World War II (original) (raw)

World War II 1939-1945

The German invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939 marked the beginning of World War II in Europe. Here are the key events surrounding this pivotal moment:

The Invasion

On September 1, 1939, Nazi Germany launched a massive attack on Poland without a formal declaration of war. At 4:45 AM, the German battleship Schleswig-Holstein opened fire on the Polish military depot at Westerplatte, near Danzig. Simultaneously, the Luftwaffe began bombing Polish cities, including Wieluń.The German assault was overwhelming:

• Over 2,000 tanks supported by nearly 900 bombers and 400 fighter planes
• 60 divisions totaling nearly 1.5 million men
• Poland was quickly outmatched by Germany's superior military technology and tactics. The Germans employed a new strategy called Blitzkrieg or "lightning war," which involved rapid, concentrated attacks by armored units supported by overwhelming air power.

Poland's Defense and Defeat

Despite fighting tenaciously, the Polish army was defeated within weeks. Several factors contributed to Poland's swift defeat:

• Late mobilization and disadvantageous deployment of forces
• Lack of modern arms and equipment
• Limited armored and motorized units
• Only about 300 planes, most destroyed in the first days

Warsaw, declared a fortress by Polish forces, endured heavy bombing before finally surrendering on September 28.

Soviet Invasion and Partition

On September 17, the Soviet Union invaded eastern Poland, effectively sealing Poland's fate. This invasion was in accordance with the secret protocol of the German-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact signed just days before the war began.

The last Polish units surrendered on October 6, 1939. Germany and the Soviet Union then divided and annexed Polish territory as agreed in the German-Soviet Frontier Treaty.

International Response

Britain and France, honoring their alliance with Poland, declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939. However, their aid to Poland was limited, and they failed to provide meaningful support during the invasion.

Aftermath

The invasion of Poland had far-reaching consequences:

• It marked the official start of World War II in Europe
• Poland ceased to exist as an independent state
• The German occupation began a period of immense suffering for Polish citizens, particularly Jews and other targeted groups
• It set the stage for the broader conflict that would engulf much of the world in the coming years

The invasion of Poland demonstrated the effectiveness of Germany's new military tactics and the vulnerability of unprepared nations to such aggressive expansion.

World War II Chronology:

1939:

• March 15: German troops invade Czechoslovakia.
• March 30: France and England pledge to protect Poland's independence.
• April 7: Italy invades Albania.
• August 23: Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union sign a non-aggression pact.
• August 25: Orders to invade Poland are canceled.
• September 1: Germany invades Poland; Norway, Portugal, and Sweden declare neutrality.
• September 3: Britain and France declare war on Germany; Spain, Ireland, and the U.S. declare neutrality.
• September 8: U.S. President declares a limited national emergency.
• September 9: Canada declares war on Germany.
• September 29: Germany and the Soviet Union agree to partition Poland.
• October 6: The last of the Polish forces surrender to the German Army.
• November 4: U.S. Congress passes the "cash and carry" law, allowing the sale of munitions to belligerents.
• November 30: The Soviet Union attacks Finland.

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1940:

• March 12: Soviet-Finnish war ends.
• April 8: Germany occupies Denmark and invades Norway.
• April 20: British troops land in Norway.
• April 23: Greece signs an armistice with Germany.
• May 10: Germany launches the invasion of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and France; Winston Churchill becomes British Prime Minister.
• May 13: Rommel's 7th Panzer Division crosses the Meuse River at Dinant; Guderian’s 19th Armored Corps crosses at Sedan.
• May 15: The Netherlands surrenders to Germany.
• May 23: Boulogne, France, falls to Germany.
• May 24: Allies withdraw from Norway.
• May 27: Belgium surrenders to Germany; Allied forces begin evacuating Dunkirk.
• June 3: The U.S. releases war materials to Great Britain.
• June 4: Evacuation from Dunkirk completed; Churchill delivers his "We shall fight on the beaches" speech.
• June 9: Norway surrenders to Germany.
• June 10: Italy declares war on France and Britain.
• June 14: German troops march into Paris.
• June 22: France signs an armistice with Germany.
• June 24: France and Italy sign an armistice.
• July 3: British forces attack the French fleet at Oran.
• July 10: Battle of Britain begins as Germany launches an air offensive against Britain.
• July 16: Hitler orders Operation Sealion, the invasion of Britain.
• July 18: Churchill gives his "This was their finest hour" speech.
• July 19: Hitler offers Britain a peace deal, which is rejected by Churchill.
• July 31: German high command plans to invade the Soviet Union by May 1941.
• August 27: U.S. Congress authorizes reservists to serve for 12 months.
• September 3: The U.S. and Britain sign an agreement to exchange destroyers for base rights.
• September 13: Italy invades Egypt, aiming to control the Suez Canal.
• September 16: The U.S. enacts the Selective Service Draft.
• September 18: Hitler postpones Operation Sealion.
• September 22: Japan invades French Indochina.
• September 27: Germany, Italy, and Japan sign the Tripartite Pact.
• October 23: Spain's Franco agrees to join the war.
• October 28: Italy attacks Greece.
• October 31: The Battle of Britain is declared over by Churchill.
• November 20: Hungary and Romania join the Axis.

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1941:

• January 5: British forces invade Ethiopia.
• January 29: U.S. and British military begin staff talks.
• March 1: Bulgaria joins the Axis.
• March 11: U.S. Congress passes the Lend-Lease Act.
• April 6: Germany invades Greece and Yugoslavia.
• April 13: Japan and the Soviet Union sign a non-aggression pact.
• May 27: U.S. President Roosevelt declares a state of unlimited national emergency.
• June 8: British and French forces invade Syria.
• June 22: Germany launches Operation Barbarossa, invading the Soviet Union with around 3 million troops.
• July 7: U.S. forces land in Iceland.
• July 26: The U.S. imposes an oil embargo on Japan.
• August 7-14: Roosevelt and Churchill announce the Atlantic Charter.
• September 4: Germany attacks the USS Greer, initiating a tacit shooting war in the Atlantic.
• September 25: U.S. military leaders submit estimates of forces needed to defeat the Axis.
• October 1: The First Soviet Protocol is signed by the U.S., Britain, and the USSR in Moscow.
• December 7-8: Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, the Philippines, Wake Island, Guam, Malaya, Thailand, and Shanghai; declares war on the U.S. and Britain.
• December 8: Germany's offensive in Russia falters; Canada declares war on Japan.
• December 9: China declares war on Japan, Germany, and Italy.
• December 10: Japan captures Guam and lands in Luzon, Philippines.
• December 11: Germany and Italy declare war on the U.S., and the U.S. reciprocates.
• December 18: Japan attacks Hong Kong, and Britain surrenders on Christmas Day.
• December 20: The Flying Tigers, led by Chennault, begin combat against Japan in China.
• December 23: General MacArthur orders the evacuation of Manila and withdrawal to Bataan; Japan captures Wake Island.

1942:

• January 1: The United Nations Declaration is signed by twenty-six nations fighting the Axis powers.
• January 2: The Japanese occupy Manila.
• January 7: American and Filipino forces withdraw into Bataan.
• January 9: The Combined Chiefs of Staff are established.
• January 14-24: Anglo-American ARCADIA Conference held in Washington, D.C.
• January 19: Japanese forces capture British North Borneo.
• January 23: The Japanese seize Rabaul and Kavieng in the Bismarck Archipelago and invade Bougainville in the Solomons.
• February 1: The U.S. Navy bombards the Gilbert and Marshall Islands.
• February 2: Singapore falls to the Japanese.
• February 27-28: The Allies lose the Battle of the Java Sea; Japan invades Java.
• March-November: Submarine attacks in the Atlantic reach record numbers.
• March 7: The Japanese occupy Burma.
• March 9: The U.S. War Department is reorganized.
• March 17: General MacArthur arrives in Australia to take command of Allied forces.
• April 8-15: British-American discussions in London result in the conditional agreement on the BOLERO-ROUNDUP plan.
• April 9: Bataan surrenders.
• April 18: The U.S. conducts its first air raid on Tokyo.
• May 2: Japanese forces land on Tulagi near Guadalcanal and begin constructing an airstrip.
• May 6: All U.S. forces in the Philippines surrender.
• May 8: The Allies win the Battle of the Coral Sea.
• May 20: The Japanese complete their conquest of Burma.
• May 27: Rommel's forces begin their drive into Egypt.
• June 3-6: The Allies win the Battle of Midway.
• June 5: The U.S. declares war on Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania.
• June 7: The Japanese invade the western Aleutian Islands.
• June 21: Axis forces seize Tobruk in North Africa.
• July 1: Germans capture Sevastopol.
• July 2: Rommel’s advance halts at the border of Egypt.
• August 7: U.S. forces invade Guadalcanal, Florida, and Tulagi in the Solomons.
• August 23: Churchill agrees to Roosevelt's proposal for U.S. operation of Persian Gulf aid facilities to the USSR.
• September 14: The Battle of Stalingrad begins.
• October 23: The British launch a counteroffensive at El Alamein.
• November 8: Allied forces land in Casablanca, Oran, and Algiers in North Africa.
• November 13: The British recapture Tobruk.
• November 19: Soviet forces launch a counterattack at Stalingrad.
• December 24: Allied drive on Tunis ends in a stalemate.

---

1943:

• January 14-23: The Allied conference at Casablanca is held.
• January 22: The Papua Campaign in New Guinea ends.
• January 27: The U.S. Eighth Air Force makes its first attack on Nazi Germany, targeting Wilhelmshaven.
• February 2: The Soviet Union destroys the remnants of the German Sixth Army at Stalingrad.
• February 9: Organized Japanese resistance on Guadalcanal ceases.
• February 20-25: Rommel’s forces break through the Kasserine Pass in Tunisia but are pushed back by the Allies.
• March 2-4: The Allies defeat the Japanese in the Battle of the Bismarck Sea.
• March 16: The final Allied offensive in Tunisia begins.
• March 18: American forces capture El Guettar.
• March 20-27: Montgomery's Eighth Army breaks through the Mareth Line.
• May 11-31: With the recapture of Attu, the Allies drive the Japanese from the Aleutians.
• May 13: Axis forces in North Africa surrender.
• May 12-25: The TRIDENT Conference takes place in Washington.
• July 4: Germany launches an assault near Kursk.
• July 10: Allied forces invade Sicily.
• July 25: Mussolini is overthrown in Italy.
• August 14-24: The QUADRANT Conference is held in Quebec.
• August 17: The campaign in Sicily ends.
• September 3: British troops invade southern Italy; Italy secretly signs an armistice with the Allies.
• September 8: Italy officially surrenders.
• September 9: Allied forces land at Salerno and Taranto.
• October 1: Allied forces enter Naples and capture Foggia airfields.
• October 13: Italy declares war on Nazi Germany.
• November 1: U.S. forces invade Bougainville.
• December 2-7: Allied conferences take place in Cairo and Tehran.

---

1944:

• January 15: The Soviet Union begins an offensive to relieve Leningrad.
• January 22: The U.S. Fifth Army lands at Anzio, Italy.
• January 27: The siege of Leningrad is broken.
• June 4: Allied forces enter Rome.
• June 6: D-Day – Allied forces land in Normandy, France (Operation OVERLORD).
• June 19-20: U.S. forces win the Battle of the Philippine Sea.
• December 16: Germany launches a major counteroffensive in the Ardennes, initiating the Battle of the Bulge.

---

1945:

• January 17: Soviet forces capture Warsaw, Poland.
• January 26: Auschwitz is liberated by Soviet troops.
• February 4-11: Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin meet at the Yalta Conference.
• March 7: The Allies establish a bridge across the Rhine at Remagen.
• April 12: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies, and Vice President Harry S. Truman assumes the presidency.
• April 30: Adolf Hitler commits suicide.
• May 7: Germany signs an unconditional surrender, ending the war in Europe (V-E Day).
• August 6: The U.S. drops the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.
• August 9: The U.S. drops a second atomic bomb on Nagasaki.
• August 14: Japan surrenders unconditionally, bringing World War II to an end (V-J Day).
• September 2: Japan formally signs the surrender aboard the USS Missouri.

Timeline rewrite by: OpenAI. (2024). ChatGPT [Large language model]. https://chatgpt.com

Students and Teachers of US History this is a video of Stanley and Christopher Klos presenting America's Four United Republics Curriculum at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. The December 2015 video was an impromptu capture by a member of the audience of Penn students, professors and guests that numbered about 200. - Click Here for more information

World War II

1939 - 1945

by Neal McLaughlin -- August 2004

World War I, which was said to be "the war to end all wars," had definitely fallen short of this proclamation. Following the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, the 3 major powers each retreated back to their neutral corners. This, however, is not to imply that they did so with a smile on their faces.

The results of World War I had been less than expected. Germany was extremely resentful of their territorial losses and at the demand made that they pay restitution. Italy, even though victorious, felt that she did not gain enough territory to offset their wartime expenditures or to satisfy their ambitions. Japan, also victorious, was beside them selves because they had not gained control of China as they had hoped.

The United States, United Kingdom and France, who had attained their war objectives, did not leave the arena as happy victors. The French and the British were frequently embroiled in disagreement on a postwar policy but neither country was confident in their abilities to defend the peace settlement. The United States, disenchanted by the Europeans failure to repay their war time debts, retreated into Isolationism.

The primary objective of the Great War was to make the "world safe for democracy." Following their defeat, Germany, as did most of the other post war states, adopted a Democratic constitution. However, by the 1920's, it appeared that the future would be paved in a form of nationalistic, militaristic totalitarianism known also as Fascism.

Fascism, was a promise to respond to the needs of the people more effectively than a democracy could and to assure defense against the state becoming communist. In 1922, Italy, under the direction of Benito Mussolini was the first post war country to establish a dictatorship.

Adolph Hitler and the National Socialist Party promised their people that he would overturn the ruling of the Versailles Treaty and expand the land of Germany, thus giving his people more space. In early 1930, depression fell upon Germany forcing the more moderate of parties to turn to the Nazis and Communism.

Japan, with her strong and powerful military intact did not adopt formal Fascism, but instead imposed a similar form of totalitarianism. The Japanese's military was well ahead of Hitler's and in 1931 they would clash with the Chinese near Mukden, and by 1938 occupy all of the Chinese ports.

In March of 1938, with the support of Mussolini, Hitler began his promised expansion project. Britain, who had been under the impression that they had established a treaty with Germany would later pledge their support to Poland if Hitler continued his forward thrust. France had already established a mutual defense treaty with Poland and she was prepared for a defensive if Germany in fact invaded Poland.

It now seemed that history was once again preparing to repeat itself. Germany continued their expansion program and Italy moved forward and seized Albania and in 1939 would unite with Germany. In reaction to this, Britain and France had abandoned their appeasement policy in favor of an anti-aggression front with her allies Turkey, Greece, Poland and Romania.

On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland without a declaration of war. In return, on September 3, Britain and France declared war on Germany. Very little time passed before the remaining member of the Commonwealth of Nations joined them, with exception to Ireland.

America had wanted nothing to do with the European conflict and was trying very hard to remain neutral. However, as the conditions on the war front deteriorated, the United States was forced to intervene to prevent the total collapse of Britain. The 1941 passing of the Lend-Lease act permitted America to extend her hand out to Britain. After meeting with Prime Minister Winston Churchill, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt agreed with the proposed charter to pronounce the aims of the democratic states.

The United States established military bases to protect shipping lanes from U-boat attacks while issuing repeated warnings to Germany, who failed to acknowledge them. relations quickly crumbled. Japan continued her aggressive acts in China, Indochina and Thailand despite the protesting of the United States.

The United States ended all efforts of establishing some sort of peace settlement when on December 7th, 1941 the Japanese Air Force soared in and bombed Pearl Harbor. On December 8th, The outraged United States and the Commonwealth of Nations, with exception to Ireland, declared war on Japan. Several days following this declaration, Germany declared war on the United States.

From 1941 to September of 1945, when all hostilities officially ceased, World War II turned out to be one of the most devastating and costly Global Military conflicts in the history of the world. This war involved 61 countries, 1.7 billion people, which was 3/4 s of the world's population, and cost more than 1 trillion dollars to carry out!

The loss of life was phenomenal, it is estimated that the militaries had lost 25 million troops and the civilian death count was nearly 30 million. Including the 5.5 +/-millions of Jews who perished during the Holocaust and the 110,000 +/-Japanese who were eradicated during the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

World War II was different from any other previous war, as it relied on the total commitment of all of the nations populous and economic resources. There was, however, a positive outcome to this travesty. There was the development of new weaponry, such as the long-range rocket and the A-bomb, as well as radical advancements in the mechanized units and the air force.

By the President of the United States of America

The Allied Armies, through sacrifice and devotion and with God's help, have wrung from Germany a final and unconditional surrender. The western world has been freed of the evil forces which for five years and longer have imprisoned the bodies and broken the lives of millions upon millions of free-born men. They have violated their churches, destroyed their homes, corrupted their children, and murdered their loved ones. Our Armies of Liberation have restored freedom to these suffering peoples, whose spirit and will the oppressors could never enslave.

Much remains to be done. The victory won in the West must now be won in the East. The whole world must be cleansed of the evil from which half the world has been freed. United, the peace-loving nations have demonstrated in the West that their arms are stronger by far than the might of dictators or the tyranny of military cliques that once called us soft and weak. The power of our peoples to defend themselves against all enemies will be proved in the Pacific war as it has been proved in Europe.

For the triumph of spirit and of arms which we have won, and for its promise to peoples everywhere who join us in the love of freedom, it is fitting that we, as a nation, give thanks to Almighty God, who has strengthened us and given us the victory.

Now, THEREFORE, I, HARRY S. TRUMAN, President of the United States of America, do hereby appoint Sunday, May 13, 1945, to be a day of prayer.

I call upon the people of the United States, whatever their faith, to unite in offering joyful thanks to God for the victory we have won and to pray that He will support us to the end of our present struggle and guide us into the way of peace.

I also call upon my countrymen to dedicate this day of prayer to the memory of those who have given their lives to make possible our victory.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States of America to be affixed.

DONE at the City of Washington this eighth day of May, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and forty-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundred and sixty-ninth.

HARRY S. TRUMAN

By the President:

JOSEPH C. GREW

Acting Secretary of State

World War II Battles and Events

Battle Of Britain

Battle Of Guadal Canal Battle Of Kursk Battle Of Liege Battle Of Midway Battle Of Stalingrad Battle Of The Atlantic Battle Of The Bulge Battle Of The Pacific Battle Of The Philippines Bombing Of Hiroshima

Bombing Of Nagasaki

Iwo JimaMaginot Line

The Allies

Omar Bradley

Neville ChamberlainSir Winston Churchill

Dwight D. Eisenhower Charles De Gaulle John F. Kennedy Chiang Kaishek Douglas MacArthur George Marshall Anthony McAuliffe William Moffett Bernard Law Montgomery Richard Montgomery Audie Murphy Chester Nimitz George Patton Hyman Rickover Matthew Ridgway

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Joseph Stalin

Jonathan Wainwright

The Axis

Nazi Propaganda

Sepp Dietrich Karl Donitz Emperor Of Japan Mitsuo Fuchida Joseph Goebbels Hermann Goring Heinrich Himmler Hirohito

Adolf Hitler

Otto Kretschmer

Erich Ludendorff Erich Manstein Hasso Von Manteuffel

Genda Minoru

Erwin Rommel

The Congressional Evolution of the United States of America

Continental Congress of the United Colonies Presidents

Sept. 5, 1774 to July 1, 1776

Commander-in-Chief United Colonies & States of America

George Washington: June 15, 1775 - December 23, 1783

Continental Congress of the United States Presidents
July 2, 1776 to February 28, 1781

Presidents of the United States in Congress Assembled
March 1, 1781 to March 3, 1789

Presidents of the United States of America

D-Democratic Party, F-Federalist Party, I-Independent, R-Republican Party, R* Republican Party of Jefferson & W-Whig Party

**Chart Comparing Presidential Powers **- Click Here

**United Colonies and States First Ladies

**1774-1788

Capitals of the United Colonies and States of America

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