Monday 16 March 1942

U-502 arrives back in port after a successful patrol during which it sank 33,800 tons of enemy shipping on 16 March 1942 (Moravia; Junkers, Federal Archive Figure 101II-MW-3810-20A).

Battle of the Pacific: Just before midnight on 16 March 1942, General Douglas MacArthur, his family, and his staff finally receive planes to take them from Del Monte, Mindanao, Philippines, to Australia on 16 March 1942. Three B-17 bombers of the US Army 5th Air Force arrive for this mission but one requires repairs before it can make the return trip (defective supercharger). Lead pilot Lieutenant Frank P. Bostrom readies for a quick turnaround by drinking a pot of coffee. He informs the general that he and his party must leave behind any luggage - including Mrs. MacArthur's prized mattress which she brought from Corregidor.

Japanese siege guns continue bombarding US Army forts on their fortified islands near Manila. The Japanese have emplaced additional artillery southwest of Temate and US counterbattery fire is ineffective. Already, several US guns have been knocked out at Forts Drum and Frank. The Japanese guns range up in size to 240 mm, and one shell hits a Fort Frank powder room but somehow fails to detonate the 60 filled powder cans inside. US Navy submarine USS Permit arrives at Corregidor Island to evacuate naval radio and communications intelligence soldiers.

The happy crew of U-502 as it arrives back at Lorient on 16 March 1942. Note the victory pennants signifying a successful patrol. (Moravia; Junkers, Federal Archive Figure 101II-MW-3810-24A).

Eastern Front: Operation Raubtier, the German mission to cut off Soviet troops that have advanced past the Volkhov River in an effort to take Lyuban, continues from both the north and south. Progress is slow but steady. The Soviet defenders on each end of the six-mile-wide breakthrough are slowly being compressed together. Even small German advances greatly improve their chances of final success.

The Germans need Operation Raubtier to end quickly so that they transfer the forces there to relieve the men trapped in the Demyansk pocket. In the pocket, General Walter von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt, commander of the II Army Corps, has been talking about staging a desperate breakout to the west. To reassure him, Army Group North commander Georg von Küchler makes an unusually risky flight for an army group commander. He flies into the Demyansk pocket. During the flights in and out, Küchler makes personal observations about the relative positions of the two forces. He sees that the Soviets are attacking from the north and south, which means that an attack from the west might well succeed. Still, the relief attack will have to cover a full 20 miles, no small feat in the snowy or, if the attack is postponed too long, boggy terrain.

"A captured German Mk IV tank is examined back at base in the Western Desert, 16 March 1942." © IWM (E 9309).

The Soviet attack at the Parpach Narrows in Crimea begun on 13 March 1942 is over. It has accomplished virtually nothing except the capture of the strongpoint at Korpech'. That small victory came at great cost in men, tanks, and planes. The Germans begin preparing a counterattack set to start on 20 March 1942. They bring in the fresh 22nd Panzer Division in order to recapture Korpech'. However, while the 22nd Pzr is powerful, it is equipped with obsolete Czech-built Panzer 38(t)s. The Soviets, meanwhile, are also building up their forces for a renewal of their attack, and the big question is who attacks first.

European Air Operations: It is a very quiet night on the Channel Front. There are standard anti-shipping sweeps during the day but no bombing missions.

The commander of U-502, Kptlt. Jürgen von Rosenstiel, on deck after his boat docks in Lorient on 16 March 1942 (Moravia; Junkers, Federal Archive Figure 101II-MW-3810-26A).

Battle of the Atlantic: U-332 (Kptlt. Johannes Liebe), on its third patrol out of La Pallice, torpedoes and sinks 11,628-ton US tanker Australia. The independent tanker is zigzagging near the Diamond Shoals Light Buoy of Cape Hatteras near other ships when U-332 spots its silhouette against the shore lights in the background. Liebe hits the tanker with a torpedo in the engine room, killing four men instantly. Freighter William J. Salman picks up the men in their three lifeboats in only 95 minutes. The ship submerges but does not completely sink (masts still visible) and has to be completely sunk later (20 March 1942) in order for the owner to receive compensation from the US War Shipping Administration (WSA).  There are four dead and 36 survivors.

U-68 (KrvKpt. Karl-Friedrich Merten), on its third patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 3386-ton British freighter Baron Newlands six miles south of Cape Palmas, Liberia. The ship is sunk after a difficult pursuit through a thunderstorm. There are 20 survivors and 18 deaths. The survivors apparently managed to swim to shore or clung to flotsam and jetsam as no lifeboats were launched.

Dutch tanker Oscilla, sunk near the Windward Islands on 16 March 1942.

Italian submarine Morosini torpedoes, shells, and sinks 6341-ton Dutch tanker Oscilla about 100 miles northeast of the Windward Islands.  There are four survivors and four deaths, including the captain, M.A.F. Kuypers.

Italian submarine Morosini also (apparently it is the Morosini, this is not confirmed) torpedoes and sinks 2802-ton British freighter Manaqui northeast of Barbuda. Morosini is known to be operating in this area. There are 41 dead. Another candidate for this sinking is U-504.

U-504 (KrvKpt. Hans-Georg Friedrich Poske), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 5966-ton British freighter Stangarth about 300 miles north of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The ship, which is carrying ammunition and other military goods, explodes and sinks immediately. All 46 men on the Stangarth perish. Another candidate for this sinking is the Morosini.

"Commissioning of USS Impulse, formerly the British corvette HMS Begonia. 16 March 1942, Albert Dock." USS Impulse served with the US Navy until being returned to the Royal Navy in 1945. © IWM (A 7789).

Danish 1458-ton freighter Agnete (under German control) is bombed and sunk by RAF aircraft about eight miles northeast of Terschelling, the Netherlands. Casualties are not recorded.

German 2642-ton freighter Utlandshorn hits a mine and sinks in the waters off northern Norway (Grense Jakobselv). The ship apparently is supplying the German garrison at Pechenga. Casualties are not recorded.

German harbor defense vessel (patrol boat) HS-97 hits a mine and sinks near Dunkirk. No details on this one.

British 430-ton freighter Miriam Thomas collides with Admiralty Hospital Ship Vasna and sinks about 15 miles south of Chicken Rocks near Holyhead, UK. All eight men aboard perish.

Dutch 4539-ton freighter Alcyone hits a mine and sinks 18 miles off Green Point, Capetown, South Africa. The mine was laid by the Speybank, a captured ship being used by the Germans. There are 46 deaths.

British 4270-ton freighter Cressdene hits a mine and is severely damaged near Swansea, UK. It sinks while under tow on the 17th. Details are scarce on this ship.

"The gun turret of a Matilda tank that had been captured [by Axis forces] and concreted into position to be used as part of the defenses of Halfaya Pass, 16 March 1942. A Valentine tank passes by in the background." © IWM (E 9320).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Royal Navy and RAF combine in an attack on the Italian E-boat base in Rhodes. This is Operation MF.8. Light cruisers HMS Dido and Euryalus and six destroyers bombard the island during the night of 15/16 March 1942.

Italian submarine Galatea uses its deck gun to sink a small sailing vessel off the Palestinian coast.

The situation on Malta is critical in certain vital areas that the Axis air forces have targeted. Ta Qali Airfield, in particular, is in trouble due to incessant bombing attacks. In addition, the field has to be modified for the use of new Spitfire squadrons. The island government sends out a request for volunteers to help with this work.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Ultimatum (P 32) arrives in Malta with 14 Italian survivors of its 14 March 1942 sinking of Italian submarine Ammiraglio Millo in the Ionian Sea off Punta (Cape) Stilo, Calabria, Italy. Commander Harrison of the Ultimatum makes a quick turnaround and departs for a new patrol on 17 March.

Dr. Seuss cartoon from 16 March 1942. Image from Dr. Seuss Went to War (Mandeville Special Collections Library, UC San Diego).

Partisans:  Joseph Goebbels notes in his diary that:

The activity of the partisans has increased notably in recent weeks. They are conducting a well-organized guerilla war.

The Germans at the front are busy preparing "Operation Munich," an anti-partisan sweep set to begin on 19 March 1942. This is planned as a large-scale operation to include a special air detachment established Bobruisk on 14 March 1942. Another such mission in the same general area set to begin later in March 1942 is Operation Bamberg.

Anglo/US Relations: President Roosevelt cables Prime Minister Winston Churchill with an offer to send a large US Navy force ("two battleships, two cruisers, an aircraft carrier, and a squadron of destroyers") to homeland British bases such as Scapa Flow. He notes that recent tanker sinkings are "very disturbing." He promises that by 1 July 1942 "our mounting production of small escort vessels and planes will come fully into play."

Time magazine, 16 March 1942. The cover story, "The Viceroy of India." Cover credit: Ernest Hamlin Baker.

Anglo/Indian Relations: British Lord Privy Seal Sir Stafford Cripps departs from London to enter negotiations with Indian leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru who demand independence. He also will talk with Moslem League President Mohammed Ali Hinnah who wants a separate Pakistan. Cripps is an avowed socialist who is sent on missions like this regularly.

Anglo/Soviet Relations: The Soviet Ambassador to Great Britain repeats Joseph Stalin's repeated request that the western Allies open a second front in Europe.

Life magazine, 16 March 1942. Note that the soldier on the cover is wearing a World War I helmet.

US Military: Lt. General W.J. Slim departs India for Magwe, Burma, in order to establish the 1st Burma Corps. This is to include the 1st Burma Division, the 17th Indian Division, and the 7th Armored Brigade. All of these units have been battered during the retreat across Burma. This will become known as "Burcorps" after it is officially established on 19 March 1942.

The 39th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor), 35th Pursuit Group (Interceptor), transfers from Ballarat to Mount Gambier with its P-39 fighters. The 64th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 43d Bombardment Group (Heavy), arrives at Sydney, Australia from the US with its B-17s. The 68th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor), 58th Pursuit Group (Interceptor), arrives at Amberly Field, Australia from the US with its P-39s.

US Government: The Maritime Commission places orders for another 234 Liberty ships. These are generic freighters built according to a standard plan that prioritizes cheap parts and ease of construction. For instance, they use a 140-ton vertical triple expansion compound steam engine of obsolete design rather than modern steam engines because the latter type is more difficult to build and requires special tooling. Everybody, including President Roosevelt, makes fun of the Liberty ships and their ugly appearance, but they get the job done.

"The weather map from the morning of March 16th [1942] showed low pressure over central Oklahoma, with an associated warm front lifting northward across central Illinois. Temperatures were unseasonably warm across the area, rising into the mid to upper 70s by afternoon." National Weather Service.

Holocaust: The Germans deport about 1600 Jews from Lublin, Poland, to Belzec concentration camp. Belzec is an extermination camp that opened on 13 March 1942 and already an estimated 6000 people have been murdered there.

American Homefront: Powerful tornadoes hit the Central and Southern United States. States affected include Illinois, Indiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Alabama, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Many of these areas do not usually get tornadoes, so they come as real shocks. The outbreak goes on for almost three full days, with 149 fatalities and 1312 injuries. On the Fujita scale, some of the tornadoes score the maximum rating of tornado damage, with costly property damage.

The Lacon F5 Tornado of 16 March 1942.

March 1942

March 1, 1942: Second Battle of Java Sea
March 2, 1942: Huge Allied Shipping Losses at Java
March 3, 1942: Japan Raids Western Australia
March 4, 1942: Second Raid On Hawaii
March 5, 1942: Japan Takes Batavia
March 6, 1942: Churchill Assaults Free Speech
March 7, 1942: British Defeat in Burma
March 8, 1942: Rangoon Falls to Japan
March 9, 1942: Japanese Conquest of Dutch East Indies
March 10, 1942:US Navy attacks Japanese Landings at Lae
March 11, 1942: Warren Buffett's First Stock Trade
March 12, 1942: Japan Takes Java
March 13, 1942: Soviets Attack In Crimea Again 
March 14, 1942: The US Leans Toward Europe
March 15, 1942: Operation Raubtier Begins
March 16, 1942: General MacArthur Gets His Ride
March 17, 1942: MacArthur Arrives in Australia
March 18, 1942: Japan Attacks In Burma
March 19, 1942: Soviets Encircled on the Volkhov
March 20, 1942: "I Shall Return," Says MacArthur
March 21, 1942: Germans Attack Toward Demyansk
March 22, 1942: Second Battle of Sirte
March 23, 1942: Hitler's Insecurity Builds
March 24, 1942: Bataan Bombarded
March 25, 1942: Chinese Under Pressure in Burma
March 26, 1942: Win Or Die, Vows MacArthur
March 27, 1942: The Battle of Suusari
March 28, 1942: The St. Nazaire Commando Raid
March 29, 1942: The Free Republic of Nias
March 30, 1942: Japanese-Americans Off Bainbridge Island
March 31, 1942: Japanese Seize Christmas Island

2020

Thursday 5 March 1942

The cover story of the 5 March 1942 Tempo magazine is "Italian tanks in Marmarica." Marmarica is the border region between Libya and Egypt, and at this moment, the only Italian tanks in that area are captured one.

Battle of the Pacific: At dusk on 5 March 1942, the Japanese 2nd Infantry Division captures Batavia, Java. Batavia is the capital of the Netherlands East Indies. Dutch troops in the vicinity of Batavia surrender. Remaining Allied forces fall back to the south to defend Bandung in the central highlands. Also under threat, further south, is the key naval base at Tjilatjap, which Japanese naval forces bombard with airstrikes during the day. The damage to Tjilatjap is extensive and 17 ships are sunk.

The Napa (California) Register of 5 March 1942 predicts the fall of Java. Also worthy of the front page: a Conn Valley man is charged with failing to darken his car headlights in violation of blackout laws.

Japanese invasion forces under the command of Rear Admiral Marumo Kuninori of the Fourth Fleet depart from Rabaul, New Britain, to invade Salamaura-Lae, Papua. Serving as escorts are light cruiser Yubari, seaplane tender Kiyokawa Maru, and destroyers Oite, Asanagi, Yunagi, Mutsuki, Yayoi, and Mochizuki. This is Operation SR. The landings at Huon Gulf, New Guinea, are scheduled for 8 March.

The front on the Bataan Peninsula is quiet as the Japanese build up their forces for an offensive to eliminate the Allied presence there. Filipino saboteurs destroy Japanese transport Takao Maru, run aground off Vigan, Luzon, on 10 December 1941.

Japanese freighter Takao Maru, destroyed by saboteurs on 5 March 1942.

Eastern Front: The Soviets announce the recapture of Yukhnov, northwest of Kaluga. This town was voluntarily abandoned by the German Fourth Army with Hitler's consent as it was difficult to defend.

European Air Operations: Air operations today are minimal as the RAF recuperates from its all-out raid on the Billancourt Renault factory on 3/4 March.

US freighter Collamer, sunk on 5 March 1942.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-404 (Kptlt. Otto von Bülow), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 5112-ton US freighter Collamer off the coast of Nova Scotia. Collamer is a straggler from Convoy HX-178, having been separated by foul weather, and is trying to return to Halifax. The first torpedo kills seven men instantly, and a second torpedo sends the ship under within seconds. Fortunately, the radio operator has just enough time to get a distress call off to Halifax, 43 miles to the northwest. While 7 men perish, the other 31 are rescued quickly.

U-126 (Kptlt. Ernst Bauer), on its third patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks independent 3110-ton US freighter Mariana near Turks Island (north of Santo Domingo) in the Caribbean. The 36 men aboard all perish.

German 3143-ton ammunition transport Argus blows up at Hambukt, Norway, in a mysterious explosion.

Superman helps to sell war bonds on 5 March 1942.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Royal Navy submarine HMS Uproar (P-31) torpedoes and sinks 5081-ton Italian freighter Marin Sanudo about 18 miles south of Lampedusa Island. The Marin Sanudo is carrying a cargo of military equipment including aircraft engines, trucks, motorcycles, helmets and shoes, and also the wages for 44,000 Axis troops in North Africa. Axis planes raid Malta throughout the afternoon and evening, bombing airfields at Ta Qali, Luqa, Hal Far, and Safi. The Luqa airfield becomes unusable for several hours.

Partisans: Partisan forces of Chetnik leader Major General Draza-Dragoljub Mihajlovic score some successes against Italian occupation forces in Montenegro.

Allied Relations: Winston Churchill badly wants New Zealand troops to remain in the Middle East, but the government of New Zealand is concerned about Japanese advances and wants them back in New Zealand. Today, Churchill tries to solve this problem by asking President Roosevelt if he would send troops to New Zealand so that the New Zealanders can stay in North Africa.

Ukrainian occupation currency dated 5 March 1942.

British Military: Field Marshall Sir Alan Brooke, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, replaces Admiral of the Fleet Sir Dudley Pound as Chairman of the British Chiefs of Staff Committee. Winston Churchill prefers this as he considers himself to be the ultimate naval authority and Pound, who also views everything through a naval lens, only offers redundancy at the top. Also, Churchill just gets on well with Brooke, though Brooke tends to look askance at some of the PM's personal quirks. Rightly or wrongly, Pound is a scapegoat for the recent successful German Channel Dash. He has a reputation for making decisive judgments that at times neutralize very shaky strategic wishes of Churchill (such as sending a fleet into the Baltic early in the war) but at other times turn out poorly (such as withdrawing escorts from Arctic convoys at the first signs of trouble, which leads to devastating merchant ship losses). Pound, who is known for dozing off at meetings due to insomnia relating to physical ailments, remains as First Sea Lord but accepts the appointment of a deputy first sea lord to "help him."

Tru-Life Detective Cases, March 1942, #5, published by Trysack. It includes tales of "Bizarre case of the woman who wanted two husbands" and "Blonde Enchantress."

Lieutenant-General Sir Harold Alexander arrives in Rangoon to become General Officer Commanding Burma Army. He replaces General Thomas Hutton, who becomes Alexander's chief of staff, and is under the command of General Archibald Wavell, Commander in Chief India. Wavell orders Rangoon held, but there is little chance of that given the disparity of forces in Burma. Alexander, with a shaky grasp of the real situation on the ground, obligingly orders the devastated 17th Indian Division to attack east of Pegu and the 1st Burma Division, guarding another important road north of Pegu, to attack as well. Neither attack accomplishes anything and today the Japanese capture the strongpoint of Pegu, which is only 50 miles from Rangoon.

Pilots of US Navy Fighting Squadron 3 (VF-3) of USS Lexington on 5 March 1942. Four of these men perish in the Battle of the Coral Sea.

US Military: Having completed his journey from Australia, Major General Lewis H. Brereton takes command of the USAAF 10th Air Force. Establishing his headquarters at New Delhi, Brereton has at his disposal eight B-17s. His top priority is establishing a secure supply route to China over the Himalayas, a formidable obstacle to the USAAF transport aircraft.

Air units of the 30th Bombardment Squadron, 19th Bomber Group (Heavy) complete their journey from Singosari, Java, to Melbourne, Australia. The planes include B-17s, B-24s, and LB-30s. The ground echelon of this unit remains trapped in Java and the Philippines. While these transfers save the units, they leave Java without any air defense whatsoever.

Headquarters, XII Interceptor Command, is activated at Drew Field, Tampa, Florida.

Japanese Military: Imperial General Headquarters issues Navy Directive No.62. This orders the Commander-in-Chief, Combined Fleet, to occupy strategic points in Dutch New Guinea. The first task is to perform reconnaissance to determine the best places to occupy first.

On 5 March 1942, Józef Henig, a Polish Jew, an accountant born on 26 August 1890 in Tarnów, is registered at #Auschwitz as number 26388. He shows obvious evidence of mistreatment. Henig perishes in the camp on 12 March 1942 (Auschwitz Memorial).

Soviet Homefront: Exiled Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia passes away in a Swiss clinic from complications related to tuberculosis. The Grand Duke was one of the few Romanovs to escape the wrath of the Bolshevik uprising because he was forced out of Russia before the revolution and thereafter lived abroad. The cause of the Grand Duke's exile was his involvement in the December 1916 assassination of Russian mystic Gregory Rasputin - his revolver was used to shoot him, and the Grand Duke was one of the men who threw Rasputin in the river. While in exile, there was some hope that the Grand Duke could return to Russia, overthrow the Bolsheviks, and become the next Czar, but that never happened. The Grand Duke did have tangential involvement in World War II, refusing a request by Hitler to lead a White Russian contingent in the Wehrmacht against the Bolsheviks (a task later taken up by Soviet General Andrey Vlasov).

The Desert Magazine, Vol. 5 No. 5 (March 1942).

British Homefront: Proving that no economy is too trivial in wartime, the government removes pencil sharpeners from government officials' offices in order to conserve pencils.

American Homefront: The Civil Air Patrol (CAP), formed on 1 December 1941 by Director of the Office of Civilian Defense Fiorello H. LaGuardia, begins flying regular antisubmarine patrols off the east coast of the United States. During the war, the CAP claims to have flown 24 million miles and sighted 173 enemy submarines.

Around this date, an 11-year-old named Warren Buffet of Omaha, Nebraska resolves to make his first stock purchase. However, he finds that he will have to place the trade through his father's broker. This will not stop him.

Dr. Seuss cartoon of 5 March 1942 (Mandeville Special Collections Library, UC San Diego).

March 1942

March 1, 1942: Second Battle of Java Sea
March 2, 1942: Huge Allied Shipping Losses at Java
March 3, 1942: Japan Raids Western Australia
March 4, 1942: Second Raid On Hawaii
March 5, 1942: Japan Takes Batavia
March 6, 1942: Churchill Assaults Free Speech
March 7, 1942: British Defeat in Burma
March 8, 1942: Rangoon Falls to Japan
March 9, 1942: Japanese Conquest of Dutch East Indies
March 10, 1942:US Navy attacks Japanese Landings at Lae
March 11, 1942: Warren Buffett's First Stock Trade
March 12, 1942: Japan Takes Java
March 13, 1942: Soviets Attack In Crimea Again 
March 14, 1942: The US Leans Toward Europe
March 15, 1942: Operation Raubtier Begins
March 16, 1942: General MacArthur Gets His Ride
March 17, 1942: MacArthur Arrives in Australia
March 18, 1942: Japan Attacks In Burma
March 19, 1942: Soviets Encircled on the Volkhov
March 20, 1942: "I Shall Return," Says MacArthur
March 21, 1942: Germans Attack Toward Demyansk
March 22, 1942: Second Battle of Sirte
March 23, 1942: Hitler's Insecurity Builds
March 24, 1942: Bataan Bombarded
March 25, 1942: Chinese Under Pressure in Burma
March 26, 1942: Win Or Die, Vows MacArthur
March 27, 1942: The Battle of Suusari
March 28, 1942: The St. Nazaire Commando Raid
March 29, 1942: The Free Republic of Nias
March 30, 1942: Japanese-Americans Off Bainbridge Island
March 31, 1942: Japanese Seize Christmas Island

2020

Monday 16 February 1942

"These pictures were taken at the extreme forward positions around Carmuset er Regem (Karmusat ar Rijam) area near Gazala, show infantry and artillery units of the Polish Independent Carpathian Rifles Brigade facing German and Italian forces." 16 February 1942. © IWM (E 8413).

Battle of the Pacific: At Bataan on 16 February 1942, the Allies score a major success when they almost completely eliminate a wedge driven into their Main Line of Resistance (MLR). The I Corps, holding the western half of the MLR, has reduced the salient to about 100 yards. Further south, a Japanese bridgehead at Salaiim Point also is eliminated. The surviving Japanese attempt to reach the MLR but eventually are caught after they cover about seven miles. North of Bataan, in Manila Bay, the Allies on Carabao Island continue to hold out, but today the Japanese cut their water pipeline. The men holding Fort Frank on the island begin distilling water.

In Burma, the bitter battle at Bilin River continues. The 17th Indian Infantry Division is the only large Allied formation between the Japanese and Rangoon, and the fate of Burma hangs in the balance. The two understrength Japanese infantry divisions making the attack, the 33d and 55th, are well-trained in jungle warfare and can operate independently of motor transport. The Allied troops, on the other hand, are deficient in those areas. The Japanese maintain pressure on the British garrisons but also stealthily send units through the jungle to cut off the British lines of communication. Army Commander General Hutton comes forward to see how things are going and is dismayed. The Bilin River at that time of year is dry and little more than a sandy ditch, offering little defensive aid. The Sittang River to the rear is much more useful defensively. He gives Brigadier Sir John George Smyth, V.C., commander of the 17th, permission to withdraw.

The Japanese Times & Advertiser for 16 February 1942 is full of happy news for its English-speaking readers about the fall of Singapore. This is an occupation newspaper, as indicated by the carmine and green seals.

In Borneo, Japanese troops continue expanding their presence, taking Sintang, West Kalimantan. In Sumatra, the Japanese advance on Palembang from two directions and take it without trouble. The British now, aside from stragglers, have abandoned Sumatra. However, the evacuation has been hurried and they have left behind a lot of equipment, particularly at Oosthaven.

Japanese planes attack an Allied convoy bound for Timor. It is led by US Navy heavy cruiser USS Houston and the destroyer USS Peary. The planes score no hits, but near-misses kill two men and injure 18 others. After this incident, the convoy is rerouted to Darwin, Australian, thereby virtually abandoning any hope of holding a position on Timor.

The Daily Mirror of 16 February 1942 reports the loss of Singapore, announced in a radio address by Prime Minister Winston Churchill the previous night.

In Singapore, the victorious Japanese begin their lengthy occupation. They hoist their flag over the former British governor's residence in Singapore and also rename the city "Light of the South." The name change, however, is ignored by just about everyone. The Japanese also begin recruiting from the Indian troops in Singapore. Ultimately out of about 40,000 Indian personnel in Singapore, 30,000 join the Japanese-affiliated Indian National Army (INA) under the command of Rash Behari Bose. Some serve as guards over the British POWs at Changi Prison. There are still naval actions offshore, and today, the Japanese use gunfire to sink Royal Navy ship HMS Pulo Soeti in the Banka Straits (55 dead, 25 survivors).

Time Magazine, 16 February 1942, has Soviet Marshal Shaposhnikov on the cover.

Eastern Front: Reporting from the encircled garrison at Demyansk, Generalleutnant Graf Walter von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt reports to OKH that he has 95,000 men with him in the pocket. In order to hold the pocket, Brockdorff reports that he requires 200 tons of supplies per day. While the Luftwaffe is using every available plane to supply the Demyansk pocket, he is only receiving 80-90 tons of supplies per day.

European Air Operations: During the day, RAF No. 88 and 226 Squadrons send eight Boston bombers on anti-shipping operations off the Dutch coast. This is a new mission for the Boston bombers, their first regular one. This mission does not result in any ships attacked or bombers lost.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command sense 37 Hampden and 12 Manchester bombers to lay mines in the Frisian Islands. One Hampden and one Manchester fail to return. Another 18 Wellingtons hit different targets in northern Germany with eight planes bombing Bremen, seven bombing Aurich, two bombing Oldenburg, and one bombing Wilhelmshaven. Two bombers hit Schipol Airfield at Amsterdam and Soesterberg Airfield near Utrecht. The British also send 11 bombers to drop leaflets over France. One British tactic at this stage is simply to spread out their attacks in order to maximize their nuisance value, as every raid requires that city's tired workers to get out of bed and troop down to shelters. Some raids force all of the Reich's workers to do so because it is unclear where the bombers will strike. In some ways, this is more useful to the British war effort than the actual effects of the bombs dropped.

U-156 (foreground) and U-507 (background) in September 1942 during the Laconia incident.

Battle of the Atlantic: German Operation Neuland begins on 16 February 1942. This is the extension of U-boat operations south from the Atlantic coast (Operation Paukenshchlag) into the Caribbean. The operation opens with several coordinated U-boat attacks. The strategic targets in this area are several oil refineries, the Venezuelan oil fields, and the Panama Canal. The most important refineries are on Dutch-owned Curaçao, processing eleven million barrels per month, which is the largest in the world; the refinery at Pointe-à-Pierre on Trinidad, the largest in the British Empire; and a large refinery on Dutch-owned Aruba. This region is the originating source of the four oil tankers of petroleum that the British Isles require on a daily basis. The entire United States oil industry also is concentrated along the Gulf of Mexico, so these are very high stakes indeed. The Germans have the advantage of being able to use the Vichy French facilities at Martinique, though such use is extremely limited as the Allies are closely watching Martinique.

In a very rare direct attack by Reich forces on land targets in the Western Hemisphere, U-156 (Kptlt. Werner Hartenstein), on its second patrol out of Lorient, attempts to shell Aruba. Hartenstein orders the crew to use the 37 mm (1.46 inch) deck gun to fire on the important oil refinery installation on the island. However, through sheer negligence, the two-man gun crew forgets to remove the water plug from the gun barrel. This causes the shell to explode within the barrel and throw shrapnel everywhere. The explosion kills the triggerman, Matrosengefreiter Heinrich Büssinger, and causes the gunnery officer standing nearby, II WO Leutnant zur See Dietrich von dem Borne, to lose his right leg. This disaster does not cause Hartenstein to abandon his attack, however. He orders the crew to saw off the shattered portion of the barrel, and they pump 16 rounds at the refinery. The shortened barrel, however, is not as accurate as it otherwise might be at long range, so only two shells are reported to hit the target. They cause a dent in an oil storage tank and a hole in a house. After this, Hartenstein sets a course for another part of the island.

SS Oranjestad, sunk by U-156 on 16 February 1942.

Before the attack on the oil refinery, Hartenstein at 01:31 torpedoes two Lago Company oilers in San Nicholas Harbor. Both ships, the SS Pedernales and Oranjestad, are loaded with oil and burst into flames. There are 8 deaths and 18 survivors on the Pedernales and 15 deaths and 7 survivors on the Oranjestad. At 03:13, Hartenstein puts one torpedo into US Texaco-owned tanker SS Arkansas at Eagle Beach (nest to the Arend/Eagle Refinery). The ship settles to the shallow harbor bottom but there are no casualties.

SS San Nicholas, sunk by U-502 on 16 February 1942.

U-boats are active elsewhere in the Caribbean, too. U-502 (Kptlt. Jürgen von Rosenstiel), on its third patrol out of Lorient, has a big day off the Venezuelan coast. During mid-morning, it sinks three ships:

• 2395-ton British freighter Tia Juana (17 dead, nine survivors)
• 2650-ton Venezuelan freighter Monagas (five dead, 26 survivors)
• 2391-ton British freighter San Nicolas (seven deaths, 19 survivors).

These U-502 attacks seriously disrupt the flow of oil from the important Venezuelan oil fields.

U-67 (Kptlt. Günther Müller-Stöckheim), on its third patrol out of Lorient, damages 3177-ton Dutch tanker Rafaela one mile north of Willemstad, Curaçao. The ship is towed to port but there it breaks in two and sinks. Rafaela later is raised, repaired, and returned to service.

SS Ramapo, sunk by U-108 on 16 February 1942.

U-108 (KrvKpt. Klaus Scholtz), on its sixth patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 2968-ton Panamanian freighter Ramapo about 180 miles north of Bermuda. The Ramapo is traveling as an independent and the torpedo strikes at 15:56, breaking the ship in two after a boiler explosion. Captain Scholtz surfaces and questions the survivors in their lifeboats, but they are never found. All forty men perish.

U-564 (Kptlt. Reinhard Suhren), on its fourth patrol out of La Pallice, uses its 88 mm deck gun to damage independent British tanker Opalia about 300 miles northwest of Bermuda. U-564 fires all 83 rounds in its inventory but does not succeed in sinking the tanker, hitting it with only three rounds. The tanker makes it to port and suffers only three injured men due to shell splinters.

SS Pedernales sinking, 16 February 1942.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Governor/Commander of Malta reports to Whitehall that he needs more artillery and men to fire them. Luftwaffe air activity over the island has increased markedly. Today, there are multiple attacks. A Junkers Ju 88 drops eight bombs on Luqa aerodrome and escapes unscathed, two other Junkers 88 bombers drop bombs on Ta Qali and in the sea off Grand Harbor, a Junkers drops four bombs on St. Paul's Bay, and other bombers attack Ta Qali again. There are other bombing attacks as well and numerous fly-bys. The air situation has become nerve-wracking for the British. However, unbeknownst to the Allies, Hitler still has not authorized an invasion of Malta despite the obvious utility to the Wehrmacht of doing so.

War Crimes: While Singapore fell on 15 February 1942, echoes from that defining moment continue to reverberate throughout the region. In the final days before its capture, Singapore refugees sought any means of escape that they could find. Since the Japanese possessed the only airfield and there were no more large ships willing to make the dangerous passage, that meant overloaded small craft, basically anything that could float. One of those ships was the Sarawak royal yacht Vyner Brooke, which carried wounded soldiers and 65 members of the Australian Army Nursing Service from the 2/13th Australian General Hospital. Also on board the  1670-ton vessel were many civilians and assorted other refugees. This results in the Bangka Island Massacre.

The NY Times for 16 February 1942 is full of very accurate news about the deteriorating situation for the Allies in the Pacific Theater of Operations.

Like many other ships leaving in the final days, the Vyner Brooke did not make it far. Japanese aircraft bombed and sank it, and whoever could swim or get in a lifeboat made it to nearby Bangka Island. An officer went to Muntok and brought back Japanese soldiers, who quickly marched the wounded Australian soldiers out of sight and bayoneted and shot them. The Japanese soldiers then returned, told the 22 surviving nurses to walk into the surf. After their matron, Irene Drummond, calls out, "Chin up, girls, I'm proud of you and I love you," the Japanese machine-gun them. The Japanese then bayoneted anyone else who they could find. Incredibly, one of the 22 nurses, Sister Lt. Vivian Bullwinkel, survives in the water despite having been shot in the gut. She manages to elude the Japanese and meet up with a British soldier, Private Patrick Kingsley, who had been bayoneted but also survived. Kingsley soon passes away from his wounds, but Bullwinkel survives three years in a POW camp and gives testimony at the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal in 1947.

British Military: The British form the 10th Army under Lieutenant-General E.P. Quinan. Its responsibilities are Iran and Iraq. Quinan has been the commander of Iraqforce and is famous for his attention to detail (a "spit and polish" officer), something that is extremely prized in a peacetime army but not so much in chaotic war conditions.

Dignitaries and sailors attending the launch of USS Alabama, 16 February 1942 (US Navy).

US Military: The battleship USS Alabama (BB-60) is launched at Norfolk Naval Shipyard. It is the fourth and final member of the South Dakota class. As of the date of this writing, USS Alabama is a National Historic Landmark based at Mobile, Alabama and is part of a museum.

The USAAF Fifth Air Force continues organizing its forces. HQ 49th Pursuit Group (Interceptor) and 7th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor) transfer from Melbourne to Bankstown, Australia with P-40s. The 8th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor) transfers from Melbourne to Canberra, also with P-40. The air echelon of the 16th Bombardment Squadron, 27th Bombardment Group, transfers from Brisbane to Batchelor with A-24s. The ground echelon remains trapped on Bataan.

Australian Military: Following the tragic losses suffered by their troops in Singapore, the Australian Chiefs of Staff recommend that "if possible, all Australian forces now under order to transfer to the Far East from the Middle East should be diverted to Australia." This indirectly is hurting the Allied situation in the Middle East, where Australian and New Zealand troops have carried much of the burden against General Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps. However, the Australians rightly fear the seemingly unstoppable Japanese advance southward towards them.

A Dr. Seuss political cartoon published on 16 September 1942 shows Hitler and Tojo as thieves leading stolen cattle out of barns marked "Pearl Harbor," "Singapore," and "Maginot Line." Tojo says to Hitler, "Funny... Some people never learn to keep their barn doors locked." PM Magazine, Dr. Seuss Collection, MSS 230. Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego Library.

Japanese Government: Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo makes a speech before the National Diet in which he makes as a war aim a "new order of coexistence and co-prosperity on ethical principles in Greater East Asia." He thus basically adopts a phrase, the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere," proposed by philosopher Kiyoshi Miki. This expands on the "New Order" proposed by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe on 22 December 1938. While Konoe only foresaw Japanese dominion over areas directly adjacent to Japan, Tojo now sees a much larger swathe of territory down to the Netherlands East Indies as being rightfully Japanese. Somewhat ironically, Miki is actually a Marxist who is opposed to Japanese militaristic expansion.

Hungarian Government: Regent Admiral Horthy's party pushes a bill through the legislature which establishes a vice-regency. The bill gives Horthy the right to nominate his own candidate. In practical effect, this bill seeks to establish a de facto dynasty for the Horthy family, though there remains widespread disagreement within the government of automatic succession. In due course, Horthy nominates his son, Istvan Horthy, as vice-regent. This is considered by many, including leaders of the fascist Arrow-Cross Party, as an affront to the Reich, as Istvan is known to be "no friend" of the Third Reich and Hitler does not think very highly of him. However, at this point, the Germans do not want to "rock the boat" far behind the front lines and wish enthusiastic Hungarian participation in the coming summer offensive which they believe will be decisive. So the fascists, at least for the time being, accept this development.

The San Bernardino County California Sun Newspaper, February 16, 1942, gives instructions for building your very own Luftwaffe fighter.

US Government: The major topic in Washington, D.C., is not military operations but how to handle people along the west coast of the United States who are ethnically or legally related to Japan. President Roosevelt sends a letter to Secretary Stimson asking him to tell Congress what the plan is. Since there is no plan yet, this is a very difficult request. The Department of Justice reports that as of 16 February 1942, the number of alien Japanese apprehended has increased to 1,266, and a Treasury agent reports to Army authorities that "an estimated 20,000 Japanese in the San Francisco metropolitan area were ready for organized action." Regardless of the accuracy of such reports, there is an urgent need for a resolution to this issue. Congress, the authorities on the West Coast, the military, and the federal bureaucracy are all groping frantically for a firm answer.

Holocaust: Heinrich Himmler issues a decree regarding German objectives behind the lines in the East. He directs that "Polonized Germans" - ethnic Germans in Poland who are resistant to Germanization - be resettled in "Old Reich territory" to complete their "re-Germanization." Anyone who resists is to be sent to a concentration camp. Meanwhile, "German farmers, laborers, civil servants, merchants, and artisans" are to be resettled in former Poland in order to create "a living and deep-rooted bastion of German people." The ultimate aim is to replace the native population of Poland with a reliably "German" one and force the native population to become truly German. Ruthless measures are approved for this process, including the confiscation of property, land, and assets.

Newsweek magazine for 16 February 1942 highlights the growing use of female labor in wartime factories.

American Homefront: While World War II is well underway, the Supreme Court of the United States is still deciding cases arising out of World War I. Some of them have obvious applicability to World War II situations. In UNITED STATES v. BETHLEHEM STEEL CORPORATION (315 U.S. 289, 291), the Court declines to force a steel plant to disgorge "unconscionable" profits from wartime ship construction under the Emergency Shipping Fund Act. The Court finds that corporations are entitled to their profits from war contracts even if some people consider them excessive and that any issue of war profiteering must be addressed by Congress. There may be an element of calculation in at least the timing of this decision, as the federal government desperately needs private businesses to step forward and fill military needs. Reassuring them that they can keep their promised profits aids the current war effort.

Life magazine, 16 February 1942, highlights soldier-civilian relations.

February 1942

February 1, 1942: The US Navy Strikes Back
February 2, 1942: Germans Recovering in Russia
February 3, 1942: Japanese Shell and Bomb Singapore
February 4, 1942: Battle of Makassar Strait
February 5, 1942: Empress of Asia Sunk
February 6, 1942: The Christmas Island Body
February 7, 1942: The Double-V Campaign
February 8, 1942: Japan Invades Singapore
February 9, 1942: French Liner Normandie Capsizes
February 10, 1942: US Car Production Ends
February 11, 1942: Tomforce Fails on Singapore
February 12, 1942: The Channel Dash
February 13, 1942: Japanese Paratroopers In Action
February 14, 1942: RAF Orders Terror Raids
February 15, 1942: Japan Takes Singapore
February 17, 1942: Indian Troops Defect to Japanese
February 18, 1942: Battle of Badung Strait
February 19, 1942: FDR Authorizes Internment Camps
February 20, 1942: O'Hare the Hero
February 21, 1942: Crisis in Burma
February 22, 1942: Bomber Harris Takes Over
February 23, 1942: Bombardment of Ellwood, California
February 24, 1942: US Raid on Wake Island
February 25, 1942: Battle of Los Angeles
February 26, 1942: Gneisenau Eliminated
February 27, 1942: Battle of Java Sea
February 28, 1942: Battle of Sunda Strait

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