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Hitler met secretly with his top military advisors
Hitlers plan was to absorb Austria and Czechoslovakia into the Third Reach. The third reach was often used to describe the Nazi regime in Germany from January 30, 1933, to May 8, 1945. -
German troops marched into Austria unopposed
Germany announced that its "Anschluss" or union, with Austria was complete. The US and the rest of the world did absolutely nothing. -
Signing of the Munich agreement
Edouard Daladier and prime minister Neville Chamberlain both signed the agreement which turned the Sudetenland over to Germany without a single shot being fired. By signing the agreement, Daladier and Chamberlain had adopted a shameful policy of appeasement. -
German troops poured into what remained of Czechoslovakia
During a meeting with Czech President Emil Hacha–a man considered weak, and possibly even senile, Hitler threatened a bombing raid against Prague, the Czech capital, unless he obtained from Hacha free passage for German troops into Czech borders. He got what he wanted and they moved in. Hitler happily gloated, "Czechoslovakia has ceased to exist." -
Stalin
Tensions rose over Poland, and Stalin surprised everyone by signing a nonaggression pact with Hitler. Stalin viewed the pact as a way to keep his nation on peaceful terms with Germany, while giving him time to build up the Soviet military. -
Blitzkrieg
The German air force roared over Poland, raining bombs on military bases, airfields, railroads, and cities. This invasion was the first test of Germany's newest military strategy. Blitzkrieg made use of advances in military technology, such as fast tanks and more powerful aircrafts -
Hitlers surprise invasion
Hitlers surprise invasion on Denmark and Norway in order to "protect [those countries'] freedom and independence." But, Hitlers real plan was to build bases along the coasts to strike at Great Britain. -
The summer of 1940
Germans began to assemble an invasion fleet along the French coast. Because it's naval power could not compete with that of Britain, Germany also launched an air war at the same time. The Battle of Britain raged on through the summer and the fall. -
Compiegne
William Shirer and the rest of the world watched as Hitler handed French officers his terms of surrender. Germans would occupy the northern part of France, and a Nazi-controlled puppet government, headed by Marshal Philippe Petain, would set up at Vichy, in southern France. -
The RAF
The RAF shot down over 185 German planes; at the same time, they lost only 26 aircraft. Six weeks later, Hitler called off the invasion of Britain indefinitely.
