Saturday 5 April 1941

The weather is warm, so a couple takes a walk at the Washington, D.C. Tidal Basin on April 5, 1941 (Library of Congress). If the weather is warming up during wartime, that means that the military campaigning season can't be far behind.

Italian/Greek Campaign: Adolf Hitler by 5 April 1941 has prepared the Wehrmacht for Operation Marita, the invasion of Greece and Yugoslavia. Field Marshal Wilhelm List has his Twelfth Army in position in Bulgaria to invade both Greece and Yugoslavia. Generaloberst Maximilian von Weichs, meanwhile, is assembling the Second Army in Austria for a second blow after List stages the actual invasion. Mussolini also intends to take part, sending General Vittorio Ambrosio down along the coast from the Fiume region toward Ljubjana, Zadar, Split, and Kotor after List's men force Yugoslav forces to abandon those places in order to meet the new threat. Originally, General Halder's plan was to use merely a reinforced corps to invade Greece - now three entire armies of approximately 85 divisions are waiting to attack, including five Hungarian ones.

The Wehrmacht makes final preparations for what is expected to be a very straightforward operation. German commandos occupy the docks along the Danube to facilitate landings. Adolf Hitler tells Romanian leader Ion Antonescu that the invasion will take place on the 6th.

Yugoslavia's policy, as set for in Plan R-41, is to defend the entire frontier - unlike, say, Holland, which from the start in May 1940 intended only to preserve "Fortress Holland," a roughly rectangular region bordered by Amsterdam and Rotterdam. This also is what Greece would like to do. However, the Yugoslav Army is too small to defend everywhere, and as the famous dictum goes, he who defends everything defends nothing.

British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden and CIGS General John Dill were supposed to return to England in March, but have remained in the region due to the growing crisis. Today, they fly from Athens to Cairo.

General Henry Maitland Wilson, fresh of Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell's staff in Cairo, takes command of British forces in Greece. He receives Ultra decrypts stating that the Germans will invade in the morning. While often such information is of inestimable value, for that to be the case, one must have the means to take advantage of it. There is nothing further that Wilson can do to meet the invasion.

The British line is stretched along the Aliakmon River in northeast Greece, and Wilson has his headquarters at the base of Mount Olympus in central Greece. This spot is handy for communications both with his own troops and the Greeks defending against the Italians in Albania. With the main Greek troop concentration in the west near the Adriatic coast, they have few troops to spare in the east. Thus, the British forces, hurriedly brought over pursuant to Operation Lustre over the past couple of months, play a critical role in defending the heart of the country - and the rear of the Greek army in Albania.

While General Wilson is in overall command of British operations in Greece as commander of "W" force, General Thomas Blamey takes command of newly formed 1st Australian Corps. This incorporates British, Australian and New Zealand units. General Carton de Wiart, a legendary military figure who led operations in northern Norway early in 1940, becomes head of the British military mission in Yugoslavia. De Wiart has had his residence in Poland and is considered a specialist about the region.

British Operation Lustre continues bringing troops into Athens. Convoy AN 25 (one Greek and five British ships) departs from Alexandria bound for Piraeus. In addition, some British garrisons are landed on Aegean islands - today, the 1st Battalion of the British Bedfordshire lands on Lemnos.

East African Campaign:  Riding in armored cars, the 11th (African) Division (Major-General H. E. de R. Wetherall) crosses the Awash River and arrives at the outskirts of Addis Ababa, the capital of Italian East Africa. The Italians do not put up a fight, and in fact, they have abandoned the city, but the South Africans wait until negotiations conclude before entering. The Italian commander, the Duke of Aosta, has taken his remaining forces out of the capital for continued resistance. From his positions in mountain fortresses in Gondar, Amba Alagi, Dessie and Gemma, the Duke of Aosta intends to form a "redoubt" which will continue the resistance. Aosta orders the Italian leader in the city, Agenore Frangipani, to surrender the city rather than cause harm to its Italian residents. The South African air force raids the airfield.

At Massawa, the situation is not much better for the Italians. The 10 Infantry Brigade of the 5th Indian Infantry Division has reached the outskirts of the well-defended port, where it has hooked up with Briggs Force, which has come from a completely different direction. Things look dire for the Italians. Italian Rear Admiral Mario Bonetti asks for surrender terms at 13:30, but then an order arrives from Rome to "fight to the last man." British General Cunningham, meanwhile, warns that if Bonetti does not surrender, Cunningham will not instruct the British to protect Italian civilians from native tribesmen. At Addis Ababa, the Polizia dell'Africa Italiana (Police of Italian Africa) have remained in the city to maintain order, which is probably best for both the Italians and the British.

Me 109E 5/JG 27 Uffz. Hans Niederrhofer in Bitola (Bitolj), Macedonia,  April 1941.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe continues shifting units east. These include units of JG 54 and SKG 77.

Operation Savanna, a Special Operations Executive (SOE) mission, ends in complete failure. This was the operation begun on 15 March 1941 in which an RAF Whitley inserted an assassination squad near Vannes to kill Luftwaffe pilots of the pathfinder group. British intelligence was faulty, and the pilots did not travel on one bus to their airport as believed. Without a target, the Special Operations Executive men accomplished nothing and headed for the coast for extraction. Out of five paratroopers involved in the operation, one goes missing, another fails to reach the rendezvous spot, and three make it to the Sables d'Olonne beach on schedule for a submarine pickup. In the event, the kayaks used for the extraction are damaged on the submarine, so only two of the three men can be taken off in a dinghy paddled ashore by Geoffrey Appleyard of the SOE's Small Scale Raiding Force. The third SOE man, Joël Letac, remains behind and proceeds to join partisans in Paris.

Battle of the Atlantic: The British note the approach of good campaigning weather, stoking their invasion jitters. After all, the chatter out of Berlin during the fall was that the invasion of England, Operation Sea Lion, would simply be postponed until the spring. Four Royal Navy minelayers (Agamemnon, Menestheus, Port Quebec and Southern Prince) depart from Scapa Flow to lay minefield SN 8. These operations may seem mundane, but they are taken extremely seriously by the British, and they withdraw heavy cruiser HMS Norfolk from the patrols on the Denmark Strait to provide cover, along with cruiser Suffolk. Separately, minelayer Teviotbank lays minefield BS 53.

The Kriegsmarine sends half a dozen destroyers through the Straits of Dover just after dark to reinforce their forces in the Bay of Biscay. The RAF observes these movements and sends some of its own destroyers out to investigate, but there is no contact. The Admiralty assumes that this presages some kind of cruiser sortie such as Operation Berlin - but, in fact, it is a simple ship transfer unrelated to larger operations.

U-105 (Kapitänleutnant Georg Schewe) is operating off the coast of South America - such extended operations are made possible by the German supply ship network - when it spots a freighter. Schewe torpedoes and sinks 5200-ton British freighter Ena de Larrinaga. It is the first U-boat success off the coast of South America, extending the conflict into a completely new sector. There are 5 deaths on the Ena de Larrinaga, while 38 survivors are left adrift at sea for 13 days before being found.

U-76 (Kptlt. Friedrich von Hippel), on its first patrol, is part of the wolfpack attacking Convoy SC-26 about 250 miles south of Iceland. The convoy already has taken massive losses. The repeated attacks have put the British are on high alert. When Hippel fires a torpedo shortly before dawn that damages and ultimately sink 5351-ton British freighter Athenic, the Royal Navy escorts swarm to attack the submarine. HMS Scarborough and Wolverine force U-76 to the surface, enabling the crew to escape before it sinks. There are one death and 42 survivors, including von Hippel. On the Athenic, all 40 people are rescued by HMS Arbutus.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 450-ton British freighter St. Clement just off Aberdeen. There is one death.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 496-ton British freighter Rattray Head in the same area as the St. Clement off Aberdeen. There are three deaths.

Canadian destroyer HMCS Assiniboine collides with 789-ton British freighter Lairdswood in the Irish Sea. The destroyer proceeds to Greenock for repairs which take well over a month.

The Regia Aeronautica bombs and sinks 2290 ton Greek freighter Sifnos off the island of Milos, north of Crete.

U-431 (Kapitänleutnant Wilhelm Dommes) is commissioned.

A caboose of the Dowling & Camp sawmill in Slater, Florida. 5 April 941 (Photographer George Pettengill via Donald R. Hensley, Jr.).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Afrika Korps continues rolling eastward, moving out from Benghazi to take Barce. As with all operations in North Africa, the distances are astounding for those used to the tiny advances made in a typical European conflict. To date, the Afrika Korps has covered about 200 miles from El Agheila and faced barely any resistance from the British. The British 2nd Armoured Division has followed orders to retreat and avoid combat, but nobody on the British side expected this kind of massive retrograde movement. General Wavell has sent the former commander of XIII Corps during Operation Compass, Lieutenant General Richard O'Connor, forward to investigate and offer counsel to the current commanders there. O'Connor dutifully is driving west from Cairo, a difficult drive made dangerous by the fact that nobody really knows where General Erwin Rommel's panzers are at any given moment.

The British are scampering southeast on the Via Balbia toward Gazala. The Luftwaffe gets Bf 110s in the air to harass the retreating British around Derna and Junkers Ju 87 Stukas at Msus.

The Luftwaffe notes that the Royal Navy has brought in to Tobruk a cruiser and 13 transport ships for evacuations - though the road remains open to Egypt. In fact, the Germans are mistaken, the cruiser is almost certainly a wrecked Italian one (the San Giorgio). The British actually are using their transports to bring troops in, not take them out. This incident just illustrates the difficulties of relying on aerial reconnaissance.

On the ground, Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel orders the Ariete Division toward the fortress at Mechili and the 5th Panzer Regiment, incorporating the Ariete Division's tanks, toward Msus. Rommel also orders Fliegerfuehrer Afrika to transport elements of the 5th Light Division to At Tmimi in the evening to block the British retreat on the Via Balbia coastal road.

The troops in the lead are those of Graf Schwerin. At this time, he is moving his forces to the northeast. They arrive at Tengeder around 21:00. Schwerin needs air supply for further maneuvers, however. A pincer movement directed at Msus is developing, though how many British troops will remain to be captured is an open question. The Italian Brescia Division also is on the move, reaching Regima and Driana at 22:00.

Today is one of General Rommel's classics. He flies to the front in his Fieseler Storch observation plane and takes personal of the Ariete Division troops approaching Mechili. It is this kind initiative that the British, relying on Ultra decrypts and spy reports to allocate their forces, cannot foresee. It is one of the few times of the war when the British are operating blind, on an even footing with the Germans who of course don't have anything like Ultra reports - which helps to explain the otherwise inexplicably chaotic British retreat. It also is a high point for German arms, with their troops in Libya sending the British packing and final preparations for Operation Marita on the other side of the Mediterranean.

In Malta, major shortages are developing in several basic areas. Water supplies to the troop are shut off for 18 hours a day to conserve water. In addition, civilians have taken to hoarding kerosene, so rationing is instituted. Each purchase is limited to half a gallon, and the police are instructed to watch supplies carefully.

In Seattle, Washington, Czech skating star Věra Helena Hrubá flashes her visa to enter the United States. 5 April 1941. She left Czechoslovakia on the "last plane out" during the German occupation. Hruba intends to pursue US citizenship. Hruba is famous for telling Hitler after the 1936 Olympic Games that she would rather skate on the Swastika rather than for it. Her brother Rudy is a Hollywood film producer, and she has aspirations to become an actress. Under the stage name Vera Ralston, she will attain success as a "poor man's" Sonja Henie.

Battle of the Pacific: Australian trading schooner Gerard is commissioned as an auxiliary patrol vessel.

Soviet/Yugoslavian Relations: The two countries announce a treaty of friendship and nonaggression in Moscow. There are no economic responsibilities nor military guarantees, as there are with the Tripartite Pact - it is more a symbolic statement. The most important aspect is that, with this agreement, the Soviet Union gives public de jure recognition of the new Yugoslav government, something that actually had been given on 3 April in private between Andrey Y. Vyshinsky, the Soviet Vice-Deputy of Foreign Affairs, and Milan Gavrilovic, the Yugoslav Ambassador to the USSR and a Cabinet member in the Simovic government.

In hindsight, some view this agreement as more of a slap at Germany by the Soviets than signifying anything of consequence regarding Yugoslavia. However... this seems to be more a case of reading meanings into actions based on later events that may not really have been there originally. The Soviets simply don't want to be involved in a Balkan war at this time which might embroil them in a larger war with Germany.

Yugoslav Ambassador to the Soviet Union Milan Gavrilovic, left, in Moscow with British Ambassador to the USSR Stafford Cripps, right, at the time of the Friendship Pact with the Soviet Union.

Italian/Yugoslav Relations: Italy closes its land border with Yugoslavia at Fiume. Not only that, the Italians mine the bridge. The Yugoslavs at the Fiume consulate decide not to get trapped on the wrong side of the bridge and return to Yugoslavia.

Spy Stuff: Reports continue to flow into Moscow about a German invasion of the Soviet Union. A spy ring centered in Prague (the mysterious "Lucy" ring) reports around this date that the invasion will begin on 15 May - which in fact was Hitler's original intention as set forth in his 18 December 1940 Fuhrer Directive, but the situation has changed and Operation Marita must come first. Presumably, the spy - whoever it was - got a peek at that document and felt it was worth reporting.

Somewhat paradoxically, one of the problems with the Soviet military intelligence about Operation Barbarossa is that there simply is too much - everyone is claiming that an invasion is coming like a chorus singing out of tune. Not only do the different sources give different dates and other particulars, but sometimes the same sources change their basic particulars such as the date. The Germans themselves do not know when the invasion will occur - and there remains an exceedingly slim possibility that it may not occur at all. Hitler, meanwhile, is sending Stalin reassuring messages to not believe all these false rumors. Stalin views the entire issue as one of "English provocation," as he writes on one of the reports.

The Soviets do, however, have one unquestionably reliable source that is beginning to raise some concern - but not in Moscow. Trade between the two countries is proceeding according to agreements reached in 1939 and 1940 which provide, in general terms, for shipment to Germany of raw materials such as grain and shipment to the USSR of German finished goods. The German embassy in Moscow notes without elaboration that the Soviet exports to Germany increased during March 1941, while shipments in the other direction fell precipitously. Hitler, of course, would rather not ship equipment to the Soviets that they can later use against them. The Soviets, however, do not seem to read much meaning into this trend, and in fact, adhere to their trade obligations with extreme diligence so that the Germans cannot claim a breach of the agreements.

Bette Davis cuts her 100 lb 33rd birthday cake in Littleton, New Hampshire. Davis and the rest of the cast are there for the world premiere of her Warner Bros. film, "The Great Lie." 5 April 1941.

German Military: At Rechlin airbase north of Berlin, Ernst Heinkel demonstrates his prototype Heinkel He 280 V1 jet fighter to skeptical Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM) big shots such as the head of development Ernst Udet. While the viewers are impressed by the fact that the jet burns kerosene, which is much easier to obtain than high-octane airplane fuel, overall the presentation falls flat. Udet does not approve of the project. Heinkel has been developing the plane, designed by his chief designer Robert Lusser, on his own dime because he feels very deeply that it is a major step past current piston-engine fighters. While Heinkel badly wants the RLM to approve the project and fund it, he is prepared to continue developing it on his own - for patriotic reasons as much as financial ones.

As with all the early Luftwaffe jets, the main factor delaying the prototype's refinement is the engine. The HeS 8 engine is coming along slowly, and another engine, the HeS 30, is also proceeding along at about the same pace and may even be a better choice. What Heinkel does not know is that the RLM has other jet projects that it feels have more potential than the He 280. They don't feel the need to pursue two of these iffy projects at this stage - especially with the war going so well.

Soviet Military: Some sources claim that the Soviets make the maiden flight of the MiG-3, designed by Artem Mikoyan and Mikhail Gurevich, today. However, the I-200, as it is designated at this stage, flew on 5 April 1940. In fact, over 20 MiG-3 fighters already have been delivered to the Red Air Force by this time.

Polish Military: Major General Franciszek Kleeberg, one of the few heroes of the Polish campaign for the Poles for his solid performance between the Bug and Vistula rivers in early October, perishes in a hospital near Dresden. Kleeburg has been imprisoned in Oflag IV-B Koenigstein, where he experienced severe health problems and became an invalid. He is buried in Dresden. After the war, his remains are brought back to Poland and reburied amongst those of his fallen comrades in Operation Group Polesie on the site of his last battle.

US Military: Congress appropriates $14.5 million in the "Fifth Supplemental National Defense Appropriation Act, 1941." Among other things, it allocates $14.575 million to establish a Marine Corps training ground on the east coast.

The New Yorker - Saturday, April 5, 1941 - Issue # 842 - Vol. 17 - N° 8 - Cover by Roger Duvoisin.

Yugoslavian Government: The government only now is beginning to return to some semblance of normalcy following the abrupt 27 March 1941 coup against the government of regent Prince Paul. The cabinet of new Prime Minister General Dušan Simović meets for the first time. Like the country as a whole, the new cabinet is deeply divided about whether to resist German demands for cooperation or work with the Axis. In fact, the cabinet is about equally divided in three parts between those who want to collaborate, those who prefer to resist, and those who don't know what to do.

Japanese Homefront: Rubber stocks are running low in Japan due to the trade sanctions imposed by President Roosevelt. The Japanese take diplomatic steps to secure all rubber exports from Thailand, Indochina and the Dutch East Indies.

British Homefront: Sir Nigel Gresley passes away at age 64. He is the designer of the Mallard Pacific locomotive, which set speed records, and the Flying Scotsman Express.

American Homefront: Warner Bros. drama "The Great Lie" premieres in Littleton, New Hampshire. This is a week before its wide release and is done at star Bette Davis' request to benefit a local hospital there. The story involves a typical 1940s "difficult marital situation," wherein a married man has a baby with another woman, and then abruptly perishes - leaving everyone to figure how to, um, split the baby. While the film is quickly forgotten after the war, during the war years "The Great Lie" is quite popular. It leads to a radio adaptation featuring stars Davis and Mary Astor, and Astor wins the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Future History: Michael Moriarty is born in Detroit, Michigan. Michael studies acting in London in the mid-1960s, then gains fame as a baseball player in "Bang The Drum Slowly" (1973), a film about a dying player on the New York Yankees. The role was somewhat appropriate because Moriarty's grandfather was a long-time Major League Baseball player, coach, and umpire. Moriarty goes on to star in "Law & Order" on television from 1990-1994. He has appeared in many successful films such as "The Last Detail" and has espoused various political causes. He currently lives in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada and continues to perform music, write and act.

An ordinary traffic incident between two Chevy sedans at 23rd and Harrison in San Francisco, 5 April 1941 (San Francisco Public Library, via Flickr).

April 1941

April 1, 1941: Rommel Takes Brega
April 2, 1941:Rommel Takes Agedabia
April 3, 1941: Convoy SC-26 Destruction
April 4, 1941: Rommel Takes Benghazi
April 5, 1941: Rommel Rolling
April 6, 1941: Operation Marita
April 7, 1941: Rommel Takes Derna
April 8, 1941: Yugoslavia Crumbling
April 9, 1941: Thessaloniki Falls
April 10, 1941: USS Niblack Attacks
April 11, 1941: Good Friday Raid
April 12, 1941: Belgrade and Bardia Fall
April 13, 1941: Soviet-Japanese Pact
April 14, 1941: King Peter Leaves
April 15, 1941: Flying Tigers
April 16, 1941: Battle of Platamon
April 17, 1941: Yugoslavia Gone
April 18, 1941: Me 262 First Flight
April 19, 1941: London Smashed
April 20, 1941: Hitler's Best Birthday
April 21, 1941: Greek Army Surrenders
April 22, 1941: Pancevo Massacre
April 23, 1941: CAM Ships
April 24, 1941: Battle of Thermopylae
April 25, 1941: Operation Demon
April 26, 1941: Operation Hannibal
April 27, 1941: Athens Falls
April 28, 1941: Hitler Firm about Barbarossa
April 29, 1941: Mainland Greece Falls
April 30, 1941: Rommel Attacks

2020

Sunday 30 March 1941

Bristol Blenheim TR-A of RAF No. 59 Squadron at RAF Hawkinge following the attack on shipping off Calais on 30 March 1941 (Photo by crew member Sgt. Len Hunt - from the book "Bristol Blenheim - Theo Boiten"').

Italian/Greek Campaign: The action at the Albanian front is desultory on 30 March 1941, with artillery exchanges but very little movement on the ground. As has been the case for several days, the main action is of the diplomatic variety. This activity necessarily concerns the fate of Yugoslavia, as nobody expects the Allies to be able to defend the long border stretching from Bulgaria to Albania. Thus, if the Wehrmacht invades Yugoslavia as well as Greece, the fate of both Yugoslavia and Greece depends upon the ability of the Yugoslav military as much as anything else.

Yugoslav Foreign Minister Momčilo Ninčić summons German ambassador Viktor von Heeren. Ninčić has a statement indicating that Yugoslavia will honor its international agreements, including the Tripartite Pact. Von Heeren prepares to send the diplomatic note on to Berlin when he receives instructions from Berlin to avoid any contact with Yugoslavian officials and to return to Berlin. It is unclear if von Heeren ever delivers the message, and Ribbentrop certainly never replies to it.

The Yugoslav Army begins deploying troops to the frontiers.

Deputy chief of the German General Staff (Oberquartiermeister I) Lieutenant General Friedrich Paulus arrives in Budapest for discussions with the Hungarian chief of staff. The chief of staff agrees to attack Yugoslavia. There is some confusion at the highest levels of the government, as Admiral Horthy approves of the attack, but Prime Minister Teleki is out of the loop entirely.

East African Campaign: General Lewis Heath's 5th Indian Infantry Division continues to pursue the fleeing Italian troops toward the port of Massawa. The 4th Indian Infantry Division has been redirected to Port Sudan for shipment to Port Sudan - showing the amount of confidence that Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell has in a single division's ability to subdue the port's garrison.

The Italians in Massawa realize the fate awaiting them. Italian 7565 ton freighter Piave makes a run for it and heads for Assab.

In Addis Ababa, the Italian commander, the Duke of Aosta, also realizes what is happening. He messages Rome that he will resist for as long as he can.

Pilot Officer L.W. Stevens in his Hawker Hurricane during the Battle of Britain. While flying with RAF No. 145 Squadron, Stevens is KIA 30 March 1941. Photo from: "The Battle of Britain" Author: T.C.G.James.

European Air Operations: The British have learned that German heavy cruisers are in Brest following their very successful Operation Berlin. After dark, RAF Bomber Command sends 109 bombers to pay them a visit. They are both in dry dock, and neither is hit. Another force of 3 bombers based at Thorney Island raids shipping off Calais at 16:30.

The RAF loses at least one bomber during the Calais raid, TR-A of RAF No. 59 Squadron, which makes it back to RAF Hawkinge and crash-lands after losing hydraulics and throttle control. The crew survives, though two are wounded, one very seriously. The RAF also loses at least one Hawker Hurricane.

The Luftwaffe continues with its recent pattern of scattered raids by single planes. A Spitfire of RAF No. 41 Squadron shoots down a Junkers Ju 88 which lands at Wilton Moor, Eston, Yorkshire during the afternoon. All three Luftwaffe crew perish.

USS Gar, USS Grampus in the background, 30 March 1941. Photo courtesy of The US Navy Submarine Force Museum.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-69 (Kptlt. Jost Metzler), on its second patrol out of Lorient, is southwest of Iceland when it spots and sinks 3759-ton British freighter Coultarn. There are three deaths.

U-124 (Kptlt. Georg-Wilhelm Schulz), on her fourth patrol and in the vicinity of the Cape Verde Islands, torpedoes and sinks 3767-ton British freighter/passenger ship Umona. There are 100 deaths, including 15 passengers. The Umona was carrying, among other things, jam, maize and similar goods that are in short supply in England.

British 210 ton trawler Nisus disappears near the Faroe Islands. There are many British minefields in the area, and it is a favored hunting ground for the Luftwaffe.

Dutch coaster Celebes disappears during a trip from Liverpool to Falmouth.

Royal Navy anti-aircraft ship Alynbank is back in action after repairs to its collision damage from 23 December 1940.

Convoy OB 304 departs Liverpool, Convoy SC 27 departs from Halifax.

USS Gar, with USS Grampus in the background, 30 March 1941. Photo courtesy of The US Navy Submarine Force Museum.

Battle of the Mediterranean: General Rommel is ready to get moving. Since he does not have orders from OKH to attack, he gives his directives verbally. He tells the 5th Light Division to attack Mersa Brega in the morning. The 5th Light has had patrols out and reports that it captured an armored car. The British 2nd Armoured Division defends Mersa Brega. Rommel is encouraged by recent skirmishes, including the capture of El Agheila, and also wants to advance to the Jebel Achdar (Green Mountain) south of Benghazi because it is a rare source of potable water in the desert.

The RAF raids Tripoli in the early morning hours, causing only slight damage. The Luftwaffe also is in action, claiming to have destroyed an armored car, self-propelled gun, and tanker.

The damaged freighter Ruhr, carrying men and vehicles for the Afrika Corps, is towed back to Sicily. Troop casualties on it are reportedly 30 men. The rest of the ships of 15th Naval Transport Squadron accompanying it are in Tripoli at 09:00.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Rorqual (Lt. Commander Dewhurst) torpedoes and sinks 3645-ton German freighter Laura Corrado about 40 miles (70 km) north of Trapani, Sicily.

The Vichy French send a convoy of six freighters, escorted by destroyer Simoun, from Casablanca back into the Mediterranean. This, of course, requires passage through the Straits of Gibraltar. The Royal Navy has had conflicting views on how to handle such transits in the past, leading to at least one court-martial. This time, the Royal Navy sends out a large force led by light cruiser HMS Sheffield to intercept the French. This is Operation Ration by Force H.

The French ships pass under the guns of their forces at Nemours, and the British are unable to intercept the convoy when the French open fire. On their way back, the Royal Navy ships are attacked by French aircraft. Sheffield is damaged by a near miss and destroyer HMS Forester is hit and requires four weeks of repairs.

Italian submarine Dagabur attacks cruiser HMS Bonaventure escorting Convoy GA-8 south of Crete but misses.

The victorious Royal Navy fleet, led by battleships HMS Barham, Valiant and Warship and aircraft carrier Formidable, arrives back at Alexandria around sunset.

At Malta, the Luftwaffe sends four Junkers Ju 88 bombers which bomb Ta Qali airfield. One Hurricane on the ground is slightly damaged, but overall it is an unsuccessful mission. Neither side loses any planes.

Camp Hulen, Palacios, Texas. View of the 300,000 elevated water tank. 30 March 1941 at 14:00. Camp Hulen is named after Major General John A. Hulen, who suggested the spot in the 1920s due to the availability of water.

US/Anglo Relations: In keeping with the expressed desires of English Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the US Navy seizes 63 ships (26 Italian, 35 Danish and 2 German) interned in US ports. Over 900 Axis sailors (850 Italian, 63 German) are taken into custody. Some of the ships carry valuable cargo. A final decision has yet to be made whether to use them in North Atlantic convoy runs to Great Britain. The decision to seize the ships is a consequence of the recent ABC-1 Conference between US and British military leaders in Washington, D.C.

As part of Operation Fish, the heavy cruiser USS Vincennes (CA-44) departs Simonstown (Cape Town) carrying gold bullion being used by Great Britain to pay for war supplies. Its destination is New York.

Visiting Australian Prime Minister Menzies note that Churchill, elated by recent victories, has been communicating with President Roosevelt. Menzies, never one to mince words in his private diary, writes:

Great news of naval victory in Mediterranean at which Winston sends off cables to Roosevelt.... What a genius the man has. He has maintained by cable and letter the most easy and informal correspondence with Roosevelt; always treating him as a friend and ally, and also U.S.A - 'Don't you think we could do so and so.' Result, F.D.R. has passed into the position of an ally without perhaps realising how some of the steps have come about.

While this entry is highly flattering of Churchill, it is not so high-minded about President Roosevelt.

Spy Stuff: Churchill learns through "sources" that the Wehrmacht has redirected three panzer divisions from Romania, thence to Southern Poland, and then further south. There, they will participate in the invasion of Yugoslavia. This crystallizes the belief in Churchill's mind that a German invasion of the Soviet Union is next on Hitler's list - after he takes care of Greece and Yugoslavia. The source of Churchill's knowledge is poor practices by a German Lorenz cipher machine operator, who sends the same 4000-character message twice.

USS Barnett (AP-11) McCawley-class attack transport off the Norfolk Navy Yard on 30 March 1941 (Photo No. 19-N-23945, U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command).

German Military: Adolf Hitler holds a private meeting in the Cabinet Room of the Chancellery in Berlin with about 250 top leaders of the Wehrmacht, including Colonel General Franz Halder, Field Marshal von Bock, and General Hermann Hoth, all of whom take fairly thorough notes or immediately write down their recollections. It is a fairly remarkable meeting, with issues discussed that will dramatically influence the Operation Barbarossa campaign.

Hitler directs that Army Group Center's mission was to head due east to the Dneiper River, and only then head north. Moscow, he casually mentions, is "absolutely irrelevant." This directly contradicts a very strong body of opinion among the men to whom he is speaking. They feel that Moscow is of the utmost importance as the entrance of the land bridge to Asia and the center of Soviet life (including the focus of the entire railway and road system). Nobody challenges Hitler on this strategy, but some in the room will make their own contrary views known eventually - and act on those views.

Hitler does not think the campaign will be much trouble. He thinks it will all be over by fall, declaring:

We have only to kick in the door and the whole rotten structure will come crashing down.

Moving from the specific to the general, Hitler remarks on the ultimate objective of the campaign. It is not just the conquest of the Soviet Union, but the "eradication" of Communism itself "for all time." To do this, he authorizes "liquidation of the Bolshevik commissars and the Communist intelligentsia." As recorded by Halder, Hitler says:

The war against Russia cannot be considered in a knightly fashion; the struggle is one of ideological and racial differences and will have to be conducted with unprecedented, unmerciful and unrelenting harshness.... The commissars are the bearers of ideologies directly opposed to National Socialism. Therefore the commissars will be liquidated. German soldiers guilty of breaking international law... will be excused.

John Keegan, The Second World War (Hutchinson, 1989), page 186. The liquidations would be carried out by SS Einsatzgruppen following behind the fighting troops.

After being translated into an official OKW order, this directive becomes known as the "Commissar Order." As Hitler indicates himself (according to the notes), it is illegal under the terms of the Geneva Convention of 1929. Some will argue the Convention does not apply to the Soviet Union because the USSR never ratified the Convention (though the previous Russian government had). Article 82 of the Geneva Convention, however, states:

In case, in time of war, one of the belligerents is not a party to the Convention, its provisions shall nevertheless remain in force as between the belligerents who are parties thereto.

Thus, even if the USSR was not a party to the Geneva Convention, Germany, as a signatory at least arguably was bound to follow it (though, again, some will argue that it need be followed only in cases where both opposing governments, and not just one, have ratified it). The Geneva Convention, of course, forbids exterminating entire classes of captives. The OKW will begin working up its drafts of this order quickly.

Luftwaffe jet prototype Heinkel He-280 makes its maiden flight under its own power under the command of test pilot Fritz Schäfer. It features tricycle landing gear and a compressed-air ejection seat. The Luftwaffe has expressed little interest in the plane, preferring to focus on other designs, so Ernst Heinkel has been continuing with the plane's development on his own initiative. The main holdup is the engine, the HeS 8, which has been behind schedule. On the bright side, the engines burn inexpensive kerosene. The Luftwaffe, specifically RLM development chief Ernst Udet, remains uninterested. Heinkel views the Luftwaffe's failure to pursue this design as one of its biggest mistakes.

The Heinkel He 280.

US Military: Eight B-18 Bolo bombers of the USAAC 73rd Bombardment Squadron arrive at Elmendorf Field, Anchorage, Alaska. This is part of a slow but steady buildup of a US military presence in Alaska (not yet a US State); they are the first bombers to be based in Alaska.

The first flight of the Vultee A-31 Vengeance prototype V-72 dive bomber. It takes place at Vultee's factory at Downey, California. The British Purchasing Commission, in need of a dive bomber, already has placed orders for 300 of them. The plane is well behind schedule, as delivers originally were scheduled to begin in October 1940.

Yugoslavia: With Belgrade in an uproar after the recent bloodless coup, Italian and German nationals have left.

Future History: Graeme Charles Edge is born today in Rochester, Staffordshire, England. He becomes a founding member of rock group Moody Blues alongside Denny Laine, Clint Warwick, Mike Pinder, and Ray Thomas. As of this writing, Edge is the only remaining original member of The Moody Blues still performing in the band.

The Heinkel He-280.

March 1941

March 1, 1941: Rettungsboje
March 2, 1941: Oath of Kufra
March 3, 1941: Germans in Bulgaria
March 4, 1941: Lofoten Islands Raid
March 5, 1941: Cooperation With Japan
March 6, 1941: Battle of Atlantic
March 7, 1941: Prien Goes Under
March 8, 1941: Cafe de Paris
March 9, 1941: Italian Spring Offensive
March 10, 1941: Humanitarian Aid
March 11, 1941: Lend Lease Becomes Law
March 12, 1941: A New Magna Carta
March 13, 1941: Clydeside Wrecked
March 14, 1941: Leeds Blitz
March 15, 1941: Cruisers Strike!
March 16, 1941: Kretschmer Attacks
March 17, 1941: Happy Time Ends
March 18, 1941: Woolton Pie
March 19, 1941: London Hit Hard
March 20, 1941: Romeo and Juliet
March 21, 1941: Plymouth Blitz
March 22, 1941: Grand Coulee Dam
March 23, 1941: Malta Under Siege
March 24, 1941: Afrika Korps Strikes!
March 25, 1941: Yugoslavia Joins The Party
March 26, 1941: Barchini Esplosivi
March 27, 1941: Belgrade Coup
March 28, 1941: Cape Matapan Battle
March 29, 1941: Lindbergh Rants
March 30, 1941: Commissar Order
March 31, 1941: Cookie Bombs

2020

Sunday 22 September 1940

On 22 September 1940, Japanese troops burst into French Indochina from China. French Indochinese Colonial troops and Foreign Legionnaires offer resistance but are forced to retreat. The Japanese appeal to local Vietnamese communist partisans to rise up against the French, and the communists set up local governments which the French later suppress. Taking the longest view, this is the first act of the later Vietnam War.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Wolfpack shadowing Convoy HX 72 on 22 September 1940 about 600 miles west of Ireland already has a bunch of successes, but it is not done yet. The U-boats sink a remarkable amount of tonnage in this convoy during a running battle that takes several days and ends today. U-100 under the command of Joachim Schepke completes the greatest attack by a single U-boat on any convoy. In all, U-100 sinks 7 ships from HX-72.

U-100 (Kapitänleutnant Joachim Schepke) at 00:22 resumes his successful attack on the convoy, torpedoing 6561-ton British iron ore freighter Empire Airman. There are four survivors while 33 men perish. The ship is taken in tow but sinks on the 23rd. There is a memorial to the men lost on the ship at the Tower Hill Memorial in London.

U-100 torpedoes 10,525-ton British tanker Frederick S. Fales. There are 32 survivors and 11 men perish. The dead crewmen perish when the ship capsizes on their lifeboat.

U-100 torpedoes 3940-ton British lumber/cotton freighter Scholar using its stern tubes. The ship remains afloat and is taken in tow, but eventually becomes unmanageable and is scuttled. All 45 men on board survive.

U-100 torpedoes 6031-ton Norwegian freighter Simla. There are 31 survivors. The ship sinks within minutes and five men perish when they jump overboard in a panic. Fortunately, there is a ship nearby that picks up the survivors in under an hour.

U-100 also attacks the 5415-ton freighter Harlingen but misses. The Harlingen returns fire accurately with its stern gun and causes some minor damage to the U-boat.

U-32 (Kapitänleutnant Hans Jenisch) then attacks a straggler from HX 72. It performs a rare surface attack, shelling British freighter Collegian from long range (7 km) and damaging it. The freighter returns fire and escapes as it runs off. This practically defines a "low probability attack."

HX72 now is in ruins, scattered all across the North Atlantic. In total, it has lost 11 ships of 72,727 tons. Kapitänleutnant Joachim Schepke sinks a phenomenal seven ships in the convoy, while Kapitänleutnant Otto Kretschmer in U-99 sinks three. They achieve their successes by infiltrating the convoy and attacking from within. Credit ultimately belongs to Kapitänleutnant Günther Prien, who spotted and reported the convoy but could not attack himself because he was out of torpedoes. The rest of the 30 ships make it to port.

Anti-aircraft duty in Paris, 1940.

U-31 (Kapitänleutnant Wilfried Prellberg), a hundred miles south of the Faroe Islands, also uses its deck gun. This attack at 17:55 is more successful, as it sinks a local Faroese trawler, the 87 ton Union Jack. All seven men survive, reaching land late on the 23rd.

Kriegsmarine auxiliary minesweeper M-1604 Österreich sinks about 40 miles west of Hoek van Holland. The cause has not been definitively determined, most likely from a mine laid by HMS Cachalot.

Royal Navy trawler HMT Loch Inver (1930, Captain Thomas Hardcastle) is torpedoed and sinks off Harwich just after midnight. All 14/15 crew perish (no survivors). The Board of Enquiry reports states that Loch Inver, on patrol, was sunk by torpedo, though some sources say it hit a mine. This sinking may have taken place on 21 September, the sources are unclear, but the Board of Enquiry report suggests shortly before 00:50 on the 22nd. This sinking occurs during an attack by E-boats, and a little sleuthing suggests that German E-boat S13 sank the Loch Inver. Fellow trawler Edwina, on patrol with the Loch Inver, observes the attack from a distance and then engages the E-boats, but is undamaged. The Loch Inver is declared missing and presumed lost on 24 September 1940, which leads some sources to pin that as the date of loss, which is correct only in a legalistic sense.

Kriegsmarine 356-ton auxiliary minesweeper (Sperrbrecher 2) Athen is badly damaged by RAF air attack in the harbor of Boulogne. Hit by an aerial mine, it is beached. The ship is refloated later.

The Luftwaffe damages Dutch tanker Barendrecht in the River Thames.

Some accounts have HMS Tuna sinking Norwegian liner (and German prize ship) Tirranna today, but sources vary and I placed that on the 21st.

Convoy OA 218 departs from Methil, Convoy FN 288 departs from Southend.

Battle of Britain: The weather is fine over most of England, with only some morning fog, but the Luftwaffe continues scaling down its daylight operations now that Operation Sealion has been suspended. Some Bf 109s do a "Freie Jagd" over London in the morning, and they ease their boredom by attacking RAF Fowlmere. There, they do some damage, destroying a Spitfire and damaging others. A Junkers Ju 88 is shot down south of the Isle of Wight by RAF No. 234 Squadron. Otherwise, there are only some lone raiders doing minimal damage

After dark, things change. The Luftwaffe sends heavy raids against London, and by some accounts, this is the heaviest attack to date. Fires start at the Royal Arsenal Timber Field which spread, causing a major conflagration. This results in the loss of 100 residences lost and another 100 damaged. Direct hits on two air raid shelters kill dozens of people and injure more, while the supposedly safe Tube system suffers a direct hit at Mile End. The British Museum takes a hit, but the treasures have been secreted to underground storage. The fires are very difficult to put out and serve as a beacon for more waves of bombers.

The Luftwaffe is trying a new tactic of sending its own night fighters over England to engage RAF ones. Tonight, they shoot down a Whitley from RAF No. 58 Squadron, their first victory.

Three Hurricanes of RAF No. 85 Squadron crash in foul weather along the coast after running out of fuel. Overall, the losses are fairly minimal on both sides, basically those mentioned above.

A Luxembourgish policeman gives the Hitler salute to Heinrich Himmler during the latter's visit to Luxembourg in September 1940 (Federal Archives).

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command attacks the Channel ports and airfields along the coast with 95 aircraft. It also targets the big aluminum factory about 25 miles northeast of Dresden (Lauta), a repeated target until the last months of the war. A raid on Berlin causes minimal damage.

HMS Furious, parked 50 miles off Trondheim, launches six Skuas and 11 Swordfish at around 03:00. The weather fails to cooperate, and the raid turns into a disaster ... for the British. A Swordfish and a Skua wind up crashing in Sweden, while three Swordfish crash in Norway and a Swordfish runs out of fuel and crashes while looking for the carrier. Overall, three men perish, 9 are captured in Norway, and five are interned in Sweden. Furious returns to Scapa Flow.

Battle of the Mediterranean: With the Italians digging in at Sidi Barrani, the RAF and Royal Navy take turns raining destruction on them. The Italians are moving their camps further inland to avoid the daily bombardments, today by British destroyers HMS Jervis, Janus, Juno and Mohawk on the airfield at Sidi Barrani.

The Italians respond by raiding Mersa Matruh 80 miles ahead of their own lines.

British submarine HMS Osiris torpedoes and sinks 875 ton Italian Navy torpedo boat Palestro west of Durrës in the Adriatic.

British submarine HMS Truant (Lt.Cdr. Hugh Alfred Vernon Haggard), on its first Mediterranean patrol, torpedoes, and sinks 8459-ton Italian freighter Provvidenza 3.5 nm off Punta Imperatore, Ischia (10 miles west of Naples) in the Tyrrhenian Sea.

At Malta, at 11:30 the Italians send five SM 79 bombers escorted by four CR 42 fighters to bomb Luga Airfield. While the airfield receives minimal damage, the poor aim of the bombers completely devastates the village of Luga. One civilian boy is killed. Several unexploded bombs in the village cause further problems but are quickly found to be inactive (they have safety pins in place). At Kalafrana Airfield, a French Latecoere plan leaves to drop leaflets over Bizerta and Tunis in Tunisia.

Italian aircraft raid Cyprus for the first time.

Danish actress Anna Katrina, born on 22 September 1940.

German Military: The unpowered airframe of the Heinkel He 280 twin turbojet fighter is taken aloft, towed by a Heinkel He 111B, for gliding tests. The He 280 V1 is sort of a follow-up to the Heinkel He 178 that flew in August 1939 (this project originally had the designation He-180). The Luftwaffe is not particularly interested, having other jet planes in development so Ernst Heinkel, with designer Robert Lusser, has been pursuing the project on his own. The HeS 8 engines, however, are nowhere near ready yet. Among the innovations of the Heinkel He 280 is the first compressed-air powered ejection seat.

German/Finnish Relations: The Germans and Finns continue negotiating the terms of transit rights for Wehrmacht troops and supplies to Narvik via ports of the Gulf of Bothnia. The Germans agree to supply the Finns with arms.

Soviet/German Relations: The Soviets broadcast that the British have destroyed the German invasion fleet assembling in the English Channel.

Vichy French/Japanese Relations: The entire situation in Indochina is confused and fluid. The local Vichy French agree to give the Japanese three airfields in French Indochina during their continued discussions about the Japanese presence there. On or about this date the two sides sign an agreement for the Japanese to send troops into the country. The Japanese already are sending troops into French Indochina, sometimes against French resistance - the Japanese 5th Infantry Division crosses into Indochina at Lang Son by force and compels the French to retreat. The Japanese appeal to anti-Western elements in the country and urge local communists to rise up against the colonial administration. Many do, and they set up local communist governments in some areas where French administration is weak. The French are not beaten, however, and later suppress many of these revolts. The revolutionary fervor, however, has been ignited.

A 50-year-old itinerant Vietnamese who has spent most of his life abroad serving in the Comintern and working as a sort of community organizer, Nguyễn Ái Quốc, is in China as an adviser to the Chinese Communist armed forces. Sometime around this date in 1940 - nobody knows exactly when - Quốc begins regularly using the name "Hồ Chí Minh." This is a Vietnamese name combining a common Vietnamese surname (Hồ, 胡) with a given name meaning "He Who has been enlightened" (from Sino-Vietnamese 志 明: Chí meaning 'will' (or spirit) and Minh meaning "bright"). He keeps a close eye on developments in his homeland.

It is hunting season in parts of the United States. Here are 73 Deer hanging at the Klamath Falls, Oregon Train Depot. September 22, 1940.

Vichy French/German Relations: The German Armistice Control Commission sends a delegation to Dakar in French West Africa. The visit is timely, as the Royal Navy is about to pay a visit as well in Operation Menace.

Free France: Charles de Gaulle expresses support for former French Indochina Governor Admiral Decoux, who he sees as his representative in Asia.

Latvia: The Soviets integrate Latvian submarines Ronis and Spidola into the Navy. Since Latvia now is part of the USSR, it is wrong to characterize this as a "seizure."

Australia: Convoy US 5 departs from Freemantle, composed of Dutch liners Christian Huygens, Indrapoera, Nieuw Holland and Selamat. There are 4262 troops embarked, and its first stop is in Colombo.

American Homefront: Ben Musick a.k.a. Bill Morris of Dallas Texas, widely rumored to be associated in some tangential fashion with the moonshine business, wins the time trials at the Big Car Races at the Kansas State Fairgrounds. Attendance "In excess of 12,000." He does one lap at the half-mile track in 26.63 and later wins the 15-lap Sweepstakes Race in a time of 7:14.

Future History: Hanne Karin Blarke Bayer is born in Solbjerg, Denmark. Under the name Anna Karina, she becomes a major collaborator/muse/wife of Jean-Luc Godard during the French New Wave in the 1960s. She starred in classic films such as "A Woman is a Woman" (1961) and "Alphaville" (1965). Anna Karina appears to have retired from the business, her last film was "Victoria" in 2007.

In Section 6 of the 22 September 1940 Chicago Sunday Tribune, Dick Tracy shows how a private dick cross-dresses.

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 1 November 1939

Polish teachers from Bromberg being taken into the "Valley of Death" (Dolina Śmierci) in Bydgoszcz, Poland on 1 November 1939. It is estimated that there are some 5-6,000 Poles buried there in mass graves.

Western Front: German long-range artillery is shelling French villages and fortifications well behind the front lines on 1 November 1939.

Battle of the Atlantic: The British detain US freighter Exminster in Gibraltar.

Convoy OB 28 departs from Liverpool.

European Air Operations: The RAF makes reconnaissance flights over northwest Germany.

The He 178 in flight.

Luftwaffe: The new jet He 178 V1, which first flew in late August, is demonstrated for top Luftwaffe chiefs at the Luftwaffe test center at Rechlin. Amazingly, despite the advances made, the Air Ministry (RLM) has not been told of the extensive progress made, so the demonstration comes as something of a surprise. Ernst Udet and Erhard Milch, who essentially control Luftwaffe purchasing decisions, attend, but Air Minister Goering does not. The demonstration is an absolute technical success, as the jet performs flawlessly. However, Milch and Udet are not sold on the design due to a weak engine that limits the He 178's speed to an unimpressive (for a supposedly revolutionary technology) 372 mph (598 km/hr) and flight endurance of only ten minutes. No orders are placed.

Ernst Heinkel, however, is certain the technology will revolutionize aviation. He decides to proceed with his own private development of a jet fighter based on the He 178, the He 280, despite the RLM's disinterest. He does not know, though, that the RLM already is backing other jet projects, though their prototypes have not flown yet.

Poland: The Reich merges the portions of West Poland that had been ceded by the Treaty of Versailles into itself.  This includes Danzig and the Polish Corridor. It creates within this territory new districts (Reichsgaue): Posen, Greater East Prussia, and Danzig West Prussia.

The Soviet Union similarly proceeds with its own annexation of eastern Poland into the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. While it has not Great War claims on its territory, it bases this decision on supposed "plebiscites" held in the territory which, naturally, supported the Soviet desires.

Holland: A "state of siege" is proclaimed along the border with Germany by Dutch Royal Decree. This means martial law.

Switzerland: The country prepares for a possible invasion, issuing decrees related to that eventuality.

British Government: Physicist Hans Ferdinand Mayer submits the Oslo Report on German weapons development.

Finland: The delegation returns to Moscow after Molotov's ultimatum of the day before.

Australia: Prime Minister Robert Menzies announces that the country will increase the size of the armed forces.

China: Chiang Kai-Shek launches a Winter Offensive in several places against the Japanese.

American homefront: The International Olympics Committee meets and decides that the 1940 Olympics cannot take place in Finland as planned. This effectively cancels the Games for 1940.

Holocaust: Mass killings of undesired inhabitants pursuant to Operation Tannenberg continues in Poland with liquidations in Bromberg (Bydgoszcz) by "Volksdeutscher Selbstschutz" and the Gestapo.

Future history: Barbara Bosson is born in Charleroi, Pennsylvania. She becomes famous in such 1960s films as "Bullitt" and 1980s television series as "Hill Street Blues."

October 1939

October 1, 1939: Occupation of Warsaw
October 2, 1939: Hel Peninsula Falls
October 3, 1939: The Diamantis Incident
October 4, 1939: Otto Kretschmer Gets Rolling
October 5, 1939: Polish Resistance Ends
October 6, 1939: Hitler Peace Effort
October 7, 1939: The British Have Arrived
October 8, 1939: First RAF Kill from UK
October 9, 1939: "City of Flint" Incident
October 10, 1939: Lithuania Under Pressure
October 11, 1939: The Atomic Age Begins
October 12, 1939: England Rejects Hitler's Peace Offer
October 13, 1939: Charles Lindbergh Speaks Out
October 14 1939: Royal Oak Sunk
October 15, 1939: Cuban Rockets
October 16, 1939: First Aircraft Shot Down Over UK
October 17, 1939: Marshall Mannerheim Returns
October 18, 1939: Prien Receives His Award
October 19, 1939: Preliminary Plan for Fall Gelb
October 20, 1939: Hitler Grapples with the Jews
October 21, 1939: Hurricanes to the Rescue!
October 22, 1939: Goebbels Lies Through His Teeth
October 23, 1939: Norway the Center of Attention
October 24, 1939: German "Justice" Gets Rolling
October 25, 1939: Handley Page Halifax Bomber First Flies
October 26, 1939: Jozef Tiso Takes Slovakia
October 27, 1939: King Leopold Stands Firm
October 28, 1939 - First Luftwaffe Raid on Great Britain
October 29, 1939: Tinkering with Fall Gelb
October 30, 1939: Defective Torpedoes
October 31, 1939: Molotov Issues an Ultimatum

November 1939

November 1, 1939: The Jet Flies Again
November 2, 1939: The Soviets Devour Poland
November 3, 1939: Amending the Neutrality Act
November 4, 1939: Roosevelt Signs Neutrality Laws
November 5, 1939: The Spirit of Zossen
November 6, 1939: First Dogfight
November 7, 1939: More Lies About SS Athenia
November 8, 1939: Hitler Almost Killed
November 9, 1939: The Venlo Incident
November 10, 1939: Dutch Panic
November 11, 1939: Poignant Armistice Day
November 12, 1939: Peace Efforts Made and Rejected
November 13, 1939: First Bombing of Great Britain
November 14, 1939: The Dyle Plan
November 15, 1939: Elser Confesses to the Bürgerbräukeller Bombing
November 16, 1939: Martial Law in Prague
November 17, 1939: International Students Day
November 18, 1939: Magnetic Mines
November 19, 1939: Walls Around the Warsaw Ghetto
November 20, 1939: First RN Submarine Victory
November 21, 1939: Salmon & Gluckstein on the Prowl
November 22, 1939: British Recover A Magnetic Mine
November 23, 1939: HMS Rawalpindi Sunk
November 24, 1939: Japanese Enter Nanning
November 25, 1939: The Olympics are a War Casualty
November 26, 1939: Soviets Stage an "Incident" at Mainila
November 27, 1939: German Marriage Becomes Perilous
November 28, 1939: Judenrats in Poland
November 29, 1939: The Soviets Prepare to Invade Finland
November 30, 1939: Winter War Begins

2019