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Germany invades Poland, starting World War II. Britain and France declare war on Germany.
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Germany invades Norway and Denmark.
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Germany invades Belgium and the Netherlands.
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Germany begins bombing Britain.
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Germany invades the Soviet Union.
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Japan bombs Pearl Harbor. The U.S. declares war on Japan.
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Japan captures Singapore.
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Japan captures the Philippines and Burma.
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The tide turns — the Allies defeat Japan in the Battle of Midway.
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German troops surrender in Stalingrad, USSR.
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Axis troops in northern Africa surrender.
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Italy surrenders.
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U.S. forces invade Tarawa.
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D-day: Allied troops land in France and begin invasion.
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Japan's navy is defeated near the Philippines.
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Germans fight back in Battle of the Bulge.
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Allied troops capture Iwo Jima.
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Germany surrenders, ending World War II in Europe.
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Atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
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Japan signs surrender agreement, ending war.