At the end of the 1930s, the world has been shaken once more by the start of another World War (WWII). World War Two started on the 1st of September, 1939 when an army from Germany invaded a country called Poland. Two days later, England and France declared war on Germany and WWII began.
Activity 1: An Eventful Experience
WWII was made up of many battles and events. Follow this link to read more about the timeline of WWII.
Choose two key events and find out some more information about what happened on those days. On your blog, write a short summary of two events, including the names of people involved and where the event happened.
- September 5, 1939: South Africa declares war on Germany.
- April 9, 1940: Germany invades Denmark and Norway
Activity 2: A Call to Arms
Over the course of WWII, approximately 140,000 New Zealanders were sent overseas to serve in the war. Many were sent to fight in huge battles, including the Battle of the Atlantic that lasted for 2064 days (over 5 years)! The Battle of the Atlantic came to an end in 1943, in large part due to the heroic efforts of people like Lloyd Trigg, a pilot from New Zealand. He was awarded a special medal from the New Zealand Government for his bravery. It is called a Victoria Cross (‘VC’ for short). A total of 22 New Zealanders have been awarded VCs.
Lloyd Trigg: Lloyd Trigg is the only serviceman to have been awarded the VC on the ‘recommendation’ of an enemy. After undertaking pilot training in Canada he was seconded to the RAF and posted to Coastal Command, flying anti-submarine patrols from West Africa. During an operational sortie on 11 August 1943, Trigg sighted U-468 on the surface. Despite being hit repeatedly by anti-aircraft fire, Trigg pressed home his attack and fatally damaged the German submarine with depth charges. His crippled Liberator then crashed into the sea with the loss of all eight crew. German survivors praised Trigg’s courage after they were picked up by an Allied ship. Their evidence was instrumental in the New Zealander being awarded a posthumous VC.
Hi there Thomas,
ReplyDeleteJade F from the Summer Learning Journey here. You haven't seem to completed the tasks! Out of the list of events in the link you've put in your post; what are two of the events from that timeline stand out to you the most? Choose two and talk about what each event is about. Same thing with your second activity, with the link that you have here on your post, choose from the list of VC winners and talk more about the person you've chosen! You can edit your post and add these tasks in!:) Make sure you have completed the tasks so I can reward you more points!
I look forward to reading more!
Bye for now,
Jade F :)