Friday 20 June 1941

"Fortress Mark I, AN521 WP-K, of No. 90 Squadron RAF based at West Raynham, Norfolk, preparing for takeoff at Hatfield, Hertfordshire, during an inspection of newly-arrived American aircraft by the Chief of the Air Staff and the US Air Attache." 20 June 1941. © IWM (CH 2873).

Syrian/Lebanon Campaign: As the day begins on 20 June 1941, the 5th Indian Brigade at Mezzeh is in dire straits. The Vichy French based in Damascus three miles to the east have surrounded them, and they are running out of supplies. They have managed to send three men through the French lines to get word to headquarters that they cannot hold out much longer. Operation Exporter may not be in trouble, but these trapped men are.

Brigadier Wilfrid Lewis Lloyd, now back in command of the 5th Indian Infantry Brigade after temporarily being in command of Genforce (now under the command of Major-General John Evetts), makes his best effort to relieve his encircled troops. He sends two companies from the 3/1st Punjab Regiment, two companies of French Marines and a battery of artillery to open a corridor to Mezzeh. The Vichy French, however, fight hard and slow the relief column, and the relief troops (the 2/3rd Battalion and 2/5th Field Regiment) get no help from the flanks.

The Indian troops, with no food or water and having run out of ammunition, surrender at 13:30, a hugely embarrassing blow for the British command. This goes a long way to restoring Gallic pride on the Vichy side and, somewhat perversely, leaves them more open to the idea of eventual surrender.

However, the hard fighting around Damascus continues. The Australian relief column continues fighting forward and retakes Mezzeh at 19:00. However, now it is an empty city and of little tactical significance beyond being one of many road junctions. The battle around Damascus now degenerates into a classic melee in which both sides jostle for control of the roads and hills (which hold forts) overlooking those roads, with neither side in control as the day ends.

The Vichy Government decides to ramp up peace feelers to Great Britain. It gives up trying to use the American Consul-General to broker a deal, and instead, Premier Petain covertly sends a representative directly to London. This is fairly easily done via Lisbon.

Luftwaffe General Hellmuth Felmy, the commander of Special Staff F (Sonderstab F), the Luftwaffe's mission to Iraq, is reassigned. The entire idea of the Axis intervening in Iraq has now drifted completely out of the realm of possibility, so Felmy becomes commander of Army Group Southern Greece (Befehlshaber Südgriechenland). In any event, in these commands, he never has to leave Athens and never has any real responsibility - the reassignment is simply an admission of the ridiculousness of continuing with the fiction of an Axis presence in Iraq.

European Air Operations: During the day, RAF Bomber Command sends 11 aircraft on anti-shipping missions. After dark, RAF Bomber Command bombs Kiel with 115 bombers during the night.

Soviet cruiser Komintern, based at the Black Sea base at Sevastopol.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-203 (Kptlt. Rolf Mützelburg), on its first patrol out of Kiel and cruising off Iceland, spots US Navy battleship USS Texas (BB-35) just within the "Blockade Zone" established around Great Britain. Technically, at least according to the Germans, this justifies sinking the ship. However, Mützelburg is unable to maneuver into firing position, and the faster battleship gets away. This very nearly starts World War II for the United States six months early. Texas, incidentally, will figure in a similar incident in May 1945.

U-123 (Kptlt. Karl-Heinz Moehle), on its fifth patrol out of Lorient and operating near the Azores, uses gunfire and torpedoes and sinks 4333-ton Portuguese freighter Ganda. There are five deaths and 61 survivors. As the ship sinks, Moehle notices that the ship flies a neutral flag. Upon his return to Lorient, Moehle reports the matter, and U-boat headquarters (BdU) tells him to alter the log to make the sinking appear legal.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 2249-ton Norwegian freighter Schieland, which is sailing with Convoy FS.520, southeast of Grimsby. There is one death (who dies later) and eight survivors.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks Royal Navy 258-ton minesweeping trawler HMT Resmilo at Peterhead. Everyone survives (no casualties).

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 5578-ton British tanker Inverarder off the Isle of Wight. The master beaches the tanker at Motherbank Buoy, Solent. It later is refloated and repaired at Southampton.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 2841-ton freighter Cormount off Outer Dowsing Light Vessel. There is one death.

British 2844-ton freighter Ilse hits a mine and is damaged near Hartlepool. There is one death. The forepart is flown off, but the rear portion of the ship is towed to Middleborough and repaired.

Royal Navy minelayer Teviotbank lays minefield BS.64 in the North Sea.

Convoy OB-337 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HX-134 departs from Halifax, Convoy SC-35 departs from Sidney bound for the Clyde.

Royal Navy escort carrier HMS Audacity (Commander Douglas W. MacKendrick) and minelayer Manxman are commissioned, corvette Campion is launched, and destroyer Relentless is laid down.

U-351 (Oblt. Karl Hause) is commissioned, U-506 is launched.

A mortar officer and rangefinder operator of the Lovat Scouts, during an exercise in the Faroe Islands, 20 June 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Prime Minister Winston Churchill remains furious about the desultory affair of Operation Battleaxe, in which a British offensive with extremely precious tanks not only failed but resulted in a loss of ground. He resolves to replace Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell with the Commander-in-Chief India, General Claude Auchinleck. Having been in command of a backwater, Auchinleck has minimal combat experience during World War II (like many other World War II leaders he made his reputation in the Great War), but Churchill doesn't want to recall Wavell to England and make his command change painfully obvious to the public - which would result in uncomfortable questions about his own competence.

Italian submarine Ondina torpedoes and sinks 3805-ton Turkish liner Refah forty miles south of Mersin. There are 165-167 deaths.

Italian 4543-ton freighter Buccari explodes under mysterious circumstances at Taranto, Apulia, Italy.

Two Royal Navy submarined, HMS Tetrarch and Severn, make unsuccessful attacks on ships, the former off Lemnos, the latter off Palermo.

Overhead view of Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii, in June 1941.

Spy Stuff: Soviet spies in Bulgaria radio the Kremlin that the Germans plan to invade on 21 or 22 June. The warning is filed.

Sleeper Soviet spy Richard Sorge, posing as a journalist in Tokyo, has sent many warnings to Moscow about Operation Barbarossa. Today, he tries again, drafting a final warning:

[German Ambassador to Japan] Ott told me that war between Germany and the USSR is inevitable…. Invest [the code name for Japanese journalist Hotsumi Ozaki] told me that the Japanese General Staff is already discussing what position to take in the event of war.

Sorge gives the message to his crony, Max Clausen, for transmission, but for pragmatic reasons, it is not sent until 21 June.

The Japanese protest at the opening of the luggage of Japanese Minister Yoshiaki Miura by Pan American Airways employees in Guatemala. Diplomat Sadao Iguchi goes to the office of the Chief of the Far Eastern Section in Washington and requests that the airline be told the proper handling of diplomats' baggage, i.e., not to search them. The reason the Japanese are so concerned with this issue at this time is that they have come into possession of detailed maps of the Panama Canal Zone from Italians living there and wish to transport them to Tokyo. There, the maps could be used for planning military attacks.

The last billet of the German 506 Infantry Regiment, 291st Infantry Division, before the Russian campaign, June 20, 1941.

US/German Relations: President Roosevelt gives a message to Congress regarding the Robin Moore affair. He describes the "ruthless sinking" of the US freighter in May as an "act of piracy." He notes that the submarine captain knew that it was a US ship and sank it anyway and this is the act of "an international outlaw." He describes the attack on "innocent men, women, and children" as "terrorism."

While long on rhetoric - and it is very strong rhetoric indeed - the statement is short on proposals for action. He notes somewhat lamely that "Full reparation for the losses and damages suffered by American nationals will be expected from the German Government," though he does not say how he expects to receive such reparations. Roosevelt concludes that the Reich seeks to make the United States "submit," but "We are not yielding and we do not propose to yield."

The President does not, of course, mention that Robin Moore was carrying war supplies to the British. However, to be fair to Roosevelt, the Robin Moore was sunk outside of the blockade zone set up by the Reich around Great Britain and the attack thus was illegal despite renewed warnings by the Germans in May about the dangers on the high seas. So, both sides have some facts with which to justify their positions, but all that matters, for the time being, is whether the United States is going to declare war over the affair - and it isn't.

There are rumblings about the US/German relationships on the other side of the Atlantic, too. At 21:00, Hitler's adjutant Colonel Rudolf Schmundt tells Hitler that Admiral Raeder has just told him that a U-boat captain claimed to have attempted to sink US battleship USS Texas about 10 miles within the blockade zone - but failed. Raeder has justified the attempted sinking, which almost certainly would have created an opportunity for President Roosevelt to declare war on the Reich. This disturbs Hitler, who wants nothing to do with the United States while he is focusing on the Soviet Union. He spends the night considering whether new rules are in order regarding attacks on US shipping.

"Calm Before the Storm." Soviet border guards on the western border, 20 June 1941.

German/Romanian Relations: The Germans reveal the secret of Operation Barbarossa to the Romanians. This is significant because security for the operation has been extremely tight and very few people outside the upper echelons of the Wehrmacht have been told. The Germans hope to have significant participation from Romanian troops during the invasion, not to mention the fact that the entire Wehrmacht runs on Romanian oil and thus their cooperation in any endeavor is necessary.

USS O-9 (SS-70), which foundered 20 June 1941. The wreck site was found in 1997 by Klein Sonar but the location remains a secret known only to the US Navy.

US Military: Major General Henry Harley "Hap" Arnold, who has led the US Army Air Corps since 29 September 1938, is appointed the leader of the newly created US Army Air Forces. Pursuant to Army Regulation 95-5, this is the successor to the US Army Air Corps.

Arnold becomes Chief of the Army Air Forces and acting "Deputy Chief of Staff for Air" with authority over both the Air Corps and Air Force Combat Command (successor to GHQAF). Arnold would prefer that the air force become a separate branch of the military equal to the Army and Navy, but Chief of Staff George C. Marshall (an old friend from before World War I) convinces Arnold to wait until after the brewing war for complete separation.

US Navy Task Group 2.6, led by the aircraft carrier USS Wasp (CV-7), departs from Hampton Roads, Virginia on a neutrality patrol.

Three US Navy submarines conduct deep submergence tests about 15 miles (24 km) off Portsmouth, New Hampshire. These tests go very badly when USS O-9 (SS-70) implodes and kills its 34 crewmen. There is nothing that can be done, it is a great tragedy that receives surprisingly little publicity and is not long remembered.

A sign in the General Government area of occupied Poland that says "Generalgouvernment of the Occupied Polish area - border 14 meters." This is at the Granitza River, and beyond in the area of Poland occupied by the Soviet Union. 20 June 1041 (Federal Archive Bild 169-0897)

German Military: Adolf Hitler tells OKW to distribute the "Proclamation To The Troops of the Eastern Front" that he was working on during the 19th. Of course, there is no "Eastern Front" yet, so the very title is a tip-off to the document's contents.

Issued in secret, the four-page document includes a lengthy recitation of the warped view of recent history that characterizes his speeches. The Proclamation also includes some specious claims (such as that there were no German troops on the border "until a very few weeks ago" when in fact he has been planning Operation Barbarossa for almost a full year). It is overkill for an "Order of the Day" and reads as an attempted justification for his attack, which he claims has been forced upon him by the Jewish-Bolshevik rulers of Moscow. In other words, it is simply more of the same rationalizations and prevarications that characterize all of his justifications for war.

The Proclamation ends:

At this moment, soldiers of the eastern front, an assembly of strength the like of which in size and scale the world has never seen is now complete.  In league with Finnish divisions, our comrades are standing with the Victor of Narvik [Dietl] on the shores of the Arctic in the north.  German soldiers under the command of the Conquerer of Norway [Falkenhorst], and the Finnish heroes of freedom under their own Marshal [Mannerheim] are protecting Finland.  On the eastern front stand you.  In Romania, on the banks of the Prut, and along the Danube right down to the beaches of the Black Sea are German and Romanian troops united under Antonescu, the head of state.  When this, the biggest front line in history, now begins its advance it does so not just to provide the means of ending for all time this great war, or to defend those countries currently concerned, but for the salvation of our entire European civilization and culture. 

German soldiers!  You are thus entering upon a harsh and demanding fight—because the fate of Europe, the future of the German Reich, the existence of our nation now rest on your hands alone. 

May the Lord God help us all in this struggle.

Hitler confirms with OKW operations chief General Alfred Jodl that Operation Barbarossa will begin on 22 June.

The troops themselves, meanwhile, are told that an attack on the Soviet Union is "hypothetical" and everything related to such an attack is an "exercise." This makes sense to the troops - why attack the Soviet Union when the Reich is still at war with England?

The Kriegsmarine, meanwhile, now is laying mines in the Baltic. U-boats there have orders to shoot at any Soviet ships (there are none). All Soviet ships in Reich ports are prevented from leaving under one pretext or another.

A member of the Finnish voluntary auxiliary paramilitary organization for women (Lotta Svärd) in Helsinki prepares to head to the front on 20 June 1941.

Finnish Military: The military calls up all reservists under the age of 45. The military begins evacuating communities along the border with the Soviet Union in preparation for Operation Barbarossa - which Finland will join independently at a later date as the "Continuation War."

Soviet Military: The Red Air Force has issued orders to camouflage airfields, but these measures require time to prepare and have not yet been begun. It also forms the 6th Fighter Corps in Moscow for the protection of the capital. An air raid drill over Moscow is planned for Sunday, 22 June.

German Government: During the day, Adolf Hitler tells his secretaries that he just finds something "wrong" about Russia - it reminds him of the ghost ship in "The Flying Dutchman." He explains:

Because we know absolutely nothing about Russia. It might be one big soap-bubble, but it might just as well turn out to be very different.

This will be a recurrent theme throughout World War II - how little the Reich knows about Russia.

Hitler is confident about Operation Barbarossa but also concerned. In his diary entry today, adjutant Hewel writes that Hitler:

told me that this morning [June 20] he again pored over every minute detail, but found no possibility for the enemy to get the better of Germany.  He thinks Britain will have to give in - and he hopes it will be before the year is over.

Hewel also writes that Hitler admits there "must always be a big element of risk." Among Hitler's worries are secret weapons, fanatical Soviet resistance, and the unknown.

Hitler needs to take pills to get to sleep. This is the beginning stage of his growing reliance on medicines for normal functioning.

"Racial theorist" Alfred Rosenberg delivers a speech in which he states that the sole use of the conquered peoples in Eastern Europe is to feed German troops and citizens. Their own survival is not a priority. This is a refrain that will recur from various German leaders throughout the war.

Norway: The Norwegian occupation authorities finally force actors and directors to end their theater strike that began on 21 May. The strike has been a major public relations failure for the Germans, receiving publicity in Swiss publications. The strike leaves very hard feelings in the occupation authorities, and the German Ministry of Culture takes full control of Norwegian Theaters. Many prominent theatrical figures are arrested at the Grini concentration camp for the remainder of the war. The strike ultimately has a devastating effect on the Norwegian theatrical scene, as the public decides to boycott shows to show solidarity and puts many theater workers out of work.

"Reflections of Spring" by Peter Mork Monsted.

Denmark: Artist Peder Mørk Mønsted (Peter Mork Monsted) passes away. He painted brilliantly vivid landscape paintings and was very popular in Germany. His art has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity.

Soviet Homefront: In a case of odd timing, Soviet anthropologists Mikhail M. Gerasimov, Lev V. Oshanin and V. Ia. Zezenkova open the tomb of the Ruler of the Golden Horde, Timur (also known as Tamerlane). His tomb in Samarkand reportedly is inscribed with the words:

When I rise from the dead, the world shall tremble.

Inside the casket reportedly is another inscription:

Whomsoever opens my tomb shall unleash an invader more terrible than I.

The locals are sure that this violation of the tomb of Timur will lead to bad things - such as an invasion.

American Homefront: In a major win for US Unions, Ford Motor Company signs its first contract with the United Auto Workers (UAW) and Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO).

Charles Lindbergh gives an isolationist speech in Los Angeles.
US journalist publishes his classic memoir of pre-war Germany, "Berlin Diary."

New York Yankee Joe DiMaggio continues his club-record hitting streak. He goes 4-5 against the Detroit Tigers in New York. DiMaggio now has hit safely in 33 games. While DiMaggio is setting history with his streak, his batting average remains far below that of Boston Red Sox player Ted Williams, who is en route to the last .400 season in MLB history.

RKO Radio Pictures releases Walt Disney Productions' "The Reluctant Dragon." An animated film, the film turns into a tour of the brand-new Walt Disney Studios building in Burbank, California. Radio comedian Robert Benchley walks the audience through the studio. After an introductory segment, the remainder of the film is in Technicolor, which in a world of black-and-white films is a draw in and of itself. The film does not, of course, mention the Disney animators' strike that still is in progress right outside the Burbank facility at the time of release. In fact, there is a ringer playing an animator in the studio, actor Alan Ladd.

The film roughly breaks even and does not alleviate the financial strain under which Disney Studios has been laboring since the failure of "Pinocchio." However, as with all Disney animated films, the characters live on in the Disney universe and make appearances in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" (1988) and some other later productions.

Marx Brothers comedy "The Big Story" opens. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, "The Big Store" features Margaret Dumont as the Marx Brothers' employer in a fight over control a department store. The film is billed as the act's farewell performance and generally is considered a lesser offering by the Marx Brothers. However, it does turn a profit and the Marx Brothers reunite in 1946 for "A Night In Casablanca."

2020

Monday 26 May 1941

Battleship Bismark steering in circles after being hit by a torpedo in the stern, 26 May 1941.

Anglo/Iraq War: A supply train filled with Syrian Vichy French military equipment arrives in Baghdad on 26 May 1941. These supplies include 8 155 mm artillery pieces, 6000 shells, 30,000 grenades, and 32 trucks.

The British take the Luftwaffe airfield at Mosul, with the Germans evacuating before they arrive. Reinforcements in the form of 11 Italian Fiat CR-42 fighters of Italian 155th Squadriglia arrive at Kirkuk during the day. The Italian fighters immediately attack the advancing British troops, who are in the Fallujah sector and approaching Baghdad. The British hope to capture Baghdad on the 27th.

European Air Operations: RAF Fighter Command undertakes Rhubarb raids over occupied France. RAF Bomber Command sends a dozen planes on anti-shipping operations. After dark, the RAF sends 38 bombers to drop mines off Brest in anticipation of the arrival of battleship Bismarck.

East African Campaign: There are media reports, such as in the Malaya Tribune, that 9,000 Italian troops have been captured in the Abyssinian Lake region. The reports state that Sudanese troops "captained by British officers" have rounded up the Italians, who had fled from Addis Ababa.

"The BISMARCK is seen in the distance from a Fairey Swordfish from the aircraft carrier HMS VICTORIOUS just before the torpedo attack, 26 May 1941." © IWM (A 9798).

Battle of the Atlantic: The day begins with Bismarck steaming toward France at 20 knots. The British have not known where it is for 30 hours but has ships combing the North Atlantic for it. Thanks to Ultra, the Royal Navy knows that the Bismarck is heading for Brest, France, and has directed Force H from Gibraltar to conduct a search along the German ship's assumed course. However, the British are not the ones who locate it.

At 10:30 a patrolling US Catalina PBY flying boat (Ensign Leonard B. Smith of the US Navy) spots Bismarck about 690 nautical miles (790 miles, 1280 km) northwest of Brest. The British ships then turn to pursue the Bismarck. However, Bismarck now has a huge head start and just enough speed to make it to France if she can avoid being confronted before dark.

The British, though, have a trump card. Although it is badly needed in the Eastern Mediterranean to help protect Crete, Force H (Admiral James Somerville) is in position to attack Bismarck. Battleships HMS King George V and Rodney and aircraft carrier Ark Royal head to the northwest. Ark Royal launches its planes, and they spot a ship 60 nautical miles to the northwest. The planes, however, mistake Royal Navy cruiser Sheffield for the Bismarck and attack it with their torpedoes. Fortunately for the men of the Sheffield, the attack fails completely, and the Sheffield contacts the Ark Royal, which issues a recall order. However, at the same time, Bismarck fires at Sheffield, and shell fragments kill three crew and wound several others. This forces Sheffield to withdraw.

The identification of this photo is unclear, but it may be HMS Rodney during the hunt for German battleship Bismarck, 26 May 1941.

The Ark Royal's planes rearm and refuel. Light already is beginning to fade, but Somerville takes a chance and orders another airstrike. Fifteen Swordfish take off at 19:10, with distance having narrowed to 40 nautical miles. The Swordfish make two hits. One is in the Bismarck's armored belt and causes some minor flooding that can be managed. The second, though, by RAF pilot John Moffatt, is serious. It hits the stern on the port side and causes major damage to both rudders. While the starboard rudder is made workable again, nothing can be done about the port rudder, which is hopelessly mangled and stuck at a bent angle. The Bismarck can only steam forward with a 12 degree turn to port, making it unmaneuverable.

So, the Bismarck is left unable to proceed further toward France. It is outside the range of Luftwaffe air cover, being just under 700 nautical miles from land, and there are no U-boats in the vicinity to protect it. The crew suggests dynamiting the rudder to restore maneuverability, but Vice-Admiral Günter Lütjens vetoes the suggestion because of the likelihood that an explosion in that vicinity would likely blow off the ship's propellers as well. (Underwater inspection after the ship's wreck is found shows that this would not have helped anyway).

The crew of the Bismarck thus is forced to remain in place throughout the night, with powerful Royal Navy forces approaching from all directions (battleship King George V is 130 miles behind but now closing rapidly). The Bismarck's men try to launch a floatplane in order to fly off the ship's log. However, it turns out that the catapult is damaged from the Battle of the Denmark Strait and the plane cannot be launched, so they push it over the side.

HMS Formidable under Luftwaffe attack, 26 May 1941.

Knowing his ship is doomed, Lütjens at midnight signals headquarters with his final message:

Ship unmaneuverable. We shall fight to the last shell. Long live the Führer.

Just like the crew of Italian cruiser Fiume during the Battle of Cape Matapan in March 1941, the Bismarck's crew spends their last few hours of life contemplating their inevitable fate at the hands of the enemy.

Winston Churchill spends the day in the Admiralty War Room. He orders Admiral John Tovey aboard King George V to close on the Bismarck even if it means running out of fuel. In fact, cruiser Repulse has to pull out to refuel, but battleship Rodney takes its place. Around midnight, destroyers of Captain Philip Vian's 4th Flotilla approach Bismarck and launch torpedoes; whether any hit is unknown.

U-69 (Kptlt. Jost Metzler) completes its mission of laying seven mines in the port of Takoradi. It is a daring mission which includes cruising into the British port on the surface at night and brazenly unloading under the British guns.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 297-ton British freighter Gros Pierre off Sunderland. The master beaches the ship, and the Gros Pierre is later refloated and repaired.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 214-ton British trawler H.E. Stroud about 10 miles off Lamb Head, Stromsay. There is one death. The Stroud is taken under tow and taken to Kirkwall.

Royal Navy submarine H.31 runs aground at Lagan, but is freed and returns to Belfast for repairs.

Royal Navy minesweeper HMS Eastbourne (Lt. Commander Norman E. Morley) is commissioned.

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

Norwegian corvette KNM Andenes (ordered in 1939 and formerly designated as HMS Acanthus) is launched.

Free French corvette FS Commandant d'Estienne d'Orves (which has been redesignated from becoming HMS Lotus) is laid down.

Heavy cruiser USS Baltimore and destroyer Doyle are laid down.

HMS Formidable being bombed by the Luftwaffe, 26 May 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: In Operation MAQ3, Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Formidable, escorted by a powerful force including battleships Barham and Queen Elizabeth, launches six Fairey Albacore planes around 02:00 to attack the Junkers Ju 87 Stuka airfield on Scarpanto. Due to mechanical issues, two planes return to the carrier, and the four remaining planes bomb their airfield between 05:05 and 05:15. Some Wellingtons from Malta arrive as planned at the same time and participate in the raid. Four Fairey Fulmars then arrive from Formidable and strafe the airfield around 05:45. The pilots report at least two aircraft destroyed on the ground, but also note 15 Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive bomber and 15 Italian CR-42 fighters untouched by the attack.

As the British withdraw, the Stukas (led by II/StG2 led by Major Walter Enneccerus) hit the Formidable with two 1000 kg bombs, damaging it severely. In addition, destroyer Nubian is badly damaged by a Stuka and a Junkers Ju 88 but makes it back to port. There are a dozen deaths on the Formidable, with ten more wounded, and fifteen deaths on the Nubian, with six wounded. The Luftwaffe loses two Stukas. After fighting off further attacks, Formidable reaches Alexandria around dawn on the 27th.

HMS Formidable hit by bombs, 26 May 1941.

On Crete, the Germans continue expanding eastward, pushing the Greek 1st Regiment defenders from Kastelli after a bitter three-day fight and approaching Canea (Chania), the island's capital. The Allies muddle through a troop changeover in front of the city which goes disastrously wrong, leading to the Germans surrounding the arriving 1000 Commonwealth troops. The Allied troops retreat to the east. The Luftwaffe mistakenly bombs the German troops advancing from Galatas toward Canea, aiding the Allies' retreat.

However, the pace of advance is slowing, and only so many troops can be brought in by air to Maleme airfield. Elsewhere on Crete, at Retimo and Heraklion, the German troops are barely hanging on in hopes of a quick advance from Maleme.

, 26 May 1941: a German Junkers Ju 52 transport takes off from Eleusis Airport outside Athens, bound for Crete. Below it is a line of French Vichy Air Force’s Dewoitine D 520s fighters.

Despite the increasingly precarious British position, the Germans pessimistically conclude that it is beginning to look as if a long-term stalemate might develop. One of local air commander Wolfram von Richthofen's liaison officers returns from Crete today and reports that German morale is plummeting on the island. He states that there is an "absolute and critical need" for "reinforcement by sea shipment of heavy weaponry if the operation is to get ahead at all." The OKW thus contacts Italian Duce Mussolini and requests that he send Italian Army units. Mussolini agrees and begins preparations for a seaborne landing which would bring tanks.

The British, however, also are unhappy with the battle, and they try to reinforce the embattled troops there with multiple missions.  The Royal Navy covers its bets by landing at Suda Bay about 800 men from No. 7 and No. 8 Commandos under the command of Colonel Robert Laycock, part of "Layforce." Their orders are to cover evacuation from the port, though it is still hoped that some portion of the island can be retained indefinitely. Another convoy containing reinforcements, led by commando ship Glenroy, comes under attack by the Luftwaffe and is forced to return to Alexandria. Convoy AN.3 of three Greek ships containing reinforcements also sets out from Alexandria today, but it also is forced to return to port as the situation on Crete deteriorates.

The problem for the British, however, is that the only way they can remain on the island is by holding ports on Crete's north shore, and already they are threatened. General Bernard Freyberg, the commander on Crete, becomes the first to broach the idea of an overall evacuation from the island in a message to Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell, a proposal that is not acted upon at this time.

Damage to HMS Nubian from the bombing of 26 May 1941, after returning to Alexandria Harbor. Incredibly, despite the entire stern being blown off, the engines and propellers continued to function.

At Kandanos and other hot spots on Crete, the Germans begin to develop a negative attitude toward the locals. The Germans have been taking heavy casualties despite their success, and they develop what may be characterized as a grudge against the local citizenry. Brutal repression is their response to those who oppose their rule.

The Luftwaffe continues attacking the British-held ports on Crete. The Germans sink 145-ton Greek freighter Emmanuel Pteris at Candia Harbour and 6426 ton Greek freighter Rokos at Suda Bay.

On the Libyan border, Afrika Korps Commanding General Erwin Rommel prepares to launch Operation Skorpion. Colonel Maximilian von Herff, in command of Kampfgruppe von Herff, assembles his troops at the foot of Halfaya Pass, the operation's objective. The plan is to bluff the British into giving up the pass voluntarily by simulating an outflanking attack in force to the east. The attack is scheduled for the morning of the 27th.

Italian torpedo boats (Calliope, Circe, Clio, and Perseo) lay mines east of Malta.

An Italian supply convoy of six large freighters leaves Naples bound for Tripoli.

The Stuka attack on HMS Formidable, 26 May 1941.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: Dutch gunboat Van Kinsbergen is operating east of Madagascar when it spots 8379 ton Vichy French freighter Winnipeg. The Dutch ship captures the Winnipeg.

Convoy BA.2 departs from Bombay, bound for Aden.

War Crimes: Courts-martial are begun of military personnel aboard HMT Dunera, used to transport evacuees from England in the summer of 1940. The captain and others on the vessel are accused of malicious and predatory conduct, including but not limited to theft and savage beatings. The hearings are held at Chelsea Barracks, London, on 26th and 27th May 1941. This is an incident shrouded in some mystery and receives no press at the time. Specifically, the commanding officer, a regimental sergeant major, and a serjeant are put on trial.

Technically, these are not war crimes, as they do not involve enemy combatants. However, the actions of the British military personnel are alleged to have violated their military oaths and duties during wartime to the detriment of others, so this seems like the appropriate category. To be fair, the entire Holocaust could go in this category under the same reasoning, along with many other incidents, but I have a separate category entirely for the Holocaust due to its oppressive and ubiquitous nature.

Anglo/Irish Relations: Irish Prime Minister Éamon de Valera sends British Prime Minister Winston Churchill a message about proposed British conscription in Northern Ireland:

Before your final decision is taken I feel that I should again put before your Government as earnestly as I can my view that the imposition of Conscription in any form would provoke the bitterest resentment amongst Irishmen and would have the most disastrous consequences for our two peoples.

Churchill very strongly feels that Ireland is not doing enough to help the war effort, but he takes this plea under earnest consideration.

A Fairey Fulmar hits the crash barrier while landing on HMS Formidable at 13:40 on 26 May 1941.

Japanese Military: The Japanese Imperial Air Force make the first flight of the Kayaba Ka-1, Army Model 1 Observation Autogyro. It is closely based on the US Kellett KD-1A single-engine two-seat autogyro and has an observation platform for artillery spotting and is powered by a 240 hp (180 kW) Argus As 10c engine. The plane is useful because it is easy to maintain and has a short 98 foot (30 meters) take-off run.

Life Magazine, "Army Nurse" Catherine Mary Hines, 26 May 1941.

British Government: Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton confides to his diary that there is a "general sense of gloom." After listing the various recent Royal Navy losses, Dalton comments:
Thus, says the PM [Churchill], the Germans have established a "unit superiority" over us. This is the most injurious and distressing naval incident [apparently referring to the Bismarck sinking the Hood] since we missed the Goeben [referring to a failed pursuit in the Mediterranean in 1914, when Churchill was First Lord of the Admiralty]. It is clear that these are Churchill's thoughts, not just Dalton's, considering the references.

Private Secretary Alexander Cadogan similarly notes in his diary that "Poor Winston very gloomy - due of course to Hood and Crete. In the latter place, things look black." He notes that there was "A tiresome and most acrimonious discussion" on a minor point about publicizing shipping losses, reflecting the tense nature of the evening War Cabinet meeting.

Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden, no doubt hearing of Churchill's "gloom," sends Churchill an inspirational (but odd) note:

This is a bad day; but tomorrow - Baghdad will be entered, Bismarck sunk. On some date the war will be won, and you will have done more than any man in history to win it.

Churchill does not respond.

On June 4, 1943, 381st Port Battalion Company "C" Scouts practice disembarking from a Landing Craft, Mechanized (LCM) in Newport News, Virginia. (Army Signal Corps Photograph/ Library of Virginia). This is a "Higgins Boat," designed by Andrew Jackson Higgins. It is the most recognizable landing craft of all time. The design passes its tests in Newport News 26 May 1941.

US Military: Marine Commander Ross Daggett, from the Bureau of Ships, and Major Ernest Linsert, of the Marine Equipment Board, observe the testing of the three landing craft designed by businessman Andrew Higgins. The tests in Newport News, Virginia, involve off-loading a truck and embarking and disembarking 36 of Higgins' employees, simulating troops. The design passes the test and later is designated LCVP—Landing Craft Vehicle, Personnel.

German Military: Adolf Hitler holds a conference of tank experts at the Berghof, similar to the one he held there on 17 February 1941 when he ordered up-gunning of current tanks with 75 mm main guns (against Wehrmacht resistance that adding such guns would be excessive and impossible). Hitler today demands that 88 mm guns be used for future tanks, along with 100 mm frontal armor and 60 mm side armor. These are considered wildly excessive requirements at this time, but the demand will be met ultimately in the Tiger I and other heavy tanks. Once again, Hitler's orders will prove to be extremely prescient about future needs.

China: The Chinese lose 18 I-153s of the Chinese 29th Pursuit Squadron at Lanzhou. Eleven Japanese A6M Zeros of the 12th Kokutai attack Tienshui and Nancheng.

Bunker No. 8 in Hannover, Germany (Paul Moerenhout).

German Homefront: In Hannover, Bunker No. 8 is ready for use. It's rated capacity is 698 people to shelter during air raids, but many more people will pack into it. Its construction is an indication of growing German realization that the war is going to last and air raids are not preventable. Bunker No. 8 remains intact as of this writing, a vivid reminder of World War II in the heart of Hannover.

American Homefront: New York Mayor Fiorella La Guardia's Office of Civilian Defense (OCD) conducts one of a series of air raid drills in the Northeast, this one a blackout in Newark, New Jersey.

The US Supreme Court of the United States decides United States v. Classic, 313 U.S. 299 (1941). It empowers (or affirms the right of) the US Congress to regulate primary elections and political nominations procedures. The "right of participation"  is extended to primary elections. This is the first decision in a series that find that primaries are part of "two stages" of state and federal elections, both essential to the voting process and worthy of protection by appropriate laws.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) prepares to strike pursuant to a vote held on 24 May at the North American Aviation plant located at 5701 Imperial Highway in Inglewood, California. This is considered a key event in Los Angeles and US labor history.

Two Japanese A6M2 Zero fighters en route to attack Nanzheng, China, 26 May 1941.

May 1941

May 1, 1941: British Hold Tobruk
May 2, 1941: Anglo-Iraq War
May 3, 1941: Liverpool Hammered
May 4, 1941: Hitler Victory Speech
May 5, 1941: Patriots Day
May 6, 1941: Stalin In Command
May 7, 1941: May Blitz
May 8, 1941: Pinguin Sunk
May 9, 1941: U-110 Captured
May 10, 1941: Hess Flies Into History
May 11, 1941: The Hess Peace Plan
May 12, 1941: Tiger Arrives Safely
May 13, 1941: Keitel's Illegal Order
May 14, 1941: Holocaust in Paris
May 15, 1941: Operation Brevity
May 16, 1941: Blitz Ends
May 17, 1941: Habbaniya Relieved
May 18, 1941: Croatia Partitioned
May 19, 1941: Bismarck at Sea
May 20, 1941: Invasion of Crete
May 21, 1941: Robin Moore Sinking
May 22, 1941: Royal Navy Destruction Off Crete
May 23, 1941: Crete Must Be Won
May 24, 1941: Bismarck Sinks Hood
May 25, 1941: Lütjens' Brilliant Maneuver
May 26, 1941: Bismarck Stopped
May 27, 1941: Bismarck Sunk
May 28, 1941: Crete Lost
May 29, 1941: Royal Navy Mauled Off Crete
May 30, 1941: Sorge Warns, Stalin Ignores
May 31, 1941: British Take Baghdad

2020

Friday 11 April 1941

Tea and sandwiches from a mobile canteen, courtesy of the Ministry of Food. Coventry, England, 11 April 1941 (Photo by Central Press/Getty Images via Los Angeles Daily News).

Operation Marita/Operation 25: On 11 April 1941, Hungary sends its forces, the 3rd Army, across the Yugoslav border in the morning. Admiral Horthy did not invade during the initial German crossings because he claimed to feel bound by the fact that Yugoslavia also had signed the Tripartite Pact. However, once Croatian separations proclaimed a new state in Zagreb, he decided that Yugoslavian no longer existed, and thus the Pact no longer applied.

Italy also is advancing south. General Ambrosio's 2nd Italian Army makes progress from Trieste, both south along the coast and toward Ljubljana. One of Ambrosio's intentions is to link up with the Italian forces in Albania, but for some reason, the Yugoslav Army has committed some of its best formations in that theater, and the going is slow.

Sepp Dietrich's 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (LSSAH) brigade is at the spearpoint of the German drive south from Vevi through the Klidi/Kleisoura Pass area (also known as the Kirli Derven). The defense is centered around the town of Kelli and the pass itself, and the German objective is the town of Kliki at the southern entrance to the pass.

"Panzer" Meyer's reconnaissance battalion ran into a mixed Greek /British /Australian /New Zealand force ("Mackay Force," named after Australian General Iven Mackay) on this drive south on the 10th, stopping it cold. The Germans regroup, and in the afternoon try to force their way down the main road. The hugely confident Germans drive their troops forward in lorries within sight of the defenders, which irks some on the Allied side. The Allied forces under Captain Gordon Laybourne Smith of the 2/3rd Field Regiment respond with accurate artillery fire, destroying five German trucks, which quickly forces the Germans to pull back.

The Germans again regroup and launch an attack in the evening. It then begins to snow. The Australians and New Zealanders have difficulties with their weapons and are exhausted from their quick march from their bivouacs on the Aliakmon Line, but they hold the line for the time being.

The German 30 Corps and Corps and XVIII Mountain Corps, and opposing British and Greek troops, continue to eye each other across the Aliakmon River just west of Thessaloniki. However, the Germans do not attempt to cross the river. Their basic strategy is to wait until the LSSAH and the rest of XL Corps advances to the west of the British line, then smash it between the two German formations. The British, meanwhile, are looking anxiously over their shoulders toward the advance of the LSSAH and related formations. They are shifting troops northwest to try and prevent this breakout.

The air war over Greece is going very well for the Germans at this point. The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 674-ton British cable ship Retriever off Phleva Island, Greece. There are 11 deaths, and 6 men become prisoners. There are 29 men who are rescued by the Allies.

British Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell meets with General Henry Maitland Wilson in Athens to discuss the situation. Among other things, they discuss a possible evacuation

The Greeks also are recognizing the likelihood of defeat. King George II requests permission to establish his government in Cyprus - but is told to stay in Athens.

"British troops use a bulldozer to pull down a fascist stone monument at Kismayu in Italian Somaliland, 11 April 1941." © IWM (E 2367).

European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe bombs Bristol with 153 aircraft in "The Good Friday Raid." It is the sixth major raid of the city, the first having been on 24 November 1940 - and the last. More than 1400 people have been killed in the raids, and the town's medieval center has been destroyed.

The primary damage is to the dock area (including Prince Street, Canon’s Marsh and Queen Square ) and residential areas. The raid causes a lot of damage, but it more notable in a historical context from some odd facts. First, that the Germans lose seven Heinkel He 111 bombers to Hurricanes from RAF No. 151 Squadron. Second, St. Philip's Bridge is hit, which disrupts power to the tramways - which are scrapped as a result. Thus, this raid ends tram service in Bristol forever.

Another Luftwaffe raid by 18 Heinkels made is on Bridlington. There are two deaths amidst a lot of damage, including to Lloyd Hospital. One of the deaths is a two-year-old boy.

The RAF conducts Rhubarb operations over Occupied France with 20 planes.

Visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies summarizes the air-war outlook presented at the day's War Cabinet meeting:

More bombing of aircraft factories in England. The Hun is becoming too accurate, and picking our factories off too regularly.

First Sea Lord John Tovey comments that the Luftwaffe has command over the skies in the Straits of Sicily, affording protection to the Italian convoys that supply the Afrika Korps.

East African Campaign: The Italians for all intents and purposes have been evicted from their ports in East Africa or have scuttled their ships in the few that remain. Accordingly, President Roosevelt quickly lifts his designation of the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden as a "combat zone." This means that US freighters are free to bring supplies directly to the British troops there.

Battle of the Atlantic: President Roosevelt informs Prime Minister Winston Churchill that he intends to shift the US Security Zone to 26 degrees west. He further intends to have US escorts for convoys to that point and requests that the Admiralty provide the US Navy with convoy information to accomplish this purpose. This is an astonishing request - anyone with that information holds the fate of Great Britain in his hands - but such is the trust between the two men that there is no question but that Churchill will supply the information. It just shows the depth of the relationship between England and the United States in this situation.

U-124 (Kptlt. Georg-Whilhelm Schulz), operating in the vicinity of the Cape Verde Islands, torpedoes and sinks 5285-ton Greek freighter Aegeon. There are four deaths.

Royal Navy 201-ton boom defense vessel HMS Othello and 56-ton boom tender HMS Yorkshire Belle, apparently operating very closely together, hit a mine and sink together at the entrance to the Humber. There are 11 deaths on the Othello and four on Yorkshire Belle.

Royal Navy destroyer HMS Blankney (L-30, Lt. Commander Philip F. Powlett) is commissioned.

Associate Justice to the US Supreme Court Hugo. L. Black pens a note to legal scholar and author Beryl H. Levy, 11 April 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Afrika Korps has surrounded Tobruk on the landward side with the 5th Light Division and the Brescia Division, but of course the British supply route from Alexandria remains intact through the port. A sandstorm hits the perimeter during the afternoon, and the Germans use that as cover for an attack. However, the Australian/British troops focus their artillery on the trucks that have brought the Germans close to the perimeter, destroying many. The German attacks make no progress.

To the south, the British send a group of 14 tanks to relieve the port. Panzerjäger-Abteilung (Sfl.) 605 is waiting for them, however, and knocks out half a dozen of the tanks. This sends the British at El Adem into further retreat, so Lieutenant General Rommel sends his own panzers in pursuit of Bardia. They set off at once, not waiting for daybreak, reflecting the excellent morale in the Afrika Korps. Rommel also orders Forward Detachment Knabe (Gustav Georg Knabe) to join the pursuit toward Sollum in the morning.

Royal Navy gunboats HMS Aphis and Gnat continue their bombardment of the Libyan coast that they began last night. Tonight, they bombard Bomba and the Gazala airfield. A squadron led by light cruiser HMS Orion begins a two-day sweep along the Cyrenaican coast in Operation MBD 3.

British 6372 ton freighter Thurland Castle delivers a load of (apparently Italian) captured tanks from Tobruk to Alexandria. The two escorting destroyers, HMS Vendetta and Waterhen, then immediately turn around and escort another freighter back to Tobruk on a similar mission.

The Luftwaffe bombs and badly damages 2018 ton British freighter Draco in Tobruk Harbor. The captain quickly beaches the ship, where it makes a tempting immobile target for further raids. There is one death, a gunner.

The Royal Navy is determined to interdict the Italian convoys running from Naples to Tripoli, so they send out four destroyers from Suda Bay, Crete to Malta. Their mission is to operate between Lampione Island and Kerkenah Bank and sink the convoy. However, they find nothing and return to port at Malta. It is unclear as of this date if the flotilla will remain in Malta to conduct further attacks. The RAF also is trying to interdict the convoys from Malta with Wellington bombers and Beauforts.

The Luftwaffe continues to have success flying out of Italian airfields. 7,/JG 26 is based at Gela, Sicily, and has many opportunities due to the heightened British concern about the convoys to Tripoli that are supplying General Rommel's Afrika Korps. Oblt. Müncheberg and Oblt. Mietusch of JG 26 shoot down Hurricanes of RAF No. 261 Squadron today among three total scored by the Staffel. I,/JG 27 is scheduled to proceed to North Africa to support the Afrika Korps, and they will be among the first to receive the newest version of the premiere Luftwaffe fighter, Bf 109Fs.

Wirth's circus, Sydney, Australia, April 11, 1941 (National Film & Sound Archive).

Battle of the Indian Ocean: There is a lot of convoy activity in the Indian Ocean. This reflects the importance of Australian and New Zealand troops to the Allied war effort in both Greece and North Africa, and also the fact that the Empire's war machine is shifting into high gear.

Troop Convoy US 10 is forming up in Australia and New Zealand. Today, 81,235-ton converted liner Queen Mary joins the convoy at Sydney. The Queen Mary isn't even the largest ship in the convoy, that honor goes to 83,673-ton Queen Elizabeth. There are several other large converted liners in Convoy US 10: 43,450-ton Ile De France, 35,739-ton Mauretania, and 36,287-ton Nieuw Amsterdam. These ships will disperse toward their own destinations with the Nieuw Amsterdam, for instance, going to Singapore and the others going to Colombo and thence Suez. Another convoy departs Madras today heading for Singapore, and a third, Convoy BM6, departs from Madras bound for Malaya.

Manufacturing Bofors antiaircraft guns, Hamilton, Ontario, 11 April 1941 (Gordon W. Powley, Reference Code: C 109-2-0-18 Archives of Ontario, I0008800).

German/Italian Relations: Hitler and Mussolini wind up a meeting in Salzburg. Mussolini is getting cold feet about the war (as well he might, considering his military's performance to date), but Hitler remonstrates with him to keep fighting.

Italian/Croatian Relations: Now that he is the leader of an independent state and not just a loudmouth in exile, Ante Pavelić has the standing to meet with Mussolini. Previously Mussolini went many months without deigning to meet with Pavelic, who was camped out in Florence. Now, the two men meet as leaders and discuss Italian recognition of Croatia.

Soviet/Chinese Relations: Soviet Ambassador to the Chungking government Panyushkin meets with Chiang Kai-shek and affirms that the USSR is not supporting Japan.

Anglo/US Relations: A RAF B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number AN-531) departs Seattle, Washington bound for England via Canada. Manned by a British crew, it is one of the lesser-known elements of Lend-Lease.

Special Forces: Royal Norwegian Navy destroyer HNoMS Mansfield (G 76 - on loan from the Royal Navy) parks offshore Øksfjord in the far north of Norway (north Alta Fjord). It destroys the Øksfjord fish oil factory, the British believing that fish oil is an important part of the German diet (and it also can be used to manufacture weapons). The Mansfield lands a crew of commandos who complete the factory's destruction. The mission is a success.
POWs: French officer Alain Le Ray, a company commander with the French Chasseurs Alpins (mountain troops), escapes from Colditz Castle. He is the first escapee from the prison, that is, the first to get out of prison (eventually he is recaptured). Le Ray already has escaped from a different camp and was brought to Colditz because the Germans feel it is exceptionally secure. He escapes, not through a tunnel dug from the clock tower that he has been helping to build, but on his own. Le Ray notices a deserted house near an exercise yard that the prisoners are allowed to use, and today he slips into it, waits for everyone to return to the castle, and then climbs a wall and is gone.

Manufacturing a Bofors antiaircraft gun in Hamilton, Ontario, 11 April 1941 (Gordon W. Powley, Reference code C-109-2-0-18, Archives of Ontario, 10008802).

War Crimes: The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 2561 ton Greek hospital ship Attiki in Doro Channel (between Euboea and Andros). There are 28 crew deaths. Hospital ships are clearly marked and intended to be left alone. It always is a fuzzy area whether such incidents can be prosecuted based on intent, accidents, mistaken identity and the like. However, make no mistake, sinking hospital ships is frowned upon by both sides.

US Military: The US Army Air Corps publishes a request asking for bids for a bomber meet the following specification:

• 450 mph/720 km/h top speed
• 275 mph/443 km/h cruising speed
• a service ceiling of 45,000 ft/14,000 m
• range of 12,000 miles (19,000 km) at 25,000 ft/7600m

These are extraordinary specifications that exceed anything in the air. In fact, there are no operational fighters in the world that can achieve that top speed, let alone bombers. US aircraft designers are left scratching their heads at this wish list. This tender, however, is the genesis, after a mid-course correction on the requirements, of post-war bombers such as the Northrop B-35 and the Convair B-36.

General George S. Patton, Jr. formally takes over command of the 2nd Armored Division. This involves promotion to Major General. Patton is one of the premier tank experts in the world, having directed tank operations during World War I. Like Rommel, Patton likes to fly above his units to see exactly what they are capable of doing.

A single panel from a U.S. comic strip, 11 April 1941.

US Government: President Roosevelt creates the Office of Price Administration via Executive Order. Leon Henderson is charged with controlling prices and profits for the good of the war effort. This office will be in charge of rationing if and when it should occur.

British Government: Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden and CIGS John Dill have returned from their diplomatic efforts in the Balkans. They give a presentation to the War Cabinet about the situation in the Mediterranean, which visiting Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies summarizes in his diary:

Libya represents a gross underestimate of German capacity. Tobruk is a poor place to defend, with an extended perimeter, but Dill thinks the supply of anti-tank guns and field artillery quite good.

On the larger question of overall armored strength between the two sides, Dill is reassuring. He states that Germany only has 15 armored divisions out of its 200 total divisions, while Britain is forming "as many armored divisions as humanly possible" - though he does not place a number on them.

The stamp portraying Hitler's likeness at left is first issued 11 April 1941. It is an early commemoration of his 52nd birthday (20 April 1941).

German Government: Adolf Hitler is on the way in his train to his forward headquarters at Mönichkirchen. Armored train Atlas arrives in the town's station just to show how serious the occasion is.

Holocaust: The German Ministry of Propaganda publishes a one-page document called “Joodsche Weekblad” (Jewish Weekly) in Amsterdam. Ostensibly produced by the "Jewish Council of Amsterdam," it portrays Jewish life in Occupied Europe as proceeding in a fairly normal way - as opposed to the reality of the Ghettos and concentration camps.

American Homefront: The strike at the Ford Motor Company Rouge Plant ends after ten days. While both sides make concessions, the strike is a turning point in labor relations in the automobile industry because Ford becomes the last of the Big Three automakers to recognize the United Auto Workers (UAW).

Paramount Pictures releases "The Road to Zanzibar," the second "Road" comedy featuring Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, and Dorothy Lamour. The picture is written by the same writers as 1940's "The Road to Singapore," is extremely similar in terms of structure and plot - and also is similar in the huge success the film enjoys, becoming the eighth highest-grossing picture of 1941. "The Road to Zanzibar" ensures that the "Road" pictures will become a continuing series.

Starlet Deanna Durbin files papers to wed Vaughn Paul. Durbin is considered a competitor of Judy Garland, and her films reportedly saved Universal Pictures from bankruptcy. Paul is an assistant director

Deanna Durbin marries Vaughn Paul.

Tonight's episode of "Mandrake the Magician" is "Tommy Has Found Princess." The series features 15-minute programs featured on the Mutual Broadcasting System and airs five days a week. Raymond Edward Johnson voices Mandrake, who is based on the syndicated newspaper comic strip, created by Lee Falk.

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