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Japan invades Manchuria
Japan invades Manchuria to try and gain more natural resources and raw materials to support their massive expansion and militarization. -
Ethiopia goes down
Fascist Italy invades, conquers, and annexes Ethiopia. -
Munich agreement
Germany, Italy, Great Britain, and France sign the Munich agreement which forces the Czechoslovak Republic to cede the Sudetenland, including the key Czechoslovak military defense positions, to Nazi Germany. -
Kristallnacht "the night of broken glass"
Thousands of Jewish businesses and synagogues were damaged, Jews were killed and 26,000 sent to concentration camps. Jews were blamed for the damage. November 9-10, 1938. -
Albania goes down
Fascist Italy invades and annexes Albania. -
nonaggression agreement
Germany and the Soviet Union sign a nonaggression agreement dividing eastern Europe into spheres of influence. -
Invasion of Poland
The invasion of Poland marks the offical start of WWII. -
Germany invades Poland
Because of the German-Soviet Pact of August 1939, Germany was able to attack Poland without the fear of Soviet intervention. -
Cash-and-Carry Law
Congress passes cash-and-carry law to ease the sale of arms to countries at war. -
Germany invades and conquers
May-June; Germany conquers the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. -
UK prime minister
Winston Churchill becomes UK prime minister -
Here comes Italy
Italy enters the war. Italy invades southern France on June 21. -
Egypt is invaded
The Italians invade British-controlled Egypt from Italian-controlled Libya. -
Another member to the Axis alliance
Japan joins Axis alliance with Germany and Italy. -
Battle over
Battle of Britain ends with Hitler's forces rebuffed. -
A third term
Election of 1940- FDR runs for a third term and succeeds -
Four Freedoms speech
Roosevelt delivers the Four Freedoms speech about the future of the world -
Lend-lease program
Congress establishes the lend-lease program to deliver arms to Great Britain on credit. -
Germany invades
Germany begins its invasion of the Soviet Union -
New prime minister
General Hideki becomes Japanese prime minister. -
Pearl Harbor
Japanese attack U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor on a Sunday. -
Doolittle Raid
American bombers attack Tokyo. -
Operation Torch
Invasion of north Africa; first time u.s troops see action. -
Invasion of Sicily
United States and Great Britain, the leading Allied powers, invaded Sicily -
D-Day
Allied forces invade Normandy /northern france. -
Yalta Conference
Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met to plan for postwar peace. Held February 4-11, 1945. -
Death of a president
FDR dies while in office -
The end of Hitler
Hitler commits suicide -
VE Day
Marked the end of the war in Europe. -
Japan formally surrenders
Having agreed in principle to unconditional surrender on August 14, 1945, Japan formally surrenders, ending World War II.
