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German Anschluss with Australia
Hitler unified all German speaking people, Annexed Australia and demanded the liberation of German people in Sudetenland- region of Czechoslovakia. -
Treaty of Munich
Hitler, Chamberlain, Daladier of France & Mussolini of Italy met in Munich and agreed that Hitler should have the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia -
Hitler invades Czechoslovakia
Hitler marched into Czechoslovakia and occupied the country despite what the Treaty of Munich stated. -
Britain rearms and reassures Poland
(March/ April of 1939) Britain begun re-arming and a highly secret radar early warning system was installed along the east coast. Conscription was introduced and assurances were given to Poland- who was being threatened by the Fuhrer -
Russia and Germany sign pact
Hitler and Stalin signed a non-aggression pact which included secret clauses for the division of Poland -
"Phoney War"
The months following Britain's declaration of war are referred to as the phoney war because Britain saw no military action (sept 1939- May 1940) -
Hitler invades Poland
Hitler invades Poland -
Britain and France Declair war on Germany
Neville Chamberlain broadcasted the announcement that the country was at war -
Hitler invades Denmark and Norway
Hitler invades and occupied Denmark & Norway to safeguard supply routes of Swedish ore and also to establish a Norwegian base from which to break the British naval blockade om Germany -
British rout Italians in N. Africa
Italian forces in North Africa were routed by the British led by General Wavell -
Blitzkreig
Hitler launched his Blitzkrieg against Holland and Belgium. Rotterdam was bombed almost to extinction. Both countries were occupied -
Chamberlain resignes
resigns after pressure from Labor members for a more active prosecution of the war and Churchill became the new head of the wartime coalition government -
France signs armistice with Germany
The French, Marshall Pertain, signed an armistice with Germany taking France, which had been devastated, out of the war and Germany into occupation -
Dunkirk
British commander in chief General Gort, had been forced to retreat to the coast of Dunkirk. Troops waited while under fire to be taken off the beaches. 338,000 men were rescued and 140,000 men formed the nucleus of the free French army under general Charles de Gaulle -
Italy entere war on side of the Axis powers
Motive for entering the war was the hope of rich pickings from the spoils of war -
Battle of Britain
4 phases
1. in July Hitler sent his Luftwaffe bombers to attack British ports
2. August the attacks on shipping continued but bombing raids were concentrated on RAF airlines
3. The Blitz- from sept 7 the city of London was heavily bombed, Hitler hoped to destroy the morale of the British citizens
4. Night bombings begun, raids ceased on oct 31 when the RAF defended the skies -
Tripartite Pact
signed by Germany, Italy and Japan -
Italy and Germany attack Yugoslavia
early 1941 -
Hitler Attacks Russia- Operation Barbarossa
Hitler sent 3 mil soldiers and 3,500 tanks into Russia. total of 20 mil casualties -
Pearl Harbor
The Japanese attacked the US pacific fleet at PH, Hawaii -
Britain and US Declair war on Japan
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Japanese take Singapore
took in about 60,000 prisoners -
Battle of Midway
the US defended the Japanese navy at the Battle of Midway. US was able to push back the Japanese after the battle. -
Allies in N Africa
Gen Alexander was given a hand-written directive from Churchill ordering his main directive was to be the destruction of the German-Italian army commanded by Field-Marshall Rommell together with all its supplies and establishments in Egypt and Libya -
Battle of Stalingrad
Russians won their first victory against Germany here -
Allies push into N Africa
British & American forces under Gen Dwight Eisenhower landed in the NW of Africa and assumed control of French Morocco and Algeria then gradually closed in on the Germans -
Battle of El Alamein
Montgomery attacked the German-Italian army in N Africa with a massive bombardment followed by an armored attack, then proceeded to chase the routed enemy 1500 miles across the desert -
Allies invade Sicily
British and US forces invade Sicily -
Allies take Sicily
The Allied troops had won the island of Sicily -
Allies meet at Tehran
Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill met to co-ordinate plans for a simultaneous squeeze on Germany & discussed post-war settlements. -
Italy Surrenders
Mussolini was thrown out of office and the new Government of Italy surrendered to the British and US. Then they agreed to join the Allies. Germans took control of the Italian army and freed Mussolini from imprisonment and set him up as head of a puppet government in northern Italy. This blocked any further allied advances through Italy -
Axis surrender North Africa
British and American forces managed to defeat the Axis forces in North Africa -
Leningrad relieved
the seige of leningrad was lifted by the Soviet Army -
Rome Liberated
Although Italy had surrendered in Sept., it was only now that the allies were able to liberate Rome from the Germans -
Japanese evicted from Burma
British forces under General Slim, with help from guerrilla fighting Chindits led by Orde Wingate, evicted Japanese from Burma -
Battle of the Bulge
Germany was beat by the Allies in the Srdennes region of Belgium -
D-Day
The Invasion of Normandy. On June 6, 1944 the Allied Forces of Britain, America, Canada, and France attacked German forces on the coast of Normandy, France. With a huge force of over 150,000 soldiers, the Allies attacked and gained a victory that became the turning point for World War II in Europe. -
Paris Liberated
Liberated from the Germans -
V2 Flying Bombs
First V2 flying planes killed 3 people in London -
Allies cross the Rhine
crossed Rhine -
Death of Roosevelt
Succeded by President Truman -
Russians reach Berlin
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Mussolini captured and executed
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Hitler commits suicide
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German forces surrender to the Allies
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German forces surrender
in nw Germany, Holland and Denmark -
VE day
Victory in Europe -
Donitz offers unconditional surrender
Hitler's successor Admiral Donitz -
Churchill loses election
lost to Clement Atlee;s Labour party -
Atomic bomb dropped in Hiroshima
Generals refused to surrender, US dropped atomic bomb -
Russia declares war on Japan
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Atomic bomb dropped in Nagasaki
Japan still refued to surrender, US drops 2nd atomic bomb -
Japanese surrender
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MacAurthur accepts Japan's surrender
Formally ended WWII