Saturday 24 January 1942

British tanker Empire Gem sinks off Cape Hatteras after being torpedoed by U-66 on 24 January 1942 (Naval History and Heritage Command NH 54371).

Battle of the Pacific: There is a short, sharp surface engagement between US Navy destroyers and Japanese surface ships off Balikpapan early in the morning on 24 January 1942. Sometimes called the Battle of Makassar Strait, it takes place during the Japanese landing at Balikpapan. The 59th US Navy Destroyer Division, under Rear Admiral William A. Glassford and Commander Paul H. Talbot, attacks following orders from Admiral Thomas Hart. There are 12 Japanese transport vessels and three old World War I-vintage Japanese destroyers serving as escorts just off Balikpapan. The US destroyers (USS Paul Jones, Parrott, Pope, and John D. Ford) use torpedoes to sink four transport ships (Kuretake Maru, Nana Maru, Sumanoura Maru, and Tatsukami Maru) and patrol boat P-37. There is gunfire between the armed transports and destroyer John D. Ford, with both ships suffering damage. The battle, the first true surface engagement of the war involving the United States Navy, is over by 04:00. The invasion, however, is unimpeded, with Major General Sakaguchi's 56th Mixed Infantry Group and the No. 2 Kure SNLF occupying Balikpapan and its critically important refineries without resistance.

This Battle of Makassar Strait is different than the one on 4 February 1942, which you may read about here.

British tanker Empire Gem sinks off Cape Hatteras after being torpedoed by U-66 on 24 January 1942 (Naval History and Heritage Command NH 54213).

In the Philippines, the Allied forces begin a broad retreat in the eastern II Corps sector. The Japanese maintain pressure on the Allies, particularly on the Philippine Division, but many of the Allied troops escape. In the western I Corps sector, the Japanese also gain ground. The 1st Division of the Philippine Army begins to crumble. A Japanese roadblock on the West Road which blocks US Army communications with its troops further north at the front continues to hold out despite increasingly frantic attempts to eliminate it. Small Japanese forces that recently landed well behind the front at Quinauan and Longoskawayan Points also continue to hold out. Ad hoc US units including some US Marines do, however, make some progress there, regaining Pucot Hill and driving the Japanese back to Longoskawayan and Lapiay Points.

British tanker Empire Gem sinks off Cape Hatteras after being torpedoed by U-66 on 24 January 1942 (Naval History and Heritage Command NH 60611).

In the Netherlands East Indies, the Japanese Eastern Invasion Force lands at Kendari on Celebes Island. Japanese destroyers and aircraft attack fleeing USN seaplane tender (destroyer), USS Childs (AVD-1, ex-DD-241), but it manages to escape to the south in stormy weather. The landings go well for the Japanese, who occupy Kendari and capture most of the Dutch defenders. As usual, some of the defenders escape into the interior and begin guerilla operations (which invariably are primarily focused on mere survival). The Japanese 21st Air Flotilla quickly beings operations from Kendari Airfield.

British tanker Empire Gem sinks off Cape Hatteras after being torpedoed by U-66 on 24 January 1942 (Naval History and Heritage Command NH 60610).

On the Malay Peninsula, the situation continues to deteriorate for the Commonwealth troops. There is hard fighting at Batu Pahat and the Japanese approach Kluang. The Japanese 18th Division completes its landings at Singora. There is some renewed hope for the British when 942 men of the Australian 2/4th Machine Gun Battalion and 1907 other Australian reinforcements arrive in Singapore during the day. However, these men are short-timers without adequate training, and many have never even fired a rifle. General Arthur Percival issues his first plan for a complete withdrawal of all troops onto Singapore Island itself. However, the island has not been prepared for a siege and no fortifications have been built because the island's civilian workers who must do the work are demanding more money.

British tanker Empire Gem sinks off Cape Hatteras after being torpedoed by U-66 on 24 January 1942 (Naval History and Heritage Command NH 60612).

In New Britain, Japanese forces begin mopping up operations south of Rabaul. Many Australian soldiers remain at large in the interior of the island, but they have no food or water or any means of resupply. The Japanese know this and post leaflets in English stating, "you can find neither food nor way of escape in this island and you will only die of hunger unless you surrender." The Japanese 3rd Battalion of the 144th Infantry Regiment under General Horii begins searching the southern part of the Gazelle Peninsula and captures the first of over 1000 Australian soldiers. The interior of the island is so rough and inhospitable, however, that Japanese efforts to clear New Britain require huge expenditures of effort and time.

US tanker SS Venore is one of two tankers sunk on 24 January 1942 by U-66 off the North Carolina coast. There are 21 deaths and 22 survivors. Venore was the other tanker sunk in the attack that also claimed Empire Gem.

In the Gulf of Panama (on the Pacific side of the isthmus), submarine chaser USS Sturdy accidentally rams and sinks US submarine S-26. There are 43 deaths, the entire crew of USS S-26 excepting three men (the captain, executive officer, and a lookout) who are in the conning tower and survive.

Aboard a convoy ship at Methil on 24 January 1942. "General view showing the convoy gathering at the anchorage." © IWM (A 7219).

Battle of the Atlantic: It is an active day in the Atlantic:

• U-106 (Oblt. Hermann Rasch), on its fifth patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 5631-ton British freighter Emperor Wildebeeste (dispersed from Convoy ON-53) at 06:53 southeast of Halifax. There are nine dead and 34 survivors.
• U-66 (Kptlt. Richard Zapp), on its fourth patrol out of Lorient, is operating about 20 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, when it torpedoes and sinks 8139-ton British tanker Empire Gem and 8017-ton US tanker Venore.
• U-333 (Kptlt. Peter Erich Cremer), on its first patrol out of Kiel and operating as part of Wolfpack Ziethen in the North Atlantic, torpedoes and sinks 4765-ton Norwegian freighter Ringstad, which also has been dispersed from Convoy ON-53.

Convoy QP-6 departs from Murmansk (QP convoys head east to west, PQ convoys head west to east). It includes six freighters and two Soviet Navy escorts. The Kriegsmarine has been beefing up its forces on the Arctic Convoy routes, but the days are short high above the Arctic Circle and German U-boats and planes have difficulty finding the Arctic Convoys.

Italian 13,098-ton Italian ocean liner MV Victoria, sunk on 24 January 1942 by a British air attack in the Gulf of Sirte. An Albacore of RAF No. 826 Squadron torpedoed the Victoria late on 23 January 1942. Italian destroyers Avere and Camicia Nera are nearby and pick up 1064 of the 1455 people on board. Victoria was part of Italian supply operation T-18, and the other ships in the convoy make it to Tripoli.

Battle of the Mediterranean: German General Erwin Rommel's offensive is gathering speed, and already the British see which way the wind is blowing. The Royal Navy sends three destroyers (HMS Dulverton, Heythrop, and Southwold) from Alexandria to evacuate Benghazi. Rommel receives badly needed supplies in Tripoli when Italian supply operation T-18 makes port with 5322-ton Monviso, 5324-ton Monginevro, and 6339-ton Vettor Pisani. However, Rommel does not get all of his supplies because 6142-ton Ravello has to turn back to Messina with rudder problems. In addition, the real prize, 13,098-ton Italian liner Victoria, sinks en route after being torpedoed by an RAF Albacore of No. 826 Squadron. While 1064 of the 1455 people on board the Victoria do get rescued and make it to Tripoli, this is another troubling loss on a convoy route that the Italian Navy is proving unable to protect.

Aboard a convoy ship at Methil on 24 January 1942. "The 1st officer at work in the Chart Room." © IWM (A 7212).

Eastern Front: A desperate German attempt to rescue an encircled 4000-man garrison at Sukhinichi barely succeeds on 24 January 1942. Generalmajor Werner von Gilsa has been able to hold out by receiving sporadic Luftwaffe supply drops. He also has been the beneficiary of somewhat clumsy Red Army attacks. A weak Second Panzer Army thrust east by 18th Panzer Division and the 208th Infantry Division exploits the weak Soviet cordon around the town to get near. A desperate battle involving reinforcements by both sides in -40 °F weather finally results in two battalions of the 18th Panzer Division reaching the town during the afternoon. It is a brilliant success, but the line back to the main German lines is extremely tenuous and Hitler still has not lifted his order to hold the town - so it is unclear if the rescuers will just get trapped there, too.

A Finnish Brewster Buffalo (No. BS-372) showing damage sustained during a mission on 24 January 1942. The plane was repaired and put back into service, ultimately being shot down and lost on 25 June 1942. The plane is found again in August 1998 in Big Kolejärvi Lake, about 50 kilometers from the town of Segezha. The Finns were the only major power able to make good use of the Brewster Buffalo after receiving a consignment of 44 of them from the United States during the Winter War. Reportedly, every Finnish Brewster averaged 11 victories.

Since 22 January, a Red Army offensive by I and V Cavalry Corps has been chewing into the Army Group South line being held by General Hermann Hoth's 17th Army. The Soviet troops are making good progress west of Sloviansk. As with Soviet advances west of Moscow, the advance is impressive in terms of ground regained. It has retaken half the distance from Izyum to Dnepropetrovsk. However, there are no strategic objectives anywhere east of Dnepropetrovsk, which contains a vital crossing across the Dnieper River (one of less than a handful in the entire southern portion of the front).

""Bagatelle", the office of the Flag Officer in Charge, Greenock." This photo was taken on 24 January 1942. © IWM (A 7732).

Even further south, on the Crimea, the Soviets have not given up on their small landing force behind the German lines at Sudak. General Dimitri Kozlov, confused by the slow Axis reaction into thinking that the Germans have no troops available to eliminate the bridgehead, feeds more reinforcements into the bridgehead. In fact, the Germans have plenty of troops available but have been waiting to see if local Romanian troops can handle the situation. Local German commander General MaximilianFretter-Pico begins sending units of the German 30 Corps to the area, but they will not get into position for a forceful counterattack for a couple of days.

A view of the B-24 Liberator production line at the Consolidated Aircraft Production Plant No. 2, in the SPAWAR complex in San Diego, California, on 24 January 1942. The plant, incidentally, remains intact in the 21st Century.

US Government: The Roberts Commission, formed in December 1941 to investigate the circumstances surrounding the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, releases its report to the public on 24 January 1942. Led by Supreme Court Justice Owen J. Roberts, the other members of the committee are all active or retired military officials: Admiral William H. Standley, Admiral Joseph M. Reeves, General Frank R. McCoy, and General Joseph T. McNarney. The Roberts Commission assigns the majority of the blame for the destruction of the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor on two men: General Walter C. Short and Admiral Husband E. Kimmel. The report singles them out for "dereliction of duty" for their lack of preparedness, a conclusion which many over the years consider typical scapegoating after an attack.

Change of command at Greenock. "Vice Admiral B. C. Watson, CB, DSO, FOIC, Greenock (center) with his staff after taking leave of them on being relieved." © IWM (A 7729).

The Roberts Commission's Report also includes an offhand remark which addresses a question of rising importance to millions of people:

There were, prior to December 7, 1941, Japanese spies on the island of Oahu. Some were Japanese consular agents and other [sic] were persons having no open relations with the Japanese foreign service. These spies collected and, through various channels transmitted, information to the Japanese Empire respecting the military and naval establishments and dispositions on the island...

This statement has a devastating impact on public opinion. There were Japanese consular agents - or agents purporting to be consular officials - who spied on Pearl Harbor throughout much of 1941. The US intelligence services kept a close eye on them. However, it is unclear who the spies "having no open relations with the Japanese foreign service" were. This inflames public opinion and greatly accelerates the process of sending Japanese-Americans to internment camps. General John L. DeWitt, head of the Western Defense Command, meets with California governor Culbert Olson shortly after the report's release. Olson tells him:

Since the publication of the Roberts Report, they [the people of California] feel they are living in the midst of enemies. They don't trust the Japanese, none of them.

All of this is undoubtedly true, the only open question is whether the Roberts Commission was correct about there being private Japanese spies and, if so, who they were. That question is never satisfactorily answered. Heretofore, General DeWitt has taken a moderate opinion on the question of internment, but, following the release of the Roberts Commission Report, he redoubles his efforts to intern Japanese-Americans.

Commander Paul H. Talbot receives the US Navy Cross for "especially meritorious conduct, extreme courage and complete disregard for his own personal safety" as commander of Destroyer Squadron 59 on the night of 24 January 1942. "LC-Lot-4263-32: Battle of Balikpapan, January 24, 1942. The Honorable Frank Knox, Secretary of the Navy, presents the Navy Cross to Commander Paul H. Talbot, USN, July 11, 1942. Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox Collection. Photographed through Mylar sleeve. Courtesy of the Library of Congress. (2015/11/20)."

1942

January 1942

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

2020

Friday 23 January 1942

The funeral of Field Marshal von Reichenau in Berlin on 23 January 1942. Visible (among others) are Reich Minister Dr. Frick, Reichsleiter Bouhler, Generaloberst Fromm, Reich Minister Goebbels, Grossadmiral Raeder (in black), and Field Marshal Milch (at far right). Notably absent are Adolf Hitler and Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering (Schwahn, Ernst, Federal Archive Figure 183-J00243).

Battle of the Pacific: Around 5,300 Japanese troops sail directly into Rabaul's Simpson Harbor on New Britain before dawn on 23 January 1942. They quickly evict defending Australian Lark Force troops from the vicinity and take the critical port of Rabaul. The Japanese 144th Infantry Regiment under Colonel Masao Kusunose brushes the Australians defending Vulcan Beach aside after a brief fight, but most of the landings are unopposed and the invaders quickly move inland. By nightfall, the Japanese have secured Lakunai airfield and Australian commander Lieutenant Colonel John Scanlan orders his civilians and soldiers alike to disperse into the nearby forests. The Australian troops lose two officers, 26 other men, and control of both New Britain and New Ireland Islands.

Japanese troops take Rabaul, 23 January 1942.

Many beaten Australian defenders of Rabaul remain at large in the interior of the two islands for weeks and some for months. There is no way to supply the men, so guerilla operations on any kind of large scale are impossible. The RAAF manages to get is people off New Britain at the last minute in flying boats and a Hudson, but the vast majority of Australians, around 1000, ultimately surrender after the Japanese make additional landings in the southern portion of New Britain. In any event, the Japanese are happy to just hold the northern portion of New Britain along the line of the Keravat River which contains the port and airfield. Northern New Britain turns into a virtually impregnable position due to the geography of the island - aside from a large-scale direct invasion such as that mounted by the Japanese. The invasion of New Ireland and New Britain is the beginning of the New Guinea Campaign.

"New Ireland. Japanese troops occupy Kavieng (formerly Kawieng) [New Ireland] on 23 January 1942." Australian War Memorial 127910.

In Burma, the 1st and 2d Fighter Squadrons, American Volunteer Group (the "Flying Tigers") have been giving a very good account of themselves since they began operation in late December 1941. Japanese pressure is increasing, however, and there are fierce air battles over Rangoon. The American pilots have a good day, shooting down five "Nate" fighters at 10:30. They also destroy five "Mary" light bombers and seven Ki-27 fighters after dark. The Japanese troops continue making slow but steady progress into Burma from Thailand.

Capsized USS Cassin (DD-372) being salvaged at Pearl Harbor, 23 January 1942 (Navsource).

On the Malay Peninsula, the Commonwealth troops evacuate Yong Peng after dark and head south. Some elements of the Indian 45th Brigade which escaped after the lost battle of the Parit Sulong Bridge manage to make it there through the jungles and swamps in the intervening five kilometers. British troops, the 2nd Loyals (North Lancashire), fight a desperate rear-guard action at Yong Peng against seven Japanese tanks which holds the road open just long enough for the fleeing 45th Brigade men to make it to safety. The British plan is to form a shortened line in the south to protect central Johore State, which serves as a buffer zone protecting Singapore. This line is projected to run Batu Pahat-Ayer Hitam-Kluang- Jemaluang. Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival, General Officer Commanding Malaya Command, is under no illusions, however. He now sets in motion the first stages of withdrawal from the mainland to Singapore Island, where the British still have not begun building defensive fortifications along the vulnerable north coast.

The Australians are holding in the Mersing area, where the bridge is destroyed (probably by the Australian defenders, though this is unclear). The Allies still have good mortar and artillery support that enables them to hold this line temporarily.

The Balikpapan Oil refinery, which the Japanese take on 23 January 1942 (Collectie Stichting Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen).

Japanese invasion forces moving south through the Makassar Strait and Molucca Passage land at Balikpapan, Borneo, and Kendari, Celebes Island, respectively. The Japanese troops at Balikpapan are in Major General Sakaguchi’s 56th Mixed Infantry Group and the No. 2 Kure SNLF. They quickly occupy the critical oil refinery which the Japanese project can supply a full third of their oil needs. The Dutch send airstrikes that accomplish little. Some Allied planes are based at Palembang, Sumatra, and RAF reinforcements begin arriving there today. However, the Japanese are moving quickly and bomb that airfield for the first time today. A Japanese landing force also heads out after dark and lands north of Kendari, Celebes Island, where they seize Kendari Airfield. The US Navy has four destroyers, USS Parrott, John D. Ford, Pope, and Paul Jones, in the vicinity of Balikpapan and they stage a daring raid on the unsuspecting Japanese invasion fleet lying at anchor offshore. In the first such night action of the war, the US destroyers use torpedoes to sink four (empty) enemy transport ships and a torpedo boat before slipping away undetected in the dark.

"USS Cassin (DD-372), at left, and USS Downes (DD-375), Under salvage in Drydock Number One at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, 23 January 1942. They had been wrecked during the 7 December 1941 Japanese air raid. Photographed from the foremast of USS Raleigh (CL-7), which was undergoing battle damage repairs in the drydock. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Photo #: NH 54562." Navsource.

In the Philippines, heavy fighting continues in the II Corps sector western flank on the Bataan Peninsula. The Japanese force II Corps to begin withdrawing after dark to the final prepared defensive line. In the I Corps sector in the western half of the peninsula, the Japanese blocking force on West Road continues to hold out despite desperate Allied attempts to dislodge them and free a line of communications to the U.S. troops north of them holding the front. The Japanese cause further problems when a battalion of the 16th Division makes small landings far behind the Allied lines at Longoskawayan Point and Quinauan Point. The local US forces are taken completely by surprise and, despite increasingly frantic attacks, are unable to dislodge them.

An A6M2 Zero taking off from Japanese aircraft carrier Zuikaku on 23 January 1942.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel's "reconnaissance in force" is quickly developing into a full-scale offensive in Libya. The Afrika Korps panzers destroy 2 Armoured Brigade of 1 Armoured Division west of Saunnu on 23 January 1942. The British thus lose their only effective mobile formation. This opens the way for Rommel's forces to advance to Msus and thence on to Benghazi and Gazala.

Officers of the U.S. War Department War Plans Division, 23 January 1942. Left to right: Col. W. K. Harrison, Col. Lee S. Gerow, Brig. Gen. Robert W. Crawford, Brig. Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, Brig. Gen. Leonard T. Gerow, Chief, Col. Thomas T. Handy, Col. Stephen H. Sherrill.

Partisans: The Germans and Italians have been trying to recover territory lost to partisans in remote areas of Croatia since 15 January 1942. This is Operation Southeast Croatia (Unternehmen Südost Kroatien). It is part of a long-term battle against partisans throughout the Balkans. Operation Southeast Croatia concludes today due to the weather, but reduced operations continue into February 1942. The blizzards hamper operations and the operation "recovers" territory only temporarily. The partisans know the Germans are coming and simply melt away into the mountains or discard their weapons and "become locals." The Germans have suffered 25 dead, 131 wounded, one missing, and 300 cases of frostbite during Operation Southeast Croatia. The partisans lose 531 killed and about 1400 captured. The Yugoslavs come to call this the "Second Enemy Offensive" - the Germans being, of course, the enemy. Operation Southeast Croatia has an unintended long-term consequence for the partisans because Chetnik (royalist) troops in the region do not fight the Axis troops but instead quickly flee across the Drina River, while Josip Broz Tito's communist partisans do fight for a while. Technically, the Chetniks may have the right plan, but politically it is a disaster. Tito's men eventually slip through Italian formations in the south of the operation and form up again around Foča. This severs cooperation between the two partisan forces, which causes the partisan movement many more problems than anything the Axis troops do.

"Anti-aircraft Bren gun team stands guard as 4.5-inch howitzers of the 1st Heavy Artillery Regiment (1st Polish Corps), towed by Morris-Commercial 'Quad' artillery tractors, passing by in deep snow, Scotland." 23 January 1942. © IWM (H 16800).

The German security forces learn some valuable lessons during Operation Southeast Croatia, such as that their Croatian allies are of little help in the mountains due to poor equipment and training and the difficulty of operations in the mountains during winter. A more valuable lesson that could be learned but apparently is not is that encirclement tactics against partisans rarely work except against very large formations (such as those that have tanks and planes) because the partisans can act like locals and simply slip through almost any cordon. Surrounding a large area to "flush out" the partisans requires a vastly greater expenditure of troops and equipment than can ever be profitable for the small gains achieved. During Operation Southeast Croatia, for instance, the Germans use 20,000-30,000 troops, five panzer platoons, and an armored train. This is a vastly greater allocation of troops than the operation ever could have been worth even had it been entirely successful and cleared the target territory of its estimated 8000 partisans. Nothing of the sort results and partisans return as soon as the German security troops leave the vicinity - those that actually left in the first place, that is. The local German commanders can just point at a map and tell their commanders that they successfully cleared a large area - and who is to dispute them? They did - for a few weeks. So, the German authorities continue to believe that encirclement is a good tactic despite its ineffectiveness during Operation Southeast Croatia.

"A US Curtiss Biplane, used by the Royal Navy taking off for a patrol flight." Onboard HMS Victorious at Hvalfjord, Iceland, ca. 23 January 1942. © IWM (A 7311).

US Military: The Roberts Commission, formed following the attack on Pearl Harbor to study the circumstances surrounding the attack, concludes its investigation. The report assembles 2,173 pages of exhibits which form an invaluable resource for future students of the attack.

Future History: Wilhelm Hermann Björn Bogner Jr. is born in Munich, Germany. He becomes a championship skier and competes in the 1960 Olympics. Later in that decade, Bogner turns to filmmaking and is most renowned as the cameraman for the skiing scenes in the James Bond films from "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" (1969) to "A View to a Kill" (1985). While engaging in these other pursuits, Bogner enters the family fashion business (primarily sportswear) and ultimately takes over his father's Bogner clothing brand (famous for the introduction of stretch pants as ski wear). As of 2021, Willy Bogner remains active in the fashion business.

BBC Radio Times, Issue 956, 23 January 1942, covering the schedules from 25 January 1942 to 31 January 1942.

1942

January 1942

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

2020

Thursday 18 December 1941

The Japanese 10th Independent Artillery Brigade attacking North Point Power Station, Hong Kong, on December 18, 1941.

Eastern Front: After two days of deliberation and introspection, Adolf Hitler on 18 December 1941 issues an order to Army Group Center which sets for how the Wehrmacht shall respond to the unrelenting Soviet counteroffensive. The order reads:

The Fuehrer has ordered: Larger evasive movements cannot be made. They will lead to a total loss of heavy weapons and equipment. Commanding generals, commanders, and officers are to intervene in person to compel the troops to fanatical resistance in their positions without regard to enemy broken through [sic] on the flanks or in the rear. This is the only way to gain the time necessary to bring up the reinforcements from Germany and the West that I have ordered. Only if reserves have moved into rearward positions can thought be given to withdrawing to those positions.

This is not the order that the commanders at the front desired. The entire front is in motion, and the question now becomes whether it can even be stopped, much less hold a new line where it is.

Adolf Hitler hosts a Christmas party for German soldiers at the Lowenbraukeller restaurant in Munich on 18 December 1941. There is some doubt whether this series of pictures is from 1941 and not actually from the 1930s, but they are identified in the original sources as being from 1941, so that is why they are placed here (Photographer Hugo Jaeger dated these photos as being from 18 December 1941).

Field Marshal Fedor von Bock sends the order along to his army commands without comment. When General Erich Hoepner protests that the order cannot be followed, von Bock curtly tells him to "hold your fist in the backs of these people." General Guderian responds to the Army Group Center chief of staff:

The situation is more serious than one could imagine. If something does not happen soon, things will occur that the German armed forces have never before experienced. I will take these orders and file them. I will not pass them on even under threat of court-martial. I want at least to give my career a respectable ending.

Guderian then arranges a flight to the Wolfsschanze to argue his case directly with Hitler. Von Bock himself has fallen out of favor at the Fuehrer headquarters, which directs him to submit an immediate request for medical leave and relinquish his command to Field Marshal Günther von Kluge. Von Bock remains in good standing and will be put on the "Fuehrer Reserve" (Führerreserve) for future assignments.

The New Castle News of New Castle, Pennsylvania is full of good war news on 18 December 1941.

Battle of the Pacific: The Japanese Navy is hungry for information about the damage caused at Pearl Harbor and decides to take a chance to find out. Submarine 1-7 launches a floatplane that flies over Pearl Harbor at dawn on 18 December to find out. The plane apparently is not detected, showing that whatever security improvements the Americans have put in place have not been completely effective. This reconnaissance information leads to a Japanese Navy communique on 19 December that announces that 8 battleships, 4 cruisers, and 2 destroyers have been sunk or heavily damaged, and lesser damage has been done to another battleship and 4 more cruisers. The communique also claims that 450 US planes were destroyed on the ground and 14 shot down. These claims, particularly those related to aircraft, are inflated but not complete fantasy. The figures appear to stem more from enemy prewar overestimates of Hawaiian air strength than to the damage actually done, bad as it was.

Late in the day, Japanese forces cross the waterway to the north shore of Hong Kong Island and land on the island's northeastern shoreline. They consolidate their position and prepare to advance inland in the morning. They capture about 20 Commonwealth gunners of the Sai Wan Battery (5th Anti-Aircraft Battery of the Hong Kong Volunteer Defense Corps) and also roughly the same number of medical staff in the Salesian Mission on Chai Wan Road and execute almost all of them on the morning of the 19th.

While the Third Reich celebrated Christmas, they renamed it Julfest and claimed that its origins predated Jesus Christ and in fact simply celebrated the winter solstice. In any event, at this Christmas party, Hitler seems pensive and out of sorts, as do others at the party, such as Reich Commissioner for Social House-Building Robert Ley sitting next to him. 18 December 1941 (Hugo Jaeger).

On Borneo, the Japanese landing forces begin to fan out from their beachhead positions. The Dutch send Martin B-10 Bombers to slow them down. The Japanese apparently don't know where the Dutch Singkawang II airfield is, so it remains in Dutch possession despite the nearby Japanese forces.

Attendees at Hitler's 18 December 1941 Christmas party in Munich (Hugo Jaeger).

On the Malay Peninsula, the Indian 11th Division completes its withdrawal behind the Krian River and proceeds to the Taiping region. The British plan on making a stand along the river and the Grik road, but commanding Lieutenant-General Sir Arthur E. Percival contemplates another withdrawal to the Perak River. The Japanese consolidate their advances and occupy Penang, which the British abandoned on the 17th. The RAAF orders all planes that can fly to proceed to Singapore.

In the Philippines, the Japanese advance from Legaspi, southeast of Manila, continues. The troops reach Naga after brushing off light resistance from the Filipino Army.

A typical 1941 blood chit. This would be pinned to the back of a pilot's flight jacket.

In China and Burma, the American Volunteer Group (AVG, or "Flying Tigers") are fighting hard. However, the American pilots are concerned about how they will be treated by Chinese civilians if they are forced to parachute to safety. These concerns have been exacerbated by difficulties encountered by pilot Eriksen Shilling and local Chinese fighters who treat him roughly. The Chinese Intelligence Service allays these concerns by printing pictures on silk and then stitching these onto the back of the pilots' jackets. These are called "blood chits" and have pictures such as the flag and a promise of a reward for safe return to authorities of the pilot.

Attendees at Hitler's 18 December 1941 Christmas party in Munich seem ill at ease, perhaps because the Fuehrer himself seems preoccupied (Hugo Jaeger).

American Homefront: Just as happened during the Civil War, the government asserts broad new authoritarian powers over citizens and companies. These powers are in the War Powers Act of 1941 and, among other things, permit censorship of all communications entering and leaving the United States. The director of censorship, Byron Price, generally follows a laissez-faire approach to censorship, relying on the threat of censorship to do his work for him. However, Price does not hesitate to intervene at times, such as when his office bars publication of photographs of US military war dead.

The decorations at the 18 December 1941 Christmas Party celebrate the Third Reich more than Christmas (Hugo Jaeger).

President Roosevelt signs an executive order, No. 8984, establishing the Roberts Commission. This commission will be headed by Supreme Court Associate Justice Owen J. Roberts and will investigate the defenses of Pearl Harbor prior to its attack on 7 December 1941. The order provides that the Roberts Commission is to:

ascertain and report the facts relating to the attack made by the Japanese armed forces upon the Territory of Hawaii on 7 December 1941...to provide bases for sound decisions whether any derelictions of duty or errors of judgment on the part of United States Army or Navy personnel contributed to such successes as were achieved by the enemy on the occasion mentioned; and if so, what these derelictions or errors were, and who were responsible therefor.

Recently fired Admiral Husband Kimmel and General Short, in command at Hawaii, will be star witnesses before the Roberts Commission.

Hitler can't seem to take his mind on the festivities at his 18 December 1941 Christmas party (Hugo Jaeger).

The US State Department announces that all French possessions in the Caribbean have been neutralized. The French have large naval forces based at Martinique in the French West Indies. Rear Admiral Frederick J. Horne and Admiral Georges Robert, French High Commissioner at Martinique, reach this agreement which prevents the need for any military intervention there by the United States Navy.

"Woody Herman In Disco Order, Volume 12" features recordings between 5 September 1941 and 18 December 1941.

December 1941

December 1, 1941: Hitler Fires von Rundstedt
December 2, 1941: Climb Mount Niitaka
December 3, 1941: Hints of Trouble in the Pacific
December 4, 1941: Soviets Plan Counteroffensive
December 5, 1941: Soviets Counterattack at Kalinin
December 6, 1941: Soviet Counterattack at Moscow Broadens
December 7, 1941: Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor
December 8, 1941: US Enters World War II
December 9, 1941: German Retreat At Moscow
December 10, 1941: HMS Prince of Wales and Repulse Sunk
December 11, 1941: Hitler Declares War on the US
December 12, 1941: Japanese in Burma
December 13, 1941: Battle of Cape Bon
December 14, 1941: Hitler Forbids Withdrawals
December 15, 1941: The Liepaja Massacre
December 16, 1941: Japan Invades Borneo
December 17, 1941: US Military Shakeup
December 18, 1941: Hitler Lays Down the Law
December 19, 1941: Brauchitsch Goes Home
December 20, 1941: Flying Tigers in Action
December 21, 1941: The Bogdanovka Massacre
December 22, 1941: Major Japanese Landings North of Manila
December 23, 1941: Wake Island Falls to Japan
December 24, 1941: Atrocities in Hong Kong
December 25, 1941: Japan Takes Hong Kong
December 26, 1941: Soviets Land in the Crimea
December 27, 1941: Commandos Raid Norway
December 28, 1941: Operation Anthropoid Begins
December 29, 1941: Soviet Landings at Feodosia
December 30, 1941: Race for Bataan
December 31, 1941: Nimitz in Charge

2020

Wednesday 17 December 1941

Imperial Japanese boats patrolling off Hong Kong Island during the battle of Hong Kong on December 17, 1941.

U.S. Military: In a move that he knew was coming, CINCUS Admiral Husband E. Kimmel is relieved of command at Pearl Harbor by US Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox on 17 December 1941. While a suitable permanent replacement is found, Admiral William S. Pye, currently the commander of Battle Force, Pacific Fleet, replaces him on an acting basis as CINCPACFLT. This impacts operations because Kimmel has been planning a quick relief expedition to Wake Island under Admiral Frank Fletcher's Task Force 11. However, Pye judges it to be too risky and ultimately cancels the operation. The new CINCUS is Admiral Ernest J. King, Commander in Chief, US Atlantic Fleet (CINCLANTFLT). King gets a new acronym, COMINCH, for Commander in Chief, United States Fleet. Also relieved of command is the U.S. military commander responsible for the defense of U.S. military installations in Hawaii, Lieutenant General Walter Short, who suffers the further indignity of reduction in rank to his permanent rank of major general. Both men are ordered to return to Washington, where their actions prior to the Pearl Harbor attack will be investigated by the Roberts Commission under the direction of US Supreme Court Associate Justice Owen J. Roberts.

Local Hawaiian boys at the wreckage of a Japanese bomber on December 17, 1941. The plane was shot down by a United States P-40 plane during the December 7 attack on Pearl Harbor (AP Photo).

Battle of the Pacific: While they prepare their forces for an invasion of Hong Kong Island, the last remaining British Commonwealth holdout in the area, the Japanese issue a surrender ultimatum. The local commander, Lieutenant General Sano Tadayoshi, commander of the 38th Division, does this by sending a captured British civilian woman along with her two dogs across to the island carrying his message. This is their second surrender offer, the first having been offered on 13 December. The British know their position is hopeless, but Governor Sir Mark Young responds that he "declines absolutely to enter into negotiations for the surrender of Hong Kong." The Japanese continue their invasion preparations.

After its initial hysteria during the first ten days of the war, the US media finally is beginning to return from fantasy to reality in its war coverage. The 17 December 1941 Poughkeepsie (New York) Eagle-News does not report any sinkings of phantom Japanese battleships. It also correctly headlines the Japanese shelling of Maui. Of course, the shelling was only a few perfunctory shells fired by a Japanese submarine at Maui that did no damage, but at least this is close to what is actually happening in the Pacific Theater.

In Malaya, the Commonwealth forces briefly contest the Grik road but fall back under pressure. Indian III Corps begins a retreat to the Perak River line, where the British improvise the "Perak Flotilla" to prevent landings. Elsewhere, the Indian 12th Brigade Group proceeds to Kuala Kangsar. The British evacuate all Europeans from Penang, leaving behind extensive supplies, ships, and even a working radio station. It is a precipitous move that alienates the local population. Some consider this move the beginning of the end of British rule in the entire region.

Hawaiian civilians working with wreckage caused by the attack on Pearl Harbor, 17 December 1941 (AP Photo).

In the Philippines, the Japanese invasion force at Legaspi, southeast of Manila, advances toward the capital. While moving along Route 1 toward Naga, it runs into advance Filipino Army units around Ragay. This is the first real contact between opposing forces in the Philippines. The US Army Air Force, already having abandoned Clark Field, begins withdrawing its 14 remaining B-17 bombers from Manila and flies them to Australia. The last bomber is gone by 20 December. Meanwhile, off Corregidor Island near Manila, 1881-ton US freighter Corregidor, loaded with Filipino refugees and troops heading for the southern Philippines, hits a U.S. mine late on the 16th and sinks during the early morning hours of the 17th. The number of casualties is unknown but is believed to be somewhere around a thousand people.

Aboard HMS Victorious at Scapa Flow, Christmas preparations are in full swing. "The Rev G W Dixon, MA, RN, who with other officers takes his turn as Censor Duty Officer, is well occupied handling the huge outgoing Christmas mail." (© IWM (A 6688)).

The US Navy reinforces Midway Island by flying seventeen SB2U-3 Vindicators of Marine Scout Bombing Squadron 231 direct from Hawaii. While Midway is part of the Hawaiian Island chain, it is 1035 miles (1665 km) away. The flight takes 9 hours and 45 minutes, a record for single-engine aircraft. A PBY-4 Catalina of Patrol Squadron 21 leads the Vindicators there. The same Vindicators had been aboard USS Lexington (CV-2) en route to Midway Island on 7 December 1941, but the carrier turned back due to the attack on Pearl Harbor. The US Fleet now considers it too dangerous to expose the precious aircraft carriers to unknown dangers, so they remain behind in Hawaii.

The remains of Mitsubishi Zero fighter BII-120 that was shot down on Niihau north of Honolulu on 7 December 1941. This photo was taken on 17 December 1941. The plane was the plane involved in the famous "Niihau Incident" in which a Japanese fighter pilot briefly survived after crash-landing on the island (Pearl Harbor Memorial).

The Australian military sends "Gulf Force" from Darwin to Ambon Island, Netherlands East Indies. The force is transported in three Dutch freighters, escorted by an Australian light cruiser and corvette. On Borneo, the Dutch send B-10 bombers based at Miri on Tarakan (base Singkawang II) against Japanese shipping offshore but score no hits. Later, three Dornier Do 24K flying boats renew the attack, but they lose one plane. However, one of the flying boats hits Japanese destroyer HIJMS Shinonome with two bombs and has a third make a near miss. The explosions blow the Shinonome apart and it sinks within minutes, taking all 229 crew with it. This is the first Dutch success in the Pacific Theater.

Not all US newspapers are reflecting reality. The Washington, D.C. Evening Star on 17 December 1941 announces in its headline that "Americans Pound Jap[anese] On Sea And In Air," which is a part wishful thinking and part fantasy.

About 222 nautical miles southeast of Honolulu (108 miles southeast of Hawaii), HIJMS I-175 torpedoes and sinks 3,253-ton US freighter Manini. There are two deaths, with the survivors being picked up by US destroyers on 27 and 28 December.

A Luftwaffe reconnaissance Fieseler Storch lands in North Africa near Mechili on 17 December 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Early in the day, an Italian reconnaissance aircraft spots a Royal Navy unit heading west near Sidi Barrani. The Italian Navy is at sea escorting a convoy to Tripoli and heads toward the British force. The Axis sends planes to attack, but they score no hits. Italian Admiral Angelo Iachino heads for the British ships, secure in his superior firepower. Rear-Admiral Philip Vian in HMS Naiad withdraws, but Iachino pursues them and opens fire at 32,000 meters (35,000 yards). Vian then lays smoke and heads for the Italian ships, causing Iachino to break off the action after 15 minutes and head back to protect the convoy. The action is inconclusive, with the Italians only scoring one near-miss on destroyer HMS Kipling that kills one rating. Seeing the Italians heading west, Vian turns around and heads back to Alexandria. While neither side achieves much during the brief battle, the Italian convoy gets through to give General Erwin Rommel badly needed supplies.

The 184-inch cyclotron under construction at the Berkeley Lab on 17 December 1941 (Donald Cooksey, The U.S. National Archives).

Applied Science: The United States Navy is busy working on airborne radar, still in its infancy but making huge strides. The Naval Research Laboratory takes a huge leap forward today by demonstrating the feasibility of the duplex antenna. It uses a single antenna for both transmission and reception of a radar pulse/echo. This greatly enhances the practicality of using airborne radar, which is extremely useful to the USN for locating U-boats while they are on the surface.

The National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony across the street from the White House on 17 December 1941 (White House Twitter).

December 1941

December 1, 1941: Hitler Fires von Rundstedt
December 2, 1941: Climb Mount Niitaka
December 3, 1941: Hints of Trouble in the Pacific
December 4, 1941: Soviets Plan Counteroffensive
December 5, 1941: Soviets Counterattack at Kalinin
December 6, 1941: Soviet Counterattack at Moscow Broadens
December 7, 1941: Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor
December 8, 1941: US Enters World War II
December 9, 1941: German Retreat At Moscow
December 10, 1941: HMS Prince of Wales and Repulse Sunk
December 11, 1941: Hitler Declares War on US
December 12, 1941: Japanese in Burma
December 13, 1941: Battle of Cape Bon
December 14, 1941: Hitler Forbids Withdrawals
December 15, 1941: The Liepaja Massacre
December 16, 1941: Japan Invades Borneo
December 17, 1941: US Military Shakeup
December 18, 1941: Hitler Lays Down the Law
December 19, 1941: Brauchitsch Goes Home
December 20, 1941: Flying Tigers in Action
December 21, 1941: The Bogdanovka Massacre
December 22, 1941: Major Japanese Landings North of Manila
December 23, 1941: Wake Island Falls to Japan
December 24, 1941: Atrocities in Hong Kong
December 25, 1941: Japan Takes Hong Kong
December 26, 1941: Soviets Land in the Crimea
December 27, 1941: Commandos Raid Norway
December 28, 1941: Operation Anthropoid Begins
December 29, 1941: Soviet Landings at Feodosia
December 30, 1941: Race for Bataan
December 31, 1941: Nimitz in Charge

2020