WWII Timeline

  • Japanese Invasion of China

    Japanese Invasion of China
    China On July 7th, 1937, a full scale war between Japan and China began. The Chinese and the Japanese fought until America joined in 1941, after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor.
    Marco Polo Bridge Incident started the great war. A soldier had gone missing from the Japanese ranks and a group of soldiers asked the Chinese permission to cross the bridge to look for him in the nearby town. Permission was denied, and the group tried.
  • Rape of Nanking

    Rape of Nanking
    http://www.historyplace.com/worldhistory/genocide/nanking.htm
    Japan launched a suprize attack on China on December 13, 1937. Soldiers pillaged villages raping and citizens. It is considered to be one of the most malicious and violent acts of a show of dominance during WWII as the ones attacked were innocents and most were murdered. There was even a contest between two generals to see who could slaughter the most civilians. It was dubbed 'Rape of Nanking' or 'The Nanking Massacre'. The towns were devestated. Europeans and Americans were sent to their aide.
  • German Blitzkrieg

    German Blitzkrieg
    http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/blitzkriegThe german tactic of blitzkreig or "lightining war" was a tactic used to create disorganization among enemy troops harnesing mobility. It was first used in the invasion of Poland in 1939, and in 1940 France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. It was a brutal and deadly tactic that held of German defeat for the time it was employed.
  • Germany's Invasion of Poland

    Germany's Invasion of Poland
    http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germany-invades-polandAlthough Germany had signed a non aggression pact with them just just a few years earlier, on September 1st of 1939 Germany invaded Poland. There was no fear of Soviet intervention due to the German-Soviet pact which encouraged Nazi Germany to strike. The Polish army was unprepared and defeated within weeks. This event triggered France & England to declare war on Germany immediatley, beginning the war. German occupied Poland would then remain under their power until the end of the war.
  • Fall of Paris

    Fall of Paris
    http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germans-enter-parisOn June 14th of 1940 Paris was overtaken by Hitlers Nazi army. 2 million Parisians had fled but those who left despared to watch the flight of the Nazi flag over the Arc de Triomphe. Canadians marched through the area leaving a sign of hope however and America cut their Axis buisness relations in retaliation (yet did not enter the war till later still).
  • Operation Barbarossa

    Operation Barbarossa
    http://www.history.com/topics/world-w
    On June 22nd of 1941, Germany invaded the soviet union. Driven by Adolf Hitler's desire to capture territories of the Soviet Union. A massive army stormed the land, covering an expanse ranging from The North Cape to the Black Sea. However, the germans greatly underestimated the military strength of their enemy. This ontop of their desire to conquer the slavic peoples lead the soviet union to crush their forces, making this a crucial turning point in the war.
  • Pearl Harbor

    Pearl Harbor
    http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harborDuring the War times Japan was in dire need of natural recources, and Japanese officials were convinced that expanding Japan was the only way to obtain these and win the war. On Dec 7th right before 8 am Japanese fighterplanes attacked an american naval base centered in Pearl Harbor (Honolulu, Hawaii). Japan's aim was to neutralize American fources in the Pacific while they infiltrated small nations and countrys with natural recources. Devestated, a day later President Roosevelt declared war.
  • Bataan Death March

    Bataan Death March
    Bataan death march ''Martsa ng Kamatayan Sa Bataan'' Also Known as the Bataan DeathMarch.It is distinguished in this way from simple prisoner transport via foot march. Death marches usually feature harsh physical labor and abuse, neglect of prisoner injury and illness, deliberate starvation and dehydration, humiliation and torture, and execution of those unable to keep up the marching pace. Alot of the American And Fili
  • Battle of Midway

    Battle of Midway
    http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-midwaySix months after Pearl Harbor, America and Japan engaged in one of the most influential naval battles in WWII. Japan, months before had been planning another attack on Amercan reserves and planned to crush Americas counter defense. However, a break through in American Intelligence had alerted them to suspision. America found the japanese fleet on a stroke of luck, eliminated Japanese pilot planes, and set America on the course to victory.
  • Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

    Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
    Around 300,000 Jews in the Warsaw ghetto were murdered or deported. Around 265,000 were deported to the Treblinka killing center. Several Jewish underground orginizations formed the Jewish Combat Orginization. In the matter of a day Germans managed to break the military resistance for the most part. Individuals and small groups of resistance fighters still fought and hid for about a month. To symbolise victory, the Germans ordered the destruction of the Great Synagogue in the destroyed ghetto.
  • Allied Invasion of Italy

    Allied Invasion of Italy
    Italy he British 8th Army under Field Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery begins the Allied invasion of the Italian peninsula, crossing the Strait of Messina from Sicily and landing at Calabria–the “toe” of Italy. the Allies’ terms for surrender, but no public announcement was made until September 8. made allied forces surrender.
  • Tehran Conference

    Tehran Conference
    Tehran Confrence The Tehran Conference (Nov. 28 - Dec. 1). This was the first World War II conference the Big Three (Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill) were all present. The purpose of this conference was to discuss the second front of the war (one topic of interest was the discussion of the Normandy Landings). However, the main purpose of the discussion was to form a plan to defeat Hitler and Germany.
  • D-Day

    D-Day
    Largest seaborne invasion in history, involving nearly three million. The D- Day invasion of World War II involed troops crossing the English Channel from England to Normandy in occupied France. D-Day invasion of Normady or Operation Neptune, began on D-Day (June 1, 1944) and ended on June 30, Information From:
    http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1749.html
  • Liberation of Concentration Camps

    Liberation of Concentration Camps
    This camp was one of the worst places for the people to go to. Here, it was a death camp and a concentration camp. In the end, it is the Soviets who come to their rescue. It is estimated that more about 1,100,000 people were killed here.<a href='' >http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005131</a>
  • Battle of Iwo Jima

    Battle of Iwo Jima
    Battle of Iwo Jima The Battle of Iwo Jima was fought from February 19 to March 26, 1945 during World War II. The battle for Iwo Jima lasted five long weeks and involved three Marine Corps divisions (the lst, 3d and 5th). The amphibious assault began on the morning of Feb. 19, 1945, and by the time the island was declared secure, 36 days later, 28,686 men had died or were wounded in action.
  • VE Day

    VE Day
    http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/v-e-day-is-celebrated-in-american-and-britain
    On May 8, 1945 the head of the Nazi Germany Reich signed a ceasefire and this day has since been celebrated as the Victory in Europe day. Thousands in Britain and America and several other countries gathered together and celebrated the end to the Nazi Germany war machine.
  • Potsdam Conference

    Potsdam Conference
    <a href='' >https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/potsdam-conf</a> The Potsdam Conference (Jul 16 - Aug 2) was attended by Stalin, Truman, and Churchill (and later Attlee, who replaced Churchill as Prime Minister). It was to discuss how to deal with the Germans, and how to bring about peace after the war.
  • Dropping of the Atomic Bombs

    Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
    <a href='' >http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/atomic-bomb-dropped-on-hiroshima</a> The United States of America launches two nuclear bombs. The first bomb hit Hiroshima on August 6th, and the second hit Nagasaki on August 9th. Russia declares war on Japan on August 8th, breaking their peace treaty
  • VJ Day

    VJ Day
    http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/v-j-day
    This day has been celebrated in America because it was the day that Japan surrendered unconditionally to the Allies. Both August fourteenth and fifthteenth have been known as victory over Japan day. When the news reached America everyone in New York celebrated in Times Square in New York City, New York. Everyone rejoiced because finally the long war was over.
  • Battle of the Bulge

    Battle of the Bulge
    http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/world-war-ii-history/videos/battle-bulge
    The Battle of the Bulge started when the German army suprised the Allied forces with a blitzkrieg attack. This attack was Hitler's attempt to split the Allied armies. As the Germans moved further into the Ardennes the Allied armies formed an appearance that looked like a bulge which is how the battle got its name.