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Germany Invades Poland
On this day, Germany invaded Polish territory without warning. This was the act that started World War 1. -
Britain and France Declare War on Germany
On this day, Neville Chamberlain requested that Hitler withdraw their troops from Poland or, "a state of war would exist between the two countries." Hitler made no response. -
Winston Churchill Becomes the Prime Minister of Britain
On the 10th of May, 1940, WInston Churchill replaced Neville Chamberlain as the Prime Minister of Britain, defeating Edward Frederick Lindley Wood, aka Lord Halifax(another candidate) in the process. -
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Evacuation of Dunkirk (Operation Dynamo)
On the 10th of May, 1940, Germany made a sudden push through Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg and towards Northern France. As British Prime Minister Churchill saw the potential for his troops to be trapped, he decided to evacuate his troops who had withdrawn back to Dunkirk, by the coast of Northern France. The British Navy was aided by the French Navy in the evacuation of the troops which was led by Admiral Ramsey. Over 320,000 Allies were evacuated in the operation. -
Italy enters the war on the side of the Axis Powers
On this day, Italy (really the dictator of Italy, Benito Mussolini) did what was quoted as,"a stab in the back" by then American President, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Mussolini saw the qucik and effective offense of Hitler and the Nazis and therfore assumed that in no time France would be defeated and then shortly after that, Great Britain would fall too. He hoped to leave Italy out of the conflict for as long as possible and then join the winning side. So, on this day he joined the Axis Powers. -
France signs armistice with Germany
Due to the aggressive and effective invasion of France by Nazi Germany, on the 22nd of June 1940, France signed a truce with Germany. Hitler aimed to disgrace the French and signed the agreement in very similar circumstances to that of the Treaty of Versailles. -
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Battle of Britain
All alone against the might of the Nazis due to the exit of France from WW2, Great Britain and Germany engaged in a battle of air supremacy that would be a major turning point for the war. Despite the effort of the German Luftwaffe, the Royal Air Force proved too much and pushed Germany out. -
Tripartite Pact Signed
The Tripartite Pact, also known as the Berlin Pact, was the official creation of the Axis Powers, which consisted of Germany, Italy and Japan. The agreement stated that if any nation that wasn't in the war yet, invaded one of the Axis Powers, then the other Axis Powers would assist them -
Operation Sea Lion: Planned
In late 1940, Hitler proposed a plan to invade Britain after the Fall of France. It required both the Luftwaffe(German Air Force) and the Kriegsmarine(Germany Navy) to eliminate the British Air Force and prevent Britsh naval inteference so that Hitler may have air superiority over Britain. Over a number of delays, the Luftwaffe attempted to crush the Fighter Command of Britain but were defeated and suffered major losses. As a result, Hitler officially cancelled Operation Sea Lion. -
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Siege of Tobruk
After being pushed back by German General-Lieutenant Erwin Rommel, the British Desert Forces, along with many Australians, retreated to the Egyptian Border, to the port-city of Tobruk. They held Tobruk for 241 days, to prevent vital supplies getting through to the Axis, and forced them to get all their supplies delivered over hundreds of kilometres of desert. They were eventually relieved by the 8th Army. -
Operation Barbarossa
This was the code name for the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany. This invasion, which would prove catastrophic for the Russian people. It was the largest military attack of World War 2 and at the start was to Russia, and also Hitler, suprisingly extremely effective. Hitler's main desire was to capture the Russian capital-Moscow. And he had. However, the use of the blitzkrieg and the attitude of constant movement and advance, became the downfall. The cold was not anticipated. -
Bombing of Pearl Harbor
A suprise to all, and "a date which will live in infamy", the Bombing of Pearl Harbor, near Honolulu Hawaii, resulted in the destruction of huge numbers of naval vessels and airplanes. America was in strife but not conflict with Japan and so did not expect an attack on American soil itself. Therefore, Pearl Harbor was a perfect target for Japan and was a very effective bombing. After two years into WW2, the USA were finally brought into the conflict. -
Britain and USA declare war on Japan
A day after Pearl Harbor, both Great Britain and the US declare war on Japan. -
Japan take Singapore
The fall of Singapore was know as the worst defeat of the Britsh Army in the whole of WW2. The savagery and the speed of the Japanese proved too much for the Brtish defenders. -
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Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a decisive victory for the allies. It was an all-out naval battle between the US and the Japanese. Both sides saw the advantages in winning and after 3 Japanese aircraft carriers were destroyed by the US, the US had won and Japan seemed to be on the defensive for the rest of the war. -
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First Battle of El Alamein
The First Battle of El Alamein was a conflict between the Rommel-lead German Afrika Corps and the General Claude Auchinleck- lead British Army in Egypt. Auchinleck was tasked with preventing Rommel's supplies getting through, so that the conquest of Africa would only stay a dream, and not a fact. -
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Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was one of the most important battles of WW2 and change the war completely. Inching closer and closer to defeat, the Soviet Union made their way to Stalingrad as one last hope against the invading German army. After 2 million civilian and military casualties combined on both sides, the Soviet Union was successful and for the rest of the war turned to the offensive, not the defensive. -
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Second Battle of El Alamein
Auchinleck was eventually relieved by Montgomery due to Auchinleck's failed attempt to increase his men's morale and as a result of the appointment, the Britsh pushed Rommel back to make a decisive and important victory that would increase the faith of the British people toward the outcome of the war. -
D-Day Landings
The D-Day landings (landings of Normandy in Northern France) was the beginning of the end of WW2. After extensive planning, the Allies landed off the coast of Northern France and made their way into Western Europe. This was an extremely succesful invasion and resulted in the liberation of Western Europe. -
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Battle of the Bulge
Battle of the Bulge was a counter-ofensive by the Germans, which was planned by Hitler, to suprise the US troops in Northern Europe and therefore split the Allied army in two. -
Benito Mussolini captured and executed.
Considering the options he had due to the inevitable Allied victory, Mussolini eventually decided to flee to Switzerland to escape capture, trial or execution. However, he was spotted and eventually got captured and executed at the same time, alongside his mistress, Clara Petacci. -
Hitler commits suicide
Underneath his headquarters in Berlin, and knowing of the siege befalling Berlin by the Soviets, Hitler along with his wife, Eva Braun, committed suicide to avoid Allied judgment. -
German forces surrender
On this day, German forces, under General Alfred Jodl, signed an unconditional surrender to the Allied forces, that would end all German participation in the war completely. -
V.E. Day
On this day, Allied nations celebrated "Victory In Europe" and the defeat of Nazi Germany. -
Atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima
US, wanting to put a full and quick end to WW2, dropped an atomic bomb (first and only used in wartime), onto Hiroshima, killing tens of thousands of Japanese people. -
Soviet Union declares war on Japan
Due to the US bombing of Hiroshima not getting the desired effect it wanted, (unconditional surrender of Japan), the Soviet Union decided to step in and invade Manchuria, suprising the Japanese and making them reconsider their choice. -
Atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki
Urging for an unconditional surrender, the US dropped another atomic bomb on Japan, in the city of Nagasaki, killing around 70,00 people. Emperor Hirohito then gave permission to surrender to avoid, "total annihilation of the Japanese people". -
Japan surrenders-End of WW2
On this day, Japan signed an unconditional surrender, bringing an official end to one of the bloodiest conflicts in human history. -
United Nations is born
On this day, The United Nations was created to not only bring the peace between all nations, but to preserve it for the future.
