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Anti-Comintern Pact
November 25, 1936
Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan sign the Anti-Comintern Pact, directed against the Soviet Union and the international Communist movement. -
teatry of Anschluss
March 11–13, 1938
Germany incorporates Austria in the Anschluss. -
Munich agreement
September 29, 1938
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. -
Nonaggression agreement
August 23, 1939
Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union sign a nonaggression agreement and a secret codicil dividing eastern Europe into spheres of influence. -
World War II in Europe
September 1, 1939
Germany invades Poland, initiating World War II in Europe. -
Italy
June 10, 1940
Italy enters the war. Italy invades southern France on June 21. -
Tripartite Pact
September 27, 1940
Germany, Italy, and Japan sign the Tripartite Pact. -
Pearl Harbor
December 7, 1941
Japan bombs Pearl Harbor -
The United States
December 8, 1941
The United States declares war on Japan, entering World War II. Japanese troops land in the Philippines, French Indochina (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia), and British Singapore. By April 1942, the Philippines, Indochina, and Singapore are under Japanese occupation. -
War on the United States
December 11–13, 1941
Nazi Germany and its Axis partners declare war on the United States. -
The Second Front
June 6, 1944
British and US troops successfully land on the Normandy beaches of France, opening a “Second Front” against the Germans. -
Normandy
June 6, 1944
British and US troops successfully land on the Normandy beaches of France, opening a “Second Front” against the Germans. -
Paris is liberated
1944 August 25
Paris is liberated from German control. -
US President Franklin Roosevelt dies
1945 April 12
US President Franklin Roosevelt dies. He is succeeded by President Harry Truman. -
Dead of Hitler
April 30, 1945
Hitler commits suicide. -
Germany surrenders
1945 May 7
Germany surrenders to the Allies. -
Hiroshima
August 6, 1945
The United States drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima -
The Soviet Union
August 8, 1945
The Soviet Union declares war on Japan and invades Manchuria. -
Nagasaki
August 9, 1945
The United States drops an atomic bomb on Nagasaki. -
Japan surrender
September 2, 1945
Having agreed in principle to unconditional surrender on August 14, 1945, Japan formally surrenders, ending World War II.