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The Start of the War
Adolf Hitler, the leader of the party of Nazi Germany at that time, invaded Poland in what was known as the September Campaign. He aimed to expand territory even though he had said it was a "defensive" invasion. This sparked Britain and France to declare war on Germany two days later. -
Auschwitz
In Auschwitz, a large amount of Jewish people and other enemies were killed, amounting to around 1 million people. Gas chambers, slave labor, and even medical experiments were some of the methods of how the people were murdered in the concentration camps. -
Blitzkrieg
To keep their northern advantage, one of the attacks the Germans initiated was invading the Netherlands and Belgium unexpectedly, forcing French and British soldiers to retreat after failing to fight against the German's machine guns and bombs. After the invasion of the Germans, Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain resigned and Winston Churchill took his place. -
Dunkirk
Around 200,000 British and over 100,000 French evacuate in naval ships and civilian boats at the coast of Dunkirk, France in an attempt to flee from the Germans after being attacked. The last day of evacuation was June 4th, 1940. -
Operation Barbarossa
Hitler and over 3 million German soldiers invade the Soviet Union (Russia), spreading out over 2000 miles in an attempt to take over the Slavic state. -
Pearl Harbor
The United States opposed Japan with economic sanctions and trade embargoes after Japan declared war on China, resulting in a backfire when Japan launches a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, a United States Navy base in Hawaii. The US enters into the war. -
Stalingrad
Germany surrenders at Stalingrad and marks one of Germany's most important defeats. The Soviet went on the offensive against the Germans, later on freeing Ukraine, and most of Russia. Germany started losing significantly from then on. -
D Day
Also known as Operation Overlord, around 150,000 Allied soldiers
successfully took over Normandy’s beaches so they could could continue on in France, resulting in more victories later on. More than 4,000 died in this invasion. -
Germany surrenders
By now, Germany was on the path to defeat. Russians invaded Germany and reached Berlin, taking over the city. Before the Soviet could get to him, Hitler committed suicide in his bunker in Berlin by poisoning himself, then continuing to shoot himself in the head. On May 8th, 1945, Germany surrenders to the Allied forces. -
The End of the War
When Japan still persisted in the war despite their unsuccessful attempts to win, an atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, killing close to 80,000 people and injuring thousands also. Another atomic bomb was dropped on the Japanese coastal city of Nagasaki. After the devastation from the bombs, Japan surrendered on November 2nd, 1945, ending the war.
