Wednesday 30 July 1941

Finnish soldiers rest before an attack, 30 July 1941.

Eastern Front: At OKH headquarters, chief of operations General Franz Halder on 30 July 1941 continues to see the glass half-full rather than half-empty. Facing tremendous resistance before Kyiv, he rather hopefully writes:

In Army Group South, the weeks of grinding at the Russian front in the Ukraine are beginning to tell. The enemy front is crumbling.

However, in the very next sentence, a shadow appears on this rosy evaluation:

Nothwithstanding, we must expect that owing to the absence of any pressure from the Romanians and the existence of several well-preserved enemy divisions in the sector of the Front Group South, an attempt will be made to hold the coastal district around Odessa. Odessa may become a Russian Tobruk.

Halder's rather gratuitous slap at the Romanians (whose leader, Ion Antonescu, today pledges his military's support throughout the campaign) is symptomatic of growing stress on the front for the Wehrmacht. Before setting out on Operation Barbarossa, allied involvement was considered helpful but not necessary. In fact, Hitler did not secure Romanian participation until virtually the last moment. Now, however, Romanian failures are portrayed as the cause of major problems. The endemic German scapegoating of its allies has just begun.

In the Far North sector, the Axis advance is stalled except on a few fronts where Finnish troops are taking advantage of their forestland expertise to confound the Soviets. Finnish Group J of 14th Division of III Corps has reached a strongly defended So'yanga canal between Lake Pyaozero and Lake Topozero. In a daring assault, the Finns smuggle a battalion of Group J across the western tip of Top Lake. This effectively flanks the Soviet canal position between the lakes and provides the leverage the Finns need to pry them out of their defenses. Meanwhile, Group F also is advancing on two fronts (moving along the north shore of the large Sredneye Kuyto Lake and along the Korpi Yarvi - Ukhta (Kalevala) road) to the Yeldanka Lake area. As this advance develops, it places Group F about 12 miles northwest of Ukhta, putting further pressure on the Soviet defenders in the sector.

The way now appears open to Kestenga and, much further beyond, the strategically critical Murmansk railway line. The Stavka, realizing the danger, begins transferring reinforcements (the independent Grivnik brigade and the 88th Rifle Division) to defend Kestenga. Both sides rely upon the very few roads in the endless wilderness, which greatly aids the defense. This particularly delays the Germans, who are unfamiliar with the wilderness and, like the Soviets, prefer to remain on the roads. However, the Finns have proven in the Winter War that they are comfortable operating off the roads, which greatly reduces the ability of the Soviets to simply blockade a road and thereby stop the Axis advance.

"Magdeburg.- Irene Proietti with bicycle south of the Hindenburg bridge (ex Königsbrücke, northbridge) in front of the Elbe." 30 July 1941 (Proietti, Ugo, Federal Archive, Bild 212-259).

In the Army Group North sector, the German I Corps (General of the Infantry Kuno-Hans von Both) pushes Soviet General Morozov's 11th Army and General Berzanin's 27th Army out of Staraya Russa. This position south of Lake Ilmen becomes the linchpin of the German line for much of the next three years.

In the Army Group Center sector, the Soviet 20th Army leads the 16th and 19th armies in an attempt to break out of the pocket near Smolensk. The Soviets do manage to open a hole in the perimeter, aided by other attacks by Soviet forces to the east. A relatively small number of Soviet troops escape. However, the Wehrmacht's Panzer Group 2 and 3 quickly seal the front again and trap 300,000 Soviet soldiers for good.

German 17th and 18th Panzer Divisions of 47 Corps are so depleted from a month of fighting and maneuvering that the OKH considers merging them. The truth is, though, that many other divisions are in similar states. Still, even in their depleted states, panzer divisions can still hold their own against the Soviet formations opposing them.

General Zhukov activates a new front, the Reserve Front. It contains the 24th Army, 28th Army, 29th Army, 30th Army, 31st Army, and 32nd Army. This is a sign of Soviet strength, as it demonstrates that the Soviets have entire armies that they have not yet been committed while the Wehrmacht has very few reserves at hand. Zhukov's task is to batter the advanced German position at Yelnya.

In the Army Group South sector, the Soviet commands are more worried about following a Stavka order to defend the Dnieper River crossings than they are defending Kyiv. The German Sixth Army, after first trying to batter the Kyiv defenders frontally, now is sliding around the Soviet concentration to potentially encircle it. Considering that the Soviets have 1.5 million troops in the area, an encirclement would be disastrous to the Red Army, but Stalin has ordered the position held. In fact, he is so adamant about this that he has demoted his chief military lieutenant, General Georgy Zhukov, to the command of a new front defending Moscow near Yelnya.

Unterscharführer of the Waffen-SS Erich Rossner. According to his Knight's Cross citation, Rossner, a member of the "Das Reich" artillery battery, destroyed 13 Soviet tanks during one operation in July 1941. He succumbs to wounds on 30 July 1941 in a field hospital.

European Air Operations: After some quiet days due to poor flying weather, the RAF resumes normal operations. During the day, RAF Bomber Command sends 43 Blenheim bombers to attack the Kiel Canal and also sweeps along the coast. The day is pretty much a disaster because of the fierce anti-aircraft and fighter defenses, which down 7 of the bombers.

After dark, the British send 116 bombers (62 Wellingtons, 42 Hampdens, 7 Halifaxes, and 5 Stirlings) against Cologne. However, it turns out that, although the skies have cleared over England, they are still rough over the Continent. The British pilots do their best but wind up bombing blind through clouds and thunderstorms. Most of the bombloads wind up dropping harmlessly in the countryside, with minimal damage to Cologne itself. Once again the raid causes more damage to the attackers than the target, as the Germans shoot down 2 Hampdens and one Wellington and six more planes crash while trying to make it back to base. An additional raid on Boulogne by 12 Whitleys also turns back due to the weather.

Battle of the Baltic: The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks Soviet submarine S-6 off Saaremaa, Estonia.

Soviet auxiliary minesweeper No. 51 Zmey sinks today of unknown causes.

General der Panzertruppe Konstanz Johann Georg Maximilian Reichsfreiherr von Edelsheim (6 July 1897 – 26 April 1994) wins the Knight's Cross on 30 July 1941 as Oberstleutnant and commander of Radfahr-Abteilung 1.

Battle of the Atlantic: Operation EF, a British raid on Kirkenes, Norway, and Petsamo, Finland, reaches its climax. The raid was planned as a secret strike from aircraft carriers HMS Victorious and Furious, but somebody at Whitehall apparently forgot that daylight is 24-hours long in the extreme northern latitudes during the summer. The Germans who occupy Petsamo with Finnish acquiesence indeed spotted the massive Royal Navy fleet on the 29th and are lying in wait for the attacks.

Furious launches its aircraft of RAF No. 800 Squadron at Petsamo. The Germans, however, having been forewarned and not being completely stupid, have virtually emptied the harbor of ships. The pilots do claim sinking one small ship (the Rotvær) and some harbor infrastructure, but they encounter vicious anti-aircraft fire - go figure - lose two planes (a Fulmar and an Albacore). Another plane fails to make it back.

Victorious takes on Kirkenes, and that becomes a true disaster. The Luftwaffe is ready and waiting for the RAF raid by Nos. 827, 828, and 809 Squadrons. There are operational problems on the British end which cause the different groups of planes to deliver uncoordinated attacks, and the planes approach from the wrong side - over the mountains. Once again, as at Petsamo, the harbor is virtually empty. The planes do sink one 2000-ton ship and damage another, but the defending Bf 109s, Bf 110s and even a Junkers Ju 87 inflict horrendous damage. The British lose 11 Albacores and two Fulmars, and an additional 8 Albacores are damaged. The Luftwaffe does lose a few planes, but overall Operation EF is a flaming disaster of wasted effort and lost planes for the British.

U-371 (Kptlt. Heinrich Driver), on its second patrol out of Brest, is operating southeast of the Azores when it spots two ships that recently have dispersed from Convoy OS-1. It torpedoes and sinks:

• 6935-ton British freighter Shahristan (65 deaths, 33 survivors)
• 7049-ton Dutch freighter Sitoebondo (17 deaths, 70 survivors).

The Sitoebondo launches three lifeboats, but one is lost at sea with 17 people on board and never found.

German 238-ton fishing trawler Pickhuben is hit with an aerial mine and sinks in the southern part of the North Sea.

The RAF bombs and damages German freighter Inga Essberger at the mouth of the Elbe River.

Royal Navy submarine Seawolf (Lt Cdr Raikes) spots U-562 making its way across the Bay of Biscay. It attacks but misses.

US aircraft carrier USS Yorktown leads task force TG-2.5 from Hampton Roads, Virginia on a neutrality patrol that is scheduled to last until 10 August.

Royal Navy minelayer Port Quebec lays minefield SN-21C in the North Sea.

Convoy OG-70 departs from Liverpool bound for Gibraltar.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Trusty (William D. A. King) and destroyer Puckeridge are commissioned, while submarine Unseen is laid down.

Canadian minesweeper HMCS Ingonish is launched at North Vancouver, British Columbia.

Free French corvette FS Renoncule (Lt. Herbert B. Acworth) is commissioned.

U-504 (Korvettenkapitän Fritz Poske) is commissioned, U-508 is launched, U-382 is laid down.

"Men of the Saxmundham Home Guard prepare to fire a 'Blacker Bombard' during training with War Office instructors, 30 July 1941. The weapon was a 29mm spigot mortar, designed by a Lieutenant Colonel V V S Blacker, and could fire a 20lb bomb some 900yds." © IWM (H 12299).

Battle of the Mediterranean: In poor visibility, Royal Navy submarine HMS Cachalot (Lt Cdr H. R. B. Newton) is rammed by an Italian torpedo boat Achille Papa off Benghazi. The Cachalot's commander orders the ship abandoned, and it sinks in 200 feet of water. The torpedo boat rescues all but one crewman. The submarine is carrying 18 passengers (naval personnel traveling to Alexandria) and they become prisoners, too.

Operation Style commences when a large force leaves Gibraltar. This is another supply mission to Malta. British Force X, led by lighter cruisers Arethusa and Hermione, carry troops and supplies to Malta that had been on troopship Leinster, which grounded and was scratched from Operation Substance. While not involving a major convoy, Operation Style does involve numerous diversions and feints over the next few days.

At Tobruk, No. 8 Commando stages a special operation to basically kidnap an enemy soldier from the no-man's land in order to gather military intelligence. It is a typical mission, and successful, but the young officer, David Sutherland, who writes about it adds a few personal thoughts:

My own feelings at being besieged in Tobruk were depression and unease. The experienced enemy had the initiative. One did not know what was going to happen next. Our job was to rest by day and patrol in no-man’s-land during the night.

Sutherland's feelings are not unique. The Australian commanders know that morale is suffering because of the trying conditions within the Tobruk perimeter, and already have begun shipping some soldiers out for rest and recreation at Mersa Matruh. While Mersa Matruh is hardly a garden spot, at least there the men don't have to suffer through continual artillery barrages and wonder where their next meal is coming from.

Royal Navy submarine Olympus (Lt Cdr Dymott) is operating off Cape Camino when it makes an unsuccessful attack on an Italian freighter.

Operation Guillotine, the British reinforcement of Cyprus, continues with Australian sloop Parramatta escorting transport HMS Gujarat to Famagusta.

At Malta, Governor Lt. General Dobbie sends a telegram to the War Department warning that food supplies are an issue because wheat mills are concentrated in one small area of the island and need to mill about 100 tons of flour every day to feed the population. He warns that, even with stockpiles of food, without the wheat mills, Malta could only withstand a siege for 100 days.

An Axis convoy departs from Naples to Tripoli. It includes four freighters escorted by an Italian destroyer and four torpedo boats.

Battle of the Pacific: The US Navy decides to inspect 17 Japanese fishing trawlers parked off the main islands of Hawaii. When they find radio transmitters, cameras, and a reserve officer of the Imperial Japanese Navy on each ship, the USN ships detain all of the spy ships.

Australian troop convoy US-1B departs Melbourne bound for Fremantle and then Singapore. Troop Convoy WS 9AX arrives at Colombo en route to Singapore.

Special Operations: Royal Navy submarine HMS Unique (Lt Collett) lands commandos at the western tip of Calabria, Italy. Their mission is to sabotage railways and trains.

A newspaper photograph of the signing of the Sikorski-Maisky Agreement, 30 July 1941. British Prime Minister Winston S.Churchill (with cigar) and Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden (on Churchill's right) sit at the head of the table; General Sikorski sits on the left with a British official. R. Dunbar, standing to his left; Ambassador Maisky with his assistant, Novikov, sits on the right.

Soviet/Polish Relations: As the first step in what will become an increasingly convoluted and insincere relationship, the Soviets execute an agreement (the "Sikorski–Mayski agreement") with the Polish government-in-exile, led by General Sikorski, in London. The agreement provides in part:

The Government of the U.S.S.R. expresses its consent to the formation on territory of the U.S.S.R. of a Polish Army under a commander appointed by the Polish Government in agreement with the Soviet Government, the Polish Army on territory of the U.S.S.R. being subordinated in an operational sense to the Supreme Command of the U.S.S.R., in which the Polish Army will be represented. All details as to command, organization and employment of this force will be settled in a subsequent agreement.

This is not an ideal arrangement. Basically, it makes such a Polish army a mercenary force for the Soviet Union. It does meet the Soviet goal as to the formation of a Polish Army (ultimately known as the Anders Army after its commander Władysław Anders) from 25,700 POWs held in the USSR.

Winston Churchill grandly proclaims this treaty as:

proof of the fact that hundreds of millions of men all over the world are coming together on the march against the filthy gangster power which must be effectively and finally destroyed.

The treaty is only a first step and creates a great deal of ambiguity. More importantly for the Poles, they have no way to enforce proper conditions for the Anders Army and no recourse if it is misused or maltreated.

German/Romanian Relations: Romanian leader Ion Antonescu pledges that his forces will fight beside the Wehrmacht until the final defeat of the Soviet Union.

A clearer picture of the signing of the Sikorski-Mayski Agreement, 30 July 1941.

US/Soviet Relations: President Roosevelt's crony Harry Hopkins arrives at Archangel in Russia's far north and proceeds to Moscow for talks. The Soviets are quite happy to see Hopkins because they covet US lend-lease aid. Timed to coincide with Hopkins' visit, the United States officially announces that it will indeed supply lend-lease supplies to the Soviet Union. This is an open-ended commitment with no strings attached, and these two factors will cause problems in the future for relations between the two powers.

US/Japanese Relations: President Roosevelt extends the sanctions against Japan to include aviation fuel.

The US government grants an exception to one Japanese freighter, the Tatsuta Maru so that its owners can pay for enough fuel for it to return to Japan.

US/Czech Relations: The United States formally recognizes the Czechoslovak government-in-exile in London.

German Military: The OKW issues Fuhrer Directive No. 34, "Strengthening Soviet Resistance." As compared to previous Fuhrer Directives, which tended to have a broad, strategic scope, Directive No. 34 deals with tactical situations of the moment. More than anything, this directive shows that Hitler gradually is losing his perspective and is being drawn into the day-to-day tactical decisions of the Wehrmacht.

In terms of substance, the directive categorically orders Army Group Center to "go over to the defensive, taking advantage of suitable terrain." This is diametrically opposed to what Field Marshal Fedor Bock and his generals wish to do, and already they are scheming about how to frustrate this order.

"Troops of the 3rd Canadian Division are carried ashore on a tender, having disembarked from a troopship at Gourock in Scotland, 30 July 1941." © IWM (H 12340).

US Military: US Army Chief of Staff George Marshall makes clear to the War Department Staff that, given the appointment of General Douglas MacArthur as the new commander in the Philippines, it is now official US policy to defend the Philippines. However, that said, the European Theater of Operations remains the top priority.

US Government: President Roosevelt sends a lengthy message to Congress requesting wage and price controls. He warns that inflation is taking off, up 3.5% since the beginning of 1941 alone.

Roosevelt also issues Executive Order No. 8839. It establishes the Economic Defense Board and is to be chaired by Vice President Henry A. Wallace.

"Castle near Magdeburg, Magdeburger Straße.- "Sharp corner", in the background Church of St. Nicolai / lower church." 30 July 1941. (Proietti, Ugo, Federal Archive, Bild 212-257).

China: The Japanese bomb the Nationalist capital of Chungking after dark. While in most respects it is a typical bombing raid, it stands out because one of the bombs damages USS Tutuila (PR-4). Tutuila is hardly a strategic US asset - it is trapped in Chungking because of Japanese control all the outlets to the sea - but it is a symbol of US support for the Chiang Kai-shek regime. The Japanese bomb lands right next to the gunboat as it is moored at Lungmenhao Lagoon, holing the ship at the waterline and destroying Tutuila's outboard-motor equipped dinghy.

The US quickly protests the damage to Tutuila, and the Japanese just as quickly apologize and call it a "tragic accident." While not an enduring international incident, the bombing heightens tensions and reinforces the prevailing American view that the Japanese are "testing" the United States. There seems to be at least a grain of truth to this, as observers on the ground report that the Japanese bombers, far from trying to avoid hitting the US ship, actually go out of their way to target it.

The graves of two Wehrmacht soldiers of the 34th Infantry Regiment KIA 30 July 1941.

American Homefront: The Chinese Consul-General in Honolulu, King-Chau Mui, delivers a radio address from Hilo, Hawaii. He calls for the "development of the international war front today" in order to preserve the "security of peace, justice, and freedom."
Future History: Paul Albert Anka is born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Paul Anka goes on to become a renowned singer, songwriter, and actor during the 1950s onward. He is credited with hits such as "Put Your Head on My Shoulder," "(You're) Having My Baby," and the theme for the Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. Anka becomes a US citizen in 1990 and remains active as a performer as of the time of this writing in 2018.

Serbs gather in a church in Gilna, Croatia, 30 July 1941. A wave of executions begins on that date with 700-2000 Serbs massacred by Ustaše paramilitary forces led by Vjekoslav Luburić. This is known as the Gilna Massacre. In 1969 a monument and museum at the site, but these are later removed by Croatian authorities.

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

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 24 June 1941

Staff Sergeant Eero Kinnunen and his Brewster 239 fighter (BW-352) of Squadron Lentolaivue/24 at Selänpää airfield, Kouvola, Finland. 24 June 1941 (colorized).

Eastern Front: Operation Barbarossa continues rolling eastward and northward on 24 June 1941. The day features various futile Soviet counterattacks that show convincingly that the Soviets do not even know where the advancing Germans are from one hour to the next. The Germans enter Kaunas (10th Army) and Vilnius (Panzer Group 3).

Army Group North beats off a powerful Soviet counterattack against 4th Panzer Group at the Battle of Raseiniai. Soviet Lieutenant-General Vasily Ivanovich Morozov takes his 11th Army back to Kaunas on the Niemen. The Soviet 8th Army also is taking a beating.

In Army Group Center, Soviet General Dmitry Pavlov orders his 6th and 11th Mechanized Corps and the 6th Cavalry Corps to attack toward Grodno to stop the panzers. The German 4th Army besieges Soviet defenders at Brest-Litovsk.

The German 3rd Panzer Group, however, already has passed through Grodno and is in Vilnius. Instead, the Soviets hit the following German infantry of V Army Corps of the German 9th Army, supported by Luftwaffe air attacks. This accomplishes nothing.

Children in a bomb shelter, Minsk, Byelorussia, 24 Jun 1941 (Russian International News Agency).

Army Grup South, led by 11th and 16th Panzer Divisions, begins the day 40 miles inside of Soviet territory. The 13th and 14th Panzer Divisions have reached the Styr River. German 17th Army takes Nemirov.

The Soviets under General Ivan Bagramyan attempt a counterattack at 04:00 today as part of the Battle of Brody but make no progress. The Soviet 22nd Mechanized Corps attacks toward Voinitsa, but the Germans make quick work of their tanks. Soviet armor and infantry are widely separated and it takes time to assemble them into a cohesive fighting force. The Soviets have powerful forces in the vicinity, but almost all are in the process of forming up today and make no attacks.

The Red Air Force attempts a raid against East Prussia. It accomplishes little. According to the German News Bureau:

An attempt by the Soviet air force on Tuesday morning to fly weak forces into East Prussia, has been frustrated by the German air defense. The enemy aircraft encountered such accurate flak fire that they were forced to turn around at once and to jettison their bombs over open country.

The Luftwaffe continues its own raids on Soviet airfields, destroying many planes on the ground. A large fraction of Soviet planes are obsolete, so their destruction is fairly routine for the experienced German pilots. The Luftwaffe bombs Moscow with 100 bombers after dark.

NY Times, 24 June 1941.

Syrian/Lebanon Campaign: The Australian 25th Infantry Brigade recaptures Merdjayoun early today.

The Australian 2/14 Battalion tries to advance north from Jezzine. They are stopped cold in the hills north of town by Senegalese defenders who have excellent defensive positions.

The Vichy French make a stand at Jebel Mazar, a tall hill on the Damascus/Beirut road. They stop the British 16th Brigade advancing west from Damascus.

The Vichy French garrison at Palmyra continues its successful defense of the town and airfield. Arab auxiliaries, led by Arab Nationalist leader Fawzi el Kawakji, ambush a British supply convoy in conjunction with French armored cars.

New Zealand light cruiser HMNZS Leander and destroyers Hasty and Jaguar park off the coast north of Beirut and shell Vichy French positions before dawn.

"British soldiers inspecting a captured German SdKfz 222 armored car, 24 June 1941." (© IWM (E 3776)).

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command raids Cologne (54 aircraft), Kiel (48 bombers), Dusseldorf (21 aircraft).

RAF Bomber Command sends Circus missions to the Thermal Power-Station at Comines. The formation is a success, with 7.5 tons of bombs dropped and the RAF claiming 9 kills, 7 probable kills and 5 damaged aircraft for the loss of two planes and pilots.

Battle of the Baltic: The Soviets scuttle more ships to avoid capture by the advancing Germans, all at Liepāja, Latvia:

• destroyer Lenin;
• submarine M-71
• submarine M-80
• submarine Ronis
• submarine S-1
• submarine Spidola
• torpedo boat TKA-27
• auxiliary gunboat Tunguska
• icebreaker Silach.

Events in the Baltic States ports are confused, with the Soviets hurriedly evacuating and partisans hot on their heels, so the exact dates when these scuttlings take place is uncertain.

Destroyed/abandoned Soviet tanks in western Ukraine, 24 June 1941.

Battle of the Atlantic: A U-boat wolfpack begins attacking Convoy HX-133. It is passing Convoy OB-336 south of Greenland, which provides numerous targets within a small sector of the Atlantic. There are several stragglers from the convoy, which makes for easy targets. The action is confused, and who sunk which ships sometimes is not definite but is based on detailed analysis and guesswork.

U-203 (Kptlt. Rolf Mützelburg), on its first patrol out of Kiel, torpedoes and sinks 4956-ton British freighter Kinross of Convoy OB-336. Everyone survives. This is sometimes listed as happening on the 25th.

U-203 also torpedoes and sinks 4402-ton Norwegian freighter Solay of HX-133. All 32 aboard survive.

U-371 (Kptlt. Heinrich Driver), on its first patrol out of Kiel, torpedoes and sinks 4765-ton Norwegian freighter Vigrid. The Vigrid is a straggler from Convoy HX-133. There are 24 deaths, and 14 survivors (some sources say 21 survivors and 28 deaths) have to wait until 7 July before US destroyer Charles F. Hughes finds them.

U-651 (Kptlt. Peter Lohmeyer), on its first patrol out of Kiel, torpedoes and sinks 5297-ton British freighter Brockley Hill. The Brockley Hill is a straggler from Convoy HX-133. Everyone survives.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 803-ton British freighter Levenwood off Tees Bay. The Levenwood is taken in tow and makes it to Hartlepool.

Convoy OG-66 departs from Liverpool bound for Gibraltar, Convoy HG-66 departs from Gibraltar bound for Liverpool.

US minesweeper USS Sheldrake is laid down.

Someone having a bad day, Nemirow, 24-25 June 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The British forces at Alexandria have been conducting nightly supply missions to the embattled Australian garrison at Tobruk without too much trouble. Tonight, however, the Luftwaffe (Junkers Ju 87 aircraft of II Staffeln, Sturzkampfgeschwader 2, Luftwaffe) is waiting for the "Tobruk Express" about 20 miles (37 km) northeast of Tobruk. During the incessant attacks:

• The Luftwaffe bombs and badly damages tanker Pass of Balmaha, which its crew abandons.
• The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks sloop HMS Auckland, with 34 deaths, 164 survivors (two die later), and 8 wounded.

The Pass of Balmaha is taken in tow by destroyer HMAS Waterhen and brought to Tobruk, where its fuel is unloaded. It is then taken back to Alexandria.

The Luftwaffe drops leaflets to the besieged Australians in Tobruk which read:

AUSSIES
After Crete disaster Anzac troops are now being ruthlessly sacrificed by England in Tobruch and Syria.
Turkey has concluded pact of friendship with Germany. England will shortly be driven out of the Mediterranean.
Offensive to relieve you totally smashed.
YOU CANNOT ESCAPE
Our dive bombers are waiting to sink your transports. Think of your future and your people at home. Come forward – show white flags and you will be out of danger!
SURRENDER!

Before dawn, Royal Navy submarine HMS Utmost lands some Commandos for a mission to destroy a railway line in Italy. The railway is used to bring supplies for shipments to North Africa. Two Commandos, Lt D R Schofield, Royal Fusiliers, and Lance Corporal F C Morgan, row ashore and place charges on the railway line. Then, they return to the waiting submarine. Unfortunately for their mission, their attempt to destroy a passing train fails when the charges fail to explode. Undeterred, the two men row ashore again and fix them. This time, they just blow up the tracks and return to the submarine without incident.

Turkish freighter Refah, previously torpedoed by an unidentified submarine (almost certainly a Royal Navy one), sinks. There are 168 deaths and 32 survivors.

Royal Navy battleship HMS Warspite, recently damaged by near misses that cause flooding, sails out of the Mediterranean for repairs. It is out of action until January 1942.

The Luftwaffe raids Benghazi and Tripoli.

Battle of the Black Sea: Soviet minesweeper T-208 Shkiv hits a mine and sinks at the Glotova Bank.

The siege of Brest fortress, June 1941.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: German raider Kormoran, disguised as Japanese freighter Kinka Maru, approaches Madras to lay mines. However, the Germans notice another ship shadowing them. They take this to be a British auxiliary cruiser (it apparently is AMC Canton). However, the ship eventually disappears. Kormoran Captain Detmers decides not to take any chances and cancels the minelaying mission.

Battle of the Pacific: Captured whaler “Adjutant,” which now has a German prize crew, arrives in New Zealand waters for minelaying operations.

Propaganda: The Germans announce:

Since early Monday morning the Luftwaffe has continued its successful attacks on Soviet military airfields. Large numbers of Russian aircraft were destroyed on the first day of battle, and we can now report that a great many more aircraft have been shot down on the same day.

The Soviets paint a very different picture:

Our aerial forces have fought successfully to protect our towns and military installations. They have fought in the air and supported the counterattacks of the ground troops. In the course of the day 51 enemy aircraft were destroyed by our fighter planes and ground defenses. One enemy plane was forced to land at an airfield near Minsk.

Neither side provides many specifics about where their forces on the ground are.

Special Operations: Italian submarine Scire launches midget submarines off Malta. The intent is to penetrate Grand Harbour and attack shipping, but the attack fails.

Soviet/German Relations: The Soviets take the German embassy staff south to Kostroma-on-Volga and house them in a worker's settlement. Their destination is Turkey once arrangements are made for the safe conduct of Soviet embassy personnel from Berlin.

German/Soviet Relations: At some point during this week - details are very sketchy - Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin attempts to broker a peace deal with Hitler through a Bulgarian diplomat, Ivan Stamenov. Foreign Minister Molotov has Lavrentiy Beria arrange this by using one of Beria's subordinates, NKVD officer Pavel Sudoplatov, who has a "casual" lunch at a Moscow restaurant with the diplomat. Sudoplatov explains to Stamenov what to say to Hitler. Stalin is willing to offer huge concessions for peace, including Ukraine and all of the areas granted to him in the "secret protocol" to the 23 August 1939 Molotov/Ribbentrop Pact in the Baltic States. Stalin does, though, demand to know why Hitler invaded the USSR.

Hitler turns Stalin down flat and will not even consider the offer. This is one of Hitler's biggest mistakes. These revelations were hidden for many years but came to light during the period after Stalin died from natural causes in the 1950s. There are few other details of this little-known incident, but there is no reason to doubt that it happened. This peace offer was classified as treason and was one of the charges used to condemn Beria to death. The others involved - including the Bulgarian Stamenov diplomat used as the go-between - submitted affidavits confirming the incident. Sudoplatov confessed to it under interrogation and also was convicted of treason, serving 15 full years in prison (yes, there are many questions about the validity of such "proof," but there was a lot of corroboration). Molotov was never tried for treason despite his deep role in the incident, but gradually fell out of favor, lost his positions one by one, and by 1962 was a "non-person" in the Soviet bureaucracy.
Anglo/Soviet Relations: Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden announces that he has reached a mutual aid agreement with the Soviets.

Original memorial erected to the victims of Einsatzgruppe A at Gargzdai/Garsden/Gorzdt on 24 June 1941 (courtesy of George Birman).

German/Spanish Relations: Hitler approves the use of a special "volunteer" Spanish formation on the Eastern Front. This becomes the famous Spanish Blue Division.

US/Soviet Relations: President Roosevelt is asked at a press conference what he intends to do about the Soviet Union. He promises to send aid to the Soviet Union, saying:

Of course we are going to give all the aid we possibly can to Russia.

It is unclear from this seemingly offhand response what the authorization for such aid would be, though presumably it would be included under Lend-Lease. Roosevelt also unfreezes about $40 million in Soviet assets.

Hungarian/Soviet Relations: Hungary breaks relations with the Soviet Union.

Slovakian/Soviet Relations: Slovakia declares war on the USSR.

German Military: The Wehrmacht begins recruiting volunteers in Denmark, while Spain begins soliciting volunteers (of which there are many) to join a division to fight with Germany on the eastern front.

Finnish Military: While not yet officially at war, the Finns continue laying mines in the Baltic. Finnish troops occupy the Aaland Islands.

Soviet Military: The Leningrad (St. Petersburg) Military District is renamed Soviet Northern Front. Its commander is General Popov. General Aleksei Antonov is appointed Chief of Staff, Southwestern Front.

US Military: In the Philippines, there is flooding at Nichols Airfield (which is not paved), so 3rd and 20th Pursuit Squadrons move to Clark Airfield. The US continues beefing up its presence as transport SS President Pierce arrives bringing 96 pilots.

Joseph Kennedy Jr. enlists in the US Naval Reserve.

IJN aircraft carrier Hiyō, launched 24 June 1941.

Japanese Military: The IJN launches aircraft carrier Hiryu, which has been converted from a passenger liner.

British Government: With war expenditures soaring, the British House of Commons votes for the second £1,000,000,000 war credit of the year.

Spain: There is strong support in Spain for the German invasion of the Soviet Union. Large demonstrations take place in Madrid and other cities. Spanish Foreign Minister Ramón Serrano Suñer announces the formation of a Spanish volunteer division to serve beside the Wehrmacht in Russia. Volunteers rush to fill the 18,000 openings. Agustin Muñoz Guardes is selected as General commanding this "Spanish Blue Division."

Lithuania: The Lithuanian Activist Front forms a government, but not even the Germans recognize it.

China: The Japanese bomb Chungking (Chongqing).

German troops at Kaunas (Kovno), Lithuania, 24 June 1941.

Holocaust: Einsatzgruppe A, following behind Army Group North, engages in the killing of about 800 Jews and 100 non-Jews in the vicinity of the Lithuanian border town of Gargzdai (called Gorzdt in Yiddish and Garsden in German). These liquidations may have occurred as early in the invasion as 22 June. The exterminations continue throughout the year.

American Homefront: New York Yankee Joe DiMaggio gets a hit in the 8th inning against St. Louis Browns pitcher Bob Muncrief. This extends DiMaggio's club-record hitting streak to 36 games. It is a Yankees blowout (they win 9-1), and the at-bat is meaningless, so some (including Browns manager Luke Swewll) question Muncrief's decision to pitch to DiMaggio. Muncrief, who could have simply walked DiMaggio or hit him with a pitch and ended the streak, says after the game:

That wouldn't have been fair, to him or to me. Hell, he's the greatest ballplayer I've ever seen.

Future History: Charles Joseph Whitman is born in Lake Worth, Florida, US. He becomes the infamous "Texas Tower Sniper: on 1 August 1966 at the University of Texas in Austin. During his well-known shooting spree, Whitman (who in his suicide note claims to suffer from migraine headaches and at his autopsy is found to have a brain tumor) kills 16 people (including his wife and mother) and wounds 31 others. Eventually, after a lengthy standoff, the Austin police shoot Whitman dead. Whitman's murder spree adds a 17th victim in 2001 when someone wounded during the attack dies of his wounds.

German death card for Johann Wocherl, 24 June 1941, perished in Russia.

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