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Germany invades Poland | September 1, 1939 | HISTORY

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On September 1, 1939, German forces under the control of Adolf Hitler invade Poland, beginning World War II.

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Complete Timeline of World War II (1939-1945) 

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Complete Timeline of World War II (1939-1945) 

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Attention*** This article is long and you do not need to read through it. But you can reference it for dates and important battles if you'd like.

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Contents

1. Leading up to World War II

2. Outbreak of World War II (1939)

3. World War II in the West (1940-41)

4. Hitler vs. Stalin: Operation Barbarossa (1941-42)

5. World War II in the Pacific (1941-43)

6. Toward Allied Victory in World War II (1943-45)

7. World War II Ends (1945)

8. African American Servicemen Fight Two Wars

9. World War II Casualties and Legacy

10. Photo Galleries

The instability created in Europe by the First World War (1914-18) set the stage for another international conflict-World War II-which broke out two decades later and would prove even more devastating. Rising to power in an economically and politically unstable Germany, Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi Party, rearmed the nation and signed strategic treaties with Italy and Japan to further his ambitions of world domination. Hitler's invasion of Poland in September 1939 drove Great Britain and France to declare war on Germany, marking the beginning of World War II. Over the next six years, the conflict would take more lives and destroy more land and property around the globe than any previous war. Among the estimated 45-60 million people killed were 6 million Jews murdered in Nazi concentration camps as part of Hitler's diabolical "Final Solution," now known as the Holocaust.

Leading up to World War II

The devastation of the Great War (as World War I was known at the time) had greatly destabilized Europe, and in many respects World War II grew out of issues left unresolved by that earlier conflict. In particular, political and economic instability in Germany, and lingering resentment over the harsh terms imposed by the Versailles Treaty, fueled the rise to power of Adolf Hitler and National Socialist German Workers' Party, abbreviated as NSDAP in German and the Nazi Party in English..

Did you know? As early as 1923, in his memoir and propaganda tract "Mein Kampf" (My Struggle), Adolf Hitler had predicted a general European war that would result in "the extermination of the Jewish race in Germany."

After becoming Chancellor of Germany in 1933, Hitler swiftly consolidated power, anointing himself Führer (supreme leader) in 1934. Obsessed with the idea of the superiority of the "pure" German race, which he called "Aryan," Hitler believed that war was the only way to gain the necessary "Lebensraum," or living space, for the German race to expand. In the mid-1930s, he secretly began the rearmament of Germany, a violation of the Versailles Treaty. After signing alliances with Italy and Japan against the Soviet Union, Hitler sent troops to occupy Austria in 1938 and the following year annexed Czechoslovakia. Hitler's open aggression went unchecked, as the United States and Soviet Union were concentrated on internal politics at the time, and neither France nor Britain (the two other nations most devastated by the Great War) were eager for confrontation.

Outbreak of World War II (1939)

In late August 1939, Hitler and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin signed the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact, which incited a frenzy of worry in London and Paris. Hitler had long planned an invasion of Poland, a nation to which Great Britain and France had guaranteed military support if it were attacked by Germany. The pact with Stalin meant that Hitler would not face a war on two fronts once he invaded Poland, and would have Soviet assistance in conquering and dividing the nation itself. On September 1, 1939, Hitler invaded Poland from the west; two days later, France and Britain declared war on Germany, beginning World War II.

On September 17, Soviet troops invaded Poland from the east. Under attack from both sides, Poland fell quickly, and by early 1940 Germany and the Soviet Union had divided control over the nation, according to a secret protocol appended to the Nonaggression Pact. Stalin's forces then moved to occupy the Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) and defeated a resistant Finland in the Russo-Finnish War. During the six months following the invasion of Poland, the lack of action on the part of Germany and the Allies in the west led to talk in the news media of a "phony war." At sea, however, the British and German navies faced off in heated battle, and lethal German U-boat submarines struck at merchant shipping bound for Britain, sinking more than 100 vessels in the first four months of World War II.

World War II in the West (1940-41)

On April 9, 1940, Germany simultaneously invaded Norway and occupied Denmark, and the war began in earnest. On May 10, German forces swept through Belgium and the Netherlands in what became known as "blitzkrieg," or lightning war. Three days later, Hitler's troops crossed the Meuse River and struck French forces at Sedan, located at the northern end of the Maginot Line, an elaborate chain of fortifications constructed after World War I and considered an impenetrable defensive barrier. In fact, the Germans broke through the line with their tanks and planes and continued to the rear, rendering it useless. The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was evacuated by sea from Dunkirk in late May, while in the south French forces mounted a doomed resistance. With France on the verge of collapse, Italy's fascist dictator Benito Mussolini formed an alliance with Hitler, the Pact of Steel, and Italy declared war against France and Britain on June 10.

On June 14, German forces entered Paris; a new government formed by Marshal Philippe Petain (France's hero of World War I) requested an armistice two nights later. France was subsequently divided into two zones, one under German military occupation and the other under Petain's government, installed at Vichy France. Hitler now turned his attention to Britain, which had the defensive advantage of being separated from the Continent by the English Channel.

To pave the way for an amphibious invasion (dubbed Operation Sea Lion), German planes bombed Britain extensively beginning in September 1940 until May 1941, known as the Blitz, including night raids on London and other industrial centers that caused heavy civilian casualties and damage. The Royal Air Force (RAF) eventually defeated the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) in the Battle of Britain, and Hitler postponed his plans to invade. With Britain's defensive resources pushed to the limit, Prime Minister Winston Churchill began receiving crucial aid from the U.S. under the Lend-Lease Act, passed by Congress in early 1941.

Hitler vs. Stalin: Operation Barbarossa (1941-42)

By early 1941, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria had joined the Axis, and German troops overran Yugoslavia and Greece that April. Hitler's conquest of the Balkans was a precursor for his real objective: an invasion of the Soviet Union, whose vast territory would give the German master race the "Lebensraum" it needed. The other half of Hitler's strategy was the extermination of the Jews from throughout German-occupied Europe. Plans for the "Final Solution" were introduced around the time of the Soviet offensive, and over the next three years more than 4 million Jews would perish in the death camps established in occupied Poland.

On June 22, 1941, Hitler ordered the invasion of the Soviet Union, codenamed Operation Barbarossa. Though Soviet tanks and aircraft greatly outnumbered the Germans', Russian aviation technology was largely obsolete, and the impact of the surprise invasion helped Germans get within 200 miles of Moscow by mid-July. Arguments between Hitler and his commanders delayed the next German advance until October, when it was stalled by a Soviet counteroffensive and the onset of harsh winter weather.

World War II in the Pacific (1941-43)

With Britain facing Germany in Europe, the United States was the only nation capable of combating Japanese aggression, which by late 1941 included an expansion of its ongoing war with China and the seizure of European colonial holdings in the Far East. On December 7, 1941, 360 Japanese aircraft attacked the major U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, taking the Americans completely by surprise and claiming the lives of more than 2,300 troops. The attack on Pearl Harbor served to unify American public opinion in favor of entering World War II, and on December 8 Congress declared war on Japan with only one dissenting vote. Germany and the other Axis Powers promptly declared war on the United States.

After a long string of Japanese victories, the U.S. Pacific Fleet won the Battle of Midway in June 1942, which proved to be a turning point in the war. On Guadalcanal, one of the southern Solomon Islands, the Allies also had success against Japanese forces in a series of battles from August 1942 to February 1943, helping turn the tide further in the Pacific. In mid-1943, Allied naval forces began an aggressive counterattack against Japan, involving a series of amphibious assaults on key Japanese-held islands in the Pacific. This "island-hopping" strategy proved successful, and Allied forces moved closer to their ultimate goal of invading the mainland Japan.

Toward Allied Victory in World War II (1943-45)

In North Africa, British and American forces had defeated the Italians and Germans by 1943. An Allied invasion of Sicily and Italy followed, and Mussolini's government fell in July 1943, though Allied fighting against the Germans in Italy would continue until 1945.

On the Eastern Front, a Soviet counteroffensive launched in November 1942 ended the bloody Battle of Stalingrad, which had seen some of the fiercest combat of World War II. The approach of winter, along with dwindling food and medical supplies, spelled the end for German troops there, and the last of them surrendered on January 31, 1943.

On June 6, 1944-celebrated as "D-Day"-the Allies began a massive invasion of Europe, landing 156,000 British, Canadian and American soldiers on the beaches of Normandy, France. In response, Hitler poured all the remaining strength of his army into Western Europe, ensuring Germany's defeat in the east. Soviet troops soon advanced into Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Romania, while Hitler gathered his forces to drive the Americans and British back from Germany in the Battle of the Bulge (December 1944-January 1945), the last major German offensive of the war.

An intensive aerial bombardment in February 1945 preceded the Allied land invasion of Germany, and by the time Germany formally surrendered on May 8, Soviet forces had occupied much of the country. Hitler was already dead, having died by suicide on April 30 in his Berlin bunker.

World War II Ends (1945)

At the Potsdam Conference of July-August 1945, U.S. President Harry S. Truman (who had taken office after Roosevelt's death in April), Churchill and Stalin discussed the ongoing war with Japan as well as the peace settlement with Germany. Post-war Germany would be divided into four occupation zones, to be controlled by the Soviet Union, Britain, the United States and France. On the divisive matter of Eastern Europe's future, Churchill and Truman acquiesced to Stalin, as they needed Soviet cooperation in the war against Japan.

Heavy casualties sustained in the campaigns at Iwo Jima (February 1945) and Okinawa (April-June 1945), and fears of the even costlier land invasion of Japan led Truman to authorize the use of a new and devastating weapon. Developed during a top secret operation code-named The Manhattan Project, the atomic bomb was unleashed on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in early August. On August 15, the Japanese government issued a statement declaring they would accept the terms of the Potsdam Declaration, and on September 2, U.S. General Douglas MacArthur accepted Japan's formal surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.

African American Servicemen Fight Two Wars

The National Archives

World War II exposed a glaring paradox within the United States Armed Forces. Although more than 1 million African Americans served in the war to defeat Nazism and fascism, they did so in segregated units. The same discriminatory Jim Crow policies that were rampant in American society were reinforced by the U.S. military. Black servicemen rarely saw combat and were largely relegated to labor and supply units that were commanded by white officers.

There were several African American units that proved essential in helping to win World War II, with the Tuskegee Airmen being among the most celebrated. But the Red Ball Express, the truck convoy of mostly Black drivers were responsible for delivering essential goods to General George S. Patton's troops on the front lines in France. The all-Black 761st Tank Battalion fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and the 92 Infantry Division, fought in fierce ground battles in Italy. Yet, despite their role in defeating fascism, the fight for equality continued for African American soldiers after the World War II ended. They remained in segregated units and lower-ranking positions, well into the Korean War, a few years after President Truman signed an executive order to desegregate the U.S. military in 1948.
READ MORE: Black Americans Who Served in WWII Faced Discrimination Abroad and at Home
World War II Casualties and Legacy

World War II proved to be the deadliest international conflict in history, taking the lives of 60 to 80 million people, including 6 million Jews who died at the hands of the Nazis during the Holocaust. Civilians made up an estimated 50-55 million deaths from the war, while military comprised 21 to 25 million of those lost during the war. Millions more were injured, and still more lost their homes and property.

The legacy of the war would include the spread of communism from the Soviet Union into eastern Europe as well as its eventual triumph in China, and the global shift in power from Europe to two rival superpowers-the United States and the Soviet Union-that would soon face off against each other in the Cold War.

Photo Galleries

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World War II was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. Rising to power in an unstable Germany, Adolf Hitler and his National Socialist (Nazi Party) rearmed the nation and signed treaties with Italy and Japan to further his ambitions of world domination.

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Number the Stars: Germany Invades Denmark (April 1940) 

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Number the Stars: Germany Invades Denmark (April 1940) 

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(1941-1942) Germany and the Axis powers European domination 

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(1941-1942) Germany and the Axis powers European domination 

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The Dark Blue represents Germany in 1941. By 1942 all the color blue both light and dark is where Germany and their buddies have taken over.

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Japan was a part of the Axis powers and were a major force to be reckoned with. When they bombed pearl harbor America really began to fight in the war.

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Germany was not the only country taking over others. Japan was too and together Germany and Japan became allies during WW2

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America enters World War II- read next about the "Lend and Lease" Act it is next on your timeline.

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WWII In HD: America Enters World War II | History

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Lend-Lease Act 1941: This reading is optional, but explains how laws can be passed.

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The Lend-Lease Act of 1941 stated that the U.S. government could lend or lease (rather than sell) war supplies to any nation deemed "vital to the defense of the United States." Under this policy, the United States was able to supply military aid to its foreign allies during World War II, while still remaining officially neutral in the conflict. Most importantly, passage of the Lend-Lease Act enabled a struggling Great Britain to continue fighting against Germany virtually on its own until the United States entered World War II late in 1941.
WATCH: World War II Documentaries on HISTORY Vault
Neutrality in Wartime

In the decades following World War I, many Americans remained extremely wary of becoming involved in another costly international conflict. Even as fascist regimes like Nazi Germany under Adolf Hitler took aggressive action in Europe the 1930s, isolationist members of Congress pushed through a series of laws limiting how the United States could respond.

But after Germany invaded Poland in 1939, and full-scale war broke out again in Europe, President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared that while the United States would remain neutral by law, it was impossible "that every American remain neutral in thought as well."

Before passage of the Neutrality Act of 1939, Roosevelt persuaded Congress to allow the sale of military supplies to allies like France and Britain on a "cash-and-carry" basis: They had to pay cash for American-made supplies, and then transport the supplies on their own ships.
WATCH VIDEO: The Lend-Lease Act
Great Britain Asks for Help

But by the summer of 1940, France and much of northern Europe had fallen to the Nazis, and Britain was fighting virtually alone against Germany on land, at sea and in the air. The London Blitz and other German offenses had taken a serious toll on British morale and military strength.

After the new British prime minister, Winston Churchill, appealed personally to Roosevelt for help, the U.S. president agreed to exchange more than 50 outdated American destroyers for 99-year leases on British bases in the Caribbean and Newfoundland, which would be used as U.S. air and naval bases.

That December, with Britain's currency and gold reserves dwindling, Churchill warned Roosevelt that his country would not be able to pay cash for military supplies or shipping much longer. Though he had recently been re-elected on a platform promising to keep America out of World War II, Roosevelt wanted to support Great Britain against Germany.

After hearing Churchill's appeal, he began working to convince Congress (and the American public) that providing more direct aid to Britain was in the nation's own interest.

Arsenal of Democracy

In December 1940, Roosevelt introduced a new policy initiative whereby the United States would lend, rather than sell, military supplies to Great Britain for use in the fight against Germany. Payment for the supplies would be deferred, and could come in any form Roosevelt deemed satisfactory.

"We must be the great arsenal of democracy," Roosevelt declared in one of his signature " fireside chats " on December 29, 1940. "For us, this is an emergency as serious as war itself. We must apply ourselves to our task with the same resolution, the same sense of urgency, the same spirit of patriotism and sacrifice as we would show were we at war."

Lend-Lease Policy

Lend-Lease, as Roosevelt's plan became known, ran into strong opposition among isolationist members of Congress, as well as those who believed the policy gave the president himself too much power. During the debate over the bill, which continued for two months, Roosevelt's administration and supporters in Congress argued convincingly that providing aid to allies like Great Britain was a military necessity for the United States.

"We are buying...not lending. We are buying our own security while we prepare," Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "By our delay during the past six years, while Germany was preparing, we find ourselves unprepared and unarmed, facing a thoroughly prepared and armed potential enemy."

Finally, in March 1941, Congress passed the Lend-Lease Act (subtitled "An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States") and Roosevelt signed it into law.

Impact of the Lend-Lease Act

Roosevelt quickly took advantage of his authority under the new law, ordering large quantities of U.S. food and war materials to be shipped to Britain from U.S. ports through the new Office of Lend-Lease Administration.

The supplies dispersed under the Lend-Lease Act ranged from tanks, aircraft, ships, weapons and road building supplies to clothing, chemicals and food. By the end of 1941, the lend-lease policy was extended to include other U.S. allies, including France, China and the Soviet Union.

Through the end of World War II the United States would use it to provide a total of some $50 billion in aid (equal to $690 billion in 2020 dollars) to more than 30 nations around the globe, from the Free French movement led by Charles de Gaulle and the governments-in-exile of Poland, the Netherlands and Norway to Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Paraguay and Peru.

For Roosevelt, Lend-Lease was not motivated primarily by altruism or generosity, but was intended to serve the interest of the United States by helping to defeat Nazi Germany without entering the war outright-at least not until the nation was prepared for it, both militarily and in terms of public opinion.

Through Lend-Lease, the United States also succeeded in becoming the "arsenal of democracy" during World War II, thus securing its preeminent place in the international economic and political order once the war drew to a close.

Ukraine Lend-Lease Act

In 2022, President Joe Biden signed into law the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act. Much like Roosevelt's 1941 program, this act allowed the U.S. government to lend or lease a wide range of military equipment to Ukraine and other Eastern European countries.

Resulting from the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the current Lend-Lease Act exempted the Biden administration from provisions of law that govern the loan or lease of military equipment to foreign countries. The act was designed to expire in 2023.

Sources

Lend-Lease Act, 1941. OurDocuments.gov.
Mark Seidl, "The Lend-Lease Program, 1941-45." Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Lend-Lease and Military Aid to the Allies in the Early Years of World War II. Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State.
Biden Signs Lend-Lease Act to Supply More Security Assistance to Ukraine. U.S. Department of Defense.

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The Lend-Lease Act of 1941 stated that the U.S. government could lend or lease (rather than sell) war supplies to any nation deemed "vital to the defense of the United States." Under this policy, the United States was able to supply military aid to its foreign allies during World War II, while still remaining officially neutral in the conflict.

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Look for dates to track for your timeline. This Article tracks some of the major events that took place during World War 2

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War in the Pacific

As war raged in Europe, President Roosevelt continued to stick to his promise to keep the United States neutral. But when Japan attacked the United States, the country had to respond. The U.S. military fought the war on two fronts. One was Europe, but the other was the war in the Pacific.

The Attack on Pearl Harbor. On December 7, 1941, Japanese bombers attacked a navy base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack occurred just after dawn. The Japanese had an aircraft carrier and launched more than 300 planes. The attack lasted only an hour and a half, but was very destructive. The U.S. lost eight battleships, three cruisers and three destroyers.

The attack killed more than 2,000 and injured another 1,000. The Japanese lost only 26 airplanes. While some were attacking Pearl Harbor, others attacked Guam Wake Island and the Philippines. Japan intended to destroy the American fleet and keep them from fighting in the Pacific. It had the opposite effect. The day after the attack, President Roosevelt declared war on Japan and Germany. Working very hard, soldiers repaired six of the battleships and they went on to fight in the war.

The Bataan Death March. In April 1942, American and Philippine prisoners of war began the journey from the Bataan Peninsula to Camp O'Donnel in the middle of the Philippines. More than 80,000 men began the trek. As they walked, the prisoners had little food or water. They walked many miles every day and slept on the ground.

Many men became sick and Japanese soldiers killed those who fell. On the last part of their journey, the soldiers loaded up to 100 men into closed railway cars. The men sweat in the tropical heat and many died. By the time they reached the camp, more than 25,000 men were dead.

The Battle of Midway. After their victory in Pearl Harbor, the Japanese thought the United States bases were easy to destroy. But they were wrong. The Japanese planned to lure the American fleet into a trap on a tiny island called the Midway Atoll. But, the Japanese didn't know that U. S. Code breakers had figured out the Japanese secret codes.

So they knew that it was a trap. The U.S. sent several ships into the trap, but kept many other battleships nearby. When the Japanese attacked, the larger U.S. force surrounded the Japanese ships and sank their battleships. This was a turning point in the war in the Pacific.

Navajo Code Talkers. Secret codes were a very important part of warfare. Speaking and writing in code allowed soldiers to send messages across long distances without the enemy understanding. Breaking the codes of Japanese and German spies was an important job. But it was just as important to create a code that the enemy couldn't crack. Phillip Johnston was too old to be a soldier, but he wanted to help. He grew up speaking Navajo and knew how difficult the language was.

He brought several Navajo soldiers to the military and showed how the language was perfect for secret codes. First of all, it had several unique sounds found no other place on earth. Secondly, words can have up to four different meanings depending on inflection. Finally, no one outside of North America knew the language. The U.S. asked the Navajo people to help them and they did. The Navajo Code Talkers became a vital part of winning the war in the Pacific and used the only secret code that was never cracked.

The Bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. After several months of bombing, Japan still refused to surrender. Bombers destroyed up to 97% of some of the major cities. Thousands of people were dying every day. Japan is an island, and its shape made it difficult or impossible for a large-scale military assault. The Allies discussed the best way to end the war. The United States offered a new type of bomb. This atomic bomb could cause much more damage than the traditional bombs dropped by airplanes.

Before dropping the bomb, The U.S. military dropped leaflets by air, warning the people of the bombing. The first bomb detonated on the city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. Japan still refused to surrender. The U.S. dropped the second bomb on Nagasaki three days later on August 9, 1945. Japan surrendered to the Allied forces five days later on August 14, 1945, ending the Second World War.

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War in the Pacific - World War 2 - History for Kids

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As war raged in Europe, President Roosevelt continued to stick to his promise to keep the United States neutral. But when Japan attacked the United States, the country had to respond. The U.S. military fought the war on two fronts. One was Europe, but the other was the war in the Pacific.

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The South Pacific Strategy Map  (1941-1944) 

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The South Pacific Strategy Map  (1941-1944) 

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Ned Begay: The Main character and narrator in Code Talkers

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Ned Begay: The Main character and narrator in Code Talkers

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Ned is a young Navajo man who is roughly 15 years old when World War II starts.

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The Navajo Code Talkers 1942 (Article & Video) 

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The Navajo Code Talkers 1942 (Article & Video) 

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The United States Marine Corps possessed an extraordinary, unbreakable code during World War II: the Navajo language. Utilized in the Pacific theater, the Navajo code talkers enabled the Marine Corps to coordinate massive operations, such as the assault on Iwo Jima, without revealing any information to the enemy.

Code talkers didn't speak plain language in Navajo, but rather encoded the messages in a phonetic code and incorporated other vocabulary adaptations to meet the needs of modern warfare. Thus, anyone seeking to intercept the messages would have to know both the Navajo language and the codebook. Long after the war, code talker Peter MacDonald Sr. recorded a sample of Navajo code for the Department of Veterans Affairs.
"An Unbreakable Code," https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmiqnAQTTCI
Given their historic significance, the code talkers are underrepresented in National Archives special media. The code talker program wasn't even revealed publicly until 1968. Due to the secret status of the operations, and probably unaware of the impact they would have, the Marine Corps did not extensively photograph or film the code talkers in action.

An important exception i s the series " Photographs of Navajo Indian "Code-Talkers" in the U.S. Marine Corps, 1943 - 1948 ," which contains 25 photographs of the code talkers, many of whom are identified by name. Based on visual similarities, the second photograph might have inspired the memorial statue depicted at the bottom of this blog post.

Recognition of the Navajo contribution to the war effort came only slowly.

The NBC program Real People aired a segment on the code talkers in 1981 which inspired over 17,000 Americans to write to the president seeking some form of recognition for the code talkers. President Ronald Reagan issued a certificate of recognition to the code talkers and proclaimed August 14, 1982 as Navajo Code Talkers Day.

Since then, the code talkers have received various forms of recognition from the federal government. Motion Picture holdings include 330-DIMOC-DDDEE970605 , which records a reception for the code talkers celebrating the installation of a museum display at the Pentagon. The video lacks a precise date, but the reception occurred during Colin Powell's tenure as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (October 1, 1989 - September 30, 1993). The ceremony includes the national anthem sung in Navajo plus remarks by President of the Navajo Nation Peterson Zah and Senator John McCain.

"Navajo Code Talkers Reception," Local ID: 330-DIMOC-DDDEE970605, NAID: 140106301

In 2008, the Najavo Nation erected a memorial to the code talkers in their capitol of Window Rock, Arizona, home to the Navajo Nation Museum. The Federal Emergency Management Agency took this photograph in documenting a severe freeze which occurred in Navajo territory in 2013.

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The United States Marine Corps possessed an extraordinary, unbreakable code during World War II: the Navajo language. Utilized in the Pacific theater, the Navajo code talkers enabled the Marine Cor...

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Ira Hayes the Navajo on the Congressional Medal in Code Talker

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Ira Hayes the Navajo on the Congressional Medal in Code Talker

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Fun fact Ira Hayes received a gold medal while our main character Ned Begay received a silver one.

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The Navajos Sacred Homeland between the four mountains 

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The Navajos Sacred Homeland between the four mountains 

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Code Talkers: This was Fort Defiance, Arizona

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Code Talkers: This was Fort Defiance, Arizona

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Ned is recruited here at Fort Defiance Arizona. He mentions that at this very spot in 1863 his people began the "Long Walk"  check out the link below if your interested and reading more about this. https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/navajo/long-walk/long-walk.cshtml

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Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

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Isoroku Yamamoto, Japan's Mastermind behind Pearl Harbor. 

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Isoroku Yamamoto, Japan's Mastermind behind Pearl Harbor. 

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You don't have to read this article, but this article does make an attempt to humanize the admiral.  https://www.historynet.com/a-new-book-shows-the-human-side-of-admiral-isoroku-yamamoto.htm

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Why did Japan Attack Pearl Harbor? (Short Animated Documentary)

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(1940-1946)The Tuskegee Airmen (African American )

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(1940-1946)The Tuskegee Airmen (African American )

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The Tuskegee Airmen were the first African American pilots. Before 1940 it was illegal. The Tuskegee Airmen greatly contributed to the USA and their allies in winning the war.

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Who Were the Tuskegee Airmen? | Dogfights | History

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The Tuskegee Airmen (The First African American Pilots) 

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The Tuskegee Airmen (The First African American Pilots) 

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hey were pioneers who blazed a trail through the war torn skies over Europe. Before the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II, no black American had ever been a U-S military pilot...after the Tuskegee Airman, the U-S military would never be the same.

Widespread discrimination prevented African Americans from flying during the First World War. For the next twenty years, the pressure would slowly build to allow black pilots to serve in the sky. Finally in 1941 the Army launched what it called "an experiment" -- the segregated 99th Fighter Squadron. That squadron would train at an airfield near Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, and thus, the Tuskegee Airmen were born. To be clear, not every Airman was a pilot...for every man who flew, there were ten keeping him in the air, men and women, military and civilian, who served on ground duty support , like mechanics, supply personnel, cooks, and more. And not all were black...some were white, or Latino, or Native American.

One notable woman who helped the Tuskegee Airmen take off into history was the First Lady of the United States. Eleanor Roosevelt visited the squadron in 1941, and insisted a black pilot take her up, and that photographs would be taken. Those photographs helped convince President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to send the unit into action, first in North Africa, and later in Europe.

The 99th, along with other squadrons, would later form the 332nd Fighter Group in Europe -- their planes boasting tails painted bright red. In Europe the airmen would fly more than 15-thousand sorties, completing an unequalled 15-hundred combat missions, all while showing great courage, skill, and dedication. Among their decorations: one hundred and fifty Distinguished Flying Crosses. Squadron leader Benjamin O. Davis Jr. would eventually rise to the rank of three star general, receiving a fourth star post retirement.

The Tuskegee Airmen were deactivated in 1946, the experiment a great success. But more than that. The brave fliers had proved themselves in combat, and their performance helped pave the way for desegregation of the military in 1948.

Today the National Park Service's Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Alabama, helps tell their story, and preserves their memory for all time.

Among the many contributions by African Americans to the country are their service and sacrifice in times of war. We pause to remember the Tuskegee Airmen. Breaking barriers and fighting Nazis, the proud pilots of the 99th Fighter Squadron earned the respect of their fellow pilots and wrote their names in the history books. Their success helped pave the way for the desegregation of the military after World War II.

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hey were pioneers who blazed a trail through the war torn skies over Europe. Before the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II, no black American had ever been a U-S military pilot...after the Tuskegee Airman, the U-S military would never be the same. Widespread discrimination prevented African Americans from flying during the First World War.

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Along this timeline you will find videos and articles that fill in the backstory for this novels setting.

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Ugly History: Japanese American incarceration camps (February 1942) 

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Ugly History: Japanese American incarceration camps (February 1942) 

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Ugly History: Japanese American incarceration camps - Densho

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History Brief: The Rise of Imperial Japan

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(June 1942) The Battle of Midway- Japan vs USA

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(June 1942) The Battle of Midway- Japan vs USA

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Read the first paragraph and then find the heading
"U.S. Gains Advantage Thanks to Navy Codebreakers"

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The Battle of Midway was an epic clash between the U.S. Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy that played out six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The U.S. Navy's decisive victory in the air-sea battle (June 3-6, 1942) and its successful defense of the major base located at Midway Island dashed Japan's hopes of neutralizing the United States as a naval power and effectively turned the tide of World War II in the Pacific.

Japan's Ambitions in the Pacific

Japan's efforts to establish clear naval and air superiority in the western Pacific first hit a snag in the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942, when the U.S. fleet turned back a Japanese invasion force headed for New Guinea. Despite the setback, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, commander of the Imperial Japanese Navy, was convinced his forces enjoyed a numerical advantage over the Americans.

Hoping to replicate the success of the Pearl Harbor attack, Yamamoto decided to seek out and crush the rest of the U.S. Pacific fleet with a surprise attack aimed at the Allied base at Midway Island. Midway is located in the Pacific Ocean almost directly in between the United States and Japan.

After a diversionary attack by a smaller Japanese force on the Aleutian Islands, off the coast of Alaska, Yamamoto planned a three-pronged approach toward Midway. First, an air attack on the island launched from four first-line Japanese aircraft carriers, the Akagi, Kaga, Hiryu and Soryu, commanded by Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo. Second, an invasion force of ships and soldiers led by Vice Admiral Nobutake Kondo. And finally, once expected U.S. reinforcements from Pearl Harbor arrived, a joint strike by Nagumo's forces and Yamamoto's own fleet, which would be waiting 600 miles to the west.

Did you know? Six months before the Battle of Midway, the islands were attacked on December 7, 1941, less than two hours after Pearl Harbor.

U.S. Navy cryptanalysts had begun breaking Japanese communication codes early in 1942, and knew for weeks ahead of time that Japan was planning an attack in the Pacific at a location they called "AF." Suspecting it was Midway, the Navy decided to send out a false message from the base claiming it was short of fresh water. Japan's radio operators sent out a similar message about "AF" soon afterward, confirming the location of the planned attack.

With Japan's fleet so widely dispersed, Yamamoto had to transmit all strategy over the radio, enabling Navy cryptanalysts based in Hawaii to figure out when Japan planned to attack (June 4 or 5) and the planned order of battle of the Imperial Japanese Navy. With this information, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, commander in chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, could develop a plan to combat the invasion.

The Japanese assumed that the U.S. aircraft carrier Yorktown, which been damaged during the Battle of the Coral Sea, would be unavailable at Midway. In fact, the damaged carrier was repaired in only two days at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, and left on May 30 to regroup with other U.S. ships near Midway in preparation for Japan's attack.

The Battle of Midway Begins

After the diversionary Japanese attack on the Aleutian Islands on June 3, a group of U.S. B-17 Flying Fortress bombers flew from Midway to attack Kondo's invasion force, which they mistakenly assumed was the main Japanese fleet. This unsuccessful attack marked the first military engagement in the Battle of Midway.

Before dawn the next day, more B-17s left Midway for a second attack on the Japanese invasion force, also unsuccessful. Meanwhile, Nagumo launched the first phase of Japan's attack as planned, sending 108 Japanese warplanes from the four aircraft carriers to strike Midway. After inflicting severe damage to the U.S. base, the first Japanese attack ended by 7 a.m., leaving the airfield still useable and U.S. anti-aircraft defenses still functioning.

Shortly after that, just as his pilots informed Nagumo that another airstrike against the base would be necessary, U.S. aircraft launched from Midway began attacking the four Japanese carriers, without success. As Nagumo was rearming Japanese planes for a second air attack, a Japanese scout plane spotted portions of the U.S. fleet, including USS Yorktown, to the east of Midway. Nagumo switched tactics, ordering planes that were still armed to prepare to attack the U.S. ships once the rest of the Japanese planes returned from Midway.

Meanwhile, a wave of U.S. Devastator torpedo bombers from the U.S. carriers Hornet and Enterprise arrived to attack the Japanese ships. Unescorted by fighter planes, nearly all of them were shot down by Japanese Zero fighters. But about an hour later, as the Japanese refueled and rearmed their planes, another wave of U.S. carrier-launched bombers struck, hitting three Japanese carriers- Akagi, Kaga and Soryu -and setting them ablaze.

In response, Japan's surviving carrier, Hiryu, launched two waves of attacks on the Yorktown, which had to be abandoned but remained afloat. U.S. dive-bombers from all three carriers returned to attack the Hiryu and set it ablaze as well, putting all four Japanese carriers out of commission.

Significance of U.S. Victory in the Battle of Midway

Though major combat in the Battle of Midway was over by the evening of June 4, U.S. troops at sea and on Midway Island continued their attacks on the Japanese over the next two days.

The destroyer USS Hammann provided cover for the disabled carrier Yorktown during salvage operations, but a Japanese submarine arrived on June 6 and launched four torpedoes that struck both U.S. ships. The Hammann sank in minutes; the Yorktown eventually capsized and sank the following day.

On June 6, Yamamoto ordered his ships to retreat, ending the Battle of Midway. In all, Japan had lost as many as 3,000 men (including more than 200 of their most experienced pilots), nearly 300 aircraft, one heavy cruiser and four aircraft carriers in the battle, while the Americans lost the Yorktown and Hammann, along with around 145 aircraft and approximately 360 servicemen.

As a result of the U.S. victory in the Battle of Midway, Japan abandoned its plan to expand its reach in the Pacific, and would remain on the defensive for the remainder of World War II. The battle injected U.S. forces with confidence and drained Japanese morale, turning the tide of war in the Pacific strongly in favor of the Allies.

HISTORY Vault: WWII in HD

Sources

The Battle of Midway, National WWII Museum.

Andrew Lambert, "The Battle of Midway." BBC, February 17, 2011.

1942: The Battle of Midway, CBS News.

The Battle of Midway, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge and Battle of Midway National Memorial.

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Battle of Midway - Location, Outcome & Significance

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The Battle of Midway was an epic WWII clash between the U.S. Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy that played out six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The U.S. Navy's decisive victory in the air-sea battle (June 3-6, 1942) dashed Japan's hopes of neutralizing the United States as a naval power and effectively turned the tide of World War II in the Pacific.

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The Heian Period of Japan (794-1185) was well known for its beautiful poetry here you can find some poems from famous Poets such as ... Ono no Komachi

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As I dozed - Ono no Komachi - My poetic side

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Downfall of Germany: The Western Front (Full Documentary) | Animated History

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D-Day - Normandy Invasion, Facts & Significance

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Codenamed Operation Overlord, the invasion began on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along the heavily fortified coast of France’s Normandy region during World War II. The operation was one of the largest amphibious mil…

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This video has fake actors but real footage of the bombings and its aftermath.