Germany Invades Poland
German forces launched a Blitzkrieg attack on Poland from three directions, beginning World War II in Europe. Air bombardment and armored units were coordinated in an unprecedented manner.
1939 — 1945
Timeline of events
Key events of World War II from 1939 to 1945
1 September 1939 3 September 1939 Britain and France Declare War on Germany
Following the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany, turning the conflict into a wider European war. This began the "Phoney War" period, largely devoid of major land battles in the west.
17 September 1939 Soviet Union Invades Eastern Poland
In accordance with the secret protocol of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, Soviet forces invaded eastern Poland, ending any prospect of a sustained Polish defensive line.
30 November 1939 Soviet Union Attacks Finland — Winter War
The Soviet Union invaded Finland, but the smaller Finnish army offered fierce resistance in brutal winter conditions. Soviet initial failures revealed the damage Stalin's purges had done to Red Army leadership.
9 April 1940 Germany Invades Denmark and Norway
German forces occupied Denmark within hours, while Norway resisted with British and French assistance before surrendering in June 1940. The occupation aimed to secure resources and bases for operations against Britain.
10 May 1940 Germany Attacks France, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg
Germany launched a Blitzkrieg through the Benelux countries, bypassing the Maginot Line with an armored thrust through the Ardennes. The armor breakthrough at the Meuse river at Sedan proved decisive.
26 May 1940 Dunkirk Evacuation
Over 338,000 British and French soldiers were evacuated from Dunkirk's beaches in a massive naval operation. Churchill described it as a "miracle of deliverance" despite calling it an "operational defeat."
10 June 1940 Italy Enters the War
Mussolini declared war on France and Britain, believing German victory was imminent. Italy's entry extended the war geographically into the Mediterranean and North Africa.
18 June 1940 De Gaulle Broadcasts from London
From BBC London, General de Gaulle delivered his historic appeal, refusing to accept surrender and calling all French people to continue the resistance. This broadcast planted the seed of the Free French movement.
10 July 1940 Battle of Britain Begins
The Luftwaffe began its intensive air campaign to destroy the RAF and force Britain's submission in preparation for Operation Sea Lion (invasion). British pilots resisted fiercely over many months.
7 September 1940 London Blitz Begins
Germany shifted its air attacks from airfields to British cities, especially London. The bombing lasted 57 consecutive nights on London, causing massive civilian casualties. This shift paradoxically allowed the RAF to recover and reorganize.
22 June 1941 Germany Invades Soviet Union — Operation Barbarossa
Germany and its allies launched the largest land military operation in history against the Soviet Union, with over 4 million soldiers on a front stretching over 2,900 km. The Eastern Front would prove the bloodiest theater of the war.
7 December 1941 Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor
In a surprise dawn attack, Japanese aircraft struck the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, sinking four battleships and destroying hundreds of aircraft. Roosevelt called it "a date which will live in infamy."
11 December 1941 Germany and Italy Declare War on the United States
By declaring war on the United States, Hitler removed the last American hesitation about full war entry. This gave Roosevelt freedom to implement his "Europe First" strategy.
20 January 1942 Wannsee Conference — Planning the Final Solution
Senior Nazi officials met at Villa Wannsee in Berlin to coordinate the implementation of the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question" — the chilling euphemism for the systematic plan to exterminate European Jews.
4 June 1942 Battle of Midway
The US Navy achieved a crushing victory over the Japanese fleet, destroying four aircraft carriers. This victory became the turning point of the Pacific war, transferring initiative from Japan to the United States.
23 August 1942 Battle of Stalingrad Begins
German forces besieged Stalingrad, igniting one of the longest and most brutal urban battles in history. The devastated city became a graveyard for Hitler's eastern ambitions.
23 October 1942 Second Battle of El Alamein
General Montgomery launched a massive offensive that stopped Field Marshal Rommel's advance in North Africa and pushed him westward. The battle marked the turning point in the African theater.
14 January 1943 Casablanca Conference
Roosevelt and Churchill met in Casablanca, declaring that the Allies would accept only unconditional surrender from Axis powers. They also decided to intensify strategic bombing of Germany.
2 February 1943 German Sixth Army Surrenders at Stalingrad
Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus surrendered with the remnants of his encircled Sixth Army at Stalingrad. The defeat was a psychological shock to the German people and a clear sign of the beginning of German collapse.
4 July 1943 Battle of Kursk — Largest Tank Battle in History
Germany attempted to regain initiative in the largest armored concentration in history, but Soviet deep defenses and superior intelligence foiled the attack. After Kursk, Germany never launched another major offensive on the Eastern Front.
8 September 1943 Italy Surrenders
Marshal Badoglio announced Italy's unconditional surrender. Germany continued fighting on Italian soil, occupying the north and fiercely resisting Allied advance northward.
28 November 1943 Tehran Conference
Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met face-to-face for the first time, setting the date for the invasion of Western Europe (Operation Overlord) for 1944. The conference paved the way for coordinating major military operations.
27 January 1944 Siege of Leningrad Lifted
After 872 days of siege that killed over a million civilians, the Red Army finally lifted the German blockade of Leningrad (St. Petersburg). It stands as one of the longest and most deadly sieges in history.
6 June 1944 D-Day — Allied Invasion of Normandy
In the largest amphibious operation in history, Allied forces stormed the beaches of Normandy in five landing zones, opening the Western Front and beginning the liberation of occupied France.
20 July 1944 July 20 Plot to Assassinate Hitler Fails
Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg detonated a bomb at Hitler's "Wolf's Lair" headquarters, but failed to kill him. The conspirators were brutally executed. The plot revealed the existence of military opposition within Germany.
25 August 1944 Liberation of Paris
Free French forces under General Leclerc entered liberated Paris, followed by de Gaulle in a massive celebration. Hitler's orders to destroy the city were refused. Liberty was restored to the "City of Light."
16 December 1944 Battle of the Bulge — Last Major German Western Offensive
Germany launched its last major offensive in the West through the Ardennes, catching unprepared Allies. Fierce fighting in brutal cold followed before Allied resistance forced German retreat, exhausting Germany's last strategic reserves.
27 January 1945 Auschwitz Concentration Camp Liberated
Soviet forces liberated Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi extermination center. They found 7,000 survivors in terrible condition and thousands of items of evidence of crimes committed. The world began to grasp the full scale of the Holocaust.
4 February 1945 Yalta Conference
Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met in Yalta, Crimea, mapping post-war Europe and dividing spheres of influence. Decisions made there laid the foundations of the postwar international order and set the stage for the Cold War.
19 February 1945 US Lands on Iwo Jima
US Marines stormed Iwo Jima in a bloody 36-day battle. The iconic photograph of the US flag raised on Mount Suribachi became one of the most famous photographs in war history.
12 April 1945 President Roosevelt Dies
Franklin Roosevelt died suddenly in Warm Springs, Georgia, weeks from victory in Europe. Vice President Harry Truman assumed the presidency, being informed for the first time of the Manhattan Project.
28 April 1945 Mussolini Executed
Benito Mussolini was executed by Italian partisans near Milan while attempting to flee to Switzerland. His body was hung upside down in a Milan public square, in a symbolic scene marking the fall of Italian fascism.
30 April 1945 Hitler Dies in Berlin
Adolf Hitler died by suicide in his bunker beneath the Berlin Reich Chancellery as Soviet forces closed in. His death effectively ended the Third Reich after twelve years of rule among the most criminal in history.
8 May 1945 V-E Day — Germany Surrenders
Germany signed the unconditional surrender document. Millions celebrated in the streets of London, Paris, Moscow, and New York at the end of six years of war that had cost tens of millions of lives.
26 June 1945 United Nations Charter Signed
In San Francisco, representatives of fifty nations signed the United Nations Charter, founding the international organization President Roosevelt had dreamed of creating. The Charter entered into force in October 1945.
6 August 1945 Atomic Bomb Dropped on Hiroshima
The American B-29 Enola Gay dropped the atomic bomb "Little Boy" on Hiroshima, instantly destroying the city and killing between 70,000 and 80,000 people immediately, with thousands more dying later from radiation.
9 August 1945 Second Atomic Bomb Dropped on Nagasaki
The "Fat Man" atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on the same day the Soviet Union declared war on Japan. The city was destroyed and 40,000 killed immediately, collapsing the last arguments of Japanese hardliners.
15 August 1945 Emperor Hirohito Announces Surrender
In the first radio broadcast of the Emperor's voice in Japanese history, Hirohito announced acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration terms, ending Japanese resistance without using the word "surrender." The broadcast stunned a Japanese public that had never heard his voice.
2 September 1945 V-J Day — End of World War II
Japan signed the formal surrender document aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. World War II was officially over after six years of bloodshed that had claimed over 50 million lives.