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Japan Attacks China
Manchuria was invaded by the imperial army of Japan. The Japanese established a puppet state called, Manchukoku, which remained active until the end of WWII. -
Hitler Appointed Chancellor
After Hitler was appointed chancellor of Germany, heforged a rigidly disciplined party structure and had mastered the techniques of mass politics and propaganda. Hitler's support came from across the social spectrum due to his promises of security against communists and socialists, effective government in place of the petty politics of the other parties and an uncompromising nationalist vision of a strong restored Germany. -
Hitler Drafts 1/2 Million Men
During March of 1935, Hitler decided it was time to begin the conscription of men. His goal, 1/2 a million men, was reached quickly. -
Italy invades Ethiopia
In October of 1935, Mussolini, using a border incident as an excuse, attacked Ethiopia. Mussolini intended to avenge the defeat of the Italians in Ethiopia in 1896, to begin the restoration of Roman Imperial glory, and to distract the Italian public opinion from domestic problems. His attack outraged the West but the Allies planned to appease him so long as Ethiopia remained its formal independence. -
German Troops Sent to the Rhineland
In March of 1936 Hitler reoccupied the French-held Rhineland with German Troops, which broke the treaty of Versailles. This was the first of a diplomatic test of will that occurred three years before the outbreak of WWII. -
Neutrality Acts
This series of acts was meant to keep the U.S. from being drawn into a war. They had an isolationist policy at the start of the war. -
Hitler Annexed Austria
Austria was annexed into the German third Reich on March 12, 1938. German troops entered into Austria in order to enforce the Anschluss. -
Munich Pact Signed
At Chamberlain's request, Mussolini called a last moment conference of Germany, Italy, France, and Great Britain. Hitler received almost everything that he demanded, including the Sudetenland, the key to Czech security. In return, Hitler agreed to spare the rest of Czechoslovakia. Czechoslovakia did not survive and the appeasement of Hitler in the Munich Pact failed. Hitler eventually broke the pact by invading Prague. -
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Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht was the persecution of Jews in 1938. Under Nazi Party orders, thousands of Jewish stores and synagogues were burned or destroyed. The Jewish community was left to pay for the damages themselves because the German government confiscated the insurance money that was paid to cover the damages. -
Hitler Invaded Czechoslovakia
The Sudetenland, the key to Czech security, became part of Germany in the Munich Pact. In return, Hitler agreed to spare the rest of Czechoslovakia. Hitler eventually broke the pact by invading Prague, which thus ended Czech state and put an end to the illusions that his only goal was to restore Germans to the Reich. -
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Battle of the Atlantic
The battle of the Atlantic was the longest continuous military campaign during WWII. It lasted from 1939 to the defeat of Germany in 1945. -
Hitler Invaded Poland
Hitler invading Poland marked the start of WWII. -
"Cash and Carry" Policy
This policy replaced the Neutrality Acts. The revision allowed the sale of materials to belligerents, as longs as the recipients arranged for the transport using their own ships and paid immediately in cash, assuming all risk in transportation. The purpose was to hold neutrality between the U.S and European countries while still giving aid to Britain, exploiting the fact that Germany had no funds and could not reliably ship across the British- controlled Atlantic. -
Battle of Britain
Hitler gained control of the Air over Britain by launching air attacks with the German Luftwaffe. The British in return, launched air raids on German Cities which caused the Luftwaffe to change its target to London. -
Italy, Japan, and Germany Unite to Form Axis Powers
The Axis powers was the alignment of Italy and Germany, soon to be followed by Japan during WWII. -
Hitler Invaded Soviet Union
The operation to invade Russia, ‘Operation Barbarossa’, was aimed at Destroying Russia before the winter could set in. Operation Barbarossa was launched against Russia and would have succeeded had it not been for the Russian Winter. -
Atlantic Charter
The Atlantic Charter was a policy statement that defined the allied goals for the post-war world. I was drafted by Britain and the United States. The charter stated the ideal goals of the war. -
Japan Attacked Pearl Harbor
While Japanese representatives were discussing a settlement in Washington D.C , Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was under a surprise air attack. Many U.S. battleships and airplanes were destroyed. The following day, the U.S. and Great Britain declared war on Japan. Three days later Germany and Italy declared war on the United States. -
Creation of the War Production Board
The war production board was established FDR in order to regulate the production and allocation of materials and fuel during WWII. The WPD converted and expanded peacetime industries to meet war needs, allocated scarce materials vital to war production, established priorities in the distribution of materials and services and prohibited nonessential production. It rationed a lot of everyday items in order to help the troops. -
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Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was the research and development program that produced the first atomic bomb during WWII. -
Bataan Death March
This forcible transfer of 76,000 American and Filipino POW’s after the three month battle of Bataan in the Philippines was 97 km and was characterized by wide ranging physical abuse and murder and resulted in very high fatalities inflicted upon prisoners and civilians. -
Battle of the Coral Sea
In 1942 the battle of the Coral sea sunk many Japanese ships and gave a security to Australia. -
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Battle of Midway
The U.S. defeated Japan in a fierce air and naval battle off Midway Island. The U.S. was able to halt the Japanese in their expedition of expansion. -
Battle of Stalingrad
The German goal was to take the oil fields near the Caspian Sea. Stalingrad was a key point on the flank of the German army in the south. Hitler was determined to take the City but Stalin was able to hold off their advances. The Russians refused to let the Germans captured their city and through the help of the Russian winter, starvation, and continued attacks, the German army failed because of Hitler's refusal to allow retreat. -
Battle of Guadalcanal
After the battle of Midway, U.S Marines landed on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands and began to reverse the momentum of the war. While the war was far from over in the Pacific, this allowed the Allies in Europe to focus on only one front. -
Mussolini Captured/Killed
When the Allies took over Sicily, Mussolini was driven out of power. The Germans still occupied Italy but Marshal Pietro Badoglio the leader of the new Italian government went on the side of the Allies, declaring war on Germany. -
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Tehran Conference
It was the meeting of Stalin, FDR, and Churchill with the aim of planning the final strategy for the war against Nazi Germany and its allies and the chief discussion was centered on the opening of a second front in western Europe. -
D-Day
American, Canadian, and British troops landed in Normandy, thus opening the “Second Front”. Success depended on meticulous planning, advance preparation by heavy bombing, and feints to mask the point of the attack. The German defense was strong but the Allies were able to establish a beachhead and were able to push the Germans out of France. France had been liberated by the beginning of September. -
Battle of Leyte Gulf
It is considered to be the largest naval battle of WWII as well as the largest naval battle in history. It was fought between U.S. and Australian forces against the Japanese Navy. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Germans launched a counter attack on Belgium through the Ardennes Forest. Because the Germans were able to push forward into the allied line, this was called the battle of the Bulge. The allies quickly recovered and pushed eastwards. They pushed into the Rhine and German forces started to crumble. -
Korematsu v. U.S.
The case questioned the constitutionality of the Japanese imprisonment in internment camps in the united states during WWII after the bombing of Pearl harbor. -
Yalta Conference
The Yalta conference was between FDR, Stalin and Churchill to discuss Europe's post war reorganization. It was mainly to discuss the re-establishment of the nations of war torn Europe, but within a few years the cold war divided the continent. -
V-E Day
Stands for Victory in Europe Day. It was the day when Europe formally accepted the unconditional surrender of the armed forces of Nazi Germany and the end of Adolph Hitler’s third Reich. -
Potsdam Conference
The meeting was held by Churchill, Stalin, and Harry S. Truman. They gathered to decide how to administer punishment to defeated Germany, which had agreed to an unconditional surrender. The goals of the conference included the establishment of post war order, peace treaties issues, and countering the effects of the war. -
Little Boy and Fat Man Atomic Bombs Dropped
Aug. 6th, 1945 an American plane dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The city was destroyed and 70,000 of its 200,000 citizens were killed. Two days later the soviet union declared war on Japan. The next day the second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. Finally emperor Hirohito forced the government to surrender on Aug 14th. They signed a peace agreement on the USS Missouri in Tokyo bay on September 2, 1945 -
V-J Day
Stands for Victory over Japan Day. On Sept, 2, 1945 a formal surrender was signed on the USS Missouri in Tokyo bay. This ended WWII. -
Nuremberg Trials Begin
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of trials held by the allied forces of WWII for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of Nazi Germany. Most of the important figures of Nazi Germany had already committed suicide before the war had ended.