Friday 14 June 1940

Western Front: With the French retreating in disarray and many Parisians heading south, the Wehrmacht on 14 June 1940 walks into a quiet Paris. There are only 700,000 inhabitants left in a city of 5 million.

French General Aubert Frere follows orders and pulls his French 7th Army out of Paris. Since the city is not defended, all of its businesses - such as the Renault tank factory at Billancourt and Schneider-Creusot armament works - are intact and ready to churn out weapons for the German conquerors. General Henri Dentz surrenders Paris at the Hotel Crillon.

The Germans stage victory parades with Major General Bogislav von Studnitz's 87th Infantry Division of the 18th Army at the Place de la Concorde and at the Arc de Triomphe. General von Bock of Army Group B reviews the parades, which glide through silent streets. As a fine point, the Wehrmacht men do not march under the arch, but around it.

Elsewhere, the war continues. Hitler, chafing at his Wolfsschlucht headquarters, issues Fuhrer Directive No. 15. Noting the "collapse" of the Allied front, he sets two objectives:

1. Prevent the formation of a new Allied front in the south; and
2. Destroy the Maginot Line.

To accomplish these objectives, Hitler orders quick seizure of the naval bases on the Atlantic coast (to avoid another Dunkirk) and attacks by the Saarbrucken Shock Group against the Maginot Line. Basically, he is implicitly revoking his previous Directive which anticipated a strong French defense of Paris - the shock at the absence of which the text of the Directive conveys between each line.

The Wehrmacht's Army Group C (von Leeb) sends its 24 divisions against the Maginot Line. The attack is led by the 7th Army against the French 8th Army and has mixed success, scoring some advances in some areas. German 1st Army (Erwin von Witzleben) breaks through at Saarbrücken. To support those attacks, Panzer Group Guderian and other troops swing east to encircle the French positions.

The German spearheads approach Romilly and St. Dizier to the east of Paris.

The 1st Panzer Division reaches Chaumont. German 12th Army is in a position to surround the French 2nd Army Group.

British Prime Minister Churchill, still reeling from the French decision to go it alone on 13 June 1940, telephones Sir Alan Brooke, commander of the BEF, and orders the evacuation of all British personnel from France. Brooke, who has only just arrived, heartily endorses the decision. For its part, French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud's government leaves General Weygand's headquarters at Briare for Bordeaux.

Contrary to virtually every other source you will find, this extremely famous photo was not taken in Paris on 14 June 1940. In fact, it was taken in Marseilles in September 1940 during a French military parade prior to sending the French battle flags to North Africa. I include it here just to make note of that - and also because the photo aptly summarizes French feelings of 14 June, even if it wasn't actually taken then. Incidentally, his name was Monsieur Jerôme Barzetti, and it appeared in Life Magazine in its 3 March 1941 issue. The photographer was W. Eugene Smith, a Life Magazine staff photographer who used a 35 mm camera, which was somewhat unusual in those days for professional photographers.

European Air Operations: The RAF attacks German ammunition dumps in the St. Michel area, the Boulogne docks, and Dunkirk Flushing and Ostend. It also sends 29 aircraft against the Ruhr during the night.

The French air force attacks oil storage facilities in the Venice region. They are scrupulously careful not to bomb the historic islands of Venice.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-101 (Kapitänleutnant Fritz Frauenheim) spots 3,557-ton Greek freighter Antonis Georgandis northwest of Cape Finisterre, Spain. The U-boat surfaces and forces the crew to disembark, and then sinks the Greek ship by gunfire using its deck gun.

U-38 (Kapitänleutnant Heinrich Liebe) spots 5,403 ton Greek freighter Mount Myrto south of Ireland. It also surfaces and attacks the Greek ship with gunfire, but when that proves ineffective, sinks it with a torpedo. There are 24 survivors and 4 crew perish.

U-47 (Kapitänleutnant Günther Prien) torpedoes and sinks 5,834-ton British freighter Balmoralwood about 70 miles southwest of Cape Clear. All 41 aboard survive and are picked up by British freighter Germanic. The Balmoralwood is a straggler from convoy HX-47 and, among other things, was transporting four aircraft to England.

German raider Widder sinks British tanker British Petrol in the north Atlantic.

US destroyer USS Gleaves (DD 423, Lt. Commander Edward H. Pierce) is commissioned.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Three fast Italian destroyers (Turbine, Nembo, and Aquilone) shell Sollum, Egypt.

French warships of the 3rd Squadron (cruisers Foch, Algerie, Dupleix, Colbert and 11 destroyers) bombard oil storage tanks on the Italian Coast in the Genoa/Vado region. Nine civilians perish. French light cruiser Albatross is damaged by Italian coastal fire, with 12 crew perishing.

North Africa: The British 7th Hussars, a company of the Kings Royal Rifle Corps and the Royal Engineers, all led by Lt. Colonel G. Fielden of the 7th Hussars, attack and capture Italian Fort Capruzzo and Maddalena on the Libyan border. The Italians put up little resistance, and 16 Italian officers and 200 other soldiers become POWs.

About 3000 Spanish Moroccan troops occupy Tangiers, heretofore an "International Zone" condominium under joint Spanish, French and British administration. Franco is counting on his "partners" being distracted by larger events, such as the fall of Paris, and he is correct. True to his nature, however, Franco does not actually annex the territory as many in his government urge but instead announces that this is only a temporary wartime measure.

The Regia Aeronautica attacks Sollum in Egypt and Berbera in British Somaliland.

The first dogfight between Italian and RAF fighters takes place over North Africa.

Norway: The German 2nd Mountain Division has been dutifully marching north to relieve General Dietl's 3rd Mountain Division at Narvik. Today, they link up. The event, of course, is of little consequence due to the Allied evacuation. The two divisions now form Mountain Korps Norway under the command of Dietl, who has become one of Hitler's favorite Generals due to his deft handling of his troops when the outlook was very dark.

The German troops marched around the Arc de Triomphe, not under it (Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-126-0347-09A).

Soviet/Lithuanian Relations: Stalin, like Franco, sees a golden opportunity to clean out his inventory of invasions while the western powers are otherwise occupied. His overall objective is to restore the pre-1918 Tsarist borders, which included both Estonia and Lithuania.

Accordingly, the Soviets decide to issue an ultimatum to Lithuania. It demands unrestricted access to the country by the Red Army, with the proviso that these troops would form a pro-Soviet government. This is done pursuant to the "secret protocols" of the Ribbentrop/Molotov Pact of 23 August 1939.

The president of Lithuania, Antanas Smetona, proposes to stand and fight. However, the rest of the government has a somewhat more realistic view of the situation and decides to capitulate, so Smetona goes into exile rather than be used to legitimate the takeover.

As part of its emphasis that "Stalin means business," two Soviet DB-3T torpedo bombers shoot down a French-owned Junkers Ju 52 "Kaleva" being used on a Finnish route from Tallinn to Helsinki. All 9 onboard perish. The French government does not lodge any diplomatic protest due to its tenuous military situation. Soviet submarine Щ-301 surfaces and does not rescue anyone, but does fish French diplomatic mail out of the wreckage.

French/US Relations: French Prime Minister Reynaud sends another appeal to President Roosevelt for assistance, pleading that he "throw the weight of American strength into the scales." Roosevelt, however, has no authority or ability - while it would still count - to do any such thing.

French Military: General de Gaulle departs for London.

US Navy: President Roosevelt signs the 11% Naval Expansion Act. Once fully implemented, this will increase the naval tonnage of aircraft carriers, cruisers, and submarines by 187,000 and auxiliary shipping by 75,000 tons. It also will increase naval aircraft by 4,500 planes.

Spies: French and Polish codebreakers, who have been working on cracking the Wehrmacht's Enigma codes, flee south toward Toulouse with their Enigma machines.

Holocaust: Initial shipments of inmates (after those who actually built the camps) arrive at Auschwitz and Theresienstadt in occupied Poland: 728 Poles are marched through Tarnow to Auschwitz.

Cyprus: The company begins forming its Cyprus Volunteer Force.

China: The Japanese are continuing their aerial assault on Chiang Kai-shek's capital of Chungking. They advise the British, American, Russian and German diplomatic communities to seek safer quarters.

The Wehrmacht turned a blind eye to fraternization in Paris, as evidenced by this photograph outside of a prehistoric ancestor of Starbucks. The Germans found that it was a good stop for a first date.

French Homefront: The final broadcast of French radio before the occupation is a recording of French National Anthem, La Marseillaise.

The French operators of the Eiffel Tower cut the elevator cables. Wehrmacht troops climb 900+ steps to hang the Swastika flag.

The German occupation forces settle comfortably into Paris immediately. Overall, the Wehrmacht does not discourage fraternization with the locals, many of whom reciprocate.

The Wehrmacht sets up headquarters at the finest hotels in St. Germain and elsewhere, including most notoriously the Hotel Ritz. The draw up a "Parisian campaign map" that shows the best cafes, restaurants and other assorted amusements.

On the whole, the occupation troops act with restraint. However, inevitably there are instances of troops acting with cruelty, taking without paying, and the like. Troops accustomed to rough life in the field are somewhat over-awed with the varied decadent opportunities in Paris and often lose the edge off their military discipline.

The Wehrmacht imposes a 20:00 curfew in Paris using loudspeakers on trucks.

American Homefront: MGM releases "The Mortal Storm," a James Stewart/ Margaret Sullavan drama that is distinguished by being overtly anti-German (though in an abstract fashion that does not name any actual German politicians and so forth). This film directly leads to a ban of MGM films in Germany - though Adolf Hitler continued to snag copies for his own private viewing pleasure. As such, the release of "The Mortal Storm" is a very rare pre-war instance of an American company willingly abandoning the lucrative German market.

The flow of refugees continues. Here, a tandem bicycle carries a whole Belgian family of four with their possessions strapped to their backs. June 14, 1940 (AP).

June 1940

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

2020

Thursday 13 June 1940

German light infantry mountain troops (Gebirgsjäger) of 6th Company, 2nd Battalion, 137th Regiment in occupied Norway. Pictured (from left to right) are Ranger Franz Hollerweger, Sgt. Kepplinger and Ranger Köhl. Köhl would later be killed in action near the village of Titovka, Murmansk Oblast, Russia, the Soviet Union on 29 June 1941. Narvik, Nordland, Norway. The picture date is 13 June 1940.

Western Front: The Allied Supreme War Council meets on 13 June 1940 for what will turn out to be its last time at Briare near Tours. French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud tells British Prime Minister Churchill that France will have to negotiate a separate peace, contrary to the 28 March 1940 agreement of no separate peace agreements. This is something that Churchill adamantly opposes but can do nothing to prevent. Churchill rather lamely suggests that Reynaud appeal to President Roosevelt, which Reynaud, of course, has been doing all along. Churchill also suggests that resistance can continue in North Africa. Reynaud refuses.

Churchill, Lord Halifax, Lord Beaverbrook and the rest of the British delegation fly back to London. They decide that enough is enough and that another BEF evacuation is necessary. This is the parting of the ways of the British and the current French national government, though everything remains amicable and civil. It is now a question of managing the dissolution of the military alliance. The future of France and its relations with the United Kingdom is extremely uncertain.

German spearheads are crossing the Seine over three bridgeheads. They are attacking towards Pacy-sur-Eure and Evreux. Meanwhile, another dozen German divisions are attacking toward Senlis and Betz. Panzer Group Kleist captures Saint-Dizier and Troyes. The 6th and 8th Panzer Divisions of German 12th Army break through the French 2nd Army line in the vicinity of Bar-le-Duc.

French forces are withdrawing all along the line past Paris, which is an open city, to the Loire. Oil tanks in the suburbs are burning. German troops of the 18th Army are in the suburbs and moving steadily toward the city center. French troops launch a pointless counter-attack at Persan-Beaumont 17 miles north of Paris. It advances 5 miles, but German troops are streaming in the other direction all around it. There are no troops between the Germans and the entire city of Paris, and they are advancing steadily.

22-year-old Scotsman P/O David G. Gorrie standing by his Hurricane Mk I on 13 June 1940, the day after sharing a He 111 with B Flight and 5 days after having moved to No 43 Squadron RAF at RAF Tangmere. He goes on to fight in the Battle of Britain.

Battle of the Atlantic: At dawn in the Arctic (02:43), British carrier Ark Royal launches 15 Skua dive-bombers against the German warships in Trondheim. The British lose eight planes (six dead, 10 POWs), and manage to hit the Scharnhorst with one 500 lb bomb that fails to explode. The surviving aircraft return by 03:45. Kriegsmarine battlecruiser Nurnberg arrives in Trondheim later in the day from Germany.

U-25 (Kapitänleutnant Heinz Beduhn) torpedoes and sinks 17,046-ton armed merchant cruiser Scotstoun (converted Anchor Line passenger ship Caledonia) about 80 miles off of the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. The attack lasts all day, but Scotstoun finally succumbs. Seven crew perish, 345 others are picked up by destroyer HMS Highlander (H 44).

British tanker Inventor hits a mine and sinks in the English Channel.

Escort destroyers HMS Antelope and Electra collide in the fog off Norway and both require extensive repair.

A German seaplane spots two survivors of the HMS Ardent in the water. They somehow have survived since 7 June. After picking them up, one dies from exposure, malnutrition, etc. The other man, able seaman Roger Hooke, is Ardent's only survivor and, in extremely poor condition, is taken as a prisoner.

Convoy OA 167 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 167 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HG 34F departs from Gibraltar, Convoy HX 50 departs from Halifax.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Italian destroyers Baleno and Strale sink Royal Navy submarine Odin. All 56 crew perish.

A French cruiser squadron bombards Genoa during the night.

Battle of the Pacific: German raider Orion lays mines off of Auckland, New Zealand.

European Air Operations: Italy's Regia Aeronautica raids the French naval base at Toulon. It also raids Aden but is driven off with losses, and Malta.

The RAF raids German bridgeheads on the Seine all along the front to the Maginot Line.

The RAF is gradually evacuating its units from France.

North Africa: The British Army captures 52 Italian soldiers during the night, many of whom have no idea that they are at war.

The RAF raids Fort Capruzzo on the Libyan border with Egypt. It also raids Assab in Italian East Africa. South African aircraft chip in with a raid on Kismayo in Italian Somaliland.

The Regia Aeronautica hits British vehicles near the Libyan border in Egypt.

Norway: While the Allies have departed and the Norwegians have surrendered, many areas of the large country remain unoccupied by the Germans. Today, some of General Dietl's 3rd Mountain Division troops quietly occupy Tromso.

13th June 1940: London schoolchildren are evacuated. (Photo by David Savill/Topical Press Agency/Getty Images).

US Military: Rear Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr., relieves Vice Admiral Charles A. Blakely as Commander Aircraft, Battle Force, onboard the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CV 5) at Lahaina Roads, Maui, Territory of Hawaii. Halsey is given the temporary rank of Vice-Admiral.

US Government: President Roosevelt signs a $1.3 billion Navy bill, which is unprecedented in amount. The first shipment of surplus artillery, rifles and other smaller weapons leaves the USA on the SS Eastern Prince. To avoid the Neutrality Laws, the arms are first sold to a steel company, which then re-sells them to the British government.

Holland: The Dutch government-in-exile announces the formation of a Netherlands Legion to be composed of all available domestic and overseas troops.

Spain: Generalissimo Francisco Franco reiterates his policy of non-belligerency, which of course tilts toward Germany. Spain is of vital strategic importance to both sides due to its ability to take Gibraltar and close off the Mediterranean.

China: The Japanese launch a terror raid on Chungking that starts massive fires.

French Homefront: Paris is largely deserted. Jewish citizens, in particular, have been quick to leave, for obvious reasons. There are oddities of a suddenly abandoned major city: for instance, herds of cattle roam the streets, as the men operating the slaughterhouses have left.

British Homefront: The government renews its evacuation plans for schoolchildren since so many returned home over the winter. Plans are to disperse 120,000 kids from London and other large cities in the south such as Dover. All children are required to carry gas masks at all times. Many of the masks have been brightly colored to make them more attractive to children, and they are carried in ubiquitous boxes.

A new law specifies that church bells are to be rung only as a signal of a German invasion.

Members of Parliament ask to be issued sidearms since rumors are flying that they are on German assassination lists. The request is refused.

F/O Frank J Howell of No 609 Squadron RAF. Howell is among the air party that escorted PM Winston Churchill to Briare and Tours on 11 and 13 June for the last meetings of the War Council. Flying Spitfire Mk I PR-H, the 28-year-old pilot noted that in the absence of trolley accumulators on the French airfield, starting up was accomplished with French infantrymen on hand cranks and some assistance from the aircraft batteries. I find it amusing that he also is holding a camera, sort of an assisted selfie.

June 1940

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

2020

Wednesday 12 June 1940

General Rommel surveys the Allied POWs at St.Valery-en-Caux on 12 June 1940.

Western Front: The situation is darkening rapidly for the Allies on 12 June 1940. General Weygand bows to reality and orders a general withdrawal. British General Sir Alan Brooke arrives in Cherbourg to take over the reconstituted BEF.

US Ambassador to France William Bullitt is the last accredited ambassador remaining in Paris, as everyone else - including the French government - has left for points south. Bullitt actually becomes the provisional governor of Paris as he awaits the Wehrmacht.

The Supreme Allied War Council at Briare continues. The French are promising to keep their fleet out of German hands. Otherwise, not much is accomplished, but the lines on the map showing the front continue getting readjusted closer.

General Erwin Rommel's 7th Panzer "Ghost" Division captures the remaining 40,000 or so Allied troops of the 51st (Highland) Division and French IX Corps at St.Valery-en-Caux, north of Le Havre (the British officially admit to losing 6,000 of their soldiers there). The blow to the Allies is greater than at Dunkirk, with no corresponding salve of a propaganda victory. There are RAF patrols over the area that accomplish little. A "small flotilla of ships" in the early morning light takes off about 3000 Allied soldiers, but that is it. It is one of Rommel's greatest if least publicized victories.

German 6th and 9th Armies push ahead across the Marne against ineffective resistance. Panzer Group Guderian takes Chalons-sur-Marne, about 80 miles east of Paris (now an open city). The deficiencies of the hedgehog defense of the Weygand Line are coming into sharp relief, as once the crust is penetrated, there are no mobile reserves to stop the attacking spearheads. The panzers are crossing the Langres plateau in the Champagne sector.

The crew of Char B1 tank No 350 "Fleurie." In the center is Sergeant-Chef Jacques Dumay, KIA June 15, 1940, at Montsuzain. Adjutant Levasseur, also in the picture, was killed on June 12, 1940, at Murmelon.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-101 (Kapitänleutnant Fritz Frauenheim) torpedoes and sinks 5,250-ton British freighter Earlspark off Cape Finisterre, Spain at noon. There are 31 survivors, 7 perish.

U-46 (Oberleutnant zur See Engelbert Endrass) spots Convoy SL-34 and attacks. It torpedoes and sinks 4,223-ton British freighter Barbara Marie off Cape Finisterre at 19:38. There are 5 survivors, 32 perish.

U-46 also torpedoes and sinks 5,041-ton British freighter Willowbank at 19:46. All 51 onboard survive.

The Italian submarine fleet is at sea in the Mediterranean and dangerous. Royal Navy cruiser HMS Calypso is torpedoed and sunk by an Italian submarine off Crete, and Norwegian freighter Orkanger is sunk by a combination of Italian submarines Nereide and Naiade.

French submarine Saphir torpedoes and sinks Italian freighter Alicantino off Sardinia.

Royal Navy cruisers operating off Tobruk sink Italian minesweeper Giovanni Berta.

British transport Baron Saltoun hits a mine and sinks off Cherbourg.

The Royal Navy raids Trondheim, where the Scharnhorst, Gneisenau, and Admiral Hipper are hiding out.

Royal Navy submarines lay mines off Norway.

Korvettenkapitän (Kriegsmarine) Kapitän zur See (Bundesmarine) Herbert Emil Schultze (24 July 1909 – 3 June 1987). Schultze was a U-boat ace, sinking 169,709 gross register tons (GRT) of shipping in eight patrols during the early part of the war. He is in eighth place on the Aces of the Deep list. He received the Knight's Cross on 1 March 1940, and he became the 15th recipient of the Oak Leaves on 12 June 1941 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-48.

European Air Operations: The RAF bombs Genoa, Milan, Venice, and Turin, focusing on Fiat factories. The RAF scrupulously avoids bombing historic portions of Venice.

Regia Aeronautica sends BR.20s against Toulon, Hyères, and Saint-Raphaël, as well as the Corsican communes of Calvi and Bastia and the Tunisian city of Bizerte. French anti-aircraft fire is effective at minimizing damage. The attack on Bizerte destroys French aircraft on the ground.

Italian bombers attack the British base at Aden and at Moyale in Kenya, where the 1st King's African Rifles is based.

North Africa: The British and Italians engage in skirmishes along the Egyptian/Libyan border. The British take 62 Italian prisoners.

A British cruiser squadron bombards Tobruk. The Italian fleet sorties to defend the port, but the British withdraw. The attack is only marginally successful, with Italian cruiser San Giorgio in the harbor surviving the attack.

Egypt breaks diplomatic relations with Italy after pressure from London.

Turkey breaks commercial relations with Italy.

Norway: A final tranche of soldiers sailing from Narvik reaches the Clyde. The French are immediately transshipped to Brest and Lorient in the south of France.

Soviet/Lithuanian Relations: The Soviet government issues an ultimatum to the Lithuanian government, requiring additional territorial concessions and a new government. Ultimatums in this day and age often presage military action.

Soviet/Estonian Relations: The Kremlin orders the Soviet Baltic Fleet to blockade Estonia. This is part of a planned invasion of Estonia and Lithuania.

Applied Science: President Roosevelt meets with Dr. Vannevar Bush of the Carnegie Institute of Washington. Bush proposes the creation of a National Defense Research Committee. Roosevelt takes up the suggestion, which is to be part of the Council of National Defense.

US Government: Pursuant to President Roosevelt's "show the flag" decision, heavy cruiser USS Quincy (CA 39) makes a port visit to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Its next destination is planned to be Montevideo, Uruguay, which is said to be a German hot spot.

The US Navy Department issues contracts for 22 new warships.

Italian Government: The Italian government temporarily bans the Vatican's newspaper, Osservatore Romano, for publishing British and French war communique.

British Government: Sir Stafford Cripps arrives in Moscow as British Ambassador.

Dutch Government: Princess Juliana and daughters Beatrix and Irene arrive in Canada.

Thailand: Britain and France sign non-aggression treaties with Thailand. Thailand also signs a "Treaty of Friendship" with Japan.

China: The Japanese 11th Army captures the port of Ichang, east of Chungking on the Yangtze River.

Melrose Place at Cienega Boulevard on 12 June 1940. That is a Foster and Kleiser billboard for 76 brand gasoline.

June 1940

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

2021

Tuesday 11 June 1940

General Rommel's 7th Panzer Division on the move, 11 June 1940.

Western Front: With German troops approaching Paris on 11 June 1940 and little to stop them, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Foreign Minister Anthony Eden fly to France to confer with French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud and French Commander-in-chief Maxime Weygand at Briare (Weygand's headquarters in Chateau du Muguet). The French demand that the RAF send more fighter squadrons across the Channel; in fact, they ask for the entire Royal Air Force. The French believe this would give the French Army a chance to regain its balance, but the British remain cautious.

Churchill defers to Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding, who refuses to send more squadrons. Churchill renews his vow to defend France, but also strongly hints at his true view of the situation by encouraging the French to begin guerrilla warfare. He pointedly reminds the French of their 28 March 1940 agreement not to make a separate peace.

Churchill's true concern is the French navy, the fourth largest in the world. He wants assurances that it will not fall into German hands. Reynaud is exasperated and refuses to discuss the matter. At some point, French Navy Admiral François Darlan assures Churchill that the fleet will not be surrendered.

There is an air of unreality to the proceedings, almost as if everyone is just going through the motions and disconnected from the awful reality. French Marshal Pétain (84) interrupts the conference with his own take on strategy: "We don't seem to be making much use of carrier pigeons." According to Reynaud, Pétain has been busy drafting an appeal for an Armistice. The conference continues on the 12th. General Spears, along with Churchill, notes: "I was suddenly aware that the battle of France was over and that no one believed in miracles."

General Erwin Rommel and his 7th "Ghost" Panzer Division take Le Havre, then advance 30 miles further up the coast. This advance bottles up the 51st (Highland) Division and many French troops, a total of 46,000 men, at Saint-Valery-en-Caux. It is a mini-Dunkirk situation, but the foggy weather makes a British evacuation difficult. Royal Navy destroyer HMS Broke and corvette HMS Gardenia take off some wounded. Rommel takes positions on the cliffs overlooking the port, making Royal Navy visits extremely hazardous. The Allied troops hide in some caves, but many are on the beach under the night sky.

Wehrmacht troops of the 4th Army enter the distant Paris suburbs at Pontoise, northwest of the city. In addition, Panzer Group Kleist crosses the Marne at Château-Thierry. The German 18th Army is approaching Paris. Faced with an unstoppable pincer attack, the French government declares Paris an open city.

Panzer Group Guderian takes Reims.

Italian troops make begin tentative movements across the Alps toward France.

German pocket battleships Gneisenau and Scharnhorst in Trondheim Harbor on the left, Admiral Hipper on the right, 11 June 1940.

Battle of the Atlantic: With the Italians in the war, the British and French take quick steps to neutralize its navy. The Royal Navy (Admiral Andrew Cunningham) and a French cruiser squadron patrol the eastern Mediterranean from Alexandria and the Levant, respectively. In addition, Royal Navy cruisers bombard the Italian stronghold of Libya.

While the British and French are the most aggressive, the Italians draw first blood. An Italian submarine sinks cruiser HMS Calypso south of Crete.

U-101 (Kapitänleutnant Fritz Frauenheim) torpedoes 5,280 ton Greek freighter Mount Hymettus in the eastern Atlantic. When it does not sink quickly, it surfaces and finishes it off with gunfire. All 24 aboard survive.

U-48 (Korvettenkapitän Hans Rudolf Rösing) torpedoes and sinks 3,598 ton Greek freighter Violando N. Goulandris off Cape Finisterre, Spain. There are six deaths, 22 survivors.

U-46 (Kapitänleutnant Engelbert Endrass) torpedoes 8,782-ton British tanker Athelprince west of Cape Finisterre at 23:04. When the first torpedo does not sink it, U-46 fires a second torpedo that hits amidships and appears to doom the ship. After U-46 departs believing it has the kill, the Athelprince is salvaged, repaired and returned to service. All 59 crew survive. This is another example of large tankers being particularly difficult to sink.

British freighter St. Ronaig hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea.

Troopship Bruges (a Belgian transport attached to the Royal Navy) is sunk by Luftwaffe attack off Le Havre; all 72 crew survive, and the ship is empty of troops.

The US passenger liner Washington is en route from Lisbon to Galway, Ireland. It is packed with 1,020 US citizens collected from France and North Africa at the urging of the US State Department. U-101 sees it, surfaces, and orders it to stop for inspection. Kapitänleutnant Frauenheim at first thinks that the ship is Greek and prepares to disembark it and sink it. However, hurried blinker signal exchanges establish that it is American, and he permits the ship to proceed. It is one of the great unknown (except by people like us) instances of a U-boat captain avoiding huge loss of innocent life by strictly and correctly following the rules of international law.

Norwegian trawler Borglund picks up 37 survivors from HMS Glorious and 2 from HMS Acasta.

Convoy OA 166G departs from Southend, Convoy OB 166 departs from Liverpool.

U-124 (Kptlt. Georg-Whilhelm Schulz) is commissioned.


European Air Operations: The RAF in Egypt bombs Italian airfields in El Adem, Libya, while the South African Air Force bombs Moyale, an outpost in Abyssinia (Ethiopia). The British lose three planes, but destroy all 18 Italian planes on the ground.

In retaliation for the RAF raids, the Italian Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) sends a raid of 10 Italian Royal Air Force Cant Z.1007 Alcione bombers to attack Grand Harbour, Hal Far and Kalafrana in Malta. One civilian and 6 British soldiers (sources vary) perish, with 130 wounded. There are only 4 completely inadequate and obsolete Sea Gladiators to defend the island, and the Gladiators valiantly damage one of the attacking planes. This is considered the start of the "Siege of Malta." Three of the British biplanes are named Faith, Hope, and Charity.

Italy bombs the French naval base at Toulon. It also bombs French positions in Tunisia and a British base at Aden and one at Port Sudan.

The RAF bombs the German fleet at Trondheim, damaging two cruisers and a transport.

The RAF sends a night raid of 36 Whitely bombers against Fiat factories in Turin and Genoa, refueling in the Channel Islands. The raid shows typical poor aim for the period and instead hits the city center indiscriminately, killing 14 civilians. The Mussolini government widely publicizes this as an instance of terror bombing.

The French in Marseilles demonstrate seeming ambivalence, or perhaps outright despair, about the course of the war when they block runways to prevent their use by RAF Wellington bombers. Their apparent objective is to prevent Italian reprisal raids. Marseilles already has suffered damage in Luftwaffe raids, but Marseilles is a much easier target from northern Italy than from Germany.

The RAF drops incendiaries on the Black Forest during the night in an attempt to begin forest fires.

North Africa: Ground hostilities in North Africa commence when a British patrol raids Sidi Omar and the Italians also stage raids. The British 11th Hussars send armored cars into Libya and take some Italian troops as prisoners. The Italians do not even realize they are at war yet.

International Relations: Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, all part of the British Commonwealth, declare war on Italy. Italy severs relations with Norway.

Italian/German Relations: The Luftwaffe establishes liaison staff with the Italian air force.

Anglo/US Relations: As part of his continuing correspondence with President Roosevelt, Churchill sends a telegram noting the Italian entry into the war, its submarine fleet (largest in the world), and reiterates his request for destroyers:

To this, the only counter is destroyers. Nothing is so important as for us to have 30 or 40 old destroyers you have already had reconditioned.

Anglo/Polish Relations: The two governments (Polish Government-in-exile) sign an agreement for there to be both a Polish army and navy in Great Britain.

German Government: Adolf Hitler gives an interview to German-born UP reporter Carl von Wiegand which is published a couple of days from now. Wiegand had been the first US reporter to interview German crown prince Wilhelm, the first interview given by a German noble during World War I, and Hitler references almost everything back to the Great War. This interview is entitled "Europe for the Europeans: Adolf Hitler on the international situation during the war in France; An interview granted to Karl v. Wiegand, Führer's Headquarters, June 11, 1940." Hitler expresses his desire not to destroy the British Empire, but instead to "destroy those who are destroying that Empire." He believes that US aid to Britain will not affect the outcome of the war.

US Government: In accordance with his obligations under the Neutrality Act, President Roosevelt defines the Mediterranean and parts of the Red Sea as combat zones.

Roosevelt expresses serious reservations with permitting the UK royals to transfer to Canada, fearing the public relations effect of allowing the monarchy to set up shop in North America.

French Homefront: The refugee crisis hits Paris, as long lines of traffic snakes out of the city with headlights dimmed, packed with gear, and mattresses on the roofs.

British Homefront: Clement Attlee, Lord Privy Seal, addresses the House of Commons about (among other things) the Italian entry into the war. He uses quite colorful metaphors, comparing the Duce to a "jackal" and a "sneak-thief":

Signor Mussolini thinks that he sees a chance of securing some spoils at the expense of the Western democracies now that they are at grips with the brute forces of Germany. Signor Mussolini uses the argument of the jackal which scents the possibility of getting some scraps from another beast’s kill. He puts forward the argument of the petty sneak-thief to rob and rifle the pockets of the murderer’s victim.

He concludes that Mussolini's aim, like Hitler's, is to "destroy democracy."

The British government extends its internment policy to include all male Italians, 16 and over, who have lived in the country for fewer than 20 years. There is no trial, and some are political refugees who fled Mussolini's regime.

June 1940

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

2020