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Germany invades Poland
Nazi Germany attacked Poland on September 1st, 1939. In a few weeks, Poland surrendered to Germany. After this attack on Poland, France and Great Britain declared war on Germany.
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Period: to
World War II
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Germany invades France
Nazi Germany invades France. They successfully take over Paris by June 22nd, 1940. This event is called the Fall of France. Source -
Battle of Britain begins
Germany bombs London, triggering the start of the Battle of Britain. Germany had the disadvantage during the battle and eventually lost. Source -
Lend Lease
The United States gave supplies to Great Britain during the war in exchange for military bases in the Caribbean and Bermuda. Since most citizens in the United States were isolationists, they couldn't directly help in the war. This was the closest they could get to assisting Great Britain. Source -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The planes came in two waves. The bombing resulted in the deaths of 2,403 people. President Roosevelt said that this would be a "date which will live in infamy." Source -
Germany and Italy declare war on USA
A few days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States. Hitler thought Japan could conquer the United States and then help Germany defeat Russia. Source -
United States wins the Battle of Midway
The United States defeats Japan in the Battle of Midway. It had begun on June 3rd, 1942 with Japan attacking the United States. They had decided to launch the attack because the United States had defeated them in the Battle of the Coral Sea, which had been a month earlier. The defeat in the Battle of the Coral Sea paused Japan's conquering of land and they wanted revenge. Source -
Germany invades Soviet Union
The German invasion of Stalingrad (now called Volgograd) was a failure. The Soviet Union begins to get the advantage over Germany. There was almost 2 million casualities during the Battle of Stalingrad. Source -
D-Day Begins
Allied troops entered Normandy, France in hopes of liberating Western Europe from Nazi Germany's reign. This is called D-Day. In late August of 1944, all of northern France was free. By spring, Germany was defeated. Source -
Hiroshima & Nagasaki Bombing
The United States drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. Around 135,000 people died. Three days later, the United States drops another atomic on Nagasaki, Japan. This kills about 64,000 people. Japan finally surrenders. Source
