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German Army Invades Poland
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England and France Declare War on Germany
WWII has officially begun, but no fighting is actually happening yet. This time period was called "phoney war." -
Dutch Government Proclaimed Martial Law
The Netherlands were neutral for a while, but in 1940, they began preparing for a German attack. Proclaiming martial law meant they could censor military information and arrest threats to national security. -
Germany Attacks the Netherlands
The first bombers were spotted heading toward the North Sea so it was assumed they were meant for England, but they turned around back toward Germany. -
Bombing of Rotterdam
There had been fighting at Rotterdam since the beginning of the attack, but the germans were unsuccessful in capturing the city.
General Schmidt gave the Dutch an ultimatum: if the city didn’t surrender, it would be bombed. Before the ultimatum even ended, the bombing started. 80,000 people lost their homes and 600-900 people died. -
Netherlands Officially Surrendered
