Denise Lee- WWII Timeline by Denise Lee

European Front: Dunkirk Evacuation - From May 26 to June 4th 1940

12377340 — 2025-03-10 20:53:53 UTC

On May 10, 1940, Germany invaded France and the Low Countries, pushing the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), along with French and Belgian troops, back to the French port of Dunkirk. A huge rescue, Operation 'Dynamo', was organised by the Royal Navy to get the troops off the beaches and back to Britain. From May 26 to June 4, over 338,000 British and French troops were safely evacuated from Dunkirk.

Pacific Front: Japan Signs Official Surrender - September 2, 1945

12377340 — 2025-03-10 20:53:53 UTC

On September 2, 1945, Japanese representatives signed the official Instrument of Surrender, prepared by the War Department and approved by President Harry S. Truman. Japan surrendered after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

European Front: Hitler Commits Suicide - April 30, 1945

12377340 — 2025-03-10 21:10:06 UTC

On April 30, 1945, holed up in a bunker under his headquarters in Berlin, Adolf Hitler commits suicide by swallowing a cyanide capsule and shooting himself in the head. Soon after, Germany unconditionally surrendered to the Allied forces .

Pacific Front: Attack on Pearl Harbor - December 7th 1941

12377340 — 2025-03-10 21:14:17 UTC

On December 7th 1941, Japan launched a surprise air attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Japan hoped for a short war, seeking to quickly weaken US naval strength and capture strategically vital oil supplies. In response, the United States joined World War II, aided the Allies to take down the Axis Powers, and bombed Japan.

European Front: The Battle of Britain - July 10 to October 31 1940

12377340 — 2025-03-10 21:17:42 UTC

The Battle of Britain, July 10 – October 31, 1940, was fought above the skies of Britain, between the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the German Luftwaffe. The battle took place over southern England and was a turning point in World War II. It was the first major battle fought entirely in the air, and Nazi Germany's first major military defeat.

European Front: Germany Surrenders - May 7, 1945

12377340 — 2025-03-10 21:28:11 UTC

On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered because of the death of Adolf Hitler. Four countries assumed administrative control of Germany: United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and France.

Pacific Front: Guadalcanal Campaign - From August 7, 1942 to February 9, 1943

12377340 — 2025-03-10 21:32:50 UTC

From August 7, 1942 to February 9, 1943, the Guadalcanal Campaign had seven major naval battles, numerous clashes ashore, and almost continuous air combat. For six long months US forces fought to hold the island. In the end they prevailed, and the Allies took the first vital step in driving the Japanese back in the Pacific theater.

European Front: Soviet Union Invaded - June 22, 1941

12377340 — 2025-03-11 20:50:55 UTC

On the 22nd of June 1941, Adolf Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa, Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union. Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941 to gain resources, establish Nazi control, and create "living space" for the German people.

European Front: Allies Land in North Africa - November 8, 1942

12377340 — 2025-03-11 20:54:17 UTC

On November 8, 1942, American and British forces invaded beaches and ports across French North Africa. They opened a long-awaited second front against the Axis, operation Torch constituted the biggest and most complex amphibious landing to that point in world history.

Pacific Front: Battle of Midway - From June 4 to 7, 1942

12377340 — 2025-03-11 21:01:09 UTC

The Battle of Midway was a U.S. victory over the Japanese Navy that took place June 4–7, 1942. The battle was a turning point in World War II in the Pacific. The U.S. The Navy intercepted a Japanese invasion fleet heading for Midway Island, so they destroyed the Japanese carriers Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, and Hiryu. The Japanese were forced to abandon their plans to capture Midway

European Front: D-Day - June 6, 1944,

12377340 — 2025-03-11 21:13:18 UTC

On June 6, 1944, D-Day, Allied forces launched the largest amphibious invasion in history, landing on the beaches of Normandy, France, to begin the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control. Brave soldiers, sailors, and airmen of the allied forces western front, and Russian forces on the eastern front, led to the defeat of German Nazi forces, pushing the Germans back out of France.

Pacific Front: Bombing of Hiroshima/Nagasaki - August 6 and 9 1945

12377340 — 2025-03-11 21:20:08 UTC

On 6 and 9 August 1945, the United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to take revenge for the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The bombings killed between 150,000 and 246,000 people, most of whom were civilians. The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki forced Japan to surrender.

Pacific Front: Japanese Internment Camps in America - February 19, 1942

12377340 — 2025-03-11 21:24:14 UTC

During World War II, the United States forcibly relocated and incarcerated about 120,000 Japanese Americans in ten concentration camps operated by the War Relocation Authority. The United States created Japanese internment camps during World War II to detain Japanese Americans due to wartime fear and racial prejudice. The US government feared that Japanese Americans on the West Coast might be working with Japan to sabotage the country.

European Front: German Surrender in Stalingrad - February 2, 1943

12377340 — 2025-03-11 21:30:52 UTC

On February 2, 1943, the 6th Army, having exhausted their ammunition and food, finally capitulated after several months of battle, making it the first of Hitler's field armies to have surrendered. Although German forces led a strong attack into Soviet territory, a strategic counteroffensive by Soviet forces surrounded a large body of German troops, eventually forcing them to surrender.

Pacific Front: Manhattan Project - August 13, 1942

12377340 — 2025-03-12 01:20:15 UTC

The Manhattan Project, led by J. Robert Oppenheimer, was a top-secret World War II program to develop the first atomic bombs. The project started on August 13, 1942, and was completed in 1945. It led to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, which ended World War II.

European Front: Poland Invaded -September 1, 1939

12377340 — 2025-03-12 01:21:50 UTC

On September 1, 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland, initiating World War II. Adolf Hitler launched a surprise attack on Poland, using Blitzkrieg tactics with air power and armored vehicles.

Pacific Front: Iwo Jima Captured- From February 19 to March 26, 1945.

12377340 — 2025-03-12 01:25:41 UTC

The United States Navy and Marine Corps captured the heavily fortified Japanese island of Iwo Jima during the Battle of Iwo Jima, which lasted from February 19 to March 26, 1945. The capture was aimed to remove the Japanese garrison that was providing early warning of B-29 Superfortress raids en route to Japan, eliminate the enemy airfield, and establish the island as an emergency landing place for the U.S. Army Air Corps.

Pacific Front: Okinawa Captured- April 1, 1945

12377340 — 2025-03-12 01:28:40 UTC

The invasion of Okinawa began on April 1, 1945, to secure the Ryukyu Islands, including Okinawa, for a final push against Japan. The battle for Okinawa dragged out over nearly three months and included some of the worst kamikaze attacks of the war. By the time Okinawa was secured by American forces on June 22, 1945, the United States had sustained over 49,000 casualties including more than 12,500 men killed or missing.uu

European Front: Battle of the Bulge - January 25, 1945

12377340 — 2025-03-12 01:45:12 UTC

The Battle of the Bulge was the last major German offensive on the Western Front during World War II, launched in the Ardennes forest, between December 16, 1944, and January 25, 1945. Despite initial success, Allied forces ultimately pushed the Germans back, marking the end of Hitler's last major offensive and paving the way for the end of the war in Europe.

European Front: Non-Aggression Pact- August 23, 1939.

12377340 — 2025-03-12 01:52:49 UTC

The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was a non-aggression agreement between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, signed on August 23, 1939. The Non-Aggression Pact made Poland the first nation to enter into a harmonious relationship with the Nazis. As a result, Germany broke the pact and invaded the Soviet Union.