lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 10, 2020 5:43:34 GMT
Day 739 of World War II, September 10th 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaGeneral Guderian's Panzer Group 2 has been diverted from the road to Moscow in order to encircle Kyiv. However, as of 10 September 1941, for the past week or so the panzers have been stalled on the Desna River while beating off furious Soviet attacks on its eastern flank. This has led to a furious Hitler row and the Fuehrer's meddling in Guderian's troop dispositions, which Hitler believed too far to the east. Today, Guderian's armor shakes off the Russian attacks and breaks loose to the southeast again. His forces take Konotop, cutting the main road from Kyiv to the east. Even further south, General Walter Model's 3rd Panzer Division of XXIV Army Corps (motorized) takes Romny. The grand plan is starting to come together. Today is usually marked as the end of the battle of Smolensk. Operation Barbarossa was supposed to go like this all along, so Halder's skepticism is a sign of how different the reality has been. This sudden fortuitous change in events seems to confirm Hitler's recent interference in Guderian's dispositions, which adds to his growing confidence in his own military judgment. These affirmations of Hitler's amateurish interference have long-term consequences. Not only is Guderian suddenly breaking out, but there are good signs for the Wehrmacht elsewhere as well. A couple of hundred miles to the south, General Ewald von Kleist's Panzer Group 1 also breaks out from its bridgehead across the Dneipr at Kremenchuk. Soviet 38th Army counterattacks Kleist's panzers ineffectively. A quick glance at the map shows the extreme peril of the massive Soviet troop concentration holding Kyiv that is led by Marshal Budyenny. Hard-pressed by German Sixth Army's frontal assault, the Soviets holding the city now face encirclement a hundred miles to the east. This area of Ukraine is an excellent area for tank movements, with flat plains and relatively few waterways. While Kleist's and Guderian's panzers are far apart on the map, they theoretically could meet within only a few days. The noose around Kyiv is tightening, and all of the military professionals on both sides can see it. Soviet Colonel-General Mikhail Petrovich Kirponos, in command of the Southwestern Front at Kyiv, urges the Stavka to take precautions as diplomatically as he can. Instead of asking for himself, he simply "relays the concerns of others," a standard tactic when one knows the request is likely to be denied: The enemy tank group has penetrated to Romny and Gaivoron. The 21st and 40th Armies are not able to liquidate this group. They request that forces be immediately transferred from the Kiev Fortified Region to the path of the enemy advance and a general withdrawal of front forces.Kirponos has a good grasp of the situation and is a competent commander. Among other things, he took the prospects of a German invasion seriously on the eve of Operation Barbarossa and managed to keep his forces in better shape than other frontier commanders. However, in Moscow, Kirponos, despite his proven success, is seen as a bit of a weak figure, someone without the true offensive spirit. That Kirponos urges a tactical focus on the defensive again is seen as just another sign of his lack of intestinal fortitude. The Stavka ignores him. In any event, overall Southwestern Direction Commander Marshal Budyenny already has requested permission to withdraw from Kyiv, and that request has been denied. Stalin has told Budyenny to keep his forces where they are no matter what happens. This defies tactical logic but at this point in the war, Stalin is simply playing for time. Stalin needs to prolong the situation in the south at all costs because, otherwise, the situation in the north will deteriorate faster. He is awaiting lend-lease shipments, and the weather won't stay nice forever. Stalin's forces have to continue to hold out for weeks for his delaying tactics to work, but the Germans will decide if that happens more than Stalin will. Photo: German heavy artillery gun position among the fields on the Eastern Front German occupied NorwayThe German occupation government declares martial law in Oslo today due to a labor strike by shipyard workers. The workers were upset that their milk rations were ended. This was the famous "Milk Strike." The authorities arrest five labor activists and shoot two of them, lawyer and Communist Viggo Hansteen and labor activist Rolf Wickstrom. There is a monumental joint tombstone and memorial to them in Oslo. Battle of the Atlantic Allied convoy SC-42 was tracked near Cape Farewell, Greenland by the German submarine U-85. A running battle between sixteen U-boats and the convoy of 65 merchants under Canadian escort occurred as submarines U-81, U-82, U-85, U-432, and U-652 attacked the Allied convoy. Over the next three nights a total of 16 ships from the convoy were sunk by the German Wolfpack. U-111 sank SS “Marken”. U-432 sank SS “Muneric”, SS “Winterswijk” and SS “Stargard” in Convoy SC-42. U-652 damaged SS “Baron Pentland” and SS “Tahchee” in Convoy SC-42. U-81 sank SS “Sally Maersk” in Convoy SC-42. U-82 sank SS “Empire Hudson” in Convoy SC-42. U-85 sank SS “Thistleglen” in Convoy SC-42. In the end, 15 merchant ships and one escort were sunk. Two submarines, U-207 and U-501, were lost. The German submarine U-501 (KptLt Hugo Förster CO) is sunk at 2330 hours in the Straits of Denmark south of Angmagsalik, Greenland, by depth charges and ramming from the RCN corvettes HMCS “Chambly” (Cdr. James Douglas “Chummy” Prentice RCN Commanding Officer) and HMCS “Moosejaw” (Lt. Frederick Ernest Grubb RCN, CO). The Canadian ships had been proceeding to the assistance of escort of convoy SC-42 when they made an ASDIC contact and “Chambly” immediately depth charged. After the first depth charge run U-501 surfaced right next to HMCS “Moosejaw” during her turn. The commander of U-501 leaped about 9 feet (2.7 meters) from his boat and onto the bridge of the corvette without even getting his feet wet! Fearing another boarding attempt the corvette opened the range and, as the U-boat passed her bows, rammed the U-boat and then straddled her with gunfire preventing the German crew from manning their deck armament and causing enough damage to cause her to start sinking. A boarding party from “Chambly”, led by Lt Edward Theodore Simmons, then boarded the U-boat and once inside found the lighting system and instrumentation wrecked and heard the tell tale sound of rushing water, all of the boarding party except one were able to clear U-501 before she sank. Stoker William Irvin Brown of “Chambly” and 11 members of U-501’s crew were lost as she sank. Of the sub crew, 37 of the 48 men aboard survived. German submarine U-111 sank Dutch merchant ship “Marken” 300 miles north of Brazil; all 37 aboard survived and were given food by U-111's crew. The survivors would later be rescued by a Spanish ship on 21 Sep 1941. Japan Vice Admiral Nishizo Tsukahara was named the commanding officer of the Japanese Navy 11th Air Fleet. Koichi Shiozawa stepped down as the commanding officer of the Yokosuka Naval District, Japan. “Shokaku” became the flagship of Carrier Division 5. She would remain at Yokosuka, Japan for the rest of the month. Japanese Combined Fleet training exercise begins in the North Pacific. Battle of the MediterraneanScirè” departed La Spezia, Italy for Gibraltar with three manned torpedoes on board. Axis Convoy departed Naples for Tripoli with six vessels escorted by Italian destroyers “Oriani” and “Fulmine” and five torpedo boats. RAF Bomber Command sends 76 aircraft to attack Turin, Italy overnight. They do little damage to military targets. RN aircraft carrier “Ark Royal” launches fourteen Hurricane fighters for Egypt via Malta. Battle of the PacificGerman raider “Atlantis” captures Norwegian vessel “Silvaplana” west of Society Islands, subsequently departs for France with prize crew. Canada/United Kingdom relationsA proposal to send two Canadian battalions to Hong Kong reaches British Prime Minister Winston Churchill's desk for approval. He accepts the recommendation.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 11, 2020 6:40:50 GMT
Day 740 of World War II, September 11th 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaNear Jamjedrowo before noon, Lt. Ostermann of 7./JG 54 claims two more Russian kills. But the “Green Hearts’ Geschwader loses another pilot when Peter von Malapert with five victories is shot down and captured, becoming a prisoner of war to the Russians. Armeegruppe Nord: The 1.Panzer-Divisionen (Lieutenant General Friedrich Kirchner) captures Dudergov. German artillery batters the city of Leningrad daily at 0800 hours-0900 hours, 1100 hours -1200 hours, 1700 hours -1800 hours and from 2000 hours -2200 hours, to disrupt the schedule of normal life, but starvation and the coming winter are the main problems facing the population. Leningrad has livestock, grain, flour and fats for 30-40 days and sugar for 60 days. There is little firewood already cut and stored for heating. Some food, supplies and ammunition arrives across Lake Ladoga by boat until the lake freezes over in November. The Leningrad Front's strength sits at 452,000 men with about 2/3 of them deployed south of Leningrad. They faced about an equal number of Germans. Armeegruppe Mitte: General Semyon Budyenny Commander-in-Chief of the Southwest Direction makes his second appeal to Stalin to withdraw from the Kiev area. This time the request was co-signed by the ranking commissar, Nikita Krushchev. Budyenny was sacked within hours and replaced him with Semyon Timoshenko. Only 60 miles separated the jaws of the great German encirclement at Kiev. "Do not abandon Kiev and do not blow up the bridges without Stavka permission" - Joseph Stalin in response to Kirponos' request to withdraw from Kiev to a better defensive position.Armeegruppe Sud: Soviet cruiser “Krasny Kavkaz” bombards Rumanian positions near Odessa. Konstantin Rokossovsky was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general. Rokossovsky takes command of Soviet 16th Army. Stavka disbands Western Theater headquarters. Voroshilov, relieved of command of Leningrad Front by Zhukov, departs for Moscow. The Soviet Far East command begins moving forces facing the Japanese to Moscow. The Soviet government warns Bulgaria against allowing its territory to be used as a basis of attack by Germany and Italy. Photo: German infantry position with MG-34 machine gun near the church Continuation WarFinnish 14th Infantry Division captures Rukajarvi en route to Murmansk railroad. German artillery begins preparatory bombardment of Soviet positions on Muhu (Moon) Island in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Estonia. Photo: a Fokker C.VE reconnaissance aircraft, location: Tiiksjärvi Airport Air War over EuropeRAF Bomber Command sends 28 aircraft to attack Le Havre and Boulogne overnight. During the day RAF Bomber Command sends 23 aircraft on coastal sweeps and 43 aircraft on assorted anti-shipping and minelaying operations. RAF No. 56 Squadron at Boscombe Down, Wiltshire, becomes the first RAF squadron to receive the Hawker Typhoon Mk. IA. Of the twenty long-range German bombers and five fighters sent into action, about thirteen operated over eastern England between Tynemouth and Brighton. Bombs were dropped at a dozen points including Durham and the North Riding. An incident occurred at Saltburn in Yorkshire, where some damage was caused to an ironworks (Skinningrove Iron Works), production was delayed for no more than three hours, however. One person was killed in this attack. Battle of the PacificUS Marine Corps 6th Defense Battalion relieved the 3rd Defense Battalion as the garrison force at Midway. George advises MacArthur that the total end strength of the FEAF ought to be 27 pursuit squadrons, eighteen light or medium bomber squadrons, and thirty heavy bomber squadrons. GermanyHitler directs that all the armed forces, including the Luftwaffe, restrict development of new prototypes except those approved by the Führer himself. These restrictions severely hamper the creation of modern aircraft and force the Luftwaffe to redesign or upgrade old types. The outcome of this is that massive man-hours and material are wasted before a conclusion can be reached about what type should be produced at all. Hitler meets with Spanish ambassador and Portuguese ambassador. RAF Bomber Command sends 56 aircraft to attack Rostock, 55 aircraft to attack Kiel and 32 aircraft to attack Warnemunde overnight. Battle of the Atlantic Attack on convoy SC-42 continues. German submarines U-82, U-202, U-207, U-432, and U-433 attacked and sank seven merchant ships 100 miles east of Greenland. U-105 sank SS “Montana”. U-207 sank SS “Berury” and SS “Stonepool” in Convoy SC-42. U-432 sank SS “Garm” in Convoy SC-42. U-433 sank SS “Bestum” in Convoy SC-42. U-82 sank SS “Bulysses”, SS “Empire Crossbill”, SS “Gypsum Queen” and damaged SS “Scania” in Convoy SC-42. U-202 sank SS “Scania”. British destroyers HMS “Leamington” and HMS “Veteran” sank German submarine U-207, killing all 41 aboard. USS “Twiggs” (DD-127) was commissioned as HMS “Leamington” (G-19) on 23 Oct. 1940, part of the destroyers-for-bases deal. Soviet warships unsuccessfully attack German convoy near Petsamo. Battle of the MediterraneanBritish submarine HMS “Thunderbolt” sank German ship “Livorno” 65 miles southwest of Benghazi, Libya. Luftwaffe bombers attack the Suez Canal overnight. US Military The ground-breaking ceremonies for the Pentagon building take place in Arlington, Virginia on a patch of farmland. It will take two years to build at a cost of $83 million. The Pentagon is planned to consolidate 17 War Department buildings into one complex. It has been ordered by Brig. General Brehon B. Somervell. Japan Emperor Hirohito assumes personal command of the Japanese Army, a move misread by American intelligence analysts as indicating a personal commitment to peace by the Japanese sovereign. A United Press dispatch from Tokyo gives the following information: “Emperor Hirohito today took direct command of Japanese Army Headquarters and moved to assure close Army collaboration with Premier Fumimaro Konoye’s Government, which appeared to be trying to keep Japan out of war even if that meant drifting away from her Axis ties.”Japanese Combined Fleet conducts a training exercise in the North Pacific. Yamamoto meets IJN General Staff for ten days of map exercises, including two days devoted to operations against US fleet in Hawaiian Islands.
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gillan1220
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I've been depressed recently. Slow replies coming in the next few days.
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Post by gillan1220 on Sept 11, 2020 11:40:43 GMT
US Military The ground-breaking ceremonies for the Pentagon building take place in Arlington, Virginia on a patch of farmland. It will take two years to build at a cost of $83 million. The Pentagon is planned to consolidate 17 War Department buildings into one complex. It has been ordered by Brig. General Brehon B. Somervell. Then exactly 60 years later, this happened:  |
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 12, 2020 6:11:37 GMT
Day 741 of World War II, September 12th 1941YouTube (Victory for the Red Army!)Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaIn the Leningrad sector, Stavka disbands 48th Army and creates 4th Army. Konev replaces Timoshenko in command of Soviet Western Front. Armeegruppe Nord: The 1.Panzer-Divisionen (Lieutenant General Friedrich Kirchner) captures Krasnoe Selo but are halted at Pulkovo in Leningrad's southwestern suburbs. Hitler halts the advance in the Leningrad area and orders the bulk of the armored and mechanized forces in Army Group North, to move south and prepare for the attack on Moscow. Hitler proclaims, “Leningrad will be starved into submission.” The daily bread ration in Leningrad, Russia was cut to 500 grams for manual workers and 300 grams for office workers and children under 12. Armeegruppe Mitte: North of Kiev, the city of Chernigov, on the Desna River is evacuated in the face of the advancing German 2.Armee. Kleist moves 1.Panzergruppe from Kremenchug to form part of a pincer ring around Soviets protecting Kiev. As Guderian’s 2.Panzergruppe drives south to encircle the Soviet forces around Kiev, an early snowfall hits most of the front in Russia turning the landscape into mud. The Germans, completely unprepared for the poor weather are completely incapable of dealing with the situation, call a temporary halt to the attacks by their mechanized forces. Armeegruppe Sud: Axis troops launched a renewed offensive against Odessa, Ukraine. German 1.Panzergruppe attacks from the Kremenchug bridgehead. Royal Air Force planes went into action against the Germans in the Murmansk area for the first time. JG 77 encounters for the Hurricanes of 151 Wing, an RAF fighter squadron flying out of Murmansk that was sent to demonstrate to the Russians how to operate the Hurricane. In the action, the British pilots shot down three enemy planes at a loss of one to themselves. The Russians were so pleased with the action that three of the pilots involved were awarded “Order of Lenin”, the only non-Russians given the award. Photo: 2 PzKpfw II Ausf C tanks from the 11th armored division on a ferry in the middle of a river Continuation WarFinnish 14th Infantry Division halts advance toward Murmansk railroad and assumes defensive positions east of Rukajarvi. Finnish Army of Karelia crosses the Svir and captures Podporogye. Photo: Finnish Armoured Jägers carrying a Lahti L-39 anti-tank gun Air War over EuropeRAF Bomber Command sends 120 aircraft to attack Frankfurt overnight. RAF Fighter Command flew a Roadstead operation and a Rhubarb operation over the Netherlands. RAF Bomber Command sends 11 aircraft on coastal sweeps off the Dutch coast. RAF Bomber Command sends 21 aircraft to attack Cherbourg overnight and 10 aircraft on minelaying operations overnight. GermanyField Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, the Chief of Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, the Armed Forces High Command [OKW], issued an explicit directive to his troops on how they should treat Jews in the USSR. “Jews in the newly occupied eastern territories”, Keitel’s directive says: “The struggle against Bolshevism demands ruthless and energetic measures, above all against the Jews, the main carriers of Bolshevism.” An authorized Nazi spokesperson said that President Roosevelt "wants war" and that Germany would take "appropriate measures". That same day, an editorial by the prominent Italian journalist and unofficial Axis spokesman Virginio Gayda was published in the Giornale d'Italia, in which he declared that the "act of unprovoked aggression" by Roosevelt had left the Axis warships no alternative "but to attack United States naval ships on sight." Battle of the Atlantic After the loss of 13 ships in 2 days, convoy SC-42 is reinforced. Three Allied corvettes (British HMS “Gladiolus”, Canadian HCMS “Wetaskiwin”, and Free French “Mimosa”) and eight destroyers (British HMS “Douglas”, British HMS “Veteran”, British HMS “Leamington”, British HMS “Saladin”, British HMS “Skate”, American USS “Sims”, American USS “Russell”, and American USS “Charles F. Hughes’) are added to Allied convoy SC-42's escort force. In the air, British Catalina aircraft of RAF No. 209 Squadron also appeared to provide protection during the day. The escorts prevent the U-boats from sinking any ships for the next 5 days. United States Coast Guard cutters USCGC “Northland” (WPG-49) and USCGC “North Star” (WPG-59) seize the Norwegian trawler “Buskoe” in MacKenzie Bay. The crew of the “Buskoe” is attempting to establish and service German weather stations in Greenland. This the first capture of a belligerent ship by the U.S. in WWII. Her capture led to the discovery of a German radio station about five hundred miles up the Greenland coast from Mackenzie Bay. A night raiding party from “Northland” captured three Nazis at Peter Bregt, with equipment and code, as well as German plans for other radio stations in the far north. In Operation EGV2, British Fairey Albacore aircraft from British carrier HMS “Victorious” (escorted by cruisers HMS “Devonshire” and “Suffolk” and HMS destroyers “Somali”, “Matabele” and “Punjabi”) damage the Glomfjord hydroelectric power plant, Norway. They also attack ships at Bodö (20 miles away) with torpedoes. Battle of the MediterraneanFlying from bases in Britain and North Africa, British bombers struck at Italy’s industrial north and at targets in Sicily, in the south, tonight. The British based Stirlings took advantage of the longer nights to fly 1,200 miles across France and the Alps and bomb the royal arsenal at Turin, where at least nine large fires were started. More fires were started at Messina and Palermo - both major supply ports for the Italian army in Libya - with crews reporting hits on merchant ships, oil tanks and a power station. In North Africa the relief operations begin for Tobruk. Approximately 6300 soldiers, from Scobie’s 70th British Division, and supplies for them are transported into the city. 6000 of the Australian garrison are taken out. Photo: Tobruk 1941: British Matilda tanks move forward at Tobruk Japan Japanese Combined Fleet continues training exercise in the North Pacific. In a secret meeting with Prime Minister Konoe in effort to avoid war, Yamamoto promises the Navy will win many victories in the first year, but can't guarantee ultimate success. Japanese air offensive against Chungking, Tzeliutzsing, and other targets were halted in order to withdraw air units in preparation for operations in the Pacific. The 3rd Kokutai reorganized from a bomber unit to a pure fighter group (as the first Kokutai to do so). The attack daitai of the 1st Kokutai returned to Kanoya, Japan, while the fighter daitai at the same time was abolished. The majority of its pilots were absorbed into the newly created 3rd Kokutai or into the Tainan Kokutai. The Genzan Kokutai returned to Genzan. Battle of the PacificIn the Philippine Islands, the first nine USAAF B-17 bombers arrive via air reinforcement route from Hawaii.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 13, 2020 5:46:14 GMT
Day 742 of World War II, September 13th 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaThe German OKW determined that Soviet prisoners of war would receive fewer rations than prisoners of other nationalities. Armeegruppe Nord: German Army Group North continues to press toward Leningrad. General Georgy Zhukov, hero of the 1938 Soviet victory over Japan at Khalkhin Gol, flies from Moscow and arrives in Leningrad with trusted lieutenants Major-Generals I.I. Fediuninsky and M.S. Khozin to replace Marshal Kliment Voroshilov as the commanding officer of the city's garrison who is unable to control the numerous military and civilian groups defending the city. He orders the harshest of punishments for dereliction of duty and orders immediate counter-attacks. His actions, in large part, save the city from the Germans. Zhukov dismisses General Ivanov for incompetence and appoints General Fedyuninsky to command 42nd Army. German forces land on Muhu (Moon) Island and Saaremaa (Osel) Island in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Estonia. Armeegruppe Mitte: Model's 3.Panzer-Divisionen and Hube's 16.Panzer-Divisionen capture Lubna and Lokhvista and the 9.Panzer Divisionen (Lieutenant General Dr. A. Ritter von Hubicki) captures Mirgorod. Armeegruppe Sud: Spearheads of German 1.Panzergruppe and 2.Panzergruppe have nearly isolated Soviet Southwestern Theater. XXIV.Armeekorps (mot.) (General of Panzer Troops Geyr von Schweppenburg) took Lokhvytsia. Manstein takes command of 11.Armee in German Army Group South. Photo: German troops conducting a river crossing. Battle of the BalticFinnish coastal defence ship Ilmarinen, participating in Operation Nordwind, hits a mine and sinks. There are 271 casualties or 7% of the entire Finnish naval arm. It is the costliest loss in the history of the Finnish Navy. Battle of the MediterraneanThe British cruiser HMS “Coventry” is sunk by aircraft off Tobruk. Three Italian vessels from a convoy bound from Naples to Tripoli are sunk by RAF aircraft from Malta. RN aircraft carriers “Ark Royal” and “Furious” launch 45 Hurricane fighters, 22 to reinforce Malta and 23 onward to Egypt. A Convoy departs Gibraltar for Malta. Such was the desperate condition of Malta that it was decided to explore the possibility of supplying the island by means of clandestine passage by unescorted merchant ships. An attempt was made under the title Operation PROPELLER by the freighter “Empire Guillemot”. She had been repainted in peace time colors and left the convoy early in its passage and proceeded as a single ship. Patrols had explicit orders neither to approach nor challenge the ship. This time the ship was loaded with fodder. In explanation it must be appreciated that civilian transport in Malta now relied solely upon horse or donkey, as did work on the land, and that these animals also provided a food reserve. Even in normal times, much fodder was imported, in siege conditions little could be grown as cultivable land was devoted to food production for the population. Japan The Japanese Combined Fleet completes the 4-day training exercise in the North Pacific. Battle of the Atlantic British Submarine HMS “Tigris” sank Norwegian coastal steamer “Richard With” off Breisund, northern Norway. Air War over EuropeRAF Bomber Command sends 147 aircraft to attack Brest overnight.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 14, 2020 6:08:44 GMT
Day 743 of World War II, September 14th 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaBritish forces are operating from Russian soil for the first time since Lord Ironside’s expedition to help the White Russians in 1919. In a changed world, the “Reds” are now Britain’s allies against Germans, so RAF pilots are flying Hurricanes from Vaenga. Two squadrons - 81 and 134 - began operations three days ago after arriving at Archangel on 7 September on the carrier HMS “Argus”. Their chief target is a force of Stuka dive-bombers, the main German tool against Soviet defenses, whether tanks or cities. The RAF will not stay here for the rest of the war. It will teach Soviet pilots to fly Hurricanes and hand them over. Armeegruppe Nord: German XLI.Armeekorps (mot.) (General of Panzer Troops G-H Reinhardt) attempts to pinch off a Soviet salient 50 miles along the South shore of Gulf of Finland from Leningrad. Soviet General Zhukov who took command yesterday launches counterattacks into the flanks of XLI.Armeekorps (mot.) to hold the salient, desperate to obey Stalin's orders to attack immediately no matter the cost. When Soviet 8th Army fails to carry out orders to attack, Zhukov replaces its commander, Shcherbakov, with General Shevaldin. Shaposhnikov tells Zhukov that Stavka has no reinforcements for Leningrad, and Zhukov must make do with local resources. The unfinished Soviet cruiser “Petropavlovsk” (formerly the German cruiser “Lützow”) was sunk at Leningrad by German artillery. German 61.Infanterie-Divisionen (Lieutenant General Siegfried Hanicke) conducts additional amphibious landing on Muhu (Moon) Island in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Estonia. Armeegruppe Mitte: The German Armeegruppe Mitte begins an encirclement of two full Soviet Armies near Kiev, Ukraine. Spearheads of German 1.Panzergruppe and 2.Panzergruppe are nearing Lokhvista. Photo: German MG-34 machine gun in the ruins of a house on the Eastern Front Air War over EuropeA very small number of German aircraft operated off Scarborough apparently looking for a convoy. One flew over Scarborough and dropped two bombs there. Two houses were demolished, water and gas mains damaged, and the main Scarborough - Whitby railway line was damaged and temporarily blocked. One person was killed and a few injured in the town. This was the only bombing incident of the night. RAF Bomber Command sends 12 aircraft on coastal sweeps off the Dutch coast. Battle of the Atlantic The U.S. Navy provided escorts for British convoy Hx-150, the first time that the Americans took a direct part in the North Atlantic campaign. A Hurricane from catapult ship “Maplin” drove off a German Fw.200 bomber one hundred miles south of Ireland. Sub Lt C. W. Walker bailed out and was picked up by sloop “Rochester”. As the USN’s Task Force 15 (TF 15) proceeds toward Iceland, destroyer USS “Truxtun” (DD-229) reports a submarine emerging from the fog 300 yards (274 meters) away, but low visibility and uncertainty as to the position of USS “MacLeish” (DD-220), also in the screen of TF 15, prevents USS “Truxtun” from opening fire. After the submarine submerges, USS “Truxtun”, USS “MacLeish” and “Sampson” (DD-394) make depth charge attacks with no verifiable result. Battle of the MediterraneanUnternehmen Sommernachtstraum [Midsummer Night's Dream]. This was a German small-scale reconnaissance operation by elements of the 3rd Aufklärungsabteilung of Generalleutnant Johann von Ravenstein’s 21.Panzerdivision to exercise new tactical doctrine, to test the state of British preparations for an attack on Tobruk and to capture a large British supply depot believed to be at Bir Khirreigat in Egypt. It was intended to deliver a surprise attack against British logistics forces south of the Sollum Front. Unternehmen Sommernachtstraum was not blessed with success. The Afrika Korps was divided into three battle groups for the operation: Kampfgruppe Stephan, Kampfgruppe Schuette with elements of 15. Panzer-Divisionen forming the last of the groups. Under the command of Obstlt. Stephan, Kampfgruppe "Stephan" consisted of Panzer-Regiment 5, 11./155.Artillerie-Rgt., 2./8.Machinengewehr-Btl. and 1./200.Pionier-Btl.. The operation was unsuccessful as there were neither large-scale British combat forces in the vicinity nor the expected logistical forces and depots. The DAK ran short of fuel and became engaged by a British support group that was backed by air support. The RAF commenced bombing the exposed German units and Rommel withdrew his German units out of fire and ordered the Italians to guard the flanks. The German reconnaissance group did not find signs of a British build-up for a counteroffensive and no depots were found. Eleven Italian Ju87R aircraft run out of fuel, force land in enemy territory near Fort Maddalena, and are captured with their crews. United StatesArmy General Headquarters (GHQ) maneuvers commence in Louisiana. The Army’s neglect of aviation support for its ground troops during the interwar period compels it to ask the Navy to provide planes to take part. Five Navy squadrons [Bombing Squadron Two (VB-2), Fighting Squadrons Forty One and Seventy Two (VF-41 and -72) and Scouting Squadrons Five and Forty Two (VS-5 and -42)] and four Marine Corps squadrons [Marine Fighting Squadron One Hundred Eleven (VMF-111), Marine Observation Squadron One Hundred Fifty One (VMO-151), and Marine Scout Bombing Squadrons One Hundred Thirty One and One Hundred Thirty Two (VMSB-131 and -132)] take part in the large-scale war games.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 15, 2020 6:17:14 GMT
Day 744 of World War II, September 15th 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaStalin asks for 25 to 30 British divisions to be sent either through Iran or the northern port at Archangel to aid the Soviet struggle against invasion. Armeegruppe Nord: Hoepner's 4.Panzergruppe begins shifting to Army Group Centre. Soviet 8th and 42nd Armies clashed with the German XLI.Armeekorps (mot.) southwest of Leningrad on the coast of the Gulf of Finland. Neither side gains the upper hand. Soviet Generals Shcherbakov and Ivanov, commanding 8th and 42nd Army, respectively, are on the verge of giving up and are replaced by Zhukov. Schlusselberg on the south side of Lake Ladoga falls to the Germans. Leningrad is completely isolated from land routes to the rest of the Soviet Union. This siege will last for 3 years. Armeegruppe Mitte: Lead elements of the 16.Infanterie-Divisionen (mot.) (Major General S. Heinrici) (Panzergruppe 1 [Colonel General Ewald von Kleist]), meet 3.Panzer-Divisionen (Lieutenant General W. Model) (2.Panzergruppe [Colonel General Heinz Guderian]) at Lokhvista, 125 miles east of Kiev. The jaws of the trap have slammed shut. Four Soviet Armies (5, 21, 26 and 37), over 600,000 soldiers, are surrounded in the Kiev area. The cordon is weak, but it is there. Armeegruppe Sud: Soviet troops outside of Odessa, Ukraine withdrew southeast toward the city. Stavka orders Trans-Baikal Military District redesignated Trans-Baikal Front, commanded by General Kovalyov with 17th Army and 36th Army. Photo: Three German soldiers storm a farmhouse Air War over Europe169 British bombers attacked the rail station at Hamburg, Germany. RAF Fighter Command flew Rhubarb operations. RAF Bomber Command sends 45 aircraft to attack Le Havre overnight. Battle of the Mediterranean After sundown, British destroyers HMS “Napier”, HMS “Nizam”, and HMS “Havock” set sail from Alexandria, Egypt to the besieged city of Tobruk, Libya with supplies. They would all return to Alexandria in the morning of the next day. Axis Convoy departs Taranto for Tripoli with troop transports “Neptunia”, “Oceania”, and “Vulcania” escorted by Italian destroyers “Da Recco”, “Da Noli”, “Pessagno”, “Usodimare”, and “Gioberti”. Battle of East Africa East African 25th Infantry Brigade arrives by sea at Massawa and begins moving to Wolchefit, north of Gondar in Ethiopia. Japan Lieutenant Commander Hirota Tachibana was named the commanding officer of destroyer “Yuzuki”. Captain Jisaku Okada was named the commanding officer of “Kaga”. Japan begins preparations for war to the south, to secure oil supplies. The 12th and 14th Kokutais was disbanded as a result of reorganization. Most pilots of the 12th Kokutai were transferred to the Tainan Kokutai or to the 3rd Kokutai. Soviet spy Richard Sorge in Tokyo, Japan, informs the Soviet Union Government that; "The Soviet Far East can be considered safe from Japanese attack.” The Foreign Office in Tokyo, Japan, requests the Japanese consul in Honolulu to report on the deployment of the U.S. Pacific Fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Battle of the Atlantic German submarine U-94 sank British ship “Newbury” at 0816 hours (all 45 aboard survived but were never seen again), Greek ship “Pegasus” at 2038 hours (16 killed after lifeboat capsized, 13 survived), and British ship “Empire Eland” at 2348 hours (all 38 survived but were never seen again) 800 miles west of Ireland. All three ships were members of Allied convoy ON-14. Norwegian vessel “Renoy” was sunk by Soviet warship off northern Norway.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 16, 2020 6:19:17 GMT
Day 745 of World War II, September 16th 1941Eastern Front - Operation Barbarossa
The Wehrmacht scores a major success. German General Hans-Valentin Hube's 16th Panzer Division (General von Kleist's 1st Panzer Group) meets 3rd Panzer Division (General Guderian's 2nd Panzer Group) at Lokhvista, Ukraine, 125 miles (201 kilometers) east of Kiev. While the German line still needs to be strengthened, this meeting is the first major step in trapping four Soviet armies (5, 21, 26 and 37) and over 600,000 soldiers at Kiev. Marshal Budyenny, in command of the Southwest Direction, already has asked for permission to retreat. Joseph Stalin has denied that request. General Timoshenko of the Stavka does authorize a withdrawal by Budyenny today. However, the order must be ratified by Stalin, and he does not do so for 48 more hours. Photo: Infantry under cover of PzKpfw 35 (t) tank The Germans make more symbolic progress toward another major objective. Field Marshal Fedor von Bock, commander of Army Group Center, gives the upcoming attack on Moscow the code name "Unternehmen Typhoon." This is in accordance with Adolf Hitler's recent Fuehrer Directive authorizing the attack. On the Black Sea coast, Romanian troops make a little progress in their attack on Odessa. They capture the heights northwest of the Gross-Liebenthal district of Odessa, Ukraine. The Soviets quickly send troops by sea from Novorossisk in the Caucasus to reinforce the reeling defense of Odessa. At Leningrad, the news is a little better for the Soviets. The following day, Recently arrived General Georgy Zhukov manages to halt his troops' withdrawals at Uritsk despite continued fierce fighting in the city’s suburbs. Army Group North Commander Field Marshal von Leeb now has run out of time, as he is under orders to transfer his panzer troops south for the upcoming Operation Typhoon. Accordingly, General George-Hans Reinhardt, commander of XLI Corps, begins pulling the 1st Panzer and 36th Motorized out of the line. He makes plans to move his corps headquarters to move with the 6th Panzer to deploy for Operation Typhoon. Panzer Group 4 Headquarters also prepares to move southeast for the offensive. This brings to a close the Germans' attempt to take Leningrad by force. Now, the only option is to starve the city into submission. Leningrad has been saved, but its worst days lie ahead. Air War over EuropeRAF Fighter Command flew sweeps and Rhubarb operations. RAF Bomber Command sends 18 aircraft on coastal sweeps. Hamburg suffered a heavy RAF attack. RAF Bomber Command sends 55 aircraft to attack Karlsruhe overnight. Battle of the Atlantic U-98 on its fourth patrol out of St. Nazaire, torpedoes and sinks 4392-ton British freighter MV Jedmoor, which is traveling with Convoy SC-42 in the Western Approaches. There are 32 deaths and five survivors. Among those lost in the Jedmoor is Merchant Navy Able Seaman Percy Wilfred Turner, age 55, the son of Captain William Thomas Turner, the captain of the Lusitania when it was sunk in 1915. Battle of the Mediterranean Italian submarine Smeraldo, which departed on a patrol on September 15th 1941, is not heard from after September 16th 1941. Without authorization, Hans-Joachim Marseille flew over an Australian airfield in Libya, amidst anti-aircraft fire, to deliver a message that pilot Lieutenant Pat Byers, whom he shot down two days prior, was being treated at a German hospital in Libya. Luftwaffe bombers attack Cairo and other targets overnight, killing 39 civilians. Middle East
Free French forces, with British backing, terminate the French mandate and agree to guarantee Syria’s independence. THE NEW YORK TIMES states that “Free France acting in agreement with her ally, Great Britain, has undertaken to terminate the mandate and grant Syria the status of an independent sovereign State and to guarantee the new State by treaty.”
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 17, 2020 5:59:38 GMT
Day 746 of World War II, September 17th 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaArmeegruppe Nord: German 18.Armee attacks Kopino and Pulkovo outside Leningrad. German 4.Panzergruppe captures Pushkin outside Leningrad. Soviet defenders withdraw from Muhu (Moon) Island to Saaremaa (Osel) Island in the Baltic Sea off coast of Estonia. Armeegruppe Mitte: Heavy fighting in the outlying areas of the city of Kiev between Soviet and German forces. The withdrawal from the Kiev pocket is finally approved by Stalin, but it is far too late. General Kirponos, commander of the forces in Kiev, would share the fate of many of his soldiers when his column, attempting to withdraw was ambushed and he was cut down. In the end, only 15,000 would escape the encirclement. This was a grave blow to the Red Army. Armeegruppe Süd: Erich von Manstein took command of the German 11.Armee following the death of Eugen Ritter von Schobert. German 11.Armee then began attacks across the Dniepr River at Berislav and advances toward the Crimea. Soviet destroyer “Dzerzhinski” bombards Rumanian positions outside Odessa. On this date, the Jager Report (issued on 1 Dec 1941) noted that 337 adult male, 687 adult female, and 247 children, all Jews, were killed in Vilnius, Lithuania for a total of 1,271 people. 4 Communists were also executed in Vilnius by Jager's Einsatzgruppen on this date. Photo: Two soldiers with an MG-34 machine gun on a railway embankment during the fight for a railway line on the Eastern Front Air War over EuropeRAF Bomber Command sends 38 aircraft to attack Karlsruhe overnight. RAF Bomber Command sends 24 aircraft to attack Marzingarbe power station and chemical works. RAF Fighter Command flew Circus operations. RAF Bomber Command sends 15 aircraft on anti-shipping and minelaying operations overnight. Battle of the Mediterranean The Australian 9th Division continued to be withdrawn from Tobruk, Libya, following Australian Government’s request that all Australian forces in the Middle East fight under one command. Relieving them was the British 70th Infantry Division, currently in Beirut in the French Mandate of Syria and Lebanon awaiting transportation by British cruisers HMS “Ajax”, HMS “Neptune”, and HMS “Hobart” which had just departed from Alexandria, Egypt. After sundown, British minelaying cruiser HMS “Abdiel” and destroyers HMS “Jervis”, HMS “Jaguar”, and HMS “Hasty” made a roundtrip from Alexandria to Tobruk with supplies for the besieged city. Battle of the Pacific Admiral Thomas Hart proposed to move his naval forces in the Philippine Islands south to combine with the British allies to better counter the more powerful Japanese Navy should it attack. He would change his mind on this plan before the start of the Pacific War. Battle of the Atlantic The US Navy increases its role in escorting Atlantic convoys. It assumes responsibility for some of the Halifax to Britain convoys and the security of traffic to Iceland. It will augment the Canadian Naval escorts which travel to 22 degrees west until British ships take over. IranAfter weeks of trying to hold on to power, Reza Shah abdicates in Iran as Soviet troops lose patience with his delaying tactics and occupy Tehran. Reza Shah is arrested before he can escape and placed in British custody. Crown Prince Mohammad Reza Pahlavi takes the oath to become the Shah of Iran. This ends the brief campaign in Iran that began on August 25th 1941 and only involved a few days of fighting. The rest of the time has been taken up with negotiations with Reza Shah that ultimately collapsed. This leaves the Soviets in control in the north of the country and the British south of Hamadan and Qazvin. While Iran does not get a lot of attention during World War II, it plays a big role. About 26–34 percent of the supplies sent to the Soviet Union under the Lend-Lease Act are sent through Iran. The country serves as a key supply corridor from the Western Allies to the Soviet Union that the Germans can never interdict except with occasional U-boat successes. It is close to the British power center in India and serves as another strand in the British web of strategic outposts in the Indian Ocean. ChinaSecond Battle of Changsha: The Japanese 11th Army, some 125,000 strong, launches attacks at Changsha in the Hunnan Providence, 350 miles east of Chungking. The 11th Army crosses Hsinchiang River in four columns at Hsinchiangshih, Tunghsichieh, Hsilufang, and Kangkou against minimal opposition.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 18, 2020 4:58:19 GMT
Day 747 of World War II, September 18th 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaChange of German strategy against Leningrad, Russia, switching from assault to besieging. 4.Panzergruppe (Colonel General Erich Hoepner) begins redeploying South, in compliance with Führer Directive 35 of September 6 to send “essential units of the motorized forces” to support the drive on Moscow (Operation Typhoon). Fieldmarshall Ritter von Leeb, in command of Army Group North, is forced to order his remaining forces to establish siege lines around Leningrad. The tanks of 4. Panzergruppe were soon loaded onto trains for Moscow. This shift in strategy partially resulted from Adolf Hitler's order earlier that Leningrad was to be razed to the ground. 1.Panzer-Divisionen and SS-Polizeiabteilungen capture Pushkin and the XXVIII.Armeekorps (General of the Infantry Mauritz von Wiktorin) capture Slutsk. Soviet battleship “Petropavlovsk” in Kronstadt harbor is again heavily damaged by German artillery fire while Soviet cruiser “Maksim Gorki” is lightly damaged. Armeegruppe Mitte: The encircled forces at Kiev continue to withdrawal. 37th Army is ordered to hold Kiev to the last. 5th Army heads for the junction between the two Panzer Groups at Lookhvitsa, while 26th Army would attempt to infiltrate the German cordon at Lubny. 21st Army was to attack Romny from the west while, outside the pocket, 2nd Cavalry Corp attacked from the east. 21st Army forces counterattack German 2. Panzergruppe at Romny but all efforts would fail over the course of the next week. Armeegruppe Süd: Units of Heeresgruppe Süd capture Poltava in the Ukraine. The Soviet Union announced conscription for all men aged 16-50. Continuation WarFinnish Army of Karelia begins attacking around Petrozavodsk on western shore of Lake Onega. Photo: Soviet F-22 76 gun captured by Finnish troops The Finnish Moscow embassy staff arrives home. They left Moscow on July 26 and spent from July 8th to August 31st stranded in railway carriages in the rail yard of Leninakan near the Turkish border. Denmark’s ambassador visited them at the end of July and observed that ‘the situation must be both physically and psychically very painful to Hynninen and his staff’. (In a meeting with Paasikivi shortly after returning Finland, Hynninen referred to 54 days spent ‘in difficult circumstances’ in Leninakan.) When they were finally able to leave, the journey continued through Ankara, Beograd, Vienna and Berlin to Lybeck, where they took a ship to Turku. Air war over EuropeOn a routine Roadstead mission over Ostend, RAF Hurricanes and Spitfires escorting Blenheim bombers of No. 88 Squadron encounter Focke Wulf Fw190 fighters for the first time. The encounter is fairly routine, with the eight Fw 190As of II./JG 26 shooting down two Blenheims at the cost of one of their own. The lost Luftwaffe pilot is Hptm. Walter Adolf, whose body washes up on a Belgian beach a few weeks later. Adolf finished with 45 victories and becomes the first combat casualty in the Fw 190. Other RAF missions today include six Hampdens of RAF 5 (Bomber) Group sent to Abbeville, the headquarters of top Luftwaffe squadron JG 26. Another 11 bombers head to Rouen. The weather is very poor over England, with ground-haze over France, so only the bombers heading to Rouen actually make their bombing runs. After dark, RAF Bomber Command sends 55 Wellingtons to bomb Karlsruhe. It is a dark night, however, and only 37 bombers can find the target, and their accuracy is poor. Another 10 Wellington bombers attack Le Havre without loss. The Battle of the AtlanticThe remnant of convoy SC-42 arrived in Liverpool. The cargo lost from SC-42 amounted to 15,050 tons of wheat, 14,400 tons of iron ore, 11,200 tons of steel, 9,300 tons of gas oil, 7,000 tons of other grains, 5,500 tons of sulphur, 4,275 tons of phosphates, 2,400 tons of pig iron, 2,100 general cargo, 525 tons of oats, and a large but unspecified tonnage of lumber. Two hundred and thirty-seven merchant sailors lost their lives in this battle. The battle for convoy SC-42 is considered to be one of the greatest convoy battles of the Second World War. The Battle of the MediterraneanBritish aircraft located a convoy of three Italian troopships escorted by four destroyers from Taranto, Italy, sailing for Tripoli, Libya. Submarines HMS “Upholder”, HMS “Upright”, HMS “Ursula”, and HMS “Unbeaten” were dispatched to attack. HMS “Upholder” sank troopships “Neptunia” and “Oceania” over a four hour period about 70 miles east of Tripoli (384 killed, 6,500 survived), while HMS “Ursula” attacked troopship “Vulcania” unsuccessfully. After dark, British minelaying cruiser HMS “Latona” and destroyers HMS “Napier”, HMS “Havock”, and HMS “Nizam” sailed from Alexandria, Egypt and delivered supplies to the besieged garrison at Tobruk, Libya. They would return to Alexandria in the morning of the next day. HMS “Nizam” was damaged on the return trip when she hit the wreck of Italian ship “Serenitas” at Tobruk. The Battle of the Pacfic US Navy Department approves Hart’s proposal to confine Asiatic Fleet to Philippine waters. ChinaThe Japanese 11th Army pushes south from Hsinchiang River. JapanAdmiral Soemu Toyoda is named the commanding officer of Kure Naval District, Japan. Japanese Army is ordered to prepare for offensive operations in Asia and the Pacific.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 19, 2020 5:28:14 GMT
Day 748 of World War II, September 19th 1941YouTube (Another week, another half million for the Germans)Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaGerman Major General W. Stemmermann's 296th Infantry Division of General von Reichenau's 6th Army breaks through crumbling Soviet defenses and advances into Kyiv. Soviet Southwestern Front has 850,000 troops under the command of General Mikhail Kirponos, who is trapped in the pocket with his men. While the German cordon around Kyiv still is fairly porous and some Soviet troops are able to break out (against German opposition), the vast majority of Kirponos' men are trapped in a giant, hopeless, and diminishing cauldron. Photo: German sentinel in the citadel of Kiev on 19 September There is little doubt that Kirponos is a scapegoat. Stalin has flown his good friend Marshal Budenny out of the Kyiv pocket, and Marshal Timoshenko is taking a "hands-off" attitude" and is just following Stalin's orders. The generals in Moscow are in no danger, at least not yet. Kirponos, in command on the spot, is seen as a bit of a cautious and pessimistic general by Stalin and his cronies even though he has shown outstanding tactical judgment from the start of Operation Barbarossa. General Zhukov is quoted by Nikita Khrushchev, a Commissar in Kyiv, as saying: I am afraid your commander (Kirponos) here is pretty weak.While Stalin easily could send a special plane in to rescue Kirponos, this is not done. Instead, Kirponos forms up his headquarters troops of about 1000 men and attempts a breakout. Kirponos is not part of "the club" and is left to fend for himself, just another victim of Stalin's callous indifference to his minions. Photo: German artillery overlooking the Dnieper river after the fall of Kiev The sole remaining major objective for the Germans in 1941 remains Moscow. The capital of the Soviet Union is still hundreds of miles behind the front, which is reassuring when the Stavka looks at a map. However, the fall of Kyiv releases massive German forces which now can be redirected (after the lengthy process of subduing the remaining Soviet forces near Kyiv) toward Stalin's place of residence. With the fall of Kyiv, the ultimate outcome of Operation Barbarossa now becomes a race between the Geman ability to grind forward toward Moscow and the weather, which already is showing the first signs of winter. Battle of the AtlanticGerman submarine U-74 sank Canadian corvette HMCS “Lévis” of Allied convoy SC-44 125 miles east of Iceland at 0603 hours; 18 were killed, 40 survived). U-372 claims a final victim in convoy SC-42, sinking British SS “Baron Pentland” at 1433 hours 100 miles East of Iceland. “Baron Pentland’s” back had been broken on 10 September by a torpedo from U-652 (2 crew lost, 31 crew and 8 gunners picked up by HMCS “Orillia” and landed at Reykjavik) but she remained afloat on her cargo of timber. Air War over Europe RAF Bomber Command sends 72 aircraft to attack Stettin overnight. The first Rhubarb (armed recce) by Curtiss Tomahawks of the RAF is flown today by RAF No. 239 Squadron from Gatwick. Battle of the MediterraneanBritish 16th Infantry Brigade begins arriving at Tobruk by naval transport at night while Australian 24th Infantry Brigade is withdrawn to Egypt. British Cruisers HMS “Ajax”, HMS “Neptune”, and HMAS “Hobart” return to Alexandria, Egypt, with 6000 troops of British 70th Infantry Division. Over the next few nights, these men will be shuttled to Tobruk to replace Australian 9th Division. To reduce German air attacks, this has to be done using fast warships during moonless periods of the month. United States/German relationsUS Secretary of State Cordell Hull sends a note to the German Charge d’Affaires asking for $2,967,092 in reparations for the sinking of the US freighter SS “Robin Moor”. The unarmed freighter was sunk on 21 May 1941 about 700 miles (1,127 km) off the west coast of Africa. The ship had been stopped by the German submarine U-69 and was then sunk by gunfire and torpedo even though US flags were prominently painted on both sides of her hull. She was the first American merchant vessel sunk in the war. All 38-crewmen and 8-passengers make it into life boats and the U-boat captain provides rations; 35 of the 46 survivors are rescued on 3 June and the remaining 11 are rescued on 8 June. The German embassy acknowledges receipt of the note. China Japanese 11th Army reaches and crossed the Milo River during advance on Changsha.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 20, 2020 7:45:10 GMT
Day 749 of World War II, September 20th 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaHaving surrounded an immense pocket of Soviet troops near Kyiv and taken the city itself on the 19th, the Wehrmacht begins reducing the cauldron on There are over 800,000 Red Army men in the area, all desperate to avoid the horrors of special German POW camps for captured Russians. Men attempt to break out in all directions, and some succeed. However, large groups are blocked by the German panzers and about 75% of the trapped men ultimately go into captivity. Among the trapped Soviet soldiers are numerous generals. Stalin could have rescued them - but he sacrifices them as an example to the rest of the Red Army. Some try to slip away through the woods, but the Germans are everywhere. In the Shumeikovo Woods, General Mikhail Kirponos, the commander of the Kyiv Military District, leads an ad hoc force composed of 1000 men from his headquarters staff and about the same number recruited on the way in a desperate escape attempt. Kirponos is killed, Major General V. I. Tupikov also perishes, and Lieutenant General Potapov is captured. The 5th Army's artillery commander, General V.N. Sotensky, also is captured near Lokhvista by the 3rd Panzer Division under the command of Lieutenant General Walter Model. This helps to raise Model's profile, whose forces previously closed the encirclement of Kyiv at Lokhitsa by meeting the 16th Panzer of Army Group South there. Because of these achievements, Model soon will be promoted to General of Panzertruppen and given command of XLI Panzer Corps. Photo: The commander-in-chief of Army Group North, Field Marshal Ritter von Leeb, and Commander-in-Chief of the 18th Army, Colonel-General von Küchler, at a forward artillery observatory at Krasnejo Selo looking through a scissors telescope.  As the day ends, the Soviet pocket is a scene of chaos and fleeing men. Each hour brings more German troops to strengthen the line so that the Red Army soldiers cannot escape. As is often the case in such situations, the Soviet forces to the east of the pocket do almost nothing to try to relieve their trapped comrades, a tendency that mystifies the Germans throughout the war. However, the trapped Soviet soldiers, having lost the battle, now are deemed unworthy and thus appropriate to leave to their doom. Battle of the AtlanticAn accidental fire aboard HMS “Eagle” killed one aircraft mechanic and damaged many Swordfish aircraft while sailing in the South Atlantic. German submarine U-124 sank British ships “Baltallinn” and “Empire Moat” of Allied convoy OG-74 500 miles west of Brest, France at 2331 hours; 60 survivors were rescued by British rescue ship “Walmer Castle”. Meanwhile, a Martlet Mk II fighter of RAF No. 802 Squadron from escort carrier HMS “Audacity” shot down a German Fw 200C Condor aircraft attempting to shadow OG-74; it was the first kill by a British carrier-based aircraft. Allied convoy SC-44 was attacked in the North Atlantic by Wolfpack Brandenburg. German submarine U-552 sank two tankers and U-74 sank catapult armed merchant ship “Empire Burton”, all of Allied convoy SC-44, 200 miles east of Iceland between 0113 and 0327 hours; 102 survivors were rescued by British corvette HMS “Honeysuckle”. Air War over Europe RAF Bomber Command sends 74 aircraft to attack Berlin and 34 aircraft to attack Frankfurt overnight. RAF Fighter Command flew Circus operations. While flying an offensive sweep over Northern France, the pilots of No. 452 Squadron, RAAF, equipped with Spitfire Mk. VBs and based at Kenley, Surrey, England, claims seven Luftwaffe Bf 109s shot down and two damaged. The first successful sortie by the photo-reconnaissance variant of the de Havilland Mosquito was made today when W 4055 (LY-T) of the RAF Photographic Development Unit based at RAF Benson flew a daylight reconnaissance over Brest, La Pallice and Bordeaux, returning over Paris. Although it was chased by three Messerschmitt Bf109 fighters, the Mosquito easily outpaced them at 23,000 ft. RAF Bomber Command sends 28 aircraft to attack Ostend overnight. RAF Bomber Command sends 54 aircraft on coastal sweeps. Battle of the MediterraneanItalian midget submarines attack shipping in Gibraltar harbor. They sink 2 ships. Led by Prince Giunio Borghese, three two-man submarines penetrated the defenses and sank 20,000 tons of shipping. Their mother ship is a converted submarine, “Scirè”, moored off the Spanish coast. “Scirè” launched three manned torpedoes into the harbor, which sank tanker “Fiona Shell” (killing 1), damaged tanker RFA “Denbydale”, and damaged freighter “Durham”. All six Italian personnel manning the three torpedoes swam to Spain and would eventually return to Italy as heroes. A British convoy bound for Gibraltar is attacked by a German submarine. Five of the twenty-seven ships were sunk. One of these, the “Walmer Castle”, was sunk by an air attack while attempting to rescue survivors from the previous attack. The next day, the submarine returned and sunk four more merchant vessels. At Malta, The first ‘Hurribomber’ Hawker Hurricane fighter-bomber conversions go into service. They can carry two 250-lb bombs. British minelaying cruiser HMS “Abdiel” and destroyers HMS “Jervis”, HMS “Kimberley”, and HMS “Hasty” delivered 1,000 troops and 120 tons of supplies to Tobruk, Libya after sundown. They departed for Alexandria, Egypt 30 minutes after arrival. JapanStaff of Japanese 16th Army ordered to prepare plans for invasion of Netherlands East Indies. ChinaJapanese 11th Army crosses Milo River at four points against minimal opposition.
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Post by lordroel on Sept 21, 2020 2:49:01 GMT
Day 750 of World War II, September 21st 1941
Eastern Front - Operation Barbarossa
The Baltic Red Fleet at Kronstadt is attacked by Luftwaffe Stuka dive bombers sink or damage nine ships, including battleship “Marat”, which settles on the bottom after losing its bow by a 1000 kg bomb hit. Stukas hit Soviet WWI-era battleship “Oktyabrskaya Revolutsia” with 6 medium bombs (damaged but remains afloat) and destroyer “Stereguschy” is also hit and capsizes.
Armeegruppe Nord: Soviet troops evacuate the Latvian capital, Riga, and the Germans capture the key naval base at Oesel.
Armeegruppe Mitte: After days of extremely heavy fighting, the Soviet 37th Army surrenders, giving the Germans Kiev.
Armeegruppe Sud: The German 11.Armee reaches the Sea of Azoz, cutting off the Crimean Peninsula. Soviet forces attacked the Romanian 15th Infantry Division near Odessa, Ukraine by landing 1,617 troops of the 3rd Naval Rifle Regiment (by Soviet cruiser “Krasni Kavkaz”, cruiser “Krasni Krym”, destroyer “Boyki”, destroyer “Besposhchadny”, destroyer “Bezuprechny”, and destroyer “Frunze”) and by launching 157th and 421st Rifle Divisions on the ground. Destroyer “Frunze” was sunk by German Stuka dive bombers in the action.
Marshal Shaposhnikov at the Kremlin issues Stavka VGK Directive No. 002202. While ostensibly requesting a routine status report from Colonel-General Kirponos (who, unbeknownst to the Stavka already is dead), the directive is quite revealing. It states:
The Stavka of the Supreme High Command demands that you report immediately: 1. Whether or not your units have abandoned Kiev? 2. If Kiev has been abandoned, whether or not the bridges been blown up? 3. If the bridges have been blown up, then who will vouch for the fact the bridges have been blown up?
Battle of the Atlantic
German submarine U-201 sank British ships “Runa”, “Lissa”, and “Rhineland” of Allied convoy OG-74 500 miles west of Brest, France at 2320 hours. While British rescue ship “Walmer Castle” came to aid the survivors, a German Fw200 aircraft attacked her, killing 16 previously-rescued survivors onboard the ship. “Walmer Castle” sustained heavy damage in the attack and was scuttled by British corvette HMS “Marigold” and sloop HMS “Deptford”.
Air War over Europe
RAF Bomber Command sends 18 aircraft on a Circus mission to Gosnay and Lille escorted by RAF Fighter Command. Escort provided by 12 Spitfire Vb of RAF No. 71 Sqn., 12 Spitfire Vb of RAF No. 222 Sqn., 12 Spitfire Vb of RAF No. 111 Sqn. and 11 Spitfire Vb of RAF No. 403 Sqn.. The new Focke-Wulf 190s of 6./JG 26 encounter a formation of RAF Spitfires over Boulogne and shoot down four of the British fighters without losing a pilot or a plane in the action. Two Spitfires from RAF No. 111 Sqn. were reported lost with pilots Sgt. R.H. Wharton and Sgt. K.J. Haine killed.
China
Chinese 9th War Area conducts minor, unsuccessful counterattacks against Japanese 11th Army south of Milo River.
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Post by lordroel on Sept 22, 2020 2:51:25 GMT
Day 751 of World War II, September 22nd 1941
Eastern Front - Operation Barbarossa
Armeegruppe Mitte: Soviet forces in the Ukraine begin a head long retreat west as they regroup from the defeat at Kiev. Counter attacks are canceled and the new line will be Kharkov-Rostov.
Armeegruppe Sud: German Stuka dive bombers damaged Soviet destroyer “Bezuprechny” at 1300 hours, destroyer “Besposhchadny” at 1630 hours, and destroyer “Boyki” in the Black Sea off Odessa, Ukraine.
Supporters of Melnyk's faction of Ukrainian National Movement arrived at Kiev and attempt to recruit and organize.
Battle of the Atlantic
German submarine U-562 sank British ship “Erna III” 200 miles east of Iceland at 0233 hours, killing all 25 aboard.
German submarines U-68 attacked Allied convoy SL-87 300 miles west of the Canary Islands at 0222 hours, damaging British merchant ship “Silverbelle”. At 2346 hours, U-103 attacked the same convoy, sinking British merchant ships “Edward” (all 63 aboard survived) and “Niceto de Larrinaga Blyden” (2 killed, 53 survived).
The US 1st Marine Brigade (Provisional) was placed under the command of the US Army's Iceland Base Command.
Norwegian government in exile
Norwegian Ambassador J. W. Michelet presents the Finnish Foreign Minister Rolf Witting a British note, stating that if Finland doesn’t withdraw its forces behind the pre-1939 borders, His Majesty’s Government is forced to consider Finland an enemy. Even if Finns comply, diplomatic relations won’t be restored and blockade lifted as long as there are German troops in Finnish territory.
Hitler issued Directive No. 36, Instructions for Winter operations in Norway, ordering a halt in attacks toward Murmansk, but to attempt to cut off Murmansk rail communications before winter, and prepare for a renewed attack toward Murmansk.
Battle of the Pacific
MacArthur and Hart meet. MacArthur informs Hart he will ignore any plans which do not call for the full defense of the Philippines. Stark informs Hart that he will receive 12 new Fleet submarines, an additional submarine tender, and 6 PT boats and outlines Army reinforcements being sent by the War Department.
British/Soviet relations
British cruiser HMS “London” departs Scapa Flow carrying the Anglo American supply mission (Lord Beaverbrook and Averell Harriman) to Archangel, USSR, escorted by both British and Soviet destroyers. Beaverbrook and Harriman will arrive on September 27 and travel to Moscow to discuss Lend-Lease with the Soviet leaders.
German/Bulgaria relations
The German government tells Bulgaria to enter war or be occupied.
China
Chinese 9th War Area withdrawing as Japanese 11th Army advances southward.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Sept 23, 2020 2:52:51 GMT
Day 752 of World War II, September 23rd 1941Eastern Front - Operation BarbarossaJu 87s from Obstlt. Dinort’s I and III./StG 2, including the Stuka of Oblt. Hans-Ulrich Rudel, attacked the Russian fleet , targeting the 23,600 ton battleship ‘Marat’ which is destroyed by a single bomb from Oblt. Rudel’s Ju 87 Stuka. His gunner reported back to Rudel seconds after he released the bomb that the “ship is blowing up, you got her”. The 1000kg bomb fell down the “steamtower” and exploded inside the ship. Rudel thus also destroyed a battleship in addition to the hundreds of tanks he hit in the war. “Marat” will be refloated and her rear turrets used as a floating battery, firing 1971 12-inch shells in the defense of Leningrad. The dive bombers return in the afternoon and continue the destruction. This time the shipyard in Leningrad was attacked. Soviet cruisers “Maksim Gorki” (damaged) and “Kirov” are damaged while under repair and submarines P-2 and M-74 are sunk in the dockyards. But the second attack causes them to suffer themselves. Hptm. Steen, Gruppenkommandeur of III./StG 2, is killed. Photo: Luftwaffe aerial photograph of Marat in Kronstadt, leaking oil after her magazine explosion Armeegruppe Nord: German 18.Armee launches unsuccessful attacks around Pulkovo outside Leningrad. German forces begin attacking Soviet positions on Saaremaa (Osel) Island in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Estonia. Armeegruppe Mitte: Remnants of Soviet 37th Army surrender in the Kiev pocket. Armeegruppe Sud: German soldiers massacre the population of Krasnaya Gora after partisans kill three German sentries. Photo: A German unit belonging to the SS Totenkopf-Division on the move on the Eastern Front Battle of the AtlanticUS President Roosevelt announces the possibility of arming American merchant vessels against German attacks. The concern about possible German attacks has pushed this issue to the front. The USN’s South Dakota Class battleship “Massachusetts” (BB-59) is launched at the Bethlehem Steel Co., Quincy, Massachusetts. Destroyer USS “Macomb” is also launched. Canada Canada's War Committee of the Cabinet discusses Britain's request for two battalions for Hong Kong. They agree, subject to opinions from the Minister of National Defence and General Andrew McNaughton. Battle of the MediterraneanExiled King Zog writes to Allied leaders, petitioning to be recognized as legitimate ruler of Albania and head of the country's anti-Axis resistance. China Japanese 11th Army advancing toward Changsha against minimal opposition. The commander of the Chinese 1st BG, Gu Zhau-Xiang led a combined formation of SBs from the 1st and 2nd BG to bomb positions near Lake Dungtinghu. When his aircraft malfunctioned the formation was disrupted and the combat mission was aborted. In the confusion many aircraft strayed off course and made forced landings. JapanThe Japanese Government calls for meeting between Prime Minister Konoe and Roosevelt. Free France The Free French became a reality today as Charles de Gaulle became the head of the French government-in-exile. General Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French, announced at a press conference the setting up of a “national committee”. He said that it would be up to the United States and other countries to recognize the committee as his country’s government in exile, rather than the German-backed Vichy regime. In fact, de Gaulle retains all authority and merely consults his nine commissioners, who include Admiral Muselier for the navy, Maurice Dejean, a former diplomat, for foreign affairs and Herve Alphand for the economy. Most colorful is Thierry d’Argenlieu, a former naval captain who spent several years a Trappist monk and escaped to England in a small boat disguised as a Norman fisherman.
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