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Commanders of World War 2

Key Events of World War II

Major Turning Points Explained

Explore the key events of World War II, from the Rise of Adolf Hitler to the end of the war.

Key Events of World War II

Some events changed the course of the war without being battles. Political decisions, acts of persecution, diplomatic agreements and turning points shaped the Second World War and the Holocaust. Explore the major events below to understand how they influenced history.

Adolf Hitler (centre), Julius Streicher (foreground, right) and Hermann Göring (left of Hitler) retrace the route of the failed Beer Hall Putsch during its annual commemoration in Munich, Germany, on 9 November 1934. The Nazi regime transformed the failed coup of 1923 into one of its founding myths, using the anniversary to honour the sixteen Nazi supporters killed during the march and to reinforce loyalty to the Party.

Beer Hall Putsch

08 November 1923

The Beer Hall Putsch, also known as the Munich Putsch, was a failed coup d'état carried out on 8–9 November 1923 by Adolf Hitler, General Erich Ludendorff and members of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP). The conspi…

The rise of the Schutzstaffel (SS) was one of the most significant developments in the history of Nazi Germany.

Rise of the SS

The rise of the Schutzstaffel (SS) was one of the most significant developments in the history of Nazi Germany. Founded on 9 November 1925 as a small unit responsible for protecting Adolf Hitler and senior members of the Nazi Party, t…

Night of the Long Knives

Night of the Long Knives

The Night of the Long Knives, which took place between 30 June and 2 July 1934, was a bloody political purge that fundamentally reshaped the power structure of the Third Reich. Codenamed Operation Hummingbird (Aktion Kolibri), the ope…

SA members enforce the nationwide boycott of Jewish businesses in Germany on 1 April 1933, marking one of the first organised acts of Nazi persecution.

Kristallnacht

09 November 1938

Kristallnacht, also known as the Night of Broken Glass or the November Pogroms, was a coordinated wave of anti-Jewish violence carried out across Nazi Germany, Austria and the Sudetenland on 9–10 November 1938. Synagogues were burned…

Germany invaded Poland on 1 September 1939 starting WW2

Invasion of Poland

01 September 1939

The Invasion of Poland marked the beginning of the Second World War in Europe. At dawn on 1 September 1939, Nazi Germany launched Operation Fall Weiss, a carefully planned assault designed to destroy the Polish state before Britain an…

The US and Soviet Red Army meeting on the Elbe river in April 1945

Elbe Meeting

On 25 April 1945, American and Soviet troops met on the banks of the Elbe River near the German town of Torgau, marking one of the final major milestones of the Second World War in Europe. Remembered as Elbe Day, the historic link-up…

Hermann Göring and Rudolf Hess listening to the proceedings. The initial attitude of the defendants was one of arrogance and annoyance, treating the tribunal as a temporary inconvenience they could outsmart or escape.

Nuremberg Trials

20 November 1945

Following the defeat of Nazi Germany in May 1945, the victorious Allied powers faced an unprecedented challenge: how should those responsible for planning aggressive war, genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity be brought to…

The atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Hiroshima and Nagasaki

By the summer of 1945, Nazi Germany had surrendered, but the Second World War was still raging in the Pacific. Despite years of devastating defeats, the Empire of Japan refused to surrender unconditionally, while Allied planners prepa…