WW2 Major Events Timeline

By Sangha
  • Hitler invades Poland

    Hitler invades Poland

    Germany penetrated Poland in order to reclaim and task management that had been lost following World War I. The – anti deal with the USSR ensured that Germany would strike if the USSR took action. Britain and France would war against Germany when Hitler rejected to evacuate Poland.
  • Battle of the Atlantic

    Battle of the Atlantic

    The war for control of the Atlantic among Germany and the Allies. During WWII, this was the oldest active fight. Britain relied on the Atlantic with all its assets, and if it were to relinquish it, it would incur a loss to all of them.
  • Miracle at Dunkirk

    Miracle at Dunkirk

    More than 338,000 British and French personnel were evacuated. The Royal Air Force of the United Kingdom proved crucial in this, intercepting German airstrikes from over the shore. This would increase British troop morale and provide them with a larger force.
  • Fall of France

    Fall of France

    Once the France war was declared, Germany conquered France and Belgium. They followed the same approach as in WW1, passing throughout Belgium, however this time they were victorious, taking little over a month to accomplish it. France was one of Germany's most formidable foes in the war and dominating it increased Germany's chances of victory.
  • Battle of Britain

    Battle of Britain

    Germany ordered fighter bombers to attack Britain's ports, air defenses, aircraft manufacturers, and radars in order to degrade the country's air defenses. Victory permitted Britain to avoid Nazi domination and provide a staging area for the invasion of Normandy on D-day.
  • Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor

    Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor

    The Japanese military conducted an unexpected strike on the US naval facility in Honolulu, Pearl Harbor. The USS Arizona, which perished with over 1000 soldiers on board, was successfully sunk and detonated by the Japanese navy. The strike would break America's exclusion in the war and lead to the United States unleashing an atomic bomb on The Japanese.
  • Japan's Invasion of Hong Kong

    Japan's Invasion of Hong Kong

    Beginning on December 8, Japan launched airstrikes on Hong Kong, again on December 18, Japanese troops arrived in Hong Kong. On December 25, Japanese forces seized Hong Kong from the British, taking no captives and killing soldiers. This was one of the earliest Pacific conflicts of WWII, and Britain lost one of its colonies.
  • Battle of Dieppe

    Battle of Dieppe

    The Allies attempted a large military coup on the French port of Dieppe, but it was ineffective. The German protections were tougher than the allies had anticipated, and the Canadian naval and air force were unavailable to assist them. After the attack, many troops were killed or taken hostage, and the allies learned a great deal that would contribute to D-triumph.
  • Italian Campaign

    Italian Campaign

    From the south, Coalition troops led A force into Italy, marching up the mainland till they were near Germany. It would result in Mussolini's demise as well as the finish of fascism in Italy.
  • D-Day

    D-Day

    The coalition troops began a marine, aerial, and ground assault on Nazi-occupied France. In the north of France, Allied soldiers parachuted into drop zones. Land soldiers then landed on 5 different beaches. Germany failed to gain the war after D-Day and surrendered just under a year afterward.
  • End of the War in Europe (Germany Surrenders)

    End of the War in Europe (Germany Surrenders)

    The German Instrument of Defeat was signed, signaling the end of Germany's involvement in World War II as well as the Nazi Party.
  • USA Drops Atomic Bombs

    USA Drops Atomic Bombs

    On August 9, the United States detonated nuclear bombs, killing between 129,000 and 226,000 people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This was the first and only occasion a nuclear bomb was used in a battle or armed combat, and it remains so today.
  • End of the War in Pacific (Japan Surrenders)

    End of the War in Pacific (Japan Surrenders)

    On August 15, barely six days after the United States launched a nuclear warhead on Nagasaki, Japan proclaimed its withdrawal from WWII. On September 2, they agreed to sign their capitulation papers, formally ending World War II.