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Invasion of Poland
The invasion of Poland was the starting point of WWII. Germany invaded against Poland, leaving devastating effects, and left the country in despair. Poland was powerless against Germany, but they had the support of Great Britain and France. In photo: Hitler instructs his troops as they leave for the invasion of Poland. -
Declared War
Great Britain and France declared war against Germany. Neither country truly helped Poland, which soon fell against Germany anyways. They became the allies. In photo: Poland was rubble in no time after Germany's invasion. -
Winston Churchill declared Prime Minister
Winston Churchill takes control of Great Britain. He replaced Neville Chamberlain as Prime Minister in May of 1940. -
France Surrenders to Germany
Conflict was avoided in Dunkirk, but France was still doomed. Allied forces could not save France, therefore France was required to surrender to Germany. Germany then occupied much of France. In photo: Hitler outside Eiffel Tower. -
Japan Invades French Indochina
Japan moved forces in for reason of supplying they would need for military needs was here. Indochina was rich in oil, rubber, and other natural resources. -
War Declared on U.S. by Germany and Italy
Germany and Italy declared war against United States three days after war was declared against Japan. United States joined the Allies in the global fight against the Axis Powers. -
Battle of Coral Sea
Japan at height in power, Japanese and American aircrafts came together in battle the location was of Coral Sea. Japanese forces invaded the british controlled "Port Moresby" on New Guinea. Allied vessels tried to block attack. Both lost aircraft carriers. Hurt the Americans moreso. And marked first time Japanese Advance had been stopped. -
Battle of Stalingrad
Purpose of German Commander of the 6th Army assisted by Fourth Panzer Army, was to secure oil fields in Caucasus. Paulus (General) was directed by Hitler to take Stalingrad. Stalingrad was Russia's centre of communications, and manufactoring. -
Allied Forces defeat of Battle of Guadalcanal
Allied forces defeat Japan in the Battle of Guadalcanal. Japanese forces are forced to abandon island. -
Germans and Italians Surrender in North Africa
Troops of Germany and Italy soon felt trapped, and nearly 250,000 Axis soldiers were taken as POWs. Germany and Italy surrender, and all of North Africa was in Allied hands. -
United States Reach Out to Jews
Millions of Jews had died, and US established the War Refugee Board to help rescue European Jews. Saved around 200,000 Jews. -
Siege of Leningrad Ended
The siege ended fully around January 27th, 1944. This was a tragic period that Russians view as the "Leningrad Blockade." Many people died from starvation during the blockade. -
Soviets Liberate Death Camp
Soviet liberates the Auschwitz Death Camp. Found 7,000 starving survivors, and found hundreds of thousand clothing items. They realized many more people were held then the ones found. -
Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Bomb included around 12-15 thousand tons of TNT. Devastated 5 sq miles. This bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.
US dropped a larger bomb on city of Nagasaki three days later, it was known as the "Fat Man" and weighed nearly 9,000 lbs.