Showing posts with label U-581. Show all posts
Showing posts with label U-581. Show all posts

Monday, August 19, 2019

February 2, 1942: Germans Recovering in Russia

Monday 2 February 1942

British warships on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
"A British destroyer flotilla taking part in Mediterranean operations." This photo was taken on board HMS Jervis in the eastern Mediterranean, 2 February 1942 (© IWM (A 8576)).
Eastern Front: The winter has bent but not quite broken the Wehrmacht, and by 2 February 1942 it is fighting back to protect its most vital arteries. The Rollbahn, a major (for Russia) road from Yukhnov to Gzhatsk, is the lifeline to Fourth Army in the Moscow sector, and the Soviets have held it for a week. The Germans now are fighting furiously from either end of the road to open it up, with General Heinrici sending his Fourth Army troops south and General Ruoff advancing with his Fourth Panzer Army vehicles north toward him. They make good progress today, though they do not quite close the gap and reopen the road yet. There are supplies waiting behind Ruoff's forces to be sluiced through the moment the road is cleared. This is one of the most important operations of the winter because until the road is cleared, the Fourth Army must rely on air support. The Luftwaffe already is hard-pressed supplying surrounded garrisons at Kholm, Demyansk, and elsewhere, so clearing the road is a top priority.

British Home Guard troops on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
"Major the Earl of Bradford (right) directs his company of the Home Guard during exercises with regular troops, 2 February 1942." © IWM (H 17543).
As the Germans regain their footing on the Eastern Front, their ambitions begin to expand again. General Dietl, commanding the Army of Lapland, is trying to convince the Finns to participate in an attack to cut the Soviet railway line to Murmansk at Belomorsk. Marshal Mannerheim, commanding all Finnish forces, is noncommital but indicates that he would be ready to participate in such an operation once the Germans capture Leningrad. Of course, the Germans have no hope of capturing Leningrad anytime soon due to their difficulties on the main front and pretty much everyone knows that. German General Waldemar Erfurth, who leads the German liaison team at Mannerheim's headquarters, reports back to OKW that Mannerheim has a pessimistic view of the war and is unwilling to stage any attacks that he has any chance of losing. Mannerheim prepares a letter to General Keitel today which basically expresses these views. The Germans have no alternatives in the northern sector of the front and are at Mannerheim's mercy.

A P-47 on the cover of Life magazine on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Life Magazine for 2 February 1942 features a Republic P-48 Thunderbolt on the cover. The XP-47B prototype, designed by Alexander Kartveli, first flew on 6 May 1941. There are only the XP-47B and an engineering prototype in existence during February 1942, so this truly is a cutting edge photo and undoubtedly had to pass through military censors.
Battle of the Pacific: In the Philippines, the fighting along the Main Line of Resistance (MLR) on the Bataan Peninsula has died down while the Japanese reinforce their presence for a decisive attack. However, the Allies continue strenuously battling Japanese pockets and bridgeheads behind the MLR, some very close to the MLR and others many miles to the south. On the eastern half of the MLR, US II Corps eliminates a small Japanese bridgehead across the Pilar River when the last Japanese leave after dark. On the western half of the MLR, the Americans send tanks of the US 192d Tank Battalion supported by a platoon of the 1st Battalion, 45th Infantry, Philippine Scouts, against the "Big" Japanese pocket. However, the Japanese are dug in and hold their ground in the rough terrain. Much further south, the Americans try the same formula (tanks of the 192d and Filipino Scouts) against the Quinauan Point beachhead. However, the Japanese there have been cheered by ultimately unsuccessful Japanese attempts to resupply and reinforce them, so they also resist the Allies. Those reinforcements, which the Allies diverted to the Anyasan-Silaiim sector, also hold out against fierce attacks by the Scout battalions (2d Battalion of the 45th Infantry; 3d and 1st Battalions of the 57th Infantry. The day's events are discouraging for the Allies, but the MLR provides a growing sense of security and the hope that they can hold the Bataan Peninsula indefinitely.

An SB2U-2 Vindicator aboard USS Wasp on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
A snow-covered SB2U-2 Vindicator sits on the USS Wasp flight deck, February 1942 (Naval History and Heritage Command).
In the Netherlands East Indies, Japanese troops continue occupying Ambon Island, home to an important naval base. The Japanese take Laha Airdrome from Australian troops during the morning. Later in the day, the surviving Australian troops send a surrender parley under a white flag carried by Major Newberry, the commanding officer at Laha. The Japanese promptly imprison them in the local school for the night. Offshore, Dutch mines sink Japanese minesweeper W-9 and damage minesweepers W-11 and W-12.

Sailors in Singapore on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
"Kepper Harbour, Singapore. 2 February 1942. Men of HMAS Hobart returning electric sewing machines in wooden crates that they had found in a godown (storage shed where incoming merchant goods were stored after unloading), just before the fall of Singapore. Approximately fifty sailors were placed under guard on the quarterdeck by the gunnery officer before Captain H. Howden returned to the ship from the dockyard and ordered the sailors to return the machines to the godown. However, some machines were brought back to the ship with a lot of other selected material. The Captain returned to the ship with a car and the dockyard crest, both of which were shipped back to Australia. (Donor M. Williams)" Australian War Memorial P02497.026.
This is the last relatively quiet day in Singapore, as the Japanese have not yet brought up artillery. The British have blown the causeway to the mainland and organized their defenses into three sectors: Northern, Southern, and Western. The largest RAF airfield is at RAF Tengah in the Western Area, but the planes have almost all been withdrawn to the Netherlands East Indies. The most vulnerable area for an invasion is recognized as the northwest part of Singapore, where there are mangrove swamps, jungles, creeks, and rivers. The British are still able to receive reinforcements and leave by sea, and there really isn't much sense of urgency in the city.

Tamagawa Maru, sunk on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Tamagawa Maru, sunk by USS Seadragon on 2 February 1942.
USS Seadragon (SS-194), on its first patrol out of Soerabaja, Netherland East Indies, sinks 6441-ton Japanese freighter Tamagawa Maru off Cape Bolinao, Luzon. Seadragon attacks a five-ship convoy off San Fernando and sinks the fourth ship in the line. This is of great aid to the Allies in Bataan, as the ship carried reinforcements and equipment for the coming Japanese offensive.

Following the successful Marshalls-Gilbert Raids of 1 February, Admiral Halsey retires with his task force from the area in bright moonlight. The US Navy ships are shadowed by Japanese planes and a submarine but escape unscathed at 25 knots. The ships encounter a sudden storm during the morning, which they use to screen themselves from the Japanese. Halsey proudly tells that the task force that it has "made history in the Marshalls."

FV Cape Spartel, sunk on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
FV Cape Spartel, one of the ships sunk by the Luftwaffe on 2 February 1942.
European Air Operations: There is a week-long lull in strategic air operations along the western front due to winter conditions. About twenty German aircraft do mount a raid on the Humber and bomb and sink 346-ton HMT Cape Spartel and also 324-ton HMT Cloughton Wyke at Yarmouth.

Admiral Doenitz on the cover of Time magazine on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Admiral Doenitz graces the cover of Time Magazine, 2 February 1942 (cover credit: Vuk Vuchinich).
Battle of the Atlantic: British escort destroyer HMS Westcott (D47) sinks U-581 (Kptlt. Werner Pfeifer) off the south exit from Horta Harbor, Azores, Portugal. U-581 was caught on the surface after an unsuccessful torpedo attack on Westcott and accompanying destroyer Croome. Due to a mechanical issue, U-581 could not submerge, and Westcott succeeds in a second attempt to ram it. Almost the entire U-581 crew, 41 men, survive after being picked up by the destroyers, while four men perish. One German sailor, Oblt. Walter Sitek, survives by swimming six km (well over three miles) to shore (he is repatriated to Germany, becomes a U-boat commander, and survives the war). U-581 ends its career having sunk one ship, HMS Rosemonde on 19 January 1942, of 364 tons.

U-103 (Kptlt. Werner Winter), on its sixth patrol out of Lorient, is operating off the east coast of the United States as part of Operation Paukenschlag (Drumbeat). Winter gets his first sinking of the patrol when he torpedoes and then shells 6182-ton US tanker W. L. Steed about 85 nautical miles (160 km) east of the mouth of the Delaware River. The weather is horrendous, with snow and icy temperatures, so many of the 38 men who take to the boats perish from exposure. Ultimately, there are 34 dead and four survivors.

Captain Erns Kals of U-130 departs from the East Coast of the US on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Ernst Kals, commander of U-130.
Operation Paukenschlag was never intended by the Germans to be a lengthy offensive. The original plan was to send one wave of five U-boats (U-66, U-109, U-123, U-125, and U-130) in early 1942 and then return focus to the convoy routes. However, the unexpected success of the U-boats along the east coast of the United States has led to a decision to continue the offensive with new waves of boats. The first wave of U-boats already is returning to Europe, with U-130 (Ernst Kals) exiting the area south of Cape Sable on 2 February. It heads back to Lorient, though it first has a rendezvous with U-109 (Heinrich Bleichdrodt), which also is leaving the area, in the mid-Atlantic in order to transfer some fuel.

W. L. Steed is sunk on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
W. L. Steed, sunk by U-103 on 2 February 1942.
The Royal Navy has been keeping a close eye on German heavy cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst, which have been bottled up in Brest, France, for the better part of a year. They are within easy bombing range of the RAF, but winter conditions have not been suitable for a decisive air attack on them. Since that will soon change with the passing of seasons, the Germans have been busy readying the ships for action. The British Naval Staff, perhaps operating off of decoded German radio transmissions, begins planning to stop an expected cruise of the large German ships up the English Channel and back to Germany. This is considered extremely dangerous by both sides, as the ships would have to make much of the journey during daylight when the RAF could easily attack. However, Adolf Hitler believes that the risks are worthwhile because of Allied control of the air and sea in the Atlantic and the ships can be put to some use in northern Norway. Thus, the Germans have begun planning Operation Cerberus, also known as the Channel Dash.

Battle of the Mediterranean: German Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel's troops continue their rapid march from Benghazi. The Afrika Korps is advancing in two columns. The coastal column captures Berta but is stopped a dozen miles west of Derna. The inland column advances further, stopping south of Derna. In Cairo, General Claude Auchinleck, Commander in Chief Middle East Command, can see what is coming and tells his Eighth Army commanders that he expects them to hold Tobruk.
ATC Gazette of February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
The Air Training Corps (ATC) Gazette Vol. II No. 2, February 1942.
US Military: VII Interceptor Command is activated at Ft Shafter in Hawaii.

Major General Joseph W. Stilwell becomes Chief of Staff to Supreme Commander, China Theater (Chiang Kai-shek). His portfolio is to:
increase the effectiveness of United States assistance to the Chinese Government for the prosecution of the war and to assist in improving the combat efficiency of the Chinese Army.
Stilwell cannot do much about the Chinese Army, but he helps to sort out the chaos of Lend-Lease shipments to China.

The Headquarters of the USAAF 49th Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor) arrives in Melbourne, Victoria. They are equipped with P-40s, the most plentiful USAAF fighter at this time. These are raw pilots just out of flight school and their first assignment is to help put their own planes together from the crates in which they were shipped.

Egypt: The entire British position in the Mediterranean hinges on keeping a tight grip on Egypt. However, that grip is shaken today when King Farouk, who is known to harbor Axis sympathies, forces his entire cabinet to resign.

Holocaust: The commandant at the Auschwitz camp institutes a new "reeducation" policy for some prisoners (Erziehungshäftlinge). This involves giving such prisoners a new series of numbers (beginning EH 1) that are distinct from the general series of numbers. A total of 1137 such numbers are issued. These reeducation prisoners live under the same conditions as other prisoners in the camp but are released after a limited period not to exceed eight weeks (though this time limit is not honored in actuality and many spend much longer in the camp). Ultimately, about 11,000 prisoners in this category pass through Auschwitz.

American Homefront: The Federal Bureau of Investigation is rounding up suspected Japanese spies, as evidenced by a headline in the 2 February 1942 Seattle Daily Times which reads, "FBI Ousts Nipponese in Island Raid."

USS Silversides on 2 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Bow view of the USS Silversides (SS-236) off Mare Island, California, 2 February 1942 (U.S. Navy).

February 1942

February 1, 1942: The US Navy Strikes Back
February 2, 1942: Germans Recovering in Russia
February 3, 1942: Japanese Shell and Bomb Singapore
February 4, 1942: Battle of Makassar Strait
February 5, 1942: Empress of Asia Sunk
February 6, 1942: The Christmas Island Body
February 7, 1942: The Double-V Campaign
February 8, 1942: Japan Invades Singapore
February 9, 1942: French Liner Normandie Capsizes
February 10, 1942: US Car Production Ends
February 11, 1942: Tomforce Fails on Singapore
February 12, 1942: The Channel Dash
February 13, 1942: Japanese Paratroopers In Action
February 14, 1942: RAF Orders Terror Raids
February 15, 1942: Japan Takes Singapore
February 17, 1942: Indian Troops Defect to Japanese
February 18, 1942: Battle of Badung Strait
February 19, 1942: FDR Authorizes Internment Camps
February 20, 1942: O'Hare the Hero
February 21, 1942: Crisis in Burma
February 22, 1942: Bomber Harris Takes Over
February 23, 1942: Bombardment of Ellwood, California
February 24, 1942: US Raid on Wake Island
February 25, 1942: Battle of Los Angeles
February 26, 1942: Gneisenau Eliminated
February 27, 1942: Battle of Java Sea
February 28, 1942: Battle of Sunda Strait

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Saturday, May 19, 2018

July 31, 1941: Final Solution Order

Thursday 31 July 1941

Finnish gunner in Bristol Blenheim, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
A Finnish gunner inside the dorsal turret of a Bristol Blenheim bomber, July 31, 1941 (SA-Kuva).

Eastern Front: The Germans on 31 July 1941 capture and interrogate an unnamed Soviet General Staff officer who gives tantalizing hints that the Soviets may be in the process of abandoning Leningrad. He says that the Stavka is shifting troops from the Leningrad perimeter to south of Lake Ilmen to defend the approaches to Moscow. The Germans also notice heavy rail traffic between Moscow and Leningrad. General Halder hopefully notes in the OKH war diary a single word: "evacuation?"

Halder also notes something more troubling in the war diary. He writes that Field Marshal Walther von Brauchitsch, the head of the German Army (ObdH), is simply transcribing Hitler's most recent Fuhrer directive directly into operational orders. Halder writes plaintively:
Unfortunately I cannot induce ObdH to inject into this order the slightest overtone expressive of a will of his own. Its wording is dictated by an anxiety to avoid anything that could be suspected as opposition to his superior.
This continues a constant refrain in Halder's diary, that Hitler is tightening his grip on military operations and squeezing out all sense of direction aside from his own.

Finnish soldiers pose with Soviet soldier, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Finnish soldiers stand in lake Paanajärvi over the dead body of a Soviet soldier killed near Rukajärvi, Karelia, Finland (now Rugozero, Republic of Karelia, Russia). 31 July 1941 (SA-Kuva).
In the Far North sector, Finnish II Corps (Maj. Gen. Laatikainen) begins an offensive north of the Karelian Isthmus toward Lake Ladoga. One goal is to cut off the Soviet divisions that are northwest of the lake from their shortest withdrawal routes. The geographical target is the city of Viipuri (Vyborg), which Finland considers naturally its own possession and not Russian for historical reasons. The overall goal is the reconquest of the entire Karelian Isthmus. The defending Soviet 115th and 142nd Divisions have strong defensive positions and blunt the Finnish offensive.

In the Army Group North sector, German forces of the 16th Army secure the southwestern shore of Lake Ilmen. The Soviets counterattack from the direction of Toropets. General von Manstein's troops continue in the direction of Luga. The Soviets are putting up a strong defense at Kholm, which is preventing the Germans from transferring troops further south.

In the Army Group Center sector, there are only local Soviet counterattacks. The Soviets are building fortifications all along their positions and evidently they intend to make a stand where they are. The Soviets continue attacking the German "lightning rod" position at Yelnya from all directions. The Germans, meanwhile, continue reducing the Smolensk pocket while the trapped Soviet forces such as Group Kachalov attempt to break out.

In the Army Group South sector, the German Sixth Army continues to sidestep the large Soviet troop concentration at Kyiv to the south. Panzer Group 1 (General von Kleist) is operating west of Pervomaisk and attempting to envelop Soviet forces of the 12th Army. Soviet attacks against the 11th Army begin to increase in intensity during the day. Progress is slow for the Germans all across this sector.

RAF Captain Eric Lock, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Captain Eric S. Lock of the RAF in the cockpit of his Spitfire Mk.V with his dog, 31 July 1941.
European Air Operations: It is a quiet day on the air front in northwest Europe following several days of unsettled weather. The RAF sends four Blenheim bombers on a Roadstead sweep over St. Valery en Caux, and they return undamaged.

The Air Ministry reports that civilian air raid casualties during July 1941 were 900 killed and 908 injured.

Battle of the Baltic: U-140 (Hans-Jürgen Hellriegel) torpedoes and sinks 206-ton Soviet submarine M-94 (Lt Dyakov) at the entrance to the Gulf of Finland. Some sources place this on 21 or 22 July. There are three survivors. U-140 also attacks M-98 but misses.

Soviet minesweeper No. 46 sinks from unknown causes off Tallinn, Estonia.

The Luftwaffe (KG4) drops 38 mines at the mouth of the Triigi River, Saaremaa, Estonia.

HMCS Battleford, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
HMCS Battleford, commissioned on 31 July 1941, off the East Coast of the United States, 5 October 1943.
Battle of the Atlantic: In Operation FB, the Royal Navy arrives at Advent Fjord, Spitsbergen. There are no Germans there, but about 700 Norwegians. Other ships arrive at Gronfjord, where there are 1800 Russians.

The Luftwaffe attacks 209-ton British freighter Onward about 20 miles east of Nolso, France.

Royal Navy destroyer HMS Vansittart intercepts 792-ton Vichy French freighter Oued Grou several hundred miles south of Dakar. The British take the ship to Freetown.

The Germans at Arcachon, France requisition 329-ton Italian trawler Sardella.

German 3172-ton blockade runner Natal arrives at Gironde, France.

Soviet destroyer Sokrushitelny meets British minelayer HMS Adventure near the Gorodetski lighthouse at the entrance to the White Sea in northern Russia. Adventure has been detached from Operation EF, the raid on Petsamo and Kirkenes.

Convoy ON-3 departs from Liverpool, Convoy SL-82 departs from Freetown bound for Liverpool. Ships intended for Convoy WS-10 (Winston Special) depart from Liverpool to join other ships arriving from other ports at sea.

Royal Navy corvettes HMS Monkshood (Lt. Commander James E. R. Wilford) and Pentstemon (Lt. Commander John Byron) are commissioned, escort carrier Pursuer is laid down.

Canadian corvette HMCS Battleford is commissioned in Montreal, Quebec (named after Battleford, Saskatchewan).

US destroyers USS Duncan, Lansdowne, and Pringle are laid down.

U-581 (Kapitänleutnant Werner Pfeifer) is commissioned, U-172 is launched, U-711 is laid down. The Kriegsmarine decommission U-B, which is the former Royal Navy submarine HMS Seal, at Kiel.

Allied shipping losses drop sharply in July 1941, from 389,316 tons in June to 109,276 tons in July. This undoubtedly is due to the diversion of German resources toward the Soviet Union. Allied losses are down sharply in every category, such as losses by U-boat down from 310,143 tons in June to 94,209 tons in July.

The silver lining for the Kriegsmarine is that they do not lose any U-boats during July after losing four in June. For its part, the Axis loses 12 ships of 47,055 tons in the Mediterranean. Admiral Doenitz has a fleet of 65 U-boats in operation during the month of July 1941.

Scots Dragoons of the "Royal Scotts Greys" Regiment , 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Scots Dragoons of the "Royal Scotts Greys" Regiment fall in on horseback near Nablus, Palestine on July 31, 1941. The photo was taken after the regiment returned from fighting in Syria and Lebanon.
Battle of the Mediterranean: As part of Operation Style, a British Force S convoy run from Gibraltar to Malta, the Royal Navy Force H detaches destroyers HMS Cossack and Maori to bombard Italian positions at Alghero, Sardinia. They also fire star shells to guide in RAF planes from aircraft carrier Ark Royal. This attack is intended to distract the Italians away from the convoy ships heading to Malta.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Regent (Lt. Knox) surfaces and uses its deck guns to sink 160-ton Italian sailing ship Igea about seven miles northeast of Benghazi (or a similar distance from Carcura, Libya).

The Luftwaffe bombs Tobruk before dawn and are met with heavy anti-aircraft fire.

The Italians attack St Angelo, Malta with three BR-20 bombers. They cause some damage to military facilities there and injure three people. Three other BR-20 bombers attack the Grand Harbour area.
Braunschweig, Germany, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
Braunschweig, Ruhfäutchenplatz. On the left is the New Town Hall, at the center of the picture is tram line 3, at the right is Dankwarderode Castle (Proietti, Ugo, Federal Archive, Bild 212-267).
US/Soviet Relations: President Roosevelt's personal emissary Harry Hopkins meets with Joseph Stalin in Moscow to discuss the terms of the United State's lend-lease aid to the USSR.

US/Japanese Relations: Japan lavishly apologizes for the bombing of USS Tutuila during a bombing raid of Chungking on the 30th. They call it "an accident, pure and simple."

Effective today, US exports of aviation motor fuels and lubricants and No. 1 heavy melting iron and steel scrap to Japan are put on the restricted list pursuant to the Export Control Act signed on 2 July 1940.

German/Swedish Relations: Having successfully transferred the 163rd Infantry Division in its entirety from Narvik, Norway to Finland on the railway line that runs across Swedish territory, the Germans ask for Swedish permission to transfer another division. The Swedes, who have been conflicted about the earlier decision, refuse.

German/Spanish Relations: Troops of the Spanish Blue Division are formally designated the Wehrmacht's 250th Infantry Division. They assemble prior to their departure to the front and swear allegiance to Adolf Hitler. They are destined for the Army Group North sector.

German Relations: Romanian leader Ion Antonescu acquiesces to Hitler's recent request to have Romanian troops conquer and occupy Ukrainian territory between the Bug and Dniester Rivers.

Lord Derby at the opening of the new Flotilla Club extension, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
"Lord Derby is seen talking with Mrs. T A Hussey." The opening of the new extension of the Flotilla Club, 31 July 1941. © IWM (A 4698).
Ecuadorian/Peruvian Relations: After several days of discussion during which military operations continued, the two sides agree to a ceasefire in their border war. As a last military movement in the war, Peruvian troops arrive at Puerto Bolivar by ship and continue to operate against Ecuadorian troops in the Amazonian jungle.

German Military: General Ludwig Crüwell becomes commander of Afrika Corps while Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel is promoted to command of the new Panzerarmee Afrika. Panzer Army Africa is more the size of a corps than an army because it has only one infantry and two panzer divisions. While there are large Italian forces in North Africa, they remain under nominal Italian command. Crüwell is ill and does not take up his position until 15 September.

Lockheed Ventura, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
A Lockheed Ventura of RAF No. 21 Squadron ca. 1941.
US Military: The Lockheed Ventura, a twin-engine medium bomber, makes its first flight. It is developed from the Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar transport. The British Purchasing Commission ordered 188 Venturas in February 1940 while the plane was still in the early stages of development.

US heavy cruiser USS Astoria arrives at Pearl Harbor, Hawaiian Islands.

Soviet Military: Soviet 43rd Army (Lieutenant General Ivan Zakharkin) becomes operational as part of General Georgy Zhukov's new Reserve Front pursuant to a Stavka order dated 30 July 1941. Its mission is to defend the Desna River south of Yelnya on the line of Kholmets and Bogdanovo.


Hermann Goering's Final Solution order to Reinhard Heydrich, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
A translation of the 31 July 1941 letter from Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering to Reinhard Heydrich regarding the "Final Solution" (Truman Library).
Bulgarian Government: The Bulgarian government annexes its portion of the former Yugoslavia.

Holocaust: Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering sends RSHA (Reichssicherheitshaupamt) Obergruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich an order to make:
all the necessary preparations with regard to organizational, practical and financial aspects for an overall solution (Gesamtlosung) of the "Jewish question" in the German sphere of influence in Europe.
Heydrich already has verbally instructed the SS to exterminate entire groups of people, including Jews, and even put it in writing. However, some later assume that Heydrich specifically asks Goering for this after-the-fact authorization letter. In colloquial terms, it is a "cover your butt" letter for Heydrich's benefit.

As it works out, the letter is meaningless to Heydrich (who is assassinated in 1942) but provides a "smoking gun" against Goering at the Nuremberg Trials (who futilely claims that the letter is mistranslated and only refers to a "desired solution," not a "final solution"). While things may have progressed as they did without this order, it provides legal cover for Heydrich to do whatever he wants to do - and Heydrich wants to do a lot where the Jews are concerned.

At Kishinev, Bessarabia (Moldova), the SS has killed about 10,000 Jews by the end of the month. At Zhytomyr, an additional 2500 are dead.

Einsatzcommando 3 reports executing 235 Jewish men, 16 Jewish women, and 5 non-Jews in the "Jäger Report."

Norwegian Homefront: Reich Commissar Josef Terboven issues a regulation that authorizes him to declare a civilian state of emergency. He does not do so at this time, however.

American Homefront: The New York Yankees lead the American League by 12.0 games over the second-place Cleveland Indians, while the St. Louis Cardinals leads the National League by 2.0 games over the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Hermann Goering Final Solution letter to Reinhard Heydrich, 31 July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com
The original and infamous "final solution" letter from Hermann Goering to Reinhard Heydrich, 31 July 1941

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

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

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