Tuesday 3 June 1941

Japanese Ambassador Hiroshi Oshima Meets Hitler at the opening of the Japanese art exhibition in Berlin in 1939.

Syrian/Lebanon Campaign: Now that the situation in Iraq has stabilized on 3 June 1941, the British turn their full attention to Syria. The Vichy French hold on Syria only has become an issue because of the French decision to allow its use to the Axis as a transport hub to Iraq, but even though that is no longer an issue, the ball is rolling toward a British invasion. Today, the RAF bombs and strafes oil installations in Beirut, French Lebanon.

The Vichy French government states that it will defend both Syria and Tunisia against the British.

The British begin stockpiling landing craft and equipment in Port Said for Operation Exporter, the invasion of Syria. Royal Navy troopship Glengyle heads there from Alexandria, while two destroyers (HMS Hotspur and Ilex) leave Alexandria for Famagusta, Cyprus to embark commandos for transfer to Glengyle for upcoming Exporter.

In Iraq, the British continue mopping up. Gurkha troops (2/4 Gurkha Rifles) fly into Mosul and occupy it. Baghdad settles down after the two-day Farhud of 1-2 June, with the British and local police enforcing a strict curfew. The hundreds of dead are being buried.

The Maori Battalion performing the Haka for the King of Greece at Helwan, Egypt during June 1941. This is a traditional ancestral war cry, dance or challenge from the Māori people of New Zealand. The Maori Battalion are hard fighters, leading German General Erwin Rommel to comment, “Give me the Maori Battalion and I will conquer the world.”

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe attacks Hull and Tweedmouth before dawn. A lone raider bombs and strafes the village of Boulmer. There are strafing attacks across northern England.

A private British de Havilland Dragon aircraft unwisely is taken up for private use for a flight between St. Mary's on the Isles of Scillies to Penzance. Unfortunately for the people on the Dragon, a passing German Heinkel He 111 bomber (I./KG 28) on its way back from bombing England spots it. The Heinkel shoots down the Dragon, killing all six aboard, including two girls aged 9 and 11. Pilot Captain W.D. Anderson DFC (Australian) and the entire Leggitt family is killed, including the mother of Mrs. Leggitt. Mrs. Sheelagh Leggitt was the Secretary to Sir Walter Monckton, Director-General of the Ministry of Information. A group of six Hawker Hurricanes of RAF No. 87 Squadron was withdrawn from the island only days before.

East African Campaign: A fierce battle on the approaches to Gondar, a key Italian stronghold in Abyssinia, develops. The British take Debarech, but then the Italians take it back. The town seesaws back and forth, but ultimately the British wind up with it. It is about 100 miles west of Amba Alagi, which fell in May, and the fierce battle shows that the Italians are going to put up a fierce battle for their remaining bastions in East Africa.

"View of Fleet Tender C, off Lincolnshire Coast." This photograph is from early October 1941 taken from a passing destroyer, HMS Whaddon, while escorting a convoy. You can see how the liner Mamari was disguised to look like an aircraft carrier. © IWM (A 5915).

Battle of the Atlantic: In order to prevent more German surface raiders from emerging like the Bismarck, and also to crimp the U-boat offensive, the Royal Navy has made it a priority to hunt down the Kriegsmarine's overseas supply network of disguised oil tankers and freighters. The Germans have nine such supply ships cruising the Atlantic in support of the abortive German Operation Rheinübung. Today, cruisers HMS Aurora and Kenya spot 6367-ton German tanker Belchen about 80 miles southwest of Greenland. The cruisers badly damage the German ship, and the Belcher's crew scuttles it. U-boat U-93 (Kptlt. Claus Korth), which the Belcher was in the process of refueling, stays nearby and rescues about 50 men after the British leave.

U-48 (Kptlt. Herbert Schultze), on its 12th patrol out of Lorient, is operating in the mid-Atlantic west of Brest (650 miles north of the Azores). It is shadowing Convoy OB-327, which recently has dispersed. At 01:01, U-48 torpedoes and damages 9456-ton British tanker Inversuir. Schultze gets impatient and fires a second torpedo at 01:11, then surfaces and uses his deck gun. Some accounts claim that U-75 (Kptlt. Helmuth Ringelmann), also involved in attacks at the same location, actually sinks the Inversuir with a coup de grace torpedo at 03:59. The entire crew survives.

U-75, operating with U-48 in the mid-Atlantic east of Brest and on its second patrol out of Lorient near U-48, torpedoes and sinks 4801-ton Dutch freighter Eibergen. There are four deaths, and 35 survivors are picked up by anti-aircraft vessel HMS Cairo on the 7th.

SS Prince Rupert City, sunk on or about 3 June 1941 by the Luftwaffe.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 4749-ton British tramp steamer Prince Rupert City in the mid-Atlantic. Some sources place this sinking on 2 June. There are 4 deaths.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2187-ton British freighter Royal Fusilier in the English Channel east of High Buston. The ship sinks about four miles from May Island. Everyone survives.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 1600-ton British freighter Dennis Rose about 50 miles southwest of Start Point. The Dennis Rose makes it to port.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages Royal Navy minesweeper Franklin as it is laying mines in the North Sea. The damage is not serious and Franklin continues with its mission.

Royal Navy decoy shop Fleet Tender C (formerly the Mamari aka liner Zealandic), disguised as aircraft carrier Hermes, hits a sunken wreck (tanker Ahamo, sunk by a mine on 8 April) southeast of Grimsby. It cannot get unstuck, and during the night, German S-boats attack. The Mamari is a write-off, but the entire crew survives. The half-sunken ship becomes a prominent "landmark" off the coast for years.

A Royal Navy stores ship, City of Dieppe, arrives in St. John's to join the fledgling Newfoundland Escort Force (NEF). The NEF's first convoy operation already is at sea, having sailed on 2 June, but there are very few support facilities in St. John's for the large and growing force. The British and Canadians are making plans to bring more ships and construct shore infrastructure to support the fleet.

Royal Navy battleship Rodney, fresh off the victory over the Bismarck, heads from the Clyde to Boston, the US to refit.

Submarine P.32, damaged on its journey by the Bay of Biscay by air attack, limps into Gibraltar.

Convoy WS 9A (Winston Special) departs from Liverpool en route to Freetown, Capetown, Durban, Aden, and Suez.

The Inversuir, sunk today in the North Atlantic.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Royal Navy submarine HMS Parthian torpedoes and badly damages 5232-ton Italian tanker Strombo in Salamis Bay. The Strombo's master manages to beach the ship, but it is a write-off.

Royal Navy submarine Unique torpedoes 736-ton Italian freighter Arsia off Lampedusa. The Arsia manages to make it to Trapani, Sicily.

Royal Navy submarine Torbay uses its deck gun to sink a caique carrying oil drum off Mitylene.

Royal Navy motor torpedo boat MTB 215 sinks Turkish schooner Iki Kardeshler a few miles off Anamur, Turkey (north of Cyprus). This is a violation of Turkish neutrality, the Royal Navy explains this by arguing that it thought the ship was involved in covert operations ("false orders").

The Luftwaffe damages a Royal Navy service ship, the KLO, during an air raid on Mersa Matruh. The ship's master and one other man are killed (the other man, Lt. Pullman, dies of his wounds on 2 July).

A large Italian force that includes light cruisers Atttendolo, Duca D'Aosta, and Eugenio D'Savoia of the 7th Cruiser Squadron, and light cruisers Bande Nere and Di Guissano of the 4th cruiser squadron, lays two minefields northeast of Tripoli. This is an area where Royal Navy submarines like to lie in wait for Axis convoys coming and going from Tripoli.

An Italian convoy of six transport ships/freighters departs Naples bound for Tripoli.

On Malta, RAF Martin Maryland and Blenheim bombers of No. 89 and 139 Squadrons on patrol claim to attack a convoy off Tunisia and sink a freighter while setting fire to another. The sunk ships apparently are the Italian freighters Montello and Beatrice C.. The RAF loses a Blenheim during the patrol, hit by flying debris as the first ship hit explodes.

There is one minor bombing raid on Malta by the Luftwaffe which causes no damage, while the RAF claims a victory over an Italian tri-motor transport west of Malta.

Invasion fears are rampant in Malta. The British troops garrison Gozo, normally uninhabited, and practice fighting paratroopers. The War Office issues an alert to expect an invasion within a week by a force of 6000 Axis troops based on spy sources.

A German sign at the site of Kandanos (one of two, with separate wording) which reads: “Kandanos was destroyed in retaliation for the savage ambush murder of a paratrooper platoon and a half-platoon of military engineers by armed men and women.” (Segers, German Federal Archive, Bild 101I-779-0003-22)

War Crimes: Following on atrocities committed at Kondomari and Alikianos, Crete on 2 June, the German 1III Battalion of the 1st Air Landing Assault Regiment (most probably led by Oberleutnant Horst Trebes) storms into the village of Kandanos. Acting pursuant to standing orders of temporary island commandant General Kurt Student, the Germans destroy the town. This is in retaliation for civilian resistance during Operation Mercury. The German troops execute most of the population, about 180 people, and kill the livestock.

The Germans declare Kandanos a "dead zone" which nobody can visit or inhabit. The Germans post two warnings in both German and Greek, one of which reads: "Here stood Kandanos, destroyed in retribution for the murder of 25 German soldiers, never to be rebuilt again." A war memorial using this exact language will be built after the war at the site of the village.

The Germans also attack the villages of Floria and Kakopetro.

Spy Stuff: German Ambassador Graf von Schulenburg is strongly opposed to Operation Barbarossa. He violates his duty by telling the head of Soviet International Affairs that Adolf Hitler had decided to begin a war with the Soviet Union on June 22. The Soviets treat this as proof that the Germans are engaging in a disinformation campaign and that there will not be any invasion.

German/Japanese Relations: Adolf Hitler meets with Japanese ambassador Hiroshi Ōshima at the Berghof. He informs Ōshima of the upcoming Operation Barbarossa. There are some hopes within the German high command that Japan will join Germany in attacking the Soviet Union.

Repair ship USS Prometheus (AR-3) laid up at the Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Washington, while being reconditioned for a return to active service after lying "in mothballs" since 1924, 3 June 1941 (Bureau of Ships Collection in the U.S. National Archives).

German/Finnish Relations: Following up on preliminary negotiations held in Salzburg on 25 May 1941, German members of the OKW arrive in Helsinki to discuss upcoming operations.  President Ryti, Foreign Minister Witting, Defence Minister Walden, Field Marshal Mannerheim, and Lt Gen Heinrichs agree to military cooperation, but not to Finnish initiation of hostilities. 

Specifically, agreements are negotiated regarding Finnish use of its army and air force against the Soviet Union in certain circumstances, both of which the Germans consider top quality. Tentative plans are formed for the Germans to occupy northern Finland and use that as a springboard to invade the Soviet Union in the far north and take the Soviet port of Murmansk. The Finns are not doing the Germans any favors - they want assistance to recover their historic territory lost during the Winter War.

The Finns remain wary about granting the Germans a "blank check." Heinrichs even warns them that any attempt to mount a coup in Finland and install a puppet government favorable to Germany would be met with absolute resistance. However, overall the talks are cordial and the Finns begin preparations for some kind of military activity. Based on the agreements reached at this meeting, Luftwaffe transport planes carrying service personnel begin arriving at Finnish airfields.

While the Germans are coy about the likelihood of Operation Barbarossa, it is hard to believe that the Finns can't figure out that the Germans intend to invade the Soviet Union, and soon. 

These meetings last until 6 June.

German/Vichy France Relations: Premier Petain, supported by his Council of Ministers, refuse to ratify Vice Premier Admiral Darlan's recently negotiated Paris Protocols. However, they have gone into effect anyway.

"HMS SUFFOLK's Supermarine Walrus amphibian taxi-ing back to the ship after a flight over the Arctic ice. Ice can be seen in the background." June 1941 on Arctic patrol in the Denmark Strait. © IWM (A 4185).

US Military: Due to a shortage of pilots, the US Army has decided that it needs to train enlisted men as pilots. There have long been enlisted pilots in the Army (the Air Corps Act of 1926 authorized their training, but trained pilots have served beginning in 1912), but the educational requirements are stiff and few enlisted men can meet them to get trained. To meet that need, Public Law 99 goes into effect today. For the first time, it authorizes the US Army Air Corps (and its successors) to take men without a college education. With the introduction of Sergeant pilots, the average age of pilots goes down to between 18 and 22. Enlisted pilot candidates will train six days a week in class or in the air and spend Sundays doing drills.

British Government: A memorandum drafted by Clement Attlee which provides that "A necessary prelude to a just peace is a total victory" is approved at a Labour Party conference by 2,430,000 to 19,000.

China: The new Nakajima Ki-43 Type 1 Fighter ‘Hayabusa’ (Allied codename "Oscar") is allocated to the Japanese 59th Sentai at Hankou. The unit begins transferring them from Japan. The Ki-43, however, turns out to have wing problems that requires repair.

Aerial view of the construction progress of Camp Polk, Louisiana on 3 June 1941.

June 1941

June 1, 1941: Farhud Pogrom
June 2, 1941: Massacres on Crete
June 3, 1941: Kandanos Massacre
June 4, 1941: Kaiser Wilhelm Passes Away
June 5, 1941: Death in Chungking
June 6, 1941: Hitler's Commissar Order
June 7, 1941: Commandos Strike at Pessac
June 8, 1941: British Invade Syria and Lebanon
June 9, 1941: Litani River Battle
June 10, 1941: British Take Assab
June 11, 1941: Hitler Thinking Beyond Russia
June 12, 1941: St. James Agreement
June 13, 1941: Lützow Damaged
June 14, 1941: Latvian June Deportations
June 15, 1941: Operation Battleaxe
June 16, 1941: The Old Lion
June 17, 1941: British Spanked in North Africa
June 18, 1941: Turkey Turns Its Back
June 19, 1941: Cheerios Introduced
June 20, 1941: Birth of US Army Air Force
June 21, 1941: Damascus Falls
June 22, 1941: Germany Invades Russia
June 23, 1941: A Soviet KV Tank Causes Havoc
June 24, 1941: Kaunas and Vilnius Fall
June 25, 1941: Finland Declares War
June 26, 1941: Bombing of Kassa
June 27, 1941: Encirclement At Minsk
June 28, 1941: Minsk Falls
June 29, 1941: Brest Fortress Falls
June 30, 1941: Mölders Becomes Top Ace

2020

Monday 2 June 1941

Victims and fellow townspeople of Kondomari, Crete are herded to the site of hostage executions, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).

Anglo-Iraq War: Jamil al-Midfai is named Prime Minister of Iraq on 2 June 1941. In Baghdad, the "Farhud" attacks continue against the Jewish Quarter. While the instigation and causes of the Farhud are subject to debate, but what is known for certain is that it ends today during the afternoon. It is unknown exactly how many deaths result from the Farhud, but estimates range from 100-1000, wich larger numbers of wounded.

Regent Abdul Illah (Abdullah) ends the Farhud riots, according to the Iraqi Commission Report, when he orders forces loyal to him into Baghdad. They use machine guns to kill many rioters. Another version of events is that the British are the ones that restore order. The two versions may be reconciled by assuming that the Regents ask the British to restore order, but that is unclear. In any event, hundreds of people on both sides of the Farhud - rioters and Jewish victims - perish. This incident begins the gradual elimination of the centuries-old Jewish presence in Baghdad.

In Syria, Vichy French forces claim to shoot down a British Blenheim reconnaissance plane over Syria-Lebanon.

German troops choose which hostages to execute in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command attacks the Ruhr River Valley of Germany with 44 bombers.

RAF Bomber Command sends 9 Blenheims of 2 Group, 105 Squadron to raid the Kiel Canal. This includes the naval barracks at Friedrichskoog and various villages along the canal. The RAF planes sink two small ships that block the canal for ten days.

RAF Bomber Command also sends bombers of 107 Squadron to raid the region between the Ems and the Elbe.

RAF Bomber Command also targets the liner Europe, tied up at Bremerhaven.

RAF Bomber Command sends 150 aircraft to attack Dusseldorf and 25 aircraft to attack Duisburg overnight.

The Luftwaffe attacks Manchester during the night of 1-2 June, killing 70 and injuring 86. This is the Manchester Blitz.

The Luftwaffe bombs Park Grove, Hull. This is Hull's fiftieth raid of the war. There are 27 killed and 11 wounded, and the tragedy is that the "all clear" mistakenly had sounded and the victims had just exited their shelters.

The RAF shoots down a Junkers Ju 88A northeast of Tynemouth at 22:29. There are two deaths, and two crewmen become POWs.

East African Campaign: East African 22nd Infantry Brigade begins crossing the Omo at Sciola in Galla-Sidamo.

Victims at Kondomari, Crete lining up for their executions, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).

Battle of the Atlantic: U-147 (Oblt. Eberhard Wetjen), operating in the Northwest Approaches on its third patrol, attacks Convoy OB-329. It torpedoes and damages 4996-ton Belgian freighter Mokambo. The Mokambo makes it to the Clyde in tow. However, Royal Navy destroyer HMS Wanderer and corvette Periwinkle attacks and sinks U-147 with a depth charge attack. There are 24-26 deaths - the entire crew - on U-147.

U-108 (Kptlt. Erich Hilsenitz), on its third patrol out of Lorient, spots Convoy OB-327 in the mid-Atlantic. It torpedoes and sinks 7628-ton freighter Michael E, which happens to be the first catapult aircraft merchant (CAM) ship. There are four deaths on the Michael E. The ship has no time to launch its fighter plane, but the pilot manages to survive the sinking along with 61 others. It is an inauspicious debut of the CAM ship force.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages Royal Navy submarine HMS P.32 off Finisterre. P.32 is able to continue on to Gibraltar, though its batteries are damaged and it is unable to submerge.

Royal Navy escort ship Hartland (formerly a US Coast Guard cutter) collides with 646-ton British freighter Welsh Coast. The Hartland makes it to Falmouth for repairs and a scheduled refit.

Dutch submarine O.14 is involved in a collision. The submarine makes it to Grangemouth for repairs that take a month.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2477-ton British freighter Beaumanoir in Robin Hood's Bay. The ship is taken under tow, but the Luftwaffe returns and sinks the Beaumanoir.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 4749-ton British freighter Prince Rupert City north of Loch Eriboll, Scotland. There are four deaths.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 197-ton Belgian trawler John 90 miles southeast of Inglos Hofdi. Everyone survives.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2183 ton British freighter Thorpebay about six miles from Coquet Lighthouse, Northumberland. The Thorpebay makes it back to the Tyne for repairs.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 195-ton British trawler Ben Screel east of Dunstanburgh Castle, Northumberland. Ben Screel makes it back to the Tyne for repairs.

Finnish 5417 ton freighter Kasteholm hits a mine and sinks northeast of the Faroe Islands. There is one death, the rest of the crew makes it to Tórshavn, Faroe Islands.

Canadian minesweeper (former Norwegian whale factory ship) HMCS Suderøy V is commissioned, minesweeper Caraquet is launched, minesweepers Grandmère and Vegreville are laid down.

US escort aircraft carrier USS Long Island (AVG-1) is commissioned (Commander Donald B. Duncan) at Newport News, Virginia. The Long Island is a conversion from cargo ship SS Mormacmail.

Royal Navy minelayer Plover lays minefield BS.57 in the English Channel.

Convoy OB 330 departs from Liverpool.

German troops line up to execute hostages in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Wehrmacht High Command issues a communique:

The battle for Crete is over. The whole island has been freed from the enemy. Yesterday German troops occupied the last base of the beaten British, the port of Sfakion, capturing 3,000 more prisoners in the process.

For once, the Germans understate their achievement - they actually capture more than 3,000 men at Sfakia.

The British War Cabinet discusses the future of Cyprus, which it believes may be next on Hitler's agenda in the Mediterranean. The Greek government would like to set up its capital in Cyprus, and there is some support within the British government for ceding the island to Greece for that purpose. The Cabinet concludes that the entire matter should be left to postwar peace settlement discussions.

Navy 353-ton whaler HMT Kos XXII attempts to make a run from Crete to Alexandria but sinks along the way. Royal Navy HMS LCT 16 also is sunk by the Luftwaffe off Canea, Crete.

Royal Navy submarine Clyde fires a torpedo at an Italian freighter off Terranova but misses.

In Malta, the British notice a new, large incendiary bomb being used by the Italian bombers. The anti-aircraft defenses claim to have shot down a Junkers Ju 52 transport off the coast.

German troops raise their rifles to execute hostages in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive Bild 101I-166-0525-39).

War Crimes: Pursuant to a standing order of temporary Crete commander General Kurt Student (sanctioned by Hermann Goering), German paratroopers (Fallschirmjäger) decide to settle some scores with the local population. Four trucks full of soldiers from the III Battalion of Luftlande-Sturm-Regiment 1 under the command of Oberleutnant Horst Trebes arrive at the village of Kondomari. The Germans force all civilians into the town square and then pick out male hostages. The 23-60 men are taken to a nearby olive grove and executed. The whole event is filmed by a Wehrmacht war correspondent, Franz-Peter Weixler, who secretly opposes the action.

Other Fallschirmjäger troops surround the village of Alikianos. The Germans take 42 men from the village to a churchyard and execute them. Other civilians are executed at Agia (12 men shot) and Kyrtomado (25 men shot).

These incidents will be included in charges of war crimes made after the war against General Student and others.

German/Italian Relations: Hitler and Mussolini unexpectedly meet at the Brenner Pass. It is their first meeting since 20 January 1941, their third at the Brenner Pass, and their fifth conference since the start of the war. Also attending the meeting are German Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop and Italian Foreign Minister Count Galeazzo Ciano. Exactly what is said at this private meeting has been the subject of much conjecture and debate.

It is believed that Mussolini urges a joint strategy against Great Britain in the Mediterranean, which Hitler rejects. This would jibe with Kriegsmarine Admiral Raeder's "peripheral strategy" which has been working well to date.

According to Joseph Goebbels, Hitler tells Mussolini about Operation Barbarossa at this meeting. However, Ciano writes in his diary, "The general impression is that for the moment Hitler has no precise plan of action." If Hitler does tell Mussolini, the latter does not tell even his closest government cronies. The official communique simply states that the meeting lasted for several hours and was cordial.

After the meeting, Mussolini - who has a tendency to disparage the Germans after such meetings, but not Hitler personally - supposedly says:

I wouldn't be at all sorry if Germany in her war with Russia got her feathers plucked.

Many believe that the Italians are, indeed, aware of Operation Barbarossa by this date, as evidenced by Italian troop movements in the Balkans.

The old Salford Royal building in Manchester takes a direct hit on June 2, 1941, with the attack claiming the lives of 14 nurses and their tutor.

German/Vichy French Relations: Pursuant to the Paris Protocols, the Vichy French government grants the Reich the use of port facilities in Bizerte, Tunis (Tunisia). While this is farther from the Libyan front, it also is closer to Naples than Tripoli. This makes Bizerte ideal for quick and relatively safe convoys across the Tyrrhenian Sea for items that are not time-critical. However, for the time being, only non-military supplies are allowed through the port.

Anglo/Turkish Relations: The Turkish government informs the British government that it prefers to remain neutral and declines a request to join an invasion of Vichy French Levant.

Anglo/US Relations: The US Army-Navy Board officially adopts the U.S.-British Commonwealth joint Basic War Plan, or, as it later became known, Rainbow Five. In the event of a worldwide conflict, the plan is for the Allies to make their priority defeating Italy and Germany first. As for Japan, the Allied "strategy, in the Far East will be defensive" because "the United States does not intend to add to its present military strength" there. Rainbow Five basically foresees the loss of the Philippines. However, no plans are made for evacuating the Americans in the islands.

Admiral Ernest J. King on the cover of Time magazine, 2 June 1941.

US Military: Cryptanalyst Joseph Rochefort reports to the main US Navy building at Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii for his new duty as head of the cryptanalysis section.

Australian Military: The RAAF established its No. 3 Base Stores Depot at Spring Hill.

Channel Islands: Hitler is worried about the defense of the islands. He asks to have maps of them brought to him.

China: The Chinese (commander of the Chinese 3rd PG, Lo Ying-Teh) decline a shipment of Hawk 81A (P-40C) fighter aircraft. They thus become the property of Claire Chennault’s Flying Tigers.

Holocaust: The Vichy French government orders a census of Jews. It also bans Jews from holding public office.

The U.S. Navy troop transport USS West Point (AP-23) under initial conversion and painting at Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co., Virginia (USA), 2 June 1941. She was previously SS America. The aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-8) is in the background. Note the neutrality markings on West Point's side and the repainting operations (US Navy, National Archives).

American Homefront: Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig passes away in Riverdale, the Bronx, New York from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), an incurable neuromuscular disorder later referred to in North America as Lou Gehrig's disease. Mayor Fiorella La Guardia ordered flags in New York to be flown at half-staff. His remains are interred at Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, New York. At the time of his death, Gehrig - "The Iron Horse" - holds the record for the number of consecutive games played, 2130, which will not be broken until 1998.

Chief Justice of the United States Charles Evans Hughes informs President Roosevelt that he will be retiring effective July 1.

Former 1936 Presidential candidate Alf Landon gives a speech at the commencement of Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. He urges caution and deliberation before going to war. Landon notes, in reference to the rush to war:

We find a fatalistic acceptance of the inevitable.

He warns that the country runs the risk of falling into "dictatorship, of the right or of the left," due to the "weakening [of] our checks upon the majority."

Future History: Walter Stacy Keach Jr. is born in Savannah, Georgia. Keach goes on to a renowned acting career, which includes the CBS television series Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer and The New Mike Hammer from 1984 to 1987. Stacy Keach continues to act as of this writing, including serving as the narrator for the CNBC series "American Greed" and hosting "The Twilight Zone" radio series.

Charles Robert Watts is born in Kingsbury, London. He becomes a talented drummer and, in mid-1962, meets Brian Jones, Ian "Stu" Stewart, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. In January 1963, Watts joins The Rolling Stones, which goes on to become one of the top rock groups of all time. As of this writing, he continues to be a member of the group despite having experienced some health problems.

USS Long Island (CVE-1) on June 10, 1944, in San Francisco Bay. This photo was taken by NAS Alameda.

June 1941

June 1, 1941: Farhud Pogrom
June 2, 1941: Massacres on Crete
June 3, 1941: Kandanos Massacre
June 4, 1941: Kaiser Wilhelm Passes Away
June 5, 1941: Death in Chungking
June 6, 1941: Hitler's Commissar Order
June 7, 1941: Commandos Strike at Pessac
June 8, 1941: British Invade Syria and Lebanon
June 9, 1941: Litani River Battle
June 10, 1941: British Take Assab
June 11, 1941: Hitler Thinking Beyond Russia
June 12, 1941: St. James Agreement
June 13, 1941: Lützow Damaged
June 14, 1941: Latvian June Deportations
June 15, 1941: Operation Battleaxe
June 16, 1941: The Old Lion
June 17, 1941: British Spanked in North Africa
June 18, 1941: Turkey Turns Its Back
June 19, 1941: Cheerios Introduced
June 20, 1941: Birth of US Army Air Force
June 21, 1941: Damascus Falls
June 22, 1941: Germany Invades Russia
June 23, 1941: A Soviet KV Tank Causes Havoc
June 24, 1941: Kaunas and Vilnius Fall
June 25, 1941: Finland Declares War
June 26, 1941: Bombing of Kassa
June 27, 1941: Encirclement At Minsk
June 28, 1941: Minsk Falls
June 29, 1941: Brest Fortress Falls
June 30, 1941: Mölders Becomes Top Ace

2020

Saturday 3 May 1941

SS Malakand, an ammunition ship that blew up during a Luftwaffe raid on Liverpool and sank six other ships.

Anglo-Iraq War: With the war in Iraq now a day old, the British on 3 May 1941 are having no difficulty maintaining their positions. The Iraqis attack the British supply port of Basra today, but are beaten off. At Habbaniyah, the RAF continues its air strikes against the Iraqis who are shelling the besieged airfield from a plateau to the south. Additional RAF air attacks are launched against Rashid Airfield (previously RAF Hinaidi). The RAF shoots down an Italian SM 79 Savoia bomber. The British are continuing their sortie with ground troops out of the airfield, with some success.

The RAF receives some reinforcements, four Blenheim bombers. The British today send reinforcements toward Iraq from Palestine and Transjordan, but they have a long march across the desert. Additional forces continue to trickle into Basra.

While the Anglo-Iraq War is usually overlooked by histories of World War II, the Axis takes it very seriously for one reason: oil. Iraqi oil supplies the Royal Navy and RAF with a large portion of their fuel. German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop radios the German ambassador in Baghdad today and orders him to request permission from the Vichy French government in Syria for Luftwaffe transit rights. The French quickly agree and even chip in by sending their own munitions and other supplies being stored in Syria to help the Iraqis. The Luftwaffe and Italians prepare to send planes to Iraq via Syria.

A single bomb caused this massive destruction in North Shields on 3 May 1941. There are 107 deaths in a shelter underneath Wilkinson's Lemonade Factory. Of the 107 deaths, 42 are under the age of 16.

European Air Operations: May 3, 1941, generally is considered the worst night of destruction ever in Liverpool, with over 400 deaths. The Luftwaffe has been launching nightly raids (the "May Blitz") against Liverpool, the critical northern port through which supplies flow. Tonight, they send about 300 aircraft and cause widespread damage to shipping and the port facilities.

The Luftwaffe is having great success at Liverpool. In fact, it may be the most successful series of Luftwaffe raids during the Battle of Britain. The pilots target port infrastructure and gradually are putting docks and deep-water berths out of commission. The total tonnage of cargo being landed is falling drastically. This is a relatively rare instance when the Axis pilots "get it right" and successfully attack the right targets with great efficiency.
However, the ships themselves are vital targets, too, and under the proper circumstances hitting them can contribute to the destruction of the port itself. The Germans get a lucky hit at Liverpool on ammunition ship Malakand, which is full of 1000 tons of shells bound for North Africa. Four people lose their lives in the massive explosion. The cause of the catastrophe is disputed, with some accounts saying it was hit by a bomb, others saying a barrage balloon fell on it and caught fire. The Malakand blows up in spectacular fashion at Huskisson Dock, and a nearby ammunition train also explodes (the heroic railway crew successfully pulls the train out to a siding while the cars behind them are bursting). The impact of the exploding Malakand - parts of which are found miles away - sinks half a dozen other nearby ships. This includes 10,224-ton Canadian passenger ship and freighter SS Europa, which later is raised for repair (and again hit by bombs while in dry-dock and destroyed for good). Other ships lost in the Malakand explosion:

• 6598-ton freighter Elstree Grange
• 1453-ton freighter Domino
• 7924-ton freighter Tacoma Star (later raised)
• 6770-ton freighter Silversandal
• barge Ellesport

Minelayer Adventure, under repair, also is damaged.

County Road in Walton following the bombing in May 1941.

• 138-ton sailing barge Barnacle
• 65-ton tug Bonita
• 58-ton motor barge Emily Burton
• 168-ton sailing barge Pike
• 164-ton sailing barge Ling
• 82-ton steam barge Walton
• 176-ton sailing barge Silverdale
• 79-ton ship Ivy P.
• 106-ton flat Grosvenvor Rover Brill
• 143-ton flat Dace
• 143-ton flat Luce
• 81-ton flat Mus
• 91-ton flat Ray
• 108-ton flat Roach
• 7-ton launch Surveyor
• 177-ton barge Longendale
• 55-ton barge Ellesport
• barges Orrell and Pike
• 3778-ton Norwegian freighter Bra-Kar.

Many ships are damaged during the raid, too. These include:

• 12,614-ton Australian liner Australian Star
• 3178-ton freighter Cantal (one death)
• 8663-ton freighter Baronese
• 6479-ton freighter Lobos
• 208-ton tug Wapiti
• 7921-ton freighter Mahout
• 13,031-ton tanker San Fabian
• 943-ton freighter Busiris
• 164-ton sailing barge Limpet
• 133-ton sailing barge Oyster
• 166-ton sailing barge Glitto
• 159-ton sailing barge Clam
• 3582-ton freighter Kadin (Greek)
• 6447-ton freighter Salland (Dutch)

Fortunately, casualties are light on the ships because the crews are ashore. A couple of crewmen from the ships, though, are among the casualties in the city.

La Scala Cinema, Lime Street, Liverpool, bomb damage, 3 May 1941.

Demonstrating its depth, the Luftwaffe also mounts other raids. One, on Portsmouth, damages light cruiser HMS Sirius, which is under construction. Other Luftwaffe raids sink 2722 ton British freighter Royston in the Humber, and sink 1347 ton Norwegian freighter Trajan and damage 1143 ton Norwegian freighter Sitona northeast of Blakeney. Bombs fall throughout the northeast, including at Newcastle, Tynemouth, Throckley, Catcleugh, Morpeth, Lynemouth, Gosforth, Clifton and Stannington in Northumberland, Sunderland, West Hartlepool, Gateshead, Tees Bridge Roundabout at Billingham, Lambton Park, Castletown, Ryhope and South Shields in Co Durham and York and Hull in Yorkshire.

RAF Bomber Command sends 21 Blenheims against shipping off the French coast. Two from 2 Group/101 Squadron are shot down near Boulogne. After dark, Bomber Command sends 101 aircraft against Cologne, with a diversionary attack by 33 bombers against shipping at Brest.

Damage in Liverpool during the May Blitz.

East African Campaign: The British under Major General Mosley Mayne are closing up on Amba Alagi, the last Italian stronghold in Abyssinia. Amba Alagi is an important north-south road junction and controls access to Italian positions in caves between Asmara and Addis Ababa.

Mayne is approaching from the north, and he plans to squeeze the Italian defenders via a pincer move on the east and west. The 5th Indian Division also is approaching from Eritrea and forcing its way through the Falaga Pass, while some South African troops also are on the way. The Italian troops are led by Amedeo, 3rd Duke of Aosta, who is noted for his gallantry - for instance, he has respected the property of (formerly) exiled Emperor Haile Selassie. Morale among the Italians (actually, mostly colonial troops) remains fairly good, but several hundred surrender during the day.

The Wray Castle, sunk on 3 May 1941 by U-103 off Freetown.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-103 (Kptlt Viktor Schütze), on her fourth (and longest, at 103 days) patrol off the coast of West Africa, torpedoes and sinks 4253-ton British freighter Wray Castle off Freetown. There is one death.

U-95 (Kptlt. Gerd Schreiber), also on its fourth patrol, torpedoes and sinks 4873-ton Norwegian freighter Taranger about 150 nautical miles (280 km, 170 miles) southwest of Reykjavik, Iceland in the Atlantic. There are two deaths.

British 468 ton freighter Corbet hits a mine and sinks just off Herculaneum Dock in Liverpool. There are 8 deaths and one man survives.

176-ton coaster Sirius hits a mine and sinks at the Albert Dock in London.

Royal Navy boarding vessel HMS Hilary captures 5595-ton Italian tanker Recco in the Atlantic. The crew of the Recco later manages to scuttle the ship.

The British Admiralty recalls battlecruiser HMS Hood from patrol off Iceland to Scapa Flow. Hood and its accompanying four destroyers call at Reykjavik to refuel.

Minelayer HMS Teviotbank lays minefield BS.55 in the English Channel.

The Kriegsmarine's overseas supply network remains intact. Today, tanker Nordmark has a rendezvous with U-105 and U-107 at sea. These supply arrangements greatly extend the U-boat range and mission duration, effectively amplifying the power of the fleet.

Royal Navy submarine HMS P-32 (Lt. David A. B. Abdy) is commissioned, minesweeping trawler Rosalind is launched.

U-205 (Kapitänleutnant Franz-Georg Reschke) and U-451 (Korvettenkapitän Eberhard Hoffmann) are commissioned, U-116 and U-654 are launched.

U-107 hooks up with the Nordmark in the Atlantic, 3 May 1941 (Jordan, Federal Archives).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Afrika Korps attack at Tobruk is at a standstill and on the evening of 3 May the Australian Brigade under General Morshead counterattacks. They send one battalion each in converging attacks, but the counterattack peters out during the night due to fierce resistance by Italian infantry and the Australians withdraw. General Paulus, in command during his "inspection tour" of North Africa, forbids further German attacks unless there is evidence that the Australians are evacuating the port.

The British at Tobruk have numerous assets with which to defend Tobruk, and one that they will return to again and again during the war on beachheads is naval shelling. Destroyers HMS Decoy and Defender shell the British positions in Tobruk during the night to support the Australian attack, then return to Alexandria.

The Luftwaffe raids Suda Bay, Crete, and damages 7258-ton freighter Araybank. The ship is bombed again later in the month and destroyed.

The RAF raids Italian shipping in Tripoli. The planes sink 5305-ton Italian freighter Birmania, which explodes and takes with it 3339-ton freighter Citta D'Bari. Italian torpedo boat Canopo also sinks.

Royal Navy cruiser HMS Gloucester hits a mine early in the morning near Gibraltar. As Gloucester limps back to port, Italian bombers attack it and manage only a minor hit. The ship makes it back to port.

Italian 838-ton freighter hits a mine and sinks in Tripoli Harbour.

Submarine HMS Triumph surfaces and uses its deck gun to sink 425-ton Italian freighter Tugnin F. about a dozen miles northwest of Mersa Brega.

Submarine HMS Usk is reported overdue today, and it never turns up. Ultimately, it is presumed to have been lost around 1 May 1941 off Cape Bon.

At Malta, the Luftwaffe raids Floriana for the first time in a major attack by 30 bombers. There are 9 Royal Engineers and one local employee killed when an aerial mine lands on a barracks. There is extensive damage to the docks and St. Publius Church.

Anglo/Polish Relations: On the 150th anniversary of the establishment of the Polish Constitution, Winston Churchill makes a radio broadcast directed, as he puts it, "to the Polish people all over the world." He calls the German occupiers of Poland "pitiless and venal" and "mechanized barbarians." He cautions that the war will be "long and hard," but "the end will reward all toil, all disappointments, all suffering."

The Rotunda Theatre on Stanley Road, Bootle, Liverpool collapses following the bombing on 3/4 May 1941.

British/Australian/US Relations:  Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies finally ends his extended visit to England when he boards a DC3 at Bristol bound for Lisbon. His eventual destination is Bermuda and then New York. His flight takes 6 1/2 hours, and it is a risky route patrolled occasionally by the Luftwaffe. Many in England are sad to see him go, as there is an undercurrent of sentiment which sees Menzies as a better alternative than Churchill to lead the British war effort. However, there have been rumblings of dissatisfaction against Menzies in Australia, and Churchill's grip on power remains strong, so it is time to go.

Anglo/US Relations: The Royal Navy has been using US ports for refits, and this pattern continues when light cruiser HMS Delhi arrives today in New York.

US Military: The Panama Canal Zone is assigned to the Panama Sector of the US Caribbean Defense Command.

Scientific Research: The University of California at Berkeley professor Glenn T. Seaborg and his team isolate plutonium as the best material for an atomic bomb.

South Africa: General Jan Smuts addresses the House of Assembly and reveals that South African troops are going to Egypt.

While the Germans hold a victory parade in Athens on 3 May 1941, British stragglers (in a lorry with shot-out windshields) continue to struggle to Nafplio for possible rescue. © IWM (E 2733).

Greece: The Germans mount a victory parade in Athens.

Yugoslavia: The Italians annex part of Slovenia and create the Province of Ljubljana.

Cambodia: Prince Norodom Sihanouk is crowned king of Cambodia.

China: The Japanese raid Chungking.

American Homefront: Frank Capra film "Meet John Doe," starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck, opens to generally favorable, but mixed, reviews. The Warner Bros. film will go on to be listed on the 2006 American Film Institute "100 Years... 100 Cheers" list at No. 49.

Whirlaway wins the Kentucky Derby in the record time of 2:01 2/5.

4th Annual Field Day at Texas A&M AgriLife Research & Extension Center, Overton, Texas, May 3, 1941.

May 1941