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war begins when germany invades poland
germany invades poland -
soviet union invades poland
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The Polish government flees into exile via Romania. Germany and the Soviet Union divide Poland between them.
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germany invades denmark and norway
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Germany attacks western Europe
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Italy enters war
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The Soviet Union forces Romania to cede the eastern province of Bessarabia and the northern half of Bukovina to the Soviet Ukraine.
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air war begins (battle of britan)
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The Italians invade British-controlled Egypt from Italian-controlled Libya.
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Germany, Italy, and Japan sign the Tripartite Pact.
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air war ends in defeat for the nazis (battle of britan)
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A Soviet counteroffensive drives the Germans from the Moscow suburbs in chaotic retreat.
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Japan bombs Pearl Harbor
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The United States declares war on Japan, entering World War II.
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Nazi Germany and its Axis partners declare war on the United States.
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British and US navies halt the Japanese naval advance in the central Pacific at Midway.
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US troops halt the Japanese island-hopping advance towards Australia at Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands.
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British troops defeat the Germans and Italians at El Alamein in Egypt, sending the Axis forces in chaotic retreat across Libya to the eastern border of Tunisia.
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The Germans launch a massive tank offensive near Kursk in the Soviet Union. The Soviets blunt the attack within a week and begin an offensive initiative of their own.
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US and British troops land on Sicily. By mid-August, the Allies control Sicily.
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The Fascist Grand Council deposes Benito Mussolini, enabling Italian marshall Pietro Badoglio to form a new government.
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Allied troops land on the beaches of Salerno near Naples.
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Soviet troops liberate Kiev.
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Allied troops land successfully near Anzio, just south of Rome.
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Germany surrenders to the western Allies.
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Germany surrenders to the Soviets
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Hitler commits suicide.
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The United States drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
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The United States drops an atomic bomb on Nagasaki.
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war ends
