Neutrality laws keep America at a distance
Congress passes a series of Neutrality Acts to prevent involvement in European and Asian conflicts.
Lend-Lease Act provides support to the Allies
The US begins supplying weapons and provisions to Great Britain and later other allies, without directly entering the war.
Attack on Pearl Harbor
Japan attacks the American naval base in Hawaii, immediately drawing the US into the war.
Executive Order 9066 and internment of Japanese Americans
Roosevelt signs an executive order that leads to the forced internment of tens of thousands of Japanese Americans.
Battle of Midway turns the tide in the Pacific
The American navy defeats the Japanese fleet in a decisive naval battle near Midway Atoll.
D-Day: the invasion of Normandy
Allied troops, with a large American contingent, land on the beaches of Normandy to liberate Western Europe.
Yalta Conference
Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin meet to discuss the post-war order in Europe.
Death of President Roosevelt
President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies unexpectedly, after which Vice President Harry Truman takes over the presidency.
atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The United States drops atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, with devastating consequences.
V-J Day: Japan surrenders
Japan signs the official surrender, bringing the Second World War to an end worldwide.
Attack on Pearl Harbor
In a surprise attack on Sunday morning, Japanese fighter planes inflict heavy damage on the Pacific Fleet, killing more than 2,400 Americans. The attack shocks the nation and leads the next day to a declaration of war on Japan, followed by declarations of war on the US by Germany and Italy.