Hungary, part of the Axis powers since 1940, wavers in its support of Hitler after Soviet successes on the battlefield. Concerned that Hungary is preparing to leave the Axis powers and join the Allies, Hitler orders Hungary’s occupation. Hungarian Regent Miklós Horthy is sidelined and a pro-Nazi government is appointed. Up to this point, Hungary has refused to deport its Jewish population.
Beginning 15 May, Nazi forces and Hungarian collaborators systematically round-up and deport c. 440,000 Jews within two months. Most are murdered on arrival in Auschwitz-Birkenau; some 110,000 are assigned to forced labor.
Beginning 15 May, Nazi forces and Hungarian collaborators systematically round-up and deport c. 440,000 Jews within two months. Most are murdered on arrival in Auschwitz-Birkenau; some 110,000 are assigned to forced labor.
After months of bitter fighting, the Soviet army is finally able to surround and trap German forces besieging the city. Of the nearly 250,000 troops that attacked the city in August 1942, some 90,000 surrender to the Soviets. The German defeat in the Battle of Stalingrad marks a turning point in the war; Soviet forces will now advance and push the Axis to retreat.
In the wake of the Munich Agreement ceding the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia to Germany, the First Vienna Award provided for further territorial claims against Czechoslovakia. With support from Germany and Italy, Hungary is awarded territories along the southeastern border of Czechoslovakia that had been under Hungarian control prior to World War I.
