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Hitler Launches His First "Saturday Surprise"
Hitler, taking advantage of the vulnerability of the British Governmenrt at the time, called the first of his "Saturday surprises". He announced that he would be rebuilding the German air force, restarting the draft system, and totally "rearming" Germany. He informed the rest of the world that these actions were solely for defensive purposes. -
The German-Italian Alliance Is Formed
Hitler formed an alliance with Italy, led by the fascist dictator Benito Mussolini. This alliance granted Mussolini German condonation for his invasion of Ethiopia. It also opened up the possibility of a German-Austrian alliance. -
German Occupation of Czechoslovakia
Following his official reception of the Sudetenland the year before (1938), Hitler fulfilled his goal to occupy all of Czechoslovakia on March 16, 1939. Despite their outrage when Hitler was officially granted the Sudetenland, many world leaders didn't speak out against this occupation. When leaders did actually speak out, they did so indirectly. That is, they spoke out only against issues that were bound to arise following the complete occupation. -
Germany Declares War on Poland
To many of the German people's dismay, Hitler announced the declaration of war by radio. Because of the horrors and depression that the first World War had brought Germany, this announcement made Germans of all ages very upset. -
German Invasion of Piotrkow, Poland
Following the declaration of war made two days earlier, the Polish city of Piotrkow was heavily bombed. This bombing carried on throughout the entire day, causing many deaths and injuries and destroying many important buildings in the city. An invasion on foot ensued which resulted in the German capture of the entire city. -
Germany Conquers France
As part of Hitler's campaign to conquer Western Europe, the Nazis finally took control of France on June 22. For Germany, this accomplishment meant that they had taken over all of Western Europe with the exception of Great Britain. Prior to June 22nd, Germany had conquered Denmark, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. -
A Jewish Ghetto is Established in Warsaw
The Nazis, after terrorizing many Jews in the city of Lodz in December of the prior year, constructed a large Jewish ghetto in the city of Warsaw. Warsaw contianed a population of 350,000 Jews (the largest population in Europe). This marked a large milestone in the Nazi escalation to the mass murder of 6,000,000 Jews that was the Holocaust. -
Hitler Orders the Invasion of the Soviet Union
In the midst of his thirst for power, Hitler made the command for the German Army to advance into the Soviet Union. Four elite SS squadrons followed in suit, occupying four designated regions of the Soviet Union: Northern Russia, the Russian Front, Northern Ukraine, Southern Ukraine, the Caucasus, and Crimea. -
The United States Declares War on Japan
After the Japanese used the bombing of Pearl Harbor to provoke America, the Americans were forced to give into the instigation and declare war on Japan, thus actively joining the second World War. This event began a domino effect involving Germany, Japan and the U.S. The U,S,'s declaration of war on Japan caused Japan to propose an alliance with Germany, and Japan's proposal led to Germany's declaration of war on the U.S. -
Germany Declares War on the United States
Just like Japan's declaration of war caused a ripple effect between multiple countries, this declaration did likewise. The difference between these two ripple effects is that Germany's declaration united three countries, the Soviet Union, Great Britain, and the United States against Germany. Thus, this influential event also marked a milestone on the progress of World War 2.
