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Period: to
The Second War of the World
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Adolf Hitler becomes leader of the Nazi party in Germany
The Nazi party is a facist politcal party that took over Germany in the 1930's. -
Benito Mussolini appointed prime minister of Italy
Mussolini was a facist leader. Under him, Italy became part of the Axis powers during World War 2. -
Josef Stalin sole dictator of the Soviet Union (USSR)
Stalin ruled until his death in 1953. The Soviet Union was part of the Allies during World War 2 under him. -
Japan's army siezes Manchuria, China
China asked for help from the League of Nations. The League of Nations couldn't do anything, though. The only thing it could do was ask member nations to stop trading with Japan, but many countries didn't want to do this because the world was in depression and didn't want to lose Japan as a trading partner to non-member nations. -
Hitler is named Chancellor of Germany
Hitler began his rise to prominence in 1932. It was spurred largely by the awful economic conditions and the defeat in World War 1. He used this anger to gain support for the Nazi party. In July, 1932, the Nazis won 230 governmental seats. -
Neutrality Acts passed by U.S Congress
Congress passed an act to forbid the trade of ammunition and arms and keep ships from entering war zones. We also couldn't assist any nation involved in a war. They did not want to repeat the mistakes it had made before World War 1 and get involved in another one. -
Italian army invades Ethiopia in Africa
Ethiopia asks the the League of Nations for help, but, as in the case of Japan's invasion of Manchuria, China, they were no help. Ethiopia fell to the invaders. -
Militarists take control of the Japenese government
The Grear Depression had undermined democratic rule and military leaders wanted to take control of nearby countries so Japan could have more space for industry. When these militarists took control, they preached racism and thought the Japenese were superior to Asians and non-Asians. -
Hitler sends troops into Rhineland in Germany, violating the Versailles treaty
In the Versailles Treaty, the size and nature of Germany's military was limited. Hitler also built an airforce and made the navy larger (things not allowed under the Versailles treaty). -
Japan's army pillages Nanjing, China; massacre a quarter million people
Japan wanted to step up its aggression in China. This attack lasted six weeks. Japan would later attack Hawaii and other Pacific states. -
Munich Pact signed giving the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia to Germany
France and Briatin wanted appeasement so war could be avoided. As this pact gave Germany what they wanted, they had to get something from Germany. This pact said that Germany could not invade any more of Czechoslovaia. This was violated in 1939 when Germany took control of the rest of Czechoslovakia. -
Nazis begin rounding up Jews for labor camps
Many other types of people were placed in these camps. For example, Gypsies, Prisoners-of-War, and many others. They also built death camps where they would gas a lot of people in gas chambers to efficiently mass murder people. -
Nazi-Soviet Pact signed by Hitler and Stalin
Hitler and Stalin agreed not to attack one another's countries and divide up Poland when they got control of it with this pact. -
Nazis invade Poland; Britain and France declare war on Germany
After Hitler took over Czechoslovakia, evryone knew that Poland would be Germany's next target. France and Britain had promised to take military action against Germany if they ever attacked Poland. After they did, the Soviet Union siezed eastern Poland and France and Britain declared war on Germany. The Soviet Union would later invade Finland and annex Estonia, Lithuania, and Lativa. -
Nazis invade Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium- take control
This was during the early days of the war. The German army seemed unstoppable as it took over country after country (like the ones mentioned above). It wasn't until later that year that the tide began to turn the Allies favor. -
Germany invades France and forces it to surrender
When the invasion began, Britain sent troops to help, but they were forced back to a port called Dunkirk. Britain sent everything it could to France to rescue the trapped soldiers. But, the Germans entered France and marched to Paris. After six weeks, France surrendered. -
Battle of Britain- Royal Air Force defeats German Air Force to prevent invasion of their island
Hitler ordered an air assault on Britain. For months, British cities were bombarded with aerial attacks that took tens of thousands of lives. The British spirit never faltered though, They kept on fighting until Germany gave up on invading Britain. -
First time Peacetime draft in US
The United States had been lending military supplies to Britain and other nationa fighting the Nazis. They wanted to take steps to prepare for a possible entry into the war. Congress had even approved greater spending on the military. -
Hitler breaks pact with Stalin's Russia-USSR, which now joins Britain in fighting the Germans
The Soviet Union had stayed out of the war in the early days. But, when a huge German force came in, hey had to get involved. Even though Churchill and Stalin hated eachother, Britain and the USSR had to work together to fight their common enemy. -
Churchill and FDR issue the Atlantic Charter
This charter outlined their goals for the postwar world. They agreed their nations wouldn't seek any territorial gain from the war and emphasized the right of all people to decide their own form of govrnment. They also asked for a new international organization that they hoped would succeed where the League of Nations had failed. -
Japanese invade French Indochina (Vietnam, Loas, Cambodia)
In response to the invasion, FDR banned the exports of iron and steel scrap to Japan and restricted the sale of oil to Japan. When this happened, Japan faced a shortage of fuel and planned an attack on the US. -
Pearl Harbor in Hawaii attacked by Japanese Naval and Air Forces, US declares war on Japan, Germany and Italy declare war on the US on December 9
Pearl Harbor was a US naval, air and ground forces base on the island of Oahu. Nearly half of the island's 400 military aircraft were destroyed, 8 battleships were damaged, two beyond repair. Around 2,000 Americans were killed. Congress declared war on Japan later that day. When Germany and Italy declared war on the US, people realized that, even though they didn't want to be, America was once again involved in a world war. -
Philippines fall to Japan; Bataan Death March
Not even a day after the Pearl Harbor attack, Japanese aircraft bombed airfields in the Philippines. They destroyed most of the planes that could defend the nation. Two weeks later, the Japanese forces landed on Luzon, the main Pilippine island. As they closed in on Manila, the Filipino-American forces drew back onto the Bataan peninsula. The trapped American and Filipino forces kept going and surrendered on April 9. They then had to walk to a prison, many died on the Bataan Death March. -
Japanese Americans interned in isolated camps
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, many Americans became scared that Japanese Americans would betray America and help Japan. As a result, FDR issued Executive Order 9066 in February 1942. This order interned, or temporarily imprisoned, thousands of Japanese Americans. This was ruled as justifiable due to military necessity by the Supreme Court in 1944. The internees were released when the war ended and recieved a small payment for property they had to sell. In 1990, all internees got $20,000. -
Battle of Midway;turning point of war in the Pacific
In May 1942, the battle of the Coral Sea was waged. Enemies didn't see the enemy's ships. Planes took off from aircraft carriers and attacked enemy ships. The US halted the Japanese drive to New Guinea. A month later, the Japanese decided to take an island the held a US base called Midway. Americans sank four Japanese aircraft carriers, destroyed 322 Japanese aircraft,and reduced Japan's supply of good pilots. Japan's navy no longer ruled the Pacific. -
Russians stop Nazi advance at Stalingrad; save Moscow
Hitler had expected the Soviets to fall easily to his assault, they didn't. In December 1941, the Soviet troops halted the advance just miles from Moscow. The Germans tried another offensive and a major battle took place near Stalingrad in Russia in mid-1942. The battle ended in a clear Soviet victory. After that, the Soviets slowly drove the Germans out. -
British and US forces defeat German and Italian armies in North Africa
A German general named Erwin Rommel had won a number of quick victories in North Africa. In October 1942, British troops defeated German forces at El Alamein, Egypt. They slowly drove the Germans west into Tunisia. In November, the first American ground troops landed in North Africa under the command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower. They occupied Morocco and Algeria. Hemmed in, Rommel's army surrendered in May 1943. -
Zoot Suits Riots- Los Angeles California
PBS; The Zoot Suit RiotsAmerica signed a treaty with Mexico that said American companies could hire Mexican laborers, or braceros. Many Mexicans moved north to work and faced prejudice and violent strife. In Los Angeles, young Mexican Americans often dressed in "zoot suits". This set them apart. In June 1943, bands of sailors attacked young Mexican Americans. As a result, there were several days of rioting. Newspapers blamed Mexican Americans for the "Zoot Suit Riots". However, Eleanor Roosevelt blamed discrimination. -
Italy surrenders; Mussolini dismissed as Prime Minister
American troops in Tunisia crossed the Mediterranean into Italy. They took contol of the Italian island of Sicily. By fall, they began fighting northward up the Italian peninsula. the king of Italy threw Mussolini from office on September 8 and the new government surrendered. However, German troops in Italy continued to fight and the Allies had to fight a hard battle before they finally controlled Italy. -
D-Day invasion of France at Normandy by Allies
On D-Day, more than 155,000 American, British, and Canadian troops crossed the English Channel to begin the Allied invasion of France. They landed on five beaches at Normandy, in western France. the troops at four of the beaches quickly overtook German forces. On Omaha Beach, however, Allied troops were met with an especially fierce German defense. Even with heavy losses of about 2,500, they succeeded with their mission. -
Paris retaken by Allies forces
Within a month after D-Day, a million Allied troops had come ashore. On August 25, the Allies entered Paris and the country was liberated. -
Battle of the Bulge- Last offensive of German forces
After liberating France, Allied forces pushed eastward. But, on December 16, the Germans counterattacked in Belgium. Allied arircraft was grounded for the first week of the battle, in that time, the Germans created a bulge in American lines. They came close to breaking through Allied lines and poured all of their reserves into the battle. But, they were running out of supplies, and soldiers. Whereas the Allies had additional troops in reserve. American forces won the Battle of the Bulge. -
American forces return to recapture the Philippines
Americans had adopted the policy of 'island hopping'. They would take islands controlled by Japan and go around to others. They hoped it would lead to capturing Japan. In January, 1945, they landed on Luzon, in the Philippines, and advanced to Manila. After nearly a month, Americans secured the city. The battle took over 14,000 Americans, 350,000 Japanese, as well as 100,000 Filipino cilvilians. -
FDR dies and Harry S. Truman becomes president
FDR dies of a stroke. Many Americans were deeply hurt by his death. Many could barely remember anyone else as their leader. Truman, the vice president was thrown into office. He had little experience dealing with important policy issues and people wondered if he would be a decisive leader. -
V-E Day, war ends in Europe
In January, 1945, Germany was invaded by the Soviets from the east and the other Allies from the west. While ground forces advanced, planes attacked from above. On April 16, Soviet troops began an assault on Berlin. On April 30, while hiding in a bunker, Hitler committed suicide. A week later, representatives from the German armed forces surrendered at Eisenhower's headquarters in France. That day, May 8, 1945 was celebrated as V-E Day, victory in Europe. -
First Atomic Bombs dropped
Island-hopper marines approached Japan. In February, they reached Iwo Jima. In April, they reached Okinawa. However, Japan wouldn't surrender. Soldiers were jumping to their deaths and crashing planes. President Truman heard of the atomic bomb, which had been tested in New Mexico. On August 6, 1945, an American plane dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima. On August 9, another was dropped on Nagasaki. Thousands died instantly, many more died slow deaths from radiation poisoning. -
V-J Day, Japan surrenders to Allied forces
After the attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the emperor of Japan announced that the nation would surrender. On September 2, MacArthur formally accepted Japan's surrender on board the battleship USS Missouri, which was anchored in Tokyo Bay. On that day, World War 2 was finally over. -
War crimes trials held in Nuremburg, Germany; Manila, Philippines and Tokyo, Japan
The Allies were shocked by the Holocaust and the genocide that took place in Nazi death camps. They prosecuted leaders of the Nazis of war crimes, or, wartime acts of cruelty and brutality that are judged to be beyond the accepted rules of war and human behavior. In Nuremburg, Germany, Allied judges tried prominent Nazis for plunging the world into war and the horrors of the Nazi death camps. Other trials were held in Manila and Tokyo to try leaders of Japanese war machine.
