Sunday 9 June 1940

General Erwin Rommel with his staff in a French field, Panzer 38(t)s in the distance, June 1940 (Ang, Federal Archive).

Western Front: General Rommel's 7th "Ghost" Panzer Division and the accompanying 5th Panzer Division of 4th Army consolidate their hold on the Seine at Rouen on 9 June 1940. Rommel turns west and pushes the British 51st "Highland" Division back, along with what remains of the French 10th Army in the vicinity. The British make a stand at St-Valery-en-Caux, with the panzers taking nearby Dieppe. Basically, it is a repeat of Dunkirk on a smaller scale. However, there are no plans for a sea rescue this time.

At Rheims, the Panzer Group Kleist and Panzer Group Guderian team up and take Compiegne. The French are still holding the remnants of the Weygand Line between Amiens and Peronne, but the Weygand Line has become porous and the panzers are able to sidestep pockets of resistance.

The offensive broadens as German 2nd Army, 12th Army, and 16th Army of General von Rundstedt's Army Group A attacks toward Reims, supported by Panzer Group Guderian.

The Luftwaffe provides essential air coverage to the advancing panzer spearheads, which are without infantry support and vulnerable to air attack. Some units of the French Air Force (Armée de l'Air) begin withdrawing to North Africa. The French have flown 1,815 sorties since the beginning of Operation Fall Rot, with 518 of them bomber missions. This rate begins to fall off drastically beginning on 9 June.

RAF air support units are retreating before the Wehrmacht advance, some moving to Brittany and other places to the south.

Hurricane Mk I YB-S. This shows damage from cannon fire that blew apart a section of the flap before P/O David C Leary force-landed near Bolbec on the afternoon of 9 June 1940. The day before, he had moved with No 17 Squadron RAF to Brittany. The 19-year-old pilot returned by train to Le Mans, arriving 2 days later and claiming a Bf-109 destroyed on 12 June and another the next day. Retiring from Dinard to Jersey and Guernsey on 17 June, he withdrew to RAF Debden 2 days later.

Norway: The Norwegian government-in-exile led by King Haakon has Commander-in-chief Ruge issue a cease-fire order effective as of midnight. The only troops still fighting are in the Norwegian 6th Division near Narvik.

The Norwegian campaign has been a complete German victory. Losses during the campaign:

Germans:

5296 dead/missing
160 fighters/bombers
80 transport planes (Ju 52s)
3 Cruisers
10 Destroyers
6 U-boats
4 cruisers and 6 destroyers damaged

Allies:
2119 British
1335 Norwegian
530 French

Most importantly, Germany has protected its source of iron ore, and also obtained advanced bases for the Kriegsmarine and useful air bases for the Luftwaffe.

General Dietl inspects Narvik and finds that the departing British have destroyed all rail and port facilities.

The 2nd Mountain Division continues marching up to Narvik from Sorfold, though its mission at Narvik to rescue General Dietl now appears to be moot.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-46 (Oberleutnant zur See Engelbert Endrass) torpedoes and sinks 2,155-ton Finnish freighter Margareta about 350 miles off of Cape Finisterre, Spain. There are 19 survivors and 5 crew perish. The survivors spend four days drifting in a lifeboat before being rescued.

British freighter Empire Commerce hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea.

Kriegsmarine patrol boat V-801 sinks from undetermined causes.

German raider Pinguin completes its trials. It will operate in the Indian Ocean.

Royal Navy ships detain Italian ship Rodi off Cape Matapan.

Convoy OB 164 departs from Liverpool, Convoy OG 33F forms off Gibraltar, Convoy HX 49 departs from Halifax.

Soviet/Japanese Relations: The two governments finalize a treaty ending the dispute in Manchukuo which led to the Battle of Khalkhin Gol. The Soviets claim territorial gains.

US Military: Destroyer USS Dickerson (DD-157) departs from Casablanca for Lisbon. It carries US nationals who wish to take the State Department's advice and return to the US aboard the passenger liner Washington. Washington itself departs from Bordeaux carrying 813 Americans leaving France. Washington is scheduled to depart Lisbon for Ireland and then the States tomorrow, 10 June 1940.

French Government: Prime Minister Paul Reynaud ponders evacuating his government from Paris with his cabinet. They ultimately decide to leave. General Weygand tells Reynaud that the Weygand Line on the Somme has collapsed and it is time to start negotiations.

The US heavy cruiser Vincennes (CA 44), accompanied by destroyers USS Truxton (DD-229) and Simpson (DD-221), arrive at Casablanca. Their mission is to transport the French gold reserves to New York.

General de Gaulle is in London for discussions with Prime Minister Churchill.

British Government: Hospital ship Atlantis, which had been spared by the Admiral Hipper, rendezvouses with battleship HMS Valiant and informs the Admiralty of the loss of the Orama. The Admiralty remains in the dark about the fate of HMS Glorious.

Italian Government: Mussolini prepares to invade French positions in the Alps. The slated start date is tomorrow, 10 June 1940.

The government orders all Italian ships to proceed at once to neutral ports.

China: At the continuing Battle of Tsaoyang-Ichang, the Japanese 11th Army makes gains around Tungshih, Tangyang, and Yuanan.

Wehrmacht troops during the Battle of France.

June 1940

June 1, 1940: Devastation at Dunkirk
June 2, 1940: Hitler Visits France
June 3, 1940: Operation Paula
June 4, 1940: We Shall Fight
June 5, 1940: Fall Rot
June 6, 1940: Weygand Line Crumbling
June 7, 1940: British Evacuating Narvik
June 8, 1940: Operation Juno
June 9, 1940: Norway Capitulates
June 10, 1940: Mussolini Throws Down
June 11, 1940: Paris an Open City
June 12, 1940: Rommel at St. Valery
June 13, 1940: France Goes Alone
June 14, 1940: Paris Falls
June 15, 1940: Soviets Scoop Up Lithuania
June 16, 1940: Enter Pétain
June 17, 1940: The Lancastria Sinks
June 18, 1940: A Day of Leaders
June 19, 1940: U-boats Run Wild
June 20, 1940: Pétain Wilts
June 21, 1940: Hitler's Happiest Day
June 22, 1940: France Is Done
June 23, 1940: Hitler in Paris
June 24, 1940: Six Million Jews
June 25, 1940: German Celebrations
June 26, 1940: USSR Being Belligerent
June 27, 1940: Malta in Peril
June 28, 1940: Channel Islands Bombed
June 29, 1940: Gandhi Insists on Independence
June 30, 1940: Channel Islands Occupied

2020

Wednesday 1 May 1940

German Panzer Factory, 1 May 1940. They appear to be making Panzer IIs (Ang, Federal Archive).

Norway: King Haakon, Prime Minister Nygaardsvold, the Crown Prince and the remainder of the Norwegian government arrive in Tromso aboard the Royal Navy cruiser HMS Glasgow.

The British give up at Åndalsnes. During their mission there, they have lost 1301 killed, missing or captured. Norwegian Commander-in-chief Otto Ruge takes the HMS Diana from Åndalsnes to Tromsø to join the king and rest of the government.

Norway Army Operations: It is a miserable day for the British 15th Brigade, which suffered heavily south of Dombås. Their train to Åndalsnes derails at a bomb crater at 01:15. There are 8 dead, 30 wounded. The men then have to walk the remaining 17 miles through deep snow in order to reach the port at 09:00.

The British troops, both the 15th Brigade and 148th Brigade, leave Andalsnes that evening on a flotilla of destroyers and cruisers under Vice-Admiral Geoffrey Layton. Destroyers HMS Inglefield (D 02), HMS Diana (H 49), and HMS Delight (H 38) take troops to the light cruisers HMS Manchester and HMS Birmingham.  While 5,084 servicemen are taken off, much equipment is left behind. The British are gone by 2 a.m. on 2 May 1940. The Germans do not immediately notice the departure.

Commander Lord Louis Mountbatten brings his 4 destroyers into Namsos and to take off General de Wiart’s 146th Brigade. Fog in the harbor limits the evacuees to the 850 men of the French Chasseurs Alpins.

About 4,000 Norwegian troops trapped at Lillehammer surrender.

The German 3rd Mountain Division under General Dietl counterattacks at Narvik.

German forces at Oslo and Bergen link up. Norwegian General William Steffens, who previously evacuated Voss and had set up his headquarters at Førde, disbands his troops. About 3,500 Norwegian 4th Infantry Brigade troops surrender, but the Germans allow them to simply disband and go home. Steffens leaves during the night for Tromsø with three naval aircraft. This effectively ends the campaign in southwest Norway, though there are still some Norwegian troops here and there who are un-noticed and remain active.

Norway Air Operations: The Germans transfer a battalion of the 2nd Mountain Division from Denmark to Trondheim by air.

The RAF sends a dozen bombers to attack Stavanger-Sola airfield during the day, then more aircraft to attack the same airfield and also Oslo during the night.

The Luftwaffe continues its attacks on the British-held ports in northern Norway. Stukas sink the anti-submarine trawler HMS St. Goran. The Stukas also hit the Royal Navy sloop HMS Bittern at Namsos and set it ablaze.

Norway Naval Operations: British submarine HMS Narwhal (Lt. Commander Ronald J. Burch) spots a German merchant convoy in the Kattegat about 20 miles north of Anholt, Denmark. It fires six torpedoes at the convoy. The convoy is carrying units of the 2nd Gebirgsjager Division to Norway. The Narwhal torpedoes and sinks one troop transport, the Buenos Aires (62 men and 240 horses killed), and torpedoes a second, the Bahia Castillo (10 men, 26 horses killed).

The Norwegian ships in western Norway are ordered to evacuate either to Great Britain or northern Norway. Only two do so, the auxiliary Bjerk sailed to the United Kingdom and Steinar to Northern Norway. The other Norwegian ships either have too few crews left to sail, or their commanders simply tell the men to go home.

Battle of the Atlantic: The 1,296-ton Swedish freighter Haga hits a mine laid by the British submarine HMS Narwhal in the Skagerrak east of Cape Skagen and sinks.

European Air Operations: During the night, the RAF bombs Aalborg airfield in Denmark.

The RAF sends other planes to drop mines during the night.

The Luftwaffe drops mines along the British coast.

Swedish freighter Haga strikes a mine and sinks.

Convoy OA-139 departs from Southend, Convoy SL 30 departs from Freetown, Convoy OG 28F forms at Gibraltar.

Western Front: Hitler is done waiting to invade France and the Low Countries and wants Fall Gelb to being as soon as possible. He sets a tentative start date of 5 May 1940.

Hitler is goaded on by public opinion, as expressed by journalist William Shirer broadcasting from Berlin: "What kind of war is this, where the world's two greatest armies stand facing but refrain from killing?" He recalls a typical scene: "200 yards from the Rhine, in sight of a French blockhouse, German soldiers play football."

British Military: The Military Coordination Committee (MCC) is reorganized in such a fashion as to give its leader (in the absence of Prime Minister Chamberlain) Winston Churchill more direct control over all military operations. General Ismay becomes Churchill's chief staff officer at the MCC.

German Military: General Johannes Blaskowitz takes over command of the German 9th Army.

US Military: The US Navy establishes a naval air station in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

German Government: The government designates a Krupp armaments plant at Essen as a "National Socialist model plant."

Holocaust: The Germans seal off the Lodz Ghetto. The German authorities tell the Council of Elders that they will supply the 230,000 captives with food only if they become a "useful workforce."

SS-Hauptsturmführer (captain) Rudolf Höss is appointed the first commandant of Auschwitz prison camp near the town of Oświęcim in western Poland.

Ireland: The government refuses a British offer of a "defense alliance." It re-asserts its neutrality and calls upon the US to guarantee it.

China: At the Battle of Tsaoyang-Ichang, the Japanese 11th Army opens an offensive from Hsinyang, Sui Hsien, and Chung-Hsiang toward Tsaoyang and rice granary areas in Hubei province, advancing in five columns. This is a typical Japanese "rice offensive."

The 11th Army quickly captures Mingkang, Lion's bridge, and Hsiaolintien. The Japanese Army Air Force 3rd Air Brigade, based at Hankow (Wuhan), provides air support for the 11th Army during the Tsaoyang-Ichang operation.

The U.S. Navy heavy cruiser USS Quincy (CA-39) underway on 1 May 1940, as seen from a Utility Squadron 1 (VU-1) aircraft. Note the identification markings on her turret tops: longitudinal stripes on the forward turrets and a circle on the after one. (By USN - Official U.S. Navy photo NH-97697 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39422422).

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel

May 1940

May 1, 1940: British Leave Åndalsnes
May 2, 1940: British Depart Namsos
May 3, 1940: Many Norwegians Surrendering
May 4, 1940: Bader Returns
May 5, 1940: HMS Seal Survives
May 6, 1940: Allies Focus on Narvik
May 7, 1940: In The Name of God, Go!
May 8, 1940: Exit Chamberlain
May 9, 1940: Enter Churchill
May 10, 1940: Fall Gelb
May 11, 1940: Eben Emael Surrenders
May 12, 1940: Germans at Sedan
May 13, 1940: Rommel at Work
May 14, 1940: German Breakout in France
May 15, 1940: Holland Surrenders
May 16, 1940: Dash to the Channel
May 17, 1940: Germans Take Brussels
May 18, 1940: Germans Take Antwerp
May 19, 1940: Failed French Counterattack
May 20, 1940: Panzers on the Coast
May 21, 1940: Battle of Arras
May 22, 1940: Attacking Channel Ports
May 23, 1940: British Evacuate Boulogne
May 24, 1940: Hitler's Stop Order
May 25, 1940: Belgian Defenses Creaking
May 26, 1940: Operation Dynamo
May 27, 1940: King Leopold Surrenders 
May 28, 1940: The Allies Take Narvik
May 29, 1940: Lille Falls
May 30, 1940: Operation Fish
May 31, 1940: Peak Day for Dynamo

2019

Tuesday 30 April 1940

The "Clacton Heinkel" which crashes on 30 April 1940.

Norway: Hitler is pleased with the progress of Operation Weserubung and issues a congratulatory Order of the Day on 30 April 1940.

General Otto Ruge issues a somewhat different statement:

Allied forces are withdrawing from Romsdal and presumably Namsos. The situation has thus been changed. A military collapse is to be expected in Gudbrandsdalen, Romsdal and Trondelag. The Government and Army High Command are transferring to Northern Norway.

Norway Army Operations: The British at Andalsnes begin evacuating during the night. The British 15th Brigade at Dombås is given the order to retire after holding there all day against German attacks. The 15th leaves by train for Andalsnes, where they will be evacuated. At 17:00, cruisers HMS Manchester & Birmingham and destroyers HMS Inglefield, Diana and Delight, all under Vice-Admiral Layton, all depart Scapa Flow for this mission.

General de Wiart's troops at Namsos are also waiting to be evacuated by the destroyer force that is en route from Scapa Flow.

The Germans of the 196th Infantry Division occupy Dombås and make contact with German troops of the 359th Infantry Regiment south of Trondheim. They are on foot because they have had to leave their vehicles behind the bridges that the British demolished.

The Germans coming west from the Osterdal link up with their comrades at Dragset.

Narvik is the new focus of Allied operations in Norway. Norwegian 6th Infantry Brigade, 7th Infantry Brigade, and French 27th Demi-Brigade de Chasseurs are slowly advancing toward Narvik from the north.

The devastation caused by the Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel.

European Air Operations: During minelaying operations, a Heinkel He 111 which is carrying a magnetic mine is damaged by anti-aircraft. After trying to crash-land safely, it crashes into a suburban neighborhood at Clacton-on-Sea, Essex. It explodes and causes the deaths of the four-man crew, two civilians, 156 injured civilians, and the destruction of 50 houses.

The RAF bombs Stavanger and Oslo-Fornebu airfields overnight, and they also attack Aalborg airfield in Denmark. The RAF wants to minimize disruptions of the evacuations.

Two British aircraft carriers, HMS Ark Royal and Glorious, provide some air cover. The Luftwaffe goes out to attack them, and they are forced to retreat further off the coast.

Anti-submarine trawler HMS Warwickshire is sunk by the Luftwaffe off Trondheim.

Battle of the Atlantic: Monthly April 1940 shipping losses:

• 58 Allied Ships
• 158,218 tons
• 5 U-boats sunk

The Luftwaffe sinks Royal Navy anti-aircraft sloop Bittern off Namsos. Stukas dive-bomb it and set it on fire in the stern. There are 20 lives lost. A nearby destroyer, HMS Janus, rescues the crew and then torpedoes the flaming hulk. Admiral Forbes is being proved correct about the unwise decision of using ships to provide an anti-aircraft defense.

Royal Navy minesweeper HMS Dunoon hits a mine and sinks off Great Yarmouth near Smith's Knoll. There are 27 lives lost.

Kriegsmarine torpedo boat Leopard is involved in a collision in the Skagerrak and sinks.

French destroyer Maille Breze has two of its own torpedoes explode and destroy it in the Clyde. There are 25 deaths, 48 wounded.

Convoy OB 139 departs from Liverpool, Convoy SL 30 departs from Freetown, and Convoy HX 39 departs from Halifax.

Minesweeping trawler HMS Fir (J. W. H. Whitelaw) is commissioned.

US Military: The Norwegian tanker Willy catches fire in the Cooper River at Charleston, South Carolina. If allowed to burn, it could have destroyed the ship and the Charleston pier. The Commandant of the Sixth Naval District organizes a team that extinguishes the fire.

US/Italian Relations: President Roosevelt sends Mussolini a personal telegram that begins, "My dear Signor Mussolini."

High wind damage in the first block of Elliott Street in Chaffee, Mo., on the day after a tornado struck about 5:35 p.m. on April 30, 1940.

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel

May 1940

May 1, 1940: British Leave Åndalsnes
May 2, 1940: British Depart Namsos
May 3, 1940: Many Norwegians Surrendering
May 4, 1940: Bader Returns
May 5, 1940: HMS Seal Survives
May 6, 1940: Allies Focus on Narvik
May 7, 1940: In The Name of God, Go!
May 8, 1940: Exit Chamberlain
May 9, 1940: Enter Churchill
May 10, 1940: Fall Gelb
May 11, 1940: Eben Emael Surrenders
May 12, 1940: Germans at Sedan
May 13, 1940: Rommel at Work
May 14, 1940: German Breakout in France
May 15, 1940: Holland Surrenders
May 16, 1940: Dash to the Channel
May 17, 1940: Germans Take Brussels
May 18, 1940: Germans Take Antwerp
May 19, 1940: Failed French Counterattack
May 20, 1940: Panzers on the Coast
May 21, 1940: Battle of Arras
May 22, 1940: Attacking Channel Ports
May 23, 1940: British Evacuate Boulogne
May 24, 1940: Hitler's Stop Order
May 25, 1940: Belgian Defenses Creaking
May 26, 1940: Operation Dynamo
May 27, 1940: King Leopold Surrenders 
May 28, 1940: The Allies Take Narvik
May 29, 1940: Lille Falls
May 30, 1940: Operation Fish
May 31, 1940: Peak Day for Dynamo

2019

Sunday 28 April 1940

Dead British "Green Howards" after the battle at Otta, Norway on 28 April 1940.

Norway: The British cabinet, given a strong recommendation on the morning of 28 April 1940 from General Massy, affirms the Military Coordination Committee (MCC) decision on 27 April to evacuate Norway. Everything is prepared for a quick exit.

Lieutenant General Claude Auchinleck is appointed commander of the British forces in Norway, now named the North-Western Expeditionary Force. He will oversee the evacuation.

Norway Army Operations: General Paget at Otta and General de Wiart at Namsos both receive orders to evacuate.

Paget tells Norwegian Commander in Chief Ruge at 05:00. Ruge gets angry at both the decision and not being told previously. He still believes that the defensive 15th Brigade south of Dombås can establish a permanent line, but the decision is final. He offers to assist with the retreat as long as Norwegian troops are included in the evacuation.

The 15th Brigade at Otta holds its line during the day, destroying three German light tanks. During the night, it withdraws 25 north to Dombås, where it can protect its own flank. They conduct a scorched-earth policy, blowing bridges as they go.

General de Wiart in Namsos withdraws his forces into a tighter, more defensible perimeter as he prepares to depart. He faces Luftwaffe attacks only.

The French 27th Demi-Brigade de Chasseurs Alpins deploys on the mainland at Sjovegan, north of Narvik.

Norway Air Operations: The Luftwaffe continues bombing the British ports in northern Norway.

The Luftwaffe sends reinforcements and supplies to General Dietl's troops at Narvik with 89 Junkers Ju-52 transport planes.

Having downed a German Heinkel 111 the previous night, RAF pilot Captain Partridge has crash-landed nearby. He finds a hut, then hears someone outside - it is the crew of the bomber he shot down. He invites them in, they become friends and are picked up this morning by a Norwegian ski patrol.


Battle of the Atlantic: The Queen Mary, impressed into British military service, completes a record-breaking, 12-day trip from New York to Cape Town.

U-13 (Kapitänleutnant Max-Martin Schulte) torpedoes and damages 9,491-ton British tanker Scottish American west of Pentland, Firth.

Convoy OA 138 GF departs from Southend, Convoy OB 138 departs from Liverpool.

Italian battleship Vittorio Veneto completed.

John Cage performing with his "prepared piano" in Seattle, 28 April 1940.

German Homefront: The Bayerische Motorenwerke BMW Mille Miglia Touring Coupe wins the Mille Miglia with an average speed of 166.7 km/h (103.6 mph).

American Homefront/Future History: John Cage, described as an "Avante-Garde experimentalist," debuts his "Bacchanale." It features his "prepared piano. The Seattle Daily Times describes "Bacchanale" as being "breathtaking in its speed and rhythm as well as unusual in its piano accompaniment." The National Academy of Arts and Letters will award Cage a $1000 honorarium - good money in those days - for the invention.

BMW Sweeps the Mille Miglia, April 28, 1940.

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel

2019

Friday 26 April 1940

Fire in Voss, Norway after the bombing of 23 and 24 April 1940. Much of the wooden center of town burns. The Germans occupy Voss on 26 April 1940.

Norway: The gold reserves of the Norges Bank (Bank of Norway) had been in Oslo at the beginning of the war, then taken to Lillehammer. There it had to stay until the end of the Battle of Dombås. Once the Fallschirmjäger company there led by Oblt. Herbert Schmidt surrendered on 19 April, the path was clear to get it out of the country. The gold, contained in 820 large boxes and 725 smaller crates, was sent by train via Dombås to the British base at Åndalsnes during the afternoon of the 19th, arriving at the port late in the evening.

While the whole shipment weighs 49 tons, it is to be shipped beginning on 26 April 1940 in smaller chunks to minimize the risk of loss. The first chunk, 8 tons, is loaded onto the cruiser HMS Galatea on the night of 25/26 April and shipped to England. With it goes Norwegian Director of Shipping Oyvind Lorentzen, who is to arrange for the Norwegian merchant fleet to be placed at the Allies' disposal.

The British War Cabinet, unlike the Supreme Allied War Council, is facing reality. It contemplates evacuating Namsos and Åndalsnes. General de Wiart agrees and declines the offer of additional troops: “in case of evacuation, this would complicate matters.” Everyone starts thinking about evacuation, and it becomes the common wisdom that all that is left to do is arrange an orderly evacuation.

Norway Army Operations: The British 15th Infantry Brigade begins the day defending its positions of the 25th at Kvam in the Gudbrandsdal. It has been a rare night when the Allies didn't have to retreat. Hopes soar on the Allied side. Norwegian CinC General Ruge issues a heroic Order of the Day:

"now the time of retreat has come to an end…, Stand fast … and the victory will be ours !"

The Germans of the 196th Infantry Division under General Pellengahr attack again in the morning, supported by their remaining armored vehicles, artillery, and heavy machine guns. The British hold the line through the day but sustain steady losses.

At dusk, General Paget orders a retreat in the direction of Dombås to preserve his fighting force. Kvam itself is a wreck, with fires everywhere, and three civilians perish along with 50 British soldiers and four Norwegian soldiers. German casualties are similar, but they are left in possession of the field of battle. The British set up a new, temporary line 3 km back, at Kjorem.

The German 3rd Mountain Division troops at Narvik have been largely cut off from their supplies throughout the campaign. Today, some rations, medical supplies, and a few specialized personnel arrive by train via Sweden.

The Germans enter Voss after the Luftwaffe devastated it.

Norway Air Operations: The Luftwaffe bombs the British base at Åndalsnes on the personal orders of Hitler, who is furious with reports of the British 15th Infantry Brigade getting through there. He wants the Luftwaffe to "raze: the town. The handful of Gloster Gladiators which have flown to Stetnesmoen get into the air one more time to shoot down one of the attacking Heinkel He 111s, but they are running out of fuel and ammunition. Burning their craft, the airmen board ships at Åndalsnes.

The Luftwaffe attacks on the port are effective. They destroy the wooden pier and piles of British equipment and ammunition.

The Luftwaffe sinks Norwegian torpedo boat Garm.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-13 (Max-Martin Schulte) torpedoes and sinks 1,281-ton Danish freighter Lily north of Scotland at 01:17. All 24 crew perish.

Royal Navy warships off Norway sink German vessel Schiff 37, which is disguised as a Dutch ship.

Convoy OB 137 departs from Liverpool. Convoy OG 27 forms at Gibraltar. Convoy HG 28F departs from Gibraltar. Convoy HX 38 departs from Halifax.

Anglo/Swiss Relations: The British and Swiss conclude a trade agreement. The Germans have been extremely respectful of Swiss neutrality so far, just as in World War I.

British Homefront: With the recent news of higher taxes and other higher government fees, the public begins quietly re-allocating its resources. Prices of UK antiques are up dramatically since September, and the current joke is that foreign collectors "hope to buy up Britain cheap before Hitler gets it." Likewise, UK silver, art, rare books and gems are in great demand; fearful of wartime taxation and inflation, the rich are buying small, portable, concealable wealth rather than keeping their wealth in cash assets which can be taxed or seized.

Nuestro Pueblo artist Charles Owens draws a full-page map on the war in Norway which appears in the LA Times, 26 April 1940.

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel

2019

Thursday 11 April 1940

Three Neubaufahrzeuge experimental tanks arriving in Oslo Harbour, April 1940. They are the only three in the Wehrmacht and the only three that will ever be built. They are used in battle in Norway with minimal effect.

Operation Weserubung: General Otto Ruge replaces Major-General Laake as Commander-in-chief of the Norwegian armed forces on 11 April 1940. Laake resigned after being accused of being a defeatist and failing to quickly act against the invasion (the mobilization orders after the German invasion were sent by mail). He establishes his headquarters at Lillehammer and orders the immediate mobilization of all forces. He also orders the destruction of infrastructure around Oslo - roads, bridges, telephone equipment - to delay the Germans.

The Norwegian government has settled in at Elverum for the time being. In a proclamation, Norwegian Premier Nygaardsvold reaffirms the country's determination to resist the German invasion.

German strategy is to link up their forces from Oslo to Trondheim. This is made possible by long mountain defiles that run the length of that section of the country. German 196th Division (General Richard Pellengahr) is to move north from Oslo up the Gudbrandsdal and Østerdal valleys, using air support to clear the way in an early form of Blitzkrieg.

The German 163rd Division and 196th Infantry Division attack the Norwegian 1st Infantry Division around Oslo. More Kriegsmarine transports arrive there carrying troops.

Northwest of Kristiansand, the German 310th Infantry Regiment moves inland and occupies Hægeland.

HMS Furious launches air attacks against shipping in Trondheimsfjord.

Late in the day at Narvik, Kriegsmarine destroyers SMS Erich Koellner (Z13) and SMS Wolfgang Zenker (Z9) both run aground. The Zenker can still move at 20 knots, but the Koellner is in bad shape and the Germans decide to convert it into a stationary defensive battery at the Tårstad, on the north shore of the fjord west of Narvik.

The British are focused on Narvik, which is so isolated in northern Norway that it may as well be an island. Basically, the entire battle in Norway is because of that one port, and whoever controls it basically wins. The British 146th Territorial Brigade re-embarks on transports and ships out of the Clyde, destination: Narvik.

First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill announces to the House of Commons that the Royal Navy is occupying the Faroe Islands. They are a Danish possession, which cannot be ceded to German control:

 We shall shield the Faroe Islands from all the severities of war and establish ourselves there conveniently by sea and air until the moment comes when they will be handed back to the Crown and people of a Denmark liberated from the foul thraldom in which they have been plunged by the German aggression.

While certainly unintentional, Churchill's justification sounds uncannily like the German offer of "protection" to Norway and Denmark. Previously, Iceland essentially seceded from Denmark to avoid German domination.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends 6 bombers to attack Stavanger-Sola airfield. This is the first daylight attack by bomber command on a continental target. One of the bombers is lost.

RAF Coastal Command shoots down a Dornier flying boat in the North Sea.

RAF Bomber Command attacks German shipping around Norway during the night without causing damage.

Two Luftwaffe reconnaissance planes - a Heinkel and a Dornier - are shot down over the western front.

The British Air Ministry issues a report stating that 19 Luftwaffe planes had been shot down in the past four days, to 6 RAF losses.

Hauptmann Herbert Stemmer in front of a light PzKpfw in Norway April 1940. Stemmer passed away in 1974.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Royal Navy submarine fleet is perfectly positioned around Norway and has plenty of targets, thanks to Admiral Horton and his hunch that something was about to happen there.

The Lützow is towed home after an attack by HMS Spearfish during the night in the Kattegat. While Spearfish fires 6 torpedoes and only one hit, that one torpedo nearly rips off her stern. In fact, it is a lucky break for the Kriegsmarine: Spearfish assumed there was an escort that would attack it, but the cruiser, in fact, was traveling without an escort.

British submarine HMS Triad sinks German troop transport Ionia.

British submarine HMS Sealion sinks German ship, August Leonhardt.

Kriegsmarine minelayers set mines in the Skagerrak.

Western Front: The British 42nd Infantry Division embarks for France.

Sweden: Stockholm radio reports that the country has mined its western coast.

Belgium: The country cancels all military leaves - again.

Soviet Union: General Pavel Batov becomes Deputy Commander in Chief of the Transcaucasus Military District.

Albania: Italy clamps down on civil disobedience, outlawing strikes, protests, rallies and the like.

Australia: General Thomas Blamey assumes command of the Australian I Corps.

US Navy: Rear Admiral Claude C. Bloch replaces Rear Admiral Orin G. Murfin as Commandant Fourteenth Naval District and Navy Yard Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii.

China: With the Chinese Winter Offensive over, the Japanese turn to weeding out communist partisans in the central Hebei, Anhui, and Shanghai sectors.

Norwegian General Otto Ruge.

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel

2020