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Rape of Nanjing
The true beginning of the war, Japan invades China in july of 1937 eventually culminating in attack on the city of Nanjing. Commonly known as the "Rape of Nanjing" the japanese murdered, molested and burned alive 300,000 out of 600,000 chinese civilians and soldiers in the city, -
Kristallnacht -- "Night of Broken Glass"
Called kristallnacht for the shattered glass of windows in Jewish Storefronts, houses, and synagogues, on the 9th and 10th of November Nazi soldiers in austria and germany terroized the jewish population. More than 30000 jewish people were taken and placed in concentration camps on that night, and many jewish owned buildings were looted and burned. -
Soviet Union and Germany Sign Non-Aggression Pact
Hitler organizes a non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union in an attempt to avoid the two-front war which ended the first world war for the Germans. However the pact was abandoned with the invasion of Poland. -
Germany Invades Poland: WWII begins in Europe.
The event that marked the beginning of the war as it is commonly viewed, on september 1st germany launched a month long campaign that it refered to as "Fall Weiß ." The campaign ended with the division of Poland whose parts were then annexed by Germany and the Soviet Union. -
Britain and France declare war on Germany
In response to the german invasion of Poland, both Britain and France declared war on germany on this day in 1939. However it was not a German that first suffered from this declaration but rather the British ocean linear Athenia, a ship with more than 1000 passengers, 112 of whom were lost at sea. -
France Surrenders to Germany
Known as the Fall of France the successful invasion of France by the germans began on the 10th of May. The germans overwhelmed the french with their superior air support and cleverly preformed flanking manuevers resulting in the German occupation of Paris by the 14th of June. however it wasn't until the 22nd that an official armistice was signed. -
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Battle of Britain
The german campaign against the united kingdom by the German airforce, it was the first major campaign to be fought totally by air forces. The Germans were unable to accomplish their goal of destroying the british air force or forcing england into surrender, and was considered the first major loss for the Nazi party and a crucial turning point in the war. -
The Blitz
Over a period of 37 weeks, german air forces constantly bombed the United Kingdom in a never ending series of aerial strikes. London was attacked 71 times, and 15 other british cities were also targeted. More than 40000 civilians were killed by the bombings. -
Operation Barbarossa
The code name for the German invasion of Soviet Union, it began on June 22nd of 1941 and lasted for three years. Over 4 million axis troops were a part of the major campaign against the Soviet Union making it the single largest military operation in history in manpower, as well as in casualties. -
Atlantic Charter
A document drafted by the allied powers that outlined the goals for a post-war world. It was basially a document saying that after the war was over the allies would do what they could to minimize the damage done by the war. -
Pearl Harbor
A surprise military strike by the Japanese on the Hawaiian naval base located at Pearl Harbor, this attack is best known as the event that really dragged America into WWII. The attack was intended to be preventative by the Japanese, to protect it's military and trade interests in the Pacific Ocean, but it really backfired. More than 2000 americans were killed in the attack, 3 cruisers and 3 destroyers were also destroyed along with some 188 US aircraft. -
US declares war on Japan
With the recently sunk American ships moldering at the bottom of Pearl Harbor, along with the brave americans who had died in the attack, FDR requested and received a declaration of war from congress. -
Germany and Italy declare war on the US
In retalliation for the US declaration of war against their asian allies, Adolf Hitler declares war on the US, dragging the once neutral country into the European conflict. Thought even Hitler was surprised by the attack on Pearl Harbor he maintained the alliance he had formed with the Japanese. -
FDR orders executive order 9066
Executive order 9066 was a Presidental Order to detain all citizens of Japanese decent and place them in Internment camps. The order was spurred by the recent Japanese attacks on American soil and war hysteria. Citizens of German and Italian decent were also targeted. -
MacArthur Loses the Philippines
On this Gen. MacArthur, at the behest of FDR, abandons the philippines and American defense of the island collapses to the Japanese. -
Germany Defeated Stalingrad
A major battle in WWII it, this battle was the fight between the Soviet Union and Germany for the city of Stalingrad. Though the Germans emerged victorious, fighting was constantly close quarters and casualties were extremely lofty on both sides. The battle is known as one of the bloodiest in history. -
FDR Approves the Manhattan Project
FDR gives approval of a government investment in excess of $2 billion to the Manhattan Project, which eventually culminated with the development of the two atomic bombs that were dropped on Japanese soil. -
D-Day Invasion
The "Storm of Normandy" was a very important battle in WWII. It was a successful attempt by the Allied forces to retake a strategic position in france. Known best for the hellish conditions surmounted by the allies who came in by boat to a storm of German fire, more than 10000 allied forces died on that day. -
Battle of the Bulge
The costliest battle for the United States, the major german offensive came as a surprise to the allied forces which were swept inward. In fact the inward bulge of the allied lines was the inspiration for the common name of the battle. -
Hitler Commits Suicide
Rather than answer for his crimes and suffer the consequences, the German dictator and head of the Nazi party commited suicide by shooting himself in the head. Hitler had decided to remain in Berlin in mid january, to "go down with the ship" persay and stayed there throughout the final days of the war. -
V-E Day
Victory in Europe day, marks the official surrender of the german forces and more or less the end of the war. Following the death of Hitler german leaders signed the unconditional surrender on this day. -
USA Drops Atomic Bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The culmination of the "Manhattan Project" the two atomic bombs that America was able to produce were dropped on japanese soil, which many would argue was the final straw in ending the war. Resulting in somewhere between 150-240 thousand civilian deaths from acute effects alone the bombings were and remains to this day a controversial topic. -
V-J Day
Victory over Japan day, marked the official end of the war. Japan threw in the towel shortly following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and submitted to the American terms of unconditional surrender. -
United Nations Founded
Following the war, as an attempt to prevent something similar from ever happening again the world powers formed the United Nations, an organization dedicated to world peace and the maintance of alliances.