Thursday 5 December 1940

London furniture vans atop one another after a raid. December 5, 1940.

Italian/Greek Campaign: In Greece, the Greek advance grinds forward on 5 December 1940. Greek I Corps captures Delvinë. Greek II Corps also advances. The Greeks advance on Argyrocastro and take heights near Librohovo, six miles southeast of the town. The Greek air force attacks Italian communications.

The British hand over a dozen Gloster Gladiator biplanes to the Greek air force.

European Air Operations: During the day, RAF Bomber Command raids Düsseldorf and Turin. Coastal Command attacks Eindhoven, Rotterdam, Lorient, and Haamstede. The Luftwaffe sends some fighter-bombers across during the day which drop bombs in scattered areas of East Kent. After dark, the RAF cancels its raids due to the weather, while the Luftwaffe sends small raids against London and points along the south coast.

Adolf Galland of JG 26 gets his 57th victory claim. He now has surpassed both Werner Molders and the now-deceased Helmut Wick. Galland is the leading ace of the war. Molders, however, remain active and could regain the lead.

The RAF makes plans to open ten new airfields by Spring. They will house ten fighter squadrons, ten medium bomber squadrons, and two heavy bomber squadrons.

Hilfskreuzer (Auxiliary Cruiser) Thor. Thor was a converted banana boat originally named the Santa Cruz.

Battle of the Atlantic: German raider Thor successfully has broken out into the Atlantic. The auxiliary cruiser is southeast of Rio de Janeiro when it spots 20,062-ton Royal Navy armed merchant cruiser HMS Carnarvon Castle. The ships are armed reasonably evenly, both with 15 cm (5.91 inches) guns, but the British ship has eight of those guns to Thor's four. Thus, in theory, the Carnarvon Castle should have the advantage. However, German Kapitän zur See (Captain) Otto Kähler displays superior tactics and his gunners better accuracy. Kähler induces the Royal Navy ship to give chase - putting its rear guns out of action and evening the combat scales. Thor's gunners then score 27 hits on its pursuer, badly damaging the Carnarvon Castle and forcing it to withdraw to Montevideo, Uruguay. The British lose 6 crew and have 32 wounded. Thor, undamaged, then proceeds to a rendezvous with cruiser Admiral Scheer, while the Royal Navy sends other ships fruitlessly to search the vast ocean for it.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages destroyer HMS Cameron while in drydock in Portsmouth Harbour. Cameron is one of the former US destroyers acquired in the bases-for-destroyers deal. There are 14 deaths. The destroyer capsizes as the bomb hits allow water to pour into the drydock. She can be refloated and repaired, though Cameron will never return to service. Instead, it will be used for testing purposes regarding things like bomb damage.

Italian submarine Argo torpedoes and sinks 5066-ton British freighter Silverpine. All 36 aboard perish. The Silverpine is a straggler from convoy OB 52.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Sunfish torpedoes and sinks 2182-ton Finnish freighter Oscar Midling off Stadlandet., Norway. Everybody on board perishes.

British torpedo boats MTB 29, 31 and 32 find a German freighter, the 6062-ton Paranagua, off Flushing and sink it.

Royal Navy 214-ton minesweeping trawler HMT Calverton hits a mine and sinks at the mouth of the Humber.

A severe storm hits the Irish Sea and sinks several ships before it is over.

British 632-ton collier Amlwch Rose gets caught in a storm after departing Liverpool for Dublin. It sinks in Liverpool Bay.

British 360-ton collie Privet also sinks in the rough weather in Liverpool Bay. All nine aboard perish.

Seaplane tender USS George E. Badger also gets caught in rough weather on the other side of the Atlantic and runs aground off Hamilton, Bermuda. However, luckily there is no damage, and the ship later floats off.

German freighter Klaus Schoke, seized by HMS California off the Azores and under tow to Gibraltar, sinks. The German ship's crew had tried to scuttle her, but only partially succeeded - at first.

The German coastal guns at Calais get another rare success when they damage 1107 ton British freighter Waterland in Dover Harbour.

Torpedoed several days ago, destroyer HMCS Saguenay makes it to port. It is the first Canadian naval casualty of the war.

Convoy AN 9 departs from Port Said, bound for Piraeus, Greece. It is a troop convoy carrying British troops to aid in the defense of Greece. The poor weather keeps convoys in the Atlantic in port.

German battleship Bismarck completes her sea trials in the Baltic Sea and heads for Hamburg.

U-109 (Korvettenkapitän Hans-Georg Fischer) is commissioned.

Royal Navy destroyer HMS Salisbury, formerly the USS Claxton, is commissioned.

The 5 December 1940 edition of PM, a New York City paper with good reporting from Europe. This edition describes that the British now think that the Germans won't invade until the Spring - something that the British in fact have known about since September.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Italian 795 ton torpedo boat Calipso hits a mine and sinks east of Tripoli about 6 miles from Cape Misurata. The mine had been laid by the Royal Navy submarine HMS Rorqual on 5 November.

At Malta, the local government puts out an appeal for donations to fund Christmas parties for refugees. There are literally thousands of refugees housed in various villages throughout the island.

Battle of the Pacific: Australian 1052 ton freighter Nimbin hits a mine and sinks off Norah Head, New South Wales. There are seven deaths and 13 survivors. The mine was laid by the German raider Pinguin in November. This is the first Australian registered merchant ship sunk. Fortunately for the survivors, the ship is carrying a cargo of plywood bundles that float and provide a means to survive until rescued by SS Bonalbo a few hours later. Captain Bryanston goes down with the ship.

Anglo/French Relations: Louis Rougier, Marshal Petain's unofficial representative to Great Britain, sends Prime Minister Winston Churchill a letter. It clarifies Petain's intentions regarding participation in the war. Specifically, Petain promises not to make a separate peace with Germany - a hollow assurance given the current state of relations between Vichy France and Germany. He also promises not to allow Germany to occupy French colonies in North Africa, nor allow it possession of the French fleet. In addition, Petain promises not to contest Charles de Gaulle's occupation of Gabon. Basically, the promises are simply rehashes of old promises or meaningless gestures, and some of them will be broken before the war is over while others will be kept.

Anglo/US Relations: The subject of how to continue supplying weapons to Great Britain despite its growing financial issues heats up. Talks are proceeding in Washington regarding a possible $2.5 billion loan to Great Britain for war aid, to be secured by British gold production over the coming five years. Bankers consider the UK to be a good credit risk, but the Johnson Act prohibits private lending to any nation in default of its Great War debt - such as Great Britain. President Roosevelt, touring the Caribbean with Harry Hopkins on the USS Tuscaloosa, also is thinking about the same general topic, but his solution isn't a loan - it is what will come to be called Lend-lease.

German/Spanish Relations: The German ambassador in Madrid telegrams Foreign Minister Ribbentrop and tells him that the Spanish have agreed to allow German tankers to anchor in small bays. These can be used to refuel U-boats and raiders. The scheme depends upon the British not finding out. This is another of the Spaniard's small gestures toward the Germans while also cultivating friendly relations with the British.

The Seattle Daily Times, 5 December 1940.

Spy Stuff: The Seattle Daily Times, in its 5 December 1940 edition, reports ominously that the German consul general posted to San Francisco, Fritz Wiedemann, had been seen visiting Seattle without informing the newspaper. Wiedemann apparently was in town to meet some local German-Americans at their weekly roundtable at the Maison Blanc, but the newspaper implies that there is something more to the visit. The paper reports that Wiedmann has a reputation at this time of being "tight" with Hitler because he supposedly saved Hitler's life during the 1939 bombing of the Brown House. Thus, his whereabouts are a matter of national security.

The legend about Wiedemann saving Hitler's life appears to be apocryphal. Hitler survived the 1939 bombing because he had left the building before the bomb went off. It is not inconceivable that Wiedemann himself spreads these tales far from Berlin, where there is nobody who knows better.

The paper also reports more generally that the Pacific Northwest is a hotbed of spy activity due to Boeing's bomber plants in the Seattle area. In fact, the Germans have very little interest in the US West Coast and they - or at least Foreign Minister Ribbentrop - consider the San Francisco post to be the ultimate diplomatic backwater, a place to send people they want to get out of the way. While Wiedemann does know Hitler, he by no means is within his inner circle.

That said, there actually is a growing German presence on the West Coast at this time. However, it is not in the Pacific Northwest, but just outside Los Angeles. The Murphy Ranch is an isolated, self-contained compound with its own water storage tank and energy production. The premises survive into the 21st Century, though gradually demolished by its current owner, the City of Los Angeles.

German Military: Adolf Hitler meets with his two army chiefs, Colonel-General Franz Halder, Chief of the General Staff, and Field Marshal Walther von Brauchitsch, Commander-in-Chief of the Army. They discuss the plans for Operation Barbarossa, which Hitler approves and following which he begins preparing a Fuhrer Directive. The operational plan at this time, which eventually will be called Operation Barbarossa, for now, is called Operation Otto. The Germans have a tendency to re-use code names, and Otto is named after the crown prince of Austria-Hungary at the time, Otto von Habsburg. It previously was used to refer to the Anschluss with Austria in 1938.

The plan at this stage envisions three axes of invasion in the north, center, and south of the Soviet border. The strength of each prong will remain a subject of much deliberation and disagreement over the coming months - some of the Generals prefer maximum effort in the direction of Moscow, while Hitler sees the taking of the Soviet capital as essentially pointless. The tentative timing for the invasion is May 1941.

Another topic broached at the meeting is Operation Felix. Hitler is trying to convince Franco to allow the passage of German troops, but the Spaniards do not want to alienate the British. Hitler tentatively sets 10 January as the date for the Wehrmacht to cross the border and 4/5 February for Operation Felix itself. Everything, however, depends upon Franco's assent - though some in the German High Command, such as Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering, think that the Wehrmacht should cross the border regardless of what Franco allows.

Canadian Military: The Royal Navy commissions four former US Navy destroyers acquired in November at Halifax during the destroyers-for-bases deal:

• USS Ringgold (DD-89) becomes HMS Newark (G 08)
• USS Sigourney (DD-81) becomes HMS Newport (G 54)
• USS Tillman (DD-135) becomes HMS Wells (I 95)
• USS Robinson (DD-88), becomes HMS Newmarket (G 47)

Additional Canadian escorts are needed to help fill the gaps in escort coverage in the Atlantic now that U-boats are based in France and are roaming further and further west.

The Hawker Tornado. The project ultimately was canceled but served as the foundation for later aircraft Typhoon and Tempest.

British Military: The first flight of the second prototype of the Hawker Tornado, P5224, takes place 14 months after that of the first prototype. Its armament has been significantly upgraded to four 20 mm Hispano cannon and it now is powered by a Vulture II engine. The flight is a success, but problems will continue to plague the plane's development, primarily relating to the Vulture engine.

US Military: The US 17th Pursuit Squadron, formerly based at Selfridge Field, Mount Clemens, Michigan, transfers to Nichols Field, Luzon, Philippines. It does not yet have its fighters and begins practicing with Boeing P-26 Peashooters. Even when they get their "real" aircraft, Seversky P-35s, they will be flying obsolete planes.

Construction begins on the 20-mile US Army Railway serving Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri, which includes a major trestle that can still be visited. This is part of a major national defensive initiative to build up military infrastructure.

US Government: Admiral William D. Leahy, USN (Retired) becomes the new US Ambassador to Vichy France.

British Government: In a very rare gesture toward peace, the House of Commons of Parliament votes on a peace amendment offered by John McGovern of the Scottish Independent Labour Party. The measure fails, 341-4. There always is a peace faction England, though it makes little noise outside of times like this.

India: The British release from prison Nationalist leader Subhas Chandra Bose after a hunger strike. They will continue to keep Bose under house arrest.

China: The Chinese Communists conclude their Hundred Regiments Offensive. They have captured much ground, but also taken heavy casualties.

American Homefront: Director Ludwig Berger's "The Thief of Baghdad" opens at Radio City Music Hall in New York. Zane Grey thriller "West of the Badlands" also opens today.

Artists Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo take out their second Marriage License at San Francisco City Hall, December 5, 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

Friday 25 October 1940

This picture is from Holborn, London on 25 October 1940. The London bus system takes a beating throughout the Blitz, not just from bombs falling on them, but from drivers not seeing fresh bomb craters in the dark. (Imperial War Museum).

Battle of Britain: After an extended period of poor flying weather, on 25 October 1940 the skies clear and the Luftwaffe gets back into action. It is a busy day, with raids throughout and a return to large numbers of planes lost. As has been the case for a couple of weeks, the Luftwaffe emphasizes daylight fighter-bomber (Jabo) attacks, which are particularly difficult to prevent because the Jabos fly high and fast. The RAF, meanwhile, now has standing patrols over key sectors which make interception quicker and more effective.

The Luftwaffe fighter squadrons all fly three (or more) missions during the day, as is usually the case on days of maximum effort. The ratio of Jabos to fighters is usually 2 bomb-less Bf 109s per Jabo (which also, of course, are often Bf 109s).

The raids begin around 09:00, when JG 26 and JG 51, the two premier formations on the Channel coast, head for the South London area. Other Luftwaffe formations head toward Hastings and Dungeness, still others toward Central London. RAF Biggin Hill takes a beating despite fierce defense. The RAF fighters take a beating over Madstone, losing three fighters to one Bf 109.

Another large effort takes place around noontime. Once again, it heads for Maidstone and RAF Biggin Hill/Hornchurch. This is a large raid of over 100 planes crossing at Dover. As it flies inland, the formation breaks up to attack different targets. No. 12 Group has three squadrons in the air on patrol which lie in wait around London. The Jabos drop their bombs more or less over their targets, and then both sides take losses.

Another large formation crosses at around 13:00. This time, RAF Fighter Command has planes ready to confront the attackers near the coast. The Luftwaffe formation splits up, some remaining to tangle with the RAF fighters and the others heading west for Westminster, Blackfriars Road and areas nearby. This raid causes casualties at the Air Provost Marshal's department at Westminster (four dead, 8 others wounded). Both sides take losses as the Jabos fight their way through to their targets.

The next large raid is around 15:00, and once again the main target is London and nearby areas. Fighter Command is late off the mark and makes few interceptions and the few RAF fighters that do take a beating. Two Hurricanes collide, killing one of the pilots.

Around dusk, RAF Montrose in Scotland suffers a rare raid from KG 26 Heinkel He 111s based in Norway. Five men are killed and 21 wounded in this raid, which is completely unexpected and causes a lot of damage. Perhaps as a result of poor bombing accuracy, nearby towns also suffer damage.

A 20-plane Luftwaffe formation attacks a convoy off North Foreland around 17:45. This results in one ship sunk.

After dark, the population centers of London, the Midlands, South Wales, Pembroke, Cardiff, and Liverpool are the primary targets. Airfields at Wittering and Middle Wallop also suffer damage. London is hit by about 150 bombers. The Luftwaffe continues its extensive recent mining operations (see below), dropping mines off Aberdeen, Liverpool, East Anglia and along the northeast coastline.

Overall, it is a day of moderate losses for both sides. The Luftwaffe loses roughly 15 planes while the RAF about 10. RAF No. 610 Squadron also loses two Hurricanes in a mid-air collision during training off Exmouth around 15:00 (this is in addition to the collision described above).

Maj. Werner Mölders of JG 51 downs a Spitfire off Dover for his 51st victory.

The British Air Ministry issues a statement noting that airmen from numerous countries are contributing to the defense of Great Britain, including the United States, Poland, France, Belgium, Holland, and Czechoslovakia. The US pilots are part of the Eagle Squadron of volunteers.

Shown is Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 (W.Nr. 1988) ‘Black 7’ of 5./JG54. It crash-landed at Broom Hill, near Lydd, Kent at 09:30 on 25 October 1940. Pilot Oberleutnant Schypek was captured.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command focuses on the coast today. Targets include the coastal guns at Hellfire Corner and the Kriegsmarine ports, such as Kiel, Bremen, Hamburg, Cuxhaven, Amsterdam, Den Helder, and Ostend. Some of the raids target oil installations in northern Germany. Berlin and Hamburg are recovering after the massive raid on the night of 24/25 October.

Battle of the Atlantic: The U-boats that have been on patrol in the Atlantic, having gorged on Convoys SC 7 and HX 79 earlier in the week, make port in France to re-stock their torpedoes and other supplies. This period thus marks a lull in U-boat successes, but the Germans have other ways to keep the pressure on Allied shipping. These make their mark today in the form of mines and the Luftwaffe.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks the South Goodwin Lightship off St. Margaret's Bay, Kent.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 89-ton Royal Navy trawler HMT Duthies at Montrose, Angus. Everybody aboard survives.

In the same attack at Montrose, the Luftwaffe damages 25-ton fishing boat Janet.

Royal Navy 338 ton trawler HMT Lord Inchcape hits a mine and sinks near Plymouth, Devon. The ship sinks in shallow water and is later salvaged.

British 45 ton trawler Encourage also hits a mine and sinks off  Plymouth. All four men on board perish.

British coaster Buoyant hits a mine and blows up at the mouth of the Humber.

British 207 ton trawler Carlton also hits a mine at the mouth of the Humber and sinks. There are seven survivors and three men perish.

British 222 ton fishing boat Windsor also hits a mine in the Humber, just south of Spurn Point, Yorkshire. One crew member perishes.

British freighter Kyle Skye runs aground on the Isle of Arran, Bute. The ship is lost, but the crew survives.

British freighter Blairsprey, part of Convoy SC 7 and torpedoed on the 18th by U-101 and on the 19th by U-100, makes it under tow to the Clyde in Scotland, where it is beached. The ship will be repaired.

U-46 (Kptlt. Engelbert Endrass), still on patrol in the Atlantic after its numerous victories against the convoys earlier in the week, is attacked by three RAF Lockheed Hudson bombers. The submarine gets away, but one crew member (Matrosengefreiter (Able Seaman) Plaep) perishes from his wounds on the 26th.

Convoy OL 9 departs from Liverpool, Convoy Fn 319 departs from Southend, Convoy SLS 53 departs from Freetown, Convoy BN 8 departs from Bombay bound for Suez.

Avro Lancaster B Mk.I. The second production Lancaster is delivered on 25 October 1940 to No. 207 Squadron at Waddington (Wing Commander Hyde). Production has been slow due to numerous modifications to the original design. The Squadron will receive 20 machines by the end of the year.

Battle of the Mediterranean: A large portion of the British Mediterranean fleet, led by the aircraft carrier HMS Eagle, departs from Alexandria to launch raids against Italian bases. It intends to patrol as far north as the Dardanelles.

British gunboat HMS Aphis bombards Italian troop positions 15 miles east of Sidi Barrani. The RAF bombs Tobruk.

The war on Malta is causing serious morale problems that result from safety measures. One of these today is the closing of a cemetery, Addolorata Cemetery, which lies on a direct path between Grand Harbour and Luqa Airfield. The cemetery has become a hot spot for bombs, so public access is restricted. While this in normal times might seem a minor inconvenience, local citizens have paid an unusual amount of attention to gravesites of their ancestors since the start of the war - perhaps because they know they might soon be joining them. Also, a new bomb disposal course concludes, the first one for men on the island.

German/Italian Relations: Ribbentrop's rushed letter to Italian Foreign Minister Count Ciano, completed from start in France to hand delivery in Rome in about 18 hours, is greeted with joy by Ciano when ambassador Mackensen hands it to him around noontime. Ciano sees it as a tacit agreement by Germany that Italy is entitled to additional territory in southern France - which is not the intent behind the letter. Ciano off-handedly proposes a date of 3 or 4 November for the meeting between Mussolini and Hitler that Ribbentrop proposes in it. Ribbentrop calls immediately after German ambassador Mackensen has left and proposes an even earlier date. They agree on 28 October - only three days hence - for the meeting, to be held in Florence. Hitler redirects his train "Amerika" from its scheduled return to Berlin to go over the Alps for the meeting. It all fits perfectly into his schedule.

The timing of all this frantic activity has become a matter of historical debate. The 28th also just so happens to be the planned start date for Mussolini's invasion of Greece. The theory is that Hitler suddenly changes his plans and hurries down to Italy to try to stop the invasion of Greece. However, there is doubt whether the Italians have actually told the Germans the actual start date of the invasion, which Ciano previously has indicated would be 23 October but obviously has been postponed. The better view appears to be that Hitler was not planning to interfere with the Italian attack at all - he had not when informed of it previously - but instead decides to visit with Mussolini in Florence simply to smooth things over after the agitation caused by his visits to Spain and France. In other words, Hitler did not suddenly rocket down to Italy in a panic to try to stop the Italian offensive, but instead as a quick show of support to Mussolini and the alliance with Italy.

Hitler's quick schedule change also may fit into some broader themes. For security purposes, he likes to vary his itinerary on the fly. This, in fact, already has saved his life at least once (at the Braun Haus in Munich in late 1939). His visit to Paris in June also was unplanned. One never knows when the RAF or some lone wolf terrorist might want to try to bomb his train (and an awful lot of people know his general itinerary by this point).

Hitler also likes to take care of diplomatic visits all at once, in quick succession. An example of this is on D-Day, 6 June 1944, when he spends the day with such visits rather than reviewing the dire war situation. Since Hitler already is on his train, with all of his necessary staff close at hand, it makes sense to just do a quick jog over the mountains rather than disrupt his entire schedule to get his train ready at some future point. He also has the Molotov visit approaching, and it would be better to get his own house in order before making big decisions with the USSR. Finally, winter is approaching, and better to get this kind of travel over the Alps out of way now.

On 25 October 1940, acting F/L Charles BF "Brian" Kingcome is awarded the DFC, the citation attesting him leadership "with judgment, skill, and keenness," for his command of No 92 Squadron RAF. Between 20 September and 2 October, the 23-year-old pilot often ignored the controller's instructions, instead of gaining height by turning north before heading south. Pouncing in a vertical dive from head-on often split up a portion of the bombers before the fighter escort could interfere.

Anglo/French Relations: While Hitler is gallivanting across Europe meeting foreign leaders to little purpose, Marshal Petain in Paris is reaching across the Channel. His man Louis Rougier is in London meeting with Churchill and Foreign Minister Lord Halifax. Halifax, always a dove in such matters, is sympathetic, but Churchill, an adamant war hawk, is suspicious about Petain's motives in light of his recent meeting at Montoire with Hitler. Churchill says vaguely that he would support an anti-German regime in North Africa under overall French auspices, which Petain takes as a willingness to ally with Vichy France - which is a bit further than what Churchill intends. Anglo/French relations remain murky.

German Military: General Johannes Blaskowitz is appointed commander of the German 1st Army. He takes over from Generalfeldmarschall Erwin von Witzleben, who remains in good standing but is a silent opponent to the regime. Von Witzleben will receive future appointments of significance, but for now, it is on to the reserve rolls for him.

British Military: Air Marshal Charles Portal officially takes over as RAF Chief of Staff. He takes the temporary rank of air chief marshal. Issues confronting him include a desire by the Royal Navy to absorb RAF Coastal Command and the wishes of the British Army to form its own air force. Air Chief Marshal Richard Peirse remains in charge of Bomber Command, but there is some grumbling that bombing operations should be more aggressive.

The War Cabinet decides to continue the battleship construction program due to concerns about developments in the Far East.

Italian Military: Commando Supremo forms the Forza Navale Speciale (FNS). The first commander is Vice Admiral Vittorio Tur.

General Davis in August 1944.

US Military: Benjamin O. Davis becomes the first African-American in the US Army, becoming a Brigadier General.

Light cruiser USS St. Louis leaves Hamilton, Bermuda for Norfolk, Virginia. It carries the Greenslade Board, which is inspecting bases acquired in the destroyers-for-bases deal with the UK.

Indochina: The Japanese 5th Infantry Division is withdrawing in northern Indochina, and the French re-occupy the territory around Lang Son. The French also launch operations against nationalists who have been taking over local governments in the area.

China: The Japanese (13th Kokutai) bomb Chungking again, which they have been doing regularly for months. This raid is different because the bombs fall close to US Navy gunboat Tutuila and the US embassy. The bombs fall within 300 yards of the US assets. The Japanese later blame the incident on faulty bomb-release mechanisms.

American Homefront: The US Presidential campaign is in the home stretch. Republican candidate Wendell Willkie campaigns today in Lackawanna Station.

Future History: Robert Montgomery Knight is born in Massillon, Ohio. Knight plays on the 1960 Ohio State NCAA Championship team (and also the team that played in the Championship game in 1961), then begins coaching JV basketball at Cuyahoga Falls High School. After joining the US Army, he becomes an assistant coach with the Army Black Knights team at West Point. One of his players is Mike Krzyzewski. In 1971, he joins Indiana State as head coach. He coaches some of the best college basketball teams of all time, including going the entire 1975-76 season without a single loss - the only time in history that has happened. Known as "Bobby Knight" for much of his career, he later indicates a preference for Bob Knight or, in most circumstances, Coach Knight. Bob Knight remains active to this day as both a coach and a broadcaster and dabbled in politics in 2016.

Wendell Willkie speaks to a huge crowd at the Lackawanna Station on October 25, 1940. Present are Mrs. Willkie, Supreme Court Justice George W Maxey, Mrs. Joseph F. Gunster, wife of the Republican nominee for congress. J. Russell Phillips, GOP candidate for representative in the Second Legislative district is standing at the extreme left of the photograph. (Times-Tribune Archives).

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

Tuesday 22 October 1940

Deportations begin in Baden pursuant to Aktion Wagner-Burckel. This is Gailingen on Lake Constance. As refugees enter an Order Police truck, officers from the Order Police and neighbors look on. A total of 178 Jewish men and women from Gailingen, the biggest Jewish rural community in Baden, are deported to Gurs camp in the south of France. October 22, 1940.

Battle of Britain: The weather remains poor throughout the day of 22 October 1940, only clearing up a bit in the afternoon. On days like this, simply flying can be almost as dangerous as encountering the enemy. The Germans lose a handful of planes (and pilots) to crashes caused or aided by the weather. While offensive operations are curtailed, those that do occur generally face little opposition, as interceptions are extremely difficult in the wet, cloudy air.

During the morning, there are some pirate raids and the like. Eastbourne is hit at about 10:30, killing two and injuring 16. A stick of bombs may not destroy anything industrial of strategic value, but it can wipe out a neighborhood in an instant.

Around 14:00, the Luftwaffe mounts its largest raid of the day. A few dozen fighter-bombers (Jabos) cross over toward London. RAF Nos. 74 and 605 Squadrons intercept, and bombs fall on RAF Brockworth, where there are two dead and 32 injured.

Other, smaller raids take place throughout the afternoon, including a large raid around 16:00. Many of the raiders turn back before attacking due to the weather, others head for the usual airfields around London such as Biggin Hill and Hornchurch. The two top Luftwaffe fighter formations, JG 26 (Galland) and 51 (Molders) are in action, and the RAF sends up eight squadrons to intercept. It is one of Werner Molders' best days, as he claims three Hurricanes to bring his score to 50, tops in the war to date.

The night raids on London are notable for how small they are in comparison to other raids since the start of the Blitz on 7 September. Many call this the easiest night of the Blitz. The bulk of the raids occur right after darkness sets in between 18:30 and the next few hours. Coventry is hit hard, suffering 150 fires and extensive damage to goods yards and factories. KGr 606 Dornier Do 17s bomb Liverpool at about 20:30, but the damage is not as great as at Coventry. Bombing accuracy is especially poor on a poor-weather night like this, and a lot of damage is avoided when bombs drop in undeveloped areas.

Total losses for the day are minimal. The RAF loses a handful of planes (4 pilots killed) and the Luftwaffe roughly the same number of Bf 109s.

Unexploded bombs remain a real problem. They are everywhere in major cities, and it can take weeks to address them. Meanwhile, they sit silently, nobody knowing if they will suddenly go off - and this includes some large land mines. At Seal, a bomb disposal officer working on such a bomb that had sat quietly for three weeks does something wrong with the fuse as he is working on it, and the bomb goes off - no trace of the body anywhere.

The Luftwaffe loses two Focke-Wulf FW 200C-1 Condors at sea near Ireland, one while attacking a ship near Cape Clear.

The coastal guns at "Hellfire Corner" (the Dover Strait) exchange a few shells between 07:50 and 09:04. While not achieving much strategically, the German shelling does make life worse for many in Dover. The occasional "lucky hit" destroys numerous houses and cuts roads. Today, 30 houses suffer light damaged and four people are lightly injured, while the A259 road to Folkestone is hit and partially closed. It is a "keep calm and carry on" situation.

European Air Operations: The weather continues to be poor, so RAF Bomber Command does not get in the air during the night.

Tree-class trawler HMT Acacia, similar to HMT Acacia which hits a mine and sinks today.

Battle of the Atlantic: After suffering through a very rough patch from 18-21 October 1940, the Royal Navy and British merchant marine get a relatively calm day. However, even "quiet" periods now involve multiple sinkings.

While providing escort duties to Convoy OL 8 sailing out of Liverpool, Royal Navy destroyer HMCS Margaree (Cdr J. W. R. Roy RCN) collides with 8337-ton British ammunition ship Port Fairy in rough seas about 483 km west of Ireland. The destroyer sinks quickly, taking her captain and 140 other men with her. Port Fairy comes off much the better in the incident and rescues 34 men. This was the Margaree's first mission for the Canadian Royal Navy, having been destroyer USS Diana with the British Home Fleet before being transferred to Canada on 6 September. The crew of the Margaree had been largely composed of survivors of the HMCS Fraser, lost on 25 June after a collision with cruiser HMS Calcutta. In addition to the large loss of life, many of the survivors are wounded.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 825-ton collier Kerry Head a few miles south of Blackball Head, near Cape Clear Island, County Cork. There are no survivors, all 12 men perish.

British freighter Cairnglen runs aground and is lost at Marsden, Northumberland. Everybody survives.

Royal Navy 545 ton trawler HMT Hickory (T116, Lt. Ralph Eric Harding, RNZNVR) hits a mine and sinks south of the Isle of Portland, Dorset. There are 20 deaths, survivors are picked up by HMT Pine (including Harding, who is wounded).

The Admiralty fears an invasion of the Shetland Islands after dark, and so sends out a destroyer patrol (HMS Somali, Punjabi, Matabele) east of the islands. This is Operation DNU. They find nothing and soon return to their regular patrols.

Convoys OA 233 and FS 317 depart from Methil, Convoy SLF 52 departs from Freetown.

U-108 (Kapitänleutnant Klaus Scholtz) is commissioned.

The sister ship of Royal Canadian Navy destroyer HMCS Margaree, HMS Defender, sinking in the Mediterranean on 11 July 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Mussolini has the Regia Marina form a "Special Naval Force" for a landing on Corfu contemplated at the end of the month (later canceled). This includes cruisers, numerous destroyers, landing craft, and other supporting units.

The South African Air Force raids Birkau in Italian East Africa. This is the fifth time they have done this.

The Italian Air Force raids Alexandria with fifteen S-81 bombers.

At Malta, Governor Dobbie works on getting gas masks and related equipment. Recent reinforcements are unprotected and vulnerable. The basic problem, of course, is that getting any supplies at all to Malta is extremely hazardous and costly for the Royal Navy.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Atlantis, disguised as Dutch freighter Tarifa, captures 5623-ton Yugoslavian freighter Durmitor. Atlantis' Captain Rugge converts the freighter into a prison ship while he sails the Atlantis into the Sunda Strait in search of more victims.


German/French Relations: Having traveled somewhat leisurely on his Special Train (Führersonderzug) "Amerika" from Berlin to France, Adolf Hitler at 18:30 meets at  Montoire-sur-le-Loir with French Vice-President of Vichy's Council of Ministers Pierre Laval. Conferring with Hitler and German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop an hour later, Laval is non-committal about signing any documents but expresses his personal willingness to work (collaborate) with the Germans. The conference is encouraging for Hitler but does not provide Ribbentrop with any opportunities to have Laval sign the agreement he has brought which would create a formal alliance between Germany and France on economic, political, and military grounds. Anything along those lines obviously would have to be approved (and signed) by Marshal Petain, with whom Hitler will meet on his return trip.

Some like to portray this meeting as a German "failure" to form an alliance with France. Perhaps, but that really is vastly overstating matters. Instead, the meeting is inconclusive. Laval has no real power. All power in Vichy France resides in Petain, who can dismiss him or anyone else at will. Hitler stays the night at Montoire in his train before proceeding to his meeting with Spanish leader Franco at Hendaye.

Anglo/French Relations: On the same day that Hitler is conferring with Laval, Petain's representative Louis Rougier arrives in London from Vichy to discuss Anglo-French reconciliation.

Anglo/Belgian Relations: Hubert Pierlot, Belgian Premier, and Paul-Henri Spaak, Foreign Minister, arrive in London by airplane from Lisbon. After being imprisoned by the Francoist regime at the Hotel Majestic in Barcelona, they had escaped Spain recently by hiding in a truck and then crossing the border to Portugal (Their escape is still commemorated at the Hotel Majestic with a plaque.). Lisbon is a well-known destination for fugitives, providing one of the few safe (relatively) conduits between the German and British orbits due to the truly neutral attitude (extremely rare in Europe) of Portuguese leader António de Oliveira Salazar. Their new digs are the Carlton Hotel in London.

Italian/Bulgarian Relations: Mussolini previously has asked King Boris III to participate in the invasion of Greece. This would stretch Greek forces out by requiring them to defend two widely separated fronts. King Boris, however, declines.

Free France: Charles de Gaulle reviews troops in Cameroon.

Aktion Wagner-Burkel, 22 October 1940. Photo courtesy of and copyright ©Stadtarchiv Mannheim - Institut für Stadtgeschichte.

Holocaust: Aktion Wagner-Burckel (often referred to as just Aktion Burckel) begins. This is an operation in the German frontier wine region begun by Gauleiters Robert Wagner of Baden and Josef Burckel of the Saar and Pfalz (now, in 1940, reworked together as Westmark). Deportation begins of almost 30,000 Jews from the German-occupied zone of France to the Vichy-controlled area, basically expelling them from the Reich. They are not much safer there - but anything is better than Poland. Burckel, in particular, is a virulent anti-Semite who has been working to achieve his schemes since Hitler first came to power in 1933.

Early in the morning, teams of police fan out and pound on doors. They have lists of names of everyone to be deported, secretly compiled in July 1940 shortly after the fall of France. Everything is done by a strict timetable: victims are told how much time they have to pack, what they could bring with them (not much), and how their remaining property left behind was to handled. Pets are given to neighbors and receipts for them obtained. It is all very orderly and brutal.

Burckel's and Wagner's motivations are to "cleanse" or "sterilize" the frontier region of both Jews and its historical culture so that it may be absorbed as just another nondescript region of the Greater Reich. Partly, they aim to stamp out "Landesgeschichte," or regional identity/history, and replace it with "Volksgemeinschaft," or "common history of the people." This attitude flows from the fact that, in the past, all of Germany had been composed of local fiefdoms, and the idea of a national, as opposed to regional, identity is new in the grand scheme of things. This type of "cleansing" later also will be undertaken by Reinhard Heydrich in the provinces of Bohemia and Moravia (formerly Czechoslovakia), with mixed success (people tend to protect their own history). The Aktion Wagner-Burckel operation will continue for a year and basically achieve the "cleansing" ends to one extent or another for the duration of the war.

Speaking of Poland, some pinpoint 22 October 1940 as the true establishment of the Warsaw Ghetto. Hans Frank has been working on that all year long, and it has been a gradual process with several dates possible as the true "beginning" of this walled-off community.

Holland House Library in London. 22 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

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