1. December 7 1941 Japan attacks Pearl Harbor- USA joins war
1.1. 1942 US wins Battle of Midway- turning point in war for Japan
1.1.1. Previously Japan was very successful in their conquests
1.2. 1943 US force Japanese back in series of battles
1.2.1. US strategy commonly referred to as "island hopping"
1.2.2. This technique allowed US to get closer to invading mainland Japan
2. September 3 1943 Italy surrenders to Allies
2.1. June 6 1944 D-Day and Normandy invasion
2.1.1. Allied forces invade France, push back Germans
2.1.1.1. Paris liberated (this is a significant moment)
2.1.2. Hitler pushes forces to Western Europe, knows he's hopeless in the East
2.2. Battle of Bulge December 1944- January 1945 is last German invasion
2.3. Hitler commits suicide April 30 and Germany surrenders May 8
3. Potsdam Conference July and Augugst 1945
3.1. Germany divided into 4 occupation zones (Soviet Union, France, Great Britain, USA)
3.2. GB and US agree with Stalin (need Soviet support in war against Japan)
4. January 30 1933 Hitler becomes dictator of Germany
4.1. Germany and Italy form an alliance on October 25, 1936
4.2. November 1936 Japan and Germany align
4.2.1. Official pact against Russia and communism
5. September 1, 1939 Germany invades Poland
5.1. Great Britain and France declare war 3 days later
5.2. May 1940 Germany uses blitzkrieg lightning war tactic
5.2.1. Using this, they successfully take over much of Western Europe
5.3. 1940 May to October Germany continually bombs Britain
5.3.1. Germans utilize night raids, heavy civilian casualties
5.3.2. Early 1941 Churchill gets US aid from Lend-Lease Act
5.4. September 22 1940 Axis powers officially form
5.4.1. 1941 the Axis powers join to fight Russia- over 4 million troops
5.4.1.1. Managed to get 200 miles of Moscow because of surprise attack and Russian lack of air technology
5.4.1.2. However, in October harsh winter weather stalled Axis powers