Timeline of events preceding World War II

This timeline of events preceding World War II covers the events (mostly during the interwar period [1918–1939] after World War I) that affected or led to World War II. Leaders of major participating countries == 1895 == October 8: Japanese agents assassinate Queen Min of Korea, removing a major obstacle to Japan's eventual conquest of Korea in the 1900s, ultimately facilitating Japan's invasion of Manchuria in 1931. == 1905 == September 5: The Treaty of Portsmouth formally ends the Russo-Japanese War, and concedes the Empire of Japan extraterritorial rights over the South Manchuria Railway Zone.

Source: Wikipedia — Timeline of events preceding World War II (CC BY-SA 4.0)