History Master Timeline

Year Event
1868
Meiji Restoration (3 January)

The Tokugawa Shogunate came to an end. The Meiji emperor sought to make Japan a
world power through industrialisation and modernisation. There was a rise of
militarisation in Japan, with its military and economy being strengthened
1894
First Sino-Japanese War (1 August)

Japan tried to gain control over the Korean Peninsula. Japan waged a successful war
against China when its country was in turmoil with the Chinese Qing Dynasty falling apart.
The Japanese took advantage of this and ,like the European Powers, take control of
Chinese territory and trade.
1895
Treaty of Shimonoseki (17 April)

China was forced to give up control of Korea and the island of Taiwan to Japan.

Taiwan was administered as Japans first overseas colony and came under Japans direct
rule. Japan embarked on a colonisation process, mirroring that of the European powers,
including construction of schools, railways and other modern infrastuctures. Taiwan also
acted as a military foothold for further conquest of South China and Southeast Asia.
Inception of economic projects to primarily benefit Japan such as the marketing of raw
materials (sugar were extracted).

Rule over Korea was handled indirectly through the Korean monarchy (royal family).
These efforts proved fruitless as the Korean King and Queen tried to assert their
independence. A plea for help by Korean queen, Myeongseong, to the Russians to expel
the Japanese had her assassinated by Japanese agents. Hence in 1910, Japan annexed
Korea and ruled it directly. Japanese implemented policies such as education in Japanese,
forced labour and military service for Koreans, settlements of Japanese migrants and the
confiscation of land for Japanese farmers.


1904-05
Russo-Japanese War (8 February, 1904)

A result of discrimination against the Japanese. The Russians did not view Japan under the
same light as the Western Powers. The Japanese were deemed inferior and less powerful.
Another factor that initiated the war was the disagreement between Russia and Japan
over sphere of influences over Manchuria and Korean peninsula respectively. Russia did
not intend to reach a compromise which sparked anger in the Japanese government.

Treaty of Portsmouth (5 September, 1905)

Japan gained control of the Liaodong Peninsula, the South Manchurian Railway and the
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southern half of the Sakhalin Island.



Renewal of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance

Britain recognised Japans right to defend Korea and Japan recognised Britains right to
defend India. Bothe agreed that China was a place of common interest

1914
World War I (4 August); Ended in 1918

Triggered by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (28 June 1914) during his visit
to Sarajevo. The assassin was a member of Serbian nationalist group. Austria-Hungary
used this opportunity to defend control over Bosnia and Serbia hence declaring war.
World powers were drawn in to support their allies.
1915
Twenty-One Demands

Confirmed Japan's recent acquisitions in Shandong Province, and expanded Japan's
sphere of influence over the railways, coasts and major cities of the province. Pertained to
Japan's South Manchuria Railway Zone, extending the leasehold over the territory into
the twenty-first century, and expanding Japan's sphere of influence in
southern Manchuria and eastern Inner Mongolia, to include rights of settlement
and extraterritoriality, appointment of financial and administrative officials to the
government and priority for Japanese investments in those areas.

1919
Paris Peace Conference (18 January)

Discussion of peace terms for the defeated Central Powers. Terms of several treaties such
as the Treaty of Versailles were discussed here.

League of Nations were set up (28 April)

Collective Security
The League of Nations was to act as an international organisation whose main role was to
maintain world peace and security. The whole league would work together towards
preventing wars and conflicts. World peace would be achieved through open, just and
honourable international cooperation.

Disarmament
The League aimed to implement disarmament to further reduce the ability to wage war.
TOV was imposed to provide armament restrictions on Germany and its allies. The Allied
Powers were also required to disarm.


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Treaty of Versailles was signed (28 June)

War Guilt Clause
Germany had to accept total blame for causing the war.

Territorial Reductions
Germany lost all her overseas colonies. Control over Alsace-Lorraine and the Saar coal
region was given to France. Polish corridor was formed between Germany and East
Prussia to give Poland independent access to the sea. Furthermore, Germany was not
allowed to reunite with Austria.

Demilitarisation
Germanys size of the army and navy was limited to 100,000 and 15,000 men respectively.
They were not allowed to have an air force, tanks and submarines.

Reparations
Germany had to pay 269 billion gold Reichmarks as compensation for all the damage
caused in the war.

Self-Determination
People previously belonging to Austria-Hungary in Central Europe with a common identity
were given the right to govern themselves.

Formation of League of Nations
The League of Nations was set up to maintain world peace.

Hitler became Nazi Partys Leader (26 July)

1921
Washington Naval Conference
The aim of the conference was to get major world powers to disarm. USA invited Britain,
France, Italy and Japan to attend the conference and they agreed to reduce the size of
their navies

Five Power Naval Limitation Treaty
The five major world powers agreed to maintain a balance in their respective fleets
according to predetermined ratio. Will not build more ships for ten years.
1922
Stalin becomes Secretary-General
Stalin abuses his seat of power to replace the allies of his opponents, especially Trotskys,
with that of his own loyal supporters. Stalin also gained control of the Cheka which he
renamed NKVD. This greatly undermined Trotskys support base.
1923
Munich Putsch
Hitler rallied the Sturmabteilung (SA) to rebel against the Weimar government. He
planned to march to Berlin to take over power but Bavarian leader, Ritter von Kahr,
backstabbed and betrayed them.
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1924

Dawes Plan
USA agreed to loan Germany 800 million gold marks for the latter to end hyperinflation
and pay reparations. The total amount of reparations were also reduced. Germany was
given a more flexible time schedule to pay and France agreed to withdraw from Ruhr after
Germany promised to resume payment.

Lenins Death
This spurred an image that Stalin was close to Lenin as Stalin was the chief mourner
during Lenins funeral. This would make him look like his natural successor and gave
Trotsky wrong dates to undermine his popularity and reputation. Stalin also proposed to
embalm Lenins body and gave a series of lectures on Lenins contributions to Marxist
theory, allowing Stalin to gain unrivalled support.

1925 Locarno Pact
Germany agreed to respect its new Western boundaries as determined by TOV. Germany
agreed not to remilitarise Rhineland. This helped improved relations between Germany
and former enemies which led Germany to be admitted into LON. This provided a great
hope in the world that it is moving towards disarmament, convincing other parties to
disarm as tension was removed between Germany and its neighbouring states especially
France.

1928 First Five Year Plan (Soviet Union)
The Five Year Plans helped propel the Soviet Union to become an industrial base for
powerful arms industry. It was, however, marked by poor coordination and planning and
there was little growth in consumer industries such as house-building, fertilisers and
woollen textiles. Other factories overproduced to meet the targets which resulted in sub-
standard and potentially hazardous products.

Kellogg-Briand Pact
15 nations agreed not to resort to war as an instrument of national policy which means
not to start a war to achieve economic or political ambitions.

1929 Young Plan
Germany only required to pay 1/3 of the original amount (US $2.6 billion). Furthermore,
the repayment period extended to 59 years.

Wall Street Crashed/ The Great Depression (29 October)
With the Great Depression, support of the coalition government in Germany fell
drastically as six million or 1/3 of the German working population lost their jobs. The
coalition government could not decide on the course of action to take. This indecisiveness
caused a rise in support for more extreme parties like the Communist Party or the Nazi
Party.

Stalin became supreme leader of the Soviet Union (November)


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1930 London Naval Conference


1931 Invasion of Manchuria
Manchuria was both economically and strategically important for Japan as it provided a
strategic foothold for Japan to further expand its territory in China and also a place to
defend Japans interests in Korea. Manchuria also provided raw materials and resources
needed for Japans growing industries.

Mukden Incident (18 September)
A bomb exploded near the Japanese-owned railway near Mukden. The Japanese army
blamed the Chinese nationalists and demanded that the Japanese government take
action to protect their interests. This provided an opportunity for a military takeover of
Manchuria. A full-scale invasion was launched and with China busy with its own civil wars,
little resistance was met. A satellite state was established called Manchukuo. The new
country is placed under Japanese military control.

1932 Nazis won most votes in Reichstag (July)

World Disarmament Conference
Germany insisted on matching the other powers armament level. However Germany
would compromise if France would limit their armament to Germanys level. France
refused. Britain and USA refused to commit to a level requested by France.

1933
Hitler became Chancellor (30 January)

President Hindenburg appointed Hitler to become Chancellor as he thought that Hitler
would be able to provide support for their policies and keep the communists under
control. The politicians underestimated his abilities and when he won enough support, he
acted decisively to gain complete control over the government.

Reichstag Fire (27 February)

Marinus van der Lubbe, a Dutchman, was arrested near the building that went ablaze that
day. He was accused of being part of a communist conspiracy and arrested along with
several Communist leaders. Hitler saw this as an opportunity to overthrow his political
opponents and convinced President Hindenburg to evoke Article 48 (emergency powers)
and convinced him to sign the Reichstag Fire Decree.

Enabling Act (24 March)

With the Communist Party out of the way, the Nazi Party won 44.6% of the votes in the
March elections. With the support of a small-wing party, the Nazis had a majority. Under
the Enabling Act, he would be able to pass laws without the Presidents approval hence
granting him a large amount of power. In addition, the Communist Party and the Social
Democrat Party were banned from taking part in future elections.
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One Party Rule (14 July)

This law made the Nazi Party the only legal political party in Germany. Hitler became a
legal dictator. Trade unions were dissolved and their leaders imprisoned. The
Sturmabteiling and the Schutz-Staffel dealt brutally with anyone who stepped out of line.

1934 Night of Long Knives (30th June)
Heinrich Himmler, Hermann Goering and Joseph Goebbels felt that Ernst Roehm, in
charge of the SA, has become too powerful. At the same time, army leaders felt that SA
represented a threat. Roehm talked rashly about taking over the army. Hence they
conspired and convinced Hitler that Roehm was indeed a threat. Hitler made a pact with
the army that if he removed Roehm and other SA leaders, they would swear an oath of
allegiance to him. That night, SS arrested and killed Ernst Roehm, other SA leader and
political opponents who angered Hitler. From that night, Schutz-Staffel held a position of
great power and were widely feared.

Creation of the Fuehrer position (August)
After President Hindenburgs death, the Weimar Constitution stated that the President
must be elected. Hitler then merged the powers of the President and Chancellor together,
which meant that Hitler now had the power to evoke Article 48. The German army then
had to swear a personal oath of allegiance to him. Hitler had gained total control over
Germany.

Kirov Affair (1
st
December)
Sergei Kirov was a potential candidate for Stalins position as Secretary-General. However
he was assassinated and accused of being part of a plot to kill Stalin and other Politburo
members. Stalin took advantage of this to eliminate all of his political opponents and
those who questioned their loyalty and Stalins policies. This not only applied to those
within the Party organisation but ordinary Russians as well. There were a series of purges
and show trials. Most often, the victims confessed to crimes they did not commit, after
being tortured or having their families threatened.

Arrests and Interrogation
Friends and family members were encouraged to turn each other in when any of them
voice opposition against Stalin. Peasants, factory workers and intellectuals were arrested
and sent to labour camps to prevent them from organizing opposition against Stalins
rule. As a result, Stalin became extremely powerful. Nobody dared to oppose or challenge
him due to the prevailing atmosphere of fear.

Loss of intellectuals, skilled worker and officers
The purge against intellectuals and the skilled workforce affected the strength of the
country. The loss of skilled workers meant that the push for industrialization shrank. The
loss of administrators, engineers and teachers meant a decline in the quality of the Soviet
civil service, industrial output and education. The purging against Red Army commanders
lead to an absence of strong leadership to lead the army.

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1935 Nuremburg Laws
Jews were not allowed to be German citizens, marry non-Jews. Throughout 1930s, many
steps were taken to humiliate the Jews and ostracize them. Many of them had their
passports restricted or even removed to prevent them from leaving Germany.

Stresa Front (14 April)
The agreement was between Italy, France and Britain. The aim was to reaffirm the
Locarno Treaties and to declare the importance of the continued independence of
Austria. They resisted any attempts by Germany to change the Treaty of Versailles.
Franco-Soviet Alliance (2 May)
The alliance (between France and the Soviet Union) to keep a check on Germanys
aggression and both countries promised to be at each others aid if Germany invaded
either side. However France refused to accept plans on how to coordinate its military with
the Soviet Union should they be attacked by Germany. This greatly undermined the
effectiveness of the alliance. Furthermore, Germany used this alliance as an excuse to
remilitarise Rhineland.

Anglo-German Naval Treaty (June)
The treaty allowed Germany to have a navy which had 1/3 the tonnage of Britains
surface fleet and an equal tonnage of submarines. This agreement signalled the beginning
of appeasement. It was hoped that these concessions would reduce German anger and
stabilise Europe. This resulted in arousing the anger of the French and confused the
British people. As a member of the Stresa Front, Britain was supposed to be seen in
condemning Germany for breaking the Treaty of Versailles. Now it seemed that Britain
was encouraging that behaviour.

Invasion of Abyssinia (October)
Mussolini wanted to make Italy a great power, he wanted to exact revenge against
Abyssinia for Italys defeat in 1896. Furthermore, Mussolini wanted to take advantage of
Abyssinias vast mineral wealth.

1936 Remilitarisation of Rhineland (7 March)
Hitler ordered German soldiers to cross the Hoherzollern Bridge to remilitarize Rhineland.
This greatly increased the German peoples confidence in Hitler. Hitler used the Franco-
Soviet Alliance as an excuse to remilitarize Rhineland to defend its own frontiers.

End of Abyssinia Conquest (9 May)

1937 Germany entered Spanish Civil War on Nationalists side
Hitlers involvement in Spain was designed in part to divert both British and French
attention for his expansion into Eastern Europe as well to show the world the weaknesses
of the League of Nation as they did not intervene in the war. Hitlers involvement in the
war also helped to gain allies from Britain and anti-communists countries as Hitler battled
against communism in Spain. It was also an opportunity to test out his army and air force.


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Italy joined Anti-Comintern Pact
The Anti-Comintern Pact was aimed agains the Communist International. Hitler hoped his
his fierce hatred against communism would improve relations with Britain by seeking to
isolate the Soviet Union. His fierce anti-Soviet stance was one of the reasons why the
Soviet Union was not invited to the Munich Conference. The pact consists Nazi Germany,
Japan and Italy.

U.S. Congress pushed for Neutrality Act
It was to ensure would not become involved in a foreign war again. American ships were
prohibited from transporting any passengers or materials to warring nations. American
citizens forbidden from travelling on ships of warring nations.


1938

Anschluss between Germany and Austria (13 March)
Hitler persuaded Kurt Schuschnigg, the Austrian Chancellor, into agreeing to the political
union. Hitler said that only Anschluss would stop the demonstrations and riots in Austria.
99.75% of the population voted for Anschluss and Austria was annexed. Its gold and iron
resources were now at Hitlers disposal.

Munich Agreement
Hitler threatened to go to war for Sudentenland if necessary. The Czech leader Edvard
Benes was willing to fight. Britain, France and the Soviet Union also promised to support
them if attacked however in keeping with the policy of appeasement, the leaders of
Britain and France signed the Munich Agreement with Hitler and Mussolini deciding that
Germany would gain control of the Sudentenland. The Czechs and Soviets were not
consulted at all. Chamberlain was warmly welcomed home by the British public. War had
been temporarily avoided but at the expense of Czechoslovakia. Neville Chamberlain
declared that he had secured peace in our time.

Nazi Germany gained control of Sudentenland

Night of Broken Glass (November)
A Nazi diplomat was shot dead by a young Jewish boy in Paris. Hitler took advantage of
this and ordered a campaign of terror against the Jews. Nazis looted and destroyed
thousands of Jewish shops. Homes and synagogues were burned. Many Jews were beaten
and killed. More than 20 000 Jews were sent to concentration camps.

1939 Germany gained control over the rest of Czechoslovakia (16 March)
Neither the Czechs nor the Allies fought back. Britain and France warned accordingly that
they would go to war with Germany if he invaded Poland

Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact (23 August)
Germany and Soviet Union would not attack each other and would resolve any problems
between them in a friendly manner. Soviet rights over the Baltic States were recognised
by both Germany and the Soviet Union. Poland was divided between them.


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Poland Invasion/World War 2 started (3 September)


Cash and Carry policy (21 September)
Policy that allowed Britain and France to buy goods from the USA if they paid in full and
provided their own transport. Payment had to be immediate and can only be made in
cash. American commercial ships were forbidden to enter conflict zones (in accordance to
the Neutrality Act).

1940 France fell to Germany (June)

Battle of Britain (July)
Hitler ordered the Luftwaffe to further weaken the British Royal Air Force (RAF) by
bombing British shipping and coastal defences, airfields and radar installations. Although
it was a great success, Hitler accidentally gave time for RAF to recover by shifting his focus
to bombing British cities known as the Blitz. The Blitz gave time for RAF to recover and
boosted the British morale.
America imposes trade embargo on Japan (August)
When Japan occupied Vietnam, Roosevelt went to impose a trade embargo on Japan. This
embargo banned the export of steel, scrap iron and fuel to Japan. This prompted Japan to
turn to Southeast Asai for resources and raw materials.

Tripartite Pact (September)
Japan recognised the dominance of Germany and Italy in the new order of Europe whilst
Japan is recognised for its dominance in Greater East Asia.

On National Security Fireside Chat (December).
Roosevelt argued against a false sense of security and pride that isolationism brough and
argued for increased involvement in the war. The fireside chats were a series of 30 radio
messages that spoke directly and informally to the Americans, addressing them as friends.
Roosevelt told them his hopes and discussed problems it face on issues such as economy
and national security.

1941 Lend-Lease Act (11 March)
President Roosevelt had the authority to supply weapons, food and equipment to Britain
and any country whose defence was vital to USAs national security. Payment could be
deferred or demanded at a later time. Furthermore, payment need not be in cash and
recipients did not have to provide their own transportation.
America imposes oil embargo on Japan (July)

Pearl Harbor Bombings (7 December)

World War 2 begain in Asia-Pacific (8 December)

1942

Battle of Stalingrad
The Wehrmacht was unable to defeat the Red Army. The winter of 1942 severely
weakened them and gave the Soviets time to reorganise and rearm.
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1943 Battle of Kursk (July-August)
The Red Army was ready for what was supposed to be a surprise attack. It was another
decisive Soviet victory.

1944 D-Day (6 June)
Allie landed their troops in Normandy to liberate Western Europe. It was crucial to the
success of Operation Overlord. There were strong fortifications along Frances coastline
hence there it was no easy feat. It was one of the most carefully planned military
operation and resulted in a decisive Allied victory.

1945 World War 2 ended in Europe (8 May)

World War 2 ended in Asia-Pacific (14 August)