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Signing of the Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles officially ended World War I. The provisions of the treaty contained significant punishments for Germany, including military and economic limitations, loss of territory, and the cost-bearing of the entire war. -
Hitler Gains Followers
In the 1930’s, life in Germany was grim. The Treaty of Versailles left the country poor, understaffed for military, and at a loss of land. The entire economic and overall reputation of Germany was tarnished around the world. German populations wanted a change, leading Hitler to become popular, blaming other people for WWI. His radical ideals appealed to the populations,getting him elected as chancellor of Germany. -
Adolph Hitler Becomes President of Germany
Already chancellor of Germany, Hitler became the elected president of the country. The old president had been reelected, but lost many followers to the nazi party as he became older and senile, and then died. To get this position, Hitler blamed a fire on communists, even though the cause was a mystery. Liking the way he took action and looked for causes to issues, the people elected him. With the added fear factor he played on the country, it was an easy win. -
Nuremberg Race Laws
Although not everyone identifies as what their family does, the Nazis did not care. They created the Nuremberg Race Laws, dictating that none with three or four Jewish grandparents was also classified as a Jew. Although the person could have left behind their Jewish beliefs long before, the citizens still lived in fear of being captured. The Nazi party spread fear to those who had Jewish families and friends, or that used to believe the religion. -
German Annexation of Austria
On this day, German military officials invaded Austria to annex the German-speaking nation as their own. Schuschnigg, the Austrian chancellor resigned under the pressure from Hitler. This allowed the german government to easily take over the land as their own. -
Munich Agreement
The Munich Agreement, a settlement that was agreed upon by Germany, Great Britain, France, and Italy, allowed Germany to take over land in western Czechoslovakia. This area was called the Sudetenland. After the annexation of Austria, Hitler decided that he could successfully overpower other areas, as well. Hitler gained confidence in his country’s power and force. -
Kristallnacht
As more racism and propaganda rose up against the Jewish, tensions begin running high. This caused a widespread wave of destruction throughout Germany, Austria, and and the Sudetenland. It included riots, broken buildings, and endangered Jewish communities. This caused a lot of hate and fear before the concentration camps were open. -
First Kindertransport Arrives in Great Britain
Fearing for the lives of their children, desperate Jewish parents placed their children on rescue trains. Kindertransport means children’ transport. Orphanages were emptied and sent away in hoped of safety. Although 9000 to 10000 children were brought away, most never saw their parents again. Although the children were saved, so many adults died, leaving even more orphans. -
German Invasion of Poland
Hitler resented the fact that Poland had received German land under the Treaty of Versailles. Being more powerful that he had ever been, the Nazi soldiers invaded Poland, taking back not only the land they lost, but also gaining more. The Polish army was not strong enough to ward off the intruders, so they were annexed within weeks. Germany gained more and more land, making the country even stronger. -
Britain and France Declare War
Due to the invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war officially on Germany. They are both allies and knew that Poland clearly needed to be aided in this time of war and destruction. Together, they worked to try to take back Poland. This added more countries to the war. -
Auschwitz Camp Established
Auschwitz, the largest and most famous concentration camp created, was established on this day. It had three main camps that all forced the prisoners to participate in labor activities. This camp killed over 1.6 million prisoners and had the power to kill people, destroy families, and torture people. -
The Tripartite Pact
The Axis powers (Japan, Germany, and Italy) officially came together, signing a pact that agreed to help each other in times on need. If a country not already involved with the war attacked any of the three countries, the other two would assist them. It was a mutual agreement that formed a strong alliance, endangering much of the world to the wrath of the Axis. This pact spanned over Europe and Asia. Later, in November, Hungary joined the pact, under demand of Germany. -
Stalingrad
Four million German troops crossed the Russian borders to attempt to take over more land. The unexpecting Russians were easily killed. In a month, over 2.5 million Russians had been slaughtered by the Germans. This let them go further in, until they reached an unexpected obstacle: winter. The troops were dressed lightly for German weather, not cold winters. Railroads did not work, so the Germans were trapped away from home, left to die by Stalin’s forces or the sheer cold they were captured by. -
Roosevelt Freezes Trade with Japan
America froze their trade and assets with Japan as they grew more and more powerful. The agreement Roosevelt came to was that they would not resume trade until Japan left China, where they had recently invaded. Because Japan is an island, they have limited resources, which is why they needed America’s trade to continue functioning. Britain followed in our footsteps and also discontinued aiding Japan. -
Operation Reinhard
This was the codename for the German’s plan to exterminate over 2 million Jewish people. Police units and SS units worked together for the elimination in the camps of the jewish work forces. In the end, 1.7 millions Jews fell into the tragedy that was the Operation Reinhard. The Nazis were merciless and killed when they felt like killing, even without reasonable evidence to support their ‘causes.’ -
Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor
Early on December 7, 1941, Japanese planes bombed Pearl Harbor, a military base located near Honolulu, Hawaii. Around 20 naval ships were destroyed in the attacks and more than 2,000 soldiers and sailors died as a result. This pushed Franklin D. Roosevelt to enter America into the war more than two years after it had begun. -
The Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project involved the research of atomic weapons. Worried about Japan and Germany had for weapons, scientist began testing radioactive material and how they could be used for mass destruction. In New Mexico, they used the materials to attempt to build a new, more destructive bomb: the atomic bomb. Early in the morning, on July 16, the first atomic bomb was tested and successful. A month later, these weapons were used against Japan. -
Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
American bombers dropped 2 atomic bombs in different parts of Japan: the "Little Boy" in Hiroshima on August 6 and the "Fat Man" in Nagasaki on August 9. These were the first ever deployed atomic weapons to be used in warfare. The bomb in Hiroshima wiped out most of the city, killing over 80,000 people immediately. Radiation later killed more. The bomb in Nagasaki killed around 40,000. This caused Japan to surrender
