A Kittyhawk that crashed at Msus, Libya, shortly after takeoff because its engine cut off on 4 January 1942. The pilot, Sgt Albert Thomas Crocker, 1259818, RAFVR, RAF No. 112 Squadron, did not survive (RAF 112 Squadron).
Battle of the Pacific: Following the announcement of the new ABDA (American-British-Dutch-Australian) command in the southwest Pacific, Major General George Brett assumes command of all United States forces in Australia and surrounding areas on 4 January 1942. The most urgent matter is what to do about the Allied position in the Philippines, where US and Filipino troops have been forced into the Bataan Peninsula. Brett immediately takes a cautious stance and orders two naval transport ships already heading from Brisbane, Queensland, en route to the Philippines with reinforcements to turn around. The ships divert from Bataan to Darwin in northern Australian. There are no further attempts to reinforce General Douglas MacArthur and his tens of thousands of American troops in the Philippines.
"Western Desert, North Africa. 4 January 1942. Three armorers bombing up an Albacore aircraft on a desert landing ground. One of the ground staff 'puts his back into it', using his back to help lift the bomb into place." Australian War Memorial MED0269.
The Japanese pour into Manila, which the Americans evacuated during the last week in December. Japanese Lieutenant General Masaharu Homma, Commanding General 14th Army, meets with Manila Mayor Jorge Vargas and imposes strict restrictions, including a curfew, blackout, martial law, and the surrender of any radios and firearms. Homma, however, is no martinet and orders his 43,110-man army to respect the Filipinos' religion and customs and treat them as friends. Some of Homma's subordinates, led by Colonel Masanobu Tsuji, disagree with this leniency and send negative reports about Homma to General Count Hisaichi Terauchi, commander of the Southern Army. Terauchi, in turn, passes on his own negative reports about Homma to Tokyo. Emperor Hirohito prevails upon Army Chief of Staff Hajime Sugiyama to reinforce Homma in order to conquer the remaining Allied troops in Bataan quickly, who in turn tells Homma to aim for a quick victory. This leads Homma, who prefers a more patient strategy, to launch direct and costly assaults on the American lines.
The American and Filipino troops are holding a line across the neck of the Bataan Peninsula anchored at Porac and Guagua. The Japanese take Guagua and continue along Route 7 toward Lubao. Further west, the line is quiet, but with Guagua lost, the entire line is now untenable. After dark, the Filipino 11th and 21st Divisions begin falling back into the Bataan Peninsula. The US Provisional Tank Group continues to hold open the road from San Fernando to Dinalupihan at the neck of the peninsula despite taking heavy losses. Meanwhile, Japanese aircraft continue to pound Corregidor Island in Manila Bay against feeble opposition. The US Army Air Force continues to withdraw its few remaining fighters in the area to Mindanao.
"Western Desert, North Africa. 4 January 1942. One of the many German glider aircraft on the ground which was destroyed over Libya. The utilization of this form of air transport was unsuccessful, the gliders falling easy prey to Allied fighters and ground fire." The Luftwaffe used this for bringing supplies from Naples due to the many losses in convoys. Australian War Memorial MED0272.
On Java, eight B-17 Flying Fortresses based at Singosari Airdrome attack Japanese shipping in Malalag Bay, Davao, Mindanao Island. While level bombing has not been particularly successful to date, the bombers display an accurate aim from 25,000 feet and damage Japanese heavy cruisers Myoko and Nachi. They also hit Japanese aircraft carrier Chitose off Davao City but cause little damage.
In the Bismarck Archipelago, the Japanese have their eyes on the Australian naval base at Rabaul on New Britain Island. They begin an aerial campaign against the base on 4 January 1942 using carrier-based aircraft. The Australians only have 5400 men on the base from the Australian 2/22d Battalion, 8th Division, an RAAF detachment, 100 men of the New Guinea Volunteer Reserve, and a few Royal Australian Navy officers. While Rabaul has a fighter strip at Lakunai and a bomber strip at Vunakanu, the Australians have few planes available. Of more interest at Rabaul to the Japanese than the airstrips is the fine port which the Japanese Navy wants as a major fleet base.
Stalingrad Truth: The organ of the Stalingrad regional and city committees of the CPSU, 4 January 1942.
In the Malay Peninsula, the Japanese have closed upon the Commonwealth line along the Slim River in western Malaya and are attacking it with their aircraft. The Japanese bypass the line through the jungle and move south along the coast. When they reach the Selangor River near Kuala Selangor, they turn east to advance in the direction of Rawang. This threatens the Allied line because Rawang is the last major communications junction north of Kuala Lumpur, so the Indian 6/15th Brigade moves to Batang Berjuntai to block it. The Japanese are preparing a major attack on the Slim River line and hope to block the escape of the Commonwealth troops at Rawang.
Eastern Front: The Germans have completed their retreat from the Tikhvin salient in the Army Group North sector, and the Red Army has made some exploratory crossings of the Volkhov River. However, the commander of the army group, Field Marshal Ritter von Leeb, today reports his first quiet day since the offensive began. The Soviets have brought in the 2nd Shock Army for offensive operations. The army's commander, Lieutenant General Sokolov, is a former NKVD commissar with no military training. Front commander General Kirill Meretskov decides that Sokolov is incompetent and replaces him with the former commander of the 52nd Army, Lieutenant General Klykov.
Battle of the Mediterranean: Things have quieted down recently in North Africa, but Germany and Italy still want to subdue Malta to solve their convoy problems across the Strait of Sicily. Around 10:00, the Luftwaffe mounts a major attack on the island after circling around to the southeast. First, a Junkers Ju 88 escorted by ten fighters performs reconnaissance over the island. The RAF sends up half a dozen Hurricanes from Hal Far airfield, and two Hurricanes and one Bf 109 are damaged. Later, the main attack comes in. This is composed of Junkers Ju 88 bombers with fighter escort. Due to cloudy weather, the bombers are able to attack Luqa airfield. They lose one bomber to anti-aircraft fire and another to a Hurricane. The attack causes a lot of damage to Luqa airfield, but frantic efforts by army troops level the craters by 14:00.
Radio Times, Journal of the British Broadcasting Corporation, programming for January 4 - 10 1942.
British Homefront: Anthony Eden, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, gives a dramatic radio broadcast recounting his recent visit to Moscow to meet Joseph Stalin and Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov. He assures the audience that Britain has an "identity of views" with the Soviet Union that is the "literal and absolute truth."
USS Alabama (BB-60) under construction, Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia, 4 January 1942.
American Homefront: Paranoia about potential Japanese attacks and subversion is running wild on the west coast. The Commanding General Western Defense Command, Lieutenant General John DeWitt, is uneasy about provoking Japanese-Americans in the area, but also feels the need to exclude them from sensitive areas. Today, he meets with the Chief of the War Department's Aliens Division in order to map out areas from which anyone defined as an enemy alien is to be excluded.
The National Football League holds its fourth All-Star Game at the Polo Grounds in Brooklyn, New York City. As is customary at this time, the recent Championship Game winning team faces an all-star team composed of top players from the remaining teams. The champion Chicago Bears win, 35-24.
Adolf Hitler and Japanese Ambassador Hiroshi Oshima.
Italian/Greek Campaign: After a very long and difficult struggle, on 17 February 1941 the Greeks complete the recapture of the Trebeshina massif. Overall, it has been an almost Pyrrhic victory, though. The Cretan 5th Infantry Division suffers terribly during the struggle, with 5776 casualties, and is effectively destroyed. Naturally, the Italians lose many men as well, but they just have to hold their positions and wait for the Germans eventually to bail them out by invading Greece from another direction. For the Italians, the battle has become a matter of national pride, and they vow to recapture the mountains and surrounding territory in the Spring.
East African Campaign: The South African 5th Infantry Brigade continues attacking toward Mega, while the 1st Infantry Brigade manages to cross the Juba River at Yonte against fierce Italian opposition.
European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe raids London with 50 bombers, its largest raid in some time. RAF Bomber Command stays on the ground.
Empire Knoll, which runs aground and is lost today.
Battle of the Atlantic: The Germans have quite a small fleet at work in the Atlantic. It involves numerous supply ships serving both heavy cruisers (currently three are on the loose: Gneisenau, Scharnhorst, and Admiral Scheer) and armed raiders. Today, German tanker Nordmark meets supply ship Alstertor to refuel it. The Nordmark has been towing captured British refrigerated ship Duquesa, which was taken full of meat and dairy products. However, all good things must come to an end, and today the Nordmark cuts loose the 8651-ton ship, not because it was out of food, but because there was no longer any fuel to power the refrigeration equipment - making it a stinky mess around the Equator. Some accounts state that Admiral Scheer sank the Duquesa upon encountering it on 18 December, but in fact, the refrigerated ship was taken as a prize and became legendary in the Kriegsmarine as the "floating delicatessen" which kept the crews of several ships well-fed for two months.
The weather is terrible. This causes all sorts of problems both for ships and for crews abandoning their sinking ships.
U-101 (Kptlt. Ernst Mengersen) torpedoes and sinks 5237-ton British pig iron freighter Gairsoppa three hundred miles southwest of Galway. Gairsoppa is a straggler from convoy SL 64. Mengersen misses with several torpedoes (the weather is terrible), but one hits and sets the ship afire. The U-boat then leaves, and the ship sinks after the crew barely escape in the lifeboats. Almost everyone dies of exposure. There are 82 deaths and only one survivor (the second officer, who brought his lifeboat to shore). After this, U-101 heads back to Lorient.
U-103 (Viktor Schütze) torpedoes and sinks 10,455-ton tanker Edwy R. Brown. The tanker is a straggler behind Convoy HX 107 in the North Atlantic shipping lanes.
U-69 (Kptlt. Jost Metzler) is on its first patrol operating out of Kiel southwest of the Faroe Islands when it spots a freighter. It is 8456-ton British freighter MV Siamese Prince, which becomes U-69's first victim. There are no survivors even though Metzler sees them take to the lifeboats - survival in the frigid ocean with storms and winter gales is problematic at best. Everybody (57 men) onboard perishes, and Admiralty searches by several destroyers find nothing and nobody.
British 307 ton collier Kyle Rona is sailing from Maryport for Portreath when it just disappears. None of the seven men on board, including Master Frederick Cook, survives. It may have hit a mine or broached deep and took water or...
British 156 ton freighter Ren Rein hits a mine off Falmouth, Cornwall in the English Channel and sinks. There are two deaths.
British 5817 ton freighter Casamance runs aground off Skinningrove, Yorkshire. The ship breaks in two and is written off. There are 38 survivors and 9 deaths.
British 2824 ton collier Empire Knoll comes aground due to the winter gales at Tynemouth in County Durham. The ship winds up on the old North Pier foundations there and is holed. It is a total loss.
Portuguese schooner Patriotismo sinks in the rough winter weather off Peniche. There are one death and seven deaths.
German raider Pinguin, in the south Atlantic, is joined by German supply ship Alstertor. Together, they sail for the Indian Ocean.
Admiral Sir Percy L.H. Noble becomes the new commander of the Royal Navy Western Approaches Command.
Convoys WS 6A and 6B (Winston Special) departs from various British ports. It includes numerous transports bound for the Middle East.
Convoy TC 9 departs from Halifax with numerous troop transports. They don't know it, but German heavy cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst are lurking just north of the shipping lanes looking for good targets.
Convoy BN 16 departs from Aden.
Destroyer HMS Avon Vale (L 06, Lt. Commander Peter A. R. Withers) is commissioned.
Light cruiser USS Birmingham is laid down.
British guard duty west of Benghazi, 17 February 1941.
Battle of the Mediterranean: The British have been deliberating about sending troops to Greece for weeks, and now they finally are in a position to start telling some of their allies about their plans. They inform New Zealand General Bernard Freyberg that he will command the expeditionary force. Freyberg is a legendary officer, much admired by the British, who currently commands the New Zealand Division.
Colonel Leclerc in southwestern Libya is heading for their ultimate target of Kufra. Leclerc has about 350 men, but the Italians are aware they are coming. The Italian Saharan company of 70 men intercepts Leclerc's force with 20 mm guns in ten armored AS37 cars. After a vicious firefight, the French lost many of their trucks but are able to continue forward when the Italians at Kufra stay inside their fort and don't help the Sahariana. Leclerc's men surround the fort, El Tag, and place their only artillery piece, a 75 mm gun, about 3000 meters from the walls. The French also place several 81 mm mortars about 1500 meters from the fort. The Saharan company attacks again but is beaten off again. The French settle down to a siege.
Turkish/Bulgarian Relations: The two nations formally sign their nonaggression pact. While at first, this might seem favorable to the British, in fact, it is designed to allow Hitler to move troops through Bulgaria to invade Greece without Turkish interference. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill has been trying to cajole the Turks (and their 38 divisions) into joining the British side, but this move effectively ends that attempt for the time being.
German/Japanese/British Relations: Japan makes an offer to mediate the European conflict, just as it has been mediating the border war in Indochina. Nobody takes Japan up on the offer.
General Oshima arrives as minister to Germany, his second appointment there. Oshima is viewed by the Germans as very sympathetic to their war aims. German Military: Adolf Hitler is thinking big. He dreams of capturing India from the British, and in fact, has been sending presents (such as a motorcar) to some princes in the region. He orders his military staff to explore the feasibility of advancing through Afghanistan to India.
"Cunningham, Admiral of the Mediterranean." February 17, 1941, | Vol. XXXVII No. 7 (Cover Credit: ERNEST HAMLIN BAKER).
British Government: Winston Churchill has a busy day sending memos and pontificating to all and sundry about his pet concerns.
During the war council meeting today, Churchill cautions against worrying about "divisions" in the military (as opposed to brigades or corps and so forth). The gist of his oration on this point is that the term "division" can refer to vastly different forces.
Churchill also memos CIGS General Ismay and Cabinet Secretary Sir Edward Bridges cautioning them not to reveal the source of their information about Japanese decrypts, information which apparently was sent around the office. He wants all copies tracked down and the information suppressed, all the way down to identifying what copying machine was used and "who gave the orders for it to go in this form." Naturally, he doesn't want the Japanese to know the British have broken their codes.
Ireland also is on Churchill's mind. He memos General Ismay that the Germans might invade Ireland before they invade England, which would give the British the "immediate pretext" to invade Ireland - something that Churchill appears eager to do. He urges Ismay to use "every scheme of which military and naval ingenuity are capable to move more troops across the Irish Channel" whether the Irish want them there or not. In fact, the Irish have made plain that they do not want to be involved in the British war.
Churchill also memos Viscount Cranborne and Sir Kingsley Wood to implement economic sanctions against southern Ireland "to make Southern Ireland realized how great a wrong they were doing to the cause of freedom by their denial of the ports" to the Royal Navy. At this point, it seems as if Churchill is much more interested in invading Ireland than Hitler ever is.
Policeman helping children with their gas masks, Brighton, 17 February 1941.
Japanese Government: Foreign Minister Yōsuke Matsuoka gives a speech which echoes the similar language of Adolf Hitler regarding the Soviet Union and "Lebensraum":
This region [Oceania] has sufficient natural resources to support from 600,000,000 to 800,000,000 people. I believe we have a natural right to migrate there.
Times, Feb. 18, 1941, p. 1. Oceania, of course, includes Australia, the Dutch East Indies, and New Zealand. Thus, the Japanese basically are telling all Europeans that they are not wanted in the Pacific and that they feel entitled by "natural right" to occupy lands now claimed by others.
US Government: The US Senate begins debating the Lend-Lease bill.
Australian Government: Prime Minister Robert Menzies is continuing his epic, month-long journey from Melbourne to London. Today, he stops over in Lagos, where he meets fellow Australian Sir Bernard Bourdillon, the Governor. Bourdillon blames the British fiasco at Dakar in September 1940, and a related incident in which French cruisers were allowed to cruise out of Mediterranean past Gibraltar to reinforce the Vichy French forces there, on unclear instructions from Winston Churchill. To be fair, Bourdillon has a point, as the British attitude toward Vichy France seems confused at best. Menzies seems quite impressed with Bourdillon and wonders if he and similar governors are "consulted enough." In fact, they are probably not consulted at all, as Churchill likes to run his own shop.
Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies viewing a burning tanker in Tobruk Harbor, February 1941.
Italian/Greek Campaign: The entire front is fairly stable as of 7 February 1941. The fierce winter weather prevents major engagements. The status quo favors the Italians, who are hanging on to their position in Albania by their fingertips. The Italians are planning another counterattack after the massive advances by the Greeks in the Trebeshina area, but it will take some time to prepare. This area is the key to the entire Albanian campaign, as it lies along the valley which leads to the vital Italian port of Valona (Vlorë). Most activity at this point consists of artillery exchanges and RAF attacks.
Already, the Italians have frustrated the most ambitious Greek plans, as they wished to capture Valona and wind up the Italian position in Albania by mid-February. The timing is important because Greek (and British) intelligence suggests that the Germans may be ready to invade Greece through Bulgaria as early as 15 February. This is not the case, but the Greeks don't know this.
East African Campaign: The British attack on Keren continues. The tactical problem is to take the Dongolaas Gorge which serves as a sort of portal to the town itself. Surrounded by mountains controlled by the Italians, the gorge is a tough nut - but the British are confident that the Italians will fold quickly as they have everywhere else.
The day begins with the 3/14th Punjab Regiment advancing to take Brig's Peak, the middle of three peaks (left to right) that overlook the gorge. However, the Italians send the 65th Infantry Division "Granatieri di Savoia" (Granatieri di Savoia) in a counterattack. The Italians have the advantage of supporting fire from other peaks nearby, and the Indian troops must move supplies and reinforcements over the exposed ground. The Indian troops are pried off Brig's Peak and sent back to their starting point, Cameron Ridge. This now is a more secure position because of the addition of the 1st (Wellesley's)/6th Rajputana Rifles there. However, Cameron Ridge itself is exposed to downward fire from several nearby peaks and it is not an easy thing to stay there.
On the other (right) side of the Dongolaas Gorge, the British also attack. Late in the day, the 4th (Outram's)/6th Rajputana Rifles advance through Happy Valley (Scescilembi Valley) on the far right and take Acqua Col. Tactically, this is an attempt to outflank an Italian strongpoint at Dologorodoc Fort. The Acqua Col also is a key position because it serves as a link between two summits, Mount Selele and Mount Falestoh. The Indian troops retain control of the Acqua Col as the day ends, but the Italians are in a strong position to counterattack there, too, raining fire down on the Indian troops.
In Abyssinia, the British continue advancing along the Gondar Road. In British Somaliland, the British advance as well.
Oblt. Baron Hubertus von Holtey, right, commanding officer of the Ergänzungsgruppe of JG 26, with Oblt. Joachim Müncheberg at Cognac, France in February 1941. Müncheberg, commander of 7./JG 26, will soon be taking his men to Sicily to bolster Fliegerkorps X.
European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe makes a few scattered raids along the northeast coast of Scotland and East Anglia, but generally is quiet. The RAF attacks a few Channel ports (27 bombers against Dunkirk, 37 against Boulogne).
Battle of the Atlantic: German battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau continue heading south from the vicinity of Greenland toward the shipping lanes. The British have no idea where they are and apparently think they are further east. However, while vulnerable, the Allied convoys nearby have beefed-up escorts which could give the German ships a nasty surprise. In any event, some kind of action is imminent.
The Royal Navy moves its command headquarters for the Western Approaches from Plymouth, on the south coast, to Derby House in Liverpool in the north. This conforms with the fact that more convoys since the fall of France are coming through the Northwest Approaches rather than the Southwest Approaches, which are closer to the U-boat bases in France. Having the headquarter near the port of arrival simply makes sense.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks British 575-ton freighter Bay Fisher a few miles northeast of Bell Rock, Angus, Scotland. There are 8 deaths.
British 513-ton freighter Scottish Cooperation hits a mine and is damaged a couple of miles off Workington Pier in the Solway Firth off Workington, Cumberland. The crew manages to beach the ship. After temporary repairs, it makes it back to Workington.
Armed merchant cruiser (AMC) HMS Letitia grounds on Litchfield Shoal near Halifax due to the fierce winter winds. The AMC will require repairs in the US that will last until the end of the year.
German raider Kormoran, with captured vessel Duquesa and operating off the Cape Verde Islands, begins a three-day rendezvous with supply ship Nordmark. This is a somewhat unusual meeting, as Nordmark is the recipient of supplies as much as the giver of the same. The Kormoran, fresh from Germany, has brought U-boat spare parts that are needed at the U-boat base in Lorient. In addition, the Kormoran transfers 170 of the 174 prisoners it has taken so far (four Chinese prisoners remain on board as laundrymen). The British crew from the British Union leave their pet monkey behind in gratitude for honorable treatment during their captivity. Among other random items, a piano from Duquesa is transferred to the Kormoran. It is all a very comfortable meeting during the happy times for German operations in the Atlantic.
U-564 and U-652 are launched.
Soviet submarine K-55 is launched.
General Bergonzoli. His nickname was "Barba elettrica," which roughly translates as the electric beard or electric whiskers or shocking whiskers.
Battle of the Mediterranean: The situation is fluid, but running against the Italians as the day begins. Shortly before dawn, the British 7th Support Group attacks the north end of the Italian convoys heading south from Benghazi on the Via Balbia. At the same time, the 2nd RTR moves south along the western side of the road while the 1st RTR moves east. The stage is set for compressions and destruction of the Italian forces unless they can break out quickly.
The Italians do try to break out. Supported by artillery, the Italian medium tanks overrun British positions of the blocking Combe Force, taking out numerous antitank guns. However, the following Italian infantry is more vulnerable, and the British rain fire on them to force them undercover. The Italian M13 medium tanks make it through the British positions, sweeping across the British officer's mess and the like. However, the British armor arrives, stopping the Italians at El Magrun, about 24 km (15 miles) south of Ghemines. Italian 10th Army is stopped, surrounded, and the surrenders begin at 11:00.
In all, the Italians lose 25,000 men taken prisoner, 93 guns, 107 tanks either captured intact or destroyed, and all of the senior Italian command staff (Lieutenant-General Annibale “Electric Whiskers” Bergonzoli of the XX Motorised corps and General Valentino Babini of the Italian Special Armoured Brigade (Brigata Corazzato Speciale) are captured, while 10th Army Commander General Giuseppe Tellera is killed in his M13 tank.
This concludes the battle of Beda Fomm and the utter destruction of the Italian 10th Army. Almost as an afterthought, the Australian 6th Infantry Division takes evacuated Benghazi. General O'Connor of XIII Corps immediately sends the 11th Hussars further to the west to take out isolated Italian garrisons at Agedabia and El Agheila. However, O'Connor does not have the authorization to proceed to Tripoli, so he can only send out patrols along the 40 or 50 miles down the coast road to Sirte.
O'Connor dispatches Middle East commander Archibald Wavell's former Brigade Major (now a brigadier serving as Wavell's personal liaison officer to XIII Corps) back to Cairo to get that permission. However, it is a long, difficult 570-mile trip by road (for some reason no planes are available) and an answer may take as long as a week. To announce the victory at Benghazi, O'Connor sends the famous signal:
Fox killed in the open.
It is another epic catastrophe for Italian arms, thought the Italians have at least tried to fight with some skill in this engagement for the first time during Operation Compass. Italian commander in North Africa Marshal Rodolfo Graziani submits his resignation, though whether or not this is strictly his idea is open to debate. It puts more pressure on Germany's Operation Sunflower, the insertion of German troops into Libya to backstop the remaining Italian garrison, which now is under the command of General Erwin Rommel, with Wehrmacht troops due on North African soil within a fortnight.
Meanwhile, Admiral Somerville continues steaming toward Genoa from Gibraltar as part of Operation Grog (formerly Result). The aim is to bombard Italian shore targets. He tries to arrange for RAF support from Malta as he passes Sardinia, but no planes are available.
On Malta, a mysterious force of eight Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bombers lands with 38 paratroopers. They are to participate in "Operation Colossus," which nobody on the island knows about.
US/Dutch Relations: Admiral Hart is negotiating with the Dutch authorities in the East Indies regarding future military cooperation. The Dutch have strong naval forces in the Pacific and would be extremely useful in the event of hostilities. The British also have naval forces at Singapore and Hong Kong, though at the moment they are fairly light. Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Stark orders Hart to insist on overall US command of any joint Allied fleet in the region. The Dutch, however, feel they are best suited to command operations.
German/Vichy France Relations: Admiral Darlan has been negotiating with the Germans to take over as head of the Vichy Government (under the overlordship of Marshal Petain, who everybody understands is more a figurehead than a real leader). German Ambassador Otto Abetz indicates today that Darlan would be acceptable as a French leader, but Germany does not want to dispose of former leader Pierre Laval just yet. Laval, meanwhile, remains a powerful force in French government circles but technically a private citizen. British Military: The Ministry of Aircraft Production is extremely enthusiastic about the Bristol Beaufighter and has set up "shadow factories" to produce it in addition to the Bristol facilities at Filton (which have been a favorite Luftwaffe target). These shadow facilities include production lines operated by the Fairey Aviation Company. Today, the first Beaufighter IF fighter (T4623) made by Fairey makes its maiden flight at Stockport, Greater Manchester.
Army maneuvers in Hawaii in 1941 before the Pearl Harbor attack.
US Military: The US Naval Academy in Annapolis graduates the class of 1941 today rather than later in the spring due to the growing crisis.
General of the Army George C. Marshall sends a letter to Lt. General Walter C. Short, the new commander of the US Army's Hawaiian Department (he replaces General Herron today). The letter states "the fullest protection for the Fleet is the rather than a major consideration." He continues:
My impression of the Hawaiian problem has been that if no serious harm is done us during the first six hours of known hostilities, thereafter the existing defenses would discourage an enemy against the hazard of an attack. The risk of sabotage and the risk involved in a surprise raid by Air and by submarine constitute the real perils of the situation. Frankly, I do not see any landing threat in the Hawaiian Islands so long as we have air superiority.
This is a very prescient letter.
Secretary of the Navy Henry L. Stimson also forwards a copy of a 24 January 1941 letter from Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox to him to General Short. That letter also warns against the likelihood of hostilities beginning at Pearl Harbor. Stimson instructs both Short and Admiral Kimmel, CINCPAC, to secure the islands against surprise attacks and cooperate with each other and with local authorities.
In fact, (later investigations conclude that) neither Kimmel nor Short lift a finger to cooperate with each other or anyone else in any meaningful way to secure the islands against air attack. This will all become of intense scrutiny after the events of 7 December 1941. Short, for his part, later feels that he acted appropriately despite these clear warnings and instructions from his superiors because he did not receive effective warnings of Japanese attacks and throughout his tenure had insufficient resources to secure the islands anyway.
This is an endless topic, but might as well point out here that the US Senate eventually exonerated both Kimmel and Short by a 52-47 vote on 25 May 1999, stating that they had performed their duties "competently and professionally." Both men, of course, were long deceased by that point, and there seems to have been some lingering suspicions behind the vote that the real blame for Pearl Harbor lay not in Hawaii, but in Washington, D.C. British Government: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill has his staff arrange a stunt for the media. During dinner, he places a call to a random passenger on a train, which is recorded for broadcast. It is all carefully choreographed - the passenger is chosen and briefed at the prior station - but the stunt shows the deep interest that the government has in public relations. This also ties in with certain governmental reforms to be announced on the 8th, as in, "Oh, you see a problem? Well, I'll take of it tomorrow!" This kind of stunt may seem rather obvious now, but it was somewhat novel at the time.
While at Alexandria, Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies visits units of the Mediterranean Fleet. He is photographed here with Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham, Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet. I don't have a firm date on this photo, but since he visited with Cunningham for lunch today on HMS Warspite, it likely is 7 February 1941. The other man in the photo is unidentified but, judging from the gold braid, quite highly placed indeed. Perhaps the captain of HMS Barham, but that is a wild guess.
Australian Government: Prime Minister Robert Menzies continues his epic journey from Melbourne to London. Today he flies to Alexandria and makes note of the dusty conditions - which are causing the RAF and armored forces all sorts of problems. Menzies meets Admiral Cunningham, who he describes as "the No. 1 personality I have so far encountered on this journey." After this, he flies down to Cairo for another dinner with General Wavell. Menzies has mixed feelings about Wavell, noting that "with his left eye closed and his almost unbreakable silence he is an almost sinister figure." Churchill most likely would concur. It is a good night for dinner, though, as they can celebrate the fall of Benghazi to Australian troops. Very good timing.
Indochina: While the Thai/Vichy French border war is over thanks to the Armistice signed aboard a Japanese warship on 31 January, there is still the matter of the actual terms of that peace. The Japanese again act as moderators, as the two sides begin to hammer out an agreement in Tokyo that both can live with. Everybody seems to understand that the Japanese are the real power in the region, the British, Dutch and Americans have no say whatsoever. China: The savage Battle of Southern Henan reaches its climax. The Chinese 5th War Area take Sinyang and points further north. This is a key point on the Wuhan-Peking railway line and puts the Japanese garrison at Wuhan in peril. The Japanese army, meanwhile, moves from Tangho to Tungpo.
American Homefront: Fleischer Studios, for Paramount Studios, releases Popeye the Sailor in "Quiet! Pleeze," animated by Willard Bowsky and Lod Rossner with a story by Milford Davis.
Terrytoon Studios releases "Mississippi Swing," in which African Americans have some fun while picking cotton. Yes, while picking cotton. Caution, the cartoon is not by any stretch of the imagination political correct in the 21st century. This is part of unchangeable history and included here as such for educational purposes only.
Italian/Greek Campaign: The Greeks continue to consolidate their grip on the key Klisura Pass on 15 January 1941. The Italian forces have been badly mauled, especially the Lupi di Toscana Division, and many Italians have become POWs. However, both the remaining Italian forces and the weather are preventing the Greeks from exploiting this victory and marching on the strategic port of Valona. The RAF bombs Italian supply lines near Berat.
Air Marshal Longmore joins General Archibald Wavell in Athens, where the two discuss reinforcing the Greeks with British forces. Greek Prime Minister Ioannis Metaxas requests equipment to help in Albania. Wavell offers the immediate transfer of a combined anti-aircraft and anti-tank regiment, but Metaxas refuses. Wavell argues that sending even a token British force will impress the Turks and Yugoslavs to stay out of the war, and even lead them to the Allied side. Metaxas, however, responds that such a small force "would provoke the Germans to attack." Metaxas only wants British troops on the mainland if they are able to act offensively as well as defensively, and until such time as such forces are available, the British should stay out.
The heart of the issue is Greek mistrust of the British, who they feel are only trying to get Greece involved in the war against Germany. The British also mistrust the Greeks, who they feel will make a separate peace with Italy and leave the British troops with another front to defend in Greece/Albania. Wavell puts on a good show, but he (along with Longmore) already has indicated internally that he does not want to send British troops to the Greek mainland. Metaxas, in a sense, is just playing into his hands and permitting the British offensive in North Africa to continue. However, truth is that the British simply do not have the troops to spare that Metaxas feels would justify a British ground presence in Greece.
European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command attacks Wilhelmshaven with 70-76 bombers out of 96 that set out. The 20 that fail to attack either get lost or turn back. At this stage of the war, that is considered a successful attack. Another, smaller force attacks Emden.
The RAF lists new priorities for its bomber attacks. They are to be oil, industrial towns, and communications in that order. The order reads, "Oil considered the sole primary aim of our Bomber Offensive." Major targets are to include Bremen, Hanover, Magdeburg, and Oppau, among others.
The Luftwaffe sends 49 bombers against Derby during the night, and night fighters also attack RAF airfields in the north, including Church Fenton and Driffield. Action during the night is confused, and the darkness prevents British anti-aircraft from operating while RAF bombers are operating. The German night fighters get in some useful practice, tracking RAF bombers back to their bases after their missions and forcing down three of them.
During this night's action, Oblt. Egmont zur Lippe of 4./NJG 1 shoots down a Whitley bomber over Holland for his second victory claim. Oblt. Albert Schulz of 2./NJG 2 shoots down two Blenheims in fifteen minutes for his first two claims. It is dangerous work, however; another fighter pilot with six claims, Heinrich Kopperschläger of JG 53, perishes in a flying accident.
Strong hurricane-force winds sink three US Navy PBY Catalina flying boats of the US Navy squadron VP-73 and two PBM Mariner aircraft of VP-74 at Iceland.
Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill, Commander-in-Chief Home Fleet Vice-Admiral Sir John C. Tovey (right), and Vice-Admiral Sir Bruce A Fraser (front left) aboard HMS King George V at Scapa Flow. January 15, 1941.
Battle of the Atlantic: German raider Pinguin rounds up some more parts of the Norwegian whaling fleet, including 12,083-ton oil refinery tanker Pelagos and several whalers. Three whalers have escaped to the Falkland Islands, where they will report what happened.
German tanker Nordmark, operating in the South Atlantic, rendezvouses with captured refrigerated ship Duquesna and replenishes its food stocks. The German sailors have grown to love the Duquesna, which they call a "floating delicatessen" full of frozen meat and dairy products.
Italian submarine Torelli (Captain C.F. Primo Longobardo) is one of the most successful Italian submarines under its able commander. Operating in the mid-Atlantic west of Ireland, Torelli torpedoes and sinks 5198 ton Greek freighter Nemea and 4079-ton Norwegian freighter Brask. There are 17 deaths on the Nemea and a dozen on the Brask (20 survivors). The incident is a bit unusual because, after the survivors of the Nemea abandon ship, the survivors of the Brask board the abandoned Nemea. The Greek survivors of the Nemea then themselves re-board their own ship. However, soon everyone is out of luck because the Nemea eventually sinks. Happily, the survivors are all rescued by HMS Highlander.
The Torelli also torpedoes and sinks 3111-ton Greek freighter Nicolaos Filinis from the same group of about six ships that it originally spotted. This sinking either occurs on the 15th or the 16th, accounts differ. Three crewmen perish.
British 1286-ton sludge ship Mancunium hits a mine and sinks off Liverpool in the Mersey. Everyone survives. Another freighter, 354 ton Karri, also hits a mine in the same vicinity but makes it to shore to be beached and later repaired. One man perishes on the Karri.
British 1823-ton freighter Maywood hits a mine and is damaged in the Bristol Channel south of Cardiff. Several vessels have hit mines there recently. Maywood temporarily is beached at Whitmore Bay, then goes to Barry for repairs.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages British 197-ton freighter Stalker in Hawke Roads, Grimsby. It sinks but is refloated and repaired.
Royal Navy minelayer HMS Adventure hits a mine and is badly damaged.
Convoys FS 388 and 389 depart from Methil, Convoy HX 103 departs from Halifax, Convoy BHX 103 departs from Bermuda.
U-151 and U-554 are commissioned, U-179 is laid down.
US destroyer USS Gwin is commissioned.
Royal Navy minesweeper HMS Felixstowe and minesweeping trawler HMS Hoxa launched, corvettes HMS Godetia and Anchusa are laid down and launched, respectively.
An inauguration ceremony for local officials in Tagkawayan, Quezon, the Philippines on 15 January 1941. Visible is Benigno Aquino Sr., whose grandson, Benigno S. Aquino III, will become the 15th President of the Philippines from 2010 to 2016 (Tripod).
Battle of the Mediterranean: The Australian and British troops earmarked for the assault on Tobruk in under a week's time to continue their preparations. The British 7th Armoured Division is getting its tanks repaired, while the Australian infantry works on the tactics that it successfully employed at Bardia.
Royal Navy submarine HMS Regent torpedoes and sinks 2472 ton Italian freighter Citta di Messina off Benghazi.
Vice Admiral Andrew Cunningham, already commander-in-chief of the Mediterranean Fleet, is promoted to the rank of full Admiral. Cunningham was before a board of inquiry only a few months ago, so this is a vote of confidence in him by the Admiralty.
At Malta, a Luftwaffe plane bearing a red cross in a white circle - an internationally recognized symbol for rescue operations that are immune from attack - is spotted at high altitude over eastern Malta. While the RAF does not get airborne in time to shoot it down, the use of this symbol is considered by the RAF to be a ruse. The RAF is notorious for shooting down such planes over the English Channel, which, if they actually are search and rescue planes, is a war crime. However, the British view these planes as performing reconnaissance, particularly since they appear at times when no rescue is needed and fly at altitudes used by reconnaissance planes, not search and rescue missions. This is another sign that the fierce contest of over the Channel is heading down to Malta as well, with the Germans and British gearing up for similarly heated warfare.
The Axis planes also stage a couple of air raids over Malta, but foul weather prevents them from releasing any bombs of consequence. RAF reconnaissance over Catania, Sicily shows that the results of the 13 January British air raid were quite good, with 25 Axis planes destroyed or badly damaged and hangars badly damaged.
Japanese Military: The Japanese Navy forms the 11th Air Fleet under Vice-Admiral Eikichi Katagiri, commander, and Rear Admiral Takijiro Onishi, chief of staff.
US Government: The US House of Representatives' Committee on Foreign Relations debates HR 1776, the Lend-Lease bill. In a sign of the importance attached by the administration to this bill, Secretary of State Cordell Hull addresses the House committee in a speech entitled, "The Defense of the United States: Speed is Our Greatest Need Today.”
Italian Somaliland: British forces mount major attacks on Italian positions from Sudan and Kenya.
HRH Haile Selassie during his return trip to Ethiopia, January 1941. With him are two heavily armed bodyguards and a priest.
Abyssinia: His Royal Highness Haile Selassie, deposed (and future) Emperor of Abyssinia (Ethiopia), returns to his country for the first time since May 1936 with British assistance. He is one of several claimants to thrones or exiled nationalist figures that the British have chosen to support for their own purposes, Charles de Gaulle being a famous example. Other claimants have not proven so fortunate, such as exiled King Zog of Albania, but Selassie inspires fervent devotion in his followers. The British hope that Selassie will spark an uprising and, should the Italians be chased out of his country, govern with policies favorable to them. Selassie is accompanied by his two sons and a retinue.
He issues a royal proclamation:
Italy is cornered by the grip of Great Britain by sea, air and land power. The Italians will not escape my trusted warriors.
Selassie is not just popular in his own country; many - the Rastafarians - actually consider him to be a living god. Selassie's return is a harbinger of increased British attacks to wrest the entire region from Italian hegemony. There are reports of uprisings upon his return. Haile Selassie, despite being from an impoverished third-world nation, is one of the enduring figures of 20th Century politics and this is his most stressful period.
Indochina: The Thai army pushes back Vichy French troops near Pakse and in the Sisophon area. French naval units in the area form up and head out toward the Thai-Cambodian border around 21:15.
China: The Nationalist Chinese (Kuomintang) government completes the destruction of the surrounded Communist Chinese New Fourth Army. The Nationalists demand that the remainder of the New Fourth Army be disbanded. The Communists, on the other hand, decry the entire Nationalist attack as a plot to destroy internal opposition and help the invading Japanese. Chairman Mao tells his troops not to trust the Nationalist Chinese.
British Homefront: King George and Prime Minister Churchill travel to Scapa Flow to see off Lord Halifax for his voyage to Washington as the new British ambassador. After lunch, battleship King George V departs for the US carrying Ambassador Lord Halifax, escorted by four destroyers, in Operation Parcel. Separately, Sir Gerald Campbell, British High Commissioner to Canada, is transferred to Washington to become British Consul General to the United States.
"Jack Delano - Street in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania January 1941" (Chris Tancock, Pictify)
American Homefront: RKO Pictures studio head George J. Schaefer has his lawyers study the issue of whether or not to release Orson Welles' forthcoming motion picture, "Citizen Kane." Schaefer believes strongly in Welles and the picture but wants to make sure that there are no legal issues involved in releasing it. The RKO lawyers review the film and ask Welles to cut three minutes of its running time to satisfy their concerns about a possible defamation action by William Randolph Hearst. Welles complies.
Future History: Don Glen Vliet is born in Glendale, California. Vliet shows artistic inclinations at an early age and attends high school with Frank Zappa (born on 21 December 1940). While Don later is full of fanciful tales about his early days, some of which appear somewhat suspect, it is clear that he is extremely talented in multiple fields - perhaps not quite so much as he claims, but who knows - but drops out of high school to help support his family. Don and Zappa begin collaborating on music, and at some point, he and Zappa decide to rename Don "Captain Beefheart" (something that Don later asks Rolling Stone "don't ask me why or how"). Anyway, as Captain Beefheart, he begins recording in the early 1960s, and gains as admirers none other than John Lennon and Paul McCartney, though it is unclear if the two Beatles ever actually met Don (he claims to have met McCartney, who has no recollection of this). Captain Beefheart goes on to become a legend in avant-garde music, one of the true characters of the rock scene and passes away in 2010.
