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History of War
World War II was the largest global conflict in history. The war claimed the lives of more than 60 million people and has shaped international affairs to this day. Because of the widespread nature of the conflict, there is not exact beginning of the war. The war in Asia between Japan and China began in 1937, when Japan invaded the country. The shooting war in Europe began in September, 1939, when Germany, led by Adolf Hitler, invaded Poland. The war in Europe concluded on May 7, 1945, when Germany surrendered. At that point, Hitler had committed suicide and Benito Mussolini was hanged in Italy. The war in Asia ended on August 15, 1945 when Japan surrendered after The United States of America dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. -
Fast Facts
- Allied Military Death Toll: over 14 million
- Allied Civilian Death Toll: over 36 million
- Axis Military Death Toll: over 8 million
- Axis Civilian Death Toll: over 4 million
- Holocaust Deaths: 9-11 million
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USSR and USA Enter War
The United States entered the war after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. The Soviet Union, under the control of Joseph Stalin, entered the war earlier that year in June when Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa and invaded the USSR. -
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September 1 1939
September 1, 1939: Nazi Germany invades Poland at 4:45am by bombing several targets in Krakow and Warsaw. -
September 3 1939
September 3, 1939: British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain declares war on Germany after they fail to withdraw troops from Poland. France makes a similar declaration of war against Germany. -
September 1939
- September 4: Japan and the United States declare neutrality in regards to the situation in Europe, while the Dominion of Newfoundland declares war on Germany.
- September 6: South Africa declares war on Germany.
- September 10: Canada declares war on Nazi Germany during World War II.
- September 17: The Soviet Union invades Poland east of the Curzon line.
- September 18: Polish President Ignacy Moscicki leaves Poland and is interned in Romania.
- September 21: The President of Romania - Armand Calinescu is assassinated by the nationalistic Iron Guard.
- September 28: The remaining Polish Army capitulates to the Germans in Warsaw.
- September 28: Estonia signs a Mutual Assistance Pact with the Soviet Union.
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October 1939
- October 5: Latvia signs a Mutual Assistance Pact with the Soviet Union.
- October 10: The remaining members of the Polish Military surrender to Germany.
- October 10: Lithuania signs a Mutual Assistance Pact that includes receiving the Polish town of Vilnius.
- October 12: Under the watch of Adolf Eichmann, Jews from Austria and Czechoslovakia are deported to Poland.
- October 19: The first Jewish Ghetto is established in Lublin.
- October 27: Belgium declares neutrality.
- October 27: Pope Pius XII condemns dictatorships.
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November 30 1939
November 30: Finland is attacked by the Soviet Union, the Winter War Battle begins. -
November 1939
- November 4: 400,000 Warsaw Jews are ordered into a ghetto.
- November 23: Germany orders Jews to wear the Star of David.
- November 29: Negotiations between the Soviet Union and Finland break down.
- November 30: Finland is attacked by the Soviet Union, the Winter War Battle begins.
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December 1944
- December 16: World War II: Germany's last major offensive, The Battle of the Bulge begins
- December 17: The United States, military announced that effective January 2, 1945, 110,000 Japanese Americans would be freed from internment camps built by the military, where they had been kept since 1942 as a reaction to the Pearl Harbor attack.
- December 16: World War II: Germany's last major offensive, The Battle of the Bulge begins
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September 8 1944
September 8, 1944: Nazi Germany launched its first V2 rocket aimed at London. They shot a total of 1,500 at Britain before ending in 1945. -
Summer of 1944
- June 6: The D Day invasion of Europe took place during World War II as Allied forces stormed the beaches of Normandy, France.
- June 22: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the GI Bill of Rights, authorizing a broad package of benefits for World War II veterans.
- July 20: Adolf Hitler was injured during an assassination attempt, a bomb went off at his headquarters in the Rastenburg.
- August 25: French Leader Charles de Gaulle enters Paris for the first time since 1940 as Paris was liberated from Nazi rule.
- June 6: The D Day invasion of Europe took place during World War II as Allied forces stormed the beaches of Normandy, France.
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September 2 1945
September 2: United States President Harry Truman announces Japan has officially surrendered, ending World War II. -
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World War II Timeline on Amazon | View All
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Less than 25 years after the “war to end all wars,” the world found itself at war once again. World War II was the biggest conflict of the 20th century, involving the armed forces of 70 nations and resulting in a staggering 63 mil...
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Questions and Answers About World War II Timeline | View All | Ask a Question
View All World War II Timeline Questions (2140) | Ask a QuestionWhat are the best websites about World War II? (4 Answers)How about some non-US perspectives?The BBC as you might expect does an excellent job, and the Guardian newspaper also has a nice site:http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/secondworldwarThen there are the Canadian and Australian stories:http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=history/SecondWarhttp://www.ww2australia.gov.au/I ... read moreIt's 70 years since the start of World War II. What does the Second World War mean to you? (12 Answers)I'm an older Mahaloian here, but I can't say that the War affected me directly, but it did affect me emotionally. My mother and I fought over which language class ... read moreWas Sweden neutral in World War II? (3 Answers)Yes they were in theory. Officially Sweden was neutral in WW2 but both the Nazis and the Allies fought very strongly for influence in Scandinavia and it's disputed if Sweden ... read more
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World War II Timeline Additional Resources
- bbc.co.uk: World War Two
- The Avalon Project at Yale Law School: World War II Documents
- Grolier.com: World War II Commemoration
- Wikipedia: World War II
- Yahoo! Directory: World War II Categories
