Thursday 8 May 1941

Merseyside Bomb Damage, Stanley Road Bridge, Bootle, May 1941.

European Air Operations: In a long war, there are often small changes that some like to call "inflection points." In one small area, May 8, 1941, could be called an inflection point in the air war. For the first week of May 1941, the Luftwaffe absolutely pounded several British cities. Liverpool, the critical gateway to North American supplies, has been reduced to 25% of capacity, and many other industrial cities in the north also have been ravaged. London, the most worthless target of the German air campaign, has been spared. In essence, the first week of May 1941 has shown what the Luftwaffe is capable of achieving given proper focus and target selection.

However, now it is the second week of May 1941, and things begin to change. Tonight, RAF Bomber Command launches a massive 359-aircraft raid on Hamburg, Bremen and diversionary targets, its largest effort of the war to date (317 against Hamburg and Bremen alone, with 19 sent against the Kiel Canal). The Luftwaffe gives up on Liverpool - right when the port is reeling - and shifts to the Rolls Royce works at Derby (which, of course, manufactures the all-important aircraft engines that some say are war-winning material). The British institute radio countermeasures that they have been refining for months, and this appears to have the desired effect of confusing the German navigators. Bombs fall all across the countryside in the Peak District, Nottingham, the agricultural Vale of Belvoir and nearby locations.

The Luftwaffe, which finally has figured out how to make its city raids pay real dividends by destroying port infrastructure, now shifts back to attacking 20 airfields during the night. While much damage is still being wrought in England, the air battle never again will be as one-sided in favor of the Luftwaffe as it was from 1-7 May 1941.

The Luftwaffe raids the Clyde, setting back construction of destroyer HMS Pakenham and monitor Roberts. An attack on the Tyne damages destroyers Vivacious and Whaddon, but nobody is aboard them because they are under repair.

The Luftwaffe raids Hull for the second consecutive (and last) night. The military helps with rescue work. The Germans hit Alexandra Dock and sink:

• 89-ton barge Delite
• 91-ton barge Ladore
• 48-ton barge Whitakers No. II
• 38-ton ketch (lighter) Welcome Home

Portsmouth also receives attention. The Germans sink 99-ton tug Irishman and 83-ton dredger F.W. No. 20. There are 8 deaths total, five on the Irishman and three on the dredger.

Damage to Liverpool continues to be assessed. In the final raid on the 7th, which crept into the early hours of the 8th, the following ships were hit:

• 4969-ton British freighter Marton (sunk)
• 143-ton barge Rose (sunk)
• 3079-ton freighter Trentino (sunk)
• 127-ton barge Burmah (sunk)
• 591-ton freighter Royal Daffodil (damaged)
• 2544-ton Finnish freighter Annenberg (damaged)
• 2902-ton Belgian freighter Leopold II (damaged)
• 1376-ton Norwegian freighter Stromboli (damaged)
• 652-ton British crane Hercules (damaged).

The Hercules crane, very important to operations, is sunk but later raised and returned to service.

Kommodore Moelders of JG 51 claims a Spitfire from RAF No. 92 Squadron in his brand new Bf 109F. It is his third victory in the last few days in the new version of the Reich's front-line fighter, a good omen for future use of the plane by the rest of the Luftwaffe.

"Arab Legionnaires guard the landing ground at H4 pumping station on the Iraq Petroleum Company pipeline in Transjordan, as Gloster Gladiators of No. 94 Squadron RAF Detachment refuel during their journey from Ismailia, Egypt, to reinforce the besieged garrison at Habbaniyah, Iraq. On arrival at Habbaniyah, these aircraft formed No. 1 Flight of 'A' Squadron for operations against the Iraqi rebels." 8 May 1941. © IWM (CM 774).

Anglo/Iraq War: The war in Iraq itself is going well for the British, but Prime Minister Winston Churchill remains a troubled man. It is clear that the Germans have designs on the oil of the Middle East, and the Vichy French in Syria appear to hold the key. Churchill writes to General Ismay:

I must have the advice of the Staffs upon the Syrian business available for Cabinet this morning. A supreme effort must be made to prevent the Germans getting a foothold in Syria with small forces and then using Syria as a jumping-off ground for the air domination of Iraq and Persia. ... We ought to help in every way without minding what happens at Vichy.

While it is not clear what Churchill means by "a supreme effort" against Syria, that is the subject of the evening's War Cabinet meeting.

The British and Transjordanian forces crossing the desert from Palestine arrive at Rutbah Fort. They find it occupied by Iraqi forces under Rashid Ali, but the defenders are mostly just local policemen. The RAF sends four Blenheim bombers of No. 203 Squadron to bomb the fort while the British troops wait outside.

East African Campaign: After an opening attack by Indian troops at Amba Alagi that proved unsuccessful, fighting largely has died down at the Italian stronghold of Amba Alagi. An Indian 9th Infantry Brigade diversionary attack through the Falagi Pass to the east makes some progress and essentially clears the pass. However, the Italians counterattack and recover Centre and Khaki Hills. The British Army has reinforcements on the march only days away.

HMS Sickle (P224). Laid down: 8 May 1941. Launched: 27 August 1942. Commissioned: 1 December 1942. Fate: Sunk June 1944.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-97 (Kptlt. Udo Heilmann), on its third patrol out of St. Nazaire, is operating off of Cape Farewell on 7 May when it spots two freighters that have been dispersed from convoy OB-317. After missing in its first try and having to engage in a long chase, U-97 finally catches and sinks 4553-ton freighter Ramilles. There are 29 deaths and 12 survivors, who are rescued by freighter Geddington Court and taken to Halifax.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 521-ton anti-submarine yacht HMY Viva II about 13 miles west of Trevose Head. There are 22 deaths and ten survivors.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 93-ton naval drifter Uberty at Lowestoft. There are 13 deaths.

Royal Navy 79-ton drifter Thistle V hits a mine off Lowestoft and sinks. There are nine deaths and one survivor.

British 16-ton smack Thistle hits a mine and sinks off Clacton-on-Sea. Everyone survives.

Spanish 106-ton fishing trawler Luis Puebla hits a mine and sinks 160 miles northeast of Gijon. All nine aboard the ship survive.

Royal Navy patrol sloop Puffin has an accident with depth charges during exercises off the Humber. It requires two days of repairs.

Convoy OB 320 departs from Liverpool.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Sickle is laid down.

U-569 (Kptlt. Hans-Peter Hinsch) is commissioned, U-515 is laid down.

German raider Pinguin (Ship No. 33), sunk 8 May 1941.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Pinguin, which is operating in the Arabian Sea and has been cruising since 15 June 1940, added to its phenomenal victory string on 7 May by sinking 3663-ton British freighter British Emperor. However, before being silenced, the radio operator on the British Emperor managed to get off a radio signal. The British have been searching fruitlessly for the Pinguin for months, and once again they send out an assortment of vessels to track it down. Heretofore the effects have failed, but today is different.

British cruiser HMS Cornwall, which had been 500 nautical miles (930 km) to the south of Pinguin, heads north and intercepts the German raider 400 miles off Somaliland. The Pinguin spots the Royal Navy ship first and tries to run away to the southwest at flank speed, but the Cornwall's Supermarine Walrus search plane spots the fleeing ship. The Cornwall is cautious: there are a lot of innocent ships in the vicinity, and Cmdr. Ernst-Felix Krüder of the Pinguin has disguised his ship carefully as Norwegian freighter Tamerlane. After returning to the Cornwall, the Walrus returns for a closer look. Once again the Walrus returns to the Cornwall, but then the decision is made to look over the suspicious ship a third time, and the captain of the Cornwall decides to take a look himself.

Ernst-Felix Krüder (6 December 1897 – 8 May 1941).

The Cornwall approaches and fires a warning shot, but the Pinguin attempts to flee. After numerous warning messages, the Pinguin finally runs up her battle flag and opens fire, straddling the Cornwall. It scores a hit in the cruiser's stern, causing one sailor to perish and wounding three, and the Cornwall has to retire. However, the damage is quickly dealt with and the Cornwall returns to the attack and begins to score hits. Within 27 minutes, the Pinguin receives a direct hit that triggers the 130 high-explosive mines stored in its hold, blowing the Pinguin apart. Cornwall then heads to Durban for repairs which take about one month.

There are 60 survivors of the Pinguin (Krüder goes down with his ship), and 24 of 238 prisoners held on the ship survive. In total, 214 prisoners and 341 crew of the Pinguin perish in the encounter. In total, during its 59,000-mile cruise, the Pinguin sank or captured 28 ships for a total of 136,642 gross register tons, and it has laid mines that have sunk an additional four ships of 18,068 tons. The biggest prize of all was the Pinguin's capture of the entire Norwegian Antarctic Whaling fleet, including two factory ships, eleven whalers, and a tanker.  That is all over now, though, and the Pinguin has the additional distinction of becoming the first German raider to be sunk.

Minesweeper HMAS Warrnambool is launched.

Warrnambool slides down the slipway at Mort's Dock, Sydney, 8 May 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Tobruk is quiet, but the sea war in the Mediterranean is becoming ferocious. The Tiger Convoy bound from Gibraltar to Alexandria has come within the reach of the Regia Aeronautica and the Luftwaffe, and today the first attacks on the critical convoy occur. Italian planes based on Sardinia are the first to attack, but Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal sends up its dozen Fairy Fulmars and they drive off the attacking 50+ aircraft at the cost of one of their own. The loss, however, is felt deeply, because the dead pilot is Admiral Somerville's nephew. Another Fulmar also is lost, but the crew is picked up.

General Friedrich Paulus, who has been in North Africa on an "inspection tour" since being sent there on 24 April, flies to Rome for a meeting with Benito Mussolini. This leaves General Rommel in sole command of the Afrika Korps. Paulus is of the view, shared (perhaps not coincidentally) by his superiors at OKW, that Rommel is too headstrong and prone to over-extending his forces. However, neither Mussolini nor Hitler are dissatisfied with Rommel's handling of the Afrika Korps, so they do not act on Paulus' recommendations.

Winston Churchill keeps the pressure on his staff regarding the Takoradi route, which shuttles planes from the west coast of Africa to Cairo. He tells the War Cabinet that "greater efforts" are necessary, and that "It was evident that inadequate steps had been taken to secure American aid in erecting American aircraft."

Royal Navy submarine HMS Truant is proceeding from Malta to Gibraltar for repairs when it spots and captures 1775 ton French freighter Gallium. The Truant takes the Gallium as a prize and continues with it toward Gibraltar. However, the Gallium has alerted the Vichy French of its situation, and the French decide to dispatch ships from Oran to recover it. This continues the very murky pattern of naval incidents between the Royal and French Navies during this period.

Bf 109E3B of 9.JG27 Brown 8, Gela, Sicily, May 1941.

The Luftwaffe mines the Suez Canal, as it has in the past, during the night.

Royal Navy submarine Cachalot arrives in Malta from Alexandria. It carries badly needed supplies. The bombing has become so regular at the island that the government there decides to relocate facilities underground. There is only one problem: everyone is in the military and there aren't enough miners to do the job. Governor Dobbie requests that miners be sent from Gibraltar for the job. Dobbie also bans the dissemination of all printed material, including newspapers such as the Government Gazette.

German/Spanish Relations: German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop signs an agreement with his Spanish counterpart by which Spanish workers will head north to work in German war plants.

The Strawberry Festival Parade in Humboldt, Tennessee. May 8, 1941.

Anglo-US Relations: Winston Churchill keeps a very close eye on political developments in the United States and is quick to react. He notices an article in the London Times quoting isolationist US Senator Vandenberg on 6 May that Churchill interprets as representing "efforts to belittle our losses." He tells his staff to publish actual shipping losses. While this may provide useful information to the Germans, Churchill views "the present state of American opinion" as more important. By the evening War Cabinet meeting, Churchill has a telegram ready to send to Harry Hopkins containing the true figures, which goes out before midnight. The telegram states:

Our shipping losses for April amount to  just under 500,000 tons sunk and 285,000 damaged. Of tonnage lost, over 300,000 were incurred in the Atlantic and the rest in the Mediterranean fighting. Besides the loss in ships sunk and damaged at sea we are losing very heavily in the bombing of our western ports when cargoes are destroyed or damaged.

Churchill adds that he will publish the figures on "this very bad month" on 15 May.

Australian/US Relations: Having met with Malcolm Macdonald in the morning, Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies boards a train from Ottawa to Toronto and then flies down to Washington. He notes in his diary that "the French Canadians... are OK," an allusion to worries that they may choose to align with Vichy France rather than the Allies.

British Military: Vice Admiral L. E. Holland, CB, formerly Vice Admiral 18th Cruiser Squadron, is named temporary commander of the 18th Cruiser Squadron, replacing Vice-Admiral W.J. Whitworth. Holland will raise his flag on HMS Hood on 12 May.

Bomb damage at the bottom of Friar Lane, Nottingham, the night of 8-9 May 1941 (Photo courtesy of John Beckett, 1990. Book of Nottingham. 1st Edition. Barracuda Bks).

Italian Government: The Italians have been given large swathes of Dalmatia to govern by the Germans (the thinking being that the Italian military at least will be a match for the partisan movement already developing there), and the issue of who is to govern Croatia has become a subject of debate. The Duke of Aosta is considered the best choice, but he is hunkered down in Abyssinia with no way to get out and, besides, the King doesn't really like him. Essentially by a process of elimination of everyone the royal court can't stand, the choice is made today. Benito Mussolini, Foreign Minister Count Ciano and Anton Pavelic' meet at Monfalcone and confirm the lucky man: Prince Aimone, the trapped Duke of Aosta's brother.

It is not a popular choice - Mussolini can't stand the prince - but he is acceptable to the King and everyone else, so that is that. There's only one problem: nobody can find the prince. The rest of the day is spent searching for the lucky 41-year-old to tell him he has just been made king of the independent State of Croatia. Prince Aimone, however, is hiding out with his mistress and, quite frankly, doesn't want to be found. As Ciano writes in his diary:

When we looked for him, to give him the news, we managed to find him, only after twenty-four hours, in a Milan Hotel, where he was hiding in the company of a young girl.

When finally found, the prince laughs it off and says his proposed royal name, Tomislav II, sounds like "the name of a ruler in an operetta or that of a music-hall comedian." Finally, the King himself has to announce the selection for Prince Aimone to realize it is a serious proposition and accept the decision.

P-35As of the 17th Pursuit Squadron, photo taken from USAT Washington as it arrives in Manila on 8 May 1941 (Walter Hinkle via Clyde Childress).

Philippines: USAT Washington arrives at Pier 7 in Manila, carrying Philippine Department officers, including 39 Class 41-B graduates who are recent flying school graduates. The pilots will be divided between the 17th Pursuit Squadron and the 3rd Pursuit Squadron. Washington will spend six days in Manila, then head back to the States carrying officers' wives and other dependents. Commanding Brig. Gen. Henry B. Clagett, who himself only arrived in the Philippines on 4 May along with his chief of staff Col. Harold Huston George, greets the pilots and several staff forces for his new command, including Captain Charles Sprague, who will serve as an operations officer.

Serbia: The Sanski Most revolt continues, and the Germans respond today with extreme force. General Rudolf Sintzenich sends the 3rd Battalion of the 436 Infantry Regiment by train from Banja Luka to Sanksi Most via Prijedor. Other troops arrive from Bosanski Novi and Prijedor. The German counterattack opens at 8 a.m., and by 11 a.m. the Serb revolt is crushed. The Wehrmacht troops sweep the area of revolt with the local Ustaše troops, with most of the rebels throwing down their weapons and surrendering but dozens perishing in the fighting. The Germans have difficulty distinguishing rebels from the rest of the population, so they wind up capturing many civilians who had nothing to do with the fighting. Reprisal executions are planned for the 9th.

China: The Japanese offensive by the North China Front Army called the Battle of Southern Shansi (Chungyuan Operation) gathers steam. They attack Tungfeng and capture Tsiyuan, Menghsien, Fulochen, and Yuanchu. The Chinese Nationalist forces in the area are in trouble and call on nearby Communist forces for help, but the communists are slow to respond due to previous incidents with the Kuomintang.

A Marmon-Herrington Mk II armored car armed with an Italian Breda 20mm gun, near Tobruk, 8 May 1941." © IWM (E 2872).

May 1941

May 1, 1941: British Hold Tobruk
May 2, 1941: Anglo-Iraq War
May 3, 1941: Liverpool Hammered
May 4, 1941: Hitler Victory Speech
May 5, 1941: Patriots Day
May 6, 1941: Stalin In Command
May 7, 1941: May Blitz
May 8, 1941: Pinguin Sunk
May 9, 1941: U-110 Captured
May 10, 1941: Hess Flies Into History
May 11, 1941: The Hess Peace Plan
May 12, 1941: Tiger Arrives Safely
May 13, 1941: Keitel's Illegal Order
May 14, 1941: Holocaust in Paris
May 15, 1941: Operation Brevity
May 16, 1941: Blitz Ends
May 17, 1941: Habbaniya Relieved
May 18, 1941: Croatia Partitioned
May 19, 1941: Bismarck at Sea
May 20, 1941: Invasion of Crete
May 21, 1941: Robin Moore Sinking
May 22, 1941: Royal Navy Destruction Off Crete
May 23, 1941: Crete Must Be Won
May 24, 1941: Bismarck Sinks Hood
May 25, 1941: Lütjens' Brilliant Maneuver
May 26, 1941: Bismarck Stopped
May 27, 1941: Bismarck Sunk
May 28, 1941: Crete Lost
May 29, 1941: Royal Navy Mauled Off Crete
May 30, 1941: Sorge Warns, Stalin Ignores
May 31, 1941: British Take Baghdad

2020

Wednesday 7 May 1941

"Smouldering grain cascades slide into the river at Hull after the raid on the night of 7/9 May 1941." © IWM (HU 660).

Anglo/Iraq War: In a cable on 7 May 1941 to Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill noted that "It would seem that the Habbaniya show has greatly improved, and audacious action now against the Iraqis may crush the revolt before the Germans arrive." Churchill sends Wavell the actual text of an Ultra decrypts of Wehrmacht wireless communications, something that very few people even within the highest levels of the military were privy to.

The British troops at Habbaniya continue pushing the Iraqi troops back toward Baghdad. Further south, the Indian 20th and 21st Brigades sortie out of the port of Basra and attack nearby port Ashar. Brigadier Slim arrives at Basra as chief of staff to General Edward Quinan.

The Italians have some planes in Iraq, and today they score a rare success when they damage 176-ton British tanker barge Safiyeh in the Persian Gulf. The barge is towed to Abadan for repairs.

Both sides are planning to send reinforcements - the Germans via Viche-held Syria - but the British have troops already on the march and already are having success on the ground in Iraq.

The Germans send Fritz Grobba to Iraq to become their official representative in Baghdad.

One of 50 Guy Mk IA armored cars, seen here during anti-invasion exercises in Southern Command, 7 May 1941. It sports a 15 mm Besa MG.

European Air Operations: The May Blitz reaches its climax. The Luftwaffe pattern of focusing on single cities over multiple nights continues as they begin raids on Kingston on Hull for the first of two consecutive nights. There is massive damage, and an estimated 40,000 are made homeless. In the harbor, 53-ton freighter Ril Ida sinks at Victoria Dock, Hull.

The May Blitz on Liverpool and Merseyside continues for a seventh consecutive (and last) night. The entire dock area is destroyed or still in flames. A hit on a school shelter kills 160 people, and a hospital sees 60 patients and staff perish.

There is more destruction in the harbor, too. Destroyer HMS Hurricane takes a direct hit and sinks, but fortunately, it is in shallow water and is raised and returned to service by January 1942. Destroyer Viscount and CAM ship Maplin also are damaged by the ship, with the Viscount also out until January 1942. 43 ton flat Ellesbasnk sinks at Stanley Dock, and 201-ton tug Hornby also is sunk, but later raised and returned to service. Other ships hit at Liverpool:

• 46-ton sailing barge Ida Burton (sunk)
• 4672-ton British freighter Clan Macinnes (damaged).

There are fires throughout Liverpool, but it continues to function both as a city and a port (though the port is reduced to only 25% of previous capacity now). As has been done before in other cities, troops are brought in to maintain order and clear debris. Cars are no longer permitted downtown - where streets are full of debris anyway - and most of the phone system is out. Overall, it is estimated that 1450 people have been killed since the bombing began on 1 May.

Other Luftwaffe attacks occur on Tynemouth Borough in Northumberland, West Hartlepool, Hartlepool and Billingham in Co Durham and Middlesbrough in Yorkshire. The attacks are not large - Hartlepool is bombed by nine planes - but they stretch out British air defenses and cause a lot of pain and suffering and damage to property.

The Luftwaffe continues attacking British shipping elsewhere as well, sinking 260-ton minesweeping trawler Susarion east of Humber Light Vessel and 96-ton naval drifter Gowan Hill at the port of Greenock. Also sunk at Greenock is 106-ton British freighter Bluestone (everyone survives).

The RAF conducts a Roadstead Operation to Gravelines. After dark, Bomber Command sends 15 bombers against the U-boat pens at St. Nazaire and another 89 bombers against the port of Brest. There also are attacks by 16 planes against coastal targets.

RAF ace Douglas Bader shoots down a Bf 109 during the day and also claims another probable.

The first B-17 Flying Fortress in RAF service arrives in Great Britain at RAF Watton. RAF No. 90 Squadron, a World War I unit, is reformed to handle the heavy bombers, which soon will relocate to West Raynham.

East African Campaign: The situation at Amba Alagi temporarily settles down into garrison duty as the Allied forces await the arrival of reinforcements.

HMS Somali in a prewar 1939 photo. The Somali captured German weather ship Munchen on 7 May 1941.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-94 (Kptlt. Herbert Kuppisch), on its fourth patrol, spots Convoy OB 318 southwest of Iceland, and the convoy's escorts spot it as well. The escorts drop 98 depth charges but fail to sink Kuppisch's boat. After shaking the Royal Navy ships off, Kuppisch resumes stalking the convoy and torpedoes and sinks 5658-ton Norwegian freighter Eastern Star (three dead) and 10,263-ton British tanker Ixon (everyone survives). The escorts attack U-94 again after this, but Kuppisch gets away.

Italian submarine Enrico Tazzoli spots 4310-ton Norwegian freighter Ferlane a few hundred miles off of Guinea Bissau and sends it to the bottom. Everybody aboard survives.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 12-ton fishing trawler Waterlily at Bessom Creek, West Mersea (near Clacton-on-Sea).

British 72-ton steam barge Kineenan hits a mine and sinks at Liverpool. All five men aboard are killed.

U-93 (Kptlt. Claus Korth) is on its fourth patrol near Greenland when it has an incident involving its machine gun. Three men are wounded, but the U-boat continues its patrol.

Two Italian submarines, Archimede and Guglielmotti, complete the long journey from Eritrea when they arrive in Bordeaux.

Convoy OB 319 departs from Liverpool.

Royal Navy corvette HMS Mignonette is commissioned.

Destroyer USS Woolsey is commissioned (Lt. Commander William H. Von Dreele).

U-352 is launched, U-260 and U-662 are laid down.

A flak gun deployed in front of the ruins of the Temple of Zeus, a short distance from Constitution Square in the center of Athens. Mt Hymettus is in the background. May 1941 (Heber, Federal Archive).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The at Tobruk has turned into normal patrols and artillery exchanges. The Royal Navy has begun a nightly supply shuttle from Alexandria, with fast destroyers dashing in, unloading and returning to port before dawn.

The pace at sea is picking up, though. Operation Tiger, which left Gibraltar on the 6th, continues steaming toward Alexandria. The transports carry tanks, but the more important tank personnel are still sent on the much longer, but safer, route around South Africa.

Royal Navy cruiser HMS Ajax and destroyers Havock, Hotspur and Imperial are passing by Benghazi to meet the Tiger convoy when they detour to bombard the city. They sink Italian freighters Capitano Cecchi and Tenace.

The Luftwaffe attacks Tobruk Harbor and scores some successes. Sunk is minesweeper Stoke, while minesweeping whaler Svana is damaged by a near miss.

The Luftwaffe raids Suda Bay, the center of British operations on Crete. They damage 1545-ton Greek freighter Tanais, which the Germans later raise and return to service.

The Germans are still consolidating their hold on mainland Greece. The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 1216-ton Greek freighter Katina P. at Astakos on the west coast.

Italian 2939 ton freighter Pascoli hits a mine and sinks near Saseno (Sazan) Island (near Vlore).

Churchill allows General Freyberg, commander in Crete, to receive actual Ultra decrypts of German wireless transmissions using the Enigma code machine. These decrypts show in real-time that the Luftwaffe is planning an aerial assault by paratroopers. However, the Secret Intelligence Service cautions Freyberg not to act on the Ultra decrypts unless and until he received independent verification of their contents so that the Germans would not suspect a security breach. Freyberg dutifully complies, and thus does not rearrange his defenses from the beaches to prospective aerial landing zones at Maleme Airfield and elsewhere despite having a very clear picture of how the battle will develop.

During his speech to the House of Commons (see below), Winston Churchill states that:

The loss of the Nile Valley and the Suez Canal and the loss of our position in the Mediterranean, as well as the loss of Malta, would be among the heaviest blows which we could sustain. 

Basically, Churchill confirms the wisdom of German Admiral Raeder's "peripheral strategy" which so far has worked well and still retains a lot of promise.

At Malta, there are several air raid alerts. The planes attack Luqa Airfield and some other military positions, and the RAF loses two Hurricanes when the planes collide (one pilot killed).

Lord Gort arrives at Gibraltar as the new Governor and Commander-in-Chief.

The front page of the New York Daily News, 7 May 1941.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Pinguin is operating in the Arabian Sea a few hundred miles off Somalia when it spots and sinks 3663-ton British tanker British Emperor. There are 45 deaths total; while many men are taken on board the Pinguin, it will sink on the 8th and take them to their deaths. This is because the radio operator on the British Emperor manages to get off a distress call, which draws in Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Eagle and heavy cruisers Cornwall and Hawkins from the port of Mombasa. New Zealand light cruiser Leander and light cruisers Glasgow and Liverpool also join in the search for the Pinguin.

Spy Stuff: In an unusual incident, the Royal Navy has diverted three light cruisers (HMS Birmingham, Edinburgh, and Manchester) from their coverage of minelaying Operation SN 9A to seek out a German weather ship off Iceland. This is Operation EB, and it succeeds when the cruisers capture 306-ton German weather ship Munchen. The weather ship is taken to Thorshavn.

Capturing the German ship itself, though, is not the real prize. Among other things, quick action by men on destroyer Somali recovers valuable Enigma codes from the Munchen. Such codes can be extremely valuable so long as the Germans don't know they have been broken because Kriegsmarine Enigma operators are extremely careful and it is difficult to break their codes otherwise. Such codes also typically remain in effect for extended periods.

Australian/Canadian Relations: After an exhausting trip across the Atlantic by flying boat from Portugal to New York, Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies boards a Douglas bomber and flies up to Ottawa for talks with Canadian leader MacKenzie King. Australia and Canada have a tight relationship because many Australian pilots are being trained in Canada at Empire Air Training Schools in Canada. Menzies gives five speeches and shows films of bomb damage in England.

View from the Victoria Monument in Derby Square, Liverpool during the May Blitz (Stewart Bale).

British Government: Winston Churchill gives a speech, giving a nod to his erstwhile French allies by making kindly references to Napoleon (who British troops defeated, caught and exiled, of course):

Some have compared Hitler’s conquests with those of Napoleon. It may be that Spain and Russia will shortly furnish new chapters to that theme. It must be remembered, however, that Napoleon’s armies carried with them the fierce, liberating and equalitarian winds of the French Revolution, whereas Hitler’s empire has nothing behind it but racial self-assertion, espionage, pillage, corruption and the Prussian boot.

During his remarks, Churchill bashes Leslie Hore-Belisha, the former Secretary of War under Neville Chamberlain. He accuses Hore-Belisha at length and in great detail for not focusing sufficiently on tank development and production. Hore-Belisha, who is present, retorts that Churchill is "indulging in petty recriminations," has not been in that position "for 20 months," and that Churchill has "enjoyed unprecedented powers" since becoming Prime Minister and thus - presumably - should bear the blame for any current deficiencies. The exchange reflects deep worry among the British about the state of their tank forces as compared to the feared panzers.

The House of Commons holds a vote of confidence in the government, and Prime Minister Winston Churchill prevails by 447 to 3. This evidences a slight firming in his overall support despite recent reversals in Libya and Greece.

China: The Battle of South Shanxi, aka the Battle of Jinnan and Zhongtiao Mountains Campaign and the Chungyuan Operation, begins. The Japanese Imperial Army's North China Front Army with six divisions and three brigades under Hayao Tada attacks to secure the Zhongtiao Mountains. The Japanese 3rd Air Group supports ground operations. The Chinese defense is hampered by extreme friction between the separate Nationalist (Kuomintang) and Communist (CPC) forces. The Japanese quickly move to surround the Nationalist Chinese forces, and they call on aid from nearby Communist forces of the 8th Route Army.

Serbia: The Sanski Most revolt continues. Ustaše authorities take prominent hostages at the railway station army barracks to prevent any more attacks on their people. The Germans respond to Ustaše calls for assistance and send 42 soldiers from their base at Prijedor and secure the area of the revolt. However, word has gotten out about the revolt to the surrounding area, and Serbs begin to pour into Tramošnja looking for a fight. The Ustaše kill three Serbs, while the Germans take three casualties. The day ends with Serbs forming a defensive perimeter on the slopes of Kijevska Gora above Sjenokos. The Germans order more troops to the area.

American Homefront: Detroit Tigers baseball star Hank Greenberg, who was drafted on 16 October 1940, is inducted into the US Army and reports to Fort Custer at Battle Creek, Michigan. Greenberg initially was turned down by the draft board (marked 4F) due to "flat feet," but Greenberg requested to be readmitted and ultimately was found fit for military service. He states: "I made up my mind to go when I was called. My country comes first." He trains as an anti-tank gunner and ultimately, with a temporary break in service, will serve for 47 months, the longest of any major league player.

"Ronald Ford (aged 7) climbs a drainpipe to show that there are no ill effects following his inoculation against diphtheria, which took place the day before (7 May 1941) at Argyle Street School Clinic." © IWM (D 3179).

May 1941

May 1, 1941: British Hold Tobruk
May 2, 1941: Anglo-Iraq War
May 3, 1941: Liverpool Hammered
May 4, 1941: Hitler Victory Speech
May 5, 1941: Patriots Day
May 6, 1941: Stalin In Command
May 7, 1941: May Blitz
May 8, 1941: Pinguin Sunk
May 9, 1941: U-110 Captured
May 10, 1941: Hess Flies Into History
May 11, 1941: The Hess Peace Plan
May 12, 1941: Tiger Arrives Safely
May 13, 1941: Keitel's Illegal Order
May 14, 1941: Holocaust in Paris
May 15, 1941: Operation Brevity
May 16, 1941: Blitz Ends
May 17, 1941: Habbaniya Relieved
May 18, 1941: Croatia Partitioned
May 19, 1941: Bismarck at Sea
May 20, 1941: Invasion of Crete
May 21, 1941: Robin Moore Sinking
May 22, 1941: Royal Navy Destruction Off Crete
May 23, 1941: Crete Must Be Won
May 24, 1941: Bismarck Sinks Hood
May 25, 1941: Lütjens' Brilliant Maneuver
May 26, 1941: Bismarck Stopped
May 27, 1941: Bismarck Sunk
May 28, 1941: Crete Lost
May 29, 1941: Royal Navy Mauled Off Crete
May 30, 1941: Sorge Warns, Stalin Ignores
May 31, 1941: British Take Baghdad

2020