1. The War in Europe

2. September 1939
Germany violates the Munich Agreement and attacks Poland
“Blitzkrieg“- lightning warfare
France & Britain declare war on Germany

4. May 1940
Winston Churchill replaces Neville Chamberlain as Prime Minister (Britain)
Germany invades Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands

5. June 1940
Germany captures Paris; France surrenders

6. July 1940 Battle of Britain begins
-Three month battle by air over Britain
-Hitler’s first defeat that fall
-British Royal Airforce v. Germany Luftwaffe
“Dogfights”

7. March 1941 President Roosevelt signs the Lend-Lease Act
Allows the U.S. to see/lend war materials to all countries the President deems vital

8. August 1941 Churchill & Roosevelt unveil the Atlantic Charter
Outlines goals for the destruction of “Nazi tyranny”
Support “the right of all peoples to choose their form of government”

9. December 1941
Following an attack on the U.S. Roosevelt asks Congress to declare war on Japan
Three days later Germany & Italy declare war on the U.S.

10. January 1942 First US troops arrive in Europe
50,000 per month in the beginning
250,000 per month by 1944

11. August 1942 Germany attacks Russian city, Stalingrad
Battle lasts 6 months
Hundreds of thousands die on both sides
Red Army finally defeats Nazis
*Turning point! Pushes Hitler back!

12. May 1943
US Troops led by Generals Dwight Eisenhower and George Patton help British defeat German troops in North Africa
Eisenhower appointed
commander of U.S. forces

13. July-September 1943 Allies capture Sicily &Southern Italy
Benito Mussolini overthrown and imprisoned
Hitler sends German troops- leads to a series of costly battles

14. November 1943 The “Big Three” meet in Teheran, Iran to discuss Italy
Roosevelt, Stalin, and Churchill
*Eisenhower becomes commander of
Allied Expeditionary Force

15. February 1944 US begins bombing Nazi production centers
600 US bombers raid Berlin

16. June 5 1944 “Operation Overlord”
Paratroopers dropped into enemy territory
160,000 troops and 30,000
vehicles landed on beaches
in Normandy
Leads to Allied liberation of
France

18. December 1944 Battle of the Bulge Hitler’s last offensive attack
250,000 Nazi soldiers are held back in the cold winter weather

19. March-May 1945
US forces cross the Rhine River, Germans retreat into Germany
Soviet forces enter Berlin, Hitler marries his mistress, poisons her then shoots himself
Mussolini attempts escape- killed
Eisenhower accepts Germany’s unconditional surrender