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Period: to
WW2
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Germany Invades Poland
Germany and the Soviet Union attach Poland and split it. -
Britain and France Declare War
Britain and France declare war on Germany honoring their commitment to Poland.President Franklin D. Roosevelt invokes the Neutrality Act but notes, "Even a neutral cannot be asked to close his mind or his conscience." -
Germany Pummels France
German fighter planes and ground troops pummel France. -
Hitler Seizes Low Countries
Adolf Hitler takes neutral Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg. -
Fleet Moved to Pearl Harbor
President Franklin D. Roosevelt moves the United States Pacific Fleet base from San Diego, California to Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. -
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
resident 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. -
Japan Joins Axis
Responding to the embargoes imposed by the United States, Japan joins the German-Italian coalition. -
U.S. Cracks Japanese Code
United States Naval Intelligence cryptographers crack Japan's secret communications code and learn that Japan intends to conquer China. -
U.S. Seizes Axis Ships
President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the United States Coast Guard to seize German ships that sail into American ports. 65 Axis ships are held in "protective custody." -
Japanese Decide to Attack
The Japanese government decides to attack Pearl Harbor if negotiations with the United States fail. -
Pearl Harbor
Japan attacks the United states and drage the Us into WW2. -
US At War
Germany and Italy, Japan's axis partners, declare war on the United States. The United States declares war on Germany, Italy, and Japan. -
North African Theatre
In the first major Allied offensive, British and U.S. armies attack Germany's Africa Korps on the Mediterranean chasing forces back toward Libya. -
Russians Trap Germany
The Russian Red Army traps and captures German armies that had invaded the Soviet Union. -
Invasion of Italy
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Italy Surrenders
RANGEEND_ITALY The Italian government officially surrenders to the Allied powers; still, German forces occupy much of Italy. -
Allies Capture Naples
The Allies capture German holdings in Naples. -
Allies Assemble
In England, the Allied powers assemble 2.9 million men, 2.5 million tons of supplies, 11,000 airplanes, and hundreds of ships in preparation for D-Day. -
Rome Falls
Rome falls to Allied forces. -
D-Day
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Paris Liberated
U.S. forces, aided by a Free French division, liberate Paris from Nazi control. -
FDR Dies
President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies of a cerebral hemorrhage in Warm Springs, Georgia. -
Mussolini Dies
Italian insurgents capture Mussolini, murder him, and mutilate his body. -
Hitler Commits Suicide
Adolf Hitler commits suicide in Berlin. -
Germany Surrenders
The German army signs an unconditional surrender. -
The Pacific Theatre
The American air force in Europe heads for the war in the Pacific. -
War in Europe Ends
May 8 marks the formal celebration of the Allies' victory in Europe during World War II -
Hiroshima
The United States drops an atomic bomb—the first to be used in warfare—on Hiroshima, killing 75,000 people instantly, and injuring more than 100,000. -
Soviet Union Enters Pacific
With still no surrender from Japan, the Soviet Union enters the Pacific war as promised in Yalta, defeating Japanese forces in Manchuria. -
Nagasaki
A second atomic bomb is dropped in Nagasaki -
WW2 is Over
A formal surrender ceremony is conducted in Tokyo Bay on the U.S. battleship Missouri. World War II officially ends.
