Battle of the Atlantic: On 24 October 1939, the Soviets are still confused about what to do with the City of Flint and its crew. Today, they send the crew, which the day before were going to return to their ship, into informal custody. The Americans are not allowed to contact the US embassy in Moscow but technically are not under arrest because of a highly technical reading of the international law of ship seizures. Nobody knows what the next step will be. There are conflicting reports, in fact, as to who exactly is being interned.
U-37 (Korvettenkapitän Werner Hartmann) has a big day. It sinks the British freighters Ledbury (3,528 tons), Menin Ridge (2,474 tons) and Tafna (4,413 tons). The successes are all against independents and about 90 miles west of Gibraltar.
Greek freighter Konstantinos Hadjipateras (5962 tons) hits a mine just off the English coast in the North Sea. Four perish, the rest are picked up by the Gorleston lifeboat Louise Stephens.
The British detain the US freighter Wacosta. They release the US freighter Iberville after seizing its cargo. They also seize US mail destined for the Continent from the Finnish freighter Astrid Thorden. The aggressive British seizures are raising some eyebrows in the United States.
Convoy HXF 6 departs from Halifax for Liverpool.
Western Front: The Germans mount a minor attack on a French outpost in the Forest of Warndt in the Saar region. There are scattered raids all along the Front, but no concerted troop movements.
German Government: State Secretary Roland Freisler of the Reich Ministry of Justice discusses "special courts," or Sondergerichte. He characterizes them as the "tank corps of penal law" which will be used to eliminate those who "stab the dagger in the people's back." In practice, they will constitute show trials, with Freisler shouting at defendants and berating them in open court. The defendants invariably are polite and respectful as Freisler hectors them and sentences them to concentration camps or death (sometimes the same thing). The trials are popular, and in a macabre way constitute the first use of courts as entertainment.
German/Soviet Relations: Foreign Minister Ribbentrop signs a trade deal with the Soviets. The Soviets agree to supply 1 million tonnes of grain and fodder.
German Propaganda: Ribbentrop makes a rare speech in Danzig. He affixes Great Britain with war guilt for working steadily against the Germans. He also blames the British for refusing to even consider "the hand of the Führer stretched out in a peace gesture."
London almost immediately dismisses the speech, saying that it "introduces no new element into the situation nor is it considered as having any particular importance."
Finland: The Finnish delegation once again returns to Helsinki to review border proposals made by the USSR.
Poland: The Polish government-in-exile has had an ace up its sleeve all along. Only now Polish gold reach Paris that has been on the road via Romania and then Syria. It totals more than £15,000,000.
Separately, the Polish government in London (the government-in-exile is still in Paris) announces that exile Poles will be used in a Polish Army in France.
Japanese/German Relations: Ambassador Oshima meets with Hitler.
American Homefront: Joe DiMaggio of the four-time World Series Champions New York Yankees is named the American League MVP. Joe hit .381. Red Sox first baseman Jimmie Foxx is second.
Nylons!
Nylon stockings go on sale nationwide for the first time. Stores report being sold out of their stock within hours. It is perhaps the biggest fashion moment of the decade.
Future History: F. Murray Abraham is born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He wins the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Antonio Salieri in "Amadeus."
Winston Churchill dressed to the nines as usual on 18 June 1940.
Western Front: General Rommel and his 7th Panzer "Ghost" Division completes the whirlwind journey to Cherbourg on 18 June 1940, capturing the port (but not the citadel). He just misses the fleeing British after another 75-mile advance, and his troops hear the explosions as the Allies blow up the port facilities. The 5th Panzer Division, which has been working in tandem with Rommel, captures Brest. The Allies destroy all the harbor facilities before they depart. French battleship Courbet gives fire support as the last Allied troops leave.
Elsewhere, the Wehrmacht faces declining French resistance. All cities over 20,000 inhabitants are declared open cities, like Paris. This is a popular decision that saves many lives.
The French set up a line along the Loire to defend the sector Tours/La Charité. The Germans establish bridgeheads between Orleans and Nevers. Le Mans, Briare, Le Creusot, Belfort, Dijon and Colmar all are now in German hands. The French cavalry school at Samur vows to fight together as a unit, instructors and cadets.
French Prime Minister Pétain has big decisions to make on 18 June 1940.
The Maginot Line has held up well and cracking it has become a chore for the Wehrmacht. Small penetrations are made, though, and the Germans capture the fortress of Belfort.
Operation Ariel, the evacuation of British troops and some others from France, winds down, though some operations continue in the south. The Admiralty announces that nearly all British troops have been evacuated. At La Pallice, for instance, the Royal Navy completes its evacuation of 10,000 British soldiers, leaving behind their vehicles. There are continued evacuations, but they primarily are of allies. At St. Nazaire, the evacuation also concludes, with the British leaving behind their equipment.
The RAF completes its evacuation from France to England with the departure of Nos. 1 and 73 Squadrons, which had been the first to arrive in 1939. The RAF lost 1,029 aircraft with 1,500 casualties while on the Continent.
General Erwin Rommel (left) and a Panzer 38(t) tank on a bridge in France, 1940.
Battle of the Atlantic: U-28 (Kapitänleutnant Günter Kuhnke) torpedoes and sinks 2,417-ton Finnish freighter Sarmatia in the eastern Atlantic. All 23 onboard survive.
U-32 (Oberleutnant zur See Hans Jenisch) torpedoes and sinks 1,522-ton Norwegian freighter Altair south of Ireland. All 18 onboard survive.
U-32 then sinks 108-ton Spanish fishing trawler Nuevo Ons with gunfire. There are seven survivors, and six perish.
U-32 also sinks 108-ton Spanish fishing trawler Sálvora with gunfire. All 12 onboard survive.
28,100-ton French troopship Champlain hits a mine and is seriously damaged. It is dead in the water and an easy target if the Germans spot it.
Kriegsmarine minesweeper M-5 hits a mine and sinks off Norway.
Brand new French battleship Richelieu (with destroyers Fougueux and Frondeur) departs from Brest for Dakar. Incomplete French battleship Jean Bart is towed out of St. Nazaire. It has its engines and is fueled at sea, then sets off at half-speed for Casablanca while evading Luftwaffe air attacks. The ships are taken out at risk to themselves out of fear of the approaching 5th Panzer Division.
The French scuttle nine French submarines, a destroyer, and a sloop at Brest and Cherbourg. They are immobile for various repair reasons.
Convoy OA 170 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 170 departs from Liverpool.
British corvette HMS Camellia (K 31, Lt. Commander Eric M. Mackay) is commissioned.
European Air Operations: The Luftwaffe sends a massive raid of 76 bombers against eastern England (Cambridge, Southend, the Thames estuary region) during the night. There are 11-12 dead and 30 injured. This is the first of a series of such nightly raids and could be counted as the unofficial start of the Battle of Britain. Meanwhile, the history books state that the Battle of Britain does not begin for another couple of months. The Luftwaffe incurs light losses during this period.
The RAF conducts reconnaissance over northern France, Belgium and Holland. The RAF also sends 69 bombers to drop 250 bombs on Bremen and Hamburg.
Battle of the Pacific: 13,415-ton liner RMS Niagara (Captain William Martin) hits a mine and sinks off Auckland, New Zealand. Niagara is carrying £ 2.25 Million of gold from the Bank of England bound for the United States in payment for munitions. The wreck settles at 121 meters of water. Immediately, thoughts turn to salvage of the gold, but the ship is at the outer limits of salvage operations.
German auxiliary cruiser Orion captures the Norwegian vessel Tropic Sea near the Society Islands.
German/Italian Relations: Hitler and Mussolini meet in Munich to discuss the French request for an Armistice. They are in no hurry to end the campaign. They ultimately send a request for the names of French plenipotentiaries to the French government currently at Bordeaux. Hitler is not impressed by the Italian contribution and gives Italy only a small zone of occupation in southern France. Mussolini is chagrined, but he has other plans of his own which he does not disclose to his partner.
US/French Relations: The US is concerned, as are the British, about the French fleet. U.S. Secretary of State Hull directs Deputy U.S. Ambassador to France Anthony J. Drexel Biddle, Jr., to tell the French that a German takeover of the fleet would the French to "permanently lose the friendship and goodwill of the Government of the United States."
The French are not impressed by the rough diplomatic veiled threat and say that they are "deeply pained" by the attempted coercion. Nonetheless, the French Minister for Foreign Affairs Baudouin promises that the French fleet "would never be surrendered to Germany." Admiral Darlan seconds this assurance.
Bulgarian/Romanian Relations: Bulgaria demands that Romania cede southern Dobruja.
Uruguay: The Uruguayan government has arrested 8 German leaders, according to US Ambassador to Uruguay Edwin C. Wilson.
Canada: Mackenzie King introduces to the Canadian House of Commons the National Resources Mobilization Act. This implements national registration and conscription for home defense.
Baltic States: The Soviet occupation is complete. The Soviet government promises to give the Germans $7.5 million in gold for the courtesy of honoring the Ribbentrop/Molotov Agreement.
Latvia: The Soviets form a new government from a list of approved candidates.
Sweden: The government permits unrestricted German transit on the vital railway to Narvik, including German troops and military supplies.
Italian Somaliland: The English King's African Rifles raid the Italian port of El Uach.
French Somaliland: Italian artillery bombards French positions.
Italy: The government secures ancient monuments and statues against possible air attack.
China: At the Battle of Tsaoyang-Ichang, the Japanese 11th Army consolidates its hold on Ichang and Tangyang. Chinese 5th War Area goes over to the defensive.
Polish Government: General Sikorski arrives in London on an RAF plane. He meets with Churchill, and they agree on the evacuation of Polish soldiers from their location at La Pallice. British Government: Winston Churchill at 15:45 addresses the House of Commons with one of his famous speeches. He states that this could be the country's "Finest Hour":
What General Weygand has called the Battle of France is over ... the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of Christian civilisation. Upon it depends our own British life, and the long continuity of our institutions and our Empire. The whole fury and might of the enemy must very soon be turned on us. Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this island or lose the war. If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be freed and the life of the world may move forward into broad, sunlit uplands.
But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new dark age made more sinister, and perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science. Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves, that if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, This was their finest hour.
French Government: The cabinet continues to debate whether to evacuate to North Africa. New Prime Minister Pétain refuses to go, but President Lebrun and the two presidents of the Chambers of Parliament, Édouard Herriot and Jeanneney, want to go. The weight of opinion is to stay in France.
French cruisers El Djezair, El Kantara, El Mansour, Ville d'Oran and Ville d'Alger evacuate 1,200 tons of French gold from Brest to Casablanca. In addition, the French use the cruiser Victor-Schoelcher to take 198 tons of Belgian gold from Lorient to the port of Dakar in French West Africa.
War Crimes: There are strong rumors that the advancing German troops have been murdering any black African French troops that they take prisoner. There is a German propaganda campaign that these French troops themselves are committing atrocities.
General De Gaulle giving his speech on 18 June 1940.
French Homefront: General Charles de Gaulle broadcasts at 20:00 from London and urges continued French resistance. He emphasizes that a battle, and not the war, is lost:
The destiny of the world is here. I, General of Gaulle, currently in London, invite the officers and the French soldiers who are located in British territory or who would come there, with their weapons or without their weapons, I invite the engineers and the special workers of armament industries who are located in British territory or who would come there, to put themselves in contact with me.
This speech initiates the image of de Gaulle, heretofore virtually unknown outside of military circles, as the leader of "Free France." It is fair to comment that de Gaulle likes to use the word "I" a lot as he develops a cult of personality.
De Gaulle has no official authority to make any claim to be a French spokesman and is no longer even in the government (though for the time being he remains a General). De Gaulle's sole source of power is that he has British backing due to his willingness to continue the fight. De Gaulle also has a large cache of French gold given to him by former Prime Minister Reynaud which will tide him over, though it is insufficient to form an army or anything like that. He certainly is an inspirational figure for many French citizens, though the legitimate French government does not think so and feels he is being counter-productive. De Gaulle returns the favor and pointedly refuses to recognize any French government under German domination, which creates a chasm between him and the "legitimate" Petain government. He no longer has any official reason to be in London and is "flying solo," at great risk to himself, creating an entire movement out of whole cloth. The course de Gaulle is taking practically defines the term "leader."
There is a tortuous story behind de Gaulle's speech. He was the one, along with Churchill, who came up with the "union" idea of France and the UK joining as one country. He flew back to France to argue for it and thought that Petain would agree with him, and was stunned when instead Petain surrendered. Returning immediately to England, de Gaulle asked to give this speech on 17 June, but the BBC required him to wait until 18 June - the anniversary of the French defeat at Waterloo.
General Legentilhomme, the French commander in Somaliland, quickly announces his support for de Gaulle, but few others do. It is easy to maintain that martial spirit when you are far from the panzers, not so much when the front that protects you is collapsing.
The Bourrasque, deck crowded with men, in its last moments.
Western Front: Operation Fish is implemented on 30 May 1940. This is the shipment of British gold and securities to the Bank of Canada in Ottawa. Battleship HMS Revenge carries £40 million in gold, while troopships Antonia and Duchess of Richmond carry £10 million in gold apiece.
General de Gaulle calls off his attack on Abbeville. The French have recovered about half the ground of the bridgehead, but lost 105 tanks in the process. One must chalk the victory up to the strength of the German artillery and the clever way in which it is handled.
Another view of the Bourrasque.
Dunkirk: The weather is poor, limiting air operations over Dunkirk. On balance, this helps the Allies. It is estimated that, to date, 134,000 men have been taken off.
The evacuation is picking up steam. An additional 53,823 men are taken off (24,311 Allied troops embark from Dunkirk harbor and 29,512 men from the beaches). For the first time, some French troops are picked up.
Smaller vessels are used primarily to transport men out to the larger transport ships standing offshore. General Sir Alan Brooke of British 2d Corps leaves today for Dover, where he will meet with General Dill and receive a new command. Bernard Montgomery, commander of the 3rd (Iron) Infantry Division, replaces him.
The Germans are close enough to start scoring artillery hits on the rescue ships. Despite a constant RAF presence, the Luftwaffe is getting through just enough to cause problems.
Conditions within the beachhead are orderly, but crude. Hospital Services for the wounded are sketchy at best. Many badly wounded men (lost arms or legs) are given morphine or heroin and allowed to drift off.
Men in a trench at Dunkirk, May 1940.
Battle of the Atlantic: The main focus remains on the English Channel due to Operation Dynamo. Numerous smaller vessels are sunk or damaged from a variety of causes, including Luftwaffe and small-arms attacks. The Admiralty removes all modern destroyers from the vicinity (H, I, J class), leaving about 10 older destroyers to rescue the roughly 300,000 men left in the shrinking bridgehead. Ronald Cartland, a Member of Parliament, is killed in the fighting at Dunkirk.
French destroyer/torpedo ship Bourrasque is damaged by striking a mine off Nieuwpoort, and then sunk by artillery fire off Ostend. It is loaded with BEF troops, and 660 men either drown or swim ashore and are captured. There are about 300 survivors picked up by other ships.
Three large transport ships are sunk off of Dunkirk.
Three Royal Navy destroyers (HMS Anthony, Sabre, and Worcester) are damaged off of Dunkirk.
Numerous smaller vessels are damaged near Dunkirk, including minesweeper HMS Kellet, armed boarding vessel HMS King Orry and steamers St. Julien & Normannia.
U-101 (Kapitänleutnant Fritz Frauenheim) torpedoes and sinks 4,831 ton British freighter Stanhall about 35 miles northwest of Ile d'Ouessant, France. There are 36 survivors, one man perishes.
U-boats U-100 (Kapitänleutnant Joachim Schepke) and U-123 (Kapitänleutnant Karl-Heinz Moehle) are commissioned.
Convoy OA 158GF departs from Southend, Convoy OB 158 departs from Liverpool.
30 May 1940: more men are being taken off from the beaches than from the docks.
European Air Operations: RAF sends 68 aircraft to attack the advancing Germans at Dunkirk during the day, and 28 more at night.
RAF Bomber Command attacks Hamburg and Bremen during the night with 18 bombers.
Norway: The British continue the evacuation of Bodø, taking another group of men off to Harstad. Colonel Gubbins remains in the port. The German 2d Mountain Division is still working its way up the lengthy road which the British were able to skip by using the ferry.
General Dietl and his mountain troops remain in the middle of nowhere in northern Norway. The Allies continue to press them, and the German mountain troops are retreating slowly toward the Swedish border at Bjørnfjell, which is only 18 miles away. During the day, Dietl receives another 57 men of the 1st Fallschirmjaeger Regiment. His main hope is the slow, painful advance of the 2nd Gebirgsjäger Division.
Once at the border, Dietl will have to make a decision whether to stand and fight to the end or cross the border and be interned - and cloud the entire campaign. Hitler is not giving him the option to be interned - the Fuhrer is focusing as much on Narvik as on the much more vital campaign in France. From the broadest possible perspective, Dietl's troops have served as a capital decoy to divert attention away from the main front in France - on both sides.
Ethiopia: The Duke of Aosta is in command of Italian forces in Addis Ababa. He is instructed to mobilize his forces.
German/Italian Relations: Mussolini tells Hitler that Italy will declare war on the side of the Axis on 5 June 1940.
US Government: President Roosevelt decides to keep the US fleet in the Pacific rather than bring it to the Mediterranean as has been suggested by US Ambassador to France William Bullitt, Jr. He has Secretary of State Cordell Hull tell Bullitt:
The presence of the fleet in the Pacific at this time is a very practical contribution to the maintenance of peace in the Pacific.
In Montevideo, US Minister Edwin C. Wilson notes in a telegram to Hull that the political situation is "deteriorating." He portrays a Uruguayan government that is "drifting," with ordinary people "climbing on the German bandwagon." He cautions that if things continue, an "armed movement is a possibility."
German Homefront: Food rationing is easing due to an influx of supplies from Denmark, Norway, and the Low Countries.
A destroyed Cruiser Mk IV tank after an engagement on 30 May 1940.
A formation of German Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers, May 29, 1940.
Western Front: The French on 29 May 1940 are beginning to realize how much trouble they are in now that the Belgians have surrendered. While the Maginot Line is holding as designed for the most part, the BEF and accompanying French forces are taking a royal beating to the north. French counterattacks along the Somme are not going well, either. In a sign of this growing pessimism, the French load auxiliary cruiser Ville d'Oran with 200 tons of Gold from the French reserve and send it to Casablanca, Morocco - where it will be available for transfer to the United States if necessary.
There are endless lines of BEF troops on the beaches and hiding in the dunes, but the Wehrmacht is assaulting the British line on the and banging it in. By the end of the day, the British troops are behind the final line of canals. A weak spot is developing at Nieuport, but there are endless amounts of British reinforcements from the hundreds of thousands of men trapped in the pocket. The British have nowhere to retreat to, so it is stand and fight, or die. So far, the line is holding.
The fighting at Lille comes to an end, with the capitulation of the 40,000 French Troops who have been drawing Wehrmacht attention away from the beachhead. General Prioux of French 1st Army is captured at Steenwerck, while General Alphonse Juin is captured and his French 15th Infantry Division eliminated at Lille. General Rommel's 7th Panzer Division is prominent in the final stages, surrounding five French divisions.
Brigadier General Charles de Gaulle attacks the German positions near Abbeville again with the French 4th Armoured Division (4e Division cuirassée). There also are some tanks of the British 1st Armoured Division in support roles. The main German defense is formed by over a dozen 88 mm Flak guns of Flak-Abteilung 64. There also are some 105 mm howitzers. The smaller anti-tank weapons, which have been found to be useless against the French tanks, are withdrawn to other purposes.
Seeking the high ground, the French tanks attack Mont de Caubert with initial success. They get to a plateau near the summit before running into serious opposition. There, the French Char B1s suddenly find themselves facing the German artillery near the summit at point-blank range and withdraw with casualties. Another group of French R35 tanks had more success on a different route and caused unreliable Wehrmacht troops of the 57th Infantry Division (Lieutenant-General Oskar Blümm) to flee across the Somme in a panic. Seeing this, General de Gaulle believes that the battle is won and orders a general advance, but the German artillery on Mont de Caubert is still intact and firing down on the French.
Faced with a potential disaster, Generalleutnant Erich von Manstein, the XXXVIII Corps commander in Abbeville, rallies his troops, who soon return to their positions. He uses his artillery to pick off more Char B1 tanks, which are the heart of the French attack. The French tanks are capable but vulnerable to the German artillery fired at close range. German infantry then counterattacks around Cambron, pushing back the 51st (Highland) Division. The day ends with the French giving the Germans a severe fright, but the positions of the two sides barely changed.
Werner Mölders is awarded the Knight's Cross on 29 May 1940 as Hauptmann & Gruppenkommandeur of III./Jagdgeschwader 53.
Dunkirk: BBC newsreader Alan Howland broadcasts an extraordinary and deliciously British understated appeal to the nation:
A number of appeals for recruits have been issued today. The Admiralty want men experienced in marine internal combustion engines for service as engine-men in yachts or motorboats. Others who have had charge of motorboats and have good knowledge of coastal navigation are needed as uncertified second hands. Application should be made to the nearest registrar, Royal Naval Reserve, or to the Fishery Officer.
No explanation as to why these men are suddenly needed is given, perhaps not to give the Germans a propaganda coup.
Operation Dynamo ramps up, with 47,310 men taken off (33,558 from the port, 13,752 from the beaches) under fierce Luftwaffe, E-boat and artillery attack. The British lose three destroyers and have another 9 damaged (Royal Navy destroyers Gallant, Jaguar, Greyhound, Intrepid, Saladin, Mackay, Montrose and Wolfhound, and French destroyer Mistral).
The Miracle of Dunkirk continues, with numerous small private craft taking men off the beaches. About 15 of these smaller vessels go under due to Luftwaffe and shore attacks. The French begin to participate in the evacuation and send their own vessels to take men off. Everybody understands that it easily could turn into a one-way trip.
The Luftwaffe clearly is over-matched. They face the determined RAF air cover from unmolested bases in England, anti-aircraft fire from the besieged troops, and Royal Navy ships putting up additional anti-aircraft fire. Still, many planes get through despite the intense crossfire.
The BEF troops wait patiently in the surf. Discipline remains strong, with lines of men stretching out into the deep water waiting for expected ships. The tide, of course, rolls in and out, the waves crash about, and the men are attired in heavy uniforms. They stand still, waiting, risking drowning (some indeed drown), knowing that if they break ranks and return to the beach, they will lose their spot and perhaps not get back to England at all.
A13 Cruiser Mk IV tank on guard at Huppy, France (just south of Abbeville), 26-29 May 1940.
Battle of the Atlantic: U-37 (Kapitänleutnant Victor Oehrn) continues its successful patrol off Vigo, Spain. It is spotting so many ships that it begins using its deck gun. Captain Oehrn stops 2,477-ton French freighter Marie José, uses its deck gun, and finishes it off with a torpedo.
U-37 then spots 7,406-ton British tanker Telena, which is carrying petrol to Pauillac, France. This time, Oehrn uses his gun to sink the ship. There are 18 survivors and 18 crew perish.
U-62 (Kapitänleutnant Hans-Bernhard Michalowski) torpedoes and badly damages destroyer HMS Grafton (H 89) just off of Dunkirk. Four men perish. The men are rescued by destroyer HMS Ivanhoe, which finishes off the sinking Grafton with gunfire.
German E-Boat S-30 torpedoes and sinks destroyer HMS Wakeful (H 88) just off of Dunkirk. The Wakeful is full of BEF troops, and 640 of them perish along with 97 crew, with only 25 crew and one of the BEF men rescued.
The Luftwaffe sinks British destroyer HMS Grenade just off Dunkirk during the evacuation. It is hit by three bombs, one going down the stack, and 18 are killed.
The scene off of Dunkirk is controlled chaos. HMS Lydd mistakes HMS Comfort for a German ship and rams it, with four killed. Destroyers HMS Mackay and Montrose collide, damaging both. HMS Jaguar is bombed with 13 killed; minesweeper HMS Waverley is carrying BEF men back to England when it is bombed, with about 350 men killed. Boats approaching Dunkirk report seeing half-sunk ships everywhere.
The British commission destroyer HMS HMS Fernie (L 11) (Lt. Commander Ronald M. P. Jonas).
European Air Operations: The cynosure of everyone's eyes is the Dunkirk defense and evacuation. The Luftwaffe is able to move more aircraft close to the battlefield, increasing the number of sorties. RAF Bomber Command maintains constant pressure on the encroaching panzers, with 51 sorties during the day and 15 at night.
However, with the RAF giving iron priority to the beachhead, the rest of France is wide open to the Luftwaffe. It establishes aerial dominance, and on a beautiful, cloudless day it shoots "anything that moves."
Hauptmann Werner Mölders, Gruppenkommandeur of III./Jagdgeschwader 53, is mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht (the Wehrmacht's daily despatches, a huge honor for any serviceman) for achieving his 20th aerial victory. He is awarded the Knight's Cross.
Norway: The British begin evacuating Bodø during the night, sailing to Scapa Flow. To avoid attracting attention, the departure is done without explosive detonations. The weather keeps the Luftwaffe away, and the 2d Mountain Division is having to take the long road around the fjord and remains far to the south.
The Luftwaffe is active over Narvik, tangling with the Hawker Hurricanes based at Bardufoss. The Hurricanes have the upper hand, downing three of the German planes.
General Dietl has been evicted from Narvik, but his force remains intact and morale is high. During the day, the Luftwaffe drops another 125 paratroopers to help him. He is on the rail line to Sweden, watching and waiting for any pursuers.
Holland: Artur Seyss-Inquart takes over his position as Reichskommissar of Holland in The Hague, stating:
"We Germans have not come to subjugate this country and its people, nor do we seek to impose our political system on them."
King Leopold, refusing to leave the country, is arrested by the Wehrmacht and placed under house arrest in one of his castles. Italy: Mussolini is in a strange mood, wishing to go to war and not really caring about the details. Foreign Minister Count Ciano - who maintains a meticulous diary - notes that Mussolini is ready to jump on board with whichever side appears to be winning. "His blood is up," as the expression goes. Sweden: The Swedish Government implements its own civil defense force aka Home Guard.
US Navy: The prototype Vought F4U Corsair (XF4U-1) makes its first flight at the hands of Lyman A. Bullard, Jr. The plane has some difficulty with its elevator trim tabs but lands safely. The plane has been in development since June 1938, when the U.S. Navy signed a contract with Vought for the prototype.
British Government: The debate in the cabinet continues, with Foreign Secretary Lord Halifax urging negotiation and Prime Minister Churchill wishing to fight on. Churchill gives a rousing speech to the cabinet in the evening which stops talk of "surrender."
Sir Samuel, 1st Viscount Templewood, flies to take up his position as Ambassador to Spain.
The prototype of the Vought F4U Corsair takes to the skies.
German bomber He-111 H-5. It was shot down by ground fire on 28 May 1940 in the valley of Mount Korsbakken in the area of Narvik. The aircraft belonged to 2./Kampfgruppe 100. Of the crew, two perish, two are captured.
Western Front: The Belgian Army lays down its weapons at 04:00 on 28 May 1940, pursuant to the agreement reached on the 27th by King Leopold, who announces:
Exhausted by an uninterrupted struggle against an enemy very much superior in numbers and material, we have been forced to surrender. History will relate that the Army did its duty to the full. Our Honour is safe.
The Belgians had fought hard, losing 7,550 men killed and 15,850 men wounded. A few scattered units continue fighting for a while, at least until they receive news of the surrender at 18:00. This decision comes as a surprise both to the Allies and to Leopold's own government.
The Belgian capitulation raises an immediate problem for the BEF. The Belgian Army had been holding a 20-mile section of the front on the left flank of the Dunkirk beachhead, from Ypres to Dixmude. Fortunately for the British, though, they literally have hundreds of thousands of fully equipped men in the pocket. Everybody knows the stakes, and ad hoc British formations (including some armored cars of the 12th Lancers) waiting for evacuation establish a new line in the Nieuport area against the German 256th Division of the German 18th Army. The Wehrmacht occupies Bruges, Zeebrugge, and Ostend.
A corps of French 1st Army (40,000 men) left in the lurch by the British retreat to the Dunkirk perimeter is surrounded by seven German Divisions (3 armored) of the Sixth Army at Lille. General Erwin Rommel's 7th Panzer Division is one of the besieging formations. The French position may be hopeless, but it is drawing off elite Wehrmacht forces that could be better employed at the beachhead.
The French 4th Armoured Division under Brigadier General De Gaulle attacks Abbeville, capturing some German outposts and reaching the Somme. However, they fail to take Abbeville or St. Valery. The French armour makes some initial progress, then falls back. The French infantry occupies about half the distance into the bridgehead, but there is massive confusion on both sides as to what is going on. The French take 200 prisoners and appear to be breaking through, but De Gaulle breaks off the attack so that he can regroup his panzers and try another full-scale assault on the 29th.
The French tanks are proving very sturdy. One, French Char B1 Bis tank "Jeanne d'Arc," receives almost 100 hits but remains in action. This also is a commentary on the underperformance of German anti-tank weapons.
Dunkirk: The evacuation has another slow day, with 17,804 men taken off. The Luftwaffe (Stukas) and Kriegsmarine (E-boats) attack the British ships arriving at the beachhead, sinking a small steamer and damaging Royal Navy destroyer HMS Windsor. Men are being taken off both from the port and from the surrounding beaches, with the troops wading out to the ships.
The famous "Miracle of Dunkirk" begins, as numerous small British private vessels begin arriving to rescue as many of the trapped soldiers as they can.
Within Dunkirk, things are getting desperate. One arriving Naval captain sent ashore reports that there are drunken mobs of men pillaging the port. Ammunition is running short in some sectors. However, despite all the problems - the perimeter holds.
The panzers press forward at Cassel and Poperinge, compressing the beachhead toward the sea.
European Air Operations: There is intense aerial activity over Dunkirk. The British claim to have shot down 79 Luftwaffe aircraft on the 27th. RAF bomber command puts 48 aircraft over the beachhead during the day, and sens 47 to attack the Germans there during the night.
The French send LeO-451 bombers, escorted by Hawker Hurricanes, against Germans lines of communication in the Aubigny sector.
Battle of the Atlantic: U-37 (Kapitänleutnant Victor Oehrn) continues its successful patrol about 100 miles west of Oporto, Portugal. First, it torpedoes and sinks 10,387 ton French liner Brazza. There are 197 survivors (53 crew, 144 passengers), and 379 perish.
Then, U-37 surfaces and shells 177-ton French trawler Julien, sinking it. All 10 crew survive.
Swedish freighter Torsten hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea. It had been laid by British submarine HMS Seal.
Norwegian freighter Blamannen hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea. It had been laid by French submarine Rubis.
British freighter Carare hits a mine and sinks in the Southwest Approaches to England.
Convoy OA 157 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 157 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HG 32F departs from Gibraltar, Convoy OG 31 forms at Gibraltar, and Convoy HX 46 departs from Halifax.
U-121 (Kapitänleutnant Karl-Ernst Schroeter) is commissioned.
HMS Lady Rosemary (FY 253) (Skipper Robert J. McCullogh) is commissioned.
Norway: The Allies, faced with utter defeat in the south, have an unexpected success in the far north to bolster morale back home.
The French Foreign Legion under French General Bethouart, supported by the light tanks landed at Bjerkvik, cross the Rombaks fjord at 00:15 with five French light tanks. It advances toward Narvik along the railway line. In addition, the Polish Brigade advances on Narvik from the west. They attack the German 3rd Mountain Division troops holding the city. The time of the attack is chosen because it is twilight at Narvik, but dark further south where the German airfields are located.
Bad weather grounds the Allied Hurricanes at Bardufoss airfield to the north of Narvik, but the skies to the south are clear enough to fly in. The Luftwaffe arrives by 04:30. The Stukas have free reign over Narvik for a while, forcing the Allied fleet to withdraw, but the Allied fighters eventually arrive. There are not enough planes on either side to make a major difference, but the Luftwaffe scores two hits on the command ship Cairo.
General Dietl mounts a spirited defense of the city, but it is hopeless. He is aided by the addition of 46 1st Fallschirmjäger Regiment troops dropped during the day. Dietl and his men are forced out by noontime. He and his men head up into the mountains while the Allies occupy Narvik.
Hitler is concerned about the Narvik situation and following it closely, as he does not want to hand the Allies a propaganda victory in Norway while he is achieving his crowning success in France. Dietl thus is determined to do anything necessary to avoid surrendering, including marching his troops across the border to Sweden to be interned if necessary. That, however, is not necessary at this point, though the German troops are badly outnumbered and out-gunned.
With Narvik safely in their hands, the French (13th Demi-Brigade Legion Etrangere), Polish (Podhale Brigade) and a Norwegian battalion consolidate their position. There are attacks by both the small RAF and Luftwaffe forces in the vicinity. The Luftwaffe damages HMS Cairo, an anti-aircraft cruiser.
General Dietl, forced out of Narvik, retreats along the rail line to Sweden.
The British at Bodø prepare to be evacuated by the Royal Navy.
German Gebirgsjägers in the mountains after losing Narvik.
German/Romanian Relations: King Carol tells his cabinet that neutrality can be dispensed with as the country draws closer to Germany.
French Government: Prime Minister Paul Reynaud broadcasts in a radio address that the surrender was done precipitously, without consultation, and that "France can no longer count on the Belgian Army."
Belgian Government: Prime Minister Hubert Pierlot has moved from London to Paris. He delivers a broadcast from Paris in which he expresses shock at the Belgian Army's capitulation. Pierlot announces that the King acted on his own, against the wishes of the rest of the government and outside of his constitutional authority, and "henceforth he has no power to govern." The Belgian cabinet - in exile - now assumes all governmental functions, and it places all resources at the service of the Allies. The Belgian King, for all intents and purposes, is deposed - but he remains in Belgium and retains loyalty there, though with growing resentment from the populace.
US Military: US Army Air Force Colonel Carl Spaatz arrives in Genoa aboard the liner Manhattan on his way to London.
US Government: Ambassador to France William Bullitt sends a telegram to Secretary of State Cordell Hull. He has a very specific request: that the US sends a cruiser loaded with arms and ammunition to Bordeaux France:
"If you cannot send a cruiser of the San Francisco [CA 38] class to Bordeaux, please order the Trenton (CL-11) at Lisbon [Squadron 40-T flagship] to take on fuel and supplies at once for a trip to America and order her today to Bordeaux."
The reason for this odd request is two-fold:
French fears of a "Communist uprising"; and
The French and Belgian gold reserves.
The Norwegian gold reserves previously were sent to England, but this time the gold is to be sent across the Atlantic.
President Roosevelt approves the ambassador's request, and the US Navy sends heavy cruiser USS Vincennes (CA 44) from Hampton Roads, accompanied by destroyers USS Truxtun (DD 229) and USS Simpson (DD 221). They will take the gold first to the Azores, then to New York. As to the expected Communist uprising, that is deemed a French concern.
Bullitt also suggests sending the Atlantic Fleet to the Mediterranean as "one of the surest ways" to keep the French and British fighting the Germans so that the United States will not have to. This suggestion is not taken up.
President Roosevelt also establishes the National Defense Advisory Committee. Its purpose is to advise the President on defense matters. Its members include former automobile manufacturer William S. Knudsen, corporate executive Edward R. Stettinius, labor leader Sidney Hillman, and economist Leon Henderson.
The (temporary) victors of Narvik. On the left are two French officers of the alpine troops. The man with the glasses is a French Captain of the Foreign Legion. On the right is a British Navy Officer.
Norway: The saga of the Norwegian gold reserve reaches a turning point on 6 May 1940, as £33,000,000 arrives in London. Having traveled most of the vast length of Norway by train and British cruiser, there were some anxious moments before it finally wound up safely in England.
Norway Army Operations: With the Germans in control of all of Norway south of Trondheim, the Allies are massing strength around the vital transit hub Narvik. The South Wales Borderers (part of British 24th Brigade) are assembling five miles to the west, and the French Chasseurs Alpins and Colonial artillery troops continue to try to force their way through Labergdal Pass to the north, across the fjord. Getting into position on the opposite shore would provide prime artillery positioning for the Allies, so the pass must be held if the Germans are to hold the town.
Colonel-General Dietl in Narvik is sitting tight in Narvik. It is a small port whose only value is the rail line to Swedish ore mines. While easily defensible due to the towering mountain ranges on all sides, Dietl's regiment does not have the manpower to hold off a determined assault from all directions.
The Wehrmacht high command (particularly Hitler) is well aware that General Dietl's regiment is in trouble. The German 2d Mountain (Gebirgsjäger ) Division continues marching north from Trondheim across snow-covered mountain roads to help Dietl. It remains far away. Sea transport is out of the question due to British naval dominance.
Norway Naval Operations: Allied supply convoys reach Harstad and Tromso, jumping-off points for an attack on Narvik. The French 13th Demi-Brigade Legion Etrangere arrives at Harstad.
The Kriegsmarine is sending reinforcements to Norway across the Skagerrak and is somewhat careless about possible Allied interference. British submarine HMS Sealion sees two transport ships, Moltkefels and Neidenfels, at 14:00. Sealion fires six torpedoes at them but all miss.
In addition, HMS Snapper sees German armed merchant cruiser Widder, which left port on 5 May for its raid, about 30 miles east of Denmark around 15:25. Snapper fires two torpedoes - and both miss.
Norway Air Operations: While the British control the sea around Narvik, the Germans increasingly control the skies. Today, the Luftwaffe attacks part of the British fleet sitting nearby, with one bomb just missing cruiser HMS Enterprise, causing some damage and killing a Marine.
The Luftwaffe can operate from Værnes Air Station near Trondheim, which is rapidly upgraded to handle large forces, and also Hattfjelldal Airfield in Hattfjelldal, Norway. While not very close to Narvik, their planes outmatch anything that the British can put in the air over the isolated port.
Western Front: Hitler's Wehrmacht is silently moving over 90 divisions into launching points for the invasion of the Low Countries and France. Meanwhile, the Allies are focused on the sideshow in Narvik. The Germans, incidentally, are preparing more divisions for combat operations than the United States fielded at any point in World War II.
Belgian reconnaissance notices a large Wehrmacht Armoured column moving west through the Ardennes. It is part of General von Rundstedt's force for Fall Gelb.
Battle of the Atlantic: The HMS Seal, captured by the Wehrmacht on 5 May, is gone but not forgotten. During its patrol, it released some 50 mines. Today, German cargo ship Vogesen hits one and sinks.
British freighter Brighton hits a mine and sinks near Dunkirk.
Convoy OA 143GF departs from Southend, Convoy OB 143 departs from Liverpool.
British corvette HMS Calendula (Lt. Commander Alan D. Bruford) is commissioned.
Minesweeping trawler HMS Ash (George A. Harrison) is commissioned.
Italian Battleship Vittorio is completed.
European Air Operations: RAF bomber command sends a dozen aircraft on minelaying operations during the night.
Vatican: The Vatican has been acting as a clearinghouse for off-and-on behind the scenes peace negotiations with Wehrmacht dissidents and thus has good sources. The Pope has been trying to get the word out that the Germans are preparing to attack. He faces massive Allied indifference or disbelief. The Pope tells Princess of Italy Marie José, the wife of the Italian Crown Prince, that Germany is about to attack the Low Countries. The Princess informs her brother, King Leopold of Belgium. Unfortunately, there have been several false alarms that have greatly embarrassed the Belgians and cost some highly placed officials their jobs, so one more alarm does not create as much excitement as it otherwise might.
Olympics: The International Olympics makes formal a decision that has been obvious for some time, canceling the 1940 Summer Olympics - the winter Games already having been canceled. China: At the Battle of Tsaoyang-Ichang, the Japanese 11th Army captures Fengyao and Changchiachi.
British Homefront: The government releases employment figures showing that unemployment is at its lowest level in 20 years.
American Homefront: John Steinbeck wins the Pulitzer Prize for "The Grapes of Wrath," which already has been turned into a classic Hollywood film starring Henry Fonda.
Tacoma Narrows Bridge nearing completion, May 6, 1940. James Bashford Press Photos. PH Coll. 290.9 University of Washington Libraries. Special Collections Division. The bridge opened in July 1940.
