Asia and the Pacific: World War II Timeline
Explore 25 dated records related to asia and the pacific between 1938 and 1946.
Dated historical records
Entries below follow the dates recorded in the WWII CHRONOS archive. Each linked title opens the original historical entry, including its source reference.
- — Battles at Lake Khasan — Fighting broke out between the Red Army and forces of the Japanese Empire along the Soviet-Korean border.
- — Beginning of the Battles of Khalkhin Gol — A series of clashes began on the border between Mongolia and Manchukuo involving Japanese and Soviet-Mongolian forces.
- — Attack on Pearl Harbor — Japan strikes the US naval base in Hawaii.
- — United States Enters the War against Japan — The US Congress declares war on Japan as the Japanese offensive continues across the Pacific.
- — Japanese Forces Capture Manila — Japanese forces enter the Philippine capital; American and Filipino troops withdraw to Bataan.
- — Japanese Landing at Rabaul — Japanese forces begin the capture of Rabaul on New Britain.
- — Allied Forces Leave the Malay Peninsula — British and Allied units withdraw to Singapore after the Japanese advance through Malaya.
- — Fall of Singapore — The British garrison at Singapore surrenders to Japanese forces.
- — Second Battle of the Java Sea — Japanese forces destroy Allied ships attempting to escape the Java area.
- — Surrender on Bataan — American and Filipino forces surrender to Japan; the Bataan Death March follows.
- — Battle of the Coral Sea — US and Japanese carrier forces fight a battle in which the opposing surface fleets never directly exchange gunfire.
- — Battle of Midway — The US Navy wins a major victory over Japanese carrier forces.
- — Landings on Guadalcanal — The United States begins an offensive operation in the Solomon Islands.
- — Battle of Guadalcanal Ends — The United States secures control of the island after Japanese forces withdraw.
- — Battle of the Philippine Sea — Japanese carrier aviation suffers a major defeat.
- — Landings on Leyte — American forces begin the return to the Philippines with landings on Leyte.
- — Battle of Leyte Gulf — One of the largest naval battles in history.
- — Battle of Iwo Jima — American forces land on the Japanese island.
- — Battle of Okinawa — American landings on Okinawa begin a prolonged battle.
- — Battle of Okinawa Ends — Organised Japanese resistance on Okinawa comes to an end.
- — Soviet Union Enters the War against Japan — The Soviet Union declares war on Japan; the offensive in Manchuria begins on 9 August.
- — Japan Agrees to Surrender — In August 1945, Japan faced the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet entry into the war in the Far East.
- — Japan Announces Surrender — The Emperor of Japan informs the population that the surrender terms have been accepted.
- — Indonesian Declaration of Independence — Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta proclaim Indonesian independence after Japan's surrender.
- — Formal Surrender of Japan — The surrender instrument is signed aboard USS Missouri, bringing the Second World War to a formal end.
For wider context, explore the interactive historical timeline and compare events across theaters.