[b]The Second World War[/b] (abbreviated "WWII" or "WW2") was a major worldwide [[war]] that began when [[Nazi]] [[Germany]] attacked [[Poland]] on September 1st of 1939 and ended after [[Japan]] surrendered on August 15th of 1945. It is considered a result of the outcome of [[World War I]].

The belligerents formed two major factions, the Allied Powers (or "Allies") and the Axis Powers (or "Axis").

World War II is considered the deadliest military conflict in human history. Over 60 million people died as a result of the fighting and/or resulting resource shortages, as well as deliberate mass killings throughout the war, and hundreds of millions were displaced or left destitute in the aftermath. WW2 can also be considered the deathblow to the old European empires which had dominated history up to that point; the war left them financially, militarily, and culturally even more exhausted than they had been after WW1 and saw the rise of two new super-powers with a rather anti-colonial bent to them: the [[soviet|USSR]] and the [[united states|USA]], thus kickstarting the [[Cold War]].

Technologically, WW2 saw the first usage of the many trends that still dominate warfare to this day: the first modern [[missile]]s and [[rocket]]s were used during WW2, [[aircraft carrier]]s replaced [[battleship]]s as the dominant surface warfare vessels, unmanned radio controlled vehicles saw limited use during the war, and [[StG 44]], the world's first assault rifle, entered service during the later half of the war. The most important and influential technology used, however, is the first (and only) usage of a [[nuclear weapon]] in the history of warfare: [[atomic bombings of hiroshima and nagasaki|when the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were destroyed by the atomic bombs dropped by the USA]].

This tag can be applied if the image is related to World War 2, such as featuring technology (tanks, aircraft, warships or weapons) of the era, uniforms & troops, or battle scenes.

h4. Participants

h6. The Allies

* [[United Kingdom]]
* [[France]]
* [[Soviet|Soviet Union]]
* [[United States]]
* [[kuomintang|Republic of]] [[China]]
* [[Poland]]
* [[Norway]]
* [[Netherlands]]
* [[Belgium]]
* [[Luxembourg]]
* [[Ethiopia]]
* [[Greece]]
* [[Czechoslovakia]] (annexed prior the war begun, later fought as partisans and foreign brigade)
* [[Yugoslavia]]
* [[Philippines]] (until 1942 and after 1945)
* [[India]]
* [[Canada]]
* [[Australia]]
* [[New Zealand]]
* [[South Africa]]
* [[Rhodesia]]
* [[Mongolia]]
* [[Brazil]]
* [[Mexico]]

h6. The Axis

* [[Nazi]] [[Germany]]
* [[Fascist]] [[Italy]]
* [[japan|Empire of Japan]]
* [[Hungary]]
* [[Romania]] (until 1944)
* [[Bulgaria]]
* [[Finland]]
* [[Slovakia]]
* [[Croatia]]
* [[Philippines]] (from 1942 - 1945)
* [[Thailand]]

h4. Tagged Battles

* Pacific Theatre
** [[Pearl Harbor|Attack on Pearl Harbor]]
** [[Battle of the Java Sea]]
** [[Battle of the Coral Sea]]
** [[Battle of Midway]]
** [[Guadalcanal Campaign]]
*** [[Battle of Santa Cruz]]
** [[Battle of the Philippine Sea]]
** [[Battle of Peleliu]]
** [[Battle of Leyte Gulf]]
** [[Iwo Jima|Battle of Iwo Jima]]
*** [[Raising The Flag On Iwo Jima]]
** [[Battle of Okinawa]]
*** [[Operation Ten-Gou]]
** [[Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]]

* North Africa Front
** [[Battle of Beda Fomm]]
** [[First Battle of El Alamein]] 
** [[Second Battle of El Alamein]] 

* European Theatre/Western Front
** [[Battle of France]]
*** [[Dunkirk Evacuation]]
** [[Battle of Britain]]
** [[Battle of Sicily]]
** [[Invasion of Normandy]]
*** [[D-Day]]
**** [[Omaha Beach]]
*** [[Battle of Carentan]]
*** [[Battle of Caen]]
** [[Operation Market Garden]]
*** [[Battle of Arnhem]]
**** [[John Frost Bridge]]
*** [[Battle of Nijmegen]]
** [[Battle of the Bulge]]
*** [[Siege of Bastogne]]
** [[Battle of Remagen]]

* Eastern Front
** [[Siege of Odessa]]
** [[Siege of Sevastopol]]
** [[Battle of the Kerch Peninsula]]
** [[Winter Offensive]]
** [[Battle of Stalingrad]]
** [[Battle of Kursk]]
** [[Battle of the Dnieper]]
** [[Prague Offensive]]
** [[Battle of Berlin]]
*** [[Raising A Flag Over The Reichstag]]

h4. See also

* [[Invasion Stripes]]
* [[ptsd|Combat Fatigue]]

* [[World War I]]
* [[Tag group:History]]

* [[Second Sino-Japanese War]]
* [[Spanish Civil War]]

* United States
** [[Franklin D. Roosevelt|Franklin D. Roosevelt]]
** [[Harry S. Truman|Harry S. Truman]]
** [[Julius Robert Oppenheimer]]
** [[United States Army]]
*** General [[Douglas MacArthur]]
*** General [[George S Patton]]
*** [[United States Air Force|United States Army Air Corps]]
** [[United States Navy]]
*** [[United States Marine Corps]]

* United Kingdom
** [[Winston Churchill]]
*** Marshall [[Bernard Montgomery]]
** [[Special Air Service]]
** [[Royal Air Force]]
** [[Royal Navy]]

* Soviet Union
** [[Joseph Stalin]]
** [[Soviet Army]]

* Nazi Germany
** [[Adolf Hitler]]
** [[Waffen-SS]]
*** [[Heinrich Luitpold Himmler]]
*** [[Josef Mengele]]
*** [[Michael Wittmann]]
** [[Wehrmacht]]
*** [[Kurt Knispel]]
** [[Luftwaffe]]
*** [[Hermann Wilhelm Goering]]
** [[Kriegsmarine]] 
** [[Afrika Korps]]
*** [[Erwin Rommel]]

* Empire of Japan
** [[Emperor Hirohito]]
** [[Toujou Hideki|Hideki Tojo]]
** [[Imperial Japanese Navy]]
*** [[Kamikaze Pilot]]s
*** [[Ohka (weapon)]]
** [[Imperial Japanese Army]]
*** [[Kuribayashi Tadamichi]]
*** [[Nishi Takeichi]]
** [[Horikoshi Jirou]]
*** [[Mitsubishi]] [[A6M Zero]]
**** [[Sakai Saburou]]

* Fascist Italy
** [[Benito Mussolini]]
** [[Regia Aeronautica]]
** [[Regia Marina]]

h4. World War II in Popular Culture

* [[The Man in the High Castle]]
* [[Wolfenstein (series)]]
* [[Company of Heroes]]
* [[Kerberos Saga]]
* [[Kaze Tachinu]]
* [[The Cockpit]]
** [[The Cockpit: Slipstream]]
** [[The Cockpit: Sonic Boom Squadron]]
** [[The Cockpit: Knight of the Iron Dragon]]
* [[Letters From Iwo Jima]]
* [[Midway (movie)]]
* [[Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence]]
* [[The Pacific]]
* [[The Two-Thousand Yard Stare]]
* [[Kelly's Heroes]]
* [[Das Boot]]
* [[Dunkirk (movie)]]
* [[Band of Brothers]]
* [[Saving Private Ryan]]
* [[Fury (movie)]]
* [[Enemy at the Gates]]
* [[Masters of the Air]]
* [[Oppenheimer (movie)]]

h4. External Links

* "Wikipedia: World War II":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II
第二次世界大戦 第2次世界大戦 WW2 WWII world_war_2