Saturday 9 November 1940

Standing in the car is Anton Mussert, founder and leader of the NSB Weerbaarheids Aldeling (Weerbaarheidsafdeling), typically called the WA. The WA is a paramilitary unit of the Dutch Fascist NSB party, somewhat similar to the German SA. They engage in violent attacks on their perceived enemies, including Dutch Jews. This is a parade of 5000 NSB members on Dam Square.

Italian/Greek Campaign: The Italians have stopped advancing into Greece on 9 November 1940, and in fact are withdrawing to their starting points in most areas. The Greek 8th Division on the Epirus sector begins launching local counterattacks to recover lost ground and push the Italians back over the Kalamas River. The Italian troops in the Vovousa Valley are trapped and gradually surrendering. The Greeks basically have recovered all the ground lost in this sector with the exception of areas still controlled by surrounded Italian formations, which are now little more than armed prison camps.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command and Coastal Command raid the U-boat pens at Lorient, the ports of Boulogne and Calais, and various airfields along the coast such as the one at Le Havre, where a Bf 109 is shot down.

The Luftwaffe only sends some lone raiders across the Channel during the day, with minor damage caused in London, the Home Counties, eastern areas of England, the Midlands, and Liverpool and nearby areas. After dark, the Luftwaffe hits the usual targets such as London and Liverpool.

The Luftwaffe continues consolidating its fighters in France. two groups of JG 77, 5 and 6, transfer south from Stavanger airfield to Brest. 4,/JG 77 also moves to Brest (from  Herdla and Mandal). All of JG 77 now is in France except for III,/ JG 77, which remains for the time being in Norway.

Dutch NSB members march in Amsterdam. These fellows would engage in such activities as forcing owners of restaurants and cafes to put up signs saying Jooden niet gewenscht ("Jews not welcome") and trolling inhabitants of neighborhoods with Jewish inhabitants. WA members are called "Blackshirts" due to their uniforms. November 9, 1940.

Battle of the Atlantic: German acoustic mines - detonated by the sound of passing propellers - are becoming an increasing problem. The British adopt several countermeasures, including using modified jackhammers to set them off.

Luftwaffe Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors attack 26,032-ton liner RMS Empress of Japan off the west coast of Ireland. They drop two 250 kg bombs that hit the ship but deflect off of a stern railing and a lifeboat, respectively. The planes also strafe the ship, forcing the helmsman, Ho Kan, to steer the ship in evasive maneuvers from a prone position. The ship sustains non-critical damage in the same region where the Empress of Britain had been bombed and sunk two weeks earlier. Captain Thomas receives the CBE, Ho Kan receives the BEM.

British 1699 ton freighter Baltrader hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea. There are two deaths. The minefield was "Alfred" laid by Kriegsmarine torpedo boats on 29/30 October.

Vichy 1970 ton French Navy colonial-service patrol boat (aviso) Bougainville is operating off Libreville in opposition to the Free French landings there when it is attacked and sunk by Free French sister ship Savorgnan de Brazza and sloop Commandant Dominé. This is known as the Battle of Gabon. The ship sinks in shallow water and is re-floated in March 1941.

The Commandant Dominé captures 3081 ton Vichy French armed merchant cruiser Cap Des Palmes off Libreville. The crew of the Vichy ship tries to scuttle it but fails.

British 1811-ton collier Gartbrattan collides with freighter Melrose Abbey to the west of Cape Clear, Ireland in the Atlantic. It sinks without any casualties. This was the ship's second collision during the war, clearly an unlucky ship.

Finnish 2139-ton freighter Minerva hits a mine and suffers severe damage off Borkum, Germany. The ship, en route from Jakobstad to Emden carrying pit props, is a total loss, but there are no casualties. The ship was built in 1889.

British 504-ton freighter Beal hits a mine off Tees and is damaged.

The Luftwaffe attacks Cleveland Wharf, Shoreham and damages 695-ton British tanker Shelbrit II.

Italian submarine Marconi, which narrowly escaped destruction by Royal Navy vessels on the 8th, comes across the disabled Swedish 2734 ton freighter Vingaland. Vingaland is traveling in Convoy HX 84 and had been damaged by the Luftwaffe bombing on the 8th. The Marconi sends the Vingaland to the bottom. There are six deaths total on the ship.

U-65 (Korvettenkapitän Hans-Gerrit von Stockhausen), on her fifth patrol, refuels at sea from German tanker Nordmark. The U-boat has been at sea since 15 October 1940. Since they have not sighted any targets, all U-65 and its crew need are some fuel and food/water and it can continue at sea for some time. In fact, this patrol will last into January, an extremely long patrol since most patrols are only about a month long.

Convoy OB 241 departs from Liverpool, Convoy FN 330 departs from Southend, Convoy FS 332 departs from Methil, Convoy SC 11 departs from St. John.

The Royal Navy commissions corvette HMS Columbine (K 94, Lt. Louis A. Sayers) and minesweeper HMS Rhyl (J 36,  Lt. William L. O'Mara).

Canadian corvette HMCS Collingwood (K 180, Lt. Norman G. Bennett) is commissioned.

Keele Street just north of Dundas Street, Toronto, Canada. 9 November 1940.

Battle of the Mediterranean: General Koenig's Free French forces fight the Vichy French forces holding Libreville. There is street fighting. Free French Westland Lysanders based in Douala, Cameroon bomb the airfield. The Free French Foreign Legion troops ultimately capture the airfield, which decides the battle. General Tetu formally surrenders to Free French Admiral Georges Thierry d'Argenlieu aboard the aviso Savorgnan de Brazza on the 10th.

Greek 489 ton coaster Vivi hits a mine and sinks in the Gulf of Patras. The mine had been laid by the Greeks, so this is a "friendly fire" incident. There is some controversy over whether the ship was sunk by a mine or by air attack, but it appears to have been off course and sunk in the "Araxos" minefield.

The RAF raids Agordat, Assab, and Keren. Gibraltar Force H aircraft carrier Ark Royal launches aircraft to attack Cagliari.

At Malta, there are two air raids by Italian CR 42 biplane fighters. There are some bombers, but they turn back well short of the island. The Italian fighters strafe Hal Far airfield, damaging a Swordfish torpedo bomber. One Italian fighter is damaged by anti-aircraft fire. A Glenn Martin Maryland reconnaissance plane is lost at sea with the crew lost.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Atlantis, operating in the Bay of Bengal, captures 6750-ton Norwegian tanker Teddy. The Atlantis currently is disguised as armed merchant cruiser HMS Antenor. The 32 men aboard the Teddy are taken as prisoners. The 10,000 tons of fuel oil on the tanker will come in handy.

Cheerleaders at the Georgia Institute of Technology vs. University of Kentucky football game, November 9, 1940 - Kentucky Digital Library.

Battle of the Pacific: Some sources place the sinking of the US freighter City of Rayville east of Cape Otway, Australia in the Bass Strait today, but others on the 8th. This sinking also is described in our entry for the 8th of November. The sinking is announced unusually quickly today by the Admiralty - perhaps because of the ship's flag and the potential implications. In any event, the ship hits a mine laid by German converted minesweeper Passat and sinks. It is the first US ship sunk due to enemy action in the war, a key moment in the war that goes virtually unnoticed both at the time and by historians. There is one death, the rest of the crew makes landfall in Apollo Bay. The US government does not, contrary to British hopes, make an issue of this sinking.

Romania: The Bucharest/Ploesti region is hit by a massive earthquake. This causes massive damage and 400 deaths.

British Homefront: Former Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain passes away from bowel cancer at the age of 71.

Saturday Evening Post, 9 November 1940.

November 1940

November 1, 1940: Hitler Irate
November 2, 1940: U-31 Sunk - Again
November 3, 1940: Kretschmer's Master Class
November 4, 1940: Spain Absorbs Tangier
November 5, 1940: Jervis Bay Meets Admiral Scheer
November 6, 1940: San Demetrio Incident
November 7, 1940: Galloping Gertie
November 8, 1940: Italian Shakeup in Greece
November 9, 1940: Dutch Fascists March
November 10, 1940: Fala and Doc Strange
November 11, 1940: Taranto Raid
November 12, 1940: Molotov Takes Berlin
November 13, 1940: Molotov Foils Hitler
November 14, 1940: Moonlight Sonata
November 15, 1940: Warsaw Ghetto Sealed
November 16, 1940: France Keeps Battleships
November 17, 1940: Malta Hurricane Disaster
November 18, 1940: Hitler Berates Ciano
November 19, 1940: Birmingham Devastated
November 20, 1940: Hungary Joins Axis
November 21, 1940: Dies White Paper
November 22, 1940: Italians Take Korçë
November 23, 1940: U-Boat Bonanza!
November 24, 1940: Slovakia Joins In
November 25, 1940: Molotov's Demands
November 26, 1940: Bananas Be Gone
November 27, 1940: Cape Spartivento Battle
November 28, 1940: Wick Perishes
November 29, 1940: Trouble in Indochina
November 30, 1940: Lucy and Desi Marry

2020

Monday 4 November 1940

U-47 (Günther Prien) on its ninth patrol, operating out of Lorient, during November 1940. It will be in the North Atlantic until 6 December.

Italian/Greek Campaign: In the strategically vital central sector in the Pindus Mountains, the Italian Julia Division on 4 November 1940 descends into chaos as Greek troops of the 2nd Army surround it in the Vovousa Valley (about 25 km northwest of Metsovo). The Greeks complete their reconquest of the villages of Samarina and Vovousa that had been held by the Italians, who now are surrounded and fighting for their lives, with little hope of rescue. Mass surrenders are in progress. The Italian Bari Division tries to break through but is stopped. Greek reinforcements are arriving from other sectors.

There are reports that the Greeks are led by guerrilla leader Varda, who is described as an 80-year-old veteran of the Balkan War decades earlier. This appears to be a bit fanciful but is an example of the type of myth-making going on among the Greeks.

Greek 9th Infantry Division and 15th Infantry Division continue attacking across the Albanian border in the Koritsa sector, making small gains.

Along the coast, the Battle of Elaia–Kalamas continues. The Italian Littoral Group attempts to cross the Kalamas River, which the Greeks are using as a defensive shield. The Italians sustain heavy casualties and make little progress due to the winter weather, minefields, inadequate equipment, and hesitant leadership. The last of the Greek forces retreat across the river in good order. During the night, the Italian Siena Division manages to cross the river around Tsifliki in Thesprotia. It breaks through the Greek battalion defending there. Greek Major-General Nikolaos Lioumbas orders a withdrawal to the south of the Acheron River. The Italians are continuing their advance here, but nowhere else.

RAF Blenheim IF fighters fly their first patrol from airfields in Greece.

Time Magazine, 4 November 1940.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe resumes attacks on London, with strafing runs during the day, some scattered bombing of East Anglia and the Midlands, and a 150-bomber raid during the night.

RAF Bomber Command attacks the Channel ports Le Havre and Boulogne. Other bombers, based on Crete now, attack the Italian naval bases at Bari and Brindisi, and also the port of Santo Quaranti in Albania, the principal port for the Epirus and Macedonian fronts.

The Luftwaffe begins moving some units from Denmark and Norway to France. The first to go is Hptm. Franz-Heinz Lange’s II./JG 77, which transfers from Aalborg to Brest-Guipavas.

Hans Philipp, Staffelkapitän of 4./JG 54, is awarded the Ritterkreuz for having achieved a dozen victories.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-99 (Kplt. Otto Kretschmer) finishes off the armed merchant cruisers HMS Laurentic and HMS Patroclus and British freighter Casanare in the early hours of the morning (discussed in the entry for 3 November 1940), then sneaks away. Otherwise, the day is unusually quiet at sea.

The British Home Fleet begins a massive move, with battleships HMS Nelson and Rodney leading a flotilla from Rosyth to Scapa Flow.

Italian submarine Bianchi, transiting the Strait of Gibraltar, sustains damage from a London flying boat and destroyer HMS Greyhound. It puts into port at Tangier.

French destroyers Mameluck, Fleuret, Epee, and Lansquenet enter sail past Gibraltar into the Mediterranean. This continues a period when French ships transit the Strait of Gibraltar with little interference. The British seem confused as to how to handle French naval movements and thus do nothing.

Convoy OB 239 departs from Liverpool, Convoy FN 327 departs from Southend, Convoy AN 6 departs from Port Said (bound for Greece), Convoy SL 54 departs from Freetown, Convoy BS 8 departs from Suez bound for Aden.

"Civilians sheltering in Elephant and Castle London Underground Station during an air raid in November 1940." © IWM (D 1568). Photo by Bill Brandt.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Royal Navy submarine HMS Tetrarch torpedoes and badly damages 2492 ton Italian freighter Snia Amba (originally American ship Santa Tecla) at the port of Benghazi, Libya. The Snia Amba is beached, but ultimately declared a total loss (2 May 1941) and salvaged for metal.

Royal Navy cruiser HMS Ajax continues shuttling troops between Alexandria and Suda Bay, Crete. Today, it departs Alexandria loaded with troops of the 14th Armoured Brigade HQ, in the company of Australian cruiser HMAS Sydney.

The Royal Navy begins Operation MB 8, a supply convoy. It involves subsidiary operations:

• Operation Coat (supply convoy to Malta)
• Convoy MW 3 (empty freighters traveling to Malta)
• Convoy ME 3 (four empty freighters traveling from Malta to Alexandria)
• Convoy AN 6 (tankers traveling to Greece)
• Operation Crack (attack on Cagliari by HMS Ark Royal)
• Operation Judgment (attack on Taranto by HMS Illustrious).

While all of the operations are important, the last - Operation Judgment - is of the most lasting significance. The Italians perform aerial reconnaissance and know that something major is going on, but assume (wrongly, as it turns out) that it is just another convoy run to Malta. In fact, the convoy run is a cover for the other operations, which will play over the coming week.

The British War Cabinet, led by Winston Churchill, decides to beef up its bomber fleet on Malta and elsewhere in the Mediterranean. Churchill's view is that only air power can help Greece quickly enough to save it. Some 24 Wellington bombers will be operating out of Malta, with 34 Hurricanes sent to Greece itself and 32 Wellingtons sent to Egypt via Malta.

Bomb damage at Wellington Road, 4 November 1940.

German Military: At 14:30, Hitler holds a meeting with a small group of senior officers: Keitel, Jodl, Brauchitsch, Halder, Major Willy Deyhle of the OKW General Staff (Jodl's adjutant), and Major Rudolf Schmundt (Hitler's adjutant). Halder begins the meeting by summarizing the results of the various studies undertaken recently by the OKW, for example, Operation Felix (the planned invasion of Gibraltar). The main result of the meeting is that Hitler decides - or announces - that German troops will not be sent to North Africa until the Italians take Mersa Matruh and are ready to advance on Alexandria. He also provides:

Commander-in-chief army will be prepared, if necessary, to occupy from Bulgaria the Greek mainland north of the Aegean Sea. This will enable the German air force to attack targets in the eastern Mediterranean, and in particular those English air bases threatening the Romanian oil fields.

This will eventually turn into Operation Marita.

The meeting establishes that the entire "peripheral strategy" is oriented around occupying air bases with which to attack British assets. Thus, while it is not all directed at British possessions, it is intended to provide the means to strangle England. As for Operation Felix, that remains on the front burner but lacks the one thing necessary for it to happen: Spanish leader Franco's active participation, of which Hitler remains hopeful.

There also is a discussion about fortifying French colonies in Africa and other operations to take Portugal, the Azores, the Canaries, Madeira and part of Morocco. Once again, these are directed against Britain, in the hopes of shutting off the Mediterranean and providing bases to attack British convoys. These would all require a working military agreement (Zusammenarbeit) between France and Germany, which the OKW is trying to negotiate via the armistice commission. The meeting involves a lot of wishful strategic thinking and few concrete decisions, basically because the predicates - cooperation by Spain and Vichy France - remain elusive.

US Military: Cruiser USS Louisville arrives in Buenos Aires on its "Show the Flag" mission.

Spain: Spain incorporates the Tangier International Zone, which formerly had been an international condominium, into Spanish Morocco. Antonio Yuste becomes the Military Governor. Britain immediately views this move with deep suspicion and worries that Spain will fortify the region while rejuvenating Hitler's hopes of taking Gibraltar via Operation Felix. In fact, while Britain is right to be worried, this solidification of Spanish control (it first occupied the territory on 14 June 1940) is of long-term benefit to the Allies. Spain has no intention of fortifying this strategic area and reassures Britain on that point, also guaranteeing its international rights there. Tangier potentially controls access to the Mediterranean and could threaten Britain's base at Gibraltar, but this move ultimately helps to keep the area out of Axis hands. That is, assuming that Spain does not join the Axis, another thing that Franco (secretly) does not intend to do but is busy making it appear that he does. This is another in a sequence of Franco moves that appear to be of aid and comfort to the Axis, but in fact, will benefit the Allies. His actual position will become clearer much later in the war.

American Homefront: The US Presidential election is tomorrow, 5 November 1940. President Roosevelt is a heavy favorite to win a third term.

Newsweek Magazine, 4 November 1940.

November 1940

November 1, 1940: Hitler Irate
November 2, 1940: U-31 Sunk - Again
November 3, 1940: Kretschmer's Master Class
November 4, 1940: Spain Absorbs Tangier
November 5, 1940: Jervis Bay Meets Admiral Scheer
November 6, 1940: San Demetrio Incident
November 7, 1940: Galloping Gertie
November 8, 1940: Italian Shakeup in Greece
November 9, 1940: Dutch Fascists March
November 10, 1940: Fala and Doc Strange
November 11, 1940: Taranto Raid
November 12, 1940: Molotov Takes Berlin
November 13, 1940: Molotov Foils Hitler
November 14, 1940: Moonlight Sonata
November 15, 1940: Warsaw Ghetto Sealed
November 16, 1940: France Keeps Battleships
November 17, 1940: Malta Hurricane Disaster
November 18, 1940: Hitler Berates Ciano
November 19, 1940: Birmingham Devastated
November 20, 1940: Hungary Joins Axis
November 21, 1940: Dies White Paper
November 22, 1940: Italians Take Korçë
November 23, 1940: U-Boat Bonanza!
November 24, 1940: Slovakia Joins In
November 25, 1940: Molotov's Demands
November 26, 1940: Bananas Be Gone
November 27, 1940: Cape Spartivento Battle
November 28, 1940: Wick Perishes
November 29, 1940: Trouble in Indochina
November 30, 1940: Lucy and Desi Marry

2020

Sunday 28 July 1940

Hitler greets Monsignor Tiso at Berchtesgaden, 28 July 1940.

Battle of Britain: The weather on 28 July 1940 remains overcast but good enough for most operations. Air Marshal Dowding shifts his Fighter Command Squadrons closer to the Channel to face the increased Luftwaffe pressure from Albert Kesselring's Luftflotte 2. The RAF has had a better loss ratio since the beginning of the air battle, but it is being worn down by the constant Luftwaffe attacks and the strain of having to defend the Channel convoys. The larger strategic question of who will establish control over the Channel and the potential invasion beaches remains open.

The Luftwaffe gets an early start that doesn't turn out well. At 05:00, the pilot of a Junkers Ju 88 of 3,/KG51 becomes disoriented and crash-lands at Bexhill, Sussex. At 05:25, Junkers Ju 88s cross the coast near Plymouth, losing one plane.

The Luftwaffe makes a more successful attack on Glasgow an hour later, bombing the Hillingdon district and causing casualties. An hour after that, at 07:30, another Junkers Ju 88 goes down while attacking shipping at Porthcawl. These piecemeal attacks are proving problematic for the attacking forces.

Around noontime, the real battle begins. Forty fighters of JG 26 and 51 assemble over Calais and cross over towards Dover, escorting 60 Heinkel He 111s. RAF Nos. 41, 74, 111 and 257 Squadrons rise to intercept. Hurricanes attacked the bombers, and Spitfires the fighters. The bombers immediately turn back to France as part of a pre-planned strategy, while the fighters mix it up. Losses are even, both sides losing five fighters.

Newcastle is bombed heavily during the day by 25 bombers, killing several female civilians.

The Luftwaffe steps up its attacks after dark, with intense minelaying in the Thames estuary. Small raids take place across southern England. Shortly before midnight, Heinkel He 111s of III,/KG55 bomb the Rolls Royce plant at Crewe in Cheshire, and also bomb Kent and Sussex. Later at night, the Sealand airfield, south Wales, railway tracks at Neath, and areas near Swansea are bombed.

The Luftwaffe continues shifting units toward England. III,/JG2 moves from Frankfurt-Rebstock to Evreux-West, and III,/JG77 leaves Berlin-Tempelhof for Wyk auf Föhr in the Frisian Islands.

The Royal Navy destroyers based at Dover are withdrawn to Portsmouth. This reduces convoy defense, antiaircraft defense at Dover, and also creates an opening for a possible invasion.

Overall, it is a mediocre day for the Luftwaffe, which is estimated to have lost around a dozen planes. However, driving the destroyers away from Dover is a major strategic victory - if it is followed up. Otherwise, it is a pointless and ephemeral victory, like gaining "control" over airspace that nobody else needs anyway.
Major Werner Mölders, the new Kommodore of JG 51, gains his twenty-sixth victory by shooting down a Spitfire. However, he takes a bullet to the leg, however, and with great difficulty manages to get back to base in Wissant, France.

A legend later grew that British pilot Adolph "Sailor" Malan, a British war hero from South Africa, was the one who wounded Werner Mölders. Malan claimed credit for the incident, but another Luftwaffe pilot who observed the incident thought another British pilot, a Lt. Webster, did the deed. There is no binding proof of who did what, but the odds are that Mölders probably was tangling with RAF No. 41 Squadron, not Malan who headed No. 74 Squadron.

As a general matter, and this applies to both sides, there often is a tendency to assign credit for celebrity shoot-downs to a popular pilot in order to create a propaganda "hero." Just as often, the celebrity victim may have been shot down by some no-name anti-aircraft gunner, a stray bullet, or some completely unknowable cause (see the Red Baron during World War I, for instance). Myth-building is common on both sides. In any event, in this incident, Mölders brought his Bf 109 back to base, so there was no victory, and Mölders returned to action after a month of convalescence.

Spitfire Mk I EB-O is inspected at RAF Manston, after F/O Anthony DJ "Tony" Lovell of No 41 Squadron RAF crashed the aircraft on landing on 28 July 1940. In combat off Dover, the 20-year-old pilot was attacked by a Bf 109 reportedly flown by Maj Werner Mölders of JG51. Lovell nursed the fighter back to base despite being wounded in the thigh, after which he was admitted to Margate Hospital. Mölders himself also was wounded in the leg during the battle.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command continues its strategic campaign against industrial targets, including Cherbourg oil installations, numerous airfields all along the coast, and the like.

Battle of the Atlantic: German raider Thor encounters a British armed merchant cruiser, HMS Alcantara, off southern Brazil near Trindade island. A battle quickly breaks out. It is a fairly evenly matched encounter. Thor hits the British ship with three shells and severely damages the Alcantara, forcing it to make port in Rio de Janeiro with 9 casualties. Thor takes two shells and also needs repairs.

U-99 (Kapitänleutnant Otto Kretschmer) torpedoes and sinks large 13,212-ton British freighter Auckland Star about 80 miles west of Ireland. All 47 crew survive by sailing their lifeboats to shore.

The Luftwaffe finds and sinks British freighter Orlock Head in the North Sea.

Norwegian freighter Argo hits a mine and sinks. The mine was laid by French submarine Rubis.

Italian submarines leave the Mediterranean for the first time and begin operating off the Azores.

Convoy OA 191 departs from Methil, Convoy SL 41F departs from Freetown.

Acting South African Flight Lieutenant Adolph "Sailor" Malan.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Free French pilots operate with the RAF in Egypt and carry out reconnaissance over Diredawa, Abyssinia. The Italians carry out scattered bombing raids without much success.

Royal Navy cruisers HMS Neptune and Sydney intercept Italian tanker Ermioni near the Dodecanese Islands and sink it.

At Malta, Italian fighters jump a Short Sunderland flying boat that carries out reconnaissance over Sicily (it spots five flying boats at Augusta) and drops some bombs without causing any damage. The Italians quickly get fighters in the air which use the explosive ammunition previously identified from downed Regia Aeronautica planes, which may violate international law. The Sunderland sustains heavy damage and several of the crew are wounded, but it shoots down one or two of the attackers and returns to base under continued attack, barely making it.

There is only one air raid alert on Malta, shortly before noontime. Heavy anti-aircraft fire drives the bombers off before they drop their bombs, and the Italians lose one plane.

War Crimes: Pursuant to an Air Ministry directive of 14 July 1940, Hurricanes of RAF No. 111 Squadron find and down a Heinkel He 59 air rescue plane in the middle of the Channel off Boulogne. Later, the same Squadron shoots down another Heinkel He 59 nearby and strafes a third which is trying to rescue the crew of the first.

Incidents like this tend not to be mentioned in the history books touting the glorious, heroic RAF defense of England. However, pilots on both sides know exactly what is going on and vengeance is usually meted out at some point, if not immediately. The British rationale is that any German rescue plane near the British coastline is engaging in aerial reconnaissance and thus a fair target, but planes obviously trying to rescue downed pilots also are shot down indiscriminately. Hitler issues a statement calling the RAF pilots downing rescue planes "cold-blooded murders," which is not far from the truth even though the pilots are acting "under orders." There are many such murderers during wartime, it is a part of this war and any war.

Hotel Diner, 41 Federal Street, July 28, 1949, Worcester Massachusetts. Photograph by George Cocaine.

German/Vichy France Relations: At 05:00, the Germans in occupied France close rail lines to Vichy France without warning. The choke point is Moulins. The reason given is invasion fears - by the British.

German/Slovak Relations: At Berchtesgaden, Hitler meets with President (Monsignor) Jozef Tiso, Prime Minister Vojtech Tuka and Hlinka Guard leader Alexander Mach of the Slovak Republic in his continuing series of discussions with Germany's eastern neighbors. This is a pattern that continues throughout the war: Hitler will meet with his most important ally - Italy or Finland or whoever it is - and then hold subsequent meetings with other, lesser powers. It is an easy way to see who is at the top of his pecking order - and who is at the bottom.

Hitler broadly hints to the Slovak leaders that they have little choice if they wish to remain free. "Slovakia should adhere loyally and unequivocally to the German cause in her domestic politics," he says. The Slovaks agree to set up a German-style state that represses Jewish people.

Soviet/Afghanistan Relations: The two nations sign a commercial trade agreement.

US/Brazilian Relations: To promote inter-American relations, the US grants Brazil a $20 million loan that likely will never be repaid. Foreign Affairs Minister Osvaldo Aranha, a former Ambassador to the US, notes that "We should erect a statue to Hitler - he made the USA finally notice us." Aranha typically represents Brazil at pan-American conferences such as the recent Havana Conference and is a strong proponent of pan-Americanism.

German Government: Discussions take place within the German army about the plans for Operation Sea Lion, which is considered unrealistic as proposed by the Kriegsmarine.

Denmark: Art Nouveau artist Gerda Wegener passes away.

China: Japanese bombers make 100 sorties against Chungking, Chiang Kai-shek's capital, losing one bomber.

Throngs fill Jones Beach on July 28,1940. At that time this section was called East Beach, but that tower later became the Robert Moses Water Tower and this section of the beach itself the Robert Moses State Park. (Credit: New York State Parks, Recreation).

July 1940

July 1, 1940: Vichy France
July 2, 1940: Arandora Star
July 3, 1940: Operation Catapult at Mers El Kébir
July 4, 1940: Romania In Crisis
July 5, 1940: The Five Freedoms
July 6, 1940: Hitler's High Point
July 7 1940: Dakar And Ringo
July 8, 1940: Tea Rationing in England
July 9, 1940: Battle of Calabria
July 10, 1940: Battle of Britain Begins
July 11, 1940: "Nous, Philippe Petain"
July 12, 1940: Enter Laval
July 13, 1940: German Surface Raiders Attack!
July 14, 1940: Bastille/Mourning Day
July 15, 1940: Tallest Man Dies
July 16, 1940: Plans for Sea Lion
July 17, 1940: Burma Road Closed
July 18, 1940: FDR Runs Again
July 19, 1940: Last Appeal To Reason
July 20, 1940: First Night Fighter Victory
July 21, 1940: Soviets Absorb Baltic States
July 22, 1940: First RAF Night Fighter Victory
July 23, 1940: Invasion False Alarm
July 24, 1940: The Meknés Incident
July 25, 1940: Black Thursday for RAF
July 26, 1940: Capture The Duke?
July 27, 1940: What's Up, Doc?
July 28, 1940: Destroyers Pulled From Dover
July 29, 1940: Barbarossa On The Burner
July 30, 1940: Hitler Delays Sealion
July 31, 1940: Bloody Wednesday of Olkusz

2020

Monday 4 September 1939

The Daily Mirror, 4 September 1939.

European Air Operations: After only dropping leaflets performing reconnaissance during the day, the RAF mounts its first raid of the war on 4 September 1939. It is against Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbüttel, which had been the subject of the previous day's recon. There are fifteen Blenheim and fourteen Wellington bombers in the raid, and the RAF comes off the worse for the day: it loses 7 bombers.

One of the aircrews killed over Wilhelmshaven on this first night of the war is Herbert Brian Lightoller, an RAF pilot. He is the son of Charles Lightoller, a senior surviving officer of RMS Titanic.

The Luftwaffe gets its first kill of the war, as seven (sources vary) of the bombers go down and at least one is a victim of a Bf 109 from II/JG 77. The cruiser Emden is damaged when one of the bombers lands on it but remains operational. The Pocket-battleship Admiral Scheer suffers a light hit but also remains operational.

Battle of Poland: The Luftwaffe is focusing its offensive operations in Poland, where cutting-edge Bf 109s meet and destroy 11 Polish fighters and three bombers over Lodz. The Polish air force is hopelessly obsolete and under-equipped and will quickly be put out of operation.

The Luftwaffe continues Operation Wasserkante against Warsaw, but results are minimal as Polish air defenses remain intact. The Polish news service announces several minor victories but admits the loss of the Silesian town of Czestochowa. A small Polish garrison of three old World War I forts at Różan holds out against a superior German panzer division. In the Battle of the Border, German forces crush Polish forces at Ćwiklice, forcing the withdrawal of the entire Armia Kraków from Upper Silesia.
Battle of the Atlantic: Great Britain blockades German ports. The German propaganda service announces that the sinking of the SS Athenia on 3 September was a false-flag operation arranged by the British to cause issues between Germany and the United States.

In actuality, the Kriegsmarine is completely in the dark about what had happened to the SS Athenia the previous day (the ship only sinks this morning). It won't know until the U-30 makes port and the commander reports. In the interim, Hitler wants no more enemies for the moment and announces a prohibition against attacks on passenger ships which will mostly be followed for some time. Propaganda Minister Goebbels has his outlets basically accuse Winston Churchill of using the Athenia to mount a false-flag operation to drag the United States into the war. The Germans, of course, were the masters of such operations, having just performed several phony "attacks" against themselves as part of Operation Himmler to "justify" their invasion of Poland.

Western Front: The French are ensconced behind the Maginot Line without British support yet, and the Germans are occupied in Poland. The latter also are happy to stay behind the mostly fictional Siegfried Line as the Reich continues to re-arm. Thus, there are only sporadic "demonstration" attacks by both sides along the border as Hitler studiously avoids the greatly feared "two-Front war."

Meanwhile, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) hurries into action and begins ferrying troops to Cherbourg, France via destroyer.

International Relations: On Monday, 4 September 1939, New Zealand (part of the British Commonwealth) declares war on Germany backdated to the time of Great Britain's announcement on 3 September. Egypt, garrisoned by British troops under the Anglo-Egyptian treaty of 1936, breaks off relations with Germany but remains neutral. Japan remains neutral - though only in Europe. Its predatory operations in China will continue, and it will remain a covert supporter of the Reich..

German Government: Hermann Goering meets with British Ambassador Sir Neville Henderson, who is getting ready to return to England. He assures him that Germany has no qualms with France or Great Britain and will not attack them with troops. Goering says the same thing to unofficial diplomat Birger Dahlerus, whose efforts had failed.

British Government: Winston Churchill accepts PM Chamberlain's offer of the previous day to join his war cabinet as First Lord of the Admiralty. Churchill had been First Lord of the Admiralty from 1911–1915 during the early part of World War I with mixed results. Now, he is seen as a strong war hawk with a wealth of experience about naval matters, but, as events show, he retains many of his old and sometimes unsuccessful ideas about naval strategy (such as landing operations in the Balkans). Chamberlain broadcasts a message in German to the German people explaining the decision to declare war.

British Homefront: The planned evacuation of 650,000 children and non-essential adults from London concludes smoothly.

German Homefront: The German income tax is increased to 50%.

The interwar years had been full of various "stunts," and it was a hard habit to break. Here, the 4 September 1939 edition of the NY Times reports breathlessly on a six-year-old who swam from New Jersey to the Dyckman Street Ferry slip. To show how popular these stunts were, this wasn't even the first time a six-year-old had done it: another boy, Johnny "Freckles" Devine, had beaten him to it in 1925.

2019