Friday 19 April 1940

Three rare Neubaufahrzeug panzers arrive in Oslo on 19 April 1940.

Norway Army Operations: As part of Operation Sickle, on 19 April 1940 the British head south from Namsos and reach Verdal. They are still 80 km from Trondheim. Behind them, French mountain troops (French 5th Demi-Brigade de Chasseurs, Chasseurs Alpins (mountain infantry)) replace them at Namsos. In a further example of the poor planning for the operation, they are not accompanied by their skis, mules, trucks and anti-aircraft guns. The skis arrive later, without straps.

The Wehrmacht watches the British troop movements with concern. They land troops near Steinkjer on Trondheim Fjord and prepare to assault the town. This effectively outflanks the British 146th Infantry Brigade (General de Wiart) that has been advancing from Namsos to join the Norwegian forces further south. In addition, the Germans have warships in Trondheim Fjord to support land operations. The British 146th Infantry Brigade also runs into the German 138th Gebirgsjäger Regiment, advancing North from Trondheim and a battle erupts.

At Andalsnes, the British troops (Brigadier Morgan) have two conflicting objectives: move on Trondheim from the south as part of Operation Sickle, and support the Norwegians to their south at Lillehammer. This means moving in opposite directions.

The situation is becoming critical because the advancing German troops of the 196th Infantry Division have captured Hamar and Elverum only 50 miles to the south. As a first step, Morgan sends the 148th Brigade south down the Gudbrandsdal to Lillehammer to protect it. These troops will help General Ruge to block the German troops advancing northward, but it also at the very least delays any British move on Trondheim from the south.

On the most direct road from Oslo to Kristiansund, the Norwegians have blocked the road at Bagn. The Germans are forced to abandon their tanks and proceed on mountain trails to clear the road.

At Hegra Fortress, the fighting settles down after the failed German attacks of the past couple of days. The Germans decide that there is no point in storming the fortress and settle down to a siege, with regular bombardment by artillery and the Luftwaffe.

At Dombås, the Fallschirmjäger force led by Oblt. Herbert Schmidt has been shelled by a 40 mm antiaircraft gun and surrounded by vastly superior Norwegian forces. The Norwegians also have just brought up a rail-mounted howitzer manned by Royal Marines. The howitzer opens fire at 06:00 with an opening barrage of 10 rounds.

At that point, a Junkers Ju 52 arrives overhead. Schmidt radios it and tells it that the Germans are going to surrender, so it leaves without dropping its supplies.

Schmidt then sends out his second-in-command, Leutnant Ernst Mössinger, to see what kind of terms he can get. Norwegian Major Arne Sunde demands unconditional surrender and tells him that they have 10 minutes before he opens fire again. The Germans are to announce their surrender by firing flares. Mössinger returns to the farm, and just before the deadline the Germans fire off the flares.

There are 45 Fallschirmjäger left, of whom 6 are wounded. The captured Germans are transported by train for incarceration at Dombås. The elimination of the Germans at Dombås clears the vital rail line and road junction. It also facilitates the escape route for King Haakon and the rest of the Norwegian government to England via the port of Andalsnes.

Three experimental heavy tanks, Neubaufahrzeug heavy tanks (35 tons, three turrets with 75 mm main and 37 mm secondary gun), arrive by ship in Oslo. They are big and scary looking, but not too imposing as weapons. They are driven around town to impress the locals, then sent to join the forces battling northward.

Norway Air Operations: With the British base at Namsos posing a threat to the German hold on Trondheim, the Luftwaffe sends raids against Namsos. The town suffers tremendous damage.

The RAF continues its daily raids against Stavanger-Sola, sending 9 aircraft to bomb the field.

Battle of the Atlantic: HMS Hickory (Chief Skipper Arthur Pitchers), a minesweeper, is commissioned.

BEF: The British begin moving the 12th Infantry Division to France.

US/Japanese Relations: After recent back and forth between US Secretary of State Cordell Hull and the Japanese Foreign Minister about the possible implications of the European war on the southern Pacific region, the Japanese government officially states that it has no aggressive plans regarding the Dutch East Indies.

Holland: The Dutch government extends the state of siege from just the frontier region to cover the entire country. This creates a form of martial law. The government also reiterates its neutrality.

Yugoslavia: Milan Stojadinović, the former premier, is arrested. The regent prince Paul suspects that he is trying to set himself up as the head of a puppet regime with Axis backing.

German Homefront: With Hitler's birthday on the morrow, Propaganda Minister Goebbels gives a fulsome speech entitled "Our Hitler" in which he states that "We Germans all agree: nothing can separate us from our love, obedience, & confidence in and for the Führer."

British Homefront: "Gone With The Wind" premieres in London four months after its American debut. As a film with an inherently American storyline, it loses something in the translation. About the film, which is now in many Top Ten lists of all time and which still holds the inflation-adjusted box office record, the critics say: "Good, but no masterpiece."

The New York Central’s Lake Shore LTD, sped around a curve at Little Falls, N.Y., jumped the track, and plowed into a rock wall. Thirty persons were killed in this crash on April 19, 1940.

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel

2019

Thursday 29 February 1940

Finnish soldiers circa 29 February 1940.

Winter War Army Operations: The Soviets on 29 February 1940 follow the Finnish withdrawal closely and immediately begin attacking to surround Viipuri. The Soviets once again attempt to outflank Viipuri by crossing the frozen Gulf of Finland. They make it to shore 15 miles west of Viipuri, but the Finns immediately launch a massive counterattack and drive them off. As part of the operation, the Soviets capture Teikari Island.

Soviets also attack at Taipale for the second day in a row, but all three attacks are repelled. The Soviets begin to lose interest in this extremely difficult sector.

There also is a Soviet attack at Pitkaerantae, Northeast of Lake Ladoga, but it also is repelled.

The Finns overrun another motti north of Lake Ladoga. This time, it is East Lemetti Motti (West Lemetti Motti having already fallen). The Finns capture 5 field guns, 1 antitank gun, 71 tanks, 12 armored cars, 6 antiaircraft machineguns, 206 trucks & 70 machineguns.

Winter War Peace Talks: One day before the Soviet deadline, the Finns accept the Soviet terms in principle and they are willing to enter into final negotiations about them. They do not communicate this to the Soviets immediately because of negative French and British reactions to the news.

The Winter War proceeds, but it is on its last legs.

Battle of the Atlantic: Shipping Losses for February 1940:

• 63 Allied Ships
• 226,920 tons
• 4 U-boats sunk.

Today, U-20 (Kplt. Harro von Klot-Heydenfeldt) torpedoes and sinks Italian freighter SS Maria Rose in the English Channel. There are 12 dead and 7 survivors.

In the Dutch West Indies, the destroyer HMS Despatch intercepts the German blockade runner Troja near Aruba. The crew of Troja scuttles the ship lest it is captured, and it sinks on 1 March. Fellow blockade runner Heidelberg, which departs at roughly the same time after dark, evades detection.

The British at Gibraltar detain the US freighter Cold Harbor.

Convoy OA 101 departs from Southend. Convoy OB 101 departs from Liverpool.

Spies: The Uruguayan Government sells the wreck of the Graf Spee in the River Platte to a local salvage firm for £14,000. The salvage firm, in fact, is a front for British naval intelligence, which wishes to learn any secrets they can find about, for instance, Kriegsmarine radar. The Admiralty thinks its local representatives paid too much, but useful information is learned about the radar.

British/Japanese Relations: The British return 9 of the 21 German nationals that they abducted from the Asama Maru on 21 January 1940. In exchange, the Japanese agree not to transport German military reservists back to Germany.

German Government: With Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles making the rounds of European leaders, there is a widespread concern throughout Europe about what his meddling in European affairs may portend. Hitler, in particular, is concerned. He instructs everyone who is to meet with Welles that they are to stick to the proper narrative: Britain and France declared war so that they could destroy Germany, and thus Germany must continue defending itself until they stop.

The British have reinstated the Navicert system used during World War I, which basically clears shipped goods as not being contraband in advance. It also is championed by President Roosevelt, but merchants are not as keen about it. The US and other neutral powers are following this system with varying degrees of enthusiasm and compliance. The German Press Department at The Hague issues a statement that anyone adhering to this system will make themselves suspect to Germany.

Estonia: The government forbids its ships to travel in the North Sea except by convoy.

Palestine: There is a spontaneous protest against the British at the recent laws restricting the purchase of land, which many settlers feel is an improper penalty upon Jews.

French Homefront: Minister of Finance Paul Reynaud warns in a broadcast about runaway inflation (le cycle infernal). The words carry weight because of the fairly recent disaster on that score in Weimar Germany. The government is imposing the usual measures to control prices, many of which stretch back to Roman times, including a price freeze, rationing, revaluation of gold reserves, and compulsory use of female labor.

In the first step of the plan, the French government introduces ration cards.

Jan/Feb 1940, l. to r. Antilla, Troja, and Heidelberg anchored at Malmok, source: Les Seekins’ scrapbook, courtesy of  www.lago-colony.com.

February 1940

February 3, 1940: Soviets Capture a Bunker
February 4, 1940: Peace Talks in Stockholm
February 5, 1940: Allies to Invade Norway
February 6, 1940: Careless Talk Costs Lives
February 7, 1940: IRA Terrorists Executed
February 8, 1940: Spies!
February 9, 1940: The Welles Mission
February 10, 1940: Confiscation of Jewish Goods
February 11, 1940: Soviets Attack Mannerheim Line
February 12, 1940: Breaches In Mannerheim Line
February 13, 1940: Soviets Inching Forward in Finland
February 14, 1940: Soviets Batter Mannerheim Line
February 15, 1940: Finns Retreat
February 16, 1940: Altmark Incident
February 17, 1940: Manstein and Hitler Discuss Fall Gelb
February 18, 1940: Operation Nordmark
February 19, 1940: King Gustav Says No
February 20, 1940: Falkenhorst Commands Weserubung
February 21, 1940: Radar Advances
February 22, 1940: Friendly Fire
February 23, 1940: Soviets Present Their Demands
February 24, 1940: Fall Gelb Revised
February 25, 1940: Mr. Welles Comes to Visit
February 26, 1940: Battle of Honkaniemi
February 27, 1940: Finns Retreat Again
February 28, 1940: Overseas Volunteers Help Finland
February 29, 1940: Finns Accept Soviet Terms In Principle

March 1940

March 1, 1940: Soviet Breakthroughs Past Viipuri
March 2, 1940: Soviets Swarm West in Finland
March 3, 1940: Soviets Across Gulf of Viipuri
March 4, 1940: USSR Apologizes to Sweden
March 5, 1940: Katyn Forest Massacre Approved
March 6, 1940: Finns Head to Moscow
March 7, 1940: The Coal Ships Affair
March 8, 1940: Peace Talks Begin in Moscow
March 9, 1940: Soviets Harden Peace Terms
March 10, 1940: Germany Draws Closer to Italy
March 11, 1940: Winter War Peace Terms Finalized
March 12, 1940: War is Over (If You Want It)
March 13, 1940: Winter War Ends
March 14, 1940: Evacuating Karelia
March 15, 1940: The Bletchley Bombe
March 16, 1940: First British Civilian Killed
March 17, 1940: Enter Dr. Todt
March 18, 1940: Mussolini To Join the War
March 19, 1940: Daladier Resigns
March 20, 1940: Soviets Occupy Hango Naval Base
March 21, 1940: Paul Reynaud Leads France
March 22, 1940: Night Fighters Arise!
March 24, 1940: French Consider Alternatives
March 25, 1940: Reynaud Proposes Action
March 26, 1940: C-46 First Flight
March 27, 1940: Himmler Authorizes Auschwitz Construction
March 28, 1940: Allies Ponder Invading Norway
March 29, 1940: Soviets Prefer Neutrality
March 30, 1940: Allied Uncertainty
March 31, 1940: The Tiger Cage

2019

Friday 15 December 1939

Women wave farewell to members of the 6th Division AIF aboard troop transport ship Strathallan, December 15, 1939.

Winter War Army Operations: The Finns on 15 December 1939 have been launching attacks on Suomussalmi that the Soviets in the town have been deflecting. Today, after days of waiting, the Finns on the Ratte road are attacked from the east. Units of the Soviet 44th Rifle Division reach Battle Group Kontula, which is barricading the road. Stretched out over the road, the Soviets attempt a company-sized assault which the Finns easily brush off.

The leader of the 163rd Rifle Division in Suomussalmi knows the danger and repeatedly requests permission to withdraw. He is told to await the 44th Rifle Division. Ninth Army (KomKor M.P. Duhanov) fails to coordinate assaults from the village and the relief force. With this failed attempt, the relief attack, in fact, ends for the time being. The 44th Division itself, confined to the road, now presents a tempting target for the Finns.

At Taipale, the Soviet attacks are failing. In the far north, the Finns withdraw from Salmijaervi near the coast and blow up the nickel mines. They can easily travel off-road, the Soviets not so much.

Western Front: British 5th Division of the BEF is formed from three infantry brigades and deployed south of Lille. The British are not shielded by the Maginot Line but are constructing some of their own fortifications. The German and British lines are far apart except at Metz.

Battle of the Atlantic: Captain Langsdorff of the Admiral Graf Spee spends part of the day going to funerals for 36 of his men and ponders what to do with his ship and men. The released British sailors attend the funeral of their own volition and lay wreaths.

Langsdorff is told that he must leave within 72 hours. His men are repairing what battle damage they can, but the ship requires much more time. The British spread rumors by various means, including phony radio transmissions, suggesting that the British forces awaiting the Admiral Graf Spee are larger than they actually are. The British also play games with departures of British merchant ships, sending them out at intervals - the Admiral Graf Spee must give departing ships 24 hours head start, and the British want more time to assemble a fleet outside the Platte River estuary.

Light cruiser HMS Ajax is refueled while the heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland minds the store.

U-48 (Kapitänleutnant Herbert Schultze) torpedoes and sinks the Greek freighter, Germaine, south of Ireland. Kpt. Schultze disembarks the ship before sinking it, so all of the crew survives.

US destroyers continue shadowing the German liner Columbus, which is near Key West, Florida. Two of the destroyers head off after the German freighter Arauca, which left Vera Cruz shortly before the Columbus.

The British release US freighter Exmoor from detention at Gibraltar.

German liner Columbus (Ang, Federal Archive).

British Government: Prime Minister Chamberlain visits the BEF in France with General Ismay.

Peace Talks: The Foreign Minister broadcasts an appeal to the Soviet Union to reopen negotiations, saying, "the Finns will never submit to a foreign yoke." The appeal is ignored.

China: The Chinese Winter Offensive shifts into high gear:

• Chinese 1st War Area captures Lowang railway station;
• Chinese 6th War Area (southern Hupei and western Hunan), assisting 9th War Area, unsuccessfully attacks Yuehyang and railroad station at Kaochiao approximately this date, but plays no other role in the winter offensive
• Chinese 8th War Area (Kansu, Ninghsia, Tsinghai, and Suiyuan) commences operations with 35th Army and 81st Army capturing Anpei approximately this date
• 19th Army Group of Chinese 9th War Area attacking Hsintanpu, Tongyang, and Nanliqiao
• Chinese East Hupei guerrilla forces begin nuisance raids

The Japanese throw in some counterattacks where possible:

• Japanese counterattacks against Chinese 2nd War Area
• Japanese counterattack Southern Honan Army of Chinese 5th War Area and recapture Yangliuho
• Japanese counterattack Left Flank Army of Chinese 5th War Area around Chihchengshan, forcing the Chinese to withdraw to Chikutien and Sanchingkuan
• Elements of Japanese 33rd Infantry Division and 40th Infantry Division attack Chinese 9th War Area around Shihmen and Shihpihu

Overall, the Japanese are withstanding the Chinese Winter Offense and throwing in some solid counter-punches.

American Homefront: Nylon yarn begins to be manufactured. "Gone With the Wind" premieres in Atlanta. Eurith D. Rivers, the governor of Georgia, declares December 15 a state holiday.

Atlanta premiere of "Gone With the Wind" on 15 December 1939.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019

Thursday 14 December 1939

Honor Guard on the Admiral Graf Spee, December 14, 1939.

German Government: Hitler meets Vidkun Quisling on 14 December 1939. Admiral Reader, the originator of the idea of invading Norway, has convinced Adolf Hitler to meet Vidkun Quisling. Quisling is a minor Norwegian politician who is pro-German, pro-defense and also a huge anti-Semite. A friend of explorer Fridtjof Nansen, Quisling among other things had been made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his services to Britain in the Soviet Union (there are rumors he was a spy), given the Romanian Crown Order and also the Yugoslav Order of St. Sava for humanitarian efforts. More recently, he had become the "Fører" of his Nasjonal Samling, the Norwegian equivalent of the NSDAP. He has an awesome resume, particular with the kinds of international contacts that Hitler envies - the one catch is that he isn't very popular in Norway, seen as more of a quaint quack than a national leader.

At the Hitler meeting, Quisling is like a Hitler dream. He asks for help with a pro-German coup that would open the huge Norwegian coastline to the U-boat fleet and save them days of transit to their Atlantic stations. Thereafter, he - as leader of Norway - would help to broker an Anglo/German settlement. Hitler is polite and promises to fund Quisling's party, but he is enough of a realist to see many of Quisling's promises as puffery, "broker's talk." His financial and moral encouragement of Quisling does not dissuade Hitler in the slightest from continuing to plan the invasion of Norway, which is not really what Quisling has in mind, and in fact, encourages it. Basically, Hitler sees Quisling as a potentially useful tool for managing a conquered nation, while Quisling sees himself as a future potentate.

The main result of the meeting is that Hitler orders the OKW (military high command) to begin a preliminary study on invading Norway. The first operational name for the project is "Studie Nord." The eventual code name is Weserubung ("Weser Exercise," because it is planned for April 9, which is the little-known holiday "Weser River Day" in Germany).

Winter War Army Operations: In the far north, the Soviets begin a new offensive in the Petsamo region, the one area where they still have freedom of action.

Winter War Naval Operations: Soviet destroyers Gnevny and Grozyaschi shell Uto Island.

Battle of the Atlantic: German liner Columbus, perhaps emboldened by the successful return to Germany of the Bremen from Murmansk, slips out of Vera Cruz, Mexico to return to Germany. There is an involved situation wherein Australian cruiser HMAS Perth is shadowing the Columbus, while several American destroyers and the cruiser USS Vincennes (CA 44) are shadowing the Perth, much to the latter's annoyance.

The Columbus almost slips out unnoticed, but two US destroyers see it leave and tail it. German freighter Arauca also departs from Vera Cruz before Columbus, perhaps as a decoy. The US ships in pursuit openly broadcast the Columbus' position for anyone who might be interested.

Admiral Graf Spee is given 48 hours to leave Montevideo port or be seized by the government after Captain Langsdorff requests two weeks. The British through their naval attaché Henry McCall are all over the Uruguayans and force this decision, though the authorities give the ship an extra day more than required (or allowed) by international law. Commodore Harwood of Force G, meanwhile, is lurking outside the estuary - 120 miles wide - with his battered ships, pondering what might happen in another action against the pocket battleship.

British destroyer Kelly (Lord Mountbatten) is damaged by a mine off the Tyne. Freighter Inverlane hits a mine but is beached before sinking and is later re-floated.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Ursula sinks Kriegsmarine escort vessel F-9.

The British release US freighter Extavia from detention at Gibraltar.

Convoys OA 53 and OB 53 depart from Southend and Liverpool, respectively.

Kapitän zur See Hans W. Langsdorff at the funeral of his men. (Photo courtesy of Hugo R. Sochi, from the private collection of Delia S. Neumann wife of Matrosenobergefreiter Gustav Neumann, Division 3, Admiral Graf Spee)

European Air Operations: The RAF sends 42 planes, its largest force yet, to attack German harbors. The Luftwaffe has a successful day, shooting down 5 of the attacking bombers.

Western Front: Premier Daladier summarizes the results of the first three months of the year in a communiqué, stating that 2,100 French soldiers had lost their lives. He rather incongruously contrasts this with 2,975 road deaths in Great Britain during the same period - road deaths having increased dramatically due to the blackout.

League of Nations: The League expels the USSR, which doesn't really notice since it has been boycotting the League anyway. The reason is for violating (among other things) the UN charter the USSR signed in 1934. Furthermore, the League coordinates relief efforts for the Finns. With Italy, Germany, and Japan already having left the League for one reason or another, it is losing relevance.

China: The Chinese Winter Offensive continues. Chinese 40th Army and 27 Army surround Japanese 36 Infantry division at Changtze and Tunliu; River North Army crosses the Han River; 19th Army Group of Chinese 9th War Area beats off a Japanese counterattack by Japanese 33rd and 40th Infantry Divisions Yuchiafan, Lungkang, and Dafan.

American Homefront: Festivities are in full swing for the Atlanta premiere of "Gone With the Wind," attended by Clark Gable, Carole Lombard and most of the cast. There are extended festivities, including a costume ball and various parades, which all culminate on 15 December 1939. It is probably the most elaborate film premiere of all time.

Clark Gable and Carole Lombard flying to Atlanta for the premiere of Gable's film "Gone With The Wind" - the salary of which had enabled Gable to marry Lombard.

December 1939

December 1, 1939: Finland Fights for its Life
December 2, 1939: First RAF Bombs on Germany
December 3, 1939: Soviets Still Advancing in Finland
December 4, 1939: Molotov to Roosevelt - Mind Your Own Business
December 5, 1939: Prien Returns
December 6, 1939: Attacks on Mannerheim Line
December 7, 1939: Kollaa Holds!
December 8, 1939: Polish Pilots Return
December 9, 1939: First British BEF Fatality
December 10, 1939: The Soviets Capture Salla in Finland
December 11, 1939: Finns Make Their Move
December 12, 1939: Finnish Success in the Winter War
December 13, 1939: Battle of River Platte December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019