World War 2 Timeline

  • Treaty of Versailles

    Signed to end World War I and was based on President Wilson's Fourteen Points, the Treaty of Versailles placed heavy financial burden on post-war Germany. Underlying reason for WW2
  • Washington Naval Conference

    The nations joined this conference and agreed to limit their naval strength and the number of warships being built, this led to the disproportioned Naval power of the U.S, Britain, Japan
  • Kellogg-Briand Pact

    This pact signed by 62 countries held a general agreement that the countries will not use war as a means to resolve international disputes
  • The Puppet State of Manchukuo

    Japan, after invading Manchuria, China, decided to set up a puppet state in order to hide the heinous act the have done.
  • Hitler became Chancellor of Germany

    After the liberal democracy in Germany proved to be useless, young Hitler was appointed Chancellor, it was then that he decided to change the nation inside out and impose his violent and Antisemitic ideals
  • Ethiopean War

    Italy decided to invade Ethiopia in this year in order to raise "national prestige" from a past war that Ethiopia had won over Italy, which avoided them from Italian invasion
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    Neutrality Acts

    During this time, FDR signed into effect a series of laws assuring and maintaining U.S neutrality in the current war and future wars.
  • Election of 1936

    President FDR won his second election by a landslide. This is a referendum to his successful New Deal. This election is followed by the FDR recession in 1937.
  • Japan declare war on China

    Japan and China's full-scale war is often marked as the beginning of World War 2
  • Munich Agreement

    In a conference held in Munich, Germany, leaders of France, Britain, Germany and Italy agreed to have Germany have a piece of Czechoslovakia. This prompted the imminent start of the war, as well as gave Germany confidence that they can take over other European countries
  • Kristallnacht - The Night of Broken Glass

    This horrendous event showed German extremists ideal of Anti-Semitism when they burned down synagogues, Jewish homes and killed Jewish people. By the end of the event, 30000 Jews were captured and brought into German concentration camps
  • German invasion to Poland

    Despite warnings against it from Britain and France, Germany decided to invade Poland. After this, the countries successively decided to declare war on Germany.
  • The Battle of Britain

    German fought Britain by air raids, and was defeated. This bought FDR more time to supply destroyers to Churchill, and reverse American public opinion of foreign war.
  • FDR Fireside chat

    He addressed the nation and mentions a volatile state and hints of U.S war mobilization.
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    The Battle of France

    This battle led to France surrendering to Germany after being crumbled under their forces
  • Lend-Lease Act

    An act signed into effect by FDR in order to give support to Great Britain and provide them equipment for war efforts
  • Operation Barbarossa

    Hitler turned his attention to Russia and attacked them, violating the German-Russian non-aggression act. This led to the beginning of the war on the western front of Europe
  • The Atlantic Charter

    FDR and Winston Churchill drafted the Atlantic Charter- a resolution for peace in the world
  • Pearl Harbor Surprise Attack

    In December 1941, Germany pulled a surprise attack on U.S' Pearl Harbor, marking the official U.S entrance to WW2
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    March on Washington

    A Philip Randolph organized this event to lobby for civil rights and desegregation of the military
  • Mexican Immigration

    Mexican braceros immigrated into the U.S to fill agricultural jobs
  • Japanese Internment Camps

    Executive Order 9066 of FDR authorized the internment of Japanese-Americans and other ethnicities.
  • The Battle of Coral Sea

    This significant battle halted Japanese offense for the first time.
  • The Battle of Midway

    The Japanese navy lost a lot of crew in this battle, gained more time for the U.S.
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    Guadalcanal campaign

    This event started the U.S counteroffensive of "island hopping"
  • Birth of ENIAC

    A team of 6 female programmers created a computer capable of thousands of math calculations in one second
  • Operation Vulcan

    The Allies successfully driven Germany out of North Africa
  • Invasion of Sicily

    This invasion marked the opening of a new major offensive in Europe
  • Operation Overlord

    Also known as the Battle of Normandy, this battle severely weakened German troops and prepared for their downfall
  • The Battle of Leyte Gulf

    This is the largest naval engagement in history, and marked the decisive defeat of Japanese navy
  • The Battle of the Bulge

    This was Germany's last major offensive, depleted German resources
  • The Yalta Conference

    This event discussed the post-war world and partitioning of Germany
  • The Battle of Iwo Jima

    This battle provided the U.S with better potential to move onto mainland Japan.
  • Battle of Okinawa

    The bloodiest battle of the Pacific War, estimation of 250000 - 1000000 American casualties
  • Potsdam Conference

    The meeting of "The Big Three" - Great Britain, Russia, U.S. It was here that President Truman announced that the U.S has detonated successfully the first atomic bomb and composed the Japanese terms of unconditional surrender.
  • Japanese Surrender

    On the USS Missouri, the Japanese signed the instrument of surrender
  • Death of FDR

    President Franklin Delano Roosevelt passed away due to cerebral hemorrhage.
  • VE Day

    Germany's official surrender
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    The Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

    The U.S dropped two deadly bombs to two Japan cities, killing their citizens. This was due to the Japanese not accepting the U.S "unconditional surrender" terms.