Wednesday 12 February 1941

General Erwin Rommel meets Italian commander General Garibaldi in Tripoli.

Italian/Greek Campaign: Today, 12 February 1941, the Greeks complete the conquest of the Trebeshinë massif. The Italians, however, are building up forces for an offensive in the same sector.

As has been the case for several days, however, the real action is taking place in capitals across Europe and North Africa. In a note to British Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill sets forth current priorities:

[Y]our major effort must now be to aid Greece and/or Turkey. This rules out any serious effort against Tripoli, although minor demonstrations thitherwards would be a useful feint.... concentrate all available forces in the Delta in preparation for movement to Europe.

This change in priorities from North Africa to Greece is, as Churchill knows, opposed not only by Wavell but by his closest military advisers in London. However, Churchill is acting on his own initiative. He concludes his instructions to Wavell with alternative moves in case the Greeks prove uncooperative regarding British troop inflows (as they have in the past):

[T]hen we must try to save as much from the wreck as possible. We must, at all costs, keep Crete and take any Greek islands which are of use as air bases. We could also reconsider the advance on Tripoli. But these will only be consolation prizes after the classic race has been lost.

Thus, Churchill makes clear that Greece itself is only a pawn in the struggle against Hitler, and only useful in that regard. In essence, he proposes making war on Greece itself if it stands in the way of fighting Hitler on Greek soil.

General Rommel around the time of his arrival in Libya, 12 February 1941.

East African Campaign: The battle at Keren continues. Today, the 5th Indian Division's 29th Indian Infantry brigade is brought up from Barentu and added to Major-General Beresford-Peirse's 4th Indian Division. The plan is for troops already on the scene to create a gap in the Italian defenses, through which the 29th Infantry can pour through and overwhelm the Italian defenses.

It doesn't go quite like that. At 05:30, the British artillery roars and the 4/6th Rajputana Rifles advance toward the west side of the Dongolaas Gorge. The objective is the Acqua Col, a spot that connects Italian strong-points on either side. Things go wrong right from the start, though: the initial surge carries to the crest of the feature, but there the troops are subjected to murderous crossfire. The battalion leader, Captain Subadar Richpal Ram, is at the forefront, and he has his foot blown off and is shot dead shortly thereafter (Posthumous VC). The 4/11th Sikh Regiment comes at the Col from the side but is stopped cold. The Indian troops are forced to retreat again, leaving them with nothing to show for heavy casualties incurred in several days of desperate fighting.

Lieutenant-General William Platt now has tried to force both sides of the gorge twice, with no success. He decides to build up his supplies and troops and try a set-piece battle at a later date. Platt sends the 29th Infantry Brigade back to Barentu, which is served by a railway line and can be more easily supplied. The British sit down to devise a new strategy.

RAF planes bomb and sink the 590-ton German cargo ship Askari at Kismayo, Somalia, while on a voyage to Mogadishu. The crew of Askari manages to beach it on the 13th, but it is a total loss.

Elsewhere in Eritrea, British forces take Elghena south of Port Sudan.

At Kismayo, Somalia, the Italians scuttle freighters Integritas (5952 tons), Marghera (4531 tons), and Carso (6275 tons). The Carso is later salvaged and renamed Empire Tana.

Bristol Blenheim Mark V: pilot's controls and instrument panel on the port side of the cockpit. (IWM, February 1941).

European Air Operations: Air activity continues to be light due to the winter weather. The Luftwaffe sends a few planes over England at night, and for most of them, if they drop bombs, nobody notices. The RAF, which has been more active than the Luftwaffe lately, largely stays on the ground both during the day and night.

Battle of the Atlantic: With four German heavy cruisers (Admiral Scheer, Admiral Hipper, Gneisenau and Scharnhorst) on the loose in the Atlantic, the Royal Navy is as stretched as at any point of the war. Force H from Gibraltar departs into the Atlantic to cover Convoy HG 53, which has been under incessant attack by the Luftwaffe and U-boats. Late in the day, it is redirected to cover Convoy WS 6, a troop convoy bound for the Middle East - the other convoy would have to be left to its own devices.

One of those German cruisers, Admiral Hipper, illustrates today why the Royal Navy is worried. After stalking Convoy SLS 64 through the night just east of the Azores, it attacks at dawn. It is a reprise of its Christmas Day attack on another convoy in the same general area, but this time there are no escorts to send it fleeing for the port. In short order, Hipper sinks:

1. British 4876-ton freighter Warlaby (three survivors)
2. British 4712-ton freighter Westbury (five deaths)
3. British 4684-ton freighter Oswestry Grange (five deaths)
4. British 4542-ton freighter Shrewsbury (20 deaths)
5. British 4896-ton freighter Derrynane (all lost)
6. Norwegian 3924-ton freighter Borgestad (all lost)
7. Greek 5172-ton freighter Perseus (14 deaths)

Hipper also damages 4934-ton British freighter Lornaston. Despite all the losses, it is a fairly quick action, over by 07:40. Hipper probably could have sunk more ships, but it is a rainy and foggy morning, giving the convoy ships cover.

Much confusion develops about this encounter which is not resolved until much later. The British, in possession of the convoy manifest, correctly report 7 ships lost. However, the Germans claim 13 ship victims, and some survivors of the convoy (experienced sea crews) believe that 14 ships were sunk. This is a classic example of how eyewitnesses can perceive vastly different outcomes without any deliberate attempt to inflate the figures - though the Germans are not averse to inflating enemy loss figures.

After this attack, Admiral Hipper heads for Brest. Due to a chain of related reasons, this will be Hipper's last operation for a full year.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Tigris sinks 243-ton French fishing trawler René Camaleyre in the Bay of Biscay.

Swedish 2139 ton four-masted hulked bark Gullmarn, built 1887, drifts ashore at Madeira and is wrecked.

British 8 ton fishing vessel Caledonian hits a mine and blows up.

Royal Navy corvette HMS Amaranthus (Lt. Nicholas B. J. Stapleton, K 17) and destroyer HMAS Nestor (Commander George S. Stewart) are both commissioned.

U-651 (Kapitänleutnant Peter Lohmeyer) is commissioned, U-301 and U-659 are laid down. U-651 develops a reputation for being crewed by particularly fanatical Germans, a spirit apparently imbued by Lohmeyer.

Soviet submarine M-122 is launched.

General Rommel takes command in Tripoli, on or about 12 February 1941 (Sturm, Federal Archives).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The halt order to General Wavell that arrives today from Churchill and the General Staff forces Wavell to completely re-direct his efforts away from Libya. Brigadier Dorman-Smith, General Wavell's liaison to XIII Corps, finally arrives in Cairo after his 570-mile drive from General O'Connor's advanced headquarters. His instructions are to attempt to secure permission for O'Connor's troops to continue westward. Instead, after being kept waiting all day by Wavell, Dorman-Smith walks in to find that Wavell is no longer interested in Libya at all. Motioning to maps of Greece that have replaced maps of North Africa on his walls, Wavell says, "You find me busy with my spring campaign."

In fact, today does mark a definitive end to Operation Compass. Some Italian troops have been holding out at Beda Fomm despite their hopeless position. Today, the last of them surrender. Throughout the campaign, including the very end today, the Italians have outnumbered the British by roughly 20,000-3000.

General Erwin Rommel flies on a Junkers Ju 52 from Rome to Tripoli to command the new Afrika Korps troops carried in three German transport ships that made port on the 11th. These transports carried elements of the 5th Light Division. The plan is for the Korps to include the light (motorized) division, a panzer division, and Italian infantry (the Ariete and Trento divisions). Rommel meets new Italian Libyan Commander General Italo Gariboldi, who replaced Marshal Rodolfo Graziani.

Rommel has his men march around the town square repeatedly to make it appear that he has more men than he actually does. He also has them drive real and fake German tanks. This is an old German trick, first practiced in the Rhineland in the 1930s when the Luftwaffe would fly the same few planes overhead to make it appear as if it had more forces than it actually did. Naturally, the Germans can assume that there are many British sympathizers among the local populace, word will get out, and appearances are important. The British are 400 miles from Tripoli, but there is virtually nothing standing between them and the few Germans in North Africa aside from Italian troops who have proven themselves completely ineffective.

The second convoy of ships carrying the Afrika Korps departs from Naples. There are four transport ships (Adana, Aegina, Kybfels, and Ruhr) escorted by Italian destroyer Camicia Nera and torpedo boat Procione. The convoy will follow the usual pattern of spending a day in Palermo before proceeding on to Tripoli.

British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden and Chief of the Imperial General Staff General Sir Anthony Dill depart London bound for Cairo. Their mission (according to Churchill's written instructions) is to expedite "speedy succor to Greece" and for CIGS Dill to "advise on the military aspect." He provides a list of 15 points that "require particular attention," the most interesting (in light of later events) of which is "What is the minimum garrison that can hold the western frontier of Libya, and Benghazi."

Churchill's letter of introduction for Middle East commander General Wavell is illuminating as to colloquialisms in use at the time. He writes:

Request you will take all possible precautions for safety of our two Envoys having regard to nasty habits of Wops and Huns.

In another note to Wavell, Churchill offers his "heartfelt congratulations" on taking Benghazi, but forbids any further advances beyond "demonstration attacks." General Rommel later writes:

If Wavell had now continued his advance into Tripolitania, no resistance worthy of the name could have been mounted against him - so well had his superbly planned offensive succeeded.

Of course, the Germans could not know that Wavell was gung-ho for taking Tripolitania, but it was solely the decision of Churchill to stand pat and divert units elsewhere. Some consider this 12 February 1941 order to stop at Benghazi to be one of the greatest British military blunders of the war.

Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies, on his extended journey from Melbourne to London, returns from Benghazi to Cairo. He experiences "My first Air Raid" before leaving the former, a visit at dawn by some minelaying bombers. The Royal Navy at this time is sending ships from Alexandria and Suda Bay in Operation Shelford to sweep Benghazi Harbor.

At Malta, the increased German presence in the Mediterranean is made plain by the first appearance of Bf 109 fighters over the island. A dozen 7,/JG 26 fighters escort a Fliegerkorps X bombing raid during the afternoon and shoot down three Hurricanes - the worst losses suffered by the RAF on the island to date. The Bf 109 pilots are veterans of the Channel Front and among the best fighter pilots of the time. They are led by ace Oblt. Müncheberg, who gets one of the victories.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Utmost damages 5463-ton Italian freighter Manfredo Campiero off Tripoli.

Rommel reviewing troops in Tripoli, on or about 12 February 1941.

Battle of the Pacific: Convoy ZT 2 departs from Wellington for Sydney.

Applied Science: Howard Florey's team administers penicillin for the first time to a patient (43-year-old Reserve Constable Albert Alexander) at the Radcliffe Infirmary in Oxford. While a policeman, Alexander incurred his infection to the face while pruning roses in his garden. The experiment is a success, but the patient dies (not enough penicillin available).

Work will proceed on this promising drug for infections. Penicillin, the first true antibiotic, was discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928 and developed at Oxford by Florey, Ernest Chain, and others. Florey will travel to the United States during the summer to interest the Americans in developing the antibiotic further.

Italian/Spanish Relations: Mimicking the October 1940 meeting at Hendaye between Adolf Hitler and Spanish Generalissimo Francisco Franco, Mussolini meets with Franco at Bordighera on the Italian Riviera to chat "on all problems interesting the two governments at the present historic moment." The meeting is scheduled to take two days. Hitler has high hopes that Mussolini can convince Franco to join the Axis.

Italian/US Relations: Italy requests that the United States close its consulates in Palermo and Naples and consolidate operations in Rome. This purportedly is due to the recent Royal Navy raid on Genoa, which makes the entire Italian seacoast insecure.

Viktor Semyonovich Abakumov (Russian: Виктор Семёнович Абакумов; 24 April 1908 – 18 December 1954). The future first director of the newly created Main Directorate of Counterintelligence (GUKR) SMERSH, "Death to Spies."

Soviet Government: Internal security specialist Viktor Abakumov, head of the UNKVD of Rostov Oblast, arrives at the Moscow headquarter of the NKVD. His new role is as a Senior Major of State Security. He will be working closely with Lavrentiy Beria.

British Government: Prime Minister Winston Churchill takes questions in the House of Commons. He states that

I can recall no occasion when the question of peace aims or reconstruction has been mentioned by any of the representatives of the American Government.

Churchill also memos the Foreign Office conceding that he has received "no reply" to offers made to Vichy French General Weygand. On another topic, he urges the foreign office to be prepared to supply food to Spain in order to induce them to support the Allied cause.

Churchill's Assistant Private Secretary, Jock Colville, notes in his diary today that there was "great opposition" to Churchill's veto of any attempt by XIII Corps to complete the conquest of Libya. He mentions that CIGS Sir John Dill "felt so strongly about it that he was almost thinking of resigning." Colville notes that sending insufficient forces to Greece runs "the risk of another Dunkirk."

Spanish Government: Alfonso XIII, the former king now living in Rome, renounces the throne in favor of his son Juan, who is the third surviving son of the king. Alfonso was deposed by the Second Spanish Republic. Juan, known to history as Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona. Juan is the father of Juan Carlos I, the future king of Spain rather than Juan due to the post-war intervention of Franco.

Chile: The country is 400 years old today, and holds celebrations.

Dutch Homefront: The street battles in Amsterdam continue. The Wehrmacht works with local Dutch police to quarantine the Jewish quarter of the city with barbed Wire. Police checkpoints are set up, and nobody goes in (unless they are Jewish) or out. The occupation authorities meet with Jewish leaders and appoint them as members of the Joodsche Raad (Jewish Council). The Joodsche Raad is a very controversial organization that remains in existence throughout the occupation. Some accuse it of effective collaboration.

A comic book showing the first administration of penicillin to treat an infection.

February 1941

February 1, 1941: US Military Reorganization
February 2, 1941: Wehrmacht Supermen
February 3, 1941: World Will Hold Its Breath
February 4, 1941: USO Forms
February 5, 1941: Hitler Thanks Irish Woman
February 6, 1941: Operation Sunflower
February 7, 1941: Fox Killed in the Open
February 8, 1941: Lend Lease Passes House
February 9, 1941: Give Us The Tools
February 10, 1941: Operation Colossus
February 11, 1941: Afrika Korps
February 12, 1941: Rommel in Africa
February 13, 1941: Operation Composition
February 14, 1941: Nomura in Washington
February 15, 1941: Churchill's Warning
February 16, 1941: Operation Adolphus
February 17, 1941: Invade Ireland?
February 18, 1941: Panzerwaffe Upgrade
February 19, 1941: Three Nights Blitz
February 20, 1941: Prien's Farewell
February 21, 1941: Swansea Blitz Ends
February 22, 1941: Amsterdam Pogrom
February 23, 1941: OB-288 Convoy Destruction
February 24, 1941: Okuda Spies
February 25, 1941: Mogadishu Taken
February 26, 1941: OB-290 Convoy Destruction
February 27, 1941: Operation Abstention
February 28, 1941: Ariets Warns Stalin

2020

Saturday 24 August 1940

This Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 (W.Nr. 5587) "Yellow 10" of 6./JG 51 "Molders" crash-lands at East Langdon in Kent on 24 August 1940. The pilot, Oberfeldwebel Beeck, becomes a POW.

European Air Operations: Saturday 24 August 1940 is one of the most significant dates of the 20th Century. It all has to do with the slippery slope of warfare.

Of course, you'll never see that in any of your textbooks. There, it's just another day in the seemingly endless conflict of World War II.

So, what happens on the 24th day of the 40th year of the 20th Century that makes it so darn important? Well, that takes a little explaining.

On the 22nd of August, a flight of Luftwaffe bombers had bombed a western suburb of London. It wasn't even London proper - but it was London as far as the British were concerned. It isn't clear if that flight meant to bomb that particular spot - probably not. But it did, and there weren't any apologies from the Germans about bombing a movie theater, other nearby businesses, and some flats within the London Civil Defense Zone.

The British noticed the attack, of course, but gave the Germans a pass that one time. Some accounts say that the RAF bombed Berlin immediately in retaliation, but there isn't any evidence of that. So far, everything remained as it was.

However, on the night of the 24th, another flight of Luftwaffe bombers ordered to attack a factory of the Short aircraft company at Rochester in Kent and the Thameshaven oil storage tanks uses the Knickebein ("Crooked Leg") radio guidance system to guide their way as usual. The British, also, as usual, employ countermeasures which throw the Luftwaffe navigator off. The Knickebein system already has been superseded within the Luftwaffe for being obsolete and easy to jam, but the more advanced system is only used within one special Luftwaffe squadron - and not this one.

Instead of bombing the proper industrial targets, the navigator relies on the false radio signals and instructs the pilots to release their bombs a bit early. It seems ok, as there is a built-up area below anyway, so the bombs won't be dropped to no purpose. It's not like they'll be dropped in the countryside or ocean.

Below lies central London and the East End. The bombs start numerous fires. In addition, perhaps coincidentally, separate Luftwaffe raids drop bombs on residential areas of Portsmouth and Ramsgate - also most likely in error. The British take note of this. There are "reports" that the London raid was actually the result of a sustained attempt to bomb the city which only succeeded in the second attempt. The RAF starts planning a little raid of its own.

This seemingly minor incident sets in motion the greatest wave of destruction of the century, the destruction of the major cities of Europe... which all begins on 24 August 1940.

London, 24 August 1940.

Battle of Britain: Luftwaffe boss Hermann Goering today orders "ceaseless attacks" against the RAF, but the weather has not been permitting them. Overnight, however, the weather clears and the Luftwaffe really goes to work. The objective remains the airfields and the destruction of the RAF both in the air and on the ground. Since many of the most important RAF airfields are close to London, that creates opportunities for mistakes such as those described above.

Luftwaffe tactics change slightly, and it is an effective change. Since it has the numerical advantage, the Luftwaffe begins using massive feints to draw off the defenders and force them to refuel while other attacks are made. The Germans also begin sending formations across at different altitudes as they try to overwhelm the stretched RAF defenses. The idea is to disperse the defending fighters and get them out of position as they are drawn to the wrong altitudes, or forced to the ground to refuel, making them unable to meet fresh attacks.

The first big operation begins at 08:30, earlier than in recent days. About 100 planes, forty of them Dornier Do 17 and Junkers Ju 88 medium bombers, take the short route over the Channel at Calais. This operation, however, turns out to be a massive feint, and the RAF falls for it by sending a dozen fighter squadrons up before the Luftwaffe formation turns back to France without dropping a single bomb.

The next big operation is 11:30, coming from the same general direction as the previous one. With the other squadrons refueling and re-arming (as the Germans intended), the RAF sends up No. 264, which is composed of Bolton Paul Defiants. The Defiants are known to be sketchy, but they surge into the bomber stream after taking off from RAF Manston. The Junkers Ju 88s shoot down three of them and damage two others. The other intercepting RAF Squadrons have little luck and Oberst ‘Pips’ Priller of 6./JG 51 files claims for two Spitfires. The bombers get through to RAF Manston and add to the damage of recent days, making it useful for little more than refueling stops and emergency landings.

The afternoon raids target RAF Hornchurch, which is perhaps the most important airfield because it is closest to the London docks and the vital Thames estuary. North Weald to the northeast of Hornchurch and almost as important also comes under attack. At this point, RAF No. 11 Group which oversees southwest England is overstretched and a real problem develops over these vital airfields.

Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park requests assistance from Air Vice Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory, commander of 12 Group. Leigh-Mallory doesn't particularly like Park, because he resents Park being in charge of the more prestigious No. 11 Group, and he only sends one formation, RAF No. 19 Squadron. Meanwhile, Leigh-Mallory takes his time forming a "Big Wing," an especially large formation. By the time this "Big Wing" arrives over Hornchurch, the Luftwaffe is long gone. This creates a huge rift between Park and Leigh-Mallory and also, incidentally, allows the bombers to bomb the area around the Thames estuary and start massive fires.

Damage to Ramsgate on 24 August 1940.

This activity over the London docks and the estuary leads to massive dogfights. More Defiants go down, and both sides take several losses. North Weald and Hornchurch are bombed, but not put out of action (like Manston).

Another large raid then heads north from Cherbourg around 15:00. It targets the usual areas on the south coast such as Brighton and Portsmouth. The Luftwaffe fighters have an altitude advantage and make full use of it, getting a number of victories. The worst moment for the Germans is when two Bf 109s of 2,/JG 51 collide over Ramsgate. The bombing of Portsmouth is particularly vicious, with over 100 killed and 300 other casualties, the highest totals of the campaign to date. The damage is widespread, and destroyer HMS Acheron is damaged (2 deaths and 3 other casualties) as well as destroyer HMS Bulldog (one death, the CO) and French torpedo boat Flore. It is probably the most successful raid to date on the important port.

After dark, things get even worse for the British. Another large formation heads north from Cherbourg, and it heads straight for London. This KG 1 raid is the one discussed above which begins the "slippery slope" of European city destruction. About 170 Heinkel He 111s targeting the aircraft factory at Rochester and oil tanks at Thameshaven instead drop their loads too far to the west. Extensive damage to fashionable Oxford Street and the West End results. This especially large bombing raid is barely intercepted at all and causes immense fires all along the dockland area. Some of the bombs drop further north than the others, right in the heart of London.

A pillbox camouflaged as a car. Felixstowe, England, 24 August 1940.

Prime Minister Winston Churchill cannot know that the London attack was unintentional. He demands a quick reprisal raid, and one is prepared for the following night on Berlin. To say that this is playing with fire is a vast understatement. However, the Germans have left him no choice, and whether or not it was against standing Wehrmacht orders to bomb London (it was) and the attack was the result of a mistake in navigation (it was again) is beside the point. If nothing else pure politics demands retaliation, and even former Prime Minister Chamberlain launched similar retaliatory raids against nearer attacks during the Spring.

There are additional night raids during the night on Bristol, another very intense event that only increases the British desire for revenge. "The damage is done," so to speak. The Luftwaffe only loses two bombers during the night.

Two RAF Fleet Air Arm Fairey Fulmars of No. 806 Squadron collide over the Bay of Biscay, killing the pilots.

RAF Bomber Command attacks various industrial targets during the night, including an electrical station at Cologne, an oil installation at Frankfurt, a chemical plant at Ludwigshafen, and the Daimler-Benz factory at Stuttgart. In addition, 10 British bombers raid auto factories in Milan again.

Horse Sands Sea Fort, Plymouth Harbour (Eastern Solent), 24 August 1940.

The day has a lasting effect on the RAF aside from the attack on London. Even if losing the Defiants themselves is not important, the pilots flying them are invaluable. Losing talented pilots in inferior equipment is a poor choice. Fighter Command finally makes the painful decision to withdraw the Defiants completely from combat and relegate them to training purposes. When people point to the withdrawal of the Stukas and Bf 110s from most missions as evidence of the Luftwaffe's "defeat," they usually forget to mention that the RAF also had to withdraw some classes of planes.

As for the Luftwaffe, the attack on London has brought a noticeable result for a change, unlike the raids on airfields which are quickly repaired. The blazing fires can be seen for miles and act as a beacon. The new policy of close escorts for the bombers appears to be working.

Losses for the day are roughly equal when figuring in all losses such as planes destroyed on the ground and such. Combat losses are usually given as roughly 30 for the Luftwaffe and 25 for the RAF. Exact figures are difficult to pinpoint because some damaged planes are write-offs, others are out of action for long periods and so on.

The cross-Channel guns at Cap Gris Nez fire again today. This time, they focus exclusively on Dover and Folkestone but don't hit anything significant.

Hans-Joachim Marseille shoots down a Hurricane over Kent for his first victory but gets in trouble for flying off on his own - abandoning his wingman, a major no-no - to do it. James Lacey gets a victory for the RAF, shooting down a Dornier bomber.

US  Rear Admiral Ghormley during an inspection tour of the Western Approaches Command on 24 August 1940. © IWM (A 216).

Battle of the Atlantic: It is a bad day for the Atlantic convoys. U-37 (Kapitänleutnant Victor Oehrn), operating out of Lorient for the first time on her seventh patrol, has another big day as it stalks Convoy OB 202 and Convoy SC 1 west of Ireland/700 miles southwest of Iceland. U-37 isn't the only successful predator on the high seas today. One of the notable things about these attacks is that they are on larger cargo vessels than usual. U-boat captains, of course, are judged as much by their tonnage sunk as by the number of ships they sink.

U-37 torpedoes and sinks 5100-ton British cargo ship Brookwood at 03:14. There are 36 survivors and one crewman perishes.

Still stalking the convoy throughout the day, U-37 sinks the only armed escort of Convoy SC 1, the British sloop HMS Penzance (L 28) at 20:38. A torpedo on the starboard side sets some of her depth charges off, and the ship sinks within minutes - leaving the convoy defenseless. There are 90 deaths and seven survivors.

U-57 (Oblt.z.S. Erich Topp), also operating out of Lorient now on her 11th patrol, starts off its own big day by damaging British freighter Havildar just after midnight in the Northwest Approaches about 25 miles northeast of Malin Head. The freighter survives.

U-57 then torpedoes 10,939-ton British freighter Cumberland. The large ship stays afloat for a couple of days and tries to make it to Ireland, but ultimately sinks within sight of land. There are 54 survivors and four crew perish.

U-57 also torpedoes 5681-ton British freighter Saint Dunstan. There are 49 survivors and 14 crew perish. Saint Dunstan also takes her time sinking, and also gets within sight of land, but down she goes about 9 km east of Ireland. U-57's big day leads to an attack by British escorts which she survives.

U-48 (K.Kapt. Hans-Rudolf Rösing) is operating west of the Outer Hebrides as Convoy HX 65 passes by. It spots straggling British tanker La Brea and sinks it with a torpedo. There are 31 survivors and 2 crew perish.

Convoy MT 149 departs from Methil, Convoy FS 261 departs from the Tyne, Convoy OB 203 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HX 68 departs from Halifax, Convoy BN 3A departs from Aden.

German battleship Bismarck is commissioned. However, no operations are scheduled for her as her crew trains and the outcome of the Battle of Britain remains uncertain.

British ASW trawler HMS Gavotte (T 115, Lt. Cyril S. Tennent) is commissioned.

The commissioning of the Bismarck, 24 August 1940.

Battle of the Mediterranean: A small flotilla departs from Alexandria to cover some freighters coming from Athens (Piraeus). War tensions are high and rising in the Aegean, which should be quiet since Greece is not at war with anyone.

A small British force bombards Bardia again, led by gunboat HMS Ladybird.

At Malta, there this an air raid around noontime on Hal Far airfield and nearby areas, which damages a Swordfish torpedo bomber. The Italians definitely lose one CR.42 fighter in the attack and perhaps others.

View from destroyer Kelvin, 24 August 1940.  © IWM (A 240).

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Atlantis, disguised as Dutch cargo ship Tarifa, finds 4744-ton British coal freighter King City about 900 miles east of Madagascar in rough seas and sinks it with its deck guns. There are six deaths, but at least the Atlantis sticks around to pick up the survivors - who would have had big problems stuck in the middle of the Indian Ocean in bad weather.

Applied Science: Oxford University scientists publish an article in The Lancet about penicillin which is considered one of the most revolutionary in medical history. This, in fact, might be the day's most farthest-reaching event. The study authors are Howard Florey, Ernst Chain, and Norman Heatley.

Hungarian/Romanian Relations: Border negotiations fail.

US Military: Former minesweeper USS Peacock collides with Norwegian freighter Hindanger off of Columbia and sinks. Hindanger has been operating in the Caribbean since the German invasion. The Peacock has been operating as a salvage tug under charter to the Shipping Board, but technically remains on the naval rolls.

German Homefront: Paul Julius Gottlieb Nipkow, inventor of the "Nipkow Disk" and honorary president of the "television council" of the Reich Broadcasting Chamber, passes away at the age of 80. He is considered one of the giants in the development of television.

The Bismarck in Kiel Harbor.

August 1940

August 1, 1940: Two RN Subs Lost
August 2, 1940: Operation Hurry
August 3, 1940: Italians Attack British Somaliland
August 4, 1940: Dueling Legends in the US
August 5, 1940: First Plan for Barbarossa
August 6, 1940: Wipe Out The RAF
August 7, 1940: Burning Oil Plants
August 8, 1940: True Start of Battle of Britain
August 9, 1940: Aufbau Ost
August 10, 1940: Romania Clamps Down On Jews
August 11, 1940: Huge Aerial Losses
August 12, 1940: Attacks on Radar
August 13, 1940: Adler Tag
August 14, 1940: Sir Henry's Mission
August 15, 1940: Luftwaffe's Black Thursday
August 16, 1940: Wolfpack Time
August 17, 1940: Blockade of Britain
August 18, 1940: The Hardest Day
August 19, 1940: Enter The Zero
August 20, 1940: So Much Owed By So Many
August 21, 1940: Anglo Saxon Incident
August 22, 1940: Hellfire Corner
August 23, 1940: Seaplanes Attack
August 24, 1940: Slippery Slope
August 25, 1940: RAF Bombs Berlin
August 26, 1940: Troops Moved for Barbarossa
August 27, 1940: Air Base in Iceland
August 28, 1940: Call Me Meyer
August 29, 1940: Schepke's Big Day
August 30, 1940: RAF's Bad Day
August 31, 1940: Texel Disaster

2020