Tuesday 5 August 1941

A Finnish soldier advances past a burning Soviet tank, apparently a BT-7. 5 August 1941 (SA-Kuva).

Eastern Front: While the Wehrmacht retains the initiative throughout the Soviet Union as of 5 August 1941, casualties are mounting. Virtually every active division has thousands of casualties, some topping 4,000 men (out of a strength of 17,000). The OKH requires 24 trains a day just to maintain daily supplies to the troops, but only 18 make the trip on average. Of course, Soviet losses are high as well. Aside from the many divisions captured in the large encirclements, Soviet divisions still in the field have been whittled down in some cases to fewer than 2000 men. The Soviets, however, have large reserves, while the Germans keep a much higher proportion of their total strength at the front.

In the Far North sector, Finnish troops continue advancing east toward Kestenga and the Murmansk railroad. At Petsamo, Finnish authorities take control of the very valuable Petsamo Nickel Company, a major source of nickel that the Germans badly need.

In the Army Group North sector, German 18th Army (Colonel General Georg von Kuchler) approaches the Narva River and is besieging Tallinn. The Army Group has a line running from Kingisepp running south just east of Staraya Russa and Kholm and then linking up with Army Group Center's 9th Army at Velikiye Luki.

Soviet troops captured during 1941.

In the Army Group Center sector, Soviet 16th and 20th armies in the "Smolensk pocket" (which isn't actually in Smolensk) surrender. About 310,000 Soviets go into captivity along with their 3200 tanks and 3100 guns. Marshal Timoshenko assembles a sketchy new defensive line about 20 miles east of Smolensk.

The German infantry released by the end of Soviet resistance at Smolensk immediately moves forward to replace the 10th Panzer Division and Das Reich Motorized Division at Yelnya. The two German armored divisions are exhausted after having defended this "lightning rod" salient. The Soviets know that Yelnya is a key location because it controls a crossing over the Desna River and an east-west rail station.

General Guderian's Panzer Group 2 continues to battle Soviet 28th Army near Roslavl, which the Germans capture. The Soviets have about 35,000 troops trapped there with little hope of escape.

In the Army Group South sector, Romanian 4th Army (Lieutenant-general Nicolae Ciupercă) and German 11th Army approach the port of Odesa on the Black Sea. Today generally is accepted as the first day of the defense of Odessa. Romanian leader Ion Antonescu has been promised control over the entire region between the Dniester and the Bug rivers, but he has to occupy it first. The Soviets in Odessa have orders to make a last stand there - which means there will be no evacuation by sea. At Kyiv, the Soviet 5th Army counterattacks the German 6th Army with little effect.

On 5 August 1941, Sergeant Toivo Manninen leads an attack on the "hill of death" west of Kiesting on the southern shore of Lake Saarijärvi  He takes command of his platoon after the leader is killed. Despite suffering an injury from a landmine that seriously damages his foot, Manninen struggles forward on one foot to lead his men to capture the objective. For his pains today, Manninen earns the Knight of the Mannerheim Cross No.100, awarded September 17, 1942, by Lieutenant-General Hjalmar Siilasvuo .

European Air Operations: During the day, the RAF sends 20 Blenheim bombers on Rhubarb sweeps across Cherbourg, the River Scheldt, and the Frisian Islands. A Circus Operation over St. Omer is recalled. No planes are lost today.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command makes a major effort against multiple targets. Results are good, and bomber losses are acceptable to maintain a sustainable bombing offensive.

The RAF sends 65 Wellingtons and 33 Hampden bombers against Mannheim and nearby Ludwigshafen, losing two Wellingtons and one Hampden. The raid is a big success, destroying five businesses and damaging three more (including a celluloid factory hit when a bomber crashes into it). The celluloid factory production is reduced by 75% for 8 days. In addition, 10 houses are destroyed with 572 damaged. In total, 27 people perish and 55 are injured.

The second target of the night is at Karlsruhe. The RAF sends 97 bombers (50 Hampdens, 28 Wellingtons, 11 Halifaxes, and 8 Stirlings) against railway targets. At a cost of one Halifax, one Wellington, and one Hampden, the RAF causes moderate damage in the western Weststadt, Muhlberg, and Rhine Harbor areas. There are 34 people killed.

The third target of the night is at Frankfurt. The RAF sends 68 aircraft (46 Whitleys and 22 Wellingtons), losing 2 Whitleys and one Wellington. While the bomber pilots claim to have hit the target, some bombs fall on Mainz 20 miles away.

In addition, in diversionary raids, RAF Bomber Command sends 13 Wellingtons to Aachen, 8 Wellingtons to Boulogne, and 5 Hampdens on mine-laying off the eastern coast of Denmark. The RAF loses two Wellingtons over Aachen, all of the other raiders return safely.

For the night, RAF Bomber Command flies 289 sorties and loses 11 aircraft. The loss rate of 3.8% is under the 5% threshold usually considered sustainable.

A Lockheed Hudson V9055 crashes at Kaldaðarnes, Iceland when sheep run across the runway during takeoff, collapsing the left landing gear. The ensuing fire causes the depth charges in the Hudson to explode. The crew survives, but a bystander has his left arm cut off by a piece of a propeller blade that flies across the runway.

New Zealand Sergeant J.A. Ward is awarded the Victoria Cross. Ward earned it on the night of 7 July 1941 while serving as a co-pilot in an RAF No. 75 Squadron Vickers Wellington.

SS Swiftpool, sunk by U-372 on 5 August 1941 while in Convoy SL-81.

Battle of the Atlantic: The Germans have known about the location of North Atlantic Convoy SL-81 long enough from reconnaissance to set up a picket line of U-boats in front of it. Today, they attack.

U-372 (Kptlt. Heinz-Joachim Neumann), on its first patrol out of Kiel, torpedoes is in position west of Ireland to attack Convoy SL-81shortly after midnight. At 01:50, Neumann attacks and sinks two British freighters:

• 3136-ton Belgravian (2-3 deaths, 47 survivors)
• 5205-ton Swiftpool (42 deaths, 7 survivors)

Neumann claims to hit another ship, but that is unconfirmed.

U-75 (Kptlt. Helmuth Ringelmann), on its third patrol out of St. Nazaire, then takes his turn to attack Convoy SL-81 at 05:20. Ringelmann fires a spread that sinks two British freighters:

• 4512-ton Cape Rodney (all 35 survive)
• 5415-ton Harlingen (2-3 deaths, 39 survivors)

Cape Rodney is taken in tow by tug HMS Zwarte Zee, but sinks on 9 August west of Ushant.
U-74 (Kptlt. Eitel-Friedrich Kentrat), on its third patrol out of Lorient, also attacks Convoy SL-81 at 05:40. Captain Kentrat torpedoes and sinks British 4922-ton British freighter Kumasian. There is one death and 59 people (including 9 passengers) survive and are picked up by escort corvette HMS La Malouine. Kentrat reports hitting and damaging three other ships, but that is not confirmed.

So, in the span of a few hours, Convoy SL-81 effectively loses five ships totaling about 23,000 tons. U-204 also claims to make a hit on a large ship, but there is no confirmation.

In the far North, German Dornier reconnaissance aircraft shadow Force A off the coast of Norway. Following the disastrous raids on Kirkenes and Petsamo and the desultory results at Spitzbergen, the Admiralty decides that further actions in the region are a bad idea and recalls the force.

Convoy SL-83 departs from Freetown, Sierra Leone bound for Liverpool, Convoy HX-143 departs from Halifax bound for Liverpool.

Royal Navy destroyers HMS Partridge and Lauderdale are launched, and escort carrier Campania is laid down.

Canadian corvette HMCS Amherst and minesweeper Ungava (Lt. Frank K. Ellis) are commissioned.

Greek destroyer Miaoulis (formerly HMS Modbury) is laid down.

Adolf Hitler during his visit to the Eastern Front, Aug. 5,1941 (Associated Press).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The siege of Tobruk drags on, with nightly bombing and Australian soldiers getting sick from bad food and water. The Germans bomb every night, but the days are generally quiet... and hot. And full of flies.

Operation Guillotine, the British reinforcement of Cyprus, continues. Australian light cruiser Hobart and three destroyers leave Port Said bound for Famagusta. In separate sailings, Australian sloop Parramatta also departs from Port Said escorting freighter Gujarat to Famagusta, while destroyer Kipling proceeds from Port Said to Famagusta as well. Greek destroyer Kondouriotis departs from Alexandria bound for Famagusta carrying torpedoes for the Fleet Air Arm Squadron No. 815.

Destroyers HMS Decoy and Hero make the nightly supply run to Tobruk without incident.

An Axis convoy departs from Naples bound for Tripoli with five freighters.

Axis bombers attack Malta from about 21:38 to about an hour after midnight. The Italians lose at least two Italian BR-20 bombers and possibly a third.

Battle of the Pacific: Troop convoy WS 9AX arrives at Singapore after a long journey from the UK with reinforcements

Special Operations: Secret Intelligence Service (SIS aka MI6) agent Bradley Davis parachutes into France to join the Alliance Réseau (network) partisan organization as a radio operator. He later turns into a double agent working on behalf of the Germans.

Partisans: General Alessandro Pirzio Biroli, under orders from Mussolini to suppress the ongoing uprising in Montenegro "at whatever cost," issues an order to the local population to surrender all firearms. Biroli makes plans to launch an Italian counter-offensive, the first by Axis troops against partisans in Yugoslavia or apparently anywhere else. He has six divisions with a total of 70,000 troops.

The U.S. heavy cruiser USS Northampton (CA-26) entering the river at Brisbane, Australia, on 5 August 1941. Note her false bow wave Camouflage Measure 5 on Camouflage Measure 1. She carries one of the early CXAM radars on her mainmast (Naval History and Heritage Command NH 94596).

US/Vichy French Relations: US Ambassador Leahy sends a long telegram to Washington which contains a memorandum from Vice-Premier Admiral Darlan. Darlan's memo attempts to explain such matters as its acquiescence to Imperial Japan's virtual occupation of French Indochina. Darlan explains that France had no choice because the Japanese would have seized the country anyway. He also calls the recent conflict in Syria and Lebanon the result of "deliberate aggression" which France had the "obligation" to resist. Darlan concludes by asking for US "comprehension" of its "problems so grave that it is difficult for third parties to appreciate their extent."

Anglo/Vichy French Relations: The British imprison Vichy French General Dentz, former commander of French forces in the Levant. They refuse to release him until all Allied troops captured in the Levant and then spirited away to metropolitan France are returned and released.

US/Australian Relations: US heavy cruisers USS Northampton and Salt Lake City arrive at Brisbane, Australia on the first stop of a goodwill tour.

This photo with the lady in the car is from August 5th, 1941. You are facing north with Buick parts and service #84 in the background (Buick City News).

Vichy French/Japanese Relations: Japanese Ambassador Kato tries to see Admiral Darlan regarding French recognition of the puppet Ching-wei government in China but is rebuffed because Darlan is "away." Kato is shunted off to Acting Vice Minister Ernest Lagarde, who advises the Japanese to be patient for another two or three months.

Anglo/US/Japanese Relations: Japanese merchants make purchases of gasoline from the stores of three foreign oil companies on Tainan. This is in technical violation of the US oil embargo on Japan. The Japanese take the chance that this will anger the Americans and permit the purchases under strict supervision. Oil supplies already are running tight in some areas of the Japanese sphere of influence.

At Tsingtao, China, Japanese authorities clamp down on American and British companies. The Japanese impose various sanctions, and in effect place receivers in control of the businesses who have the final say on all decisions. No ownership interest may be transferred without Japanese approval, and the Japanese decide on the distribution of profits.

The Japanese learn that the US, British, and Chinese are planning to build a military road through Darjeeling, Tibet, and Seita in order to supply the Nationalist government in Chungking, with engineering material already being assembled and prepared in the United States.

A German death card for a soldier killed during the fighting of 5 August 1941.

US Military: The Vultee SNV Valiant makes its first flight. Deliveries soon begin to Naval Air Station (NAS) Corpus Christi, Texas. The plane quickly takes on the nickname "Vultee Vibrator" because it tends to vibrate in situations including high airspeed and approaching stalling speed.

Japanese Military: The Imperial Japanese Army considers attacking northward and seizing the trans-Siberian railroad in order to stop US lend-lease shipments. The issue apparently arises from a suggestion by the Japanese Ambassador in Rome, who thinks it best to help eliminate the Soviet Union before it can combine with the Americans in a general war. However, the Japanese high command decides that it would be wiser to not provoke the Soviets and Americans and let the matter drop without approval.

No. 3 Bombing and Gunnery School trainees from Sydney, Australia, MacDonald, Manitoba July 6 - August 5, 1941.

Australian Military: Lieutenant General Sir Iven Giffard Mackay, commander of the Australian 6th Division, is appointed to the command of Australian Home Forces. Mackay must fly back to Australia in order to take up the position, which will take until 1 September.

US Government: Presidential yacht USS Potomac (AG-35) pulls alongside heavy cruiser Augusta (CA-31) at Menemsha Bight, Vineyard Sound, Massachusetts at 05:30. President Roosevelt and his advisers on board the cruiser, which embarks at 06:17 to cross north through the Cape Cod Canal. Press dispatches pretend that Roosevelt remains on board the Potomac (an elaborate ruse is implemented with a Roosevelt double remaining on the yacht) while the Augusta and accompanying cruiser Tuscaloosa (CA-37) continues north toward Canada.

Vice-Premier adds control over France's North Africa colonies in Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco to his resume. General Weygand is his deputy. The Germans are not fond of Weygand, who is opposed to German use of Vichy French ports and bases in North Africa.

Westmount, Quebec train station, 5 August 1941 (Old Time Trains, Bud Laws Collection).

Lithuania: The Provisional Government of Lithuania, a temporary government formed by members of the Lithuanian Activist Front (LAF) in Kaunas and Vilnius and seeking the goal of an independent Lithuania, is disbanded by the Germans. The Germans have no interest in independent states within their area of control, and the provisional government also is opposed to the Holocaust.

Holocaust: The Germans begin liquidations of Jews in Pinsk, which they occupied on 4 July. About 8000 Jewish men, including 20 members of the Judenrat, are ordered to repair a railroad track. However, they are marched to pits outside of town and executed. Over the next few days, the death total climbs to about 10-11,000.

French Homefront: Vichy limits wine consumption to two liters per person per week.

John F. Kennedy ca. 1939.

American Homefront: In Eleanor Roosevelt's "My Day" column, she describes how "we" traveled through upstate New York over the weekend. She never mentions who is with her, leaving the clear implication that it is her husband. However, President Roosevelt at this time is at sea sailing up the east coast to Canada on a top-secret mission.

New York Times, 5 August 1941. "Full U.S. Aid Pledged Russia."

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

2020

Sunday 27 July 1941

"Home Guard troops 'fighting' Valentine tanks of 6th Armoured Division during large-scale manoeuvres at Yelden in Bedfordshire, 27 July 1941." © IWM (H 12081).

Eastern Front: Field Marshal Fedor von Bock, commander of Army Group Center, holds a conference on 27 July 1941 at his headquarters at Novy Borisov. Commander-in-Chief Walther von Brauchitsch, the head of the Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH), the Supreme High Command of the Wehrmacht, attends. The gist of the meeting is simple: follow the Fuhrer's orders. While the assembled generals sit silently, one of Brauchitsch's aides reads a memorandum. It states that the generals are to follow Hitler Directive 33, which specifies that there is to be a pause in the offensive while bypassed Soviet units are subdued, the line is straightened, and repair and maintenance take place.

It is an odd event, made necessary in the eyes of OKW and Hitler due to the strong opposition by many generals and Field Marshals to this strategy. The main targets are Generals Guderian and Hoth, whose Panzer Groups 2 and 3, respectively, have outpaced their colleagues. Both generals disagree, with Guderian writing in his journal that Hitler:

preferred a plan by which small enemy forces were to be encircled and destroyed piecemeal and the enemy thus bled to death. All the officers who took part in the conference were of the opinion that this was incorrect.

The importance of the meeting is not so much what is said, but the fact that Hitler and von Brauchitsch feel it is necessary at all. That it is held at the Army Group Center headquarters also is significant, given that von Bock, Hoth, and Guderian are intent on taking Moscow, which they feel is easily within their grasp.

When the meeting is over, Guderian hurriedly puts together a plan with Hoth and von Bock to honor Directive 33 in form, but not in substance. From here on, generals on the eastern front will often operate through "back channels" and conduct their operations with increasingly looser "interpretations" of OKW (and Hitler) orders.

There is something to be said for both the OKW position and that of von Bock, Hoth, and Guderian. On the one hand, the panzers have been fighting steadily for over a month and simply driving for that long puts a heavy strain on the equipment, let alone engaging in endless combat. On the other hand, however, the Red Army is reeling and it is imperative for the Wehrmacht to destroy the Soviet capacity to resist quickly during good campaigning weather.

In this July 1941 propaganda shot, Red Army soldiers are on a TIZ AM-600 motorcycle with a mounted DP-27 machine gun.

In the Far North sector, the German 36 Corps (General Hans Feige), under pressure from the Army of Norway (AOK Norwegen) headquarters (General Nikolaus von Falkenhorst), attacks the Soviet defenses east of Salla. The attack, the first in weeks, gains no ground at a heavy cost in lives. Feige regroups for another try in a couple of days.

In the Army Group North sector, the Germans approach the Estonian capital Tallinn and capture it late in the day. There is heavy fighting near Velikiye Luki.

In the Army Group Center sector, German forces, after many days of trying, finally link up to the east of Smolensk. This happens when XXXIX Korps (General R. Schmidt) of Panzer Group 3 meets XLVII Korps (General J. Lemelsen) of Panzer Group 2. There is little question that at this stage of the war the panzers of Generals Hoth and Guderian have formed a powerful combination that is clearing the way east.

In the Mogilev area, Soviet resistance ends due to a lack of supplies. About 35,000 Soviet troops go into captivity. A small number of trapped soldiers manage to escape to the east.

This closes a massive pocket that traps large portions of Soviet 16th, 19th, and 20th Armies. The Soviets immediately begin planning a breakout, to be led by the 20th Army. The German line is weak because the infantry is still struggling to catch up with the panzers on the eastern side of the pocket.

In the Army Group South sector, Soviet 26th Army counterattacks Panzer Group 1. The panzers are greatly in need of repair and maintenance, as noted in the war diary of LVII Korps (General Kuntzen):

It must be understood that without a rapid and plentiful supply of track rollers, track links and bolts for the Mark IV and track bolts for the Kpfw 38(t) the number of available panzers will sink further so that the combat strength of the panzer regiments will be greatly weakened. Still especially urgent is the delivery of fully operational motors, gearboxes, oil and specialized panzer grease.

The Bf 109E7 "White 12" of Luftwaffe ace Lt. Joachim Müncheberg in Libya, 7,/JG 27, July 1941.

European Air Operations: Weather is poor over northwest Europe today. This causes problems for the RAF, but not for the Germans.

RAF Bomber Command sends six Blenheim bombers on a raid to the Yainville power station. However, the heavy clouds cause the bombers to turn back without completing their mission. A Circus raid over Le Trait accomplishes little.

Later, the RAF attempts a raid by 14 Wellingtons and Whitleys to Dunkirk. However, these bombers also have to turn back due to the weather. Minor operations by 36 Hampdens laying mines off of Lorient and St. Nazaire, however, are successful. The British lose one bomber.

After dark, the Luftwaffe makes its largest raid on London in 10 weeks, putting 50 aircraft over the capital. The Germans lose four planes.

Battle of the Baltic: The German 3rd Motor Torpedo Boat Flotilla (S-54, S-55, S-57, and S-58) attacks Soviet shipping in the Gulf of Riga. S-54 and S-55 sink 1690-ton Soviet destroyer Smelyi, while S-57 and S-58 attack other ships without success at Oesel. The motor torpedo boats also sink Latvian coaster Lashplesis off Saaremaa, Estonia.

The Red Air Force bombs and sinks 338-ton German trawler Elbing III near Libau.

HMS Whitehall armed with experimental depth charge throwers in the bows. These are tested on 27 July 1941 (Beadell, SJ (Lt), © IWM (A 4671)).

Battle of the Atlantic: Luftwaffe reconnaissance spotted Convoy OG-69 off Cape Finisterre, Spain on the 26th. U-boat command (BdU) assembled a picket line in its path. Today, the first attacks occur in the early morning hours. There is some disagreement about which U-boats sunk what freighters, which is not unusual for convoy battles involving wolfpacks.

U-79 (Kptlt. Wolfgang Kaufmann), on its second patrol out of Lorient, fires four torpedoes at 02:54 and sinks the 2475-ton British freighter Hawkinge. There are 15 deaths. U-79 also claims to sink two other freighters today, but those are usually attributed to other U-boats.

U-203 (Kptlt. Rolf Mützelburg), on its second patrol out of St. Nazaire, torpedos and sinks 2475-ton British freighter Hawkinge. There are 14 deaths.

U-126 (Kptlt. Ernst Bauer), on its first patrol out of Bremen, torpedoes and sinks two ships:

5102-ton British freighter Erato
1304-ton Norwegian freighter Inga I

There are nine deaths on Erato (27 survivors, including the master) and three on Inga I (16 survivors, including the master). U-126 also claims to sink two other ships today, but those are usually allocated to U-79 and U-203.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 198-ton British fishing trawler Ben Strome about fifteen miles southeast of Fuglo Island in the Faroes. Everybody on board, ten men, perishes.

The RAF drops an aerial mine on 1582-ton Danish freighter Knud Vellemoes north of Heligoland, sinking it.

SS Hawkinge, sunk by U-79 on 27 July 1941.

Royal Navy torpedo boats attack German destroyer Friedrich Ihn during a routine voyage north to Calais but do not cause any damage.

Norwegian 4785-ton freighter Lidvard escapes from internment at Dakar into the Atlantic. A chase ensues as Vichy French light cruisers Georges Leygues and Gloire, aircraft, and submarine Acteon attempt to stop Lidvard. However, the Norwegian ship is spotted by Royal Navy destroyer Highlander, which takes it to Freetown.

Royal Navy corvettes HMS Gardenia and Amaranthus intercept 130-ton Vichy French auxiliary patrol ship Edith Germaine off the African coast. However, reflecting the complicated politics involved, the Royal Navy ships allow the Vichy French ship to proceed.

Operation FB, the attack on Kirkenes (in conjunction with Operation EF), proceeds as Force A departs from Scapa Flow bound for Seidisfjord, Norway.

U-371 (Kptlt. Heinrich Driver) spots Convoy OS-1 west of Portugal and shadows it.

Convoy ON-2 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HX-141 departs from Halifax bound for Liverpool.

"A view of 5 throwers in line. Depth charges can be seen ready, loaded into the muzzle of the thrower. Ratings can be seen preparing the depth charges." The sailors on HMS Whitehall call the experimental Fairlie mortars, which are tested on 27 July 1941, the "Five Wide Virgins." © IWM (A 4664).

Battle of the Mediterranean: Operation Substance, a successful Royal Navy supply run to Malta, ends when Force H arrives back at Gibraltar.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Tetrarch uses its deck gun to sink Italian caique Nicita about five miles south of the Greek island of Kos.

Operation Guillotine, the reinforcement by the Royal Navy of Cyprus, continues as 6676-ton transport Salamalia departs Port Said for Famagusta.

The Luftwaffe attacks the Suez Canal during the night.

An Axis convoy departs from Naples bound for Tripoli. It has a heavy escort which includes the Italian 8th Cruiser Division. A return convoy from Tripoli also puts to sea.

Battle of the Baltic: Soviet passenger ship Lenin hits a mine and sinks within 10 minutes between Sevastopol and Yalta. There are about 643 survivors and 1000+ deaths, including a large fraction of 1200 Soviet soldiers of the Red Army reserves. The best estimates place the total casualties at 2500-4600 people, but there is no passenger list. Apparently, the mine was in a "friendly" minefield in an area that the Lenin should have avoided. Navy pilot Lieutenant I.I. Svistun survives the sinking, but not for long - Svistun is blamed for the blunder. He will be shot for his error on 24 August.

"A bow view of HMS WHITEHALL, showing the depth charge throwers." 27 July 1941 (Beadell, SJ (Lt), © IWM (A 4672))

Special Operations: After dark, British Commandos of No. 12 Command (Second Lieutenant Philip Pinckney) undertake Operation Chess. This is a reconnaissance and training raid on Ambleteuse, Pas-de-Calais, France. The Commandos cross the English Channel in two motor launches and land at a random spot about two miles from the Slack River near Ambleteuse. The men remain ashore for a couple of hours, accomplish little aside from stand on French soil, and they are picked up by a landing craft. The British are encouraged at being able to complete the operation undetected and plan more such missions.

War Crimes: OKW Chief Wilhelm Keitel orders destroyed all copies of the OKW order of 13 May 1941 which provided, among other things, that Wehrmacht soldiers could commit crimes on the eastern front with impunity. The order, issued under Keitel's signature, also provided that civilians suspected of partisan activities could be shot. However, the order itself is not rescinded. In fact, Keitel basically supplemented the 13 +May order on 23 July 1941, when he issued an order stating that legal punishments are inadequate for quelling civil disturbances and the Wehrmacht is free to use whatever means it so chooses to subdue the Soviet population. Copies of the German orders survive in Soviet files and are used against Keitel at the Nuremberg trials.

Partisans: There is an uprising by several hundred Serb men in Srb, Croatia. It is motivated by the killings of local Serbs by Ustasa units led by Vjekoslav Maks Luburic. This is a very controversial incident, and the controversy centers around exactly what the uprising was about and who it was directed against. The official state description is that it was an uprising by local Serbs against the occupying German forces, while some others claim that it was a nationalist uprising by ethnic Serbs directed against Croat civilians.

Lieutenant-General Henry Alexander Seyffardt, commander of the Volunteer Legion Netherlands, hands a member of the Legion their flag before departing for the German-Soviet front (The Hague, 27 July 1941).

Propaganda: Rome Radio touts the failed motor-launch attack on Malta's Grand Harbour on the 26th as a resounding success. However, it does slightly hedge its bets:

It is not possible to say what damage was inflicted on the British Navy but knowing how our seamen delivered the attack one must rest assured that at least eight more British units have been rendered unseaworthy. With this exploit which may be compared with the greatest naval battles was concluded a three-day epic, opened on 23 July by the action of one of our submarines and so successfully carried out by our aviation and MAs.

Of course, the Italian attackers didn't disable any Royal Navy ships at all and only managed to destroy an old stone bridge.

US/Japanese Relations: The Japanese lodge a diplomatic protest with the United States over the delivery of war supplies to the Soviet port of Vladivostok. This technically violates neutrality laws, but the US at this point isn't too worried about those.

German/Spanish Relations: The Spanish add to their volunteer Blue Division on the eastern front by sending a small volunteer air group. The Escuadra Azul joins III,/JG 27 to become 15,/JG 27 of General Kesselring's Luftlotte 2. Captain Angel Salas Larrazabal leads the unit, which is equipped with Bf 109E fighters.

German motorized AT troops near Cholm, 27 July 1941.

German/Romanian Relations: Hitler is pleased with the Romanian army's performance to date. Now that Romanian troops have "recovered" their "lost" territories, however, they may act like the Finns have recently in Karelia and decide to curtail further offensive operations. To avoid this, Hitler sends a letter to his fellow dictator that specifically asks Ion Antonescu to clear the entire area between the Dniester and Bug Rivers and add it to the Romanian province of Transnistria. Antonescu, eager to add to Romanian territory, agrees.

Ecuadorian/Peruvian War: While a cease-fire is being negotiated, it has not yet taken effect. The Peruvian military has a paratrooper unit which it uses today to seize the port city of Puerto Bolivar. This is the first time in the Americas (and one of the very few times ever) that airborne troops are used to successfully seize a strategic objective from enemy control.

Soviet Military: The NKVD executes the son and nephews, four teens in total, of Lavrentiy Beria's old nemesis Nestor Lakoba in Moscow. In addition, the State Defense Committee condemns to death nine more Soviet officers whose crime is failing to stop the Germans.

General Douglas MacArthur.

US Military: General MacArthur, promoted officially to Lieutenant General as he returns to active duty in the US Army today, establishes his headquarters at No. 1 Calle Victoria in Manila. MacArthur makes his quarters in the building's penthouse. He controls the newly created United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE). USAFFE has roughly 20,000 troops in the Philippines, many of whom are Philippine auxiliaries. MacArthur is uniquely positioned to supervise operations in the Philippines because he has been a Philippine Field Marshal for several years despite having retired from the US Army in the late 1930s.

General Lemelsen receives the Knight's Cross at the hand of Adolf Hitler on or about 27 July 1941 (Heinrich Hoffmann).

German Military: The German commander in chief of the Order Police in occupied Kraków issues an order that brings into existence the local municipal police force (UP) in the occupied Ukrainian SSR. In the newly formed Reichskommissariat Ukraine the auxiliary police forces are named Schutzmannschaft. The units are used primarily to keep order and carry out constabulary duties, but also participate in various war crimes relating to the Holocaust.

General der Panzertruppe Joachim Hermann August Lemelsen receives the Knights Cross today for his performance in command of the 47 Panzerkorps at Smolensk.

Luftwaffe ace (27 victories) Hans Kolbow, KIA 17 July 1941 south of Stara Bychow by Soviet flak, is posthumously awarded the Ritterkreuz.

Japanese Government: Japan Finance Minister Masatsune Ogura announces that the proper plan for Japan is to "forge ahead towards the establishment of the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity sphere." The Imperial General Headquarters is reaching the same conclusion and making plans to strike to the south, not north toward the Soviet Union in order to help its ally Germany.

A Peruvian Navy Almirante Grau class cruiser in Ecuadorian waters during the Peruvian/Ecuadorian conflict, July 1941.

British Government: The government nationalizes the railroads for the duration.

German Government: During his evening rambles with cronies, Hitler gives his vision of a successful campaign in the USSR:

We must take care to prevent a military power from ever again establishing itself on this side of the Urals, for our neighbors to the West would always be allied with our neighbors to the East. That's how the French once made common cause with the Turks, and now the English are behaving in the same fashion with the Soviets. When I say, on this side of the Urals, I mean a line running two or three hundred kilometers east of the Urals.

Heretofore, there has been virtually no discussion within the German government as to what a successful conclusion to Operation Barbarossa would look like. At least now Hitler indicates that the limit of the Wehrmacht's advance would be slightly beyond the Ural mountain range. Presumably, a decapitated Soviet state would remain on the far side of the Urals, with the Wehrmacht watching it sort of like Roman soldiers manning the Danube.

Iceland: Advance units of the US 45th Infantry Division arrive at Reykjavik. US transport American Legion sets sail for Iceland from Norfolk, Virginia carrying part of the USAAF 33rd Pursuit Squadron. Its planes travel aboard the aircraft carrier USS Wasp (CV-7). US Task Force TF.16, led by battleship Mississippi, escorts the Wasp to the north.

Jews at Kovno, Lithuania being assembled before being led to the Seventh Fort to be executed by the Lithuanian militia, 27 July 1941 (Yad Vashem Photo Archives 76BO2).

Holocaust: At Vilna, A German shakedown effort of the Jewish community gets deadly when the Germans execute two Judenrat members due to the inability of the Jewish community to meet a ransom demand.

Germans in Belgrade take 1200 Jews from Belgrade to the Tasmajdan concentration camp, where about 120 are shot.

Clothing taken from Jews in Ponas, Ukraine is sold.

Dutch Homefront: The Freiwillingen Legion Niederlander (Dutch Volunteer Legion), an auxiliary force for the SS, is established under the command of Lieutenant-General Henry Alexander Seyffardt.

American Homefront: David Ross Brower becomes the first to climb the Lost Brother peak in the Sierra Nevada, one of 33 peaks in the mountain range that he is the first to ascend. This apparently is Brower's last "first" in the range. He later recounts his experiences in "A Climber's Guide to the High Sierra" (Sierra Club, 1954). Brower will serve as a lieutenant in the US 10th Mountain Division and earn a Bronze Star in action in Italy.

Future History: Andrew McMaster is born in Carlton, Glasgow, Scotland. He becomes a very successful songwriter during the 1970s, writing or co-writing hits for the UK charts such as "Airport," "Forget About You," and "Dancing the Night Away." Andy McMaster continues to release material as of 2018.

The German forces arriving in Mogilev tell the Jewish women that they have to 'register' with the authorities. On or about 28 July 1941 (Kessler, Rudolf, Federal Archive).

July 1941

July 1, 1941: US TV Broadcasting Starts
July 2, 1941: MAUD Report
July 3, 1941: Stalin Speaks
July 4, 1941: Pogroms in Eastern Europe
July 5, 1941: Germans on Schedule
July 6, 1941: Australians Attack Damour
July 7, 1941: US Marines in Iceland
July 8, 1941: Flying Fortresses In Action
July 9, 1941: British Take Damour
July 10, 1941: Sword and Scabbard Order
July 11, 1941: Cease-fire in Syria and Lebanon
July 12, 1941: Anglo/Russian Assistance Pact
July 13, 1941: Uprising in Montenegro
July 14, 1941: Katyusha Rocket Launchers in Action
July 15, 1941: Smolensk Falls
July 16, 1941: Stalin's Son Captured
July 17, 1941: Heydrich Orders Mass Executions
July 18, 1941: Twin Pimples Raid
July 19, 1941: V for Victory
July 20, 1941: The Man Who Wouldn't Shoot
July 21, 1941: Moscow in Flames
July 22, 1941: Soviet Generals Executed
July 23, 1941: Secret Plan JB 355
July 24, 1941: Operation Sunrise
July 25, 1941: US Naval Alert
July 26, 1941: Italian E-Boat Attack on Malta
July 27, 1941: MacArthur Returns
July 28, 1941: Auschwitz Exterminations
July 29, 1941: Rescue From Crete
July 30, 1941: Raid on Petsamo and Kirkenes
July 31, 1941: Final Solution Order

2020

Tuesday 15 July 1941

A blown bridge at Kovno (Kaunas), Lithuania, 15 July 1941.

Eastern Front: Demonstrating that the Wehrmacht's striking power remains intact on 15 July 1941 despite weeks of unrelieved wear and tear and Soviet counterattacks, Generals Hoth and Guderian brush aside Soviet opposition at Smolensk. Ultimately, the Germans encircle about 300,000 Soviet troops in the Smolensk–Orsha pocket. It is an unalloyed victory and one of the great triumphs of Operation Barbarossa.

In the Far North sector, Finnish VI Corps advances toward Lake Ladoga from the northeast and continues clearing resistance on the eastern shore of the Jänisjärvi Lake (north of Lake Ladoga). The defending Soviet 7th Army opposing VI Corps is outnumbered and over-matched and struggles to maintain a front north of Lake Ladoga. However, Finnish VII Corps has been having much more trouble advancing parallel to VI Corps on the western shore of Jänisjärvi Lake, and only today does it run up against the main Soviet fortifications. The Finns hope that both Corps will be able to round the lake and meet to the south of it and surround the remaining Soviet defenders, but the two Finnish Corps are operating completely independently and must both overcome their respective opponents for that to happen. An advance to Lake Ladoga also would split the Soviet defenders.

In the Army Group North sector, Soviet 11th Army counterattacks against German 4th Panzer Group in the Lake Ilmen region. The Soviet forces are ravaged, but buy time for Soviet forces further back to build fortifications. In Leningrad, citizens begin building tank traps and other fortifications.

In the Army Group Center sector, the German 29th Motorized Division (General Walter von Bolternstern) of 47 Panzer Korps, supported by 17th Panzer Division, reach the outskirts of Smolensk by 04:00 and take the heart of the city by dark. Soviet 16th Army remains in the suburbs and launches counterattacks, which results in house-to-house fighting. This is a rarity so far during Operation Barbarossa, as the panzers so far have been able to stick to the roads and follow them east toward Moscow. German 7th Panzer Division and 20th Panzer Division bypass Smolensk and reach Yartsevo, to the city's east. Isolating the Soviet forces around Smolensk is more significant in the long run than actually taking the city, and to do both in the same day is a phenomenal achievement. General Hoth's 3rd Panzer Group takes Nevel.

In the Army Group South sector, the Battle of Uman begins when General Ewald von Kleist’s 1st Panzerarmee separates the two Soviet sectors of the front south of Kyiv and north of Vinnytsia by capturing Berdychiv. General Karl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel’s 17th Field Army advances to the south of Uman and General Eugen Ritter von Schobert’s 11th Field Army advances northward from the Romanian border. The plan is to encircle large Soviet formations in the vicinity of Kyiv, but the Soviets wrongly interpret the moves as part of an advance to the Dniepr between Kyiv and Cherkasy and further to the east. Romanian troops advance toward Kishinev.

Luftwaffe ace Werner Mölders.

Luftwaffe ace Werner Mölders makes files his 100th and 101st victory claims. He celebrates by making a victory roll over his JG 51 airfield. Mölders will receive the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillanten) for reaching the "C" mark.

Hartwig von Ludwiger is awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 15 July 1941 as Oberstleutnant and commander of Infanterie-Regiment 83 of the 28th Infantry Division for bravery in the vicinity of Smolensk.

The US 1st Armored Division on July 15, 1941. It is celebrating the first anniversary of its founding, hence the giant cake.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command sends 38 Wellington bombers to Duisburg after dark. The weather is cloudy, and little is achieved for the loss of 4 bombers to German Flak.

Battle of the Baltic: The German 3rd Motor Torpedo Boat Flotilla (S-47, 54, 57, and 58) attacks a Soviet destroyer in the Bay of Riga, but the destroyer gets away.

Just south of Finland, Soviet commandos invade the small Finnish island of Morgonland. The island is important to the Soviets because properly garrisoned, it could restrict access to their port of Hanko on the Finnish mainland, which is still holding out. The Finns only have five lightly armed men on Morgonland, and they are captured and sent to Kazakstan. One survives to see Finland again.

Soviet Zhytomyr-class river monitor Vinnytsia is operating in the Berezina River when it is hit by German field artillery. The master runs the ship aground to avoid sinking, then the crew later scuttles on the 16th to avoid capture.

"Two lieutenants, one a Royal Navy Reserve the other a Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve use coded tags to plot the positions of convoys on a large wall map of the British Isles and North Atlantic. This map is in the Operations Room of Derby House, Liverpool, the home of Western Approaches Command, July 1941" (© IWM (A 4545)).

Battle of the Atlantic: Italian submarine Morosini torpedoes and sinks 3500-ton Royal Navy ocean boarding ship HMS Lady Somers southeast of Ponta Delgada, Azores. All 138 men aboard survive, being picked up by 6382-ton Spanish freighter Campeche. The Admiralty is worried that Axis-leaning Spain will intern the sailors, so they send a small flotilla to intercept the Campeche. However, Campeche makes it to Lisbon and releases them there, from where 1033-ton British freighter Procris takes them to Gibraltar.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 468-ton British freighter Farfield about five nautical miles off South Stack in the Irish Sea. There are eight deaths, but one passenger, a naval rating, survives.

Royal Navy 2938-ton landing ship HMS Prince Philippe collides with 7463-ton freighter Empire Wave west of Scotland and sinks. There is one death.

Swedish freighter Iris collides with RFA Blue Ranger in the Firth of Forth about 4 nautical miles off Pladda, Buteshire, UK, and sinks.

Royal Navy minelayer Teviotbank lays minefield SN.21A in the North Sea.

Convoy SL.81 departs from Freetown bound for Liverpool.

Canadian destroyer HMCS Huron is laid down at Vickers-Armstrong Ltd. in Newcastle-on-Tyne.

US aircraft carrier USS Lexington (CV-16, currently named the USS Cabot) and anti-aircraft cruiser Oakland are laid down. The Cabot will be renamed the Lexington after its namesake, CV-2, is lost at the Battle of the Coral Sea.

U-507 is launched, U-223, U-224, U-623, and U-624 are laid down.

The Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Maikaze on 15 July 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Royal Navy submarine HMS Unbeaten sinks Italian patrol boat Nettuno off Mara Zuag Roads, Libya. The submarine crew also claims to sink a second patrol boat, but that is unverified.

Royal Navy submarine HMS P.33 torpedoes and sinks Italian freighter Barbarigo about 8 nautical miles (15 km) south of Pantelleria.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Taku sinks 270-ton Italian patrol boat Vincenzo Padre east of Ras Auegla, Libya.

The Luftwaffe attacks two Royal Navy lighters A.10 and A.11) while they are sailing to Tobruk. The planes badly damage A.10 east of Tobruk and later sinks while in tow. There is one death and three wounded in A.10 and one wounded in A.11.

The Regia Aeronautica raids Malta several times after dark, but the bombs are dropped virtually at random. There are a few wounded soldiers. A Maryland reconnaissance plane fails to return from a mission and the crew of three deaths. Also, a crewman on a Blenheim that is attacking a Tripoli convoy perishes when hit by anti-aircraft fire.

Battle of the Black Sea: The Red Air Force bombs and sinks Romanian Navy minelayer NMS Aurora at the mouth of the Sulina branch of the Danube, the easternmost part of Romania.

Battle of the Pacific: Two Soviet submarines, M-49 and M-63, hit mines and sink off Vladivostok.

Japanese light cruiser Kashii, July 15, 1941.

Partisans: The revolt in Montenegro against Italian occupation authorities continues to grow. Two units of 80 insurgents (from Ljubotinj and Upper Ceklin) ambush a convoy of trucks transporting Italian II Border guard battalion from Podgorica.

Italian forces are sent to relieve Cetinje, which is besieged by the insurgents. After eight hours of battle, the insurgents are victorious and kill 70–80 Italian soldiers and officers, wound 260, and capture the remaining 440 Italians.

At Virpazar, rebels capture several small boats. They intend to use them to trade with Italian authorities in Scutari.

Spy Stuff: The Japanese are keeping a close eye on US military activity all across the Pacific. Today, the Japanese Embassy in the Philippines reports to Tokyo about the status of construction at the Cavite military base due to an electricity outage caused by bad weather.

Howard Florey.

Applied Science: The MAUD Committee in London approves its final report on nuclear research and disbands ("Maud" does not stand for anything and is not an acronym; it actually is just taken from a cryptic comment made by Niels Bohr in a telegram from occupied Europe about his children's nanny, named Maud Ray Kent). The MAUD Committee is a secret unit of the Air Ministry tasked with discussing the feasibility of atomic weapons.

While they are still only a theoretical concept, atomic bombs are described in great detail and with precise accuracy in the MAUD report. The report includes a concrete proposal for building atomic weapons, including cost estimates and how long the project could take. It states in part:

We have now reached the conclusion that it will be possible to make an effective uranium bomb which, containing some 25 lb of active material, would be equivalent as regards destructive effect to 1,800 tons of T.N.T. and would also release large quantities of radioactive substance, which would make places near to where the bomb exploded dangerous to human life for a long period.

Vannevar Bush has reviewed drafts of the report but awaits the receipt of an official final copy before taking any action.

British researcher Howard Florey and his graduate student assistant, Norman Heatley, arrive at the Northern Regional Research Laboratory in Peoria, Illinois. They bring with them freeze-dried mold cultures and information that will lead to the mass production of Penicillin.

A bloodless bullfight at an unknown location on July 15, 1941 (AP Photo).

Japanese/Mexican/US Relations: There is a very quiet economic war in progress between the United States and Japan even though the guns remain silent. This explodes today in an unexpected direction: Mexico.

Mexico and the US sign an agreement today instituting an embargo of Mexican exports outside the Americas. This obviously is directed at Japan, given that Japan relies heavily on Mexican mercury and other items.

Yoshiaki Miura, Japanese Minister in Mexico City and who also happens to be the head of the Japanese Intelligence Network in Mexico and Central America, calls a meeting of local Japanese businessmen to discuss the situation. They decide to test the Mexican position by requesting approval to export goods already under contract to Japan. Miura decides that, if Mexico refuses to approve the exports, Japan, in turn, will take steps against Mexico. These include stopping the export from Japan to Mexico of rayon, which Mexico greatly needs (it has no other source of supply). Japan also would refuse the use of Japanese shipping to Mexico.

The upshot is that Minister Miura has his agents successfully work a deal with Mexico's Economic Minister: Japan will trade 20,000 cases of rayon for 8,000 bottles of Mexican mercury despite the embargo. Miura sends the proposed deal to Tokyo for approval.

Anglo/US Relations: The US Marine Corps activates its Marine Detachment at the American Embassy in London, England.

Commissioning Ceremony, NAS Argentia, 15 July 1941.

The US sets up a base at Argentia Bay, Newfoundland. Opening today is the Argentia US Naval Air Station and the US Naval Operating Base.

German Military: Throughout the war, working on the front lines is extremely hazardous for German war correspondents and photographers. Today, two men in this capacity perish, namely, Max Kretzer, 87, German writer; and Walter Ruttmann, 53, German film director.

Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel is named the official commander of Panzer Group Afrika.

Italian Military: Inigo Campioni is appointed the governor of the Italian Aegean Islands, also known as the Italian Dodecanese.

Joseph P. Kennedy in his pilot's uniform while training at the Squantum, Massachusetts Naval Air Station, 15 July 1941.

British Government: The British government begins requiring import permits for all cargo passing through English ports. Any cargo without a permit is subject to seizure. This is of concern to the Japanese (as revealed by Magic intercepts), who don't like their activities scrutinized.

Libya/Syria: Having conquered Syria and Lebanon from the Vichy French, the British offer local people self-rule. This fulfills a promise made by Free French leader Charles de Gaulle.

Leaders of the Jewish community of the town of Balti (right) are seen before their execution on July 15, 1941. Soldiers/executioners stand at left. (Photo: Matatias Carp, Cartea Neagra - Bucharest, 1947 - Volume III).

Holocaust: There is a mass execution of Jews at Balti, Moldova. This is part of a targeted campaign against Jews instituted by the government of Prime Minister Ion Antonescu.

American Homefront: In the final game of a series against the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park, Chicago, New York Yankee Joe DiMaggio goes 2-4 against White Sox hurler Eddie Smith. This extends DiMaggio's hitting streak to 55 consecutive games, extending his major league record.

Look magazine, 15 July 1941, features an article by Mrs. Roosevelt.

July 1941

July 1, 1941: US TV Broadcasting Starts
July 2, 1941: MAUD Report
July 3, 1941: Stalin Speaks
July 4, 1941: Pogroms in Eastern Europe
July 5, 1941: Germans on Schedule
July 6, 1941: Australians Attack Damour
July 7, 1941: US Marines in Iceland
July 8, 1941: Flying Fortresses In Action
July 9, 1941: British Take Damour
July 10, 1941: Sword and Scabbard Order
July 11, 1941: Cease-fire in Syria and Lebanon
July 12, 1941: Anglo/Russian Assistance Pact
July 13, 1941: Uprising in Montenegro
July 14, 1941: Katyusha Rocket Launchers in Action
July 15, 1941: Smolensk Falls
July 16, 1941: Stalin's Son Captured
July 17, 1941: Heydrich Orders Mass Executions
July 18, 1941: Twin Pimples Raid
July 19, 1941: V for Victory
July 20, 1941: The Man Who Wouldn't Shoot
July 21, 1941: Moscow in Flames
July 22, 1941: Soviet Generals Executed
July 23, 1941: Secret Plan JB 355
July 24, 1941: Operation Sunrise
July 25, 1941: US Naval Alert
July 26, 1941: Italian E-Boat Attack on Malta
July 27, 1941: MacArthur Returns
July 28, 1941: Auschwitz Exterminations
July 29, 1941: Rescue From Crete
July 30, 1941: Raid on Petsamo and Kirkenes
July 31, 1941: Final Solution Order

2020