Friday 14 March 1941

Damage to Clydebank from the Luftwaffe bombing of 13/14 March 1941.

Italian/Greek Campaign: The Italian Primavera Offensive of the 11th Army continues on 14 March 1941 without achieving anything. The tough Julia Division assaults the heights south of the Vojussa river - and fails, with horrendous casualties. The Pusteria Division also tries to advance, with the same result. Italian casualties for the offensive are in the low five figures and rising fast.

Mussolini, watching the activity from a mountain with a good view of Monastery Hill in the center of the line, is frustrated. However, things could be much worse for him than simply feeling bad about his troops' difficulties. Two Allied airplanes suddenly strafe the mountain that he is standing on. Everyone rushes to the shelter - and leave Mussolini behind to enter last. It is both a lucky escape and a commentary on the people surrounding him and their view of their leader.

Italian Chief of the Supreme Command General Ugo Cavallero has seen enough. He urges Mussolini to end the offensive and go over to the defensive. Mussolini, however, urgently wants to have some sort of Italian victory before the start of the German offensive from Bulgaria.

Air battles over the ground fighting are intense. The Italians are making a major effort to support the ground troops, and the RAF joins the party. The RAF claims eight Italian aircraft downed.

A handful of British Swordfish torpedo planes of RAF No. 815 Squadron based in Paramythia, Greece attack Valona (Vlorë), Albania. They sink an Italian hospital ship, the Po, and 3539-ton freighter Santa Maria at the cost of one aircraft (the Santa Maria is later raised and repaired). Needless to say, hospital ships are off-limits to attacks. Technically, this is a war crime. However, like many other such incidents throughout the war (on both sides), nothing comes of it. The British lose a plane, and the three airmen become POWs.

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill asks Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden to stay in Cairo until there is more clarity. Given that the British (and, unknown to the British, the Germans) are preparing radical departures in their activities in the region, this may be some time.

East African Campaign: Lieutenant-General William Platt has been stymied in front of Keren and its narrow entrance, the Dongolaas Gorge, for over a month. He has used that time to prepare his troops and wait for other British forces to put pressure on the entire Italian position in East Africa. Now, he is ready to attack on the 15th in a classic set-piece sequence of battles that focus on the Italian weak spots. He meets with his commanders on the 14th and warns them that it is going to be a bitter battle:

Do not let anybody think this is going to be a walkover. It is not. It is going to be a bloody battle: a bloody battle against both enemy and ground. It will be won by the side which lasts longest. I know you will last longer than they do. And I promise you I will last longer than my opposite number.

This is a standard inspirational speech. However, for those who like to cast everything that Adolf Hitler ever did as eccentric and weird and revealing of his mental deterioration and so forth, compare its language to speeches Hitler makes around the time of the Ardennes Offensive in late 1944 and early 1945. He easily could have said those words. In fact, he actually did say some of them, such as the bit about lasting longer than his opposite number. This is simply how commanders under stress talk, whether they are winning or losing.

Some patrol actions take place around Mount Gegghiro. Two companies of the 4/16 Punjab climb 5000 feet up the mountain and displace some Italians who also are patrolling in the area. Punjab troops occupy the heights and install artillery, which can reach Engiahat.

The Italians are testing their Reggiane Re 2001, which among other advances uses the same engine, the DB 601, as the German Bf 109. This is the remains of the 14th test flight today. The second prototype, MM408, crashes and kills the test pilot, Pietro Scapinelli. The crash is ascribed to a faulty airscrew pitch. Alfa Romeo is judged guilty and must pay a large fine. These "second-generation" fighters of the Regia Aeronautica hold great promise and are a major upgrade for the Italian air force.

European Air Operations: The weather has improved enough for the Luftwaffe, after a two-month absence, to resume major bombing raids. The Germans put 451 bombers in the sky over Great Britain, and they cause tremendous damage to several locations.

The Luftwaffe, as is its tendency, returns to the same city that it creamed on the previous night. Having devastated Glasgow and the surrounding area on the night of the 13th, the Luftwaffe returns tonight. Just over 200 bombers attack Glasgow and Clydebank again, dropping 231 tons of high explosives. Further damage results to the shipyards and to the Rolls Royce engine factory there. This is known as the second night of the Clydebank Blitz.

It also is the night of the largest Luftwaffe attack of the war on Leeds. Tonight's raid begins at 21:00 when about 40 bombers attack the city and drop about 25 tons of bombs on it. The bombers aim for the city center, destroying about 100 houses and damaging 4600 others. In all, about 65 people are killed. Many historical buildings are destroyed or damaged, and you can see some bomb damage to this day in various structures. The antiaircraft defenders in the region down about five Junkers Ju 88 and Dornier Do-17 bombers, but it is unclear if they are involved in the Leeds raid, which is known as the Leeds Blitz.

The bombers also target surrounding towns, which likewise take a beating. This includes Huddersfield, near the site of a David Brown factory making Supermarine Spitfire parts, and Castleford. Sheffield receives special attention, with 117 bombers dropping 83 tons of high explosives and 328 incendiary bombs. This raid receives a blackout in the British media and is usually referenced as a "North East Inland Town."

RAF Bomber Command attacks oil installations at Gelsenkirchen with 101 bombers. Oil production in the city is interrupted temporarily. Also attacked by 24 bombers is Dusseldorf.

Battle of the Atlantic: Heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper has been at Brest, France for a month. It has had to be repaired after hitting some submerged objects in the harbor. It also needs a major refit which can only be done in Germany. In any event, Brest is becoming too "hot" for it to remain there indefinitely. The Germans ready it today for a return voyage to Germany via the Denmark Strait for a departure on the 15th.

German battleship Bismarck is preparing for its own sortie into the Atlantic. Tied up at Scheerhafen, Kiel, the warship is taking on supplies.

German S-boats have been active recently off the English coast. Today, they attack local Convoy FS 35, but destroyers HMS Vanessa and Holderness fight them off.

Italian submarine Emo torpedoes and sinks 5759-ton British freighter Western Chief in the Atlantic. Western Chief is a straggler from Convoy SC-24. There are 22 deaths.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 1802-ton British freighter Stanleigh in the Mersey near the Bar Light Vessel. There are 17 deaths.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 6507-ton British freighter Artemisia off Mundesley.  There are two deaths.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 94-ton British drifter Peaceful Star east of the Rockabill Lighthouse. Everyone survives.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks British drifter Peaceful Star in the Irish Sea southeast of Rockabill, County Dublin. Everyone survives.

The Luftwaffe attack on Liverpool damages several British ships: 179-ton tug Minegarth, 7006-ton freighter Scottish Chief, and 5691-ton freighter Empire Simba.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 4265-ton Norwegian freighter Tyr in the Humber near the Humber Light Vessel. The ship has to be towed to Immingham.

The Luftwaffe bombs Royal Navy minesweeper HMS Franklin in the North Sea. Four near misses damage it.

The RAF (Handley Page bomber) bombs and sinks 2365-ton Finnish freighter Wirma, recently renamed Rainer, off the German North Sea Coast. Its location is northeast of Norderney Island, between Cuxhaven and Emden. All 23 aboard survive, rescued by Swedish freighter Arete. Because of the ship's different names and other factors, this sinking tends to get cited separately as two (or more) sinkings. It had left Emden bound for Stockholm.

Brazilian freighter Santa Clara sinks in the Atlantic. It is believed to have been sunk by a submarine. Nobody survives.

Royal Navy 95-ton drifter HMS Jeannie Leasik hits a mine off Clacton-on-Sea. The captain beaches the ship at Brightlingsea Harbour. It ultimately is refloated and repaired.

British 2653-ton freighter Herport hits a mine and sinks off Cromer in the North Sea. There are four deaths.

Convoy HG 56 departs from Gibraltar.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Trusty and minesweeper HMAS Mildura are launched, and destroyer HMS Rocket is laid down.

US destroyer USS Monssen (DD 436, Lt. Commander Roland N. Smoot) is commissioned.

Brazilian freighter Santa Clara. A mystery ship, nobody survives its sinking on 14 March 1941. Perhaps sunk by a U-boat.

Battle of the Mediterranean: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill has been zealously guarding the information received from the Ultra decryption service. However, he allows Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell to share in this intelligence beginning today.

The British are considering multiple courses of action in the Mediterranean basin - but none of them involve looking to the west. The obsession with the Wehrmacht forces in Bulgaria is at a fever pitch. The latest issue is whether or not to bomb infrastructure in Bulgaria. While a legitimate target due to the presence of German troops there, Bulgaria isn't at war with anyone. However, nobody is really too concerned about the rights of neutrals at this stage of the war.

On Malta, Lt. General William Dobbie, the island's governor and commander in chief, is knighted.  He is now Lt. General Sir William Dobbie.

Convoy ANF 20 departs from Alexandria, Convoy AS 19 departs from Piraeus.

An Axis convoy of three freighters and three Italian destroyers departs from Tripoli bound for Naples. A five-transport convoy also departs from Naples bound for Tripoli.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: The Axis ships in East Africa have been fleeing for safety as British troops approach. It has been an infallible signal of Italian-held ports about to fall. Today, 9000-ton German freighter Coburg, which had been at anchor in the port of Massawa, is intercepted off the island of Mauritius. The crewmen scuttle the ship and are taken as prisoners.

German raider Komet, which has been meeting with fellow raider Pinguin in the Kerguelen Islands, departs today. Pinguin remains in the islands to receive supplies and to have its crew scrape barnacles from the hull and the like.

US/Japanese Relations: The new Japanese Consul General to Hawaii, Kita Nagao, arrives in Honolulu aboard the freighter Tatsuta Maru. He replaces Acting Consul General Ojiro Okuda, who has been spying on the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor.

Royal Navy battleship HMS Vanguard is ordered today from John Brown & Company. While it is launched on 30 November 1944, it is not commissioned until 12 May 1946. Incidentally, yes, this picture is taken from a Royal Navy aircraft carrier, but it is unknown which carrier it is.

US Military: Future ace Francis S. 'Gabby' Grabreski graduates from flight school.

Soviet Military: General Rodion Malinovsky becomes commander of Soviet 48th Rifle Corps.

China: The Battle of Shanggao (a county in the northwest of Jiangxi province) begins today when the Japanese 11th Army attacks the headquarters of the Chinese 19th Army.

Japanese Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" fighters have been dominant over China. Today, they score another major success. Chinese ace pilot (seven victories) Major Wong Sun-Sui is flying a Soviet-built I-15III fighter over the southern area of Chengdu, Sichuan Province when a Zero shoots him down. He makes it to a hospital in Sumatou District of Chengdu but perishes from a head wound.

That isn't all. In addition, ace pilot Cen Zeliu (five victories), also flying an I-15III fighter, is shot down apparently in the same engagement, also by a Zero. Cen is remembered as someone who did not pursue medals but was a fine combat pilot (and also deputy commanding officer of the 5th Pursuit Group). The Chinese have great difficulties in the air against the Japanese, and these victories cement the superiority of the Zero over the second-rate import fighters the Chinese use.

American Homefront: The Gallup Organization has been tracking public opinion about the war throughout the conflict. While polling techniques are primitive, the data does provide some information about feelings among ordinary Americans about the distant wars in places many couldn't even locate on a map. Today, in Public Opinion New Service, 14 March 1941, Gallup finds that a small majority of voters with an opinion feel that preventing the Japanese from occupying Singapore and the Dutch East Indies is worth a potential US war.

"Amapola (Pretty Little Poppy)" enters the Billboard singles chart. It will be a No. 1 hit for teen weeks.

Future History: Wolfgang Petersen is born in Emden, Germany. He studies theater, then works for West German television. After making his first theatrical film in 1974, Peterson makes a controversial film, "Die Konsequenz," then makes the film he is most remembered for, "Das Boot" (1982). It stars an old friend, Jürgen Prochnow, and tells the tale of a German U-boat. Having made his international reputation off "Das Boot," Peterson goes on to a major film career and still makes films occasionally.

Norma Jeanne Baker aka Marilyn Monroe with Ana Lower's nephew, March 1941. They are standing at the southwest corner of Nebraska and Corinth Avenue in West Los Angeles. The scene looks remarkably similar today (without Marilyn and her friend), as the building behind them, the Nora Sterry (Sawtelle Boulevard school) school Auditorium, is still there. Norma Jeanne attended it in 1938. At the time of this picture, Norma Jeanne is a few months away from graduating from Emerson Junior High School. She is 14 years old.

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

Sunday 23 February 1941

HMS Terror, sunk today.

Italian/Greek Campaign: British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden and CIGS Anthony Dill inter alia continue their discussions with the Greek government throughout the day of 23 February 1941. The Greeks feel that putting insufficient British troops on the Greek mainland (the British already are on Crete) would merely invite an invasion that could not be repelled. Finally, with great reluctance, Greek Prime Minister Alexandros Koryzis agrees to accept a British expeditionary force projected at 100,000 well-armed troops. The disagreement about tactics lingers, however: the Greeks want to defend the Bulgarian frontier along the Metaxas Line, while the British prefer positions (along the Aliakmon River) further back.

In Cairo, Middle East Commander Archibald Wavell considers, then rejects a proposal from London that the RAF bomb the Ploesti oil fields from bases in Greece. He reasons that this would violate Turkish air space and also give the Wehrmacht a pretext (not that it needs one) to invade Greece by revealing the British presence there. Neither of those reasons, however, has a particularly strong foundation (Hitler should know about RAF activity in Albania already, and the bombers could avoid Turkey). However, there is another reason that would make any attack on the oil fields explosive in more ways than one. While the British don't know this, one of Hitler's greatest fears (he confesses to Marshal Mannerheim at their meeting in June 1942 that he has nightmares about it) is the Allied bombing of the Romanian oil fields. RAF attacks on the oil could force Hitler's hand early before the British are even on mainland Greece. Thus, Wavell makes the proper decision from mistaken premises. Great weight is placed upon Wavell's support since it is common knowledge (as noted in the minutes) that he would prefer to finish off the Axis forces in North Africa first.

Prime Minister Churchill, the most ardent backer of a British presence in Greece, is under no illusions about possible success in the Balkans. He notes in a message to Eden that the "odds seem heavily against us in Greece." Australian Prime Minister Menzies discusses the question of a campaign in Greece "largely with Australian & New Zealand troops" with the heads of RAF Bomber Command (Air Marshal Sir Richard Pearse) and Fighter Command (Sholto Douglas) and comes away with more questions than answers. He notes that committing his men to an uncertain campaign in Greece "is not easy." A big War Cabinet meeting is scheduled for the 24th to discuss the issue, and Menzies is a troubled man.

East African Campaign: Operation Canvas begins. It is a two-pronged advance to take Mogadishu and other Italian forces in Italian Somaliland (Somalia). Having pocketed Jelib (Somalia), General Cunningham begins sending his forces on the road northeast to Mogadishu. He sends the 11th African Division together with the 23rd Nigerian and 22nd East African Brigades toward Mogadishu. Italian defenses are now in a state of collapse, and the 35th Works Company quickly throws a bridge across the Juba river at Mabungo. Meanwhile, the British 12th African Division drives along the Juba River toward the Abyssinian border.

Indian 7th Infantry Brigade and Free French Brigade d'Orient capture Cub Cub. The British capture 436 prisoners, four guns and many supplies.

Propaganda leaflet dropped in France, 23/24 and 24/25 February 1941 (McMaster University, WWII Propaganda Collection 0102).

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe attacks Skaalefjord, missing British tanker War Pindari. It also sends 49 bombers against Hull just after dark at 19:30. There are 13 deaths and 27 injured, including the death of a six-month-old baby, and 36 are left homeless. Right at midnight, an aerial mine hits the Alexandra Dock and sinks lighters "Brakelu" and "Monarch."

RAF Bomber Command attacks Boulogne with 52 planes.

Battle of the Atlantic: A classic Wolf Pack operation unfolds against Convoy OB 288 south of Iceland. It is a textbook operation of how the Luftwaffe can work in combination with the U-boat fleet to wreak devastation on the convoys. A Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor of I,/KG 40 spots Convoy OB 288 heading west about 500 km south of Iceland (370 km northwest of Rockall). The convoy has dispersed and is without escort, but it aware that it is being shadowed and has turned north to avoid U-boats. The ships also close up their spacing again - which makes it easier to attack them.

The Condor vectors in (via U-boat command B.d.U) every U-boat and Italian submarine in the vicinity:

• U-69 (Kapitänleutnant Jost Metzler, first patrol)
• U-73 (Kptlt. Helmut Rosenbaum)
• U-95 (Kptlt. Gerd Schreiber)
• U-96 (Kptlt. Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock)
• U-107 (K.Kapt. Günther Hessler, first patrol)
• U-123 (Kptlt. Karl-Heinz Moehle)
• Italian submarine Michele Bianchi (C.C. Adalberto Giovannini, first BETASOM patrol from Bordeaux)
• Italian submarine Barbarigo (Capitano di Corvetta Enzo Grossi)

The submarine attacks begin at 23:27, with an attack by U-69. Details of this convoy attack have been uncertain, with who sunk what unclear and subject to some controversy and guesswork. All told, the victims of OB 288 (including those sunk on the 24th, but not those in following days) are:

• 4542-ton British freighter Marslew (U-69, 13 deaths, 23 survivors)
• 5457-ton British freighter Anglo-Peruvian (U-96, 29 deaths, 17 survivors)
• 3385-ton British freighter Linaria (U-96)
• 5458-ton British freighter Sirikishna (U-69)
• 3807-ton British freighter Cape Nelson (U-95)
• 1908-ton Norwegian freighter Svein Jarl (U-95, all 22 perish)
• 4427-ton British freighter Temple Moat (U-95, a straggler)
• 5360-ton Royal Navy ocean boarding ship HMS Manistee (U-107, no survivors)
• 8685-ton Dutch freighter Grootekerk (U-123, no survivors)
• 4260-ton British freighter Waynegate (U-73)
• 5360-ton British freighter Manistree (U-107, first attacked by Bianchi, all 141 perish)
• 10,946-ton British transport Huntingdon (Bianchi and U-96, everyone survives).

Simply listing the victims does not give the full flavor of the action. U-107 and Bianchi chase HMS Manistee (Lt Cdr E. H. Smith RNR) throughout the night before finally sinking it (destroyer HMS Churchill finds no survivors). U-123 similarly spends nine hours chasing the Grootekerk before sending it under. The Royal Navy escorts counterattack, and U-69 is subjected to a three-hour attack. However, all of the submarines escape, leaving behind a nightmarish scene of burning ships and men in the frigid water.

The Linaria sinking is particularly murky, as Italian submarine Bianchi, U-73 and U-96 all may have sunk it. The sinking of the Huntingdon also is murky, but the best scholarship (Jürgen Rohwer, Bibliothek für Zeitgeschichte, Marinearchiv) suggests that U-96 hit the ship first, followed by the kill shot from Bianchi. Even the men on the scene did not know who did what, so piecing it all together requires a lot of detective work, comparison of different accounts and the like.

British 698-ton coaster Shoal Fisher hits a mine and sinks east of Falmouth. Everyone survives and arrives safely at Falmouth.

Convoy OB 290 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HX 111 departs from Halifax.

President Roosevelt and Fala in his Ford Phaeton, February 1941 (National Archives  NPx 73-113:59).

Battle of the Mediterranean: Royal Navy submarine HMS Upright (Lt. Edward Dudley Norman, DSC, RN) torpedoes and sinks 2365 ton Italian freighter Silvia Tripcovich off Sfax (east of Kuriat Island). This is roughly along the line that Italian convoys take to Tripoli.

Greek submarine Nereus claims to sink an Italian freighter near Valona in the Adriatic, but there is no confirmation.

A German convoy departs from Naples bound for Tripoli. It has a heavy escort and carries more troops for General Rommel's Afrika Korps.

Royal Navy Monitor HMS Terror, bombed on the 22nd, sinks off the Libyan coast at 04:20. The Luftwaffe continues its attacks on Benghazi and Tobruk.

The Free French continue bombarding Italian fortress El Tag at Kufra. The Italians are holding out, but are not mounting any sorties despite outnumbering the surrounding French.

Governor Lt. General William Dobbie issues a statement about conscription on Malta, which as created many hard feelings among the locals:

We must be as strong as possible in order to ensure that all attacks are decisively beaten off, should they be attempted.  The Government must, therefore be in a position to utilise the resources of Malta (including the manpower) to the best advantage, and it is for that reason that conscription of manpower is being brought into being.

Applied Science: Dr. Glenn T. Seaborg, who discovered Plutonium (atomic number 94) on 14 December 1940 (credit to Joseph W. Kennedy, Edwin M. McMillan, and Arthur C. Wahl as well), makes further progress in his research of the element. Working in famous Room 307 of Gilman Hall of University of California, Berkeley. Seaborg, working together with Arthur C. Wahl and Joseph W. Kennedy, produces and identifies plutonium in the 60-inch cyclotron. Progress is quickening, with the scientists gaining more knowledge about what will become a key part of nuclear weapons. However, at this point they still have not produced visible amounts of plutonium, merely traces that are too small to be weighed.

U-203 during its commissioning at Kiel on 18 February 1941.

German/Japanese Relations: Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop meets with Japanese Ambassador Hiroshi Oshima. Ribbentrop takes the position that the Japanese should strike only at the British, and go to war with the Americans only if the Americans attacked. Throughout this period, Ribbentrop maintains a healthy respect for United States power, though he does blithely tell Oshima that the Japanese Navy could defeat the US Navy. The general gist of Ribbentrop's counsel is that Japan enter the war soon - but avoid the US.

Anglo/Soviet Relations: In a somewhat cryptic note sent to Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden (currently in Athens), British Prime Minister Winston Churchill rejects a suggestion (coming from Sir Richard Stafford Cripps, a Socialist who specializes in relations with the USSR) that Eden should visit Moscow. Churchill does not trust Stalin, feels that he could arrest Eden, and muses that the "Best way of gaining Russians (favor) is a good throw (success) in the Balkans."

A3-1 of the CA-6 Wackett Trainer at the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation Fishermans Bend factory in February 1941. Photo: CAC.

Italian Homefront: In one of these odd but characteristic fascist moments, Il Duce Benito Mussolini gives a speech in Rome's Adriano Theater which is defiant with hints of defensiveness. He dates the beginning of the war from February 1, 1935, not September 1, 1939, when the conquest of Ethiopia began - but then corrects himself and says it actually began in 1922 when he seized power. He emphasizes that despite the "gray days" so far in the war:

Great Britain cannot win the war. I can prove this logically and in this case belief is corroborated by fact. This proof begins with the dogmatic premise that although anything may happen, Italy will march with Germany, side by side, to the end.

Earlier, Mussolini foretold where this might lead: "to the last drop of blood." Fatalistically, he does not say what "anything may happen" might mean, but the "last drop of blood" the war might require is chilling (and, in his case, accurate). This sense of fatalism imbues many of Hitler's speeches throughout the war as well.

Dutch Homefront: The Germans, with the assistance of Dutch police, complete their roundup of 450 Jewish male hostages, all aged 25-30. They will all be sent to concentration camps, and two will survive the war. Many ordinary Dutch citizens are outraged at the Germans' heavy-handed approach, and a general meeting of various groups, such as the local communist party, is scheduled for the 24th in the Noordemarkt to discuss retaliation.

Future History: Ronald Kenneth Hunt is born in St. Louis, Missouri. Ron Hunt becomes a major league baseball player in 1963 with the new New York Mets. Playing second base, he set a single-season record for being hit by more pitches (50) in a season than anyone since 1900.

Lodz, Poland, Jews on the bridge above Zgierska St., which connects the two parts of the ghetto. 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