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July 4th 1942-May 4th 1945
The Japanese had been at war in China since 1931. The Allies thought that it was essential for Japan to stay committed to the war in China, as that would divert Japan's resources and make the Pacific campaign easier. The Allies decided to use air offensives, which succeeded in diverting Japan's attention, leading them to launch multiple offensives, all of which were eventually repelled, placing Japan on the defensive as the American war in the Pacific drew closer.

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Germany surrendered on May 7th, 1945, and Japan surrendered by August 16th of the same year, ending WW2.

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Used between September 8th 1944-March 27th 1945, the V-2 was promised by Hitler to be a "miracle weapon" and allow Germany to win the war. The V-2 was both the first ballistic missile and first object to reach suborbital flight. It had a 200 mile range and was mainly used to target London and Antwerp. Since it was deployed late in the war and was highly expensive, it had little impact on the outcome. However, the science used in it was an important breakthrough in space travel.

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July 25th to September 14th, 1944
After the Normandy Landings, the Allies began heading inland, and on August 19th met with the Allied forces coming in from the south. Together they captured 43,000 German soldiers in the "Falaise Pocket". Six days later the Allies liberated Paris and began to close in on the German border.

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5th-23rd of July, 1943. After a failed German offensive, both the Soviets and Germans spent the spring of 1943 reorganizing. The Soviets gained control of an important city called Kursk. The Germans tried to take control of the city, but the Soviets anticipated this and placed extensive defenses around the city. Germany began attacking and faced heavy losses, after which the Soviets launched a counterattack. This was the largest tank battle of WW2. Germany began losing ground and the Soviets now had the initiative.

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22nd of June, 1941
Despite previously signing a Non-Aggression Pact with the Soviet Union, on June 22nd 1941 Germany attacked, taking the Soviets by surprise. On the first day, German air strikes destroyed over 1200 Soviet aircraft. The Soviets were now engaged in WW2 on the side of the Allies.

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December 7th, 1941 to September 2nd, 1945
German submarines (U-boats) frequently sank over many hundred thousand tons a month, causing the Allies to begin moving supplies and troops with escorts. The invention of radar and sonar, as well as code-breaking, also helped significantly. In May 1943, Allied forces sank 1/6 of the U-Boats, and afterward, the balance between goods shipped and goods sank favored the Allies.

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On April 18, 1942, 16 American B-25 bombers attacked the Japanese mainland. While the physical damage was minor, the psychological impact caused Japan to extend its defensive boundary and overextend itself. Additionally, American morale was boosted.

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A Japanese cruiser that was destroyed by the battle

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Taking place on 4th to 7th of June, 1942, this battle was the turning point in the Pacific Theatre. Previously, Japan had launched multiple campaigns that diverted America's attention. However, the United States was able to sufficiently break the Japanese code, and instead of engaging in a surface battle, the Americans attacked from the air and were able to open a hole Japan's defense. The Americans ultimately sank 4 aircraft carriers and lost one. The loss of ships, planes, and troops decisively turned the war in America's favor, placing the Japanese on the defensive.

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5th to 22nd of June, 1940
After a week of heavy fighting, German forces broke through the French lines east and west of Paris. The Allies evacuated 163,000 troops, and France surrendered on the 22nd of June. Over half of the country became occupied, with the unoccupied portion ruled by a puppet government.

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September 1st, 1939
This is frequently regarded as the beginning of WW2. Great Britain and France declared war on Germany a couple of days later, followed by other Commonwealth nations. Poland completely surrendered on October 3rd.

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Between the 4th of July 1942 and 7th of May 1945, the United States joined Britain in strategically bombing German territory. The bombing effectively drained Germany's resources and damaged their cities, and by mid-1944 their air and mechanical capabilities were heavily decreased. During this period of time, a total of 2,376,000 tons of bombs were dropped.

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Interactive Battlefield Timeline
Online Textbook Chapter 27, Lesson 5
and
History.com

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Purple: Time labels
Yellow: Europe event
Orange: Europe battle
Blue: Pacific event
Green: Pacific battle
White/no color: Miscellaneous

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The boat the Allies used to land opened in the front, making it faster and easier to exit

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June 6th, 1944. This signaled the start of the invasion of Normandy and the opening of the western front. During this, 3 million Allied troops gathered on the British Islands while other offensives isolated the battlefield, and deception plans focused German attention on a far away beach. During the invasion, rough weather and harsh German resistance interfered, but by the end of the day a foothold was established and after connecting the beaches, the Allies began turning inland.

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Scientists who worked on the Manhattan Project

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September 17, 1942
Due to fears that Nazi Germany was researching atomic weapons that, if successful, could be apocalyptic, the United States commissioned many scientists to begin researching and building nuclear weapons. Ultimately, they would be successful, and the resulting bombs would later be dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

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December 7th, 1941
On December 7th, Japanese planes attacked the naval base on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The planes sunk or damaged 18 ships, including 7 of 8 battleships. Many aircraft were destroyed or damaged, and there were over 3,000 casualties. However, all of the American aircraft carriers were out at sea at the time and avoided the attack, and the oil storage and harbor facilities were relatively undamaged.
The attack led America to declare war on Japan the next day, bringing America into WW2. The other Axis powers declared war on the United States on December 11th.

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August 6th and 9th, 1945. The Potsdam Declaration was an ultimatum given to Japan by the United States. Japan ignored it, so America dropped the first bomb on Hiroshima in the hopes that it would lead to surrender and avoid an invasion of the Japanese mainland. At Hiroshima, 70,000 people died immediately, and another 70,000 in the following year from its effects. When Japan did not immediately respond, the second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on August 9th. It is unknown how many died, but it is estimated to be between 39,000 and 80,000.

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April 16th-May 2nd, 1945
The Soviet forces, along Oder and Niesse rivers, were well prepared and numbered over 2,500,000. They ground through the unprepared German resistance and continued on to Berlin. By April 25th, the Soviets had surrounded the city and began to invade. In a bunker, Hitler committed suicide. His successor surrendered shortly after.