German and Soviet soldiers conversing, 22 September 1939.
Battle of Poland: German forces under the command of General Heinz Guderian (XIX Corps) were in possession of territory on the eastern side of the Bug River. Soviet forces now arrived to assume control of that area under the secret terms of the 23 August 1939 Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact. Kombrig (Commanding officer of the brigade) Semyon Moiseevich Krivoshein of the Soviet 29th Tank Brigade, who had crossed the Polish border on 17 September, reached Brest-Litovsk on the morning of 22 September. Krivoshein found the Germans looting the town, with Guderian himself ensconced there. The German apparently had been there for several days already.
A Wehrmacht soldier initiates peace talks with a Russian female soldier in Brest-Litovsk, Poland, 22 September 1939.
After some back-and-forth, Krivoshein visited Guderian at the latter's headquarters. Guderian acknowledged that he had to relinquish the town, but proposed to make the German departure a formal occasion, complete with a parade. Krivoshein was not very enthusiastic about the idea, having just completed a quick advance to reach the city and not wanting any extra hassles. However, Krivoshein agreed to supply a few token battalions to support the effort, along with a military band. The informal parade began at 16:00, complete with festive bunting. Both German and Soviet troops marched through hastily constructed "Victory Arches" before the two commanding officers.
Guderian and Krivoshein at the Brest-Litovsk parade.
Krivoshein later greatly downplayed the event in his memoirs and implied that the Soviet forces were merely present and not active participants. He recalled that he did not allow his troops to march with the German forces, who were rested and looked more presentable. However, it should be noted that subsequent events made downplaying any cooperation with the Germans a politically wise decision, and Soviet military historical works are notorious for their impeccable political hindsight.
Afterward, the German forces withdrew to the west bank of the Bug River as pre-ordained. The event has attracted much publicity in subsequent years due to the subsequent estrangement of the two forces. It is believed that the 22 September 1939 parade was the only such event that ever took place involving the two sides. Russian historians, in particular, are quick to minimize the event as being merely a "ceremonial departure" of the German forces, but the photographic record suggests that it was a bit more than that.
The Polish commander of Lwów hands it over to the Soviets.
Polish units of the 39th Infantry Division have been defending the village of Cześniki near Zamość. They have been holding off the German 27th Infantry Division and 4th Light Division. The 39th Infantry Division now is ordered to relieve Lwów and breaks through the German lines. With that city suddenly being surrendered, however, they are now on the move with nowhere to go.
"Honorary Colonel of the 12th Artillery Regiment" Generaloberst Werner Thomas Ludwig Freiherr von Fritsch is killed in Praga while "inspecting the front." He is picked off by either a sniper or a machine gun. Von Fritsch is believed to have voluntarily exposed himself to enemy fire due to his lingering disgrace over the false accusations of homosexuality used to depose him from his position as Commander in Chief of the Heer.
Western Front: The French claim to be approaching Zweibrücken in the Siegfried line. French radio also reports that the Wehrmacht has lost 150,000 men so far in the conflict. The actual figure is maybe 10% of that.
Battle of the Atlantic: The steamer Arkleside is torpedoed and sinks. A Grimsby trawler also is sunk.
Romanian Government: The government executes several members of the Iron Guard, including the assassins of the Romanian Prime Minister, in Bucharest.
Allied Supreme Command: In Hove, Sussex, the second meeting of the Allied Supreme War Council takes place between the British and French representatives. Nothing much is accomplished beyond issues of supply.
British Homefront: The Metropolitan Police Commission in London reports that road accidents have tripled so far in September. That is likely due to the blackout. The courts are clogged with blackout violations. Gasoline is rationed.
Eastern Front: In the Army Group North sector, German 16th Army begins an offensive on 9 August 1941 toward Kingisepp and Novgorod at the northern tip of Lake Ilmen. German troops already are in Staraya Russa to the south of Lake Ilmen, taking Novgorod would enable the Germans to use the lake as part of the German line. The 21st Infantry Division (General Sponheimer), reinforced by 424th Infantry Regiment of 126th Infantry Division, attacks east along the main road. The offensive advances five miles by nightfall in a very rough and well-fortified area.
In the Army Group Center sector, the Soviets continue attacking the German "lightning rod" position at Yelnya. The Germans repulse the attacks after hard fighting.
In the Army Group South sector, the Uman pocket now has surrendered and the 100,000 prisoners are being processed prior to being sent to POW camps. Pursuant to orders, General von Kleist is driving north toward Kyiv in order to effect a junction with General Guderian's Panzer Group 2. While this makes some sense from an operational viewpoint because the possibility exists of surrounding a large force of Soviet troops, it also alters the initial Army Group South goal of heading south and taking the Crimea, an important objective in Hitler's view. The Stavka takes advantage of this new diversion and begins reinforcing the neck of the Crimea with the 9th Coastal Army (independent) and remnants of other battered armies.
Romanian 4th Army makes some small gains in Ukraine, capturing the villages of Ponyatovka and Razdelnaya, while the German 11th and 17th Armies attack along the Southern Bug River. German 6th Army continues pressing forward in the Kyiv area.
Flak gun at the Bug River in the Soviet Union, 9 August 1941. (Federal Archive, B 145 Bild-F016203-15).
European Air Operations: The RAF has a light schedule today. Its only mission is a Circus Operation with five Blenheim bombers against the Gosnay power station. The bombers get lost or are deterred by fighter opposition and bomb Gravelines instead. All return to base.
During this mission, RAF Wing Commander Douglas Bader in his Spitfire Mk VA shoots down a Bf 109 and maybe a second when apparently his plane is hit by either friendly or enemy fire (Bader himself thinks it is a mid-air collision, but other records indicate this is unlikely). Bader successfully parachutes out after losing his right prosthetic leg which becomes ensnared in the falling aircraft (it is later found in an open field but is too damaged to use again). No German pilot is awarded the victory, suggesting strongly that it may have been friendly fire, and there is some other inconclusive evidence to support that theory.
Bader has 22 aerial victories, four shared victories, six probable victories, one shared probable victory, and 11 enemy aircraft damaged.
The Germans treat Bader with great respect, as they are well aware of RAF propaganda heroes. JG 26 commander Adolf Galland has lunch with Bader but refuses Bader's request to "try out" a Bf 109, explaining, "It would pain me to have to chase you and shoot you down." The Germans are a little too respectful, it turns out, as Bader attempts to escape from his hospital but is quickly recaptured.
Hermann Goering, a former fighter pilot himself, personally authorizes the RAF to air-drop a replacement artificial leg for Bader at St. Omer airfield in the "Leg Operation" on 19 August. Galland later recalls that the British also drop bombs on the Luftwaffe airport in addition to the replacement leg.
Oberstleutnant Hans von Ahlfen confers with officers about a bridge being built across the Bug River as part of the German advance, 9 August 1941 (Federal Archive, B 145 Bild-F016203-19).
Battle of the Baltic: Soviet submarine SC-307 (Treska), commanded by N. I. Petrov, torpedoes and sinks U-144 (Kptlt. Gert von Mittelstaedt), on its third patrol out of Stormelö, near the Estonian island of Hiiumaa (Dagö). All 28 men on U-144 perish. This is revenge for U-144 sinking 206-ton Soviet submarine M-78 on 23 June 1941, the only victory claimed by U-144.
Soviet auxiliary minesweeper T-487 sinks today from unknown causes.
German 210-ton freighter Gertrude III hits a mine and sinks off Windau/Ventspils, Latvia.
President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill at Placentia Bay, 9 August 1941.
Battle of the Atlantic: The Germans continue their aggressive patrols in the far north at the Kola Inlet, sending a destroyer force (Hans Lody, Freidrich Eckholdt, and Richard Beitzen) that sinks Soviet patrol ship SKR.12. The Soviets, as they have done elsewhere when the Germans begin operations in a new area, have reinforced the area and now are able to fight back. They furiously attack the German ships with artillery and air attacks and force them to withdraw. Destroyer Richard Beitzen is damaged by near misses but makes it back to port with the other ships.
Royal Navy destroyer HMS Croome rams and sinks Italian submarine Maggiore Baracca northeast of the Azores.
Some sources state that U-206 (ObltzS Herbert Opitz), on its first patrol out of Trondheim, sinks 202-ton British fishing trawler Ocean Victor today. Other sources claim that Ocean Victor is sunk by the Luftwaffe. In any event, Ocean Victor sinks southeast of Iceland roughly halfway between Iceland and the Faroe Islands.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 2345-ton British freighter Cordene, which is traveling in Convoy FN-503 a few miles east of Cromer in the North Sea. Escorting destroyer HMS Electra, on its first escort mission after a refit, picks up the entire crew and takes them to Scapa Flow.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks Norwegian 1392-ton freighter Dagny about 20 km east of the southern Faroe Islands. Dagny is in tow of trawler Leicester City when it is attacked. There are two deaths, the rest of the remaining 61 crew and passengers on board are picked up by the trawler.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 868-ton British freighter Glendalough near where the Cordene is sunk off Cromer. Another ship tows Glendalough to Yarmouth Roads for emergency repairs, then to Hull for permanent repairs.
Royal Navy gunboat MGB.62 collides with the gunboat MGB-67, in the North Sea and sinks.
Churchill and Roosevelt aboard USS Augusta, 9 August 1941. Roosevelt, wearing a naval uniform, likes to call himself "former naval person" in his regular cables to Roosevelt.
Norwegian submarine B.1 has an explosion in her engine room caused by her battery at Blyth. The explosion sets off some ammunition, causing extensive damage. The submarine is already under repair and this just adds to its time in the shipyard.
A commercial flight between London and Lisbon spots an unidentified freighter west of La Rochelle. The Royal Navy sends multiple ships out to investigate from Gibraltar and passing convoys, but none finds the ship.
Royal Navy submarine HMS Severn spots a submarine, apparently Italian, several hundred miles west of Tangier in the Atlantic. The Italian submarine apparently notices it is being watched because it immediately submerges. Neither submarine launches an attack.
Convoy HG-70 departs from Gibraltar bound for Liverpool.
Royal Navy corvette HMS Cowslip (Lt. Frederick Granger) is commissioned, minesweeping trawler Shiant is launched.
U-267 and U-360 are laid down.
Star Weekly magazine, August 9, 1941. Star Weekly is a publication of the Toronto Star.
Battle of the Mediterranean: Royal Navy destroyers HMS Jervis and Kingston make a supply run from Alexandria to Mersa Matruh, while destroyers Decoy and Havock make a supply run from Alexandria to Tobruk.
At Malta, an RAF No. 69 Maryland on patrol over Sicily drops a few bombs in August, damaging some buildings.
Air Marshal Arthur Coningham arrives in Egypt from London and takes command of RAF No. 204 Group in North Africa.
Earl Oliver Hurst, "Cream Puff Sailor," Collier's, August 9, 1941.
Anglo/US Relations: Royal Navy battleship HMS Prince of Wales arrives in Placentia Bay carrying British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to the Atlantic Conference (codenamed Riviera). President Roosevelt has been waiting there for Churchill aboard heavy cruiser USS Augusta for a couple of days idling his time by fishing off the forecastle. The two men quickly get down to business. Meeting on Augusta over lunch and dinner, Churchill and Roosevelt hammer out any remaining issues concerning the Atlantic Charter which the two men intend to sign during the four-day conference. After dinner, Churchill returns to Prince of Wales. The top military staff of the US and the UK get to know each other in a similar fashion.
US Secretary of State Cordell Hull gives a memorandum to Lord Halifax, the British Ambassador. It provides that Hull will confer with his counterpart in England (currently Anthony Eden) in the case of further Japanese military movements to the south (apparently meaning beyond French Indochina).
Finnish/Swedish Relations: A battalion of Swedish volunteers under Finnish command is ordered into the line in southern Finland facing the Soviet enclave of Hango.
British Military: King George VI arrives at Scapa Flow for an inspection.
The New Yorker, August 9, 1941.
Japanese Military: The Imperial Japanese Navy requisitions 8606-ton freighter Kanto Maru and begins converting it into an armed auxiliary aircraft transport. The military version receives 120-mm (4.7-inch) guns at the bow and the stern.
The Imperial General Headquarters staff once again approves a strategy of attacking south toward the oil fields in Indonesia rather than attacking north into the USSR. Attacking the Soviet Union remains under consideration. However, the high command makes a firm decision to do nothing in that regard before the spring of 1942.
Holocaust: Germans execute 534 Jews in Kaunas.
American Homefront: Charles Lindbergh, a prominent figure in the America First anti-war movement, makes a speech in Cleveland that is broadcast over the radio. He warns of interventionists planning "incidents and situations" that will lead the US intentionally into war "under the guise of defending America."
Warner Bros. releases "Manpower," directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Edward G. Robinson, Marlene Dietrich, and George Raft. The film received a lot of publicity during filming due to a reported fistfight on the set between Raft and Robinson, reportedly due to Raft's resentment at Robinson's late hiring which made Robinson the headliner instead of Raft (this may all be studio fakery, though, because it rather suspiciously mirrors a film plot point). Raft turned down "The Maltese Falcon" to make "Manpower," a pretty poor career decision, as "Falcon" made Humphrey Bogart a major film star after years of being just a character actor. "Manpower" goes on to become a box office hit, though it gets mixed reviews and never achieves the rank of a true classic in most filmgoers' eyes.
Saturday Evening Post, August 9, 1941, "Dunked Under Water."
The Looney Tunes cartoon "We, the Animals Squeak" is released on 9 August 1941. It is a colorized Looney Tunes cartoon starring Porky Pig. The cartoon is directed by Bob Clampett. The voices are performed by Mel Blanc, Sara Berner, Billy Bletcher and Michael Maltese. This is one of the Porgy Pig cartoons that is colorized. "We, the Animals Squeak" is a parody of the 1930s radio program, "We the People," an early reality program where people would share unusual stories with the audience. Porky Pig is the program's moderator.
German and Soviet soldiers conversing, 22 September 1939.
Battle of Poland: German forces under the command of General Heinz Guderian (XIX Corps) have been in possession of territory on the eastern side of the Bug River after heavy fighting. Soviet forces now arrive to assume control of that area under the secret terms of the 23 August 1939 Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact. Kombrig (Commanding officer of the brigade) Semyon Moiseevich Krivoshein of the Soviet 29th Tank Brigade, who had crossed the Polish border on 17 September, reaches Brest-Litovsk on the morning of 22 September. Krivoshein finds the Germans looting the town (he later claims), with Guderian himself comfortably ensconced there. The Germans have been there for several days already and really don't want to leave.
A Soviet tank (perhaps a T-26) rolls down the street during the joint Soviet-German parade held on 22 September 1939 (Gutjahr, Federal Archive Bild 101I-121-0012-30).
After some back-and-forth, Krivoshein visits Guderian at the latter's headquarters. Guderian acknowledges that he must relinquish the town, but proposes to make the German departure a formal occasion, complete with a parade. Krivoshein is not very enthusiastic about the idea, having just completed a quick advance to reach the city. He does not want any extra hassles because his advance is being watched closely by Moscow. However, Krivoshein agrees to humor Guderian by supplying a few token battalions to support the ceremony, along with a military band. The informal parade begins at 16:00, complete with festive bunting. Both German and Soviet troops march through hastily constructed "Victory Arches" in front of a reviewing stand on which stand the two grinning commanding officers. It turns into a bizarre spectacle in light of later events that a lot of participants speak little of later.
Guderian and Krivoshein at the Brest-Litovsk parade on 22 September 1939 (Gutjahr, Federal Archive Bild 101I-121-0011A-22).
Krivoshein later greatly downplays the event in his memoirs and implies that the Soviet forces were merely present as onlookers and not active participants. He recalls that he did not allow his troops to march with the German forces, who were rested and looked more presentable. This recollection seems doubtful in light of the photographic evidence. Obviously, subsequent events made downplaying any cooperation or "celebrations" with the Germans a political necessity, and Soviet military historical works are notorious for their impeccable political hindsight. In other words, all military memoirs that came out of Soviet Russia were politically scrubbed to remove any embarrassing details and always must be read with that in mind. A celebratory parade with Wehrmacht troops certainly was awkward to explain in the post-war world.
A German honor guard awaits the arrival of the Soviet commander during the 22 September 1939 joint Soviet-German parade ( Federal Archive Bild 101I-121-0012-15).
After the parade, the German forces withdraw to the west bank of the Bug River as pre-ordained. This event has attracted much publicity in subsequent years due to the subsequent estrangement of the two forces. It is believed that the 22 September 1939 parade was the only such event that ever took place involving the two sides. Russian historians, in particular, are quick to minimize the event as being merely a "ceremonial departure" of the German forces, but the photographic record suggests that the Soviets participated without much reservation.
Soviet and German soldiers, sitting amicably beneath a portrait of Joseph Stalin in Brest-Litovsk on 22 September 1939. Compare this to the photo immediately below (Böttcher, Federal Archive Bild 101I-121-0011-20).
For instance, it is highly doubtful that the Germans were carrying around posters of Joseph Stalin, but the photographic evidence shows such posters somehow materialized in Brest-Litovsk on the day of the parade as part of the overall celebration. Incidentally, similar posters of Stalin showed up and were displayed in April 1945 on the day of the meeting of Soviet and US forces. In fact, the photos from the two widely separated events look strikingly similar, and both became awkward later for political reasons. Quite a coincidence.
A photo that was taken at the celebration marking the 25 April 1945 meeting of Soviet (First Ukrainian Army) and US (Fifth Corps of US First Army) troops at Torgau, Germany. Note the prominently placed portrait of Joseph Stalin, which is oddly similar to the 22 September 1939 photograph of the Soviet-German meeting at Brest-Litovsk above (note there also is a small portrait of President Roosevelt which is lined in black crepe paper due to his recent passing). Apparently, Soviet armies carried these Stalin portraits as a matter of course ((Photo by Photo12/UIG/Getty Images)).
The Polish commander of Lwów hands it over to the Soviets.
Polish units of the 39th Infantry Division have been defending the village of Cześniki near Zamość. They have been holding off the German 27th Infantry Division and 4th Light Division. The 39th Infantry Division now is ordered to relieve Lwów and breaks through the German lines. With that city suddenly being surrendered, however, they are now on the move with nowhere to go.
Separately, "Honorary Colonel of the 12th Artillery Regiment" Generaloberst Werner Thomas Ludwig Freiherr von Fritsch is killed in Praga while "inspecting the front." He is picked off by either a Polish sniper or a machine gun. Von Fritsch is believed to have voluntarily exposed himself to enemy fire. This is due to his lingering disgrace over the false accusations of homosexuality used to depose him from his position as Commander in Chief of the Heer.
Western Front: The French claim to be approaching Zweibrücken in the Siegfried line. French radio also reports that the Wehrmacht has lost 150,000 men so far in the conflict. The actual figure is maybe 10% of that.
Battle of the Atlantic: The steamer Arkleside is torpedoed and sinks. A Grimsby trawler also is sunk.
Romanian Government: The government executes several members of the Iron Guard, including the assassins of the Romanian Prime Minister, in Bucharest.
Allied Supreme Command: In Hove, Sussex, the second meeting of the Allied Supreme War Council takes place between the British and French representatives. Nothing much is accomplished beyond issues of supply.
British Homefront: The Metropolitan Police Commission in London reports that road accidents have tripled so far in September. That is likely due to the blackout. The courts are clogged with blackout violations. Gasoline is rationed.
The reviewing stand at the 22 September 1939 parade (Gutjahr, Federal Archive Bild 101I-121-0011A-23).
