Monday 7 April 1941

LSSAH (1st SS Panzer Division, Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler) motorcycles in Bulgaria on their way to the Yugoslav border at Klistendil, April 7, 1941. The LSSAH is to follow the 9th Panzer Division of XL Panzer Corps (General der Panzertruppe Georg Stumme) and help exploit its breakthrough.

Operation 25: The Wehrmacht continues grinding forward in Yugoslavia against very light opposition - and often none at all - on 7 April 1941.

The XL Panzer Corps continues skidding across southern Yugoslavia at a lightning pace. Exactly when particular areas fall is difficult to ascertain, as the Germans are simply driving east as fast as they can. Today, the Germans pocket Prilep and the 9th Panzer Division moves on to regional center Skopje in Macedonia. Skopje is a major road junction from the Yugoslav coast to Greece, so this further isolates the bulk of the Yugoslav military and population to the north.

The Yugoslav Army counterattacks against the northern flank of the XL Panzer spearhead but fails to make any progress.

In the north, General Maximillian Baron von Weichs continues moving south with his 2nd Army. The Hungarians occupy territory north of the Danube that was lost in the treaties ending World War I.

Along the coast, the Italian 2nd Army under General Ambrosio makes a lunge south from the Trieste region. The Yugoslav 3rd Army attacks with five infantry divisions (13, 15, 25, 31 and 12 Divisions) in northern Albania west toward Elbasan, apparently to help the Greek Army conquer the Italians. This makes sense in the context of the Yugoslavs having watched the Italian/Greek conflict for months and contemplating how they could help the Greeks, and perhaps was a standing plan for the eventuality of hostilities with Italy. In the abstract, freeing the Greek forces to shift east would help the Allies to form a front there, but it assumes that the Yugoslavs can hold off the Germans while that plan plays out - a very risky bet.

The Luftwaffe continues pounding Belgrade in Operation Punishment. The Luftwaffe has complete command of the skies, but estimates of each side's losses during the battle vary widely and are completely unreliable. This is the climax of the Luftwaffe's attack on the capital. Estimates of Yugoslav casualties in Belgrade also vary widely and are completely unreliable, ranging from 1500 to 17,000, with the official figure 2,271.

Fires from yesterday's raid burn out of control, creating giant plumes of smoke and guiding follow-up raids to the city. The main targets hit today include the main railway station and a pontoon bridge across the Danube east of the city. The rail line is the major means of international communication from Belgrade, and XL Panzer Corps already has cut the mainline to Greece around Prilep. The Stukas also continue their work on the Yugoslav Air Force, which essentially has been missing in action, with many of its planes destroyed on the ground.

The Luftwaffe is having such an easy time that the fighters of 7,/JG 26, flying out of Taranto, return to their previous bases on Sicily. During this very brief operation over the Balkans, commander Oblt. Müncheberg scores a victory, a Yugoslav Fury biplane.

In Budapest, the government claims that the Yugoslav Air Force attacked three of its airfields and that its own forces shot down eight of the bombers. This is unconfirmed.

Croatian exile Ante Pavelic continues his broadcasts from Florence. He calls on Croats, who by and large are sympathetic to Germany, to resist the central government and set up their own state Naturally, Pavelic has some ideas on who might lead such an independent Croatian government.

New York Times, 7 April 1941.

Operation Marita: At this stage of the invasion, Greece remains of secondary importance while the Wehrmacht carves up Yugoslavia. The Wehrmacht has attacked the incomplete Greek Metaxas Line on the Bulgarian/Greek border, with the British positioned further back. The German XVIII and XXX Corps are leading the attack.

A simple glance at the map, however, shows that the panzers at Skopje are perfectly positioned to turn south and head toward Thessalonica (Thessaloniki). This would cut off the Greeks on the Bulgarian frontier and the British expeditionary force on the Aliakmon River line. Strategically, the German 12th Army under the command of Field Marshal Wilhelm List is best off by just keeping the Allied forces in place while they are enveloped to the west.

However, that does not mean that the Bulgarian/Greece front is quiet, and suggesting that does the men fighting there a huge disservice. Soldiers are fighting and dying there just like they are in Yugoslavia - in fact, given the ease of the German invasion of Yugoslavia, there may be more soldiers dying in Greece at any particular time. The Germans make progress on the western flank.

The people at the port of Piraeus continue picking up from the events of the 6th. Then, the harbor was rocked on the first day of the invasion when ammunition ship Clan Frazer blew up, sinking and damaging over a dozen ships. The dock facilities, which have been used to bring in British troops, are completely wrecked and the Royal Navy withdraws its remaining ships from the port to Suda Bay, Crete.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 1012 Greek freighter Kyrapanagia off the port of Piraeus.

Greece severs diplomatic contact with Bulgaria and Hungary, while Great Britain breaks diplomatic relations with Hungary.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe remains active on the Channel Front despite the fact that numerous formations have been withdrawn to support Operation Marita. There are several different attacks that leave a lasting impression.

The Luftwaffe sends 179 bombers against Glasgow and 43 against Liverpool and Greenock. These attacks begin around 23:05.

A Heinkel He 111 equipped with X-Verfahren direction-finding equipment guides a small group of bombers from KG 54 and 55 to attack Bristol and Avonmouth after 21:00. A Beaufighter of RAF No. 219 Squadron shoots down a Heinkel from 1,/KG 55.

It is the first night of the "Belfast Blitz." This is not the first raid on Belfast, but it apparently is the first intentional bombing of the city. The Germans bomb the docks and also hit nearby residential areas. It is a small attack by half a dozen bombers and causes - by Blitz standards - only light damage, including destroying a factory used to manufacture fuselages for Short Stirling bombers. There are 13 deaths. The Luftwaffe loses a plane, but the pilots are delighted that the air raid defenses are relatively light.

During the day, the RAF conducts standard Rhubarb operations over France.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command, No. 2 Group, attacks the Kiel dock area, Cologne and Bremerhaven. The Kiel attack is the night's centerpiece, involving 229 bombers dropping 40,000 incendiaries and lasting for five hours. Kiel is easily accessible by the RAF bombers and receives poundings with great regularity - so far during the war, it has been attacked three dozen times. Despite that, the port remains fully functional. The RAF attack on Bremerhaven is much lighter, made by only 24 bombers.

East African Campaign: The South Africans consolidate their control over Addis Ababa. The Polizia dell'Africa Italiana (Police of Italian Africa) remain on patrol in the city with their approval. At Massawa, the British once again call on Italian Admiral Bonetti to surrender, but he refuses. The 7th Indian Infantry Brigade Group, 10th Indian Infantry Brigade, and a tank squadron prepare to assault the port on the 8th.

The Royal Navy is standing offshore bombarding Massawa in Operation Atmosphere, but Admiral Bonetti still has naval forces at his disposal. He sends Italian MAS 213 (torpedo boat) out after dark to shoo the British off. The Italians torpedo light South African cruiser HMSAS Capetown, badly damaging its stern and killing four sailors. The Capetown must be towed to Port Sudan, and later to Bombay. The repairs will take until July 1942.

Convoy BN 23 departs from Suez.

Battle of the Atlantic: Invasion fears are mounting. The Admiralty for some reason fears a major Luftwaffe raid on Scapa Flow in northern Scotland, so it orders the Home Fleet to sail. There is no air raid, and the ships return.

U-124 (Kptlt. Georg-Whilhelm Schulz) is operating around the Cape Verde Islands thanks to the good Kriegsmarine supply network which has kept it at sea there for the past month. It torpedoes 1746-ton Canadian freighter Portadoc, then surfaces and uses its deck gun to finish it off. The entire crew escapes in two lifeboats. They sail east and, in six days, make it to Benty, French Guinea - where the Vichy French intern them. The Portadoc was sailing as an independent.

German tanker Nordmark replenishes U-105 (Kapitänleutnant Georg Schewe) and U-106 (Kptlt. Jürgen Oesten) prior to their heading to Rio de Janeiro to escort a trapped German freighter, 3290-ton Lech, back to France.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks Royal Navy 258-ton minesweeping trawler Roche Bonne (Rochebonne) about eight miles southeast of the Lizard. Captain W.R. Settlefield and his ten sailors perish.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 213-ton British trawler Sylvia southeast of the main Faroe Islands, east of Suðuroy. There is one death.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 3829-ton British freighter Kirnwood east of Clacton on Sea.

British 945-ton freighter Elisabeth hits a mine and sinks five miles (9 km) southeast of Portscatho. There are two deaths.

Convoy OB 307 departs from Liverpool.

Canadian minesweeper HMCS Cowichan (J 146) is commissioned.

Things are heating up in Alexandria, Egypt, but in Alexandria, Louisiana, the 3rd Battalion of the 164th Infantry Division marches for Army Day. 7 April 1941 (Dickinson Library).

Battle of the Mediterranean: In his diary, visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies notes after the War Cabinet meeting, with classic understatement: "Things have gone wrong in Libya."

The Afrika Korps continues its rampage across Libya. The panzers effectively capture Derna, capturing the airfield and block the Via Balbia - the British position there now is hopeless. At Mechili, reached by the Germans on the 6th, the Afrika Korps twice demands that the remnants of the shattered British 2nd Armoured Division surrender, but the British hold out. Rommel orders his panzers forward (Group Olbrich) for an immediate attack. After a difficult march over harsh terrain, Group Olbrich is in position around Mechili as night falls, ready for a final attack on the 8th. General Rommel is upset at the delay, feeling the attack should have been conducted today. General Johannes Streich, the commander of the 5th Light Division (of which Group Olbrich is a part), claims among other things that yesterday's sandstorms clogged his panzers' turrets.

This battle presents a sort of an alternate reality to the majority of World War II. Throughout the conflict, the Allies, via their Ultra decryption service, read many German communications in real-time - in fact, there may be cases when the British read German messages before the intended German recipient does. However, with General Rommel leading from the front and ignoring orders from his supposed Italian commander, the British have very little spy intelligence to work with. On the other hand, the British are retreating in a pell-mell fashion that approaches raw panic. As they go, they are sending radio messages in the clear and on the fly to headquarters identifying their positions - which the Wehrmacht's intelligence service is reading and forwarding to Rommel.

General Erwin Rommel continues flying in his personal Fieseler Storch observation plane above the battlefield. By doing this, he sees not only where the British forces are, but also exactly where his own forces are - which is a lot more than the British commanders know. The Luftwaffe also helps out, reporting that large British forces are concentrating around Gazala, now the westernmost tip of British control. Luftwaffe transport planes work overtime bringing in supplies to the forces investing Mechili. Supply is a major developing problem for the Wehrmacht, with some troops without rations for four days now - a consequence of unexpected success.

The Germans and Italians spirit Generals O'Connor and Neame, captured on the 6th, out of Libya to imprisonment in Italy.

At Malta, supplies continue to tighten. Food rationing is introduced.

William Faulkner's final screenplay of Twentieth Century Fox's "The Bouncer and the Lady," dated 7 April 1941.

Propaganda: Berlin radio reports that Allied shipping losses for March 1941 totaled 718,000 tons. Losses indeed were high for the month, but that is about double the actual amount. The broadcaster also does not mention the 5 U-boats lost during the month. Excessive shipping claims by the Germans become a running joke, especially among Allied POWs who keep running totals and show that, if the claims were remotely true, the entire Allied fleet of vessels would be at the bottom of the sea.

British Military: General Bernard Law Montgomery, aka "Monty," is appointed commander of XII Corps. This is a key command, responsible for the Kent/Sussex sector in southeast England. With invasion fears running wild as spring approaches, this is a key vote of confidence. Montgomery immediately institutes a training program for all ranks and begins sacking officers he believes are incompetent.

The Gloster E.28/39 (Meteor) prototype is delivered to Brockworth airfield for ground (taxiing) tests. This version does not include a fully working jet, the key component of any jet fighter, but the engine provided can power the aircraft sufficiently to make short hops off the ground. A Power Jets W.1 engine is just about ready for delivery to the airfield for full flight tests.

US Military: The US sends a force, TG 7.2, from New York Navy Yard to establish Naval Station Bermuda under the command of Captain Jules James, USN. TG 7.2 includes aircraft carrier USS Ranger (CV-4) and heavy cruisers Tuscaloosa and Wichita, which will stay and make Bermuda their home port. This relatively small force will be greatly augmented by large US naval forces. This is one of the bases ceded by the British to the US pursuant to the destroyers-for-bases deal of September 1940.

Iraq: The British forces at Habbaniyah are growing increasingly worried about the change in government from a pro-British to pro-Axis orientation. Whitehall telegrams Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell asking him what troops he can spare for Iraq. Wavell responds that, given operations in both Libya and Greece, all that he can spare is a battalion.

Newsweek Magazine, 7 April 1941.

China: Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek, in an appearance before the Executive Yuan, vows to cooperate with the Communist military - temporarily. He previously has ordered his troops to attack the Communists when they come to close to his own sphere of control, but now changes his tune:

…these border imbroglios are mere secondary questions. We can’t worry too much over such trivialities. As the international situation improves, they will automatically be settled. Let's wait at least until we get a definite assurance from England and the United States before we clamp down on the Communists.

British Government: It is Budget Day. The government raises taxes again, raising the toll by 1s 6d to 10s in the £. Chancellor of the Exchequer Kingsley Wood aims to reduce inflation by increasing taxation and forcing the public to save more. The total tax increase is expected to increase revenues by £250, with a government budget deficit of £2.304 billion. This is a huge increase, made more onerous by the fact that numerous deductions are eliminated. Of course, technically the British government is insolvent given its growing obligations under Lend-Lease, so increases are borne, by and large, with good humor or at least acceptance by many citizens and the media.

American Homefront: The Gallup opinion research firm publishes the results of a poll. The question posed is:

Which of these two things do you think it is more important for the United States to try to do — to keep out of the war ourselves, or to help England win, even at the risk of getting into the war?

Of the respondents, 67% prefer to help England win. This is a 7% increase from a similar question asked in January 1941.

Life Magazine, 7 April 1941, "Spring Showers."

April 1941

April 1, 1941: Rommel Takes Brega
April 2, 1941:Rommel Takes Agedabia
April 3, 1941: Convoy SC-26 Destruction
April 4, 1941: Rommel Takes Benghazi
April 5, 1941: Rommel Rolling
April 6, 1941: Operation Marita
April 7, 1941: Rommel Takes Derna
April 8, 1941: Yugoslavia Crumbling
April 9, 1941: Thessaloniki Falls
April 10, 1941: USS Niblack Attacks
April 11, 1941: Good Friday Raid
April 12, 1941: Belgrade and Bardia Fall
April 13, 1941: Soviet-Japanese Pact
April 14, 1941: King Peter Leaves
April 15, 1941: Flying Tigers
April 16, 1941: Battle of Platamon
April 17, 1941: Yugoslavia Gone
April 18, 1941: Me 262 First Flight
April 19, 1941: London Smashed
April 20, 1941: Hitler's Best Birthday
April 21, 1941: Greek Army Surrenders
April 22, 1941: Pancevo Massacre
April 23, 1941: CAM Ships
April 24, 1941: Battle of Thermopylae
April 25, 1941: Operation Demon
April 26, 1941: Operation Hannibal
April 27, 1941: Athens Falls
April 28, 1941: Hitler Firm about Barbarossa
April 29, 1941: Mainland Greece Falls
April 30, 1941: Rommel Attacks

2020

Friday 15 November 1940

The Warsaw ghetto blocking a major thoroughfare. — US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Dwight D. Eisenhower Library.

Italian/Greek Campaign: The Greek offensive gathers steam on 15 November 1940. Advancing through the valley of the Devoll River (also Devoli River), the Greeks continue to make progress against light resistance. Advances are swift around Mount Morava. The Greek 8th Infantry Division attacks in the Kalamas and Negrades sectors, the Greek 1st Infantry Division attacks in the Pindos sector, while the Greek 9th, 10th and 15th Infantry Division attacks in the Koritsa sector.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe's Operation Moonlight Sonata, a massive air attack against the industrial city of Coventry, concludes in the early morning hours. Aside from the devastation to the city, it is a major propaganda coup for the German news services. The Reich media coins and uses the verb "Coventrate" for the destruction of British cities, as in, "We will Coventrate all of England."

After dark, the Luftwaffe launches another major raid, this time against London with 358 bombers.

RAF Bomber Command sends 67 Wellington, Whitley and Hampden bombers against Hamburg.

Feldwebel Karl Hier of JG 76 is shot down and killed by Spitfires over London. He had 15 victories.

A couple at their destroyed Coventry home, 15 November 1940.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-65 (K.Kapt. Hans-Gerrit von Stockhausen), on an extended fifth patrol near Freetown, Sierra Leone, torpedoes and sinks 5,168-ton British steam merchant vessel Kohinur. There are 68 survivors and 17 men perish.

The survivors of the Kohinur are picked up by 7,614-ton Norwegian tanker Havbør. However, U-65 then torpedoes and sinks the Havbør, too. The Havbør's oil spreads over the water and catches fire, incinerating men struggling in the water. In this sinking, 31 men from the Kohinur and 28 men of the Havbør perish. The tanker takes seven hours to sink, and only four men survive. Accounts of the number of men saved and lost on these two ships vary greatly, as things get confused when two ships go down near each other.

The Luftwaffe attacks Convoy FN 34. It bombs and badly damages 263-ton Royal Navy trawler HMT Dungeness in the North Sea off Haisborough, Norfolk. The ship remains afloat but is written off.

In the same attack, the Luftwaffe also bombs and sinks 712-ton British coaster Blue Galleon. There are three deaths.

Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors (1,/KG 40) operating out over the Atlantic sea lanes attack Convoy SL 53. They bomb and sink 9333-ton British passenger ship Apapa west of Achill Head, County Mayo, Ireland. There are 24-28 deaths, while 230 people survive. The ship is carrying £19,188 worth of gold.

British 297-ton coaster Amenity hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea off Spurn Head, Yorkshire. All seven men on board survive.

British 102-ton tug Guardsman hits a mine and sinks off North Foreland. There are two deaths.

British 143-ton coaster Penryn collides with another ship in the Liverpool approaches and sinks.

United States destroyer USS Plunkett is on Neutrality Patrol off Tampico and observes German freighter Orinoco and tanker Phrygia as they begin to leave the area to return to Germany.

Convoy FN 335 departs from Southend, Convoy FS 336 departs from Methil, Convoy AN 7 departs from Alexandria and Port Said (bound for Piraeus).

Royal Navy corvette HMS Delphinium (K 77, Commander Robert L. Spalding) is commissioned.

United States submarine USS Trout (SS 202, Lt. Commander Frank Wesley Fenno, Jr.) is commissioned.

Cleanup and fire-dousing have only begun at Coventry on 15 November 1940.

Battle of the Mediterranean:  A large convoy of nine Greek troopships departs from Suda Bay, bound for Salonika. They are escorted by four cruisers and other ships in Operation Barbarity.

The Italians send a strafing mission against Mersa Matruh with 25 CR 42 biplane fighters.

Force H, split up into Forces A and B, departs from Gibraltar on Operation White. This is a convoy to fly Hurricanes to Malta.

At Malta, the government warns the public not to send postcards abroad with pictures of Malta that might be useful to the Italians.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Pinguin rendezvouses with converted minelayer Passat at their prearranged meeting spot several hundred miles west of Australia. Both ships have completed extensive minelaying operations off Australia.

Commonwealth Day, Quezon City, November 15, 1940. From the Manila Bulletin microfilm of the University of the Philippines Main Library.

German/Italian Relations: General Keitel and Marshal Badoglio conclude their talks at Innsbruck. Badoglio promises that the Italian offensive in Albania will be resumed in mid-February with 20 divisions. However, no further advance in Egypt is contemplated.

Japanese Military: Isoroku Yamamoto, considered an expert on the US military, is promoted to the rank of Admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy. Hiroaki Abe takes charge of Japanese Navy Destroyer Squadron. Vice Admiral Teruhisa Komatsu takes command of the Ryojun Military Port at the port formerly known as Port Arthur. Rear Admiral Shigeki Ando becomes chief of staff of the Chinkai Guard District in southern Korea.

Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier Ryujo returns to service after repairs. The Ryujo joins the 3rd Carrier Division of the 1st Fleet. The Ryujo has sixteen A5M4 fighters and eighteen B5N1 carrier attack planes. The aircraft carrier Akagi is posted to the Yokosuka Naval District. Japanese cruiser Tenryū undergoes repairs to her boilers and upgrading her armament. Captain Yuji Takahashi takes command.

US Military: US flying boats begin patrol operations from Bermuda. These are new bases obtained from the British in the destroyers-for-bases deal.

Heavy cruiser USS Louisville arrives in Santos, Brazil as part of its "Show the Flag" operation.

Gabon: Free French leader Charles de Gaulle arrives in Libreville and makes a personal appeal to the captives of the battles of Libreville and Port Gentil. Very few respond positively, and the men are sent to become POWs at Brazzaville, French Congo. The French now focus on Libya. Gabon is the first territory controlled by the Free French.

Holocaust: The Germans seal off the Warsaw Ghetto. It contains 400,000 Jews in a very restricted space. While there are numerous dates that are available as the "start" of the Warsaw Ghetto, this is when it actually becomes a walled prison.

"Popeye the Sailor with Poopdeck Pappy #89."

American Homefront: "One Night in the Tropics" is released. It stars comedians Abbott and Costello, who have a successful radio show.

"Three Men From Texas" starring William Boyd as Hopalong Cassidy premieres today.

"Popeye the Sailor with Poopdeck Pappy #89" premieres today.

Future History: Robert Cavalli is born in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. He becomes a leader in the fashion industry, making his breakthrough by inventing and patenting a printing procedure on leather. He remains a powerful force in the fashion industry.

Samuel Waterston is born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He becomes a stage actor and makes his film debut in 1965. After starring in many popular films, Waterston becomes a popular regular on television series Law & Order from 1994-2010. Waterston continues to act and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
November 1940

November 1, 1940: Hitler Irate
November 2, 1940: U-31 Sunk - Again
November 3, 1940: Kretschmer's Master Class
November 4, 1940: Spain Absorbs Tangier
November 5, 1940: Jervis Bay Meets Admiral Scheer
November 6, 1940: San Demetrio Incident
November 7, 1940: Galloping Gertie
November 8, 1940: Italian Shakeup in Greece
November 9, 1940: Dutch Fascists March
November 10, 1940: Fala and Doc Strange
November 11, 1940: Taranto Raid
November 12, 1940: Molotov Takes Berlin
November 13, 1940: Molotov Foils Hitler
November 14, 1940: Moonlight Sonata
November 15, 1940: Warsaw Ghetto Sealed
November 16, 1940: France Keeps Battleships
November 17, 1940: Malta Hurricane Disaster
November 18, 1940: Hitler Berates Ciano
November 19, 1940: Birmingham Devastated
November 20, 1940: Hungary Joins Axis
November 21, 1940: Dies White Paper
November 22, 1940: Italians Take Korçë
November 23, 1940: U-Boat Bonanza!
November 24, 1940: Slovakia Joins In
November 25, 1940: Molotov's Demands
November 26, 1940: Bananas Be Gone
November 27, 1940: Cape Spartivento Battle
November 28, 1940: Wick Perishes
November 29, 1940: Trouble in Indochina
November 30, 1940: Lucy and Desi Marry

2020

Thursday 18 January 1940

Towed, electric cables of Double-L, magnetic–mine sweeping gear being deployed behind a Royal Navy minesweeper. Note the boat is wooden.

Winter War Army Operations: The Soviet 9th Army at Salla completes its withdrawal to Maerkaejaervi on 18 January 1940.

General Siilasvuo takes his Finnish 9th Division 30 miles south to Kuhmo. There, he attacks another division of Vasily Chuikov's 9th Army, the 54th Division.

Winter War Air Operations: Soviet bombers raid the port of Kotka, damaging Finnish icebreaker Tarmo. The Finns claim to have brought down five Soviet bombers.

Western Front: There is an artillery duel to the west of the Saar.

Battle of the Atlantic:  The Kriegsmarine orders unrestricted U-boat warfare on Britain and France. This follows months of warfare bound by the international Law of Prize, though the first British passenger ship was sunk on the very first day of the war, 3 September 1939 (apparently mistaken for a warship). U-boats are authorized to sink, without warning, all ships "in those waters near the enemy coasts in which the use of mines can be pretended." Exceptions were to be made in the cases of the United States, Italian, Japanese and Soviet ships. This marks the institution of full and illegal unrestricted submarine warfare for the first time since 1918. [This is according to evidence produced by Admiral Doenitz at the Nuremberg Court following World War II. The Allies argued that 3 September 1939 was the commencement of unrestricted U-boat warfare by Germany. The court did not specify which date was correct but did find Admiral Doenitz guilty on two counts.]

A rush order for buoyant electrical cable is delivered to the Admiralty by the British Insulated Callendar's Cable Company. It is to be used by wooden trawlers dragging it along behind, with the magnetic field sufficient to detonate nearby magnetic mines. This gives new hope to Allied shipping which has been taking a beating from the magnetic mines.

U-25 (Kapitänleutnant Viktor Schütze) continues its lucky streak. It torpedoes and sinks 6,873-ton Swedish freighter Pajala near the Hebrides. British destroyer HMS Northern Duke, escorting the Pajala, rescues the 35 crew and depth-charges the U-25, which escapes.

U-44 (Kapitänleutnant Ludwig Mathes) also continues its lucky patrol. It stops 1,831-ton Danish freighter Canadian Reefer and disembarks the crew northeast of Cape Villano, Spain. All 26 survive.

U-55 (Kapitänleutnant Werner Heidel) is believed to have sunk 1,304-ton Swedish freighter Foxen off of Pentland Sound in the North Sea. There are only 2 survivors, 1 perish. U-55 does not return from its patrol.

U-9 (Oberleutnant zur See Wolfgang Lüth)  torpedoes and sinks 1,179-ton Swedish freighter Flandria north of Ymuiden, Holland. There are four survivors, 17 perish.

British authorities in the Bermuda Islands remove European-bound mail from the Lisbon-bound Pan American Airways Boeing 314-ton American Clipper. The US consul on hand issues a written protest.

Convoy OG 15F forms at Gibraltar.

Holland: The crown declares a state of siege in several coastal areas, extending such areas from the German border.

British Homefront: Five workers at Waltham Abbey Royal gunpowder factory in Essex are blown up in a suspicious accident.

Holocaust: The Gestapo executes 250 Jews outside Warsaw. This is due to the Germans' arrest of Jewish-born-turned-Catholic resistance leader Andrzej Kott.

Fortifications at the port of Kotka, Finland.

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