Germany timeline
-
The Luftwaffe Begins Attacks on British Airfields
Göring ordered attacks on aircraft factories on 19 August 1940; on 23 August 1940 he ordered that RAF airfields be attacked. That evening an attack... Read more
-
Lossberg Study for the Invasion of the Soviet Union
Lossberg study is a German military plan prepared by Lieutenant Colonel Bernhard von Lossberg and developed under Alfred Jodl in OKW on September... Read more
-
Major RAF Victory, Later Commemorated as Battle of Britain Day
15 September was a day of heavy and sustained fighting. The Luftwaffe had flown over 1,000 sorties. Euphoric British pilots and anti-aircraft... Read more
-
Following German Defeats in the Battle of Britain, Hitler Cancels Operation Sealion
On 17 September 1940, Hitler held a meeting with Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring and Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt. Hitler became convinced that... Read more
-
King George VI Creates the George Cross to Honor Civilian Bravery During the Battle of Britain and the Blitz
The GC was instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI. At this time, during the height of The Blitz, there was a strong desire to reward the... Read more
-
Germany, Italy and Japan Sign Tripartite Pact
On this day in 1940, the Axis powers are formed as Germany, Italy, and Japan become allies with the signing of the Tripartite Pact in Berlin. The... Read more
-
Operation Sealion is Cancelled a Second Time, Never to be Resumed
Although difficult on the civilian population, the Blitz gave the RAF a much-needed break. Air bases and factories could be repaired and plane... Read more
-
Warsaw Ghetto established
The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest of the Jewish ghettos located in the territory of General Government in occupied Poland during World War... Read more
-
Luftwaffe Begins Heavy Bombing of British Cities
From November 1940 to February 1941, the Luftwaffe attacked industrial and port cities. Targets included Coventry, Southampton, Birmingham,... Read more
-
English City of Coventry Sustains Devastating Bombing from German Luftwaffe
The raid that began on the evening of 14 November 1940 was the most severe to hit Coventry during the war. It was carried out by 515 German... Read more
-
German Luftwaffe Commences Main Air Raid on English City of Southampton
Southampton Blitz The Second World War hit Southampton particularly hard. Pockets of Georgian architecture remain, but much of the city was leveled... Read more
-
Luftwaffe Commences Heavy Bombing of Bristol
Hitler's propaganda claimed that Bristol had been completely destroyed in a night raid on November 2, 1940 in which 5,000 incendiary and 10,000... Read more
-
Sheffield Blitz
The Sheffield Blitz is the name given to the worst nights of German Luftwaffe bombing in Sheffield, England during the Second World War. It took... Read more
-
The Christmas Blitz of Liverpool
The first major air raids began towards the end of 1940 against Liverpool and Wirral, with over 300 casualties sustained to air raids by the end of... Read more
-
Heaviest Bombing of the Manchester Blitz, known as the 'Christmas Blitz'
The Manchester Blitz (also known as 'the Christmas Blitz') was the heavy bombing of the city of Manchester and its surrounding areas in England... Read more
-
Llandaff Cathedral is Badly Damaged by a German Bomb During the Cardiff Blitz
On the evening of 2 January 1941 during World War II the cathedral was severely damaged when a landmine was dropped near it during the Cardiff... Read more
-
Swansea Blitz
The Swansea Blitz was the heavy and sustained bombing of Swansea by the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany on 19 February-21 February 1941. Swansea was... Read more
-
Clydebank Blitz
On 13th March, 1941, 236 Luftwaffe bombers attacked targets in the Clydebank area. These included the shipyards, Dalnottar tank farm and large... Read more
-
The English City of Plymouth Sustains Heavy Bombing from German Luftwaffe in the 'March Raids'
At just after 8.30pm the alert was sounded and at 8.39 the attack started. First came a group of Heinkel III bombers flying at between 9,900 and... Read more
-
Battle of Fort Roupel
Like the Maginot Line on the Franco-German border, the Metaxas Line was outflanked by German forces specifically when the Germans invaded Greece in... Read more
-
Axis Powers Begin Invasion of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia with the Bombing of Belgrade
At the end of March 1941 the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was forced to join the Axis, which ignited a popular revolution in the country; this led to a... Read more
-
Yugoslav Army Begins Albanian Offensive
In accordance with the Royal Yugoslav Army’s war plan, R-41, a strategy was formulated that, in the face of a massive Axis attack, a retreat on all... Read more
-
German Forces Seize Thessaloniki
On the dawn of April 6, the German armies invaded Greece, while the Luftwaffe began an intensive bombardment of Belgrade. The XL Panzer Corps—which... Read more
-
Battle of Vevi (1941)
The Klidi Pass is between 100 metres (0.062 mi) and 500 metres (0.31 mi) wide, a winding defile, with steep, rocky and treeless sides up to 1,000... Read more
-
Belgrade is Captured by German Forces
Since three separate attack forces were converging on Belgrade simultaneously, the Army High Command was not immediately able to determine which... Read more