History By Benk24 Period: Jan 1, 1921 to Dec 31, 1946 WWII Jan 30, 1921 Adolf Hitler becomes the leader of the Nazi Party Apr 17, 1922 Benito Mussolini appointed Prime Minister of Italy Apr 17, 1929 Josef Stalin sole dictator of the Soviet Union (USSR) Apr 17, 1931 Japan’s Army seizes Manchuria, China Mar 21, 1933 Hitler is named Chancellor of Germany Apr 18, 1935 Neutrality Acts passed by US Congress Apr 19, 1935 Italian Army invades Ethiopia in Africa Apr 18, 1936 Militarist take control of Japanese Government Apr 18, 1936 Hitler sends troops into Rhineland of Germany in violation of the Versailles Treaty Apr 18, 1937 Japan’s army pillages Nanjing, China; massacre a quarter of a million people. Apr 18, 1938 Munich Pact signed giving the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia to Germany Apr 18, 1938 Nazis begin rounding up Jews for labor camps Apr 18, 1939 Sept 1st - Nazis invade Poland; Britain and France declare war on Germany Apr 18, 1939 Nazi-Soviet Pact signed by Hitler and Stalin Apr 18, 1940 Germany invades France and forces it to surrender Apr 18, 1940 Battle of Britain – Royal Air Force defeats German Air Force to prevent invasion of their island Apr 18, 1940 First time Peacetime Draft in US Apr 18, 1940 Nazis invade Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium – take control Apr 18, 1941 Churchill and FDR issue the Atlantic Charter Dec 4, 1941 Pearl Harbor in Hawaii attacked by Japanese Naval and Air forces, US declares war on Japan, Germany and Italy declare war on the US - Dec. 9 Apr 18, 1942 Philippines fall to Japanese – Bataan Death March Apr 18, 1942 Japanese Americans interned in isolated camps Apr 18, 1942 Russians stop Nazi advance at Stalingrad save Moscow Jun 4, 1942 Battle of Midway, turning point of war in the Pacific Apr 18, 1943 British and US forces defeat German and Italian armies in North Africa Apr 18, 1943 Zoot Suit Riots – Los Angeles, CA Aug 18, 1943 Italy surrenders, Mussolini dismissed as Prime Min. Jun 6, 1944 D-Day invasion of France at Normandy by Allies Aug 18, 1944 Paris retaken by Allies Forces Dec 18, 1944 Battle of the Bulge – last offensive of German Forces Jan 18, 1945 US forces return to recapture the Philippines Apr 16, 1945 FDR dies, Harry S. Truman becomes President May 18, 1945 V-E Day, war ends in Europe Aug 14, 1945 V-J Day, Japan surrenders to Allied Forces Aug 18, 1945 First Atomic Bombs dropped Apr 18, 1946 War Crimes Trials held in Nuremburg, Germany; Manila, Philippines and Tokyo, Japan.