Timeline

1939

As the Depression era ended, World War II began. Nazi troops goosestepped into Poland, and in response, France and Great Britain declared war on Germany. Hitler ally Francisco Franco seized power in Spain, having defeated the democratically elected government in the Spanish Civil War. In the still-neutral U.S., a terrorist bomb exploded at the New York World’s Fair, while in fictional Gotham City, Batman made his comic book debut. College students, meanwhile, battled to see who could gulp the most live goldfish.

Mar

15

Invasion Of Prague By The German Nazi Troops In 1939

CZECH REPUBLIC - MAY 14: Invasion Of Prague By The German Nazi Troops In 1939. (Photo by Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images)

Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images

Mar

28

End of Spanish Civil War

People knock down a barricade and gun emplacement, as life returns to normal after the end of the Spanish Civil War. | Location: Madrid, Spain. (Photo by © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)

Corbis via Getty Images

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