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Japanese invasion of China
In 1937 the Japanese took the Chinese capital of Nanjing, and in 1945 they retreated from the Filipino capital of Manila. In both cases, Japanese troops massacred many thousands of civilians. The Japanese wanted to expand their empire and gain control over Chinese resources -
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Rape of Nanking
The imperial Japanese army captured the city and committed numerous atrocities against the Chinese population. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians and disarmed soldiers were killed and many women were subjected to sexual violence. This was a tragic brutal chapter in history. -
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Ribbentrop / Molotov Pact
Germany and the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression pact: The countries agreed that they would not attack each other and secretly divided the countries that lay between them. This treaty allowed the Germans to avoid a two-front war, which crushed Germany in World War I, and allowed the Soviets to expand their power in the Baltic States and Finland. -
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German Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg tactics were used in the successful German invasions of Belgium, the Netherlands, and France in 1940, which saw audacious applications of air power to overcome fixed fortifications that were believed by the defenders to be impregnable. -
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Fall of Paris
The Maginot Line fortresses fell one by one, though some held until July. Meanwhile the main attacks across the Somme and Aisne, initially checked by the French, eventually broke through, and succeeded in taking Paris on 14 June. On 22 June the French signed an armistice, surrendering to the Germans. France had fallen. -
Pearl Harbor
The Japanese military launched a surprise attack on the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Since early 1941 the U.S. had been supplying Great Britain in its fight against the Nazis. It had also been pressuring Japan to halt its military expansion in Asia and the Pacific. -
Wannsee Conference
The Wannsee Conference was a high-level meeting of German officials to discuss and implement the so-called “Final Solution of the Jewish Question”. The goal of this was: to inform and secure support from government ministries and other interested agencies relevant to the implementation of the “Final Solution” and to disclose to the participants that Hitler himself had tasked Heydrich and the RSHA with coordinating the operation. -
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Bataan Death March
The Bataan Death March began on April 10, 1942, when the Japanese assembled about 78,000 prisoners .They began marching up the east coast of Bataan. Although they didn't know it, their destination was Camp O'Donnell. -
D-day
The war would not be over by Christmas. But D-Day had opened another major front, where the bulk of America's rapidly expanding army could at last be brought to bear. It led to the liberation of France, denying Germany any further exploitation of that country's economic and manpower resources. -
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Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge marked the last German offense on the Western Front. The catastrophic losses on the German side prevented Germany from resisting the advance of Allied forces following the Normandy Invasion. Less than four months after the end of the Battle of the Bulge, Germany surrendered to Allied forces. -
Liberation of concentration camps
Internment centre established by a government to confine political prisoners or members of national or minority groups for reasons of state security, exploitation, or punishment. The prisoners are usually selected by executive decree or military order. -
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Battle of Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima was the site of one of the most important and most bitterly fought amphibious operations of the Pacific War. The strategic island, needed as an air base for the assault on Japan itself, was invaded 19 February 1945 and declared secure almost a month later. -
VE Day
On Victory in Europe Day, Germany unconditionally surrendered its military forces to the Allies, including the United States. On May 8, 1945 - known as Victory in Europe Day or V-E Day - celebrations erupted around the world to mark the end of World War II in Europe. -
Dropping of the atomic bombs
At 8:15 am on August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb used against human beings was dropped on Hiroshima. 600 meters over the city and with a blinding flash, the atomic bomb exploded 43 seconds after being dropped, creating a fireball that blazed. -
VJ Day
Victory over Japan Day, marks the end of World War II, one of the deadliest and most destructive wars in history. When President Harry S. Truman announced on Aug. 14, 1945, that Japan had surrendered unconditionally, war-weary citizens around the world erupted in celebration.