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Treaty of Versailes
The Treaty of Versailles was signed by Germany and the Allied Nations, formally ending World War One. The terms of the treaty required that Germany pay financial reparations, disarm, lose territory, and give up all of its overseas colonies which lead Germany into economic despair. -
Hitler Voted to Power in Germany
Hitler needed the vote of the Centre Party and Conservatives in the Reichstag to obtain the powers he wanted. Reichstag members are political figures. He called on Reichstag members to vote for the Enabling Act. Hitler was granted his powers "temporarily" by the passage of the Act, but this ended up not being so temporary. -
Hitler's Summer Olympics
Nazi Germany used the 1936 Olympic Games for propaganda purposes and to show dominance. The Nazis promoted an image of a new, strong, and united Germany while masking the regime's targeting of Jews as well as Germany's growing military. The Nazis spent lot's of money on the Olympics. -
German Invasion of Poland
Germany invades Poland, initiating World War II in Europe. German forces broke through Polish defenses along the border and quickly advanced on Warsaw, the Polish capital. Hundreds of thousands of refugees, both Jewish and non-Jewish, fled the German advance hoping the Polish army could halt the German advance. They were not succesful. -
Nazis Establish Gas Chambers in Auschwitz
The Nazis decided to create something to exterminate the people in the camps in the most efficient, quick, and cheap way possible which lead to the invention of the gas chamber. -
France Surrenders to Germany
The French lost in 1940 mainly because of three reasons: intelligence failure, operational and tactical inferiority, and poor strategic leadership. -
Japan Joins WW2 as an Ally of Germany
The skirmishes between Japan and a surprisingly effective Soviet Union in Mongolia, coupled with Soviet military aid to China, led to Japan seeking a military alliance with another rival of the Soviet Union: Nazi Germany. -
Tripartite Pact Signed
Tripartite Pact, agreement concluded by Germany, Italy, and Japan , one year after the start of World War II. It created a defense alliance between the countries and was largely intended to deter the United States from entering the conflict. -
Pearl Harbor Bombing
Japan attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The surprise attack by some 350 Japanese aircraft sunk or badly damaged eighteen US naval vessels, including eight battleships, destroyed or damaged 300 US aircraft, and killed 2,403 men. -
Japanese Americans Sent to Internment Camps
Following the Pearl Harbor attack, a wave of anti-Japanese suspicion and fear led the Roosevelt administration to adopt a drastic policy toward these residents, alien and citizen alike. Virtually all Japanese Americans were forced to leave their homes and property and live in camps for most of the war. -
Axis Powers Surender
Soviet forces entered Berlin, prompting Hitler to commit suicide. Germany formally surrendered to the Allies, ending the war in Europe. Japan surrendered in August 1945 following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, marking the end of the Axis and the war itself -
Atomic bombs dropped on Japan
The United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively to end the war quickly. The bombings killed between 150,000 and 246,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the only use of nuclear weapons in an armed conflict. -
Iwo Jima
U.S. Marines invaded Iwo Jima after months of naval and air bombardment. The Japanese defenders of the island were dug into bunkers deep within the volcanic rocks. Approximately 70,000 U.S. Marines and 18,000 Japanese soldiers took part in the battle.