Saturday 16 March 1940

HMS Norfolk.

European Air Operations: The Royal having recently returned to Scapa Flow, on 16 March 1940 the Luftwaffe decides to give it a welcoming home party. The heavy cruiser Norfolk is damaged during the attack by 32 Junkers Ju 88 bombers of KG 30. The bomb penetrated three decks before exploding, piercing the water line and killing 6 crew. The Norfolk will have to go to the Clyde for repairs but is still seaworthy.

There are 7 RN and 8 civilian casualties in a nearby village, the Bridge of Waithe, hit apparently by accident when a bomber fleeing the vicinity releases its bombs there to aid its escape. The raid is historic because it includes the first British civilian fatality of the war. The Luftwaffe loses either one or two aircraft (sources vary). The unlucky civilian is James Isbister, aged 27.

Luftwaffe Major Fritz Doensch, who was on the mission, comments: "It was a long flight, but we're used to that. 1 radio operator had a harmonica to keep us cheerful."

During the night, British reconnaissance planes operated over Poland and over the Heligoland Bight. RAF planes also stage a raid on Borkum in the Frisian Islands.

Battle of the Atlantic: British trawler HMS Maide strikes a mine and sinks. Six, including the commanding officer, lost.

The 4,512-ton Yugoslavian freighter Slava hits a mine in the Bristol Channel and sinks. There is one fatality, 33 survive. The mine was laid by U-29 on 2 March 1940.

Convoy OA 111 departs Southend, Convoy OB 110 departs Liverpool, Convoy OB 111 also departs Liverpool.

German Military: Hitler holds a conference involving senior Wehrmacht leaders.

A new decree establishes brothels for the troops - under medical supervision. The ostensible purpose is "to protect Wehrmacht members against health dangers." Jewish prostitutes are banned, but other working girls can avoid any police hassles by helping out the boys in uniform.
Argentina: The government transfers the Admiral Graf Spee crew to the interior and forbids them from wearing their uniforms.

Panama: The President of Panama, Augusto S. Boyd, lodges an official protest with the Court of St. James for aggressive British actions within the Latin American neutrality zone off the coast of Brazil. The incident involved the Wakama on 12 February 1940.

US Government: Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles is back in Rome, conferring again with the King, Mussolini, and Ciano after his visits to Berlin, Paris, and London. At this point, he appears to be acting as a mediator, which may make certain parties in other capitals uncomfortable. In any event, he is not accomplishing anything if that is his agenda.

British Home Front: The Admiralty offers cash prizes for information about enemy naval activities.

China: The Japanese attack the Chinese New 4th Division west of Linhe. While they are occupied there, the Chinese 35th Army of the 8th War Area moves east along the Wu-chia River toward Wuyuan. This is the opening of the Battle of Wuyuan.

In the continuing Battle of South Kwangsi, the 22nd Army captures Chiuchow and Luwu.

Future History: John F. Kennedy, the son of current US ambassador to the Court of St. James Joseph Kennedy, publishes his senior year thesis at Harvard. It covers the pre-war period of negotiation between England, France, and Germany. The thesis is later published as a book after some re-drafting, given a title taking off on Winston Churchill's 1938 classic "While England Slept." The book, "Why England Slept," is a financial success that enables future US President Kennedy to donate money to Plymouth England and also buy himself a Buick convertible. It looks at the Chamberlain policy of appeasement with sympathy. Chamberlain, of course, remains the PM, and it is only later that attitudes toward him and his policies harden.

"Modern Wonders' of 16 March 1940 explains why "We can't win wars without spiders." Modern wonders apparently include biplanes.

March 1940

March 1, 1940: Soviet Breakthroughs Past Viipuri
March 2, 1940: Soviets Swarm West in Finland
March 3, 1940: Soviets Across Gulf of Viipuri
March 4, 1940: USSR Apologizes to Sweden
March 5, 1940: Katyn Forest Massacre Approved
March 6, 1940: Finns Head to Moscow
March 7, 1940: The Coal Ships Affair
March 8, 1940: Peace Talks Begin in Moscow
March 9, 1940: Soviets Harden Peace Terms
March 10, 1940: Germany Draws Closer to Italy
March 11, 1940: Winter War Peace Terms Finalized
March 12, 1940: War is Over (If You Want It)
March 13, 1940: Winter War Ends
March 14, 1940: Evacuating Karelia
March 15, 1940: The Bletchley Bombe
March 16, 1940: First British Civilian Killed
March 17, 1940: Enter Dr. Todt
March 18, 1940: Mussolini To Join the War
March 19, 1940: Daladier Resigns
March 20, 1940: Soviets Occupy Hango Naval Base
March 21, 1940: Paul Reynaud Leads France
March 22, 1940: Night Fighters Arise!
March 24, 1940: French Consider Alternatives
March 25, 1940: Reynaud Proposes Action
March 26, 1940: C-46 First Flight
March 27, 1940: Himmler Authorizes Auschwitz Construction
March 28, 1940: Allies Ponder Invading Norway
March 29, 1940: Soviets Prefer Neutrality
March 30, 1940: Allied Uncertainty
March 31, 1940: The Tiger Cage

2019

Thursday 29 February 1940

Finnish soldiers circa 29 February 1940.

Winter War Army Operations: The Soviets on 29 February 1940 follow the Finnish withdrawal closely and immediately begin attacking to surround Viipuri. The Soviets once again attempt to outflank Viipuri by crossing the frozen Gulf of Finland. They make it to shore 15 miles west of Viipuri, but the Finns immediately launch a massive counterattack and drive them off. As part of the operation, the Soviets capture Teikari Island.

Soviets also attack at Taipale for the second day in a row, but all three attacks are repelled. The Soviets begin to lose interest in this extremely difficult sector.

There also is a Soviet attack at Pitkaerantae, Northeast of Lake Ladoga, but it also is repelled.

The Finns overrun another motti north of Lake Ladoga. This time, it is East Lemetti Motti (West Lemetti Motti having already fallen). The Finns capture 5 field guns, 1 antitank gun, 71 tanks, 12 armored cars, 6 antiaircraft machineguns, 206 trucks & 70 machineguns.

Winter War Peace Talks: One day before the Soviet deadline, the Finns accept the Soviet terms in principle and they are willing to enter into final negotiations about them. They do not communicate this to the Soviets immediately because of negative French and British reactions to the news.

The Winter War proceeds, but it is on its last legs.

Battle of the Atlantic: Shipping Losses for February 1940:

• 63 Allied Ships
• 226,920 tons
• 4 U-boats sunk.

Today, U-20 (Kplt. Harro von Klot-Heydenfeldt) torpedoes and sinks Italian freighter SS Maria Rose in the English Channel. There are 12 dead and 7 survivors.

In the Dutch West Indies, the destroyer HMS Despatch intercepts the German blockade runner Troja near Aruba. The crew of Troja scuttles the ship lest it is captured, and it sinks on 1 March. Fellow blockade runner Heidelberg, which departs at roughly the same time after dark, evades detection.

The British at Gibraltar detain the US freighter Cold Harbor.

Convoy OA 101 departs from Southend. Convoy OB 101 departs from Liverpool.

Spies: The Uruguayan Government sells the wreck of the Graf Spee in the River Platte to a local salvage firm for £14,000. The salvage firm, in fact, is a front for British naval intelligence, which wishes to learn any secrets they can find about, for instance, Kriegsmarine radar. The Admiralty thinks its local representatives paid too much, but useful information is learned about the radar.

British/Japanese Relations: The British return 9 of the 21 German nationals that they abducted from the Asama Maru on 21 January 1940. In exchange, the Japanese agree not to transport German military reservists back to Germany.

German Government: With Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles making the rounds of European leaders, there is a widespread concern throughout Europe about what his meddling in European affairs may portend. Hitler, in particular, is concerned. He instructs everyone who is to meet with Welles that they are to stick to the proper narrative: Britain and France declared war so that they could destroy Germany, and thus Germany must continue defending itself until they stop.

The British have reinstated the Navicert system used during World War I, which basically clears shipped goods as not being contraband in advance. It also is championed by President Roosevelt, but merchants are not as keen about it. The US and other neutral powers are following this system with varying degrees of enthusiasm and compliance. The German Press Department at The Hague issues a statement that anyone adhering to this system will make themselves suspect to Germany.

Estonia: The government forbids its ships to travel in the North Sea except by convoy.

Palestine: There is a spontaneous protest against the British at the recent laws restricting the purchase of land, which many settlers feel is an improper penalty upon Jews.

French Homefront: Minister of Finance Paul Reynaud warns in a broadcast about runaway inflation (le cycle infernal). The words carry weight because of the fairly recent disaster on that score in Weimar Germany. The government is imposing the usual measures to control prices, many of which stretch back to Roman times, including a price freeze, rationing, revaluation of gold reserves, and compulsory use of female labor.

In the first step of the plan, the French government introduces ration cards.

Jan/Feb 1940, l. to r. Antilla, Troja, and Heidelberg anchored at Malmok, source: Les Seekins’ scrapbook, courtesy of  www.lago-colony.com.

February 1940

February 3, 1940: Soviets Capture a Bunker
February 4, 1940: Peace Talks in Stockholm
February 5, 1940: Allies to Invade Norway
February 6, 1940: Careless Talk Costs Lives
February 7, 1940: IRA Terrorists Executed
February 8, 1940: Spies!
February 9, 1940: The Welles Mission
February 10, 1940: Confiscation of Jewish Goods
February 11, 1940: Soviets Attack Mannerheim Line
February 12, 1940: Breaches In Mannerheim Line
February 13, 1940: Soviets Inching Forward in Finland
February 14, 1940: Soviets Batter Mannerheim Line
February 15, 1940: Finns Retreat
February 16, 1940: Altmark Incident
February 17, 1940: Manstein and Hitler Discuss Fall Gelb
February 18, 1940: Operation Nordmark
February 19, 1940: King Gustav Says No
February 20, 1940: Falkenhorst Commands Weserubung
February 21, 1940: Radar Advances
February 22, 1940: Friendly Fire
February 23, 1940: Soviets Present Their Demands
February 24, 1940: Fall Gelb Revised
February 25, 1940: Mr. Welles Comes to Visit
February 26, 1940: Battle of Honkaniemi
February 27, 1940: Finns Retreat Again
February 28, 1940: Overseas Volunteers Help Finland
February 29, 1940: Finns Accept Soviet Terms In Principle

March 1940

March 1, 1940: Soviet Breakthroughs Past Viipuri
March 2, 1940: Soviets Swarm West in Finland
March 3, 1940: Soviets Across Gulf of Viipuri
March 4, 1940: USSR Apologizes to Sweden
March 5, 1940: Katyn Forest Massacre Approved
March 6, 1940: Finns Head to Moscow
March 7, 1940: The Coal Ships Affair
March 8, 1940: Peace Talks Begin in Moscow
March 9, 1940: Soviets Harden Peace Terms
March 10, 1940: Germany Draws Closer to Italy
March 11, 1940: Winter War Peace Terms Finalized
March 12, 1940: War is Over (If You Want It)
March 13, 1940: Winter War Ends
March 14, 1940: Evacuating Karelia
March 15, 1940: The Bletchley Bombe
March 16, 1940: First British Civilian Killed
March 17, 1940: Enter Dr. Todt
March 18, 1940: Mussolini To Join the War
March 19, 1940: Daladier Resigns
March 20, 1940: Soviets Occupy Hango Naval Base
March 21, 1940: Paul Reynaud Leads France
March 22, 1940: Night Fighters Arise!
March 24, 1940: French Consider Alternatives
March 25, 1940: Reynaud Proposes Action
March 26, 1940: C-46 First Flight
March 27, 1940: Himmler Authorizes Auschwitz Construction
March 28, 1940: Allies Ponder Invading Norway
March 29, 1940: Soviets Prefer Neutrality
March 30, 1940: Allied Uncertainty
March 31, 1940: The Tiger Cage

2019

Friday 16 February 1940

The Altmark in Norway.

Winter War: Sweden on 16 February 1940 rejects the Finnish request for rights of passage of foreign troops across its territory. It is a right assumed by the Allied Supreme War Council in its plans to cross over Swedish territory to Finland and also "protect" Swedish iron ore mines. This unexpected Swedish decision, however, does not cause the Allies to alter those plans.

Winter War Army Operations: The Finns admit in a communique that the Soviets have breached the Mannerheim Line in three places: east of Summa, and two between Muola Lake and Vuoksi River. This, of course, does not include the critical fact that the entire line now is in retreat to the V-Line.

The order to retreat came late on the 15th, and the units under the most pressure executed it immediately. Some units in better shape don't receive the order until this afternoon.

Finnish 9th Infantry Division, including Group Talvela, wipes out the remnants of the Siberian ski brigade "Dolin." There are 70 survivors of the unit out of the 1,800 skiers who initially crossed the frontier. The Siberians are/were well-equipped with automatic weapons, which the Finns can use.

Winter War Air Operations: The Finns bomb Soviet railway stations and tracks behind the lines. They also claim to have shot down 8 more Soviet planes.

Special Ops: Having spotted the Altmark a few days ago, the Admiralty, i.e., Winston Churchill, acts fast. It instructs the HMS Cossack to violate Norwegian neutrality and enter its territorial waters for the purposes of boarding the supply ship. The Altmark, crowded with 299 British prisoners from the ships sunk by the Admiral Graf Spee in the South Atlantic, believes that it is safe, but it is not.

Located in Joessing Fjord, Southwest Norway, Admiral Vian menaces the Altmark at around 22:00, which then runs aground. A British boarding party kills seven German sailors, wounds 11, and releases the prisoners from the hold. Captain Philip Vian becomes a national hero for this, and the incident enters British naval lore for truths, half-truths, and unproven and unlikely legends about the affair (such as that the boarding party actually used cutlasses, like pirates, to free the men).

The Norwegian escort - a torpedo boat - watches the whole affair but does not intervene. Technically, the prisoners should have been released upon entering neutral waters, so the Norwegian involvement is equivocal, but the Germans never notified them of the prisoners. This, actually, is something the British have done as well, such as when a British ship passed through the US Panama Canal with German prisoners, so they have no cause to complain, and don't. The Cossack leaves the Jøssingfjord just after midnight on 17 February with the 299 prisoners.

While the fate of the 299 sailors is important, so is the larger course of the war. The Germans observe the high-handed British attitude to Norwegian neutrality and speed up their own plans regarding the country. Naturally, the Germans make the dead into martyrs.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-14 (Oberleutnant zur See Herbert Wohlfarth) has a big day northeast of Scotland. They are all carrying coal from Britain to Denmark and Sweden.

First, around midnight, U-14 torpedoes and sinks 1,064-ton Danish freighter Rhone. There are 11 survivors, 9 perish.

Second, it torpedoes and sinks the 1,066-ton Danish freighter Sleipner. There are 28 survivors and 13 perish. The Sleipner had stopped to help the people from the Rhone.

Third, at 21:25, U-14 sinks the 1,526-ton Swedish freighter Osmed. There are 7 survivors and 13 perish.

Fourth, about ten minutes later, U-14 sinks 1,646-ton Swedish freighter Liana. There are eight survivors, 10 perish. The area is full of passing freighters and trawlers, so the survivors all get picked up fairly quickly.

The British authorities at Gibraltar detain the US freighter Excalibur for a few hours, then let it and the freighter Exermont, which has been detained since 14 February, proceed.


Convoy OA 93 GF departs from Southend. Convoy HX 20 departs from Halifax.

Royal Air Force: Royal Air Force Hurricanes and Spitfires are converting over to 100 octane fuel. This gives them a performance boost by increasing engine power by raising the boost to +12 lb/sq.in. Every little bit helps against the equally matched Bf 109s, though the Bf 109s as yet cannot make it to Great Britain. No. 602's Operations Record Book notes today that "100 octane fuel now in all aircraft."

Anglo/Soviet Relations: Sir Stafford Cripps, a well-known Marxist sympathizer who plays that role well in the British government, meets with Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov. This is a fascinating example of the British minding their diplomatic fences. On the one hand, they are openly supporting the Finns in their fight against the Soviets, but on the other, they are secretly attempting to learn if there is any room for accommodation with the Soviets.

British Homefront: The British authorities stage a crackdown on "steakeasies" (like "speakeasies" during Prohibition) which are unauthorized slaughterhouses circumventing the rationing process.

Flag-draped coffins containing German dead are brought ashore for burial after the Altmark Incident in Jossingfjord, Norway.

February 1940

February 3, 1940: Soviets Capture a Bunker
February 4, 1940: Peace Talks in Stockholm
February 5, 1940: Allies to Invade Norway
February 6, 1940: Careless Talk Costs Lives
February 7, 1940: IRA Terrorists Executed
February 8, 1940: Spies!
February 9, 1940: The Welles Mission
February 10, 1940: Confiscation of Jewish Goods
February 11, 1940: Soviets Attack Mannerheim Line
February 12, 1940: Breaches In Mannerheim Line
February 13, 1940: Soviets Inching Forward in Finland
February 14, 1940: Soviets Batter Mannerheim Line
February 15, 1940: Finns Retreat
February 16, 1940: Altmark Incident
February 17, 1940: Manstein and Hitler Discuss Fall Gelb
February 18, 1940: Operation Nordmark
February 19, 1940: King Gustav Says No
February 20, 1940: Falkenhorst Commands Weserubung
February 21, 1940: Radar Advances
February 22, 1940: Friendly Fire
February 23, 1940: Soviets Present Their Demands
February 24, 1940: Fall Gelb Revised
February 25, 1940: Mr. Welles Comes to Visit
February 26, 1940: Battle of Honkaniemi
February 27, 1940: Finns Retreat Again
February 28, 1940: Overseas Volunteers Help Finland
February 29, 1940: Finns Accept Soviet Terms In Principle

2019

Friday 2 February 1940

Starboard 10.5 cm/65 mounting on Admiral Graf Spee, with 2 cm mounting in the foreground. Photograph was taken on 2 February 1940 by Ensign Richard D. Sampson, USN. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph # NH 50959.

Winter War Army Operations: The Soviets on 2 February 1940 continue their massive bombardment of the Finnish Mannerheim Line, along with probing attacks all along the line. They send a special assault squad against the Millionaire bunker, which captures it. The Soviets affix a 50 kg explosive to the roof and blow a hole in the roof and wall. The squad then retreats back to Soviet lines, suffering 75% killed in action. The Finns then recapture the bunker temporarily.

Otherwise, the Soviet 7th and 13th Armies only mount demonstration attacks, not intended to capture ground but to soften the defenses.

Further north, the Finnish 9th Division maintains its grip on Soviet 54th Division near Kuhmo. A Siberian ski battalion under Colonel Vyatsheslav Dmitrievitsh Dolin attempts to make contact with the trapped men, who otherwise are completely forgotten by the Kremlin as the main effort shifts to the Karelian Isthmus.

Winter War Air Operations: The Soviets continue bombing Finnish cities, including Helsinki and Sortavala. The Finns claim to have shot down at least five Soviet planes.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-59 (Kapitänleutnant Harald Jürst) torpedoes and sinks 839-ton British tanker Creofield 20 miles East of Lowestoft, Suffolk, England. All 16 crew perish.

The U-59 also torpedoes and sinks 1,064-ton British freighter Portelet. There are 9 survivors and 2 perish.

British tanker Councillor hits a mine and sinks.

US light cruiser Helena, taking a shakedown cruise at Montevideo, Uruguay, sends a party to board the derelict Admiral Graf Spee and take photographs.

The French auxiliary patrol vessel FS Vaillant stops the US passenger liner Manhattan 25 miles south of Cape Vincent, Portugal. The Manhattan is ordered to proceed to Gibraltar.

Convoy OA 84 departs from Southend, while OB 84 departs from Liverpool.

Balkans: The Balkan Entente Conference officially begins. The ministers of Yugoslavia, Greece, Romania, and Turkey issue a statement expressing their desire for peace.

China: At the Battle of South Kwangsi, the Japanese capture Pinyang and Szelung and attack Wuning.

Port 10.5 cm/65 twin mounting on Admiral Graf Spee. At lower right is a 15 cm/55 mounting. The photograph was taken on 2 February 1940 by Ensign Richard D. Sampson, USN. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph # NH 50959.

February 1940

February 1, 1940: Second Battle of Summa
February 2, 1940: Soviet Assaults at Summa February 3, 1940: Soviets Capture a Bunker
February 4, 1940: Peace Talks in Stockholm
February 5, 1940: Allies to Invade Norway
February 6, 1940: Careless Talk Costs Lives
February 7, 1940: IRA Terrorists Executed
February 8, 1940: Spies!
February 9, 1940: The Welles Mission
February 10, 1940: Confiscation of Jewish Goods
February 11, 1940: Soviets Attack Mannerheim Line
February 12, 1940: Breaches In Mannerheim Line
February 13, 1940: Soviets Inching Forward in Finland
February 14, 1940: Soviets Batter Mannerheim Line
February 15, 1940: Finns Retreat
February 16, 1940: Altmark Incident
February 17, 1940: Manstein and Hitler Discuss Fall Gelb
February 18, 1940: Operation Nordmark
February 19, 1940: King Gustav Says No
February 20, 1940: Falkenhorst Commands Weserubung
February 21, 1940: Radar Advances
February 22, 1940: Friendly Fire
February 23, 1940: Soviets Present Their Demands
February 24, 1940: Fall Gelb Revised
February 25, 1940: Mr. Welles Comes to Visit
February 26, 1940: Battle of Honkaniemi
February 27, 1940: Finns Retreat Again
February 28, 1940: Overseas Volunteers Help Finland
February 29, 1940: Finns Accept Soviet Terms In Principle

2019

Monday 29 January 1940

HMS Achilles steams past the wreck of the Admiral Graf Spee, 29 January 1940.

Winter War Army Operations: At 05:00 on 29 January 1940, the Finnish 9th Division attacks and ultimately encircles the Soviet 54th Division at Kuhmo. The Soviets had been moving forward slowly, but now the division is immobile. In any event, the division has no authority to retreat. Airdrops now are the Soviets' only means of supply. The Soviet government is turning its attention further south and leaving the operations above Lake Ladoga in abeyance.

Winter War Air Operations: The Soviets launch sharp air raids along the coastal towns on the Gulf of Bothnia. At Hango and Turku, two of their favorite targets, they cause extensive damage. At Hango, 50 perish and 200 are injured, whereas at Turku, 28 men perish and 46 are injured. In addition, the Soviet bombers, perhaps mistakenly, bomb the Red Cross hospital on the Karelian Isthmus, killing 23.

Winter War Peace Talks: The Soviets for the first time send a note to Alexandra Kollontai, their ambassador in Stockholm, for transmission to the Finnish government. The note indicates that they are willing to at least sit down with the Finnish government and talk about things:

The Soviet Union has no objection in principle to a possible agreement with the Ryti government.

This appears to end the Soviet pretense that their puppet government staffed by former Comintern members is the "legitimate" Finnish government, which nobody took seriously anyway. The Soviets are preparing a major offensive, so the sincerity of this offer is highly suspect - unless the Soviets consider it to be a prelude to surrender negotiations.


Battle of the Atlantic: The British Admiralty warns US ships not to enter the war zone previously established by President Roosevelt.

U-51 (Kapitänleutnant Dietrich Knorr) torpedoes and sinks 1,503-ton Norwegian freighter Eika south of Ireland out in the Atlantic at 15:00. Fourteen perish, 2 survive. Knorr states that he saw no neutral markings and that the ship was using a zig-zag pattern. At the last moment, he states, it aimed right at his U-boat and tried to ram it, so he had to sink it. The German Government sends the Norwegian Department of foreign affairs a note stating:

The circumstances leading to the torpedoing of the steamship Eika is a typical example of what the consequences can be for neutral ships when they do not pay heed to the German Government's repeated warnings against un-neutral or suspicious behaviour.

Knorr's account is disputed in all particulars. What is not disputed is that Knorr stops and carries the two survivors, Harald Støle (age 16) and Alfred Johansen, with him until returning to Bremerhaven. The two Norwegians ultimately get home after returning to port on 14 February and state they were treated well by the Captain and crew. There is a memorial in Stavern, Norway for the ship and its crew.

Luftwaffe Heinkel He 111 bombers sink two British merchant ships between the Shetlands and Kent, the Stanburn and the Leo Dawson (assumed to be the Luftwaffe). They also bomb the unarmed "East Dudgeon" lightship, killing seven of the eight-man crew when it capsizes near shore. There were other attacks on British shipping that damage and sink some smaller craft.

The British detain US freighter Exochorda at Gibraltar.

Convoy OA 82 departs from Southend, and Convoy OB 82 departs from Liverpool, while Convoy HG 17 departs from Gibraltar.

German Military: Admiral Raeder, who is leading the planning for Weserubung, declares the Friesian Islands as military security districts. All local inhabitants are removed.

German/Italian Relations: The Germans release Italian aircraft destined for Finland that they had detained.

French Homefront: Premier Daladier delivers another emotional speech in a national broadcast, stating: "Germany hopes to encompass our downfall by exploiting the weakness at home …" It is a common refrain from him, as he sees the internal enemy of communists working in conjunction with Stalin as a huge threat, perhaps even greater than the Germans.

Holocaust: The Polish Government-in-exile releases a report estimating that 18,000 Poles drawn from all segments of society have been executed in occupied Poland.

Future History: Katherine Ross is born today in Hollywood, California. She becomes famous in the 1960s as an actress in such films as "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." She remains active in the television/film industry as of 2016 in shows such as "Family Guy."

Lana Turner is the cynosure of all eyes today in Life Magazine.

January 1940

January 1, 1940: Finns Carve up the Soviets
January 2, 1940: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
January 3, 1940: Soviets Trapped
January 4, 1940: Soviet Breakout Attempts Fail
January 5, 1940: Dicing Up the Soviets
January 6, 1940: Soviet 44th Division Runs
January 7, 1940: Shakeup in Soviet High Command
January 8, 1940: Ratte Road Battle Ends
January 9, 1940: British Submarines in Peril
January 10, 1940: Mechelen Incident
January 11, 1940: Finns Surround More Soviets
January 12, 1940: New Soviet Attacks at Taipale
January 13, 1940: Fall Gelb Postponed
January 14, 1940: Japan's Government Falls
January 15, 1940: Soviets Prepare More Carefully
January 16, 1940: German Atrocities Uncovered
January 17, 1940: Bletchley Park in Action
January 18, 1940: New Hope for Allied Shipping
January 19, 1940: Finnish Attacks at Salla
January 20, 1940: Churchill Urges Cooperation
January 21, 1940: Asam Maru Incident
January 22, 1940: Dissension Within British Government
January 23, 1940: Dissension in South Africa
January 24, 1940: NKVD Blocking Detachments
January 25, 1940: Auschwitz Site Selected
January 26, 1940: Millionaire Bunker Destroyed
January 27, 1940: U-20 Sinks Four Ships
January 28, 1940: Softening Up the Finns
January 29, 1940: Moscow Willing to Talk
January 30, 1940: Hitler Throws Down the Gauntlet
January 31, 1940: Timoshenko Is Ready

2019

Thursday 24 December 1939

Winter War Army Operations: International aid to the Finns continues. Volunteers from virtually other European nations have been pouring in. Today, 24 December 1939, 50 Finnish-American volunteers arrive at the port of Oulu to serve in the military.

The campaign now has been in progress for 24 days, twice the amount of time expected in the Soviets' overly optimistic plans.

The remnants of Soviet 75th and 139th Divisions have been on the run in the Tolmojaervi and Aglajaervi (Ägläjärvi) districts. Group Talvela is pursuing them and enter into Soviet territory, though only briefly.

At Suomussalmi, the trapped Soviet 163rd Division tries to break out east down the Ratte road but makes no progress against the Finnish 9th Division. Soviet 44th Division, trapped further down the road, does not have enough strength to help them. The winter is working its magic on the Soviet troops and their vehicles, robbing them of strength and initiative. Part of the problem is that the Soviet 44th Division has plenty of skis, but no ski troops. The Finns can maneuver through the woods on skis and attack the Soviets all along the road.

Soviet troops further north are being pushed back to Salla from the Kemijoki River by the Finnish troops under the command of  Major General Kurt Martti Wallenius.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends 17 planes to attack German shipping but has no success.

Battle of the Atlantic: The fire on the Admiral Graf Spee finally burns out.

Convoy OB 59 departs from Liverpool and HG 12 from Gibraltar.

German/Soviet Relations: The two nations sign an agreement restoring rail links between their occupied areas.

German Government: Hitler is still inspecting the Siegfried Line.

Vatican: Pope Pius XII makes an appeal for peace on Christmas Eve before 25 Cardinals. He denounces aggression and the right of small countries to exist. He says that there have been "acts which cry for the vengeance of God." The Pope also offers a 5-point program to achieve "a just and honorable peace."

China: While elements of the Chinese forces remain on the offensive, the Japanese counterattacks are increasing. Japanese 21st Army Yinchanao and Pachiangkou north of Canton, while the Japanese 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade helps out the Japanese at Paotou and sends the Chinese 8th War Area on to the defensive. The Chinese West Route Force is attacking the Japanese 5th Infantry Division near Lungchow but is making slow progress.

Holocaust: German troops accompanied by Polish policemen encircle the synagogue in Siedlce, remove the two Torah scrolls, and set the synagogue on fire. They also burn the scrolls separately. The fire spreads to nearby Jewish offices. The Polish police prepare a report blaming the fire on the Jews. The Germans then prepare to deport many of the Jews of Lublin to labor camps.

The synagogue in Siedlce burning on 24 December 1939.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019

Sunday 17 December 1939

A Finnish soldier on the Kollaa front, 17 December 1939.

Battle of the Atlantic: On 17 December 1939, Captain Langsdorff must make a decision, and he does. The Admiral Graf Spee only has left a third of its ammunition, about as much as expended during the previous battle. It also has insufficient fuel left to return to Germany, with the prospect of being able to refuel while being chased by the British very unlikely. So, after consulting with his officers, at 6:15 p.m., Langsdorff sails slowly west out of Montevideo and scuttles the ship in neutral waters. It sits mostly submerged in 7 meters of water, blazing away.

Most of Langsdorff's crew transfers to the German freighter Tacoma. He and his 1,039-man crew wind up in detention in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The outcome is a huge propaganda victory for the British and First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill, but the sailors from Admiral Graf Spee survived. Churchill spins into rhetorical overdrive:

the outcome was "like a flash of light and colour on the scene, carrying with it an encouragement to all who are fighting, to ourselves, and to our Allies."

The Admiral Graf Spee had sunk 50,089 tons of shipping, nine ships. It also badly damaged a heavy cruiser and kept a large portion of the Allied fleets searching the South Atlantic for weeks. This deprived convoys further north of protection. The Altmark, its supply ship, remains free and heads back north to Germany, loaded with Allied prisoners.

U-59 (Oberleutnant zur See Harald Jürst) sinks the 1.245-ton Danish freighter Jaegerborg east of the Firth of Forth in Scotland. All eighteen crew perish.

U-59 also torpedoes and sinks the 1,214-ton Danish freighter Bogø. Of the 20-man crew, three survive.

British destroyers lay mine off the German coast.

The British at Gibraltar detain the US freighter Meanticut.

Admiral Graf Spee burning in the Platte River, 17 December 1939.

Winter War Army Operations: Soviet attacks continue at Summa. Soviet tanks continue attempting to penetrate the gap in the defenses in the nearby swamp. The Finnish infantry holds its ground and separates the Soviet tanks from their infantry support, then pick the tanks off with anti-tank guns and Molotov Cocktails primarily after dark.

The Soviet 163d Rifle Division remains surrounded at Suomussalmi. The relief force is reeling from Finnish counterattacks and is not trying to break through again. The Finnish strategy is to cut the elongated Soviet caravan on the Ratte road into separate pieces and then finish them off individually.

The Finns at Kollaa are counterattacking two Soviet divisions trapped on the coastal road. The Finns operating on skis can pick and choose their points of attack, while the Soviets are defending their immobile vehicles. The process is debilitating for both sides, but the Finns have turned the tables and are attacking the helpless Soviets.

Snipers are of huge importance in the woods. Finnish sniper Simo Häyhä, nicknamed "The White Death," is accumulating kills.

At Salla, the Soviets have split into two parts at a fork in the road. The Finns block the Soviet move on the southern road toward  Kemijärvi and put the weight of their effort on the north road. The Finns use these men to ambush the northern pincer moving toward Pelkosenniemi. The Soviet force on the north road, an infantry regiment a battalion, and a company of tanks, is outflanked and begins to retreat. A wild fight ensues.

League of Nations: The Soviets issue a long and entirely negative reply to the League of Nations resolution expelling it.

BEF: The first convoy of Canadian troops arrives in Liverpool, some 7,500 men of the 1st Canadian Division (Canadian Major-General McNaughton). It consists of five ocean liners.

China: The Chinese Winter Offensive continues. While the Chinese 3rd War Area attacks the 116th Infantry Regiment and captures Hsientao and Szekang, elsewhere the Japanese begin counter-attacking. The Japanese 5th Infantry Division attacks toward Lungchow, the 104th Infantry Division reaches Yuantan in Kwantung Province, and the Japanese counterattack the Chinese 2nd War Area.


December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019

Saturday 16 December 1939

Finnish troops with a destroyed Soviet tank at Summa.

Winter War Army Operations: Apart from its value as a chokepoint against Soviet attacks north from Leningrad, the Mannerheim Line on the Karelian Isthmus serves to shield the city of Viipuri. Loss of the city would open a communications network into the heart of Finland, and it would be a major blow to Finnish morale. The terrain is much more tank-friendly beyond the city. The Finns have heavily fortified the village of Summa to Viipuri's east which defends the city.

On 16 December 1939, frustrated at Summa, the Soviets attempt to bypass Summa and instead head through the nearby Munasuo swamp to the east. In prioritizing their defenses, the Finns have left this area relatively unprepared.  With the ground hard, 20 Soviet tanks blow through this gap, sometimes passing directly over Finnish infantry who hold their ground in trenches. The tank raid, though, could undermine the entire Mannerheim Line if handled properly. This battle introduces the world to "Molotov Cocktails, which are bottles full of combustible fluids thrown at the engine compartments of tanks to set them on fire.

Finnish antitank obstacles at Summa.

At Tolvajärvi, the Soviet 75th Division marches to the relief of the 139th Division which has gotten into difficulty. The Finns counterattack and send the relief force into retreat.

Western Front: The French stop a German raid on an outpost east of the Moselle River.

Battle of the Atlantic: Captain Langsdorff communicates with Berlin through the German embassy. He asks for instructions. He is told to either move the Admiral Graf Spee to Buenos Aires or scuttle the ship to avoid British intelligence from examining it. Admiral Raeder and Adolf Hitler are monitoring the situation closely. Force G remains outside the River Platte, with the Ajax's floatplane monitoring the situation and the ships refueling. Commodore Harwood is promoted to Rear Admiral and knighted (KCB). The three Force G cruiser captains are made Companions of the Bath (CB).

U-59 (Oberleutnant zur See Harald Jürst) torpedoes and sinks 1,568-ton Norwegian freighter east of Scotland. Thirteen crew survive and five perish.

U-59 also torpedos and sinks 1,366-ton Swedish freighter Lister. All 19 crew survive.

British freighters Amble, Evelina and Sedgefly hit mines and sink.

U-64 commissioned.

Convoy OA 54 departs Southend, OB 54 departs Liverpool, and HG 11 departs from Gibraltar.

Italy: Foreign Minister Count Galeazzo Ciano gives a speech to the fascist assembly which is anti-Soviet and pro-Finnish. Italy is continuing to send volunteers to Finland along with heavy equipment.

German Homefront: The Germans complete their repatriation of 51,000 Baltic Germans via the port of Riga in Latvia. They are sent to populate the portions of Poland that have been annexed to the Reich.

China: The Chinese Winter Offense continues expanding:

• Chinese 1st War Area captures Kaifeng
• Chinese 3rd War Area (Anhwei south of Yangtze River, northeastern Kiangsi, and territory to the east with 10th Army Group, 23rd Army Group, and 32nd Army Group) opens offensive
• Chinese 5th War Area captures Japanese strongpoints at Niehchiachang, Funanchang, Wuhsuchiachang, Chouchiachang, Tunghsinchang, Tuochuanu, and Nanhofu
• 73rd Army of Chinese 9th War Area opens attacks around Shihchengwan, Kueikoushih, and Tashaping and remains intermittently engaged in that area for a month

The Japanese forces are reeling, but manage some counterattacks such as against the Chinese 2nd War Area.

Finnish troops at Summa, complete with bicycles.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019