Sunday 2 March 1941

The Oath of Kufra is taken on 2 March 1941.

Italian/Greek Campaign: Mussolini pays another visit to Albania, flying in on 2 March 1941. This is another attempt by the fascists to raise Italian troops morale in Albania, which in fact has been on the rise due to the successful stand at Klisura.

The British in Cairo are gathering together the forces and shipping for the expedition to Greece. These are assembling as W Force Operation Lustre, under the command of Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Maitland Wilson. This collectively will be known as Lustreforce, and the first convoy is scheduled to leave for Greece within a couple of days. Due to recent developments in Bulgaria, which are an obvious indication that the German invasion of Greece is not far off, the Greeks now wholeheartedly welcome British troops.

The German troops of 12th Army have entered Bulgaria by crossing the Danube. The Wehrmacht's civilian-clad advance forces have the entire border area scouted, and the troops quickly take up positions along the border. However, there are still many ducks to line up before Hitler is ready to invade, including clarifying the situation in Yugoslavia and Turkey, assembling all of the necessary logistical support, and waiting for the weather to improve.

Italian bombers attack Larissa, north of Athens, again. The RAF units around Athens shoot down five of the bombers for no loss.

East African Campaign: At Keren, both sides are bringing forward reinforcements. The Italians add the 6th Colonial Brigade and the 11th Blackshirt Battalion of the Savoia Grenadiers - both premier formations. The British, meanwhile, bring forward the 5th Indian Infantry Division (Major-General Lewis Heath) which had been sent back to the railhead during February. The Italians now have 25,000 troops to 13,000 for the British, but numbers alone mean little in this conflict. What does matter is the willingness to fight and the quality of defensive positions, and, for a change, the Italians have both in abundance at Keren.

The British troops in Italian Somaliland continue occupying the region against scattered resistance. The final objective is Ferfer, north of Mogadishu. The Italians are retreating - fleeing - to Abyssinia, which is the seat of Italian power in East Africa.

At Mescelit Pass, which the British took on the 1st, the British do not know what awaits them on the plateau beyond. They send patrols ahead to discover what the Italians may have in store for them.

An early Grumman F4F Wildcat undergoing tests at NACA Langley, March 1941. NACA is the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, the predecessor of NASA.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command raids Cologne (Köln) and Brest with 130+ bombers. Luftwaffe activity remains light, with isolated fighter-bomber raids in Scotland and eastern England.

BOAC has begun covert air flights during the night between Scotland and Stockholm, virtually passing over Luftwaffe airfields. Lufthansa, of course, also maintains regular passenger flights, but they don't go quite so close to enemy fighters. The flights enable a trickle of trade past the German blockade in the Baltic and also provide a rare source of British input (documents, passengers, special equipment) to isolated Sweden. Sweden happens to be a major producer of ball bearings and supplies both sides with them throughout the conflict.

The flights are rare at first but increase with time. They get a variety of nicknames, including "The Ball-bearing Line" (for the cases of ball bearings flown out of Sweden) to "Bashful Gertie, the terror of the Skagerrak" to the official military code name, "Scrutator." The Royal Norwegian Air Transport generally crews the flights, and various aircraft (such as a Polish airline Lockheed 14) are used, with their quality increasing with time, too. While many ascribe this operation to the Air Transport Command of the Royal Air Force and give it the credit, in fact, the Air Transport Command is not in existence yet and will not be until 11 March 1943.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Germans are busy repairing heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper at Brest. Upon arriving at the harbor, the Hipper struck underseas objects, requiring repairs before she can depart. Brest is too close to England, making Hipper an easy (and frequent) target of RAF attacks. Thus, the Kriegsmarine high command - Admiral Raeder - is drawing the conclusion that Hipper should be brought back to Germany, where it can be better protected and refitted. However, that is no easy matter, because the British are sure to be keeping a close eye on the short route via the English Channel. The only other route is to loop widely around the British Isles through the Faeroes Gap or the Denmark Strait. By choosing one of the latter routes, the voyage will be several times lengthier than it otherwise would be.

A small wolfpack is assembled around convoy HX 109 northwest of the Outer Hebrides. It includes U-95, U-147, and U-552. Yesterday, right before midnight on the 1st, U-552 sank tanker Cadillac. The other two U-boats are next in line.

U-95 (Kptlt. Gerd Schreiber), on its third patrol out of Lorient and operating north of Rockall, torpedoes and sinks 6034 British freighter Pacific. There are only one survivor and 33 deaths, continuing a recent trend of all or most of the crews perishing.

U-147 (Kptlt. Reinhard Hardegen), on its first patrol out of Bergen, spots a straggler from HX-109 about 133 km north/northwest of Ness in the Outer Hebrides (280 km northwest of Loch Ewe). Hardegan torpedoes and sinks 4811-ton Norwegian freighter Augvald. This is the U-boat's first victory. There are only one survivor and 29 deaths - it is difficult to last for long in the frigid waves even if you make it to a lifeboat.

Memorial to two of the victims on freighter Castlehill at Tower Hill.

The Luftwaffe (a Heinkel He 111 of KG 27) bombs and sinks 690-ton British freighter Castlehill east of Mine's Head in the Bristol Channel. There are only one survivor and nine deaths.

The Luftwaffe (I,/KG 40 Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors) also bombs and sinks 6533-ton Dutch freighter Simaloer in the Northwest Approaches.

British 348-ton freighter Madge Wildfire runs aground at Congress Point on the Isle of Man and is written off.

Royal Navy minesweeper Kellett collides with armed boarding vessel HMS Northern Reward and requires repairs lasting a month.

Convoy OB 293 departs from Liverpool.

Battle of the Mediterranean: At Kufra, Colonel Leclerc celebrates his victory over the Italian garrison of the El Tag fortress. He and his men (about 350) swear a solemn oath:

Swear not to lay down arms until our colors, our beautiful colors, float on the Strasbourg Cathedral.

This seems like an almost impossible dream. The Free French forces by themselves have virtually no chance of defeating the German war machine in any kind of reasonable time frame. Even with the British as allies, it is quite a fanciful notion. However, with the right allies, anything might be possible.

With the British Army blissfully unaware of any threat that they may pose, the Afrika Korps (DAK) stages a cynical military parade. Before crowds of cheering people, the same tanks roar past, round the block, and roar past again - multiple times. This is a standard propaganda trick that creates an impression of limitless strength. The technique also, incidentally, is used in motion pictures. Attending the parade are General Rommel and all the senior Italian staff in Libya.

A staff car fails to stop at a checkpoint near Luqa Airport. The Maltese sentry, as ordered, fires on the vehicle to stop it. Apparently aiming at the drive, the bullet ricochets and hits the passenger in the back seat. It is Lieutenant William Barnes, RN of RAF No. 806 Squadron. Barnes is one of the pilots from HMS Illustrious whose unit was transferred to the ground airfield after Illustrious was severely damaged by the Luftwaffe and forced out of action. In a sense, taking a very broad view, Barnes is the final casualty of that Luftwaffe attack.

The Luftwaffe stages what the British might call a Circus raid, sending a large formation of fighters over the island which accompany a lone bomber - which doesn't drop any bombs. The RAF dutifully sends eight Hurricanes up to defend, one of which is damaged.

Convoy ANF 16 arrives in Piraeus.

A Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) truck, March 1941.

Anglo/Bulgarian Relations: The day after Bulgaria signs the Tripartite Pact, Great Britain severs diplomatic relations.

Anglo/British Relations: Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden, back in Athens after conferring with the Turks, follows previous instructions from Prime Minister Winston Churchill and confers with the British ambassador to Belgrade. Churchill wants to try to entice the Yugoslavs into the war by launching a surprise attack on the Italians in Albania, thereby freeing Greek troops to counter the expected German thrust from Bulgaria. The British ambassador, however, says there is no consensus in Yugoslavia to do anything for either side.

German/Bulgarian Relations: Prime Minister Filov, back in Sofia after signing the Tripartite Pact on behalf of Bulgaria, announces that German troops have entered the country via pontoon bridges over the Danube "to safeguard peace in the Balkans." The Wehrmacht troops are in Twelfth Army under the command of Field Marshal Wilhelm List.

German/Yugoslavian Relations: Hitler is greatly desirous of expanding the prospective Greek front to encompass the long border that extends from Bulgaria to Albania. He continues to woo Prince Paul, making various promises in exchange for Yugoslav joining the Tripartite Pact like Bulgaria. However, the Yugoslav government and military are hopelessly split between those who want to help the Greeks and those who prefer to appease Hitler and join the Axis to prevent their country from becoming a battleground.

US Government: The US Senate approves an increase in the debt ceiling, from $49 billion to $65 billion. This should require another increase within a year, based on expected spending. Military procurements, of course, are underneath the dramatic increase in debt, with defense spending amounting to a staggering (by pre-war standards) $28.5 billion.

The US Senate Committee to study war production issues - known as the Truman Committee (Resolution 71) - now has Tom Connally of Texas, Carl hatch of New Mexico, Monrad C. Wallgren of Washington and James Mead of New York (Democrats), and Joseph H. Ball of Minnesota and Owen Brewster of Maine (Republicans).

LRDG soldiers, March 1941.

British Government: Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies gives a capsule appraisal of Churchill in today's diary entry:

Churchill grows on me. He has an astonishing grasp of detail and, by daily contact with the service headquarters, knows of disposition and establishment quite accurately. But I still fear that his real tyrant is the glittering phrase - so attractive to his mind that awkward facts may have to give way. But this is the defect of his quality.... Churchill's course is set. There is no defeat in his heart.

Many others around Churchill have a similarly mixed view of his personality, but overall the general consensus is that his doggedness in pursuit of victory is irreplaceable.

Romania: Continuing to ingratiate itself with Germany, the Romanian government enacts additional repressive laws targeting the Jews.

Turkey: The Turks now require permits for all ships transiting the Dardanelles.

Chile: In Parliamentary elections, the Radical Party (which actually is merely moderately left of center) gains a plurality. The President remains Pedro Aguirre Cerda of the Popular Front, which is a left-wing coalition that includes the Radical Party as well as the Communist Party and various other worker parties. However, Cerda is wasting away from tuberculosis.

Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque in Bangui (now part of the Central African Republic), April/May 1941.

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 17 February 1941

Adolf Hitler and Japanese Ambassador Hiroshi Oshima.

Italian/Greek Campaign: After a very long and difficult struggle, on 17 February 1941 the Greeks complete the recapture of the Trebeshina massif. Overall, it has been an almost Pyrrhic victory, though. The Cretan 5th Infantry Division suffers terribly during the struggle, with 5776 casualties, and is effectively destroyed. Naturally, the Italians lose many men as well, but they just have to hold their positions and wait for the Germans eventually to bail them out by invading Greece from another direction. For the Italians, the battle has become a matter of national pride, and they vow to recapture the mountains and surrounding territory in the Spring.

East African Campaign: The South African 5th Infantry Brigade continues attacking toward Mega, while the 1st Infantry Brigade manages to cross the Juba River at Yonte against fierce Italian opposition.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe raids London with 50 bombers, its largest raid in some time. RAF Bomber Command stays on the ground.

Empire Knoll, which runs aground and is lost today.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Germans have quite a small fleet at work in the Atlantic. It involves numerous supply ships serving both heavy cruisers (currently three are on the loose: Gneisenau, Scharnhorst, and Admiral Scheer) and armed raiders. Today, German tanker Nordmark meets supply ship Alstertor to refuel it. The Nordmark has been towing captured British refrigerated ship Duquesa, which was taken full of meat and dairy products. However, all good things must come to an end, and today the Nordmark cuts loose the 8651-ton ship, not because it was out of food, but because there was no longer any fuel to power the refrigeration equipment - making it a stinky mess around the Equator. Some accounts state that Admiral Scheer sank the Duquesa upon encountering it on 18 December, but in fact, the refrigerated ship was taken as a prize and became legendary in the Kriegsmarine as the "floating delicatessen" which kept the crews of several ships well-fed for two months.

The weather is terrible. This causes all sorts of problems both for ships and for crews abandoning their sinking ships.
U-101 (Kptlt. Ernst Mengersen) torpedoes and sinks 5237-ton British pig iron freighter Gairsoppa three hundred miles southwest of Galway. Gairsoppa is a straggler from convoy SL 64. Mengersen misses with several torpedoes (the weather is terrible), but one hits and sets the ship afire. The U-boat then leaves, and the ship sinks after the crew barely escape in the lifeboats. Almost everyone dies of exposure. There are 82 deaths and only one survivor (the second officer, who brought his lifeboat to shore). After this, U-101 heads back to Lorient.

U-103 (Viktor Schütze) torpedoes and sinks 10,455-ton tanker Edwy R. Brown. The tanker is a straggler behind Convoy HX 107 in the North Atlantic shipping lanes.

U-69 (Kptlt. Jost Metzler) is on its first patrol operating out of Kiel southwest of the Faroe Islands when it spots a freighter. It is 8456-ton British freighter MV Siamese Prince, which becomes U-69's first victim. There are no survivors even though Metzler sees them take to the lifeboats - survival in the frigid ocean with storms and winter gales is problematic at best. Everybody (57 men) onboard perishes, and Admiralty searches by several destroyers find nothing and nobody.

British 307 ton collier Kyle Rona is sailing from Maryport for Portreath when it just disappears. None of the seven men on board, including Master Frederick Cook, survives. It may have hit a mine or broached deep and took water or...

British 156 ton freighter Ren Rein hits a mine off Falmouth, Cornwall in the English Channel and sinks. There are two deaths.

British 5817 ton freighter Casamance runs aground off Skinningrove, Yorkshire. The ship breaks in two and is written off. There are 38 survivors and 9 deaths.

British 2824 ton collier Empire Knoll comes aground due to the winter gales at Tynemouth in County Durham. The ship winds up on the old North Pier foundations there and is holed. It is a total loss.

Portuguese schooner Patriotismo sinks in the rough winter weather off Peniche. There are one death and seven deaths.

German raider Pinguin, in the south Atlantic, is joined by German supply ship Alstertor. Together, they sail for the Indian Ocean.

Admiral Sir Percy L.H. Noble becomes the new commander of the Royal Navy Western Approaches Command.

Convoys WS 6A and 6B (Winston Special) departs from various British ports. It includes numerous transports bound for the Middle East.

Convoy TC 9 departs from Halifax with numerous troop transports. They don't know it, but German heavy cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst are lurking just north of the shipping lanes looking for good targets.

Convoy BN 16 departs from Aden.

Destroyer HMS Avon Vale (L 06, Lt. Commander Peter A. R. Withers) is commissioned.

Light cruiser USS Birmingham is laid down.

British guard duty west of Benghazi, 17 February 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The British have been deliberating about sending troops to Greece for weeks, and now they finally are in a position to start telling some of their allies about their plans. They inform New Zealand General Bernard Freyberg that he will command the expeditionary force. Freyberg is a legendary officer, much admired by the British, who currently commands the New Zealand Division.

Colonel Leclerc in southwestern Libya is heading for their ultimate target of Kufra. Leclerc has about 350 men, but the Italians are aware they are coming. The Italian Saharan company of 70 men intercepts Leclerc's force with 20 mm guns in ten armored AS37 cars. After a vicious firefight, the French lost many of their trucks but are able to continue forward when the Italians at Kufra stay inside their fort and don't help the Sahariana. Leclerc's men surround the fort, El Tag, and place their only artillery piece, a 75 mm gun, about 3000 meters from the walls. The French also place several 81 mm mortars about 1500 meters from the fort. The Saharan company attacks again but is beaten off again. The French settle down to a siege.

Turkish/Bulgarian Relations: The two nations formally sign their nonaggression pact. While at first, this might seem favorable to the British, in fact, it is designed to allow Hitler to move troops through Bulgaria to invade Greece without Turkish interference. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill has been trying to cajole the Turks (and their 38 divisions) into joining the British side, but this move effectively ends that attempt for the time being.

German/Japanese/British Relations: Japan makes an offer to mediate the European conflict, just as it has been mediating the border war in Indochina. Nobody takes Japan up on the offer.

General Oshima arrives as minister to Germany, his second appointment there. Oshima is viewed by the Germans as very sympathetic to their war aims.

German Military: Adolf Hitler is thinking big. He dreams of capturing India from the British, and in fact, has been sending presents (such as a motorcar) to some princes in the region. He orders his military staff to explore the feasibility of advancing through Afghanistan to India.

"Cunningham, Admiral of the Mediterranean." February 17, 1941, | Vol. XXXVII No. 7 (Cover Credit: ERNEST HAMLIN BAKER).

British Government: Winston Churchill has a busy day sending memos and pontificating to all and sundry about his pet concerns.

During the war council meeting today, Churchill cautions against worrying about "divisions" in the military (as opposed to brigades or corps and so forth). The gist of his oration on this point is that the term "division" can refer to vastly different forces.

Churchill also memos CIGS General Ismay and Cabinet Secretary Sir Edward Bridges cautioning them not to reveal the source of their information about Japanese decrypts, information which apparently was sent around the office. He wants all copies tracked down and the information suppressed, all the way down to identifying what copying machine was used and "who gave the orders for it to go in this form." Naturally, he doesn't want the Japanese to know the British have broken their codes.

Ireland also is on Churchill's mind. He memos General Ismay that the Germans might invade Ireland before they invade England, which would give the British the "immediate pretext" to invade Ireland - something that Churchill appears eager to do. He urges Ismay to use "every scheme of which military and naval ingenuity are capable to move more troops across the Irish Channel" whether the Irish want them there or not. In fact, the Irish have made plain that they do not want to be involved in the British war.

Churchill also memos Viscount Cranborne and Sir Kingsley Wood to implement economic sanctions against southern Ireland "to make Southern Ireland realized how great a wrong they were doing to the cause of freedom by their denial of the ports" to the Royal Navy. At this point, it seems as if Churchill is much more interested in invading Ireland than Hitler ever is.

Policeman helping children with their gas masks, Brighton, 17 February 1941.

Japanese Government: Foreign Minister Yōsuke Matsuoka gives a speech which echoes the similar language of Adolf Hitler regarding the Soviet Union and "Lebensraum":

This region [Oceania] has sufficient natural resources to support from 600,000,000 to 800,000,000 people. I believe we have a natural right to migrate there.

Times, Feb. 18, 1941, p. 1. Oceania, of course, includes Australia, the Dutch East Indies, and New Zealand. Thus, the Japanese basically are telling all Europeans that they are not wanted in the Pacific and that they feel entitled by "natural right" to occupy lands now claimed by others.

US Government: The US Senate begins debating the Lend-Lease bill.

Australian Government: Prime Minister Robert Menzies is continuing his epic, month-long journey from Melbourne to London. Today, he stops over in Lagos, where he meets fellow Australian Sir Bernard Bourdillon, the Governor. Bourdillon blames the British fiasco at Dakar in September 1940, and a related incident in which French cruisers were allowed to cruise out of Mediterranean past Gibraltar to reinforce the Vichy French forces there, on unclear instructions from Winston Churchill. To be fair, Bourdillon has a point, as the British attitude toward Vichy France seems confused at best. Menzies seems quite impressed with Bourdillon and wonders if he and similar governors are "consulted enough." In fact, they are probably not consulted at all, as Churchill likes to run his own shop.

Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies viewing a burning tanker in Tobruk Harbor, February 1941.

February 1941

February 1, 1941: US Military Reorganization
February 2, 1941: Wehrmacht Supermen
February 3, 1941: World Will Hold Its Breath
February 4, 1941: USO Forms
February 5, 1941: Hitler Thanks Irish Woman
February 6, 1941: Operation Sunflower
February 7, 1941: Fox Killed in the Open
February 8, 1941: Lend Lease Passes House
February 9, 1941: Give Us The Tools
February 10, 1941: Operation Colossus
February 11, 1941: Afrika Korps
February 12, 1941: Rommel in Africa
February 13, 1941: Operation Composition
February 14, 1941: Nomura in Washington
February 15, 1941: Churchill's Warning
February 16, 1941: Operation Adolphus
February 17, 1941: Invade Ireland?
February 18, 1941: Panzerwaffe Upgrade
February 19, 1941: Three Nights Blitz
February 20, 1941: Prien's Farewell
February 21, 1941: Swansea Blitz Ends
February 22, 1941: Amsterdam Pogrom
February 23, 1941: OB-288 Convoy Destruction
February 24, 1941: Okuda Spies
February 25, 1941: Mogadishu Taken
February 26, 1941: OB-290 Convoy Destruction
February 27, 1941: Operation Abstention
February 28, 1941: Ariets Warns Stalin

2020

Sunday 16 February 1941

Sir Hugh Dowding visits the Lockheed aircraft factory in Burbank, California today, 16 February 1941, to check on the status of Lockheed Hudson Bombers (visible in the photo). Many future celebrities worked in this plant, including Marilyn Monroe and Robert Mitchum. The photo was taken 16 February 1941, apparently in honor of Dowding's visit (Collection of Oakland Museum of California. The Oakland Tribune Collection. Gift of Alameda Newspaper Group).

Italian/Greek Campaign: Fierce fighting continues on the Trebeshina massif, the gateway to the vital Italian port of Valona, on 16 February 1941. The Greeks, led by the 5th Cretan Division of III Corps, are making ground but taking huge numbers of casualties from the Italian 11th Army (which also is suffering). The Greeks have been trying to move past the Klisura Pass area for a solid month, but for the first time in the war, Italian troops are providing effective resistance.

East African Campaign: The South African Air Force (SAAF), using converted Junkers Ju 86 airliners, attacks Italian positions on the far (east) side of the Juba River in Italian Somaliland. The British 1st South African Brigade is trying to break out across the river to the coast and ultimately take Mogadishu.

The Royal Navy is able to bring troops to Eritrea in the Mersa Teclai inlet. The Free French Brigade d'Orient begins arriving there. In Abyssinia, the South African 5th Infantry Brigade attacks Mega.

South African Junkers Ju 86Z bombers, used against the Italians in East Africa.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe attacks Seaham Harbour with high explosive bombs, destroying four houses and causing other damage. The railway bridge across Lord Street is wrecked, blocking the road, and a subway shelter caves in. There are four deaths. The Germans also dropped some bombs on London and nearby areas by individual bombers during the day. They lose a bomber at Shoreham.

RAF Bomber Command makes daylight attacks on some of the invasion ports such as Zeebrugge, Middleburg and Den Helder.

The Ormonde, victim of a Luftwaffe attack today.

Battle of the Atlantic: German heavy cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst remain stationary in the North Atlantic south of Greenland. They have been refueling from tankers Esso Hamburg and Schlettstadt. Admiral Lütjens in command of Operation Berlin is contemplating his next move while the Allied navies have no idea where his two ships are - or even whether they are at sea.

Coastal Command Western Approaches completes its move from Plymouth north to Derby House, Liverpool. It is under the command of Admiral Sir Percy Noble. It is supported by RAF No. 15 Group, while a new group, No. 19, takes over the Plymouth command.

Royal Navy battlecruiser HMS Repulse leaves Scapa Flow for a refit at Rosyth. Many British warships are taking advantage of the latter part of winter to undergo maintenance there, including destroyer HMS Escapade.

The Luftwaffe bombs Chatham, site of Royal Navy repair facilities. The Germans damage light cruiser HMS Neptune, already in the repair dock to address some earlier damage.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 250-ton minesweeping trawler HMT Ormonde off Peterhead off the east coast of Scotland. There are 20 deaths, including skipper W.T. Coull, RNR.

The Luftwaffe (I,/KG 40 Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors) bombs and sinks 340-ton British trawler Naniwa in the Atlantic west of Dunquin, Ireland. There are five deaths.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 3000-ton British transport Coryton northeast of the Farne Islands. The ship is holed, but the Captain (Josiah Evans) manages with great skill to beach the ship in Budle Bay. At first, the crew refuses to abandon the ship, but the weather turns bad. Captain Evans orders the 39 crew ashore but remains aboard (if the ship is abandoned, it becomes prey for salvagers). During the night, the storm wrecks the ship and kills Captain Evans, who washes ashore.

British 4670 ton tanker Empire Otter hits a mine and sinks off Hartland Point, Devon. Everybody survives. The Bristol Channel has claimed numerous ships to mines in the past month.

British 276 ton trawler Thomas Deas hits a mine and sinks a few miles from Spurn Point, Yorkshire. Everybody perishes.

Australian auxiliary minesweeper HMAT Southsea hits a mine and is badly damaged in the Tyne. The crew beaches it, but it is written off. There are seven deaths.

British 1514 ton freighter Varna, damaged by the Luftwaffe off the coast of Portugal on the 9th and left a flaming derelict, finally sinks after drifting further north and west.

Convoy OB 287 departs from Liverpool.

U-261 is launched.

The Todd-Bath Iron Shipbuilding Corp. "East Yard," where Liberty ships will be built. Portland, Maine. The yard was established to build 30 Ocean class freighters for the UK; the Liberty ship project came later. 16 February 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: French Colonel Philippe Leclerc has been consolidating his position in southwest Libya ever since the destruction of his attached Long Range Desert Group forces on 31 January. Leclerc leaves behind two armored cars (but keeps an artillery piece) and takes 350 men to capture Kufra (more men set out, but several trucks break down and they must be left behind). The Italians receive word that the French are approaching and form a blocking force, 70 men of the Saharan company. The stage is set for a major battle outside Kufra.

The Luftwaffe sends eleven air raids against Malta in 24 hours. Many of the raids are to lay mines, and the raids are usually by single or duo bombers. One raid on Luqa airfield by Junkers Ju 87 Stukas of 7,/JG 26 results in escort fighters shooting down three RAF Hurricanes. Governor Dobbie sends a telegram to the War Office stating:

The proposed establishment of anti-aircraft batteries in Malta is utterly inadequate. Raids are now frequent throughout the 24 hours and personnel have been standing to for long hours continuously day and night.  With normal sick wastage in other ranks there are no reliefs, and the officer establishment allows no reliefs even with none on sick leave.  Unless an adequate establishment is allowed to Malta, it will be necessary to put 25 per cent of guns out of action for resting.

A Fairey Swordfish of RAF No. 830 Squadron, based on Malta since the bombing of HMS Illustrious, torpedoes and sinks 4957-ton Italian freighter Juventus east of Monastir, Tunisia (northeast of Kuriat Island).

The British are still evacuating Italian POWs from Tobruk. Armed boarding vessel HMS Fiona takes 417 prisoners from there to Alexandria.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Komet heads south into the Antarctic, searching for whaling vessels.

Troop carrier Queen Mary splits off from Convoy US 9 and heads for Singapore.

The Royal Navy continues mining the waters around Singapore.

Turkish/Bulgarian Relations: The two countries conclude a nonaggression pact. Both Hitler and Churchill feel that Turkey is the balance of power in the region, but it remains steadfastly neutral.

A parachutist dropping from a converted Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bomber.

Spy Stuff: Prime Minister Winston Churchill reveals (to history) the source of the information contained in his warning telegram to President Roosevelt on 15 February: decoded intercepts. He memos Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Sir Alexander Cadogan and confides about new information, "These conversations and the delayed telegram have the air of being true." He certainly is referring to intercepted conversations decoded at Bletchley Park. Churchill feels that the situation in the Pacific has suddenly experienced "a decided easement, and the danger for the moment seems to have passed."

Separately, the first courier to the Polish underground, bombardier Czeslaw Raczkowski, parachutes into Poland (the Reichsgau Wartheland) today. He is part of Team Zero in Operation Adolphus. This operation was originally planned for December 1940 but was postponed because the Whitley bombers had to be modified for the lengthy flight. The plane is slow, so the operation must be done during long winter nights. The flight takes off at 18:37 and the agent drops around 02:00 on the 16th. This mission does not achieve much, but it does boost the morale of the Free Polish Army in England. Since the nights are getting shorter, the mission really is a one-off for the time being. The Whitley spends 11 hours and 16 minutes in the air, flying over Berlin, which the crew sees is not subject to a war-time blackout.

British Military: General O'Connor, commander of XIII Corps, is appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief the British Troops in Egypt. XIII Corps is being effectively disbanded since Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell intends to send its troops to Greece. This is being done at the very time when the Germans are landing troops in Tripolitania to form the Afrika Korps.

Holocaust: Several hundred Jews are rolling in a sealed train from German and Austria to Lisbon. They are in possession of US quota visas, issued by the American Consulate in Berlin. They are permitted a maximum of ten German marks. Tickets to the United States paid for by US relatives, await them in Lisbon. Jews in German (the Greater Reich, which includes some annexed territories such as Austria) and Holland are still able to exit the Continent if they have the appropriate documentation, e.g., visas and tickets. Italian Jews also are free to leave. Lisbon has become the primary portal for overseas escape, and arrivals and departures are carefully scrutinized by German (and British) agents.

Meanwhile, the German government in Austria (Arthur Seyss-Inquart) deports 10,000 (the number is approximate) more Jews to Poland.

British Homefront: The New York Times prints an editorial bemoaning the rise of inflation in Great Britain. It points out that prices there rose 64% in the first year of the war.

Future History: Yuri Irsenovich Kim is born in the village of Vyatskoye, near Khabarovsk (this is all disputed: North Korean records prepared decades later state that he is born in 1942 in a secret military camp in Paektu Mountain, Korea). Yuri is the son of Kim Jong-un, leader of a Soviet battalion made up of Chinese and Korean exiles. Yuri completes a normal education in Pyongyang, Korea during the 1950s (or in China, depending upon the source) and becomes active in politics, particularly Marxist organizations. At some point, Yuri changes his name to Kim Jong-il, perhaps to escape his Russian-sounding name. His father rises through the diplomatic and political ranks in North Korea, eventually becoming the country's leader, and Kim himself attains leadership of the local communist party. He becomes known as "Dear Leader" in 1980 and in 1991 becomes the Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army. In 1992, he becomes known as "Dear Father." On 8 July 1994, Kim's father passes away and Kim Il Jong becomes the leader of North Korea after a three-year power struggle. Kim Jong-Il passes away on 17 December 2011 and is succeeded by his son, Kim Jong-un.

A corvette on convoy escort duty, 16 February 1941. © IWM (HU 110323).

February 1941

February 1, 1941: US Military Reorganization
February 2, 1941: Wehrmacht Supermen
February 3, 1941: World Will Hold Its Breath
February 4, 1941: USO Forms
February 5, 1941: Hitler Thanks Irish Woman
February 6, 1941: Operation Sunflower
February 7, 1941: Fox Killed in the Open
February 8, 1941: Lend Lease Passes House
February 9, 1941: Give Us The Tools
February 10, 1941: Operation Colossus
February 11, 1941: Afrika Korps
February 12, 1941: Rommel in Africa
February 13, 1941: Operation Composition
February 14, 1941: Nomura in Washington
February 15, 1941: Churchill's Warning
February 16, 1941: Operation Adolphus
February 17, 1941: Invade Ireland?
February 18, 1941: Panzerwaffe Upgrade
February 19, 1941: Three Nights Blitz
February 20, 1941: Prien's Farewell
February 21, 1941: Swansea Blitz Ends
February 22, 1941: Amsterdam Pogrom
February 23, 1941: OB-288 Convoy Destruction
February 24, 1941: Okuda Spies
February 25, 1941: Mogadishu Taken
February 26, 1941: OB-290 Convoy Destruction
February 27, 1941: Operation Abstention
February 28, 1941: Ariets Warns Stalin

2020

Wednesday 28 August 1940

Mossley Hill Parish church in Liverpool (the Church of St. Matthew and St. James) It is bombed during the night of 28/29 August 1940 - the first church bombing in England.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe continues to avoid bombing London. However, that doesn't mean they are completely avoiding English cities, as discussed below, and the British have been "triggered" (to use a 21st Century idiom) into bombing German cities themselves. The slippery slope toward unrestricted aerial warfare is getting greasier on a daily basis as of 28 August 1940.

The RAF raids Berlin for the second time, killing 8-10 civilians and injuring 21-29 others. Among other things, they bomb the Görlitzer railway station. This kind of obvious damage to public infrastructure is causing the government to lose face, and Hitler is still deliberating about how to respond. People are starting to recall Luftwaffe boss Hermann Goering's words at the start of the war in September 1939:

Wenn auch nur ein englischer Bomber die Ruhr erreicht, will ich nicht mehr Hermann Göring, sondern Hermann Meyer heißen. (If even one British bomber reaches the Ruhr, I don't want to be called Hermann Göring any more, but rather Hermann Meyer.)

Note that, contrary to every legend about Goering, he never said anything about Berlin not being bombed. However, this statement invariably is mistranslated and bastardized to, "If the enemy ever bombs Berlin, you may call me Meyer," which is a lot pithier (This is similar to Captain Kirk never actually saying "Beam me up, Scotty" on Star Trek, but that is how it comes down in history). Loosely interpreted, Goering has been boasting in his usual bombastic fashion that his Luftwaffe is so powerful and almighty that he stakes his entire reputation on completely overwhelming and destroying the RAF before it can strike back and hurt Germans.

Incidentally, let's clear one other thing up while we're at it. Goering was not making an anti-Semitic reference here, though that is claimed far and wide now. Meyer was and is a common German name. "Panzer" Meyer would have been highly offended if you claimed that "Meyer" was a Jewish name. Goering simply was intimating that he was staking everything on the claim - which makes the whole incident more ironic in retrospect.

While this jest (using a common German idiom) explicitly refers to the industrial region of the Ruhr, virtually everyone in Germany interprets it as really meaning Berlin. Since Berlin is now being bombed, it becomes a catchphrase for the failures of the Luftwaffe (of which there is an increasing number). It is one of the classic ill-fated predictions of the war. This phrase will haunt Goering to the last days of the war, but among much of the public, he remains a popular figure. Despite all of his other many and varied faults, Goering is perhaps the only top German with any kind of sense of humor, which is badly needed during the dark days of World War II. People already are starting to call the ubiquitous air raid sirens "Meyer's trumpets" with typical German sardonic wit as a way to poke fun at the fat man and his farcically bellicose rhetoric.

"Call me Meyer."

Battle of Britain: Air Vice Marshall Keith Park of No. 11 Group continues to ride the whirlwind. The Luftwaffe is singling out his airfields in southeastern England for devastation, and his forces are weakening though not breaking. Some of his jealous fellow commanders (No. 11 Group is the most prestigious command in England) are secretly delighting in Park's discomfiture (though they would never admit any such thing, would deny it to the death, and the regular history books would never even hint as such an interpretation).

There are three major Luftwaffe raids against England forces during the daylight hours:

1. At 09:00, raids against various points in Kent;
2. Around 11:00, raids targeting RAF Rochford;
3. During the afternoon, a massive fighter sweep swooping down from Kent to the Thames estuary.

The first raid results in massive dogfights between JG 51 and RAF Nos. 79, 85 and 264 Squadrons. Dornier Do 17s of I,/KG 3 bomb RAF Eastchurch with 100 bombs, while Heinkel He 111s from KG 53 bomb RAF Rochford. The damage is significant in both airfields, particularly Eastchurch.

The second raid by KG 2 Dorniers hits RAF Rochford again with about 30 bombs. However, the damage to the airfield is slight despite it being hit for the second time, and it remains operational. There is some fancy flying, with a Bf 109 heading for home and the pursuing Spitfires of No. 54 Squadron flying so low themselves that one of them returns to its base with leaves and branches stuck in its wing.

The third raid is a standard Luftwaffe fighter sweep, or Freie Jagd, over a large swathe of England from north to south. It is a massive sweep, including elements of JG 2, 3, 26, 27, 51, 54 and Epr.Gr 210 (Bf 110s). The Luftwaffe fighter pilots love these opportunities to act unrestricted by escort obligations, and, having the initiative, they generally begin the battles with the altitude advantage. Both sides lose 16 fighters in this action, which somewhat vindicates the fighter pilots' argument that the Freie Jagds are a good way to wear down the RAF. Keith Park, meanwhile, is furious that his weary fighters are being baited like this and forbids any similar interceptions in the future.

After dark, another slide down the slippery slope toward all-out bombing occurs when the Luftwaffe raids Liverpool for the first time. KG 27, LG 1 and KGr 806 send across about 160 bombers. The raid experiences navigational errors and bombs land seemingly everywhere in the general vicinity. Another raid by 23 Dorniers hits Bristol, but Bristol gets hit every night and that raid is barely noticed. The bombs dropping on houses in Liverpool do get everyone's attention.

A Morris Quad towing a 25-pounder field gun, 28 August 1940.

The day's losses sum up to about 30 Luftwaffe losses and 20 RAF ones. There are clear signs of frustration on both sides to just get on with it and move on to the next stage, but Hitler continues to ponder a decision to resort to outright mass terror bombing.

In addition, RAF Fighter Command is forced to come to some hard truths about part of its force which is completely inadequate. During the afternoon raid, the remaining Boulton Paul Defiants are like sitting ducks, and one after another - five in all - goes down in flames. Along with the planes, nine crew perish. At long last, Fighter Command transfers the remaining planes to night operations. In this way, there is a parallel to the Bf 110s, but they remain at least viable during the daytime, if not particularly threatening.

Luftwaffe top-scoring ace Werner Mölders gets two victories but loses his wingman, who is captured. His new wingman is Oberleutnant Georg Claus.

In a weird "wrong way Corrigan" type of flight, a Luftwaffe Gotha Go 145 biplane (not a World War I plane as often claimed, these were built starting in 1935) used for communications gets seriously lost and, instead of flying east from Cherbourg to Strasbourg, somehow flies north to England. It lands at Lewes horse track and becomes an odd exhibit in the "Rafwaffe," the RAF No. 1426 Squadron of captured enemy aircraft.

British Prime Minister Churchill watches the afternoon air battles over Dover from Dover Castle, where he inspects "Hellfire Corner." Afterward, he visits some bombed buildings in Ramsgate, then tours a nearby bombed airfields and, concerned about the damage, orders more manpower devoted to airfield repairs. This has not really been an issue for the RAF, and bomb craters are easily filled in. It is an instance of Churchill's good intentions leading to intervention that would have been better off avoided.

Winston Churchill inspects air raid damage at Ramsgate in Kent, 28 August 1940.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-101 (Kptlt. Fritz Frauenheim), operating out of Kiel, stalks Convoy SC 1 west of Ireland. At 04:25, it torpedoes and sinks 3868-ton Finnish freighter Elle. There are 27 survivors and 2 crew perish. The ship doesn't sink right away, so sloop HMS Leith sinks it with gunfire.

U-28 (Kptlt. Günter Kuhnke), on its fifth patrol, is about 200 nautical miles west of the Outer Hebrides stalking Convoy HX 66. At 21:00, it torpedoes and sinks 3946-ton British freighter Kyno. There are 32 survivors and 5 crew perish.

Dutch grain freighter SS Driebergen is sailing with the daily food convoy from Methil to the Tyne when it sinks off Northumberland in the North Sea after colliding with British freighter Port Darwin, perhaps trying to avoid Luftwaffe attack. Everybody survives, and the damaged Port Darwin makes it to port.

British 202 ton trawler Flavia goes missing in the North Sea, perhaps hitting a mine - both sides are heavily mining the area.

Convoy FN 265 departs from Southend, Convoy MT 153 departs from Methil, Convoy FS 265 departs from the Tyne, Convoy HX 69 departs from Halifax and other ports,

British minelayers HMS Plover and Willem van der Zaan lay minefield BS 36 in the North Sea, while four other minelayers put down a field in the St. George's Channel.

U-94 is commissioned.

Destroyer HMS Eglington (L 87, Commander Emile F. V. Dechaineux) is commissioned.

This Ju 88 A-1 of I/KG 54 just made it back to France and crashed near Dieppe on August 28, 1940.

Battle of the Mediterranean: British submarine HMS Pandora, which has been delivering supplies to Malta, torpedoes and sinks Italian cargo ship Famiglia about just east of Haniya, Libya.

Italian bombers raid  El Qantara and Port Said during the night.

At Malta, there are two air raid alerts, but, as is often the case, the Italian planes turn back before getting close to the coastline. In other news, Governor Dobbie and the War Office continue wrangling over additional anti-aircraft guns for the island, with the War Office dragging its feet despite hinting at big plans for upgraded air forces there.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: The British know there is a German raider operating in the Indian Ocean - one of its victims' recent distress signal was even picked up in New York - but they don't know which one or exactly where it is. Ships are out looking for it, without success so far. The Italian Navy also has destroyers Pantera and Tigre operating in the Red Sea.

German Government: Adolf Hitler is keeping a close eye on Romania, which has been seething over losing territory to its neighbors such as the Soviet Union, Bulgaria, and Hungary. He cautions the Wehrmacht to be prepared to intervene if necessary as the situation develops and perhaps occupy the country.

Vichy France: The government broadcasts that laws providing special protections to Jews - such as there are any - have been revoked. Marshal Petain has complete power and discretion over the entire government, but Pierre Laval is actually running day-to-day operations.

In between stops at Dover and then Ramsgate on 28 August 1940, Winston Churchill noticed a crashed plane and asked to stop and visit. It is a Messerschmitt Bf 109E on Church Farm at Church Whitfield near Dover. His personal bodyguard, Inspector W H Thompson, is on the right.

French Cameroon: Captain Leclerc, who occupied the Presidential Palace on the 27th, travels by train to Youande to accept the country's surrender from the nominal Vichy authorities. This is a major coup for Charles de Gaulle's "Free France" movement, which has not been accomplishing much recently.

Oubangui (Central African Republic): At French-controlled Bangui, Governor de Saint Mart follows Captain Leclerc's lead in Cameroon and announces for Free France also. He promises the local Vichy garrison that they will be taken to the Vichy base at Dakar if they wish.

Finland: Famed sniper Simo "Simuna" Häyhä, horribly injured on 6 March 1940 during the closing stages of the Winter War, receives a promotion direct from Marshal Mannerheim. He is elevated from alikersantti (Corporal) to vänrikki (Second lieutenant). Häyhä is still recovering from his disfiguring wounds but improving.

Latin America: Heavy cruisers USS Wichita and Quincy continue their "Show the flag" mission and depart Montevideo, Uruguay for Buenos Aires, Argentina. This is the area that ignited the request for the mission in the first place.

Burma: The British lock up radical nationalist Ba Maw.

American Homefront: The last refugee ship from Petsamo in northern Finland arrives in New York City. It carries Crown Princess Martha and a 40mm Bofors gun which the Finns did not wish to fall into Soviet hands.

"Rhythm on the River" starring Bing Crosby and Mary Martin (the mother of Larry Hagman of "Dallas" who at this time is 8 years old) opens today.

August 1940

August 1, 1940: Two RN Subs Lost
August 2, 1940: Operation Hurry
August 3, 1940: Italians Attack British Somaliland
August 4, 1940: Dueling Legends in the US
August 5, 1940: First Plan for Barbarossa
August 6, 1940: Wipe Out The RAF
August 7, 1940: Burning Oil Plants
August 8, 1940: True Start of Battle of Britain
August 9, 1940: Aufbau Ost
August 10, 1940: Romania Clamps Down On Jews
August 11, 1940: Huge Aerial Losses
August 12, 1940: Attacks on Radar
August 13, 1940: Adler Tag
August 14, 1940: Sir Henry's Mission
August 15, 1940: Luftwaffe's Black Thursday
August 16, 1940: Wolfpack Time
August 17, 1940: Blockade of Britain
August 18, 1940: The Hardest Day
August 19, 1940: Enter The Zero
August 20, 1940: So Much Owed By So Many
August 21, 1940: Anglo Saxon Incident
August 22, 1940: Hellfire Corner
August 23, 1940: Seaplanes Attack
August 24, 1940: Slippery Slope
August 25, 1940: RAF Bombs Berlin
August 26, 1940: Troops Moved for Barbarossa
August 27, 1940: Air Base in Iceland
August 28, 1940: Call Me Meyer
August 29, 1940: Schepke's Big Day
August 30, 1940: RAF's Bad Day
August 31, 1940: Texel Disaster

2020

Tuesday 27 August 1940

Polish aviators in England, with a light day due to poor weather, exercise (IWM).

Battle of Britain: The fickle summer of 1940 turns rainy again throughout most of England on 27 August 1940, though the Channel is only cloudy and hazy. Operations largely are on hold until the afternoon. The rain causes some accidents, as a Blenheim of RAF No. 219 Squadron crashes on landing and a Spitfire of No. 72 Squadron crashes on landing. These types of accidents also are a function of the overstrained nature of the RAF. In terms of combat, there are only a few scattered losses on both sides.

Early in the morning just after midnight, Gillingham is hit hard, with its bus depot, fire station and several other structures destroyed or heavily damaged. There are 20 killed and 40 injured.

Around noontime, a large formation approaches from Cherbourg. RAF No. 10 Group sends up a couple of squadrons to chase them off, with each side losing a plane.

Toward the evening, Dornier Do 17s raid the southwest area, and No. 10 Group sends up three squadrons. The RAF downs three bombers and disrupts the attack. Another raid around midnight on the Bristol area results in some small-scale damage.

Ireland receives some bombs again at Port Clarence in County Durham.

The Luftwaffe raids Scapa Flow during the evening, interrupting Home Fleet operations for a few hours.

Royal Navy armed 23 ton yacht HMY White Fox II catches fire and sinks after being bombed by the Luftwaffe at Plymouth.

Freighter Sir John Hawkins is hit by the Luftwaffe and damaged at Plymouth.
RAF Bomber Command continues its raids on Italian factories, bombing the Turn Fiat works and the Sesto San Giovanni (near Milan) Marelli automotive parts factory. Other raids are sent against the north German ports of Kiel and Wilhelmshaven, the Augsburg Messerschmitt factory, oil installations at Mannheim, and various airfields in northwest Europe.

The RAF shuttles units around, sending RAF No. 603 Squadron to Hornchurch, No. 65 Squadron to Turnhouse, No. 32 Squadron to Acklington and No. 79 Squadron to Biggin Hill.

The Luftwaffe awards the Ritterkreuz (Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross) to Oblt. Helmut Wick of JG 2. He has 20 victories.

Oberleutnant Helmut Wick.

British Military: Simmering tensions between Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park of Group 10 and Air Vice Marshal Leigh-Mallory of Group 11 break out into the open at a meeting between the RAF fighter commanders. Park believes in getting fighter squadrons up as quickly as possible, while Leigh-Mallory insists on assembling at least three squadrons into a group (the "Big Wing") before sending them to intercept. Park considers the Big Wing tactic inefficient and tardy, while Leigh-Mallory considers it dangerous to send out-numbered fighter forces. There is the additional complication that Leigh-Mallory resents Park having the more prestigious command of Group 10, which protects the most sensitive areas in the south. Nothing is resolved at this point.

German Military: Contrary to many media accounts, the Luftwaffe has not been ordered at this point to bomb London, and it does not do so today. In fact, Hitler has not issued any orders on terror bombing, a decision he expressly reserved to himself in his mid-July Fuhrer Directive. Conceivably, the tit-for-tat raids on London and Berlin may still turn into one-offs.

The London press is full of stories about attacks on London that are wildly overblown, like much of the reporting about the Battle of Britain. There is widespread reporting that the Luftwaffe is "trying" to raid London but is only prevented from doing so by the valiant RAF.

Operation Sea Lion remains active within the German High Command even though nothing seems to be going as hoped in the continuing Battle of Britain. The Army still wants a broad landing area, while the Navy says that it can only supply a smaller invasion. General Keitel sides with the army, but Hitler intervenes and agrees with the Navy, with landings to take place between Eastbourne and Folkestone.

Another proposed operation, Operation Felix, receives a blow when Abwehr chief Admiral Canaris returns from Madrid with a pessimistic outlook. He tells OKH Chief of Staff Franz Halder that the operation depends upon a completely unreliable potential ally. During their meeting, Spanish General Juan Vigón Suerodíaz had made the discouraging request for Germany to supply food and fuel because the Spanish food situation was deteriorating.  Franco, Canaris reports, is steadily losing domestic support. Canaris tells Halder that Spain would be "unpredictable" and concludes:

We shall get an ally who will cost us dearly.

Operation Felix remains alive within the planning process, but, like Operation Sea Lion, it is growing more and more unlikely.

Sergeant Jack Stokoe transfers today with the rest of his No. 603 Squadron to RAF Hornchurch. Stokoe is a pre-war auxiliary pilot now in the thick of it.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-46 (Kptlt. Engelbert Endrass) torpedoes and sinks (on the 28th) armed 15,007 merchant cruiser HMS Dunvegan Castle west of Ireland. There are 262 survivors and 27 men perish. The AMC was helping to protect Convoy SL 43.

U-28 (Kptlt. Günter Kuhnke) torpedoes and damages 1599 ton Norwegian freighter Eva west of the Outer Hebrides. There are 17 survivors and one man perishes. The Eva remains afloat due to her timber cargo, and it takes two torpedoes and the deck gun to reduce it to a blazing wreck. It still stays afloat long enough to come ashore at the Butt of Lewis, a total loss. Eva is a straggler due to reduced speed resulting from bad coal. The RAF shows up and interrupts U-28's attempts to help the survivors.

U-37 (Kapitänleutnant Victor Oehrn), on its seventh patrol and operating out of Lorient, uses gunfire to sink 3409 ton Greek maize freighter Theodoros T. southwest of Ireland. Everybody aboard survives.

Convoy FN 264 departs from Southend, Convoy MT 152 departs from Methil, Convoy FS 264 departs from the Tyne, Convoy OB 204 departs from Liverpool.

Troop Convoy US 4 departs from Auckland, New Zealand. It has three troopships and is under escort.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The RAF bombs Derna.

Island commander Governor Dobbie receives a telegram from Whitehall telling him that Malta will receive numerous additional anti-aircraft guns during the winter. However, Dobbie has to recruit people to man some of the guns and there are not a lot of people available.

German auxiliary cruiser Pinguin, identification number Schiff 33 (HSK 5). The Royal Navy called her "Raider F."

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Pinguin, with captured Norwegian tanker Filefjell trailing behind, has a big day. It is sailing a few hundred miles south of Madagascar when it spots a mysterious ship during the night sailing under blackout conditions. After stalking it for an hour, the Pinguin stops the ship, which turns out to be tanker British Commander. After some confusion, the Pinguin takes aboard the 45-man crew and disposes of the ship - which takes some doing, because tankers are very difficult to sink. The Pinguin wastes a torpedo and 40 150mm shells on the ship, finally sinking it. The crew of the British Commander is able to send a distress signal with its position.

Later, the Pinguin captures Norwegian freighter Morviken. After boarding the crew and making them POWs, the Pinguin sinks the Morviken.

Pinguin then takes the trailing 7616 Norwegian ton tanker Filefjell south, away from the shipping lanes, to take aboard its 500 tons of fuel oil. It then sinks the tanker (which still has large quantities of oil products) with its deck guns, causing a huge explosion and fireball.

Separately, Panamanian freighter Bolivar takes on the water without any external factors involved and sinks. Everybody survives.

German/Hungarian/Romanian Relations: Hitler requests a meeting in Vienna with Hungarian and Romanian representatives regarding their border dispute. Tensions remain high as Romania continues to maintain that Hungarian aircraft have violated its airspace. Hungary claims the same, and also claims to have shot down a Romanian bomber. There is no proof that anyone actually was violating anyone's airspace.

Free France: Charles de Gaulle's Free France movement receives a much-needed boost in Africa thanks to, among others, Captain Leclerc. About forty men have launched a coup in Cameroon against the Vichy colonial government. Today, Leclerc, Claude Hettier de Boislambert and a few others leave Victoria, British Cameroon in native canoes (pirogue) bound for Douala, Cameroon, where they occupy the Vichy Government Palace without opposition.

US Government: President Roosevelt signs a law authorizing him to call up Army Reserves and National Guard units for one year of service. Other legislation authorizing him to call up US Navy and US Marine Corps reserve aviators also is in the works. The legislation allows for the appointment of reserve aviators to become regular pilots.

The destroyers-for-bases deal faces some opposition in Congress, but Roosevelt has his people continue with the preparations. Admiral Stark certifies that the destroyers are not necessary to protect US shores. Attorney General Robert H. Jackson certifies the sale as legal under US law.

The Caproni Campini in flight. This was considered a major event at the time because it was the first publicized flight by a jet aircraft. In fact, the Luftwaffe got there a full year before, but that was kept secret.

Italy: Jet aircraft Caproni Campini N.1. (C.C.2.), powered by a motorjet, takes its first flight at Caproni's Talledo factory. Test pilot Mario De Bernardi is impressed, but the plane has very poor fuel economy and other issues. This flight is made public - unlike the August 1939 flight of the jet Heinkel He 178 V1 - so it is recognized by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (for a time) as the first jet flight. Italian engineer Secondo Campini has been working on the project since first proposing it in 1931.

Iceland: RAF Coastal Command establishes its first airbase to protect the sea lanes. This is becoming urgent because the U-boats operating out of French ports now can reach out into the middle of the Atlantic. The first patrols use obsolete Fairey Battles. The patrols are only as good as the aircraft used, and the increasing range of operation of RAF (and later USAAF) aircraft is destined to have a major influence on the Battle of the Atlantic.

Canada: Troop Convoy TC 7 departs from Halifax under heavy escort. It includes six troop transport ships each carrying between 1153-2801 Canadian troops.

All single Canadian men 21-45 become subject to the military call-up.

Downed Luftwaffe planes accumulated in a giant scrap heap in England. 27 August 1940. (AP Photo).

August 1940

August 1, 1940: Two RN Subs Lost
August 2, 1940: Operation Hurry
August 3, 1940: Italians Attack British Somaliland
August 4, 1940: Dueling Legends in the US
August 5, 1940: First Plan for Barbarossa
August 6, 1940: Wipe Out The RAF
August 7, 1940: Burning Oil Plants
August 8, 1940: True Start of Battle of Britain
August 9, 1940: Aufbau Ost
August 10, 1940: Romania Clamps Down On Jews
August 11, 1940: Huge Aerial Losses
August 12, 1940: Attacks on Radar
August 13, 1940: Adler Tag
August 14, 1940: Sir Henry's Mission
August 15, 1940: Luftwaffe's Black Thursday
August 16, 1940: Wolfpack Time
August 17, 1940: Blockade of Britain
August 18, 1940: The Hardest Day
August 19, 1940: Enter The Zero
August 20, 1940: So Much Owed By So Many
August 21, 1940: Anglo Saxon Incident
August 22, 1940: Hellfire Corner
August 23, 1940: Seaplanes Attack
August 24, 1940: Slippery Slope
August 25, 1940: RAF Bombs Berlin
August 26, 1940: Troops Moved for Barbarossa
August 27, 1940: Air Base in Iceland
August 28, 1940: Call Me Meyer
August 29, 1940: Schepke's Big Day
August 30, 1940: RAF's Bad Day
August 31, 1940: Texel Disaster

2020