Wednesday 24 April 1940

The German hierarchy in Norway: Vidkun Quisling, Heinrich Himmler, Reichskommissar Josef Terboven, and military commander Generaloberst Nikolaus von Falkenhorst in 1941 (Bundesarchiv, Bild 101III-Moebius-029-12 / Möbius / CC-BY-SA 3.0).

Norway: The Germans, bypassing Quisling, on 24 April 1940 appoint Josef Antonius Heinrich Terboven as Reichskommissar or Gauleiter of Norway. Naturally, his authority ends at the range of German guns.

U.S. Naval Attaché Lt. Commander Ole E. Hagen, taking up where the deceased Robert E. Losey left off, escorts a party of American citizens evacuated from Oslo to the interior of Norway. Then, they cross into neutral Sweden and safety in Stockholm.

Norway Army Operations: German troops in eastern Norway advance past Lillehammer in the Osterdal and reach Rendal.

The British 15th Infantry Brigade (General Bernard Paget) lands at Andalsnes moves quickly to take up a blocking position at Kvam. The troops have been cooped up in the ships since the 15th.

The German 196th Infantry Division has crushed the British 148th Infantry Brigade, which, down to about 300 men, retires past the Paget's troops at Kvam to Otta. Otta is another key road junction in the chain of defiles that bisect Norway. The Germans are hot on the heels of the 148th Infantry Brigade and run into the fresh 15th Infantry Brigade.

At Hegra Fortress, the incessant German bombardment continues. Today, the Germans knock out the second and last of the 7.5 cm guns in the fortress, making it even less of a threat to the Germans. After this point, the Germans use an assortment of unusual or captured weaponry to gradually wear down this non-threatening nuisance.

At Narvik, the Norwegian 6th Brigade (General Carl Gustav Fleischer) attacks south towards Narvik at Gratangsbotn. The German mountain troops under General Dietl hold the attack at Lapphaug Pass. The crafty Germans circle back through an undefended pass near Gratangsbotn on Fjordbotneidet mountain and ambush the Norwegians, who have relaxed for the night. The Germans kill 34, wound 64, take 130 prisoners and set up a new position at Gratangsbotn, for casualties of their own of 9 dead and 16 wounded. The Germans at Narvik are elite troops, with high morale and well-led.

Norway Naval Operations: British battleship Warspite, which had been devastating during the Second Battle of Narvik, returns there with cruisers HMS Effingham, Enterprise and Aurora, and destroyer Zulu (they are screened by British destroyers HMS Encounter, Escort, Faulknor, Foxhound, Havock, Hero, Hostile and Polish destroyers Blyskawica and Grom). The battleship force, under the command of Admiral of the Fleet Lord Cork, once again boldly sails up the Ofotfjord and bombards Narvik again for three hours and point-blank range. HMS Effingham sinks captured British cargo ship Riverton at the dock.

However, the accompanying cruiser Vindictive, which is loaded with troops for a landing, does not land its troops after the commanding British army General cancels the landing. Here is where it gets controversial: despite the devastating firepower assembled, it is said that the flat trajectory of the ships' fire does not sufficiently eliminate the enemy according to the standard story.

Many thus later blame Cork for the failed invasion at Narvik, because he is an easy target who has been brought back off the retired list and has seniority over everybody else, so nobody dares to question him. However, the British are facing determined German troops who do not easily succumb. Both Cork - no pansy - and General Orrey in command of the ground troops actually go ashore, but they find that the snow makes the landing too difficult against mountain troops dug in all over the fjord. It is impossible to square the legend - that the fleet approached too close to town to destroy the defenders - with the reality that it was the ground commander who called off the invasion due to the weather conditions.

Three French destroyers in the Skagerrak battle German patrol boats and also fend off Luftwaffe attacks.

Narvik and surrounding hills aflame after the 24 April 1940 shelling.

European Air Operations: The RAF raids five Luftwaffe airfields which are supporting German ground operations in Norway: Aalborg, Kristiansand, Oslo, Stavanger, and Westerland on the island of Sylt. During the raid, the RAF sinks two German patrol boats north of Sylt. Luftwaffe fighters challenge the British bombers over Stavanger.

The RAF conducts armed reconnaissance over Trondheim Fjord.

HMS Glorious sends its cargo of 18 No. 263 Squadron Gloster Gladiators to frozen Lake Lesjaskogsvatnet, between Andalsnes and Dombås. The operation once again shows poor planning, as the lake base has no anti-aircraft support.

The Luftwaffe bombs Åndalsnes during the day. They badly damage the British anti-aircraft cruiser HMS Curacoa with a bomb that crashes through the deck in front of the bridge, explodes, and kills 45 men and wounds 36. The ship has to withdraw to Chatham.

Royal Navy aircraft carrier Ark Royal sends its Fleet Air Arm aircraft into battle against German fighters over Trondheim.

The Luftwaffe bombs Scapa Flow during the night. After dropping some bombs on land and machine-gunning a road, the RAF and anti-aircraft drive them off.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-23 spots British cruiser HMS York while it is steaming back to Scapa Flow after having deposited Paget's troops at Åndalsnes. Despite two attempts, the U-boat fails to hit the fast cruiser.

British freighters Stokesley and Rydal Forces hit mines in the English Channel and sink.

Convoy OA 135G departs from Southend, Convoy OB 134 departs from Liverpool, and Convoy OB 135 departs from Liverpool.

German armed auxiliary cruiser Orion sinks British freighter Haxby east of Bermuda.

HMS Griffin (H31).

Spy Stuff: Two British destroyers, HMS Griffin and Acheron, are on patrol in the North Sea when they stop a freighter for inspection off Andalsnes, about halfway between Bergen and Trondheim on the Norwegian coastline. The ship's captain claims that it is an ordinary Dutch trawler. The British boarding party from Griffin does a thorough inspection and finds that it is the disguised Kriegsmarine surface raider Schiff 26 - the Polares. It is trying to bring supplies to Narvik.

The German crew acts quickly and throws a weighted bag overboard. The British act even quicker and retrieve the bag before it sinks. It turns out to contain some of the German Enigma machine coding machine keys for the period 23–26 April, including the procedures for scrambling the rotors.

These are quickly sent to Bletchley Park, site of the Ultra decoding project. The cryptanalysts there use the information to program their "Bombe" electro-mechanical computers. The machines prove that they can decode German transmissions from this time period.

This is a clear breakthrough for the Ultra team. Now, they have proven that their system works. From this point on, the Royal Navy is tasked with finding new "cribs" such as the ones from the Polares to enhance their code-breaking. Ultimately, this enables the Bombes to break German codes even without recent cribs.

China: At Macao, the Japanese advance and force the police to retreat into the Portuguese colony.

American Homefront: Baseball legend Lou Gehrig makes what is believed to be his final dugout appearance during a Yankees game.

A huge fire in Natchez claims a hundred or more lives.

April 1940

April 1, 1940: Weserubung is a Go
April 2, 1940: British Subs On Alert
April 3, 1940: Churchill Consolidates Power
April 4, 1940: Missed the Bus
April 5, 1940: Mig-1 First Flight
April 6, 1940: Troops Sailing to Norway
April 7, 1940: Fleets At Sea
April 8, 1940: HMS Glowworm and Admiral Hipper
April 9, 1940: Invasion of Norway
April 10, 1940: First Battle of Narvik
April 11, 1940: Britain Takes the Faroes
April 12, 1940: Germans Consolidate in Norway
April 13, 1940: 2d Battle of Narvik
April 14, 1940: Battle of Dombås
April 15, 1940: British in Norway
April 16, 1940: Germans Cut Norway in Half
April 17, 1940: Trondheim the Target
April 18, 1940: Norway Declares War
April 19, 1940: Dombås Battle Ends
April 20, 1940: Germans Advancing in Norway
April 21, 1940: First US Military Casualty
April 22, 1940: First British Military Contact with Germans
April 23, 1940: British Retreating in Norway
April 24, 1940: British Bombard Narvik
April 25, 1940: Norwegian Air Battles
April 26, 1940: Norwegian Gold
April 27, 1940: Allies to Evacuate Norway
April 28, 1940: Prepared Piano
April 29, 1940: British at Bodo
April 30, 1940: Clacton-on-Sea Heinkel

2019

Wednesday 21 February 1940

Professors John T. Randall and Henry A.H. Boot, shown here after the war. Professor Boot is holding a six-cavity anodic block.

Winter War: There is a blizzard on 21 February 1940 across Finland which overall benefits the Finns, as they could use a rest after the events of the past week or two. Still, Soviet forces continue grinding toward Viipuri.

Winter War Air Operations: The Soviets continue their strategic bombing campaign against Finland, attacking Pajala in the Tornedal Valley next to Sweden. The Finns announce that they have shot down 17 more Soviet bombers.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-50 (Kapitänleutnant Max-Hermann Bauer) torpedoes and sinks 4,760-ton Dutch freighter Tara west of Cape Finisterre, Spain. The entire crew survives.

U-23 (Kapitänleutnant Otto Kretschmer) gets another victory on its highly successful patrol, torpedoing and sinking the 4,996-ton British freighter Loch Maddy south-southwest of Rockall. Of the crew, 35 survive and 4 perish. The ship is a straggler from Convoy HX-19. The crew abandons ship, but it doesn't actually sink. It becomes a floating derelict.

Royal Navy cruiser Manchester captures German freighter Wahehe south of Iceland.

The British at Gibraltar detain US freighter Sahale, and they release US freighter Exhibitor.

Convoy OA 96 departs from Southend, OB 95 and OB 96 depart from Liverpool.

European Air Operations: The RAF conducts reconnaissance over the Heligoland Bight.

Applied Science: Birmingham University conducts the first successful test of the cavity magnetron. This is the basis for short-wave radar. Britain is in the lead in developing effective, practical rada. Professors John T. Randall and Henry A.H. Boot are researchers in the group of Australian physicist Marcus Oliphant. The seal their experimental device in wax and permanently connect it to a vacuum pump. It oscillates at a wavelength of 9.8 cm, producing the power of 400 W, which is two orders of magnitude above anything previously achieved.

British Government: The Treasury publicly announces nominal budgets of £100 each for the British army, navy, and RAF for the calendar year 1940 and also for the war. The true amounts are classified.

British Homefront: There is a coal shortage and the severe winter is straining stocks on hand. Passenger rail service is curtailed.

Holocaust: The Inspectorate of Concentration Camps reports to Reichsfuhrer-SS Heinrich Himmler that Auschwitz, located in the newly "incorporated territories" that formerly were Poland, would be of best use as a "quarantine center."

China: Chiang Kai-shek holds a military conference assessing the Chinese Winter Offense.

The Japanese Shangtung Operation continues, as the Imperial Army occupies it.

Future History: Peter Gethin is born in Ewell, England. He becomes a top race car driver in the 1970s, participating in 31 World Championship Formula One Grand Prix.

Finnish soldiers inspect a Soviet bomber.

February 1940

February 3, 1940: Soviets Capture a Bunker
February 4, 1940: Peace Talks in Stockholm
February 5, 1940: Allies to Invade Norway
February 6, 1940: Careless Talk Costs Lives
February 7, 1940: IRA Terrorists Executed
February 8, 1940: Spies!
February 9, 1940: The Welles Mission
February 10, 1940: Confiscation of Jewish Goods
February 11, 1940: Soviets Attack Mannerheim Line
February 12, 1940: Breaches In Mannerheim Line
February 13, 1940: Soviets Inching Forward in Finland
February 14, 1940: Soviets Batter Mannerheim Line
February 15, 1940: Finns Retreat
February 16, 1940: Altmark Incident
February 17, 1940: Manstein and Hitler Discuss Fall Gelb
February 18, 1940: Operation Nordmark
February 19, 1940: King Gustav Says No
February 20, 1940: Falkenhorst Commands Weserubung
February 21, 1940: Radar Advances
February 22, 1940: Friendly Fire
February 23, 1940: Soviets Present Their Demands
February 24, 1940: Fall Gelb Revised
February 25, 1940: Mr. Welles Comes to Visit
February 26, 1940: Battle of Honkaniemi
February 27, 1940: Finns Retreat Again
February 28, 1940: Overseas Volunteers Help Finland
February 29, 1940: Finns Accept Soviet Terms In Principle

2019

Monday 19 February 1940

Winter War: King Gustav of Sweden has the final say on whether his country will help Finland:

From the first hour I informed Finland that she unfortunately could not count on military intervention from Sweden.

While the Swedish government cannot help the Finns, Swedish volunteers continue to pour across the border. Some 8,000 Swedish and 725 Norwegian volunteers take up stations in the far north of the front to relieve Finns for duties on the Karelian Isthmus.

Winter War Army Operations: The Soviets are gaining footholds within the V-line switch position. Soviet units work on building an ice road over the frozen Gulf of Viipuri. They attack across Lake Suvanto in the Taipale sector near Lake Ladoga. The Finns use artillery fire to break the ice and destroy the Soviet formation. The ice is littered afterward with 700-1,000 dead Soviet troops.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-23 (Kapitänleutnant Otto Kretschmer), having sunk the HMS Daring on the 18th, continues its successful patrol in support of Operation Nordwind by torpedoing and sinking 5,225-ton British freighter Tiberton with one torpedo east of the Orkneys. All 33 crew perish as the ship sinks within 30 seconds.

Operation Nordmark continues without spotting any convoys.

Convoy OG 19F forms at Gibraltar.

Western Front: The Germans ambush a French patrol east of the River Nied and kill 20 French soldiers.

Special Ops: The Norwegian legislature (the Storting) endorses the way the Norwegian coastal forces handled the Altmark Incident.

Related to these events involving the Altmark, Hitler prods Admiral Raeder to speed up planning for Operation Weserubung.

American Homefront: Sugar Ray Robinson (Walker Smith Jr.) wins New Yorks' Golden Glove Tournament at Madison Square Garden.

Sugar Ray Robinson, 19 February 1940.

February 1940

February 1, 1940: Second Battle of Summa
February 2, 1940: Soviet Assaults at Summa February 3, 1940: Soviets Capture a Bunker
February 4, 1940: Peace Talks in Stockholm
February 5, 1940: Allies to Invade Norway
February 6, 1940: Careless Talk Costs Lives
February 7, 1940: IRA Terrorists Executed
February 8, 1940: Spies!
February 9, 1940: The Welles Mission
February 10, 1940: Confiscation of Jewish Goods
February 11, 1940: Soviets Attack Mannerheim Line
February 12, 1940: Breaches In Mannerheim Line
February 13, 1940: Soviets Inching Forward in Finland
February 14, 1940: Soviets Batter Mannerheim Line
February 15, 1940: Finns Retreat
February 16, 1940: Altmark Incident
February 17, 1940: Manstein and Hitler Discuss Fall Gelb
February 18, 1940: Operation Nordmark
February 19, 1940: King Gustav Says No
February 20, 1940: Falkenhorst Commands Weserubung
February 21, 1940: Radar Advances
February 22, 1940: Friendly Fire
February 23, 1940: Soviets Present Their Demands
February 24, 1940: Fall Gelb Revised
February 25, 1940: Mr. Welles Comes to Visit
February 26, 1940: Battle of Honkaniemi
February 27, 1940: Finns Retreat Again
February 28, 1940: Overseas Volunteers Help Finland
February 29, 1940: Finns Accept Soviet Terms In Principle

2019

Sunday 18 February 1940

The Scharnhorst photographed from the Gneisenau. The photo appears to have been taken just after launching one of the Gneisenau's Arado Ar 196 aircraft.

Winter War Army Operations: The Soviet 13th Army assaults the Taipale sector on 18 February 1940. Bludgeoning their way forward with their armor, the Soviets create breaches in the V-Line in two places.

The Finns north of Lake Ladoga complete the destruction of the "regimental motti" of part of the Soviet 18 Rifle Division. They capture 32 field guns, 30 antitank guns, 1 mortar, 20 tanks, 15 machineguns, 25 trucks & 32 field kitchens. The Soviets lose some 1,000 dead, 250 prisoners and uncounted wounded. The Finns complete their efficient operation with only 166 dead. While things are not going well for them further south, the operations in the north continue to favor the Finns.

Winter War Air Operations: The Soviets bomb Tampere, Pori, the Karelian Isthmus, and several smaller towns. The Finns claim to have shot down another 24 Soviet planes.

Battle of the Atlantic: German pocket battleships Gneisenau and Scharnhorst and heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper, along with destroyers Wilhelm Heidkamp, Karl Galster, and Wolfgang Zenker, make a sortie towards the Shetland Islands. This is "Operation Nordmark" and is intended to intercept British convoys (the "HN" route) between Bergen, Norway and Great Britain. In the evening, Wolfgang Zenker has to return to port when it takes on water. There are several U-boats providing escort duties to the surface ships.

U-23 (Kapitänleutnant Otto Kretschmer) sinks Royal Navy destroyer Daring with two torpedoes off the Pentland Firth while escorting convoy HN-12 from Norway. The sinking is 40 miles east of the Orkney Islands, Scotland; 156 perish, and there are 4-15 survivors (sources vary). This sinking is an ancillary benefit of Operation Nordmark. Attacking destroyers is considered quite risky, so this adds to Kretschmer's already huge reputation.

The British tanker Imperial Transport torpedoed on 11 February 1940 by U-53 (Korvettenkapitän Harald Grosse) has remained afloat - at least the stern half has. The crew returned to it as it drifted. They are spotted by a passing ship and landed in Scotland.

HMS Hasty brings the German freighter Morea, which it intercepted trying to run the blockade, into a West Country port.

Dutch cargo vessel Ameland hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea.

Spanish freighter Banderas sinks after an explosion of undetermined cause.

The British protest to the Norwegian government that it should intern the Altmark for violating the neutrality laws.

Convoy OA 94 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 94 departs from Liverpool, Convoy SL 21 departs from Freetown, Convoy HX 21 departs from Halifax.

Western Front: A small German infantry detachment, supported by heavy mortars, makes an unproductive raid on a French post near the Moselle.

Following his meeting with General von Manstein, Hitler instructs General Halder to re-cast the Fall Gelb plan to include a major thrust through the Ardennes Forest. This is the decisive moment in the transition of the Fall Gelb plan for the invasion of France and the Low Countries from a conventional regurgitation of the von Schlieffen Plan of August 1914 into its final 1940 form.

Franco/Polish Relations: The French government agrees to allow the Polish Air Force to re-establish its units on French soil.

British Government: The government approves the formation of a Cyrus Regiment.

US Government: US Secretary of State Cordell Hull states that the "moral embargo" indicated by President Roosevelt extends to the Soviet Union.

Iraq: Prime Minister Nuri al-Sa'id resigns.

China: In the Battle of South Kwangsi, the Japanese 22nd Army evacuates Kaofengyi and the Chinese recover it. There are reports that Nanning is lost as well.

In the Shangtung Operation, Japanese naval troops land at the tip of Shangtung Peninsula.

Photo of the Gneisenau (far left) from underneath the Arado Ar 196 floatplane showing two destroyers as seen from the Scharnhorst off the Friesian island of Wangerooge, 18 February 1940.

February 1940

February 1, 1940: Second Battle of Summa
February 2, 1940: Soviet Assaults at Summa February 3, 1940: Soviets Capture a Bunker
February 4, 1940: Peace Talks in Stockholm
February 5, 1940: Allies to Invade Norway
February 6, 1940: Careless Talk Costs Lives
February 7, 1940: IRA Terrorists Executed
February 8, 1940: Spies!
February 9, 1940: The Welles Mission
February 10, 1940: Confiscation of Jewish Goods
February 11, 1940: Soviets Attack Mannerheim Line
February 12, 1940: Breaches In Mannerheim Line
February 13, 1940: Soviets Inching Forward in Finland
February 14, 1940: Soviets Batter Mannerheim Line
February 15, 1940: Finns Retreat
February 16, 1940: Altmark Incident
February 17, 1940: Manstein and Hitler Discuss Fall Gelb
February 18, 1940: Operation Nordmark
February 19, 1940: King Gustav Says No
February 20, 1940: Falkenhorst Commands Weserubung
February 21, 1940: Radar Advances
February 22, 1940: Friendly Fire
February 23, 1940: Soviets Present Their Demands
February 24, 1940: Fall Gelb Revised
February 25, 1940: Mr. Welles Comes to Visit
February 26, 1940: Battle of Honkaniemi
February 27, 1940: Finns Retreat Again
February 28, 1940: Overseas Volunteers Help Finland
February 29, 1940: Finns Accept Soviet Terms In Principle

2019

Wednesday 24 January 1940

An NKVD blocking detachment. They are not there to fight the enemy, but their own fleeing comrades.

Winter War: On 24 January 1940, Other nations continue contributing to the Finnish war effort. Two planes full of medical supplies depart from London for Helsinki. In addition, there are reports that 30 British aircraft have arrived in Finland to help with air defense.

Winter War Army Operations: The Soviets resort to a typical tool to keep men at their guns. They create special NKVD "preventative detachments" or "blocking detachments" (zagraditelnyi otriad). These are set up in the rear of Soviet front-line units and are armed with machine guns just like regular army units. If troops retreat without orders, they are shot.

Group Talvela is at Kollaa, defending successfully against the Soviet 8th Army. The two sides throw alternating attacks at each other at Aittojoki River (Joki = river in Finnish).

Winter War Air Operations: Soviet aircraft bomb Finnish hospitals, 19 killed.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-44 (Kapitänleutnant Ludwig Mathes) torpedoes and sinks 3,819-ton French freighter Alsacien 5 miles west of Lisbon at 11:40. Four crew perish.

U-18 (Oberleutnant zur See Ernst Mengersen) torpedoes and sinks 1,000-ton Norwegian freighter Bisp. All 14 men on the ship perish.

U-23 (Kapitänleutnant Otto Kretschmer) has been tailing 1,085-ton Norwegian freighter Varild off northeast Scotland since 20:00 on the 23rd. Kretschmer finally gets within range and fires a torpedo, but it jams in the tube. He tries a second torpedo in another tube, but it misfires and becomes a circle-runner (kreisläufer). Kretschmer, exercising all sorts of patience, fires a third torpedo at 19:00 and it runs true.  All 15 crew perish.

Yugoslavian destroyer Ljubljana runs into a reef at the port of Šibenik and sinks before it can get to shore. The Captain is arrested pending an investigation. The ship is refloated.

Convoy OB 78 departs from Liverpool, HG 16 departs from Gibraltar, SL 18 departs from Freetown.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe drops four bombs on the Shetland Islands but they do no material damage.

British Government: The King reviews Canadian 1st Division training at Aldershot.

British/ Belgian Relations: Prime Minister Chamberlain, attempting to smooth over some of the drama from the Mechelen Incident, tells Belgium that it will aid in their defense if attacked by Germany.

Spain: The Spanish Council of Ministers bans Freemasonry.

China: The Chinese 2d War Area captures Licheng, Tungyangkuan, and She Hsien during the continuing Chinese Winter Offensive.

Paavo Talvela and Marshal Mannerheim.

January 1940

January 1, 1940: Finns Carve up the Soviets
January 2, 1940: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
January 3, 1940: Soviets Trapped
January 4, 1940: Soviet Breakout Attempts Fail
January 5, 1940: Dicing Up the Soviets
January 6, 1940: Soviet 44th Division Runs
January 7, 1940: Shakeup in Soviet High Command
January 8, 1940: Ratte Road Battle Ends
January 9, 1940: British Submarines in Peril
January 10, 1940: Mechelen Incident
January 11, 1940: Finns Surround More Soviets
January 12, 1940: New Soviet Attacks at Taipale
January 13, 1940: Fall Gelb Postponed
January 14, 1940: Japan's Government Falls
January 15, 1940: Soviets Prepare More Carefully
January 16, 1940: German Atrocities Uncovered
January 17, 1940: Bletchley Park in Action
January 18, 1940: New Hope for Allied Shipping
January 19, 1940: Finnish Attacks at Salla
January 20, 1940: Churchill Urges Cooperation
January 21, 1940: Asam Maru Incident
January 22, 1940: Dissension Within British Government
January 23, 1940: Dissension in South Africa
January 24, 1940: NKVD Blocking Detachments
January 25, 1940: Auschwitz Site Selected
January 26, 1940: Millionaire Bunker Destroyed
January 27, 1940: U-20 Sinks Four Ships
January 28, 1940: Softening Up the Finns
January 29, 1940: Moscow Willing to Talk
January 30, 1940: Hitler Throws Down the Gauntlet
January 31, 1940: Timoshenko Is Ready

2019

Friday 12 January 1940

Albert Kesselring (gesturing) with General Speidel and Hermann Goering.

Winter War Army Operations: On 12 January 1940, the Soviets of 7th Army, now under Kirill Meretskov, attempt to cross the River Taipale, which is ice-bound. They choose a 16 km area between Taipale and the Munasuo swamp. They use an armored wedge to force a breakthrough, followed by infantry and other forces. They have built up their tank force and drastically increased manpower. The ultimate aim is Viipuri.

Winter War Peace Talks: There is a secret meeting between Finnish representatives and Madame Kollontai, the Soviet ambassador to Sweden, in Stockholm.

Mechelen Incident: Hitler believes that the Allies have the documents despite all assurances to the contrary. The Belgians continue trying to convince the Germans that they learned nothing. General Gamelin holds a meeting with his military subordinates, and the consensus is that, regardless of the authenticity of the documents, this is a good excuse to pressure the Belgians to allow the stationing of French troops on their territory. The Dutch also are skeptical because they have not been told of the exact source - the Belgians are being very cagey with their allies.

The two men in the plane, Majors Reinberger and Hoenmanns are sentenced to death in absentia - which is the lawful punishment for what they did. Hoenmann is beyond the Gestapo's reach, but not his wife, who soon dies under interrogation.

To replace the fired Felmy, Hitler and Goering appoint General Albert Kesselring to command the 2nd Air Fleet. Kesselring had done good work in support of army operations during the Battle of Poland but does not have a lot of knowledge about strategic air campaigns.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-23 (Oberleutnant zur See Otto Kretschmer) scores another victory, sinking 10,517-ton Danish tanker Danmark at 06:50. The sinking is spectacular because it is done when the Danmark is lying at anchor at Inganess Bay, Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, and the two halves of the tanker drift ashore. All 40 crew survive. Fuel is highly prized by the Allied war effort, and this is a big tanker, so it is a big score for Kretschmer.

British freighter Granta hits a mine and sinks.

Convoy OA 71 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 71 departs from Liverpool, Convoy OB 71M departs from Liverpool, and Convoy HXF 16 departs from Halifax.

European Air Operations: The RAF conducts night reconnaissance over Western Germany and flies missions over German seaplane bases on the Heligoland Bight. There also is a targeted raid on minelaying infrastructure at Rantum Bay.

China: Chinese 4th War Area captures Pachiangkou and Yuantan.

The “tonnage king” Otto Kretschmer, seen here with cigar and papers in hand. Erich Topp is in the foreground on the right, he sank 35 merchant ships for a total of 197,460 tons while skipper of U-57 and U-552 in 1940–41.

January 1940

January 1, 1940: Finns Carve up the Soviets
January 2, 1940: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
January 3, 1940: Soviets Trapped
January 4, 1940: Soviet Breakout Attempts Fail
January 5, 1940: Dicing Up the Soviets
January 6, 1940: Soviet 44th Division Runs
January 7, 1940: Shakeup in Soviet High Command
January 8, 1940: Ratte Road Battle Ends
January 9, 1940: British Submarines in Peril
January 10, 1940: Mechelen Incident
January 11, 1940: Finns Surround More Soviets
January 12, 1940: New Soviet Attacks at Taipale
January 13, 1940: Fall Gelb Postponed
January 14, 1940: Japan's Government Falls
January 15, 1940: Soviets Prepare More Carefully
January 16, 1940: German Atrocities Uncovered
January 17, 1940: Bletchley Park in Action
January 18, 1940: New Hope for Allied Shipping
January 19, 1940: Finnish Attacks at Salla
January 20, 1940: Churchill Urges Cooperation
January 21, 1940: Asam Maru Incident
January 22, 1940: Dissension Within British Government
January 23, 1940: Dissension in South Africa
January 24, 1940: NKVD Blocking Detachments
January 25, 1940: Auschwitz Site Selected
January 26, 1940: Millionaire Bunker Destroyed
January 27, 1940: U-20 Sinks Four Ships
January 28, 1940: Softening Up the Finns
January 29, 1940: Moscow Willing to Talk
January 30, 1940: Hitler Throws Down the Gauntlet
January 31, 1940: Timoshenko Is Ready

2019

Thursday 11 January 1940

Gloster Gladiator in use in Finland during the Winter War.

Winter War: Kombrig Vinogradov, Commissar Parkhomenko, and Chief of Staff Volkov of the 44th Rifle Division each are found guilty by a court-martial and sentenced to death. The charges are irrelevant, the outcome was preordained by the military defeat, but they are accused among other things of leaving behind wounded to die. They are executed on 11 January 1940 in Vazhenvaara by firing squad in front of what remains of their troops. The commissar of the Ninth Army, Furt, is appointed the acting commander of the 44th Rifle Division, which must be completely rebuilt.

Winter War Army Operations: The Finnish IV Corps (12th Infantry Division and 13th Infantry Division) surround the 34th Tank Brigade, Soviet 168th Division and 18th Rifle Division of Soviet 8th Army north of Lake Ladoga. They call this the "Great Mottie of Kitilä." The weather is good enough for the Soviets to supply the pocket by air, but the men inside are miserable and immobilized. The Finns beat off a Soviet relief attempt and set to work cutting up the pocket as they did near Suomussalmi. Major Matti Aarnio of the 4th Jaeger battalion leads the effort and becomes famous as "Motti-Matti."

At Salla, the Soviets try another attack toward the Kemijarvi-Tornio railway but make a little progress.

Winter War Air Operations: At frozen Lake Kemi, the Swedish volunteer air group, Flygflottilj 19, starts off with a dozen obsolete Gladiator Gloster fighters and 4 Hart light bombers. They are a good match for Soviet airplanes, however, which in general are also obsolete by current standards.
Future History: Flygflottilj 19 remains in operation to the end of the Winter War and claims 12 Soviet aircraft downed for 2 planes of their own lost to enemy action, and four lost in accidents.

"His Girl Friday" is remade in 1974 as the Jack Lemmon/Walter Matthau comedy "The Front Page."

Dutch soldiers training on the ice, 11 January 1940.

January 1940

January 1, 1940: Finns Carve up the Soviets
January 2, 1940: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
January 3, 1940: Soviets Trapped
January 4, 1940: Soviet Breakout Attempts Fail
January 5, 1940: Dicing Up the Soviets
January 6, 1940: Soviet 44th Division Runs
January 7, 1940: Shakeup in Soviet High Command
January 8, 1940: Ratte Road Battle Ends
January 9, 1940: British Submarines in Peril
January 10, 1940: Mechelen Incident
January 11, 1940: Finns Surround More Soviets
January 12, 1940: New Soviet Attacks at Taipale
January 13, 1940: Fall Gelb Postponed
January 14, 1940: Japan's Government Falls
January 15, 1940: Soviets Prepare More Carefully
January 16, 1940: German Atrocities Uncovered
January 17, 1940: Bletchley Park in Action
January 18, 1940: New Hope for Allied Shipping
January 19, 1940: Finnish Attacks at Salla
January 20, 1940: Churchill Urges Cooperation
January 21, 1940: Asam Maru Incident
January 22, 1940: Dissension Within British Government
January 23, 1940: Dissension in South Africa
January 24, 1940: NKVD Blocking Detachments
January 25, 1940: Auschwitz Site Selected
January 26, 1940: Millionaire Bunker Destroyed
January 27, 1940: U-20 Sinks Four Ships
January 28, 1940: Softening Up the Finns
January 29, 1940: Moscow Willing to Talk
January 30, 1940: Hitler Throws Down the Gauntlet
January 31, 1940: Timoshenko Is Ready

2019

Thursday 7 December 1939

The Finns are perfectly prepared for fighting in severe weather.

Winter War Naval Operations: The Soviet Union announces a naval blockade of Finland on 7 December 1939.

Winter War Army Operations: The events of today mark a climax of recent operations. The highly disciplined and well equipped (for winter warfare) Finns have retreated to prepared positions. They can retreat no further without beginning to jeopardize their rear. The battles that began on 7 December 1939 are destined to be major turning points in the Winter War, for better or worse, but at this point, nobody knows which way they will go.


The Soviets attack Kollaa north of Lake Ladoga. It is the center of the Finnish line and provides absolutely vital flank protection for positions protecting the heartland of Finland. Their own deep flank also is vulnerable but is more easily defended because of the nature of the terrain (lakes and forests). The Finnish 12th Division, along with some odds and ends from other units, has to make its stand here at Kollaa. Their determination becomes a rallying cry for the Finns elsewhere: "Kollaa holds!" The Soviets, though, have more troops, more artillery, and more of pretty much everything except experience in the extreme conditions.


The Finns evacuate Suomussalmi, which is threatened from two different directions. They destroy it to deny the Soviets any shelter. The Soviet 163rd division of the 9th Army (KomKor M.P. Duhanov), seeing this as a welcome gift, is coming up the road to occupy it. The Finns have only scratch forces in the area, two incomplete companies, and are badly outnumbered. The Finns withdraw to the opposite shores of lakes Niskanselkä and Haukiperä. The Finns are using lakes and forests as defensive weapons, and are adept at moving through the woods that the Soviets avoid. The Finns have a plan for Suomussalmi and have not given up on it.

On the Karelian Isthmus, the Soviet 7th Army begins pounding against the Mannerheim Line with no success.

Western Front: The Germans step up their patrolling activity.

Battle of the Atlantic: Admiral Graf Spee claims another victim. It sinks the 3,895 ton SS Streonshalh south of Trinidad. It is the pocket battleship's ninth victim. Captain Langsdorff, as usual, takes the 32-man crew off, then sinks the vessel with scuttling charges and 6-inch shells.

Captain Langsdorff has made a habit of ransacking his victims for anything useful before sinking them, and this time it pays off handsomely. In the Streonshalh's captain's cabin, Langsdorff's men find papers indicating that a 4-ship convoy will be departing Montevideo on 10 December 1939. It seems likes a wonderful gift, as if his next victims are going to meet him practically by appointment rather than his having to scour the empty sea for them. Langsdorff decides to head there to intercept them. Langsdorff is now holding 61 prisoners after previously having transferred 305 to the Altmark.

U-38 (Kapitänleutnant Heinrich Liebe) sinks 4,460-ton British freighter Thomas Walton in Norwegian territorial waters south of Svolvaer and 80 miles from Narvik. Liebe also mistakenly fires a torpedo at a German rescue ship, the SS Sebu, but it misses. The Sebu takes the 31 survivors to Bodo, Norway. Thirteen perish.

U-47 (Kapitänleutnant Günther Prien) torpedoes and sinks 8,159-ton Dutch freighter Tajandoen. Six perish, 62 survive. Prien mistook the freighter for a tanker and wastes a torpedo on her.

U-23 sinks the Danish vessel Scotia.

US freighters Effingham and Winston Salem are released from Ramsgate. The British seized the latter's cargo of cotton.

Royal Navy destroyer HMS Jersey intervenes at night against Kriegsmarine minelaying destroyer Erich Giese and is damaged by a torpedo.

Belgian steamer Louis Sheid is wrecked at Leas Foot, Thurlestone. It had been making for Antwerp and floods the surrounding coast with the cargo of grain it is carrying.

Sweden: Declares neutrality in the Winter War.

Denmark: Declares neutrality in the Winter War.

Norway: Declares neutrality in the Winter War.

Italy: Declares non-belligerence in the Winter War.

Romania: King Carol asks London if it will guarantee Romanian security against an expected Soviet attack. This, of course, would be quite difficult for the United Kingdom to do regardless of any good intentions it may have.

India: Sir Stafford Cripps, an early foe of fascism and a socialist, arrives in India for consultation with leaders Gandhi and Jinnah. It is felt that Cripps, with his communist leanings, may be best suited to keep the wayward Indians in line during the war, by offering various inducements for what may transpire after it.

Holocaust: Pursuant to a decree from Adolf Hitler, the SS begins overseeing the euthanization of mental patients at the Dziekanka Psychiatric Hospital in Gniezno. SS Untersturmführer Herbert Lange is in charge. The tool used to kill the patients is a simple van with its exhaust fed back into the compartment.

China: The Japanese attack against the Chinese 2nd War Area around Wenhsi and Hsia Hsien continues.

Improvised Finnish camouflage and shelter for their horses during the battle of Kollaa.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019