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Hitler becomes leader
German people were unhappy about the Treaty of Versailles. Germany could not afford to pay the money during the twenties. The German people voted a man who promised to rip up the treaty. -
Period: to
World War II
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Benito Mussolini becomes Prime Minister of Italy
Mussolini threated to overthorw Italy's elected government. In response, the king made Mussolini prime minister. He turned Italy into the world's first Fascist state. -
Josef Stalin sole dictator of The Soviet Union
Stalin turned the Soviet Union into a totalotarian. He took brutal measures to modernize the industry, such as ordering peasents to give their land to government run farms. -
Japan's army seizes Manchuria, China
In 1931, Japan was hit badly by the depression. People lost faith and turned to the army for help. The army invaded Manchuria which was an area that was rich in minerals and resources. -
Hitler is named Chancellor of Germany
Hitler immediatly stared building up Germany's and weapons. He increased the size of the army by 1934. Compulsory military service was also introduced. -
Neutrality Acts passed by US congress
The law was designed to keep the U.S at peace. It forbade the president from giving any kind of assistance to any nation involved in war. -
Italian Army invades Ethiopia
Ethiopia's emperor appealed to the League of Nations for help, but the League respond weakly so Ethiopia fell to the invaders. -
Militarist take control of Japanese government
Japanese militarists preached racism. They said that they were superior to other Asians and non-Asians. -
Hitler sends troops into Rhineland of Germany
In defiance of the Treaty of Versailles, he began to rebuild Germany's forces. He sent troops into Rhineland. -
Japan’s army pillages Nanjing, China
Japanese armies were brutal to the Chinese. Forces pillaged Nanjing for six weeks. More than a quarter of a million civilians and prisoners of the war were killed. -
Munich Pact signed
Signed by the leaders of Germany, Britain, France, and Italy, agreed the Sudetenland would be returned to Germany.The Czech government protested about the loss of Sudetenland.They felt that they have been betrayed by Britain and France. -
Nazis begin rounding up Jews for labor camps
Anti-Semitic laws were passed in Germany. Jews were banned from public schools and professions. Jewish communities were even attacked and Nazis sent Jews to concentration camps. -
Nazi-Soviet Pact signed by Hitler and Stalin
Two sworn enemies signed a nonaggression agreement. The two dictators promised to not attack eachothers countries. Secretly, they agreed to divide up Poland. -
Nazis invade Poland
Two days after the invasion of Poland, Germany and France declared war on Germany. World War II begun. -
Nazis invade Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium – take control
In April they seized Demark and Norway. It wasn't until May that they marched west to conquer Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Belgium. Hiltler's armies were unstoppable in the early days of the war. -
Germany invades France
Britain sent troops to help France, but they were overpowered. Geramn armies marched into Paris and six weeks later France surrendered. -
Royal Air Force defeats German Air Force
Hitler ordered an air assault on Britain. The raids took thousands of lives. By day, the British tried to carry one. Then the British air force fought invading planes and by then Hitler had abandoned all plans to invade Britain. -
First time Peacetime Draft in US
The U.S took steps to prepare for possible entry into the war. Congress approved greater spending for the army and navy. Roosevelt ordered the Army of Air Corps to organize an African American unit under the command of black officers. -
Hitler breaks Pact with Stalin’s Russia and invades
A huge German force crossed into the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union now joined Britain in fighting the Germans. -
Japanese invade French Indochina (Viet. Laos, Cambodia)
In response, Roosevelt banned American exports of iron and steel to Japan. He also restricted the sale of oil to Japan. -
Churchill and FDR issue the Atlantic Charter
They agreed that their nations would seek no territorial gain from the war. They also called for a new international organization that might succeed since the League of Nations failed. -
Pearl Harbor in Hawaii attacked by Japanese Naval and Air forces
Attack on Pearl HarborThe attack destroyed half of the island's 400 military aircraft and damaged 8 battle. About 2,400 Americans were killed. Later that day, Congress declared war on the U.S -
Philippines fall to Japanese
A Japanese invasion force landed on Luzan. As the enemy closed on the capital, MacArthur withdrew his forces onto the Bataan peninsula. By early March, the Americans and Filipinos were the only major forces in the Pacific that had not given way to the Japanese, but they surrendered on April 9th. -
Japanese Americans interned in isolated camps
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Americans feared that Japanese Americasn would act as spies. Because of this, Roosevelt issued an order that temporarily imprison 110,000 Japanese Americans. The U.S Army then took them to a small, remote interment camps enclosed by barbed wire. -
Battle of Midway
The Japanese sought to take the island of Midway, home of anAmerican military base. The Americans sank 4 Japanese aircraft carriers, destroyed 322 Japanese aircrafts,and reduced Japan's supply of highly trained pilots. After the battle, Japan's navy no longer ruled the Pacific. -
Russians stop Nazi advance at Stalingrad save Moscow
A major battle with the Germans and Russians took place in and around the Russian city of Stalingrad. Months of fighting ended in a Soviet victory. From then on, the Soviets slowly drove the Germans back westward. -
British and US forces defeat German and Italian armies in North Africa
American andBritish troops crossed the Mediterrenean from Tunisia. They took control of the Italian island of Sicily. By fall they were fighting their way northward along the Italian Peninsula. -
Zoot Suit Riots – Los Angeles, CA
Mexian Americans in Los Angeles often dressed in zoot suits. In June of 1943, bands of sailors on shore attacked young Mexican Americans, beating and clubbing them. The incident sparked several days of rioting. -
Italy surrenders, Mussolini dismissed as Prime Min.
The king of Italy dismissed Mussolini from office. On September 8th 1943 the new government surrendered to the allies. Even so, Germen troops in Italy continued to fight. -
D-Day invasion of France at Normandy by Allies
More than 155,000 American, British, and Canadian troops crossed the English Channel. By the end of the day 2,500 American troops lay dead on Omaha Beach. However, the the mission was a success. -
Paris retaken by Allies Forces
The allies entered Paris. After four years under Nazi rule, French men, women, and children greeted their liberators with joy. -
Battle of the Bulge – last offensive of German Forces
Allied forces pushed eastward. Bad weather grounded Allied aircraft which allowed German troops to create a "bulge" in the American lines. However, the allies had additional troops while Germany was running out. American fordes won the battle. -
US forces return to recapture the Philippines
The U.S army landed on Luzon in the Philippines and then advanced to Manila. After nearly a month of urban warfare, the Americans secured the city. -
FDR dies, Harry S. Truman becomes President
FDR died of a stroke. His death crushed American citizens, Many could hardly remember anyone else as their leader. Truman was put into office with little experiance with important policy issues. -
V-E Day, war ends in Europe
The Soviets began an assult on Berlin. Hilter took shelter in a bunker with his Nazi empire in ruins and eventually committied suicide. Germany's army surrenders a week later. -
First Atomic Bombs dropped
An American plane dropped a boom on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Within minutes, the blast killed more than 130,000 people. Still the Japanese refused to surrender. -
V-J Day, Japan surrenders to Allied Forces
The emperior of Japan announced that the nation would surrender. MacArthur accepted Japan's surrender aboard the battleship USS Missouri. WWII was finally over. -
War Crimes Trials held in Nuremburg, Germany; Manila, Philippines and Tokyo, Japan.
In Nuremburg, allied judges tried Nazis for plunging the the world into war and for the death camps. 12 defendents were sentenced to death at the first Nuremburg trial. In Maila and Tokyo, there were trials that tried the leaders of the Japanese war machine.
