The start of WWII is generally held to be September 1, 1939 beginning with German invasion of Poland. Britain and France declared war on Germany two day later. Most of the world's nations, including all of the great powers eventually became involved. The great powers organized into two opposing military alliances.
The Allies (the good guys): Soviet Union, United States, United Kingdom, China, Poland, France, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Belgium, Netherlands, Greece, Yugoslavia, Norway and others.
The Axis (the bad guys): Germany, Japan, Italy, Finland, Hungary, Romania, Thailand, Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovakia and others.
It was the most widespread war in history, with more than 100 million military personnel mobilized. In a state of total war, the major participants placed their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities at the service of the war effort. The war took its toll on many thousands of civilians, including the Holocaust and the only use of nuclear weapons in warfare. It was the deadliest conflict in human history with over seventy million casualties.
The United States was trying to stay out of the war. But then on the morning of December 7, 1941, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in a surprise attack and caused so much death and destruction that President Franklin Roosevelt declared war on Japan on December 8, 1941. The U.S. also declared war on all the Axis powers on December 8, 1941.
The war was fought in Europe, Pacific, Atlantic, South-East Asia, China, Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa.
The exact date of the wars end is not entirely agreed upon. Some believe the war ended at the Armistice of August 14, 1945 on V-J Day (Victory over Japan) rather than the formal surrender of Japan on September 2, 1945. The Treaty of Peace with Japan wasn't signed until 1951. V-E Day (Victory over Europe) was celebrated on May 8, 1945.
The number of our American Heroes who perished during the war from 1941 - 1945 was 405,339.
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