1940
Germany invades France and the Low Countries
At dawn German armor poured through the Ardennes, bypassing the Maginot Line which the French had spent a fortune building.
Trotsky killed in Mexico City
A Spanish communist agent of Stalin's named Ramon Mercader drove an ice axe into Leon Trotsky's skull in the revolutionary's fortified Mexican villa.
Battle of Britain
Through a blue summer, Luftwaffe bombers came across the Channel day after day and Spitfires and Hurricanes rose to meet them.
Dunkirk evacuation
Surrounded on the French coast, three hundred thousand British and French soldiers waited on the beaches while a ragtag flotilla of warships, fishing boats…
The Blitz begins
Unable to defeat the RAF in daylight combat, Hitler switched to bombing British cities by night.
Germany invades Norway and Denmark
Wehrmacht troops swept into Denmark in a few hours and into Norway in weeks, securing iron ore supplies from Sweden and Atlantic ports.
Axis pact binds Germany, Italy, Japan
In Berlin the three Axis powers signed a tripartite pact formalizing their alliance and dividing the world into spheres.
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Frequently asked
What happened in the year 1940?
Saeculum lists 8 events from 1940. The most significant is Germany invades France and the Low Countries: At dawn German armor poured through the Ardennes, bypassing the Maginot Line which the French had spent a fortune building.
What era was 1940 part of?
1940 falls within the Modern Era (1901-2000). World wars, cold war, and the splitting of the atom.
Which regions saw notable events in 1940?
The events from 1940 span Europe and North America.