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This World War II Timeline highlights the military conflicts throughout the war.
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Fast Facts
- "The Big Three": Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin & Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Two Axis Leaders: Adolf Hitler & Benito Mussolini
- 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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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. -
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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World War II in Africa: Timeline - July 1940: One month into World War II in Africa and both sides were testing .. http://tinyurl.com/mzwndz
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Fighters of World War II - $13.98
Fighter aircraft were the front line of the air war in Europe during World War II. From the Urals to the Midlands, they provided the air cover for advancing infantry, defended the bombers as they penetrated deep into enemy territory, and...
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Excerpt from Chapter I:...Much has been said and written since 1914 concerning the unpreparedness of the army for war. But the truth is that the army was not unprepared for that limited-liability, pill-to-stop-an-earthquake theory of ...
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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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December 7, 1941 was a day that would not be forgotten because of the 2,388 people that died as a result of the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Shown in the foreground is a stricken ship that was damaged in the early morning attac...
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Bombers of World War II - $13.98
During World War II, the bomber emerged as one of the preeminent offensive weapons of the war. Day after day, bombers would rain death and destruction from above onto the soldiers and civilians below. In this program we explore some of t...
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Questions and Answers About World War II Timeline | View All | Ask a Question
View All World War II Timeline Questions (1320) | Ask a QuestionWhat are the best websites about World War II? (3 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 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 moreHow many people (civilians + soldiers) were killed during World War II by the japanese army? (1 Answer)That's a serious research question. Here's a start at least. I don't know about the numbers for the army only, but including all branches, Wikipedia says the Second Sino-Japanese War ... read moreWhat was the best tank of World War II? Why? (3 Answers)It would have to be the T-34. Rugged, fast, reliable, well armored, good gun, and good cross-country mobility, and most of all sheer numbers made it the tank that won ... read more
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1939
- Sept 1: Germany invades Poland in an agreement with the Soviet Union
- Sept 3: UK and France declare war on Germany
- Sept 10: Canada declares war on Germany
- Sept 27: Poland falls
- Nov 30: U.S.S.R invades Finland
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1940
- April: Norway and Denmark invaded by Germany
- April 9: Denmark falls without fight, sinks own navy in Copenhagen harbor
- May: Norway falls
- May 10: Germany invades Low Countries (Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium)
- May 14: Luxembourg and Netherlands fall
- May 28: Belgium surrenders
- May: British/French forces trapped in Belgium
- May: USSR conquers Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia
- June 4:British and French troops evacuated to Great Britain at Dunkirk, France
- June 10: Italy declares war on UK and France
- June 14: Paris falls to Nazis
- June 22: France capitulates, forming Vichy government under Marshal Henri Petain
- Aug: German Luftwaffe bombs British RAF air bases
- Sept: London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and other British cities bombed by Nazis
- Sept: Italian forces in Libya attack British in Egypt
- Sept 22: Japanese attack French Indochina
- Sept: Japan joins Axis
- Oct 28: Italy invades Greece
- Nov 20: Hungary joins the Axis
- Nov 23: Romania joins the Axis
- Dec 8: British attack Italian forces in Egypt
- Dec: German U-Boats sink US/Canadian convoys to Britain
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1941
- Jan 15: British forces invade Ethiopia
- Jan: Greek troops push Italian forces into Albania
- March 1: Bulgaria joins the Axis
- April 6: German forces invade Greece and Yugoslavia,
- April 13: Japan signs nonaggression pact with the USSR
- end of April: Greece completely occupied by Axis
- May: Britain's Royal Navy destroys German battleship Bismark
- June 22: Germany invades Soviet Union
- July 7: US troops land in Iceland
- Aug 14: Atlantic Charter announced
- Sept: German forces capture Kiev, USSR
- Dec: Soviet troops repulse German advance on Moscow
- Dec 7: Japanese Imperial Fleet bombs US Pacific Fleet in Pearl Harbor
- Dec 8: The United States of America declares war on the Empire of Japan
- Dec 9: China declares war on the Axis
- Dec 10: Japanese capture Guam
- Dec 11: Germany and Italy declare war on US
- Dec 11: United States declares war on Germany and Italy
- Dec 23:Wake Island falls to Japanese
- Dec 25: Hong Kong captured by Japanese
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1942
- Jan 2: Manila, Philippines, falls to the Japanese
- Jan 11: Japanese land in The Netherlands Indies
- Feb 1: US ships raid Marshal and Gilbert Islands
- Feb 15: Singapore surrenders to Japanese
- Feb 27: Allies lose Battle of the Java Sea to Japan
- March 7: Netherlands Indies occupied by Japanese
- April 9: Bataan surrendered to the Japanese
- April 18: US carrier aircraft bomb Tokyo
- May 4-8: Allies win the Battle of the Coral Sea
- May 6: Japanese occupy Corregidor
- June 4-6: Battle of Midway ends Japanese eastward expansion
- June 21: German troops seize Tobruk, North Africa
- July 2: British defeat Germans at El Alamein
- Aug 7: United States Marines land on Guadalcanal
- Nov 7: 500,000 Allied troops massed against Axis in Africa
- Nov 11: Vichy French resistance in Africa ended
- Nov 12: British troops recapture Tobruk
- Nov 19: Soviets counterattack at Stalingrad
- Nov 27: French scuttle their fleet at Toulon
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1943
- Jan: German Field Marshall Von Paulus surrenders to the Soviets
- Jan: German troops at Stalingrad surrender after 3 months of extremely intense fighting
- Jan 31: Allies win Battle of the Bismark Sea
- Feb 2: Japanese troops retreat across the Yangtze River
- March 2-5: Tunis and Bizerte fall to the Allies
- March 13: Organized Axis resistance in Africa ends
- May 7: Organized Japanese resistance in Attu ends
- May 12: Allies invade Sicily
- May 30: Allies land on Italian mainland
- July 10: Italy signs secret armistice with Allies
- Sept 3: Allies capture Finschhafen
- Sept 3: Italy declares war on Germany
- Oct 2: US troops land on Bougainville Island
- Nov 1: Soviets retake Kiev
- Nov 6: US Marines invade Tarawa and Makin
- Nov 20: Allied Leaders confer in Cairo, Egypt
- Nov 22: Allies march into Rome, Italy
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1944
- Jan 27: Soviets break the siege of Leningrad
- Jan 31: US troops attack Kwajalein Atoll
- Feb 17: United States forces raid Truk Island
- Feb 29: Allied soldiers land in the Admiralties
- March 19: Hungary conquered by Germany
- March 22: Japanese troops invade India
- April 22: Allied forces land at Hollandia
- June 6: Allies invade [Normandy, France
- June 13: First German V-I guided missile falls on London
- June 15: United States Marines invade Saipan Island
- June 15: USAF B-29s raid Japan
- June 19-20: USN defeats Japanese Fleet in Battle of the Philippine Sea
- July 21: US forces land on Guam Island
- July 25: Allies break out of Normandy
- Aug 15: Allies retake Philippines from Japan
- Aug 15: Allies invade southern France, encountering little German
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- Aug 25: Romania declares war on Germany
- Sept 9: Bulgaria declares war on Germany
- Sept 10: Finland signs armistice with U.S.S.R
- Sept 15: US Marines invade Peleiu Island
- Oct 20: US Army lands on Leyte
- Oct 26: US Pacific Fleet defeats Japanese Fleet in Battle for Leyte Gulf
- Dec 16: Nazis counterattack at Bulge, Belgium
- Dec 27: Allies defeat Germans at the Battle of the Bulge
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1945
- Jan 9: Allied troops invade Luzon, Philippines
- Jan 22: Allies reopen a land route to China
- Jan 11: Red Army enters Warsaw, Poland
- Jan 21: Hungary declares war on Germany
- Feb 13: Soviet forces occupy Budapest, Hungary
- Feb 19: US Marines storm Iwo Jima Island
- April 1: US troops land on Okinawa Island
- April 13:Vienna captured by Red Army
- April 22: Soviets reach suburbs of Berlin
- April 25: US and Soviet forces meet at Torgau
- May 2: German troops in Italy surrender
- May 2: Berlin surrenders to Soviet Army
- May 7: Germany surrenders to the Allies
- July 26: Allies issue the Potsdam Declaration
- Aug 6: United States bomber, Enola Gay, drops atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan
- Aug 9: US bomber, Bock's Car, drops atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan
- Aug 10: Japanese government opens up negotiations for peace
- Aug 14: Japan surrenders to Allies
- Sept 2: Japanese officials sign terms of surrender on US battleship Missouri
- Sept 8: Japanese forces in China surrender
- Sept 12: Japanese forces in southeast Asia surrender
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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
