-
Mount Rushmore
The four presidents carved on Mount Rushmore National Memorial represent the founding, growth, development, and preservation of the United States of America. George Washington is the founding, Thomas Jefferson is the growth, Theodore Roosevelt is the development, and Abraham Lincoln is the preservation. They symbolize freedom, liberty and the power of a dream. For over 70 years, they’ve stood above the Black Hills, inspiring generations of families and visitors who visit from all over the world. -
Pearl Harbor
The Japanese launched a surprise air attack on the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. It was estimated that more than 2,400 Americans were dead, 21 ships had either been sunk or damaged, and more than 188 U.S. aircrafts were destroyed. -
Period: to
The Stranger
The Stranger was taken place throughout the 1940s as there is no specific date. -
D-Day
In the morning, the Allies launched an attack by sea, landing on the beaches of Normandy on the Nazi-occupied Northern part of France. It was the first day of the Battle of Normandy for World War II. By the end of the day, 2,500 Allied soldiers had been killed and another 6,500 wounded. In "The Stranger" Meursault was planning to live in France with Marie. -
Hitler Commits Suicide
Nazi leader Adolf Hitler shot himself in the head with a gun after swallowing cyanide, ending his own life. After seeing her husband dead, Eva Buren killed herself as well. The SS men carried their bodies up to the Chancellery’s courtyard, covered them with gasoline, and lit them on fire. The event of Hitler’s death would mean the end of the Holocaust. -
Germans Surrender
In Italy, the German forces that were fighting were the first to surrender to the Allies. Representatives of the German command in Italy signed the surrender on April 29, and it became effective on May 2, 1945. On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered officially to the western Allies, ending the war in Europe. -
V-E Day
On this day, Great Britain and the United States celebrate Victory in Europe Day. They put out flags and banners, rejoicing in the defeat of the Nazi. On the eighth of May, German troops throughout Europe finally laid down their arms and surrendered. So then the next day ,on May ninth, is when V-E Day would be celebrated. -
The Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The atomic bomb in Hiroshima killed tens of thousands of civilians. Three days later, the United States struck again, this time, on Nagasaki. According to a survivor, they described the civilians by saying that they all had skin blackened by burns, they had no hair because their hair was burned, and at a glance you couldn't tell whether you were looking at them from the front or back. In Hiroshima, about 70,000 civilians died immediately from the explosion and another 70,000 died from radiation -
WWII Ends
It has been two decades since the last global conflict; World War II. The war was the most widespread and deadliest war in history. It involved more than 30 countries and resulted in more than 50 million military and civilian deaths. After the Allies defeated both Nazi Germany and Japan in 1945, the war had ended. -
United Nations founded
On this day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill issued a declaration, signed by representatives of 26 countries, called the “United Nations.” It was made to create an international postwar peacekeeping organization against the Axis Power. It was the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union’s strategy to defeat the Axis Power. -
Berlin Airlift Ends
In June of 1948, the Russians who wanted Berlin all for themselves closed all highways, railroads and canals from western-occupied Germany into western-occupied Berlin. They believed that it would make it impossible for the people who lived there to get food or any other supplies and would eventually drive Britain, France and the U.S. out of the city for good. The U.S. and its allies decided to supply their sectors of the city from the air; known as the "Berlin Airlift."
