German Expansion Timeline

German Re-Armament

Mar 16, 1935

Hitler announced that Germany would rebuild it's military in violation of the Treaty of Versailles.

Austria and Czechoslovakia Fall

Nov 5, 1937

Hitler met secretly with his top military advisers. He declared that Germany needs land of its neighbors to grow and prosper.

Union with Austria

Mar 12, 1938

German troops marched into Austria unopposed. Later declaring that the union with Austria was complete.

Daladier an Chamberlain signed the Munich Agreement

Sep 30, 1938

Agreement that turned the Sudetenland over to Germany.

Soviet Union Declares Neutrality

1939

Hitler began charging that Germans in Poland were mistreated by the Poles and needed his protection.

The Phony War Stalin's Army

1939

Stalin sent his Soviet army into Finland.

German Offensive Begins

Mar 15, 1939

German troops poured into what remained of Czechoslovakia.

Nonaggression Pact

Aug 23, 1939

Fascist Germany and communist Russia now committed never to attack each other.

Blitzkrieg in Poland

Sep 1, 1939

German Luftwaffe or German air force, roared over Poland, raining bombs on military bases, airfields, railroads, and cities.

Germany going to war with Poland, Britain, and France

Sep 3, 1939

Two days following the terror in Poland, Britain, and France declared war on Germany.

Battle of Britain

1940

Germans began to assemble an invasion fleet along the French coast.

The Phony War

Apr 9, 1940

Hitler launched a surprise invasion of Denmark and Norway trying "to protect freedom and independence.

The Fall of France

Jun 22, 1940

Hitler handed French officers is terms or surrender.