istoryworld
All Events
Mussolini invades France in the last-minute hope of gaining some territory in the armistice settlement
Adolf Hitler attends the signing of the armistice with France, in the railway carriage used for the armistice after the German defeat in 1918
The armistice leaves France with the southern part of the country, with a new capital at Vichy
A delegation from France, defeated and partly occupied by Germany, signs in Rome an armistice with Mussolini's Italy
The British government gives recognition to Charles de Gaulle as official leader of the Free French
Increased German U-boat activity after the fall of France launches the crucial Battle of the Atlantic
Germany takes control of Romania, to secure the country's rich oil fields
British warships bombard the French fleet in harbour at Mers-el-Kébir, in Algeria, killing more than 1250 sailors
Hitler orders preparations for the invasion of England, under the codename Operation Sea Lion
The Battle of Britain reaches its most intense phase, with 1500 German planes involved in a single day's assault
Churchill says of the Battle of Britain pilots that never has so much been owed by so many to so few
The first German night-time bombing raid on London signals the start of the Blitz on British cities
Germany, Italy and Japan form a Tripartite Pact as a military alliance
President Roosevelt, campaigning for a third term, asssures Americans that he will not send their sons to fight in Europe's war
The US government provides 50 destroyers to boost the British escort of convoys in the Atlantic
After the summer's losses in the air, Hitler orders the effective cancellation of operation Sea Lion, the planned invasion of Britain
Mussolini plans a new Roman empire, reaching like the first one round the entire Mediterranean
Moscow appoints Tito to head the Communist Party of Yugoslavia
Italian troops cross the Albanian border in the hope of a blitzkrieg against Greece
The castle at Colditz, adapted as a high-security prisoner-of-war camp, receives 140 Polish officers as its first inmates
F.D. Roosevelt wins an unprecedented third US presidential term, albeit it with a considerably reduced share of the vote
British aircraft sink three Italian battleships at anchor in Taranto harbour
Coventry suffers a raid of such intensity that the new technique becomes known as carpet bombing
Hungary, Romania and Slovakia sign the Tripartite Pact, joining the war on the German side
The de Havilland Mosquito, a multi-purpose wooden aeroplane widely used by the RAF in World War II, makes its first flight
