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Germany Limits Submarines
Reacting to international outrage at the sinking of the Lusitania and other neutral passenger lines, Kaiser Wilhelm suspends unrestricted submarine warfare. This is an attempt to keep the United States out of the war, but it severely hampers German efforts to prevent American supplies from reaching France and Britain. -
Zimmerman Telegram
British intelligence gives Wilson the so-called Zimmermann Telegram, a message from German foreign secretary Arthur Zimmermann proposing that Mexico side with Germany in case of war between Germany and the United States. In return, Germany promises to return to Mexico the "lost provinces" of Texas and much of the rest of the American Southwest. Mexico declines the offer, but the outrage at this interference in the Western Hemisphere pushes American public opinion to support entering the war. -
Hitler Becomes Chancellor
Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany. -
Roosevelt Limits Ships to Asia
President Franklin D. Roosevelt forbids U.S. ships from carrying arms to China or Japan -
Roosevelt Quarantines War
In response to Japanese action in China, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivers a speech in which he calls for peace-loving nations to act together to "quarantine" aggressors to protect the world from the "disease" of war. -
Attack on the Panay
Japanese warplanes dive-bomb the American gunboat Panay in the Yangtze River in China. Japan apologizes and pays reparations for the lives lost. -
Sudetenland and Appeasement
Leaders of France and Great Britain meet with representatives from Germany, including Adolf Hitler, to discuss Germany's demands, ultimately granting Hitler the Sudetenland in the hopes of gaining "peace with honor." The Czechs are not consulted. -
Kristallnacht
During the German Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass), 7500 Jewish businesses are looted, 191 synagogues are set afire, nearly 100 Jews are killed, and tens of thousands are sent to concentration camps. -
Hitler is Time Man of the Year
Time magazine prints its 1938 Man of the Year edition choosing Adolf Hitler for the title, but does not show the Nazi leader's face on the cover of the publication. -
Roosevelt Writes Hitler and Mussolini
President Franklin D. Roosevelt writes letters to both Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini, requesting they promise not to attack a list of nations for at least ten years. Hitler would respond on behalf of the Italian leader and himself, assuring Roosevelt that he had nothing to fear. -
St. Louis Refusal
Passenger ship St. Louis, containing 907 Jewish refugees, begins its journey back to Europe after the United States refuses to grant it permission to dock. -
Stalin and Hitler Sign Nonaggression Pact
Germany and the Soviet Union agree to a nonaggression pact leaving the Soviets free to strengthen their western frontier, and Hitler free to attack Poland. -
Germany Invades Poland
German troops invade Poland on the ground while Hitler's air force bombs Polish cities from the sky. -
France Surrenders
RANGEEND_HITLERMOVES France, crushed, surrenders to Germany and signs an armistice. Great Britain now stands alone against the Axis powers. -
Congress Enacts Draft
Congress appropriates $16 billion for defense needs, and enacts the first peacetime draft in American history -
U.S. Withholds Gas from Japan
The United States orders gasoline withheld from Japan sparking protest from the Japanese government. -
Roosevelt Aids Britain
President Franklin D. Roosevelt makes a deal to give Great Britain 50 destroyers in exchange for naval bases in Newfoundland, Bermuda, and sites in the Caribbean and the South Atlantic. -
U.S. Extends Japanese Embargo
The United States extends the Japanese embargo to include iron and steel. -
Japan Joins Axis
Responding to the embargoes imposed by the United States, Japan joins the German-Italian coalition. -
Roosevelt Reelected for Third Term
In the presidential election, Democrats break with the two-term tradition and renominate Franklin D. Roosevelt for a third term. Republicans nominate Wendell L. Willkie, a public-utilities executive who shared FDR's views on the war in Europe. Franklin D. Roosevelt defeats Wendell L. Willkie by nearly 5 million popular votes -
Draftees to Camps
The first draft numbers are drawn, sending thousands of draftees to drill camps all over the country.
