Monday 16 June 1941

"The Cheshire Yeomanry patrolling on horseback at Marjuyan in Syria, 16 June 1941." "At the outbreak of war, the British Army had only eight mounted units. Its cavalry horses last saw action in the Middle East during 1940-1942 where they were used for patrol and reconnaissance work" (Major Geoffrey Keating, © IWM (E 3593)).

Syrian/Lebanon Campaign: Operation Exporter continues. The Battle of Kissoué, which controls access to Damascus, reaches a climax on 16 June 1941. Vichy French resistance has stiffened, and a company of the 7th Chasseurs d'Afrique advance to take Quneitra (Kuneitra or El Quneitra) from the Royal Fusiliers. The French tanks surround the town and at 19:00 take 13 British officers and 164 other ranks prisoner.

The French thus save Damascus for the moment. However, the British remain on the offensive by bringing in the 16th British Brigade from Egypt (diverted from other operations). This forces the Vichy French to withdraw their forces attempting to outflank the advancing British and prepare for a frontal defense. During the French withdrawal, British troops take up positions above the road the French must use and kill over 50 troops before withdrawing during the night.

The Vichy French are held at Jezzine, which the 25th Australian Brigade holds with difficulty. At Merdjayoun, Brigadier Berryman takes command.

The war at sea heats up. Vichy destroyer Chevalier Paul, carrying supplies to Syria and Lebanon, is sunk near Latakia by British Swordfish of RAF No. 815 Squadron (one plane shot down). There are six deaths and nine wounded. French destroyers Valmy and Guepard pick up the survivors. While they withdraw, Guepard and Valmy are damaged by Royal Navy destroyers Jervis and Kimberley.

Another French destroyer, Vaquelin, makes port in Beirut with supplies, but the RAF damages it there. The Royal Navy, meanwhile, continues providing support to the Australians advancing north from Sidon.

"40mm anti-aircraft gun being towed in Syria, 16 June 1941." (Major Geoffrey Keating © IWM (E 3561)).

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe raids Gloucester with 60 bombers.

RAF Bomber Command sends three Blenheims of No. 21 Squadron on a special mission to sink trawlers parked in the North Sea to act as a primitive early-warning system. These trawlers are known to the British as "squealers." The Blenheims, flying at wavetop level, manage to sink a squealer but lose a Blenheim when it hits one of the trawlers' masts.

RAF Bomber Command sends 25 planes on an anti-shipping mission.

The RAF conducts "Circus No. 14." This is a raid on Boulogne, with ten No. 11 Group fighter squadrons escorting ten Coastal Command Blenheim bombers. Luftwaffe fighters of elite I,/JG 26 (Adolf Galland) intercept the formation, and the RAF loses two Blenheims and nine Supermarine Spitfires. The Luftwaffe loses four Bf-109s, and two of the pilots perish.

During this action, Lt. Joseph "Pips" Priller shoots down a Spitfire and a Blenheim over Boulogne. Galland, meanwhile, downs a Hurricane. Both men will wind up the war with 100 victories (Galland with 104, Priller with 100) and are considered two of the greatest fighter pilots of the war - if not all time.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command sends 105 bombers to attack Cologne, 72 to attack Dusseldorf and 39 to attack Duisburg.

HMS Rapid (H32) - R class destroyer. Ordered: 1 April 1940. Laid down: 16 June 1941. Launched: 16 July 1942.

Battle of the Atlantic: British invasion fears continue during prime summer weather. Upon unconfirmed reports of a German sortie from Brest, the Home Fleet is brought to one hour's notice. However, the ships leaving port are only freighters and the alert is canceled.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 167-ton British trawler Atlantic three miles southeast of Eddystone. The Atlantic makes it back to Plymouth.

German Patrol Vessel (Vorpostenboot) V-5606 runs aground near Vagsoy, Norway. The 204-ton former whaler ("Treff") is a write-off and eventually sinks in 35-45 meters of water. It remains in good shape and is a dive site.

Royal Navy minelayers Agamemnon and Menestheus lay minefield SN-66 in the Iceland Faroe field. This has been a favored breakout point for German surface raiders into the Atlantic.

Convoy OB-335 departs from Liverpool bound for Halifax, Convoy HX 133 departs from Halifax.

Royal Navy corvette HMS Bryony is commissioned, minesweeper Seaham is launched, and destroyers Rapid and HNLMS Kortenaer (nee Scorpion) are laid down.

Canadian corvette HMCS Vancouver is laid down at Esquimalt, British Columbia.

United States USS Gansevoort and Gillespie are laid down.

U-406 is launched, U-220, U-221, and U-222 are laid down.

An Afrika Korps soldier gets out of his Panzer III, June 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: It is Day 2 of Operation Battleaxe, the latest British attempt to push the Germans and Italians back from the Libyan frontier and relieve Tobruk. Today does not go any better than the opening day of the offensive for the British, and it runs tight today due to smart and quick German ripostes.

The 11th Infantry Brigade attacks into Halfaya Pass, a critical objective that divides the front into thirds, with the pass being the center section. Afrika Korps Major Wilhelm Georg Bach controls the outnumbered Axis forces in the Pass, and the British quickly surround him. Bach, an unorthodox officer who flouts Wehrmacht convention by being indifferent about his attire and kindly to his men, is an expert with 88 mm flak guns being used in an anti-tank role, and he puts his skills to good use. He holds out throughout the day and continues destroying British tanks. This is the linchpin of the German defense, and it holds despite great privations.

General Walter Neumann-Silkow, the Commander of the 15th Panzer Division, attacks the lone British success of the opening day of the British offensive, Fort Capuzzo, at 06:00. Neumann-Silkow has 80 tanks and forms them into two columns. Like the British in Halfaya Pass, however, the advancing panzers run into the fierce anti-tank fire from 25-pounders and tanks hull-down in well-chosen defensive positions. The panzer force loses 50 tanks within four hours, and the attack is over by noon. This is a mirror-image of the failed British tank attack on Halfaya Pass and Hafid Ridge on the 15th. This failure frees the Scots Guards to pursue them, and the British take the Sollum barracks on the east flank. This further isolates Bach in Halfaya Pass.

Meanwhile, the German 5th Light Division also attacks down the coastal sector at dawn. It rolls southward past Hafid Ridge, shadowed by the 7th Armoured Brigade and 7th Support Group. The panzers once again demonstrate their superiority over the British tanks, standing off and shelling the British while still out of range of British tank fire. The Germans thereby eliminate their true threat - the vulnerable towed British 25-pounder anti-tank guns. Once those are gone, the Panzer IIIs (50 mm gun) and Panzer IVs close and destroy the thinly armed British cruiser tanks. The battle goes so poorly for the British that they have to retreat not just to their starting positions, but east of them - losing ground. The day ends with 5th Light continuing to harass the retreating British tank force.

General Erwin Rommel keeps close tabs on the battle and notices the brilliant success on the flank by the 5th Light Division. At 16:00, Rommel orders the 15th Panzer Division to leave only a screen against the advancing Scots Guards and shift its tanks to support 5th Light's advance. The British at first try to continue attacking into Halfaya Pass, but after dark the British accept defeat. They consolidate their remaining Matilda Tanks (over half have been destroyed) as a blocking force while the British infantry withdraws back into Egypt. The British only have 21 cruiser tanks left in the 7th Armoured Brigade and 27 Matildas in the 4th Armoured Brigade.

The events of 15 June effectively end Operation Battleaxe. However, the battle is not over. Now, the Afrika Korps is on the offensive due to superior equipment and tactics. While the British Army still holds Fort Capuzzo, the Germans are advancing into position not only to cut them off but stream further east into Egypt.

Overhead, Luftwaffe ace Hans-Joachim Marseille takes damage to this fighter in the aerial battles over the battle. Oil spraying on his windshield blinds him, but he is "talked down" to a safe landing by flight leader Reiner Pöttgen.

At Malta, a Wellington bomber arriving from Gibraltar crashes in the sea on approach to Hal Far airport. The entire crew perishes. Another Wellington fails to arrive and is presumed lost.

British propaganda dropped on Germany, 16 June 1941 (EH.510/4, Luftpost, Nr. 4, 16. Juni 1941Psywar.org).

POWs: Realizing that his peace mission has failed and that Germany faces a two-front war, Rudolf Hess throws himself down a flight of stairs at his place of confinement in Aldershot in order to commit suicide. However, he only manages to break his leg.

The reverse side of the 16 June 1941 British propaganda leaflet (EH.510/4, Luftpost, Nr. 4, 16. Juni 1941Psywar.org).

Anglo/US Relations: Prime Minister Winston Churchill makes a stirring radio speech from London that is broadcast in the United States. It is a brief three-minute speech, but very effective. The occasion is the University of Rochester awarding Churchill an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws, his first honorary degree from the United States. In a speech entitled "The Birth Throes of a Sublime Resolve (‘The Old Lion’)," Churchill says in part:

But what is the explanation of the enslavement of Europe by the German regime? How did they do it? It is but a few years ago since one united gesture by the peoples, great and small, who are now broken in the dust, would have warded off from mankind the fearful ordeal it has had to undergo. But there was no unity. There was no vision. The nations were pulled down one by one while the others gaped and chattered. One by one, each in his turn, they let themselves be caught. One after another they were felled by brutal violence or poisoned from within by subtle intrigue.

England, he implies, now is the "old lion with her lion cubs at her side" standing ready to deter aggression, alone against hunters who are armed with deadly weapons and impelled by desperate and destructive rage" after the others have been overcome. It is classic Churchill, one of his best speeches.

Winston Churchill addresses the American people, 16 June 1941.

US/German Relations: Further to his recent Executive Order freezing German, Italian, and other European assets connected to the Axis, President Roosevelt orders the closing of all German consulates (other than the embassy in Washington D.C.) by 10 July. All related personnel must return to Germany. This includes ancillary services such as the German Library of Information in New York City, the German Railway and Tourist Agencies, and the Trans-Ocean New Service. The reason given is that these German services "have been engaged in activities...of an improper and unwarranted character" and "wholly outside the scope of their legitimate duties." These activities are "inimical to the welfare of this country."

The Germans, of course, quickly respond in kind.

Chinese General Chen Chang on the cover of Time magazine, 16 June 1941 (Boris Artzybasheff).

US/Japanese Relations: The US Ambassador in Tokyo, Joseph Grew, delivers a diplomatic protest over Japanese Imperial Air Force flights over the US naval base at Guam on 11 and 14 June. The Japanese government denies any culpability in the matter. Grew, incidentally, is wary of Japanese intentions, having cabled Washington in January 1941 with warnings of a brewing Japanese attack.

German/Italian Relations: Italian Foreign Minister Count Galeazzo Ciano meets with German Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop in Venice. Ribbentrop denies rumors of a pending German attack on the Soviet Union. He does say, though, that should war break out, Germany would win quickly.

Aerial reconnaissance of Kharkiv, the fourth-largest city in the Soviet Union and the most fought-over city in Russia.

German Military: Luftwaffe General Eugen Meindl, commander of Meindl Group during Operation Mercury on Crete until badly wounded at Platanias Bridge, receives the Knight's Cross.

Field Marshal Albert Kesselring meets with Field Marshal Fedor von Bock. Kesselring commands Luftflotte 2, which is to operate in support of Bock's Army Group Center (Heeresgruppe Mitte) on the road to Moscow. Kesselring and others move to their forward headquarters in anticipation of the 22 June 1941 scheduled start to Operation Barbarossa.

Reich port authorities are ordered to prevent any Soviet vessels from leaving. German U-boats already have carte blanche to sink Soviet vessels, so this is probably a necessary move because U-boats are lurking around all Baltic ports.

Finnish Military: In preparation for Operation Barbarossa and the Continuation War, the Finns withdraw their troops from the island of Morgonland. Morgonland is used to spy on Soviet forces in Hanko, which the Soviets use pursuant to the surrender terms of the recently concluded Winter War. The Finns begin to mine the waters around Hanko. It is difficult to conceive of the Finns making these moves if they are not already informed about Operation Barbarossa.

Finnish Naval HQ also gives orders to prepare for occupying the Åland Islands, which are demilitarised in peacetime. These islands have been a perpetual bone of contention between the Finns and the Soviets but have minimal strategic significance because they are demilitarized in peacetime. These preparatory moves are indicative of Finnish motivations to settle old scores with the Soviets and recover lands they believe belong to them for historical and pragmatic reasons.

USS R-2 (SS-79) R-class coastal and harbor defense submarine. Assigned to Div. 12 on 1 June 1941, R-2 departed New London on 16 June 1941 and 6 days later arrived in Key West, Florida. This photo is from the 1920s or 1930s (Photograph # NH 41873, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center.).

US Military: The US Marine Corps establishes the 1st Marine Brigade (Provisional) at Charleston, South Carolina. Brigadier General John Marston is in command. Marston trains his men for their next assignment, the occupation of Iceland.

Canadian Military: The First Canadian Tank Brigade departs from Canada, bound for England.

British Homefront: Member of Parliament Captain J. Henderson Stewart denounces slackers in the munitions industry, saying in the House of Commons:

Today, when the flower of our land has been mowed down through lack of arms to defend themselves, arms factories at home are frequent scenes of deliberate slacking, deliberate idleness and shameless agitation for higher and higher wages for the same work done.

While there are always slackers in any industry and country, British workers are operating under intense pressure and danger. This is more a statement of how some British troops view their inferior equipment (such as tanks) and supplies than any reflection on dedicated war workers.

British Homefront: The government issues figures showing that unemployment for May 1941 was 243,656 people. This is down from 600,000 in May 1940.

Washington National Airport, opening day, 16 June 1941.

American Homefront: Washington National Airport (renamed Ronald Reagan National Airport in 1998) opens southwest of Washington, D.C. The airport, according to a 1945 act of Congress, is within Virginia but controlled by federal authorities.

New York Yankees centerfielder Joe DiMaggio ties the Yankee record for hitting streaks (held jointly by Roger Peckinpaugh and Earle Combs, both of whom attend this game) at 29 games when he gets a double to left field in the fifth inning. The record is at risk (at least in pure terms) when a rain delay in the middle of the fifth inning almost ends the game. However, after an hour the game resumes and DiMaggio quickly gets his hit against Cleveland Indians pitcher Al Milnar.

"British Sailor A First Soda," Life magazine, 16 June 1941.

June 1941

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

2020

Saturday 17 May 1941

A Messerschmitt Bf 110D in British markings in North Africa. This aircraft served with II/ZG76 in Iraq and was captured after crash-landing near Mosul on 17 May 1941. The RAF named it "The Belle of Berlin" and used it as a communications aircraft and later as a unit 'hack' in RAF No.267 Squadron.

Anglo/Iraq War: On 17 May 1941, recently arrived Special Force Junck (Sonderkommando Junck), under the command of Commander of Aviation Iraq (Fliegerführer Irak) Oberst Werner Junck, raids the advancing British relief column (Kingcol) with three Bf 110s. The RAF sends two recently arrived Hawker Hurricanes (flown in from Egypt) and six Bristol Blenheim bombers of No. 84 Squadron to attack Junck's own airfield at Mosul. While the RAF loses one precious Hurricane, the Luftwaffe loses two planes and has four more damaged. In a separate action, two RAF Gloster Gladiators from Habbaniya Airfield catch two Bf 110s taking off from Rashid Airfield at Baghdad and shoot them down. One of these Bf 110s crashlands and will be repaired and placed in RAF service. While Junck still has a sizeable and effective force, it is suffering rapid attrition, and Iraqi/Luftwaffe ground support services are virtually nonexistent.

On the ground, the scratch British garrison at Habbaniya Airfield continues its unexpectedly stout defense against the Iraqi military with great success. The British relief column, Kingcol, reaches Habbaniya late in the evening, but the Habbaniya garrison was in no need of rescue. The newly arrived British forces then continue their advance east to within ten miles of Fallujah on the road to Baghdad.

The Soviet TASS News Agency announces that the USSR and Rashid Ali government in Iraq have reached an agreement for diplomatic, trad and consular arrangements.

Illustrated London News, 17 May 1941.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe is moving the bulk of its aircraft from the western front to the East in preparation for Operation Barbarossa. Thus, the Blitz is over and the pace of operations along the Channel front slows markedly. The Luftwaffe mounts a small raid on Birmingham that hits Alum Rock Road (a continuation of High Street).

RAF Bomber Command completes its missions over Cologne and Bramsfeld begun on the 16th, and during the day sends 70 aircraft to attack Kiel. At Bramsfeld the Atlantik rubber plant is hit with two high explosive bombs and 44 incendiary bombs. After dark, Bomber Command sends 14 bombers against Rotterdam and 15 against Boulogne.

Lieutenant Stanley Michel Kolendorski, KIA 17 May 1941.

The first American, Pilot Officer Stanley Michel "Mike" Kolendorski, is killed in action while flying a Hawker Hurricane in service with the RAF. He is with RAF No. 71 (some sources say 121) "Eagle" Squadron. Kolendorski is of Polish heritage, was born in 1915 in Jersey City, New Jersey, and was living in California with his wife Charlotte May when he enlisted with the RAF in Canada. Kolendorski, shot down over Holland, is buried at  Rockanje (Zeeweg) General Cemetery  Rockanje, Westvoorne Municipality, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands, Memorial ID 18834392.

The British Ministry of Home Security announces that 6,065 people were killed and 6,926 injured during Luftwaffe attacks in April 1941. Among the dead, 2912 were men and 2418 were women, and 680 were children under the age of 16. An additional 61 people remain missing and are presumed dead. The figures are an increase from the 4259 killed and 5,557 injured in April 1941.

East African Campaign: The Sudan Defense Force, accompanied by Abyssinian guerilla forces, attack Italian positions at Chilga west of Gondar.

At Amba Alagi, surrender negotiations are concluded between the Duke of Aosta and the British (Indian and South African troops). An agreement for the Italians to surrender is reached at 17:30. It is to be a "surrender with honor," and the Italians will be permitted to march out with their rifles (to be surrendered later) but leave behind their other equipment and stores. The ceremony of surrender is to take place on 19 May. The Italians are forced to surrender due to lack of supplies, a situation exacerbated when a British artillery shell damaged the oil tank they were using to store their potable water.

"Six Blenheim Mark IVFs of No. 254 Squadron RAF, flying in formation over Northern Ireland shortly after the unit's arrival at Aldergrove, County Antrim." May 1941. © IWM (CH 2992).

Battle of the Atlantic: U-107 (Kptlt. Günther Hessler), on its lengthy second patrol, is operating off Freetown. The U-boat has been stalking independent 8029-ton Dutch tanker Marisa, which is full of oil, since mid-day on the 16th. At 00:36 on the 17th, Hessler finally gets into firing position and hits the Marisa with one torpedo. The explosion kills two or three men, but the rest of the crew takes to the lifeboats. Tankers being difficult to sink due to their compartmentalized structures, Hessler hits it with another torpedo in the stern at 01:15, then surfaces to use deck guns - both of which misfire. The survivors take to three lifeboats, two of which are picked up by Royal Navy destroyers (Columbine and Surprise), and the third of which makes landfall at French-Guinea on 23 May.

The Luftwaffe (Focke-Wulf Fw 200 aircraft of I Staffeln, Kampfgeschwader 40) bombs and sinks 7939-ton British freighter Statesman in the Northwest Approaches. There is one death.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 1091 ton British freighter Arthur Wright and 933-ton Norwegian freighter Ala five miles south of Shoreham. Ala has to be beached near Shoreham but later is refloated and repaired. There is one death on Ala, the rest of the two crews survive.

Winston Churchill, in a memo to First Lord of the Admiralty A.V. Alexander and First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Dudley Pound, requests that ten of the Royal Navy's 40 large armed merchant cruisers (AMCs) be converted into troop transports.

Royal Navy ocean boarding vessel HMS Registan captures 488 ton Vichy French auxiliary schooner Izarra near Canada and sends it to St. John's, Newfoundland.

Four German freighters are reported to have left Chilean ports in an attempt to run the Royal Navy blockade of Europe.

Convoy OB 323 departs from Liverpool, Convoy SL 75 departs from Freetown bound for Liverpool.

Canadian corvette HMCS Dauphin (Lt. Commander Robert A. S. MacNeil) is commissioned and corvette Summerside is launched in Quebec City.

U-206 (Oberleutnant zur See Herbert Opitz) is commissioned, U-134 is launched, U-212, U-261, and U-465 are laid down.

The four-engine Junkers G-38. The last one is destroyed on 17 May 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The British attack on the Axis line centered on Halfaya Pass, launched on 15 May, lives up to its codename Operation Brevity by coming to an inglorious end. German Colonel Maximilian von Herff, in command of Group Herff, launches a counterattack in the area near Bir Wair and Musaid at 1600 hours. British Brigadier General William "Strafer" Gott withdraws his troops into the Halfaya Pass, Egypt, ending his offensive operation.

The only tangible benefit of the offensive is that the British remain in possession of strategically important Halfaya Pass. However, that that small gain has cost the British five tanks destroyed and 13 damaged in addition to 206 casualties. The Germans have suffered 295 casualties and Italians 395 (347 captured), along with losing three tanks lost and about the same number damaged.

At Tobruk, fresh Australian troops and their artillery pieces arrive during the night on destroyer HMAS Vampire. By first light, the troops and guns are used to attack the investing Axis troops, but they make no progress.

Winston Churchill cables Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell and begins with "Results of action [Operation Brevity] seem to us satisfactory." He notes that "News from Tobruk is also good." He makes an extremely rare direct reference to Ultra decrypts (which Wavell knows about) when he writes that "Enemy is anxious about Tobruk and reports with apparent satisfaction when it is quiet."

The RAF (Beaufighters of No. 252 Squadron based on Malta) raids Athens airfield and destroys the second - and last - Junkers G.38 (the "Generalfeldmarschall von Hindenburg") being operated by the Luftwaffe (after long service with Lufthansa) on the ground. The G.38 is an obsolete 1929 design but has an advanced design that foreshadows the "Blended Wing Body" design that offers aerodynamic advantages and will experience a resurgence of popularity by Boeing and NASA in the 21st Century. It also is one of the few four-engine designs ever used by the Wehrmacht and features unique seats in the wings for passengers with forward-facing windows.

The Luftwaffe continues its attack on British installations on Crete in preparation for Operation Mercury, the invasion of Crete. At Suda Bay, the German planes sink 10,694-ton British tanker Eleonora Maersk (20 killed, 7 later become POWs, 17 rescued) and 5719 ton Greek freighter Themoni. The Eleonora Maersk will stay sunk throughout the war but will be raised and repaired thereafter.

The Luftwaffe drops mines in the Suez Canal.

Tanker Rondine, carrying 5000 tons of aviation fuel, arrives later than expected at Athens. Operation Mercury accordingly is postponed to 20 May, which now appears to be a firm invasion date.

Quiet day on Crete, with the Luftwaffe only performing minimal reconnaissance.

War Crimes: The Luftwaffe attacks 7938-ton hospital ship Aba about fifty miles south of Crete. Some Royal Navy ships of Force C come to the hospital ship's aid, and one, anti-aircraft cruiser HMS Coventry, is strafed by the Luftwaffe planes. Attacking hospital ships, which are plainly marked, is a war crime, but it is fair to say that both sides have been guilty (under some interpretations) of violations of such commonly accepted rules of war.

Bomb damage in Birmingham, 17 May 1941 (Birmingham City Library).

POWs: Rudolf Hess takes up temporary residence at the Tower of London, arriving there by train from Scotland. He is imprisoned near the White Tower and can idle his days away by watching guardsmen drill through his window. A "special place" is being prepared for him near London. Hess is treated well but is not allowed visitors, not allowed to learn any war/political news and not told that his peace initiative is being treated as a joke. Army psychiatrists conclude that he is sane, but his disposition darkens as days go by without any meeting with Winston Churchill and no movement on his peace offer.

Applied Science: Vannevar Bush creates the Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD). Separately, Arthur Compton and the United States National Academy of Sciences together publish a report about favorable prospects for the invention of an atomic bomb.

Lieutenant General Herbert J. Brees (right) pins the third star on his successor in command of the Third Army, Walter Krueger (left), on 17 May 1941, in San Antonio, Texas (U.S. War Department (Archive of U.S. War Department)).

US/Vichy French Relations: Four US Senators of President Roosevelt's Democratic Party publicly advocate seizing Vichy French possessions in the Western Hemisphere. These include but are not limited to Martinique and small islands off the Canadian coast. This would be done in collaboration with Latin American republics pursuant to the pact of Havana.

German Military: Adolf Hitler issues his Directive No. 29, which addresses "The aim of German operations in the southeast," i.e., the Balkans and Crete. The main points of the Directive are that the Italians will be primarily responsible for defending Greece, and how Crete will be garrisoned - its capture being assumed in upcoming Operation Mercury.

A Curtiss-Wright Navy SNC-1 trainer airplane, 17 May 1941.

US Government: The Department of Justice launches a crackdown on illegal aliens in the United States. It appears primarily directed at German and Italian nationals, particularly seamen whose ships recently were seized.

The Dies Committee investigating un-American activities announces that it will hold hearings next week regarding "the extent to which Communist and Communist sympathizers have been able to obtain employment in the federal government."

Italian Government: King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy is in Albania visiting Albanian Prime Minister Shefqet Vërlaci when both are shot at in their car. The culprit is 19-year old Albanian nationalist Vasil Laçi, who will be executed on 27 May.

Philippines: A load of 31 P-40B fighters arrives by ship and is transported to Nichols Field, the only paved airfield capable of handling fighters. The shipment does not include the Prestone antifreeze which is necessary for their operation - so the planes are unusable until the coolant arrives. This will not be until early July, and training is critical because P-40s are considered tough to fly, especially by inexperienced pilots.

American Homefront: It is "Connie Mack Day" at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, PA.

Connie Mack Day program at Shibe Park, Philadelphia, 17 May 1941. In 1953, Shibe Park will be renamed Connie Mack Stadium and demolished on 13 July 1976 after being replaced by Veterans Stadium.

May 1941

May 1, 1941: British Hold Tobruk
May 2, 1941: Anglo-Iraq War
May 3, 1941: Liverpool Hammered
May 4, 1941: Hitler Victory Speech
May 5, 1941: Patriots Day
May 6, 1941: Stalin In Command
May 7, 1941: May Blitz
May 8, 1941: Pinguin Sunk
May 9, 1941: U-110 Captured
May 10, 1941: Hess Flies Into History
May 11, 1941: The Hess Peace Plan
May 12, 1941: Tiger Arrives Safely
May 13, 1941: Keitel's Illegal Order
May 14, 1941: Holocaust in Paris
May 15, 1941: Operation Brevity
May 16, 1941: Blitz Ends
May 17, 1941: Habbaniya Relieved
May 18, 1941: Croatia Partitioned
May 19, 1941: Bismarck at Sea
May 20, 1941: Invasion of Crete
May 21, 1941: Robin Moore Sinking
May 22, 1941: Royal Navy Destruction Off Crete
May 23, 1941: Crete Must Be Won
May 24, 1941: Bismarck Sinks Hood
May 25, 1941: Lütjens' Brilliant Maneuver
May 26, 1941: Bismarck Stopped
May 27, 1941: Bismarck Sunk
May 28, 1941: Crete Lost
May 29, 1941: Royal Navy Mauled Off Crete
May 30, 1941: Sorge Warns, Stalin Ignores
May 31, 1941: British Take Baghdad

2020

Friday 16 May 1941

"Children waving at a Valentine tank of the 2nd Battalion, 1st Tank Regiment (1st Polish Corps) on the move against the 'invaders' during a mock invasion exercise in Perthshire. Polish troops played the role of the defenders, while Scottish troops (probably the 51st Highland Division) took the part of the invaders." Captain W.T. Lockeyear, © IWM (H 9786).

Anglo/Iraq War: Special Force Junck (Sonderkommando Junck) on 16 May 1941 has assembled a squadron (Fliegerführer Irak) in Mosul composed of 12 Messerschmitt Bf 110s, 5 Heinkel He 111s, a communications flight equipped with light aircraft, a section of anti-aircraft guns, and 3 Junkers Ju 52s. The RAF No. 203 Squadron opens hostilities in the early morning hours by raiding Sonderkommando Junck's airfield at Mosul. They destroy a Heinkel bomber and 2 Bf 110s. Already, Sonderkommando Junck is being whittled down.

The Germans respond by sending three Heinkel He 111 bombers and six Bf 110s against the main British airfield at Habbaniya. The Germans kill numerous British ground personnel and destroy a Hawker Audax fighter-bomber and shoot down a Gloster Gladiator fighter, both obsolete biplanes but still useful in the theater. Debris from the exploding Gladiator disables one of the Heinkels' engines, causing it to crash-land on the way back to Mosul.

Oberst Werner Junck, leader of the German forces (Fliegerführer Irak), flies to Baghdad from Mosul in place of the deceased Major Axel von Blomberg, recently shot in his transport while approaching Baghdad. He meets with Rashid Ali, German representative Dr. Grobba, and other top Iraqi leaders. The group decides to interdict Kingcol, the British relief column currently at Fort Rutbah, and prevent it from relieving RAF Habbaniya. Sonderkommando Junck also is to assist Iraqi ground forces in taking Habbaniya.

Several German ships anchored at Bandari Shahpur are ordered to scuttle themselves in the Shatt al-Arab. The hope is that they will block the entrance to the refinery there.

The Soviet Union recognizes the Rashid Ali government in Iraq via an exchange of diplomatic notes in Ankara, Turkey.

An early Consolidated B-24 Liberator that arrives in the UK on 16 May 1941. This plane is slotted to be used for crew training in RAF No. 120 Squadron Coastal Command.

European Air Operations: There are two separate commonly discussed periods of war activity between the Reich and Great Britain that overlap: the Battle of Britain and the Blitz. It is easy to confuse them and think of the Blitz and the Battle of Britain as one period of time, but they are separate actions that involve different characteristics. While the Battle of Britain is said to have ended at the end of October 1940, the Blitz continues until 16 May 1941. It finally ends today - or, at least the first and most destructive part of the Blitz.

The Luftwaffe sends 111 aircraft to raid RAF airfields in Birmingham and the West Midlands. The Germans lose three planes. While not apparent at the moment, this is the final Luftwaffe night bomber raid on England during the May Blitz. The Luftwaffe is shifting massive forces east in preparation for Operation Barbarossa.

The Luftwaffe sends fighter-bombers (Jabo) to raid southeast England. While Jabos carry a small payload, they are more accurate than level bombers and incur fewer losses. They also engage in strafing missions and can battle defending RAF fighters on an equal basis.

RAF Bomber Command raids Cologne with 93 planes after dark, causing fires on both sides of the Rhine. The Atlantik rubber plant at Bramsfeld (in the Ruhr Valley) also is attacked, with some success. Diversionary attacks in France and Holland also are effective, and overall the RAF loses two planes.

Manchester Guardian, 16 May 1941.

East African Campaign: Following a renewed attack on his defenses at Amba Alagi, the Duke of Aosta has had enough. His troops are giving ground and his supplies are running out, a situation exacerbated by an artillery hit on an oil tank that contains the Italians' only supply of fresh water. In addition, British promises of self-determination for Eritrea have induced the Italians' Eritrean troops to desert and motivated partisans (Arbegnoch), who are said to be committing atrocities against Italians. The Duke sues for peace and institutes a ceasefire.

British freighter Rodney Star, sunk 16 May 1941 off Freetown by U-105.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-105 (Kptlt. Georg Schewe), on its lengthy second patrol out of Lorient, extends its string of successes around 420 miles off of Freetown. Schewe spots independent (unescorted) 11,803-ton refrigerated transport Rodney Star (master Samuel John Clement) during the early morning hours, and at 05:48 fires two torpedoes. One hits in the stern, disabling the Rodney Star. Schewe then fires another torpedo at 06:20, and a third at 07:46, but larger ships tend to be hard to sink, so Schewe finally surfaces and uses its deck gun. After pumping 91 high explosive shells and 22 incendiary rounds into the crippled freighter, the Rodney Star finally sinks by the stern.

The 83-man crew of the Rodney Star (everyone survives) spends six days in lifeboats before being rescued by HMS Batna and Boreas and taken to Takoradi. According to some accounts, U-105's deck gun blew up during a training exercise on 6 May, while other accounts state that it blew up while firing on the Rodney Star, injuring six crew.

British 2448-ton freighter Archangel is badly damaged by the Luftwaffe. The ship, 10 miles north of Aberdeen, is attacked by three Heinkel He 111 bombers around midnight on the 16th and badly damaged. The ship later sinks while under tow to Aberdeen (some accounts say it was beached and broke up onshore). There are 41 deaths and 42 wounded, all enlisted men out of 475 men on board (figures vary). The wounded suffer from burns.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 5673-ton British freighter Ethel Radcliffe at Great Yarmouth. The Ethel Radcliffe had been damaged by German S boats on 17 April.

The Luftwaffe bombs and badly damages 715-ton British freighter Joffre Rose off St. David's Head. The ship's master manages to beach the ship in Dale Bay, and, and further attacks by the Luftwaffe, the ship ultimately is refloated and repaired.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 811-ton British freighter Obsidian in St. George's Channel.

U-107 (Kptlt. Günter Hessler), also operating off Freetown, spots 8029-ton Dutch tanker Marisa in the distance and begins pursuit.

U-109 (Kptlt. Hans-Georg Fischer), on its first patrol out of Kiel, spots a large formation of US ships that includes battleships and several destroyers. Fischer, following orders, avoids contact.

Issues to the port-side crane of battleship Bismarck are resolved to Captain Lindemann's satisfaction. Admiral Lütjens reports the ship ready for action. Admiral Doenitz authorizes Operation Rheinübung, the planned sortie to the North Atlantic by Bismarck and cruiser Prinz Eugen, to begin on the evening of 19 May.

Royal Navy minelayers HMS Teviotbank and Plover lay minefield BS-56 in the English Channel.

Convoys HX 127 and BHX 127 depart from Halifax and Bermuda, respectively.

Royal Navy corvettes Jasmine (Lt.Cdr. (retired) Cecil Dick Bluett Coventry) and Lavender (Lt.Cdr. Jackson Whayman, RNR) are commissioned, frigate Exe is laid down at Paisley.

Canadian corvette HMCS Levis (Lt. Charles W. Gilding) is commissioned, and corvette Shawinigan is launched at Lauzon, Quebec.

U-385 and U-386 are laid down.

RAF ace Noël le Chevalier Agazarian, KIA 16 May 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Operation Brevity lives up to its codename as the British attack on Axis forces on the Egyptian/Libyan border, begun on the 15th and aimed at Sollum, stalls out. Berlin orders General Rommel - back in undisputed command of Afrika Korps following the departure of his General Staff "minder" General Friedrich Paulus on 8 May - to leave his Italian forces to guard Tobruk and block the British advance further south with his panzers of the 5th Panzer Regiment and 8th Panzer Regiment.

Lt. Colonel Hans Cramer, in command of the panzers, launches an aggressive attack against the British which succeeds. At the front, the British 22nd Guards Infantry Brigade withdraws from Fort Capuzzo and Sollum to Halfaya Pass, while the British 7th Armored Brigade withdraws from Sidi Aziz. The British Army forms a new line running from Sidi Omar to Sidi Suleiman to Sollum. This gives up all of the British gains from Operation Brevity aside from Halfaya Pass itself. The British are forced to retire because they have sustained heavy tank losses following the rapid Wehrmacht response to the attack.

Overhead, the RAF and Luftwaffe battle it out during Operation Brevity. RAF ace (seven victories) Noël le Chevalier Agazarian of 274 Squadron perishes when Fw. Franz Elles in a Messerschmitt Bf 109 of 2./JG 27 shoots his Hawker Hurricane near Gambut.

Separately from the German attacks, Italian troops launch an unexpected attack on Tobruk. Sappers clear barbed wire and clear mines. The Italian infantry then moves forward and takes some bunkers.

Clearly worried about the staunch Axis defense on the Libyan frontier, Winston Churchill cables Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell and asks if it would be okay to repeat the recent Tiger Convoy, which sent hundreds of tanks directly through the Mediterranean to Alexandria. Churchill notes, "in view of the heavy loss of I tanks on 15th May, victory may depend upon the last hundred."

In a message to South African leader Jan Smuts, Churchill notes that "President Roosevelt is pushing United States supplies towards Suez to the utmost." Churchill also states "I have good hopes that we shall win the campaign in the Eastern Mediterranean this summer."

The British use Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire to reinforce Tobruk during the night.

Light cruisers HMS Fiji and Gloucester land troops at Heraklion, Crete and then join the Royal Navy forces operating in large numbers near Crete. The Luftwaffe continues its attacks on the British base at Suda Bay, damaging 5993-ton freighter Logician and 6397-ton Greek freighter Nicolaou Ourania (beached and repaired by the Germans) and sinking 1070-ton Greek freighter Kythera. The RAF loses two Hurricanes of No. 33 Squadron based at Maleme.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Unbeaten fires at Axis transports off Tripoli but misses.

Winston Churchill sends Malta Governor Dobbie a message saying that he is sending Donald Parker Stevenson, DSO, to be his new air commander because "He embodies the offensive spirit." The Luftwaffe raids continue against the island, and today they damage destroyer HMS Encounter and sink freighter Araybank.

A minesweeper, HMS Gloxinia, is damaged by a mine near Malta, and minesweeper Widnes is damaged by a bombing near-miss in the eastern Mediterranean, adding to the numerous minesweepers in the Mediterranean that have been put out of action. The island's government releases figures today providing data on the effects of the air attacks to date:

• 2087 houses destroyed
• 11,679 homeless

The damage extends throughout the island, with areas populated by refugees also suffering along with Valetta. Wing Commander J. Warfield is named commanding officer of RAF Station Takali in Malta.

USS Monssen (DD-436) at Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Washington, 16 May 1941 (Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center.).

Anglo/US Relations: Churchill sends President Roosevelt a lengthy cable. This message summarizes what has been learned from Rudolf Hess. The gist of the cable is that the Hess flight has brought valuable intelligence, but otherwise cannot be taken seriously.

Churchill writes that Hess has made "proposals for settlement." Churchill continues:

Hess said that the Fuehrer had never entertained any designs against the British Empire, which would be left intact save for the return of former German colonies, in exchange for a free hand for him in Europe. But condition was attached that Hitler would not negotiate with present Government in England.

Churchill notes that Hess has denied that Germany is making plans to attack Russia, but that the Reich does have plans in Asia. These include the removal of British forces from Iraq. Hess also makes "rather disparaging remarks" about the United States and its "aircraft types and production."

Churchill concludes that if Hess "is honest and if he is sane this is an encouraging sign of ineptitude of German Intelligence service" for thinking that there is a strong peace faction in Great Britain which he hoped to stimulate. Regarding that last point, Churchill later notes that "Hess seems in good health and not excited and no ordinary signs of insanity can be detected."

US/Chinese Relations: President Roosevelt states that the US has a vital interest in the defense of China.

Wake Island, May 1941(U.S. National Archives Photo 80-G-451195 from the U.S. National Park Service website A MAGNIFICENT FIGHT: Marines in the Battle for Wake Island).

Spy Stuff: German envoys in Stockholm overhear the Russian envoy claiming that at no time in Russian history have more powerful troop contingents been massed in the west. This jibes with other warnings being received in Berlin from Antonescu in Romania that Soviet troops are massing around Kyiv. In fact, the Soviets are indeed moving two armies to the area around Kyiv pursuant to the Zhukov Plan of 15 May.

Winston Churchill, in his message today to Jan Smuts, notes that "It looks as if Hitler is massing against Russia." He continues regarding Operation Barbarossa, still a full month away:

A ceaseless movement of troops, armoured forces and aircraft northwards from the Balkans and eastward from France and Germany is in progress. I should myself suppose his [Hitler's] best chance was to attack the Ukraine and Caucasus thus making sure of corn and oil.

Whatever his sources, most likely Ultra decrypts, Churchill is deadly accurate in this summary to Smuts. His strategic analysis also jibes closely with Hitler's own views, which are opposed by many generals and the OKW, who favor focusing on Moscow.

Churchill authorizes the movement of Rudolf Hess, still in a Glasgow military hospital, to the Tower of London "by tonight pending his place of confinement being prepared at Aldershot." Once again, Churchill emphasizes that "he must be kept in the strictest seclusion."

US Military: First delivers are made to the US Army Air Corps of the P-43 Lancer fighter. Separately, General Walter Krueger takes command of the US Third Army.

British Government: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill sends a memo to Sir Kingsley Wood, Chancellor of the Exchequer, arguing that the survivors of soldiers killed while on leave should receive the same compensation as those actually killed in action. Heretofore, survivors have been given much smaller amounts. He writes that soldiers:

have a right to be considered when on leave as enjoying the same privileges in regard to pensions for their widows etc. as when they are with their Units.

Wood has resisted making the change because of cost, so Churchill asks for the figures.

German Government: The Gestapo arrests Karl Haushofer, a friend (former employer) of Rudolf Hess. Haushofer is one of many German philosophers who have argued that Germany should expand. As a former major general from World War I, he enjoys some status within the Reich and respect by Hitler. Haushofer's wife is Jewish, or rather a "half-Jew" according to Reich racial laws, and to date, Hess has protected her - but that protection now is gone. While paternity of the word "Lebensraum" and its significance within the Third Reich generally is assigned to Hitler in "Mein Kampf," some attribute the concept as used by the Reich as belonging to Haushofer.

Polikarpov I-16 Type 24 aircraft of the 178 IAP-PVO based south of Moscow, 16 May 1941 (TASS). This is a still taken from a Soviet propaganda film entitled "The Soviet Red Army Air Force Guards the Frontiers of the Motherland." These are show planes - normal military planes are not this shiny.

Soviet Government: Vsevolod Merkulov, Deputy People's Commissar of the NKVD and head of the NKGB (a unit of the NKVD), updates Joseph Stalin on plans to deport influential natives (politicians, military leaders) from the Baltic States. Merkulov urges that the people be rounded up be given 8-year sentences in labor camps, with exile for their families to Siberia.

Martinique: Churchill inquires to General Ismay about the status of Martinique and says that "I have it in mind that the United States might take over Martinique to safeguard it from being used as a base for U-boats in view of Vichy collaboration." Great Britain, of course, has no control over either Vichy France or the United States, so Churchill cannot compel anything to happen regarding the government of the island, but, of course, Churchill has an opinion on everything and a lot of influence with President Roosevelt.

Iceland: The Althing (Icelandic Parliament) adopts four constitutional amendments intended to complete de facto independence from Denmark, which is effectively occupied by the Reich even if its government has been allowed to remain in place and theoretically retains freedom of decision. However, the Icelandic-Danish Act of Union remains in place for the time being (until February 1944). The Danish ambassador in Washington, D.C., who is not encumbered by coercion by the Reich, has been making decisions and representations on behalf of Iceland favorable to the Allies whose legality is questionable, and this action by the Althing does nothing to resolve that. Iceland itself is occupied by British troops, which the Icelandic government has protested against without result.

It is fair to say that the status of Iceland remains a giant unfinished puzzle, though its territory without question is greatly aiding the Allies. In any event, Iceland is going its own way regardless of legalities.

Malaya: General Percival, who has recently arrived by plane from Great Britain, assumes his post as General Officer Commanding, Malaya.

China: Japanese bombers raid Nationalist capital Chungking.

The 1st Armored Division M2A4 light tanks and medium tank parade for a Congressional Committee visiting Ft. Knox, KY, 16 May 1941.

May 1941

May 1, 1941: British Hold Tobruk
May 2, 1941: Anglo-Iraq War
May 3, 1941: Liverpool Hammered
May 4, 1941: Hitler Victory Speech
May 5, 1941: Patriots Day
May 6, 1941: Stalin In Command
May 7, 1941: May Blitz
May 8, 1941: Pinguin Sunk
May 9, 1941: U-110 Captured
May 10, 1941: Hess Flies Into History
May 11, 1941: The Hess Peace Plan
May 12, 1941: Tiger Arrives Safely
May 13, 1941: Keitel's Illegal Order
May 14, 1941: Holocaust in Paris
May 15, 1941: Operation Brevity
May 16, 1941: Blitz Ends
May 17, 1941: Habbaniya Relieved
May 18, 1941: Croatia Partitioned
May 19, 1941: Bismarck at Sea
May 20, 1941: Invasion of Crete
May 21, 1941: Robin Moore Sinking
May 22, 1941: Royal Navy Destruction Off Crete
May 23, 1941: Crete Must Be Won
May 24, 1941: Bismarck Sinks Hood
May 25, 1941: Lütjens' Brilliant Maneuver
May 26, 1941: Bismarck Stopped
May 27, 1941: Bismarck Sunk
May 28, 1941: Crete Lost
May 29, 1941: Royal Navy Mauled Off Crete
May 30, 1941: Sorge Warns, Stalin Ignores
May 31, 1941: British Take Baghdad

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