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Stalin comes to power in Russia
Although there was power struggle between Stalin and Trotsky, Stalin was the General Secretary of the USSR beginning April 3rd of 1922 until his death in 1953. -
Mussolini takes power in Italy
After a telegram message was received from King Vittorio Emmanuele III, Mussolini boarded a train to Rome where he was given control over Italy. -
The US Stock Market Crashes
This day, known as Black Tuesday, is when the stock market crashed. Most of the people were largely affected by this disaster, causing many banks and businesses to shut down. This caused many people to speculate the stock market and withdrawl all of thier money from banks or investments; Or they lost all of their money. -
Japan invades Manchuria
The Japanese invasion of Manchuria began on September 19, 1931, when Manchuria was invaded by the Kwantung Army of the Empire of Japan immediately following the Mukden Incident. -
Hitler named chancellor of Germany
On this day in 1933, President Paul von Hindenburg names Adolf Hitler, leader or fÜhrer of the National Socialist German Workers Party (or Nazi Party), as chancellor of Germany. Hitler's emergence as chancellor on January 30, 1933, marked a crucial turning point for Germany and, ultimately, for the world. His plan, embraced by much of the German population, was to do away with politics and make Germany a powerful, unified one-party state. -
FDR elected President of the US
When first elected President, FDR did more in his first 100 days in office than most Presidents do in their first term. He started many regulations, bills, and reforms that we still use today. FDR served as President for twelve years. -
Italy invades Ethiopia
Mussolini adopts Hitler's approach to ruling and expanding Germany by taking over the land. With this, Italy invades Ethiopia. Mussolini claimed that his policies of expansion were not different from that of other colonial powers in Africa. -
Germany remilitarizes the Rhineland
The remilitarization of the Rhineland by the German Army took place on 7 March 1936 when German military forces entered the Rhineland. This was significant because it violated the terms of the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Treaties, marking the first time since the end of World War I that German troops had been in this region -
Civil War erupts in Spain
After a rebellion by a group of conservative generals that was led by Franceesco Franco in protest of the Government of Spain, the country erupted into civil war that lasted nearly 3 years, fianlly ending in victory for the conservative generals over the former conservative Republican government. -
US passes the Neutrality Act
An act passed in 1937 that stated supported the beliefs of isolationists that the protection of neutral rights didn't wasn't an excuse to get involved in the war. The act stated that warring nations could only trade nonmilitary goods with the US. -
Anschluss
On this day, Adolf Hitler announces an "Anschluss" (union) between Germany and Austria, in fact annexing the smaller nation into a greater Germany. Austria was now a nameless entity absorbed by Germany. It was not long before the Nazis soon began their typical ruthless policy of persecuting political dissidents and, of course, all Jewish citizens. -
The Munich Conference
On 29 September 1938 the Munich Conference was called. Here Hitler met with representatives of the heads of state from France, the United Kingdom, and Italy. An agreement was reached that Hitler could annex the Sudetenland provided he promised not to invade anywhere else. All four countries signed the agreement: Adolf Hitler (Germany), Neville Chamberlain (UK), Edouard Daladier (France), and Benito Mussolini (Italy). -
Germany occupies Sudetenland
Nazi Germany formally took possession of the Sudetenland, part of Czechoslovakia whose majority population was of German ancestery. This secession of territory came as a result of the Munich Agreement, a treaty signed by Great Britain, France, Germany and Italy. Intended to avert a war on the European continent, it ultimately emboldened Adolf Hitler and gave him time to strengthen his growing war machine. -
Kristallnacht
On this day in 1938, in an event that would foreshadow the Holocaust, German Nazis launch a campaign of terror against Jewish people and their homes and businesses in Germany and Austria. The violence was later dubbed "Kristallnacht" after the countless smashed windows of Jewish-owned establishments, left approximately 100 Jews dead, 7,500 Jewish businesses damaged and hundreds of synagogues, homes, schools and graveyards. -
The Nazi-Soviet Pact
On August 23, 1939, representatives from Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union met and signed the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact, which guaranteed that the two countries would not attack each other. By signing this pact, Germany had protected itself from having to fight a two-front war in the soon-to-begin World War II; the Soviet Union was awarded land, including parts of Poland and the Baltic States. -
Germany invades Poland
German forces have invaded Poland and its planes have bombed Polish cities, including the capital, Warsaw. Britain and France were forced to declare war after Germany ignored their separate ultimatums, delivered on 3 September 1939, demanding the withdrawal of German troops from Poland -
"The Phony War"
The first six months of the war became known as the ‘Phoney War’ because there was almost no fighting and no bombs were dropped. This gave the government more time to protect Britain from an attack. Protections included: Barrage balloons were deployed to force the Luftwaffe to fly higher, if and when they attacked, Pillar boxes were painted with yellow gas-sensitive paint, 400 million sandbags were piled round the entrances to shops and public buildings, 38 million gas-masks were handed out. -
Churchill elected Prime Minister of England
On May 10th, 1940, Winston Churchill became Prime Minister and during the war, he was the most dominant figure in British politics – a role that received huge praise once the war was over.
To many people in Britain, Churchill’s stand against Nazism and all it stood for, summarised why the war was being fought. His speeches have become part of legend. -
Miracle at Dunkirk
At the battle of Dunkirk in May of 1940 the British, French and Belgium soldiers had underestimated the power of the German army and had lost many soldiers as they were fighting. They were being pushed back by the Germans to the beaches of Dunkirk and their looked like there was no way out for the Allie Army. One of the generals in charge of the operation had sent destroyers and transport ships to evacuate the troops, but they only expected to have time to carry off about 30,000 troops. -
France surrenders
On June 22, 1940, the French government signed an armistice with Nazi Germany just six weeks after the Nazis launched their invasion of Western Europe.Northern France spent four years under German occupation. Southern France was controlled by the Vichy Government, a French government headed by Marshal Philippe Petain that collaborated with the Axis powers. -
Battle of Britain
It was started after Germany attacked France and Britain stepped in to help then retreated back to Britain where Germany attacked next. The Battle of Britain was the aerial conflict between British and German air forces in the skies over the United Kingdom in the summer and autumn of 1940. It was one of the most important moments in Britain's twentieth century history and a vital turning point of the Second World War. -
Japan seizes French Indo-China
In 1940 Japan invaded French Indochina in an effort to embargo all imports into China, including war supplies purchased from the U.S. This move prompted the United States to embargo all oil exports, leading the Imperial Japanese Navy to estimate that it had less than two years of bunker oil remaining and to support the existing plans to seize oil resources in the Dutch East Indies. -
The Lend Lease Act
The Lend-Lease Act of March 11, 1941, was the principal means for providing U.S. military aid to foreign nations during World War II. The act authorized the president to transfer arms or any other defense materials for which Congress appropriated money to "the government of any country whose defense the President deems vital to the defense of the United States. -
The Atlantic Charter
The Atlantic Charter was a pivotal policy statement first issued in August 1941 that early in World War II defined the Allied goals for the post-war world. It was drafted by Britain and the United States, and later agreed to by all the Allies. The Charter stated the ideal goals of the war: no territorial aggrandizement; no territorial changes made against the wishes of the people. -
Japan attacks Pearl Harbor
Japanese planes attacked the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Territory. The bombing killed more than 2,300 Americans. It completely destroyed the American battleship U.S.S. Arizona and capsized the U.S.S. Oklahoma. The attack sank or beached a total of twelve ships and damaged nine others. 160 aircraft were destroyed and 150 others damaged.
