What was the axis forces

Thailand was valuable for the Axis powers, as their airfields, ports, and railways would be instrumental in planned invasions of Malaya and Burma. The partnership was not necessarily an equal one; their alliance was the result of the December 8 Japanese invasion of Thailand after failed negotiations, the Thai resistance lasting only hours before a ceasefire was declared.

Like many countries, Thailand joined the Axis powers because of military pressure. Why countries joined the Axis or the Allies was complex, often rooted in many different factors, such as how much military power that country held, what political system they followed, and where they were located geographically. When trying to understand the complicated course of WWII, it is helpful to know the main players and their goals. So, who were the Axis powers and who were the Allies?

The common purpose of the Allies was to defeat the Axis powers and create a peaceful post-war world. On July 2, , as part of the British and American strategy to lay mines in the Danube River by dropping them from the air, American aircraft also drop bombs and leaflets on German-occupied Budapest. Hungarian oil refineries and storage tanks, important to the German war Live TV.

This Day In History. History Vault. Yugoslavia When the Germans agreed to settle for Yugoslav neutrality in the war against Greece, without demanding transit rights for Axis troops, Yugoslavia reluctantly joined the Axis on March 25, Two days later, Serbian military officers overthrew the government that had signed the Tripartite Pact.

Italy Italy was the first Axis partner to give up: it surrendered to the Allies on September 8, , six weeks after leaders of the Italian Fascist Party deposed Fascist leader and Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. Romania On August 23, , following the overthrow of dictator Marshal Ion Antonescu, Romania switched sides: Romanian troops fought alongside Soviet troops for the remainder of the war.

Bulgaria After the Soviets rejected its offer of an armistice, Bulgaria surrendered on September 8, , as the Communist-led Fatherland Front seized power from the Axis government in a coup and then declared war on Nazi Germany.

Hungary The German occupation of Hungary in March succeeded in its primary purpose: to prevent the Hungarian leaders from deserting the Axis as the Romanians would later do. Slovakia Slovakia, which German troops occupied in the summer of to suppress the Slovak uprising, remained in the Axis as a puppet state until the Soviets captured the capital, Bratislava, in early April Japan On May 7, , seven days after Hitler committed suicide, Nazi Germany surrendered unconditionally to the Allies.

Japan fought on alone, surrendering formally on September 2, We would like to thank Crown Family Philanthropies and the Abe and Ida Cooper Foundation for supporting the ongoing work to create content and resources for the Holocaust Encyclopedia.

View the list of all donors. Trending keywords:. Featured Content. Tags Find topics of interest and explore encyclopedia content related to those topics. Browse A-Z Find articles, photos, maps, films, and more listed alphabetically.