World War II in real time

Day 606 of World War II, April 30th 1941

Balkans Campaign: Battle of Greece - Operation Marita

The Wehrmacht mops up on the Peloponnesos, taking thousands of British, New Zealand, Australian, and of course Greek captives who couldn't be evacuated in Operation Demon. The evacuation is often called a "second Dunkirk," as the British took off 50,732 men, but, as at Dunkirk, all of the heavy weapons had to be left behind. While this proved inconsequential at Dunkirk because the Wehrmacht stopped at the Channel coast, it won't in the upcoming campaign in Crete. In comments to the House, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill notes that the British landed 60,000 men in Greece, and "at least 45,000 have been evacuated." After dark, Royal Navy destroyers HMS Isis, Kimberley and Hero return to Kalamata and take off another 200 soldiers, while destroyers Havock and Hotspur take 700 men off of Milos. After that, the only men to escape from the mainland do so in small groups or singly.

Photo: "German Panzer III tanks advance along a railway line in pursuit of retreating British troops in Greece between 25 and 30 April 1941."



While Allied soldiers continue to find any way off the mainland that they can find, for all intents and purposes Operation Demon is over and those left on the Peloponnesos will be captured or killed. That said, the general attitude to this information is one of relief, for those "in the know" expected much worse.

The Germans quickly set up a puppet government in Greece. It is led by Georgios Tsolakoglou. They also set up a government in Serbia, known as the Commissioner Government, under Milan Acimovic.

The Germans and Italians quickly occupy the islands of the Aegean abandoned by the British. The Italians send their 2nd Paratroop Battalion to take Zante, Cephalonia and San Mauro, taking 250 Greeks as prisoners, while a black shirt (fascist) division lands on Corfu. These islands will change hands several times during the conflict. The Germans also seize numerous ships in Greece, including 190-ton Panamanian freighter Ines.

The German press announces that Crete is the next objective. Churchill, noting this in a memo to General Ismay, comments that, "Although our evidence points the other way, we must not exclude the possibility that Crete is a blind, and Syria or Cyprus the quarry." This is a great example of how openly telling the plain truth about future military strategy can be an effective way to create doubt in an opponent. Meanwhile, New Zealand General Bernard Freyberg VC is confirmed as the Allied commander in Crete. He commands 29,000 Anzac forces and 9000 Greek troops. General Wavell, Middle East Commander, flies in and briefs Freyberg on Ultra decrypts citing Crete as the next target of German paratroopers (though Freyberg is not told the source).

North African Campaign

Visiting Major-General Friedrich Paulus finally has allowed General Erwin Rommel to attack the Tobruk perimeter after some indecision. The defenders have had time to sow minefields and even to bring in a dozen infantry tanks, but the Germans now have had time to settle their dispositions as well. At the War Cabinet today, Churchill comments that "sufficiently vigorous steps were not being taken by any of the three Services to strike the Germans before they became stronger," so this attack will prove the acid test for that judgment.

Rommel plans his attack to hit the southwest salient, defended by the 26th Australian Brigade. The attack begins at 20:00, led by the 15th Panzer Division and the 5th Light Division. The Axis dispositions have been disrupted by Allied artillery fire - troop movements in the desert are hard to conceal, especially during the day. The panzers make a small breakthrough, but the defending Australians hold tight at several outposts. The Italian troops of the Ariete and Brescia divisions make little progress following the lead panzers, and the offensive deteriorates into a melange of local actions. As the day ends, it is unclear which side has the advantage.

Photo: "The crew of an A13 Cruiser tank Mk IV studying a map whilst on operations in the Western Desert, 30 April 1941."



The Germans and Italians mount a supply convoy from Messina and Augusta with five freighters and several escorts. The Luftwaffe bombs HMS Gloucester while it is trying to intercept the convoy. The bomb passes through the ship without exploding, so the damage is very minor. Another convoy departs from Tripoli.

Royal Navy gunboats HMS Aphis and Ladybird bombard Sollum and Gazala, respectively.

Battle of the Mediterranean

The Luftwaffe continues to be active over Malta. The raids begin at 08:00 when a couple of Junkers Ju 88s escorted by fighters bomb St. Angelo and shipping in Grand Harbour. Around sunset, half a dozen Heinkel He 111s with fighter escort make another raid, followed by a much larger raid around 20:30. The last raid starts major fires and includes large parachute mines. Included in the targets are the airfields at Luqa and Ta Qali, and shipping damage includes a hit on HMS Encounter and the loss of minesweeper HMS Coral Trusty Star (later refloated and repaired). Minesweeper HMS Fermoy is operating off Valletta when it, too, is bombed and sunk (though later raised for scrap). In addition, minesweeper HMS Abingdon is damaged while sweeping, which, with the sinking of the Coral Trusty Star, leaves the Royal Navy with no usable dedicated minesweepers.

This is considered one of the worst raids of the year on Malta, with banks, the law courts and numerous other businesses and residences obliterated. There are dozens of casualties, both military and civilian, including several children as young as age 4, 5, 9, 10 and 11. The German High Command quickly pushes out a press release touting the Luftwaffe's successes in Malta and at Tobruk.

Battle of the Atlantic

U-107 on its second patrol and operating about 300 miles southwest of the Cape Verde islands, torpedoes and sinks 7417-ton British freighter Lassell. There are 24 survivors and 17 deaths. The survivors are picked up by the Benvrackie. The Lassell had been part of Convoy OB 309, which was dispersed on April 19th.

Troop transport SS Nerissa (5583 tons) is approaching the British Isles when U-552 on her second patrol out of St. Nazaire, torpedoes and sinks her with three torpedoes at 23:30 about 320 km west of Liverpool. The ship quickly breaks in two, preventing the lifeboats from launching. Fortunately, the radio operator has just enough time to send a Mayday signal with his ship position. There are 84 survivors, picked up by HMS Veteran early the next morning.

German river patrol boat CF-1 is lost today of unknown causes.

The Luftwaffe attacks and sinks tug HMS Peuplier off Plymouth.

The Luftwaffe attacks Westgarth and damages the Royal Navy sloop HMS Erne. It will not be repaired until 21 June 1942.

Royal Navy patrol vessel HMS Loch Oskaig captures the Vichy French freighter Cap Cantin a couple dozen miles off Cape Espichel. The ship is taken to Gibraltar.

German raider Thor arrives in Hamburg, having completed a cruise in which it sank 11 ships totaling 83,000 tons.

Convoy OB 317 departs Liverpool, Convoy SA-1 forms at sea and departs, Convoy HX 124 departs from Halifax.

The Royal Navy commissions frigates HMS Barle and Mourne and corvette Celandine.

The US Navy lays down future destroyers USS Chevalier and Strong.

U-501 is commissioned in Hamburg and U-453, U-454, U-575, and U-576 are launched.

During the month of April 1941, Axis sinkings spike, largely due to increased success by the long-range Luftwaffe group previously authorized by Adolf Hitler. There are 88 Allied ships sunk with 381,289 tons in Atlantic, 107 Allied ships with 306,512 tons sunk elsewhere (primarily the Mediterranean, where 32 Axis ships with 152,129 tons are sunk. Overall, total Allied shipping losses rise from 474,879 tons in March to 616,469 tons in April (figures will not match up because they come from different sources and calculating such totals is more of an art than a science - even seemingly exact figures are best taken as crude approximations).

The Kriegsmarine loses two U-boats sunk in the Atlantic, Arctic or Baltic. There are 32 serviceable U-boats in Atlantic, a continuing increase over those available at the start of the war. The Allied shipping losses will decline from here until the peak months of 1942, though, because Admiral Doenitz' U-boat fleet has lost some of its best commanders recently.

Air War over Europe

RAF Bomber Command continues its attacks on Channel shipping, focusing today along the Dutch coast. Three Blenheims of No. 2 Group spot a tanker escorted by flak ships and patrolling Bf 110s and the flak shoots down one RAF plane. After dark, Bomber Command sends a major raid (81 bombers) to Kiel and a smaller, diversionary one to Berlin.

The Luftwaffe bombs Cardiff before dawn, causing great damage with land mines.

A Wellington bomber on a training flight crash-lands in St. Andrews Park at Somerville Road in Bristol, killing three crew, after hitting anti-aircraft cables dangling from a barrage balloon. Pilot Lawrence Hugh Houghton survives. The incident is kept out of the newspapers for morale purposes. The incident will be kept secret until 2009 when a memorial service is held, attended by Houghton.

Anglo-Iraq War

The standoff continues in Iraq, with Iraqi ground forces threatening the RAF Habbaniya airfield and the RAF planes based there launching strikes against them (authorized by Churchill himself). The Iraqi government orders the military to deploy 28 cannons on the plateau south of the airfield overlooking the airfield and sends 6000 men on a "training mission" there to cover this operation.

The British have 2000 troops in the airfield and 9000 civilians there as well. Additional troops are being airlifted from RAF Shaibah to Habbaniya by the RAF on a piecemeal basis, with civilians being taken out on the return flights. The Iraqis have told the British to cease all flights, but they continue.

East African Campaign

In Abyssinia, the Indian 9th Infantry Brigade launches small attacks against Italians at Amba Alagi.

Indian 1548 ton patrol vessel Parvati hits a mine and sinks at the confluence of the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. There are 16 deaths, 14 wounded, and 21 survivors overall.

Anglo/US Relations

The US Navy transfers four Lake-class U.S. Coast Guard cutters to the Royal Navy:

- USCGC Pontchartrain renamed as HMS Hartland.

- USCGC Tahoe renamed as HMS Fishguard.

- USCGC Mendota renamed as HMS Culver.

- USCGC Saranac renamed as HMS Banff.

Photo: HMS Banff when it still serviced in the U.S. Coast Guard as USCGC Saranac



German/Egyptian Relations

German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop replies to an inquiry by King Farouk of Egypt, saying that Germany has no designs on Arab nations. This, of course, is patently false.

German Military

The Luftwaffe is busy developing advanced engines, including jets, rockets, and assorted other concepts. Today, a test pilot takes aloft a Gotha Go 145 biplane with an Argus pulse-jet of 265lb static thrust suspended below it. The engine test is a success. This engine, after further development, will evolve into the powerplant on the V-1 cruise missile (Fieseler Fi 103 flying bomb).

Around this time, a party of air ministry engineers returns to Germany following a tour of Soviet aircraft factories. They report to Hitler that the Soviet factories dwarf German factories, with more under construction. They further relate that Soviet aircraft designer Artem (Artyom) Ivanovich Mikoyan, perhaps under the influence of alcohol, had rather imprudently stated:

Now you have seen the mighty technology of the Soviet fatherland. We shall valiantly ward off any attack, whatever quarter it comes from.

Hitler confers with OKW operations director General Jodl. Hitler sets June 22nd 1941 as the date for the invasion, though, as always, this is subject to change.

British Military

Winston Churchill sends a note to Air Vice Marshal William Sholto Douglas congratulating him on the progress of Operation Mutton. This is a project being experimented with to use six specially equipped Harrows of RAF No. 93 Squadron (at this time still No. 420 Flight) to tow Long Aerial Mines (LAM) in the path of German bombers. The LAMs are cylindrical containers 14 inches long and 7 inches in diameter, weighing 14 pounds and towed at the end of long cables. Churchill places great stock in this concept, and comments to Douglas that "It seems possible that this will enable us to make bags in the dark period as heavy as those we can get on the best moonlit nights." The Harrows, however, are clumsy aircraft, and the interceptions (guided by ground controllers using radar) are a bit like fishing - either the Luftwaffe plane blunders into the mines, or it doesn't, and multiple factors such as wind and angle of approach are extremely difficult to get just right. That said, Operation Mutton Harrows do have some success during early trials.

Italian Government

Mussolini's Foreign Minister, Count Ciano, meets with King Victor Emmanuel II regarding Croatia, which Italy will administer for the duration of the conflict. The King decides to award the area to the Duke of Spoleto.

Day 608 of World War II, May 2nd 1941

YouTube (Balkans in Nazi Hands - A Greek Tragedy)



Anglo-Iraq War

Today is generally considered the "start" of the Anglo-Iraq war, though the Iraqis have been increasingly hostile for the past week.

The Iraqis continue to shell the British airfield at Habbaniya, west of Baghdad, from a plateau to the south of the airfield. The Iraqis have 28 artillery pieces, but the Royal Air Force has complete control of the air despite the Iraqis having adequate planes. As the day opens, the Iraqis remain in a threatening posture, but British operations are not in any impinged or their forces really threatened - aside from the Iraqis controlling land routes between the isolated British garrisons.

The British decide enough is enough. They give the Iraqis a firm ultimatum to leave the area. The Iraqis refuse, so, before dawn, the British at Habbaniya make a sortie out of the perimeter. Using their lightly armed 80-100 old trainers, Gladiator fighters, and other obsolete aircraft, the RAF pilots support a battalion of the King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster), six companies of Assyrian Levies (Kurds), 18 armored cars and a company of RAF personnel. All told, the British have about 2,200 troops against the nearby Iraqi forces of about a division in size. Since the Iraqi government controls virtually the entire country, its forces potentially vastly outnumber the British - if they can bring them to bear.

The British objective is to give themselves some breathing room around Habbaniya and, if that goes well, restore land communications to their other bases. The air attack, timed to coincide with Muslim morning prayers, goes well, though Iraqi counterfire kills 13 and wounds 29 in Habbaniyah airbase, including civilians. The Iraqis immediately begin to fall back toward Fallujah. In addition to bombing Iraqi positions on the nearby plateau, the RAF raids the Iraqi airfield at Rashid airfield near Baghdad and destroy 22 planes on the ground at a cost of 5 of their own.

Mufti Amin al-Husseini declares jihad against the British "infidels." The Iraqi leader, Rashid el Gailani requests aid from Germany. The generals in Berlin basically shrug their shoulders due to the impossibility of sending help, but Hermann Goering is determined to provide assistance to Germany's allies in Iraq. He, along with the Italians, begins to send some planes that are crudely painted in Iraqi national markings. The Germans have no ground facilities for their aircraft in Iraq, however, as the British occupy all the airfields, and Iraq is far from the nearest Luftwaffe bases. These are daunting logistical issues, but it is the only form of assistance the Axis can send. The Arabs are willing Axis allies, and it is important for Germany to at least make a show of trying to help.

At Basra, the British seize oil installations. The situation in the port is very unsettled, with some guerrilla activity against the British, but so far the British there remain in control. Women and children (including travel writer Freya Stark) continue to seek refuge in the British embassy, many flown out of Habbaniya. In London, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill deliberates about what to do with the extremely important Iraqi oil wells and pipelines. The British continue sending reinforcements from India, with both troops and additional aircraft expected to arrive soon at the southern port of Basra and overland from Palestine.

North African Campaign

The Germans continue their attack at Tobruk in the Wadi Giadia sector. A dust storm seriously hampers operations, preventing General Rommel from making use of his panzers. A stalemate has developed, with the Germans fighting hard to expand their bridgehead (roughly 2 miles (3.2 km) along a 3 mile (4.8 km) front) through the Australian 9th Infantry Division perimeter. They have little success, and the Australians prepare to counterattack. However, the two sides are in a classic "clinch," and the outcome of the battle is far from certain. The Germans have occupied some high ground, but the Italian infantry has had difficulty overcoming surviving Australian garrisons in the rear. General Paulus, who has an overall command for the time being in North Africa, continues to grant General Rommel operational control, but he is growing increasingly leery of chances of success and tells Rommel not to press his attack home.

The Royal Navy bombards Derna with the gunboat HMS Ladybird.

The Royal Navy begins operations to ferry troops from Mersa Matruh to Tobruk aboard destroyers HMS Decoy and Defender. The 2041-ton Greek steamer Virginia makes it to Tobruk with badly needed supplies. The Luftwaffe attacks, but the steamer quickly makes it in and out of the port without damage.

The Luftwaffe mines Alexandria Harbour, temporarily closing it to traffic. Alexandria is the Royal Navy's irreplaceable port in the eastern Mediterranean. It is reopened by sunset.

Luftwaffe incursions continue at Malta, but they are just fighter sweeps and reconnaissance today. Minesweeper Fermoy is hit while in drydock for maintenance and utterly destroyed.

Battle of the Mediterranean

The Royal Navy has several different ways of resupplying Malta. Sometimes, a direct approach is taken, but at other times more covert operations are used. In the first such clandestine attempt, the 4702-ton British freighter Parracombe, disguised as a Spanish tramp steamer, hits a mine (some sources say it was sunk by Italian aircraft) off Cape Bon while trying to make a run past at night and sinks. This is part of Operation Temple, a convoy to resupply Malta with Hurricane fighters and other supplies. Along with everything else, 21 crated Hurricanes go to the bottom. There are 18 survivors from the 47-man crew, who are rescued by the Vichy French in Tunisia and interned at Bizerte.

Royal Navy destroyer HMS Jersey is returning from a sweep in search of Axis convoys to the Afrika Korps when it hits a mine dropped by the Luftwaffe at the entrance to Valletta Harbour in Malta and sinks. There are 35 deaths and an additional 48 wounded. The Luftwaffe has been successful in eliminating all Royal Navy minesweepers at Malta, making the waters treacherous. This incident causes the British immediately to transfer three warships (light cruiser Gloucester and destroyers Kashmir and Kipling) from Malta to Gibraltar rather than attempt to enter the harbor, which Jersey now blocks.

Battle of the Atlantic

U-201 comes across the wreck of the 8190-ton British tanker Capulet in the mid-Atlantic and sinks it. The Capulet has been adrift since being torpedoed on April 28th and already has been abandoned.

Royal Navy 286-ton minesweeping trawler HMT Alberic collides with destroyer St. Albans in Pentland Firth and sinks. There are 13 deaths. The St. Albans makes it to Southampton for repairs, which take a month.

Royal Navy 48 ton armed yacht HMY Nyula sinks in the Tyne after colliding with another ship.

Convoy OB 318 departs from Liverpool.

Air War over Europe

The RAF continues its missions against German shipping, today with 25 aircraft. It has some success today, sinking 321-ton German anti-submarine trawler Vp 808 (formerly the Reichsprasident Von Hindenburg) northwest of Borkum, Lower Saxony, and 2000 ton "Channel Stop" off Ostend.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command sends 95 planes against Hamburg and 17 against Emden.

The Luftwaffe also makes some sweeps over the North Sea. At 23:25, the Germans bomb and sink 1414-ton Norwegian collier Trajan (formerly the Doris). All 21 men aboard survive when picked up by destroyer and landed at Harwich, though some are injured. The wreck is located roughly a dozen miles northeast of Blakeneny, Norfolk.

The Luftwaffe continues its campaign against Liverpool after dark with 65 aircraft.

East African Campaign

The rainy season basically has halted operations for the time being. The Italians remain in their fortifications in the mountains near the Eritrean border under the command of the Duke of Aosta.

Photo: Captured Italian material and equipment at Agordat, Eritrea. Guns were captured when the British Troops took Agordat.



German/Greek Relations

With Operation Marita successfully completed, the Wehrmacht tightens its control over the Greek mainland and occupies various villages and towns. As in Norway, Hitler authorizes that enemy soldiers be granted amnesty if they will surrender their weapons and go home. This process begins today.

Anglo/US Relations

Another US Coast Guard cutter, the fifth, is transferred to the Royal Navy pursuant to Lend Lease. The USCGC Chelan becomes HMS Lulworth, named, as have been the previous transfers, for a Royal Navy coast guard station. The Royal Navy crews her with men from the battleship HMS Resolution, which is in New York for repairs.

Drawing: U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Chelan before becoming HMS Lulworth



Anglo/Vichy France Relations

The British attitude toward Vichy France's military continues to descend into murkiness. Lord Halifax, in Washington, has complained to US Secretary of State Cordell Hull about humanitarian food shipments that have made their way to France. This attitude was fairly common within the British government around the turn of the year, but now some at Whitehall are having second thoughts. Winston Churchill, in fact, has completely changed his initial attitude against such US aid and now thinks it is a good idea to have the Americans involved a little more closely in European affairs. In fact, apparently, he thinks that the new US Ambassador to France Admiral Leahy may be able to use such aid to wring concessions from Petain, maybe even form a covert alliance with the French. Churchill sends Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden a memo basically telling Eden to tell Halifax to cool it and leave the Americans alone about it.

Anglo/New Zealand Relations

New Zealand Prime Minister Peter Fraser is in Cairo, on his way to London for a visit. Churchill sends him a cable saying that "The successful defense of Crete is one of the most important factors in the defense of Egypt." New Zealand General Bernard Freyberg is in charge of Commonwealth forces there. Churchill notes that "an airborne attack" on Crete is expected "in the near future." Churchill, of course, does not mention that this very prescient intelligence is derived from reading German codes in the Ultra program.

US Military

Admiral Ernest J. King takes command of the US Atlantic Fleet. He remains subordinate to CINCPAC.

The US Navy begins an in-depth course in intelligence basics for naval officers. It will last for three weeks.

German Government

Hitler has fixed June 22nd 1941 as the date for Operation Barbarossa, and there is extreme confidence within the German government that large swathes of Soviet territory will fall quickly. The real issue at this point is not military operations, but rather an exploitation of the soon-to-be conquered territories in the East. Accordingly, the government forms an Economic Staff to plan and administer this gargantuan task. This is the Oldenburg Plan, and its sole objective is to take out as much from the USSR as possible both to help the German economy and destroy the Soviet one. As the report states, "many millions of people will starve to death in Russia if we take out of the country the things necessary for us." This is not considered a bad thing or even anything of much consequence. This strain of thinking will persist throughout the war.

Day 610 of World War II, May 4th 1941

Anglo-Iraq War

the British continue their successful defense of Habbaniyah Airfield, Basra and their other fortified positions in Iraq. The RAF has complete control of the air. British reinforcements, called "Iraqforce," are now on the march to Iraq from Palestine and Transjordan (Habforce and Kingcol), while men are trickling into Basra from India. The motley group of British ground forces in Habbaniyah already are having some success forcing the Iraqis back toward Baghdad, suggesting they will be able to hold out until the relief arrives.

The RAF raids the Iraqi forces, including Baghdad (where it drops leaflets) and other enemy areas. The Luftwaffe has a small presence at Mosul Airfield for receiving supplies via Vichy Syria, which the RAF also attacks.

There still is Iraqi resistance at Basra, where Iraqi gunboats and merchantmen remain outside of British control. Australian sloop HMAS Yarra arrives there today to help deal with the Iraqi shipping

North African Campaign

German General Paulus, temporarily in command of the Afrika Korps, seen enough of the abortive attack on Tobruk. He orders that no more attacks be made by Rommel's forces unless there are signs of Allied retreat. Paulus already is looking toward his rear and orders that a new defensive line must be built in Gazala. In this sense, he is basically in agreement with the failed Italian strategy which began the campaign, believing in the value of fixed defensive positions in the defensive rather than Rommel's faith in mobile operations. Rommel dutifully begins constructing defensive outposts facing the Tobruk perimeter. From this point forward for the next couple of months, the Germans and Australians will engage in only local actions, with the Germans holding their small three-mile wide incursion into Tobruk's defenses.

The campaign evolves into competing supply buildups between Germany and Great Britain, with both sides holding unique advances in that struggle (the Royal Navy largely controls the sea and can be supplied from India, Australia, and New Zealand in addition to England, while the Axis has a short, though dangerous, supply route from Italy).

Churchill cables his Middle East commander General Archibald Wavell in Cairo. He states that is is "most important not to allow fighting around Tobruk to die down" due to the Germans' over-extension following his "premature audacious advance." He encourages counterattacks "at the earliest possible moment" to prevent the Afrika Korps from being able to "gather supplies and strength for a forward move." Churchill and Paulus, thus, see the North Africa campaign developing the same way, and this is not a coincidence, as the British are reading the German codes via the Ultra decryption program.

Churchill also notes in his cable the "success of Demon." This is a reference to Operation Demon, a daring gamble of running disguised freighters directly through the Mediterranean to Egypt. In fact, one Demon ship already has been sunk, though two have made it through.

New Zealand Major-General Bernard Freyberg, the British leader in Crete, is feeling a bit exposed now that the Germans have had some time to digest the Greek mainland. He asks Wavell for permission to evacuate about 10,000 men who are refugees from the mainland and, by and large, unarmed. He notes that they have "little or no employment other than getting into trouble with the civil population."

Battle of the Mediterranean

The Germans occupy the Greek islands of Lesbos and Chios.

Photo: German troops enter Myrina, Lemnos in 1941.



Italian torpedo boat Giuseppe La Farina hits a mine and sinks off Kerkennah. The Italians are busy supplying the Afrika Korps in Tripoli and today send a convoy of seven troopships from Naples. The Italians provide a heavy escort three light cruisers and 8 destroyers, with some smaller torpedo boats also involved.

At Malta, the Luftwaffe remains active. Minesweeper HMS Fermoy, which was damaged earlier in the month and under repair, sinks from its damage.

Battle of the Atlantic

U-38 operating out of Lorient on her 9th and most successful patrol, is off of Freetown in the Atlantic when it fires three torpedoes and uses its deck gun to sink 5230-ton Swedish freighter Japan. The entire 55-man crew (and four passengers) makes land and survives, but is captured and interned by the Vichy French. The ship is part of Convoy OB-310. The U-38's deck gun explodes, injuring the gun crew.

The Luftwaffe hits 234-ton minesweeping trawler HMT Ben Gairn with a parachute mine at Waveney Dock, Lowestoft, Suffolk. There are no casualties, but the ship is destroyed.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 222-ton British freighter Tregor off Trevose Head. The six-man crew survives.

The Luftwaffe also damages 545-ton Belgian freighter Marie Flore off Trevose Head. Marie Flore tries to make it to port but cannot get there and is beached at Padstow.

The Luftwaffe also damages destroyer HMS Southdown in the North Sea by a near miss. The ship is leaking and temporarily loses steering but makes it to port.

The Luftwaffe damages minesweeper Selkirk and patrol yacht HMY Franc Tireur in the Thames Estuary. Both ships make it back for repairs.

Royal Navy minesweeper HMS Latona is commissioned.

Air War over Europe

The Luftwaffe continues bombing Liverpool. The May Blitz is notable for its ferocity and accuracy. The Germans have refined their techniques and finally are targeting port infrastructure and vulnerable shipping in the harbor with great success. The aftereffects of the devastating explosion of 7649-ton ammunition ship Malakand on the 3rd continue to be felt there, and 295-ton ship Pneumatic Elevator No. 11 sinks due to the blast effects, adding to the numerous ships sunk or damaged. The port is devastated and in chaos, with many ships on fire, others slowly sinking, and new ships still being docked and unloaded. There are separate attacks by 55 bombers targets Barrow-in-Furness, and 17 bombers on Hartlepool, with a small force hitting Middlesbrough. The Germans lose a couple of Junkers Ju 88s, one to engine failure, another to a night fighter.

The Luftwaffe also bombs Belfast with 204 aircraft. This is the third attack of the "Belfast Blitz," the first two attacks occurring on 7 and 15 April 1941. In today's attack, 150 people are killed by the many incendiaries dropped by the Germans. The Germans believe that this is one of England's "hiding places" where it is hiding vast stocks of war material. Hitler, however, is beginning to have doubts about the wisdom of attacking Ireland, reasoning that the strong Irish influence in the United States might lead to US entry into the war.

The British in Liverpool are reeling. They evacuate the Liverpool North End Unitarian Mission shelter, where Reverend Charles A Piper has been keeping a diary as he runs the shelter. The diary, which concludes with the 4 May 1941 entry, remains a valuable primary source on the May Blitz.

RAF Bomber Command raids the port of Brest with 97 bombers, and also sends a dozen aircraft to attack shipping.

The Luftwaffe continues to upgrade its equipment, with Bf 109F fighters beginning to appear. Kommodore Mölders of JG 51, the leading ace of the war to date, shoots down a Hawker Hurricane of RAF No. 601 Squadron in the new plane.

East African Campaign

The 5th Indian Division, which has been advancing from the south, attacks the Italian positions at Amba Alagi. The Italians, though somewhat distracted by a separate attack coming up the Falaga Pass, are dug in and give little ground. The Gold Coast 24th Infantry Brigade attacks Italian positions at Wadara in Galla-Sidamo, while the Indian troops at Amba Alagi do capture a few foothills (Pyramid, Whale Back, and Elephant ). From here the going becomes steeper and more open to Italian fire.

Another British force is heading south toward the city, with a third force, the South Africans, also approaching. The Italians, meanwhile, are hiding out in caves which are very defensible, but also have no access to resupply and scant stores of even the most basic necessities such as food and water.

Anglo/US Relations

Churchill cables President Roosevelt and suggests that the Royal Navy is seriously considering occupying the Canary Islands (which he never actually names) and other Portuguese islands in the Atlantic in order to forestall a Wehrmacht occupation there. The US, he proposes, would serve as the "guarantor" that those islands would be returned to Portugal after the war. He also notes that "We are determined to fight to the last inch and ounce for Egypt, including its outposts of Tobruk and Crete."

Anglo/Portuguese Relations

Perhaps coincidental to Churchill's cable to President Roosevelt (but perhaps not), Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies, on his way to New York, calls on Portuguese Prime Minister Dr. Salazar in Lisbon. Salazar, Menzies writes in his diary, is "very sincere and earnest" and tells Menzies that "The Portuguese won't fight." Of course, the Portuguese are in no danger so long as Spain remains neutral, though Hitler still dreams of drawing Franco into his collection of satellites and then occupying Portugal and its Atlantic islands.

German Military

While Adolf Hitler already has set the date for Operation Barbarossa as June 22nd 1941, not everyone agrees with the decision. In fact, there is little enthusiasm for it within the uppermost reaches of the German government and military, including by Luftwaffe boss Hermann Goering. Admiral Raeder continues to press for his "peripheral strategy," which focuses on cutting off Great Britain's overseas possessions in the Mediterranean and elsewhere. That strategy to date has had great success, but the British remain entrenched in Egypt and at Gibraltar. The vast mass of the Wehrmacht, however, already is positioned in the East, and Hitler sticks with his plan to invade the Soviet Union.

Soviet Government

The Politburo replaces Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov with Joseph Stalin as Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars. This makes Stalin the de jure head of the Soviet government These appointments in the USSR are mere formalities, though, as there is no question that Stalin runs the government and always is the de facto national leader.

German Government

Adolf Hitler addresses the Reichstag in the Kroll Opera House. As often happens during his wartime speeches, Hitler sums up past events rather than giving a specific preview of coming events. In essence, it is a victory speech and covers events from the beginning of the war to date.

Hitler digs deep, delivering a polemic on why Germany is at war that is based on equal parts paranoia, self-delusion, and outright fabrications. He propounds some of his standard themes - that Germany was forced into the war based on decisions taken by others "as early as 1936," that the plot against Germany was formed by "great international Jewish financial interests," and that "this criminal" Winston Churchill (he also terms him a "fool" and a "drunkard") was personally responsible for the blockade and aerial campaign against the Reich.

Hitler also puts forth an economic argument for German policy in the Balkans - which obviously involves a lot of Wehrmacht military activity. He argues that reliance on money, or "worthless democratic money paper" as he puts it, is inherently unfair, and only mutual trade agreements such as those between the Reich and the Balkan states is fair. The wars that Germany has just won were the product of "filthy British politics" which had duped Romania, Yugoslavia, and Greece and had forced a defensive campaign by the Wehrmacht to protect its southeast flank.

Hitler summarizes the Greek Campaign (Operation Marita) by claiming that Churchill had committed "one of the greatest strategic blunders of this war" by trying to garrison and defend it. He credits the order to attack Yugoslavia to the coup there. He notes that "the Greek soldiers have fought with the greatest bravery and contempt of death," and that the British force in Greece was there to attack the Reich and thus had to be removed. He gives figures of 57 officers and 1042 noncommissioned officers and men killed, 181 officers and 3571 noncommissioned officers and men wounded, and 13 officers and 372 noncommissioned officers and men wounded. Regarding future operations, he merely states that he views them with "perfect tranquillity and great confidence."

Needless to say, the speech is pure propaganda. Churchill's belated and inadequate military aid to Greece turned out to do nothing but offer Hitler a convenient excuse for why he attacked. No mention is made in the speech, of course, of Hitler's intense preparations for invading Greece long before the first British boot set foot there.

Singapore

Winston Churchill asks General Ismay for a "report on the efficiency of the gunners and personnel" manning air defenses in Singapore.

Day 612 of World War II, May 6th 1941

Anglo-Iraq War

The British gradually have been pushing the Iraqis back from their stronghold at Habbaniyah Airfield west of Baghdad. Today, they clear the plateau to the south which overlooks the airfield from which the Iraqis have been shelling the airfield with 28 artillery pieces. The Iraqis flee in disarray after taking 1000 casualties, falling back on Baghdad with the rag-tag British troops (chiefly the King's Own Royal Regiment) in pursuit in armoured cars. The British catch up to the Iraqis at Sinn El Dhibban, taking 433 prisoners while losing 7 killed and 14 wounded.

Hitler still wants to send troops and planes to Iraq. His representative in Paris, Otto Abetz, receives tentative permission from Admiral Darlan, the Foreign Minister of Vichy France under Petain, to do so (in exchange for cutting the French indemnity owed to Germany from 20 million to 15 million Reichsmarks per day). Of course, there is the little matter of getting German troops to Syria in the first place, which is a tricky proposition given Royal Navy command of the eastern Mediterranean. The British already have two columns of troops of their own on their way across the desert from their possessions in Palestine and today receive the 21st Indian Brigade at the port of Basra, so the possibility of a remote battle between Axis and Allied troops in the desert looms.

Hermann Goering is eager to increase his prestige with operations in Iraq. He organizes Fliegerführer Irak with 12 Messerschmitt Bf110 fighters and 12 Heinkel He111 bombers under the command of Luftwaffe Colonel Werner Junck. Of course, this force also must find its way to Iraq.

In London, Winston Churchill writes an angry memo to General Ismay about a military appreciation he has received of the Iraq situation. The analysis by Middle East Commander General Archibald Wavell and General Bernard Auchinleck of the Indian Command suggests that the British troops in Palestine, which are headed to relieve the British forces in Iraq, are insufficient to overcome the Iraqi Army. Wavell and Auchinleck are pessimistic and they project that the outnumbered British will be forced to surrender by the 12th of May. Churchill notes that British losses in Iraq "have been nominal as so far reported" and rejects the recommendation that negotiations with Iraqi leader Rashid Ali be planned. "We should treat the present situation like a rebellion," Churchill concludes, and the British Army has a century of experience in handling those.

North African Campaign

The battle on land at Tobruk has subsided for the moment, so attention turns to the war at sea. Both sides depend completely on supplies from their home countries, with the Axis troops favored by the short but somewhat risky route from Naples to Tripoli. The Allies have a relatively clear supply route - setting aside the omnipresent threat of U-boats - around Cape Horn and up toward Suez. However, that passage takes several weeks, time that the Allies cannot spare. So, with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill as the main instigator, the decision has been made to send a convoy "up the gut" from Gibraltar all the way across the Mediterranean to Malta and Alexandria. This is the Tiger Convoy.

The German 8th Panzerregiment arrives at Tripoli aboard a convoy to Tripoli.

The RAF (830 Squadron) attacks Tripoli, losing a plane. Two crewmen are made prisoner and one perishes.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Taku torpedoes and sinks 2322 ton Italian freighter Cagliari about three miles (5 km) off Fuscaldo, southern Italy.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Truant torpedoes and sinks 1716 ton Italian freighter Bengasi a few miles off Cavoli, Elba, Italy.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Triumph spots a German convoy heading north from Tripoli. It attacks but misses.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Cachalot arrives at Gibraltar from England loaded with supplies for Malta. It will continue toward the island on the 8th.

At Malta, the air defense is refined to alternate defense by fighters and anti-aircraft fire. During a large 36-plane Luftwaffe raid in the evening on Grand Harbour, the fighters shoot down one or two raiders and damage another. In addition, anti-aircraft fire shoots down two Junkers Ju 88s.

Convoy AN 30, composed of four freighters, departs from Haifa and Port Said bound for Suda Bay, Crete.

Battle of the Mediterranean

Tiger leaves Gibraltar today. It is composed of five large troop transports escorted by the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal, battleships Renown and Queen Elizabeth, cruisers Fiji, Gloucester, Naiad and Sheffield, and the 5th Destroyer Flotilla. Ark Royal has a new commander, Captain Loben Maund, as Captain Holland has been relieved due to "stress." The convoy is limited in speed by its slowest ship, as all convoys are, and travels at a still-brisk 14 knots (26 km/h). Italian aircraft quickly spot it, and the Luftwaffe readies its forces on Sardinia and Sicily to intercept it. Curiously, the Italian Navy remains in port.

Winston Churchill, who apparently is in a foul mood throughout the day, sends an angry memo to Air Chief Marshal Sir Charles Portal which includes in relevant part:

Here is another shocking week at Takoradi. Only 18 aircraft have been despatched, whereas I think a programme of nearly double the number was promised. I am afraid it must be realized that this is a very great failure in our arrangements, which may play its part in a disastrous result to the great battle proceeding in the Nile Valley [by which Churchill apparently means North Africa in general].

Takoradi is the airfield in the British colony of the Gold Coast (Ghana) which serves as the key transit hub for flights to Cairo (a 3700-mile air route) aka the West African Reinforcement Route (WARR). Churchill wishes more planes to be shuttled from Takoradi to Cairo to help in the defense of North Africa. Bemoaning the "complete breakdown," Churchill demands an accounting.

Churchill also sends a sarcastic memo to General Sir John Dill, asking that the suitability and supply of maps by Allied forces in Crete be determined, "Otherwise we shall soon find that any German arrivals will be better informed about the island than our men."

In another memo, Churchill demands of Admiral Pound an inquiry into a "lapse of Staff work" over problems transporting a mobile naval base defense organization to Suda Bay, Crete. The base took 12 weeks to arrive and was packed in a disorganized fashion, he notes.

British military intelligence is hardening that Crete will be the next German objective in the Mediterranean. This is largely based on Ultra decrypts of coded Wehrmacht transmissions. However, Churchill is desperate to not let the Ultra secret out, so he allows commanding General Bernard Freyberg to believe that the Germans will arrive in ships rather than by air.

Photo: Australian 6th Division Troops landing at Suda Bay, Crete after their evacuation from Greece



Battle of the Atlantic

U-103 torpedoes and sinks 5529-ton British freighter Surat about 100 miles off Conakry, Guinea. There are three deaths. There is still an element of chivalry in the sea war, with the Germans helpfully righting a lifeboat for the struggling British crew.

U-103 also torpedoes and sinks 4752-ton British freighter Dunkwa in the same area. There are three deaths.

U-556 is on its first patrol out of Kiel when it uses its deck gun and sinks 166-ton Faroes fishing trawler Emanuel west of the Faroe Islands. There are three deaths.

U-105 torpedoes and sinks 4255-ton British freighter Oakdene midway between Guinea-Bissau and Brazil. Everyone survives.

U-97 torpedoes and sinks Royal Navy boarding vessel HMS Camito southwest of Ireland. There are 28 deaths and a few survivors. U-97 also torpedoes and sinks 6466-ton Italian freighter Sango in the same area. The Camito has been escorting the recently captures blockade runner Sango to port in England - obviously ineffectively.

Convoy HG 61 departs Gibraltar bound for Liverpool, Convoys HX 125A and B departs from Halifax also bound for Liverpool.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Sea Nymph is laid down.

U-613 and U-614 are laid down.

Air War over Europe

The Luftwaffe attacks Liverpool again as part of the May Blitz. The bombing causes additional damage and the Germans mange to damage 2 ships, the Germans also attack Greenock, Scotland. This is the first of two consecutive nightly attacks that collectively are known as the Greenock Blitz. The Luftwaffe loses at least two bombers during the night.

The RAF sends a Roadstead operation to Gravelines during the day. RAF Bomber Command sends 8 aircraft to attack shipping. After dark, it sends 16 bombers against Le Havre and 115 to attack Hamburg.

Kommodore Mölders of JG 51 shoots down an RAF No. 601 Squadron Hurricane for another victory in his new Bf 109F fighter.

Photo: Hawker Hurricane I RAF 245Sqn DXL based in Aldergrove Northern Ireland May 6th 1941



US Military

First flight of the Republic XP-47B (40-3051), with Lowry P. Brabham as the pilot, at Republic Field in Farmingdale, Long Island.

US/Australian Relations

Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies, aboard a Clipper flying boat, arrives safely in Bermuda. He has breakfast, then departs immediately for New York aboard a Douglas DC-3. He is ensconced in the Ritz-Carlton by dinnertime.

Vichy French/Japanese Relations

The Japanese conclude a trade agreement with French Indochina.

Battle of the Indian Ocean

Convoy US 10B departs from Colombo. It includes three large liners - 44,786 ton Aquitania, 43,450 ton Ile De France, and 35,739 ton Mauretania. It is escorted by New Zealand light cruiser Leander.