1939–1941

World War II and the Mass Killing of Jews

Polish civilians walk by a section of the wall that separated the Warsaw ghetto from the rest of the city. [LCID: 78390] — Polish civilians walk by a section of the wall that separated the Warsaw ghetto from the rest of the city. Warsaw, Poland, 1940–41.
—⁠Bildarchiv Preussischer Kulturbesitz

On September 1, 1939, Nazi Germany unleashed World War II by invading Poland. The war radicalized Nazi policies, leading to brutal occupations of conquered territory. German authorities in occupied Poland established ghettos for Jews. They also introduced harsh measures against non-Jewish Poles. Inside Germany and in occupied Polish territories, German physicians and SS staff used gas chambers to kill institutionalized persons with disabilities. In June 1941, German troops invaded the Soviet Union, unleashing a “racial war” that led to the mass murder of Soviet Jews and Soviet prisoners of war. In the weeks and months that followed, Nazi Germany’s leaders decided to carry out the systematic mass murder of Europe’s Jews.

Highlighted events

November 15, 1940

Warsaw Ghetto Sealed
December 08, 1941

Killing Operations Begin at Chelmno
December 08, 1941

United States Declares War on Japan

All events 1939–1941

January 30, 1939

Reichstag Speech

Hitler declares that the outbreak of war would mean the end of European Jewry.
February 09, 1939

Wagner-Rogers Bill

Submission of a bill to permit entry of 20,000 refugee children into the United States.
May 13, 1939

St. Louis Sets Sail

The St. Louis, carrying Jews fleeing from Nazi Germany, departs for Havana, Cuba.
August 18, 1939

Registration of Children with Disabilities

The Reich Ministry of the Interior orders German medical practitioners to report infants and toddlers showing signs of mental or physical disabilities.
September 01, 1939

Backdated Order Authorizes “Euthanasia” Program

Adolf Hitler authorizes the murder of people with disabilities sometime in autumn 1939 but backdates the order to the start of World War II.
September 01, 1939

German Invasion of Poland

Germany invades Poland, initiating World War II in Europe.
September 03, 1939

Britain and France Declare War

Great Britain and France declare war on Germany.
May 10, 1940

Winston Churchill Becomes Prime Minister

Neville Chamberlain resigns as prime minister and is succeeded by Winston Churchill.
May 20, 1940

Auschwitz Camp Established

SS authorities establish the largest concentration camp complex of the Nazi regime.
May 1940

Dunkirk Evacuation

Approximately 338,000 Allied troops evacuate Dunkirk with the help of British ships and boats.
July 10, 1940

Battle of Britain Begins

Between July 10 and October 31, Germany and Britain battle for air control of the English Channel.
August 21, 1940

Samuel Soltz's Visa

Samuel Stoltz's papers bear witness to the vast array of bureaucratic stamps and visas needed to emigrate from Europe in 1940–41.
September 07, 1940

The Blitz Begins

Germany initiates its bombing campaign against Britain.
November 15, 1940

Warsaw Ghetto Sealed

The ghetto was enclosed by a wall that was over ten feet high, topped with barbed wire.
November 25, 1940

Explosion of the SS Patria

The destruction of a ship carrying 1,800 Jewish refugees.
March 03, 1941

Krakow Ghetto Established

Between 15,000 and 20,000 Jews are forced to live within the ghetto boundaries.
March 11, 1941

Lend-Lease Act

The Lend-Lease Act passes in Congress, allowing the United States to send material aid to the Allies prior to entering World War II.
June 22, 1941

Operation Barbarossa

Germany launches its largest military operation of the war.
July 10, 1941

Hidden History: Establishment of the Kovno Ghetto

Across Nazi-occupied territory, many Jews engaged in acts of spiritual and intellectual defiance.
August 14, 1941

Atlantic Charter

President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill meet to establish postwar priorities.
August 15, 1941

Soviet Prisoners of War in Minsk

Heinrich Himmler inspects Soviet prisoners of war at a German camp in occupied Belarus.
August 15, 1941

Kovno Ghetto Sealed

German authorities seal off the Kovno ghetto, Lithuania.
August 20, 1941

Drancy Camp Established

In Drancy, France, German authorities open an internment and transit camp for Jews.
August 24, 1941

“Euthanasia” Killings

Responding in part to public protests, Hitler orders the cessation of centrally coordinated murder of people with disabilities.
September 01, 1941

Jewish Badge

All Jews over six years of age in the Reich, Alsace, Bohemia-Moravia and the German–annexed territory of western Poland (called the Warthegau) are ordered to wear an identifying badge.
September 19, 1941

Occupation of Kyiv

German forces occupy Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine.
October 15, 1941

Operation Reinhard

The plan to annihilate Jews in occupied Poland will lead to the murder of some 1.7 million innocent people.
October 15, 1941

Deportations of German, Austrian, and Czech Jews

German authorities begin deporting Jews from central Europe to ghettos in occupied eastern territory.
October 15, 1941

Stahlecker Report

An SS officer submits his report on the mass killing of Jewish civilians in the northwestern region of the Soviet Union.
October 29, 1941

Massacre in Fort IX

9,200 residents of the Kovno ghetto massacred in Fort IX on the edge of the city.
November 24, 1941

Theresienstadt Camp-Ghetto Established

In its function as a tool of deception, Theresienstadt was a unique facility.
December 07, 1941

Attack on Pearl Harbor

Japan launches a surprise attack on the United States Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, severely damaging the installation.
December 08, 1941

Killing Operations Begin at Chelmno

Chelmo was first stationary facility where poison gas was used for mass murder.
December 08, 1941

United States Declares War on Japan

President Roosevelt asks the US Congress to declare war on Japan following the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor.

Next: 1942–1945

Highlighted events

All events 1939–1941

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