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Japan’s Invasion of China
Japan's invasion of China is better known as the Second-Sino Japanese War. Japan's imperialist policies made it hungry for more land and resources that it did not have, so they invaded China. -
Germany Invades Poland
On this day, Hitler invaded Poland by land and air to regain lost territory and rule it. By doing this, he started World War II. -
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain took place in the summer and fall of 1940 and was the air war campaign fought between the German and British Air Forces. It was a major turning point in the war that prevented the Germans from invading Britain. -
Tripartite Pact
On September 27, 1940, Italy, Germany, and Japan became the Axis Powers by signing the Tripartite Pact also known as the Berlin Pact. -
Lend-Lease Act
During World War II, the Lend-Lease Act allowed the U.S. to support other countries without being fully in battle. WIth the permission of Congress, they sent money, arms, and other defense materials to the governments of other countries that were in need. -
German Blitzkrieg on Soviet Union
In June of 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union and used one of their well known military tactics called "Blitzkrieg" or "lightning war." At first, it seemed like Germany was sure to succeed in their invasion, but the Soviet Union was able to defeat them with a counteroffensive. -
Leningrad Blockade
The Leningrad blockade or the Siege of Leningrad was when the Germans surrounded the city of Leningrad in the Soviet Union, and it lasted 900 days. The city refused to surrender even though they quickly ran out of resources and were living in harsh conditions. -
Bombing of Pearl Harbor
After the Japanese bombed the American naval base in Hawaii and killed 2000 Americans, the U.S. declared war on Japan and joined World War II. -
Formation of the U.N.
The formation of the U.N. took place and 26 representatives of different countries signed a declaration and agreed to fight against the Axis Powers. It replaced the League of Nations and promoted international cooperation among countries. -
Wannsee Conference
The purpose of the Wannsee Conference was to find a final solution to the Jewish question. On this day, Nazi officials met to discuss this matter. They basically were trying to find different ways to exterminate the Jews in Europe as quickly as possible. -
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a crucial voctory for the U.S. against the Japanese in World War II. By countering Japan's planned ambush, the U.S. was able to defeat them in this battle and turn offensive. -
D-Day
D-Day was the Allies surprise invasion of Normandy, France in order to fight off the Germans. They breached the German fortresses on the beach and came out with a victory. -
Yalta Conference
This was the second meeting of Roosevelt, Stalin, and Churchill where Stalin agreed to fight against Japan in Asia and allowed free elections in Eastern Europe. The three leaders also started making plans for after the war. -
Iwo Jima/Okinawa
This was the day that Americans started fighting on Japanese Islands at Iwo Jima and Okinawa by island hopping. -
Hitler’s Suicide
Hitler committed suicide on this day in his quarters in Berlin by swallowing cyanide and then shooting himself in the head with a pistol. Germany quickly surrendered to the Allied forces soon after this. -
VE Day
Great Britain, the U.S., and other previously occuppied cities in Western Europe celebrated Victory in Europe Day on May 8, 1945. This day marked the defeat of Nazi Germany when they had finally surrendered. -
Potsdam Conference
The Postdam Conference was attended by Harry S. Truman, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin. They once again discussed how to handle Gemany. Here they established an Allied Control Council for the overseeing of Germany and also a Foreign Ministers Council. -
Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima & Nagasaki
In order to end World War II, the first atomic bomb ever deployed was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. After the Japanese failed to surrender, another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on August 9. Japan announced that they had surrendered a few days later. -
VJ Day
Standing for "Victory over Japan Day," VJ Day was the day that Japan had finally surrendered to the Allies. -
Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine stated that the U.S. would provide assistance politically, militarily, and economically to any democratic country endangered by authoritarian forces. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was also known as the European Recovery Program. Its purpose was to direct over $13 billion to assist the recovery of Europe between the years 1948-1951. The plan was successful and met its goal. -
NATO
Twelve countries joined together in Washington, D.C. to sign the North Atlantic Treaty. It basicaly said that any enemy military attack against these 12 countries meant an attack against all of them. -
Mao Zedong & People’s Republic of China
On this day, Mao Zedong announced the start of the communist People's Republic of China. The U.S. was very shocked by this, and it created an even larger divide between the two countries. -
Korean War
The Korean War began when people from the North Korean People's Army (which was backed by the Soviet Union), invaded Southern Korea which was pro-Western. The U.S. sent their troops to fight for South Korea while they also tried to create an armistice with North Korea. China and the Soviet Union fought on behalf of North Korea, and the U.N. joined forces with South Korea. To this day, the Korean Peninsula is still split. -
Stalin’s Death; Khrushchev
After Stalin's death, Malenkov was next heir in line, but Khrushchev took advantage of him and force him to give up his high positions. -
Warsaw Pact
The Soviet Union and other communist countries in Eastern Europe founded the Warsaw pact to go against NATO. The signing of the pact happened soon after West Germany joined NATO. Members of the Warsaw Pact agreed to defend and detect enemy attacks. -
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a war between Communist North Vietnam (Viet Cong) and its southern supporters and South Vietnam and the U.S. Over 3 million people were killed, and North Vietnam acheived their goal of uniting Vietnam as one socialist state. -
Sputnik
On this day, the Soviet Union launched the first ever artificial satellite, Sputnik. -
Bay of Pigs
It was a failed invasion of Cuba by the American CIA in order to overthrow Castro's communist government which the U.S. did not support by bombing their arifields. -
Berlin Wall
The Communist gosvernment of East Germany started building the Berlin Wall on AUgust 13, 1961 to keep out Western fascists. It stood until November 9, 1989. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Soviet Union installed nuclear-armed Soviet missiles on Cuban shores which were only 90 miles away from U.S. shores. Prsident Kennedy informed Americans that he was ready to take military action if it was needed The Soviet Union retrieved their missiles when the U.S. agreed to not invade Cuba and took their missiles out of Turkey. -
Gorbachev
Gorbachev was the last president of the Soviet Union. He resigned in 1991, and the Soviet Union broke up after this. -
Soviet Union Falls
Representatives from 11 Soviet republics announced that they were forming independent states and would not be apart of the Soviet Union anymore. The cause of this were Gorbachev's radical reforms that he has established during his presidency.
