Battle of the Pacific: While the Japanese have vague plans to use their submarines operating off of the west coast of the United States to shell cities, on 27 December 1941, they cancel those plans. Vice Admiral Shimizu Mitsumi, commander of the Advance Expeditionary Force (Sixth Fleet), decides that any gain would be minimal and simply invite retaliation. The submarines have been successful in generating widespread fear in California without loss, so some of the submarines are allowed to return to base to refuel and rearm. Today, I-25 spots 8684-ton US tanker Connecticut about ten nautical miles west of the mouth of the Columbia River (the boundary between the states of Oregon and Washington).
In the Philippines, the Japanese continue to consolidate their troops at the Agno River as it prepares an offensive to take Manila. With Manila declared an open city, US Lieutenant General Douglas MacArthur works on preparing a redoubt in the Bataan Peninsula south of the city. The North Luzon Force, engaged in a delaying action, retreats to a line between Tarlac and Cabanatuan. In southern Luzon, the Japanese take Candelaria, brushing aside the Filipino 53rd Infantry Regiment. The US Navy sends half a dozen PBY Catalina flying boats (Squadron 101) to attack Japanese shipping off Jolo Island and the Pasig River, but achieve little. Japanese Nell and Betty bombers based on Formosa also are in operation, attacking Allied shipping in the Pasig River and Manila Bay. They hit some small Filipino customs cutters and motorboats and sink US freighters Ethel Edwards (395 tons) and Canlaon (667 tons in Manila Bay.
In Singapore, the British shake up their command, replacing Commander-in-Chief of the British Far East Command Air Chief Marshal Sir Robert Brooke-Popham with Lieutenant General Henry Pownall. Brooke-Popham, the first RAF commander-in-chief of a joint command during a world conflict, returns to London for further assignments. The position of the commander-in-chief is largely symbolic, as Royal Navy units and civil servants report through different chains of command. However, Operation Matador, the current defensive strategy on the Malay Peninsula, is Brooke-Popham's brainchild. Meanwhile, the Commonwealth troops dig in along the Pasig River, where some Americans scuttle their 1251-ton freighter Taurus.
With the Japanese now in possession of Hong Kong, US submarine Perch operates nearby and gets a little revenge. It torpedoes and sinks 7190-ton Japanese ammunition ship Nojima Maru southwest of the city.
In Burma, the Japanese continue to occupy the southernmost portion of the country while the Allies squabble in Rangoon over the "Tulsa Incident." US General John Magruder is technically in charge of Lend-Lease shipments in Rangoon but has been outranked by naive newcomer Major General George Brett (Magruder, incidentally, later becomes a founder of the civilian Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) after the war). Magruder sends a detailed message to the War Department in D.C. explaining British attempts to divert Lend-Lease supplies intended for the Chinese that were brought to Burma by USS Tulsa (hence the name "Tulsa Incident"). This memo ultimately comes to Secretary of State Cordell Hull's attention. He personally sorts matters out by affirming that the supplies belong to the Chinese and not the British. Based on these assurances, Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek backs off from his threats to withdraw all Chinese troops from Burma and good relations are restored between the United States and China. However, Chiang remains furious with the British throughout the remainder of the war. The Tulsa Incident provides a huge opening wedge for United States influence in the region.
Battle of the Mediterranean: The Afrika Korps counterattacks on the Gazala Line. In a brilliant flanking maneuver, German panzers surprise the British 22nd Armored Brigade at El Haseia and destroy its tank force. This protects Ajdabiya and stabilizes the German position. However, Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel does not follow this success up with further attacks. Instead, he authorizes a retreat to a defensive line anchored at El Agheila while he awaits supplies and reinforces from Tripoli.
Japanese bombing sets fire to Manila's Walled City, Intramuros, Manila, Philippines. Visible is San Juan de Dios Hospital (domed building). Santo Domingo Church is burned in this raid, leaving a roofless ruin (International News via Flickr).
Eastern Front: The weather remains bitterly cold on the Moscow Front, with temperatures hitting -15 °F during the daytime and -25 °F overnight. The snow also is a major problem, as indicated in the 27 December 1941 daily report from the Army Group Center journal:
All movement burdened by the enormous snowdrifts. Rail transport is stalled for the same reason, and the loss of locomotives due to freezing increases the problem. The shifting of the few, available reserves is stopped by the snow. For the above reasons, all time schedules are rendered meaningless. The Russians must contend with the same difficulties, but their mobile, well-equipped cavalry, ski, and sled units (the latter used to bring rations and fodder to the cavalry and to transport infantry) give them tactical advantages that, together with larger manpower reserves, they are now trying to exploit operationally.
It is often claimed that the weather is only said to have affected the Germans and not the Soviet troops. Contemporaneous accounts such as the above show that the Germans fully understand that the Red Army is laboring under the same constraints - they are just handling them better.
German patrol boat V-5102, sunk by Royal Navy destroyers Offa and Chiddingfold as part of Operation Archery off Norway on 27 December 1941. Some sources place this sinking on 24 December.
The weather is not quite as extreme in the Crimea, but the Germans are under even greater pressure there. At 13:00, Lieutenant General Hans Graf von Sponeck's 42nd Army Corps mounts a counterattack against the Soviet landings made on 26 December near Kerch. The Red Army soldiers spot the Germans coming (the area is flat, treeless, and offers no cover) and deploy their three T-26 tanks and several infantry companies. The Germans knock out the tanks using an overworked 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun which fires an epic 42 rounds, but the spirited Red Army response enables the Soviet troops to survive the night after they retreat into their bridgehead. The Germans hoped to eliminate the invading group today, but plan to attack again early on the 28th.
Special Forces: British No. 3 Commando conducts Operation Archery, a raid on the island of Vågsøy (Vaagso), Norway. Following a shattering naval bombardment, 570 Commandos come ashore with plans to destroy the island's businesses. Unknown to the British, an experienced Gebirgsjäger (mountain rangers) unit is on leave on the island, and a bitter fight breaks out. The Commandos achieve their main objective, the destruction of four factories and military installations, but they suffer 17 killed and 53 wounded. In addition, the Germans shoot down eight RAF aircraft. As the British withdraw, they take with them over 70 partisans and also some captured Quislings. Operation Archery is conducted in conjunction with Operation Anklet in the Lofoten Islands, which began on 26 December and concludes today. Operation Anklet proceeds virtually with no opposition, as opposed to the fierce fighting involved today in Operation Archery.
On 27 December 1941, British troops embark onto HMS Prince Leopold after the raid on Vaagso.
The British withdraw all of their surviving forces from both Commando operations without incident and lose no ships, but it is a much sharper engagement than they were expecting. On the German side, Operations Anklet and Archery scare Adolf Hitler into committing heavy forces to Norway in the mistaken belief that the British intend to invade the country and not just conduct raids on it. This is considered a great German strategic error, as Norway remains over-garrisoned for the remainder of the war. There are many surviving fortifications in the remote areas of the Norwegian coast to this day due to the effects of these raids.
Australian/US Relations: Australian Prime Minister John Curtin releases his New Year's message (a little early) on 27 December 1941. Unlike one of his recent predecessors (and also eventual successors), Robert Menzies, who followed a distinctly Anglocentric policy, Curtin takes a different view. Curtin has a distinctly pragmatic (as opposed to a historical) view of where Australia's strategic future lies:
Without any inhibitions of any kind, I make it quite clear that Australia looks to America, free of any pangs as to our traditional links or kinship with the United Kingdom.
The United States already is organizing its defense of the southwest Pacific in Australia, and it remains very unclear if the Japanese will actually invade Australia.
American Homefront: US citizens begin to feel the first pinches of deprivation. Rubber is needed for the war effort, so private automobile tire sales are restricted.
Members of the Hearns Volunteer National Defense Corps spell the slogan “Remember Pearl Harbor” at a rally held on 14th St. between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in New York City, 27 December 1941. (AP Photo).
Italian/Greek Campaign: Things have quieted down on land in Albania on 25 March 1941. The Italians finally have given up on their Primavera Offensive, which accomplished nothing but rack up casualties. Overall, Italian casualties for the Primavera Offensive number 11,800 dead and wounded, while the Greeks suffer 1243 dead, 4016 wounded and 42 missing.
Operation Lustre, the British reinforcement of mainland Greece, continues. Convoy AG 8 departs Alexandria bound for Piraeus carrying troops and supplies, while Convoy AS 22 departs Piraeus bound for Alexandria. Norwegian 5062 ton freighter Hav departs from Piraeus bound for Alexandria.
"Goodwill visit to Brisbane by the American fleet in March 1941. This was the first visit to Brisbane during World War Two of an American Naval Squadron. At this time, the United States of America had not entered the war. Entry was a few months away after Pearl Harbour in December 1941." 25 March 1941. State Library of Queensland.
East African Campaign: The latest British 5th Indian Infantry Division attack on Keren continues today. Started late on the 24th, the attack quickly yields tactical successes. One objective of British General Heath is to capture the areas overlooking the Dongolaas Gorge that control access to Keren. Another is to neutralize Italian positions at the head of the gorge from which Italian troops can fire down on British sappers trying to clear the gorge of the obstacles placed there by Italian engineers.
As the day beings, the West Yorkshire and 3/5th Mahrattas advancing down the hill from Fort Dologorodoc to the right of the gorge seize some lower hills overlooking the gorge. The Italians resist fiercely, but the British occupy the entire southeastern side of the gorge by 07:30.
At 03:00, another attack is launched by the 2nd Highland Light Infantry and the 4/10th Baluch Regiment. They emerge from a railway tunnel that is to the left of the gorge in order to attack Italian troops at the head of the gorge. The British maintain heavy artillery fire on the Italian positions from the area around the Sanchil heights. Other troops (3/2nd Punjab Regiment) then enter the gorge itself to clear it. By 05:30, the entire gorge is cleared of Italian troops and the Italians can no longer fire down directly into it.
The Italians counterattack in the afternoon. Italian troops continue to hold out on Mount Sanchil on the left side of the gorge. The Indian troops use artillery to break up the Italian attempts to counterattack.
British engineers quickly begin clearing the Dongolaas Gorge of the obstacles placed there to prevent British vehicular traffic. On the surrounding rim, the Italians and British continue struggling for dominance. The British take 500 prisoners in the early morning hours.
European Air Operations: The RAF switches strategic targets. Rather than attack factories in and around cities, for the time being, RAF Bomber Command will attack Axis convoys. These include the iron ore shipments flowing down the Norwegian coast from Narvik to Hamburg, convoys from Hamburg to occupation forces along the North Sea and Channel coast, and oil shipments coming up from Spain. Initiating this strategy, the British bombers attack shipping off of Ameland in the north of Holland.
The Luftwaffe sends small raids against towns on the south coast. A fighter sweep over southern England with fighter-bombers (Jabos) produces few results.
Cable ship C.S. Faraday is lost on 25 March 1941 to Luftwaffe attack.
Battle of the Atlantic: While German cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau have made port at Brest, there remain many German raiders at sea. Today, they make their mark.
German raider Kormoran captures 11,309-ton Canadian tanker Canadolite midway between Africa and Brazil. The Germans put a prize crew on board and sent it to Brest.
German raider Thor remains a thorn in the Admiralty's side. Today, it torpedoes and sinks 8799-ton British liner Britannia in the mid-Atlantic about 750 miles west of Freetown, Sierra Leone, British West Africa. The Thor's captain hears British radio transmissions and assumes they mean that the Royal Navy is nearby. He departs the scene after rescuing only one man from the 203 crew and 281 passengers on board. The Britannia is carrying a large number of Royal Navy officers heading to the Mediterranean Theater of Operations.
While almost everyone on board the Britannia survives the initial sinking, many perish after the Thor leaves. The weather may be warming up a bit, but the seas remain cold. A Spanish freighter, the Bachi, rescues 51 men, another, the Cabo De Hornos, rescues 77, and British freighter Raranga rescues 67 men. Another 33 men reach Brazil in their lifeboat, but it takes them 23 days. Two men on the Britannia, Lieutenant I. S. McIntosh and Frank L. West RNVR (who writes a book about the incident) receive MBEs for their service on the ship, while four others receive commendations. The Thor's captain, Otto Kähler, acts correctly in terms of his legal wartime obligations; however, this is not the best moment of the Kriegsmarine.
Thor later comes across 5047-ton Swedish freighter Trolleholm. This time, Thor takes all 31 men on board prisoner after scuttling the ship.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 627-ton British freighter Rossmore about a dozen miles from Godrevy Island in Bristol Channel. There are six deaths.
The Luftwaffe at 19:45 bombs and damages 5533-ton cable ship CS Faraday in the Bristol Channel. The Heinkel He 111 bombs and strafes the Faraday, causing a fire that forces the crew to abandon ship - after it shoots down the Heinkel. There are 8 deaths and 25 wounded. The blazing Faraday later grounds at St. Anne's Head, and the cable on board is mostly recovered. However, the remains of the ship, such as they are, remain there and in fact have become a favored diving location in shallow water at Hooper's Point, Pembrokeshire.
The Luftwaffe (I,/KG 40 Focke-Wulf Fw-200 Condors) bombs and sinks 9956-ton British tanker Beaverbrae in the Northwest Approaches. All 86 men on board survive. One of the destroyers picking up the men, HMS Gurkha, collides with a small wooden ship while returning to Pentland Firth outside Scapa Flow, but everyone is fine and the destroyer makes it back to base. However, the drifter sinks and nobody on it survives. The Gurkha has to go to Roslyn for repairs to its bow.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 347-ton Dutch freighter Escaut southwest of Hartland Point. After the crew abandons it, the ship drifts ashore near Bude but is later refloated and repaired at Appledore.
British 21-ton fishing boat Alaskan hits a mine and sinks northeast of Hartlepool. All five on board survive.
US 8013-ton tanker Cities Service Denver is under tow off the coast of North Carolina when an unexplained explosion occurs beneath the crew quarters. There are 19 deaths.
The Admiralty sends a troopship, HMS Circassia, from the Clyde to Iceland. It carries more personnel for the growing British presence there.
Convoy HG 57 departs from Gibraltar.
Royal Navy light cruiser HMS Hermione (Captain Geoffrey N. Oliver) is commissioned.
British liner Britannia, sunk on 25 March 1941 by German raider Thor.
Battle of the Mediterranean: It is fair to say that, at this stage of the war, the Italian military has not covered itself with glory. They have been forced back in Albania, East Africa, and North Africa, while the Italian fleet largely has stayed in port. However, there is one area of the military at which the Italians are ahead of everyone: small-scale attacks at sea which can produce big results. However, so far these operations have been canceled for various technical reasons.
That changes today. Italian destroyers Crispi and Sella each carry three 2-ton motor assault boats from Leros in the Dodecanese Islands. They head for the vicinity of the major British naval base at Suda Bay, Crete. The destroyers release the boats from about 10 miles (18 km) offshore at 23:30. The small boats proceed toward the large Royal Navy ships at anchor in the bay for an attack on the 26th. The prime target is heavy cruiser HMS York.
On land, the German Afrika Korps continues consolidating its recent acquisition of El Agheila. The British have withdrawn to Mersa Brega, which occupies a narrow point between the coast and the rocky interior where larger operations are impossible. The Germans also note that the British have abandoned Maaten Bescer, too, with British patrols in the area west of Mersa Brega vastly reduced.
Having completed their mission in Athens and Cairo, Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden and CIGS John Dill begin their journey back to London. Today, they lay over at Malta around midnight on the 24th from Athens. The original plan was for them to continue on to Lisbon immediately, but the weather forces a layover, so they spend the day playing billiards and visiting various highly placed individuals on the island. It is a memorable day for Malta, which does not get many highly placed visitors who stick around for any length of time.
British submarine HMS Rorqual lays mines off Palermo west of Sicily.
Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Pinguin completes its refit at the uninhabited Kerguelen Islands and departs, along with supply ship Adjutant, for further operations. The crew has disguised Pinguin as Norwegian freighter Tamerlane.
British 11,092 ton transport Waimarama runs aground after departing Port Said bound for Alexandria. The ship is pulled off by two tugs, but the ship requires 2-3 months of repairs.
The Admiralty transfers aircraft carrier HMS Eagle's two squadrons of Swordfish bombers to Port Sudan.
Spy Stuff: The British learn through their decoding operations and spy network, along with "hard" intelligence such as observed Luftwaffe reconnaissance missions, that the Italians are planning a major operation at sea.
U.S. Navy cruiser Chicago makes port at Brisbane, Australia, 25 March 1941. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Neg 77816.
German/Yugoslavian Relations: Despite fierce opposition even within his own cabinet, regent Prince Paul authorizes signing of the Tripartite Pact. In Vienna's Belvedere Palace, Yugoslavia Prime Minister Dragiša Cvetković signs the Pact, adding his name to those from Japan, Romania, Italy, and other nations. Hitler and German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop are in attendance, signifying the importance they place on this event.
By joining the Axis, Yugoslavia allows German troops to cross its territory but does not have to fight - at least according to the secret terms promised by Hitler. There is immediate disagreement with Prince Paul's decision throughout the country, but particularly within certain sections of the military. There also is a division along ethnic lines that foreshadow events decades later, with Serbs favoring the British and Croats favoring the Germans.
The Germans are ecstatic about Yugoslavia signing the agreement. The Propaganda Ministry orders its outlets to describe this as another step toward a New World Order. German/Soviet Relations: One of the remaining sticking points between Germany and the USSR is removed today. Ethnic Germans from Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia complete their resettlement to Germany, while ethnic Lithuanians, Russians, and White Russians are resettled in the USSR. That many of these people, such as the White Russians, may not particularly want to make the move is irrelevant. These mass dislocations of people (an estimated 60,000 people head west while 20,000 head east) is a common and continuing feature of World War II. Of course, the people heading east will see the Germans again before too long, but nobody outside of the top German government and military circles is supposed to know that. The people brought in from the east are housed for the most part in camps to await properties the Germans plan on seizing or otherwise acquiring soon from others.
German/Japanese Relations: Japanese Foreign Minister Yōsuke Matsuoka is visiting Berlin and says:
The Japanese nation is with you in joy or sorrow...to arrange the world on the basis of the new order.
Matsuoka is visiting both Berlin and Moscow, and his trip will have repercussions that reverberate for years. He is a proponent of Japan attacking the USSR in concert with Germany, but that view is not shared within the higher levels of the Japanese government and military.
German/Greenland Relations: Greenland long ago declared its independence from mother country Denmark due to German domination there. However, Greenland never declared war on Germany. Today, Germany declares that it will observe only a three-mile territorial limit around Greenland.
Australians greet visiting American sailors, Brisbane, Queensland, 25 March 1941. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Neg 104176.
US/Australian Relations: Rear Admiral John Newton takes his cruiser squadron (USS Chicago and Portland, along with five destroyers) to Brisbane for a three-day visit. This follows an extremely successful visit to Sydney.
In the same vein, Captain Ellis S. Stone brings his light cruiser squadron (USS Brooklyn and Savannah, along with three destroyers) to Tahiti.
Italian Military: Following the disaster of the British Operation Compass, Marshal Rodolfo Graziani is formally replaced by General Italo Gariboldi as Commander-in-chief of Italian North Africa and as Governor-General of Libya. Despite his lack of success on the battlefield, Graziani remains good friends with Benito Mussolini, traveling with him and acting as a military confidante. This is not the end of his military career, either, but Graziani will remain inactive for the time being.
Japanese Military: Captain Kiichi Hasegawa takes command of aircraft carrier Akagi.
Romanian Military: Petre Dumitrescu takes command of the Romanian Third Army. This formation is oriented toward northern Bukovina, which the Soviets occupied in June 1940.
British Government: The Admiralty holds a conference on shipping and shipbuilding. Visiting Australian Prime Minister Menzies, who has been visiting ports around the country, shares his thoughts. He decries the control being exercised by the Admiralty over shipyards. In Menzies' view, private industry would be much more efficient. Somewhat unusually, since he views many in the Churchill government as "Yes men," Menzies notes with satisfaction in his diary that he gains support from others at the meeting.
Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding is in the United States inspecting aircraft factories. He has made some public statements with which British Ambassador Lord Halifax disagrees. Halifax requests Dowding's recall.
China: At the Battle of Shonggao, the Japanese 11th Army has given the Chinese 19th Army Group of the Chinese 9th War Area its best shot - and come up short. Having used all of its resources to try to punch through the Chinese lines, the army gives up the fight as pointless given the high cost. The lines remain where they are for the time being, but the Japanese launch no more attacks. The city of Shangkao, though, is destroyed. This has been a very important Chinese defensive victory. The Chinese try to take advantage of this victory by moving to encircle the advanced Japanese positions, but the Japanese begin edging back toward their base.
Author Ernest Hemingway is in the Far East on a "tourist" visit which may be a little more than that. Today, he and his wife Martha Gellhorn depart from the British base in Hong Kong for China.
British Homefront: Lord Woolton cuts the jam and marmalade ration, as previously announced. Everyone gets 8 ounces per month. He also cuts the meat ration to 6 ounces per month.
Occupation currency issued on Guernsey in the Channel Islands, dated 25 March 1941.
Fiat-Ansaldo M13/40 tanks of the VII Battaglione, 32 Reggimento Carri, Ariete Armored Division on or about 24 March 1941, just before the Axis advance on El-Agheila. Italian troops, particularly infantry, formed a huge component of General Rommel's successful Afrika Korps operations.
Italian/Greek Campaign: The Italian Primavera Offensive continues on 24 March 1941, with heavy artillery bombardments followed by mass attacks. As on all the other days, the effort is futile and no gains of any significance are made. But, as on the other days, there is one tangible and lasting result: lots of bodies left in the crevices and crags and barren rocks.
Indian artillery troops at Keren, 1941.
East African Campaign: Major-General Lewis Heath, in command of the 5th Indian Infantry Division, launches the latest British attacks at Keren just before midnight on the 24th. The objective is to neutralize Italian positions that overlook the Dongolaas Gorge and whose fire prevents British engineers from clearing the obstructions that the Italians have dropped to block its passage. In essence, the entire attack is a diversion, designed to draw Italian fire and allow the sappers to clear the gorge. However, there are diversions within diversions, making this a complex attack.
The diversion for the main attacks begins with an advance on Sanchil to the left of the gorge. After this progresses a bit, the main attack on the right of the gorge begins. This main attack is made by the West Yorkshires and the 3/5th Mahrattas, advancing from Fort Dologorodoc. They advance down the hill from the fort to take a lower feature that actually overlooks the gorge, Hillock A, as the day ends.
Much further south, the British Army completed the reoccupation of British Somaliland - whose conquest in August 1940 was the one real Italian military achievement of the war.
European Air Operations: RAF No. 82 Squadron of Bomber Command attacks shipping off the Norwegian and Dutch coasts during the day. They lose a Blenheim but sink a fishing trawler. Coastal Command raids Cherbourg right when a German military parade is in progress, somewhat spoiling the festivities as everyone has to scatter. The Luftwaffe remains quiet, with a few random attacks by lone raiders in Kent and South Wales.
RAF ace James Lacey, flying a Supermarine Spitfire Mk II fighter, damages a German fighter.
The launching of the Wilna at Cochrane shipyard, Selby, on 30 May 1941. Later requisitioned by the Royal Navy. Attacked on 24 March 1941 by the Luftwaffe and written off. The owner, Mr. W. H. Collins of Portsmouth, never got much use out of her.
Battle of the Atlantic: Prime Minister Winston Churchill asks if damaged battleship HMS Malaya can be repaired in the United States. He adds, somewhat hopefully, "She is steaming thither at 14 knots." As a supposedly neutral nation, technically the United States should be interning British warships that make port there - but that legal nicety has been completely ignored throughout the war.
The Royal Navy remains obsessed with German cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst, which the Admiralty now realizes have made port in Brest. The British detail aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal and battlecruiser Renown from Gibraltar to sit outside the port waiting for them to depart. A rotating cast of destroyers supports them.
The Commander-in-chief Fleet Home Fleet Admiral Sir John Tovey transfers his flag from HMS Nelson to Queen Elizabeth.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 461-ton Royal Navy anti-submarine yacht HMT Wilna at Portsmouth. The ship is abandoned and written off. There are no casualties.
Italian submarine Veniero torpedoes and sinks British 2104-ton freighter Agnete Maersk in the mid-Atlantic southwest of Ireland. The Agnete Maersk is part of Convoy OG-56. Everybody perishes.
U-97 (Kptlt. Udo Heilmann) also attacks Convoy OG-56. It sinks 4301-ton Norwegian freighter Hørda. There are no survivors from this ship, either, all 30 aboard perish.
U-106 (Kptlt. Jürgen Oesten) torpedoes and sinks 4267-ton British freighter Eastlea. The ship's back is broken by the torpedo and it sinks within ten minutes.
Royal Navy destroyer HMS Mansfield loses all engine power and has to be towed to port. It is out of service for ten days.
Royal Navy armed boarding vessel St. Day collides with 3276-ton Spanish freighter Gayarre in the Straits of Gibraltar. The St. Day has to return to Gibraltar.
Norwegian tanker Polykarb, captured by the Gneisenau, arrives in the Gironde. The other captured ships haven't made it, intercepted by the Royal Navy and scuttled by their crews.
Minelayer HMS Abdiel, escorted by destroyers Kashmir and Kipling, lays minefield GV in the English Channel.
Convoy WS (Winston Special) 7 departs from the Clyde with 21 transport ships each of 20,000-30,000 tons. However, two of the transports, 22,281-ton HMT Strathaird and 25,550-ton Stirling Castle, collide and must return to the Clyde.
Convoy OB 302 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HG 57 departs from Gibraltar.
Avro Anson in front of Air Traffic Control, Brantford, Ontario, 24 March 1941. Used during the war as RCAF's No. 5 Service Flying Training School, the airport is still there, though greatly reduced in size and primarily used by a flying club. Courtesy Canadian Forces Digital Image Centre.
Battle of the Mediterranean: Today is the first military success for the Afrika Korps.
Adolf Hitler has ordered Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel not to attack - so he does anyway. At 06:00, the advance begins. By 07:30, the 3rd Reconnaissance detachment of the 5th Light Division of the Afrika Korps occupies El Agheila at the extreme west of the British conquests against light opposition. The British destroy the lead German armored car, then withdraw. The Germans do lose two tanks damaged to mines. Rommel uses one of his typical ruses, sending dummy tanks out on Volkswagen chassis to raise up a lot of dust and make it look like an entire panzer army is on the way.
Rommel comments:
The garrison, which consisted only of a weak force, had strongly mined the whole place and withdrew skilfully in face of our attack.
The green 2nd Armoured Division, which has replaced the veteran 4th Armoured Division due to the latter's transfer to Greece, gives ground rapidly. To be fair, the British in El Agheila are under orders to retreat if attacked. Nobody thinks that a British armored division, no matter how green, is full of cowards: many such incidents on both sides are due to blind caution at the higher levels ("REMFs," for those who understand military slang).
The British retreat to Marsa Brega 30 miles behind El Agheila. The Luftwaffe attacks it there, losing a Bf 110 to antiaircraft fire.
The Afrika Korps command squadron advances east of Nofaliya (Nawfaliya).
After dark, the RAF bombs Sirte. The attack kills 15, with 32 wounded, including 2 German soldiers.
Italian 633 ton freighter Nuraghe founders off Capo Pali, Valona, Albania. The cause of the sinking is described as a "marine accident."
Axis convoys have been getting through from Naples to Tripoli without many incidents. Royal Navy submarines know the route well, but so far they have had few successes. Today, the streak continues, as Royal Navy submarine HMS Ursula attacks a convoy off Cape Bon - but misses. As Rommel well knows, his success in the desert depends upon the successes or failures of the Royal Navy off Tripoli, so advances in the coming days can be partially attributed to this failure.
At Malta, the convoy that arrived on the 23rd remains in port. This requires constant patrols at full strength above the island. Coupled with the heavy recent RAF losses, this is imposing a strain on both the equipment and the pilots. The situation also is affecting the local population, who are cautioned to cease looting downed Luftwaffe aircraft - of which there have been many recently. Over the past two days, the Luftwaffe has lost 14 planes (almost all Junkers Ju 87 Stukas) while the RAF has lost only 6 or 7 - but the RAF has far fewer planes at its disposal than the Germans.
The Luftwaffe bombs the dockyards at dawn, causing some damage. There is one fatality and three wounded among the antiaircraft gunners, no losses by the Luftwaffe. In the afternoon at 18:25, the Luftwaffe returns with a bombing run by 10 Junkers Ju 87 Stukas on Grand Harbour. The Germans lose a Stuka this time, with three reportedly damaged.
Royal Navy submarine HMS Rorqual lays mines west of Sicily.
Hawker Tornado P5224, March 1941.
Battle of the Indian Ocean: Royal Navy sloop HMS Shoreham stops German freighter Oder, which escaped from Massawa yesterday, in the Strait of Perim. The Oder's crew scuttles the ship. Italian freighter India, which fled along with the Oder, is spotted by Royal Navy spotter aircraft. India's crew knows it has been detected, and rather than scuttle the ship or be captured, the captain makes port in Assab.
Convoy BN 21 departs from Aden, Convoy BS 21 departs from Suez.
Turkish/Soviet Relations: Both the USSR and Turkey pledge to remain neutral if the other is attacked. The superficial fear by both is that the other will take advantage of German aggression to settle long-standing scores. The real underlying concern is by Turkey, which fears being attacked by Germany, but the treaty will come in very handy for the USSR. Anglo/Yugoslav Relations: The diplomatic center of the world has shifted to Belgrade. Both sides are trying to alternately cajole and threaten the Yugoslavs to side with them - or else. Today, London gives a warning.
Life Magazine 24 March 1941, "Spring Veils," Designer Sally Victor.
British Government: Visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies describes the day as "routine," but also comments:
War Cabinet [meeting] chiefly about Ireland, but also rendered gloomy by reports from Jugo-Slavia, Turkey and Spain. The Irish position grows intolerable. Winston summed up - "700 years of hatred, and six months of pure funk."
US Government: The US Senate passes President Roosevelt's $7 billion appropriations request for Lend-Lease.
China: The Battle of Shanggao heats up again after a very brief lull. The Japanese make an all-out assault on the Japanese lines, while the Chinese throw everything they have to stop them. There are tremendous casualties on both sides, with nobody really sure how many died or whose side suffered more. Last-minute Chinese reinforcements, brought in by Chinese General Zhu Xiang, turn the tide. As on the other side of the world in Albania, the lines remain the same at the end of the day, but the rivers of blood on the ground tell the tale.
American Homefront: "Native Son," written by Paul Green and Richard Wright, premieres at the St. James Theatre on Broadway. Orson Welles and John Houseman produce the play, which stars among many others Welles protege Ray Collins (of "Citizen Kane") and Francis Bavier. You may recognize that latter name but not be sure where you know it from. Aunt Bee. Mayberry. Enough said.
March 24, 1941, | Vol. XXXVII No. 12. Field Marshal List is the commander of German forces in Bulgaria. His forces are poised to invade Greece (Cover credit: AP).
Western Front: British commandos are at sea en route to the Lofoten Islands on 3 March 1941. This is Operation Claymore, an attack on fish-oil plants at these islands in northern Norway. The Royal Navy task force is Operation Rebel. The British ships have not been spotted and are heading into the islands from the west.
Italian/Greek Campaign: The Italians continue their aggressive operations in Greece, bombing Larissa north of Athens. The RAF shoots five of the bombers down. This attack adds insult to injury, as Larissa has been devastated by earthquakes recently.
The Greeks are looking forward to the British expeditionary force. However, issues of strategy continue. There are multiple proposed lines, with the Metaxas Line on the Bulgarian border, the Aliakhmon Line behind the Metaxas, and the Nestos Line. The Greeks refuse to contemplate any territorial losses, so they want to try to hold the most advanced lines, while the British are more realistic and believe only lines further back have any likelihood of holding.
To try to reach some kind of resolution to this disagreement, both Middle East Commander General Wavell and Lustreforce commander Henry Maitland Wilson fly into Tatoi airfield. They will meet with Anthony Eden and CIGS John Dill, who remain in Athens to address just this kind of issue. However, no agreement is possible, because the two allies have different priorities. In any event, the first convoy for Lustreforce is scheduled to leave Alexandria tomorrow.
East African Campaign: The British at Mescelit Pass make some tentative moves forward. The 1st Royal Sussex advance across the Anseba Road and reach the vicinity of Mendad. Other troops head toward Massawa. There is only scattered Italian opposition on the road to Massawa.
The Italians at the port of Massawa see the British approaching and know what that invariably means - the same thing that happened at Kismayu and Mogadishu. So, the captains of three Italian submarines - Archimede, Guglielmotti, and Ferraris - set out to run the British blockade into the Indian Ocean.
European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command sends 71 bombers against Cologne (Koln) during the night. The Luftwaffe bombs Cardiff again with 47 bombers.
Battle of the Atlantic: German heavy cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst reach the vicinity of the Cape Verde Islands. Admiral Lütjens plans to intercept British convoys en route to and from Freetown. This is a major convoy route, with supplies for England flowing north and troop convoys heading south.
U-97 (Kptlt. Udo Heilmann) loses a man (Bootsmannsmaat, or Petty Officer, Artur Mei) overboard in the Bay of Biscay. Such incidents are very disheartening to the confined crews in U-boats. U-124 (Kptlt. Georg-Wilhelm Schulz) is operating around the Canary Islands. Today, it refuels from German tanker Charlotte Schliemann. It will work in loose conjunction with Gneisenau and Scharnhorst, which now are in the same general area.
Royal Navy T-class submarine HMS Taku (Lt. John Frederick Beaufoy Brown, RN), on a passage from Holy Loch to Halifax, has been in trouble since 27 February due to weather damage. The aft hydroplanes have become locked in the vertical position due to wave damage, leaving the submarine immobile. Today, three Royal Navy ships (HMS Enchantress, Gladiolus and HMRT Salvonia) arrive. Salvonia after great difficulty takes the damaged submarine in tow to Londonderry.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 275-ton Royal Navy trawler HMT Cobbers off Lowestoft. There are 9-11 deaths, including Skipper L. Turner RNR, of her 15-man crew.
The Luftwaffe (KG 27 Heinkel He 111) bombs and disables 866-ton British freighter Port Townsville in St. George's Channel. There are two deaths, and the Port Townsville eventually sinks.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks Royal Navy 5 ton auxiliary yacht HMY Tiny while at the dock at Sutherland.
Royal Navy destroyer HMS Burnham collides with its fellow destroyer HMS Malcolm in the Northwest Approaches. Both destroyers proceed to Liverpool for repairs lasting into April.
British mine destructor ship HMS Corfield collides with British freighter Cormead in the Thames Estuary. The Corfield is lightly damaged and goes to Blackwell for repairs lasting until mid-March.
Royal Navy gunboat MGB 13 hits a mine off Milford Haven. It eventually sinks.
Convoy HG 55 departs from Gibraltar. Royal Navy corvette HMS Begonia (K 66, Lt. Thomas A. R. Muir) and the escort destroyer HMS Liddesdale (L100) are commissioned, minesweeping trawler HMS Inchcolm and corvette Alysse are launched, and destroyer HMS Holcombe is laid down.
U-125 (Kapitänleutnant Günther Kuhnke) is commissioned.
The Port Townsville ablaze in St. George's Channel, 3 March 1941.
Battle of the Mediterranean: General Rommel, commander of the growing Afrika Korps, only has the 5th Light Division at his disposal (and allied Italian troops). Nevertheless, he moves more troops forward, adopting an aggressive posture. Rommel's most advanced troops now are in the vicinity of El Agheila, where they begin forming a defensive line based around a narrow pass 17 miles (30 km) west of the British lines. He also forms blocking lines to the south so that the British cannot just bypass his main defensive positions, as they have done repeatedly to the Italians.
Another supply convoy for Rommel's Afrika Korps departs from Naples bound for Tripoli. It has four freighters and is escorted by two destroyers and a torpedo boat.
British 1553-ton freighter Knight of Malta runs aground near Ras Azzaz, Libya (north of Bardia). Everybody survives. The cargo is salvaged, but the ship is written off due to air attacks.
At Malta, the conscription recently ordered by Governor Dobbie begins. Men line up at Birkirkara School to be processed. In addition, Police Constable Carmel Camilleri is awarded the George Medal for actions he took on 4 November 1940. On that date, Camilleri rescued an RAF pilot from a cliff into which his plane had crashed. Battle of the Pacific: Convoy AP 14 departs from Wellington, New Zealand.
Panzer III in Bulgaria, March 1941.
Soviet/Bulgarian Relations: The Soviet Union considers Bulgaria within its sphere of control, and it is not amused that has Bulgaria joined Germany's Tripartite Pact. Foreign Minister Molotov denounces the signing, saying that a German presence there will only lead to problems.
Turkish/Bulgarian Relations: Turkey also reacts to the Bulgarian signing of the Tripartite Pact. It abrogates the non-aggression pact that it signed with Bulgaria in February.
US/Bulgarian Relations: The United States also reacts negatively to the Bulgarian signing of the Tripartite Pact. President Roosevelt immediately freezes all Bulgarian assets in the US. There, in fact, are very few Bulgarian assets in the US, but this is another instance of Roosevelt using his economic powers as a means of punishment. US/Vichy French Relations: Vichy France agrees not to supply the German war machine with oil from French North Africa.
US Military: Rear Admiral John H. Newton, Commander Cruisers Scouting Forces, leads a flotilla of cruisers and destroyers on a training/scouting mission from Pearl Harbor to the US Naval base at Samoa. However, this mission also has other possible destinations that have not yet been finalized.
Australian Government: Prime Minister Robert Menzies, visiting London, gives an address to the Foreign Press Association on diplomatic relations in the Pacific region. As he puts it in his diary, the solution is:
Policy vis a vis Japan is not appeasement in the sense of offering sops to Cerberus, but a proper blend of friendliness & a plan statement that we can and will defend ourselves and our vital interests.
Churchill is sick with a cold and absent from Whitehall. Menzies notes that the British War Cabinet refuses to take any major decisions in his absence, and vows to find "the secret of having my cabinet unwilling to decide any important questions in my absence."
There are persistent theories that, around this time, several highly placed individuals in the British government are considering replacing Churchill with Menzies. Churchill is seen as a ruthless autocrat, while Menzies is far more amenable (and quite level-headed). However, this is a highly debatable theory based on scant evidence, though there is little question that Menzies is making a smashing impression in London. His absence from Melbourne, though, is gradually causing his highly placed political supporters there to look elsewhere. This is a fairly typical and recurrent political scenario, where a domestic leader becomes more popular abroad than at home (a more modern example is Mikhail Gorbachev in Russia).
Wehrmacht marching, Karnobat, Bulgaria, March 1941. Military marching band parades are a standard tactic the Germans use after occupying a city to show ownership and also provide some entertainment and show the locals it isn't all bad.
Dutch Homefront: Anton Mussert, leader of the National Socialist Movement in the Netherlands (NSB), visits German Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels in Berlin. Mussert has been busy forming the 23rd SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Division "Nederland," but this visit probably concerns the recent General Strike centered in Amsterdam that the SS brutally put down.
The Germans execute Ernst Cahn. Cahn is one of the owners of the Koco ice cream joint, held by rebels, which the Germans stormed in February. The German forces incurred several casualties during that raid, which led to the General Strike, which led to the Germans killing literally dozens of people for protesting. This reportedly is the first execution of a civilian in cold blood in Holland (other than during incidents like the Koco battle), but it won't be the last.
The famous "Crying Man" or "Weeping Frenchman" shot, published on 3 March 1941 in Life Magazine on page 29. This is from newsreel footage used in the the Frank Capra film "Why We Fight - Chapter III - Divide and Conquer." The footage was taken long after the French surrender as fleeing Frenchmen were leaving a southern port.
French Homefront: The famous "Crying Man" image that is universally mistaken as happening during the fall of Paris, but actually happened much later in Marseille, is published in Life Magazine. This becomes the start of the picture's (it is a frame from a film) gradual elevation to iconic status. While the exact details are a subject of scholarship, according to "Marseille sous l'occupation" by Lucien Gaillard, this is a shot of Monsieur Jerôme Barzetti, taken in Marseilles on February 20, 1941. Other sources place this in September 1940 (the date being in 1940 makes sense, since it occurred during the transfer of the French flags to North Africa which happened then, but as I noted, this is a matter of scholarly research). There is no further information on the further history of Monsieur Barzetti.
American Homefront: The US Supreme Court issues its decision in Railroad Commission v. Pullman Co., 312 U.S. 496 (1941). This case introduces what is known as "Pullman Abstention," wherein federal courts abstain from hearing cases that involve questions of sensitive application of US Constitutional claims to state policy. In short, when state social policy is at issue, the proper court to decide a case is the state court in the state in question despite the presence of questions relating to the US Constitution. If deciding the state law ground for relief could obviate the need to adjudicate the federal issue, then the state court should be the proper court to hear the case. This Pullman Abstention doctrine leads to decades of refinement and a clear set of rules for deciding the issue, and the general result is that the state court hears the case first, and if the application of state law does not determine the outcome, then a federal court can hear the claims based on the US Constitution.
Australians about to ship out to Greece muster to lifeboat stations during a drill, 3 March 1941 (Australian War Memorial).
Below is the 1943 Frank Capra film which contains the newsreel footage from which the "Weeping Frenchman" shot is taken. The Weeping Frenchman appears at 54:50 (this clip is only a few minutes long, it is toward the end).
