HONORS WORLD HISTORY WWII

World War Two: Summary Outline of Key Events

From the invasion of Poland to the dropping of the atom bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki - here's a guide to the main events of World War Two.

• 1. Timeline

• 2. Events of 1939

• 3. Events of 1940

• 4. Events of 1941

• 5. Events of 1942

• 6. Events of 1943

• 7. Events of 1944

• 8. Events of 1945

• 9. Find out more

• Print entire article

JAPAN AND THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC

 The mushroom cloud billowing up 20,000 feet over Hiroshima on the morning of August 6, 1945 (Photo from U.S. National Archives, RG 77-AEC)

Nagasaki, August 10, 1945; photograph by Yosuke Yamahata; used with permission of copyright holder, Shogo Yamahata/Courtesy: IDG films. Photo restoration by TX Unlimited, San Francisco

A nuclear weapon of the "Fat Man" type, the plutonium implosion type detonated over Nagasaki. 60 inches in diameter and 128 inches long, the weapon weighed about 10,000 pounds and had a yield approximating 21,000 tons of high explosives (Copy from U.S. National Archives, RG 77-AEC)

A nuclear weapon of the "Little Boy" type, the uranium gun-type detonated over Hiroshima. It is 28 inches in diameter and 120 inches long. "Little Boy" weighed about 9,000 pounds and had a yield approximating 15,000 tons of high explosives. (Copy from U.S. National Archives, RG 77-AEC)

A photo  prepared by U.S. Air Intelligence for analytical work on destructiveness of atomic weapons. The total area devastated by the atomic strike on Hiroshima is shown in the darkened area (within the circle) of the photo. The numbered items are military and industrial installations with the percentages of total destruction. (Photo from U.S. National Archives, RG 77-AEC)