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German soldiers march into the Rhineland
Hitler marches 22,000 troops into the Rhineland, a demilitarised zone where no troops were permitted. By doing this, he was directly showing opposition to the Treaty of Versailles, and used this to see how far he could break the treaty without a reaction. -
Anschluss with Austria
On the 12th March, Hitler marched his troops into Austria unopposed in order to make Austria a part of the Reich. This allowed Hitler to get more resources, troops and control in Europe. -
The Munich Conference
A conference held with the counties of France, Britain, Germany and Italy where an agreement was reached known as the Munich Pact. This agreement allowed Germany to receive parts of Czechoslovakia as long as peace was preserved. This was an effort to appease Germany. -
Hitler invades Poland
Hitler moves his forces quickly into Poland after bombing it to weaken its defenses. This was the first time Hitler used his 'Blitzkreig' stratergy, where troops were effeciently mobilised and invaded quickly so it was difficult for the enemy to react. This provokes the other European nations... -
The Allies Declare War
After Hitler invades Poland, the Allies declare war on Germany. Britain declared war on the 3rd of September, along with Australia which supported Britain as a part of the monarchy. -
Australians capture Tobruk
Australian 6th Division capture Tobruk in Libya from Italian forces in a siege that lasted around 2 days. -
Australian forces sent to Greece
Australian Prime Minister Menzies decides to send Australian troops to Greece in order to help protect it from the threat of German invasion. -
Damascus is taken by Allies
The capital of Syria, Damascus, fell into Allied hands after a combined force of Australian, British, Indian and French fought the pro-German Vichy force government. -
Bombing of Darwin
On the 19th of February the Japanese bombed mainland Australia for the first time. This was done as a strategic manouvre to disrupt Australian military forces before they invaded Timor. -
Japanese land at Papua
In July Japanese land at Papua in an effort to take Port Morsby. Australian troops hold off the soldiers on the 'Kokoda trail'
