The site of the Bogdanovka massacre, where executions of over 40,000 people were carried out from 21 December 1941 to 9 January 1942 (The National Archives for Photos and Films, Kiev, copy Yad Vashem Archive, Photo Collection 4147/18).
Battle of the Pacific: About 20 miles off Monterey Bay, California, Japanese Navy submarine I-23 surfaces on 21 December 1941 and fires eight or nine shells at 6771-ton Richfield Oil Company tanker Agwiworld. The captain of the Agwiworld manages to evade the shells using a zigzag pattern and makes it to port.
As shown in the 21 December 1941 headline of The Courier-Journal of Louisville, Kentucky, the Japanese submarine attacks off the California coast have become a new problem for the US Navy.
In the Philippines, the Japanese increase their military presence by sending three convoys from Formosa and the Pescadores bearing troops of the 14th Army assault group. The convoys carry 43,110 men of the 48th Division and one regiment of the 16th Division, supported by about 90 light tanks and artillery. They land at three points in Lingayen Gulf on the northeast coast of Luzon during the night of 21/22 December 1941.
The LA Times for 21 December 1941 headlines the Japanese submarines operating off the California coast.
The US attempt to counterattack with a few B-17s flying all the way from Australia and also some submarines in the vicinity, but they accomplish nothing. General Wainwright sends the 11th and 71st Divisions of the Philippine Army to launch counterattacks on 22 December. A bit further north at Bacnotan, the Japanese forces that landed earlier advance down the coast and make contact with the Filipino 11th Division. Another Japanese invasion force which left from Taiwan is at sea heading toward Lamon Bay on the eastern shore of Manila, south of Manila. It is obvious to all that the Japanese are heading for Manila, so local naval defense commander Rear Admiral F.W. Rockwell transfers his headquarters to the fortress island of Corregidor.
Texas soldier Juan Lugo Martinez at Camp Roberts, California, 21 December 1941. He enlisted after Pearl Harbor and entered active service on 10 December 1941. Mr. Martinez survived the war and passed away in 1999. (Voces).
At Wake Island, the last plane to leave, a PBY-5 Catalina, departs at 07:00. It carries Major Walter J. Bayler of Marine Aircraft Group 21, who comes to be known as the "last man off Wake." Shortly after, at 08:50, Japanese aircraft carriers Hiryu and Soryu launch 29 bombers escorted by 18 Zero fighters to attack the Marines holding out on the island. Around noontime, 33 "Nell" bombers from Roi Aerodrome on Kwajalein, Marshall Islands also attack. Meanwhile, US Navy Task Force 14 is approaching Wake Island from the southeast but is still 600 nautical miles away.
U-552 - U-567 and U-93 St. Nazaire in September 1941. U-567 is sunk on 21 December 1941 in the North Atlantic north-east of the Azores by Royal Navy sloop HMS Deptford and corvette Samphire. All 47 men aboard perished.
US Naval Task Force 14 has overwhelming firepower that includes aircraft carriers USS Lexington and Saratoga and heavy cruisers Astoria, Minneapolis, and San Francisco, but nobody knows where the Japanese fleet is and the task force comprises a large fraction of remaining US seapower in the Pacific. Thus, risking it at this stage of the war in an unknown situation concerns Vice Admiral William S. Pye, the temporary commander of the Pacific Fleet. However, at this time Pye allows TF 14 and nearby Task Force 11 (Admiral Frank Fletcher) to continue their attempt to relieve the Marines on Wake.
U-boat ace Engelbert Endrass, commander of U-567, KIA 21 December 1941.
On the Malay Peninsula, the Indian 11th Division (Major-General David Murray-Lyon) assumes command over all Commonwealth troops west of the Perak River, including those on the Grik road. The division orders a general withdrawal behind the Perak River. With units widely dispersed across the peninsula in dense jungles, many units do not receive the order or otherwise have great difficulty retreating.
Dutch submarine K XVII runs into the same minefield that claimed fellow Dutch submarine O 16 on 15 December 1942. It hits a mine about 22 miles off the coast of Malaysia's Tioman Island. All 36 men on board perish. The wreck is discovered in 1978 and identified in 1982, being declared a war grave. However, like the wreck of O 16, it since has disappeared, likely due to illegal salvaging operations.
The Flyin' Jenny (Virginia Dare) comic strip from the Baltimore Sun, 21 December 1941. This strip was the creation of Russell Keaton.
Eastern Front: The disarray within the Wehrmacht continues on 21 December 1941. In the morning, General Adolf Strass, commander of Ninth Army northwest of Moscow between Kalinin and Staritsa, flies to the Army Group Center headquarters in Smolensk. He pleads with the commander of Army Group Center, Guenther von Kluge, to permit continued withdrawals past Staritsa. His plan is to form a defensive line he dubs the "K-Line" (Koenigsberg Line) on a line including Rzhev, Gzhatsk, Orel, and Kursk. This is the same line that recently deposed army group commander Field Marshal Fedor von Bock had proposed. Kluge denies the request, referring to Hitler's "definitive" order to stand fast at Staritsa. On the other side, Soviet General Leytenant I.I. Maslennikov, Commanding General, 39th Army, deploys two divisions east of Staritsa to join a planned offensive toward Rzhev. Maslennikov also has an additional six divisions in reserve to exploit any initial successes.
A picture that was taken of a pilot class at the airfield at Sky Harbour, Ontario (Goderich Airport) on 21 December 1941 (Huron County Museum via Flickr).
Holocaust: At the Bogdanovka, Domanovka, and Acmecetca concentration camps on the Southern Bug river, in the Golta district, Transnistria, the German advisor to the Romanian administration of the district and the Romanian District Commissioner order an Aktion. They are concerned about sickness at the camps, which are unheated and poorly provisioned. The camps are located about 200 km northeast of Odessa. The Bogdanovka Massacre is the organized execution of more than 40,000 primarily Jewish inmates evacuated from Odessa and Romania that extends to 9 January 1942. The Aktion is carried out by Romanian soldiers, gendarmes, Ukrainian police, civilians from the district, and local ethnic Germans (Selbstschutz) under the commander of the Ukrainian regular police, Kazachievici, and the Romanian Prefect of the area, Modest Isopescu. Some of the inmates are locked in two stables which are then set afire, while others are executed by the standard practice of forcing them to march to ravines outside of town and shot there. Some others are forced to dig pits in the nearby forest with their bare hands and bury corpses before they, too, are executed.
This Pass Out Check will get you into the 21 December 1941 NFL Championship Game.
American Homefront: In the NFL Championship Game held at Wrigley Field in Chicago, the Chicago Bears beat the New York Giants 37-9. The audience is only 13,341, the smallest ever to attend an NFL championship game.
Alaska Territorial Governor Ernest Gruening orders all Alaskan flags to fly at half-mast today in honor of Ketchikan native Navy Ensign Irvin Thompson, 24. Ensign Thompson perished aboard battleship USS Oklahoma during the 7 December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He was the first Alaskan serviceman casualty of World War II.
The official game program for the 21 December 1941 NFL Championship Game held at Wrigley Field between the Chicago Bears and the New York Giants. The Bears defeat the Giants, 37-9.
Wehrmacht Troops enter Zagreb, 24 April 1941 (original caption "Zagreb - Arrival of the Germans - 04/24").
Operation Marita: The Battle of Thermopylae takes place on 24 April 1941 after some initial skirmishes. The Allied ANZAC Corps holds the pass with rearguards, but the orders already have been issued for the complete evacuation of all Operation Lustre forces. General Blamey, the Australian general in charge of the Commonwealth troops, flies to Alexandria.
The British maintain a blocking detachment on the road from Larissa to Athens at the pass composed of the 4th New Zealand Brigade. The 6th New Zealand Brigade holds the east portion of the pass line and the 19th Australian Brigade holds the western sector. The German 6th Mountain Division (Generalmajor Ferdinand Schörner) attacks at 11:30 and attempts to break through the defensive line. The 5th Panzer Division also sends a battlegroup into the pass. New Zealand and Australian troops repulse these attacks, the Wehrmacht losing about 12-15 panzers. After the dark, the ANZAC troops withdraw from the pass toward Thebes, having delayed the panzers for over 24 vital hours.
There are no Greek troops involved in the Battle of Thermopylae despite the fact that the nation of Greece officially has not surrendered, only the army group in the north. This becomes a controversial issue in Greece which echoes down through the years.
Operation Demon, the evacuation of British and Commonwealth troops from mainland Greece, begins. Many ships depart from Suda Bay, Crete bound for ports on mainland Greece. On the first day, about 5200 men, mostly from the 5th New Zealand Brigade, are evacuated from Porto Rafti in East Attica, and another 8000 from Nauplia on the Peloponnese. Other ports being used for evacuations include Megara and Rafina.
The Germans continue pressing against the British line anchored at Thermopylae, but they also are making an end-around run toward the Gulf of Patras. The Greek Army was supposed to protect this sector, but it in effect no longer exists, having surrendered on the 23rd. The 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler ("LSSAH," still of brigade-size) is racing to the southwest from Ioannina, with its ultimate objective seizing ports on the Peloponnesus which the British need for their evacuation.
The Germans also are using the port of Salonika (Thessaloniki) to occupy the islands in the Aegean. These include Samothrace, Lemnos (occupied today by elements of the 164th Division) and Thasos. The Greek garrison on Lemnos puts up a brief fight, then surrenders.
Somewhat belatedly, Bulgaria, under Tsar Boris III, declares war on Yugoslavia and Greece. The Bulgarian Army is in the process of occupying Western Thrace, and much of Macedonia.
At the War Cabinet meeting held in London, visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies "said that he was uneasy as to whether our forces in Greece... would be given sufficient protection from the air." Prime Minister Winston Churchill decides to send a telegram to Middle East Air Marshal Longmore, ordering him "to spare all the aircraft he could for Greece during the immediately critical days." Menzies himself notes darkly in his diary that "I am afraid of a disaster... Better Dunkirk than Poland or Czechoslovakia." He also wonders how anyone could have thought that the Greek expedition had "military merits," something he always argued against.
The Lublin ghetto, sealed off today.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2269-ton British freighter Cavallo at Nauplia. There is nobody on board, and the ship sinks on the 25th.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 370-ton Royal Navy armed yacht Calanthe at Milos. There are five deaths.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 2083-ton Greek freighter Popi S. at Milos.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 932-ton Greek freighter Pylaros at Galaxeidion.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 379-ton Greek coaster Speitsai off Psathopyrgos, Gulf of Corinth.
The Luftwaffe bombs and badly damages 4810-ton Greek freighter Point Judith off Kythnos Island. Everyone survives, and the ship officially sinks on the 26th.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks Greek torpedo boat Pergamos at Salamis.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 2295-ton Hellas at Piraeus. This is a tragic event, as at the time the Hellas is boarding 500 British civilians and 400 wounded Allied soldiers. The Hellas catches fire and rolls over, claiming the lives of up to 500 people.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 1968-ton Greek freighter Kehrea in the Bay of Frangolimano.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 5528-ton Greek freighter Kyriaki at Suda Bay.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 238-ton Greek coaster Manna at Aedipsos.
The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 634-ton Greek freighter Petros at Porto Heli. The Germans later salvage it for scrap.
Greek Navy torpedo boat Aigli is scuttled in Saronis Bay.
Greek Navy torpedo boat Alkyoni is scuttled in Vouliagmeni Bay.
Greek Navy torpedo boat Arethousa is scuttled off Varkizy.
Greek Navy contraband chaser A-4 is lost on this date from unknown causes.
The Luftwaffe bombs and badly damages British submarine HMS York, which is alongside beached heavy cruiser York to supply power to its antiaircraft guns. The skipper quickly beaches the submarine, then is towed to Alexandria. Repairs at Bombay take well into 1942.
British troopship Ulster Prince, part of Operation Demon, runs aground at Nauplia. This leads to her eventual destruction because beached ships become tempting targets for the Luftwaffe.
Yugoslav submarine Nebojsca arrives in Suda Bay after escaping from the Germans. It is never put into service.
Convoys AG 14 (six troopships) and AG 15 (six troopships) depart from Alexandria bound for Suda Bay.
Barge "Foz do Douro" moored to the quay of Alcântara dock, Lisbon, 24 April 1941 (unknown author). Lisbon is completely untouched by the ravages of war but is a hotbed of agents from both sides and people fleeing continental Europe.
European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command attacks Kiel with 69 bombers and Le Havre with a dozen bombers. Scattered attacks are made on various coastal targets in Rhubarb missions.
The Luftwaffe sends scattered raiders over the Channel after dark.
Dutch Prince Bernhard becomes an RAF pilot.
East African Campaign: The Indian 29th Infantry Brigade moves toward the Italian redoubt at Amba Alagi.
Battle of the Atlantic: President Roosevelt extends Neutrality Patrols to 26W longitude (the vicinity of Iceland) and as far south as Rio de Janeiro and orders the US Navy to report any movement of German ships west of Iceland. US Rear Admiral Robert Ghormley, President Roosevelt's Special Naval Observer in England, meets with Churchill to discuss joint operations in the Atlantic. Among the topics is the possibility of German bases on the island groups in the Atlantic, including the Canary and Cape Verde Islands. US Navy ships simply transport their sightings in the clear, and the signals invariably are picked up by Royal Navy listeners who can vector in British ships or aircraft.
US Task Force 3 (Rear Admiral Jones H. Ingram), led by light cruisers USS Cincinnati, Memphis, Milwaukee Omaha, departs from Newport, Rhode Island bound for the Caribbean and the Cape Verde Islands.
The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 5507-ton British freighter Dolius southwest of Montrose. It manages to make port in Leith.
German raider Thor makes port in Cherbourg. It is en route to Hamburg.
Convoy HG 60 departs from Gibraltar bound for Liverpool,
Royal Navy corvette HMS Polyanthus (K 47, Lt. Arthur Hague) is commissioned and submarine Sirdar is laid down.
U-127 and U-567 are commissioned, U-207 and U-504 are launched.
The 2/48th Australian Battalion near Tobruk, 24 April 1941.
Battle of the Mediterranean: Both sides launch attacks on the Tobruk perimeter without major results, but there are some ominous omens for the Axis. The Germans mount a series of coordinated assaults on the Tobruk perimeter, but the daily D.A.K. staff report notes that "Italian troops cannot be relied upon." This is a brewing problem for the Germans, and one of Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel's major tasks is figuring out a way to get effective use out of the Italians. In their defense, the Italians are taking heavy casualties and holding large portions of the perimeter, but they do show an inclination to surrender.
A secret cablegram dated 24 April 1941 reports:
there are about 145,000 prisoners in the Middle East excluding Abyssinia and Eritrea and figures (are) still growing. ((National Archives of Australia NAA: A 433, 1945/2/6098, 1941-1943) ).
While this sounds like a positive, taking care of the vast hordes of Italian prisoners is becoming a major issue for the Allies. Many of these prisoners will wind up in Australia, causing a strain on transport and that country's resources.
At Ras el Medauuar, an Italian battalion attacks at 07:00 and manages to make its way in the perimeter wire, but after a hail of artillery fire, it surrenders. A British report notes sardonically that white flags "appeared to have become standard battle equipment of the Italian infantry at Tobruk." The British take 107 mainly Italian POWs, with the Italians losing about 40 dead. The German 15th Panzer Division then makes an attack in the same area around midday that is supported by about 18 Junkers Ju 87 Stukas, but this also is beaten off. In repelling the Axis attacks, the Australian defenders follow their typical pattern and allow the panzers to approach closely to their positions, then open fire as if in an ambush and send the attackers packing.
The British Army launches its own attack in the Gazala area which is quickly broken off but causes genuine alarm. The Royal Navy assists by bombarding the Capuzzo/Bardia area during the night, with the RAF joining in. The British obviously are building up large tank forces near Bardia and Sollum, with the German high command realizing that loss of those areas "would lead... also to the abandonment of the fight for Tobruk."
The German summary notes that the battle is developing into a "crisis-like situation" that requires "immediate reinforcement" - which the OKH (Army High Command in Berlin) notes is "currently not possible." The Tobruk battle is developing into a classic stalemate.
Churchill sends a telegram in which he continues his veiled attacks on Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell. After making some elementary tactical suggestions - using smoke screens in Tobruk Harbor to protect shipping - he turns to his usual theme of Wavell providing insufficient information about the situation. "We still await news" of recent battles in Libya, he writes, noting "Evidently there was a severe defeat." He continues:
Surely the reports of the survivors should have made it possible to give us a coherent story of this key action. I cannot help you if you do not tell me.... While I recognize the difficulties of giving information of the fighting in Greece set out in your telegram, I cannot feel that the explanation is complete.
He demands that General Henry Maitland Wilson, the commander in Greece, send a "short report" every night setting forth the positions of the troops. Of course, the troops are heading for embarkation ships now and won't be on mainland Greece much longer.
Italian torpedo boat Simone Schiaffino hits a mine and sinks off Cape Bon.
The Luftwaffe continues its heavy raids on Malta. About 30 planes spend an hour over the dockyard area and the airfields at Luqa and Hal Far. Valetta is hammered, and four auxiliary antiaircraft gunners of the 4th Battalion perish when a bomb hits their position. St. Frederic Street takes the most damage, but everyone in the shelters survives after temporarily being trapped under the rubble.
Operation Dunlop, a supply effort to Malta, begins when Force H departs from Gibraltar. HMS Ark Royal carries 22 Hurricane fighters for delivery to Malta. There also is a supply component from Alexandria, led by three battleships escorting fast transport Breconshire. Convoy ME 7 departs from Malta bound for Alexandria.
Battle of the Pacific: American, British, Dutch and Australian representatives continue to meet in Singapore to discuss a joint military strategy in the Pacific.
War Crimes: The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 2068 ton Greek hospital ship Andros off Loutraki, Gulf of Corinth. This is another in a series of Luftwaffe attacks on hospital ships operating off the Greek mainland.
Short Sunderland Mk I, N9023, KG-G of RAF No. 204 Squadron, which hit a hill while returning to base at Skerjafjörður (near Reykjavik), Iceland on 24 April 1941. Of 13 crew, at least one perishes. Searching the Atlantic for U-boats was hazardous work. The issue of Allied aerial patrols is a major topic in transatlantic communications and decisions today.
Anglo/US Relations: Churchill sends a telegram to President Roosevelt summarizing the war situation. He notes that the U-boats have moved further west, from 22 degrees West to about 30 degrees West, and they seem to be heading even further west. He asks for US aerial reconnaissance in this area. He also asks for a US Navy carrier to conduct aerial patrols in the vicinity of the Cape Verde Island, which Churchill characterizes as "Another area in which we are having considerable trouble." Churchill also says that, should Spain declare war, the Royal Navy immediately will occupy the Azores and the Cape Verde Islands, but requests that US Navy ships conduct a "friendly cruise in the region" in order to scare off any German raiders.
Roosevelt is in agreement with Churchill's requests. US Navy Secretary Frank Knox issues a statement:
We can no longer occupy the immoral and craven position of asking others to make all the sacrifices for this victory which we recognize as so essential to us.
That, however, is US doctrine at the moment, amplified by Lend Lease. He will divert the ships of Task Force 3, which sails today from Newport, Rhode Island bound for the Caribbean, to the Cape Verde Island group.
Receipt for an American Red Cross package, signed by a POW at Stalag VIII-A in Germany, dated 24 April 1941. Many of these will be issued in the coming years.
German/Soviet Relations: The German Naval Attaché in Moscow reports to Berlin that the British know about the plans for Operation Barbarossa. The only thing they don't know is the exact date of the invasion - which is not surprising since the Germans have not yet set a date. Hitler, meanwhile, still has not made his "final, final" decision to mount Operation Barbarossa, but his meeting today with Admiral Horthy goes a long way in that direction.
German/Hungarian Relations: Admiral Horthy, Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary, lunches with Adolf Hitler at the Fuehrer's command train Amerika near Graz, Austria. This is their first meeting since 1938 when Horthy in effect agreed to participate in the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia. Horthy, as he has in previous correspondence, warns against attempting to invade Great Britain, but enthusiastically argues that by seizing "Russia's inexhaustible riches," Germany can "hold out forever." Walther Hewel writes in his diary that Horthy "talked and talked" during the luncheon, which is unusual because Hitler usually launches into extended monologues with other leaders.
This meeting seems to clarify Hitler's own mind about invading the Soviet Union, or at least allay any of his underlying concerns about Germany's ability to prevail. After today, Operation Barbarossa becomes much more likely to happen. It may be that Hitler' feels that Hungarian military might would seal the deal, but Horthy's influence may be much more subtle: Hitler always has a great deal of respect for foreign leaders of stature and their assessments.
The Admiral tries to work a deal in which Hungary is granted large territorial concessions at Romanian expense - the whole of Transylvania - in exchange for its participation in upcoming Operation Barbarossa (which Horthy fervently advocates). Hitler knows that Hungarian / Romanian relations are a potentially explosive issue, refuses to commit to Hungary taking the whole of Transylvania at Romania's expense. Horthy takes this in stride. As a result of the meeting, Hitler and Horthy maintain their collaborative relationship, with Hungary benefiting directly from Hitler's conquests while trying to keep its own hands as clean as possible. The issue of Hungarian military participation in the Soviet Union remains up in the air, but relations between the two leaders remain excellent.
Judy Garland on 24 April 1941. This was a publicity shot to promote Judy's film "Life Begins for Andy Hardy" and "Babes on Broadway" (both of which, coincidentally, co-star Mickey Rooney) (MGM, Eric Carpenter).
German/Croatian Relations: German Colonel Lahousen of the Abwehr (German military intelligence) meets with Croatian War Minister General Kvaternik. Kvaternik expresses open hatred for the Italians, reflecting a general sentiment within Croatia, but agrees to Italian annexation of the Dalmatian coastal area. Already, reports are surfacing of insensitive Italian actions in the region.
British Military: Churchill decides to hold regular meetings to discuss issues of the Army's tank and anti-tank weaponry. He characterizes these meetings as a "tank parliament." Among the topics covered will be the organization of Armoured Divisions.
US Military: The Detroit Arsenal Tank Plant in Detroit, Michigan delivers its first M3 medium tank to the US Army. The M3 has a 75mm main gun in a sponson mount, not an optimal arrangement because American manufacturers are not at this time capable of creating turrets large enough to handle the gun. The Germans at this time are up-gunning their Panzer IIIs and IVs to handle similar guns at Hitler's personal insistence but in normal turrets. The M3 continues the American pattern of tall and roomy tanks which the crews like - until they have to go into battle in such an exposed target. It is fair to argue that the M3 already is outclassed by tanks in Europe, but this is a controversial topic and, on the other hand, American engineering is very solid and the tanks reliable. Many of these M3s will be sent to Great Britain with different turrets and be called Grants, serving capably in the major battles in North Africa.
British Government: Late in the day, Churchill sets out on a tour of Liverpool and Manchester.
Sweden: Poet/novelist Karin Maria Boye, age 40, passes away in an apparent suicide on or about this date. She chooses a spot next to a boulder on a hill with a view near Alingsås, near Bolltorpsvägen. The boulder is made into a memorial dedicated to her.
HM Sisowath Monivong (27 December 1875 to 24 April 1941) leaving the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh.
Cambodia: King Sisowath Monivong (27 December 1875 to 24 April 1941) of Cambodia passes away.
Holocaust: The Germans seal off the Lublin ghetto. There are 30,000 people inside, all prohibited from leaving without special work passes.
An accountant in Warsaw, Chaim Hasenfus, recalls in his diary walking innocently along Walicowa Street in the Warsaw Ghetto today when a German soldier hits him on the head with a rubber nightstick and orders him and several other Jews to load gravel on a truck. The diary entries stop soon after this and his fate is unknown.
American Homefront: Columbia Pictures releases "Penny Serenade." Produced and directed by George Stevens and starring Cary Grant and Irene Dunne, "Penny Serenade" is another in a series of 1941 Hollywood films exploring issues within marriages - a theme which seems to reflect the troubled international situation and the divisions that it is causing within the United States. The film begins with Dunne's character stating that her marriage is over, and the remainder of the film addresses how that issue resolves. Cary Grant is nominated for an Academy Award, but Gary Cooper wins it for "Sergeant York." The film strikes a chord, and radio dramatizations are produced throughout the war, with a television adaptation broadcast in January 1955.
There is another major air defense drill in New York City. Air defense officials maintain a plotting board in Manhattan that directs interceptors based at Mitchell Field, Long Island.
Painter George de Forest Brush passes away.
Future History: John Christopher Williams is born in Melbourne, Australia. He is taught guitar by his English father, then studies with Andrés Segovia in Siena, Italy in the early 1950s. John Williams goes on to become a renowned classical guitar player, and as of this writing remains active.
Richard Charles Albert Holbrooke is born in New York City. He goes on to become the only person to serve as Assistant Secretary of State for two different regions of the world: Asia from 1977 to 1981 and Europe from 1994 to 1996. Holbrooke last served as the United States Special Envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan during 2009-2010. Richard Holbrooke passed away on 13 December 2010.
Pictured on 24 April 1941 are nine of the 11 City College of New York teachers suspended by the Joint Legislative Committee to Investigate the Educational System of the State of New York aka the "Rapp-Coudert Committee." This committee aims to stem the influence of communist influences in New York schools. The suspension of these teachers has led to student protests (Daily Worker via CUNY.EDU).
German heavy cruiser Scharnhorst on 6 March 1941. This photo was taken by a crewman on U-124 near the Cape Verde Islands (Scharnhorst-class.dk).
Italian/Greek Campaign: The seesaw battles in the center of the Albanian front continue on 6 March 1941. The Greeks and Italians have been fighting over the heights near the Klisura Pass for two months, with neither side able to make lasting gains. Today, the Greeks recapture some of the high ground, aided by the RAF and Greek Air Force. The Greeks claim to capture a thousand Italian prisoners.
The Italians are preparing their own offensive in the area within a few days. Mussolini is in Albania to oversee the preparations and watch the start. This offensive is extremely important to Mussolini because he wants to prove that his troops can succeed against the Greeks before the Wehrmacht invasion scheduled for April.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill sends a message to Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden in Athens. Churchill believes that defeat in Greece may be inevitable without intercession by Turkey or Yugoslavia. Eden replies that everyone in Athens feels that the British expedition to Greece, Operation Lustre, was "the right decision." Eden, CIGS John Dill, and General Wavell all return to Cairo today, where they confer with South African leader Jan Smuts.
Convoys for Operation Lustre, the British expedition to Greece, are in full swing. Royal Navy cruisers HMS York, Gloucester, and Bonaventure depart from Alexandria for Piraeus loaded with troops. Two freighters also leave the port carrying tanks and other equipment. This is the general pattern for all convoys to Piraeus, troops carried on fast cruisers and freight carried on slower and more vulnerable cargo vessels.
The Greeks are looking over their shoulders toward the Bulgarian front. Commander-in-chief Papagos prepares contingency plans for the event of a German invasion from that direction.
The SS Artillery Division on the parade grounds of the Hauptkadettenanstalt (Cadet's Institute) in Lichterfelde, Berlin, 6 March 1941.
East African Campaign: Haile Selassie has taken command of a motley force called Ethiopia's Patriots. They take Burye, using native troops. The Italians evacuate the fort during the night. Meanwhile, South African troops in Eritrea are advancing from Mogadishu north toward Harar and, further on, Addis Ababa.
European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe continues its pattern of sending lone raiders over the Channel during the daytime. There are scattered bombings in London, Kent, and East Anglia. There is a small attack northeast of London after dark.
Minister of War David Margesson reports to the House of Commons that Luftwaffe losses outside the Mediterranean Theater number 5,346 planes versus 854 British planes. Real Luftwaffe losses are nowhere near that figure, which would have completely eliminated the Luftwaffe by now. However, the figure for RAF losses appears realistic. Most historians likely would assign a figure roughly double the RAF losses to the Luftwaffe, though estimates vary wildly. Since the war, estimates of Luftwaffe losses have declined fairly steadily.
Battle of the Atlantic: Having first used the phrase during a War Cabinet meeting recently, Winston Churchill today issues a directive titled "The Battle of the Atlantic." It sets forth the nation's priorities in the sea war. Looking remarkably like a Fuhrer Directive, Churchill's directive wants to "defeat the attempt to strangle our food supplies and our connection with the United States" by:
Hunting down U-boats, both at sea and in their pens/shipyards;
Giving "Extreme Priority" to catapult ships able to launch fighters;
Concentrating Coastal Command's forces upon the vulnerable Northwestern Approaches
Formation of a "Battle of the Atlantic Committee chaired by Churchill himself.
Today technically is viewed as beginning "the Battle of the Atlantic." However, this is just an arbitrary date based on Churchill's adoption of the phrase; the true battle at sea has been in progress since the first day of the conflict, and nothing changes at this time other than Churchill issuing this directive giving the battle the very highest priority.
German battleship Bismarck receives orders to depart from Hamburg and move to Kiel. The Luftwaffe escorts the Bismarck with Bf 109 fighters and two armed merchant cruisers. An icebreaker accompanies the Bismarck. The battleship is approaching operational status, though it still must stock up with supplies and ammunition before it can embark on a raiding voyage.
German heavy cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst sit astride the shipping lanes heading south from Great Britain to Freeport. Today, they rendezvous with U-124 (Kptlt. Georg-Whilhelm Schulz), which recently refueled from a German tanker in the Canary Islands. Scharnhorst and Gneisenau are steaming at half speed up and down the convoy lanes, waiting for targets to appear.
An attempt to recover a mine for study in the Falmouth Inner Harbour goes disastrously wrong. The mine explodes, sinking 196-ton British barge Queen Wasp and accompanying echo sounding boat Mouse, and killing five men from shore establishment ship HMS Vernon (which was used to capture mines for study throughout the war). There are six deaths and four injuries.
Royal Navy 252-ton minesweeper HMT Keryado hits a mine and sinks about 12 km south of Newhaven. There are 9 deaths.
British 202-ton tug Sun VII hits a mine and sinks near the Barrow Deep. There are five deaths.
Norwegian 3017-ton tanker Mexico hits a mine and sinks in the English Channel off Ipswich. There are ten deaths and 23 survivors. The partially sunk wreck remains a navigational hazard throughout the war.
British 781-ton freighter Eilian Hill hits a mine and is damaged off Barry Island in South Wales.
The Kriegsmarine lays minefield Wollen about 70 km east of the Out Skerries, Shetland.
Royal Navy destroyer HMS Puckeridge is launched.
U-560 (Oberleutnant zur See Hans-Jürgen Zetzsche) is commissioned, U-567 and U-568 are launched.
Flemish volunteers train with the SS, 6 March 1941.
Battle of the Mediterranean: The Luftwaffe once again mines the Suez Canal. These are acoustic mines, which the British have not yet learned how to counter, and they are particularly effective in the narrow waters of the canal. This effectively closes the canal for three weeks, though some high priority ships are allowed through. Among other things, this delays the transit of aircraft carrier HMS Formidable to the Red Sea, where it could be extremely useful in protecting convoys in the eastern Mediterranean.
The British convoys to Pireaus are in full swing, and the Italians have taken notice. Italian bombers (about ten each of S-79s and S-81s) attack British Convoys AN-17 (going to Greece) and AS-16 (returning from Greece) to the northeast of Crete in the Kaso Straits. They do not score any hits. The Italians lose a bomber, with half a dozen others damaged by antiaircraft fire. The Luftwaffe also attacks the convoys.
East of Crete, Italian 590-ton Sirena class submarine Anfitrite attacks British troop convoy AS-17 (some sources say GA.8) heading toward Athens. However, the attack fails and HMS Greyhound sinks the Anfitrite. The Greyhound takes 39 prisoners, including the submarine's commander.
The British Mediterranean Fleet, led by battleships HMS Barham and Valiant, sorties from Alexandria, first for gunnery exercises, then to support convoy operations west of Suda Bay, Crete.
There are some minor encounters between the Afrika Korps and the British forces west of Agheila. The British have noticed that the enemy is using armored vehicles, but finds nothing significant about that, as the Italian tanks have been relatively ineffective. An Italian convoy of four freighters makes it to Tripoli carrying German troops and supplies without the British noticing.
On Malta, the RAF is still recovering from yesterday's massive Luftwaffe attacks that devastated Hal Far airfield. The Royal Engineers Bomb Disposal Squad clears nineteen unexploded bombs from the base.
Flemish volunteers to the SS, 6 March 1941. They have machine gun equipment.
US/Italian Relations: The "War of the Consulates" continues. In apparent retaliation for Italy closing some US consulates (ostensibly for security concerns following a Royal Navy raid on Genoa), the US closes several Italian consulates (Detroit, Michigan and Newark, New Jersey). In addition, the Italians must provide information on any movements within the United States by Italian soldiers. US/Japanese Relations: Some US companies still have licenses to export high-grade petroleum and rich crude stocks to Japan. Today, the US move to block the export of these 5 million barrels of oil.
Anglo/Romanian Relations: Churchill memos personal secretary Alexander Cadogan that King Carol II of Romania, who abdicated and fled the country under fire from the Iron Guard, should be "offered accommodation."
Anglo/Australian Relations: At the war cabinet meeting, visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies has sharp words. He complains about London making important decisions for the Dominions (such as committing Australian and New Zealand troops to Greece) without first properly consulting their governments. Churchill has been mounting a charm offensive with Menzies, but the Australian PM is not being swayed from his skepticism about such risky decisions.
Applied Science: Edward Teller, a native of Hungary, becomes a naturalized US citizen, following in the footsteps of Albert Einstein and other émigré scientists.
Yugoslav Military: The Royal Yugoslav Air Force (Serbo-Croatian: Vazduhoplovstvo Vojske Kraljevine Jugoslavije, VVKJ) is secretly mobilized. It remains completely unclear who it would be used against - the Germans or the British.
Japanese Military: Tatsuta Maru departs from Yokohama under Captain Toichi Takahata. The 16,975-ton liner is being used to scout out obscure routes for an attack on the Hawaiian Islands and engage in deception operations against the US Navy.
Merchantman Mormacmail, prior to its conversion to escort carrier USS Long Island (AVG-1). It is taken to Newport News for conversion.
US Military: The US Navy officially acquires USS Long Island (AVG-1), the country's first escort carrier. Its first skipper is Commander Donald B. Duncan. British Government: Churchill has lunch with a small group of friends in the basement of No. 10 Downing Street. The editor of the Sunday Dispatch, Charles Eade, attends and writes a detailed account for his personal use. Churchill dwells on Operation Claymore, the successful commando raid on the Norwegian Lofoten Islands, noting that the whale oil factories were important to the German diet. Churchill also mentions a 4,000 lb bomb the Luftwaffe recently dropped on Herndon, killing 80 people and injuring 300 others. Among the other topics covered at the luncheon, downed Luftwaffe airmen being treated well by Englishwomen who come across them (a tendency later turned around in "Mrs. Miniver" (1942)) is downplayed by Mrs. Churchill, who says that "before this war is over, we should be hating our enemies all right."
Yugoslavian Government: Regent Prince Paul convenes the Crown Council to discuss joining the Tripartite Pact.
China: The Japanese launch an offensive with a heavy artillery bombardment at 05:30 in western Hubei (Hupeh). Then, they launch an attack from bridgeheads taken on the south bank of the Yangtze River. The offensive is intended to push the Chinese (Kuomintang) back toward Chungking, into the mountains. The Japanese troops of the 13th Infantry Division take Chang-Kang-Ling and Fan-Chia-Hu. This is known as the Western Hubei Operation.
Captain John W. Reeves, Jr. of the USS Wasp (CV-7), 6 March 1941. The Wasp is operating off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina (US Naval Institute).
British Homefront: A rare wartime strike breaks out at the John Brown Shipyard in Clydeside.
For the first time, women become signalmen on Britain's mainline railways. They have had two weeks of training and begin their duties on the South Yorkshire joint line.
German Homefront: A large number of Polish workers is being used within Greater Germany for farming. Their relationships with German women are becoming scandalous, at least in the minds of the Reich's leaders. New laws decreed today forbid these workers from any relationships whatsoever, and also forbid these "guest workers" from complaining or participating in civic life.
Dutch Homefront: The fallout from the February 1941 General Strike continues. The Germans are in complete control and are taking reprisals. Today, they execute Dutch Communist resistance fighter Leen Schijveschuurder.
American Homefront: John Gutzon Borglum passes away from complications following surgery in Chicago, Illinois, age 73, and is to be buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale. Borglum is a sculptor who has specialized in massive projects such as Stone Mountain, Georgia (though Borglum's work there was replaced after he quit the project). The Stone Mountain project honed his skills, leading him to take up a project by South Dakota state historian Doane Robinson to carve a figure the figures of two United States Presidents into Mount Rushmore. Eventually, the project expanded to four Presidents.
Borglum's son Lincoln takes over the Mount Rushmore project now, which is in an advanced state of completion. No further work of any note will be made on the tableaux due to the war and Borglum's passing. The original design now never will be completed, including the completion of President Jefferson's jacket.
Future History: Johannes Marinus van Zon is born in Utrecht, Netherlands. As Hans van Zon, he goes on a wild killing spree during the 1960s. Van Zon violently murders five people (three men and two women) and attacks others in the Netherlands before being arrested on 13 December 1967. Despite being sentenced to life, he is released from custody in 1986 and lives a free man until 11 May 1998.
The Johnson House, Salem, New Jersey, 6 March 1941 (Photographer George Neuschafer for the Historic American Buildings Survey, Library of Congress).
