Saturday 27 July 1940

Bugs Bunny is born today, 27 July 1940.

Battle of Britain: The weather clears sufficiently on 27 July 1940 for most air operations, though a persistent cloud layer hangs over everything with scattered rainstorms. The Luftwaffe resumes its massive attacks against the Channel convoys. Today, 50 Stukas find Convoy "Bacon" and sink destroyers HMS Codrington and Wren, the latter off Aldeburgh (Suffolk).

General Wolfram von Richthofen's Fliegerkorps VIII is in the air and over the convoy by 09:45. There are several convoys in the vicinity, two forming up in the Thames estuary. Heinkel He 111s of KG 53 join the attack and sink the Wren (37 deaths) of the 18th Destroyer Flotilla whilst also damaging HMS Montrose (lost her bow, had to be towed to Harwich).

The RAF gets several squadrons in the air (RAF Nos. 145, 238, and 609) to defend. The RAF shoots down at least one Stuka and Bf 109, with additional possible victories, at a cost of one Spitfire from 609 Squadron.

The Luftwaffe launches massive attacks against Dover as well. There, HMS Codrington goes down and destroyer HMS Walpole is badly damaged. The attack is notable because, for the first time, Bf 109s are equipped with bomb racks that enable them to operate as ground-attack ("Jagdbomber" or "Jabo") fighter-bombers. This type of raider is particularly dangerous because, once the German fighters drop their bombs, they can basically out-run the pursuing RAF fighters back to France - unlike the much-slower Stukas.

The Admiralty concedes defeat and withdraws all destroyers from Dover. This accomplishes a prime objective for Operation Sea Lion, but it is only a benefit if followed up properly - the Admiralty can always bring the destroyers back. The withdrawal places more weight on the RAF to defend convoy ships against both Luftwaffe and German torpedo boat attacks. In addition, the damage to Dover port itself is mounting, and Fighter Command makes protecting it a top priority. Protecting the forward airfields at Manston and Hawkinge becomes more vital than ever.

There are a few more raids during the day, including an attack on Belfast and scattered attacks on shipping. During the night, the Luftwaffe attacks Swansea Docks, Upton-upon-Severn, and Kidwelly (Carmarthen). The Luftwaffe also conducts minelaying operations around Portland and elsewhere on the Channel coast.

The RFA War Sepoy, which has been converted into a blockship at Dover after its extensive damage on the 19th by the Luftwaffe, is still very visible. The Luftwaffe pilots see it and, perhaps thinking it is still operational, pound it repeatedly.

Total losses for the day are said to be four Luftwaffe planes and one RAF plane.

The Luftwaffe gets a little more coordinated by the appointment of a "fighter leader" of Luftflotte 2, the main formation facing England. Luftflotte 2 has the following fighter formations in action:

• JG 3
• JG 26
• JG 51
• JG 52
• JG 54
• ZG 26

Generalmajor Theo Osterkamp takes on the job, giving up his leadership of JG 51. Major Werner Mölders takes over command of JG 51, and Mölders is replaced as Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 53 by Hauptman Harro Harder.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command sends 15 bombers to attack various targets in Holland and northwestern Germany, primarily shipping facilities, oil depots and airfields.

RAF Fighter Command begins evaluating the first prototype Beaufighter IF fighters.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-34 (Kapitänleutnant Wilhelm Rollmann) continues stalking convoy OB 188, which is now about 350 miles out into the Atlantic west of Scotland. To add to its totals of the 26th, the U-boat torpedoes and sinks 5,260-ton British freighter Sambre at 02:58 and 10,364-ton British tanker Thiara at 03:13. There are 25 dead on the Thiara, while 36 survive; everybody on the Sambre (48 crew) survives.

British freighter Salvestria hits a mine and sinks in the Irish Sea.

British corvette HMS Clematis (K 36, Commander York McLeod Cleeves) is commissioned.

Convoy OB 190 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HG 40F departs from Gibraltar, Convoy HX 61 departs from Halifax.

U-73 is launched.

The crew of U-73, launched today at Bremer Vulkan of Bremen-Vegesack, Germany.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Malta needs better air defenses, so Whitehall begins plans to send a dozen heavy guns and ten light anti-aircraft batteries to the island via the Suez Canal. Operation Hurry, the convoy past Gibraltar into the Mediterranean, is confined to the transport of Hurricane fighters and is not carrying any extraneous materials. The ships are not intended to actually dock at the island, but rather to fly the Hurricanes off once within range.

The Italians send a reconnaissance raid over the island at 11:10, losing a fighter to anti-aircraft fire. At 16:40, a couple of Short Sunderland flying boats on patrol find some enemy fighters and shoots down three of the Italian planes. One of the Sunderlands is damaged but makes it back to base.

The incessant air raids are seriously affecting productivity in the dockyard. The government begins pondering moving some operations underground so that the workers do not have to stop for each air raid alert, many of which are either false alarms or for enemy planes that wind up not attacking.

German/Spanish Relations: While there is not much enthusiasm on the Spanish side, the two countries' military staffs begin preliminary planning for Operation Felix: the invasion of Gibraltar. Taking Gibraltar would effectively bottle up the Mediterranean and force all British ships to take the long way around Africa to supply British forces in Egypt.

German/Bulgarian Relations: Adolf Hitler meets with the Bulgarian Premier and Foreign Minister at Berchtesgaden. Hitler tells them that he supports their claim on Romania in southern Dobruja province.

Italian/Romanian Relations: The Romanian Premier and Foreign Minister, having talked with Hitler on the 26th, meet with Mussolini and Italian Foreign Minister Ciano in Rome.

British/Japanese Relations: The Japanese detain eleven British citizens. Such detentions invariably result in diplomatic protests.

An illustration from the 27 July 1940 "The Illustrated London News" about German bombings.

German Resistance: Another victory parade for the defeat of France is scheduled for today in Paris. Count FritzDietlof von der Schulenberg, a member of the German Resistance, later claims to have had plans to shoot Hitler at the event. In addition, Captain Graf Schwerin Von Schwanenfeld, Major Hans Alexander Von Voss, and Captain Graf Von Waldersee have plans to both shoot Hitler and also toss a grenade at him. Hitler, however, cancels the parade.

Italian Government: Mussolini sets his eyes on expanding his African empire. He and Commando Supremo decide to invade British Somaliland on 3 August. Coordinating with Vichy France, which now is a nominal ally, Mussolini has them withdraw French forces from the key Jirre pass into the country.

British Government: The Admiralty appoints a board of inquiry to look into the reasons why destroyer HMS Effingham hit a rock and sank on 18 May 1940 while performing escort duties near Bodø, Norway.

Barrage balloons and Home Guard observers now cover London. The balloons are raised from parks and other open spaces.

The government imposes a curfew in the restricted zone on the south coast: everyone must be indoors from one hour after sunset to one hour before sunrise. Cars are allowed only one headlight, the other must be covered.

Australian Government: Australian radio reports that 125,000 men have volunteered for the Royal Australian Air Force.

US Government: President Roosevelt, Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox, and Naval Affairs Committee chairman Carl Vinson board the presidential yacht Potomac for a trip to the Norfolk Navy Yard.

Colonel George S. Patton, Jr. takes command of the 2nd Armored Brigade at Fort Benning.

Japanese Government: Prime Minister Konoye's government continues its militaristic stance by deciding to establish military ties with Germany and Italy.

Latin America: The Pan-American conference in Havana, Cuba results in an agreement to protect any European colonies in the region that are attacked by Axis forces. This is known as the Act of Havana.

British Homefront: The Illustrated London News publishes a pictorial guide to German bombing and how to survive it. This is quite timely, because, while London has not yet been bombed, it soon will be.

Francis Albert Sinatra in 1940.

American Homeland: It is a big day for Warner Bros: Bugs Bunny is born. Warner Bros releases "A Wild Hare," directed by Tex Avery. Bugs Bunny gets a chance to introduce his classic catchphrase, "What's up, Doc?", which Avery says was just a typical saying back home in Texas, nothing special at all. The short is nominated for an Academy Award (but loses). Earlier incarnations of Bugs actually appeared in several shorts starting in 1938, but everyone considers "A Wild Hare" to be Bugs' debut as his ultimate character. This is the wabbit's second meeting with Elmer Fudd, who hunts him down in "A Wild Hare," unsuccessfully of course.

Incidentally, while he is not yet given a screen name, Bugs in fact already has been named by his creator, though nobody knows it yet. Ben "Bugs" Hardaway first started drawing a generic rabbit in 1938 and, without thinking about it too much, filed him under "Bugs' Bunny" - as in, his own drawing of a rabbit. The name stuck, and is first used in Bugs' next film in 1941, "Elmer's Pet Rabbit."

Bugs Bunny as a US Marine in "Super-Rabbit" (1943).

Bugs Bunny becomes iconic during World War II for his wiseguy, purely American attitude. He represents freedom and is embraced by Allied servicemen worldwide - and not just Americans. Bugs Bunny later is the official mascot of Kingman Army Air Field in the U.S. and of the 530 Squadron, 380th Bombardment Group of the Royal Australian Air Force, among other outfits. The US Marines make Bugs an honorary Master Sergeant because, at the end of Super-Rabbit (1943), Bugs wears the dress blues of the United States Marine Corps.

In other Hollywood news, Warner Bros. releases the classic "They Drive By Night" starring Humphrey Bogart, George Raft and Anne Sheridan.

Also, Billboard Magazine publishes its first list of top records for the week (there have been other services charting how records perform, but this is the beginning of the "Billboard Top 100"). Topping this initial list is Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra's "I'll Never Smile Again." It features Frank Sinatra singing vocals with the Pied Pipers. The song was written by a Canadian woman, Ruth Lowe, who had just lost her husband on the operating table.

So, if you ever wondered what was Frank Sinatra's first mega-hit, you've come to the right place! It indeed was "I'll Never Smile Again" with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and The Pied Pipers. This is Sinatra's fourth chart appearance. "I'll Never Smile Again" will stay atop the chart for 12 weeks, and Sinatra will re-record "I'll Never Smile Again" in 1965.


July 1940

July 1, 1940: Vichy France
July 2, 1940: Arandora Star
July 3, 1940: Operation Catapult at Mers El Kébir
July 4, 1940: Romania In Crisis
July 5, 1940: The Five Freedoms
July 6, 1940: Hitler's High Point
July 7 1940: Dakar And Ringo
July 8, 1940: Tea Rationing in England
July 9, 1940: Battle of Calabria
July 10, 1940: Battle of Britain Begins
July 11, 1940: "Nous, Philippe Petain"
July 12, 1940: Enter Laval
July 13, 1940: German Surface Raiders Attack!
July 14, 1940: Bastille/Mourning Day
July 15, 1940: Tallest Man Dies
July 16, 1940: Plans for Sea Lion
July 17, 1940: Burma Road Closed
July 18, 1940: FDR Runs Again
July 19, 1940: Last Appeal To Reason
July 20, 1940: First Night Fighter Victory
July 21, 1940: Soviets Absorb Baltic States
July 22, 1940: First RAF Night Fighter Victory
July 23, 1940: Invasion False Alarm
July 24, 1940: The Meknés Incident
July 25, 1940: Black Thursday for RAF
July 26, 1940: Capture The Duke?
July 27, 1940: What's Up, Doc?
July 28, 1940: Destroyers Pulled From Dover
July 29, 1940: Barbarossa On The Burner
July 30, 1940: Hitler Delays Sealion
July 31, 1940: Bloody Wednesday of Olkusz

2020

Friday 17 May 1940

Belgian Army ACG-1 tank 829, knocked out on 17th May 1940 at Kapelle-op-den-Bos.

Western Front: French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud on 17 May 1940 is casting about for a solution to an insoluble problem. He has fired Commander-in-chief Gamelin and recalled Generals Weygand and Petain from the Middle East. He also appeals for a thousand American planes to fill the French skies and drive out the invader.

The German OKW (military high command) is increasingly agitated at the panzer divisions heading toward the channel without waiting for the infantry. Many of the top generals are infantry officers who do not understand or appreciate fluid battles. In addition, and more importantly, Hitler gets nervous and throws tantrums about the danger of armor advancing beyond the infantry. General Jodl notes in his diary that Hitler is "nervous and irritable - terrified by success, fearful of a collapse."

General Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist issues (another) stop order and holds a dramatic meeting with General Guderian. Guderian resigns, and von Kleist accepts the resignation. General Gerd von Rundstedt, though, who was one of the original advocates of the Fall Gelb plan, steps in. He reinstates Guderian. Guderian is allowed to continue his "reconnaissance in force," and he maintains the farce by purposefully understating the extent of his troops' advance in reports to his superiors.

As shown in several actions, the French tanks are of high quality. More investment in them and less in the Maginot Line might have made more sense in the pre-war years. While strong, however, they have the odd weakness of having a limited range. Many French tanks are rendered useless to operations when they simply run out of gas while assembling for battle.

The Dash to the Channel by General Guderian's XIX Corps and General Hoth's forces, led by General Erwin Rommel's 7th "Ghost" Panzer Division, is proceeding at full speed.

General Rommel and the 5th Panzer Division have lost 50 of their 500 tanks destroying French 1st Division Cuirassée (DCR), which has been forced to retreat with only 3 tanks left. Before dawn, Rommel takes Avesnes-sur-Helpe. Rommel presses forward throughout the day and reaches and seizes Le Cateau by evening. To do so, he must cross the Sambre River. The French helpfully have left a bridge there intact for him. Rommel at this point claims to have taken 10,000 prisoners to losses of only 36 men.

Guderian's armored troops (1st, 2nd, and 10th Panzer Divisions) are near the Oise River south of Guise. Guderian continues west nonetheless. His troops reach Maubeuge by evening.

Pictured on 17 May 1940 is the badly damaged Heinkel 111 of Unteroffizier Otto Stephani of ll/KG76. During a strafing run on a French ammunition truck, it blew up and showered the passing plane with shrapnel.

The French 4th Armored Division under General Charles de Gaulle is assembled near Laon with 200 tanks, including the fine Char B. At 04:14, he attempts a flank attack on General Guderian's own headquarters at Montcornet. Guderian calls the 10th Panzer Division back from its fight on the flank, and also calls in the Luftwaffe's Fliegerkorps VIII.

De Gaulle's men surround Montcornet by noon and take 500 prisoners, but the Luftwaffe and the Germans in the town (using 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank guns), along with some panzers, stop the assault around mid-day. At 16:00, de Gaulle tries again, and this time the German defenders add 88 mm Flak guns to the defense. The Luftwaffe returns at 18:00, and the French are forced back to their starting positions having lost 23 tanks. The Germans are not impressed by the French tentativeness. De Gaulle does get one cheery bit of news, though, when a superior tells him that his advocacy of mass armored attacks is indeed the correct strategy: "Cheer up! The Germans have proved you right!"

German Sixth Army under General Reichenau has brushed aside all resistance and today take Brussels as the BEF retreats before it. The Allies evacuate Antwerp and the islands of Walcheren and Beveland, but the Germans are not yet ready to occupy them.

Lord Gort, in charge of the BEF, has a decision to make. He has a strong force of capable troops, while the Germans in front of him are not much of a threat. There is, however, a very dangerous German spearhead breaking out from Sedan (headed westward) advancing to the sea just to his south. Gort can either retire toward the coast himself or perhaps stage a spectacular flank attack on the German mobile forces.

Gort makes his decision. He forms a small force to protect his flank from the Germans under his chief of intelligence, General Mason-Macfarlane. Regardless of his abilities as a battlefield commander, Mason-Macfarlane likely would be of more use in his intelligence role than in commanding troops. Gort then retreats to the west. It is this retrograde movement that enables Reichenau's 6th Army to enter Brussels. The British and French fall back from the Dyle River to the Dender River.

On 17 May 1940, F/L James G "Sandy" Sanders destroys a Ju 88 near Lille, the second of 3 enemy aircraft claimed in France that will earn him a DFC on 4 June.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends in a dozen or so Blenheim bombers against the Germans at Gembloux, Belgium, losing eight and not appreciably damaging the Wehrmacht troops.

RAF Bomber Command continues its turn to strategic bombing and attacks Hamburg, Bremen, and Cologne during the night.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Venezuelan government orders the navy to take over German merchant ships Durazzo and Sesostris.

Convoy SL 32 departs from Freetown.

Norway: British cruiser Effingham is carrying 2nd Battalion of the South Wales Borderers and supplies south of Narvik. Due to fears of Luftwaffe attacks, it is proceeding at a fast 23 knots in shallow waters. It hits a rock 12 miles off Bodø. HMS Effingham is a complete write-off and eventually is scuttled to avoid capture. The battalion of troops aboard is brought back to Harstad.

The Germans of 2nd Mountain Division attack the allies at Stien, some 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Mo i Rana. They mount a frontal assault under Generalleutnant Valentin Feurstein. The main German assault is stopped, but a flanking effort using skis comes down behind the defenders on the Dalselva River using Schmeisser machine pistols. The Allies withdraw.


Iceland: The British 147th Infantry Brigade takes over as an occupation force. Pursuant to government orders, the (invading) troops are to be treated as "guests," and it is a fairly easy billet but for the weather. This is Operation Fork. The 147th Brigade has a sense of humor and adopts as its unit insignia a polar bear on an ice floe.

Holland:  General Tiedemann is the new military commander of Amsterdam. He tells the Mayor that "If the Jews don’t want to see us, we don’t want to see them."

French Military: The French military is a true multicultural force. The  Journal officiel de la République française publishes a decree allowing chaplains for Muslims in the French Army.

US Navy: President Roosevelt plans to recommission 35 "flush-deck" destroyers. This will free up destroyer's to meet British Prime Minister Churchill's needs.

China: At the Battle of Tsaoyang-Ichang, the Japanese 11th Army marches into Tsaoyang.

American Homefront: The Green Lantern makes his first appearance (cover date July) in All-American Comics #16.

Pictured on 17 May 1940 is refugee Betti Malek, who has just arrived in England from Antwerp, Belgium.

May 1940

May 1, 1940: British Leave Åndalsnes
May 2, 1940: British Depart Namsos
May 3, 1940: Many Norwegians Surrendering
May 4, 1940: Bader Returns
May 5, 1940: HMS Seal Survives
May 6, 1940: Allies Focus on Narvik
May 7, 1940: In The Name of God, Go!
May 8, 1940: Exit Chamberlain
May 9, 1940: Enter Churchill
May 10, 1940: Fall Gelb
May 11, 1940: Eben Emael Surrenders
May 12, 1940: Germans at Sedan
May 13, 1940: Rommel at Work
May 14, 1940: German Breakout in France
May 15, 1940: Holland Surrenders
May 16, 1940: Dash to the Channel
May 17, 1940: Germans Take Brussels
May 18, 1940: Germans Take Antwerp
May 19, 1940: Failed French Counterattack
May 20, 1940: Panzers on the Coast
May 21, 1940: Battle of Arras
May 22, 1940: Attacking Channel Ports
May 23, 1940: British Evacuate Boulogne
May 24, 1940: Hitler's Stop Order
May 25, 1940: Belgian Defenses Creaking
May 26, 1940: Operation Dynamo
May 27, 1940: King Leopold Surrenders 
May 28, 1940: The Allies Take Narvik
May 29, 1940: Lille Falls
May 30, 1940: Operation Fish
May 31, 1940: Peak Day for Dynamo

2020

Monday 13 May 1940

The SS crosses the Meuse near Mook on 13 May 1940.

Western Front: It is a good day for German Generals who lead from the front.

On the morning of 13 May 1940, General Erwin Rommel's 7th "Ghost" Panzer Division is the first Wehrmacht unit across the Meuse near Dinant. He personally finds a weir and lock gate across the river that his troops can use to establish a bridgehead, and sends over motorcycle troops. His troops spend the rest of the day slowly expanding the bridgehead against scattered French opposition. Taking the broadest view, Rommel's troops threaten to separate the BEF from France if they eventually reach the coast at Abbeville.

The other German formations further south are also across during the day. Generals Guderian and Reinhardt make crossings at Sedan and Monthermé, respectively. Guderian's crossing by XIX Corps includes portions of 1st Panzer Division, 2nd Panzer Division, 10th Panzer Division, and (SS) Infantry Regiment Großdeutschland. This part of Panzer Group Kleist's breakout threatens a penetration into good tank country in the French heartland and is a serious breach of the Allied line. Guderian's men take a more traditional approach than Rommel's, with their initial crossing in rubber boats. There are still some French holdouts in Sedan, but many are beginning to surrender as the Luftwaffe launches mass raids at them (1000 bombers, including Stukas, engage in hours of bombing). Guderian is the first General firmly on French territory, and he gains the nickname "Fast Heinz."

This is true Blitzkrieg stuff, with the Stukas blasting holes through the French lines for the German troops to capitalize on. All of the German bridgeheads quickly put up pontoon bridges by evening. Tanks are able to cross and help expand the slender German footholds. French General Huntzinger has brave words about the penetrations: "That will just mean we take more prisoners."

However, the nearby French troops are not nearly as sanguine. The French troops begin to panic - in fact, the situation is known as the "Panic of Bulson" due to French troops fleeing a portion of the line on Bulson ridge 10 km (6.2 miles) behind the river. Any French chance to pierce the German bridgehead or even contain it is lost within the opening hours due to this panic and slow reflexes by the Supreme Allied Headquarters.

Northeast of Namur, Belgium, the French 2nd and 3rd Light Mechanized Divisions fight the 3rd and 4th Panzer Divisions of the German XVI Corps of the 6th Army. There is fierce fighting with many destroyed tanks throughout the day. The French tanks line up in a long line to cover the Gembloux gap, a strategy that fails. The Germans prevail through sheer numbers. While many German tanks are disabled, the Wehrmacht retains possession of the battlefield and many of them can be repaired; the French, however, incur staggering tank losses (roughly 105 tanks lost), with all complete write-offs. The French retreat to a defensive position at Gembloux.

The Germans take Liege.

German ground troops link with the paratroopers holding the bridges at Moerdijk, a rare success for the airborne troops. The 9th Panzer Division of 18th Army breaks into "Fortress Holland" and is approaching Rotterdam from the south. The 22nd Flieger Division holds key bridges in the city. The Germans are approaching the Nieuwe Maas River.

At the Afsluitdijk in the far north, German troops advance after 62 Luftwaffe planes bomb Fort Kornwerderzand, losing four of their number. The assault fails completely, with heavy German casualties.

At Grebbeberg, the Germans shift their axis of attack to the north of the main hill. The Dutch are hampered by the withdrawal of support aircraft to fight the German penetrations across the Meuse to the south. Attacking first, the Dutch make some gains, but the Germans begin their own preparatory bombardment for an attack, and this, combined with rampant confusion and much friendly fire, destroys the Dutch attack. The Germans seize upon the confusion, mount attacks all along the line, and in the end, the entire Dutch line falls. In the process, Obersturmbannführer (Lieutenant Colonel) Hilmar Wäckerle and his battalion of the SS brigade, who had impetuously advanced through the Dutch lines on the 12th and then been surrounded in a factory, are relieved.

The Allies, ensconced on the Dyle Line, have taken some prisoners. Some 900 German POWs are transported to Britain aboard Dutch ship Phrontis.

The BEF receives reinforcements, as the British 2nd Battalion of Irish Guards Regiment arrives at Hook of Holland.

Rommel's troops cross the Meuse. That building in the background is still there. You can recognize that it is near Dinant by the steep bluffs.

European Air Operations: New French fighters appear over the front. Dewoitine D-520 fighters, which match any other fighters in the world, engage Bf 109s over the Meuse front and have a great debut, destroying four Luftwaffe planes without loss to themselves.

RAF bomber command switches to tactical missions, attacking bridges and roads around the German breakouts near Maastricht and Eindhoven.

Battle of the Atlantic: German raider Widder continues its journey along the Norwegian coast. British submarine HMS Clyde spots Widder but is unable to damage it.

Dutch submarines HNLMS O-23 (P-23) ( Lt. Commander Gerard Koudijs) and HNLMS O-24 (P-24) (Lt. Commander Gerardus B. M. van Erkel) are commissioned.

Norway: It is twilight throughout the night in Narvik. The Allies advance on Narvik from Harstad. Norwegian 6th Infantry Brigade leads the assault on Narvik. The Wehrmacht troops in Narvik are heavily outnumbered, one regiment facing several divisions, but are well-led and have advantages of terrain.

British cruisers HMS Aurora and HMS Effingham bombard Bjerkvik early in the morning. At 01:00, the French land the Foreign Legion and light tanks at Bjerkvik and Øyjord (13th Demi-Brigade Legion Etranger). This position can be used for landings across the Rombaksfjord, and also offers the chance to cut the main Narvik rail line to Sweden. The French take 36 casualties, and the local citizens also suffer.

British No. 2 Independent Company arrives in Bodo.

British Government: While introducing his new war cabinet in a radio broadcast, Winston Churchill fires off one of his best lines: "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat." The aim is:

Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be, for without victory, there is no survival.

His new Minister of Labour and National Service is Ernest Bevin, appropriately a Labour politician in Churchill's coalition government.

War Crimes: The Battle of Grebbeberg is fiercely fought, and there have been potential war crimes on both sides. Obersturmbannführer Wäckerle, in a desperate situation (he could not foresee the fall of the Dutch defenses so quickly), uses Dutch prisoners as human shields to break out. He also orders his men to don Dutch uniforms - though they forget to put on Dutch boots, which gives them away. The real Dutch units recognize the deception and fire on the escaping SS men, whose breakout fails. Wäckerle himself is badly wounded and evacuated once his troops are rescued.

Holland: Several members of the royal family, including Queen Wilhelmina (aboard HMS Hereward), and part of the Dutch government (HMS Windsor) arrive in London.

Canada: Robert Manion, whose leadership of the Conservative Party has been disastrous and who even was defeated in his own seat, formally resigns as leader of the party.

British Homefront: The British government interns all Germans and Austrians in England as possible saboteurs.

China: US gunboat USS Tutuila (PR 4), stranded on a reef in the Yangtze River near Chungking, escapes from its predicament.

May 1940

May 1, 1940: British Leave Åndalsnes
May 2, 1940: British Depart Namsos
May 3, 1940: Many Norwegians Surrendering
May 4, 1940: Bader Returns
May 5, 1940: HMS Seal Survives
May 6, 1940: Allies Focus on Narvik
May 7, 1940: In The Name of God, Go!
May 8, 1940: Exit Chamberlain
May 9, 1940: Enter Churchill
May 10, 1940: Fall Gelb
May 11, 1940: Eben Emael Surrenders
May 12, 1940: Germans at Sedan
May 13, 1940: Rommel at Work
May 14, 1940: German Breakout in France
May 15, 1940: Holland Surrenders
May 16, 1940: Dash to the Channel
May 17, 1940: Germans Take Brussels
May 18, 1940: Germans Take Antwerp
May 19, 1940: Failed French Counterattack
May 20, 1940: Panzers on the Coast
May 21, 1940: Battle of Arras
May 22, 1940: Attacking Channel Ports
May 23, 1940: British Evacuate Boulogne
May 24, 1940: Hitler's Stop Order
May 25, 1940: Belgian Defenses Creaking
May 26, 1940: Operation Dynamo
May 27, 1940: King Leopold Surrenders 
May 28, 1940: The Allies Take Narvik
May 29, 1940: Lille Falls
May 30, 1940: Operation Fish
May 31, 1940: Peak Day for Dynamo

2019