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Germany invades Poland
Adolf Hitler seeks to regain lost territory by invading Poland in the air and on the land. -
Britain & France Declare War on Germany
Two days after the invasion, as a response, both Britain and France declare war on Germany. -
Churchill Becomes Prime Minister of Britain
After losing a confidence vote, Neville Chamberlain’s resignation brings about Winston Churchill becoming Prime Minister. -
Evacuation of Dunkirk
It took nine days for the Allies to evacuate Dunkirk, the largest evacuation in history helped save 338,000 allied troops from being captured by the Nazis. -
Italy enters war on side of Axis Powers
As the defeat of France became apparent, Italy joined the Axis Powers. -
France Signs Armistice with Germany
The armistice signed in France on June 22, came into effect three days later on the 25th and put France under German control. -
Battle of Britain
During the summer and some of the fall of 1940, British and German air forces sustained one of the largest battles in the air to that date. -
The Tripartite Pact
The Tripartite Pact formed the Axis powers of German, Italy, and Japan, to combat the Allied powers of countries such as Britain, Australia, and later the US. -
Operation Sea Lion
It was set to happen near Normandy and along the Belgian coast line, and the responsibility was placed mostly on Raeders and Goering, who weren’t for the operation, and apparently didn’t hide the fact. -
The Siege of Tobruk
The Siege of Tobruk lasted 241 days. The occupation of Tobruk by the allies denied the axis a close supply port, and it also took some Axis focus off the Western Front. -
Operation Barbarossa
Hitler launched his armies eastward, in a massive invasion on the Soviet Union. -
Bombing of Pearl Harbour
Hundreds of Japanese naval planes attacked the American marine base of Pearl Harbor. This act brought the Americans into the war. -
Britain and US Declare War on Japan
Hundreds of Japanese naval planes attacked the American marine base of Pearl Harbor. This act brought the Americans into the war. -
Japan Takes Singapore
Following the fall of the British Colony, the occupation of Singapore by Japan occurred. The military forces of the Empire of Japan took it after they managed to defeat the collective efforts of Australian, British, Malayan, and Indian military forces. -
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a decisive naval battle that took place in the Midway Atoll in the Pacific Ocean, between the United States and Japan. The United States won decisively. -
First Battle of El Alamein
This was a battle fought in Egypt between the Axis forces (Germany and Italy) and Allied forces (Britain, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand, as well as British India). The battle finished as a stalemate, but held Axis forces in getting into Alexandria. -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was the successful Soviet defence of the city of Stalingrad (now Volgograd). Russians consider it to be the most important battle of the war, and so do many historians nowadays. It stopped the German advance into the Soviet Union, and turned the favour of the rest of the war to the Allies. -
Second Battle of El Alamein
This was a decisive battle in Egypt, near a railway line called El Alamein (hence the name). It resulted in an allied victory, with the Allies losing far less men in the battle than the Axis forces. -
D-Day Landings
D-Day was the largest seaborne invasion in history, with hundreds of Allied troops landing on five different beaches around Normandy. These were called Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword. The number of Allied troops that landed on the five beaches is generally thought to be around 24,000. -
Battle of the Bulge
Adolf Hitler attempted to separate the Allied armies located in the northwest of Europe by launching a surprise attack from Ardennes to Antwerp. General Patton’s forces, however, fought back and defended well enough for them to neutralize the German’s counteroffensive attack, even though they lost many men. -
Mussolini Captured and Executed
Two days earlier, Mussolini fled Milan where he had been based. Mussolini, along with his wife, was then captured on April 27, and both were shot the following afternoon by Italian communists two days before the suicide of Adolf Hitler. -
Hitler Commits Suicide
On April 30, 1945, both Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun (two days after the death of Mussolini and his wife) committed suicide after spending countless hours in a bunker surrounded by German troops to protect them from the Allied forces closing in on that location. It is said that Hitler shot himself and that Eva Braun killed herself with cyanide. -
German Forces Surrender
On May 7, 1945, German forces surrendered unconditionally. This was to take effect the following day, and ended the conflict of World War II. -
V.E. Day
Victory in Europe Day (most commonly shortened to V.E. Day) was the public holiday celebrated on this day that marked the formal acceptance on the Allies’ part of the surrender of Nazi Germany. -
Atomic Bomb Dropped on Hiroshima
The United States, with the consent of the UK through an agreement titled The Quebec Agreement, dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Within 4 – 6 months, its effects killed 90,000 to 146,000 people. -
Soviet Union Declares War on Japan
In 1943, Stalin had agreed that the Soviet Union should enter into war with Japan after Nazi Germany had been defeated. After the defeat of the Nazis in 1945, Stalin kept his word and declared war on Japan. Their intent was to pick up more land from the weakened Japanese, before they were defeated. -
Atomic Bomb Dropped on Nagasaki
On this date, another atomic bomb was dropped, this time on the city of Nagasaki. It resulted in 39,000 to 80,000 casualties and the unconditional surrender of Japan. -
Japanese Surrender
The Japanese surrender was announced by Imperial Japan on August 15, and was formally signed on September 2, 1945. -
Formation of the United Nations
The United Nations was formed on this date in 1945, succeeding the war, partially to replace the ineffectual League of Nations. The United Nations is still running and is one of the world’s most important international organizations developing world peace and promoting social progress internationally.