Monday 2 June 1941

Victims and fellow townspeople of Kondomari, Crete are herded to the site of hostage executions, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).

Anglo-Iraq War: Jamil al-Midfai is named Prime Minister of Iraq on 2 June 1941. In Baghdad, the "Farhud" attacks continue against the Jewish Quarter. While the instigation and causes of the Farhud are subject to debate, but what is known for certain is that it ends today during the afternoon. It is unknown exactly how many deaths result from the Farhud, but estimates range from 100-1000, wich larger numbers of wounded.

Regent Abdul Illah (Abdullah) ends the Farhud riots, according to the Iraqi Commission Report, when he orders forces loyal to him into Baghdad. They use machine guns to kill many rioters. Another version of events is that the British are the ones that restore order. The two versions may be reconciled by assuming that the Regents ask the British to restore order, but that is unclear. In any event, hundreds of people on both sides of the Farhud - rioters and Jewish victims - perish. This incident begins the gradual elimination of the centuries-old Jewish presence in Baghdad.

In Syria, Vichy French forces claim to shoot down a British Blenheim reconnaissance plane over Syria-Lebanon.

German troops choose which hostages to execute in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command attacks the Ruhr River Valley of Germany with 44 bombers.

RAF Bomber Command sends 9 Blenheims of 2 Group, 105 Squadron to raid the Kiel Canal. This includes the naval barracks at Friedrichskoog and various villages along the canal. The RAF planes sink two small ships that block the canal for ten days.

RAF Bomber Command also sends bombers of 107 Squadron to raid the region between the Ems and the Elbe.

RAF Bomber Command also targets the liner Europe, tied up at Bremerhaven.

RAF Bomber Command sends 150 aircraft to attack Dusseldorf and 25 aircraft to attack Duisburg overnight.

The Luftwaffe attacks Manchester during the night of 1-2 June, killing 70 and injuring 86. This is the Manchester Blitz.

The Luftwaffe bombs Park Grove, Hull. This is Hull's fiftieth raid of the war. There are 27 killed and 11 wounded, and the tragedy is that the "all clear" mistakenly had sounded and the victims had just exited their shelters.

The RAF shoots down a Junkers Ju 88A northeast of Tynemouth at 22:29. There are two deaths, and two crewmen become POWs.

East African Campaign: East African 22nd Infantry Brigade begins crossing the Omo at Sciola in Galla-Sidamo.

Victims at Kondomari, Crete lining up for their executions, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).

Battle of the Atlantic: U-147 (Oblt. Eberhard Wetjen), operating in the Northwest Approaches on its third patrol, attacks Convoy OB-329. It torpedoes and damages 4996-ton Belgian freighter Mokambo. The Mokambo makes it to the Clyde in tow. However, Royal Navy destroyer HMS Wanderer and corvette Periwinkle attacks and sinks U-147 with a depth charge attack. There are 24-26 deaths - the entire crew - on U-147.

U-108 (Kptlt. Erich Hilsenitz), on its third patrol out of Lorient, spots Convoy OB-327 in the mid-Atlantic. It torpedoes and sinks 7628-ton freighter Michael E, which happens to be the first catapult aircraft merchant (CAM) ship. There are four deaths on the Michael E. The ship has no time to launch its fighter plane, but the pilot manages to survive the sinking along with 61 others. It is an inauspicious debut of the CAM ship force.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages Royal Navy submarine HMS P.32 off Finisterre. P.32 is able to continue on to Gibraltar, though its batteries are damaged and it is unable to submerge.

Royal Navy escort ship Hartland (formerly a US Coast Guard cutter) collides with 646-ton British freighter Welsh Coast. The Hartland makes it to Falmouth for repairs and a scheduled refit.

Dutch submarine O.14 is involved in a collision. The submarine makes it to Grangemouth for repairs that take a month.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2477-ton British freighter Beaumanoir in Robin Hood's Bay. The ship is taken under tow, but the Luftwaffe returns and sinks the Beaumanoir.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 4749-ton British freighter Prince Rupert City north of Loch Eriboll, Scotland. There are four deaths.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 197-ton Belgian trawler John 90 miles southeast of Inglos Hofdi. Everyone survives.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2183 ton British freighter Thorpebay about six miles from Coquet Lighthouse, Northumberland. The Thorpebay makes it back to the Tyne for repairs.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 195-ton British trawler Ben Screel east of Dunstanburgh Castle, Northumberland. Ben Screel makes it back to the Tyne for repairs.

Finnish 5417 ton freighter Kasteholm hits a mine and sinks northeast of the Faroe Islands. There is one death, the rest of the crew makes it to Tórshavn, Faroe Islands.

Canadian minesweeper (former Norwegian whale factory ship) HMCS Suderøy V is commissioned, minesweeper Caraquet is launched, minesweepers Grandmère and Vegreville are laid down.

US escort aircraft carrier USS Long Island (AVG-1) is commissioned (Commander Donald B. Duncan) at Newport News, Virginia. The Long Island is a conversion from cargo ship SS Mormacmail.

Royal Navy minelayer Plover lays minefield BS.57 in the English Channel.

Convoy OB 330 departs from Liverpool.

German troops line up to execute hostages in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Wehrmacht High Command issues a communique:

The battle for Crete is over. The whole island has been freed from the enemy. Yesterday German troops occupied the last base of the beaten British, the port of Sfakion, capturing 3,000 more prisoners in the process.

For once, the Germans understate their achievement - they actually capture more than 3,000 men at Sfakia.

The British War Cabinet discusses the future of Cyprus, which it believes may be next on Hitler's agenda in the Mediterranean. The Greek government would like to set up its capital in Cyprus, and there is some support within the British government for ceding the island to Greece for that purpose. The Cabinet concludes that the entire matter should be left to postwar peace settlement discussions.

Navy 353-ton whaler HMT Kos XXII attempts to make a run from Crete to Alexandria but sinks along the way. Royal Navy HMS LCT 16 also is sunk by the Luftwaffe off Canea, Crete.

Royal Navy submarine Clyde fires a torpedo at an Italian freighter off Terranova but misses.

In Malta, the British notice a new, large incendiary bomb being used by the Italian bombers. The anti-aircraft defenses claim to have shot down a Junkers Ju 52 transport off the coast.

German troops raise their rifles to execute hostages in Kondomari, Crete, 2 June 1941 (Franz Peter Weixler, Federal Archive Bild 101I-166-0525-39).

War Crimes: Pursuant to a standing order of temporary Crete commander General Kurt Student (sanctioned by Hermann Goering), German paratroopers (Fallschirmjäger) decide to settle some scores with the local population. Four trucks full of soldiers from the III Battalion of Luftlande-Sturm-Regiment 1 under the command of Oberleutnant Horst Trebes arrive at the village of Kondomari. The Germans force all civilians into the town square and then pick out male hostages. The 23-60 men are taken to a nearby olive grove and executed. The whole event is filmed by a Wehrmacht war correspondent, Franz-Peter Weixler, who secretly opposes the action.

Other Fallschirmjäger troops surround the village of Alikianos. The Germans take 42 men from the village to a churchyard and execute them. Other civilians are executed at Agia (12 men shot) and Kyrtomado (25 men shot).

These incidents will be included in charges of war crimes made after the war against General Student and others.

German/Italian Relations: Hitler and Mussolini unexpectedly meet at the Brenner Pass. It is their first meeting since 20 January 1941, their third at the Brenner Pass, and their fifth conference since the start of the war. Also attending the meeting are German Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop and Italian Foreign Minister Count Galeazzo Ciano. Exactly what is said at this private meeting has been the subject of much conjecture and debate.

It is believed that Mussolini urges a joint strategy against Great Britain in the Mediterranean, which Hitler rejects. This would jibe with Kriegsmarine Admiral Raeder's "peripheral strategy" which has been working well to date.

According to Joseph Goebbels, Hitler tells Mussolini about Operation Barbarossa at this meeting. However, Ciano writes in his diary, "The general impression is that for the moment Hitler has no precise plan of action." If Hitler does tell Mussolini, the latter does not tell even his closest government cronies. The official communique simply states that the meeting lasted for several hours and was cordial.

After the meeting, Mussolini - who has a tendency to disparage the Germans after such meetings, but not Hitler personally - supposedly says:

I wouldn't be at all sorry if Germany in her war with Russia got her feathers plucked.

Many believe that the Italians are, indeed, aware of Operation Barbarossa by this date, as evidenced by Italian troop movements in the Balkans.

The old Salford Royal building in Manchester takes a direct hit on June 2, 1941, with the attack claiming the lives of 14 nurses and their tutor.

German/Vichy French Relations: Pursuant to the Paris Protocols, the Vichy French government grants the Reich the use of port facilities in Bizerte, Tunis (Tunisia). While this is farther from the Libyan front, it also is closer to Naples than Tripoli. This makes Bizerte ideal for quick and relatively safe convoys across the Tyrrhenian Sea for items that are not time-critical. However, for the time being, only non-military supplies are allowed through the port.

Anglo/Turkish Relations: The Turkish government informs the British government that it prefers to remain neutral and declines a request to join an invasion of Vichy French Levant.

Anglo/US Relations: The US Army-Navy Board officially adopts the U.S.-British Commonwealth joint Basic War Plan, or, as it later became known, Rainbow Five. In the event of a worldwide conflict, the plan is for the Allies to make their priority defeating Italy and Germany first. As for Japan, the Allied "strategy, in the Far East will be defensive" because "the United States does not intend to add to its present military strength" there. Rainbow Five basically foresees the loss of the Philippines. However, no plans are made for evacuating the Americans in the islands.

Admiral Ernest J. King on the cover of Time magazine, 2 June 1941.

US Military: Cryptanalyst Joseph Rochefort reports to the main US Navy building at Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii for his new duty as head of the cryptanalysis section.

Australian Military: The RAAF established its No. 3 Base Stores Depot at Spring Hill.

Channel Islands: Hitler is worried about the defense of the islands. He asks to have maps of them brought to him.

China: The Chinese (commander of the Chinese 3rd PG, Lo Ying-Teh) decline a shipment of Hawk 81A (P-40C) fighter aircraft. They thus become the property of Claire Chennault’s Flying Tigers.

Holocaust: The Vichy French government orders a census of Jews. It also bans Jews from holding public office.

The U.S. Navy troop transport USS West Point (AP-23) under initial conversion and painting at Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co., Virginia (USA), 2 June 1941. She was previously SS America. The aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-8) is in the background. Note the neutrality markings on West Point's side and the repainting operations (US Navy, National Archives).

American Homefront: Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig passes away in Riverdale, the Bronx, New York from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), an incurable neuromuscular disorder later referred to in North America as Lou Gehrig's disease. Mayor Fiorella La Guardia ordered flags in New York to be flown at half-staff. His remains are interred at Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, New York. At the time of his death, Gehrig - "The Iron Horse" - holds the record for the number of consecutive games played, 2130, which will not be broken until 1998.

Chief Justice of the United States Charles Evans Hughes informs President Roosevelt that he will be retiring effective July 1.

Former 1936 Presidential candidate Alf Landon gives a speech at the commencement of Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. He urges caution and deliberation before going to war. Landon notes, in reference to the rush to war:

We find a fatalistic acceptance of the inevitable.

He warns that the country runs the risk of falling into "dictatorship, of the right or of the left," due to the "weakening [of] our checks upon the majority."

Future History: Walter Stacy Keach Jr. is born in Savannah, Georgia. Keach goes on to a renowned acting career, which includes the CBS television series Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer and The New Mike Hammer from 1984 to 1987. Stacy Keach continues to act as of this writing, including serving as the narrator for the CNBC series "American Greed" and hosting "The Twilight Zone" radio series.

Charles Robert Watts is born in Kingsbury, London. He becomes a talented drummer and, in mid-1962, meets Brian Jones, Ian "Stu" Stewart, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. In January 1963, Watts joins The Rolling Stones, which goes on to become one of the top rock groups of all time. As of this writing, he continues to be a member of the group despite having experienced some health problems.

USS Long Island (CVE-1) on June 10, 1944, in San Francisco Bay. This photo was taken by NAS Alameda.

June 1941

June 1, 1941: Farhud Pogrom
June 2, 1941: Massacres on Crete
June 3, 1941: Kandanos Massacre
June 4, 1941: Kaiser Wilhelm Passes Away
June 5, 1941: Death in Chungking
June 6, 1941: Hitler's Commissar Order
June 7, 1941: Commandos Strike at Pessac
June 8, 1941: British Invade Syria and Lebanon
June 9, 1941: Litani River Battle
June 10, 1941: British Take Assab
June 11, 1941: Hitler Thinking Beyond Russia
June 12, 1941: St. James Agreement
June 13, 1941: Lützow Damaged
June 14, 1941: Latvian June Deportations
June 15, 1941: Operation Battleaxe
June 16, 1941: The Old Lion
June 17, 1941: British Spanked in North Africa
June 18, 1941: Turkey Turns Its Back
June 19, 1941: Cheerios Introduced
June 20, 1941: Birth of US Army Air Force
June 21, 1941: Damascus Falls
June 22, 1941: Germany Invades Russia
June 23, 1941: A Soviet KV Tank Causes Havoc
June 24, 1941: Kaunas and Vilnius Fall
June 25, 1941: Finland Declares War
June 26, 1941: Bombing of Kassa
June 27, 1941: Encirclement At Minsk
June 28, 1941: Minsk Falls
June 29, 1941: Brest Fortress Falls
June 30, 1941: Mölders Becomes Top Ace

2020

Saturday 31 May 1941

Damage caused by four high-explosive bombs dropped by German aircraft on the North Strand area of Dublin City during the early morning hours of 31 May 1941. The casualties were many: 28 dead and 90 injured, with 300 houses damaged or destroyed. The Irish Red Cross provided emergency shelter for people made homeless by the bombing at the Mansion House and in parish halls throughout the city. This is known as the North Strand Bombing

Anglo/Iraq War: The end is at hand at Baghdad for the Iraqi government on 31 May 1941. With the Rashid Ali government and the Grand Mufti both having fled to Persia (taking refuge in the Japanese legation), the surrender is left to the Mayor of Baghdad and his delegation. The Mayor meets the British at the Washash Bridge along with British Ambassador Sir Kinahan Cornwallis, who has been confined to the British Embassy all month.

The British decide not to occupy Baghdad, which is a very practical decision due to the small strength (1200) of British forces in the vicinity. The British invite Prince 'Abd al-Ilah to return to the city. As part of the armistice, both sides release prisoners (except for German and Italian POWs of the British). The British allow the Iraqi troops to return o their barracks with their equipment.

Without an effective government, Baghdad descends into an orgy of looting and attacks. The government heretofore has protected the city's Jewish Quarter, but now that protection is gone. About 120 Jewish inhabitants perish and 850 are injured before the British and the incoming (returning) government restore order.

Without flyable planes, the German military mission (Sonderkommando Junck) departs for Syria on foot (the last arriving 10 June). The eight or so Italian Fiat CR-42 fighters of 155th Squadriglia still operational at Kirkuk fly to Syria, thence to Rhodes (two are destroyed by the Italians as unusable).

In the Reich, Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering  makes a lame attempt to explain the Iraq disaster to Hitler and Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop:

They don't know anything about aviation out there, and airlifting fuel would have been pointless and costly.

It is a feeble excuse for the utter failure of the Luftwaffe in Iraq. The British have managed to win in Iraq precisely because of its adroit use of airpower. The failed Iraq campaign probably never was a winnable proposition for the Axis due to the inherent British advantages in the region (large numbers of Indian troops close at hand, for instance), but Germany could have made a better showing and thereby curried stature within the Arab world.

"Lieutenant General Bernard Freyberg VC, commanding officer of the British forces on Crete, gazes over the parapet of his dug-out in the direction of the German advance, May 1941." © IWM (E 3020E). Freyberg leaves Crete on a Sunderland flying boat in the early hours of 31 May 1941.

European Air Operations: In the early morning hours, the Luftwaffe bombs Dublin at 02:00. There are 28 killed, 87 seriously injured and hundreds made homeless. The Irish lodge a diplomatic protest with London, who characterizes the incident as a navigational error caused by high winds. The Luftwaffe also bomb Liverpool and areas along the Mersey and the Bristol area during the night, so there is some plausibility to the German denial of intent as those areas are not too distant from Dublin.

May 1941 marks the end of the Blitz or at least the most effective and devastating phase of it. The Luftwaffe is busy moving aircraft to Poland in order to support future operations in the Soviet Union. British civilian losses for the period September 1940 - May 1941 inclusive, which do include some military personnel on leave and the like, are estimated to total 39,678 dead and 46,119 injured.

At Black Tarset Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, four people, including a seven-year-old girl and an eleven-year-old Boy Scout, succumb to gas fumes emanating from a bomb crater. Two firemen (Larry Young and Leading Fireman Bruce) descend into the crater to rescue them. Young manages to retrieve the bodies and also rescue Bruce, who passes out from the fumes. Larry Young receives the George Medal for his gallantry and Bruce is commended. One of the victims, Auxiliary Fireman Wanless, earns a posthumous commendation.

Londoners wearing gas masks during a gas drill in Richmond Surrey, 31 May 1941. The Blitz is over, but nobody knows that.

East African Campaign: The British are mopping up throughout various areas of Abyssinia. Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell also is preparing a plan of attack against French Somaliland. Next on the docket is an assault on the last Italian port on the Red Sea Assab. Planned for mid-June, this will be Operation Chronometer.

Battle of the Atlantic: It is a big day for the U-boat fleet. A massive presence of U-boats has been sent into the Atlantic in support of (now sunk) battleship Bismarck and heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen, and today the move pays off - though it is fairer to say that the U-boat fleet sinkings are simply time-shifted due to the dispositions rather than there being any net increase over what would normally have taken place.

U-106 (Kptlt. Jürgen Oesten), on its extended second patrol out of Lorient, spots an unescorted freighter north of the Cape Verde Islands. Oesten pumps one torpedo into 6843-ton British freighter Clan Macdougall, the first at 03:31, the second at 03:45. There are two deaths and 85 survivors who make it to the islands.

U-69 (Kptlt. Jost Metzler), on its third patrol out of Lorient, penetrates the harbor of Accra, Ghana and fires a torpedo at 5445-ton British freighter Sangara. The Sangara sinks in 33 feet of water, and her bow remains visible. The Sangara will be salvaged in 1943 (refloated, cargo recovered and sold) and returned to service in 1947.

U-107 (Kptlt. Günther Hessler), on its second patrol out of Lorient, is operating near Freetown, Sierra Leone when it spots 5664-ton British freighter Sire. Hessler hits Sire on the starboard bows with a torpedo, and the Sire sinks in ten minutes. There are three deaths, while the 46 survivors (including the master) are picked up by HMS Marguerite.

SS Gravelines, sunk by U-147 on 31 May 1941.

U-147 (Oblt. Eberhard Wetjen), on its third patrol out of Bergen, is operating northwest of Bloody Foreland, Ireland in the shipping lanes when it spots 2491 ton British freighter Gravelines. The Gravelines was part of Convoy HX-127 but fell behind for some reason and convoys don't slow down for stragglers. A torpedo splits the Gravelines in half, though the forward part of the ship remains afloat and later is towed to the Clyde, beached at Kames Bay, and scrapped in 1942. There are 11 deaths, including the master, and 25 survivors who are picked up by escort HMS Deptford and taken to Liverpool.

U-204 (Kptlt. Walter Kell), on its first patrol out of Kiel, is operating in the Denmark Strait (northwest of Dyrafjordur, Iceland) when it spots 16 Icelandic fishing boat Holmsteinn. Kell decides not to waste a torpedo on it, and also wants to disable its wireless before the position can be broadcast, so surfaces and sinks it with gunfire. All four aboard perish.

U-38 (Kptlt. Heinrich Liebe), on its extended ninth patrol out of Lorient and operating off Liberia, hits independent 6029-ton Norwegian freighter Rinda with two torpedoes at 00:24. There are five deaths immediately, including the master, and more when the ship sinks before the boats can be launched. There are 18 survivors. The ship's sinking is noted by the rescue of ship's cat Rinda, who is found swimming after the ship sinks by the men in the lifeboat, which the survivors manage to right. Rinda serves out the war on the rescue ship, HMS Pict.

German heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen spends its last full day at sea in the Atlantic, heading toward Brest with engine trouble. Despite numerous Royal Navy warships in the vicinity and RAF patrols, nobody spots it.

US Navy Task Group 1, led by the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CV-5), departs from Bermuda on a two-week neutrality patrol. It will cover over 4500 miles (7424 km). Yorktown carries VF-41, VS-41 and VS-42, and VT-5.

For the month of May 1941, total Allied shipping losses in the Battle of the Atlantic fall slightly, from 616,469 tons to 486,796 tons. This is primarily due to a steep drop in losses to surface raiders, from 91,579 tons to 15,002 tons, and to the Luftwaffe, from 323,454 tons to 146,302 tons. U-boat losses actually rise, from 249,375 tons to 325,492 tons.

"New Zealand soldiers from 19th Battalion on board an Australian destroyer (either HMAS Nizam or HMAS Napier) following their evacuation from Crete, c. 31 May 1941." (New Zealand History).

Overall, merchant shipping losses in May 1941 are a total of 119 Allied ships with 436,544 tons in the Atlantic, and 20 Allied ships with 74,498 tons elsewhere in European waters. On the other hand, the Axis loses 20 ships with 74,498 tons in the Mediterranean. Royal Navy losses are heavy due to the loss of HMS Hood in the Atlantic and a bunch of warships in the waters around Crete.

There is 1 U-boat sunk in the Atlantic (U-110, briefly captured), Arctic or Baltic, and 32 serviceable U-boats are on duty in the Atlantic. The Italians continue to maintain a strong submarine presence out of Bordeaux, but, while they make occasional sinkings, generally their patrols are much less efficient in terms of enemy aircraft sunk that Kriegsmarine craft.

Commodore L.W. Murray RCN is appointed Commander of the Newfoundland Escort Force (NEF). He reports to Commander-in-Chief, Western Approaches, Admiral Sir Percy Noble in Liverpool.

Convoy OB 329 departs from Liverpool, Convoy WS 8X (Winston Special) departs from the Clyde bound for Freetown and thence Capetown. WS 8X is escorted by the aircraft carrier HMS Victorious, showing its importance - it includes large transports Duchess of Bedford (20,123 tons) and Waiwera (10,800 tons), among other ships.

Royal Navy tug HMS Dart is commissioned.

Canadian corvette HMCS Sudbury is launched at Kingston, Ontario.

U-502 (Kptlt. Jürgen von Rosenstiel) is commissioned, U-435 is launched, U-291 and U-617 are laid down.

Soviet submarine SC-411 is launched.

"Evacuation: The troops being served with tea on the quayside after disembarking at an Egyptian port. Lieutenant-General Sir Bernard Freyberg VC ordered the evacuation to commence on 28 May 1941. 16,500 were rescued, including 2000 Greeks. The rest were left dead or prisoners in German hands." 31 May 1941 © IWM (E 3295).

Battle of the Mediterranean: The British evacuation from Crete begins winding down as the Luftwaffe's domination over the waters south of the island increases. The capture of new airfields at Heraklion (Candia), Retimo (Rethymno), and elsewhere raises the Luftwaffe's power to new heights, and the RAF is powerless to prevent extremely accurate Junkers Ju 87 Stuka attacks on warships during daylight hours. The problem for the Royal Navy is that, while they can make it to the key embarkation ports such as Sfakia during darkness, they can't get clear of the island before dawn - and Luftwaffe pilots are early risers.

During the night of 31 May/1 June, about 4,000 men are taken off. These are the final evacuations from Sfakia. Light cruiser HMS Phoebe leads the evacuation contingent there. They are covered by a large force including cruisers Calcutta and Coventry. The Luftwaffe damages destroyer Napier, one of the ships at Sfakia.

There are 16,511 men land at Alexandria on 31 May 1941 from Crete. However, this is just a fraction of the thousands of British and Dominion troops still on the island, let alone thousands of Greek soldiers. Many of the Allied soldiers barely escaped from the mainland during the Germans' Operation Marita, and now they find themselves caught in the same kind of trap on Crete. A small number can be taken out by two Sunderland flying boats, but only 54 senior officers (including General Freyberg) make it out that way.

A British soldier stands by a cave on Crete being used as an air-raid shelter. Many British Commonwealth troops left behind after the evacuation would make use of such caves to avoid capture (© IWM (E 3022E)).

The tables on Crete turn - the RAF now is the air force that bombs Maleme and Heraklion during the night.

The Germans and Italians seize a large number of ships at Suda Bay:

7258 ton British freighter Araybank (damaged, taken to Trieste)
6343 ton British freighter Dalesman (beached, taken to Trieste)
6397 ton Greek freighter Nicolauou Ourania, beached but refloated and renamed Nikolaus for German use
7073 ton British tanker Olna (beached, but refloated and used).

The Italians have a case of friendly fire when one of their bombers accidentally drops a bomb on Italian torpedo boat Pleiadi near Tobruk. The master runs it aground and eventually is written off.

In Malta, it is a quiet day in the air. However, the ruins of the building that housed the former Courts of Justice fall into the city's main street. This blocks Kingsway until the street can be cleared.

"Evacuation: A wounded soldier being brought ashore on a stretcher at an Egyptian port after the evacuation from Crete. A total of 16,500 were rescued, including 2000 Greeks. The rest were left dead or prisoners in German hands."  31 May 1941 © IWM (E 3284).

War Crimes: On or around 31 May 1941, the courts-martial reach verdicts of at least three men (the commanding officer, a regimental sergeant major and a sergeant) aboard HMT Dunera. Held at Chelsea Barracks in London on 26-27 May 1941, the secret proceedings are given no media attention and no record of the proceedings have survived. The Dunera transported refugees from England to Australia under fantastically abysmal conditions during June/September 1940.

Predatory actions alleged against the crew and those aboard to look after the 2700 refugees aboard include savage beatings and theft. One refugee jumped overboard. Many aboard the vessel are Jews fleeing continental Europe, and it is believed that some already had been in concentration camps.

The courts-martial hold three men guilty. These include Major William Patrick Scott, the ship's master, who is severely reprimanded. His regimental sergeant major is jailed for 12 months.

Not enough is known about the Dunera Chelsea Barracks proceedings to affix firm dates to matters related to them. Note that other relevant dates are 18 February 1941, when a decision to hold a court of inquiry is confirmed, and 13 May 1941, when the issuance of a report of the court of inquiry is confirmed. References are made to the proceedings in the 24 February 1941 Commons Official Report and the 17 January 1979 records of the House of Lords.

General Freyberg on the cover of Illustrated London News, 31 May 1941.

The latter report confirms regarding the Dunera incident that it is:

clear that a court of inquiry was held. No details are given about its composition, though it is recorded that only one internee was available to give evidence to it. This is the only available evidence relating to the holding of the inquiry, and it must be assumed that the full record of the proceedings was subsequently destroyed in accordance with the rules about disposal of public records applicable at the time.

This Dunera incident is a rare incident of a warring power prosecuting its own military personnel for improper and abusive conduct during World War II. While the Germans did this at times, it was rare despite many occasions when it most certainly was warranted. The Wehrmacht had standing orders at various times and places throughout the war to be given "leave to not prosecute" soldiers for war crimes.

As a coda to this sad chapter, many of the HMT refugees ultimately returned to England after the war. A sizeable fraction remained in Australia and began new lives there. All traces of the camp where they were interned have disappeared save the access road and a memorial plaque.

On Crete, the temporary commander of Crete General Kurt Student responds to demands from his Fallschirmjäger by publishing an order authorizing reprisals against the local population. Many German troops are incensed at military actions taken against them by Greek civilians on the island and want revenge. This order plants the seeds for long-lasting hatred between Cretan civilians and Germans that extends long past the war.

The reprisals are to consist of shooting, fines, burning villages or even extermination of the male population. Several senior officers leave the conference in protest of the order, but it does go into effect and reprisals are taken. This will lead to charges made against General Student after the war.

"Evacuation: Women and children, civilian refugees from the fighting come ashore at an Egyptian port after their evacuation from Crete. A total of 16,500 were rescued including 2000 Greeks." 31 May 1941 © IWM (E 3288).

Spy Stuff: German Lt. Col. Edwin Scholl confides to Richard Sorge in Tokyo that 170 to 190 German divisions are massed on the Soviet border and the invasion will begin on June 15.

POWs: Lieutenant Peter Allan of the Queens Own Cameron Highlanders, who escaped from the Colditz Castle POW camp in a mattress carried by French Army POWs on 10 May 1941, makes it to Vienna. He had attempted to escape for Switzerland but had insufficient rations, so headed east to Vienna. Allan had walked into the US consulate there asking for help to reach Budapest and neutral Hungary. After the consul refused (there are German staff who witness the encounter), Allan went across the street and fell asleep in a park. Frozen by the night air, Allan crawled to a nearby house and surrendered. He is taken to a hospital, then back to Colditz today.

US Military: The US Army Air Corps assigns the P-40 Warhawk fighters of 22nd and 23rd Fighter Squadrons to St. Croix Airfield, US Virgin Islands.

 Minor changes are ordered for naval uniforms. Henceforth, the eagle is to face to the left for the Seaman Branch, Boatswain Mate, Turret Captain, Signalman, Gunners Mate, Fire Controlman, Quartermaster, Mineman and Torpedoman's Mate.

Parade magazine, 31 May 1941.

Soviet Government: The government issues a decree permitting the children of traitors to be charged upon reaching the age of 15.

Switzerland: Rationing of coffee, tea, and cocoa is instituted.

Belgium: The government begins expropriating the property of Jewish residents.

A memorial built on Crete on the outskirts of Canea by Germans in honor of their fallen during Operation Mercury. The memorial stood intact into the 21st Century - the bird ("Evil bird" to locals) has fallen off, though.

German Homefront: The Church complains that the government's encouragement of children to leave cities for special country camps is an attempt to create secular "education by the state," which it implies involves brainwashing. Hitler Youth leader Artur Axmann is in charge of the camps.

British Homefront: Preston North End beat Arsenal 2-1 in the Cup Final replay.

Rationing of eggs begins. Rationing of Fish and milk tightens.

American Homefront: Isolationist Senator Hiram W. Johnson (California) makes a radio broadcast for the America First Committee. He notes that the US now is "at the brink of war," which he attributes to President Franklin Roosevelt breaking a long string of promises to keep the country out of the war. He cites advocates for war as:

a smattering of good citizens, the vociferous little puppets of J. P. Morgan and Co., a large part of the press, practically all the columnists, the newspaper correspondents, all crying for war with Germany and against Hitler.

He admits that support for Britain is popular, but "with the proviso that it should be 'short of war.'"

"Walking wounded British troops disembarking at a port in Egypt after the evacuation of Crete, 31 May 1941." © IWM (E 3282).

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

June 1941

June 1, 1941: Farhud Pogrom
June 2, 1941: Massacres on Crete
June 3, 1941: Kandanos Massacre
June 4, 1941: Kaiser Wilhelm Passes Away
June 5, 1941: Death in Chungking
June 6, 1941: Hitler's Commissar Order
June 7, 1941: Commandos Strike at Pessac
June 8, 1941: British Invade Syria and Lebanon
June 9, 1941: Litani River Battle
June 10, 1941: British Take Assab
June 11, 1941: Hitler Thinking Beyond Russia
June 12, 1941: St. James Agreement
June 13, 1941: Lützow Damaged
June 14, 1941: Latvian June Deportations
June 15, 1941: Operation Battleaxe
June 16, 1941: The Old Lion
June 17, 1941: British Spanked in North Africa
June 18, 1941: Turkey Turns Its Back
June 19, 1941: Cheerios Introduced
June 20, 1941: Birth of US Army Air Force
June 21, 1941: Damascus Falls
June 22, 1941: Germany Invades Russia
June 23, 1941: A Soviet KV Tank Causes Havoc
June 24, 1941: Kaunas and Vilnius Fall
June 25, 1941: Finland Declares War
June 26, 1941: Bombing of Kassa
June 27, 1941: Encirclement At Minsk
June 28, 1941: Minsk Falls
June 29, 1941: Brest Fortress Falls
June 30, 1941: Mölders Becomes Top Ace

2020

Sunday 27 April 1941

Germans raise the Swastika flag over the Acropolis, 27 April 1941 (Federal Archives).

Operation Marita: In an event of worldwide importance, on 27 April 1941 the Wehrmacht enters and occupies Athens at 09:25. German soldiers immediately climb up to the Acropolis beside ordinary tourists and raise the Swastika flag. The Wehrmacht troops, fueled by vast supplies of oil and related valuable items captured in the capital, continue south, pursuing the retreating Commonwealth troops.

Operation Demon, the British evacuation from mainland Greece, continues. The British take off 4200 troops from Raphina and Raphtis. There is some unhappiness among the Greek troops awaiting evacuation in the Peloponnese, as the British take off their own troops and leave the Greek Cretan 5th Division behind.

The 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler ("LSSAH," still of brigade-size) completes its crossing of the Gulf of Patras to take the key port of Patras at 17:30. However, it is an empty victory because the British forces have chosen to evacuate from other ports such as Nafplio. In addition, Wehrmacht troops advancing through Athens already have advanced into the Peloponnese and relieved the Fallschirmjäger (German paratroopers) of Operation Hannibal that was holding the Gulf of Corinth. While the rapid LSSAH advance south from Ioannina across the Gulf of Patras was an outstanding technical achievement, in a military sense it becomes essentially superfluous. However, it greatly enhances the reputation of the formation, and plans are made to expand it to division size.

An undated photo of Luftwaffe bombers over Athens.

While the British troops largely escape the Wehrmacht ground forces, they are not quite so lucky with the Luftwaffe. Nine Junkers Ju 87 Stukas of Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 attack a troop convoy fleeing from Nafplio in the Peloponnese. They bomb and sink Dutch troopship Slamat, which is part of a convoy carrying 3,000  British, Australian and New Zealand troops (the Slamat only has a portion of them). Two Royal Navy destroyers, HMS Diamond and Wryneck, pick up as many survivors as they can, but as they head to Suda Bay, Crete, the Luftwaffe Stukas sink them, too. A total of roughly 1,000 British troops perish, with only 8 troop and 11 crew survivors from the Slamat, 20 from the Diamond, and 27 from the Wryneck.

The German 5th Panzer Division advances rapidly south through Athens and down to the Corinth Canal. It throws across a temporary bridge on or about this date and heads south toward the fleeing British.

The Luftwaffe continues its depredations against Greek shipping in the Aegean, sinking:

• 441-ton freighter Evanghelos Georgiou off Kithara
• 1350-ton freighter Astir at Kapsalion
• 333-ton freighter Tassos at Hermione (Ermioni)
• 441-ton freighter Fragiscos in the Greek Archipelago
• 1759-ton freighter Hollandia at Hermione

The Luftwaffe damages other Greek ships, including 2113 ton freighter Danapris at Piraeus, which the Germans later repair.


European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe raids Portsmouth with 38 bombers.

East African Campaign: Local Abyssinian forces loyal to Emperor Haile Selassie capture Socota from the Italians.

Iraq War: Diplomatic efforts continue to defuse the tensions in Iraq, where the Rashid Ali government refuses to allow additional British troops into the country. The British ambassador informs Ali's government that additional troops are at sea and bound to arrive at Basra any day. Within Iraq, the British troops are secure but unable to travel by land between their bases. However, their airlift capability is unimpeded, so the British airlift elements of the British 1st Battalion of King's Own Royal Regiment from RAF Shaibah to RAF Habbaniya, where Iraqi troops have assembled.


Battle of the Atlantic: U-552 (K.Kapt. Erich Topp), on its second war patrol, torpedoes and sinks two ships south of Iceland:

• 227-ton British trawler Commander Horton
• 10,160-ton British ship HMS Beacon Grange (two perish)

U-147 (Oblt.z.S. Eberhard Wetjen) torpedoes and sinks independent 1334-ton Norwegian freighter Rimfakse about 240 km northwest of Scotland. There are eight survivors and eight deaths.

U-110 (Kptlt. Fritz-Julius Lemp) torpedoes and sinks 2564-ton British freighter Henri Mory about 610 km northwest of Blasket Islands, Ireland. There are four survivors and 28 perish.

The Luftwaffe sinks 5355-ton Royal Navy auxiliary fighter catapult ship (CAM ship) near Coquet Island. There are about 50 deaths, including the skipper, Commander D.M.B. Baker.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 943-ton British freighter Celte west of the Faroe Islands. Everyone survives.

Royal Navy sloop HMS Rosemary collides with 754-ton British freighter Carrickmacross at Milford Haven. It is under repair at the port until 6 June.

Norwegian freighter Rimac collides with Royal Navy transport HMT Lord Plender off Great Yarmouth. The Rimac sinks, and five of its crew perish while 14 survive. There also are three deaths on the Lord Plender, which rescues the Rimac's survivors.

The shifting Admiralty position on Vichy ships changes again. After ocean boarding vessel HMS Maron intercepts five French freighters escorted by a patrol boat between the Canary Islands and Africa, the Sea Lords direct that the ships be released and allowed to proceed to Dakar.

Convoy OB 315 departs from Liverpool, Convoy SL 73 departs from Freetown.

Royal Navy destroyer HMS Farndale (Commander Stephen H. Carlill, L 70) is commissioned.

Canadian Royal Navy corvette HMCS Rimouski is commissioned.

Panzers in Athens.

Battle of the Mediterranean: In Operation Dunlop, Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal sends off 24 Hawker Hurricanes to reinforce the RAF presence on Malta; 23 reach the island.

Despite recent military successes in North Africa, the German high command has become increasingly leery of Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel's conduct of operations there. Among the concerns is Rommel's decision to stage a major offensive before receiving all of the troops en route to Tripoli - the fact that the offensive was wildly successfully does not enter into this assessment. Rommel repeatedly disregards orders sent by either the OKH and his Italian military superiors. The Germans cannot know this now, but that is one of the keys to Rommel's successes since the British are reading German communications but Rommel just disregards them. When the OKH orders something and then Rommel does something else, the British are caught flat-footed.

To assuage their concerns, the OKH (Oberkommando des Heeres, army high command) sends staff officer Friedrich Paulus, a Deputy Chief of the General Staff, to Tripoli to investigate the situation. Paulus later recalls that he was offered command of the Afrika Korps in place of Rommel, but turned it down. However, Paulus does assume control of operations during his tenure in the theater and cancels a planned offensive against Tobruk pending his later approval.

In the field, the Germans consolidate their recent gains in the south. Gruppe Herff sets up outposts at Sidi Suleiman, about ten miles east of the British lines. Some of its units are sent north through Sollum in preparation for a renewed attack on Tobruk - which depends upon General Paulus' approval.

The Luftwaffe attacks Australian artillery positions in Tobruk in preparation for the planned assault. The Luftwaffe employs level bombers to attract anti-aircraft fire while Junkers Ju 87 Stukas pound the anti-aircraft guns. The attack is successful, with four guns destroyed and 8 killed at a cost of one bomber. The Australian defenders set up dummy gun emplacements and move the artillery.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Usk (Lt. G.P. Darling) hits a mine and sinks near Cape Bon, Tunisia. All 32 men on board perish.

Italian freighter SNA7/2679 hits a mine and sinks off Cape Bon, Tunisia. There also is a theory that HMS Usk, believed lost on this date, sank SNA7/2679 before itself sinking, but this is unconfirmed.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 8672-ton Dutch transport Costa Rica north of Crete. Costa Rica is part of Convoy GA 14, and everybody aboard is rescued.

Convoy GA 14 departs from Suda Bay, Crete to free up space for the transports soon to arrive from the Greek mainland.

Heinrich Himmler inspects the Mauthausen concentration camp, 27 April 1941. These appear to be the infamous steps in which inmates climb with heavy rocks until all perish.

American/Dutch/British/Australian Relations: A military meeting (the "ABDA" conference) in Singapore between the (future) allies ends with an agreement on combined operations in the event of Japanese aggression. The United States, which sent only junior officers led by Captain William R. Purnell to the meeting, takes the plan lightly, with the US War and Navy Departments rejecting the plan. The British, Dutch and Australians, who already are at war with Germany but not yet Japan, take the plan extremely seriously.

German Government: After a brief stop in Maribor/Marburg and a return trip to Graz on the 26th, Adolf Hitler embarks on his command train "Amerika" for the trip back to Berlin.

Captured Allied troops turn in their weapons in Corinth.

British Government: Winston Churchill addresses the nation on the BBC. He has a somber tone, as Churchill knows that Greece is lost and the British have lost their last foothold on the European mainland. He crows about the inability of the Germans to invade Great Britain, noting that

with every week that passes we grow stronger on the sea, in the air and in the number, quality, training and equipment of the great armies that now guard our island.

Of Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell, he notes that "we cheered in good days and will back through the bad." He then turns to the Axis leaders and Italian leader Mussolini a "whipped jackal" and Hitler "that bad man" prone to "raving outbursts." He essentially places all of England's hopes on America, concluding with an Arthur Hugh Clough poem that has the last line, "But westward, look, the land is bright."

Visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies meets with US Ambassador to Great Britain John Gilbert Winant. Menzies writes in his diary that Winant agrees with him that, in terms of the news media, "most stuff going to the USA is of German origin." The AP, for instance, continues to obtain photographs from Germany through its Lisbon contacts. Menzies jots down that "news to America badly handled." Churchill muttered darkly during his BBC broadcast about supposed tensions between Australia and England due to German propaganda, and if Menzies' private thoughts are any indication, such tensions do indeed exist.

Holocaust: Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler inspects the Mauthausen concentration camp. Mauthausen is a Category III camp and perhaps the most brutal in the entire system.

The Croatian Ustashi militia kills an unknown number of civilians in the Serbian town of Gudovac. There is no love lost between the Croats and the Serbs, with the Croats firmly in the German camp while the Serbs back Great Britain.

Heinrich Himmler inspects the Mauthausen concentration camp, 27 April 1941. Note the inmate standing at attention, ignored by Himmler.

April 1941

April 1, 1941: Rommel Takes Brega
April 2, 1941:Rommel Takes Agedabia
April 3, 1941: Convoy SC-26 Destruction
April 4, 1941: Rommel Takes Benghazi
April 5, 1941: Rommel Rolling
April 6, 1941: Operation Marita
April 7, 1941: Rommel Takes Derna
April 8, 1941: Yugoslavia Crumbling
April 9, 1941: Thessaloniki Falls
April 10, 1941: USS Niblack Attacks
April 11, 1941: Good Friday Raid
April 12, 1941: Belgrade and Bardia Fall
April 13, 1941: Soviet-Japanese Pact
April 14, 1941: King Peter Leaves
April 15, 1941: Flying Tigers
April 16, 1941: Battle of Platamon
April 17, 1941: Yugoslavia Gone
April 18, 1941: Me 262 First Flight
April 19, 1941: London Smashed
April 20, 1941: Hitler's Best Birthday
April 21, 1941: Greek Army Surrenders
April 22, 1941: Pancevo Massacre
April 23, 1941: CAM Ships
April 24, 1941: Battle of Thermopylae
April 25, 1941: Operation Demon
April 26, 1941: Operation Hannibal
April 27, 1941: Athens Falls
April 28, 1941: Hitler Firm about Barbarossa
April 29, 1941: Mainland Greece Falls
April 30, 1941: Rommel Attacks

2020