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Archduke Franz Ferdinand is assassinated
Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, were both shot to death by a Bosnian Serb nationalist during an official visit to the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo. -
Russian Revolution
Two revolutions in 1917, the first as in March, overthrew the imperial government and the second of which, in October (November) placed Bolsheviks in power. -
Paris Peace Conference
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting that inaugurated the international settlement after WWI. -
Mussolini's March on Rome
The March on Rome was an organized mass demonstration in October 1922 which resulted in Benito Mussolini's national fascist party ascending to power in the Kingdom of Italy. -
Adolf Hitler's Beer Hall Putsch
Adolf Hitler and his followers staged the beer hall putsch in Munich, a failed takeover of the government in Bavaria, a state in Southern Germany. -
Stalin's First Five Year Plan
The first five- year plan concentrated on developing heavy industry and collectivizing agriculture, at the cost of a drastic fall in consumer goods. -
Second Italo-Ethiopian War
This was a brief war between the fascist Italian state and the Ethiopian Empire. This was infamous for the Italians using illegal mustard gas. -
Germany violates the Treaty of Versailles by reoccupying Rhineland
Nazi leader, Adolf Hitler, violates Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact by sending German military forces into Rhineland. -
Spanish Civil War
Military revolt against the Republican government of Spain, supported by conservative elements within the country. -
Rape of Nanking
During the Sino-Japanese war, Nanking, the capital of China, falls to Japanese forces and the Chinese government flees to Hankow, further inland along the Yangtze River. Much of the city was burned and Japanese troops launched a campaign of atrocities against civilians.(Raped at least 20,000 women/little girls. Some were killed in the process) -
Germany's blitzkrieg on Poland
Germany invaded Poland to regain lost territory and ultimately rule their neighbor to the East. The German invasion of Poland was a primer on how Hitler intended to wage war- what would become the "blitzkrieg" strategy. -
France Surrenders to the Axis Powers
The French government signed an armistice with Nazi Germany just six weeks after the Nazi's launched their invasion of Western Europe. -
Bombing of Pearl Harbor
Surprise aerial attacks on the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu Island, by the Japanese that precipitated the entry of the U.S. into WWII. -
Battle of El Alamein
The battle of El Alamein marked the culmination of the WWII North African campaign between the British Empire and the Germany - Italian army -
Battle of Guadalcanal
The WWII Battle of Guadalcanal was the first major offensive and a decisive victory for the Allies in the Pacific Theatre. U.S. marines launched a surprise attack and took control of an airbase under construction. -
Battle of Stalingrad
The battle of Stalingrad was a brutal military campaign between Russian forces and those of Germany and the Axis powers during WWII. This battle is infamous to be one of the largest, longest, and bloodiest engagements in modern warfare. -
D-Day
The allies attacked via air and sea, parachuting troops behind German lines and storming the beaches of Normandy. -
MacArthur's Plan for Japan
MacArthur directed the occupation mission with absolute authority. The primary purpose of the occupation was to disarm Japan. -
Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam conference, held near Berlin was the last of the big three meetings during WWII. It was attended by Stalin from Soviet Union and the new American president, Harry S. -
Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The United States detonated two nuclear weapons over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people. -
United Nations Formed
The United Nations is an intergovernmental organization that aims to maintain international peace and security, to develop friendly relations among nations. -
Marshall Plan
This was a U.S. program providing aid to western Europe following the devastation of WWII. It provided more than 15 billion dollars to help the continent. -
NATO is Formed
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was created by the U.S., Canada, and several western European nations to provide collective security against the Soviet Union. -
Warsaw Pact is Formed
The Soviet Union and seven of it's European satellites sign a treaty establishing the Warsaw Pact, a mutual defense program that put the Soviets in command of the armed forces of member states.