Dateline WWII

British and American Air Forces bomb Dresden in Germany for three days in February 1945 reducing the city to rubble. American forces in the Philippines reach the outskirts of Manila closing in on remaining Japanese resistance. Allies launch Reichswald Offensive in February 1945 as part of Eisenhower's broad front strategy for penetrating Germany across the Rhine. A look at Partisan fighters.

Allied leaders Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin meet at Yalta to discuss post-war Europe. In the Philippines: Return to the Rock: U.S. forces land on Corregidor. In France, The Colmar Pocket in the Alsace Region finally taken from the Germans by the U.S. 6th Army Group leading to the main assault into Germany in March 1945. Burma Update: A big Allied push in the CBI Theater of operations.

U.S. forces land on Iwo Jima to eliminate Japanese ground and air forces and then prep the island as a staging base for the eventual invasion of the Japanese home islands. In Europe the Allies mount new offensive and clear the Rhine. The battle for Manila rages in the Philippines. A look at Medics & Chaplains: Ministering to the body and soul of U.S. forces.

Heavy fighting on Iwo Jima continues. A look at Recognizance units: the eyes of the force. In Germany Eisenhower tells Patton to bypass Trier as it would take at least four divisions to take the town. Patton takes it with two and famously asks "Do you want me to give it back?" U.S. forces secure Corregidor in the Philippines. A look at the infantryman's lot: Life in the trenches.

Fighting continues on Iwo Jima as Marines push toward Mt. Suribachi through tenacious Japanese defense. Germans launch a major counter attack against Russian forces in Hungary. This would be the last significant German offensive ion the Eastern Front. U.S. forces enter Cologne in Germany, a city in ruin from Allied bombings. A tribute to The Girls Left Behind.

U.S. Air Forces conduct major fire bombing raid on Tokyo in March 1945. Patton's 3rd Army crosses Moselle River and defeat German forces invested at Nancy. Heavy fighting on the Shimbu Line near Manila in the Philippines. U.S. forces breach the Rhine into Germany at Remagen in March 1945.

V-Mail, short for Victory Mail, was the mail process used during the war as the primary means of corresponding with U.S. servicemen and women abroad. British forces take Mandalay in Burma in March 1945. Hitler orders a scorched earth policy as German armies retreat on both fronts. Japanese unleash Kamikazes against U.S. fleet off Okinawa. A look at "Rosie" - The women arms workers in America.

Fighting winds down on Iwo Jima and flag raising photo becomes historic image. The battle saw the award of 27 Medals of Honor to Marine and U.S. Navy personnel. Patton's forces at full force over the Rhine and into Germany. U.S. preps for Okinawa invasion, the last stop before the Japanese home islands. A look at the U.S. bomber force in combat across the globe.

Stalin gets a green light from Eisenhower resulting in Russians to take Berlin. A look at the Tuskegee Airman: Black pilots blast the Hun. A Philippines Update as sporadic fighting contuse throughout the islands. The backbone of victory: The story of G.I. Joe.

Allies encircle the Ruhr, Germany's industrial heartland. U.S. landings on Okinawa put U.S. forces on the Emperor's doorstep. A look at tanks, the work horses of World War II. America mourns as FDR dies in April 1945. Roosevelt was in the beginning months of his fourth term. Harry Truman acceded to the Presidency and a few months later would make one of the most momentous decisions in history.

Allies launch new offensive in Italy pressuring German defenders. In the Pacific, Japanese Navy sends the battleship Yamato into the fray. The Yamato, and her sister ship the Musashi were the heaviest and most powerfully armed battleships ever constructed. The Yamato was sunk in April 1945 by U.S. Navy carrier based bombers during the Battle of Okinawa. A look at the home front in Germany.

Allies cross Po River on April 25th and on May 4th the war in Italy is over. Allied forces include the Brazilian Expeditionary Force. Brazil was the only independent South American country to send ground troops to fight in WWII. German forces in the Ruhr surrender. Pacific update: Heavy fighting and stalemate on Okinawa. Allied forces liberate Nazi concentration camps finding 'hell on earth'.

Russian forces breakout at the Oder River only 40 miles from Berlin. Marines make big push on Okinawa. In Germany Herman Goering, head of the Luftwaffe and second in command in the Reich to Hitler sends a telegram to Hitler offering to take command. Furious, Hitler's reply was to demand Goering's resignation or he would be executed. A look at life in the Japanese Homeland.

With the Po crossed and Italy done, an update on the Allied activity in Italy. Update on fighting in the Philippines. With no targets left in Germany, Allies announce the end of the strategic bombing campaign. Burma Update: Allies continue offensive. U.S. Army forces and a Russian Guards division link up on the Elbe River at Torgau on April 26th 1945.

Il Duce,' Benito Mussolini, and his mistress, Clara Petacci, are shot by Italian partisans who had captured the couple as they attempted to flee to Switzerland. Updates from the Western Front and from Okinawa.

Kesselring capitulates and surrenders German forces in Italy to Allies. British forces in Burma press towards Rangoon after victories at Mandalay and Meiktila to complete reconquest of Burma. The last battle for the Third Reich: The Fall of Berlin: The Berlin commander surrenders the city to the Russian forces on May 2nd 1945. Hitler had committed suicide on April 28th.

May 7th 1945, the German High Command, in the person of General Alfred Jodl, signs the unconditional surrender of all German forces, East and West, at Reims, in northwestern France. 'The Divine Wind' - Kamikaze attacks against U.S. naval forces continue off Okinawa. A look at the aftermath of the German surrender.

Philippines Update: U.S. forces land at Macaljar Bay on Mindanao. Okinawa fighting continues. The Thousand Year Reich Officially Ends: Victory in Europe Day, May 8th 1945. Liberated concentration camps reveal the full Nazi Horror: The Holocaust.

American forces seize Naha Airfield on Okinawa. The Battle of Okinawa was the last major ground battle between U.S. and Japanese forces in the Pacific war. Top Nazi officials face decision: Surrender to Allied forces or commit suicide. U.S. forces final push on Luzon in the Philippines. Australian Forces, supported by U.S. air power, retake Borneo.

Okinawa: Last stand for Japanese forces before home island invasion planned for November 1945. America's Daughters join up: A look at training women for war. MacArthur's forces liberate Philippines with surrender of Japanese forces on August 15, 1945. A look at the Unseen Enemy: Mines.

Next Stop in the Pacific: Japan - Invasion plan presented to Allied high command. A look at British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. U.S. Navy launches major carrier strikes against Japanese Home Islands. The Stars come out: A look at Hollywood and the war effort.

U.S. tests atomic bomb at Trinity base in New Mexico. Allied leaders meet in Potsdam Germany outside Berlin from July 17th to August 2nd in 1945. President Truman, Prime Minister Churchill and Russian leader Josef Stalin discuss how to administer Germany, the establishment of post-war order and peace treaty issues. Above and beyond: The Medal of Honor.

American air forces drop atomic bombs on Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6th and 9th in 1945. Japan announced its surrender on August 15th and signed the instrument of surrender on the U.S. Battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2nd 1945 effectively ending World War II.

September 2nd 1945: VJ Day: Victory over Japan Day causes celebration throughout America. Led by the victorious Allied powers, the United Nations is formed on October 24th 1945 at Lake Success New York and headquartered in New York City. A look at Combat Cameramen: Recording for Posterity.

The final cost of the war is counted. Axis war criminals are tried. Out of the ashes the world looks toward the future - and peace.