Germany invades Poland, initiating World War II in Europe.
Period: to
World War II
Great Britain and France declare war on Germany.
The Soviet Union invades Poland from the east.
The Soviet Union invades Finland
Germany attacks western Europe—France and the neutral Low Countries. Luxembourg is occupied
the Netherlands surrenders
Belgium surrenders
Germany invades Denmark and Norway.
Italy enters the war.
France signs an armistice agreement by which the Germans occupy the northern half of the country and the entire Atlantic coastline. In southern France, a collaborationist regime with its capital in Vichy is established.
Germany, Italy, and Japan sign the Tripartite Pact.
Italy invades Greece
Yugoslavia surrenders
Japan bombs Pearl Harbor.
The United States declares war on Japan, entering World War II.
Nazi Germany and its Axis partners declare war on the United States.
Axis forces in Tunisia surrender to the Allies, ending the North African campaign.
US and British troops land on Sicily. By mid-August, the Allies control Sicily.
Soviet troops liberate Kiev
British and US troops successfully land on the Normandy beaches of France, opening a “Second Front” against the Germans.
Finland concludes an armistice with the Soviet Union, leaving the Axis partnership.
US troops land in the Philippines.
US troops cross the Rhine River at Remagen.
The Soviets launch their final offensive, encircling Berlin
Hitler commits suicide
Germany surrenders to the Soviets
The United States drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
The United States drops an atomic bomb on Nagasaki.
