1944

World War II Timeline

January 22, 1944

The Allies land at Anzio, Italy.

January 27, 1944

The German siege of Leningrad that began in September 1941 finally ends.

February 20, 1944

The Allies begin massive bombing campaign of Germany.

February 22, 1944

The USSR bombs Stockholm, Sweden. Four days later the USSR bombs Helsinki, Finland.

March 19, 1944

German troops occupy Hungary.

April 10, 1944

The USSR retakes Odessa.

May 12, 1944

German troops surrender in the Crimea.

June 4, 1944

The Allies capture Rome.

June 6, 1944

D-Day. Operation Overlord -- the Allied invasion of German-occupied Western Europe -- begins on the beaches of Normandy, France.

June 13, 1944

Germany launches the first V-1 flying-bomb on Britain.

June 15, 1944

U.S. troops make an amphibious assault on the Japanese -held island of Saipan in the Marianas.

June 19, 1944

The U.S. defeat the Japanese in a massive air battle known as the Battle of the Philippine Sea. The Japanese lost more than 400 planes and three carriers. This victory paved the way for eventual success in the Marianas invasion.

June 27, 1944

The Allies liberate Cherbourg.

July 3, 1944

The USSR retakes Minsk.

July 7, 1944

Japanese troops on Saipan surrender.

July 9, 1944

The Allies liberate Caen.

July 20, 1944

German military leaders attempt but fail to kill Adolf Hitler in the Rastenburg Assassination Plot. Hitler then kills about 200 suspected plotters. U.S. troops make an amphibious assault on the Japanese -held island of Guam in the Marianas.

July 23, 1944

U.S. troops make an amphibious assault on the Japanese -held island of Tinian in the Marianas.

August 4, 1944

The Allies liberate Florence.

August 10, 1944

U.S. troops complete the recapture of Guam.

August 15, 1944

The Allies landing in the South of France, beginning Operation Anvil.

August 20, 1944

The USSR invades German-occupied Romania.

August 23, 1944

Romania surrenders.

August 25, 1944

The Allies liberate Paris.

September 2, 1944

The Allies liberate Pisa.

September 4, 1944

The Allies liberate Brussels and Antwerp.

September 8, 1944

The USSR invades Bulgaria. Germany launches the first V-2 flying-bomb on Britain.

September 9, 1944

Bulgaria makes peace with the USSR, then declares war on Germany.

September 11, 1944

The Allies enter Germany.

September 17, 1944

The ambitious Allied airborne assault in Arnhem, Holland -- Operation Market-Garden -- fails to shorten the war against Germany.

September 22, 1944

The Allies liberate Boulogne.

September 26, 1944

The USSR occupies Estonia. Over 6,000 Allied survivors of Operation Market-Garden in Arnhem, Holland are taken prisoner by the Germans.

September 28, 1944

The Allies liberate Calais.

October 1, 1944

Soviet troops enter Yugoslavia.

October 4, 1944

The Allies enter Greece, following the withdrawal of German troops.

October 14, 1944

The Allies liberate Athens.

October 20, 1944

The Allies capture Belgrade.

October 21, 1944

The Allies capture Aachen, the first city to be taken in Germany.

October 23, 1944

Soviets troops enter East Prussia.

October 26, 1944

The U.S. Navy defeats the Japanese in the Battle in Leyte Gulf. The Japanese Navy was now virtually powerless.

November 4, 1944

Axis forces in Greece surrender.

November 24, 1944

U.S. B-29 bombers begin the massive bombing campaign against mainland Japan. In Europe, the Allies capture Strasbourg.

November 29, 1944

The Allies capture Albania.

December 16, 1944

Germany begins its last-ditch offensive in the Ardennes, beginning the Battle of the Bulge.

December 26, 1944

U.S. troops hold Bastogne, stalling the German offensive in the Ardennes.