World War II 1940–1945
U.S. History 1865–2004
World War II 1940–1945
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United States attempts to isolate itself from war in Europe, offering only limited support to Allied powers
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Japan bombs Pearl Harbor in 1941, launching United States fully into World War II in both European and Pacific theaters
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U.S. industry, powered in part by women entering workforce for first time, creates unprecedented numbers of planes, tanks, and supplies for soldiers overseas
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Allies negotiate terms of victory and lay foundation for postwar world order
| 1940 | USSR invades Finland | |
| Germany’s blitzkrieg war conquers most of Western Europe | ||
| Germany, Italy, and Japan sign Tripartite Agreement | ||
| Government of Vichy France established in collaboration with Germany | ||
| Germany firebombs London in Battle of Britain | ||
| Isolationist group America First Committee founded; led by Charles Lindbergh | ||
| Richard Wright publishes novel Native Son | ||
| FDR reelected president for unprecedented third term | ||
| United States and Britain sign destroyers-for-bases deal | ||
| Selective Training and Service Act requires peacetime conscription | ||
| 1941 | Fair Employment Practices Committee established to guard against discrimination in government and war-industry hiring | |
| Lend-Lease Act provides U.S. loan aid to Britain, USSR, other Allied powers | ||
| Germany invades USSR | ||
| FDR and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill sign Atlantic Charter | ||
| Japan occupies Indochina | ||
| Japan attacks U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawai'i (December 7), killing nearly 2,400 Americans; United States declares war on Japan (December 8) | ||
| Germany and Italy declare war on United States (December 11) | ||
| “Rosie the Riveter” image becomes symbol of working women during World War II; integral to war propaganda effort on home front | ||
| 1942 | Japan captures Philippines, lead American and Filipino prisoners-of-war on Bataan Death March | |
| U.S. naval forces surprise superior Japanese force at Battle of Midway, sink three Japanese aircraft carriers; Japanese navy never recovers | ||
| North Africa campaign begins | ||
| War Production Board, War Labor Board, Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Office of Strategic Services (forerunner of Central Intelligence Agency) created | ||
| FDR’s Executive Order 9066 authorizes internment of Japanese Americans in California and other Pacific coast states | ||
| United States launches Manhattan Project effort to build atomic bomb | ||
| Edward Hopper paints Nighthawks | ||
| University of Chicago students found Congress of Racial Equality | ||
| 1943 | Soviets defeat Germans at Stalingrad, Russia | |
| Allies invade Italy | ||
| Allied leaders FDR, Churchill, and Stalin meet at Tehran Conference | ||
| Operation Overlord launches, planning invasion of Normandy coast of France | ||
| Zoot Suit Riots see clash between U.S. military forces and Mexican American community in Los Angeles | ||
| Smith-Connally War Labor Disputes Act limits workers’ right to strike in certain key industries during wartime | ||
| 1944 | Allies invade Normandy, France, on D-Day (June 6) | |
| FDR reelected president for unprecedented fourth term | ||
| United States recaptures Philippines | ||
| Dumbarton Oaks Conference lays groundwork for founding of United Nations | ||
| Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 (also known as G.I. Bill of Rights) establishes free college education for World War II veterans | ||
| Battle of the Bulge begins to break down Axis position on Western Front | ||
| Korematsu v. U.S. ruling upholds FDR’s executive order authorizing internment of Japanese Americans | ||
| 1945 | Allied troops liberate Nazi concentration camps in Eastern Europe | |
| At Yalta Conference, Stalin agrees to declare war on Japan once Germany surrenders; approves plan for United Nations conference | ||
| Allies firebomb Dresden, Germany, and Tokyo, Japan | ||
| FDR dies; Vice President Harry S Truman becomes 33rd president | ||
| Hitler commits suicide | ||
| Soviets capture Berlin; Germany surrenders on V-E Day (May 8) | ||
| At Potsdam Conference, Allies agree to demilitarize Germany, divide it into four zones; accept war crimes trial in theory | ||
| American capture Okinawa from Japan | ||
| United States drops atomic bombs on Hiroshima (August 6) and Nagasaki (August 9), Japan, killing approximately 110,000, mostly civilians | ||
| Japan surrenders on August 14; V-J day proclaimed on August 15 | ||
| Soviet troops occupy North Korea; U.S. troops occupy South Korea | ||
| Vietnamese Communist leader Ho Chi Minh takes power | ||
| United Nations established with 51 founding member nations | ||
| Nuremberg trials begin to prosecute Nazi war criminals; last until 1946 |
