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On September 19th, 1931, Japan invaded Manchuria, a part of the Chinese Republic. The imperialism of Japan was driven by their need for new raw materials.
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On January 1st, 1933, the "rise of Hitler" ends. This happens as he is appointed Chancellor of Germany.
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On October 3, 1935, Italy invaded Ethiopia, the last African country to be colonized. The invasion was led by Benito Mussolini, Italy's dictator.
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On September 29th, 1938, the Munich Conference was attended by Italy, Germany, Great Britain, and France. They came to the decision to give Sudetenland to Germany as an act of appeasement.
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On November 9, 1938, Kristallnacht, also called "The Night of Broken Glass", terrorized Germany. Anti-semitic German Nazis burned synagogues, vandalized Jewish homes, schools and businesses and killed close to 100 Jews.
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On August 23, 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union came together and signed the Non-Aggression Pact. The pact promised peace between the nations and aid if one were to join war.
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On Sep 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, led by Adolf Hitler. This event marks the start of WWII.
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On May 10, 1940, Germany invaded France. On Jun 25, 1940, the Battle of Britain ended by the Allies driving out the Germans via airforce.
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On July 10, 1940, Germany started the Battle of Britain by bombing them each night. It lasted until Oct 31, 1940, in which the Germans gave up because Great Britain would not surrender.
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Japan launched an unexpected attack at the U.S. military base, Pearl Harbor. Dozens of planes dropped bombs and destroyed 8 battleships, 300 planes, and killed 2,403 Americans.
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On August 23, 1942, the Allies fought with the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad. The battle ended on February 2, 1943.
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On June 6, 1944, the Allies landed on the coast of Northern France for Operation Overlord. This was a turning point against the Nazis, also called D-Day.
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On May 8th, 1945, winning citizens celebrated Victory in Europe Day. It occurred directly after the Nazis unconditional surrender.
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On Aug 6, 1945, the United States dropped the first ever atomic bomb, "Little Boy" on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The decision was made by U.S. president Harry Truman.
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On Aug 9, 1945, the U.S. dropped the second ever atomic bomb, "Fat Man" on the Japanese city of Nagasaki. Over 120,000 people died from the combined bombs as part of Harry Truman's "Manhattan Project".
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On August 14, 1945, Japan announced their complete surrender to the United States as a direct result of the atomic bombings. This day is known as Victory in Japan Day to celebrate the Allied Victory.
