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Munich Pact
Germany had taken over neighboring countries, including Austria and the Sudetenland, which made France and Britain nervous. Germany was alsobeginning to build up their military again, which was against the treaty made at the end of World War I. In response, France and Britain decided to appease these actions, and let Hitler take the land as long as they promised not to take any more. Hitler signed the Munich Pact in agreement. -
Germany invades Poland
Germany had already broken the Munich Pact earlier by taking over all of Czechoslovakia, but now Germany had decided to take over Poland. The style of fighting Germany used was called Blitzkrieg or "Lightning War". This meant total destruction of the area with lots of firepower to do the most amount of damage as possible. Germany had also signed a nonagression pact with the Soviets, so they were also attacking Poland from the east. It only took a month for Poland to fall to Germany. -
France & UK Declare War
France and Britain had already forced the Munich Pact on Hitler and appeased Germany's breaking of the pact when they invaded Czechoslovakia. After the news about Poland's invasion, though, they decided to declare war on Germany. A second World War had begun. -
France Falls to Germany
After about a month of fighting, Germany finally defeated the French. On this day the capital of France was taken over, and Germany controlled Northern France, while Southern France remained neutral but collaborated with the Nazis. During the fighting, British troops had to evacuate through Dunkirk, which was called the Miracle at Dunkirtk. 338,000 British troops were saved. -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
Japan attacked one of the United States Navy's most valuable Pacific bases. Japan sent 6 aircraft carriers, 360 airplanes, and several submarines. The fighting came in two waves in order to first destroy all major ships and airplanes, and then to finish off whatever remained. A third wave was intended to strike Pearl Harbor, but was eventually terminated. Several soldiers were killed and wounded, and many valuable ships and airplanes were destroyed. The day after the attack, US declared war. -
US Surrenders in Bataan
After fighting in the Philippines for several months, General Douglas MacArthur had underestimated the strength of the Japanese, so troops retreated to the Bataan Peninsula. MacArthur retreated to Australia, but left 75,000 troops behind. These soldiers had to surrender and marched 55 miles in which more than 7,000 died. It was called the Bataan Death March. -
D-Day
On this day, more than 50 divisions from US, Canada, UK, and Poland attacked five different beaches of Normandy. Of the 50 miles of beaches, the one with the most fighting was at Omaha. About 11,000 planes and 4,400 ships were used in the fighting, and by winning the battle, over 1 million Allie soldiers were in Europe. -
Battle of the Bulge
As a last attempt to win the war, Hitler ordered a counterattack on the Allies. He thought if he could create a separation between the British and United States sectors in Western Europe, that he could destroy their alliance. While Germans did have the element of surprise and their attack almost worked, US troops held control of Bastongne, a major supply camp. -
V-E day
Germany finally surrenders on this day, which is commemortated as Victory in Europe Day. At the end of April, Hitler committed suicide, leaving the country spineless. After the news broke out, people flooded the streets in major cities in the US and in Britain. President FDR did not actually live to see this day, for his death was not long before. -
Atomic Bombs Dropped
After fighting for the last couple years with Japan and their surrender still seeming unlikely, Truman decided to drop the atomic bombs on Japan. His main reason was to save American lives. On August 6, one was dropped on Hiroshima, and on August 9, on was dropped on Nagasaki. The one in Hiroshima killed somewhere between 80,000-120,000 people, and Nagasaki killed between 35,000 and 75,000. -
Japan Surrenders
Emperor Hirohito decided to surrender on August 15 after the two American atomic bombs on Japan (V-J Day). The US did not actually have another atomic bomb available, but Japan did not know that. They officially surrendered, though, on this day. This declared the end of World War 2 and a victory for the Allies.
