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Hitler becomes leader of Nazi Party
In early 1921, politician Adolf HItler was already a strong public speaker. When he was first made leader, his own party deemed him dictoral and tried to weaken his powers but elected him Fuhrer of the party after they realized his absence would mean the end of the Nazi Party, -
Benito Mussolini appointed Prime Minister of Italy
After WWI people were looking for a way to make Italy strong again. Mussolini assembled a group together called the Fascists. After he was sworn in he had enough power to make himself dictator of Italy. -
Josef Stalin sole dictator of the Soviet Union (USSR)
After Vladmir Lenin, leader of the communist party, died in 1924, Stalin began to work his way up from General Secretary, eliminated opponents and and eventually became dictator. -
Japan’s Army seizes Manchuria, China
After the Mukden Incident, the Japanese Army, called the Kwantung Army, occupies the northern part of China -
Hitler is named Chancellor of Germany
President Paul von Hindenburg names Hitler the leader or Furher of Germany. -
Neutrality Acts passed by US Congress
These acts, which called for isolationism, meant the US would not get involved in the growing turmoil in Europe, or WWII. -
Italian Army invades Ethiopia in Africa
The Second Italo-Ethiopian War was a colonial war fought between Italy and Ethiopia. -
Hitler sends troops into Rhineland of Germany in violation of the Versailles Treaty
On this date Hitler sends troops into the Rhineland, which directly goes against the conditions in the Treaty of Versailles, which said that the area was to be demilitarized. He did this to spread the power of Nazi Germany. -
Militarist take control of Japanese Government
People who believe a country should have a strong military take over Japan's government. -
Japan’s army pillages Nanjing, China; massacre a quarter of a million people.
The mass killing of many people over six weeks as the Japanese caputure the city of Nanjing -
Munich Pact signed giving the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia to Germany
This pact was to discuss the future of the Sudentenland already inhabited by ethnic Germans. Hitler was making a territorial demand for this area. -
Nazis begin rounding up Jews for labor camps
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Nazi-Soviet Pact signed by Hitler and Stalin
This statement said that the Soviet Union and Germany would not attack each other. -
Nazis invade Poland; Britain and France declare war on Germany
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Nazis invade Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium, they take control
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Germany invades France and forces it to surrender
Six weeks after the Nazis launch their invasion of western Europe, France signed an armistance with Nazi Germany. -
Battle of Britain
Royal Air Force defeats German Air Force to prevent invasion of their island -
First time Peacetime Draft in US
During WWII 15 million Americans were drafted into the way -
Hitler breaks Pact with Stalin’s Russia and invades -USSR which now joins England in fighting the Germans
Under the codename Operation Barbarossa, Nazi Germany invades Soviet Russia, their largest military attack. -
Churchill and FDR issue the Atlantic Charter
The Atlantic Charter was a joint statement that said what the US and Britain aimed for after the war. -
Japanese invade French Indochina (Viet. Laos, Cambodia)
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Pearl Harbor in Hawaii attacked by Japanese Naval and Air forces
The US declares war on Japan soon after Pearl Harbor -
Germany and Italy declare war on the US
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Japanese Americans interned in isolated camps
This was a response to the governments fear of spies from Japan. -
Russians stop Nazi advance at Stalingrad and save Moscow
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major and decisive victory for the Soviet Union against the Nazis. -
Philippines fall to Japanese – Bataan Death March
The Bataan Death March was the forcible transfer of 75,000 Filipino and American prisoners of war to Bataan, after a three month battle. -
Battle of Midway, turning point of war in the Pacific
Six months after Pearl Harbor the US won against the Imperial Japanese Army -
British and US forces defeat German and Italian armies in North Africa
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Zoot Suit Riots – Los Angeles, CA
People who wore Zoot Suits (Mexicans mainly) were seen as unpatriotic because they used a lot of material that was meant to be rationed, -
Italy surrenders, Mussolini dismissed as Prime Minister
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D-Day invasion of France at Normandy by Allies
160,000 Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy to liberate France -
Paris retaken by Allies Forces
The Battle of Paris lasted until the 25th until the occupying Nazi forces signed an armistance -
Battle of the Bulge – last offensive of German Forces
The Battle of the Bulge was the bloodiest battle in World War II but it resulted in an Allied victory -
US forces return to recapture the Philippines
Recapture from Japan -
FDR dies, Harry S. Truman becomes President
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt suddenly passes away after four terms in office -
V-E Day, war ends in Europe
German forces officially surrendered, ending WWII -
First Atomic Bombs dropped
After the defeat of Germany, the US looked to Japan. The first atomic bomb was called "Little Boy" and was dropped on Hiroshima. The second was called "Fat Man" and was dropped three days later on Nagasaki. -
V-J Day, Japan surrenders to Allied Forces
On August 14 Emperor Hirohito announced that Japan would surrender unconditionally. The surrender took place September 2 aboard the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay. -
War Crimes Trials held in Nuremburg, Germany; Manila, Philippines and Tokyo, Japan
Leaders of Nazi Germany were brought to multiple military court sessions for war crimes and other crimes against humanity.