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Germany Invades
Invasions of Poland by USSR and Germany, beginning World War II. Most of Poland is taken in days -
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10 major events of World War 2
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Fight moves to North Africa
British armored forces attack Italian forces in North Africa. This campaign escalates and continues for nearly three years. -
Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain. Germany suffers its first defeat in the skies over England, and abandons invasion plans. -
Germany invades Russia
June, Germany invades the USSR, opening what becomes known as the Eastern Front. -
Pearl Harbor
December 7, the Imperial Japanese Navy attacks the US Pacific Fleet anchored at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. US enters the war, opening the Pacific Theatre. -
Pacific
June 4-7, Battle of Midway. The US Navy sinks four Japanese aircraft carriers in the fight that proves to be the turning point in the Pacific war. -
Stalingrad
Battle of Stalingrad. Germany's entire Sixth Army is lost, and the war begins turning in favor of the Allies. -
America Joins Western Front
Before the Main invasion the 101st and 82nd Airborne Divisions parachute behind German lines in France. -
D-Day
June 6, the Allied Expeditionary Force under Dwight Eisenhower lands on the coast of northern France on what will later be called "D-Day". The "Second Front" that Stalin has been demanding for three years is now open -
Hitler Dies
April 30, Hitler commits suicide, shortly before the fall of Berlin and surrender of German forces in Europe. -
Atomic bomb
USA develops the atomic bomb, and successfully uses it in August to force the surrender of Japan.
