World War II Timeline By kmthelegend Nov 11, 1918 End of World War I End of World War I Period: Dec 18, 1918 to Sep 15, 1940 World War II Timeline Jan 24, 1919 Hitler joins the Nazi Party Feb 26, 1921 Fascist Party established under Mussolini in Italy Oct 31, 1922 Mussolini takes over Italy Dec 30, 1922 Establishment of the USSR Jan 26, 1924 Death of Vladimir Lenin; control of USSR to Joseph Stalin; deaths of 8-13 million Russians Mar 6, 1928 Japanese invasion of Manchuria Apr 17, 1928 US and 61 other countries sign the Kellogg-Briand Pact Jan 31, 1932 Hitler begins military buildup Jan 27, 1933 Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany, May 26, 1933 Roosevelt takes office Nov 9, 1935 US begins passing Neutrality Acts Feb 22, 1936 Civil War begins under Francisco Franco May 7, 1936 Italian troops conquer Ethiopia Nov 5, 1937 Hitler announces secret plans for lebensraum Mar 12, 1938 Hitler takes Austria Sep 30, 1938 Munich Agreement; Sudetenland to Germany Jan 20, 1939 Franco is successful in Spain Feb 28, 1939 Totalitarian government established in the USSR Apr 27, 1939 Russian army into Finland (Finns surrender in three months) Apr 30, 1939 Czechoslovakia falls to Hitler Aug 23, 1939 Non-aggression pact; Germany and Russia; divide Poland Sep 1, 1939 German invasion of Poland; blitzkrieg Feb 19, 1940 Italy enters the war on the side of Germany and invades France Apr 1, 1940 Defeat of the Netherlands, Blegium and Luxembourg by Germany Apr 9, 1940 German invasion of Denmark and Norway Jun 22, 1940 British and French defeat at Dunkirk Jun 22, 1940 France surrenders to Germany Sep 15, 1940 Plans for an invasion of Great Britain; beginning of the Battle of Britain
