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Signing of the Treaty of Versailles
The winning powers of the WWI (the Allies) made Germany sing this treaty in which they expropiated all colonies Germany had and disarmed the country. Germany was put under such humiliating conditions it developed a deep wish of revenge. -
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The road to WWII
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The Global Depression begins
It was a severe economic crisis whose consequences expanded among different countries throughout the developed world during the 1930s. It began with the New York's stock market crash in the USA, main economical power back then. -
Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany
During the year of 1932 Germany witnessed the rise in popularity of the Nazi party, which obtained 40% of the votes in the July elections that year. And so on 30 January 1933, Hitler was appointed Chancellor within a coalition government. -
Beginning of the Spanish Civil War
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Spanish Civil War
It lasted for three years and was a fight between the Republicans, who believed in the democratic system of the Second Spanish Repulic that had been going on until that moment, and the Nationalists, group led by general Francisco Franco. The Nationalists finally won the war, which came to an end in April 1st 1939. This meant that the next 40 years of Spanin's history would be marked by the ruling of Franco as a dictator. -
Rome-Berlin Axis: Hitler-Mussolini Alliance
The relationship with Italy and its allies back then, Britain and France, was tenser each time and so they finally broke their alliance. Mussolini got invoved in the Spanish Civil War in the side of Franco, and Hitler showed his solidarity to Italy by joining in too. Italy's Prime Minister was invited to Berlin, where the two countries signed a pact called the Rome-Berlin Axis. This pact committed both countries to follow a common foreign policy, and it became a millitary alliance in 1939. -
Anschluss with Austria
The German term "anschluss" was the one used by the Nazi propaganda to refer to the annexing of Austria into the Nazi Germany. Something similar was attempted in 1918, when both countries tried to join together to form a "Greater Germany" but the Treaties of Versailles and Saint Germain forbid it. -
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Nazis invade Czechoslovakia
It began with the creation of Sudetenland, meaning the incorporation of portions of Czechoslovakia to Germany, however it became Hitler's ambition to invade the whole country after the Anschluss with Austria in 1938. After the merge of Sudetenland and Germany, Czechoslovakia was left very weak and was very easy to conquer. -
The Munich Agreement
This event was originally dated on the 29th September. It designates the allowance of Nazi Germany to incorporate portions of Czechoslovakia as long as they were situated on its borders and mainly inhabited by German speakers. This union was called "Suedetenland". -
End of the Spanish Civil War
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The Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
Shortly before WWII broke out in Europe, Germany and the Soviet Union signed the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact, in which the two countries agreed to take no military action against each other for the next 10 years. This would benefit both Stalin (Soviet Union) as he could keep his nation in peace with Germany, and Hitler (Germany) because then he would be able to invade Poland with no opposition. -
Invasion of Poland
Also known as the Spetember Campaign, it was a joint invasion of Poland by Germany and other countries such as the Soviet Union. This event marked the beginning of World War II in Europe.
