The Second World War began in 1939 when Germany invaded Poland and subsequently invaded parts of Europe. By 1942, the advance of the Axis powers of Germany and Japan began to stall as Japan lost some key battles and Germany had to withdraw troops from Eastern Europe in 1943. The Allies launched major invasions of Western Europe in 1944 as the Soviet Union recaptured its territory, and the war in Europe ended on May 8, 1945 with the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany.