-
Period: to
World War II Interactive Timeline
-
Start of WWII
Germany invades Poland on September 1, 1939. This marks the start of WWII. Great Britain and France declare war on Germany in order to maintain the integrity of the Polish border. The reason for the invasion is that Hitler wants to take back portions of Germany that were given to Poland in the Treaty of Versailles, including West Prussia. Text:https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005070
Image:https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005070 -
Systematic Murder of Jews is in Full Operation
The Auschwitz concentration camp was a series of three camps located in southern Poland. An estimated 1.1 million people were killed here, most Jewish people. This marked the full brevity and magnitude of Hitler's plan to purge the world of so-called undesirables. The sign at the front of the camp reads "Arbeit Macht Frei" which translates to "Work gives one freedom." Text:http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/auschwitz Picture:https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbeit_macht_frei -
Germany takes Western Europe
Germany invades France through the Ardennes Forest in southeastern Belgium. This was a surprise and Britain and France thought Germany would invade through central Belgium, as they had in WWI. The invasion lasted less than six weeks and soon the French government was in exile, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Holland all surrendered, and France was split into two parts - occupied france and Vichy France. Text:https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005181 Pic: Battle of France - wikipedia -
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain was a drawn-out battle that was considered to the first in history primarily fought in the air. This battle is also considered to be the turning point of the war, as Hitler was eventually forced to rescind operation Sea Lion after failure to destroy Britain's air defenses and force a surrender or armistice. Night bombings of London were known as Blitz, which means lightning in German. Text and Picture: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Britain -
Battle of Midway
This battle marked the turning point in the Pacific Theater for the war against Japan and United States. Japan was planning to ambush the U.S. again, 6 months after Pearl Harbor. However, American cryptographers determined the location and date of the ambushed and the U.S. was able to prepare. Japan lost many air carriers and men, a loss that proved irreparable. Text and Picture:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Midway -
Atomic Bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima
On August 6 and 9, 1945, the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively. The Allies resulted to this when the Japanese government refused to unconditionally surrender, as Germany had. More than 100,000 civilians were killed and the Japanese government surrendered 6 days after the bombings. Text and Picture:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki
