World war ii

World War II

By Qiouci

  • 1939

    Hitler invades Poland on 1 September. Britain and France declare war on Germany two days later

  • 1940

    • Rationing starts in the UK.
    • German 'Blitzkrieg' overwhelms Belgium, Holland and France.
    • Churchill becomes Prime Minister of Britain.
    • British Expeditionary Force evacuated from Dunkirk.
    • British victory in Battle of Britain forces Hitler to postpone invasion plans.

  • 1941

    • Hitler begins Operation Barbarossa - the invasion of Russia.
    • The Blitz continues against Britain's major cities.
    • Allies take Tobruk in North Africa, and resist German attacks.
    • Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, and the US enters the war.

  • 1942

    • Germany suffers setbacks at Stalingrad and El Alamein.
    • Singapore falls to the Japanese in February - around 25,000 prisoners taken.
    • American naval victory at Battle of Midway, in June, marks turning point in Pacific War.
    • Mass murder of Jewish people at Auschwitz begins.

  • 1943

    • Surrender at Stalingrad marks Germany's first major defeat.
    • Allied victory in North Africa enables invasion of Italy to be launched.
    • Italy surrenders, but Germany takes over the battle.
    • British and Indian forces fight Japanese in Burma.

  • 1944

    • Allies land at Anzio and bomb monastery at Monte Cassino.
    • Soviet offensive gathers pace in Eastern Europe.
    • D Day: The Allied invasion of France. Paris is liberated in August.
    • Guam liberated by the US Okinawa, and Iwo Jima bombed.

  • 1945

    • Auschwitz liberated by Soviet troops.
    • Russians reach Berlin: Hitler commits suicide and Germany surrenders on 7 May.
    • Truman becomes President of the US on Roosevelt's death, and Attlee replaces Churchill.
    • After atomic bombs are dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan surrenders on 14 August.