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1945

World War II: The U

World War II: The U.S. Army liberated Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp, and killed German prisoners of war.

1982

Falklands War: HMS Sheffield was struck by an Exocet missile, killing 20 sailors and leading to its sinking six days lat

Falklands War: HMS Sheffield was struck by an Exocet missile, killing 20 sailors and leading to its sinking six days later—the first Royal Navy ship sunk in action since World War II.

1861

American Civil War: Union troops occupy Alexandria, Virginia, with Colonel Elmer E

American Civil War: Union troops occupy Alexandria, Virginia, with Colonel Elmer E. Ellsworth becoming the first Union officer to be killed during the war.

1940

World War II: Norwegian, French, Polish and British forces recapture Narvik in Norway

World War II: Norwegian, French, Polish and British forces recapture Narvik in Norway. This is the first Allied infantry victory of the War.

1894

The Empire of Japan and Qing China declare war on each other after a week of fighting over Korea, formally…

The Empire of Japan and Qing China declare war on each other after a week of fighting over Korea, formally inaugurating the First Sino-Japanese War.

1965

Vietnam War: Operation Starlite begins: United States Marines destroy a Viet Cong stronghold on the Van Tuong…

Vietnam War: Operation Starlite begins: United States Marines destroy a Viet Cong stronghold on the Van Tuong peninsula in the first major American ground battle of the war.

1945

Ten days after World War II ends with Japan announcing its surrender, armed supporters of the Chinese Communist Party…

Ten days after World War II ends with Japan announcing its surrender, armed supporters of the Chinese Communist Party kill U.S. intelligence officer John Birch, regarded by some of the American right�

1914

World War I: The German colony of Togoland surrenders to French and British forces after a 20-day campaign. Togoland…

World War I: The German colony of Togoland surrenders to French and British forces after a 20-day campaign. Togoland is the first German colony to fall to Allied hands in World War I.

1939

World War II: The submarine HMS Oxley is mistakenly sunk by the submarine HMS Triton near Norway and becomes the Royal…

World War II: The submarine HMS Oxley is mistakenly sunk by the submarine HMS Triton near Norway and becomes the Royal Navy's first loss of a submarine in the war.

1988

In Israel John Demjanjuk is sentenced to death for war crimes committed in World War II, although the verdict is later o

In Israel John Demjanjuk is sentenced to death for war crimes committed in World War II, although the verdict is later overturned.

1775

American Revolutionary War: The war begins during the Battles of Lexington and Concord with a victory of American minute

American Revolutionary War: The war begins during the Battles of Lexington and Concord with a victory of American minutemen and other militia over British forces, later referred to as the "shot heard�

1752

Start of Konbaung–Hanthawaddy War, a new phase in the Burmese Civil War (1740–57)

Start of Konbaung–Hanthawaddy War, a new phase in the Burmese Civil War (1740–57).

1898

Spanish–American War: The United States Navy begins a blockade of Cuban ports

Spanish–American War: The United States Navy begins a blockade of Cuban ports. When the U.S. Congress issued a declaration of war on April 25, it declared that a state of war had existed from this dat�

1915

World War I: The use of poison gas in World War I escalates when chlorine gas is released as a chemical weapon in the Se

World War I: The use of poison gas in World War I escalates when chlorine gas is released as a chemical weapon in the Second Battle of Ypres.

1877

Russo-Turkish War: The Russian Empire declares war on the Ottoman Empire

Russo-Turkish War: The Russian Empire declares war on the Ottoman Empire.

1965

Cold War: The Dominican Civil War broke out due to tensions following a military coup against the democratically elected

Cold War: The Dominican Civil War broke out due to tensions following a military coup against the democratically elected government of President Juan Bosch two years earlier.

1898

Spanish–American War: The United States Congress declares that a state of war between the U

Spanish–American War: The United States Congress declares that a state of war between the U.S. and Spain has existed since April 21, when an American naval blockade of the Spanish colony of Cuba began�

1945

World War II: Battle of Bautzen: Last successful German tank-offensive of the war and last noteworthy victory of the Weh

World War II: Battle of Bautzen: Last successful German tank-offensive of the war and last noteworthy victory of the Wehrmacht.

1945

World War II: The last German formations withdraw from Finland to Norway

World War II: The last German formations withdraw from Finland to Norway. The Lapland War and thus, World War II in Finland, comes to an end and the Raising the Flag on the Three-Country Cairn photogr�

1945

World War II: Stalag Luft I prisoner-of-war camp near Barth, Germany is liberated by Soviet soldiers, freeing nearly 9,0

World War II: Stalag Luft I prisoner-of-war camp near Barth, Germany is liberated by Soviet soldiers, freeing nearly 9,000 American and British airmen.