Tuesday 12 August 1941

HMS Prince of Wales at the Atlantic Conference, August 1941. Photographed from USS Augusta (CA-31). Donation to US Naval Historical Center by Vice Admiral Harry Sanders, USN (Retired), 1969.

Eastern Front: Adolf Hitler on 12 August 1941 issues a supplement to his directive No. 34 of 30 July 1941. This directive, No. 34A, addresses military objectives and strategies on the Eastern Front. Its three main points are:

1. In the Army Group North sector, the objective is to encircle Leningrad and effect a junction with the Finns advancing from the north (it does not say to actually take Leningrad);
2. In the Army Group Center sector, "the most important task is to eliminate the enemy flanking positions." Pointedly, the directive notes that "Only after these threats to our flanks have been entirely overcome" can the advance on Moscow resume;
3. In the Army Group South sector, halt the attack on Kyiv and instead focus on establishing bridgeheads across the Dnieper River, occupy the Crimea, and occupy Kharkiv and the Donets area.

In some respects, Fuhrer Directive No. 34A already is outdated, because General Kleist has started moving his Panzer Group No. 1 north towards Kiev in order to effect a junction with General Guderian's Panzer Group No. 2, which is heading south toward Gomel. However, the main effect of Directive No. 34A is to eliminate any misunderstandings among the general that Hitler is going to change his mind about advancing on Moscow any time soon.

Some warning signs are starting to appear in the Wehrmacht concerning manpower. The Liaison Officer for Army Group North to OKH, Lt. Colonel Langhaeusor, reports that it has no reserves and manpower is "tight." OKH addresses this by keeping Luftwaffe units in the area to make up for manpower shortages. For the moment, this problem can be remedied once some convenient railroad lines are taken, as they are the only way to bring forward large numbers of troops. In order to form strength to advance, OKH has to juggle units and focus on one area at a time - which at the moment is at Lake Ilmen.

A Finnish machine gun team set up among some hay bales in Sortavala, 12 August 1941 (SA-Kuva).

In the Far North sector, the Finns now are within striking distance of the Murmansk railway at Loukhi. However, the Soviets are frantically bringing in the 88th Rifle Division to block the remaining 20 miles northeast to the main railway line.

In the Army Group North sector, German 16th Army makes some local gains around Lake Ilmen. The Germans also make some minor gains near Narva. Soviet 34th Army counterattacks toward Lake Ladoga. Overall, Army Group North is fairly static for the moment.

In the Army Group Center sector, units south of Rogachev reach the Dneipr River and II Corps puts three divisions across the river south of Zhlobin. General Guderian's Panzer Group II attack toward Gomel. The Germans encircle parts of the Central Front near Krichev. The Soviets are counterattacking in several places without success.

An advanced divisional command post of German 21st Infantry Division on August 12, 1941.

In the Army Group South sector, the Romanian 4th Army continues closing the land routes to the Soviet port of Odesa. The Romanian navy begins deploying submarine Delfinul and torpedo boats Viscolul, Vijelia, and Viforul along the Soviet coast to intercept any relief attempts. The Soviets, meanwhile, use the Danube Flotilla to begin evacuating Soviet troops from the lower Dneipr River. Soviet river gunboat Peredovoy sinks in action today.

German Eleventh Army reaches the outskirts of Mykolaiv, isolating it. The Germans begin rushing reinforcements to the city to cut off the Soviet lines of retreat.

In the air, Oblt. Kurt Sochatzy, the Staffelkapitän of 7th Staffel of JG 3, has his airplane rammed by a Soviet I-16 fighter over Kyiv. Sochatzy is taken as a prisoner, but the Luftwaffe awards him the Ritterkreuz later in the day anyway. Siegfried Freytag of JG 77 downs a MiG 3 for his tenth victory.

The Soviets begin preparing the Volga region for combat. The Central Committee orders the deportation of the population of the Volga German Autonomous Republic to Siberia and Central Asia.

The RAF raid on  Knapsack, Cologne, Nordrhine-Westphalen, Germany. To the left is a Bristol Blenheim Mark IV (extreme left), serial V6391, marked RT-V of No. 114 Squadron, 2 Group.

European Air Operations: The RAF makes a maximum effort on 12 August 1941. These are the heaviest daylight bombing raids on Germany of the war to date. Weather is good again after a long unsettled period. The British wish to demonstrate to ally Joseph Stalin that it is doing its best to draw Luftwaffe units from the Eastern Front to the defense of the Reich. The Luftwaffe still has fighter defenses in the west, but they are depleted by the needs of the Eastern Front.

RAF Fighter Command begins the day with a sweep by 84 fighters escorting six Hampdens against St. Omer.  The Luftwaffe sends up 150 Bf 109s to defend its airfield there.

During the day, RAF Bomber Command sends 54 Blenheim bombers to attack the Knapsack (38 bombers) and Quadrath (18) power stations outside Cologne. The Knapsack plant is a Goldenburg-Werk lignite (brown coal) power station and is hit hard. The Germans shoot down 10 of the bombers. This is an 18.5% loss rate, entirely unacceptable for a sustained bombing campaign.

There also are some diversionary operations during the Cologne attack. Six Hampdens each attack St. Omer, Le Trait dockyards, and Gosnay, and four fortresses attack Cologne, De Kooy airfield, and Emden. These all return without loss and are escorted by heavy fighter escorts (144 at Gosnay, for instance).

In addition, two Blenheims acting as navigational leaders, or pathfinders, also are shot down. Overall, RAF Bomber Command loses 12 bombers or 15.4% of the 78 sorties made during daylight operations.

There also is heavy air fighter combat during the day over France and the Low Countries. RAF Fighter Command puts 174 sorties in the air, and the RAF claims 4 Luftwaffe fighters destroyed and 6  probably destroyed, along with 10 others damaged. The RAF loses 6 Spitfires.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command sends 65 Wellingtons and 13 Hampdens over Hannover. The Germans shoot down four Wellingtons, including one carrying experimental Gee direction-finding equipment. The Gee plane is destroyed completely and no secrets are revealed.

The RAF also sends 40 Wellingtons, 12 Halifaxes, 9 Stirlings, and 9 Manchesters against Berlin - a total of 70 bombers. Less than half - 32 - of the force actually bombs in the Berlin area. In addition, the Germans shoot down 9 bombers, a 12.8% loss rate.

RAF Bomber Command also sends 36 Hampdens over Magdeburg without loss and 35 bombers (30 Wellingtons, 3 Stirlings, and 2 Halifaxes) over Essen. The RAF loses one bomber, and the night's objective - the Krupps factory - is not hit.

The RAF also sends minor operations of 14 bombers to Le Havre and one Stirling over Bielefeld, without loss.

Overall, it is a rough night for both sides. The German cities take moderate damage, while the RAF loses 20 planes out of 234 sorties, an 8.5% loss ratio.

The church in Kurkijoki, Ladoga Karelia, 12 August 1941. The city was taken by the Soviets in the Winter War and occupied for shortly over a year. During that time, the Soviets turned the church into a cultural center. The communist propaganda has been desecrated, likely by the liberating Finnish troops. This church now is in the Lahdenpohja district of the Republic of Karelia, where its territory is divided between the Kurkijoki and Elisenvaara municipalities.

Battle of the Baltic: Ships of the German 1st S-Boat Flotilla sink Soviet minesweeper R-101 "Rybinci" in the Gulf of Finland.

German torpedo boats sink Soviet minesweeper Tsczcz-41.

Soviet submarine L-4 (Lt. Cmdr. Polyakov) lays 20 mines southeast of Mangalia, Romania.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-568 (Kptlt. Joachim Preuss), on its first patrol out of Trondheim and operating with wolfpack Grönland, torpedoes and sinks Royal Navy corvette Picotee (Lt. Harrison), which is escorting Convoy ON-5, south of Iceland. Everybody perishes - there are 65 deaths. U-586 also claims to torpedo another ship, but there is no confirmation.

The Luftwaffe bombs and damages 1900-ton Royal Navy auxiliary vessel Eaglescliffe Hall about two miles east of Sunderland. Eaglescliffe Hall is taken under tow to Sunderland.

Royal Navy 16-ton auxiliary ship HMT Express hits a mine and sinks one mile southwest of East Spaniard Buoy at Whitstable.

According to some sources, 124-ton Norwegian freighter Cito sinks today after hitting a mine in the Sognefjord (north of Bergen). Other sources claim this happened on the 11th.

Royal Navy heavy cruiser HMS London claims to bomb a submarine with her Walrus aircraft north of the Azores, but there is no confirmation.

Italian submarine Tazzoli makes an unsuccessful attack on a freighter south of Liberia.

A Luftwaffe Focke-Wulf Fw-200 Condor of I,/KG40 spots Convoy HG-69 and informs BdU in Paris.

Royal Navy destroyers HMS Airedale and Tetcott and minesweeper Shippigan are launched.

Australian corvette HMAS Meadowsweet is laid down.

British Convoy "Dervish" departs from Liverpool bound for Archangel via Iceland.

U-657 is launched.

A British soldier in North Africa getting a shave, 12 August 1941.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The Australians at Tobruk have endured months of artillery shelling, flies, and scorching desert sun. Lieutenant-General Thomas Blamey of XIII Corps, backed by the Australian government, has convinced Whitehall to evacuate them and replace the Tobruk garrison with fresh soldiers. The 5000 Australian troops begin leaving tonight and are replaced by Polish troops.

Royal Navy 372-ton lighter HMS A.14 (aka LCT.14, Lt. Mullens) hits an aerial mine laid by a Junkers Ju-88 of LG-1 and sinks in Tobruk Harbor. Everyone survives.

Dutch submarine makes an unsuccessful attack on a freighter in the Ligurian sea.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Torbay (Cdr. Miersa) unsuccessfully attacks an Axis convoy four miles west of Benghazi.

Royal Navy destroyers HMS Kandahar and Kimberley depart from Alexandria on a supply run to Tobruk, first stopping at Mersa Matruh.

Italian minelayers Aspromonte and Reggio lay minefield SN-41 in the Sicilian Strait.

Troops of the 8th Battalion of the Manchester Regiment begin training on Gozo Island.

Battle of the Black Sea: Soviet icebreaker Ledokol No. 5 hits a mine and sinks.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks Soviet freighter Novorossiysk in the Gulf of Odesa.

"The Prime Minister and Lord Beaverbrook leave the PRINCE OF WALES to say good-bye to President Roosevelt aboard USS AUGUSTA." © IWM (A 4863).

Anglo/US Relations: President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston agree to the Atlantic Charter (a name only later applied to it at this time it is called "Joint Declaration by the President and the Prime Minister," or more commonly simply as the "Joint Declaration") at Placentia Bay, Newfoundland. There isn't any formal document, and nothing ever is signed. Instead, the staffs prepare a "final draft" and give copies to the radio operators of the USS Augusta and HMS Prince of Wales to send out to the media.

The Atlantic Charter sets forth eight points, twice as many as Roosevelt's "Four Freedoms" but in many cases similar in tone to them. They provide:

1. no territorial gains to be sought by the United States or Great Britain;
2. territorial adjustments elsewhere to be made with reference to the wishes of the peoples affected;
3. self-determination of peoples;
4. removal of trade barriers for both "victor [and] vanquished";
5. global economic cooperation and advancement of peoples' welfare;
6. participants to work toward a world free of want and fear;
7. disarmament of everyone, including the victors, after the war
8. freedom of the seas;

The striking thing about the eight points is that they don't mention military aims - because the United States is not at war. Instead, they refer to what appears to be post-war objectives. However, they very subtly reach out to peoples of the Axis powers by, for example, reassuring them that there won't be post-war trade sanctions on the losers.

After the communique is issued, Churchill departs back for Britain aboard Prince of Wales, while Roosevelt sails aboard cruiser Augusta down to Blue Hill Bay, Maine, where Presidential yacht Potomac (AG-25) is anchored.

President Roosevelt wishes Prime Minister Churchill a safe voyage home on 12 August 1941.

German/Finnish Relations: Finnish Ambassador T. M. Kivimäki notifies the German Foreign Ministry that Finland will not be joining the Anti-Comintern Pact because "the Finnish attitude towards communism is already clear." In fact, Finland wants to remain a co-belligerent rather than an ally of the Reich and prefers to have few agreements tying the two countries together militarily.

Soviet/Polish Relations: The Soviets make official their amnesty of Polish citizens in the USSR. This enables many to join the army being formed by General Anders, and others to work on collective farms.

US/Italian Relations: US naval authorities seize 5592-ton Italian freighter Dino in Boston. The US reflags Dino as Panamanian Meridian.

US/Japanese Relations: The Japanese recall liner Asama Maru, which is nearing the United States with American passengers and a cargo of silk, due to the imposition of US sanctions.

"Royal Air Force mechanics in Singapore are working at top pressure to assemble, and pilots to test, large numbers of Brewster Buffaloes, American high-speed fighting planes. At one Singapore Royal Air Force station hangar after hangar is crammed with crated Buffaloes. Many of the planes are already in the air over Malaya, flown often by British fighter pilots, who have already shot down German planes (one of the ten) in Europe. This photo shows part of one of the Buffalo assembly lines." Circa 12 August 1941. © IWM (K 598).

British Military: The RAF forms No. 488 (NZ) Squadron at RAF Leuchars, Fife, Scotland. The first commander is Wing Commander J.A.S. Brown, and the unit's mission is anti-shipping patrols and convoy protection.

US Military: US military maneuvers being held at New River, North Carolina are concluded. The US 1st Marine Division and 1st Army Division have been training together.

US Navy Motor Torpedo Squadron 3 is commissioned. It is assigned to the Philippines.

The US Army-US Marine Corps 1st Joint Training Force under Major General Holland M. Smith is redesignated the Atlantic Amphibious Force.

The 260th Infantry Division crosses the Berezina River near Barysaw, Minsk Oblast, Belarus, Soviet Union. 12 August 1941.

Japanese Military: Battleship Yamato ("Battleship No. 1") departs from Kure, Japan for sea trials.

Aircraft carrier Hosho is named the flagship of the Japanese Carrier Division 3.

The IJN requisitions 6442-ton freighter Keiyo Maru for use as an armed auxiliary aircraft transport. This conversion includes putting 120-mm (4.7-inch) guns in the bow and stern.

Soviet Military: Marshal Semyon Timoshenko drafts an order calling for the execution of deserters. He submits it to Stalin for approval.

US Government: The House of Representatives passes by 203-202 a bill extending the term of military service of draftees from 12 to 30 months. The bill now goes to the Senate.
China: Chinese General Zhao Chengshou, commander of the Chinese 7th Army, signs a secret armistice with the Japanese. Zhao has been convinced by Chinese collaborators that the Japanese are willing to work with the Chinese and not just conquer them.

Luftpost (propaganda), No. 13, 12 August 1941.

Holocaust: Romania compels all Jews to register for forced labor.

French Homefront: Premier Petain makes a radio address to the French people. He enumerates a dozen measures that "I have decided." These include suspending political parties, try former officials who are "responsible for our disaster," and require all government officials to "swear an oath of fealty to me." He sums up, "In 1917 I put an end to mutiny. In 1940 I put an end to rout. Today I wish to save you from yourselves."

Petain also announces his previous decision to appoint Admiral Darlan, "to whom public opinion has not always been favorable or fair," to be Minister of National Defense. He pointedly emphasizes that "Authority no longer emanates from below. The only authority is that which I entrust or delegate." In fact, Petain uses the word "I," as in "I have decided" and "I entrust or delegate," a total of 28 times in the speech.

The radio broadcast reinforces in the minds of some that perhaps Petain has let his position of authority go to his head a little bit.

Canadian Homefront: The government requires Japanese-Canadians to carry registration cards that include their photos and thumbprints.

Hans Scholl, member of the White Rose resistance group in Germany. At this time, they are still contemplating how and whether to resist. On 12 August 1941, Scholl writes to a friend: “In a world dominated by brutal negation, I can still see the positive values. (…) The shadows are there because the light is there. But the light comes first.” (Geschwister-Scholl-Archiv/Süddeutsche Zeitung Photo).

American Homefront: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer releases "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," directed by Victor Fleming (of "Gone With The Wind" and "The Wizard of Oz") and starring Spencer Tracy, Ingrid Bergman, and Lana Turner. This is a direct remake of a 1931 film of the same name and cements a "theatrical" version of the tale that is different than the original Robert Louis Stevenson 1886 novella. In fact, the studio goes to the extreme lengths of finding and destroying every copy of the 1931 version that it can, though decades later a full version of that earlier film is found and restored. The film turns a $350,000 profit on a budget of $2.351 million and earns three Academy Award nominations in technical categories. The film is notable for Tracy's iconic performance in the lead role and Bergman playing against type as a "bad" girl.
Future History: Deborah Walley is born in Bridgeport, Connecticut. She becomes an actress who rises to prominence in the late 1950s and 1960s, appearing in television series "Naked City" and "Route 66" and "Beach Blanket" films such as "Gidget Goes Hawaiian" (1961), "Beach Blanket Bingo" (1965), and "Ghost in the Invisible Bikini" (1966). Walley passes away on 10 May 2001.

Letícia Román is born in Rome, Italy. She starts a career in the Elvis Presley film "G.I. Blues" (1960), then goes on to appear in other films in the 1960s before retiring to start a family.

Winston Churchill aboard HMS Prince of Wales, August 1941.

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

2020

Thursday 8 August 1940

If you ever wondered what one of those "crash-landed" planes looks like, here is one. After being shot up off Swanage on 8 August 1940, Sgt Denis N Robinson of No 152 Squadron RAF makes a crash-landing in a field near Wareham. The 22-year-old pilot is unhurt but Spitfire Mk I UM-N is a write-off.

Battle of Britain: Luftwaffe attacks pick up noticeably on 8 August 1940. There is reasonably good flying weather, though there are low clouds (2000 ft, 700 meters) over the Channel. Rather than 10 July 1940, today feels like the true start of what is known as the Battle of Britain. Adolf Galland later notes that the intent is to overwhelm the RAF fighter defense and, after drawing them up for combat, destroy them. Everything else is secondary.

Pursuant to Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering's directive of the 6th, the focus of attacks is supposed to be the RAF and its infrastructure. The implicit assumption is that the easy pickings in the Channel have been eliminated. However, today shows that the best-laid plans sometimes go awry, as shipping is first on the agenda.

The attacks on the 20-ship (plus 9 escorts) convoy (codename "Peewit" by the RAF and "CW9" by the Royal Navy) spotted by German Freyda radar at Wissant and sentries on Cape Gris Nez late on the 7th take place throughout the day. German radio has said that the Channel is closed to British convoys, and the Wehrmacht intends to make good on that statement. The British, on the other hand, intend to prove the Germans wrong and reassert their control over the waters just beyond their own coastline. This sets the stage for a classic battle in which both sides are trying to prove themselves "right" and make a larger point about dominance. Naturally, the sailors on the ships of both sides have nothing to say about this.

Squadron Leader Harold A "Jimmy" Fenton is hit by the fire of a He 59, damaging an oil line of his Hurricane Mk I VK-A and sending him down. He is saved by trawler HMS Bassett. The 31-year-old CO had been out looking for another pilot of No. 238 Squadron downed that day. It is a rare case of one rescue plane shooting down another (though his Hurricane is not marked as such). The British have been shooting down rescue planes routinely, accusing them of scouting for the Luftwaffe.

Kriegsmarine E-boats and S-boats head out before dawn on the 8th, scattering the convoy moving south which they learned about around dusk on the 7th. There is mass mayhem, with two colliers colliding (only one of them sinks) and the "convoy" reduced to fleeing refugees seeking to save their skins. For once, the scatter strategy works, minimizing ship losses. The E-boats sink two or three ships (Fife and Holme) at a cost of one of their own boats.

An odd circumstance occurs which is of huge portent. The Luftwaffe is slow to react because Luftlotten 2 and 3 disagree over whose zone of operations the ships lie within. As they argue about it, the ships sail on. This is a perpetual problem within the Wehrmacht, both in Luftwaffe settings and also the army (Heer), and everybody notices it but nobody ever solves it.

Generalmajor Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen of Fliegerkorps VIII, Luftflotte 3 finally cuts the knot and sends his Stukas in after several hours' wait at about 09:00. Escorted by fighters of I,/JG27 and III,/JG26, they sink 2 ships (SS Conquerdale and SS Empire Crusader) and damage 7 others. The Stukas are hampered by barrage balloons and low cloud cover. The RAF defends with six squadrons from Nos. 10 and 11 Groups.

There are Luftwaffe fighter sweeps by JGs 3, 26, 51, 53 and 54 in the southeast as well. RAF Nos. 41, 64 and 610 Squadrons rise to meet them. The RAF loses four Spitfires and three pilots. The Luftwaffe loses one plane, but five others are either badly damaged or complete write-offs when they make it back to France.

The second attack on the Peewit convoy, which by now has made it almost to the Isle of Wight, occurs at 12:48. There are almost 60 Stukas (StG 2, StG 3 and StG 77), escorted by 30 Bf 109s (JG 27) and 20 Bf 110s (LG 1). The RAF counters with over fifty fighters from Squadron Nos. 43, 145, 238, 257 and 609 (Spitfires). The Luftwaffe loses three Stukas, with four more damaged, three Bf 109s with one damaged, and a Bf 110 with three more damaged. The Stukas sink four more ships and inflict damage on seven others.

Von Richthofen is determined to teach the British a lesson about thumbing their noses at him, so he sends a third wave of attackers against the (largely meaningless) Peewit convoy at 15:00. This is the largest effort of all, with 87 Stukas escorted by 68 Bf 109s of II,/JG 27 and some Bf 110s. The RAF Groups No. 10 and 11 meet them again with seven squadrons. The carnage is everywhere, on the sea, in the RAF, and in the Luftwaffe.

There are various ways of looking at the day's events. Altogether, it is estimated, that the RAF downs 31 Luftwaffe aircraft to 19 of its own planes. However, the Luftwaffe only lose 9 fighters, with another 8 damaged. The RAF lose 19 planes, of which 18 are fighters and the other a Blenheim bomber. In terms of fighter operations, it is not a bad day for the Luftwaffe. More significantly, the RAF loses 16 pilots permanently and several others to wounds, and pilots are a major bottleneck for fighter defense. As such, the day's balance tends to favor the Luftwaffe.

On the other hand, the Stukas are mauled throughout the day. While they are absolutely phenomenal at the precision bombing of ships, they also are proving themselves to be phenomenally easy targets for RAF fighters. This is not a cause for concern by the Luftwaffe - yet - because the fighter pilots are full of stories about their own successes which tend to exaggerate the reality of the situation. The Stuka losses, though, are becoming painful and are there to see when the planes (don't) return.

A Heinkel He 59 rescue plane. These were put to good use on 8 August 1940, and one even gets an aerial victory against a Hurricane.

Some major decisions flow from today's events.

• The Admiralty suspends collier convoys. Only four of the original 20 ships reach their destination of Swanage, Dorset, with six others damaged and making any port that they can. Future coal shipments can and will be made by rail, which in fact was a superior alternative all along.
• Based on all sorts of assumptions about the progress of the battle that are highly sketchy - such as that the RAF is running low on fighters, which is not the case - the Luftwaffe high command issues the order for Operation Adlerangriff, the full-out assault on the RAF, to begin on the next convenient day of good flying weather.

After dark, the Luftwaffe sends Heinkel He 111s of I,/KG 55 against their usual target of the Bristol Aeroplane Company at Filton and II,/KG 55 against Bristol proper. Heinkels of II,/KG 27 also raid the Bristol area, trying to knock out searchlights in the area.

During the day, RAF Bomber Command raids Amsterdam-Schiphol and Valkenburg in Holland, losing a bomber. After dark, they attack the usual targets in northwestern Europe, including the port of Hamburg, electrical facilities at Cologne, and train infrastructure at Hamm and Soest. They lose a bomber in these raids as well.

The Luftwaffe continues moving its units to forward bases along the Channel. III,/JG3 moves to a converted football field at Desvres.

A shot-up Heinkel which took massive damage but still made it in for a level landing in France, August 1940.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-37 (Kapitänleutnant Victor Oehrn) torpedoes and sinks 5380-ton British freighter Upwey Grange about 200 miles west of Ireland at 01:14. There are 36 deaths when one of the lifeboats disappears.

German raider Widder disembarks the 34-man crew of 5,850-ton Dutch collier Oostplein and sinks the ship.

British tanker Lucerna that was torpedoed and badly damaged by U-99 (Otto Kretschmer) on 2 August 1940, limps into Greenock, Scotland.

The Luftwaffe lays mines in the Thames estuary and near ports in the south of England.

Convoy OB 195 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HX 64 departs from Halifax.

Battle of the Mediterranean: The RAF and Italian Regia Aeronautica have been sparring lightly over the Libyan/Egyptian desert, and today a major battle develops. The Italians lose 7 planes and the RAF 2 Gloster Gladiator biplanes.

The second British submarine carrying spares to Malta for the new Hurricanes, HMS Proteus, arrives at Grand Harbour. HMS Pandora, which also brought in supplies, departed on the 7th. Together, this supply mission is called Operation Tube. The Proteus has a mishap when it accidentally rams a small freighter, the Andromeda, whilst shifting its berth. Andromeda sinks.

The Italians once again buzz Malta during the afternoon with half a dozen aircraft, but nothing comes of it. The War Office promises to send supplies on 7000 tons of shipping space that has opened up for it, with the government of Malta to pay for civilian goods so as to ensure secrecy.

British Somaliland: The British, having given up the key ports to the west, set up a defensive perimeter on six hills overlooking the road into Berbera. They use their recent reinforcements of the 1/2nd Punjab Regiment and the 2nd Battalion of the Scottish Black Watch to man these key positions. The Italian troops advance toward this position, which guards the British stronghold at Tug Argan pass.

The Regia Aeronautica begins attacks on British vessels in the Gulf of Aden, but has little success, and also on British positions at Berbera. The Fleet Air Arm operating from Australian cruiser HMAS Hobart, meanwhile, counters with attacks on Italian headquarters in Zeila. RAF aircraft retreat to bases in Aden.

North Africa: Italian Foreign Minister Count Galeazzo Ciano meets with Marshal Rodolfo Graziani, the new commander of Italian operations in North Africa. Ciano is upset that his father-in-law's (Mussolini's) invasion date for Egypt has come and gone. Graziani responds that the Italian forces in Libya are unprepared for operations.

German Military: Adolf Hitler is gradually interposing himself on staff decisions relating to the planning of the attack on the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa). He tells General Keitel to issue the Aufbau Ost directive calling for the mobilization of troops in eastern Germany and also tells General Jodl's deputy Walter Warlimont to ascertain Soviet troop positions. All of this attention underscores how serious Hitler is about the attack. He does not spend nearly as much time effort on Operation Sealion, the invasion of Great Britain.

Air Vice-Marshal Sir Keith Park: "It's too quiet." In Germany, he is known as "the Defender of London". [© IWM (CM 3513)]

British Military: The British War Cabinet is pleased with the progress of the air battle to date. However, Air Vice Marshall Keith Park, in charge of Fighter Command, is not so sure that this will last, stating:

It's too quiet; at least I've managed to re-establish my airfields, but the blighters are up to something.

Military pay is never very good, even in (or perhaps especially during) times of war. The average British Army Private receives 17 shilling and 6 pence a month. Today they receive an increase of 6 pence per day.

Japanese Military: The Japanese launch the Yamato at Kure Naval Arsenal. It is known only as "Battleship No. 1" at this point and is capable of fielding the largest naval guns in the world.

Vichy France: Pierre Laval orders the arrest of Georges Mandel in Morocco. This is done by General Charles Nogues. He is taken to the Château de Chazeron, where all of the former French leaders are being held. This is of particular interest to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who does not really like Charles de Gaulle and would prefer Mandel as the leader of the Free French.

Mandel was one of the few in the French government who wished to carry on the fight against the Germans from North Africa. Mandel also happens to be Jewish. He had the opportunity to flee with de Gaulle but refused because he felt it would look bad for a Jew to run.

President Roosevelt with Fala, 8 August 1940 in Pine Plains, New York, perhaps there to beat the summer heat (it is about 25 miles from the Roosevelt resident at Hyde Park). The doll beside him s a handmade shaker doll made by Mary Garrettson of Rhinebeck, NY. (Franklin Roosevelt Presidential Library).

Romania: The Romanian government imposes new employment and education rules which are racially biased. This is an obvious attempt by the regime to ingratiate itself with the Germans.

India: It is well known that the Nationalist leaders led by Mahatma Gandhi refuse to cooperate with war preparations without a guarantee of Indian independence. Viceroy of India Lord Linlithgow tries to cut a deal by offering nationalist leaders some constitutional reform now and re-examination of the independence question after the war. This would be done by assembling a Constituent Assembly composed of people from India's major ethnic groups to devise a new constitution. The British government goes along with this.

Burma: Nationalist leader Aung San escapes Burma and joins Japanese forces in China.

American Homefront: American factories are ramping up in response to huge new military orders. Airplane production hits 500 aircraft production per month, dwarfing that of the combatants.

"Boom Town" starring Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Claudette Colbert, and Hedy Lamarr premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

Today's headlines in Brisbane.

August 1940

August 1, 1940: Two RN Subs Lost
August 2, 1940: Operation Hurry
August 3, 1940: Italians Attack British Somaliland
August 4, 1940: Dueling Legends in the US
August 5, 1940: First Plan for Barbarossa
August 6, 1940: Wipe Out The RAF
August 7, 1940: Burning Oil Plants
August 8, 1940: True Start of Battle of Britain
August 9, 1940: Aufbau Ost
August 10, 1940: Romania Clamps Down On Jews
August 11, 1940: Huge Aerial Losses
August 12, 1940: Attacks on Radar
August 13, 1940: Adler Tag
August 14, 1940: Sir Henry's Mission
August 15, 1940: Luftwaffe's Black Thursday
August 16, 1940: Wolfpack Time
August 17, 1940: Blockade of Britain
August 18, 1940: The Hardest Day
August 19, 1940: Enter The Zero
August 20, 1940: So Much Owed By So Many
August 21, 1940: Anglo Saxon Incident
August 22, 1940: Hellfire Corner
August 23, 1940: Seaplanes Attack
August 24, 1940: Slippery Slope
August 25, 1940: RAF Bombs Berlin
August 26, 1940: Troops Moved for Barbarossa
August 27, 1940: Air Base in Iceland
August 28, 1940: Call Me Meyer
August 29, 1940: Schepke's Big Day
August 30, 1940: RAF's Bad Day
August 31, 1940: Texel Disaster

2020

Monday 8 July 1940

Operation Catapult, July 1940.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-99 (Kapitänleutnant Otto Kretschmer) continues its successful patrol on 8 July 1940, torpedoing and sinking 5,758-ton British freighter Humber Arm at 07:53. The steamer is sailing with convoy HX-53. All 43 on board survive and are picked up by British destroyers. The escorts then spend 14 hours dropping depth charges on U-99, but it escapes after diving to a dangerous 350 feet. The crew almost succumbs to oxygen deprivation and U-99 gradually exits the area under low power.

Convoy OA 179 departs from Methil.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Operation Catapult, the neutralization of the French fleet, continues. At Casablanca, British torpedo boats attack the French battleship, Jean Bart. In addition, the British attack Dakar for the second day without inflicting any major damage.

Italian submarine Guglielmo Marconi torpedoes Destroyer HMS Escort in the Western Mediterranean. The destroyer eventually sinks.

Admiral Cunningham in the Mediterranean is running Operation MA5, a convoy from Malta to Alexandria. He has provided massive protection for it, including virtually all of the Royal Navy forces in the Mediterranean. The Italian Navy under Admiral Campioni also is running an operation in the same general area covering a convoy to Benghazi. The British learn of the Italian operation and break off their own, but proceed to positions in the general vicinity of Taranto to intercept the Italians when they return to Italy. The Italians complete their own convoy and then learn of the British fleet presence. They arrange their own dispositions for possible fleet action. These are the preliminary stages of the Battle of Punta Stilo.

Force H under Admiral James Somerville, led by battlecruiser Hood and aircraft carrier Ark Royal, leaves Gibraltar to help cover the big Malta-Alexandria convoy and related operations.
The Regia Aeronautica damages Royal Navy cruiser Gloucester, killing the captain, 11 others, and wounding 9.

At Malta, quarrymen dig out 30 new rock shelters near Luqa aerodrome. There are international press reports about recent raids on the island. There is an attempted raid at 14:20, but defending RAF fighters disperse it before it reaches the coast.

Aircraft carrier HMS Hermes off Dakar during a convoy run. In the background, HMS Dorsetshire.

European Air Operations: The RAF mistakenly bombs two Swedish torpedo boats temporarily being held in the Faeroe Islands by the authorities. The boats had been bought from Italy. The two boats are damaged but proceed on to Sweden.

The fighter forces "mix it up" during the day, and the Luftwaffe shoots down 3 Spitfires and two Hurricanes. JG51 gets the kills.

Lt. Johann Bohm of 4./JG51 is forced down after being damaged in combat. He lands at Bladbean Hill, Elham, Kent. This gives the British a good Bf 109E to study and is the first largely undamaged Bf 109 to land in Great Britain. Coincidentally, later in the day another Bf 109E also lands later in the day at Sandwich, Kent, flown by Lt. A. Striberny of 3(J)./LG 2. This one is a Bf 109E-3. The British learn that there is heavier armor plating in the cockpit area on this series of aircraft.

Twin-engine Bf 110 Zerstorers are being used as fighter-bombers. A flight of them crosses the English coast at Dungeness and is intercepted by Spitfires from No. 54 Squadron. An escorting formation of Bf 109s then gets involved and shoots down two Spitfires and damages another.

Heinkel 111s of III./KG 54 attack industrial targets at Bristol.

RAF bombers attack Kiel, where heavy cruiser “Lützow” is being repaired following torpedo damage. A bomb hits the Lützow but fails to explode. They also raid Ostend, hitting a German supply ship, and also damage port infrastructure. The priority of RAF Bomber Command is shifting to the barges in canals in places like Zwolle, Haten, Weest, Elberg, and Deft.

RAF Fighter Command forms No. 10 Group for the defense of southwest England.

German/Swedish Relations: The governments sign a formal agreement permitting Wehrmacht troop and supplies transit on the Narvik railway under certain circumstances.

British/Swedish Relations: The British lodge a formal protest about the decision by Stockholm to allow German military transit on the Narvik railway.

Soviet/Finnish Relations: The Soviets demand transit privileges across Finnish territory to their base at Hango.

Soviet Military: The Soviets establish a Danube Flotilla on the territory they have occupied in Romania.

Swiss Military: The Swiss government mobilizes its army and allocates them to three Alpine fortresses. The Swiss have gotten wind of a German desk planning exercise, Operation Tannenbaum, the invasion of Switzerland. Hitler has some sort of grudge against Switzerland which leads to violent outbursts among his staff.

Japanese Military: The Imperial Japanese Navy launches battleship Yamato. Yamato has the largest guns in the world.

French Government: Free French leader Charles de Gaulle makes a BBC address in which he criticizes the British for their attacks on the French fleet, saying "all Frenchmen are dismayed."

The Vichy French prepare to withdraw their ambassador to the Court of St. James in London.

British Government: The nine divisions recovered from France are reorganized to face a possible invasion.

Norwegian Government: King Haakon refuses a request made by the German-controlled Storting (legislature) that he abdicate.

US Government: The US Joint War Planning Committee examines possibilities for the French island of Martinique in the Caribbean. The tentative plan is to send the US 1st Marine Brigade from New York to invade it.

British Homefront: Tea rationing begins, with 2 oz. per person per week. This is a big deal in the British Isles, with many extravagant literary expressions of calamity. This is a subtle but telling indication that the U-boat menace is real and growing.

The Republican ticket, Newsweek, 8 July 1940.

July 1940

July 1, 1940: Vichy France
July 2, 1940: Arandora Star
July 3, 1940: Operation Catapult at Mers El Kébir
July 4, 1940: Romania In Crisis
July 5, 1940: The Five Freedoms
July 6, 1940: Hitler's High Point
July 7 1940: Dakar And Ringo
July 8, 1940: Tea Rationing in England
July 9, 1940: Battle of Calabria
July 10, 1940: Battle of Britain Begins
July 11, 1940: "Nous, Philippe Petain"
July 12, 1940: Enter Laval
July 13, 1940: German Surface Raiders Attack!
July 14, 1940: Bastille/Mourning Day
July 15, 1940: Tallest Man Dies
July 16, 1940: Plans for Sea Lion
July 17, 1940: Burma Road Closed
July 18, 1940: FDR Runs Again
July 19, 1940: Last Appeal To Reason
July 20, 1940: First Night Fighter Victory
July 21, 1940: Soviets Absorb Baltic States
July 22, 1940: First RAF Night Fighter Victory
July 23, 1940: Invasion False Alarm
July 24, 1940: The Meknés Incident
July 25, 1940: Black Thursday for RAF
July 26, 1940: Capture The Duke?
July 27, 1940: What's Up, Doc?
July 28, 1940: Destroyers Pulled From Dover
July 29, 1940: Barbarossa On The Burner
July 30, 1940: Hitler Delays Sealion
July 31, 1940: Bloody Wednesday of Olkusz

2020