Monday 16 March 1942

U-502 arrives back in port after a successful patrol during which it sank 33,800 tons of enemy shipping on 16 March 1942 (Moravia; Junkers, Federal Archive Figure 101II-MW-3810-20A).

Battle of the Pacific: Just before midnight on 16 March 1942, General Douglas MacArthur, his family, and his staff finally receive planes to take them from Del Monte, Mindanao, Philippines, to Australia on 16 March 1942. Three B-17 bombers of the US Army 5th Air Force arrive for this mission but one requires repairs before it can make the return trip (defective supercharger). Lead pilot Lieutenant Frank P. Bostrom readies for a quick turnaround by drinking a pot of coffee. He informs the general that he and his party must leave behind any luggage - including Mrs. MacArthur's prized mattress which she brought from Corregidor.

Japanese siege guns continue bombarding US Army forts on their fortified islands near Manila. The Japanese have emplaced additional artillery southwest of Temate and US counterbattery fire is ineffective. Already, several US guns have been knocked out at Forts Drum and Frank. The Japanese guns range up in size to 240 mm, and one shell hits a Fort Frank powder room but somehow fails to detonate the 60 filled powder cans inside. US Navy submarine USS Permit arrives at Corregidor Island to evacuate naval radio and communications intelligence soldiers.

The happy crew of U-502 as it arrives back at Lorient on 16 March 1942. Note the victory pennants signifying a successful patrol. (Moravia; Junkers, Federal Archive Figure 101II-MW-3810-24A).

Eastern Front: Operation Raubtier, the German mission to cut off Soviet troops that have advanced past the Volkhov River in an effort to take Lyuban, continues from both the north and south. Progress is slow but steady. The Soviet defenders on each end of the six-mile-wide breakthrough are slowly being compressed together. Even small German advances greatly improve their chances of final success.

The Germans need Operation Raubtier to end quickly so that they transfer the forces there to relieve the men trapped in the Demyansk pocket. In the pocket, General Walter von Brockdorff-Ahlefeldt, commander of the II Army Corps, has been talking about staging a desperate breakout to the west. To reassure him, Army Group North commander Georg von Küchler makes an unusually risky flight for an army group commander. He flies into the Demyansk pocket. During the flights in and out, Küchler makes personal observations about the relative positions of the two forces. He sees that the Soviets are attacking from the north and south, which means that an attack from the west might well succeed. Still, the relief attack will have to cover a full 20 miles, no small feat in the snowy or, if the attack is postponed too long, boggy terrain.

"A captured German Mk IV tank is examined back at base in the Western Desert, 16 March 1942." © IWM (E 9309).

The Soviet attack at the Parpach Narrows in Crimea begun on 13 March 1942 is over. It has accomplished virtually nothing except the capture of the strongpoint at Korpech'. That small victory came at great cost in men, tanks, and planes. The Germans begin preparing a counterattack set to start on 20 March 1942. They bring in the fresh 22nd Panzer Division in order to recapture Korpech'. However, while the 22nd Pzr is powerful, it is equipped with obsolete Czech-built Panzer 38(t)s. The Soviets, meanwhile, are also building up their forces for a renewal of their attack, and the big question is who attacks first.

European Air Operations: It is a very quiet night on the Channel Front. There are standard anti-shipping sweeps during the day but no bombing missions.

The commander of U-502, Kptlt. Jürgen von Rosenstiel, on deck after his boat docks in Lorient on 16 March 1942 (Moravia; Junkers, Federal Archive Figure 101II-MW-3810-26A).

Battle of the Atlantic: U-332 (Kptlt. Johannes Liebe), on its third patrol out of La Pallice, torpedoes and sinks 11,628-ton US tanker Australia. The independent tanker is zigzagging near the Diamond Shoals Light Buoy of Cape Hatteras near other ships when U-332 spots its silhouette against the shore lights in the background. Liebe hits the tanker with a torpedo in the engine room, killing four men instantly. Freighter William J. Salman picks up the men in their three lifeboats in only 95 minutes. The ship submerges but does not completely sink (masts still visible) and has to be completely sunk later (20 March 1942) in order for the owner to receive compensation from the US War Shipping Administration (WSA).  There are four dead and 36 survivors.

U-68 (KrvKpt. Karl-Friedrich Merten), on its third patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 3386-ton British freighter Baron Newlands six miles south of Cape Palmas, Liberia. The ship is sunk after a difficult pursuit through a thunderstorm. There are 20 survivors and 18 deaths. The survivors apparently managed to swim to shore or clung to flotsam and jetsam as no lifeboats were launched.

Dutch tanker Oscilla, sunk near the Windward Islands on 16 March 1942.

Italian submarine Morosini torpedoes, shells, and sinks 6341-ton Dutch tanker Oscilla about 100 miles northeast of the Windward Islands.  There are four survivors and four deaths, including the captain, M.A.F. Kuypers.

Italian submarine Morosini also (apparently it is the Morosini, this is not confirmed) torpedoes and sinks 2802-ton British freighter Manaqui northeast of Barbuda. Morosini is known to be operating in this area. There are 41 dead. Another candidate for this sinking is U-504.

U-504 (KrvKpt. Hans-Georg Friedrich Poske), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 5966-ton British freighter Stangarth about 300 miles north of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The ship, which is carrying ammunition and other military goods, explodes and sinks immediately. All 46 men on the Stangarth perish. Another candidate for this sinking is the Morosini.

"Commissioning of USS Impulse, formerly the British corvette HMS Begonia. 16 March 1942, Albert Dock." USS Impulse served with the US Navy until being returned to the Royal Navy in 1945. © IWM (A 7789).

Danish 1458-ton freighter Agnete (under German control) is bombed and sunk by RAF aircraft about eight miles northeast of Terschelling, the Netherlands. Casualties are not recorded.

German 2642-ton freighter Utlandshorn hits a mine and sinks in the waters off northern Norway (Grense Jakobselv). The ship apparently is supplying the German garrison at Pechenga. Casualties are not recorded.

German harbor defense vessel (patrol boat) HS-97 hits a mine and sinks near Dunkirk. No details on this one.

British 430-ton freighter Miriam Thomas collides with Admiralty Hospital Ship Vasna and sinks about 15 miles south of Chicken Rocks near Holyhead, UK. All eight men aboard perish.

Dutch 4539-ton freighter Alcyone hits a mine and sinks 18 miles off Green Point, Capetown, South Africa. The mine was laid by the Speybank, a captured ship being used by the Germans. There are 46 deaths.

British 4270-ton freighter Cressdene hits a mine and is severely damaged near Swansea, UK. It sinks while under tow on the 17th. Details are scarce on this ship.

"The gun turret of a Matilda tank that had been captured [by Axis forces] and concreted into position to be used as part of the defenses of Halfaya Pass, 16 March 1942. A Valentine tank passes by in the background." © IWM (E 9320).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Royal Navy and RAF combine in an attack on the Italian E-boat base in Rhodes. This is Operation MF.8. Light cruisers HMS Dido and Euryalus and six destroyers bombard the island during the night of 15/16 March 1942.

Italian submarine Galatea uses its deck gun to sink a small sailing vessel off the Palestinian coast.

The situation on Malta is critical in certain vital areas that the Axis air forces have targeted. Ta Qali Airfield, in particular, is in trouble due to incessant bombing attacks. In addition, the field has to be modified for the use of new Spitfire squadrons. The island government sends out a request for volunteers to help with this work.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Ultimatum (P 32) arrives in Malta with 14 Italian survivors of its 14 March 1942 sinking of Italian submarine Ammiraglio Millo in the Ionian Sea off Punta (Cape) Stilo, Calabria, Italy. Commander Harrison of the Ultimatum makes a quick turnaround and departs for a new patrol on 17 March.

Dr. Seuss cartoon from 16 March 1942. Image from Dr. Seuss Went to War (Mandeville Special Collections Library, UC San Diego).

Partisans:  Joseph Goebbels notes in his diary that:

The activity of the partisans has increased notably in recent weeks. They are conducting a well-organized guerilla war.

The Germans at the front are busy preparing "Operation Munich," an anti-partisan sweep set to begin on 19 March 1942. This is planned as a large-scale operation to include a special air detachment established Bobruisk on 14 March 1942. Another such mission in the same general area set to begin later in March 1942 is Operation Bamberg.

Anglo/US Relations: President Roosevelt cables Prime Minister Winston Churchill with an offer to send a large US Navy force ("two battleships, two cruisers, an aircraft carrier, and a squadron of destroyers") to homeland British bases such as Scapa Flow. He notes that recent tanker sinkings are "very disturbing." He promises that by 1 July 1942 "our mounting production of small escort vessels and planes will come fully into play."

Time magazine, 16 March 1942. The cover story, "The Viceroy of India." Cover credit: Ernest Hamlin Baker.

Anglo/Indian Relations: British Lord Privy Seal Sir Stafford Cripps departs from London to enter negotiations with Indian leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru who demand independence. He also will talk with Moslem League President Mohammed Ali Hinnah who wants a separate Pakistan. Cripps is an avowed socialist who is sent on missions like this regularly.

Anglo/Soviet Relations: The Soviet Ambassador to Great Britain repeats Joseph Stalin's repeated request that the western Allies open a second front in Europe.

Life magazine, 16 March 1942. Note that the soldier on the cover is wearing a World War I helmet.

US Military: Lt. General W.J. Slim departs India for Magwe, Burma, in order to establish the 1st Burma Corps. This is to include the 1st Burma Division, the 17th Indian Division, and the 7th Armored Brigade. All of these units have been battered during the retreat across Burma. This will become known as "Burcorps" after it is officially established on 19 March 1942.

The 39th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor), 35th Pursuit Group (Interceptor), transfers from Ballarat to Mount Gambier with its P-39 fighters. The 64th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 43d Bombardment Group (Heavy), arrives at Sydney, Australia from the US with its B-17s. The 68th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor), 58th Pursuit Group (Interceptor), arrives at Amberly Field, Australia from the US with its P-39s.

US Government: The Maritime Commission places orders for another 234 Liberty ships. These are generic freighters built according to a standard plan that prioritizes cheap parts and ease of construction. For instance, they use a 140-ton vertical triple expansion compound steam engine of obsolete design rather than modern steam engines because the latter type is more difficult to build and requires special tooling. Everybody, including President Roosevelt, makes fun of the Liberty ships and their ugly appearance, but they get the job done.

"The weather map from the morning of March 16th [1942] showed low pressure over central Oklahoma, with an associated warm front lifting northward across central Illinois. Temperatures were unseasonably warm across the area, rising into the mid to upper 70s by afternoon." National Weather Service.

Holocaust: The Germans deport about 1600 Jews from Lublin, Poland, to Belzec concentration camp. Belzec is an extermination camp that opened on 13 March 1942 and already an estimated 6000 people have been murdered there.

American Homefront: Powerful tornadoes hit the Central and Southern United States. States affected include Illinois, Indiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Alabama, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Many of these areas do not usually get tornadoes, so they come as real shocks. The outbreak goes on for almost three full days, with 149 fatalities and 1312 injuries. On the Fujita scale, some of the tornadoes score the maximum rating of tornado damage, with costly property damage.

The Lacon F5 Tornado of 16 March 1942.

March 1942

March 1, 1942: Second Battle of Java Sea
March 2, 1942: Huge Allied Shipping Losses at Java
March 3, 1942: Japan Raids Western Australia
March 4, 1942: Second Raid On Hawaii
March 5, 1942: Japan Takes Batavia
March 6, 1942: Churchill Assaults Free Speech
March 7, 1942: British Defeat in Burma
March 8, 1942: Rangoon Falls to Japan
March 9, 1942: Japanese Conquest of Dutch East Indies
March 10, 1942:US Navy attacks Japanese Landings at Lae
March 11, 1942: Warren Buffett's First Stock Trade
March 12, 1942: Japan Takes Java
March 13, 1942: Soviets Attack In Crimea Again 
March 14, 1942: The US Leans Toward Europe
March 15, 1942: Operation Raubtier Begins
March 16, 1942: General MacArthur Gets His Ride
March 17, 1942: MacArthur Arrives in Australia
March 18, 1942: Japan Attacks In Burma
March 19, 1942: Soviets Encircled on the Volkhov
March 20, 1942: "I Shall Return," Says MacArthur
March 21, 1942: Germans Attack Toward Demyansk
March 22, 1942: Second Battle of Sirte
March 23, 1942: Hitler's Insecurity Builds
March 24, 1942: Bataan Bombarded
March 25, 1942: Chinese Under Pressure in Burma
March 26, 1942: Win Or Die, Vows MacArthur
March 27, 1942: The Battle of Suusari
March 28, 1942: The St. Nazaire Commando Raid
March 29, 1942: The Free Republic of Nias
March 30, 1942: Japanese-Americans Off Bainbridge Island
March 31, 1942: Japanese Seize Christmas Island

2020

Friday 2 January 1942

Japanese troops enter Manila in the Philippines on 2 January 1942.

Battle of the Pacific: While the Allies declared Manila an open city in late December 1941, they have retained control of the capital city and all of its facilities and supplies. Until now, that is. On 2 January 1942, the Japanese actually enter the city and it ceases being "open." A battalion of the Japanese 1st Formosa Regiment and two of the 47th Infantry Regiment are the first units into the city. Other Japanese troops occupy the Cavite Naval Base, which the departing US troops and the Japanese Air Force's bombs have wrecked.

The Daily Times-News of Burlington, North Carolina trumpets the loss of Manila in its 2 January 1942 edition. Ordinary people may not know much about the Pacific region, but Manila is one place that pretty much everyone has heard of due to the huge US military presence there.

The Japanese are hardly satisfied by taking Manila. They have a very good idea where the Americans have gone and may eventually go. Japanese bombers begin the daily bombing of fortified Corregidor Island in Manila Bay, where the US Army has a vast underground military complex. American and Filipino army units complete their withdrawal through San Fernando, which the Allies abandon at 02:00. The Japanese to the east of San Fernando cross the Pampanga River and take the city occupy the city without opposition. The goal of the Allied troops now is to delay the Japanese troops on the ten-mile road from Porac to Guagua, and to do this, the Filipino 21st Division covers the west side of the road and the 11th Division covers the east side. During the day, the advancing Japanese attack the western side, forcing the 21st Division back from Porac.

Japanese troops celebrate their capture of Manila, the Philippines, on 2 January 1942.

The Allies have been quite successful in moving 80,000 troops and 26,000 civilian refugees into the Bataan Peninsula, but everyone is tired, supplies are short, there is little prepared infrastructure such as airfields and naval bases, and the troops already are on half rations. Perhaps as a gesture of defiance, the US Army headquarters in Bataan sends a message:

Manila, Cavite lost; MacArthur fights on, holding Corregidor.

However, wars are not won by losing cities and holding tiny islands.

An Italian POW, still wearing his Afrika Korps cap, arrives in London on 2 January 1942 (AP Photo).

The fate of the Philippines is rising to the top of American concerns on 2 January 1942, and things do not look good. US and Filipino troops under Lieutenant General Douglas MacArthur are racing to secure the neck of the Bataan Peninsula before the Japanese can get there, and so far that is going reasonably well. However, the US Naval and US Army Air Force presence in the Philippines is dwindling fast, which gives the Japanese invaders a huge advantage. This is an unusual situation for World War II, where the Axis has aerial domination over the western Allies, and the imbalance cannot be rectified right away. In Australia, Major General George H. Brett, Commanding General-Designate of the U.S. Forces in Australia (USFIA), sends a dispiriting message to General George C. Marshall, Chief of Staff, U.S. Army in Washington, D.C. Brett indicates that reinforcing the Philippines is becoming critical, but it is impossible for the time being. Until a major airbase can be completed in Darwin, Australia, and a similar supply and repair depot constructed at Townsville, Queensland, effective relief is impossible. Of course, Brett also doesn't have much naval power to spare, either. The Philippines are beginning to look like a lost cause, but nobody wants to abandon them just yet.

USS President Hayes (AP-39), shortly after launching at Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia, on 2 January 1942 (Photo No. 19-N-26565. Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-19-LCM).

In the Malay Peninsula, Indian III Corps is under increasing pressure along the Perak River, as Japanese troops cross the river and take Teluk Anson (Teluk Intan) near the west coast. The 1st Independent Company and Indian 3d Cavalry Squadron retreat from the area, while Indian 12th Brigade Group nearby barely hangs on to its position. The Japanese also attempt an ad hoc landing at Kuala Selangor late in the day, but Allied artillery prevents this. After dark, the troops in the area begin to withdraw to the Slim River. The silver lining for the Allies is that from this point onward, the Malay Peninsula narrows like a triangle reaching its apex until the peninsula reaches Singapore at the southern tip. This should favor the defense, and the Battle of Kampar which ends today is characterized as an Allied defensive victory due to the delays imposed on the Japanese. However, the inability of the Commonwealth troops to hold any defensive line for any length of time so far is a bad omen. The less ground that remains between the Japanese lines and Singapore makes Japanese air attacks easier, more effective, more often, and less costly. Eventually, the British could run out of the real estate to defend, though great hope is placed in "Fortress Singapore."

The Seattle Star on 2 January 1942 reports on "Alien Restrictions Tightened" as restrictions on foreign nationals from Axis countries increase.

In Thailand, the American Volunteer Group (AVG, or "Flying Tigers") have been battling Japanese raiders over Rangoon since 20 December 1941 as the Allies squabble below them. Today, they launch their first raid on Japanese forces, a strike on an airbase in Thailand. This makes the title of a US Army Air Forces video, "Flying Tigers Bite Back," real. The AVG squadron leader is John Van Kuren Newkirk of Westchester, New York. Identified publicly only as "Scarsdale Jack," Newkirk is a former Navy pilot. Flying with him in their separate P-40B Tomahawk aircraft is Gregory "Pappy" Boyington, a former US Marine Corps aviator who was such a good flyer that he served as an instructor at Pensacola. Both Newkirk and Boyington are "private contractors" who are employed by the Central Aircraft Manufacturing Company (CAMCO), a front for covert US operations in Burma led by Claire "Old Leatherface" Chennault.

Italian WWII Fiat 665NM protetto (protected) or scudato (shielded) armored personnel carrier,. This photo was taken on 2 January 1942. This is an early model, perhaps a prototype, as these were developed in 1942 at the Arsenale Regio Esercito di Torino in collaboration with the Fiat Veicoli Industriali following the request of the Italian Military Staff.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The South African 2nd Division and British 1st Armoured Brigade (30 Corps, British Eighth Army) take Bardia southeast of Tobruk. A total of 2,200 German and 4,400 Italian troops who have been trapped in Bardia since the beginning of Operation Crusader in late November surrender on 2 January 1942. Other Axis troops continue to hold out near Halfaya Pass, but their situation also is hopeless and, unless Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel can stage a successful counteroffensive soon, they will be forced to surrender. While their defensive positions are good, the Axis troops in the area are running out of food and water and aerial supply by the Luftwaffe is not coming close to meeting their daily needs.

On Malta, a Bomb Disposal Officer reports finding a unique bomb with tail fins made of a blue alloy. There are other odd aspects to this weapon and how it is found. The officer reports it as a "seemingly rocket-propelled" type of bomb. If so, it is the first use of such a weapon. The trail grows cold here and it is unclear how this turns out.

A destroyed German train station in Maloyaroslavets, Russia, 2 January 1942. Soviet bombers destroyed this train. In the foreground is a German tank Pz.Kpfw.IV. On the second platform, a destroyed light tank Pz.Kpfw.II. Propaganda photo by Ivan Shagin.

Eastern Front: The Red Army continues to make gains around Moscow. Soviet 43rd Army opens a ten-mile gap between Borovsk and Maloyaroslavets, thereby cutting the German Fourth Army (General Ludwig Kuebler) off from its neighbor to the south. The commander of Fourth Panzer Army, General Erich Hoepner, requests permission to withdraw to reestablish contact with Fourth Army and is given a "categorical" no. Instead, Army Group Center commander Field Marshal Guenther von Kluge simply transfers a Fourth Army corps that had been cut off on the Fourth Panzer Army side to Hoepner. This helps the stranded corps receive supplies from Fourth Panzer Army but also removes any incentive for Kuebler or Hoepner to close the gap between their armies - so it grows wider. This is a pattern that will reassert itself repeatedly throughout the war on the Eastern Front, as Soviet attacks between armies split the German front because the German army commanders are more concerned with preserving their own units and less with their contact with neighboring units.

"Pilots and Hurricanes of No 56 'Punjab' Squadron at Duxford, 2 January 1942. The official caption reads: 'Fighter aircraft donated by the Province of Punjab have been in action and have scored numerous victories over the Hun'." © IWM (CH 4547).

In the Crimea, the opposing Soviet and German forces begin to dig in just west of the port of Feodosia. Soviet 44th Army's offensive from its bridgehead at Feodosia has stalled after German 42 Corps finally sorted out its units and got them into position facing the Red Army thrust. The Soviet success in recapturing the Kerch Peninsula has not come cheap, as they have lost 41,935 men, including 32,453 killed or captured and 9482 wounded or suffering from frostbite and other maladies. They also have not succeeded in their ultimate objective of relieving Sevastopol, which was never a realistic goal due to the large German 11th Army forces surrounding the port. However, the Red Army has taken a great deal of pressure off of Sevastopol and caused General Erich von Manstein a huge problem in maintaining two separate fronts, one facing west toward Sevastopol and the other facing east against the Soviet forces which landed at Feodosia. The Red Army does have other units of the 51st Army heading west from Kerch, but they are moving slowly and the Germans also are building their line with units taken from the siege of Sevastopol.

US Military: US Army Air Force Eighth Air Force is activated on 2 January 1942 at Savannah Air Base, Georgia.

German Homefront: Heinrich Himmler writes to Reinhard Heydrich asking him to suppress the Swing Kids (Swingjugend). The Swing movement of Hamburg, Himmler complains, is detrimental to the war effort. Himmler suggests that some time in concentration camps might improve the Swing Kids' attitudes.

Image from "Dr. Seuss Went to War" (Mandeville Special Collections Library, UC San Diego).

1942

January 1942

January 1, 1942: Declaration By United Nations
January 2, 1941: Manila Falls to Japan
January 3, 1942: ABDA Command Announced
January 4, 1942: MacArthur on His Own in the Philippines
January 5, 1942: Soviets Plan General Offensive
January 6, 1942: US Army in Europe
January 7, 1942: Soviet General Offensive Opens
January 8, 1942: Hitler Sacks Hoepner
January 9, 1942: Battle of Dražgoše
January 10, 1942: Building the Jeep
January 11, 1942: Japan Takes Kuala Lumpur
January 12, 1941: Rommel Plans Counterattack
January 13, 1942: First Ejection Seat Use
January 14, 1942: Operation Drumbeat First Sinking
January 15, 1942: U-Boat Off NYC
January 16, 1942: Carole Lombard Crash
January 17, 1942: British Take Halfaya Pass
January 18, 1942: Soviet Paratroopers in Action
January 19, 1942: FDR Approves Atomic Bomb
January 20, 1942: The Wannsee Conference
January 21, 1942: Parit Sulong Bridge Battle
January 22, 1942: Parit Sulong Massacre
January 23, 1942: Japan Takes Rabaul
January 24, 1942: Battle of Makassar Strait
January 25, 1942: Kholm Surrounded
January 26, 1942: GIs Land in Europe
January 27, 1942: Battle of Endau
January 28, 1942: Rommel Takes Benghazi
January 29, 1942: First US Coast Guard Ship Sunk
January 30, 1942: Singapore Isolated
January 31, 1942: Army Group South Averts Disaster

2020

Wednesday 12 November 1941

T-34 prototypes up to 1941 from left to right: BT-7M, A-20, T-34 mod. 1940 (L-11), T-34 mod. 1941 (F-34). Note that the armor gets more sloped, the gun bigger, the treads wider.

Eastern Front: German panzers as a group generally can be considered to be the best tanks in the world in 1941. Every country has its "best" tanks and is proud of them, but the Panzer III and Panzer IV, along with their accompanying support vehicles, have had little difficult storming across both East and West Europe. While there have been some unpleasant encounters on the Eastern Front with some advanced Soviet models, those have been few and far between. Most Wehrmacht armored troops have never encountered anything more dangerous than an obsolete T-26. However, on 12 November 1941, that begins to change as the Soviets begin to unleash them on both ends of the Battle of Moscow.

A German supply convoy near Nargowi Sawod near Moscow in November 1941. The ground is freezing, making the roads passable again after the Rasputitsa (Cusian, Albert, Federal Archive Picture 101I-140-1226-06).

While the T-34 is considered a medium tank, at 26.5 tons it is heavier than any of the German tanks. Its main gun is an L-10 76.2 mm (3 in) gun, enough to easily pierce all but the 80 mm frontal armor of the Panzer IV. The typical Panzer IV, meanwhile, has the short-barreled, howitzer-like 75 mm (2.95 in) Kampfwagenkanone 37 L/24 (7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24) tank gun, which cannot penetrate the T-34's 45 mm frontal armor except at very close range. The Germans, at Hitler's insistence, have plans to upgrade the Panzer IV's main gun to the deadlier 50 mm (1.97 in) Pak 38 L/60 gun, but the first prototype of that is not delivered until 15 November 1941. The Soviets have even heavier KV tanks, but they are slow and the Germans have figured out ways to contain them. The T-34, though, is a good all-around tank that is hard to kill and deals out devastating blows. While every country's citizens believe that its T-34 or Panzer IV or Valentine or Sherman is the best, the T-34 is among the elite. In short, the T-34 may not be the best tank in the world, particularly in terms of poor reliability, but in combat, it is at least a match for the best that the Wehrmacht has in late 1941. The Soviets have had them throughout Operation Barbarossa, but only now is furious tank production since June beginning to unleash large numbers of the T-34.

"Seamen drawing the gun carriage with the coffin covered with a white ensign." The funeral is for Able Seaman James S. Tarleton at Rosyth on 12 November 1941. © IWM (A 6226).

The impact of the T-34 is felt first at Tikhvin. The city of Tikhvin north of Moscow is nothing special in comparison with the many other cities the Wehrmacht has captured. However, Tikhvin may be the most strategically important place outside of Moscow itself. The city controls the only remaining land routes from Moscow to Lake Ladoga that are in Soviet hands. If the Germans can hold Tikhvin, they can capture Leningrad without firing a shot. Thus, Tikhvin's recapture is absolutely vital to the Soviet Union. The Germans have occupied Tikhvin, but the city is at the tip of a long, tenuous salient east from the Volkhov River which is very vulnerable. The German 12th Panzer Division expended the last of its strength to capture the city, and winter has set it, with temperatures on 12 November 1941 never exceeding 5 degrees Fahrenheit (-15 C). The Wehrmacht is completely unprepared for such weather conditions, and the men are dying of frostbite already and the vehicles have no antifreeze. This is the perfect time for the Red Army to attack, and it does.

A German photograph in Kharkov taken on 12 November 1941. The city had been captured a couple of weeks previously. Written on the back in German was the inscription, "This is the way street fights have wrecked conquered Kharkiv! As of today, there has not yet been time to clean everywhere."

Soviet 52nd Army (General Nicolai Kuzmich Klykov) follows the textbook procedure and attacks the German infantry divisions holding the right (southern) arm of the salient. German 126 Infantry Division (General Paul Laux) at Malai Vishera and the Spanish Blue Division (250th Division) just south of there guard that sector of the front. The T-34s form a hard crust around the weaker T-26 tanks. The Germans barely withstand the first shock of the attack and hastily form infantry tank-killer groups that use bundles of grenades to blow off the tanks' tracks. The Soviet attack peters out due to superior German defensive tactics, but it is clear to everybody that more such attacks would be fatal to the German hold on Tikhvin once the Soviets figure out how to use their armor efficiently.

"Squadron Leader Henryk Szczęsny, the CO of No. 317 "Wilno" Polish Fighter Squadron, saluting the Polish President-in-Exile, Władysław Raczkiewicz, at RAF Exeter, 12 November 1941. Szczęsny is decorated with the Polish Cross of Valour (Krzyż Walecznych) for the fourth time. He was also a holder of the Virtuti Militari and the Distinguished Flying Cross." © IWM (HU 111404).

South of Moscow, at Tula, General Guderian also is finding the Soviet armor to be a problem. Here, the issue is more his own weakness, as Colonel Heinrich Eberbach's Kampf Gruppe has taken serious losses. The Germans are down to barely 50 panzers. The Soviets are bringing up fresh Siberian troops and T-34 tanks. There is fierce fighting today northwest of Tula where a Soviet cavalry division and two rifle divisions fight to prevent the German 31st and 131st Infantry Divisions from encircling Tula and bypassing it. The fighting there is inconclusive, but with the weather turning frigid and the Soviets continually bringing forward reinforcements that the Wehrmacht cannot match, a tie essentially is a victory for the Red Army. The Germans are still in the fight and have not been pushed back, but they also are not advancing any longer - which means they are left out in the open as winter closes in.

Hilde Krahl on the cover of Filmwelt (Film World), issue dated 12 November 1941.

November 1941

November 1, 1941: Finns Attack Toward Murmansk Railway
November 2, 1941: Manstein Isolates Sevastopol
November 3, 1941: Japan Prepares to Attack
November 4, 1941: German Advances in the South
November 5, 1941: Last Peace Effort By Japan
November 6, 1941: Stalin Casts Blame in an Unexpected Direction
November 7, 1941: Stalin's Big Parade
November 8, 1941: Germans Take Tikhvin
November 9, 1941: Duisburg Convoy Destruction
November 10, 1941: Manstein Attacks Sevastopol
November 11, 1941: Finland's Double Game Erupts
November 12, 1941: T-34 Tanks Take Charge
November 13, 1941: German Orsha Conference
November 14, 1941: German Supply Network Breaking Down
November 15, 1941: Operation Typhoon Resumes
November 16, 1941: Manstein Captures Kerch
November 17, 1941: Finland Halts Operations
November 18, 1941: British Operation Crusader
November 19, 1941: Sydney vs. Kormoran Duel
November 20, 1941: The US Rejects Final Japanese Demand
November 21, 1941: Germans Take Rostov
November 22, 1941: Kleist in Trouble at Rostov
November 23, 1941: Germans Take Klin, Huge Battle in North Africa
November 24, 1941: Rommel Counterattacks
November 25, 1941: HMS Barham Sunk
November 26, 1941: Japanese Fleet Sails
November 27, 1941: British Relieve Tobruk
November 28, 1941: Rostov Evacuated, German Closest Approach to Moscow
November 29, 1941: Hitler Furious About Retreat
November 30, 1941: Japan Sets the Date for its Attack

2020

Saturday 8 November 1941

German troops by a knocked out Soviet T-34 tank in Tikhvin after taking the town on 8 November 1941.

Eastern Front: As dawn breaks on 8 November 1941, the German 12th Panzer Division (General Josef Harpe), supported by a reinforced regiment of the 18th Motorized Division and a combat group from the 8th Panzer Division (General Brandenburger), stands seven kilometers from Tikhvin. The town is defended by elements of four rifle divisions commanded personally by General Vzevolod Fedorovich Iakovlev, commander of the 4th Independent Army. A fierce snowstorm beats down, but Harpe sends his panzers forward.

"Inside the cockpit of the Link Trainer, Wrens are shown the instruments, dials, etc." This is at Royal Naval Air Station Donibristle Air Training Center on 8 November 1941. © IWM (A 6234).

The snow aids the German attack by obscuring the vision of the defending Soviet troops. The anti-tank gunners on the outskirts of Tikhvin do not see the panzers until the last moment, and then they open fire and destroy several vehicles. However, the German infantry quickly catches up and eliminates the guns, enabling the attack to continue. The panzers break into Tikhvin, where the Red Army defenders defend each house. The going is slow because the panzers are of less value in the city streets, but at midday, the combat group from the 8th Panzer division makes good progress. General Iakovlev and his staff barely escape with their lives - for Iakovlev it becomes a bittersweet escape because he is immediately replaced as commander of the 4th Independent Army by General Kiril Afanasevich Meretskov.

Since it is a Saturday in November, that means in the United States it is time for college football! Here is a copy of the 8 November 1941 Navy vs. Notre Dame football program. These were very complete programs and included pictures of all the players and team histories.

By the early sunset, the Germans hold Tikhvin. Both sides have taken heavy casualties, with the Soviets losing 20,000 men as prisoners and an untold number of other casualties. In the 12th Panzer Division, each rifle company is down from its normal complement of about 100 men. While Hitler had selected Tikhvin as the objective (rather than the nearer Volkhov preferred by his generals), he is not satisfied by its capture. He quickly sends a message to General Rudolf Schmidt, commander of  39thArmy Corps (motorized), setting Volgada as the next objective. This would entail an advance of another 400 km and take the unit further east than any other. Schmidt quickly replies that a further advance in the winter snow is impossible.

A view at Pearl Harbor of the USS Arizona in the distance on 8 November 1941, when she was undergoing repairs in Drydock #1 due to a collision with USS Oklahoma (US Navy).

The capture of Tikhvin is an astonishing achievement. It opens up many strategic possibilities for the Wehrmacht, including joining the Finns to the north at the Svir River or, as Hitler suggests, making a deep encirclement of Moscow. Most importantly, having Tikhvin cuts the last supply roads and railway lines to Leningrad (via Lake Ladoga). If the Germans can hold Tikhvin, Leningrad cannot hold out for very long at all. Hitler, safe in his warm command headquarters, sees the possibilities and wants to make the most of them.

The New Yorker, 8 November 1941 (cover by Peter Arno).

There are several problems with Hitler's plans, however. For one, the weather north of Moscow is getting worse every day. Temperatures are at 20 degrees below zero Fahrenheit and soon fall to -40. The Wehrmacht soldiers are not properly equipped for such conditions, and even if they were, their equipment is not. The panzers have to be run almost constantly to keep them from freezing, and the supply route from the Volkhov River is tenuous at best. Most significantly, the Red Army has been pushed back, but hardly has been beaten. General Meretskov immediately begins planned a riposte against Schmidt's depleted and freezing forces in the town.

A destroyed Pz.Kpfw.IV Aust-E.№-8 tank of the 15 Panzer Division in Libya, November 1941.

German Government: As he does each year on the anniversary of the 1923 Putsch, Adolf Hitler gives a speech in the Löwenbräukeller Munich to his party faithful. He does not mention the day's big success at Tikhvin for some reason, perhaps because he is not sure if the victory is complete at the time of the speech. However, Hitler has a lot to say about England, describing Winston Churchill as a "whiskey-happy gentleman" who had been counting on the Soviet Union to save Great Britain. Leningrad, he claims, is about to "fall into our hands" as a "heap of ruins." He further claims that Germany has taken 3.6 million Soviet prisoners so far and inflicted "an absolute loss of at least eight to ten million" men on the Soviet Red Army. In this, Hitler seems to be competing with Stalin, who on the evening of the 6th claimed to have inflicted over 4 million casualties on the Wehrmacht, figures which Hitler sneeringly recites and then refutes. The Soviet Union he describes as a "Mongolian state of a second Genghis Khan."

Launching of the Glenn L. Martin Company's prototype XPB2M-1 Mars at its launching on 8 November 1941. This is the prototype for the PBM Mariner patrol bomber. This prototype will be used for ground runs. Production will be delayed due to an engine fire and changing military requirements, and the first production model for the US Navy will not be delivered until June 1945 (US Navy).

Perhaps Hitler's most interesting comments concern the United States, about which he has not spoken overly much in previous speeches. Hitler blames President Roosevelt for "Poland's entry into the war" - apparently forgetting that it was Germany that invaded Poland. Hitler continues:

I have ordered German ships, if they sight American ones, not to fire, but to defend themselves if they are attacked. A German officer who does not defend himself will be court-martialed by me. If, on the President’s order, an American ship fires, then it does this at its own risk. The German ship will defend itself, and our torpedoes will not miss.

There is little question that both sides, Germany and the United States, are edging toward war. The looming question that remains, however, is what will turn this simmering conflict at sea into an all-out shooting war.

The XPB2M-1 as it is launched on 8 November 1941 (US Air Force).

November 1941

November 1, 1941: Finns Attack Toward Murmansk Railway
November 2, 1941: Manstein Isolates Sevastopol
November 3, 1941: Japan Prepares to Attack
November 4, 1941: German Advances in the South
November 5, 1941: Last Peace Effort By Japan
November 6, 1941: Stalin Casts Blame in an Unexpected Direction
November 7, 1941: Stalin's Big Parade
November 8, 1941: Germans Take Tikhvin
November 9, 1941: Duisburg Convoy Destruction
November 10, 1941: Manstein Attacks Sevastopol
November 11, 1941: Finland's Double Game Erupts
November 12, 1941: T-34 Tanks Take Charge
November 13, 1941: German Orsha Conference
November 14, 1941: German Supply Network Breaking Down
November 15, 1941: Operation Typhoon Resumes
November 16, 1941: Manstein Captures Kerch
November 17, 1941: Finland Halts Operations
November 18, 1941: British Operation Crusader
November 19, 1941: Sydney vs. Kormoran Duel
November 20, 1941: The US Rejects Final Japanese Demand
November 21, 1941: Germans Take Rostov
November 22, 1941: Kleist in Trouble at Rostov
November 23, 1941: Germans Take Klin, Huge Battle in North Africa
November 24, 1941: Rommel Counterattacks
November 25, 1941: HMS Barham Sunk
November 26, 1941: Japanese Fleet Sails
November 27, 1941: British Relieve Tobruk
November 28, 1941: Rostov Evacuated, German Closest Approach to Moscow
November 29, 1941: Hitler Furious About Retreat
November 30, 1941: Japan Sets the Date for its Attack

2020