Lebensraum 57c5b3c75f9b5855e5cf7d05

German Expansion Timeline

  • Hitler's secret conference

    Hitler's secret conference
    Adolf Hitler held a secret conference during which he revealed his plans for the acquisition of Lebensraum for the German people at the expense of other nations in Europe. Present at this conference were Werner von Blomberg, Werner von Fritsch, Erich Raeder, Hermann Göring, Constantin von Neurath, and Colonel Friedrich Hossbach who attended the conference. Known as the Hossbach Conference or Hossbach Memorandum.Link text
  • Germany annexes Austria

    Germany annexes Austria
    On March 12, 1938, German troops march into Austria to annex the German-speaking nation for the Third Reich. Austrian Nazis conspired for the second time in four years to seize the Austrian government by force and unite their nation with Nazi Germany. The next day, Hitler accompanied German troops into Austria. Hitler appointed a new Nazi government, and on March 13 the Anschluss was proclaimed. Link text
  • Munich Pact signed

    Munich Pact signed
    In 1938, Hitler began to support the demands of Germans living in the Sudeten region of Czechoslovakia. Chamberlain and Prime minister Daladier, unprepared for On September 22, Hitler demanded the immediate cession of the Sudetenland to Germany and the evacuation of the Czechoslovak population by the end of the month. The outbreak of hostilities, traveled to Munich, where they gave in to Hitler’s demands on September 30. Link text
  • Nazis take Czechoslovakia

    Nazis take Czechoslovakia
    Slovakia declared its “independence” on March 14, 1939, with the threat of invasion squelching all debate within the Czech province. On March 15, 1939, during a meeting with Czech President Emil Hacha–a man considered weak, and possibly even senile–Hitler threatened a bombing raid against Prague, the Czech capital, unless he obtained from Hacha free passage for German troops into Czech borders. Link text
  • Non-Aggression Pact with Poland

    Non-Aggression Pact with Poland
    As tension rose over Poland, Stalin surprised everyone by signing Non-aggression Pact with Hitler. On August 23, 1939, fascist Germany and Communist Russia committed to never attacking each other again. This agreement can also be referred to as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. The main people that negotiated this pact were German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop and Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov. Link text
  • The Blitzkrieg Tactic

    The Blitzkrieg Tactic
    Blitzkrieg tactics required the concentration of offensive weapons along a narrow front. German air power prevented the enemy from adequately resupplying or redeploying forces and thereby from sending reinforcements to seal breaches in the front. The first time that they tried this tactic was with Poland on September 1, 1939. This was also during the time that Russia made the Non-aggression pact with Germany.
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  • The German Invasion of Norway

    The German Invasion of Norway
    On the morning of April 9, 1940, Hitler’s troops begin their sweep through Norway—a neutral country—with a single objective in mind. Their leader, Adolf Hitler, plans to turn Norway into a Third-Reich-affiliated nation. Also, Hitler planned to build bases along the
    coasts to strike at Great Britain.Link text
  • Evacuation of Dunkirk

    Evacuation of Dunkirk
    On May 27, 1940, the British, French, Canadian, and Belgian troops had been forced back to Dunkirk by the advancing German army. This event was the evacuation of more than 300,000 Allied soldiers from the beaches of Dunkirk, France between May 26th and June 4th 1940, during World War II. nearly 700 ships brought over 338,000 people back to Britain, including 140,000 soldiers of the French Army. Link text
  • Hitler's victory over France

    Hitler's victory over France
    With Paris fallen and the German conquest of France reaching its conclusion, Marshal Henri Petain replaces Paul Reynaud as prime minister and announces his intention to sign an armistice with the Nazis.This had occurred during the time of June 17, 1940. The Armestice was the agreement that was signed during this event to end fighting. Link text
  • The Battle of Britain

    The Battle of Britain
    German and British air forces clashed in the skies over the United Kingdom, locked in the largest sustained bombing campaign to that date. The Battle of Britain ended when Germany’s Luftwaffe failed to gain air superiority over the Royal Air Force despite when targeting Britain’s air bases, military posts and, ultimately, its civilian population. The Armistice was the agreement that was signed this event to end fighting.Link text
  • The Battle of Britain day

    The Battle of Britain day
    On September 19, Nazi leader Adolf Hitler postponed indefinitely “Operation Sea Lion”–the amphibious invasion of Britain. Although heavy German aid raids on London and other British cities would continue through spring 1941, the Battle of Britain was effectively won. Link text