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Vladek Drafted
Vladek Spiegelman is drafted into the Polish Army to fight against the Nazis. -
The Start of World War Two
Germany invaded Poland without warning sparking the start of World War Two. -
Period: to
World War Two
World War Two lasted for 6 years and one day. -
Warsaw Surrenders
Warsaw surrendered to German troops encircling its borders. Massive air and artillery bombardments left the poles no choice. -
Germany Invades Norway
German forces invaded Norway and Denmark. Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim, Stavanger and Naravik were rapidly taken. -
Paris Falls
Paris was evacuated by French forces, in the face of advancing German forces. -
British Sink Battleship
The German battleship, "Bismark," was sunk by the British Navy. -
Germany Invades Soviet Union
Four million troops poured over the Russian border. Within one month, over two and half million Russians had been killed, wounded or captured. -
The Attack on Pearl Harbor
The Japanese attack force under the command of Admiral Nagumo, consisting of six carriers with 423 planes. At 6 a.m., the first attack wave of 183 Japanese planes takes off from the carriers located 230 miles north of Oahu and heads for the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. -
Philipines surrender
The Japanese caught the bulk of the American airforce assigned to protect the Philippines on the groundÐ despite the fact the Japanese attack took place many hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor. -
Battle of Midway
The Japanese planned to attack the Island of Midway, expanding their hold on the Central Pacific. American intelligence intercepted Japanese plans and knew of the impending Japanese attack. -
Operation Torch
The invasion of North Africa, in what was named "Operation Torch," was designed to encircle German troops stationed there. American troops went ashore in French North Africa with limited opposition -
Casablanca Conference
A conference was held in Casablanca, in French Morocco. from January 14th to the 24th, between Roosevelt and Churchill and their respective staffs. At the conference, it was announced that the war would be fought until there was an unconditional surrender. Agreement, in principle, was reached on the opening of a second front. -
Richieu Killed
Tosha, Anja's older sister, kills herself and the children she is caring for, including Richieu, in Zawriercie to avoid the gas chambers. -
Elie Wiesel is taken to Auschwitz
Elie Wiesel and his family were forced from their home and loaded onto a truck headed to poland. -
Wiesel family arrives ast Birkenau, Poland
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Buchenwald Camp: Elie Wiesel's Father's Death
At the age of 16, Elie Wiesel experienced his father die right before him. Holding his father in his arms lifeless left a scar on his life and impacted him greatly. -
Auschwitz Evacuated
Nazi soldiers march remaining Jews to the Dachau camp to escape the oncoming Red Army. -
Vladek in Refugee Camp
In the summer of 1945, Vladek reaches an American run displaced persons camp.
