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Nazis and Soviets Divide Poland
On September 29th, 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union agreed to share control of Poland; Germany took all of the western areas, while the Soviet Union took all of the eastern areas. -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
On December 7th, 1941, the Japanese military launched a surprise attack on the US Naval base at Pearl Harbor. The attack killed 2,403 service members, wounded 1,178 more, sank or destroyed six US ships, and destroyed 169 US Navy and Army Air Corps planes. -
Chester Nimitz Appointed Commander and Chief of the US Pacific Theater
When the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred, Nimitz had been in the US Navy for 30 years. He was ranked a Rear Admiral and stationed in Washington, DC as chief of the Bureau of Navigation. 10 days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt promoted Nimitz to the commander-in-chief of the United States Pacific as an Admiral. -
Treblinka Extermination Camp and Deportations from Warsaw
Treblinka was a major Nazi German concentration and extermination camp located close to the village of Treblinka, Poland. The Nazis opened the first Treblinka in December 1941. Massive deportations from Warsaw began on July 22nd, 1942. Over the next two months, the Nazis deported more than 250,000 Jews from Warsaw to their deaths at Treblinka. -
Unconditional Surrender of all German Forces
On May 7th, 1945, General Alfred Jodl, the Chief of Staff of the German Army, signed the unconditional surrender of all German forces. The German High Command issued orders to all German military, naval, and air authorities and to all forces under German control to cease active operations at 2301 hours Central European time on May 8th, 1945, and to remain in the positions occupied at that time. -
Emperor Hirohito Surrenders
On September 2nd, 1945, the foreign affairs delegation of the Japanese Empire boarded the USS Missouri and signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender under the guidance of Emperor Hirohito, finally putting an end to the bloodiest war mankind has ever seen.