-
The War Begins
Adolf Hitler started the War with the invasion of Poland on September 1st. Earlier that year in August, Germany signed an agreement with Russia. This agreement stated that if Germany were to invade Poland, Russia would not intervene. Hitler took advantage of this on September 1st. Within just weeks, Poland was defeated. This German invasion was the gateway to years of brutal war. -
Period: to
World War II Timespan
The war began with the invasion of Poland by Germany and ended with Japan's unconditional surrender -
Blitzkrieg
Hitler launched the blitzkrieg (lighning war) attack on Belgium and Holland. Rotterdam, Holland was destroyed almost to extinction. Both of these countries became occupied by Germany. Blitzkrieg was based on speed, co-ordination, surprise, and movement. It pushed back the French and British armies in just a few weeks to Dunkirk. -
Tripartite Act
On this day, the signing of the Tripartite Act in Berlin, formed Germany, Italy, and Japan into allies. This act ensured that if any of the three Axis Powers were to be attacked by any other nation, the other two countries would assist in protection. Not only was this between just those three countries, however. The Tripartite Act was also designed to give the 'neutral' United States a warning about choosing the side of the Allies. -
Operation Barbarossa
This operation was led by Hitler to take on Russia. This was the largest military attack of World War II. This attack was executed with three large German army groups. Although they arrived in Russia with plenty of manpower and artillary, they underestimated the difficulty of the attack. The rain turned roads into morasses. Although they caused a lot of damage to the Soviet army, Germany eventually retreated. -
Battle of Midway
-
Pearl Harbor
The Pearl Harbor bombing by Japanese aircraft carriers and subs took the American Naval base by surprise. The lack of preperation for such attack led to over 1500 deaths and the destruction of the entire U.S. Pacific Fleet. The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor to ensure their expansion in the Pacific without US intervention. This attack is what brought the US into the War -
D-Day - codename Operation Overlord
D - Day, an invasion by some 156,000 British, American, and Canadian troops, was one of the largest amphibious military attacks in history. The troops arrives on 5 different beaches on the coast of France's Normandy region. This invasion liberated all of France's northern region and lead to Germany's defeat. -
Allies Meet in Tehran
On this day in World War II, the Big Three - Churchill, Stalin, and Roosevelt - met for the first time in Tehran, Iran. They met to discuss not only postwar plans for Germany, but to discuss how to take the offensive against Nazi Germany as well. -
Germany Surrenders
On this day, just days after Adolf Hitler commited suicide, Germany unconditionally surrendered. Eisenhower forced complete surrender, not giving way to Germany's plea to surrender just the forces fighting the Western Allies. This surreneder ended the war in the West. -
Japan Surrenders
Officially bringing the end to World War II, Japan finally surrenders to the Allies aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The Japanese defeat had been more than obvious after the US bombing of two major Japanese cities and the destruction of the their air force and navy. With the economy and the country as a whole totally ruined, Japan had no choice but to surrender. This victory for the Allies put a fortunate spin on the conclusion of World War II.
