Friday 27 December 1940

This photo of Douglas Bader and his squadron mates appears in newspapers around the world today. This example is from page 4 of the 27 December 1940 San Bernardino Sun. There's one little problem with this news item: Bader, the subject of the item (for his recent DFC), is not Canadian and apparently never even visited Canada. However, the brief caption to the photo does manage to work in not once, but twice that Bader had lost his legs in a 1930s air accident. To be fair to the press agency, RAF No. 242 Squadron commanded by Bader was largely composed of Canadian pilots - just not Bader himself, who was born in London. Not to be too technical, but the piece also describes him as a Squadron Leader, but in fact, at this time Bader is only an acting Squadron Leader.

Italian/Greek Campaign: Except for local gains, the Greek offensive basically has ground to a halt by 27 December 1940. The Greek government and military commanders assess the situation to see if perhaps now it is time to go over to the defensive. The weather in the mountains simply is too brutal at this point to facilitate major advances. To the credit of the Greek forces, they have secured strong defensive positions, with V Army Corps taking Mount Tomorr and establishing a connection between II and III Corps, which have been blocked by the Italians in the valleys below. Greek I Corps captures Kalarati and Boliena in the coastal sector.

There are rumors in the press that "an Italian peace commissioner" is "seeking a discussion" with the British for an armistice. The press theory is that Italy is trying to force Germany to help it out militarily by threatening to surrender. This brings up another, more ominous development: possible German involvement in the Balkans and North Africa. A perceptive UPI analysis piece is picked up by news services around the world. An example is one on page four of the San Bernardino Sun's 27 December 1940 edition, placed under the banner headline "Mystery Attached to Movement of Huge German Army Through Rumania." It continues:

REASONS FOR [GERMAN] ACTION UNDISCLOSED
Several Courses Open, but All Dangerous for Germany and Axis Partner Italy 
By J. W. T. MASON (United Press War Expert)

Reports from Budapest that Germany is moving between 20 and 30 fully equipped divisions into Rumania through Hungary have no basis in known facts of any new conditions in southeastern Europe. If the reports are true, they would imply the sudden development of a critical situation facing the axis with Germany being called upon to try to readjust it. An army as large as the Budapest reports describe would be sufficient for the first phases of a thrust through Bulgaria against both Turkey and Greece. But it was recently announced that demobilization of the Bulgarian army had been ordered, which could scarcely have occurred without assurances that the axis did not intend to invade Bulgaria. It is possible that Italy has secretly asked Herr Hitler to create a double diversion in the Balkans, hoping to lessen Greek pressure in Albania and British pressure in Libya. A German military concentration in Rumania, threatening Greece and the Dardanelles, might disturb Greek strategy.

Of course, there most definitely are German troop movements in Romania, though not necessarily of the scope reported in the article. They are heading for Bulgaria as part of Operation Marita - it remains unclear to the Germans at this point if they will invade Yugoslavia as well. And, the author of the piece is absolutely correct when he states that the German troops "might disturb Greek strategy."

Part of today's article in the 27 December 1940 San Bernardino Sun recounting German troop movements through Romania.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe returns to the attack, bombing London with 108 bombers over the course of four hours overnight. There is heavy damage in the City and Whitehall, with 141 deaths. Damage is concentrated in certain neighborhoods such as Islington.

RAF Bomber Command counters with a strike by 75 bombers against an aircraft factory at Bordeaux.

RAF No. 252 Squadron receives the first Beaufighter to be delivered to a coastal fighter squadron.

The plaque at Tower Hill for the Araby. Only victims actually buried at Tower Hill are listed on the memorials there. One crewman was cremated at Glasgow, another buried at a Roman Catholic cemetery.

Battle of the Atlantic: Prime Minister Churchill asks the First Sea Lord, Admiral of the Fleet Sir Dudley Pound, whether merchant ships, particularly tankers, can be converted to launch "expendable aircraft" (which apparently means battle-worn Hawker Hurricanes) from catapults (as from battleships and cruisers) for convoy protection. This indeed is possible, and such craft first are called Auxiliary Fighter Catapult Ships, and later become known as Catapult Aircraft Merchant ships (CAM ships). The Hurricanes carried by the CAM ships become known as "Hurricats" or "Catafighters" or "Sea Hurricanes."

Following its abortive attack on Convoy WS 5, Admiral Hipper makes port at Brest. Is is the first major Kriegsmarine warship to reach any of the French ports. This concludes Operation Nordseetour, the codename for Hipper's raiding expedition. Nordseetour must be adjudged only a partial success because Hipper sank only one ship of 6078 tons during the entire cruise - but its mere presence in the Atlantic jumbled Royal Navy deployments and kept the Admiralty wasting men and ships on fruitless searches in both the North and South Atlantic. In addition, it now is in position to sortie out into the Atlantic at will and also preoccupy RAF Bomber Command, drawing bombs away from other targets. Thus, saying that Operation Nordseetour is "unsuccessful" as many do is untrue - it simply is not as successful as it might otherwise have been. Getting Admiral Hipper to the Atlantic coast ports is a strategic gain for the Kriegsmarine.

Meanwhile, heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer remains in the Atlantic, meeting with German raider Thor and supply ships Nordmark and Duquesa (captured) east of St. Helena.

The German coastal guns at Cap Gris Nez shell British convoys off Dover and score some rare successes, hitting and damaging 530-ton Royal Navy armed trawlers HMT Blackthorn and Deodar.

U-38 (Kptlt. Heinrich Liebe) torpedoes and damages 4980-ton British freighter Ardanbhan in Convoy OB 263 in the Northwest Approaches. The freighter and its 40-man crew are left for dead in the water. About 13 hours later, Italian submarine Enrico Tazzoli (TZ) comes across the Ardanbhan and sends it to the bottom. Everybody perishes in the frigid seas.

Meanwhile, shortly after midnight on the 27th U-38 comes across the abandoned 12,823 ton Waiotira, which U-95 torpedoed on the 26th and left for dead, and sinks it. There is one death on the Waiotira, with 89 survivors.

U-65 (K.Kapt. Hans-Gerrit von Stockhausen) torpedoes and sinks 5455-ton Norwegian freighter Risanger east of the Cape Verde Islands. After stopping the ship with one torpedo, the U-boat surfaces and finishes it off with the deck gun. All 29 men aboard survive.

British 4936-ton freighter Araby hits a mine and sinks about 1800 meters west of Nore Light Vessel near Southend. There are six deaths.

British 449-ton freighter Kinnaird Head hits a mine and sinks in the Thames Estuary north of Sheerness. There are six deaths.

An RAF Hudson bombs and sinks 1200-ton Norwegian freighter Arnfinn Jarl at anchor off Egersund, Rogaland. However, the freighter is not badly damaged and sinks in shallow water, so it can be refloated and repaired. As with many ships sunk in World War II, this ship bears the name of a similar freighter sunk during World War I. The attack on Egersund is one of half a dozen attacks on shipping launched during the day by Coastal Command, which reports other successes which have not been confirmed.

British 2284-ton freighter Lady Connaught hits a mine and is damaged in the English Channel. However, she makes it back to port.

British 1641-ton freighter Victoria hits a mine and suffers damage in the River Mersey. However, the Victoria makes it back to port.

The Luftwaffe bombs 4668-ton Dutch tanker Woensdrecht, damaging it.

Convoy FN 368 departs from Southend, Convoy 372 and 373 depart from Methil, Convoy BN 12 departs from Bombay, Convoy BS 11B departs from Suez.

Memorial at Tower Hill for SS Waiotira.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Weather in the Mediterranean Basin is especially severe, heavy storms blowing cold winds all across the region. It is turning into the coldest month in 17 years. In Malta, it rains for 36 hours straight, and morale is so poor that the military offers another extra rum ration.

Cairo signals "No change" in the battlelines. With military operations at a standstill again - the Italians are defending Bardia and Tobruk, while the British are bringing up Australian troops to launch assaults on them - the British begin strategizing over the next steps. A big meeting is planned in Cairo between General Wavell, General O'Connor and Major General Iven Mackay, commander of the 6th Australian Division currently deploying to launch an assault on Bardia.

Battle of the Pacific: Having futzed around in the general vicinity for a week - including an abortive attempt to lay mines near Rabaul on 24 December - German raider Komet returns to Nauru today. At 05:45, it appears off the main phosphate loading facilities and issues a warning to the inhabitants not to radio for help and to avoid the phosphate installations. Then, at 06:40, Captain Kurt Weyher orders the Komet's crew to open fire with some combination of its six 15 cm, one 7.5 cm, one 3.7 cm, and four 2 cm guns. The bombardment wrecks the phosphate operation, destroying the loading plant, the oil tanks, boats, buildings, even the mooring buoys.

Having crippled the island's phosphate trade, Captain Weyher sets sail to the southeast. This is the only attack by German raiders on Nauru and the most effective attack of any kind by German forces in the Pacific Ocean during World War II. The British Admiralty quickly acts to station forces on the island for its protection, but the damage is done. Fertilizer production in the entire region is crippled, and New Zealand eventually must institute rationing. In a somewhat ironic twist, Japan's imports of phosphate are cut, and Japan has harsh words with the German government. There also is the little matter that the Komet flies the Japanese flag during the attack.

One may well ask, why raid Nauru? Who cares about fertilizer? True, this incident does little to advance the German war effort. It also somewhat hampers future German raider operations, since the prisoners released by Orion and Komet tell the British authorities many useful details about Kriegsmarine operations in the region.

However, in 21st Century parlance, Nauru is a "soft target" and, as a British colony, certainly fair game for attack. The island has no defenses at hand, and none close enough to matter. Thus, attacking it can bring virtually no consequences to the Germans - at least immediately. A common German belief throughout this period of the war is that the British commonwealth nations are stretched extremely thin, and disrupting their economies aids the overall war effort. Attacking Nauru forces the Royal Navy to divert ships to guard the island - and that alone justifies the attack, in order to thin out the fleet available to search for Komet and its fellow raiders.

There also is a more subtle reason for German attacks on Nauru: the island is a former German colony. Annexed by Germany in 1888 and incorporated into Germany's Marshall Islands Protectorate for administrative purposes, German recalls a long, profitable relationship with the island. Phosphate was discovered there in 1900, and exports began in 1907. It still would be a German colony in 1940, except the Australians captured it during World War I. The League of Nations then gave it to Great Britain under a mandate as part of the overall resolution of the war.

One of the reasons behind the rise of Adolf Hitler in the first place was the desire to "right the wrongs" of the decisions made by the victors after the Great War (which go far beyond just the Treaty of Versailles, though that is the easy handle to remember). Just before this raid, on 24 December, Captain Weyher tried to attack another target with mines - Rabaul. What do Rabaul and Nauru have in common? They are both former German colonies, stripped from Germany after its defeat in World War I (Rabaul went to Australia). Out of all the targets in the South Pacific, the Germans pick the two that were taken from them as part of "victor's justice." There may be an edge of vengeance or even spitefulness behind the apparent German obsession with this remote island in 1940. One word can explain this choice of targets: resentment.

The damaged phosphate elevator at Nauru. While the dock was repaired within 10 weeks, the factory equipment such as this had to wait until after the war.

German Military: Admiral Raeder meets with Adolf Hitler in Berlin. He tells Hitler that Italy's reverses mean that "The threat to Britain in the entire eastern Mediterranean, the Near East and in North Africa has been eliminated." Raeder essentially is admitting that the peripheral strategy that he pushed on Hitler just months earlier has become a complete failure, and essentially Germany is left with no effective strategy against England at all. Raeder also expresses "grave doubts" about attacking the Soviet Union with Great Britain still unsubdued.

Even though Raeder is one of the very few advisors from whom Hitler sometimes takes advice, perhaps because he knows little about naval warfare and grand strategy involving sea transport, the issue of the Soviet Union is a closed issue in his mind. Several other top advisors, including Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering, also are extremely skeptical of the wisdom of tangling with the Soviet Union. However,  Hitler considers himself - apparently due to his own war service and his past successes with invasions as Fuhrer - as the best strategist for land operations.

Hitler remains positive about the prospects for Operation Sea Lion, the proposed invasion of England. He states that "in all probability, it will not take place until the summer of 1941." During this period, Hitler seems to be balancing the competing ideas of invading Great Britain or invading the Soviet Union, which, despite his Fuhrer Directive No. 21 of 18 December setting forth planning and a target date for Operation Barbarossa, he still seems uncertain about.

British Military: Churchill sends a memo to General Hastings "Pug" Ismay, who holds several top military positions but essentially is Churchill's personal military advisor and adjutant (basically fulfilling a role similar to that of Keitel in Germany). Churchill suggests that preparations for Operation Marie, the invasion and occupation of Djibouti, should be set in motion by the sailing of several French battalions to Port Sudan on a convoy departing on 4 January 1941.

Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park, recently unceremoniously ousted from his command of No. 11 Group defending London, is given command of the RAF Fighter Command No. 23 Training Group.

Sub-Lieutenant Richard Valentine Moore receives the George Cross for his heroism in disarming five aerial mines without any formal training. Another George Cross is given posthumously to Sub-Lieutenant John Herbert Babington, who perished while attempting to disarm a bomb at Chatham.

Submarine tender Fulton (AS-11) launching at Mare Island, 27 December 1940.

Philippines: The musical chairs game of who is US Commandant of the Sixteenth Naval District and Cavite Navy Yard continues. Captain Eugene T. Oates assumes temporary command.

Vichy France: Premier Marshal Petain has released Pierre Laval, but has not restored him to his offices despite German pressure via Ambassador Otto Abetz. The official French press agency alludes to Laval's "retirement" today and notes that he is living in Paris as a private citizen.

American Homefront: RKO Radio Pictures releases "Kitty Foyle." It stars Ginger Rogers and is directed by Sam Wood based upon a book by Christopher Morley and a screenplay by Dalton Trumbo and Donald Ogden Stewart. This very successful film - it is RKO's top film for 1940 and essentially finances 1941's "Citizen Kane" - starts a new fashion craze, the "Kitty Foyle dress."

Continuing the H.G. Wells "Invisible Man" franchise, Universal Pictures releases "The Invisible Woman." Starring Virginia Bruce and John Barrymore, this outing plays the concept for laughs, with a model using her invisibility as a means to get even with her boss, Mr. Gowley (Charles Lane). Shemp Howard of the Three Stooges (with whom he is not working at this time, but has before and will again) makes a brief appearance as a hapless thug. This film also becomes a big hit, though it's not a big prestige picture like "Kitty Foyle."

A German escort ship showing nice dazzle camouflage photographed off Holland while being attacked on 27 December 1940. The ship was not damaged in this attack. However, another attack later in the day did badly damage it, though at the cost of a Beaufort and its crew.

December 1940

December 1, 1940: Wiking Division Forms
December 2, 1940: Convoy HX 90 Destruction
December 3, 1940: Greeks Advancing
December 4, 1940: Italian Command Shakeup
December 5, 1940: Thor Strikes Hard
December 6, 1940: Hitler's Cousin Gassed
December 7, 1940: Storms At Sea
December 8, 1940: Freighter Idarwald Seized
December 9, 1940: Operation Compass Begins
December 10, 1940: Operation Attila Planned
December 11, 1940: Rhein Wrecked
December 12, 1940: Operation Fritz
December 13, 1940: Operation Marita Planned
December 14, 1940: Plutonium Discovered
December 15, 1940: Napoleon II Returns
December 16, 1940: Operation Abigail Rachel
December 17, 1940: Garden Hoses and War
December 18, 1940: Barbarossa Directive
December 19, 1940: Risto Ryti Takes Over
December 20, 1940: Liverpool Blitz, Captain America
December 21, 1940: Moral Aggression
December 22, 1940: Manchester Blitz
December 23, 1940: Hitler at Cap Gris Nez
December 24, 1940: Hitler at Abbeville
December 25, 1940: Hipper's Great Escape
December 26, 1940: Scheer's Happy Rendezvous
December 27, 1940: Komet Shells Nauru
December 28, 1940: Sorge Spills
December 29, 1940: Arsenal of Democracy
December 30, 1940: London Devastated
December 31 1940: Roosevelt's Decent Proposal

2020

Wednesday 18 December 1940

The Curtiss XSB2C Helldiver prototype in flight, December 1940.

German Military: Adolf Hitler issues on 18 December 1940 Fuhrer Directive No. 21, "Case Barbarossa." Among all of Hitler's orders to the Wehrmacht, this one stands out as the most fateful. The Directive outlines the structure of a proposed invasion of "Soviet Russia in a rapid campaign ("Case Barbarossa")." Hitler personally chose the word Barbarossa for its historical connotations of a crusading Emperor fighting for the preservation of a Christian Europe.

Preparations are to be "concluded by 15th May 1941." The intent is to destroy the "bulk of the Russian Army stationed in Western Russia... by daring operations led by deeply penetrating armored spearheads." A barrier will be erected "against Asiatic Russia on the general line Volga-Archangel." This line evidently would run roughly from Astrakhan north along the Volga via Stalingrad.
Hitler orders that the main theater of operations is to be north of the Pripet Marshes, with two army groups in that portion of the front. One, the Northern Army Group, is to head in the "general direction" of Leningrad. "Only after the fulfillment of this first essential task," namely the destruction of Soviet forces operating in the Baltic area, "will the attack be continued with the intention of occupying Moscow, an important center of communications and of the armaments industry." The southernmost army group, that below the Pripet Marshes, is given short very shrift in the order - it is to operate from Lublin toward Kyiv and "destroy all forces west of the Dnieper (river) in Ukraine." Only general tasks are to be handled by the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine. This is to be primarily an army operation, with other services providing support and/or occupied elsewhere.

One of the dozen copies of Hitler's Directive No. 21, showing numerous security clearances and acknowledgments.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The tempo of British operations begins to fall quickly today. Having gained extensive territory and huge numbers of prisoners, the British forces begin some consolidation in southeast Libya in the Sollum/Fort region. Advanced mechanized units are firing on Bardia, but it will take some time to assemble troops for a proper assault.
Australian troops are being brought forward, including the 16th and 19th Australian brigades, to lead assaults on Bardia and the strategically important port and fortress of Tobruk. These troop movements will take roughly two weeks to complete. The British troops are aided by the fact that the Italian strong points, such as Fort Capuzzo, are in excellent shape due to the minimal amount of fighting there.

In Malta, it is the coldest winter in 17 years. Snow even falls on the higher elevations, an unusual occurrence. Two workers at the Malta Dockyard, B J Lewis, Chargeman of Fitters, and Frank Mallia, Chargeman of Labourers, are awarded the George cross for protecting an anti-aircraft gun hit by bomb splinters during an air raid on 24 September. There also is an air raid today by one bomber which causes some damage in the dockyard. The RAF shoots down the bomber.

Convoy MW 5B, the fast part of the MW 5 convoy, departs from Alexandria for Malta. Many of the British air and naval operations over the coming week will be intended as distractions from this convoy.

Italian/Greek Campaign: The Greek 3rd Infantry Division continues struggling forward from Porto Palermo toward Himara on the Adriatic coast. The weather is terrible, but the Greeks are making progress toward capturing the tactically important Giami high ground. The Greeks are readying a coordinated assault on the port on the morrow. The RAF bombs the port of Valona, while the Italians use their fleet to bombard the Greeks along the coast. The Royal Navy also is active along the Albanian coast, with battleships HMS Valiant and Warspite joining in with the RAF's attack on Valona.

European Air Operations: The RAF returns to Mannheim during the night with 17 aircraft in a classic follow-up raid to the recent terror raid. The RAF also attacks the submarine pens at Lorient. The Luftwaffe is very quiet today.

Battle of the Atlantic: The British Admiralty knows there are strong German forces operating in the Atlantic, and, despite allocating significant forces to track them down, so far has been unable to find them either in the South Atlantic or near the Azores/Canary Islands. Today, it tries again, sending aircraft carrier HMS Formidable and heavy cruiser HMS Norfolk as Force K to search the South Atlantic once again. They join aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and light cruiser HMS Dragon and armed merchant cruiser HMS Pretoria Castle on the search in the South Atlantic, and also cruisers HMS Cumberland, Newcastle, Enterprise, Dorsetshire and Neptune searching a little further north. Admiral Scheer is actually about 800 miles south of the Cape Verde Islands, and it's a big ocean.

Separately, battleship HMS Nelson and battlecruiser HMS Repulse depart from Scapa Flow for tactical exercises west of the Orkneys. Admiral Scheer's crew, meanwhile, is feasting off the massive bounty of fresh eggs and meat taken with the 8651-ton British refrigerated ship Duquesna, just captured off the Brazilian coast.

U-96 (Kplt. Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock) torpedoes and damages 10,746-ton Dutch tanker Pendrecht in Convoy OB 259 along the Western Approaches. The Pendrecht, like other tankers, is difficult to sink. The crew abandons ship, but then re-boards it and makes it to Rothesay under escort. U-96 later spots battleship HMS Repulse but is unable to attack.

U-100 (Kptlt. Joachim Schepke) torpedoes and sinks 10,116-ton British passenger ship Napier Star. There are 71 deaths (including 12 passengers), with the 15 survivors (including three women) rescued by Swedish freighter Vaalaren (some sources say there were 84 deaths). This is the last victory for Schepke and U-100, a very successful submarine, and its penultimate patrol.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Tuna, operating off the Gironde in the Bay of Biscay, sinks 172-ton French tug Chassiron. Earlier, it attacked but missed Italian submarine Brin, which was returning to its base at Bordeaux.

The Luftwaffe (Focke Wulf Fw 200 of I,/ KG 40) attacks and sinks 1010-ton British tanker RFA Osage off County Wicklow, Ireland. The Luftwaffe also damaged 2697 ton British freighter Tweed. Everybody survives these attacks.

Royal Navy 258-ton minesweeping trawler HMT Refundo hits a mine and sinks (after being taken under tow) off Harwich. There are two deaths.

German 6322-ton freighter Birkenfels hits a mine and sinks off the Scheide.

German vorpostenboot (flak ship) V-403 hits a mine and sinks in the Westerscheide (Western Scheldt).

British coaster Ability hits a mine and sinks in the Thames Estuary near Clacton-on-Sea, Essex.

Italian submarine Veniero torpedoes and sinks 2883 ton Greek freighter Anastassia. The Anastassia had been in Convoy SC 15, which dispersed. There are 18 deaths, and ten crew are made prisoners of war. The Anastassia actually drifts for some time is and sighted by another ship two days later, but it is a total loss and only a hazard to navigation after this.
Convoy WS51 ("Winston Special") departs from the Clyde and Liverpool. Faster units of the convoy will wait and depart later. The Winston Special convoys are destined for the Middle East and carry troops, tanks, and other supplies and equipment.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Triton is declared lost after failing to return to Malta on the 17th. There are 54 deaths and no survivors.

Convoy HX 97 departs from Halifax, Convoy BN 11 departs from Aden.

Canadian corvette HMCS Chambly (K 116, Lt. Commander Frank C. Smith) is commissioned.

The SS Napier Star, Joachim Schepke's final victory.

Anglo/US Relations: Having just arrived in London, Colonel "Wild Bill" Donovan meets with Winston Churchill. Churchill briefs Donovan on the situation in Spain, Turkey, and the Balkans, Donovan's destinations.

German/Vichy French Relations: Fernand de Brinon becomes the Vichy French ambassador to the Germans occupying Paris. De Brinon is seen as quite sympathetic to the Germans and has had five private talks with Hitler during the 1930s. He also is friendly with German Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop.

German Military: German 2nd SS Division "Das Reich" is in the process of transferring from the Netherlands to northern France. ith it goes Otto Skorzeny, who has gained some prestige within the Wehrmacht for designing a clever ramp for loading tanks on barges.

Soviet Military: General Andrey Eremenko (Yeryomenko) becomes Commander in Chief of the North Caucasus Military District. Eremenko is a tank expert, as shown during the conquest of eastern Poland in 1939, and has acquired the nickname "the Russian Guderian" - which is both a compliment to him and to General Heinz Guderian.

British Military: In a decision made long before, Air Vice Marshal Keith Park of No. 11 Group, the most prestigious Air Group and the one that defends London, is replaced by his long-time nemesis Leigh-Mallory of No. 12 Group. He and Air Marshal Dowding have been essentially cashiered due to political infighting within the RAF, though both have done sterling work. Once Dowding was removed from his position atop Fighter Command and replaced by Sholto Douglas, Park's removal was a given, as Park and Dowding continually supported each other during the Battle of Britain. Coincidentally, Dowding departs for the United States today aboard liner Leopoldville as part of his duties for his sinecure position within the aircraft production area. For his part, Park is going to some training duties.

US Military: The Curtiss SB2C Helldiver makes its maiden flight. The plane is reputed to have issues with its small vertical tail, but the flight is without incident.

Heavy cruiser USS Louisville makes port at Bahia, Brazil as part of its "Show the Flag" mission in Latin America.

Boston College Eagles players on their way to New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl. About 5000 fans, including Boston's Mayor, see them off at the station on 18 December 1940 for the game to be held on 1 January 1941. (Don't tell them - they win).

British Homefront: Winston Churchill visits Harrow School, his alma mater, for the first rendition Harrow songs (he makes these visits annually). After commenting that Hitler had described the war as being between those who had been through the German schools and those who had been at Eton, Churchill comments, "Hitler has forgotten Harrow." Meanwhile, the Queen makes a tour of ambulance services and ARP depots. Her daughter, the future queen, will work in a motor pool herself, and the Queen may be thinking ahead.
German Homefront: Strangely enough, Hitler also gives a speech to students today, at the annual rally of young officer cadets at the Berlin Sportpalast. In it, he compares the populations of nearby nations to that of Germany and finds injustice in the amount of land that Germany occupies relative to its population - quite an interesting rationale for war:

There are approximately 85 million Germans in Germany. I do not even include in this figure our Low German Volksgenossen. England, the British Empire, has barely 46 million Englishmen at home. The French Empire has barely 37 million Frenchmen at home. Even the American Union, minus Negroes and Jews and Latinos and Germans, has barely 60 million true Anglo- Saxons. Russia has barely 60 million Great Russians. 

And even today the unified racial core in Germany remains the largest by far; not only in value, in itself highly significant, but also in numbers, it is the greatest. By contrast, if we compare the percentage of Lebensraum occupied by the German Volk to that of the earth as such, then we must remark that our Volk is one of the most disadvantaged peoples of the world. Barely 600,000 square kilometers, in fact about 140 persons per square kilometer. 46 million Englishmen rule, control, and organize about 40 million square kilometers. Barely 60 million Great Russians rule an area of about 19 million square kilometers. About 60 million Anglo-Saxons within the American Union determine life within an area which encompasses about nine and a half million square kilometers. 37 million Frenchmen rule over life in an area of nearly ten million square kilometers. 

In other words: the German Volk, in terms of the space it occupies, is by far the most modest there is on this earth.

Hitler also justifies his actions - which, of course, are top secret, but the day's Directive obviously is what he is commenting upon here - from a candidly Darwinian perspective:

Truly, this earth is a trophy cup for the industrious man. And this rightly so, in the service of natural selection. He who does not possess the force to secure his 'Lebensraum' in this world, and, if necessary, to enlarge it, does not deserve to possess the necessities of life. He must step aside and allow stronger peoples to pass him by.

This jibes nicely with Fuhrer Directive No. 21 issued to the Wehrmacht today. It is quite possible that he intended this address to serve as a companion piece to the Directive for historians.

Cine illustrato, 18 December 1940.

December 1940

December 1, 1940: Wiking Division Forms
December 2, 1940: Convoy HX 90 Destruction
December 3, 1940: Greeks Advancing
December 4, 1940: Italian Command Shakeup
December 5, 1940: Thor Strikes Hard
December 6, 1940: Hitler's Cousin Gassed
December 7, 1940: Storms At Sea
December 8, 1940: Freighter Idarwald Seized
December 9, 1940: Operation Compass Begins
December 10, 1940: Operation Attila Planned
December 11, 1940: Rhein Wrecked
December 12, 1940: Operation Fritz
December 13, 1940: Operation Marita Planned
December 14, 1940: Plutonium Discovered
December 15, 1940: Napoleon II Returns
December 16, 1940: Operation Abigail Rachel
December 17, 1940: Garden Hoses and War
December 18, 1940: Barbarossa Directive
December 19, 1940: Risto Ryti Takes Over
December 20, 1940: Liverpool Blitz, Captain America
December 21, 1940: Moral Aggression
December 22, 1940: Manchester Blitz
December 23, 1940: Hitler at Cap Gris Nez
December 24, 1940: Hitler at Abbeville
December 25, 1940: Hipper's Great Escape
December 26, 1940: Scheer's Happy Rendezvous
December 27, 1940: Komet Shells Nauru
December 28, 1940: Sorge Spills
December 29, 1940: Arsenal of Democracy
December 30, 1940: London Devastated
December 31 1940: Roosevelt's Decent Proposal

2020

Thursday 24 October 1940

Hitler and Petain in Montoire. This was taken by Hitler's personal photographer Heinrich Hoffmann, the only photographer authorized to take pictures of Hitler and who received royalties (along with Hitler) for use of the shots. Ribbentrop in the background. (Federal Archives).

Battle of Britain: Air Marshal Dowding, still in charge of Fighter Command on 24 October 1940 despite being targeted for removal, remonstrates with AVM Keith Park at No. 11 Group, telling him to cut AVM Leigh-Mallory some slack at No. 12 Group. Leigh-Mallory has been dilatory in responding to requests for assistance over London, standing firm in his commitment to the "Big Wing" strategy which takes longer periods of time to assemble. Relations between the leaders of the two groups continue to deteriorate, and Dowding is helpless to smooth over their differences.

The weather remains poor for flying, rainy and low-hanging clouds. However, this is an important day in the Battle of Britain because the Italians join in. They are based in Belgium, the zone of Luftflotte 2, and engage in operations with them against Harwich and Felixstowe after dark. The standard Italian fighter is a biplane long past its prime, and Italian bombers are 1930s tri-motor marvels that are, by late-1940 standards, lumbering and inadequately armed. Handled properly, though, they can be effective.

Italian General Corso Fougier has his Corpo Aereo Italiano (CAI, literally, "Italian Air Corps") HQ in Petite Espinette of Rhode-St-Genesis (between Brussels and Waterloo) and other operations are based at Evere airfield. The Italians operate under the command of II Fliegerkorps

Shown is the train bridge on Blackfriars Road between London Bridge and Waterloo Station, which, along with the trams beneath is, has sustained bomb damage. 24 October 1940). (London Fire Brigade).

The morning is extremely quiet. A Dornier Do 215 reconnaissance plane is shot down over St. Neots by a Hurricane of RAF No. 1 Squadron around 11:00. That is about the only activity until the afternoon.

Around 14:30, the Luftwaffe sends across a small formation of Dornier Do 17s. They attack Hayes and damage the Farley Aviation Company.

As has been happening quite a bit lately, the weather causes some casualties. Two Hurricanes collide in the clouds near Taunton. One pilot is killed, the other plane, which only suffered damage to its tail, makes it back to base. The third Hurricane of No. 43 Squadron crashes upon landing due to fierce cross-winds, killing pilot Sgt. D.R. Stoodley. Another Hurricane of No. 303 Squadron crashes during dog-fight exercises.

After dark, the primary targets are London, Liverpool, and Manchester. The raids begin around 19:00 and come from all along the Channel coast. In London, New Street Station is engulfed in flames. Bombing accuracy in the iffy weather is poor, and bombs drop at random. The RAF somewhat charitably figures that the Luftwaffe was aiming for water mains and the like, and indeed there are some lucky hits. The Luftwaffe also continues mining the Thames Estuary and all along the eastern coastline.

The Italians send twelve BR.20Ms of 13o Stormo and six from 43o Stormo against Felixstowe and Harwich. They get off to a bad start when one of the bombers crashes shortly after takeoff near the church at Houtem, Belgium. Ten of the bombers make it to the target and drop their bombs, but two get lost on the way back and the crews have to bail out. A third bomber lands at the wrong airfield (Lille-Epinoy), damaging the aircraft. Only 8 of the 12 bombers sent off manage to return to their original base.

Losses for the day are low - assuming that you do not include the Italian bomber losses - at about 8 for the Luftwaffe and 4 for the RAF.

"A group of pilots of No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron walking towards the camera from a Hawker Hurricane (probably Hurricane Mk.I, RF-F, V6684) after returning from a fighter sortie at RAF Leconfield, 24 October 1940. Left to right, in the front row are - Pilot Officer Mirosław "Ox" Ferić; Flight Lieutenant John A. Kent "Kentowski" (the CO of 'A' Flight); Flying Officer Bogdan Grzeszczak; Pilot Officer Jerzy Radomski; Pilot Officer Witold "Tolo" Łokuciewski; Pilot Officer Bogusław Mierzwa (obscured by Łokuciewski); Flying Officer Zdzisław Henneberg; Sergeant Jan Rogowski; Sergeant Eugeniusz Szaposznikow. In the center, to the rear of this group, wearing helmet and goggles is Pilot Officer Jan "Donald Duck" Zumbach." © IWM (CH 1535).

European Air Operations: During the day, RAF Bomber Command attacks shipping off Zeebrugge, industrial targets around Calais, and the ports of Gravelines and Ostend.

After dark, the RAF launches the first attacks on Berlin which produce extensive civilian casualties. Other targets include oil installations at Hamburg, Hanover, and Gelsenkirchen; the ports of Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Cuxhaven, Wilhelmshaven, Rotterdam, Le Havre, and Lorient; and various airfields in northwest Europe.

Battle of the Atlantic: Things at sea continue to quiet down after the massive destruction recently visited upon Convoys SC 7, HX 79 and elsewhere. The U-boats are returning to port for re-stocking - but they will be back. It is this stage of the war - the "Happy Time - that the Kriegsmarine would most benefit from having more U-boats of ocean-going design.

In Operation DNU, Royal Navy destroyers HMS Matabele, HMS Punjabi and HMS Somali engage in a sweep off Norway. They are supported at a distance by the Home Fleet, represented by battlecruisers HMS Hood and Repulse and two cruisers. The destroyers sink German weather ship WBS 5 Adolf Vinnen (a 391-ton trawler) off Stadtlandet, Norway (north of Bergen) (some accounts state that accompanying submarine HMS Seawolf actually sank the weather ship). The destroyers attempt to intercept a group of 20 fishing vessels escorted by one ship nearby but make no contact. After this, the destroyers and supporting battlecruisers head back to Scapa Flow. It is an unproductive operation not worth the fuel and time; the Admiralty must have thought something more important was happening off Norway. Kriegsmarine battlecruiser Admiral Scheer is heading that way and may have been the real target, but it has not yet left German waters.

Royal Navy destroyer HMS Mendip is sailing just off Barrel of Butter when it accidentally sets off one of its own depth charges. This blows the stern of the ship off and it must be towed to Scapa Flow. The repairs, made at the Tyne, will take until February 1941.

German 3664 ton freighter Helgoland departs from Puerto Columbia, Colombia in a risky bid to return to a French Atlantic port of St. Nazaire. Not only must it evade the Royal Navy, but also patrolling US destroyers who typically make sure that the Royal Navy is informed of their whereabouts. The journey will pass by St. Thomas on its way toward the Atlantic. The US destroyers are alerted to its departure and give chase.

Convoys OA 234 (last of this OA series) and Convoy FS 319 depart from Methil, Convoy OB 234 departs from Liverpool, Convoy FN 318 departs from Southend, Convoy HX 83 departs from Halifax, Convoy SC 9 departs from St John.

RAF ground crew preparing a bomb to be used against Italian positions in North Africa, 24 October 1940.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The RAF bombs Italian supply lines in both Libya/Egypt and East Africa. Also attacked are Benghazi, Berka, Gura, and Asmara. Swordfish flying out of Fuka lay mines in Tobruk Harbor.

In Malta, there is an air raid alert around noontime. As they often do, however, the Italian raiders stay far off the coast, circle for a while, then return to base. It is a curious routine, perhaps the pilots are not interested in actually attacking the island but want to make it look like they did to their superiors. The citizenry on the island shows increasing signs of anti-Italian sentiment, with many wishing to change street names and accusing neighbors of being secret Italian sympathizers. The sight of Italian POWs also sets off many residents.

German/French Relations: Following his unproductive meeting with Franco at the Spanish border, Hitler travels to Montoire-sur-le-Loir and meets with Marshal Philippe Pétain. This location is both convenient to the main railway line from Berlin-Paris-Hendaye but also has a tunnel nearby in case of an air attack. That railway tunnel, in fact, has steel doors affixed to it for this meeting that still remain in the 21st Century.

Hitler is on much more solid footing with Petain than with Franco, but things do not go particularly well in this meeting. Yes, Petain does state that he is willing "to collaborate," but those are just words that must be fleshed out with substance to have any real consequences. As in his meetings with Mussolini and other leaders, Hitler engages in long monologues while Petain says little. Petain says nothing that could be considered sympathetic to Germany. At the end of the meeting, Petain takes out a list of French demands for collaboration and sticks it in Hitler's pocket.

The most important thing that happens at the meeting is that Petain says "no" when Hitler asks him to join the war against England. This is usually what the French take away from this meeting, that Petain "said no to Hitler." However, to the Allies, collaborating alongside the Germans was almost as bad. French resources prove immensely valuable to the Reich's war effort from this point forward.

There is also a feeling among some that Petain "stared Hitler down." The story goes that Petain's advisor, Rene Gillouin, had told Hitler to stare at him unflinchingly. This very basic trick supposedly unnerves Hitler. It is fair to say that modern French opinion about Petain is overwhelmingly negative, but there is an undercurrent of pride in the way he handled this meeting.

An interesting outcome in this meeting is in the way that Petain describes it a week later in a radio broadcast. On 30 October, he refers to "the new European order," a phrase that resonates with one Ribbentrop has been using in secret communications with the Soviet Union (though there he uses "New World Order"). In that speech, Petain also states that he will "enter today the path of collaboration." While Montoire is not the start of a new war for France, it is the beginning of the long, dark collaborationist journey that blackens the name of the Vichy regime. In that sense, the meeting constitutes an overwhelming success for Hitler.

US/French Relations: The US State Department cautions the Vichy government not to permit the Germans to use French warships.

Arming one of the bombers heading to Berlin. 24 October 1940 (AP Photo).

German/Italian Relations: Mussolini is outraged that Germany has been dickering with Spain and France behind his back without offering him (and Italy... of course) any stroking at the same time. "Since this is how it is going to be," he has ordered his Foreign Ministry to start making noises about Italian demands for further cooperation - including cession by France of large stretches of the French coastline stretching clear to Marseilles.

The Italians hint darkly that Petain and de Gaulle are actually in cahoots to hoodwink Hitler and demand numerous territorial and economic demands to be imposed upon France, including her overseas colonies. Basically, Spain and Italy now both want to dismember France to their own benefit - or, put more accurately, they want Hitler to do it for them.

Having, at last, realized that Italy - or at least Mussolini - is acting like a spurned lover over the German wooing of Spain and France, German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop (traveling with Hitler in his own separate train) springs into belated action. Ribbentrop calls his Italian counterpart, Count Ciano, during the evening. The call does not go well - Ciano conveys his "fears and suspicions" that Germany is about to sell out its staunch ally Italy in favor of the French and Spanish floozies. Ribbentrop immediately drafts a letter which summarizes the current situation:

• The talks with Spain had failed;
• France was willing to cooperate with Germany (how far he does not explain, and in fact that remains an open question);
• Hitler would soon send Mussolini a letter of his own summarizing matters and would like to set up another meeting with Mussolini ASAP in northern Italy.

Ribbentrop's sudden agitation about the Italian situation is underlined by the extreme speed with which he prepares this soothing letter (Ribbentrop is notorious for going through numerous drafts): he stays up all night and has the letter typed out on the large-lettered "Fuhrer typewriter" and approved by Hitler in the early morning hours (also a sign of how sensitive the matter is). The signed letter is at the Foreign Ministry for delivery before daylight. Sent by a fast courier plane, Ribbentrop's letter is in the hands of German ambassador Mackensen in Rome by 08:00 on the 25th, only about 12 hours from start to finish. He just could have, you know, called a florist and sent over some roses instead.

US Military: Heavy cruiser USS Louisville departs from Rio de Janeiro for Montevideo, Uruguay as part of its "Show the Flag" mission.

Lighter cruiser St. Louis arrives at Hamilton, Bermuda with the members of the Greenslade Board who are inspecting British bases acquired in the destroyers-for-bases deal.

Belgium: Taking a much different route than France, Belgium opens a government-in-exile in London. It is led by Hubert Pierlot and Paul-Henri-Spaak, who only recently escaped from detention in Francoist France, and Camille Gutt. The new government quickly declares war on Italy for operating air missions from Belgian airfields.

British Homefront: The recent call to outlying cities to supply buses to London produces its first results. The first provincial buses appear on London streets. Driving in London is increasingly dangerous due to the deteriorating streets and the continued need for the blackout. You never know when a recent bomb hit may have left some debris in the road, and that is tough to see in the dark. Ultimately, about 2000 buses will go into service to keep the capital functioning.

Unlike in 1939, the government decides to extend British Summer Time throughout the winter.

American Homefront: The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938’s mandate of a 40-hour workweek with time-and-a-half overtime pay for hours of work beyond that takes effect. The same basic scheme has been in place ever since.

October 24, 1940. Publicity shot by Virgil Apger at MGM and used to promote the new "Judy Garland Doll" to be marketed at Christmas 1940. Not a particularly good likeness, but it's the thought that counts. (MGM serial number MG81797).

October 1940
October 2, 1940: Hitler's Polish Plans
October 3, 1940: British Cabinet Shakeup
October 4, 1940: Brenner Pass Meeting
October 5, 1940: Mussolini Alters Strategy
October 6, 1940: Iron Guard Marches
October 7, 1940: McCollum Memo
October 8, 1940: Germans in Romania
October 9, 1940: John Lennon Arrives
October 10, 1940: Führer-Sofortprogramm
October 11, 1940: E-Boats Attack!
October 12, 1940: Sealion Cancelled
October 13, 1940: New World Order
October 14, 1940: Balham Tragedy
October 15, 1940: Mussolini Targets Greece
October 16, 1940: Japanese Seek Oil
October 17, 1940: RAF Shakeup
October 18, 1940: Convoy SC-7 Catastrophe
October 19, 1940: Convoy HX-79 Catastrophe
October 20, 1940: Convoy OB-229 Disaster
October 21, 1940: This Evil Man Hitler
October 22, 1940: Aktion Wagner-Burckel
October 23, 1940: Hitler at Hendaye
October 24, 1940: Hitler and Petain
October 25, 1940: Petain Woos Churchill
October 26, 1940: Empress of Britain Attack
October 27, 1940: Greece Rejects Italian Demands
October 28, 1940: Oxi Day
October 29, 1940: US Draft Begins
October 30, 1940: RAF Area Bombing Authorized
October 31, 1940: End of Battle of Britain

2020

Thursday 17 October 1940

U.S. Ambassador Joseph Kennedy, left, with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill outside 10 Downing Street in London on Oct. 17, 1940. (AP).

Battle of Britain: Both sides draw some conclusions from the course of the battle so far on 17 October 1940. They are vastly different conclusions, and both are completely unwarranted - for vastly different reasons.

Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering attempts to put a bit of a period on the disastrous Battle of Britain by praising his pilots:

In the past few days and nights you have caused the British world enemy disastrous losses by your uninterrupted disastrous blows. Your indefatigable, courageous attacks on the heart of the British Empire, the City of London, with its eight and a half million inhabitants, have reduced British plutocracy to fear and terror. The losses which you have inflicted on the much-vaunted Royal Air Force in determined fighter engagements is irreplaceable.

It is true that recent attacks on London have been especially severe. However, throughout the battle, there has been a decided tendency for the Luftwaffe to think that it has been doing than it has. The RAF's losses are hardly "irreplaceable," and its losses are quickly replaced by newer and better aircraft and more pilots coming from Canada and elsewhere. The Royal Air Force has survived, and the Luftwaffe's night attacks are doing little to curb its growth.

On the British side, the continued conflict about tactics once again breaks out into the open. Air Vice-Marshal Leigh Mallory of No. 12 Group, along with his second Douglas Bader, pushes his favored tactic of the "Big Wing" again. This is the assembly of large fighter formations composed of multiple squadrons before attacking intruders. AVM Keith Park at the more stretched No.11 Group, however, resists this tactic as it wastes valuable time and allows many intruders to complete their missions and escape. He would rather continue the strategy of sending squadrons into battle as soon as they assemble rather than go through the added complication of stacking squadrons. Air Marshal Dowding basically backs Park, while Leigh Mallory has the support of the Air Ministry - partly due to war hero Bader's political connections with it and Churchill.

There are pros and cons to each approach, but Park has been the point man who essentially saved England in its darkest days. His leadership worked, as did Dowding's. Leigh-Mallory has been a carper who at times appeared to disregard Park - to the detriment of operations. Bader, for his part, is a propaganda hero (somewhat overblown, but his personal story, of course, is inspirational) with a Member of Parliament in his unit. This has become a classic power struggle that has more to do with becoming a master of the domain rather than tactics. There are going to be winners and losers in short order.

With this background, after some delay, a long-anticipated meeting is held today under the rubric of Major Day Tactics in the Fighter Force. This becomes a classic bureaucratic set-up, with the guys on the front-lines - Dowding and Park - completely outmatched by the REMFs (or, as Hitler would put it, the swivel-chair Generals). Deputy Chief of the Air Staff Sholto Douglas chairs the meeting, and Leigh-Mallory brings junior officer Bader - a clear sign that this is a political affair, as otherwise, Bader has no reason to be there. It really doesn't matter whose ideas are better - Leigh-Mallory and Bader are "in good" with the powers that be, and that is it.

As a direct result of this meeting - handled quite discreetly, with no blame attached and decorations granted and so on and so forth - both Dowding and Park get the ax. Dowding "decides to retire," and Park is given a temporary post in the training sector. The Air Ministry's description of the battle issued later does not even bother to mention either man. Leigh-Mallory takes over the more prestigious No. 11 Group from Park (made cushier because Park has done all the heavy lifting), and Bader is promoted to Wing Commander at Tangmere. Douglas, meanwhile, takes the job he quietly had coveted all along - Dowding's spot in charge of Fighter Command.

As George Carlin would say, there's a big club, and you ain't in it.

Sir Hugh Dowding and Douglas Bader in 1945.

Over England, the weather turns better again, allowing large-scale raids, though visibility remains poor. The days are getting shorter, and the Luftwaffe no longer has its heart in the battle - which even a fool could see that it has lost, as evidenced by Goering's spurious valedictory quoted above.

The day's first raid occurs at 08:30, with fighter-bomber (Jabo) raids toward London. This group also includes some Dornier Do 17s and numbers altogether about 100 planes. The Germans bomb Margate, Broadstairs, and Stanmore without too much interference due to the cloudiness.

After lunch, another Jabo raid at 13:00-15:00 targets East London, Kenley and Biggin Hill. The RAF sends up 14 Squadrons, and massive dogfights break out all across southern England. Central London takes some damage, as does RAF Kenley.

At 17:00, another Jabo raid targets various objectives in Kent and Sussex. Three Fighter Command squadrons handle this attack.

After dark, the Luftwaffe targets the usual suspects of London, Liverpool, Birmingham, the Midlands, and East Anglia. There also is some mining in the Thames Estuary and off the Suffolk coast. The night's biggest casualty is the automatic signaling equipment at Waterloo Station, which is replaced until repair by human signallers.

Overall, it is a fairly bad day for the Luftwaffe. It loses about 15 planes, while the RAF only loses a few. As usual, when the Luftwaffe launches major raids as today, it loses disproportionately, whereas when it keeps the raids small and varied as in recent days, the losses are about equal.

Two Home Guard officers, Sub-Lt Jack Maynard Cholmondeley Easton, RNVR, and AB Bennett Southwall, RN, attempt to disarm a mine in a house. The mine slips and goes off, killing Southwall and badly injuring Easton. They both receive the George Cross. Another man, 2nd Lt Alexander Fraser Campbell of the 9 Bomb Disposal Coy Royal Engineers, also perishes while working on a bomb and receives the award. While all involved undoubtedly earned their awards many times over - what more can you give than your life? - this continues a trend where the George Cross - originally conceived as a way to reward civilians - typically is awarded instead to men working (and often dying) in their official capacities.

Luftwaffe ace Hans-Karl Mayer, Gruppenkommandeur I./JG 53, never returns from a test flight today. His body washes up on a beach 10 days later. He was possibly a victim of RAF ace F/L D. McMullen of No. 222 Squadron. Mayer had 39 victories, just under the leaders.

Luftwaffe ace Hans-Karl Mayer.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command has no operations due to the foul weather. Coastal Command makes a daylight attack on Brest.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-boats have infested the major sea lanes, and today all the hard work to change bases from Germany to forward bases in Norway and France pays off.

Several convoys get hit in running battles that last several days. In addition, four German destroyers (Hans Lody, Karl Galster, Friedrich Ihn, and Erich Steinbrinck) with six torpedo boats are sighted off Brest, forcing the Admiralty to re-route Convoys OG 44, SL 50 and HG 45 to the west. The Admiralty despatches Two light cruisers (HMS Newcastle and Emerald) and destroyers from Plymouth to confront the German ships, and the British cruisers chase the German ships from 16:00 to 18:00 before the faster Kriegsmarine ships slip away as the light fades.

Convoy SC 7 is entering the Western Approaches from Canada and only has as escorts three ships: destroyer HMS Scarborough, sloop HMS Fowey and corvette HMS Bluebell. This is one of those early-war situations where the number of U-boats watching actually is greater than the number of escorts. There is air cover by Coastal Command, but it can only do so much. This is only the beginning of the torture of Convoy SC 7.

U-38 (Kptlt. Heinrich Liebe), on her seventh patrol out of Lorient, is shadowing Convoy SC 7 about 150 km northeast of Rockall when it spots 3554 ton Greek freighter Aenos. The freighter is a straggler from the convoy. U-38 fires a torpedo at 09:57 but misses. The U-boat then surfaces and uses its 105 mm deck gun on the ship, sinking it at 10:52. There are 25 survivors and 4 crew perish. Canadian freighter Eaglescliffe Hall rescues the crew and takes them to Scotland.

U-38 is not the only U-boat stalking Convoy SC 7; in fact, half a dozen submarines have their eyes on the large convoy. U-48 (Kapitänleutnant Heinrich Bleichrodt) sets up and fires three torpedoes into the convoy. All three hit.

U-48 (Kptl. Heinrich Bleichrodt) torpedoes and badly damages 9512-ton British tanker Languedoc in Convoy SC 7. After all 41 crew survive and are taken off on other ships, the tanker is deemed irrecoverable. Royal Navy corvette HMS Bluebell scuttles it.

U-48 also torpedoes and sinks 3843-ton British freighter Scoresby (Master Lawrence Zebedee Weatherill) in Convoy SC 7. The entire crew survives when also picked up by HMS Bluebell.

U-48 torpedoes and damages 4678-ton British freighter Haspenden. The ship makes it to port.

After the U-48 attacks, the U-boat is chased by the Scarborough. This forces the U-boat to go deep, putting it out of action as far as Convoy SC 7 is concerned. However, this incident also takes the Scarborough, one of only three escorts, out of the picture as well. From this point, the Convoy SC 7 only has two escorts - and more than double that number of U-boats are watching and waiting for opportunities to attack.

U-93 (Kptlt. Claus Korth), on her first patrol out of Kristiansand, Norway, is tracking Convoy OB 228 south of Iceland. At 03:39, he torpedoes and badly damages 2715 ton British tanker Uskbridge (Master Wilfred Breckon Smith). Tankers are very difficult to sink. After waiting for it to sink, Korth finally puts another torpedo into it at 13:36, splitting it in two. There are 27 survivors and six crew perish.

After being spotted by the British escorts of Convoy OB 228, U-93 is attacked twice with ships and once by a flying boat. After surviving these attacks, Korth gets down to business again. He torpedoes and sinks 1168 ton Norwegian freighter Dokka. There are seven survivors and ten crew perish. He questions the survivors, then proceeds on his way after being spotted by the convoy escorts again.

Popeye animation "My Pop, My Pop" released today.

E-boat attacks off the East Anglia coast are so common that the area has become known as "E-boat Alley." Today, a major E-boat attack cements that nickname.

E-boat S-27 attacks Convoy FN 11. It torpedoes and badly damages British collier Gasfire about 11 km northeast of Smith's Knoll at Great Yarmouth. There are 11 deaths. Having lost her stern, the collier is towed to Spurn Head at the mouth of the Humber and beached, where it will be repaired after being towed to the River Wear.

E-boat S-18 (Christiansen) torpedoes and badly damages 1595 ton coaster Hauxley in Convoy FN 11. HMS Worcester takes her in tow, but she sinks on the 18th. There is one death.

E-boat S-24 torpedoes and sinks 3754-ton French ship P.L.M. 14 in Convoy FN 11.

British freighter Brian claims to have sunk one of the E-boats that attacked Convoy FN 11, but there is no record of that in the German archives. In addition, British long-range coastal guns at Dover shell the E-boats, but the distance is too great and the boats too fast for any hope except a very lucky hit.

British 1361 ton freighter Frankrig hits a mine and sinks off Orford Ness, Suffolk. All 19 crew survive, taken on board HMS Holderness.

Royal Navy trawler HMT Kingston Cairngorm hits a mine south of the Isle of Portland, Dorset. Taken in tow, it sinks on the 18th.

Royal Navy minesweeper HMS Dundalk hits a mine off Harwich, Essex and suffers extensive damage. Fellow minesweeper HMS Sutton takes it in tow, but the Dundalk sinks. There are four deaths.

The Faroe Islands 65-ton fishing trawler Cheerful hits a mine and explodes off the Faroe Islands.

British 15 ton fishing boat Albatross hits a mine and blows up off Grimsby, Lincolnshire. All five onboard perish, including skipper J.A. Ward. The crew is listed on Tower Hill Memorial in London.

Sailing ship Janna A (unknown flag) hits a mine and sinks in the Oosterschelde, Zeeland. It lies just offshore and becomes a fairly popular diving wreck, with lots of lobsters.

British 936 ton freighter Ethylene hits a mine just northeast of East Oaze Light Buoy but makes it back to port.

British 1570 ton freighter George Balfour hits a mine just off Aldeburgh Light Vessel. The ship makes it back to port.

Convoy OB 230 departs from Liverpool, Convoy FN 311 departs from Southend, Convoy FS 312 departs from Methil.

Vice-Admiral J. C. Tovey replaces Admiral of the Fleet Sir Charles M. Forbes as Commander-In-Chief of the Home Fleet.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Royal Navy control of the Straits of Gibraltar continues to be somewhat shaky, at least as far as the French Navy is concerned. Previously, some French cruisers had reinforced Dakar by passing through the Strait, causing the British commander there to be sacked. Today, French torpedo boat La Batailleuse escorts submarines Pegase, Monge, Espoir and Vengeur westbound to Casablanca. Why the British are allowing these transits is a mystery because they have enough ships to at least attempt interceptions. It may simply be that the French vessels simply sneak through without being spotted - which also raises questions about British operations on Gibraltar.

The South African Air Force bombs Italian transports at Neghelli, Abyssinia.

Orde Wingate arrives in Cairo.

The Chief of Imperial General Staff in London informs Governor Dobbie on Malta that it will be sending some tanks and artillery to Malta. In addition, a battalion will be shifted from Egypt to Malta. This is completely inadequate to repel a serious invasion but does mitigate the military's weakness on Malta. The General Staff somewhat puckishly suggests that building dummy tanks might convince the Italians to stay away from the island.

Marion Michael: born 17 October 17, 1940, Königsberg Germany (now Kaliningrad, Russia); star of “Liane, Jungle Goddess” (1956), “Jungle Girl and the Slaver” (1957) and “Davon träumen alle Mädchen” (1961). Michael passed away on 13 October 2007 at Brandenburg Germany.

German/Soviet Relations: German Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop's lengthy letter to Soviet Premier Josef Stalin is finally fully translated (after several days) and delivered to Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov. Among the ideas in the far-reaching letter is the institution of a New World Order led by Germany, Italy, Japan, and the Soviet Union. Ribbentrop is furious at the delay in delivering the letter and feels it should have been hand-delivered to Stalin himself, but the embassy staff knows what it is doing and handles things properly.

Molotov is somewhat nonplussed by the letter - he virtually directs Soviet Foreign policy, with of course the required approval of Stalin, and the letter does not address concerns he has about recent German activities in Finland - but decides to accept Ribbentrop's invitation for a visit in November. Molotov begins preparing a response to be signed by Stalin.

Holland: Consistent with other changes in occupied Europe, Holland now institutes a requirement that Jews carry special documents with them.

Japan: There is a general amnesty which releases Buddhist priest Inoue Shirō (Inoue Nissho ) of the infamous League of Blood incident of 1932 (assassinations of several liberal political figures). Inoue is an ultra-nationalist hero to some, and it is possible to interpret this gesture as an increasing nationalism and imperialism within the Japanese government.

China: Following through on its recent vow, Great Britain reopens the Burma Road from Burma to China after it has been closed for three months.

British Homefront: The London bus system has taken a beating during the Blitz. Today, the London Transport requests provincial bus systems to send replacement buses to keep the London transport system running.

American Homefront: "My Pop, My Pop" is released by Paramount. Popeye's Pappy produces problems.

British actress Madeleine Carroll being escorted into a Red Cross benefit at the Orpheum Theater, Royal Mounties clear a path. Vancouver. 17 October 1940.

October 1940

October 2, 1940: Hitler's Polish Plans
October 3, 1940: British Cabinet Shakeup
October 4, 1940: Brenner Pass Meeting
October 5, 1940: Mussolini Alters Strategy
October 6, 1940: Iron Guard Marches
October 7, 1940: McCollum Memo
October 8, 1940: Germans in Romania
October 9, 1940: John Lennon Arrives
October 10, 1940: Führer-Sofortprogramm
October 11, 1940: E-Boats Attack!
October 12, 1940: Sealion Cancelled
October 13, 1940: New World Order
October 14, 1940: Balham Tragedy
October 15, 1940: Mussolini Targets Greece
October 16, 1940: Japanese Seek Oil
October 17, 1940: RAF Shakeup
October 18, 1940: Convoy SC-7 Catastrophe
October 19, 1940: Convoy HX-79 Catastrophe
October 20, 1940: Convoy OB-229 Disaster
October 21, 1940: This Evil Man Hitler
October 22, 1940: Aktion Wagner-Burckel
October 23, 1940: Hitler at Hendaye
October 24, 1940: Hitler and Petain
October 25, 1940: Petain Woos Churchill
October 26, 1940: Empress of Britain Attack
October 27, 1940: Greece Rejects Italian Demands
October 28, 1940: Oxi Day
October 29, 1940: US Draft Begins
October 30, 1940: RAF Area Bombing Authorized
October 31, 1940: End of Battle of Britain

2020