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Japan's Invasion of China
China was supported by the US, Germany, and the Soviet Union and gave up land to Japan initially before reaching a stalemate. Once WWII broke out, China joined the Allies and once Japan was defeated in WWII, they eventually surrendered in China. -
Germany invades Poland
Germany begins blitzkrieg and air raids over Poland to regain lost territory due to WWI. Germany eventually wins and this begins WWII. -
Battle of Britain
A German air campaign to gain and maintain air superiority over the British. -
Tripartite Pact
An agreement between Germany, Italy, and Japan with the addition of some other states that they would protect each other. -
Lend-Lease Act
An act passed by the US to provide military aid to the Allies and bring the US further out of Isolation. Taft said the bill would "give the President power to carry on a kind of undeclared war all over the world." -
German Blitzkrieg on the Soviet Union
Germany used blitzkrieg or lightening war against the Soviet Union and it was greatly successful until the Germans were defeated at Stalingrad and they were continually pushed back by the Soviet Union until the end of the war. -
Leningrad Blockade
Germany encircles Leningrad and cut off supply lines in an attempt to force a surrender or kill all Soviet civilians and soldiers within the city. -
Pearl Harbor Bombing
The Japanese use fighter planes and submarines to attack Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and destroyed many US ships and carriers at the naval base. -
Formation of the UN
26 nations met to sign the Declaration of the United Nations which was to pledge all of their resources against the Axis powers called the Atlantic Charter. The actual UN was created October 24, 1945. -
Wannsee Conference
A conference between 15 high ranking Nazi officials met to determine the mass murder plan for the extinction of Jews and other races. -
Battle of Midway
An extremely important naval battle between the US and Japan where the US sank 4 Japanese aircraft cariers at the cost of only 1. This only happenned due to America cracking the Japanese code and it turned the tide as Japan's industry couldn't sustain their losses. -
D-Day
An allied, amphibious landing on Normandy France that had been preceded by aerial bombings, fake radio transmissions, and even fake armies landing in other places on the war front. This invasion was the largest in seaborne history and was a major factor in the allied victory. -
Yalta Conference
A meeting between the US, UK, and Soviet Union to discuss post-war reorganization and redraw country borders. -
Iwo Jima/Okinawa
A battle to take two close islands to Japan that would allow B-29 bombers to attack mainland Japan. These islands were well fortified and while the US lost thousands of men, the Japanese lost tens of thousands more. -
Hitler's Suicide
Hitler consumes a cyanide capsule before shooting himself in his bunker during the Battle of Berlin. He was not officially declared dead until 1956. -
Victory in Europe Day
After Hitler commited Suicide on April 30, Karl Donitz signed the formal military surrender in France. The same surrender was reenacted in Germany on May 8th for the Soviet Union. -
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong establishes the Communist Party in China and begins one of the most controversial and important rulers in Chinese history.He led China until September 9, 1976. -
Potsdam Conference
A conference between just the US, USSR, and the UK to discuss their ideas on German punishments and post-war problems. -
Atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Two atomic bombs were detonated over major Japanese cities in an attempt to end the war quickly. Rather than a US-led ground invasion of mainland Japan, the bombs were predicted to save hundreds of thousands if Japan surrendered. The US threatened Japan with false statements of having several more bombs ready to be dropped to further force Japan's surrender. -
Victory over Japan Day
Japan informally surrendered to the US and later they formally surrendered on September 2 (also refered to as VJ day). -
Truman Doctrine
A speech that esentially removed our isolationist policy by promising political, economic, and military assistance to any democratic government that is being pressured by authoritarian forces. -
Marshall Plan
An aid plan to support and rebuild Europe after WWII. More aid was given based on industrialization and whether the country was a part of the allies or the axis. -
NATO
An organization where any member state agrees to defend another member state from attack from an outer force. -
Korean War
A war between South Korea, US, UK, and the UN against North Korea, China, and the Soviet Union. Several attempts to invade each other caused large back and forth changes in the front lines, but neither side could force the surrender of the other and an armistice was signed splitting the two countries at the 38th parallel. -
Stalin's Death/Khrushchev
Stalin dies leaving the ruler of the Soviet Union unoccupied, leading to a power struggle. Khrushchev rose to power for a significant part of the Cold War and worked to de-Stalinize the Soviet Union. -
Warsaw Pact
The pact was a defensive treaty among all of the communist states of central and eastern Europe. It was mainly formed by the Soviet Union as they reacted to the integration of West Germany into Nato. -
Vietnam War
An anti-communism war is fought between North Vietnam and South Vietnam. Each side had support for major powers such as China, the Soviet Union, and the US. -
Sputnik 1
The worlds first artificial satellite to be succesfully launched into space in a low orbit by the Soviet Union. This threatened the US and began the Space Race. -
Bay of Pigs
An invasion of Cuba by the US and DRF in an attempt to overthrow Castro and the communist government that failed and was defeated within three days. -
Berlin Wall
A barrier created between East and West Germany to seperate the communists in East Berlin from West Berlin and it was mainly created to prevent or slow defection in East Berlin. -
Cuban Missle Crisis
Soviet nuclear missiles were placed in Cuba in response to the Bay of Pigs invasions and the placement of US missiles in Italy and Turkey. The US U-2 spyplanes spotted them and blockaded Cuba until an agreement was reached with the Soviet Union that the missiles would be removed. -
Gorbachev becomes President of the Soviet Union
Mikhail Gorbachev becomes the final president of the Soviet Union after being General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union for 5 years. -
The Soviet Union Falls
The Soviet Union is officially dissolved as Mikhail Gorbachev releases all of his power and the power of the communist party,
