-
Hitler begins making plans
Hitler met with his top military advisers, declaring that to grow and prosper, Germany needed the land of its neighbors. He made a plan to take Austria and Czechoslovakia and merge them into the Third Reich. The Third Reich was the Nazi state of Germany under the leadership of Adolf Hitler. -
Period: to
German Expansion Timeline
-
Hitler takes over Austria
German troops march into Austria without conflict. The next day, on March 13, Germany announced that its Anschluss, or union, with Austria was complete. The rest of the world did nothing about it. -
Meeting in Munich
About 3 million German speaking people lived by the western border of Czechoslovakia called the Sudetenland. Hitler claimed that the Czechs were abusing these Germans in the Sudetenland, and declared that they needed protection. He invited French premier Edouard Daladier and British prime minister Neville Chamberlain to meet with him in Munich. Hitler said the Sudetenland would be his last territorial demand, and the leaders signed the Munich Agreement, turning over the Sudetenland to Hitler. -
Hitler takes Czechoslovakia
German troops pour into what remains of Czechoslovakia. By nightfall, Czechoslovakia was taken over by Hitler as he declared, "Czechoslovakia has ceased to exist." -
Stalin and Hitler sign nonaggression pact
On August 23, 1939, Stalin surprised the world by signing a nonaggression pact with Hitler. Bitter enemies in WW1, the nonaggression pact signed by these two countries sealed the fate of Poland. -
Hitler invades Poland
Hitler's invasion of Poland was unlike anything he had done previously. Unlike the past countries, where he claimed that Germans were being discriminated against, Hitler made no such claims this time. He took straight military action, rushing and overwhelming Poland forces out of nowhere, an attack that would be called a blitzkrieg. This was the first of many. -
France and Britain declare war
On September 3, 1939, France and Britain realize that war is inevitable and something needed to be done to stop Hitler. They both declared war on Germany, beginning World War 2. -
Hitler surprises with invasion of Denmark and Norway
On April 20, 1940, German troops marched into Norway unopposed. Hours after the invasion, a German minister in Norway demanded that they surrendered. The civilians absolutely disagreed and fought alongside the British. Ultimately, it was a loss for Norway as Britain was forced to transfer the soldiers from Norway to France. -
France surrenders to Germany
On June 22, 1940, France was forced to surrender to Germany. -
Air bombings begin on Britain
On August 15, 1940, Germany began to rain bombs upon Germany relentlessly. This continued for nearly three months, with both sides bombing each other from the skies continuously. -
BRA fight back
On September 15, 1940 Britain's Royal Airforce shot down over 185 German planes, while only losing 26 in the process. This marked a turn in the bombings, and gave hope to many citizens in Britain.
