Tuesday 5 August 1941

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

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

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

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

Soviet troops captured during 1941.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

John F. Kennedy ca. 1939.

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

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

August 1941
August 1, 1941: More Executions on Crete
August 2, 1941: Uman Encirclement Closes
August 3, 1941: Bishop von Galen Denounces Euthanasia
August 4, 1941: Hitler at the Front
August 5, 1941: Soviets Surrender at Smolensk 
August 6, 1941: U-Boats in the Arctic
August 7, 1941: Soviets Bomb Berlin
August 8, 1941: Uman Pocket Captured
August 9, 1941: Atlantic Conference at Placentia Bay
August 10, 1941: Soviet Bombers Mauled Over Berlin
August 11, 1941: Rita Hayworth in Life
August 12, 1941: Atlantic Charter Announced
August 13, 1941: The Soybean Car
August 14, 1941: The Anders Army Formed
August 15, 1941: Himmler at Minsk
August 16, 1941: Stalin's Order No. 270
August 17, 1941: Germans in Novgorod
August 18, 1941: Lili Marleen
August 19, 1941: Convoy OG-71 Destruction
August 20, 1941: Siege of Leningrad Begins
August 21, 1941: Stalin Enraged
August 22, 1941: Germans Take Cherkassy
August 23, 1941: Go to Kiev
August 24, 1941: Finns Surround Viipuri
August 25, 1941: Iran Invaded
August 26, 1941: The Bridge Over the Desna
August 27, 1941: Soviets Evacuate Tallinn
August 28, 1941: Evacuating Soviets Savaged
August 29, 1941: Finns take Viipuri
August 30, 1941: Operation Acid
August 31, 1941: Mannerheim Says No

2020

Saturday 19 April 1941

Devastation at Essex Road, Romford (Picture: "Hitler v Havering" by Peter Watt via Romford Recorder)

Operation Marita: With Yugoslavia out of the war now and the British settling into a new line running from Thermopylae to Corinth on 19 April 1941, the focus turns to the Greek Epirus Army in Albania. It has pulled out of some positions in Albania, which the Italians there somewhat tentatively have occupied, but the bulk of the Greek Epirus Army remains in the mountains along the Greece/Albania border.

The 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler ("LSSAH," still brigade-size at this point in the war) under SS-Obergruppenführer Sepp Dietrich (Hitlers former chauffeur) once again makes a radical change in its orientation to address this situation. Having moved west into Yugoslavia and then south into Greece, the LSSAH now heads west again into the mountains to confront the Greeks. The Greeks are trying to escape through the Metsovon Pass in the Pindus Mountains, which is at an altitude of 5000 feet, so the LSSAH has a bit of a climb on its hands.

However, the Germans don't even have to do fight the Greeks to defeat them - all they need to do is seize Ioannina, which controls the Greek's supply road. The LSSAH closes up on Ioannina today against light opposition, which is a mystery considering the city's strategic importance. In fact, reports coming out of the mountains, such as by Greek Generals Ioannis Pitsikas and Georgios Bakos, indicate that Greek troop morale has collapsed and they may not have the motivation any longer to continue a hopeless cause.

Elsewhere, the day is spent by the British occupying their new defensive line and the Germans closing upon it. The Germans of the XVIII Mountain Corps take firm control of Larissa, which bottles up any remaining Allied troops in the northeast of Greece and makes their escape route dependent either upon air or naval transport. The Germans find that the British at the airfield left so precipitously that they abandoned sufficient rations and other supplies to supply the German unit's continued move south.

Winston Churchill once again demonstrates the borderline contempt that he feels toward Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell. He sends him a querulous Secret memorandum that can best be characterized as snotty. It reads in part:

So far His Majesty's Government have not received from General Wilson or from you any account of the fighting in Greece, although heavy and prolonged actions have been in progress for several days, and lengthy newspaper reports of a confused character have been telegraphed home. This is not the way His Majesty's Government should be treated. It is also detrimental to the Service.... I wish you to make ... a short daily report of what is happening on the Front ... at least every twenty-four hours.

A clearer slap in Wavell's face is hard to imagine. This is akin to a teacher remonstrating with a student to turn in his homework on time. Wavell's main problem, though, is not Churchill, but that he probably doesn't really have a true picture of the course of the conflict, because it is moving at a rapid pace and his local commanders probably don't have time to submit precise reports of their own locations when they are rolling down the highway toward the next defensive line.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 1822 ton Greek freighter Teti Nomikou at Chalkis.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Regent, based in Malta, arrives at Kotor, Yugoslavia to rescue the British Ambassador, Sir Ronald Campbell, and other VIPs. However, the Germans are in possession of the port and bomb the submarine as it approaches, injuring an officer, rake it with machine-gun fire from the shore. The Regent's commanding officer, Lt. Commander H.C. Brown, and a sailor are shot by the machine gun and seriously wounded. The Regent departs without the ambassador or an officer, Lieutenant D. Lambert, who is sent ashore to locate him.

The German 164th Infantry Division sends troops to occupy Samothrace.

Nurses doing what they can in St. Peter’s Hospital, Stepney, East London, to pick up after the bomb damage on April 19, 1941. Four hospitals, some say more, were among the buildings hit during a night of devastation. (AP Photo).

East African Campaign: The Indian 5th Infantry Division marches south from Amara, Abyssinia toward the 1st South African Brigade, which is marching north from Addis Ababa. In between is the 7000-man Italian stronghold Amba Alagi. The South Africans encounter Italian resistance at Dessi, which is about 130 miles (200 km) south of Amba Alagi.

Iraq: The British seized Basra on the 18th with the landing of the Indian 20th Infantry Brigade. Legally, this is proper according to a 1930 treaty. However, the Iraqis see their chance to break free of colonial British rule, don't care about treaties.

The Rashid Ali government, defiantly pro-Axis, steps up its movement of large military forces to the vicinity of RAF Habbaniya, one of two major British airbases in Iraq. This airbase, about 50 miles (80 km) west of Baghdad on the Euphrates, is isolated and vulnerable to many forms of pressure. The Iraqis move an infantry brigade, a separate artillery brigade, a few tanks, a dozen armored cars, and assorted other units to a plateau that overlooks the airbase. The Iraqis demand that all movement to and from the base cease, but the British fly in half a dozen additional Gloster Gladiator fighters to Habbaniyah.

The British strategic problem is that they have large forces in Iraq, but they are widely separated by increasingly hostile territory. The Germans, upon whom Ali has called for aid, have a much bigger strategic problem. They cannot send ships to Iraq, so any presence must be via the Luftwaffe. However, the British control all the Iraqi airfields and the Germans, even if they could find a place to land, would have no logistical support. Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering, however, has high hopes of intervening anyway.

Blitz damage to St. Paul's in London. LA Times, 19 April 1941.

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe returns to London again after dark with another massive raid. It is even more destructive than the previous raid on 16-17 April. As in 1940, the bombers continue arriving until the first glimmers of dawn. Total sorties (some planes fly multiple missions) equal 712, dropping about 1180 tons of bombs. The Luftwaffe loses only two planes. Casualties are not broken down between the missions, and total casualties are roughly 2300 killed and 3000 seriously wounded. The misery of London dwellers grows, with about 150,000 homes hit between the two raids.

Many important landmarks and public buildings are hit. These include the Speaker's House at Westminster, the Law Courts, Selfridge's, Christie's Auction House, and even St. Paul's, which takes a hit to the north transept and shatters the remaining stained glass windows. Eight London hospitals and many churches - including Christopher Wren's Holborn - are obliterated. London firefighters lose 13 men, the most so far during the war.

The devastation, of course, is worse in some districts than in others. It becomes known locally as "Essex Road Night" because of the damage inflicted upon Romford and Hornchurch. There are 38 dead there alone, mainly women and children. A bomb scores a direct hit on an air-raid shelter at 144 Brentwood Road, killing nine members of one family (the Gills).

RAF Bomber Command continues its patrols of the North Sea and also sends 36 aircraft to bomb coastal targets.

Free French submarine Minerve sights German tanker Tiger being led by auxiliary minesweeper M.1101 along the coast of Norway southwest of Stavanger. The Minerve sinks the minesweeper but misses the tanker.

The Luftwaffe attack on London damages some ships at the quays, including:

• Destroyer HMS Wild Swan, in drydock
• Destroyer HMS Winchester, in drydock

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 351-ton minesweeping trawler Kopanes near Coquet Island in Northumberland. Everyone survives.

British 133-ton dredger Fravis hits a mine and sinks at Langstone Harbour in Hampshire.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Sunfish collides with 707-ton net layer HMS Minster. This sends the Sunfish to the repair yard for almost exactly five months.

To man the US coast guard cutters transferred to the Royal Navy, sloop HMS Aberdeen departs Gibraltar bound for Halifax carrying 26 officers and 31 enlisted men to bring them to the UK.

German raider Atlantis transfers the captured passengers from sunk liner Zamzam to supply ships Alsterufer and Dresden, which will take them to Occupied France. Captain Rugge of the Atlantis orders the captives treated well. The Atlantis takes on board three crated Arado Ar-196 seaplanes for reconnaissance.

Convoy SC 29 departs from Halifax bound for Liverpool.

U-372 (Kapitänleutnant Heinz-Joachim Neumann) is commissioned.

Navy Vought XF4U-1 Corsair parked on a Compass Rose, Bridgeport Airport, on April 19, 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The front around Tobruk is settling down. Both sides are launching occasional patrol, but there is no chance of a breakthrough at this time by either side. Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel busies himself with organizational changes such as switching his German and Italian units so that they had the appropriate duties (for instance, he orders that only German troops should occupy Bardia, which has been subject to aggressive British sea bombardments). He also greets the new commander of the 15th Panzer Division, Colonel Freiherr von Esebeck.

While inspecting the troops in the Sollum sector, Rommel observes that the British do not appear to have many troops in this key area. He resolves to continue his offensive into Egypt at this point rather than wait for the conquest of Tobruk. Most German commanders stay in their offices, but making the effort to visit the troops at the front often pays off for Rommel like this.

The British have mounted a series of commando raids of varying success. After dark, they try again. The British use 9919-ton freighter HMS Glengyle to deposit 450 commandos who are part of Layforce (2000 British commandos on call in the Middle East) at Bardia. The problems start even before the men get ashore, as there are difficulties with the landing craft. Then, there is supposed to be a shore party to guide them in, but it is delayed and not there. This probably contributes to the commandos landing on the wrong beaches. They can still complete their mission, but when they get to Bardia, they find it vacant. Searching for something to do, the commandos destroy an Italian supply dump and coastal artillery battery before returning to the beach for pick-up. The raid, though, comes to an unhappy ending for the British when 70 men go to the wrong evacuation beach and are captured, and when a British sentry mistakenly shoots one of his own officers.

The British government put the best face on this fiasco by claiming that it later induces the Germans to over-garrison Sollum - but Rommel was sending German troops there to garrison it anyway. Layforce essentially is disbanded after this and its men used as infantry on various special projects. One of the reasons that the Bardia Raid, as it is called, is remembered at all is that author Evelyn Waugh participates. He records in his diary (as opposed to the triumphant media accounts that soon follow) that the entire affair is an incompetent debacle against no opposition.

The Luftwaffe is getting more aggressive as it receives more units. Today is the first aerial combat over Tobruk involving the Luftwaffe. Fighter unit I,/JG 27, which has arrived after a short detour in the Balkans, make its first patrol and has an immediate impact. It shoots down four Hurricanes of RAF Nos. 73 and 274 Squadrons based at Gerawla which intercept a Junkers Ju 87 Stuka mission against the port. The Germans accomplish this at a cost of one of their own number (force-landed).

Two of the claims go to Oblt. Karl-Heinz Redlich, giving him ten victories. This is Obfw. Hans-Joachim Marseille's unit and he has seven victories at this time. The Luftwaffe has a number of advantages at this time in North Africa:

• The RAF is becoming seriously short of fighters in the western desert, with units transferred to Greece;
• The Luftwaffe has transferred in some top pilots from the Channel Front;
• The RAF pilots are culls of the English fighter force;
• The local RAF is flying Hurricanes and does not have any Spitfires, generally considered the top RAF fighter;
• The Germans are flying their latest model fighter, the Bf 109F, which has been fitted with air filters suitable to the desert.

The Italian Brescia Division shoots down a Blenheim Mk.IV from RAF No. 45 Squadron, killing the crew.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 3257-ton Panamanian freighter Margit at Kalkara Creek, Malta.

The Italian 7th Cruiser Division lays a minefield with 321 mines and 492 explosive floats east of Cape Bon, Tunisia. The field will have a total of 740 mines when it is completed. This operation may be in response to the recent Royal Navy patrol near there that destroyed an Axis supply convoy to Tripoli.

The Luftwaffe bombs Malta, but the bombs fall in open fields and cause no damage.

Convoy ME 7 departs from Malta for Alexandria.

German/Bulgarian Relations: Hitler meets with King Boris III of Bulgaria.

German/Hungarian Relations: Hitler meets with the Hungarian ambassador.

Switzerland: Bertolt Brecht's play "Mother Courage and Her Children" has its world premiere at the Schauspielhaus Zürich in Switzerland.

China: The Japanese launch the Fuzhou Operation. This targets an important administrative center that also has a handy airfield. In addition, the Japanese launch the Zhedong Operation, which is in the eastern part of Zhejiang Province.

British Homefront: Today is the compulsory registration date for women aged 20-12. Minister of Labour Ernest Bevin has exempted certain categories of women, such as those with young children, but even they must register to indicate their status. Only the smallest of children will get a mother out of the queues because the government is providing subsidized childcare. The government also is compelling companies to hire women via an Essential Work Order.

American Homefront: Les Pawson wins the Boston Marathon. He becomes the second man to win the race three times.

Weightlifter Steve Stanko lifts 1000 pounds total at the Mid-Atlantic Championships in York, Pennsylvania. This sets a new world record.

"Snarling Tiger," Emmett Watson, Saturday Evening Post, 19 April 1941.

April 1941

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

2020