A British tank passes a burning German Panzer IV in North Africa in this nicely colorized shot. See the details of this shot below.
Battle of the Mediterranean: The British relieve Tobruk on 27 November 1941 when the 6th New Zealand Brigade overcomes the Italian 9th Bersaglieri Regiment at Ed Duda and the 32nd Tank Brigade and accompanying units create a small corridor to the port. This action technically justifies the British Operation Crusader, but the British have suffered severe tank losses as German General Erwin Rommel sent his main panzer forces into the British rear. After three days of deliberation, British Commander-in-Chief Middle East Command General Claude Auchinleck makes the very hard decision to relieve Eighth Army commander Lieutenant-General Alan Cunningham and replace him with Lieutenant-General Neil Ritchie. This is a very rare case of a general being sacked at the very moment that he achieves his main objective. Thus, in some sense, Operation Crusader has become a Pyrrhic victory for the British, at least so far.
General Rommel, meanwhile, is fighting a completely different campaign to the southeast. He sends 15th Panzer Division to Bir el Chleta, where it runs into 22nd Armored Brigade. The sides are roughly equal in tanks at about 50 until 4th Armored Brigade rushes up from the northeast. In conjunction with the RAF Desert Air Force, the British tankers wreak havoc on the panzers. However, after darkness falls, the British forces inexplicably move to the south to regroup, leaving the surviving German forces free to threaten the narrow British corridor to Tobruk to the northeast. During the night, General Rommel confers with Afrika Corps commander General Crüwell and, while Rommel wants the panzers to cut the corridor, Crüwell convinces Rommel to instead attack the British tanks to the south. Once this is done, the men agree that 15th Panzer can be resupplied and have a better chance of once again isolating Tobruk.
Eastern Front: The German commanders in the Army Group South section of the front prepare for the final evacuation of Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia. General Ewald von Kleist's First Panzer Army will withdraw toward Taganrog and the Mius River, which is considered an easily defensible winter line. It will be an unforced withdrawal, and thus all units can be expected to reach the safety of the Mius River in good order. There, they can enter winter quarters and await the spring to retake Rostov and advance into the oil-rich Caucasus.
Jews were for the first time deported from Würzburg toward the East on 27 November 1941. These deportees will wind up Riga, Latvia in a few days to become residents of the Jungfernhof concentration camp (Yad Vashem Photo Archives 7900/58, Courtesy of the State Archives in Würzburg (Staatsarchiv Würzburg)).
The Wehrmacht at this point has only occupied Rostov for six days, but the local commanders knew virtually from the day that they took Rostov that it was indefensible. Soviet 37th Army is waiting to march into Rostov after the Germans leave. While Army Group South commander Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt does not have permission to withdraw, Adolf Hitler is in Berlin attending to other affairs. He is out of touch with developments at the front and thus is not available to countermand any orders. Hitler could return to the Wolfsschanze headquarters in East Prussia any day now, though, so if the withdrawal is to be completed without his interference, it will have to be done soon. Everyone knows that Hitler's standard response to any difficult military situation is to not retreat and that ordering a withdrawal without his permission will displease him, so there likely will be consequences. This is accepted by the commanders on the spot.
SS Lurline sets sail on 27 November 1941. It makes regular voyages from San Francisco to Honolulu, Hawaii and is at sea on 7 December 1941 between those two ports.
In the Crimea, General Erich von Manstein decides to postpone his offensive against Sevastopol until 17 December. He is concerned about supply difficulties - four out of five railway locomotives have broken down due to frost and road transport has been reduced by 50% - and the Soviet unit holding the port shows no signs of cracking. Hitler still wants the entire Crimea, including Sevastopol, taken as soon as possible, but Manstein feels he isn't ready. However, on the other side, General Petrov, the Red Army commander at Sevastopol, figures that holding out at Sevastopol will help divert German forces from Moscow. So, for the time being, both sides just try to maintain the status quo. Advantage Soviets.
Ordinary Seaman Harold Clyde Dunn aboard HMAS Parramatta. KIA 27 November 1941 (Australian War Memorial).
US Military: Negotiations with the Japanese have broken down completely, so President Roosevelt meets with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General George Marshall and Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Harold Stark. The consensus is that the Japanese will attack somewhere, but it is unknown where and Japanee intentions "cannot be forecast." Marshall and Stark submit a memo to the President today which states in part:
The most essential thing, from the United States point of view, is to gain time... [Military action should be avoided] so long as consistent with the national policy... [Military action should be contemplated] only if Japan attacks or directly threatens the United States, British, or Dutch territory.
The War Council meets later in the day and, at the urging of Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson, drafts and sends a war warning for Hawaii, Panama, San Francisco, and the Philippines. The warning cautions local commanders to let the Japanese make the "first overt act" but to "undertake such reconnaissance and other measures" as necessary. The operative plan in case of an attack is Rainbow 5, which assumes that the United States will be allied with Britain and France and contemplates offensive operations by American forces in Europe, Africa, or both. The major assumption of Rainbow 5 is that the United States will follow a "Europe first" policy while temporarily going on the defensive in the Pacific.
Ceremonial handshake between the Eighth Army relief force commander and the commander of the garrison at Tobruk on 27 November 1941. Original caption: "Relief of Tobruk. Join up of 8th Army and Tobruk garrison, 27 November 1941. Lieutenant-Colonel S F Hartnell is on the left. British official photograph. Notes on the back of file print include 'Prob 19 NZ Bn [?] at Ed Duda. NZ Officer - Lt/Col S F Hartnell. Tobruk - Link-up - 2 Libyan Campaign. 19 NZ Bn - Ed Duda. 32 Army Tank Bde - Ed Duda.'"
Victims and fellow townspeople of Kondomari, Crete are herded to the site of hostage executions, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).
Anglo-Iraq War: Jamil al-Midfai is named Prime Minister of Iraq on 2 June 1941. In Baghdad, the "Farhud" attacks continue against the Jewish Quarter. While the instigation and causes of the Farhud are subject to debate, but what is known for certain is that it ends today during the afternoon. It is unknown exactly how many deaths result from the Farhud, but estimates range from 100-1000, wich larger numbers of wounded.
Regent Abdul Illah (Abdullah) ends the Farhud riots, according to the Iraqi Commission Report, when he orders forces loyal to him into Baghdad. They use machine guns to kill many rioters. Another version of events is that the British are the ones that restore order. The two versions may be reconciled by assuming that the Regents ask the British to restore order, but that is unclear. In any event, hundreds of people on both sides of the Farhud - rioters and Jewish victims - perish. This incident begins the gradual elimination of the centuries-old Jewish presence in Baghdad.
In Syria, Vichy French forces claim to shoot down a British Blenheim reconnaissance plane over Syria-Lebanon.
German troops choose which hostages to execute in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).
European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command attacks the Ruhr River Valley of Germany with 44 bombers.
RAF Bomber Command sends 9 Blenheims of 2 Group, 105 Squadron to raid the Kiel Canal. This includes the naval barracks at Friedrichskoog and various villages along the canal. The RAF planes sink two small ships that block the canal for ten days.
RAF Bomber Command also sends bombers of 107 Squadron to raid the region between the Ems and the Elbe.
RAF Bomber Command also targets the liner Europe, tied up at Bremerhaven.
RAF Bomber Command sends 150 aircraft to attack Dusseldorf and 25 aircraft to attack Duisburg overnight.
The Luftwaffe attacks Manchester during the night of 1-2 June, killing 70 and injuring 86. This is the Manchester Blitz.
The Luftwaffe bombs Park Grove, Hull. This is Hull's fiftieth raid of the war. There are 27 killed and 11 wounded, and the tragedy is that the "all clear" mistakenly had sounded and the victims had just exited their shelters.
The RAF shoots down a Junkers Ju 88A northeast of Tynemouth at 22:29. There are two deaths, and two crewmen become POWs. East African Campaign: East African 22nd Infantry Brigade begins crossing the Omo at Sciola in Galla-Sidamo.
Victims at Kondomari, Crete lining up for their executions, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).
Battle of the Atlantic: U-147 (Oblt. Eberhard Wetjen), operating in the Northwest Approaches on its third patrol, attacks Convoy OB-329. It torpedoes and damages 4996-ton Belgian freighter Mokambo. The Mokambo makes it to the Clyde in tow. However, Royal Navy destroyer HMS Wanderer and corvette Periwinkle attacks and sinks U-147 with a depth charge attack. There are 24-26 deaths - the entire crew - on U-147.
U-108 (Kptlt. Erich Hilsenitz), on its third patrol out of Lorient, spots Convoy OB-327 in the mid-Atlantic. It torpedoes and sinks 7628-ton freighter Michael E, which happens to be the first catapult aircraft merchant (CAM) ship. There are four deaths on the Michael E. The ship has no time to launch its fighter plane, but the pilot manages to survive the sinking along with 61 others. It is an inauspicious debut of the CAM ship force.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages Royal Navy submarine HMS P.32 off Finisterre. P.32 is able to continue on to Gibraltar, though its batteries are damaged and it is unable to submerge.
Royal Navy escort ship Hartland (formerly a US Coast Guard cutter) collides with 646-ton British freighter Welsh Coast. The Hartland makes it to Falmouth for repairs and a scheduled refit.
Dutch submarine O.14 is involved in a collision. The submarine makes it to Grangemouth for repairs that take a month.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2477-ton British freighter Beaumanoir in Robin Hood's Bay. The ship is taken under tow, but the Luftwaffe returns and sinks the Beaumanoir.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 4749-ton British freighter Prince Rupert City north of Loch Eriboll, Scotland. There are four deaths.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 197-ton Belgian trawler John 90 miles southeast of Inglos Hofdi. Everyone survives.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2183 ton British freighter Thorpebay about six miles from Coquet Lighthouse, Northumberland. The Thorpebay makes it back to the Tyne for repairs.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 195-ton British trawler Ben Screel east of Dunstanburgh Castle, Northumberland. Ben Screel makes it back to the Tyne for repairs.
Finnish 5417 ton freighter Kasteholm hits a mine and sinks northeast of the Faroe Islands. There is one death, the rest of the crew makes it to Tórshavn, Faroe Islands.
Canadian minesweeper (former Norwegian whale factory ship) HMCS Suderøy V is commissioned, minesweeper Caraquet is launched, minesweepers Grandmère and Vegreville are laid down.
US escort aircraft carrier USS Long Island (AVG-1) is commissioned (Commander Donald B. Duncan) at Newport News, Virginia. The Long Island is a conversion from cargo ship SS Mormacmail.
Royal Navy minelayer Plover lays minefield BS.57 in the English Channel.
Convoy OB 330 departs from Liverpool.
German troops line up to execute hostages in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).
Battle of the Mediterranean: The Wehrmacht High Command issues a communique:
The battle for Crete is over. The whole island has been freed from the enemy. Yesterday German troops occupied the last base of the beaten British, the port of Sfakion, capturing 3,000 more prisoners in the process.
For once, the Germans understate their achievement - they actually capture more than 3,000 men at Sfakia.
The British War Cabinet discusses the future of Cyprus, which it believes may be next on Hitler's agenda in the Mediterranean. The Greek government would like to set up its capital in Cyprus, and there is some support within the British government for ceding the island to Greece for that purpose. The Cabinet concludes that the entire matter should be left to postwar peace settlement discussions.
Navy 353-ton whaler HMT Kos XXII attempts to make a run from Crete to Alexandria but sinks along the way. Royal Navy HMS LCT 16 also is sunk by the Luftwaffe off Canea, Crete.
Royal Navy submarine Clyde fires a torpedo at an Italian freighter off Terranova but misses.
In Malta, the British notice a new, large incendiary bomb being used by the Italian bombers. The anti-aircraft defenses claim to have shot down a Junkers Ju 52 transport off the coast.
German troops raise their rifles to execute hostages in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive Bild 101I-166-0525-39).
War Crimes: Pursuant to a standing order of temporary Crete commander General Kurt Student (sanctioned by Hermann Goering), German paratroopers (Fallschirmjäger) decide to settle some scores with the local population. Four trucks full of soldiers from the III Battalion of Luftlande-Sturm-Regiment 1 under the command of Oberleutnant Horst Trebes arrive at the village of Kondomari. The Germans force all civilians into the town square and then pick out male hostages. The 23-60 men are taken to a nearby olive grove and executed. The whole event is filmed by a Wehrmacht war correspondent, Franz-Peter Weixler, who secretly opposes the action.
Other Fallschirmjäger troops surround the village of Alikianos. The Germans take 42 men from the village to a churchyard and execute them. Other civilians are executed at Agia (12 men shot) and Kyrtomado (25 men shot).
These incidents will be included in charges of war crimes made after the war against General Student and others.
German/Italian Relations: Hitler and Mussolini unexpectedly meet at the Brenner Pass. It is their first meeting since 20 January 1941, their third at the Brenner Pass, and their fifth conference since the start of the war. Also attending the meeting are German Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop and Italian Foreign Minister Count Galeazzo Ciano. Exactly what is said at this private meeting has been the subject of much conjecture and debate.
It is believed that Mussolini urges a joint strategy against Great Britain in the Mediterranean, which Hitler rejects. This would jibe with Kriegsmarine Admiral Raeder's "peripheral strategy" which has been working well to date.
According to Joseph Goebbels, Hitler tells Mussolini about Operation Barbarossa at this meeting. However, Ciano writes in his diary, "The general impression is that for the moment Hitler has no precise plan of action." If Hitler does tell Mussolini, the latter does not tell even his closest government cronies. The official communique simply states that the meeting lasted for several hours and was cordial.
After the meeting, Mussolini - who has a tendency to disparage the Germans after such meetings, but not Hitler personally - supposedly says:
I wouldn't be at all sorry if Germany in her war with Russia got her feathers plucked.
Many believe that the Italians are, indeed, aware of Operation Barbarossa by this date, as evidenced by Italian troop movements in the Balkans.
The old Salford Royal building in Manchester takes a direct hit on June 2, 1941, with the attack claiming the lives of 14 nurses and their tutor.
German/Vichy French Relations: Pursuant to the Paris Protocols, the Vichy French government grants the Reich the use of port facilities in Bizerte, Tunis (Tunisia). While this is farther from the Libyan front, it also is closer to Naples than Tripoli. This makes Bizerte ideal for quick and relatively safe convoys across the Tyrrhenian Sea for items that are not time-critical. However, for the time being, only non-military supplies are allowed through the port.
Anglo/Turkish Relations: The Turkish government informs the British government that it prefers to remain neutral and declines a request to join an invasion of Vichy French Levant.
Anglo/US Relations: The US Army-Navy Board officially adopts the U.S.-British Commonwealth joint Basic War Plan, or, as it later became known, Rainbow Five. In the event of a worldwide conflict, the plan is for the Allies to make their priority defeating Italy and Germany first. As for Japan, the Allied "strategy, in the Far East will be defensive" because "the United States does not intend to add to its present military strength" there. Rainbow Five basically foresees the loss of the Philippines. However, no plans are made for evacuating the Americans in the islands.
Admiral Ernest J. King on the cover of Time magazine, 2 June 1941.
US Military: Cryptanalyst Joseph Rochefort reports to the main US Navy building at Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii for his new duty as head of the cryptanalysis section.
Australian Military: The RAAF established its No. 3 Base Stores Depot at Spring Hill.
Channel Islands: Hitler is worried about the defense of the islands. He asks to have maps of them brought to him.
China: The Chinese (commander of the Chinese 3rd PG, Lo Ying-Teh) decline a shipment of Hawk 81A (P-40C) fighter aircraft. They thus become the property of Claire Chennault’s Flying Tigers.
Holocaust: The Vichy French government orders a census of Jews. It also bans Jews from holding public office.
The U.S. Navy troop transport USS West Point (AP-23) under initial conversion and painting at Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co., Virginia (USA), 2 June 1941. She was previously SS America. The aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-8) is in the background. Note the neutrality markings on West Point's side and the repainting operations (US Navy, National Archives).
American Homefront: Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig passes away in Riverdale, the Bronx, New York from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), an incurable neuromuscular disorder later referred to in North America as Lou Gehrig's disease. Mayor Fiorella La Guardia ordered flags in New York to be flown at half-staff. His remains are interred at Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, New York. At the time of his death, Gehrig - "The Iron Horse" - holds the record for the number of consecutive games played, 2130, which will not be broken until 1998.
Chief Justice of the United States Charles Evans Hughes informs President Roosevelt that he will be retiring effective July 1.
Former 1936 Presidential candidate Alf Landon gives a speech at the commencement of Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. He urges caution and deliberation before going to war. Landon notes, in reference to the rush to war:
We find a fatalistic acceptance of the inevitable.
He warns that the country runs the risk of falling into "dictatorship, of the right or of the left," due to the "weakening [of] our checks upon the majority."
Future History: Walter Stacy Keach Jr. is born in Savannah, Georgia. Keach goes on to a renowned acting career, which includes the CBS television series Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer and The New Mike Hammer from 1984 to 1987. Stacy Keach continues to act as of this writing, including serving as the narrator for the CNBC series "American Greed" and hosting "The Twilight Zone" radio series.
Charles Robert Watts is born in Kingsbury, London. He becomes a talented drummer and, in mid-1962, meets Brian Jones, Ian "Stu" Stewart, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. In January 1963, Watts joins The Rolling Stones, which goes on to become one of the top rock groups of all time. As of this writing, he continues to be a member of the group despite having experienced some health problems.
USS Long Island (CVE-1) on June 10, 1944, in San Francisco Bay. This photo was taken by NAS Alameda.
General Erwin Rommel with the 15th Panzer Division between Tobruk and Sidi Omar. Rommel sometimes used armored cars but preferred staff cars because they were more mobile and convenient. This would cost him later in the war (National Archives 1941).
Operation Marita: With mainland Greece occupied by the Germans on 1 May 1941, the focus shifts to Crete. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill sends a lengthy cable to Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham, chief of the Mediterranean Fleet, in which he congratulates the Royal Navy for the way it "succored the Army and brought off four-fifths of the entire force" from the mainland. He also notes:
It is now necessary to fight hard for Crete, which seems soon to be attacked heavily, and for Malta as a base for flotilla actions against the enemy's communications with Libya.
Churchill sends a much briefer cable to his Middle East Commander, General Archibald Wavell, merely appending his cable to Cunningham and noting "Feel sure you are waiting to strike a blow." An old sea dog, Churchill naturally favors the Royal Navy over the army, but it also is clear from his communications that he hates to lavish praise on Wavell (and his subordinates) for what are likely personal reasons.
Italian airborne troops continue occupying the Greek islands of Cephalonia, Ithaca, and Zante.
Iraqi War: The Iraqis have demanded that the British at Habbaniya Airfield west of Baghdad surrender. The British do not reply. The ultimatum will expire in the early morning hours of 2 May. The British prepare to sortie out of their airfield fortress against the Iraqis, who have set up 28 artillery pieces on a plateau overlooking the airfield to the south. There are small Iraqi attacks near the airfield at Rutba. Air Vice-Marshal Harry Smart is instructed personally by Churchill to defend his position: "If you have to strike, strike hard. Use all necessary force."
The May Day parade in Kuibyshev on May 1, 1941 (Vladimir Samartsev).
European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe begins a major campaign against Liverpool, which is the main port through which Great Britain communicates with the outside world. This will continue for the next seven nights and wound or kill 3000 people. The Germans also accomplish their true goal of strangling tonnage going into the port, at least temporarily.
The Luftwaffe sinks British freighter Europa and ammunition transporter Malakand during the raid on Liverpool.
Churchill's secretary, John Colville, notes in his diary after a tour of the area that "Plymouth has been cruelly laid waste in the last fortnight." The Luftwaffe has attacked Plymouth for five nights running, but at least the attacks had lessened in severity as they continued. Now, it is Liverpool's turn. The War Cabinet minutes note that it is "disturbing" that "the Press had drawn attention to an unofficial nightly exodus from Plymouth into surrounding districts." The same pattern is likely to occur in Liverpool.
The Luftwaffe combines the day and night fighter commands into a unified command structure, but FLAK units remain independently controlled by local air headquarters (Luftgaukommandos). Colonel Josef Kammhuber is in charge of coordinating FLAK, searchlight and radar units and is a genius at creating an organization (though a bit shakier on overall military strategy). Kammhuber is in the process of coordinating Reich air defenses into a unified structure later known as the Kammhuber Line. This works fairly well under the circumstances that prevail during the early part of the war.
RAF Bomber Command conducts a sweep off the Dutch coast with 22 planes, but there are no incidents.
Ofw. Erich Rudorffer of I./JG 2, with nineteen aerial victories, is awarded the Ritterkreuz.
U-34 (right), a training boat, 1 May 1941. If you look very closely, you will see that it's operational emblem is a picture of an elephant stepping on Winston Churchill, probably in reference to Churchill's time as First Lord of the Admiralty.
East African Campaign: While there have been some small attacks recently in western Abyssinia on heavily defended Italian positions, the rainy season begins and halts the most further operations until mid-June. The Duke of Aosta, a favorite of the King of Italy, is trapped in Amba Alaga, Abyssinia with 7000 troops, but has maximized his possibilities with prudent withdrawals into defensible positions. The East African 22nd Infantry Brigade, advances south from Addis Ababa, capturing Mount Fike in Galla-Sidamo.
On 1 May 1941, the Germans confiscate bicycles at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. This is done both to help their own troops (many of whom use bicycles rather than walk) and to deprive the Dutch people of this means of mobility (ANP Historisch Archief Community).
Battle of the Atlantic: The 5583-ton British freighter Nerissa, attacked by U-552 (K.Kapt. Erich Topp) yesterday just before midnight, sinks. It takes 83 crew and 124 passengers with it. There are 23 crew and 51 passengers rescued. See also events of 1 May 1941.
U-103 (Viktor Schütze), on its fourth patrol, is off the coast of West Africa when it torpedoes and sinks 1494 ton British freighter Samsø. This is the start of a string of success in the area for U-103. The Samsø sinks slowly, taking 50 minutes, and only one crewman perishes. The rest of the crew makes it to Los Island, French Guinea, on 3 May.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 329-ton minesweeping trawler Jean Frederic off Start Point. There is one death. Another ship, 200-ton balloon barrage vessel Saturnus, is declared a total loss due to damage sustained. Both vessels have Dutch crews.
British 2950-ton freighter Sea Fisher hits a mine and is beached with the assistance of two tugs. The ship is given temporary repairs and eventually makes it to Middlesborough on 5 May.
Royal Navy patrol boat 534-ton Loch Oskaig captures 3317-ton French freighter Cap Cantin near the entrance to the Mediterranean and takes it to Gibraltar.
Royal Navy patrol boat Cavina captures 6466-ton Italian tanker Sangro, a blockade runner, in the same general vicinity as the Loch Oskaig's capture.
Royal Navy patrol boat HMS Corinthian captures 350-ton French three-masted schooner Martin Pecheur. The ship is sent to Gibraltar with a prize crew.
Royal Navy destroyer HMS Juno sustains damage when a depth charge explodes prior to launch. One man is killed and 15 others are wounded.
Portugues schooner Santa Quitéra founders off the Grand Banks. All 40 men are rescued.
Royal Navy destroyers HMS Adrias and Haydon are laid down.
USN submarine USS Grenadier is commissioned, and light fleet carrier USS Independence is laid down, along with destroyers Bancroft, Beatty, Endicott, Kendrick, Laub, McCook and Tillman.
U-163 and U-164 are launched, and U-568 is commissioned. At this stage of the war, increases to the U-boat fleet are far outpacing losses.
Maurine Zollman, a John Powers model (photo by John Rawlings).
Battle of the Mediterranean: The German/Italian offensive against Tobruk continues, and makes some progress. The Germans reorient the axis of attack by the panzers from the southeast to the east but run into a minefield and antitank fire. Paulus, nominally in charge, already is ready to give up, but Major General Rommel tries to enlarge his small bridgehead with an attack to the southeast toward Bir el Medauar. The British respond by sending their own tanks to block them, and a major battle takes place. The British lose five tanks, but blunt the German attack, and the Australian infantry counterattacks. This attack also is repulsed, leaving the Germans within the Tobruk perimeter but unable to expand it as the day ends.
The following Italian infantry, meanwhile, which was supposed to follow the panzer in, is still dealing with isolated Australian outposts that have been overrun but still refuse to surrender. Overall, the battle is trending toward the British, but they have lost ground when they have very little to spare. Operations are hampered during the morning by fog. This combat operation, incidentally, is sometimes called the Battle of Ras el Medauar.
The Luftwaffe, of course, fiercely supports the German attack. Hans-Joachim Marseille, escorting German Stuka dive bombers to Tobruk, shoots down his 10th and 11th kills, two British Hurricane fighters.
General Wavell, from his headquarters in Cairo, is quick to put out a press release about the defense of Tobruk which is refreshingly candid for a military communique. He notes:
An extremely violent battle ignited Wednesday night around Tobruk. After a vigorous bombardment lasting several hours, German and Italian infantry attacked the Tobruk fortifications, deploying heavy tanks and flamethrowing tanks simultaneously. Early this morning another attack ensued by large numbers of German Stuka dive bombers which dropped heavy calibre bombs on the defence installations. Until 10:00 A.M. the British garrison succeeded in preventing any breach in the Tobruk defences. After that, a strong panzer force successfully penetrated the outer perimeter along a 2-mile front. British and Australian troops are at this moment engaged in hand-to-hand fighting in the defensive installations outside the city.
The presence of flamethrower tanks at this early stage of the war is a bit unusual, as the Wehrmacht and British did not become enamored with them until later. They apparently are Italian L3 tanks of the Ariete Division, small tanks that tow their flamethrower fuel in a separate armored trailer.
The RAF attacks shipping in the Benghazi harbor and sinks 1533-ton Italian freighter Serdica.
HMS Upholder torpedoes and sinks German freighter Arcturus just south of the Kerkennah Islands, Tunisia. This is part of a convoy returning from North Africa to Italy.
HMS Upholder also torpedoes and sinks German freighter Leverkusen in the same vicinity as the Arcturus south of the Kerkennah Islands.
Two Royal Navy submarines go missing in the Mediterranean during this general period of time - HMS Undaunted (operating near Tripoli) and Usk (the Strait of Sicily). Causes of their loss are unknown. Submarine Truant has sustained damage from minelaying and is sent from Malta to Gibraltar.
German 1819-ton freighter Larissa hits a mine and sinks in the Gulf of Volos.
Winston Churchill orders another operation to run an aircraft carrier into the Mediterranean from Gibraltar and fly off some Hawker Hurricanes to Malta. Such operations have had mixed success to date, with losses of several planes that apparently ran out of fuel. This projected operation is tentatively slated for late May at the earliest.
At Malta, the Luftwaffe attacks continue, and the attacks include bombings and minelaying. The Germans sink 1373-ton freighter Polinice, but the ship is later raised for salvage. There is one civilian death. HMS Jersey hits a mine in Valetta Harbor and later sinks during a raid.
The Italian Navy sends a large force, including three light cruisers, to lay mines north of Tripoli.
The 1 May 1941 cover of "The Shadow" magazine.
Anglo/US Relations: Adding to the four US coast guard cutters transferred to the Royal Navy yesterday pursuant to Lend Lease, the US Navy transfers to the British USCGC Chelan (CGC-45), renamed HMS Lulworth.
German Military: Generalleutnant August Krakau takes command of the German 7th Mountain Division, replacing Robert Martinek. Kapitän zur See Friedrich Hüffmeier took command of cruiser Köln.
US Military: Rainbow 5, the plan for US military responses to an attack, is completed by the Joint Army-Navy Board. It calls for a defensive strategy that entails the surrender of the Philippines. Admiral Hart in the Philippines, acting on optimistic advice from the Navy Department, tells his staff that they will have at least two days of warning prior to the outbreak of hostilities. Commander H D Linder, RNethN arrives in Manila to serve as Hart's liaison with the powerful Dutch naval forces in the East Indies (Indonesia).
Admiral Ernest J. King takes command of the Atlantic Fleet.
Lieutenant Colonel William P. T. Hill takes command of the newly built Marine Barracks of New River, North Carolina.
Japanese Military: Aircraft carrier Kaga is put in drydock in Sasebo for refit, while freighter Kasuga Maru begins conversion to an escort carrier at the same port.
The May Day parade in Moscow, 1 May 1941.
Soviet Military: Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin gives a routine May Day speech which reflects growing rumblings beneath the placid peacetime surface. Stalin's remarks probably are not directed at his current ally Germany, but, in retrospect, they seem to fit what he has in store for them:
The Red Army is ready, in the interests of the socialist state, to ward off every blow struck by the imperialists. The international situation is full of unexpected events. In such a situation the Red Army must step up its defensive readiness.
The German military attache in Moscow notes that the Red Army has begun calling up recruits in the lowest age cohort six months earlier than usual. The Soviets also orders that foreign diplomats may no longer travel freely, but must be escorted.
British Military: General Percival leaves Great Britain to take up his new command in Singapore by air. It is a risky passage via Gibraltar, Malta, Egypt, and India.
US War Bonds go on sale today.
British Government: There is a major shakeup within the ministries. Lord Brabazon becomes the new Minister of Aircraft Production, and a new Ministry of War Transport is established that combines the old ministries of shipping and transport. Industrialist Frederick Leathers, who gets a peerage for his effort, will preside over the new Transport ministry. Lord Beaverbrook becomes Minister of State.
Visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies confides in his diary that he is "desperately afraid of the future in Great Britain." Menzies is scheduled to return home on 3 May, but notes that Lord Beaverbrook "thinks [it] absurd that I should go back to Australia!" There is definite sentiment among those opposed to Churchill's conduct of the war that Menzies would be a good replacement for Churchill as Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Holocaust: Gross-Rosen concentration camp (German: Konzentrationslager Groß-Rosen), set to become one of the largest camps, becomes an independent camp. It is in Groß-Rosen, Lower Silesia, Germany (later Rogoznica, Poland). Gross-Rosen had been begun in the summer of 1940 as a satellite camp of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
SS Karsik (formerly the German Soneck), 1 May 1941, a well-traveled 2191 ton ship of World War II (Australian War Memorial, ID Number: 303479)
Partisans: Joseph Broz "Tito" issues a call for armed resistance to the Germans and Italian occupiers. He is an avowed communist. This is partly in response to mass killings being undertaken at this time by the Pavelic Ustashi government.
US Homefront: Orson Welles' "Citizen Kane" is released in the US, with its world premiere at the Palace Theater in New York. It will be nominated for nine Academy Awards and win for Best Original Screenplay (Welles and Herman Mankiewicz). The making of "Citizen Kane" is an oft-retold saga all of its own, with William Randolph Hearst repeatedly trying to quash its release to no avail. "Citizen Kane" is widely regarded as one of the best films ever made, and can fairly be said to the high point of Welles' long and inventive career. Audience reception upon its release, however, is muted.
The Esposito Brothers, who stand accused of murder near the Empire State Building, are convicted of two counts of murder after one minute of deliberation. A photographer happened to be nearby and captured stunning images of the incident. The brothers' attempt to plead insanity as their defense fails. However, the case greatly expands the use of the insanity defense.
General Mills introduces its new cereal Cheerioats. The name eventually will become Cheerios, and the cereal remains a steady seller for many decades.
US Defense Savings Bonds and Stamps, better known as war bonds, go on sale.
