Friday 22 March 1940

Bf 110 night fighters.

European Air Operations: Handley Page Hampden bombers conduct a standard night reconnaissance and leaflet drop over the Ruhr industrial area and northwest Germany on 22 March 1940. For the first time, though, Luftwaffe Bf 110 Zerstorer (destroyer) night fighters come up to challenge the British. One bomber is damaged.

Along the Dutch border, a Hawker Hurricane tangles with Bf109s and crashes.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Luftwaffe conducts another sweep over the British east coast and attacks the Cromer Knoll lightship without scoring any hits.

The British freighter Loch Assater hits a mine and sinks.

Convoy SL 25 departs from Freetown.

Western Front: Journalist William Shirer, based in Berlin, writes in his diary that "Germany can now try to force the issue on the western front, but this is improbable."

Soviet Military: General Konstantin Rokossovsky, arrested in 1937 during the purges that ended the lives of many of his colleagues, is released from prison and rehabilitated. This is part of Stalin's pattern of imprisoning his top generals, torturing them, executing some, and somewhat arbitrarily restoring others to their former, or even more prominent, positions.

French Government: While new Prime Minister Paul Reynaud has kept former Prime Minister Edouard Daladier in the cabinet, they find that they cannot agree on a strategy. This also has implications for relations with the British.

Turkey: The government orders all Turkish freighters to return to Turkish waters ASAP.

Finland: The Soviets continue occupying the Finnish port of Hanko, which is theirs for 30 years under the Moscow Peace Treaty. They rename it Hangö. The official handover is at midnight on 22 March 1940.

Romania: King Carol II vows to defend his country's borders.

India: The Muslim League advocates splitting India into Muslim and Hindu countries. This is an idea that is highly controversial among other revolutionaries.

China: The Chinese 101st Division, having bagged Wuyuan on the 21st, move on to capture the strongpoint at Hsin-an-chen in order to cut the road along the Yellow River that leads to Wuyuan. The Japanese send 80 trucks full of troops from Dashetai via Siyitang to make a forced crossing of the Wu-chia River at Ta-Tsai-chu 10 km (6.2 mi) north of Wuyuan. This is a Muslim region with Chinese troops that are full of fervor.

In the Battle of South Kwangsi, the Chinese 46th Army attacks the Japanese 22nd Army at Lingshan.

British Homefront: Gerald Winter, a farmer from Sussex, is awarded an Empire Gallantry Medal for dragging an RAF pilot from a burning plane.

American Homefront: Popeye the Sailor -- Stealin Aint Honest # 78 March 22, 1940, is released. Popeye battles Bluto for a gold mine!

Future History: Haing S. Ngor is born in Los Angeles, California. He becomes famous in the 1984 film "The Killing Fields" (1984), for which he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Thereafter, he continues acting and becomes an author.

March 1940

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

2019

Wednesday 20 March 1940

A British reconnaissance photo of the German seaplane base on the Isle of Sylt with targets marked, 1940.

Winter War: The Soviet Navy occupies its new base at Hango in Southern Finland.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-19 (Kapitänleutnant Joachim Schepke) continues its successful patrol on 20 March 1940 by torpedoing and sinking 1,153-ton Danish freighter Viking northeast of the Moray Firth at 05:00. Two crew survive, 15 perish.

Next, U-19 torpedoes and sinks the 2,109-ton Danish freighter Bothal at 05:15. Five of the crew survive, 15 perish.

The passenger liner Mauretania departs from New York with an unpublished destination.

The British respond to the Brazilian government's protest of the heavy cruiser HMS Dorsetshire's stopping of the German freighter Wakama on 12 February. They claim that they were only protecting Brazilian commerce. The Brazilians are not amused, as stated by the Brazilian Minister for Foreign Affairs Oswaldo Aranha:

Indeed you are not, you are definitely not protecting our commerce by maintaining your warships off our coast. It is apparent to me that your blockade of Germany is plainly ineffective. If it were effective, you could stop the German boats [sic] on the other side before they entered German ports.

U-44 (Kptlt. Ludwig Mathes), if not sunk on 13 March 1940 by mine, is sunk today by destroyer depth charges. Either way, U-44 does not return from its mission, and all hands are presumed lost.

U-22 (Karl-Heinrich Jenisch) is lost either today or sometime thereafter from unknown causes after leaving Wilhelmshaven. All 27 crew are presumed lost.

Convoy HG 23 departs from Gibraltar.

European Air Operations: Ten Luftwaffe bombers attack a coastal convoy of neutral ships. The RAF and Coastal Command defend the convoy. Three of the vessels are damaged: Norwegian Syinta and Topra Elise, and Swedish Utklippan. Several of the attacking planes are damaged.

RAF Coastal command sinks a Kriegsmarine ship, the converted freighter Altenfels now called German Sperrbrecher 12, while it is clearing mines.

The Luftwaffe attacks British freighter Barn Hill off the Isle of Wight. She has to be beached and later breaks in two.

An RAF attack overnight scores damage on the Sylt Island Luftwaffe seaplane base. RAF reconnaissance on Sylt shows damage to the hangers, jetty, oil tanks and other infrastructure. One RAF plane fails to return.

Western Front: The BEF claims that in an encounter with a German patrol, five Wehrmacht soldiers were killed.

German Propaganda: German radio claims of Allied shipping losses become a running joke throughout the war due to incidents such as this one: Dr. Goebbels claims today that a Luftwaffe attack on a British convoy sank 9 British ships totaling 42,000 tons. The British quickly respond on the BBC, noting that in fact no ships were sunk and only four damaged. They describe the German claims as "42,000 tons in excess of the actual facts."

French Government: The French cabinet resigns along with Daladier.

US Government: Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles ends his fact-finding tour of Europe and boards a liner at Genoa to return to the United States.

Soviet/Scandinavian Relations: Moscow expresses its displeasure at reports that the Scandinavian nations are going to form a mutual defense pact.

India: The Assembly of Congress Party calls for independence.

China: In the Battle of Wuyuan, the Chinese 35th Corps and associated units enter Wuyuan by surprise after dark. The two sides engage in fierce combat for control of the city throughout the night.

In the Battle of South Kwangsi, the Chinese East Route Force attacks the Japanese 22nd Army at the city the Japanese just captured, Lingshan.

Future History: US photojournalist Mary Ellen Mark is born. She shot stills for films such as Federico Fellini's "Satyricon" (1969) and Francis Ford Coppola's "Apocalypse Now" (1979). She passed away in 2015.

Scripps Institute of Oceanography research vessel, E.W. Scripps (ship), aground on a sandbar until the next high tide came in. March 20, 1940.

March 1940

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

2019

Saturday 30 December 1939

Dead Soviet soldiers in Suomussalmi after the battle - abandoned by their comrades. Their dark uniforms still stand out in the snow.

Winter War: General Stern has been brought west from the Soviet Far Eastern Army on 30 December 1939 to direct operations north of Lake Ladoga.

Winter War Army Operations: The Finnish 9th Division has been pursuing the fleeing Soviets from Suomussalmi. A platoon under Captain Kuistio embarks in two trucks and manages to catch the tail end of the 4 kilometer-long Soviet column at the northern end of Lake Kiantajärvi. There is nowhere to hide on the ice, and Kuistio and his men kill another 500 Soviet men using 4 machine guns, 1 twin antiaircraft- machine gun and various submachine guns. In addition, the Finnish air force (Bristol Blenheim Mk 1 bombers) and Finnish artillery blast away at the fleeing Soviets, killing some outright and sending others through holes in the ice. Total losses for the Soviet 163rd Rifle Division are estimated at 15,000, versus 420 Finnish dead or missing along with 600 wounded.

The total war booty from Suomussalmi brought back to headquarters is staggering for the poorly armed Finns:

• 625 Rifles, 
• 33 LMG's, 
• 19 MG's, 
• 2 AntiAircraft-MG's (four barrels), 
• 12 AntiTank-guns, 
• 27 Field and AntiAircraft-guns, 
• 26 Tanks, 
• 2 Armored cars, 
• 350Horses, 
• 181 Trucks, 
• 11 Tractors, 
• 26 Field kitchens, 
• 800,000 rounds of 7.62 mm rifle ammo, 
• 9,000 artillery shells, 
• a field hospital, and 
• a bakery. 

In addition, the local Finnish troops get their fill of rifles ammunition and machine guns which they can put to immediate use without headquarters ever knowing about it.

The Soviet 44th Rifle Division on the Raate road is still intact, but their standard Red Army 1902 model Moisin-Nagant 7.62 mm rifles are freezing in the extreme cold (gun-oil can freeze). In addition, most of their vehicle engines have seized because there is not enough fuel to keep them running through the frigid days and nights. This means the men and their animals are stuck - and with few ways to warm up. Thus, the Soviets are immobile and freezing. If they can be defeated, there will plenty of more booty to be had.

Winter War Air Operations: Soviet bombers attack Hango and drop about 60 bombs.

Winter War Naval Operations: Soviet battleship Oktyabrskaya Revolutsiya and destroyers bombard Finnish shore batteries at Saarenpaa.

Battle of the Atlantic: In a distant echo of the Admiral Graf Spee drama, the Uruguayan government gives the German freighter Tacoma 24 hours to leave Montevideo. It believes the freighter was assisting the German pocket battleship (including embarking her crew after she was scuttled) and thus is a military vessel.

Convoy OA 63 GF departs from Southend, and Convoy OB 63 departs from Liverpool.

Indochina:  In Hanoi, Chinese leader Chingwei signs an agreement with the Japanese. Chingwei is a former foreign minister of the Kuomintang who has left China because he lost a power battle with Chiang Kai-shek. Chingwei is convinced that the Nationalist Chinese cannot beat the Japanese, and thus he is agreeing to set up a rival Nationalist government under Japanese overlordship. He hopes to have the undisputed rule over China as a Japanese satrap after the Japanese win the war.

China: The Nationalist Chinese Air Force, which Claire Chennault has been working on, sends 40 fighters into the air over Liuchow. They encounter 13 Japanese Type 96 fighters. The Chinese apparently need more practice, because they lose 14 planes to none by the Japanese.

In the continuing Battle of South Kwangsi, the Japanese 5th Infantry Division escapes from Kunlunkuan during the night.

Japanese 21st Army captures Wongyuan in the Chinese 4th War Area.

The Finns were prepared for the cold... and for hand-to-hand combat.

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

2019