World War 2 Timeline

Adolf Hitler

Jan 30, 1921

Adolf Hitler Becomes Leader of the Nazi Party.

Benito Mussolini

Mar 20, 1922

Benito Mussolini was appointed Prime Minister of Italy.

Josef Stalin

Jun 20, 1929

Josef Stalin sole dictator of the Soviet Union (USSR)

Seize of Manchuria

Jan 1, 1931

Japan’s Army seizes Manchuria, China.

HItler is Chancellor

Mar 21, 1933

Hitler is named Chancellor of Germany.

Neutrality Acts

Jun 21, 1935

Neutrality Acts passed by US Congress.

Ethiopia is Invaded.

Sep 21, 1935

Italian Army invades Ethiopia in Africa.

Japanese Government

Jan 3, 1936

Militarist take control of Japanese Government

Troops sent to Rhineland

Mar 21, 1936

Hitler sends troops into Rhineland of Germany in violation of the Versailles Treaty

Massacre of Nanjing

Mar 21, 1937

Japan’s army pillages Nanjing, China; massacre a quarter of a million people.

Munich Pact

Jan 31, 1938

Munich Pact signed giving the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia to Germany

Jews

Mar 21, 1938

Nazis begin rounding up Jews for labor camps

Nazi-Soviet Pact

Mar 21, 1939

Nazi-Soviet Pact signed by Hitler and Stalin

Declaration of War

Sep 1, 1939

Nazis invade Poland; Britain and France declare war on Germany

Nazis Invasions

Jan 1, 1940

Nazis invade Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium – take control

France Surrenders

Mar 21, 1940

Germany invades France and forces it to surrender

Battle of Britain

Apr 24, 1940

Royal Air Force defeats German Air Force to prevent invasion of their island

Peacetime Draft

Jun 7, 1940

First time Peacetime Draft in US

Hitler Breaks Pact

Jan 1, 1941

Hitler breaks Pact with Stalin’s Russia and invades -USSR which now joins England in fighting the Germans

Atlantic Charter

Mar 21, 1941

Churchill and FDR issue the Atlantic Charter

Japanese Invasions

May 17, 1941

Japanese invade French Indochina (Viet. Laos, Cambodia)

Pearl Harbor Attacked

Dec 7, 1941

1941, Dec. 7 Pearl Harbor in Hawaii attacked by Japanese Naval and Air forces

US Declares War

Dec 9, 1941

US declares war on Japan, Germany and Italy declare war on the US

Bataan Death March

Jan 2, 1942

Philippines fall to Japanese

Interned Isolated Camps

Mar 2, 1942

Japanese Americans interned in isolated camps

Battle of Midway

Jun 4, 1942

June 4-7 Battle of Midway, turning point of war in the Pacific

Russians Stop Nazi Advance

Jun 25, 1942

Russians stop Nazi advance at Stalingrad save Moscow

Defeat of Germany and Italy

Apr 11, 1943

British and US forces defeat German and Italian armies in North Africa

Zoot Suit Riots

Jul 11, 1943

1943 Zoot Suit Riots – Los Angeles, CA

Italy Surrenders

Jul 31, 1943

1943 July - Italy surrenders, Mussolini dismissed as Prime Min.

D-Day

Jun 6, 1944

1944 June 6 - D-Day invasion of France at Normandy by Allies

Paris is Retaken

Aug 11, 1944

1944 Aug. - Paris retaken by Allies Forces

Battle of the Bulge

Dec 11, 1944

1944 Dec. Battle of the Bulge – last offensive of German Forces

Recapture Phillippines

Jan 11, 1945

1945 Jan. – US forces return to recapture the Philippines

FDR Dies

Apr 16, 1945

1945 April 16th - FDR dies, Harry S. Truman becomes President

V.E. Day

May 8, 1945

1945 May 8th - V-E Day, war ends in Europe

Bombs

Aug 11, 1945

1945 Aug. - First Atomic Bombs dropped

V-J Day

Aug 14, 1945

1945 Aug. 14th – V-J Day, Japan surrenders to Allied Forces

War Crimes Trials

Jan 1, 1946

1946 War Crimes Trials held in Nuremburg, Germany; Manila, Philippines and Tokyo, Japan.