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Spanish Civil War
A political struggle in Spain led to a bloody battle starting in 1936. Francisco Franco led a revolt against the Liberal republic that was set up. People from different sides supported different sides of the argument, with Hitler supporting Franco. This battle took over 500,000 lives total. -
Nazi-Soviet Pact
Hitler made a surprising move, by signing a peace pact with the one man who was his greatest enemy, Joseph Stalin. The pact wasn't made because of respect but because of the fact that they both wanted Poland divided so communism and fascism would not happen. Stalin used this as an opportunity to protect the Soviet Union from Germany and to gain some land in Eastern Europe. -
Pearl Harbor Attack
General Tojo ordered his army to make a surprise move, attack the military complex of Pearl Harbor early in the morning. This is why President Roosevelt made the famous statement, "a date which will live in infamy." These Kamikaze pilots killed over 2,000 Americans and injured over 1,000 more. -
Atomic Bomb
After a bloody period of "island-hopping" in Japan, the American military finally made the decision to drop the dreaded "atomic bomb" on Japan to end it swiftly. They killed 110,000 Japanese in less than a week, finally forcing Japan to surrender, the biggest sign of humility in Japanese culture. The peace treaty was signed on September 2, 1945, ensuring the world that Japan was done with the war.
