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Germany invades Poland
At 4:45 am on September 1, 1939, 1.5 million German troops invaded Polish boarders. The German air force bombed Polish airfields and in the Baltic Sea German Navy forces attacked Polish naval forces. Hitler ordered troops to invade so that there would be more space for his "superior race". Hitler hoped that the invasion of Poland would escape international opposition as had the invasion of Czechoslovakia and the Sudetenland. Hitler claimed that the invasion of Poland was a defensive action. -
Britain & France declare war on Germany
German troops invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. Hitler claimed it was a defensive action however Britain and France did not believe this. On September 2 Britain and France ordered German troops to withdraw by September 3 or they would face war. At 11 pm on September 3 German troops had not withdrawn and the ultimatum had expired. At 11:15 pm Neville Chamberlain announced on national radio that Britain was at war with Germany. France, Australia, New Zealand and India declared war on Germany. -
Churchill becomes Prime Minister of Britain
Neville Chamberlain had been Prime Minister of Britain before the beginning of WWII but then war broke out he had been unsuccessful in creating peace and resigned after his attempt at appeasement failed. Winston Churchill was appointed PM. He created an all party coalition and promised British people would never surrender.
He had a military leadership ability and lead the successful defense of Great Britain. -
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Evacuation of Dunkirk (Operation Dynamo)
The British Expeditionary Force was evacuated on May 26 1940 from Dunkirk in France. They had hoped 45 000 British soldiers could be transported back to Britain within two days. Ship arrived in Calais to remove the Force before German troops arrived. The German air force began bombing Dunkirk and the area surrounding it to prevent the evacuation from occurring. British, Polish and Canadian pilots were able to fight the German air force. The evacuation was delayed by 9 days but was successful. -
France signs armistice with Germany
Germany had taken Paris & Marshal Henri Petain became PM. He announced that he intended to sign an armistice with the Nazis. An armistice was sign on June 22 and took effect 3 days later. Germany occupied more than half of France. In July, Petain took office as “chief of state” at Vichy. The Vichy government co operated with the Nazis and all French people suffered. Pierre Laval took the place of Petain in co operating with the Nazis. After the war they were both sentenced to death. -
Italy enters war on side of Axis powers
Italy declares war on Britain and France. It's thought that their decision to join the war was affected by Germany's occupation of Paris. Britain and France had been trying to convince Italy to remain neutral in exchange for territorial concessions in Africa. Italy had been wary of entering the war due to their lack of raw materials. After Italy declared war American President, Roosevelt promised to support the French and British with material resources. In London many Italians were interned. -
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Battle of Britain
When the Battle of Britain took place the Britain stood alone against Germany. The Battle of Britain was the first battle to take place solely in the air. They began bombing radar sites but abandoned this tacit & began attacking the RAF air bases instead. British attacks on Berlin & bad intelligence lead to the Luftwaffe organizing attacks on London & innocent civilians. Spitfire and Hurricane were central to Britain's air superiority. Britain's victory saved the nation from a ground invasion. -
Tripatite Pact signed
The Axis powers, Italy, Germany and Japan meet to sign the Tripartite Pact in Berlin. The pact stated that if any of the signatories suffer an attack from a nation that is not already involved in the war they will provide mutual assistance. This act was aimed directly at America as to cause them to think thoroughly before joining the war on the side of the allies. In the pact Japan was granted power over greater East Asia while Italy and Germany were able to establish a new order in Europe. -
Operation Sea Lion
Operation Sea Lion was a planed amphibious invasion of Britain. It was dependent on Germany having air & sea superiority.The operation did not occur because Germany lost the Battle of Britain so Britain had superiority. The Luftwaffe & navel forces weren't enthusiastic about an attack on Britain because the naval forces had lost many of ships fighting for Norway. They believed it would be better to economically & strategically isolate Britain by blocking shipping routes with mines & submarines. -
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Siege of Tobruk
The Allies were in Libya in February 1941. The Allies were forced to retreat to Tobruk when the German troops arrived in Libya to reinforce the Italians. They were to hold Tobruk so that the Axis powers would be denied the port facilities and delay their advance. The 9th division became encircled. Through reinforcements of the 18th Brigade and 7th Australian Division along with other troops and supplies via the sea they were able to hold Tobruk until November 27 1941. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was a massive invasion of the Soviet Union over a front of 2000 miles. The Germans had major deficiencies, underestimated their opponent & within the first months their logistics were unraveling. Soviet counterattacks stalled the advance of the German forces but in September they received the supplies to continue their attack. Winter weather stopped the forces from receiving supplies and they were forced to retreat. This lead to the Nazis having to fight a two-front war. -
Bombing of Pearl Harbor
At 7:55 am 360 Japanese warplanes began an attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor. The attack came as a surprise & no alarm was sounded as they were expecting a flight of B-17s from the US. 5 battleships, 3 destroyers & 7 other ships were destroyed or sunk. 2400 Americans were killed & another 1200 injured.The Japanese failed as the attack was intended to cripple the American forces & discourage them from joining WWII. Instead it lead to America declaring war on Japan & joined WWII. -
Britain and US declare war on Japan
The day after the bombing of Pearl Harbor Roosevelt made a speech to American people informing them that America should go to war against Japan. There was 1 descending vote against the declaration of war. Roosevelt signed the declaration at 4:10 pm whilst wearing a black armband to symbolize mourning for the people lost in the attack on Pearl Harbor. Japanese nationals were rounded up in New York and taken to Ellis Island. Antiaircraft batteries were set up on Long Beach & the Hollywood Hills. -
Japan take Singapore
Japanese troops occupied French Indochina in July 1941. The Japanese telegraphed their plans to take Singapore from the British empire and add it to their own. The battle began on the eve of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. On February 8, 5000 Japanese troops in Singapore and the British troops were out-manned and outgunned. Pamphlets were dropped encouraging surrender. By February 13 Singapore's coastal guns were destroyed. Britain was forced to surrender and they lost their stronghold in the east. -
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Battle of Midway
Japan wished to sink the ships that had survives the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Their plan was to invade a location close to Pearl Harbor to draw out the American fleet and destroy the remaining ships. American intelligence had solved the Japanese fleet coding system and had been able to understand their plans. US carriers were placed at Midway to suprise the Japanese attack. The Japanese deploided to Midway were destoryed. The success allowed the US and allies to move into an offensive position -
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First battle of El Alamein
Italian and German forces under the command of Rommel were attempting to advance to Kairo, then Alexandra, to reach the Seuz canal as it was important for shipping and access to oil fields in Persia. Lack of German supplies & British air force attacking supply routes meant the German forces were spread to thin. But the German Panzer division were had battlefield superiority. The allies destroyed a lot of Axis military equipment. The allies lost a total of 13000 men. The battle was a stalemate. -
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Battle of Stalingrad
Stalingrad was a strategic city. It had to be overthrown for Germany to defeat Russia. September 3 1942, Germany attempted to take Stalingrad but fierce Russian resistance meant they fought for every street. They successfully took the center but became encircled when low on ammunition & men. Hitler ordered them not to retreat. German troops surrendered in winter on February 2 1943. 150 000 men had die fighting. Stalingrad was a turning point as Russia gained confidence & Germany offence weakened -
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Second battle of El Alamein
The 2nd battle was a turning point for the war in North Africa.The Allied forced were lead by General Montgomery & the Axis powers by Rommel. It was a battle of attrition & Allies had air superiority & their planes torpedoes Axis oil tanks essentials for supplying the Axis tanks. The allied forces had 13000 casualties (22% Australian) & the Axis powers lost 25000. It was fought near the railway station of El Alamein because there was a geographical feature than made it easier to defend. -
D-Day Landings
Leading up to D-Day Hitler put Rommel in charge of finishing the Atlantic wall.The Allies created a massive deception operation to make the Germans believe Pas-de-Calais was the target rather than Normandy. The invasion was originally planed for June 5 but had to be moved back 24hrs due to poor weather conditions. The invasion began at 6:30am and by the end of the day 15600 Allied troops had successfully stormed the beaches of Normandy. 4000 Allied troops lost their lives in the D-Day landings. -
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Battle of the Bulge
The battle of the Bulge was America's biggest battle of WWII. 80,000 GI were captured, killed or wounded. Hitler launches a surprise offensive in the difficult terrain of the Ardennes in Southern Belgium. Initially freezing weather prevented allied air support, but German success required a rapid paced advance to the deep water part of Autwerp. Improved weather allowed for allied air support & failed logistical support for the German tanks eventually turned the battle into an American victory. -
Mussolini captured and executed
The Allies were gaining ground up along the Italian peninsula and the defeat of the Axis powers was certain. Mussolini and his mistress, Clara Petacci attempted to escape to Switzerland, a neutral country. When they reached the Swiss boarder Mussolini discover the guards had switched and join the Allies. He attempted to disguise himself as a German soldier but he and Petacci were discover and shot. Their bodies were transported to Milan and hung upside down for the public to view. -
Hitler commits suicide
Towards the end of the war Hitler entered his bunker 55 feet below the chancellery with his girlfriend Eva. The bunker was self sufficient and he only left it on a few occasions. Hitler had been urged to escape to Berchtesgarden by officers who warned him the Russians were about to overtake Germany. Hitler instead chose to commit suicide and his body was cremated. Hitler committing suicide was significant because he knew that Germany was defeated and it left them without a leader. -
German forces surrender
The Allies accepted the German surrender from Nazi officers in the town of Reins in France. Admiral Donitz who was in charged after Hitler's death was radioed by one of the officers and he agreed to the surrender.The German officer, Jodl was attempting to arrange a surrender only of the western front so they could fight Russia. But Eisenhower, head of US military command, refused.The Russian general who signed the peace treaty was taken away by Russian secret police.This ended the war in Europe. -
V.E. day
Victory in Europe or V.E. Day was the 8th May 1945. It was the day German troops laid down their weapons. Just after the Germans surrendered, there was around 2 million people held as prisoners. 13,000 British Prisoners of War (POWs) were released and returned to Great Britain. On May 9th Germany finally surrendered in Silesia. -
Atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima
The United States had been developing an atomic bomb to use against Germany but by the time they had completed the first successful test Germany had already been defeated. The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima an attempt to invade Japan would result in many casualties so the atomic bomb was dropped by American bomber Enola Gayto bring the war to an end. 80,000 people were killed immediately and tens of thousands more died after this due to radiation poisoning. -
Soviet Union declares war on Japan
Japan refused to surrender unconditionally after the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. They had not expected to engage a Soviet Union attack until 1946 as they were busy with the Germans on the Eastern front. A strong Soviet invasion of Manchuria caused the Emperor Hivohite to convene his war council to consider surrendering. -
Atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki
The second atomic bomb nicknamed "Fat Man" was planned to be dropped on August 11 1945 but bad weather moved plans forward two days. The atomic bomb was dropped 1,650 feet above Nagasaki at 11:02 am on August 9 1945. The bomb killed between 60 000 - 80 000 people. Another bomb was planned to be dropped around August 17th but was unnecessary as Japan surrendered and WWII ended. -
Japanese surrender - End of WWII
By the summer of 1945 the Japanese navy & air force were destroyed.The bombing of major Japanese cities & its isolation due to Allied naval blockades cause the county & economy devastation. By midnight August 9 Japan was willing to surrender to as long as nothing affected the reign of their Emperor. The United States were not willing to meet this agreement but Japan decided peace was preferable to destruction and surrendered. On Sept 2 Mamoru Shigemitsu signed their surrender on behalf of Japan. -
United Nations is born
In 1941 the allies first proposed the creation of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of creating and maintaining peace between nations. The UN was at first the nations allied against the Axis powers.
After the end of WWII the UN created the Charter which aimed to promote progress and better standards of living, maintain international peace and security, strengthen international law, and promote the expansion of human rights. On October 24 1945 the Charter was put into action.
