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The Wall Street Crash of 1929
The Wall Street Crash was a trigger of the Great Depression and the worst economic crisis in U.S. history. Unemployment rose to 25% in the United States. Mass unemployment and the start of the Great Depression (Quam, 2021). -
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The Great Depression and World War II
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The Star-Spangled Banner
The Star-Spangled Banner is adopted as the United States national anthem (Infoplease Staff, 2023). -
Global Economic Crisis
The global economic Crisis gets worse. Many countries abandon the gold standard which had regulated their currency values. Began in Austria and spread throughout Europe and the U.S. (History.com, 2023). -
FDR and the Great Depression
Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt has won the presidential election. It was a very overwhelming election (History, n.d.). -
The New Deal: A Road to Recovery
FDR launched the first new deal. This was a series of programs to help stabilize the economy. This helped in the economy by providing jobs (History.com, 2023). -
Hitler's Dictatorship
Hitler abolished the role of president while he was already Chancellor and declared himself Führer of the German Reich and People.This caused him to be the Dictator of Germany (Holocaust Encyclopedia, n.d.). -
National Flag of Germany
The Nazi party flag becomes the National Flag of Germany. The swastika on the flag symbolizes the Aryan victory over the Jews, which was an important piece to the war along with being important to history (Chicago Public Library Foundation, 2012). -
Anti-Comintern Pact
Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan signed the Anti-Comintern Pact on this date. This pact was directed against the Soviet Union and also included the international Communist movement. This later led to the Tripartite Pact which gave Italy, Germany, and Japan an alliance which signed them to help each other politically, economically, and by any military means (Holocaust Encyclopedia, 2021). -
Japan's Invasion of China
This started an undeclared war between China and Japan. The Japanese invaded big cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, and Nanjinj in Eastern China. This led to Japan bombing Pearl Harbor brining the U.S. into the war (The National WWII Museum, n.d.). -
The Munich Agreement
The Munich Agreement was signed by Germany, Italy, Great Britain, and France. This forced the Czechoslovak Republic to cede the Sudetenland and military defense positions to Nazi Germany. This was important because it meant that Hitler would be in control of parts of Czechoslovakia. Czechoslovakia would not choose to go to war with Nazi Germany due to the fact they would be doing it alone and Nazi Germany was already strong at this point (Murphy, n.d.). -
Soviet Union Invasion of Poland
Poland is invaded by the Soviet Union. 3/5ths of Poland was run by the Soviet Union along with around 13 million being put under Soviet Union rule (History, 2020). -
Warsaw Surrenders
Warsaw surrendered to Nazi Germany. Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union also split Poland and kept a portion each. This is important because it overturned the non-aggression pact that Germany had with Poland creating more conflict (Holocaust Encylopedia, n.d.). -
Selective Training and Service Act of 1940
By instituating the Selective Training and Service Act, all American men ages 21-45 were required to register for the U.S. military draft. This Act was instituted prior to any U.S. involvement in WWII but quickly resulted in 10 million American men being enlisted into the army during WWII (The National WWII Museum, n.d.). -
Franklin D. Roosevelt's Third Inagural Address
On January 20, 1941 Franklin D. Roosevelt gave his Third Inaugural Address marking the beginning of his third term as U.S. President. Roosevelt was elected due to World War II and to this day has been the only president elected for three terms (Roosevelt, 194). -
Pearl Harbor Attack
The United States Naval Base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was attacked by the Japanese Navy on the morning of Decemeber 7, 1941. This attack left 2,403 Americans dead and effectivley drew the United States into World War II (Imperial War Museums, n.d.). -
Operation Torch
Led by United States’ General Dwight D. Eisenhower on Novemeber 8-16, this operation was an invasion of French Morocco and Algeria by the Allies. 350 warships and 500 transports made their way into North Africa and seized key ports increasing Allie power in World War II (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, 2019).
Operation Torch Video -
Executive Order 9066
Issued by U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, Order 9066 called for all people who “posed a threat to national security” be moved to relocation centers. This led to nearly 122,000 people, often Japanese Americans, being held in Japanese Internment camps (Roosevelt, 1942). -
D-Day Invasion
The Allies invaded the French on Normandy through the use of various military devices. General Eisenhower initiated this invasion in hopes of finding a quick end to the war; while this invasion did not end the war it did lead to 10,300 casualities (Dwight D Eisenhower Presidential Library, n.d.). -
U.S. Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The United States’ bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, on August 6 & 9, were the first atomic bombing of populated areas and caused a total of almost 205,000 deaths. Harry Truman’s decision to drop these bombs effectivley forced Japan to surrender, leading to the end of World War II. -
The Postdam Declaration
The United States, the Republic of China, and Great Britain formed this declation which tells Japan that if they do not surrender the Allies will have to send the “full application” of their military against Japan (Hickox, 2022).