Pre-War Period (1930s):

• 1931: Japan invades Manchuria, establishing control and withdrawing from League of Nations
• 1933: Hitler becomes German Chancellor, begins seizing control and rebuilding military
• 1936: Germany, Italy, and Japan form the Axis alliance
• 1938: Germany annexes Austria (Anschluss) and demands Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia

Early War (1939-1941):

• 1939: Germany invades Poland on September 1; Britain and France declare war
• 1940: Germany conquers Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France in rapid succession
• 1940: Battle of Britain - RAF defeats Luftwaffe, preventing German invasion
• 1941: Germany invades Soviet Union with 3 million troops and 20 Panzer Divisions

Pearl Harbor and Pacific War:

• December 7, 1941: Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, destroying 21 warships and 347 aircraft, killing 2,390 Americans
• December 1941-February 1942: Japan conquers Philippines, Guam, Wake Island, Singapore, and Dutch East Indies
• April 1942: 75,000 American and Filipino troops surrender at Bataan, leading to the brutal Death March
• June 1942: Battle of Midway - US carrier aircraft deal devastating blow to Japanese navy

Allied Leadership:

• Key American commanders included General Eisenhower (European Theater), Admiral Nimitz (Pacific Fleet), and General MacArthur (Southwest Pacific)
• The US Army grew from 188,000 in 1939 to over 6 million personnel by war's end, supported by 150,000 women in the WACs

Final Toll:

• The war claimed 40-75 million lives globally, including 25 million Soviets and 20 million Chinese