-
Invasion of Manchuria
This was the brazen violation of treaty agreements by Japan, where they started to invade China.
(https://www.historycentral.com/DEP/JapanInvadesManchuria.html) -
Hitler becomes Chancellor
Hitler was made fuhrer of Germany by President Paul von Hindenburg on this day. The position was meant to be a combination of president and chancellor.
(https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/adolf-hitler-is-named-chancellor-of-germany) -
Invasion of Ethiopia
This was the push of the Italians to take over the weak Ethiopia. The League of Nations condemned the action, but could do nothing to stop it.
(https://www.britannica.com/event/Italo-Ethiopian-War-1935-1936) -
Munich Conference
This was a conference designated to negotiate for the annexation of the Sudetenland to Germany. It was, however, further proof of the inaction of the League of Nations.
(https://www.historytoday.com/archive/munich-conference) -
Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht, or the Night of Broken Glass, was the mass burning of Jewish synagogues and businesses. It was an evil response to the supposed assassination of a German diplomat by a Jew.
(https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/kristallnacht) -
Non-Aggression Pact
This agreement between the Soviet Union and Germany stated that neither would attack the other for the next ten years. Both countries used it to buy time, until the Germans attacked and invaded.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/german-soviet-nonaggression-pact) -
Invasion of Poland
This invasion was the actual starting point of WWII. Poland had alliances with France and Great Britain should Germany attack, thus the declaration of war.
(https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/invasion-of-poland-fall-1939) -
Invasion of France
The Germans took France in only 46 days (Timeline date is beginning), outmaneuvering defenses and driving out British troops. They did so because they saw a weak point in the Maginot line, a series of defenses designed to stop them.
(https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-France-World-War-II) -
Dunkirk
Dunkirk was the site of one of the largest evacuations by sea. Allied troops, with their backs to the sea and nowhere to go, trapped by the Germans, successfully escaped through the help of civilian craft from Great Britain.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/dunkirk) -
The Battle of Britain
This was an intense battle between the German Luftwaffe and the British Royal Air Force, or RAF. It was a fierce battle, the outcome of which turned the tide of the war for Britain.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-britain-1) -
Pearl Harbor
December 7, 1941, and in Roosevelt's words, "A day which shall live in infamy." Pearl Harbor was the site of a devastating surprise attack by the Japanese against the U.S. Navy stationed at the base.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor) -
Bataan Death March
The Bataan Death March was the forced marching of captured soldiers from the Philippines by the Japanese. It was brutal, with thousands dying from hunger or from the cruelty of the guards.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bataan-death-march) -
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a critical turning point for the war in the Pacific. It was where the American Navy and its aircraft successfully repelled Japanese invaders from the islands and devastated the Japanese navy.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-midway) -
Stalingrad
This was a battle between the German army and the Soviet civilians and troops. It was brutal, with hand-to-hand combat very common, and thousands of lives were lost.
(https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Stalingrad) -
Normandy Invasion (D-Day)
This event, officially called Operation Overlord, was the Allied attempt to get a foothold into France, from which they could free the rest of Europe. The operation was a success, but had a high cost.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day) -
The Battle of the Bulge
This battle was the last major German offensive of the war. It derived its name from the apparent bulge in the combat line.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-the-bulge) -
Yalta Conference
The "Big Three" met at Yalta to discuss the terms for Germany and what was to be done with them. They decidedly split the country in four pieces, one for each major country that had participated, and Berlin was also divided.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/yalta-conference) -
Iwo Jima and Okinawa
Iwo Jima and Okinawa were the sites of some of the bloodiest combat in the Pacific. It was also the location where the Kamikaze suicide bombers first came into play.
(https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/iwo-jima-and-okinawa-death-japans-doorstep) -
V-E Day
The official end to the war in Europe occurred on this day with the signing of surrender by the Germans. It was not the end of the war, however, because Japan was still fighting in the Pacific.
(https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/victory-in-europe) -
Atomic Bombings of Japan
The Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bombed as an alternative to an all-out invasion of Japan. It saved thousands of American lives, and possibly many Japanese who had said that they would fight to the last man, woman, and child.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bombing-of-hiroshima-and-nagasaki) -
V-J Day
V-J Day, or Victory in Japan Day, was the final, official end to WWII. Japan had no choice but to surrender, or face more atomic bombing.
(https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/v-j-day)
