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Franz Ferdinand's Assassination
Known as the event that sparked World War I, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the “straw that broke the camel’s back” for Austria-Hungary. Franz and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were both shot and killed by Gavrilo Princip, a member of a group of assassins organized and armed by the Black Hand. Serbia was behind the attack and the motive of the assassination was to rebel against Austria-Hungary and make Serbia an independent nation. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was negotiated in Paris by the Allies with little input by the Germans. The treaty revealed that France wanted to split up Germany to prevent future wars. Basically, the treaty’s purpose was to keep Germany in line and force them to accept responsibility for the damage they caused to the Allies. Many nations were against the treaty but others were supporting it. In 1935, Hitler denounced the treaty altogether. -
Beer Hall Putsch
The goal was to take over the government, however, they failed. Their plan was to kidnap Gustav von Kahr, the state commissioner of Bavaria, and protest in order to gain control. This was inspired by a similar attempt to gain control made by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini which was successful, unlike Hitler’s attempt. Hitler left the beer hall to deal with crises somewhere else in the city, leaving the Nazis by themselves. -
Japan invades Manchuria
Japan claimed that the Chinese soldiers had sabotaged the railway, and attacked the Japanese army. The Chinese army did not fight back because it knew that the Japanese were just wanting an excuse to take over Manchuria. -
Hitler's Rise to Power
After World War I, Hitler became the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party. He thought that would be his way to eventually become the ruler of Germany. He made people believe what he was doing was to benefit them. He believed fighting battles that could gain Germany land for the people was the way to go. When Hitler came to power in 1933, Germany started preparing for wars. They focused on making weapons and prepared for long trips across the world to fight for land. -
President Von Hindenburg
Paul Von Hindenburg was the man that named Hitler the chancellor of Germany. He was a German World War I military commander and president. Hindenburg was modest and honorable. He fought in many wars like the Austro-Prussian War and the Franco-German War. Retiring for a short time in 1911, he was called back to duty for the beginning of World War I. He worked alongside Erich Ludendorff as commander of the Eighth Army and then became chief of the General Staff. -
Nuremberg Race Laws
At the annual party rally held in Nuremberg in 1935, Hitler announced German Jews couldn’t be Reich citizens. He also said Jews could not marry Germans. Many of the racial theories Nazis supported were discussed. If you weren’t necessarily Jewish yourself but your grandparents were, you were considered a Jew and treated like one. However, when it came time for the Olympics, Hitler had some of the racist signs and posters took down all across Berlin to maintain their image. -
Kristallnacht
On November 9 to November 10, 1938, hundreds of Nazis took place in what is called “Kristallnacht”. They burned down synagogues, vandalized Jewish homes, and killed about 100 Jews. Some people call Kristallnacht the “Night of Broken Glass”. About 30,000 Jewish men were arrested and sent to Nazi concentration camps right after Kristallnacht. This event was one of the first violent acts against Jews by the Nazis. -
The Axis and the Allies
The main Allies were Great Britain, France, Russia, and the United States. The purpose behind the Allies was to defend themselves against the Axis powers. At the beginning of World War II, Germany and Russia were friends. However, Hitler ordered a surprise attack on Russia. When Japan attacked the United States, they decided to join the Allies also. The main Axis powers were Germany, Italy, and Japan. Germany and Italy signed an agreement saying they were in an alliance. -
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is the reason behind the United States becoming a part of World War II. On December 7, 1941, Japan flew over Pearl Harbor and tried to destroy the entire South Pacific naval fleet. Luckily, the aircraft had just taken off from the ships. When the Japanese would sink the ships, the sailors had nowhere to escape and they drowned with the ship. There were 2,403 people that died because of Pearl Harbor. -
Liberation of Camps
As the Allies began to move across Europe into Germany, they discovered thousands of concentration camp prisoners. Soviet forces were the first to explore the major camps. Germany was shocked by the advance of the Soviet forces so they attempted to destroy evidence of the camps by burning them down. Soviet forces were finding evidence of mass murders and emaciated prisoners left behind. They saved millions of Jews from dying in the camps by liberating them. -
Germany Surrenders
On May 7, 1945, Germany’s leader at the time signed a surrender stating all German forces would stop. Originally, the plan was to only surrender a part of the German army, however, General Dwight Eisenhower demanded total surrender of all German forces. If Germany did not agree to the deal, they were prepared to fight, and win.
