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It was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak Republic, and the Soviet Union; and it marked the beginning of World War II. -
Nazi Germany launched a surprise attack against the Soviet Union, who was their ally in the war against Poland. By the end of the year, German troops had advanced hundreds of miles to the outskirts of Moscow. Soon after the invasion, mobile killing units began the mass murder of Soviet Jews. -
the Japanese military launched a surprise attack on the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Since early 1941 the U.S. had been supplying Great Britain in its fight against the Nazis. It had also been pressuring Japan to halt its military expansion in Asia and the Pacific. -
The Battle of Midway turned the tide of the war. Japanese and American naval powers were roughly equalized. The war ended three years later, and today the battle is memorialized by such monuments as Chicago Midway International Airport and the Battle of Midway National Memorial. -
The successful Operation Torch saw the American armies gain their first major victory in World War II. Paratroopers and Rangers from the U.S. Army were also successfully used for the first time at the landings around the city of Oran.