istoryworld
All Events
German troops invade and rapidly overrun Yugoslavia
German troops move on from Yugoslavia into Greece, driving a small British force from the mainland across the sea to Crete
In preparation for the invasion of Russia, Adolf Hitler and Heinrich Himmler set up Special Task Commandos (Einsatzkommando) to exterminate Communists and Jews
Rudolf Hess, Hitler's deputy in the Nazi party, flies to Britain on a bizarre secret mission
A Gloster E.28/39 air frame becomes the first craft to fly with a Whittle jet engine
The Vietminh is founded as a guerrilla force to liberate Vietnam from the Japanese, and Ho Chi Minh soon emerges as the leader
Germany's latest battleship, the Bismarck, is sunk in the Atlantic with the loss of nearly all her 2222 crew
With Iceland as an Allied base, convoys can now be escorted by warships for the entire Atlantic crossing
German forces evict the British from the island of Crete after a week-long battle
German armies cross the border to invade Russia on a front from the Baltic to southern Poland
June 27 - the Communist Party of Yugoslavia appoints Tito to head a guerrilla force to resist the recent German invasion of the country
Churchill appoints Claude Auchinleck as British commander in North Africa and the Middle East
The systematic shooting of Russian Jews by German Einsatzgruppen is the first step in the development of the Holocaust
Britain's Special Air Service (SAS) is formed for unorthodox guerrilla operations in the north African desert
Less than four weeks after crossing the Russian border, a German army is within 200 miles of Moscow
Roosevelt appoints Douglas MacArthur commander of US forces in the Far East
Goering orders Reinhard Heydrich to prepare plans for the 'final solution of the Jewish queston'
Nazi experiments are carried out on Jews and Soviet prisoners of war to find effective means of murder by gas
British and USSR troops invade Iran to depose the oil-rich Reza Shah, fearing that he may take the side of the Germans
Roosevelt and Churchill publish a joint Atlantic Charter, foreseeing a future free from 'Nazi tyranny'
The first of the Arctic convoys leaves Scapa Flow, in the north of Scotland, taking Hurricane fighters and raw materials to the Soviet Union
De Gaulle forms in London the French National Committee, a government in exile in London for the Free French
A week or two after reaching Leningrad a Germany army establishes a siege that will last 900 days
With British and Russian support, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi succeeds his deposed father as shah of Iran
Japanese emperor Hirohito appoints Tojo Hideki as the country's prime minister
