Friday 18 July 1941

German soldiers taking down a Soviet Red Star somewhere in Russia, 18 July 1941.

Eastern Front: In the Far North sector on 18 July 1941, the Finnish Army of Karelia continues clearing out Soviet resistance around the northern part of Lake Ladoga and the Jänisjoki River. German 163rd Infantry Division battles towards the road junction of Suvilahti (Suojärvi or Suoyarvi) in Ladoga Karelia to the northeast of Lake Ladoga (140 kilometers (87 mi) northwest of Petrozavodsk), a tiny border town which suffered badly during the Winter War and will again. The difficulty of pinpointing battles in that region exemplifies the anonymity of warfare in the endless forests of the region which have few points of reference.

In the Army Group North sector, General Erich von Manstein's LVI Army Corps withstands a determined Soviet counterattack by Soviet 11th Army and 27th Army, with part of Manstein's force escaping from encirclement. The German 8th Panzer Division is mauled, and Manstein's force loses a large portion of its striking power.

In the Army Group Center sector, Panzer Groups 2 and 3 continue moving toward each other east of Smolensk. Today, they advance to within 16 km (9.9 miles) of each other. The laggard is General Hoth's Panzer Group 3, which is struggling with the swampy terrain that has been swollen due to recent rains. Soviet resistance also has strengthened, as the Kremlin now realizes the danger - the Soviets have hundreds of thousands of troops around Smolensk - and are pulling troops out of the closing pocket and placing them in a position to hold the jaws of the trap open. Under newly appointed General Konstantin Rokossovsky, the motley collection of Soviet defenders manage to slow Hoth's advancing 7th Panzer Division to a crawl and keep the trap from closing.

In the Army Group South sector, the German 17th Army crosses the Bug River near Vinnytsia. German 11th Army attacks in the direction of Sorokin, while German 6th Army batters against Soviet 37th Army in front of Kyiv.

"Lieutenant Kokko (center), who, with his men, attacked the rear of the enemy on their own initiative, and brought the battle to victory." Village of Yläjärvi - 18 July 1941.

European Air Operations: The weather over northwest Europe remains unsettled, disrupting air operations. RAF Bomber Command sends a handful of Stirling bombers to raid Holland and Germany, but they turn back and one is lost. In another action, three Blenheim bombers undertake Operation Channel Stop and attack shipping off Gravelines. While they damage some ships, including a tanker, none of the planes returns, so the RAF loses four bombers on the day without achieving much.

RAF Fighter Command sends a Roadstead Mission to Dunkirk.

The Luftwaffe sends a large raid of 108 planes against Hull and other targets in Yorkshire, Lincolnshire. The attack lasts for about two hours and starts 160 fires, with four becoming serious. There are 111 killed, 108 seriously wounded, and 3500 people are left homeless.

Battle of the Baltic: The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks Soviet motor torpedo boat TK-123 in the Gulf of Riga.

Luftwaffe pilot Fritz Fliegel, KIA 18 July 1941.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 7046-ton British freighter Pilar de Larrinaga several hundred miles west of Northern Ireland. There are four deaths. The Pilar De Larrinaga makes it to Belfast Lough in tow.

Luftwaffe pilot Fritz Fliegel, who has been mentioned twice in the prestigious Wehrmachtbericht, is killed in his Focke-Wulf FW-200 C-3 "F8+AB" (Werknummer 0043—factory number) while attacking Convoy OB-346. Fliegel's five-man crew also perishes. This occurs during the attack on freighter Pilar de Larrinaga when the gunners on the freighter score a lucky hit that tears off the plane's starboard wing.

Convoy HG 68 departs from Gibraltar bound for Liverpool.

U-703 is launched.

An E.A.Scammell tank transporter named 'Snow White' carrying a British Cruiser tank to the workshops for an overhaul in the Western Desert, 18 July 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Twin Pimples Raid takes place at Tobruk. The 43 soldiers of No. 8 Commando, who have infiltrated behind Italian lines, lie undercover and wait for a diversionary attack by 18th Cavalry. While this occurs and the Italians are preoccupied, the Commandos stealthily advance toward the two hills (the "Twin Pimples") overlooking the Tobruk perimeter that are their objective.

When the Commandos get within about 30 yards/meters, they are challenged. Rather than respond, the Commandos open fire and charge ahead. There is a four-minute fire-fight. The Australian engineers following the Commandos plant explosive charges on Italian artillery pieces and an ammunition dump. Then, the entire force heads back toward the Tobruk perimeter. On the way, Italian artillery opens up and one Commando is killed (Corporal John Edward Trestrail later dies of his wounds) and four others wounded. The raid is considered a success, but No. 8 Commando is disbanded soon after this because the high command thinks the Commando can be employed better elsewhere.

Operation Guillotine begins. This is a Royal Navy movement of troops and supplies from Haifa and Port Said to Famagusta, Cyprus. The first ship to go is 6676-ton Australian freighter Salamaua, escorted by sloop HMS Parramatta. The Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica notice and begin attacking Cyprus today.

Australian morale at Tobruk is plummeting. It is hot, the Axis artillery can reach much of the Allied territory, there are flies everywhere, and food and water supplies require effort to obtain. General Blamey, the commander, requests their relief.

The nightly supply run to Tobruk is made by destroyers Hero and Hotspur. They make it there and back without incident.

At Malta, two Blenheim bombers attack a power station in Tripoli. They hit the target, but one of the bombers is shot down by defending fighters. Another five RAF bombers attack Palermo Harbor. Malta reports to Whitehall that Axis bombs have destroyed a fuel tank, causing the loss of ten tons of fuel.

Luftwaffe Generalmajor Theo Osterkamp becomes Fliegerführer Afrika.

Battle of the Black Sea: Soviet freighter Kola hits a mine and sinks in the Black Sea. There are three deaths, and 30 crew survive.

Fw 200 C-3/U2 W.Nr. 0043 "F8+AB", Stab I./KG 40, Bordeaux-Mérignac, Autumn 1940. This is the plane, piloted by Hptm Fritz Fliegel, that will be lost on 18 July 1941.

Partisans: Communist member of the Politburo Milovan Đilas establishes the Command of People's Liberation Troops of Montenegro, placing Boka, and Sandžak under his own command. Dilas accepts the help of those former Yugoslav Army officers that are willing to fight under communist control.

Spy Stuff: The Japanese have been keeping tabs on US movements throughout the Pacific. Today, the Japanese Consul (one of his staff is a trained spy) in Manila reports that one light cruiser was undergoing repairs, while four destroyers departed from the harbor and six submarines entered it.

Applied Science: The RAF puts ASV radar equipment on a PBY Catalina and a couple of PBM Mariner planes.

Soviet/Czech Relations: The Czech government-in-exile signs an agreement in London with the Soviet government. It provides that the two "countries" will exchange ambassadors and that the Czechs will form an army in the USSR. Of course, the Czechs no longer have a country (it is now called the Reich's Province of Bohemia and Moravia), but there are enough Czechs in exile to give the London Czech government some influence. Czech President Edvard Beneš (he claims to have only "resigned" in 1938 under duress, making the act null and void) harbors illusions of eventually forming a true alliance with the USSR in a post-war world.

German 8.8cm Flak battery operating in Russia as indirect fire artillery, July 1941.

Anglo/Soviet Relations: Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin writes to Winston Churchill, responding to two prior notes from the latter. Stalin remarks that the Red Army is "strained" and admits that the Soviet troops were placed too far forward (which some attribute to Stalin's own offensive plans). He then brings up one of his favorite themes of the war, writing:

It seems to me, furthermore, that the military position of the Soviet Union, and by the same token that of Great Britain, would improve substantially if a front were established against Hitler in the West (Northern France) and the North (the Arctic).

A front in the North of France, besides diverting Hitler's forces from the East, would make impossible invasion of Britain by Hitler. Establishment of this front would be popular both with the British Army and with the population of Southern England. I am aware of the difficulty of establishing such a front, but it seems to me that, notwithstanding the difficulties, it should be done, not only for the sake of our common cause, but also in Britain's own interest. The best time to open this front is now, seeing that Hitler's forces have been switched to the East and that he has not yet been able to consolidate the positions he has taken in the East.

Churchill is happy to help, but he has economic aid to the USSR more in mind right now rather than military assistance.

The Belgian Training Center, 18 July 1941.

Anglo/Czech Relations: The British government recognizes the Czech government-in-exile (formally the Czechoslovak National Liberation Committee) led by President Edvard Benes and Prime Minister Jan Šrámek. It appoints an ambassador to conduct business with Benes and Sramek.

Finnish/Japanese Relations: Finland establishes diplomatic relations with the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo.

Australian Military: Vice-Admiral Sir Guy Royle, KCB, CMG, becomes Australian First Naval Member and Chief of Naval Staff.

German Military: General Keitel's youngest son, Hans-Georg Keitel, perishes in a field hospital after being badly wounded on July 17th.

Minister of Labor Ernest Bevin opens the Belgian Training Center in London on 18 July 1941.

Japanese Government: Prime Minister Prince Konoye Fumimaro reshuffles his Cabinet. The most significant change is that he drops Foreign Minister Matsuoka from the Cabinet altogether. Matsuoka has alienated the military which really runs the government through his advocacy of closer ties to the Reich and the importance of attacking the USSR to the north rather than the British and Dutch to the south. Matsuoka is replaced as Foreign Minister by Vice Admiral Teijirō Toyoda, a careerist, and reliable yes-man.

US Government: At a House committee hearing, Corrington Gill, assistant commissioner of the Works Progress Administration, claims that there are still 5 million unemployed over a decade after the Great Depression began.

The War Department agrees to allow the Department of Justice to monitor and round up enemy aliens in the event of war.

A publicity photo of singer/actress Evelyn Dall, taken 18 July 1941.

German Government: At the Wolfschanze in Rastenburg, Hitler meets with veterans of Operation Mercury.

During the night, Hitler rambles about various topics, including Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin, as recorded in Hugh Trevor-Roper's "Hitler's Table Talk":

Stalin is one of the most extraordinary figures in world history. He began as a small clerk, and he has never stopped being a clerk. Stalin owes nothing to rhetoric. He governs from his office, thanks to a bureaucracy that obeys his every nod and gesture. It's striking that Russian propaganda, in the criticisms it makes of us, always holds itself within certain limits. Stalin, that cunning Caucasian, is apparently quite ready to abandon European Russia, if he thinks that a failure to solve her problems would cause him to lose everything. Let nobody think Stalin might reconquer Europe from the Urals! It is as if I were installed in Slovakia, and could set out from there to reconquer the Reich. This is the catastrophe that will cause the loss of the Soviet Empire.

Hitler's line about Stalin being a clerk foreshadows a somewhat similar line in "Apocalypse Now."

Executions at Marjampole, on or about 18 July 1941.

Holocaust: Einsatzcommando 3 (Karl Jäger) of Einsatzgruppe A, attached to Army Group North, executes 39 Jewish men and 14 Jewish women at Marjampole.

American Homefront: Paramount picture "The Shepherd of the Hills" is released. Starring John Wayne, Harry Carey, Beulah Bondi, Majorie Main, and Ward Bond, the film follows the travails of an Ozark Mountain moonshiner played by Wayne.

New York Yankee Joe DiMaggio gets two hits in a 2-1 loss to the Cleveland Indians. This is the start of another hitting streak, of 16 games, right after his famous 56-game streak ended.

Future History: Lonnie McIntosh is born in Harrison, Dearborn County, Indiana. He becomes an influential rock and blues guitarist.

Martha Rose Reeves is born in Eufaula, Alabama. She becomes an R&B singer most known for her work with '60s girls group Martha (Reeves) and the Vandellas. She is perhaps best remembered for "Dancing in the Street."

The fire brigade put out a fire at the Tuschinski Theater in Amsterdam (renamed by the Germans to the more Aryan "Tivoli"). The fire completely destroys two viewing rooms.

July 1941

July 1, 1941: US TV Broadcasting Starts
July 2, 1941: MAUD Report
July 3, 1941: Stalin Speaks
July 4, 1941: Pogroms in Eastern Europe
July 5, 1941: Germans on Schedule
July 6, 1941: Australians Attack Damour
July 7, 1941: US Marines in Iceland
July 8, 1941: Flying Fortresses In Action
July 9, 1941: British Take Damour
July 10, 1941: Sword and Scabbard Order
July 11, 1941: Cease-fire in Syria and Lebanon
July 12, 1941: Anglo/Russian Assistance Pact
July 13, 1941: Uprising in Montenegro
July 14, 1941: Katyusha Rocket Launchers in Action
July 15, 1941: Smolensk Falls
July 16, 1941: Stalin's Son Captured
July 17, 1941: Heydrich Orders Mass Executions
July 18, 1941: Twin Pimples Raid
July 19, 1941: V for Victory
July 20, 1941: The Man Who Wouldn't Shoot
July 21, 1941: Moscow in Flames
July 22, 1941: Soviet Generals Executed
July 23, 1941: Secret Plan JB 355
July 24, 1941: Operation Sunrise
July 25, 1941: US Naval Alert
July 26, 1941: Italian E-Boat Attack on Malta
July 27, 1941: MacArthur Returns
July 28, 1941: Auschwitz Exterminations
July 29, 1941: Rescue From Crete
July 30, 1941: Raid on Petsamo and Kirkenes
July 31, 1941: Final Solution Order

2020

Sunday 9 March 1941

Greek troops at Doliana, Arcadia, Greece, March 1941.

Italian/Greek Campaign: Mussolini is in Tirana on 9 March 1941 to personally oversee the launch of a major offensive to recapture ground in the center of the line. The Italians begin the attack, the "Primavera Offensive," with a two-hour artillery barrage by 300 guns. The attack is in the mountains, so the artillery size is small due to transport difficulties. While 100,000 shells are dropped on a 6 km front, the effect of the shelling on the Greek defenses is minimal. The Italian Regia Aeronautica chips in with attacks by Junkers Ju 87 Stukas.

The offensive by a dozen Italian divisions is designed on the left of the advance to break through the pass over Mt. Trebeshina north of the Vojussa. The Cagliari Division is to lead this assault, but its commander, General Gianni, is not well. This contributes to the attack losing impetus. On the right wing of the attack, the Pinerolo Division aims for the Qafa Lusit Pass. The most important area is in the center, where the Puglie Division heads toward Monastery Hill. This promontory is close to the front, but is heavily defended.

There is no subtlety to the attack; it is what the Germans might call a "cleaving stroke" in which 50,000 Italian troops will try to overcome the determined Greek defenders by sheer weight of numbers. The Greek First Army is dug in and knows the area well. The Italians make small gains of less than a mile during the day.

East African Campaign: South African troops continue advancing along the road to Mogadishu.

Fireboats at the West India docks, London. Some sources date this as 9 March 1941, others as some time in 1940.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe is quiet during the day, with its usual scattered raids by lone raiders in southern England. After dark, the German bombers once again attack London and Portsmouth. The docks burn throughout the day from the attacks that began late on the 8th.

As part of Prime Minister Winston Churchill's "Battle of the Atlantic," RAF Bomber Command switches bombing target priorities in favor of U-boat bases and construction yards. Throughout the war, tension will arise over what parts of the German war effort are targeted - each service has its own preferences, such as tank factories, aircraft factories, and U-boat pens.

Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies, visiting London, records his view of last night's big air raid on London:

Last night London has its first real blitz since I arrived, and I missed it [Menzies was at Churchill's Chequers home]. Bombs & incendiaries all round my hotel & the West End generally - Cafe de Paris, where a bomb cam right through into the ballroom. Curzon St. incendiaries on roof of No. 10 [Downing Street] & so on. There is no pretence of a military objective.

Menzies also has dinner today with Sir Alan Brooke, in charge of the United Kingdom Home Forces. Brooke explains in detail the predicates for areas where conditions favor a German invasion of England:

• Adequate Luftwaffe fighter cover for bombers
• Restricted waters to minimize Royal Navy defense

According to Brooke, these conditions mean an invasion must occur somewhere between Plymouth and The Wash, where Norfolk meets Lincolnshire.

Battle of the Atlantic: Admiral Lütjens continues taking his two ships in Operation Berlin, Gneisenau and Scharnhorst, west into the Atlantic. As it retreats from the shipping lanes, Scharnhorst comes across 6352-ton independent Greek collier Marathon. Scharnhorst takes the entire crew prisoner.

The Luftwaffe bombs local Convoys EN 83 and WN 95. British 4976-ton freighter Esmond suffers damage off Buchan Ness. There are seven casualties.

The Luftwaffe also bombs and damages a 1040-ton British freighter, Sylvia Beale, off of Dungeness.

Anti-submarine trawler 730-ton HMS Gulfoss hits a mine and sinks in the English Channel. There are 10 deaths and the skipper, A. Hill, is wounded.

Royal Navy minesweeping trawler 295-ton HMS Hatsuse hits a mine off Penlee Point. The captain beaches the ship at Cawsand Bay. The ship later is salvaged and repaired at Plymouth.

The Royal Navy's 1st Minelaying Squadron departs to lay minefield SN.68 B.

Signal Magazine, March 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: General Rommel in command of Afrika Korps considers going over to the offensive. He sends a message to the OKW which offers three objectives:

1. Recovery of ground to the British Operation Compass;
2. An advance into Northern Egypt;
3. Taking the Suez Canal.

Rommel's supply and troop convoys have been getting through from Naples, so he is rapidly building up his military strength.

The Royal Navy has been hard at work sweeping the Suez Canal of mines dropped by the Luftwaffe. While the entire canal is not yet clear, enough of it is for the Royal Navy to finally give aircraft carrier HMS Formidable the go-ahead to begin its transit to the Mediterranean. Formidable makes the entire passage and departs Port Said for Alexandria with an escort of two destroyers (HMS Juno and Griffin).

The Germans are famous for their Wolf Pack attacks, but a little-known fact from the war is that the British occasionally try the tactic, too. Today, four Royal Navy submarines (HMS Unique, Upholder, Upright and Utmost) position themselves astride the convoy route between Palermo and Tripoli about 50 km from Tripolitania in the Gulf of Hammamet. HMS Utmost spots a convoy and attacks, torpedoing and sinking 5683-ton Italian freighter Capo Vita. Another freighter, 6476-ton Caffaro, has mechanical issues and must return to Trapani.

Another Italian convoy of four freighters (Ankara, Kybfels, Marburg, and Reichenfels) makes port in Tripoli without incident.

A British troop convoy departs from Alexandria bound for Piraeus. The British soldiers are carried on Royal Navy cruisers HMS Bonaventure, Gloucester, and York.

Convoy GA-2 departs from Piraeus bound for Alexandria.

Vichy French submarine depot ship Jules Verne, escorted by destroyers Albatros and Tempete, passes through the Straits of Gibraltar without British interference.

In Malta, the first Luftwaffe attack is at 06:27. Four Bf 110s escort a lone bomber across the coast at wavetop level, evading the island's radar. They come in so low that one of the Bf 110s hits a ridge and crashes. The remaining planes strafe Ta Qali airfield, destroying a Hawker Hurricane and damaging two others. About two hours later, a single Junkers Ju 88 bomber drops bombs on the Grand Harbour area. Late in the afternoon, at 18:08, another lone Ju 88 drops four bombs near St. Clements Bastion. The first attack continues the Luftwaffe's gradual destruction of the defending RAF fighter forces which is becoming a real problem.

Spy Stuff: At around this time, the Japanese begin coordinating their spying efforts within the United States. Spying is to be done both by official Japanese government officials, such as embassy personnel and by ethnic Japanese with or without American citizenship. A meeting is held at the Japanese Embassy in which it is decided to request $500,000 to purse these spying activities. The Nichibei Kogyo Kaisha propaganda/espionage organization in Los Angeles is reorganized as the Nichibei Kinema Company, Inc., and it is suspected by the US government as acting as a front for other suspect organizations and firms. A spy ring in San Diego, a major naval port, also is organized around this time.

Superman Sunday No. 71, 9 March 1941.

Dutch/Bulgarian Relations: The Dutch government breaks diplomatic relations with Bulgaria.

US Military: A flotilla led by heavy cruiser USS Chicago (CA-29) under the command of Rear Admiral John H. Newton, Commander Cruisers Scouting Force) arrives in Samoa. This is their original destination, but that may change. For now, the ships will anchor as the military authorities contemplate their next move.

China: The Western Hupei Operation continues. The Japanese 11th Army's 13th Infantry Division captures Kaolingpo. The Chinese defenders continue withdrawing toward Chunking.

Holocaust: The German Occupation authorities begin deporting the Jews of Oswiecim to Chrzanow in southern Poland. Oswiecim is the home to the Auschwitz concentration camp, and also is the location of synthetic oil and other plants which are to make use of slave labor.

French Homefront: The Vichy government continues restricting the freedom of Jewish citizens. It now requires government authorization before Jews can sell or rent their companies. The Germans have noticed that many Jews who wish to flee the Continent are apt to "rent" their companies to Gentiles for the duration of the conflict while they escape to England or the United States.

British Homefront: Labour Secretary Ernest Bevin gives a speech directed at women civilians. He appeals for:

1. 100,000 women to volunteer to work at munitions factories
2. 50,000 former skilled shipbuilding workers (men) who have retired to return to their old jobs
3. businessmen and others in non-essential jobs to take on unskilled positions in shipyards.

The New York Herald Tribune on 10 March 1941 refers to this as a "triple-barreled appeal. He adds:

I have to tell the women that I cannot offer them a delightful life. They will have to suffer some inconvenience. But I want them to come forward in the spirit of determination to help us through.

To assist women in taking on these tasks, the government expands day nurseries and prepares a register of "minders."

Capitol Homes, public housing project, Atlanta, Georgia, March 9, 1941. Atlanta Journal-Constitution Photographs.

American Homefront: Ernesto Arturo Miranda is born in Mesa, Arizona. He quickly becomes a petty criminal, and by the 1960s is a hardened criminal who has been in and out of jail. On 13 March 1963, Miranda is arrested on suspicion of kidnapping and rape by the Phoenix Police Department. After participating in a police lineup, Miranda gives a confession for the crimes. However, the confession is obtained without informing Miranda of his constitutional rights against self-incrimination and to have an attorney present. The victim also identifies Miranda as her attacker. Miranda then writes down a confession.

A public defender, Alvin Moore, defends Miranda. The confession is used as evidence, to which Moore objects. The court overrules Moore and allows the confession as evidence. The jury convicts Miranda of rape and kidnapping, and the court sentences him to 20-30 years. Moore then hands to the case off to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which submits a petition for certiorari (appeal) to the United States Supreme Court.

In Miranda v. Arizona, the US Supreme Court holds that:

The person in custody must, prior to interrogation, be clearly informed that he has the right to remain silent, and that anything he says will be used against him in court; he must be clearly informed that he has the right to consult with a lawyer and to have the lawyer with him during interrogation, and that, if he is indigent, a lawyer will be appointed to represent him.

This warning to persons in custody becomes known as the "Miranda Warning." Generally, the Miranda Warning is:

You have the right to remain silent. If you give up the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney and to have an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided to you at no cost. During any questioning, you may decide at any time to exercise these rights, not answer any questions or make any statements. Do you understand these rights as I have read them to you?

The Supreme Court sets aside Miranda's conviction due to its tainting by an unconstitutionally derived confession. However, the state of Arizona retries Miranda without using the confession, but he is convicted on other evidence. He once again is sentenced to 20-30 years in prison. Paroled after only a few years, Miranda makes a living selling autographed Miranda warning cards, and on 31 January 1976 perishes in a knife fight in a bar.

Galatasaray-Fenerbahçe match in Turkey, 9 March 1941. The two teams have a fierce rivalry, representing parts of Istanbul on different sides of the strait that divides the city. Fenerbahçe wins, 2-0. It is the 87th meeting between the two teams (the rivalry currently approaches 400 games, and the most recent game in November 2016 also was won by Fenerbahçe 2-0).

March 1941

March 1, 1941: Rettungsboje
March 2, 1941: Oath of Kufra
March 3, 1941: Germans in Bulgaria
March 4, 1941: Lofoten Islands Raid
March 5, 1941: Cooperation With Japan
March 6, 1941: Battle of Atlantic
March 7, 1941: Prien Goes Under
March 8, 1941: Cafe de Paris
March 9, 1941: Italian Spring Offensive
March 10, 1941: Humanitarian Aid
March 11, 1941: Lend Lease Become Law
March 12, 1941: A New Magna Carta
March 13, 1941: Clydeside Wrecked
March 14, 1941: Leeds Blitz
March 15, 1941: Cruisers Strike!
March 16, 1941: Kretschmer Attacks
March 17, 1941: Happy Time Ends
March 18, 1941: Woolton Pie
March 19, 1941: London Hit Hard
March 20, 1941: Romeo and Juliet
March 21, 1941: Plymouth Blitz
March 22, 1941: Grand Coulee Dam
March 23, 1941: Malta Under Siege
March 24, 1941: Afrika Korps Strikes!
March 25, 1941: Yugoslavia Joins The Party
March 26, 1941: Barchini Esplosivi
March 27, 1941: Belgrade Coup
March 28, 1941: Cape Matapan Battle
March 29, 1941: Lindbergh Rants
March 30, 1941: Commissar Order
March 31, 1941: Cookie Bombs

2020

Friday 7 March 1941

U-47 (Photo courtesy of Vladimir Tarnovski).

Italian/Greek Campaign: Limited Greek offensive operations continue on 7 March 1941 at the center of the line, west of Klisura Pass in the Senteli Mountains, by II Corps (1st, 5th, 11th, 15th, and 17th Divisions). The Italians are building up their forces for a major effort in the same effort, so the Greeks make little progress.

South African leader Jan Smuts is in Cairo consulting with British Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell, Foreign Minister Anthony Eden and CIGS John Dill. He okays the use of his country's troops wherever they are needed, which at the moment is Greece. Smuts sends a telegram to Whitehall expressing his agreement to the use of South African troops there.

The flow of British troops from Suda Bay, Crete and Alexandria to Piraeus (Athens) continues. Today, cruisers HMS Bonaventure, Gloucester and York arrive and disembark the troops they are carrying. Slower freighters also arrive carrying their equipment. These troops for Operation Lustre include parts of the British 1st Armoured Division.

New Zealand General Bernard Freyberg arrives in Athens. He is slated to command a major part of the British force.

March 7, 1941, Lynn, Massachusetts Daily Evening Item.

East African Campaign: The British continue advancing toward Mogadishu along the main road in Italian Somaliland. Supply difficulties are slowing them more than scattered Italian opposition.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe continues its lone-raider operations during the day, dropping scattered bombs hither and thither. The British claim to down two bombers, one by convoy escort HMS Guillemot. RAF Coastal Command attacks Den Helder and shipping off the Dutch coast. RAF Bomber Command is inactive.

Günther Prien. Despite being a committed member of the NSDAP, his reputation survived the war largely intact due to his daring exploits.

Battle of the Atlantic: It is an extremely busy day in the Battle of the Atlantic. However, one event stands out above all the others.

Günther Prien is one of the top U-boat aces, having received news of his promotion to Korvettenkapitän as of 1 March 1941 (though technically he remains a Kapitänleutnant at this time, the promotion becoming effective posthumously). Prien has to date been mentioned in the official military communiques (Wehrmachtbericht) seven times (with another to come). Each mention on the nightly news is one of the highest honors of the Third Reich, equivalent to receiving a top medal.

Prien also became the 5th recipient of the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-47 (on 20 October 1940). Throughout his career (including today), Prien has sunk 30 merchantmen of 162,769 tons, sunk a warship of 29,150 tons (Royal Navy battleship HMS Royal Oak at Scapa Flow in 1939), and damaged eight other merchantmen of 62,751 tons along with a warship of 10,035 tons. Günther Prien is a commander of great daring and an asset to the U-boat command.

Today, Prien sights Convoy OB-293 and vectors in a Wolf Pack (the other U-boats involved are U-70, U-99, and U-A). Prien's U-47 damages 20,638-ton British whaling factory ship Terje Viken (reputedly the world's largest before the war, currently serving as a tanker). U-70 (Kptlt. Joachim Matz) also fires three torpedoes at it, but misses. Before U-70 can fire a fourth, U-99 (Otto Kretschmer) then torpedoes and disables the Terje Viken, turning it into a flaming wreck. The whaling ship's crew abandons ship and survives. The abandoned derelict remains afloat for a while, but finally is sunk by the Royal Navy escorts as a hazard to navigation.

Afterward, U-47 disappears. Since none of the 45 men on board ever is heard from again, it is unknown what happened to U-47. One theory is that U-47 is destroyed or seriously damaged by attacks from convoy escorts HMS Wolverine and Verity, two of four destroyers in the vicinity. In any event, the warships do see what is believed to be the U-boat rise almost to the surface, then explode in an orange fireball. However, recent scholarship has called the identity of this U-boat into question, and it may not have been U-47 at all that the British saw explode. In fact, some wild conspiracy theories posit that Prien survived the patrol, but was arrested for subversion upon his return to port - but that has been completely disproven (among other things, Prien was a solid member of the NSDAP, but there are many other reasons this theory is not widely believed).

Of all the U-boat commanders, it is fair to say that Prien's memory has been the most long-lasting within the German military. His name has been considered for several major weapons systems, and his life has been celebrated in various media forms such as film and books. His death also is the first of three top U-boat commanders in the next ten days which are extremely damaging to the fleet and show how thin the "bench" of ace commanders is. This lack of depth is an endemic problem within all branches of the German military, as top Luftwaffe aces and tank commanders also are extremely difficult to replace when lost.

The German authorities soon realize that U-47 is missing and presumed lost. However, the Propaganda Ministry decides to keep the news from the public. The British also realize that Prien is missing - they have excellent spies - and turn Prien's loss and the German decision to keep it hidden into a propaganda coup. The RAF will drop leaflets over Germany asking "Wo ist Prien?" (Where is Prien), stirring wild speculation about his fate throughout the Reich.

HMS Camellia (K-31). It is one of the escorts of OB 293 and claims credit, along with sister ship HMS Arbutus, for sinking U-70 (though that claim is much disputed).

The other U-boats in the Wolf Pack also make attacks and suffer as well. U-70, on its first patrol, has a big day, and not in a particularly good way. First, at 04:30, it torpedoes and sinks 6570-ton British tanker Athelbeach. Seven crew perish So far, so good for U-70 (Some sources assign this sinking to U-99, but the U-70 crew claimed credit as set forth in its interrogation report).

Then, at 04:50, U-70 torpedoes 6423-ton British freighter Delilian. The crew abandons ship, but later returns and manages to restart the engines and make port.

U-70 then, at 06:25, torpedoes 7493-ton Dutch tanker Mijdrecht. The Mijdrecht has made the "mistake" of stopping to pick up survivors of the Delilian, but the ship remains maneuverable. The captain of the Delilian spots the U-boat's periscope and reacts immediately. He turns the ship and rams U-70. This causes the U-boat to surface, and the Mijdrecht uses one of its guns to hit U-70's conning tower (the U-boat's crew denies this, but it is a minor point). U-70's crew then abandons ship, and U-70 sinks. Mijdrecht, meanwhile, manages to make port, a rare instance when a merchant ship sinks a U-boat and survives rather than the other way around.

U-A also is present, but it does not make a successful attack. During the aftermath, U-A is damaged by HMS Wolverine but survives.

Elsewhere, U-37 (Kptlt. Asmus Nicolai Clausen), on its final patrol out of Lorient (it is to become a training boat), is sailing south of Iceland. It spots the 3050-ton Greek freighter Mentor. There are seven deaths.

Far to the south, there also are dramatic developments in the Battle of the Atlantic. Commanding Operation Berlin with heavy cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst, Admiral Lütjens has been waiting for several days on the Cape Town-Gibraltar convoy route northwest of Cape Verde. Today at 09:20, his lookouts spot a convoy (SL-67). However, as in an earlier instance, among the escorts is a battleship, HMS Malaya. Lütjens is under strict orders to avoid combat with capital ships. However, in this area of the ocean, Lütjens now has another card to play. He radios U-boat command (BdU) in Lorient to vector in any U-boats nearby. Two U-boats arrive and attack the convoy during the night of 7-8 March (early on the 8th) and sink 28,488 tons of shipping.

Malaya, meanwhile, also spots the two German cruisers and steams toward them. The Malaya closes to within extreme firing range, about 24,000 meters, but Lütjens decides to obey his orders and heads west out into the Atlantic.

In the English channel, the German 1st MTB Flotilla sorties against Convoys FN 426 and FS 429 off Yarmouth. This is one of many short, sharp and largely forgotten actions by German E-boats against the local British convoys. In all, five British ships sink on the 7th, and two more just after midnight.

S-29 damages 1385-ton British freighter Dotterel. The captain beaches the ship, which is written off. There are eight deaths among the crew. In addition, three men of patrol boat HMS Sheldrake attempt to board the ship, but perish in the attempt, including the commander, Lt. Commander WC Checucci. There are 19 survivors.

S-31 sinks 1047-ton British freighter Kenton. There are four deaths.

S-28 sinks 2345-ton British freighter Corduff. There are seven deaths, two men become POWs, and 14 are rescued by the British.

S-61 sinks 4805-ton British freighter Boulderpool. Everyone survives.

S-27 sinks 1048-ton British freighter Rye. All 22 men on board perish.

Just after midnight, in the opening minutes of the 8th, two more ships go down.

S-102 sinks 1547-British freighter Togston. There are 8 deaths.

S-102 also sinks 957-ton British freighter Norman Queen. There are 14 deaths, one man survives as a POW.

The Luftwaffe also is active during the day. It attacks and sinks 934-ton British freighter Flashlight in the North Sea off Hull. Everyone survives.

Belgian 483-ton freighter Adolphe Urban disappears without a trace after passing Mumbles Light, off Glamorgan. A lifeboat eventually washes ashore at Kilrush, Ireland on 26 March.

Royal Navy motor torpedo boat MTB 28 has a fire and is lost at Portsmouth.

British battleship Bismarck enters the Kiel Canal on its journey east.

Convoy OG 55 departs from Liverpool.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Splendid is laid down.

U-412 is laid down.

Some victims of the Adolphe Urban, as memorialized at Tower Hill.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The RAF attacks Tripoli, including its airfields and harbor. The Afrika Korps continues digging its defensive line west of El Agheila.

Convoy AN 18, a troop convoy, departs from Alexandria bound for Piraeus, while Convoy GA 1 1/2 departs from Piraeus.

The Luftwaffe bombs Malta during the day and after dark, damaging the dockyard area and some ships. British 11,063 transport Essex is damaged (again), and destroyer HMS Imperial is hit by splinters. Fighters of 7,/JG 26 are achieving dominance over the island, and they strafe the harbor and damage a Sunderland flying boat. Island Governor Lt. General Dobbie cables the Chief of the Air Staff and warns that he needs RAF fighters if the island is to remain useful to the Royal Navy.

"Short Sunderland Mark I, L2164 'DQ-M', of No. 228 Squadron RAF, on fire in St Paul's Bay, Malta after being hit for a second time by Messerschmitt Bf 109s of 7/JG26. L2164, already damaged from the previous attack on 7 March 1941, ultimately sank after efforts to tow her ashore failed." © IWM (MH 8043).

US Military: USS Wasp (CV-7, Captain Reeves) is sailing in the notoriously stormy seas off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina when it comes across a sinking merchantman. It is a US lumber schooner, George E. Klinck. Reeves pulls off a rescue of great daring, saving the crew in this "graveyard of ships."

The Seventh Defense Battalion of the Fleet Marine Force arrives at Pago Pago, Samoa. They are aboard transport USS William P. Biddle. This is the US Marines' first deployment south of the Equator during the conflict.

British Government: Minister of Labour Ernest Bevin is given powers to classify any business as constituting essential war production. Once so classified, a business has special restrictions imposed on its employees: the workers cannot leave or be fired without authorization from the ministry. The rationale is to prevent turnover and keep skilled workers where they are. On the flip side, such "essential" workers are guaranteed a minimum wage and other protections. However, again on the flip side, workers who are not punctual or miss a lot of work can be punished.

Bevin immediately classifies aircraft, building, shipbuilding, engineering, railways, docks, and mines as "essential." This order appears unrelated to an ongoing strike at the John Brown shipbuilding firm at Clydeside, as Bevin has been concerned about labor developments in the shipyards throughout the war to date. This gives the British government - and Bevin in particular - massive power over labor conditions in major portions of the British economy. Many workers resent this and carry those feelings over to the 1945 elections.

China: The Japanese Western Hupei Operation continues making progress. The 13th Infantry Division of the 11th Army has a bridgehead on the southern/western bank of the Yangtze River. It breaks out and takes Wuchiapa, Hsiawulungkou, and Chienchiatai. The objective is to clear the river valley and push the defending Chinese (Kuomintang) forces back toward Chunking.

Holocaust: German Jews are pressed into forced labor.

American Homefront: It is spring training in the US baseball leagues. A recent issue in the sport has been the protection of batters' heads from pitches. Two Brooklyn Dodgers, Pee Wee Reese, and Joe Medwick try out batting helmets during a special exhibition game in Havana, Cuba against the Cleveland Indians. They have no issues using the helmets, which later become standard equipment.

St. Paul's Cathedral, London, taken 7 March 1941 (PA).

March 1941

March 1, 1941: Rettungsboje
March 2, 1941: Oath of Kufra
March 3, 1941: Germans in Bulgaria
March 4, 1941: Lofoten Islands Raid
March 5, 1941: Cooperation With Japan
March 6, 1941: Battle of Atlantic
March 7, 1941: Prien Goes Under
March 8, 1941: Cafe de Paris
March 9, 1941: Italian Spring Offensive
March 10, 1941: Humanitarian Aid
March 11, 1941: Lend Lease Become Law
March 12, 1941: A New Magna Carta
March 13, 1941: Clydeside Wrecked
March 14, 1941: Leeds Blitz
March 15, 1941: Cruisers Strike!
March 16, 1941: Kretschmer Attacks
March 17, 1941: Happy Time Ends
March 18, 1941: Woolton Pie
March 19, 1941: London Hit Hard
March 20, 1941: Romeo and Juliet
March 21, 1941: Plymouth Blitz
March 22, 1941: Grand Coulee Dam
March 23, 1941: Malta Under Siege
March 24, 1941: Afrika Korps Strikes!
March 25, 1941: Yugoslavia Joins The Party
March 26, 1941: Barchini Esplosivi
March 27, 1941: Belgrade Coup
March 28, 1941: Cape Matapan Battle
March 29, 1941: Lindbergh Rants
March 30, 1941: Commissar Order
March 31, 1941: Cookie Bombs

2020

Monday 13 May 1940

The SS crosses the Meuse near Mook on 13 May 1940.

Western Front: It is a good day for German Generals who lead from the front.

On the morning of 13 May 1940, General Erwin Rommel's 7th "Ghost" Panzer Division is the first Wehrmacht unit across the Meuse near Dinant. He personally finds a weir and lock gate across the river that his troops can use to establish a bridgehead, and sends over motorcycle troops. His troops spend the rest of the day slowly expanding the bridgehead against scattered French opposition. Taking the broadest view, Rommel's troops threaten to separate the BEF from France if they eventually reach the coast at Abbeville.

The other German formations further south are also across during the day. Generals Guderian and Reinhardt make crossings at Sedan and Monthermé, respectively. Guderian's crossing by XIX Corps includes portions of 1st Panzer Division, 2nd Panzer Division, 10th Panzer Division, and (SS) Infantry Regiment Großdeutschland. This part of Panzer Group Kleist's breakout threatens a penetration into good tank country in the French heartland and is a serious breach of the Allied line. Guderian's men take a more traditional approach than Rommel's, with their initial crossing in rubber boats. There are still some French holdouts in Sedan, but many are beginning to surrender as the Luftwaffe launches mass raids at them (1000 bombers, including Stukas, engage in hours of bombing). Guderian is the first General firmly on French territory, and he gains the nickname "Fast Heinz."

This is true Blitzkrieg stuff, with the Stukas blasting holes through the French lines for the German troops to capitalize on. All of the German bridgeheads quickly put up pontoon bridges by evening. Tanks are able to cross and help expand the slender German footholds. French General Huntzinger has brave words about the penetrations: "That will just mean we take more prisoners."

However, the nearby French troops are not nearly as sanguine. The French troops begin to panic - in fact, the situation is known as the "Panic of Bulson" due to French troops fleeing a portion of the line on Bulson ridge 10 km (6.2 miles) behind the river. Any French chance to pierce the German bridgehead or even contain it is lost within the opening hours due to this panic and slow reflexes by the Supreme Allied Headquarters.

Northeast of Namur, Belgium, the French 2nd and 3rd Light Mechanized Divisions fight the 3rd and 4th Panzer Divisions of the German XVI Corps of the 6th Army. There is fierce fighting with many destroyed tanks throughout the day. The French tanks line up in a long line to cover the Gembloux gap, a strategy that fails. The Germans prevail through sheer numbers. While many German tanks are disabled, the Wehrmacht retains possession of the battlefield and many of them can be repaired; the French, however, incur staggering tank losses (roughly 105 tanks lost), with all complete write-offs. The French retreat to a defensive position at Gembloux.

The Germans take Liege.

German ground troops link with the paratroopers holding the bridges at Moerdijk, a rare success for the airborne troops. The 9th Panzer Division of 18th Army breaks into "Fortress Holland" and is approaching Rotterdam from the south. The 22nd Flieger Division holds key bridges in the city. The Germans are approaching the Nieuwe Maas River.

At the Afsluitdijk in the far north, German troops advance after 62 Luftwaffe planes bomb Fort Kornwerderzand, losing four of their number. The assault fails completely, with heavy German casualties.

At Grebbeberg, the Germans shift their axis of attack to the north of the main hill. The Dutch are hampered by the withdrawal of support aircraft to fight the German penetrations across the Meuse to the south. Attacking first, the Dutch make some gains, but the Germans begin their own preparatory bombardment for an attack, and this, combined with rampant confusion and much friendly fire, destroys the Dutch attack. The Germans seize upon the confusion, mount attacks all along the line, and in the end, the entire Dutch line falls. In the process, Obersturmbannführer (Lieutenant Colonel) Hilmar Wäckerle and his battalion of the SS brigade, who had impetuously advanced through the Dutch lines on the 12th and then been surrounded in a factory, are relieved.

The Allies, ensconced on the Dyle Line, have taken some prisoners. Some 900 German POWs are transported to Britain aboard Dutch ship Phrontis.

The BEF receives reinforcements, as the British 2nd Battalion of Irish Guards Regiment arrives at Hook of Holland.

Rommel's troops cross the Meuse. That building in the background is still there. You can recognize that it is near Dinant by the steep bluffs.

European Air Operations: New French fighters appear over the front. Dewoitine D-520 fighters, which match any other fighters in the world, engage Bf 109s over the Meuse front and have a great debut, destroying four Luftwaffe planes without loss to themselves.

RAF bomber command switches to tactical missions, attacking bridges and roads around the German breakouts near Maastricht and Eindhoven.

Battle of the Atlantic: German raider Widder continues its journey along the Norwegian coast. British submarine HMS Clyde spots Widder but is unable to damage it.

Dutch submarines HNLMS O-23 (P-23) ( Lt. Commander Gerard Koudijs) and HNLMS O-24 (P-24) (Lt. Commander Gerardus B. M. van Erkel) are commissioned.

Norway: It is twilight throughout the night in Narvik. The Allies advance on Narvik from Harstad. Norwegian 6th Infantry Brigade leads the assault on Narvik. The Wehrmacht troops in Narvik are heavily outnumbered, one regiment facing several divisions, but are well-led and have advantages of terrain.

British cruisers HMS Aurora and HMS Effingham bombard Bjerkvik early in the morning. At 01:00, the French land the Foreign Legion and light tanks at Bjerkvik and Øyjord (13th Demi-Brigade Legion Etranger). This position can be used for landings across the Rombaksfjord, and also offers the chance to cut the main Narvik rail line to Sweden. The French take 36 casualties, and the local citizens also suffer.

British No. 2 Independent Company arrives in Bodo.

British Government: While introducing his new war cabinet in a radio broadcast, Winston Churchill fires off one of his best lines: "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat." The aim is:

Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be, for without victory, there is no survival.

His new Minister of Labour and National Service is Ernest Bevin, appropriately a Labour politician in Churchill's coalition government.

War Crimes: The Battle of Grebbeberg is fiercely fought, and there have been potential war crimes on both sides. Obersturmbannführer Wäckerle, in a desperate situation (he could not foresee the fall of the Dutch defenses so quickly), uses Dutch prisoners as human shields to break out. He also orders his men to don Dutch uniforms - though they forget to put on Dutch boots, which gives them away. The real Dutch units recognize the deception and fire on the escaping SS men, whose breakout fails. Wäckerle himself is badly wounded and evacuated once his troops are rescued.

Holland: Several members of the royal family, including Queen Wilhelmina (aboard HMS Hereward), and part of the Dutch government (HMS Windsor) arrive in London.

Canada: Robert Manion, whose leadership of the Conservative Party has been disastrous and who even was defeated in his own seat, formally resigns as leader of the party.

British Homefront: The British government interns all Germans and Austrians in England as possible saboteurs.

China: US gunboat USS Tutuila (PR 4), stranded on a reef in the Yangtze River near Chungking, escapes from its predicament.

May 1940

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

2019