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The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles is signed by the Allied countries and Germany. This treaty restricts Germany from having any air force, limits its army to 100,000 men, surrender most of their fleets and provide livestock and resources to other countries. -
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Events Leading Up To WW2
World War 2 was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It is estimated that over 60 million people died in WW2 which was a much larger casualty list compared to WW1. Many factors led up to the Second World War and this timeline sets out the major events from 1919 to 1939 year by year. -
The League of Nations
In Geneva, Switzerland the League of Nations meets for the first time. The US is absent due to the Senate voting against joining the League in November 1919 -
The Washington Conference is Held
The conference results in a treaty that gives over 10,000 tons of capital ships to Great Britain, the US, Japan, France, and Italy. They split it into the ratio, in that order, is 5:5:3:1.67:1.67. -
Mussolini and his fascists take power in Italy
Benito Mussolini is made Italian premier by King Victor Emmanuel in an attempt to fight off violent conflict between the Fascists and the Communists. -
Unsuccessful attempt Munich Putsch
Adolf Hitler and General Ludendorff lead a small contingent of followers in a harmless attempt at rebellion. -
Vladimir Lenin Dies
Joseph Stalin beats out Leon Trotsky to take control of the Soviet government after Lenin's death. -
The Locarno Pacts are Signed
A period of peace and prosperity arises as the Locarno Pacts are signed in efforts to stabilize relations with Germany and its neighbours. -
Dictator in Poland
Joseph Pilsudski becomes and maintains the position of dictator in Poland until his death in May 1935. -
Parliament House
The Duke of York officially opens Parliament House in Canberra, Australia. -
Mickey Mouse
The cartoon star Mickey Mouse appears on November 18th in Steamboat Willie, an animated 1928 short film produced by Walt Disney. -
The Wall Street Crash
The Wall Street Crash is the stock-market crash that starts the period of The Great Depression. -
The Great Depression
Due to the Wall Street crash in 1919, 1,350 banks in the US alone fail. Businesses and consumers panic, pulling their money out of the banks after the stock market crash, merely helping the fall. -
Japan Invades Manchuria
The invasion happened due to an explosion that happened near Mukden that caused a section of a railway track owned by the Japanese to be destroyed. The Japanese blamed the Chinese for this happening and as a form of revenge, decided to invade Manchuria. However, there are speculations that the bomb itself was planted by the Japanese for an excuse to invade China. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1921-1936/mukden-incident -
Unemployment in Australia Peaked
In 1932, unemployment in Australia reached an all time high, peaking at nearly 32% of all Australians being unemployed. -
Japan Create Manchukuo
In February 1932, the Japanese's conquest was finished. They declared Manchuria independent from the rest of China and made them the puppet state of Manchukuo. -
Hitler Appointed as Chancellor of Germany
In the 1932 election, the NAZI Party won 37% of the votes and was the most popular party. However, what caused Hitler to be the Chancellor was conservatives convincing the German president to appoint him. This is because while Hitler was a powerful leader, he had no government experience so the conservatives thought they could control him while having an alliance with the NAZIs which would help them greatly. However, this plan backfired greatly as Hitler used his position to gain a dictatorship. -
Japan's Withdrawal from League of Nation
The reason Japan withdrew from the League of Nations was due to their refusal to withdraw their troops from Manchuria. Japan believed that Manchuria was rightfully theirs after getting it from Russia. With 42 parties voting for Japan to withdraw from Manchuria, and one party, which was Japan themselves, voting to not withdraw from Manchuria, it was unanimous that Japan withdrew from Manchuria. Since Japan did not want to do this, they ended up withdrawing from the League of Nations. -
Germany's Withdrawal from League of Nations
Months after Hitler was appointed as the Chancellor of Germany, the German government pulled away from the League of Nations. They did this by getting the Foreign Minister of Germany, Konstantin Freiherr von Neurath, to send a letter to the secretary-general of the League of Nations, Joseph Avenol, regarding Germany's withdrawal. -
Nuremeberg Race Laws
The Nuremberg Race Laws were announced during the annual Nuremberg party rallies. The laws announced are the laws that defined the Nazi ideology. The laws defined Jews not as someone who followed the religion, but instead if a person had connections to Judaism, such as those with Jewish grandparents. The law stated that a "Jew" would not be able to marry or have sexual relations with those of German blood. -
Italy Invades Abyssinia
In 1934, Italy had accused Abyssinia of aggression at an oasis which led to them invading Abyssinia in 1935. What the Italians had used when they attacked the Abyssinians was considered modern at the time. They had armoured vehicles and mustard gas and pre- world war I rifles. The Abyssinians whose army already were a lot smaller than the Italian's stood no chance against them. -
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War was something that happened between the Nationalists and the Republicans. The Nationalists received helped from Italy and Germany while the Republicans received help from the Soviet Union and the International Brigades. The Nationalists comprised mostly of Roman Catholics, important military elements, landowners, and businessmen. The Republicans comprised mostly of urban workers, agricultural labourers, and educated middle class. -
Japan Invades China
When China started resisting Japan completely, it caused the Second Sino-Japanese War to start.The war started because the Japanese troops wanted to control mainland China but the Chinese resisted. In 1945, the Japanese lost to China. China had received a lot of aid from Britain and the USA. A series of attacks from the USA and the Soviet Union towards the Japanese caused them to surrender as they realised they would not have been able to fight anymore. -
Invasion of Poland
On September 1st 1939, Germany invades Poland under the orders of Hitler. This marked the start of World War II. Days after this, on September the 3rd, Australia declared war on Germany.
