Showing posts with label HMS Resolution. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HMS Resolution. Show all posts

Friday, September 23, 2016

September 25, 1940: Filton Raid

Wednesday 25 September 1940

25 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com gun camera footage
A dogfight over England. "This camera gun film still shows tracer ammunition from an RAF Supermarine Spitfire Mark I, flown by Flight Lieutenant J H G McArthur, hitting a German Heinkel He 111. These aircraft were part of a large formation which attacked the Bristol Aeroplane Company's works at Filton, Bristol, just before noon on 25 September 1940." © IWM (CH 1823).

Operation Menace: With the British/Free French invasion frustrated, the French turn to the attack on 25 September 1940. The Vichy French Air Force (Armée de l'Air de Vichy), based in Morocco and Algeria, launches another, larger strike on Gibraltar than on the 24th. This is in retaliation for the Operation Menace attack on Dakar by the British and Free French. It is even larger than the attack on 24 September, this time including 80-100 aircraft dropping some 300 bombs. This is the largest air raid of the war to date on Gibraltar, causing extensive damage to the dockyard facilities. British 550 ton anti-submarine trawler HMT Stella Sirius is sunk by direct hits in the harbor with 12 deaths. Some accounts state that four Vichy French destroyers also bombard the port.

The British fleet again bombards Dakar at first light. French submarine Bévéziers, the only one remaining at Dakar after two have been sunk, manages at 09:00 to evade detection by the assembled fleet and torpedoes British battleship HMS Resolution. It loses power and must be towed back to Freetown, Sierra Leone, by HMS Barham, which also takes damage from the French battleship Richelieu. This forces the Royal Navy to end the operation, which has been accomplishing nothing anyway.

The affair has been a fiasco for the Allies. Long in the planning, involving extensive Royal Navy movements throughout September, Operation Menace accomplishes nothing but further poison relations with the Vichy French. General Charles de Gaulle suffers a huge loss in prestige, as his assumption of the mantle of resistance to his former French bosses turns out to have less appeal than he has claimed. It is easier now to portray de Gaulle as nothing but a tool of British interests. The Royal Navy itself does not come off well, either.

In a wider sense, Operation Menace is a learning experience. It is the first in a series of Allied raids along the length of the Atlantic Coast that will grow in intensity over the coming years. While a shaky start, it sets the foundation for later efforts at Dieppe, in Norway, and ultimately at Normandy. However, there is no question whatsoever that, in the short run, this is a major Vichy French victory.

25 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com U-48 Lorient
U-48, with commander Heinrich Bleichrodt, returns to base at Lorient. 25 September 1940. Note the numerous victory pennants.
Battle of the Atlantic: A Coastal Command flying boat flying over the shipping lanes in the mid-Atlantic spots a lifeboat and vectors in destroyer HMS Anthony. It turns out to be from the City of Benares, sunk on the 18th. Lifeboat 12 contains about 40 survivors, including six boys from the Children's Overseas Reception Board (CORB) program. Also on board are Mary Cornish and Father Rory O'Sullivan, the children's escorts, along with numerous crewmen.

U-32 (Oblt.z.S. Hans Jenisch) torpedoes and sinks 6694-ton British freighter Mabriton 500 hundred miles west of Ireland at 03:25. There are 25 survivors and 12 crew perish. The Mabriton was sailing with Convoy OB 216, which had dispersed.

U-43 (Kptlt. Wilhelm Ambrosius) torpedoes and sinks 5802-ton British freighter Sulairia about 400 miles out in the Atlantic west of Ireland around 13:30. There are 56 survivors and one fatality. The Sulairia was sailing with Convoy OB 217, which had dispersed.

U-29 (Kptlt. Otto Schuhart) torpedoes and damages 6223-ton British freighter/passenger ship Eurymedon (John Faulkner Webster) west of Ireland around 14:00. The ship stays afloat for two days before sinking. There are 66 survivors (42 crew and 22 passengers) and 29 perish (9 passengers and 20 crew). Captain Faulkner, who survives, later receives the Lloyd's War Medal for bravery at sea. The Eurymedon was part of Convoy OB 217, which had dispersed.

Italian 569 ton cargo ship Rina Croce hits a mine and sinks about 6 nautical miles west of Capo di Torre Cavallo (near Brindisi). The HMS Rorqual laid the minefield on 14 June 1940.

British 79 ton naval trawler HMT White Daisy founders in the North Sea near Lerwick.

The Royal Navy seizes Vichy French 1344 ton ocean-going trawler Finland near the Vichy French base at Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Canada. They transfer it to de Gaulle's Free French movement.

The Royal Canadian Navy AMC Prince Robert captures 9170-ton German freighter Weser off Manzanillo, Mexico just before midnight. The Weser is a supply ship for German raider Orion. The Canadians, approaching in the dark, get aboard before the crew can scuttle the freighter. The Canadians put aboard a prize crew who sail it to Esquimalt, where it is renamed Vancouver Island.

The British prepare Operation Lucid, which is designed to use obsolete warships as fire ships against the invasion barges in Channel ports. The operation is set for the 26th. It is a throwback to the use of fireships against the Spanish Armada and during the Napoleonic Wars. Escorted by destroyer forces, the fire ships are old tankers Nizam and Nawab. The tankers are packed with various flammables including heavy fuel oil, gasoline, and diesel oil. The force leaves port today (Sheerness and Portsmouth) - the old fire ships are very slow. En route, the Nizam breaks down less than 10 miles from Boulogne Harbor and the operation is canceled.

Royal Navy submarine Cachalot fires torpedoes and U-138 in the Bay of Biscay but misses. The British submarines like to lie in wait on the typical routes taken by U-boats from their main bases to and from their Atlantic patrol stations.

British minelayers Plover and Willem van der Zaan run aground on the Goodwins but are brought off by a tug. They are prevented from laying their mines.

Convoy FS 290 departs from the Tyne, Convoy FN 291 departs from Methil, Convoy OB 219 departs from Liverpool, Convoy SLS 49 departs from Freetown.

25 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Gerrman freighter Weser
German freighter Weser is captured on 25 September 1940.
Battle of the Mediterranean: On the desert front, the RAF attacks Tobruk, while the Royal Navy shells Sidi Barrani. The RAF raids Berbera in British Somaliland and the port of Assab in Ethiopia.

A Royal Navy destroyer flotilla operating out of Alexandria bombards an Italian land convoy west of Sidi Barrani, causing extensive damage to the vehicles.

At Malta, there is an air raid around noontime which drops some bombs on the countryside. The Italians lose one Macchi C. 200 Saetta ("Arrow") fighter. The soldiers at Malta already are occupied defusing unexploded bombs at Hal Far and Luqa airfields which have been dropped over the previous two weeks.

25 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Spitfire Mk. 1 crashed
Leading B Flight of No. 152 Squadron from RAF Warmwell took off just before 11:30 on 25 September 1940 to intercept KG55. 29-year-old S/L Peter K Devitt claims a Ju 88 damaged south of Bristol during the Filton Raid. However, he sustains hits to the fuel tank of his Spitfire Mk I UM-A by return fire. Temporarily blinded, Devitt somehow makes a belly landing at Skew Bridge, Newton St Loe. He is lucky: Spitfire UM-C in his flight crashes at 12:00 near Church Farm, Woolverton, killing Sgt Kenneth C "Ken" Holland (see picture below)
Battle of Britain: Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering continues fine-tuning his aerial assault on England. This time, he cuts back on raids against London and shifts his focus toward British aircraft factories. These are primarily located in the western half of Britain, and Luftlotte 3 (Sperrle) is given primary responsibility. While perhaps justified by changing priorities, these types of changes are demoralizing to Luftwaffe crews who see no lasting results from all their efforts. These changes do, however, catch the RAF off guard now and then, and this happens today, to England's detriment.

The weather is good, but nothing much happens until about noontime. Then, a large raid targets the Bristol Aeroplane Company at Filton, a favorite target of the Luftwaffe which it has attacked over and over. About 80 bombers of KG 55 cross at Weymouth and bomb the factory and also oil installations at Portland. Fighter Command vectors its fighters to an expected target that turns out to be wrong, and thus the defending fighters get a late start on the Heinkel He 111s escorted by 52 Bf 110s of ZG 26.

The bombers reach their targets without much interference aside from anti-aircraft fire, even if the ride home is hot. RAF Nos. 152, 229, 234 and 238 Squadrons defend and bring down eight bombers, most on the way back to France. Canadian pilot John Urwin-Mann gets two of the planes. The raid causes extensive damage, including to shelters hit by bombs that kill and injure many inside. The Luftwaffe also destroys 8 fighters on the ground, including two Beaufighter night-fighters. There are 132 deaths, 91 of them factory workers, and 315 other casualties. It is a major Luftwaffe victory.

The Germans are fully aware of their success after reconnaissance flights confirm it, and KG 55 Gruppenkommandeur Major Friedrich Kless later is awarded the Ritterkreuz for it. The British are alarmed and shifts RAF No. 504 Squadron from Hendon to Filton to guard against future attacks.

The next big raid is at 16:00, and it targets the Isle of Wight area. Fighter Command does a better job of intercepting this raid, shooting down a bomber at no cost, but the bombers drop their bombs at random and destroy a lot of homes and underground infrastructure.

25 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Filton Raid
A still from camera gun footage taken from a Supermarine Spitfire Mark I of No. 609 Squadron RAF flown by Pilot Officer R.F.G. Miller. It is an attack on a He 111 of KG 53 or KG 55 taking hits in the port engine (which appears to be out now) from Miller's machine guns. This was during the raid on the Bristol Aeroplane Company's factory at Filton, Bristol on 25 September 1940.
The night-time raids begin around 19:30, and as usual, they focus on London. Later raids from Luftflotte 3 target Liverpool, South Wales, and the Midlands. Several hits on the rail lines around London destroy the railway bridge across Thames Road, Chiswick and the yards at Kensington. Large fires are started in the Wandsworth, Edmonton, Tottenham, Old Kent Road and Hammersmith areas of London. The raids continue all night and only end just before first light at 05:30.

Losses for the day are usually given as 13 for the Luftwaffe and 4 for the RAF. These figures, however, do not include the numerous brand new RAF fighters destroyed on the ground at Filton. Once those are factored in, it is a roughly even day.

The Tubes set an all-time record for people sheltering in them from the Blitz.

Feldwebel Walter Scherer of III,/ZG 26, with 7 victory claims, is shot down and he becomes a POW during the Filton raid.

The Italians are fulfilling Mussolini's promise to participate in the Battle of Britain - even though it is virtually over. They are transferring 2 Gruppos to Melsbroek airbase in Belgium northeast of Brussels. The total projected Italian force:
  • 36 CR 42 Falco ("Falcon") biplane fighters;
  • 36 Fiat G.50 Freccia ("Arrow") fighters;
  • 72 Fiat BR.20 Cicogna ("Stork") bombers;
  • 5 Cant Z 1007 Alcione ("Kingfisher") bombers.
While it is a large number of planes, the Italian models are mid-1930s designs (or earlier) which set records during that decade, but now are deathtraps on the highly competitive Channel front. The bombers are slow, ponderous and poorly armed, while the fighters are completely outclassed by much faster Spitfires and Hurricanes.

25 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Churchill Clementine London docks
Winston Churchill and wife, Clementine, onboard a naval auxiliary patrol vessel, tour the London docks. 25 September 1940.
European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command attacks Berlin again. It targets Tempelhof Airport, a munitions factory, power stations, and the railway. Other raids are launched on Kiel, warehouses at Osnabruck, Ehrang, Hamm, Mannheim and Hanover, and invasion ports including Flushing and Antwerp. Coastal Command chips in with a raid on Brest, which sets the oil tanks there alight.

Spy Stuff: The US Signals Intelligence Service has been hard at work on breaking the Japanese military codes. Today, it reads the Japanese Purple Code for the first time.

German/Soviet/Japanese Relations: German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop informs the German embassy in Moscow that Japan is joining the German-Italian alliance (Axis). He emphasizes that this is not directed against the Soviet Union - which is absolutely true. Germany has other plans for the USSR. Ribbentrop instructs the Chargé d'affaires to tell Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov about the coming agreement on the 26th and explain that the alliance is directed against "American warmongers."

German/Spanish Relations: Adolf Hitler meets with Spanish Interior Minister - and Franco's brother-in-law - Serrano Suner. It is likely that the topics discussed include arranging a meeting between Hitler and Franco. Hitler's objective is to bring Spain into the war on his side in order to capture the British naval base at Gibraltar, while Franco demands an exorbitant price for his cooperation.

US/Chinese Relations: The US grants a $25 million loan to China that is designed to help stabilize the Chinese currency.

US Military: Heavy cruiser USS Louisville departs from Colon in the Panama Canal Zone on another "Show the Flag" tour. Its first stop will be Recife, Brazil.

The Greenslade Board investigating new US bases acquired from the British in the destroyers-for-bases deal arrives in Norfolk, Virginia.

Norway: Pursuant to decisions taken earlier, the German Reich-Commissar for Norway (Reichskommissar für die besetzten Norwegischen Gebiete), Josef Terboven, dissolves all political parties except for the pro-German Nasjonal Samling. He appoints 13 commissars to govern the country. As the leader of Nasjonal Samling, Vidkun Quisling forms the new collaborationist government. In addition, the King and his former government are formally deposed.

25 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com RAF pilot Ken Holland
Sgt Kenneth C "Ken" Holland of No 152 Squadron RAF, KIA 25 September 1940. He opened fire on He 111P-1 G1+EP of KG55 at 400yds from astern and slightly to the port side in the morning. He was seen turning for a second burst at 2000ft. His Spitfire Mk I UM-C was hit by the rear gunner still in the stricken bomber. Both aircraft were strewn across the fields of Church Farm, Woolverton when crashing less than 500yds apart at 12:00. The 20-year-old Australian was found to have been shot in the head. See below for another related photo.
French Homefront: The Vichy French begin court-martial trials for the various government officials arrested for alleged misdeeds which led to to the loss of the Battle of France.

French Indochina: The Japanese invasion of French Indochina continues. The Japanese have aircraft carriers off the coast in the Gulf of Tonkin that are launching raids on French bases. The French shore batteries remain under orders to repel any invasion. The French have sent a special envoy to Tokyo to negotiate. The Japanese are primarily interested in northern Indochina in the Haiphong area, not as much in the area further south by Saigon. The Japanese 5th Infantry Division consolidates its hold on Lang Son, site of a key airfield.

New Caledonia: The government of Noumea reaffirms that it is siding with Free France.

American Homefront: Eleanor Roosevelt attends the American Newspaper Guild meeting in New York City (of which she is a member, with voting privileges). At issue is whether to approve a report critical of President Roosevelt as trying to force the United States into the European War. She votes against the report, but it passes 140-85. Afterward, she meets with the Guild's leaders and expresses her disagreement. The incident is an early foray by Mrs. Roosevelt into politics and an indication of the widespread isolationist sentiment in the country.

25 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Luftwaffe pilot Helmut Brandt
The only survivor of He 111P-1 G1+EP when bailing out following hits by Sgt Kenneth C "Ken" Holland (see above ) of No. 152 Squadron RAF near Woolverton on the morning of 25 September 1940 was pilot Hptm Helmut Brandt of KG55. He stated on interrogation that the first burst had already crippled the bomber and that there was no need for Holland to go in for a second attack. Holland failed to heed a basic lesson: take out the rear gunner first, then the engine.
September 1940

September 1, 1940: RAF's Horrible Weekend
September 2, 1940: German Troopship Sunk
September 3, 1940: Destroyers for Bases
September 4, 1940: Enter Antonescu
September 5, 1940: Stukas Over Malta
September 6, 1940: The Luftwaffe Peaks
September 7, 1940: The Blitz Begins
September 8, 1940: Codeword Cromwell
September 9, 1940: Italians Attack Egypt
September 10, 1940: Hitler Postpones Sealion
September 11, 1940: British Confusion at Gibraltar
September 12, 1940: Warsaw Ghetto Approved
September 13, 1940: Zeros Attack!
September 14, 1940: The Draft Is Back
September 15, 1940: Battle of Britain Day
September 16, 1940: italians Take Sidi Barrani
September 17, 1940: Sealion Kaputt
September 18, 1940: City of Benares Incident
September 19, 1940: Disperse the Barges
September 20, 1940: A Wolfpack Gathers
September 21, 1940: Wolfpack Strikes Convoy HX-72
September 22, 1940: Vietnam War Begins
September 23, 1940: Operation Menace Begins
September 24, 1940: Dakar Fights Back
September 25, 1940: Filton Raid
September 26, 1940: Axis Time
September 27, 1940: Graveney Marsh Battle
September 28, 1940: Radio Belgique Begins
September 29, 1940: Brocklesby Collision
September 30, 1940: Operation Lena

2020

Thursday, September 22, 2016

September 24, 1940: Dakar Fights Back

Tuesday 24 September 1940

24 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Adolf Galland 40th victory
Adolf Galland is greeted back at the airfield in Wissant by his mechanic, Unteroffizier Gerhard Meyer, after recording his 40th victory. He shot down a Hurricane of RAF No. 17 Squadron over Rochester at 10:45 on 24 September 1940.
Operation Menace: The Allies on 24 September 1940 remain offshore of Dakar during Operation Menace, with the Vichy French sitting tight. Both sides are lobbing shots at each other, but the basic situation remains unchanged. During the day, the British battleship HMS Barham, sitting 13,500 yards (about 8 miles) offshore, lobs in some 15-inch shells that strike the French battleship Richelieu sitting in port. The Richelieu, unfinished, also has issues with its guns, with 380mm guns 7/8 in Turret 2 going out of service today when a shell explodes. However, the port defense guns aren't fully manned, so some Richelieu crew just switch to coastal guns, where they have success. The biggest problem for the Vichy French is ammunition, as they are using an old powder which causes problems.

The Vichy French have submarines in the area, and shortly after sunrise the British force their submarine Ajax to surface. This is a joint exercise between Swordfish operating from the Ark Royal and patrolling destroyers. The Swordfish bomb the submarine and force it to surface. The Vichy French crew then scuttles the badly damaged sub. Destroyer HMS Fortune rescues the 61-man crew. There are different versions of this action in which the destroyer, and not the planes, cause the sub to surface and scuttle, and likely it was some combination of forces.

24 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Dakar Operation Menace Tacoma
The freighter Tacoma under fire at Dakar, 24 September 1940. The Tacoma was bombarded in the harbor, then towed out to sea where she sank. (Tentative credit: Frederick Milthorp, Frederick Milthorp Collection).
The British fleet approaches the port in the morning but retreats under fire around 10:00. It then approaches in the afternoon again, then retreats again. British battleship HMS Resolution, for its part, takes damage which eventually requires it to be put under tow down to Cape Town, South Africa. Barham and two British cruisers are damaged by coastal defense guns manned by the Richelieu crew.

The Vichy French retaliate for the attack by sending 64 aircraft based in Morocco and Algeria over Gibraltar. They drop 150 bombs on the British base and cause damage to the dock area, especially the South Mole area. This attack is somewhat unusual because heretofore the Armée de l'Air de Vichy bombers have made perfunctory runs and dropped many of their bombs out at sea. Somewhat perversely, this is the largest air raid of the war to date by the French Air Force, including the Battle of France.

24 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com newspaper headlines

Battle of the Atlantic: The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks classic 1815 ship of the line HMS Wellesley at its dock on the Thames. The ship sinks in shallow water and can be salvaged, but it is damaged beyond repair. HMS Wellesley has the distinction of being the last ship of the line to be lost in enemy action and the only one lost by air attack. Its figurehead now graces the entrance to Chatham Dockyard.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 169-ton British trawler Bass Rock about 40 km southwest of County Cork, Ireland. Four crew perish and four perish, that's the lottery of the Battle of the North Atlantic, pick your number and take your chances.

German torpedo boat S-30 torpedoes and sinks 555 ton Continental Coaster off Happisburgh, Norfolk (off Great Yarmouth) in the North Sea. Four crew perish.

Royal Navy 20 ton motor torpedo boat HMS MTB 15 hits a mine and sinks 56 km northeast of North Foreland, Kent (Thames Estuary) in the North Sea. These carry a complement of 9-12 men, and it is unclear if there are any survivors.

HMS Tuna torpedoes and sinks 1280 ton submarine tender ("catapult vessel") Ostmark southwest of Saint-Nazaire in the Bay of Biscay. The Ostmark is a Deutsche Lufthansa vessel on its way to Germany for commissioning into the Kriegsmarine, and the plan is to use the Ostmark to launch long-range reconnaissance aircraft from Brest (contemplated as the new main U-boat base in France). So, technically, it is not a loss for the Germany Navy. However, the loss is noticed in Berlin and is an early indication to the Germans that the Atlantic coast shipping area is vulnerable and security there needs to be upgraded - a turn to the defensive. The Tuna, for its part, is having an excellent patrol, having sunk the Tirranna on the 22nd.

The Luftwaffe damages anti-submarine trawler HMT Loch Monteith operating in the Channel. Seven crew perish.

British submarine Cachalot spots an unidentified U-boat in the southwest approaches and fires torpedoes but misses.

Convoy OA 219 departs from Methil, Convoy FN 290 departs from Southend, Convoy FS 289 departs from the Tyne, Convoys OB 218 and OL 4 depart from Liverpool, Convoy SL 495 departs from Freetown.

German cruiser Admiral Hipper leaves Wilhelmshaven to attempt to break out into the Atlantic but soon loses all engine power due to a fire in the engine oil feed system. It drifts aimlessly for several hours before repairs are effected and the ship can return to Hamburg for more permanent repairs.

U-106 (Oberleutnant zur See Jürgen Oesten) is commissioned.

24 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com RAF Pilot Harold Birdie Wilson
Harold 'Birdie' Bird-Wilson, RAF No. 17 Squadron, RAF Debden. He becomes Adolf Galland's 40th victim today. Birdie takes two months to recover from his burns but then returns to service. His nose is one of the first reconstructed by pioneering plastic surgeon Sir Archibald McIndoe. (Via WW2 Colourised Photos, Colourised by Doug UK).
Battle of Britain: The morning is foggy, but clears up rapidly. While bombing is fairly light and mainly on secondary targets, there is intense fighter activity throughout most of the morning.

The first Luftwaffe attacks begin around 08:30. This time, it is 200+ plane formation that includes a large formation of Junkers Ju 88s. RAF Fighter Command sends up 11 squadrons, which intercept the Luftwaffe planes over the Thames Estuary. The bombers turn back, some badly damaged, and the fighters engage in dogfights which result in some RAF losses.

Around 11:00, the Luftwaffe sends over more planes. One force attacks coastal towns, but Adolf Galland's JG 26 is hunting for RAF fighters over the Thames Estuary and finds them. Both sides lose a plane.

An eerie calm descends around noontime. Luftwaffe pilots jokingly praise the "Anglo-Saxon custom of lunch" for such a quiet period. However, things heat up again soon thereafter.

The Luftwaffe sends more fighters over during the early afternoon. RAF No. 41 Squadron loses a couple of planes. Some Bf 110s of  I./Epr.Gr 210, 4./ZG 76 and III./ZG 76 then raid Southampton and Portsmouth, bombing the Woolston Spitfire factory. A "lucky" hit on a shelter there kills 100 workers, but the factory itself is unscathed. For some reason, Fighter Command does not intercept this formation, accounting for its great success, but anti-aircraft fire downs three of the fighter-bombers.

Around 16:00, another formation crosses near the Isle of Wight. This time, Fighter Command intercepts and downs four bombers.

After dark (which is coming much earlier now), the Luftwaffe targets London, Shoreham, Portsmouth, Plymouth, Hull, Humberside, Newcastle, Manchester, Middlesborough, and South Wales. The London West End takes some damage, as does Westminster. The attacks are widespread and scattered, causing fairly random damage. The largest raid is in Liverpool, which is bombed by II,/KG 27 from midnight until first light. RAF Feltwell takes some damage during the final raids of the night.

Overall, losses are fairly light on both sides. The Luftwaffe loses about 10 planes (depends how you count the several bombers heavily damaged but which make it back to France), while the RAF loses about half that number.

Adolf Galland gets credit for his 40th claim. The victim is ace Harold Bird-Wilson of RAF No. 17 Squadron (baled out badly burned into the Thames, picked up by a riverboat). Galland is hot on the trail of Werner Mölders, who has a few more victories at this point. This victory entitles Galland to the Oak Leaves, which he receives at the hand of Adolf Hitler. Hitler, aware of Galland's somewhat impertinent comment to Reichsmarschall Goering in August, jokes with Galland about also wanting a squadron of Spitfires.

Staffelkapitän Oblt. Hans 'Assi' Hahn, 4./JG 2, receives the Ritterkreuz.

24 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Charlie Chaplin The Great Dictator
Charlie Chaplin has to explain why he made fun of Hitler in "The Great Dictator" in the 24 September 1940 Look Magazine.
European Air Operations: RAF Coastal Command attacks the ports of Zeebrugge and Brest, while Bomber Command attacks Berlin with 20 bombers, Frankfurt, the German coastal guns at Cap Gris Nez, and the usual ports and airfields in northwest Europe. By far the greatest effort is made against the invasion ports, where the barges are gradually dispersing.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Italian submarine Scirè departs La Spezia, Italy carrying three special manned torpedoes. Its mission is to drop off the torpedoes, which then will penetrate Gibraltar Harbour and sink large Royal Navy ships (which, apparently unknown to the Italians, are operating off Dakar). Prince Junio Valerio Borghese, who has trained with U-boats in the Baltic, is in command of this prestige assignment. Italy leads the world in the area of manned torpedoes.

At Malta, it is a quiet day with no air raids. The island receives word that three warships are on the way (arrival date unknown) carrying supplies, so unloading parties are put on standby throughout the day. Arriving ships must be docked and unloaded immediately so they can depart again to avoid air/naval attack.

Anglo/US Relations: The formal transfer of the third tranche of US destroyers is made pursuant to the destroyers-for-bases deal at Halifax. The destroyers are:
  • USS Mackenzie > HMCS Annapolis, 
  • USS Haraden > HMCS Columbia, 
  • USS Williams > HMCS St. Clair, 
  • USS Thatcher > HMCS Niagara, 
  • USS McCook > HMCS St. Croix
  • USS Bancroft > HMCS St. Francis.
French Indochina: The Japanese 5th Infantry Division seizes Lang Son, where the French briefly held out due to the airfield there. Fighting continues further south.

Australia: General Gordon Bennett now commands the Australian 8th Infantry Division.

24 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Look Magazine Lucille Ball
The 24 September 1940 issue of Look Magazine contains a photo-story on starlet Lucille Ball.
US Military: President Roosevelt establishes the Defense Communication Board, headed by Director of Naval Communications Rear Admiral Leigh Noyes.

British Homefront: The German blockade is biting. Petrol prices rise to 2 shillings 2 pence per gallon.

The government announces that 444,000 children have been evacuated from London and plans to evacuate more.

American Homefront: Jimmie Fox, 32, of the Boston Red Sox hits home run No. 500 in a game against the Phillies. He is only the second man to do so and trails Babe Ruth, retired since 1935, by 214 home runs. He is the youngest to reach 500 home runs until Alex Rodriguez in 2007, but Foxx has health issues of one form (exactly what and why is controversial) which impair his skills going forward.

24 September 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com Gene Tunney Worlds Fair
On 24 September 1940, former World Heavyweight champion James Joseph "Gene" Tunney meets with competitors of the American Institute of New York's science fair at the Westinghouse Pavilion, New York World's Fair. Tunney, always considered a scholarly boxer, was there to give a speech at the official sealing of a time capsule. Shown with Tunney, left to right: Irving Lazarowitz, Alan Bernstein, Theresa Zinghini, and Jack Zimmer. The Science Talent Search became an annual event the following year.
September 1940

September 1, 1940: RAF's Horrible Weekend
September 2, 1940: German Troopship Sunk
September 3, 1940: Destroyers for Bases
September 4, 1940: Enter Antonescu
September 5, 1940: Stukas Over Malta
September 6, 1940: The Luftwaffe Peaks
September 7, 1940: The Blitz Begins
September 8, 1940: Codeword Cromwell
September 9, 1940: Italians Attack Egypt
September 10, 1940: Hitler Postpones Sealion
September 11, 1940: British Confusion at Gibraltar
September 12, 1940: Warsaw Ghetto Approved
September 13, 1940: Zeros Attack!
September 14, 1940: The Draft Is Back
September 15, 1940: Battle of Britain Day
September 16, 1940: Italians Take Sidi Barrani
September 17, 1940: Sealion Kaputt
September 18, 1940: City of Benares Incident
September 19, 1940: Disperse the Barges
September 20, 1940: A Wolfpack Gathers
September 21, 1940: Wolfpack Strikes Convoy HX-72
September 22, 1940: Vietnam War Begins
September 23, 1940: Operation Menace Begins
September 24, 1940: Dakar Fights Back
September 25, 1940: Filton Raid
September 26, 1940: Axis Time
September 27, 1940: Graveney Marsh Battle
September 28, 1940: Radio Belgique Begins
September 29, 1940: Brocklesby Collision
September 30, 1940: Operation Lena

2020

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

May 18, 1940: Germans Take Antwerp

Saturday 18 May 1940

18 May 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com German mounted troops
German mounted troops, 18 May 1940 (Schweizer, Federal Archives).
Western Front: The XXVI Corps of General Georg von Küchler's 18th Army captures the vital port of Antwerp, Belgium on 18 May 1940.

Brigadier General de Gaulle regroups after his failure of 17 May and prepares for another flank attack on the German spearhead with his French 4th Armoured Division. He prepares for another attack.

At Noord-Beveland, the last Dutch holdout in Zeeland, a German under a flag of truce goes over and informs the Dutch that all of their comrades have surrendered. They have been out of touch, and now surrender.

General Erwin Rommel is at Cambrai, having advanced 85 miles to the west. He takes the town with one of his usual clever strategems: he has his tanks roll over a dusty field near the town, giving the defenders the impressions that his force is larger than it is, and causing them to flee in terror. Rommel is over halfway to the English Channel, having captured (by his own account) 10,000 prisoners and 100 French tanks for losses of his own of only 50 dead and 100 wounded. He pauses to refuel, resupply and plan his next axis of attack.

General Guderian's troops also are refueling and consolidating gains. The 1st Panzer Division troops reach the vicinity of Péronne in their drive toward Amiens.

Hitler issues Fuhrer Directive 12, Prosecution of the Attack in the West. It does not contain anything significant, and is more an expression of his desire to appear in charge and reassert control over a campaign which has developed due to decisions of commanders at the front rather than OKW headquarters.

Morale in the BEF is low, because they are being told to retreat despite giving a good account in every battle they have fought. The problem is not their military skill, but the German eruptions to the south that threaten their lines of communication.

18 May 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com 88 mm gun
In Belgium, a German 88mm gun model Flak 18 and crew pass Wehrmacht motorcycles (a BMW R18 and a DKW NZ350) alongside a British Morris C8.
Norway: Colonel Gubbins arrives at Mo i Rana. He has orders from Lieutenant General Claude Auchinleck to defend Mo i Rana. However, the local commander, Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Byrnand Trappes-Lomax of the Scots Guards, tells him that he cannot hold out without reinforcement - of which none is available. Gubbins thus, against orders but based on the best available information, authorizes a withdrawal. In Gubbins' opinion, the Scots Guards withdraws "precipitately" toward the ferry terminus at Rognan and leaves behind much valuable equipment. The German 2nd Mountain Division approaches the town, though Gubbins leaves behind some skeleton forces.

The Luftwaffe continues its gradual reinforcement of General Dietl at Narvik, dropping another 16 troops of the 1st Fallschirmjaeger Regiment. In addition, Luftwaffe seaplanes bring 15 more troops.

The Luftwaffe damages the Royal Navy battleship HMS Resolution off Narvik.

The Germans capture a Norwegian torpedo boat, Troll, at Floro.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends 13 aircraft against German columns around le Cateau.

Battle of the Atlantic: The U-boat fleet has been occupied with tactical patrolling the Dutch/Danish/Norwegian coasts. They now resume strategic patrolling around Great Britain. U-37 and U-43 are already are at sea, while U-60 and U-62 leave Kiel for stations around Great Britain.

Convoy OA 150G departs from Southend, Convoy OB 150 departs from Liverpool.

Anglo/US Relations: Churchill sends Roosevelt a telegram stating, "if American assistance is to play any part it must be available [soon]."

Spies: A member of the US embassy staff, clerk Tyler Kent, is arrested for spying. He has been (allegedly) passing copies of Prime Minister Churchill's correspondence with President Roosevelt to Anna Wolkoff, a Russian emigre with ties to a Fascist organization. Wolkoff, also arrested, has been (allegedly) passing the documents to Italian diplomats, who (allegedly) forwarded them on to Hitler. The US waives Kent's immunity.

French Government: Prime Minister Paul Reynaud shakes up the cabinet. Former PM Daladier switches to Foreign Minister, Philippe Pétain becomes Vice Premier. Reynaud takes Defense. General Weygand, recalled from the Middle East, is the new Commander-in-chief. Both 84-year-old war hero Pétain, who was the Ambassador to Spain, and Weygand are somewhat "out of the loop" and bring a fresh attitude to the government which may not be entirely positive. Weygand arrives in Paris from the Levant via Tunis.

Pétain is a particularly interesting choice. He has developed a friendly relationship with Francisco Franco and has commented that "France's greatest mistake has been to enter this war" - not exactly a resoundingly enthusiastic position.

The Paris sector is declared a military zone, with martial law imposed. For now, the government remains in Paris.

Belgian Government: King Leopold and his cabinet set up improved headquarters in Brugges.

Holland: The new Reich Commissioner for Holland, which surrendered on 15 May, is Artur Seyss-Inquart.

Germany re-incorporates into its borders the small slices of territory handed to Holland pursuant to the Treaty of Versailles.

Queen Wilhelmina is in Great Britain and visits Dutch vessels at Portsmouth.

French Homefront: The refugee crisis is only growing. An estimated 6 million Frenchmen are on the road south, while the population of northern French cities has fallen by 90%.

Belgian Homefront: The Belgians now really have nowhere to run, so the refugee crisis is much less there than in France.

Norwegian Homefront: The Germans ban the celebration of Norwegian Constitution Day, which typically includes traditional children's parades.

British Homefront: British men continue volunteering for the local defense groups - and an estimated 250,000 have now signed up (eventually known as the Home Guard). They do not have any uniforms or equipment and are told: "We'll get back to you." They are nicknamed "parashots" due to their presumed role of guarding against German paratroopers.

American Homefront: In California, the El Centro earthquake hits at 21:35 Pacific Standard Time. It is the first earthquake recorded by a nearby strong-motion seismograph and registers 6.9 on the Richter scale. It is the strongest earthquake in Imperial Valley, killing nine people. The area is largely agricultural, so, while irrigation systems and other farming infrastructure are destroyed, the damage is much more limited than it if had hit, say, a little further northwest at Los Angeles.

18 May 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com NYC headlines
It is a quiet morning in New York. Today's headline: "[German] Army Now 75 Miles From Paris." The sports section, however, is more interesting at the moment. Sixth Avenue and 40th Street, near Times Square, New York City. May 18, 1940.

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

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