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Hitler Becomes Chancellor
On this day, Hitler, the Fuhrer of the Nazi Party became Chancellor of Germany after making negotiations with the government officials to bring order and control in Reichstag. This title gave Hitler the power to initiate his plan to make Germany the most powerful, one-party nation by establishing the Nazi military force which was dedicated to bring down all those who defied him. Therefore, Hitler's current power and support was the key element to unleashing his savagery later on in WW2. -
Nuremberg Laws in effect against Jews
On this day, the Nuremberg laws were passed which was based on Hitler's antisemitic views against the Jews. This consisted of two laws in which the first was the 'Law for the Protection of German Blood and honor' which prohibited marriages and sexual relationships between Jews and Germans. The second law was the Reich Citizenship Law which classified the Jews as 'state subjects' who were stripped from their citizenship rights as they were 'negligible' to be Reich citizens. -
Italy into Ethiopia
Benito Mussolini, a fascist leader of Italy dispatched the Italians to invade Ethiopia on this day. This action later on led to Ethiopia's first loss of independence as tens of thousands of Ethiopians were killed by poisonous gas. By 1936, Italy was successful in pushing the Ethiopian army back and conquer the capital, Addis Ababa. This Italo-Ethiopian War also highlighted the League of Nations' ineffectiveness as their plan to impose economic sanctions on the aggressor lacked support. -
Italy, Germany and Japan signed Anti-Comintern Pact, against Russia
The Anti-Comintern Pact was an anti-communist agreement signed between three of the major fascist countries at that time; Germany, Italy and Japan. This was against the Communist International but specifically, against the Soviet Union(Russia). The reason why Germany took an interest in Japan was because of its evident success in the opening war against China whereas, Japan took interest in the treaty because of its anger on the nonaggression treaty signed between China and the Soviet Union. -
Anschluss-Germany takes over Austria without fighting
In early 1938, a conspiracy to seize the Austrian government by force and reunite it with Nazi Germany was made by the Austrian Nazis. The Austrian Chancellor, Schuschnigg, was determined to protect his country's independence by calling a national vote to resolve the issue of annexation. However, his effort did not exceed as he resigned from his position due to the pressure inflicted by Hitler. This therefore, allowed Hitler to appoint a new Nazi government and renounce the Anschluss. -
Full invasion and takeover of Czechoslovakia
In late 1938, the Munich Pact was signed which authorized Hitler to take over Sudentenland, Czechoslovakia where many Germans resided, However, with this land taken away by the Germans, the Slovaks were limited in resources and were prone to vulnerability.
Under German pressure, the Slovaks declared their independence and formed a Slovak Republic on this day. Then, the Germans occupied the rump Czech lands in violation of the Munich agreement, forming a Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia. -
German-Soviet Non-aggression Pact
On this day, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union shocked the world as they signed a non-aggression pact between each other where they vowed to seize any military combat for the next 10 years. The Soviet leader viewed this pact as a way to ensure that the Soviet military got time to strengthen. Whereas, Hitler used this pact to ensure lack of opposition when invading Poland. The pact also consisted of a secret agreement in which both countries decided to split Eastern Europe between themselves. -
Germany invades Poland with Blitzkrieg warfare
On this very day, Germany invaded Poland in which the Polish army was defeated within weeks of the invasion specifically due to their lack of awareness and preparation. Additionally, the Germans came up with an effective military tactic called 'The Blitzkrieg' or 'lightning war' which ensured that German units consisted of more than 2,000 tanks and over 1,000 planes which broke through Polish defenses along the border and advanced on Warsaw in a massive encirclement attack. -
Britain declares war on Germany
On this day in 1939, in response to Hitler’s invasion of Poland, Britain and France, both allies of the overrun nation declared war on Germany. In regards to Britain’s response, it was initially no more than the dropping of anti-Nazi propaganda leaflets—13 tons of them—over Germany. However, matters escalated as they instigated the bombing of German ships on September 4, suffering significant losses. Nevertheless, the Allied forces ensured not to harm innocent German civilians. -
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Battle of the Atlantic
The Battle of the Atlantic was Canada's longest military engagement of the Second World War, lasting from September 1939 to May 1945. This battle was bravely fought by the men and women of the Canadian Merchant Navy, the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force. More than 4,600 courageous service men and women lost their lives at sea. -
Canada declares war on Germany
Unlike during WW1, Britain's declaration against Germany didn't automatically commit Canada to join the war. However, after a debate with the Parliament, Canada declared war on Germany on September 10th, 1939. However, the Prime Minister ensured that only volunteers could join the war overseas. As a result, the Canadian army was not in its top shape due to the lack of soldiers, modern equipment, aircrafts and warships. -
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Battle of Britain
This was a battle where German and British air forces clashed in the skies over U.K. It ended when Germany’s Luftwaffe(air force) failed to gain air superiority over the Royal Air Force(RAF) despite months of targeting Britain’s air bases, military posts and, ultimately, its civilian population. Britain’s decisive victory saved the country from a ground invasion and possible occupation by German forces and successfully defeated the French which caused them to withdraw form the War. -
Invasion of Soviet Union
Regarding the German-Soviet nonaggression pact as a temporary tactical maneuver, Hitler launched his armies east to pursue 'Operation Barbarossa', a code name for the massive invasion of the Soviet Union with over 3 million German soldiers. Barbarossa was the crucial turning point in World War II, for its failure(due to Russia's unexpected harsh Winter weather) forced Nazi Germany to fight a two-front war against a coalition possessing immensely superior resources. -
Pearl Harbor Attack
On that day, Japanese planes attacked the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The bombing killed more than 2,300 Americans and completely destroyed the American battleship U.S.S. Arizona and capsized the U.S.S. Oklahoma. The attack sank a total of twelve ships(damaged nine others), and destroyed 160 airplanes with 150 others damaged. The attack took the country by surprise, especially the ill-prepared Pearl Harbor base. -
Japanese-Canadian Internment
After Japan joined the war against Canada, the Japanese-Canadians were suspected of being spies which imminently caused them to be removed from their homes, and sent to internment camps. Over 21,000 Japanese were placed in camps with over 4000 of them forcefully deported to Japan. This act was unjust as it broke many families and ruined many lives as the victims were sent to a country that they did not know of in terms of people and/or language. -
Battle of El Alamein
German forces threatened to seize Egypt and the Suez Canal were defeated by the British This defeat prevented Hitler from gaining access to Middle Eastern oil supplies. -
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Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle started when Germany besieged the Russian city of Stalingrad which led the U.S.S.R. to take the defensive. This battle was considered a long, cold, and bitter battle with up to 1.5 million casualties (including hundreds of thousands of German soldiers who were killed or captured in the months-long siege). Nevertheless, Germany’s defeat at Stalingrad prevented Hitler from seizing Russian oil fields and was the turning of the tide of war in favor of the Allies. -
Dieppe Raid
The Allies launched a major raid on the small French coast port of Dieppe. Operation Jubilee was the first Canadian Army engagement in the European war, designed to test the Allies' ability to launch amphibious assaults against Adolf Hitler's "Fortress Europe." The raid was a disaster: Over 900 Canadian soldiers were killed, and thousands more were wounded and taken prisoner. Despite the bloodshed, the raid provided valuable lessons for Allied amphibious assaults on Africa, Italy and Normandy. -
Battle of Stalingrad
Also known as 'Black Sunday', this was the day in which the first bombs fell on Stalingrad. The Germans had concentrated the bulk of the Luftwaffe in the east for the assault – and they began a systematic block by block destruction of the city that lasted for five days. The Soviets had resisted evacuating the civilians from the city as it was a center for war production – as a consequence, over 40,000 would die in these early stages of the battle. -
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Italian Campaign
This was mainly the Allies' attempt to defeat the Axis powers of Italy and Germany by invading Italy in a series of beach landings and battles from Sicily towards Nazi Germany. Beyond their goal of crushing Italian Axis forces, the Allies wanted to draw German troops away from the main Allied advance through northern Europe to Berlin, Germany. Unfortunately, the Allied advance through Italy produced some of the most bitter, costly fighting of the war, much of it in treacherous mountain terrain. -
D-Day
Code-named 'Operation Overlord', the Battle of Normandy began on this day(D-Day) when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of France’s Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history and required extensive planning. Nevertheless, the liberation of France had been successful in the end which named this battle 'the beginning of the end of war in Europe'. -
Germany surrenders
On May 7, 1945, Germany officially surrendered to the Allies, bringing an end to the European conflict in World War II. General Alfred Jodl, representing the German High Command, signed the unconditional surrender of both east and west forces in Reims, France, which would take effect the following day. As a result, May 8 was declared Victory in Europe (VE) Day, a holiday still celebrated by many European countries. -
Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima
On August 6, 1945, during World War II (1939-45), an American B-29 bomber dropped the world’s first deployed atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The explosion wiped out 90 percent of the city and immediately killed 80,000 people; tens of thousands more would later die of radiation exposure. -
Atomic Bomb on Nagasaki
Three days after the Hiroshima Atomic bomb, a second B-29(from the United States) dropped another A-bomb on Nagasaki, killing an estimated 40,000 people. Japan’s Emperor Hirohito announced his country’s unconditional surrender in World War II in a radio address on August 15, citing the devastating power of “a new and most cruel bomb".
