World War II

Japan invades China, initiating WWII in the Pacific

Jul 7, 1937

Germany, Italy, Great Britain, and France sign the Munich agreement

Sep 29, 1938

which forces the Czechoslovak Republic to cede the Sudetenland, including the key Czechoslovak military defense positions, to Nazi Germany. 20

France and Great Britain guarantee the integrity of the borders of the Polish state

Mar 31, 1939

Germany invades Poland, initiating World War II in Europe.

Sep 1, 1939

Honoring their guarantee of Poland’s borders, Great Britain and France declare war on Germany.

Sep 3, 1939

Italy enters the war. Italy invades southern France on June 21.

Jun 10, 1940

Italy later invades France

Germany, Italy, and Japan sign the Tripartite Pact.

Sep 27, 1940

Japan bombs Pearl Harbor.

Dec 7, 1941

The U.S. would go on to declare war on Japan the next day and enter WWII

Nazi Germany and its Axis partners declare war on the United States.

Dec 11, 1941

U.S. and British troops land at several points on the beaches of Algeria and Morocco in French North Africa.

Nov 8, 1942

The failure of the Vichy French troops to defend against the invasion enables the Allies to move swiftly to the western border of Tunisia, and triggers the German occupation of southern France on November 11.

British and U.S. troops successfully land on the Normandy beaches of France, opening a “Second Front” against the Germans.

Jun 6, 1944

The Germans launch a final offensive in the west, known as the Battle of the Bulge,

Dec 16, 1944

By Jan. 1st, the Germans were on the retreat

Hitler commits suicide.

Apr 30, 1945

Less than 2 weeks later, Germany surrenders

The United States drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima.

Aug 6, 1945

Three days later, the U.S. drops a second bomb on Nagasaki.

Japan formally surrenders, ending World War II.

Aug 14, 1945