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Japanese Invasion of China
On July 7, 1937, Japanese forces attacked Chinese troops near Beijing (Bulliet 818). After this attack, the Japanese rapidly took many Chinese coastal cities, including Shanghai and Tianjin (Bulliet 818). This event resulted from the ambition of Japanese junior officers, who decided to invade China in order to resolve economic problems in their own country (Bulliet 818). This minor engagement led to an undeclared war between China and Japan, which shaped Japan's later involvement in WWII (BBC). -
Ribbentrop/Molotov Pact
On August 23, 1939, the Ribbentrop/Molotov Pact was signed between the Soviet Union and Germany in order to prevent conflict between the two nations (BBC). The pact also involved the decisions on which territories would be annexed and by which power, which made war inevitable (BBC). Germany offered the pact to prevent Soviet aggression when it invaded Poland and the Baltic states, while the USSR signed it to avoid war (BBC). This pact led to the outcome of the war on the Eastern front (BBC). -
Germany's Invasion of Poland
On September 1, 1939, Hitler led German forces into Poland, breaking through defences and marching on Warsaw (USHMM). Hitler invaded Poland in order to satisfy his ambition in conquering land, and chose Poland because of the Nazi-Soviet Pact made earlier that year, which guaranteed that Hitler would not be fighting on two fronts (Bulliet 816). This event represents the beginning of the war in Europe, as Britain and France declared war on Germany just two days after this event (USHMM). -
German Blitzkrieg
On May 10, 1940, Germany began their blitzkrieg, or "lightning war," attacks on France (BBC). This strategy of war was characterized by the extensive use of new technology, as well as speed and flexibility in combat (BBC). This type of warfare was adopted in order to give Germany an edge over Allied forces, as France and Britain were completely unprepared to face the Germans with this strategy (BBC). This adoption of this strategy led to the Nazi taking of France on June 21, 1940 (BBC). -
Operation Barbarossa
On June 22, 1941, Nazi Germany began Operation Barbarossa, a large-scale attack against the Soviet Union, involving 3 million soldiers and 3 thousand tanks (History). Initially, German forces advanced quickly and with success, but they began showing signs of weakness by winter, leading to the failure of the campaign in 1942 (History). Hitler launched this attack in order to defeat the Soviet Union, but failed in 1942, which marked a major turning point in WWII in the Allies' favor (History). -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked the United States Navy base at Pearl Harbor, knocking out a significant portion of the US offensive naval fleet (USHMM). The Japanese attack was performed by two waves of airplanes for an air raid (USHMM). The strike was carried out in order to sufficiently damage the US Pacific fleet such that they would not intervene with Japanese conquests (USHMM). This attack led to the war in the Pacific, and inspired Americans in support of the war (USHMM). -
Wannsee Conference
On January 20, 1942, high-level German officials gathered in Wannsee in Berlin in order to discuss the "Final Solution" regarding the Jewish people (USHMM). The plan known as the "Final Solution" involved the systematic extermination of the Jewish race in Nazi Germany (USHMM). The purpose of this meeting was only to determine the means for murdering a planned 11 million Jewish people (USHMM). This event had significant repercussions, namely the genocide of 6 million Jews, among others (USHMM). -
Battle of Midway
On June 4, 1942, the US Navy countered an ambush of its Japanese counterparts, leading to the first decisive US victory in the Pacific Theatre (History). In the battle, US planes from aircraft carriers sunk four Japanese aircraft carriers, the entire task force, leaving just two in the arsenal of the Japanese (History). The US engaged in this battle because of advances in code-breaking, in which they discovered the plans of the Japanese (History). Midway was a turning point in the war (History). -
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
On April 19, 1943, an uprising in the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw began, as armed German troops entered the ghetto (USHMM). In July of 1942, the ZOB, or Jewish Fighting Group, was established to encourage Jews to fight back and defend their families (USHMM). The uprising occurred when Germans entered into the ghetto, which would lead to the Jews being sent to concentration camps (USHMM). Although the revolt was crushed, the uprising showed the spirit of the Jews despite their circumstances (USHMM). -
Operation Gomorrah
On July 24, 1943, Operation Gomorrah was launched, in which the city of Hamburg, Germany was raided by British bombers by night (History). The 17,000 bombing sorties destroyed more than 280,000 buildings by the end of the operation, plus significantly reducing German morale (History). The operation served as retaliation for German bombing runs on Britain, and was carried out by US and British forces (History). The attacks caused despair among Germans, including Hitler himself (History). -
Allied Invasion of Italy
On September 3, 1943, Allied forces invaded the mainland of Italy in order to put pressure on the Italian fascist government (History). Before the invasion, the Allies took the island of Sicily, which led Italians to force Mussolini to resign and be arrested (History). The Allies invaded Italy in order to crush one of the Axis powers, as well as to have another front against Germany (History). The invasion of Italy led to the immediate signing of a surrender by Italian officials (History). -
D-Day (Normandy Invasion)
On June 6, 1944, Allied forces invaded the beaches on the coast of Normandy, France in a massive joint services operation (BBC). In the extensive assault, naval, air, and amphibious forces moved on to the six beaches in Normandy, and secured their positions despite German efforts (BBC). This assault was executed in order to open a third front in northwest Europe and converge on Germany through the three fronts (Bulliet 822). The Allies were successful, which hastened the end of the war (BBC). -
Battle of the Bulge
On December 16, 1944, German forces pushed back through the thin American line with hundreds of thousands of troops (History). However, due to the determination of small groups of American forces, the Germans were stopped short of their goal, the Meuse River (USHMM). The battle was initiated as a desperate counterattack on part of the Germans in order to push back Allied forces (USHMM). However, the Americans pushed back all German gains by Jan. 1945, leaving the Germans very weakened (USHMM). -
Operation Thunderclap
On February 13,1945, the Allied forces in Europe executed the most deadly bombing operation of the war against the German city of Dresden (History). In the assault, up to 135,000 people were killed by the incendiary bombs dropped, and the city was severely damaged (History). The purpose of this attack was part of an Allied initiative to destroy strategic military locations for the Nazis (History). However, given that Dresden was not a military center, the attack achieved very little (History). -
Battle of Iwo Jima
On February 19, 1945, United States forces invaded the island of Iwo Jima near the Japanese coast (History). US Marines conquered the island after a month of fighting, despite the horrible conditions and heavy defence forces of the Japanese (History). The United States chose to take Iwo Jima due to its proximity to to the island of Japan, which would be within range of American planes (History). The battle furthered the US "island hopping" offensive, hastening the end of the war (History). -
Battle of Okinawa
On April 1, 1945, the last major battle of the war, the Battle of Okinawa, took place, directly following the US capture of Iwo Jima (History). Despite the extensive defence effort put forth as a last stand by Japan, American forces took the island on June 22, 1945, after the suicides of the Japanese leadership (History). Okinawa provided the ideal location for the efforts to end the war for the US (History). The location allowed for the atomic bombs to be dropped, ending the war (History). -
V-E Day
On May 8, 1945, the war in Europe came to a formal end with the signing of an unconditional surrender by German officials (BBC). The German senior officials technically signed the document on May 7th at General Dwight Eisenhower's headquarters, but the US delayed celebrations to the 8th of May (BBC). The German government decided to surrender because they knew the German army was too weak to continue fighting (BBC). This event marked the end of years of suffering for millions of people (BBC). -
Potsdam Declaration
On July 16, 1945, the Potsdam Conference was held between the major Allied powers, and served to find a plan of action for restoring Europe after the war, as well as to force Japan's surrender (History). On July 26, 1945, Stalin, Truman, and Churchill decided to make the Potsdam Declaration, which demanded Japan's surrender immediately and unconditionally (History). The declaration was hoped to end the gruesome war in the Pacific, and it did influence Japan after the bomb was dropped (History). -
Atomic Bombs are Dropped
On August 6, 1945, the atomic bomb dubbed "Little Boy" was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, destroying 90 percent of the city (History). Just three days later, the bomb "Fat Man" was dropped on Nagasaki, killing additional tens of thousands, through the explosion or through the radiation (History). The atom bombs were dropped to in order to avoid an American invasion of Japan (History). The event led to Japan's surrender, ending the war in the Pacific after years of battle (History). -
V-J Day
On August 15, 1945, the Allies celebrated Victory in Japan Day, after the dropping of the two atomic bombs and the Russian invasion of Japanese-held Manchuria (BBC). This date, marking the disintegration of the empire, also denotes the end of World War II as a whole (BBC). The Japanese were forced to sign a formal surrender on September 2, 1945, due to their inability to continue fighting (BBC). This event ended the most deadly war in history, and began a new chapter for the world (BBC).
