World War II Timeline

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Florida newspapers announced the major dates and happenings of World War II.

Photo Credit: Ray Stanyard, Museum of Florida History

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Floridians celebrate the end of World War II.

Photo Credit: Historical Museum of South Florida

1939

August 23 - Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact signed
September 1 - German invasion of Poland, start of World War II
September 3 - Great Britain and France declare war on Germany

1940

May 10 - German invasion of France and the Low Countries
June 21 - France surrenders to Germany
August - Commencement of the Battle of Britain
September 3 - Destroyers for Bases deal between U.S. and Great Britain
September 16 - Selective Service Act passed by U.S. Congress

1941

January 7 - Inauguration of Spessard Holland, Florida’s 28th governor
March 11 - Lend Lease Act passed by U.S. Congress.  Authorized military aid to Allies
June 22 - Opening of Operation Barbarossa, Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union
December 7 - Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
December 8 - U.S. Declaration of war on Japan
December 11 - Germany and Italy declare war on the U. S.; U.S. reciprocates

1942

April 9 - Surrender of U.S. troops on Bataan, Philippine Islands
April 10 - Gulfamerica torpedoed off Jacksonville Beach
May 6 - Surrender of U.S. troops on Corregidor, Philippine Islands
June 4-6 - Battle of Midway
June 17 - Landing of German saboteurs on Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida
August 7 - Beginning of Guadalcanal Campaign
November 8-14 - Allied troops land in North Africa

1943

February 2 - Surrender of surviving German troops at Stalingrad
May 7-14 - Surrender of German and Italian troops in Tunisia
July 9 - Allied Invasion of Sicily
July 18 - U.S. Blimp K-74 shot down by German U-Boat off Florida Keys
September 3, 9 - Allied Invasion of Italy
September 7 - Italy signs armistice with Allies
November 20-24 - Battle of Tarawa

1944

January 22 - Allied forces land at Anzio
June 4 - Allied occupation of Rome
June 6 - D-Day, Allied invasion of German-occupied France
June 19-20 - U.S. victory in Battle of the Philippine Sea
October 20 - American troops land on Leyte, Philippines
October 24-25 - U.S. victory in Battle of Leyte Gulf
December 16 - Outbreak of the Battle of the Bulge, Germany’s last great offensive.

1945

January 2 - Inauguration of Millard Caldwell, Florida’s 29th governor
February 19-March 16 - Battle of Iwo Jima
April 1-June 22 - Battle of Okinawa
April 12 - Death of Franklin Roosevelt; Harry Truman becomes new U.S. president
April 22-May 2 - Battle of Berlin
April 30 - Death of Adolf Hitler
May 8 - V-E Day.  Defeat of Nazi Germany
August 6 - Atomic Bomb dropped on Hiroshima
August 9 - Atomic Bomb dropped on Nagasaki
August 15 - V-J Day.  Japan agrees to surrender terms.
September 2 - Formal surrender ceremony takes place in Tokyo Bay aboard U.S.S. Missouri, ending World War II.