1939
Germany invades Poland
At dawn Luftwaffe planes screamed over the border and Panzer columns rolled east in the world's first blitzkrieg. The Polish army fought hard with cavalry and obsolete aircraft. Warsaw held out for four weeks before surrendering. Britain and France declared war on September 3. The Second World War had begun.
Einstein warns Roosevelt about atom bomb
Urged on by Hungarian refugee physicist Leo Szilard, Albert Einstein signed a letter to President Roosevelt warning that German physicists might build a uranium weapon of unimaginable power and that the United States must not fall behind. Roosevelt read it and appointed a small committee. The committee would eventually become the Manhattan Project and produce the bomb Einstein dreaded.
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact shocks the world
Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, ideological sworn enemies, signed a non-aggression treaty in Moscow with a secret protocol carving up eastern Europe between them. Communists in Paris and New York resigned in disgust. Within a week German tanks were rolling east toward Warsaw with Stalin's blessing, and Poland's fate was sealed between two predators.
Spanish Civil War ends
After Franco's nationalist forces entered Madrid, the Republican government fled to exile and the war was over. Half a million Spaniards were dead. Two hundred thousand Republicans and their families crossed the Pyrenees into France, where many were interned. Franco would rule Spain with a firm Catholic hand for thirty-six years.
Einstein's letter drafted
At the urging of Hungarian refugee physicist Leo Szilard, Albert Einstein signed a letter to President Roosevelt warning that Germany might build a uranium bomb and urging a US research effort. Roosevelt, when he eventually read it, said, This requires action. The letter germinated into the Manhattan Project two years later.
The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind
In a single year, Hollywood released both The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind, each a spectacle of Technicolor and ambition. MGM's musical fantasy and Selznick's Civil War epic defined what Hollywood's Golden Age could do when money, craft, and studio discipline all pointed the same direction. American film had its landmark year.
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Frequently asked
What happened in the year 1939?
Saeculum lists 6 curated events from 1939. The most significant is Germany invades Poland: At dawn Luftwaffe planes screamed over the border and Panzer columns rolled east in the world's first blitzkrieg.
What era was 1939 part of?
1939 falls within the Modern Era (1901-2000). World wars, cold war, and the splitting of the atom.
Which regions saw notable events in 1939?
The curated events from 1939 span Europe and North America.