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Treaty of Versailles signed
The Treaty of Versailles was an agreement signed by Germany and the Allied Powers that ended World War I. It stated that Germany must pay $5 billion dollars in financial reparations, to surrender territory, and accept guilt for the war. This made Germany humiliated and infuriated, and it wanted to take a stand against the Allied Powers. -
Mussolini takes power in Italy
Mussolini, with a group of fascist leaders, went to Rome, Italy and forced the king to appoint him to prime minister. His reign of power quickly gained the support of many anti-communists as he made himself dictator and arrested any Communist members of Parliament. Mussolini made Italy into a fascist empire, which is the reason why Italy became a part of the Axis Powers in World War II. -
Mein Kampf is published
Mein Kampf is a book written by Adolf Hitler, with the name translating to “My Struggle”. The book describes his political views and the process by which he got increasingly antisemitic. Interest in the work grew whenever he took power and he sold about 10 million copies at the end of WWII. Because of Mein Kampf, Hitler gained more followers that supported his thoughts about Germany, especially whenever he was Chancellor, which only made his power grow more. -
Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany
After the German president before him died, Hitler became his successor and became Chancellor of Germany. From here, Hitler would make himself the dictator and completely defy the Treaty of Versailles, which grew Germany into a very powerful nation. This marked the beginning of Nazi Germany, as Hitler began to discriminate Jews and promote extreme nationalism. -
"Night of the Long Knives"
The “Night of the Long Knives” was a night when Hitler ordered people who seemed like a political threat of his to be killed or arrested. Over 150 people were killed and many more were arrested. This night was intended to secure his overbearing power on Germany, basically to show that “nobody can mess with Hitler”. -
Italy invades Ethiopia
Italy invading Ethiopia started the Second Italo-Ethiopian War, which started simply to increase Italy’s empire and to avenge previous war losses that were embarrassments to Italy. The war resulted in an Italian victory, with Ethiopia being annexed and becoming a part of Italian East Africa. This war showed how powerful Italy was at the time and how it wasn’t ready to back down any time soon. The war lasted until February 19th, 1937. -
Japan invades China
Under the rule of General Hideki Tojo, Japan sets out on a quest to capture some of China’s land. Japan did this because they blamed Chinese nationalists for an incident involving Japanese-owned railroads being exploded near a city in China. Because of the railroad incident, Japan wanted to invade and capture Manchuria, which was successful. This only made Japan stronger and eager for more of China’s land. -
Rape of Nanjing
After Japan took over the city of Nanjing, General Matsui Iwane ordered that the city “must be destroyed”, thus starting the Rape of Nanjing. During this massacre, the Japanese killed as many as 300,000 Chinese people, and raped around 20,000 women in Nanjing. They also looted and burned Nanjing and any of the surrounding towns, destroying around a third of the buildings. This was so significant because it made the United States be against Japan. -
Pact of Steel signed
The Pact of Steel was signed by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, creating an alliance between the two. Originally, Japan was supposed to be a part of the alliance, too, but because of a disagreement between Japan and Germany, Japan didn’t sign the pact. Since Mussolini in Italy has always wanted to team up with Germany, this was a dream come true for him. This started a deadly reign with the two countries being best buds, and they would always be on the same side from this point on. -
Germany invades Poland
The Invasion of Poland was an attack on Poland by Germany, Slovak Republic, and the Soviet Union. Poland ended up losing by a landslide. As a result, Germany and the Soviet Union signed the German-Soviet Frontier Treaty, stating that the two nations can divide and annex the whole of Poland. Because of Germany’s actions, both Great Britain and France declared war on Germany, starting World War II. -
Tripartite Pact signed
The Tripartite Pact was signed by Germany, Italy, and Japan a year into WWII, which created an alliance between all of them. The pact was mostly directed at the United States, with the main intention of it to keep the United States out of the war. The significance of the Tripartite Pact was that it brought Japan into the war on the Axis Powers, who fought against the Allied Powers.