World War II: In the Mediterranean Sea, the Royal Navy confronts Italy's Regia Marina in the Second Battle of Sirte.

World War II: In the Indian Ocean, Japanese forces capture the Andaman Islands.

World War II: In Poland, the first female prisoners arrive at Auschwitz.

World War II: In occupied France, British naval forces raid the German-occupied port of St. Nazaire.

World War II: Japanese forces invade Christmas Island, then a British possession.

World War II: Japanese forces begin an assault on the United States and Filipino troops on the Bataan Peninsula.

World War II: The Japanese Navy attacks Colombo in Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Royal Navy cruisers HMS Cornwall and HMS Dorsetshire are sunk southwest of the island.

World War II: The Doolittle Raid on Japan. Tokyo, Yokohama, Kobe and Nagoya bombed.

World War II: In Poland, the Majdan-Tatarski ghetto is established, situated between the Lublin Ghetto and a Majdanek subcamp.

World War II: The most famous (and first international) Aggie Muster is held on the Philippine island of Corregidor, by Brigadier General George F. Moore (with 25 fellow Texas A&M graduates who are under his command), while 1.8 million pounds of shells pounded the island over a 5 hour attack.

World War II: Japanese naval troops invade Tulagi Island in the Solomon Islands during the first part of Operation Mo that results in the Battle of the Coral Sea between Japanese forces and forces from the United States and Australia.

World War II: The Battle of the Coral Sea begins with an attack by aircraft from the United States aircraft carrier ''Yorktown'' on Japanese naval forces at Tulagi Island in the Solomon Islands. The Japanese forces had invaded Tulagi the day before.

World War II: On Corregidor, the last American forces in the Philippines surrender to the Japanese.

World War II: The Battle of the Coral Sea comes to an end with Japanese Imperial Navy aircraft carrier aircraft attacking and sinking the United States Navy aircraft carrier USS Lexington. The battle marks the first time in the naval history that two enemy fleets fight without visual contact between warring ships.

World War II: Second Battle of Kharkov: in eastern Ukraine, Red Army forces under Marshal Semyon Timoshenko launch a major offensive from the Izium bridgehead, only to be encircled and destroyed by the troops of Army Group South two weeks later.

Mexico enters World War II on the side of the Allies.

World War II: Imperial Japanese Navy midget submarines begin a series of attacks on Sydney, Australia.

World War II: United States declares war on Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania.

World War II: Battle of Midway. U.S. Navy dive bombers sink the Japanese cruiser Mikuma and four Japanese carriers.

World War II: The Battle of Midway ends.

World War II: first Battle of El Alamein.

World War II: the Germans test fly the Messerschmitt Me-262 using only its jet engines for the first time.

World War II: The first unit of the Women's Army Corps begins training in Des Moines, Iowa.

World War II: Operation Edelweiss begins.

World War II: Soviet leader Joseph Stalin issues Order No. 227 in response to alarming German advances into the Soviet Union. Under the order all those who retreat or otherwise leave their positions without orders to do so were to be immediately executed.

World War II: in Washington, DC, six German would-be saboteurs (Operation Pastorius) are executed.

World War II: Battle of Savo Island

World War II: Operation Pedestal

World War II: The two-person crew of the U.S. naval blimp L-8 disappears without a trace on a routine anti-submarine patrol over the Pacific Ocean. The blimp drifts without her crew and crash-lands in Daly City, California.

World War II: Operation Jubilee

World War II: The Battle of the Eastern Solomons. Japanese aircraft carrier ''Ryūjō'' is sunk and US carrier USS Enterprise heavily damaged.

World War II: Battle of Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea.

World War II: A Japanese floatplane drops an incendiary bomb on Oregon.

World War II: RMS ''Laconia'', carrying civilians, Allied soldiers and Italian POWs is torpedoed off the coast of West Africa and sinks with a heavy loss of life.

World War II: Swiss Police Instruction of September 25, 1942 – this instruction denied entry into Switzerland to Jewish refugees.

World War II: Battle of Cape Esperance

World War II: Japanese ships retreat after their defeat in the Battle of Cape Esperance with the Japanese commander, Aritomo Gotō dying from wounds suffered in the battle and two Japanese destroyers sunk by Allied air attack.

World War II: In the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands during the Guadalcanal Campaign, one U.S. aircraft carrier, ''Hornet'', is sunk and another aircraft carrier, ''Enterprise'', is heavily damaged.

World War II: Second Battle of El Alamein ends – German forces under Erwin Rommel are forced to retreat during the night.

World War II: Operation Torch