Sunday 31 August 1941

Finnish soldiers at a military parade in Viipuri celebrating its capture, 31 August 1941. They find the city in ruins, with 3807 of 6287 buildings destroyed (SA-Kuva).

Eastern Front: On 31 August 1941, the true nature of the relationship between the Finns and the Germans is starkly revealed without any possibility of misinterpretation. German General W. Erfurth contacts Finnish Field Marshal Mannerheim on behalf of Field Marshal Keitel, head of OKW, and informs Mannerheim that Keitel will be sending a letter coordinating a joint attack on Leningrad. Mannerheim already has decided not to attack Leningrad, and politely replies that he is not interested. However, Erfurth later delivers the letter anyway.

Mannerheim is not acting alone, as the Finnish Social Democrat government led by President Risto Ryti is dead-set against any advances beyond the old border. Ryti and Mannerheim, after receiving Keitel's letter shortly thereafter, collaborate on a negative reply. There will be no Finnish attack on Leningrad (though this is a sensitive topic to Russians who feel the physical evidence in the city of Finnish artillery shelling indicates otherwise).

This is a decisive moment in World War II. The Finnish Army has been the dominant force in the north, outclassing both its Soviet opponents and its German allies. German troops in the forests and swamps have had mixed success and have little hope of advancing further without Finnish military assistance. Finnish refusal to attack Leningrad from the north means that the Soviets can concentrate all of their defensive forces in the south, effectively doubling their effectiveness.

Finnish and Geman collaboration is far from over. The Finns simply have shown their own limits. From now on, though, their status as "co-belligerents" rather than true German "allies" is unmistakable.

Finnish forces held a victory ceremony in Viipuri/Vyborg Main Square before the statue of Torkel Knutsson, 31 August 1941 (SA-Kuva).

In the Far North sector, Mannerheim orders that Finnish forces attack to the south but stop their advance once they reach a line well short of Leningrad. This line runs from the mouth of the river Rajajoki to Ohta and actually is slightly beyond the old border - which Mannerheim has requested and received permission from the government to do in order to achieve the best defensible positions (Minister of War Lt. General Walden also supports this). Ryti's government demands in exchange for this slight concession that Germany supplies 25,000 tons of rye in order to support Finland keeping all of its men at the front (this is a continuing theme in Finnish/German relations throughout the war). Mannerheim leaves the exact line in between those two points unsaid in order to give his troops local flexibility on seizing the most advantageous defensive points (hills, rivers, marshes, etc.).

A quick look at the map shows that Mannerheim's line represents a shortened front between the Baltic and Lake Ladoga while avoiding Soviet fortifications on the outskirts of Leningrad (the 22nd Karelian Fortified Region, or KaUR). Mannerheim's specificity on stopping along a specific line avoids incidents encountered previously in other sectors in which some Finnish troops refused to cross the old border. The troops now are reassured that they are not advancing endlessly into the Soviet Union and thus feel more confident in advancing slightly into the USSR. Finnish 12th Division reaches the town of Kivennapa south of Viipuri on the old border today but continues advancing beyond pursuant to Mannerheim's orders.

Soviet troops are in disarray on the Karelian Isthmus. Having lost Viipuri, they stream back toward Leningrad and prepare to make a stand in the Stalin Line anchored by the KaUR. On the other side of Leningrad, the Germans continue to advance but still do not have a tight line around the city.

Street scene in Viipuri, 31 August 1941.

In the Army Group North sector, the final Soviet troops evacuate from Tallinn and the Germans complete their capture of the city. The Soviets counterattack at Mga and retake it. The Germans complete the capture of Novgorod north of Lake Ilmen, providing a secure "block" on the eastern flank of Army Group North. Moscow radio announces in its usual vague wording that "the enemy is at the approaches of Leningrad." The Leningrad government puts up posters throughout the city saying "The Enemy is at the Gates." The city is prepared for a siege, with sandbags in store windows and everyone mobilized to help in the defense.

In the Army Group Center sector, General Guderian's Panzer Group 2 and Second Army continue trying to drive south to Kyiv against fierce resistance from Soviet Bryansk Front. The Soviets are counterattacking and have stopped the Germans for the moment. Marshal Boris Shaposhnikov reports:

The offensive on Roslavl' by the Reserve Front's 43rd Army is developing successfully. However, the enemy is bringing forces up for an attack from the south. Consequently, it is necessary to speed up the preparations for the 50th Army's offensive and to begin it on 1 September or, in the last resort, on 2 September, in order to assist the 43rd Army's attack and prevent the enemy from concentrating forces against it. The 50th Army must continuously and energetically continue reconnaissance with reinforced battalions along the front.

The German defenders at Yelnya are under extreme pressure but continue holding their positions. Field Marshal von Bock does not have reinforcements at hand due to the diversion of Panzer Group 2 to Kyiv.

In the Army Group South sector, the Wehrmacht opens the offensive toward Rostov by building a pontoon bridge over the Dneipr. LII Corps (General of the Kavalrie von Briesen) captures a bridge at Derievka just south of Kremenchuk.

Finnish troops in Viipuri celebrating its capture, 31 August 1941 (SA-Kuva).

European Air Operations: During the day, RAF Bomber Command sends 30 Blenheim bombers against several targets. Twelve bombers attack the Lille power station, while the RAF sends six bombers against each of several targets: Lannion airfield, St-Omer airfield, and Le Trait Shipyards. The weather is poor, so some of the bombers choose other targets that they can see. In addition, three Flying Fortresses bomb Bremen. All of the bombers then return safely.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command attacks Cologne and Essen despite the poor weather. There are 103 bombers (45 Wellingtons, 39 Hampdens, 7 Halifaxes, 6 Manchesters, and 6 Stirlings) over Cologne, with an additional five Manchesters on searchlight-suppression missions. The RAF loses 3 Hampdens, one Manchester, and one Wellington over the city, and another Wellington shot down over England by a Luftwaffe intruder. Accuracy is very poor, and only 68 bombers actually release bombs over the city. There is one death in the city, suggesting that most of the bombers miss it completely.

The night's secondary target is Essen. The 43 Whitleys and 28 Wellingtons sent there lose only one Whitely and accomplish very little due to the cloud cover. Only a handful of people are killed and ten injured.

In addition, the RAF sends 6 Wellingtons over Boulogne and 12 Hampdens on minelaying at Kiel Bay and the Frisian Islands. There is one Wellington lost.

The Luftwaffe attacks Hull after dark. A bomb hits a shelter and causes many casualties. Approximately 200 homes are destroyed and 38 people are killed.

Marines (Naval Infantry) of the Baltic Fleet, 31 August 1941.

Battle of the Baltic: The German 5th R-Boat Flotilla lays 32 mines between German minefield Juminda and Finnish minefield Valkjarvi during the night. This was the scene of over 20 Soviet ships hitting mines and sinking recently during the evacuation of Tallinn.

A total of 164 Soviet vessels reach Kronstadt out of roughly 200 that participate in the Tallinn evacuation - the rest are at the bottom of the Baltic. The four convoys carry 28,000 troops and civilian evacuees - many thousands either drowned or were rescued along the way. The convoy escorts now change missions and provide shore bombardment in support of ground troops defending Leningrad.

Finnish troops in Viipuri celebrating its capture, 31 August 1941 (SA-Kuva).

Battle of the Atlantic: This is one of the few days of this stage of World War II when no ships are reported sunk for any reason in the Atlantic.

The ships of Operation Dervish, the first British convoy to the Soviet Union, reach Archangel. It includes six freighters an oiler escorted by the aircraft carrier HMS Victorious, heavy cruisers Devonshire and Suffolk, and several destroyers. Four Soviet destroyers greet the convoy at sea and guide it in.

For the month of August 1941, total Allied shipping losses edge up slightly, from 109,276 tons in July to 125,550 tons in August. Imports to - which now include the Soviet Union for the first time - edge up as well, from 3,765,724 tons to 4,002,450 tons. Allied losses to U-boats are down from 94,209 tons to 80,310 tons, but that is counterbalanced by increased losses to the Luftwaffe (from 9275 tons to 23,862 tons). Losses to mines fall from 8583 tons to 1400 tons, which is the lowest point of the war and also the lowest until August 1942.

The Allies lose 36 ships of 103,452 tons in the Atlantic and 5 ships of 27,247 tons in the Mediterranean. The Axis (primarily Italy) loses 11 ships of 52,538 tons in the Mediterranean, most along the vital convoy route from Naples to Tripoli which the Royal Navy knows all about and where it maintains patrols. RAF bombers based on Malta also are becoming more effective against Axis shipping. The Kriegsmarine loses four U-boats (which includes U-570, which is captured and the crew made prisoners of war) but has a new high of 65 available in the Atlantic.

Finnish troops at Viipuri celebrating its capture, 31 August 1941 (SA-Kuva).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Luftwaffe attacks Alexandria shortly before midnight. There are two deaths of Royal Navy officers and an officer is wounded, along with numerous other casualties. Damage to the port itself and shipping is minimal.

An Italian convoy of three large liners (Neptunia, Oceania, and Victoria) being used as transports, escorted by six destroyers, departs from Tripoli bound for Taranto. Royal Navy submarine HMS Upholder (Lt Cdr Wanklyn) attacks the convoy but misses. Another Italian convoy of five freighters and a mine-ship also departs from Tripoli bound for Naples.

Dutch submarine O.21 spots an Italian submarine in the Tyrrhenian Sea and makes an unsuccessful attack.

Nine Wellington bombers based on Malta attack Tripoli, damaging buildings.

During the month of August, Royal Navy submarines based on Malta sink six ships totaling 50,000 tons, 1 Italian cruiser (Bolzano), and damage 4971-ton freighter Aquitania and perhaps a destroyer.

Battle of the Black Sea: Soviet submarine M-34 spots 4958-ton Italian tanker Tampico off Varna, Bulgaria. It attacks but misses.

The Germans sink several Soviet river warships on the Dneipr:

• Several Soviet ships are lost in the Dneipr River today:
• Zhitomar-class river monitor Bobruysk (hit by artillery and scuttled)
• Auxiliary river guard ship SK-4 Tekrik
• Trudovoy-class river gunboat Trudovoy (runs aground, is towed off, then hit by panzer tank fire and sunk)

The Soviets are learning through hard experience that river gunboats are no match for shore-based panzers and artillery.

German crew sighting the 20mm cannon on a Bf 109F fighter of JG 54 "Greenhearts" (Grünherz) fighter wing, near Leningrad, Russia, August 1941 (Reiners, Federal Archive, Bild 101I-390-1220-19),

Partisans: At 07:00, the Jadar Chetnik unit attacks Loznica. The Chetniks take many 18 killed and 93 casualties in total, including leader Lieutenant Colonel Veselin Misita, who is killed. Many Germans surrender (93), and the Chetniks take Loznica. The victors treat the captured Wehrmacht troops humanely, which is not always the case in this region. Those Germans who can get away flee to Banja Koviljača.

While the Chetniks are attacking Loznica, the 25-strong Cer Chetnik Detachment under the command of a regular artillery officer, Captain First Class Dragoslav Račić, attacks the village of Bogatić. This attack does not go as well as the attack on Loznica, as the Germans have reinforcements nearby. The Račić group continues the attack through the day and holds its position through the night.

The subtext behind these two attacks reveals much about the state of the partisan movement in Yugoslavia. The joint attacks take place despite the prohibition by Chetnik leader Draža Mihailović against attacks until there is a popular uprising. Thus, these attacks represent a splintering of the opposition forces in Yugoslavia.

Special Forces: Canadian forces remain in possession of Spitzbergen. Norwegian radio operators on the island continue feeding the Germans on the mainland false information about bad weather, keeping the Luftwaffe at bay. The native Norwegians on the island prepare to be evacuated to England.

Soviet and British troops meeting in Qazvin, Iran, on or about 31 August 1941.

Iran Invasion: With a ceasefire in effect, fighting is negligible today. The British eye occupying the "open city" of Kermanshah, while the Soviets also continue expanding their presence within their agreed northern zone of influence. Soviet and British troops meet in Qazvin (Kazvin) at Avej Pass. This basically halts the Soviet advance as both sides watch the diplomats try to arrange a final settlement.

The outcome of the campaign is a foregone conclusion, but the Allies want to convert Iran into an ally, not just subdue it. Iran represents a possible supply line (the "Persian Corridor") from the Western Allies to the USSR, and the less opposition within the country to that idea, the better. The stumbling block is Reza Shah Pahlavi, who wishes to protect German, Italian, Hungarian, and Romanian nationals and give them an opportunity to escape. The Allies, of course, want to intern them. The Iranian government, led by new Prime Minister Mohammad Ali Foroughi, doesn't care about protecting Axis nationals and simply wants the war over, so it is an unstable situation in which either someone gives in - or goes.

A Finnish anti-tank gun crew poses next to a captured Soviet gun, August 1941.

Cuban/Italian Relations: Cuban authorities seize 5441-ton Italian freighter Recca at Havana and rename it Libertad.

British/Australian Relations: Prime Minister Winston Churchill informs new Australian PM Arthur Fadden that he intends to create a new Far East fleet built around capital ships. These ships would be based in Singapore.

British Military: British women serve in a combat role for the first time when a mixed-gender anti-aircraft battery is formed in Richmond Park, London. There are 200 women and 200 men.

Japanese Military: The Imperial Japanese Navy completes the conversion of Kasuga Maru into an escort carrier named Taiyo at Sasebo, Japan.

Holocaust: At Vilnia, the German SS takes 3700 Jews (some sources say 1600), including 2019 women and 817 children, out to Ponar and execute them. This ostensibly is in retaliation for a partisan ambush of a German patrol.

Swiss Homefront: Rationing of cheese is introduced.

American Homefront: Radio show "The Great Gildersleeve" debuts on the NBC Red Network. It airs every Sunday at 18:30 EST. Harold Peary plays Throckmorton Philharmonic Gildersleeve, a character that originated on "Fibber McGee and Molly. This is an early example of a spinoff program. Peary also stars in the film adaptation of the sitcom.

Harold Peary as Gildersleeve.

August 1941

August 1, 1941: More Executions on Crete
August 2, 1941: Uman Encirclement Closes
August 3, 1941: Bishop von Galen Denounces Euthanasia
August 4, 1941: Hitler at the Front
August 5, 1941: Soviets Surrender at Smolensk 
August 6, 1941: U-Boats in the Arctic
August 7, 1941: Soviets Bomb Berlin
August 8, 1941: Uman Pocket Captured
August 9, 1941: Atlantic Conference at Placentia Bay
August 10, 1941: Soviet Bombers Mauled Over Berlin
August 11, 1941: Rita Hayworth in Life
August 12, 1941: Atlantic Charter Announced
August 13, 1941: The Soybean Car
August 14, 1941: The Anders Army Formed
August 15, 1941: Himmler at Minsk
August 16, 1941: Stalin's Order No. 270
August 17, 1941: Germans in Novgorod
August 18, 1941: Lili Marleen
August 19, 1941: Convoy OG-71 Destruction
August 20, 1941: Siege of Leningrad Begins
August 21, 1941: Stalin Enraged
August 22, 1941: Germans Take Cherkassy
August 23, 1941: Go to Kiev
August 24, 1941: Finns Surround Viipuri
August 25, 1941: Iran Invaded
August 26, 1941: The Bridge Over the Desna
August 27, 1941: Soviets Evacuate Tallinn
August 28, 1941: Evacuating Soviets Savaged
August 29, 1941: Finns take Viipuri
August 30, 1941: Operation Acid
August 31, 1941: Mannerheim Says No

September 1941

September 1, 1941: Two Years In
September 2, 1941: Germans Pushed Back at Yelnya
September 3, 1941: FDR Refuses to Meet with Japanese
September 4, 1941: Hitler Furious at Guderian
September 5, 1941: Germans Evacuate Yelnya
September 6, 1941: Japan Prepares for War
September 7, 1941: Hitler Orders Drive on Moscow
September 8, 1941: Leningrad Cut Off
September 9, 1941: Germans Attack Leningrad
September 10, 1941: Guderian Busts Loose
September 11, 1941: Convoy SC-42 Destruction
September 12, 1941: Starve Leningrad!
September 13, 1941: Zhukov at Leningrad
September 14, 1941: Germany's Growing Casualties
September 15, 1941: Sorge Warns Stalin Again
September 16, 1941: Soviets Encircled at Kiev
September 17, 1941: Iran Conquest Completed
September 18, 1941: Focke-Wulf Fw 190 in Action
September 19, 1941: Germans Take Kiev
September 20, 1941: Death at Kiev
September 21, 1941: Raging Soviet Paranoia
September 22, 1941: Defense of Nickel Mines
September 23, 1941: Air Attacks on Leningrad
September 24, 1941: Japanese Spying Intensifies
September 25, 1941: Manstein at the Crimea
September 26, 1941: Kiev Pocket Eliminated
September 27, 1941: Massacre at Eišiškės
September 28, 1941: Ted Williams Hits .400
September 29, 1941: Babi Yar Massacre
September 30, 1941: Operation Typhoon Begins

2022

Thursday 19 December 1940

A British Matilda tank on the move in North Africa, 19 December 1940.

Italian/Greek Campaign: Snow is piled 3 meters high at the higher elevations in Albania on 19 December 1940, even near the coast. However, while this might normally be thought to aid the defense, in some ways it helps the attacking Greek forces. Italian fixed defenses such as barbed wire are covered by the heavy snow, and the Greeks can just run right over the Italian fortifications. That does not mean that attacking in such circumstances is at all easy, just that the horrendous conditions do bestow a few odd benefits.

Greek I Corps (2nd, 3rd, and 4th Divisions) continue advancing on Himarë (Himara) along the southern coast of Albania. They capture the Giam height.

The Greek 3/40 Evzone Regiment, under the command of Colonel Thrasyvoulos Tsakalotos, helps the assault on Himarë. It launches a surprise dawn attack on Italian troops at Mount Mount Mali i Xhorët (Mount Pilur) a little to the east. Their objective is Italian artillery posted the high ground, which guards the entrance to the valley of Shushicë which provides access to the Italian port.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command sends 85 bombers against Cologne and targets in the industrial Ruhr River Valley. RAF Coastal Command raids the airfield at Le Touquet and a railway between Oslo and Bergen. The Luftwaffe makes a few small sorties against the Home Counties after dark, losing a bomber but causing some damage in Swindon.

The British War Cabinet is reviewing the efficiency of the air war against Germany and Italy. In a report for their eyes only by the Secretary of State for Air, the conclusion is drawn that, relative to the size of their respective forces, the RAF is causing more damage to Germany than the Luftwaffe is to Great Britain.

Bomb damage at Beatrice and Ipswich Streets in Swindon on 19 December 1940. Five houses destroyed, others damaged.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-37 (Kptlt. Asmus Nicolai Clausen), on its ninth patrol off Spain and North Africa, torpedoes two French ships, 2785-ton oiler Rhône and the 1379-ton submarine Sfax (Q 182). However, this part of the ocean seven miles north of Cape Juby, Morocco is one of the very few which Axis ships frequent, and they turn out to be Vichy French ships that should not have been attacked. There are 11 deaths on the Rhône and four (out of 69 crew) on the Sfax. Clausen does not enter this "success" on his ship's log (or the U-boat command Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote (BdU) later removes it for political reasons), and the only notation for the day is "DJ 9285 - Nothing to see."

Italian submarine Alpino Bagnolini torpedoes and sinks 3360-ton British freighter Amicus about 200 miles west of Ireland. The Amicus was traveling with Convoy SC 15, which recently had dispersed. Everyone on board the Amicus perishes. The Bagnolini is part of a patrol line west of the North Channel, formed along with U-95, U-38 and U-124 and Italian submarine Tazzoli. Some sources place this sinking a week earlier.

Royal Navy destroyers HMS Veteran and Verity collide in Lough Foyle near Londonderry. The Veteran has light damage to her stern which will keep her in port for a few days, but the Verity's damage to her flooded engine room is more serious and will take a few months in drydock at Belfast to repair.

The Luftwaffe (Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors of I,/KG 40) bombs and sinks British 734-ton lightship tender Isolda off Barrels Rock Light Vessel, South Wexford, in St. George's Channel. There are six deaths.

British 57-ton naval trawler HMT Proficient runs aground and is broken up by the waves at Whitby, Yorkshire.

Dutch 400-ton freighter Twee Gebroeders hits a mine and is damaged in the Thames Estuary.

British tanker Arinia hits a mine and sinks in the Thames Estuary off the Nore Lightship. All 60 people on board perish.

Norwegian freighter Erling Skjalgson sinks in heavy seas off Jæren, Rogaland. All six crew survive.

Danish phosphate freighter Jacob Maersk hits a mine off Drogen and sinks off Copenhagen. However, it sinks in shallow water and can be salvaged and repaired. The Maersk shipping companies take a beating during this period of the war.

Norwegian 5043-ton freighter Arosa hits a mine in the Humber but makes it back to port.

Convoy OB 261 departs from Liverpool, Convoys FS 364 and FS 365 depart from Methil, Convoy BS 11 departs from Suez.

Destroyer HMS Legion (G 74, Commander Richard F. Jessel.) is commissioned, and destroyer HMS Blankney is launched.

U-75 and U-111 are commissioned.

"A mobile bakery lorry and trailer at Aldershot, 19 December 1940." © IWM (H 6271).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The British pursuit of the Italians during Operation Compass basically is at a halt by this point. Australian troops are advancing to take the lead in assaulting the fortress of Tobruk, but they will take a couple of weeks to be ready to attack. The Italians have mustered some tanks outside of Bardia which slow the British down, but they have two divisions trapped there.

The RAF bombs Bardia and Derna. General O'Connor reports that his forces have suffered only 141 killed or missing and 387 wounded during Operation Compass. The British now have literally tens of thousands of prisoners to process and new forward supply bases to set up.

Meanwhile, the incredulity about recent events in North Africa breaks out in an odd exchange between Prime Minister Churchill and General Wavell, the Middle East Commander, who throw scriptural references at each other. Churchill has sent Wavell a telegram with the cryptic reference "St. Matthew, Chapter VII, verse 7" (Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you); Wavell replies today with the following:

St. James, Chapter I, first part of verse 17, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above..."! More aircraft are our immediate need and these you are providing.

While it is not much of an exchange, it underscores how the two men - and everyone else in the know - ascribe the wildly unexpected success of Operation Compass to some sort of divine intervention.

The Royal Navy fleet movements in support of the convoy to Malta continues. Operations Hide and Seek (Hide is a sortie by Force H to meet battleship HMS Malaya and accompanying vessels coming west from Alexandria, Seek is the related anti-submarine sweep) come off without Italian interference.

River gunboat HMS Aphis continues to bombard Italian positions around Bardia without much interference from the Italian air force. Royal Navy battleships HMS Valiant and Warspite bombard Vlorë, Albania.

German 7563 ton freighter Freienfels and 7605-ton freighter Geierfels hits mines and sink near Livorno.

Battle of the Pacific: Troop convoy US 8 departs from Wellington. It includes two liners, the Dominion Monarch and Empress of Russia. Its first stop is Sydney, where it will accrue the Queen Mary and lose the Empress of Russia, which will return to Auckland.

The US Secretary of the Navy takes over control of uninhabited Palmyra Atoll, which legally has been under the Navy's jurisdiction since 1934. This is to become the site of the "Palmyra Island Naval Defensive Sea Area," restricted to passage only by ships authorized by the US Secretary of the Navy. The date when the Navy actually arrives is in spring 1941. Palmyra Atoll, incidentally, remains to this day the only incorporated territory in the United States, but it most definitely is American land although almost nobody outside the Navy knows it even exists. It truly is one of the most remote spots on earth and apparently never has been permanently inhabited, whether in ancient or modern times.

Italian/German Relations: The Italian attitude toward German intervention in North Africa has shifted 180 degrees from its position just two months ago. While then the Italians had not wanted any German interference in what they saw as their own national sphere of influence, the Mediterranean basin, today they ask that the Wehrmacht send an armored division and support troops to Libya at the earliest opportunity.

Anglo/US Relations: The British Purchasing Commission places $750 million in war orders. This includes orders for 12,000 aircraft and 60 merchant ships, all to be completed within one year's time. Congress will be consulted about this transaction.

Risto Ryti leaving Finnish parliament after being inaugurated as President, 19 December 1940.

Finland: Kyösti Kallio had submitted his resignation as President on 27 November, effective today, with the intention of retiring to his farm in Nivala. However, he attends the farewell ceremonies, leaves for the train station and, as the marching band is playing a patriotic song while he boards his train, collapses in the arms of his adjutant, Colonel Aladar Paasonen. Kallio is a tragic figure, the man who had to give the order to sign the harsh treaty with the Soviet Union that ended the Winter War and who suffered a devastating stroke over the summer. Kyösti Kallio, dead at 67.

The new President is Risto Ryti.

Cine Magazzino, Anno VII, Num. 51, 19 December 1940.

British Homefront:  Prime Minister Winston Churchill gives a speech that receives extensive media coverage around the world. He notes, with classic British understatement:

One cannot say that the Italians have shown high fighting spirit or quality in this battle.... The A.R.P. services, the Home Office, and the Ministry of Health are as much in the front lines as are the armoured columns chasing the Italians about the Libyan desert....

In a long-winded address, Churchill posits that "The Germans reached the culminating point at the end of last year," and he points to the recent bombing of Mannheim - which by now he knows did not hit the strategic targets intended - as inflicting "very heavy blows."

Holocaust: With the Christmas holiday approaching, Archbishop Sapieha of Krakow, Poland requests in a letter to Auschwitz Commandant Rudolf Höss that Christmas services be permitted there. Höss permits his inmates to receive 6000 one-kilogram food parcels but flatly turns down the religious request because no religious observances whatsoever are permitted in the camp. A former Catholic, Höss left the religion due to the horrors of World War I.

International Red Cross shipments such as these, incidentally, are greatly treasured throughout the war both in the concentration camps and in POW stockades and often a large proportion of them fall into the hands of the guards. The IRC does do its best to verify matters.

The Waifs & Strays Society has plenty of work to do this Christmas season, 19 December 1940.

December 1940

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

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