Tuesday 16 July 1940

RAF Boulton Paul Type A Mk.IID Defiants flown by Squadron Leader Philip Hunter (PS-A) and the rest of his force in July 1940. The Defiants, long forgotten by most casual students of the war, remained in the front lines at the time.

Battle of Britain: Hitler releases Fuhrer Directive No. 16, "On Preparations For A Landing Operation Against England" on 16 July 1940 It is an odd Fuhrer Directive, because in the preamble Hitler admits that he would prefer not to have had to issue it. He provides that he will only actually order the invasion (which he gives the codename "Unternehmen Seelöwe -- Operation Sea Lion") "if necessary":

Since England, in spite of her hopeless military situation, shows no signs of being ready to come to an understanding, I have decided to prepare a landing operation against England, and, if necessary, to carry it out.

"Preparing" an operation to be carried out "if necessary" is not the usual Hitler command strategy, where he says to do something and expects it to happen. The body of the order also is highly equivocal, with multiple qualifiers such as "I reserve the decision to myself," wildly unrealistic preconditions that "must" be met, and the qualification that the Luftwaffe "must attempt" to neutralize the Royal Navy "as far as possible." The language in the order shows that Hitler is not a big fan of Operation Sealion, and actually is looking for ways to avoid carrying it out - not a good way to inspire confidence in his infallible judgment.

The plan itself is straightforward. There will be a "wide front" on the southern coast of England west of the Isle of Wight, with possible preliminary limited operations such as the occupation of that island. Some of the preconditions are wildly unrealistic, such as mining the Straits of Dover so they are "closely sealed off with minefields on both flanks," something that the Wehrmacht is not even close to being able to do (though the Royal Navy effectively achieves it in 1944). If nothing else, the Directive shows how unrealistic any actual invasion of England is given the current state of the opposing forces and the unlikelihood of Hitler's preconditions being met, at least in 1940.

Inside the Wehrmacht, there also is low confidence in a successful conclusion to the Battle of Britain. The Chief of the Luftwaffe Operations Staff, Oberst "Beppo" Schmid, submits a sober appraisal that suggests an aerial campaign alone cannot subjugate England; the only feasible strategy is to choke off British aircraft replacements by bombing aircraft factories and sealing off the convoy routes with U-boats, followed by an actual invasion.

British radar also is becoming a major problem, not mentioned in Schmidt's report but recognized by the Luftwaffe commanders as a decisive British advantage. Overall, Schmidt's report concludes that the only hope of victory is a full-scale invasion, though Schmidt sees the prospect of successful daylight operations which can be "decisive." The report smacks of this kind of false optimism that plays well in command chains such as the Wehrmacht's, but the overall conclusions strongly imply the impossibility of the whole project under current circumstances. Hitler issues his directive after reading these very serious and real problems, and this perhaps explains his own waffly tone.

On the Channel front itself, there is poor weather today and little activity, showing the difficulties of achieving Hitler's pre-conditions are presented not just by the British but by the elements themselves. While it is high summer, the weather will begin turning for good within a few months. If any preconditions for an invasion must be established, they must be accomplished soon.

There are scattered attacks in the Bristol area in the morning, and in the early afternoon, there are attacks on Fraserburgh and Peterhead, Scotland, with RAF No. 603 Squadron Spitfires shooting down a Heinkel He 111 from III,/KG26.

Later in the afternoon, the weather clears, and the RAF shoots down a Junkers Ju 88 over the Isle of Wight. The weather remains poor into the night. For the day, the RAF reports 2 aircraft lost and the Luftwaffe 5. Due to the weather, RAF sorties fall from the 400s of previous days to well below that number (sources vary).

The Luftwaffe formations on the Channel coast are becoming depleted. III,/JG51 (Hptm. Hannes Trautloft) is at 40% capability. Some of the formations sent back to Germany for rest and refit, such as JG26, are filtering back and taking up the slack.

RAF No. 232, composed of Hurricanes, is formed today.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command attacks airfields in northern France and barges being collected for the Operation Sea Lion near Armentiéres.

Defiants led by Squadron leader Philip Hunter (nearest the camera) flying over England, July 1940.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-61 (Oberleutnant zur See Jürgen Oesten) torpedoes and sinks (on the 17th) 6998-ton British tanker Scottish Minstrel about 130 miles north of Bloody Foreland on the Irish Coast. It is a victory against Convoy HX-55. There are 32 survivors, and 9 crew perish.

Royal Navy cruiser HMS Glasgow collides with 1335 ton destroyer HMS Imogen in thick fog, sending the destroyer to the bottom (apparently - nobody can see in the fog) and killing 17 sailors. The Glasgow suffers two deaths and makes it back to Scapa Flow with a 6' (2 meter) gash in her port side.

HMS Phoenix (Lt Cdr Gilbert Hugh Nowell), a Parthian-class Royal Navy submarine, attacks Italian torpedo boat Albatross off the coast of Augusta unsuccessfully and is sunk in turn. All 55 aboard perish. This is an echo of the Battle of Calabria of a few days ago since Phoenix is positioned where she is to attempt to cut off the Italian retreat.

German raider Thor sinks 5487-ton British freighter Wendover in the South Atlantic. There are 37 survivors who become POWs, and 4 crewmen perish.

The Luftwaffe lays mines in the Thames estuary.

Convoy SL 40 departs from Liverpool.

The Admiralty reports that thirteen British merchant ships were lost during the week ending 7 July 1940.

German soldiers lead blindfolded Polish hostages to an execution site. Olkusz, Poland, July 16, 1940 (Beit Lohamei Haghettaot).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The RAF intercepts a formation of Fiat CR42s. Flight Lt. Peter Keeble goes up in his Hurricane to intercept as usual but is shot down and killed. Keeble is the first RAF pilot to lose his life in the Mediterranean and his death leaves the island's slight fighter defenses gravely weakened.

Italian bombers attack Haifa in Palestine again.

A dozen Italian S-81 bombers attack the British base at Alexandria.

Italian bombers attack British bases at Matruh and Sidi Barrani with 30 SM-79 bombers.

Spanish/Chilean Relations: Generalissimo Francisco Franco breaks off relations with Chile.

New Zealand Government: Prime Minister Fraser forms a new War Cabinet.

Dutch Government: The Dutch Army forms local guard units in the Netherlands East Indies.

Japanese Government: Japanese Prime Minister Yonai Mitsumasa resigns after only a few months in his office under military pressure (War Minister General Hata Shunroku's resignation - a show of lack of confidence by the military - causes the government to fall). The entire cabinet resigns, and a new government must be formed. Prince Konoye Fumumaro begins forming a new government. This is a major step toward a much more militaristic Japan (not that it already hasn't been militaristic for the past decade).

Holocaust: Vichy France revokes the citizenship of naturalized citizens of France who are Jewish. The Germans occupying Colmar in the south deport its Jewish residences across the border into Vichy France.

Liquidations by the Germans continue in Poland.

British Homefront: London increasingly is taking on the appearance of an armed camp, with sandbags, barbed wire, and street barriers. So far, though, Luftwaffe attacks on the city itself have been minimal in relation to what might be happening.

Not only is public opinion on the war not as monolithic in England as later accounts would suggest, but a sense of fatalism is also descending in some quarters. Many people welcome a good fight. Novelist George Orwell sends a letter to James Laughlin today which encapsulates such thinking:

We are all on our toes waiting for an invasion which quite possibly won’t happen. Personally I am much more afraid of Hitler mopping up north Africa and the near East and then making a peace offer. I actually rather hope that the invasion will happen. The local morale is extremely good, and if we are invaded we shall at any rate get rid once and for all of the gang who had got us into this mess.

Labour Minister Hugh Dalton also is thinking along such lines, but with a different outlook. He is forming a new secret anti-German British guerilla organization somewhat similar to the SS organization Werwolf of later years. Dalton himself likens it to Irish terrorist group Sinn Fein.

Look Magazine, 16 July 1940.

Hitler's Directive No. 16 -- On Preparations For A Landing Operation Against England

                Since England, in spite of her hopeless military situation, shows no signs of being ready to come to an understanding, I have decided to prepare a landing operation against England, and, if necessary, to carry it out.

                The aim of this operation will be to eliminate the English homeland as a base for the prosecution of the war against Germany and, if necessary, to occupy it completely.

                I, therefore, order as follows:

                1. The landing will be in the form of a surprise crossing on a wide front from about Ramsgate to the area west of the Isle Of Wight. Units of the Airforce will act as artillery and units of the Navy as engineers.

                The possible advantages of limited operations before the general crossing (for example, the occupation of the Isle Of Wight or of the county of Cornwall) are to be considered from the point of view of each branch of the Armed Forces and the results reported to me. I reserve the decision to myself.

                Preparations for the entire operation must be completed by the middle of August.

                2. These preparations must also create such conditions as will make a landing in England possible, namely:

                (a) The English Airforce must be so reduced morally and physically that it is unable to deliver any significant attack against the German crossing.

                (b) Minefree channels must be cleared.

                (c) The Straits Of Dover must be closely sealed off with minefields on both flanks; also the western entrance to the Channel approximately on the line Alderney-Portland.

                (d) Strong forces of coastal artillery must command and protect the forward coastal area.

                (e) It is desirable that the English Navy be tied down shortly before the crossing, both in the North Sea and in the Mediterranean (by the Italians). For this purpose we must attempt even now to damage English homebased naval forces by air and torpedo attack as far as possible.

                3. Command Organisation And Preparations.

                Under my overriding command and according to my general instructions, the Commanders In Chief will command the branches of the Armed Forces for which they are responsible.

                From 1st August the Operations Staffs of Commander In Chief Army, Commander In Chief Navy, and Commander In Chief Airforce are to be located at a distance of not more than 50 kilometres from my Headquarters (Ziegenberg).

                It seems to me useful that the inner Operations Staffs of Commander In Chief Army and Commander In Chief Navy should be placed together at Giessen.

                Commander In Chief Army will detail one Army Group to carry out the invasion.

                The invasion will bear the covername Seelöwe -- Sea Lion.

                In the preparation and execution of this operation the following tasks are allotted to each Service:

                (a) Army:

                The Army will draw up the operational and crossing plans for all formations of the first wave of the invasion. The antiaircraft artillery which is to cross with the first wave will remain subordinate to the Army (to individual crossing units) until it is possible to allocate its responsibilities between the support and protection of troops on the ground, the protection of disembarkation points, and the protection of the airfields which are to be occupied.

                The Army will, moreover, lay down the methods by which the invasion is to be carried out and the individual forces to be employed, and will determine points of embarkation and disembarkation in conjunction with the Navy.

                (b) Navy:

                The Navy will procure the means for invasion and will take them, in accordance with the wishes of the Army, but with due regard to navigational considerations, to the various embarkation points. Use will be made, as far as possible, of the shipping of defeated enemy countries.

                The Navy will furnish each embarkation point with the staff necessary to give nautical advice, with escort vessels, and with guards. In conjunction with air forces assigned for protection, it will defend the crossing of the Channel on both flanks. Further Orders will lay down the chain of command during the crossing. It is also the task of the Navy to coordinate the setting up of coastal artillery -- that is, all artillery, both naval and military, intended to engage targets at sea -- and generally to direct its fire. The largest possible number of extraheavy guns will be brought into position as soon as possible in order to cover the crossing and to shield the flanks against enemy action at sea. For this purpose railway guns will also be used (reinforced by all available captured weapons) and will be sited on railway turntables. Those batteries intended only to deal with targets on the English mainland (K5 and K12) will not be included. Apart from this the existing extraheavy platform gun batteries are to be enclosed in concrete opposite the Straits Of Dover in such a manner that they can withstand the heaviest air attacks and will permanently, in all conditions, command the Straits Of Dover within the limits of their range. The technical work will be the responsibility of the Organisation Todt.

                (c) The Task Of The Airforce Will Be:

                To prevent interference by the enemy Airforce.

                To destroy coastal fortresses which might operate against our disembarkation points, to break the first resistance of enemy land forces, and to disperse reserves on their way to the front. In carrying out this task the closest liaison is necessary between individual Airforce units and the Army invasion forces.

                Also, to destroy important transport highways by which enemy reserves might be brought up, and to attack approaching enemy naval forces as far as possible from our disembarkation points. I request that suggestions be made to me regarding the employment of parachute and airborne troops. In this connection it should be considered, in conjunction with the Army, whether it would be useful at the beginning to hold parachute and airborne troops in readiness as a reserve, to be thrown in quickly in case of need.

                4. Preparations to ensure the necessary communications between France and the English mainland will be handled by the Chief, Armed Forces Signals.

                The use of the remaining eighty kilometres of the East Prussia cable is to be examined in cooperation with the Navy.

                5. I request Commanders In Chief to submit to me as soon as possible:

                (a) The plans of the Navy and Airforce to establish the necessary conditions for crossing the Channel (see paragraph 2).

                (b) Details ff the building of coastal batteries (Navy).

                (c) A general survey of the shipping required and the methods by which it is proposed to prepare and procure it. Should civil authorities be involved? (Navy).

                (d) The organisation of Air Defence in the assembly areas for invasion troops and ships (Airforce).

                (e) The crossing and operation plan of the Army, the composition and equipment of the first wave of invasion.

                (f) The organisation and plans of the Navy and Airforce for the execution of the actual crossing, for its protection, and for the support of the landing.

                (g) Proposals for the use of parachute and airborne troops and also for the organisation and command of antiaircraft artillery as soon as sufficient English territory has been captured.

                (h) Proposals for the location of Naval and Air Headquarters.

                (i) Views of the Navy and Airforce whether limited operations are regarded as useful before a general landing, and, if so, of what kind.

                (k) Proposal from Army and Navy regarding command during the crossing.

Adolf Hitler.

Hitler planning Operation Sea Lion.

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

Wednesday 1 May 1940

German Panzer Factory, 1 May 1940. They appear to be making Panzer IIs (Ang, Federal Archive).

Norway: King Haakon, Prime Minister Nygaardsvold, the Crown Prince and the remainder of the Norwegian government arrive in Tromso aboard the Royal Navy cruiser HMS Glasgow.

The British give up at Åndalsnes. During their mission there, they have lost 1301 killed, missing or captured. Norwegian Commander-in-chief Otto Ruge takes the HMS Diana from Åndalsnes to Tromsø to join the king and rest of the government.

Norway Army Operations: It is a miserable day for the British 15th Brigade, which suffered heavily south of Dombås. Their train to Åndalsnes derails at a bomb crater at 01:15. There are 8 dead, 30 wounded. The men then have to walk the remaining 17 miles through deep snow in order to reach the port at 09:00.

The British troops, both the 15th Brigade and 148th Brigade, leave Andalsnes that evening on a flotilla of destroyers and cruisers under Vice-Admiral Geoffrey Layton. Destroyers HMS Inglefield (D 02), HMS Diana (H 49), and HMS Delight (H 38) take troops to the light cruisers HMS Manchester and HMS Birmingham.  While 5,084 servicemen are taken off, much equipment is left behind. The British are gone by 2 a.m. on 2 May 1940. The Germans do not immediately notice the departure.

Commander Lord Louis Mountbatten brings his 4 destroyers into Namsos and to take off General de Wiart’s 146th Brigade. Fog in the harbor limits the evacuees to the 850 men of the French Chasseurs Alpins.

About 4,000 Norwegian troops trapped at Lillehammer surrender.

The German 3rd Mountain Division under General Dietl counterattacks at Narvik.

German forces at Oslo and Bergen link up. Norwegian General William Steffens, who previously evacuated Voss and had set up his headquarters at Førde, disbands his troops. About 3,500 Norwegian 4th Infantry Brigade troops surrender, but the Germans allow them to simply disband and go home. Steffens leaves during the night for Tromsø with three naval aircraft. This effectively ends the campaign in southwest Norway, though there are still some Norwegian troops here and there who are un-noticed and remain active.

Norway Air Operations: The Germans transfer a battalion of the 2nd Mountain Division from Denmark to Trondheim by air.

The RAF sends a dozen bombers to attack Stavanger-Sola airfield during the day, then more aircraft to attack the same airfield and also Oslo during the night.

The Luftwaffe continues its attacks on the British-held ports in northern Norway. Stukas sink the anti-submarine trawler HMS St. Goran. The Stukas also hit the Royal Navy sloop HMS Bittern at Namsos and set it ablaze.

Norway Naval Operations: British submarine HMS Narwhal (Lt. Commander Ronald J. Burch) spots a German merchant convoy in the Kattegat about 20 miles north of Anholt, Denmark. It fires six torpedoes at the convoy. The convoy is carrying units of the 2nd Gebirgsjager Division to Norway. The Narwhal torpedoes and sinks one troop transport, the Buenos Aires (62 men and 240 horses killed), and torpedoes a second, the Bahia Castillo (10 men, 26 horses killed).

The Norwegian ships in western Norway are ordered to evacuate either to Great Britain or northern Norway. Only two do so, the auxiliary Bjerk sailed to the United Kingdom and Steinar to Northern Norway. The other Norwegian ships either have too few crews left to sail, or their commanders simply tell the men to go home.

Battle of the Atlantic: The 1,296-ton Swedish freighter Haga hits a mine laid by the British submarine HMS Narwhal in the Skagerrak east of Cape Skagen and sinks.

European Air Operations: During the night, the RAF bombs Aalborg airfield in Denmark.

The RAF sends other planes to drop mines during the night.

The Luftwaffe drops mines along the British coast.

Swedish freighter Haga strikes a mine and sinks.

Convoy OA-139 departs from Southend, Convoy SL 30 departs from Freetown, Convoy OG 28F forms at Gibraltar.

Western Front: Hitler is done waiting to invade France and the Low Countries and wants Fall Gelb to being as soon as possible. He sets a tentative start date of 5 May 1940.

Hitler is goaded on by public opinion, as expressed by journalist William Shirer broadcasting from Berlin: "What kind of war is this, where the world's two greatest armies stand facing but refrain from killing?" He recalls a typical scene: "200 yards from the Rhine, in sight of a French blockhouse, German soldiers play football."

British Military: The Military Coordination Committee (MCC) is reorganized in such a fashion as to give its leader (in the absence of Prime Minister Chamberlain) Winston Churchill more direct control over all military operations. General Ismay becomes Churchill's chief staff officer at the MCC.

German Military: General Johannes Blaskowitz takes over command of the German 9th Army.

US Military: The US Navy establishes a naval air station in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

German Government: The government designates a Krupp armaments plant at Essen as a "National Socialist model plant."

Holocaust: The Germans seal off the Lodz Ghetto. The German authorities tell the Council of Elders that they will supply the 230,000 captives with food only if they become a "useful workforce."

SS-Hauptsturmführer (captain) Rudolf Höss is appointed the first commandant of Auschwitz prison camp near the town of Oświęcim in western Poland.

Ireland: The government refuses a British offer of a "defense alliance." It re-asserts its neutrality and calls upon the US to guarantee it.

China: At the Battle of Tsaoyang-Ichang, the Japanese 11th Army opens an offensive from Hsinyang, Sui Hsien, and Chung-Hsiang toward Tsaoyang and rice granary areas in Hubei province, advancing in five columns. This is a typical Japanese "rice offensive."

The 11th Army quickly captures Mingkang, Lion's bridge, and Hsiaolintien. The Japanese Army Air Force 3rd Air Brigade, based at Hankow (Wuhan), provides air support for the 11th Army during the Tsaoyang-Ichang operation.

The U.S. Navy heavy cruiser USS Quincy (CA-39) underway on 1 May 1940, as seen from a Utility Squadron 1 (VU-1) aircraft. Note the identification markings on her turret tops: longitudinal stripes on the forward turrets and a circle on the after one. (By USN - Official U.S. Navy photo NH-97697 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39422422).

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

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

Monday 29 April 1940

King Haakon and Crown Prince Olav take cover in Molde during a Luftwaffe raid.

Norway: King Haakon catches a ride on HMS Glasgow from Molde to Tromso on 29 April 1940. It also takes Crown Prince Olav, Prime Minister Nygaardsvold, and much of the rest of the Norwegian government. The government issues a statement condemning German "terrorism" which they claim to have witnessed first-hand against civilians. The portion of the Norwegian gold reserves that have not been transported to England goes with them.

Like other British-held ports, Molde is in flames due to Luftwaffe attacks. The royals and other Norwegians have to board the ship by running across a burning pier.

Despite this cooperation, Anglo/Norwegians are strained at all levels. The Norwegians feel that the British are acting in high-handed fashion, such as by not telling them about the decision to evacuate. There are tales of British soldiers acting imperiously: "British officers behave with the arrogance of Prussians, demanding food at gunpoint."

Winston Churchill, "Britain's Warlord," on the cover of Life magazine on 29 April 1940.

Norway Army Operations: While the British have decided to evacuate, they are still tinkering with their strategy. They land troops at Bodo in the north. It is convenient to have if the objective is Narvik.

The British 15th Infantry Brigade holds Dombås through the day. The German troops pursuing them are delayed by British demolitions. Oberst Fischer’s Kampfgruppe, composed mainly of the 196th Division, completes its bypass of the British blocking action. It moves from the Østerdal valley to link up with German troops from Trondheim. This effectively hems the British in on the east.

The Germans at Steinkjer launch probing attacks against the British concentrated at Namsos.

The Germans at Hegra bring in fresh troops. They now ramp up the artillery assault, using captured Norwegian 12 cm (4.7 in) howitzers from the armory in Trondheim.

East of Lillehammer, 3,700 troops of the Norwegian 2nd Infantry Division surrender.

Norway Naval Operations: A British destroyer force (HMS Kelly, Maori, and Imperial, plus French destroyer Bison which is under Commander Lord Louis Mountbatten) departs from Scapa Flow. Its mission is to evacuate Namsos.

Norwegian Air Operations: The Luftwaffe launches attacks at Andalsnes, the site of a large British base, and Molde, where King Haakon and the Norwegian government have been recently camped.

The Luftwaffe attacks Norwegian hospital ship Brand IV off Aalesund.

The Luftwaffe sinks Royal Navy anti-submarine trawlers Cape Chelyuskin and Cape Shiretoko off Norway.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-50 is sunk by British destroyers HMS Amazon and HMS Witherington off the Shetlands.

British submarine HMS Unity is lost when SS Atle Jarl runs into it at Blyth Harbour in a heavy fog. There are four lives lost. Lieutenant John Low and Able Seaman Henry Miller help other men to get out and are given posthumous medals.

The Kriegsmarine lays mines in the North Sea.

Convoy HG 28 departs from Gibraltar.
RAF: The Empire Air Training Program gets underway at training schools in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Anglo/US Relations: The US government has not received a satisfactory response from the British about the seizure of German engineers from the Panamanian ship Don Juan at Port Said on 5 September 1940. However, it closes the incident “on the assumption that similar incidents will not be permitted to occur in the future."

France: Prime Minister Paul Reynaud offers old war hero Henri Petain a cabinet post as Minister of State.

War Crimes: Over 20,000 Poles have been shot during the purge known as the Katyn Forest Massacre, led by Vasily Blokhin, who personally has shot over 7,000, or 250/night.

British Homefront: All sorts of basic commodities, such as toilet paper, are now rationed and highly sought after on the black market.

Vasily Blokhin's tomb at the Novodevichy Cemetery.

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

Sunday 14 April 1940

One of the Junkers Ju 52 transport planes shot down during the Dombås paratrooper operation, 14 April 1940.

Norway: The military commandant, General von Falkenhorst, on 14 April 1940 threatens all civilians resisting the German occupation with harsh measures. He takes 20 prominent citizens of Oslo hostage, including the Bishop. The entire situation is completely fluid: US journalist James Aldridge comments that it is the "Most nonsensical war ever seen: no-one knows where 'front' is, every time I look for fighting, I just miss it."

The British and French are unsure how to proceed. However, they are agreed that they have to do... something. The decision comes down to getting some troops ashore and then figuring out what to do with them later. So, troops land in Norway, but far away from any opposition.

Norway Army Operations: The Germans are advancing north from Oslo through the Glomma Valley, and the Norwegians are delaying them wherever possible. The German 196 Infantry Division pushes northward from Oslo, and about 3000 Norwegian troops in the sector head across the border into Sweden and are interned.
The Battle of Dombås begins when the Germans drop elite paratroopers (Fallschirmjäger) of the 7th Flieger Division near the railroad junction at Dombås at about 18:00. Unknown to the Germans, the drop is into the middle of a temporary encampment of the 2nd Battalion of the Norwegian Army′s Infantry Regiment 11 (II/IR 11). The Junkers Ju 52 planes flying at treetop level come under fire from all directions, and the planes return fire as best they can. The Junkers Ju 52s carrying them lose 8 of their 15 number, and the remainder are shot up.

A different German parachute drop in Norway, probably up at Narvik.

It thus is an extremely hazardous drop in poor weather, completed only because it is a Hitler order which must be obeyed. The paratroopers are spread out over a wide area and suffer heavy casualties during the drop. Out of a force of 185 men, only 63 wind up with the commander, Oberleutnant Herbert Schmidt, and in a position to do anything. The men on the ground barely have any maps. It is a "wing it" type of operation - but sometimes that works.

The initial objective at Dombås is the destruction of the railroad which runs through the town, as well as blocking any Allied advance inland, particularly south through the Gudbrandsdal valley. Schmidt blocks the main road in the area, cuts the rail line and cuts the phone wires, then captures a passing taxicab. Piling as many men into it as possible, Schmidt and the men head north to Dombås.

Along the way, Schmidt's taxi runs into two truckloads of Norwegian soldiers coming the other way. A firefight breaks out, and Schmidt's advance is stopped. He takes up a defensive position near the main road - thus blocking it - and waits for his other men coming along behind (walking) to catch up. The attack is a fiasco for the men involved, and Schmidt is badly wounded while retaining command - but there is more to the story.

The attack has some important results: it causes the Norwegians to evacuate the national gold reserves to Britain immediately by fishing boats and British cruisers. Schmidt also, despite everything, has blocked a key road, disrupted Norwegian communications and delayed Norwegian mobilization plans. Perhaps most importantly, he has sowed terror and confusion throughout the Norwegian government and military - everyone throughout the country soon is talking about "German paratroopers" and looking over his or her shoulder.

Dombås paratroopers, 14 April 1940.

Norway Naval Operations: The light cruisers HMS Sheffield and HMS Glasgow put ashore a preliminary force of 350 Royal Marines at Namsos, the first Allied troops in Norway.

British infantry troops then land at Harstad, near Narvik, and at Namsos, just north of Trondheim. The Namsos troops of the 146th Territorial Brigade, which have been embarked since 11 April, intend to consolidate in the Namsos and Andalsnes sectors. Execution of the operation is confused, as the 146 Territorial Brigade first is sent toward Narvik, but then is diverted south to attack Trondheim due to Vice Admiral Whitworth's (HMS Warspite) belief that Trondheim will be easy to take. The landing force's artillery, anti-aircraft guns, and commanding officer don't get the message and continue north to Narvik.

The troops at Harstad also are pointed at Narvik, the one true strategic objective in northern Norway.

The Admiralty announces that it is mining the entire Kattegat and parts of the Baltic, with the exception of a 3-mile territorial belt around Sweden.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Tarpon torpedoes and sinks Kriegsmarine minesweeper M-6.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Snapper torpedoes and sinks German cargo ship Florida.

Royal Navy Ship HMS Sunfish torpedoes and sinks Kriegsmarine ship Schiff-35.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Sterlet torpedoes and sinks Kriegsmarine training ship Brummer (sinks on 15 April).

Convoy OA 129 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 129 departs from Liverpool, Convoy OG 26F forms at Gibraltar, and Convoy HX 35 departs from Halifax.

Norway Air Operations: At dawn, the RAF bombs Stavanger-Sola airfield and the seaplanes in Hafrs Fjord. Some damage is done to the hangars.

The Norwegian air force, which has old Fokker biplanes, bombs the Junkers Ju 52 transport planes landing on Lake Hartvigvann to supply the Mountain troops holding Narvik.

RAF Bomber command sends 28 aircraft to lay mines off the Danish coast during the night.

Holland: The military extends the areas covered by the state of siege in the northern part of the country.

Future History: It is easy to make fun of the Battle of Dombås and call it a failure and so forth. However, the men of the 7th Flieger Division accomplished exactly what the paratroopers of 6 June 1944 did in Normandy - they dropped at random in the enemy rear, disrupted enemy operations, and sowed confusion and terror behind the lines despite not accomplishing all of their formal objectives. Nobody ever says that the paratroopers of D-Day were a failure.

The image is taken from a newspaper article about the bombing of Namsos (Havnegata) that was published in Namdal. People are running down to the harbor to see a British seaplane that has landed on the fjord.

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

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