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Nazis take over
Nazi party declared only legal party in Germany -
Banning Jews
Jews cannot own land, work, or have health insurance -
Hitler takes over
German President von Hindenburg dies. Hitler becomes Fuhrer -
Germany takes Austria
Nazi troops enter Austria and announce union with the country -
Concentration camp
Nazis establish concentration camp for the 200,000 Jews in Austria -
Rights stripped
Many Jewish rights are stripped by the Nazis, including the placement of a big red "J" on their passports -
Germany takes Czech
Nazi troops seize Czechoslovakia -
Nazis invade Poland
Nazis take Poland -
WWII begins
Great Britain and France declare war on Germany -
Segregation continues
Yellow stars required to be worn by Polish Jews over age 10 -
Polish concentration camp
Auschwitz becomes newest concentration camp -
Nazis invade Denmark and Norway
Nazis invade Norway and Denmark -
Nazis take France
Nazis invade France, Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg -
Madagascar Plan
Nazis plan to send all European Jews to island off the coast of Africa, Madagascar -
Triple axis
Tripartite Axis Pact signed by Germany, Italy, and Japan -
Nazis invade Romania
Nazis invade Romania -
Nazi allies
Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia become Nazi allies -
Another concentration camp
Birkenau becomes newest concentration camp -
Nazis take Bulgaria
Nazis occupy Bulgaria -
New extermination camp
Belzec becomes newest extermination camp to use gas chambers -
Nazis invade Yugoslavia and Greece
Nazis invade Yugoslavia and Greece -
Nazis invade Russia
Nazis invade Russia -
Another concentration camp
Majdanek becomes newest concentration camp -
Zyklon-B gas
Nazis use new gas at Auschwitz -
Final solution
Although already in force, Nazis step up killings especially in Auschwitz -
Pearl Harbor
Japanese attack U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor -
U.S. and England declare war on Japan
U.S. and Great Britain declare war on Japan -
Extermination camp
Chelmno camp in Poland becomes operational -
The U.S. is all in
Hitler declares war on the United States and the United States declares war on Germany -
Mass deportations
Mass deportations to Auschwitz and Belzek -
Newest extermination camp
Sobibor becomes newest extermination camp in Poland to use gas chambers -
Over 1,000,000 dead
The New York Times reports that over 1,000,000 Jews have been killed by the Nazis -
Another new extermination camp
Treblinka becomes newest extermination camp in Poland -
Belzek closed
Belzek is closed and plowed under after 600,000 Jews killed -
Cover up
After world learns of attrocities, Nazis dig up and burn all corpses to remove all traces -
Hitler suffers first big defeat
Germans surrender to Russian troops at Stalingrad in the first big defeat of Hitler's armies -
MSG
American Jews hold a mass rally at Madison Square Garden to pressure U.S. government to help the European Jews -
Treblinka closed
Exterminations cease at Treblinka, after an estimated 870,000 deaths -
Sweden by sea
The Danish underground helps transport 7,220 Danish Jews to safety -
Escape then closing
300 prisoners escape into the woods, after which Sobibor closes. Claiming 250,000 lives, Sobibor is erased and trees are planted -
Roosevelt reacts
President Roosevelt issues a statement condemning German and Japanese ongoing "crimes against humanity" -
Pulling the wool over their eyes
A Red Cross delegation visits Theresienstadt after the Nazis have carefully prepared the camp and the Jewish inmates, resulting in a favorable report -
D-Day
Allied landings in Normandy on the coast of N. France -
Majdanek over run
Russian troops liberate the first concentration camp, Majdanek where over 360,000 had been murdered -
Anne Frank
Anne Frank and family are arrested by Gestapo in Amsterdam, then sent to Auschwitz. Anne and her sister Margot are later sent to Bergen-Belsen where Anne dies of typhus on March 15, 1945 -
End of Auschwitz?
Last use of the gas chambers at Auschwitz -
Russians liberate Budapest
Russians liberate Budapest, freeing over 80,000 Jews -
Auschwitz liberated
Russian troops liberate Auschwitz. By this time, an estimated 2,000,000 persons, including 1,500,000 Jews, have been murdered there -
Buchenwald liberated
Allied troops liberate Buchenwald -
The end is near
Berlin is reached by Russian troops -
Dachau liberated
U.S. Army liberates Dachau -
Hitler dead!
Hitler commits suicide in his Berlin bunker -
May Day!
Unconditional German surrender signed by General Alfred Jodl at Reims. WWII is over!