-
Germany invades Poland
Germany invades Poland after already taking back Austria, and Czechoslovakia. After the initial attack on Poland, Britain, France and Poland fought back which began WW2. After Germany, Italy, and Japan created the axis alliance. This sparked the beginning of WW2
On the day WW2 started, actress Lily Tomlin was born -
Britain and France Declare War on Germany
Brittan and France declare war on Germany after they invaded Poland. This was because they had agreements to protect Poland in response to Germany's occupation in Czechoslovakia on March 31, 1939. First casualties of this war were British citizens on a ship that was sunken by a German submarine. -
Hitler Invades France
Germany invaded France after France declared war on Germany. The invasion started by Germany going through the forests of the Ardennes. Germany invaded France because they wanted more control over western Europe and posed as a threat. The invasion only took 6 weeks before Germany claimed victory. Allowed Germany to obtain a stronger position in the war as it weakened the allied forces and allowed more control over more land. -
Miracle at Durkirk
British and French troops were able to pull a successful evacuation of over 338k troops and more civilians after German troops advanced. This all took place in the port city of Durkirk in France. This was a forced evacuation as the allied troops were surrounded by German troops.
This event was called a Miracle because the operation only expected to rescue about 45k men but instead they were able to rescue 7x the amount.
This had a major impact as the allied troops didn't lose too many forces. -
Battle of Brittan
A major air battle between Britain's RAF and the German's Luftwaffe. Most of these battles occurred over the southern skies of England. This battle was started by Germany as they wanted control over the air over western Europe as they knew Britain's air force was a threat. This was the first major battle that occurred only in the air. This was very important battle as Victory for Britain mean a delay to the German invasion and time to prepare for the next attack. -
Pearl Harbor happens
Japan decides to bomb USA's Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor is a harbor located in Hawaii. Japan bombed Pearl Harbor because they believed it would interfere in their goal of expansionism. Americans also sunk a Japanese submarine before the attack meaning they initiated the fight. This was a huge impact on WW2 as this was the reason why USA got involved in WW2 and led towards the Japanese surrendering causing Germany to lose an ally. -
USA Joins WW2
USA joins WW2 after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Before Pearl Harbor, USA did have some affiliation with the war as they were suppling Britain and France with supplies, but after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, USA declared war on Japan, and German, Japan, and Italy declared war on USA -
Battle of Midway
The battle of midway was between the US Navy and the Japanese Navy as Japan wanted more control over the pacific ocean. The battle of midway occurred at Midway Atoll which is a small group of islands owned by the US. During this battle, the US destroyed the Japanese carriers which significantly weakened the Japanese army. America was able to win the battle even though they were severely outnumbered. This led to a significant change in the war as it was the turning point in the pacific. -
The Battle of Stalingrad
The battle was primarily a battle between Germany against the Soviet Union. This was a major battle as it lasted 6 months and 2 weeks and was fought around southern Russia by Volga River. This battle occurred as winning this battle would provide the Germans with a strong and strategical location due to the river as well as the industry. During this battle, the average life expectance of a soviet soldier was 24 hours. This was an important battle as it was when the Germans eastern front weakened. -
Raid on Dieppe
The Raid on Dieppe was a test to determine the allies amphibious assault capabilities and to disrupt the German occupied ports. The assault was mainly led by Canadian soldiers followed by Britain, France and US against Germany. Unfortunately the assault failed due to strong German defenses and a lack of air and naval support. The fight was located at Northern France in Dieppe. The Raid on Dieppe was one of the reasons for the successful battle on D-day which was a large turning point in the war. -
D-day
D-Day was one of the largest amphibious invasion during WW2. It consisted of Canada, US, Britain, and France attacking Germany to take back Western Europe. The battle mostly took place on Omaha Beach as it was one of the only ways back into France. This battle happened because the allies wanted to liberate western Europe and to help the Soviet Union as it would apply more pressure on Germany from the opposite direction. The son of the US president was also apart of the storming of the beaches. -
End of WW2 in Europe
This was the date when the German army unconditionally surrendered to the allied forces. This was mostly due to the loss of Berlin as the allies were able to successfully take it over as well as Hitlers suicide on April 30th. Charles Havlat was the last US soldier to die before the end of ww2 in Europe. Additionally Italy also had its dictator executed which left only Japan in WW2 which led to a strong chance the allies would win. -
A-Bomb Dropped on Hiroshima
USA dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima killing over 200 thousand people in an attempt to make Japan surrender as they were the last ones left. It was also a moment where USA could demonstrate their power. USA was hoping this could help them avoid an invasion in Japan. The Bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima was called "little boy" and the bomber that dropped the bomb was called "Enola Gay" -
A-Bomb Dropped on Nagasaki
Again, USA wanted to end the war quicker and decided to drop another A-Bomb on Nagasaki as it was a port town and didn't have much damage. This happened as Japan did not surrender after the first dropping which was 3 days prior to the bombing of Nagasaki. The Atomic bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki was called "Fat Man" due to the large and round shape of the bomb. -
End of WW2
WW2 officially ends after the defeat of Germany, Italy, and Japan and the official signing of all the documents of each country of their surrender. This meant the victory for the allies. The official signing of the surrender document was actually signed on August 6th, almost a month after Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bombed.