World War 2 - The Call of Duty: A Complete Timeline

When Adolf Hitler marched his troops into Poland on September 1, 1939, the Second World War was inevitable. As the opening skirmishes are played out, see the events that shaped the escalating crisis.

As the New Year dawned and the people of Britain faced the introduction of rationing, all eyes turned northwards to Scandinavia, where Adolf Hitler was preparing for a full-scale invasion. U-Boat attacks increased and at Scapa Flow a German Air Raid claimed the first British casualties.

When Winston Churchill became Prime Minister of the wartime coalition government in May 1940 he pledged his "blood, toil, tears and sweat" and within days of his appointment, he was called upon to honor his promise. As the Low Countries fell to Adolf Hitler, and France was poised to follow suit, rescuing thousands of Allied servicemen from the beaches of Dunkirk was Churchill's top priority.

With mainland Europe under Hitler's control, the German Führer turned his attention to Operation Sealion, and the Battle of Britain, expecting an easy victory. However, he'd underestimated the enormity of the task and the spirit of a nation inspired by Winston Churchill.

Worldwide, the conflict continued to escalate as Japan made their presence felt as signatories of the Tripartite Pact, giving Hitler's Axis of Evil more power than ever. Britain stood alone as the nightly bombing raids of the Blitz devastated major cities, while overseas British troops joined the Allied campaign for supremacy in North Africa.

The Luftwaffe continued its attempts to bomb Britain into submission, while the German Afrika Korps strengthened its position as Rommel, Hitler's "Desert Fox", took charge. At sea, the naval forces battle each other and the elements, as the Japanese embark upon a spy mission to gather information about the American Fleet at Pearl Harbor.