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Munich Pact Signed
The pact was signed to stop Hitler's domination of European land without agression or force. Germany, France, and Britan appeased Hitler by letting him take Austria and western Czechoslovakia as long as he promised not to take any more land. British Prime Minister Chamberlain excitedtly told the world that Hitler had been stopped. -
Hitler blitzkriegs Poland, France and Britain declare war
Hitler suddenly attacked Poland using lots of firepower to damage as much as possible as quickly as he could, breaking the Munich Pact. This event caused France and Britain to declare war on Germany, fearing that this was the only way to stop Hitler. By the end of September 1939, Poland had fallen to German forces. -
Hitler Uses More Agression
Hitler breaks the nonagression pact and attacks the Soviet Union. Later that fall, Hitler began to attack US boats using his German submarines. At this point, war became inevitable for the United States. -
Pearl Harbor Attacked
Japan sent thousands of airplanes and attacked Pearl Harbor in two waves on a Sunday morning. Luckily, many ships were out on patrol that morning, but many were still damaged. 2,402 soilders were killed, four battleships were sunk, eleven ships were damaged. The attack stopped US naval forces for six months. -
FDR Declares War on Japan
Roosevelt's Speech a heavy-hearted speech, "A Day That Will Live In Infamiy", President Roosevelt declared war on Japan. United States production boards immediatly began monbilizing industries for wartime. Even Stalin praised this production leap. -
Doolittle Raid Takes Place Over Tokoyo
Colonel James Doolittle led Us bombers in a night attack over Tokoyo, Jpana. However, the planes were detected early so the forces bombed during the day. They killed 50 Japanese civilians and damged 100 buildings. This attack did little for military advance, but it gave the United States the morale boost they needed to advance in the Pacific War. -
Italy Surredners to Ally Invasion
The allies adopted a "Europe-First" strategy for the war because Germany posed the most long term threats. The allied forces attacked the island of Sicily first, ending the rule of Mussolini. Italy surrendred unconditionally, delcaring war on Germany five weeks later. -
D-Day Invasion
The allied forces attacked Germany in force at the beaches of Normandy: Omaha, Juno, Sword, Utah, and Gold. The beaches were firmly secured and turned the war in favor of the Allies. This later led to the liberation of Paris in August 1944. -
V-E Day
With Hitler dead after the outcome of the Battle of the Bulge, Germany surrendered to the Allies on this day. -
V-J Day
Due to the work of Project Manhattan and the devlopment of the atomic bomb, the new president Truman decided that dropping and atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan would save American lives and end the war. Because of the destruction, Japan surrendered on this day and brough the war to armsitice.
