The 1940s

1941 85 years ago

German engineer Konrad Zuse presented the Z3, the first working programmable and fully automatic computer, to an audienc

Konrad Ernst Otto Zuse was a German civil engineer, pioneering computer scientist, inventor and businessman. His greatest achievement was the world's first programmable computer; t…

German engineer Konrad Zuse presented the Z3, the first working programmable and fully automatic computer, to an audienc

1941 85 years ago

World War II: German paratroopers began the Battle of Heraklion on the island of Crete, capturing the airfield and port

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and air…

World War II: German paratroopers began the Battle of Heraklion on the island of Crete, capturing the airfield and port

1941 85 years ago

Second World War: The German battleship Bismarck sank the British battlecruiser Hood at the Battle of the Denmark Strait

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and air…

Second World War: The German battleship Bismarck sank the British battlecruiser Hood at the Battle of the Denmark Strait

1941 85 years ago

World War II: The German battleship Bismarck was sunk by gun and torpedo fire by the British battleships HMS Rodney and

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and air…

World War II: The German battleship Bismarck was sunk by gun and torpedo fire by the British battleships HMS Rodney and

1941 85 years ago

German forces dropped four bombs on neutral Ireland, killing 28 people and damaging the residence of the President of Ir

During World War II, Dublin was first bombed early on the morning of 2 January 1941, when German bombs were dropped on the Terenure area. This was followed early on the following m…

German forces dropped four bombs on neutral Ireland, killing 28 people and damaging the residence of the President of Ir

1941 85 years ago

The United Kingdom completed its re-occupation of Iraq, returning Abd al-Ilah to power as regent for Faisal II

The Anglo-Iraqi War was a British-led Allied military campaign during the Second World War against the Kingdom of Iraq, then ruled by Rashid Ali al-Gaylani who had seized power in …

The United Kingdom completed its re-occupation of Iraq, returning Abd al-Ilah to power as regent for Faisal II

1941 85 years ago

World War II: German forces dropped four bombs on neutral Ireland, killing 28 people and damaging Áras an Uachtaráin, th

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and air…

World War II: German forces dropped four bombs on neutral Ireland, killing 28 people and damaging Áras an Uachtaráin, th

1941 85 years ago

World War II: In reprisal for the participation of the local population in the Battle of Crete, the German Wehrmacht des

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and air…

World War II: In reprisal for the participation of the local population in the Battle of Crete, the German Wehrmacht des

1941 85 years ago

Second Sino-Japanese War: About 4,000 people died of asphyxiation in Chongqing when the tunnel in which they were hiding

The Second Sino-Japanese War, known in China as the War of Resistance Against Japan, was fought between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan and its puppet states between …

Second Sino-Japanese War: About 4,000 people died of asphyxiation in Chongqing when the tunnel in which they were hiding

1941 85 years ago

World War II: The Allies commenced the Syria–Lebanon campaign against Vichy French possessions in the Levant

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and air…

World War II: The Allies commenced the Syria–Lebanon campaign against Vichy French possessions in the Levant

1941 85 years ago

World War II: German minister of foreign affairs Joachim von Ribbentrop presented a declaration of war to the Soviet amb

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and air…

World War II: German minister of foreign affairs Joachim von Ribbentrop presented a declaration of war to the Soviet amb

1941 85 years ago

World War II: As Axis troops began their invasion of the Soviet Union, the Lithuanian Activist Front started an uprising

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and air…

World War II: As Axis troops began their invasion of the Soviet Union, the Lithuanian Activist Front started an uprising

1941 85 years ago

The Holocaust: During the German occupation of Latvia, a number of synagogues in Riga were set on fire, killing many…

The Holocaust, known in Hebrew as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered ar…

The Holocaust: During the German occupation of Latvia, a number of synagogues in Riga were set on fire, killing many…

1941 85 years ago

German AB-Aktion in Poland: After capturing Lwów, the Nazis executed professors of the University of Lwów along with…

Aktion AB was the second stage of Nazi Germany's campaign of violence in the occupied General Government (GG) of Poland. It followed the Intelligenzaktion, during Germany's invasio…

German AB-Aktion in Poland: After capturing Lwów, the Nazis executed professors of the University of Lwów along with…

1941 85 years ago

Second World War: After a three-month siege, the Italian garrison of Saïo (in modern-day Ethiopia) surrendered to…

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. World War II …

Second World War: After a three-month siege, the Italian garrison of Saïo (in modern-day Ethiopia) surrendered to…

1941 85 years ago

The Holocaust: Ethnic Poles murdered at least 340 Jewish residents of Jedwabne in German-occupied Poland.

The Holocaust, known in Hebrew as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered ar…

The Holocaust: Ethnic Poles murdered at least 340 Jewish residents of Jedwabne in German-occupied Poland.

1941 85 years ago

The Holocaust: Under instructions from Adolf Hitler, Hermann Göring authorised SS officer Reinhard Heydrich to handle…

The Holocaust, known in Hebrew as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered ar…

The Holocaust: Under instructions from Adolf Hitler, Hermann Göring authorised SS officer Reinhard Heydrich to handle…

1941 85 years ago

After a secret meeting in Newfoundland, British prime minister Winston Churchill and U.S. president Franklin D.…

The Dominion of Newfoundland, or simply Newfoundland, was a British Dominion in eastern North America, today the modern Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It included …

After a secret meeting in Newfoundland, British prime minister Winston Churchill and U.S. president Franklin D.…

1941 85 years ago

Josef Jakobs, a German spy, became the last person executed at the Tower of London.

Josef Jakobs was a German spy and the last person to be executed at the Tower of London. He was captured shortly after parachuting into the United Kingdom during the Second World W…

Josef Jakobs, a German spy, became the last person executed at the Tower of London.

1941 85 years ago

Adolf Hitler ordered the suspension of the T4 euthanasia program of the mentally ill and disabled, although killings…

Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany in the Nazi era from 1933 until his suicide in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Part…

Adolf Hitler ordered the suspension of the T4 euthanasia program of the mentally ill and disabled, although killings…

1941 85 years ago

World War II: A detachment of Chetniks captured the town of Loznica in German-occupied Serbia.

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many eng…

World War II: A detachment of Chetniks captured the town of Loznica in German-occupied Serbia.

1941 85 years ago

The mass expulsion of Soviet Germans from the Volga German ASSR begins.

After the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, ethnic Germans living in the Soviet Union were subject to mass deportation starting from August 1941 by the NKVD on the …

The mass expulsion of Soviet Germans from the Volga German ASSR begins.

1941 85 years ago

In Des Moines, Iowa, American aviator Charles Lindbergh delivered an antisemitic speech (reporting pictured) accusing…

Des Moines is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is named after the Des Moines River, likely derived from the French Rivière des Moines meaning 'River…

In Des Moines, Iowa, American aviator Charles Lindbergh delivered an antisemitic speech (reporting pictured) accusing…

1941 85 years ago

Operation Barbarossa: A Wehrmacht training event known as the Mogilev Conference began, marking an increase in…

Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3…

Operation Barbarossa: A Wehrmacht training event known as the Mogilev Conference began, marking an increase in…