-
Austria and Czechoslovakia Fall
Hitler secretly met in Britain with his top military advisers to declare Germany needed more land in order to prosper and grow. His plan was to absorb Germany's neighbors, Austria and Czechoslovakia, and war was not a concern. -
Union with Austria
Majority of Austria's people favored German unification. Germany marched into Austria and later that day announced their unification. -
Bargaining for Sudetenland
Hitler met with France and Britain and declared Sudetenland would be "his last demand." Prime ministers agreed in order to avoid war and signed the Munich Agreement without a single shot fired. -
German Offense Begins
German troops poured into Czechoslovakia, made it "cease to exist," and moved into Poland. -
Soviet Union Declares Neutrality
After the Nonaggression Act was signed by Stalin and Hitler, Germany and Russia committed to not attacking each other again. Germany and the Soviet Union agreed to split Poland. -
Blitzkrieg in Poland
German air force roared over Poland, while German tanks covered the country side. This strategy is known as lightning war, or a blitzkrieg. -
Start of WW1
Britain and France declared war on Germany. Germany used the blitzkrieg tactic again which worked very well. They made Poland cease to exist and World War 1 began. -
The Phony War
Hitler launched a surprise invasion on Denmark and Norway and then turned against the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. -
Fall of France
Hitler handed the French officers his terms to surrender. Germans took control of North France and a Nazi controlled government would remain in South France. -
Battle of Britain
Germans began to assemble an invasion fleet across the French coast. They also launched air war over Britain creating the Battle of Britain. -
Battle of Britain
The RAF shot down over 185 planes, lost 26 aircraft. Germany and Britain were relentless. Finally, six weeks later Hitler called off the battle.