World War II in real time

[lordroel]

Day 142 of World War II, January 20th 1940

From World War II Realtime Instagram Account

Winston Churchill,still First Lord of the Admiralty, holds a radio broadcasted speech about the current state of affairs. The address, which would become famous as the ‘house of many mansions’ speech, is mostly about the position of the Neutral nations in Northern and Western Europe. Churchill reasons that these Neutral countries already suffer under ‘German malice and cruelty’ – illustrated by the fact that the Germans often torpedo neutral ships. He argues that the Allied convoys could provide safe passage on the seas, because according to Churchill, the Allied navies are superior to the Kriegsmarine.

Churchill paints a verbal picture of the dangers that lie ahead for neutral nations. He asks himself ‘what would happen if all these neutral nations […] were with one spontaneous impulse to do their duty in accordance with the Covenant of the League, and were to stand together with the British and French Empires against aggression and wrong?’ In other words: Churchill invites or even urges the neutral or independent countries to join the Allied side in their war with Germany.

‘Each one hopes that if he feeds the crocodile enough, the crocodile will eat him last.’ Churchill argues that war will be inevitable for many of these countries anyway, and that siding with the Allies would allow them to stay free. ‘There is no chance of a speedy end except through united action.’ Still, many neutral countries still hold on to their hopes of staying out of the conflict unharmed. In that light, the Belgians refuse to allow the Allied forces in France access to Belgium in anticipation of a German invasion.

The Atlantic

U-44 (Kapitänleutnant Ludwig Mathes) continues its successful patrol, torpedoing and sinking 5,329 ton Greek freighter Ekatontarchos Dracoulis west of Portugal. There are 6 lives lost, but there could have been more had Captain Mathes not held his fire as the crew took to the boats.

U-57 (Kapitänleutnant Claus Korth) torpedoes and sinks 1,328 ton Norwegian freighter Miranda 30 miles northwest of Peterhead in the North Sea. Three crew survive, fourteen perish. The survivors spend the night in the water before being picked up by a passing Antarctic exploration vessel, RRS Discovery II.

British 7,807 ton tanker Caroni River hits a mine laid by U-34 in Falmouth Bay, southwest England. All 43-55 crew survive (sources vary). The ship was on sea trials and was only carrying ballast.

US freighter Examelia is detained at Gibraltar, but allowed to proceed later in the day.

Convoy OA 76 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 76 departs from Liverpool, Convoy SL 17F departs from Freetown, Convoy HXF 17 departs from Halifax.

Air War over Europe

RAF bombers make a bombing run in the North Sea and are attacked by anti-aircraft guns from four Kriegsmarine patrol vessels. The British planes suffer no damage.

German Government

Hitler orders the Wehrmacht's Fall Gelb pre-invasion countdown reduced from four days to 24 hours for security purposes. He also uses his intuition (and perhaps intercepts) to surmise that the British are thinking of invading Scandinavia (they are). Thus, he agrees with the Generals to put off Fall Gelb until the spring, but begins thinking himself more seriously about invading Norway.

[lordroel]

Day 143 of World War II, January 21st 1940

From World War II Realtime Instagram Account

The British destroyer HMS Exmouth (H02) is torpedoed by German U-Boat U-22. All 190 crewman die in the attack. The Exmouth was the leader of the 5th Destroyer Flotilla. Yesterday, on the 20th, the HMS Exmouth was ordered to rendezvous with freighter SS Cyprian Prince off the coast of Aberdeen. The Exmouths task is to exert the freighter with a cargo of anti-aircraft guns, trucks and cars to Scapa Flow. The set course took them directly into the patrol of commander Karl-Heinrich Jenisch’s U-22. They sailed directly through his line of sight.

While U-22 was originally observing three Scandinavian steamers, he shifts target quickly and fires a torpedo at both. U-22’s War Diary shows that the sighted destroyer – the HMS Exmouth, is hit from a range of 1500 meters. The torpedo takes 2 minutes and 35 seconds to travel the distance. The torpedo directed at the SS Cyprian Prince misses or fails. A board of inquiry concluded later in 1940 that neither ships were zigzagging, thus becoming an easier target for U-22.

When SS Cyprian Prince returns to the scene to look for survivors, the HMS Exmouth is already completely disappeared below sea level. While screams were heard and some men were identified in the water, the captain of the Cyprian Prince set course to Kirkwall at full speed. While this was in accordance with the guidelines, it was contradictory to customs at sea. Still, according to U-22’s war diary, this probably saved the Cyprian Prince from following HMS Exmouth’s fate.

Battle of the Atlantic

Italian liner Orazio catches on fire off Barcelona, apparently accidentally. French destroyers take off passengers, there are 104 deaths.

U-55 (it is believed) sinks Swedish freighter Andalusia. All 21 crew are lost. U-55 never returned from its patrol.

British freighter Protesilaus hits a mine laid by a U-boat and sinks.

British cruiser HMS Liverpool stops Asama Maru, a Japanese liner, off Honshu (35 miles from Japan) and takes off 21 German passengers (of 51 total Germans on board). The Germans are sailor survivors of the German liner Columbus that was scuttled off the US east coast on 19 December 1939). They are returning to Germany by a circuitous route. The men are considered suitable for military service and are to be taken to Hong Kong to be interned. The Japanese government is irate and sends destroyers to intercept the Liverpool, so it makes top speed to the British base.

US freighter Nishmaha is detained by the British at Gibraltar (again).

Convoy OA 77 departs from Southend, Convoy OB 77 departs from Liverpool, Convoy HG 16F departs from Gibraltar, and Convoy OG 15 forms at sea off Gibraltar.

British Government

The Duke of Windsor (former heir to the throne) steps down ("takes leave") from his duties as a liaison between the BEF and the French government.

Anglo/French Relations

The British Ministry of Information gives 8 French war correspondents a tour of the War Office, the Admiralty, the Air Ministry and other key spots.

Holland

The government announces that leave for the military will soon be restored.

Norway

The government announces that 28 Norwegian-flagged ships have been lost.

China

Wang Ching-wei, puppet ruler over Japanese-occupied China from Nanking, denies the veracity of a published document that supposedly shows that he has given the Japanese complete economic and political dominion over China. Two former associates of his published the supposed agreement.

[lordroel]

Day 144 of World War II, January 22nd 1940

Battle of the Atlantic

U-25 (Kapitänleutnant Viktor Schütze) stops 2,589-ton Norwegian freighter Songa, searches the ship, finds contraband, disembarks the crew, and then torpedoes and sinks it.

U-51 (Kapitänleutnant Dietrich Knorr) torpedoes and sinks 1,640-ton Swedish freighter Gothia north of St. Kilda, Scotland. Twelve of the crew survive, 11 perish.

U-55 (it is assumed) (Kapitänleutnant Werner Heidel) torpedoes and sinks 1,387-ton Norwegian freighter Segovia. U-55 apparently had quite a patrol, sinking numerous ships, but never returned.

U-61 (Oberleutnant zur See Jürgen Oesten) torpedoes and sinks 2,434-ton Norwegian freighter Sydfold northeast of Scotland. Of the crew, 5 crewmen perish and 19 survive.

US freighter Excellency is detained by the British at Gibraltar.

Convoy HX 17 departs from Halifax.

British Government

British Foreign Secretary Lord Halifax reprimands First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill for his speech of 20 January 1940. In it, Churchill had suggested, among other things, that the neutral countries should essentially abandon their neutrality and join the fight against Naziism. This is interfering in foreign policy, Lord Halifax tells him, which of course is the business of the Foreign Office - not the Admiralty.

Norway and Sweden, in any event, ignored the speech. They are worried that following Churchill's suggestions would just invite invasion by Hitler. The French, on the other hand, would welcome more nations in the fight against Germany.

British Military

General Freyberg arrives in Cairo, with his troops still en route from Australia and New Zealand.

German occupied Poland

Hermann Goering as Germany's Economic Czar confiscates former Polish state property.

British Homefront

The British Board of Film Censors adds newsreels to its domain. Previously, newsreels were exempt because they were constructed under tight time pressure twice weekly. Now, they must be submitted to the Ministry of Information in advance. A liaison officer is appointed to convey guidelines to newsreel producers, and an appointed editor must review all submissions. This is censorship, but, well, there's a war on.

China

The 31st Army Group of Chinese 5th War Area attacks the Japanese around Chiangchiaho, Pichiashan, Kusaoling, Chihshanai, and Yinchiatien. The Japanese 22nd Infantry Division is attacking the Chinese 3rd War Area and captures Hsiao-shan.

American Homefront

The British Navy has three warships outside San Francisco Bay trying to round up the men of the scuttled liner Columbus, who were trying to get back to Germany by any route possible. Some already had made it to Japan, where the Asama Maru incident of 21 January had occurred.

[lordroel]

Day 145 of World War II, January 23rd 1940

From World War II Realtime Instagram Account

The former South African Prime Minister J. B. M. Hertzog introduces a motion in the House of Assembly, saying that ‘The time has arrived that the war with Germany should be ended and that peace be restored.’ The debate that follows was about the character of South Africa’s contribution to the British Commonwealth’s war effort. The phrasing of his plea suing for peace was quite ambiguous. Was he advocating a general peace? Or did he want South Africa to make a separate deal with the Germans?

Hertzog was unconvinced that the South African declaration of war against Germany in September 1939 was grounded on valid reasons. In fact, he Hertzog was such a prominent adversary to the Treaty of Versailles that he could very well understand that Germany wanted to restore the authority and the territorial unity of their country, ‘so scandalously dislocated and broken up’ by the 1919 treaty.

He placed the responsibility for the outbreak of a second world war with the Allies, who according to Hertzog refused to discuss peace terms with Hitler. He thought that the Allied were out to destroy Germany or once again force ‘unacceptable conditions’ on the Germans ‘with the knee on his chest and the sword at his throat, as had happened at Versailles.’

Many of his opponents and even his supporters knew better. They were careful to emphasise that support for Hertzogs motion did not imply pro-nazi sympathies. Still, the motion appealed to Afrikaner Nationalists, who didn’t care about what they believe was ‘the Empire’s War’, not South Africa’s.

Battle of the Atlantic

One of Germany's most successful U-boat commanders, Joachim Schepke, gets two victories.

U-19 (Kapitänleutnant Joachim Schepke) torpedoes and sinks 1,598-ton Norwegian freighter Pluto off the southeast Scottish coast. All 22 crew survive, the ship had just left convoy HN-8 and was traveling further south unescorted. The attack is at 08:43.

U-19 quickly scores another kill, the 1,528-ton British freighter Baltanglia. It also had been in Convoy HN-8 and was traveling down the coast unescorted. All 28 crew survive and are picked up by local fishing boats. This attack is at 08:55, just a dozen minutes after the previous one. Schepke uses one torpedo on each ship.

Finnish 1,333-ton freighter Onto hits a mine laid by U-56 on 8 January 1940 and sinks near Smith's Lightvessel, Cross Sand. All 18 crew survive and are picked up by a British destroyer and a Greek freighter.

The British at Gibraltar release the US freighters Excambion and Excellency. The authorities confiscate 470 sacks of mail bound for Italy and Germany.

Britain and France jointly warn that they will attack German shipping encountered in the Pan-American neutral zone.

Convoy OA 78 GF departs from Southend.

Western Front

Performers sent to entertain the BEF troops report that the The ENSA entertainment organization is in a "chaotic muddle." ENSA officials are told to report to the War Office.

South Africa

General Hertzog, leader of the opposition, delivers a speech to the South African Parliament in support of peace which is widely interpreted as pro-Nazi. Jan Smuts immediately rebuts it.

Yugoslavia

Italian Foreign Minister Count Ciano and Ustaše leader Ante Pavelić discuss plans for an insurrection that would separate the province of Croatia from Yugoslavia. Italy considers the Balkans to be within its sphere of influence.

Japan

Japan lodges a formal protest over the British seizure of 21 German passengers on the Asama Maru on 21 January 1940.

Polish Government-in-exile

The Polish National Council meets in Paris for the first time instead of Anvers, with all Polish parties represented. Ignacy Paderewski is chosen as Speaker of the National Council of Poland, the Polish Parliament-in-exile.

British Homefront

The Government, alarmed at the sharp rise in road accidents due to the blackout (1200 killed in December alone), decides to take action: it lowers the speed limit in built-up areas during darkness from 30 mph to 20. The blackout continues despite the fact that there have been no Luftwaffe raids on British cities.

China

The Japanese 22nd Infantry Division is attacking toward Shaohsing against the 3rd Chinese War Area.

[lordroel]

Day 146 of World War II, January 24th 1940

Battle of the Atlantic

U-44 (Kapitänleutnant Ludwig Mathes) torpedoes and sinks 3,819-ton French freighter Alsacien 5 miles west of Lisbon at 11:40. Four crew perish.

U-18 (Oberleutnant zur See Ernst Mengersen) torpedoes and sinks 1,000-ton Norwegian freighter Bisp. All 14 on board perish.

U-23 (Kapitänleutnant Otto Kretschmer) has been tailing 1,085-ton Norwegian freighter Varild off northeast Scotland since 20:00 on the 23rd. Kretschmer finally gets within range and fires a torpedo, but it jams in the tube. He tries a second torpedo in another tube, but it misfires and becomes a circle-runner (kreisläufer). Kretschmer, exercising all sorts of patience, fires a third torpedo at 19:00 and it runs true. All 15 crew perish.

Yugoslavian destroyer Ljubljana runs into a reef at the port of Šibenik and sinks before it can get to shore. The Captain is arrested pending an investigation. The ship is refloated.

Convoy OB 78 departs from Liverpool, HG 16 departs from Gibraltar, SL 18 departs from Freetown.

Air War over Europe

The Luftwaffe drops four bombs on the Shetland Islands but they do no material damage.

British/ Belgian Relations

Prime Minister Chamberlain, attempting to smooth over some of the drama from the Mechelen Incident, tells Belgium that it will aid in their defense if attacked by Germany.

China

The Chinese 2d War Area captures Licheng, Tungyangkuan, and She Hsien during the continuing Chinese Winter Offensive.

[lordroel]

Day 147 of World War II, January 25th 1940

Battle of the Atlantic

There continues to be a rash of sinkings of neutral vessels, especially Norwegian ones. The British would dearly love for the Norwegians to join the fight, but they refuse to budge on their neutrality - though it is obvious they tilt toward the Allies.

U-14 (Oberleutnant zur See Herbert Wohlfarth) torpedoes and sinks 1,752-ton Norwegian freighter SS Biarritz. 36 miles northwest of Ymuiden. There is only time to launch a single lifeboat. There are 21 survivors, while 37 people perish (11 passengers, including some women, and 26 crew).

U-19 (Kapitänleutnant Joachim Schepke) continues its stellar patrol by torpedoing and sinking 4,434-ton Latvian freighter SS Everene (re-flagged as Belgian vessel Louvain) five miles off Longstone Lighthouse, Farne Islands at 09:12. There are 30 survivors, one perishes.

U-19 also torpedoes and sinks 1,300-ton Norwegian freighter SS Gudveig nearby at 09:30. There are eight survivors, ten perish. Schepke is proving adept at attacks in quick succession, which takes a bit of nerve due to the chances of being spotted and attacked himself.

U-44 (Kapitänleutnant Ludwig Mathes) torpedoes and sinks 2,769-ton French freighter SS Tourny at 04:11, 20 miles off Porto, Portugal. There are 9 survivors and 8 perish. U-44 sets up on another freighter in the same convoy (56-KS), but an escort vessel spots the U-boat and launches an unsuccessful depth-charge attack.

British destroyer HMS Exmoor is launched.

Convoy OA 79 departs from Southend, OB 79 departs from Liverpool.

Air War over Europe

A RAF reconnaissance fails to return from a mission over northwest Germany.

Occupied Poland

The "Goering-Frank Circular" is issued. All occupied territory is to be fully exploited for the benefit of the Reich. This is a top-secret document that soon finds its way to the Polish government-in-exile.

The SS selects the village of Oswiecim (Auschwitz) for construction of a concentration camp.


Belgium

The Belgian Foreign Minister rejects the 20 January 1940 appeal by First Lord of the Admiralty for neutral countries to join the Allies.

China

Chinese 3rd War Area attacks the Japanese 22nd Infantry Division west of Shaohsing.

In the Battle of South Kwangsi, Japanese units from Nanning open an offensive in the direction of Pinyang.

[lordroel]

Day 148 of World War II, January 26th 1940



Battle of the Atlantic

HMS Durham Castle, an 8,240-ton special service vessel, hits a mine laid by U-57 and sinks on 21 January 11 miles northeast of Cromarty in the North Sea. A former passenger ship owned by Union-Castle Mail SS Co. before being requisitioned by the Admiralty, Durham Castle was being towed to Scapa Flow to serve as a stores ship and floating barracks.

Convoy OG 16F forms at Gibraltar.

German/Vatican Relations

The German ambassador protests against recent Vatican broadcasts about German atrocities in Poland.

French Homefront

"Radio Traitor" Paul Ferdonnet, broadcasting propaganda in French from Stuttgart, is tried in absentia by a military tribunal.

British Homefront

The government reports that the massive evacuation of London at the beginning of the war largely has reversed itself. Half of the 734,883 children evacuated, some 316,192, have returned to their homes in London as of 8 January 1940. It is not just the absence of air raids that has brought them back, but a growing feeling that the entire war with Germany has been completely avoided.

US/Japanese Relations

The US allows the US-Japanese Treaty of Navigation and Commerce to lapse due to the continuing Japanese invasion of China.

Occupied Poland

Hans Frank decrees that Jews in occupied Poland are no longer allowed to travel on trains. Limitations also are placed on Jewish worship.

China

The Chinese 3rd War Area attacks the Japanese 22nd Infantry Division west of Shaohsing.

[lordroel]

Day 149 of World War II, January 27th 1940

Battle of the Atlantic: US freighter City of Flint arrives back in Baltimore after a historic journey that sparked repeated international incidents.

U-20 (Kapitänleutnant Harro von Klot-Heydenfeldt) goes on a wild U-boat spree, with four victories in a matter of hours. However, they are all small, empty, neutral steamers, so the effect is not as great as appears at first glance. Operating just to the east of the Orkneys, he sinks in order:

- 844 ton Norwegian SS Faro (8 men perish, 7 survive);

- 2,094 ton Danish SS Fredensborg (20 men perish);

- 2,319 ton SS England (20 men perish, one survivor);

- 1,591 ton Norwegian SS Hosanger (17 men perish, one survivor).

Klot-Heydenfeldt could have sparked wars with the neutrals by these sinkings. However, neither Norway nor Denmark is looking for a fight.

The winter waters are extremely rough on the survivors. The sole survivor of the Hosanger, Magnus Sandvik, is near death, and a crew member of the HMS Northern Reward must jump into the water to help him aboard. The Fredensborg and England are both torpedoed as they came to help the stricken Faro, which somewhat ironically does not itself sink but instead drifts ashore and was wrecked in Taracliff Bay, Deerness. The crew reboarded the Faro at one point, but her list drew the propeller out of the water, making her un-maneuverable. She then broke free of the anchor the crew set.

The British at Gibraltar detain the US freighter Cold Harbor.

Convoy OA 80G departs from Southend, and Convoy OB 80 departs from Liverpool.

German Military

Hitler okays the expanded Kriegsmarine plan for the invasion of Norway and orders preparations to begin, and the code name Weserubung is adopted - which suggests that Admiral Raeder already has the ultimate date in mind.

British Homefront

First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill, undaunted by the very mixed reviews to his previous radio address, takes to the broadcast waves again. At the Free Trade Hall in Manchester, he gives a pep talk to workers, stating: "each to our station. . . there is not a week, nor a day, nor an hour to be lost!" He almost sounds disappointed that England has not been bombed yet, which would spur the national effort.

South Africa: After five days of debate in Parliament, General Hertzog's peace resolution is defeated, 81-59. PM Jan Smuts says of Hertzog's arguments, "Goebbels could not have done it better."

China

Chinese 3rd War Area forces the Japanese 22nd Infantry Division to withdraw to Hsiao-shan.

[lordroel]

Day 150 of World War II, January 28th 1940

Battle of the Atlantic

At 02:52, U-34 (Kapitänleutnant Wilhelm Rollmann) torpedoes 5,625-ton Greek freighter Eleni Stathatou 200 miles east of Isles of Scilly in the Atlantic Ocean. It takes two torpedoes, the first only damages the freighter; the second at 04:21 finishes her off. Those are U-34's last two torpedoes, so its patrol is over. Of the crew, 12 perish.

U-44 (Kapitänleutnant Ludwig Mathes) torpedoes and sinks with one torpedo 2,980 ton Greek coal carrier Flora west of Figuera la Foz, Portugal. All 25 crewmen perish.

The 1,487-ton British freighter Eston hits a mine laid by U-22 on 20 December 1939 in the Bristol Channel and sinks. All 18 crew perish.

The British at Gibraltar detain the US freighter Sarcoxic for several hours and then send it on its way. US freighter Waban also is temporarily detained, and the British seize an item of contraband and 34 items for further investigation.

Convoy OA 81 departs from Southend, Convoy SL 18F departs from Freetown, Convoy HXF 18 departs from Halifax.

British Homefront

The Director of Censorship has been preventing publication of the details of the severe winter weather. Today, though, it allows publication. It is the coldest winter since 1894, and both the River Thames (at Kingston and between Teddington and Sunbury) and Southampton Docks have frozen over. The sea has frozen over at various points on the coast as well. London's reservoirs have a foot of ice. At Buxton, there is 18°C (33°F) of frost. Of course, the rest of Europe is suffering, too.

King George announces that court will not be held this year due to the war.

China

The Chinese 2d War Area captures Lucheng, while the Chinese 3rd War Area ceases active operations and reverts to the defensive.

[lordroel]

Day 151 of World War II, January 29th 1940

From World War II Realtime Instagram Account

French Prime Minister Edward Daladier holds his ‘nazis aim is slavery’ speech, claiming that Germanys primary intensive for waging war is creating ‘a world of masters and slaves in the image of Germany herself’. He speaks: ‘The German worker and peasant are the slaves of their Nazi masters while the worker and peasant of Bohemia and Poland have become in turn slaves of these slaves.’

Daladier holds is speech a few months after Germany occupied Poland and annexed large parts of it. ‘The domination at which the Nazis aim is not limited to the displacement of the balance of power and the imposition of supremacy of one nation. It seeks the systematic and total destruction of those conquered by Hitler, and it does not treaty with the nations which he has subdued. He destroys them. He takes from them their whole political and economic existence and seeks even to deprive them of their history and their culture. He wishes to consider them only as vital space and a vacant territory over which he has every right,’ Daladier writes.

The speech comes at at moment when Frances morale is slowly getting impacted by the idle nature of the phoney war. German and communist propaganda attacks the French army for being ill-prepared and the British for not pulling their weight. This speech is very clearly intended to battle the decline in civilian morale. The enemy is pictured as something bigger and more evil than just a military foe: ‘For us there is more to do than merely win the war. We shall win it, but we must also win a victory far greater than that of arms. In this world of masters and slaves, which those madmen who rule at Berlin are seeking to forge, we must also save liberty and human dignity.’

Battle of the Atlantic

The British Admiralty warns US ships not to enter the war zone previously established by President Roosevelt.

U-51 (Kapitänleutnant Dietrich Knorr) torpedoes and sinks 1,503-ton Norwegian freighter Eika south of Ireland out in the Atlantic at 15:00. Fourteen perish, 2 survive. Knorr states that he saw no neutral markings and that the ship was using a zig-zag pattern. At the last moment, he states, it aimed right at his U-boat and tried to ram it, so he had to sink it. The German Government sends the Norwegian Department of foreign affairs a note stating:

The circumstances leading to the torpedoing of the steamship Eika is a typical example of what the consequences can be for neutral ships when they do not pay heed to the German Government's repeated warnings against un-neutral or suspicious behaviour.

Knorr's account is disputed in all particulars. What is not disputed is that Knorr stops and carries the two survivors, Harald Støle (age 16) and Alfred Johansen, with him until returning to Bremerhaven. The two Norwegians ultimately get home after returning to port on 14 February and state they were treated well by the Captain and crew. There is a memorial in Stavern, Norway for the ship and its crew.

Luftwaffe Heinkel He 111 bombers sink two British merchant ships between the Shetlands and Kent, the Stanburn and the Leo Dawson (assumed to be the Luftwaffe). They also bomb the unarmed "East Dudgeon" lightship, killing seven of the eight-man crew when it capsizes near shore. There were other attacks on British shipping that damage and sink some smaller craft.

The British detain US freighter Exochorda at Gibraltar.

Convoy OA 82 departs from Southend, and Convoy OB 82 departs from Liverpool, while Convoy HG 17 departs from Gibraltar.

German Military

Admiral Raeder, who is leading the planning for Weserubung, declares the Friesian Islands as military security districts. All local inhabitants are removed.

German/Italian Relations

The Germans release Italian aircraft destined for Finland that they had detained.

The Polish Government-in-exile

The Polish Government-in-exile releases a report estimating that 18,000 Poles drawn from all segments of society have been executed in occupied Poland.

[lordroel]

Day 152 of World War II, January 30th 1940

Battle of the Atlantic

U-55 (Kapitänleutnant Werner Heidel), which has had an eventful patrol, attacks British convoy OA-80G 50 miles off Lands End at 07:00. First, U-55 sinks 5,026 ton British tanker SS Vaclite and evades British retribution (all 35 crew survive). After stalking the convoy some more, U-55 sinks 5,085 ton Greek freighter SS Keramiai. All 28 crew survive.

This time, however, Heidel has pressed his luck too far. British destroyers HMS Valmy, HMS Whitshed and French destroyers Valmy and Guépard, along with a Sunderland Short flying boat from No. 228 Squadron attack the U-boat. They damage the U-boat, and it surfaces long enough to allow its crew to escape. Kpt. Heidel, an aggressive (too aggressive) commander, goes down with the ship (perhaps while scuttling it personally), but everyone else, 41 of his crew, survives.

The Luftwaffe sinks British freighters Giralda, Highwave, Bancrest and Voreda.

In a case of friendly fire, German torpedo boat Iltis sees a submarine 50 miles north of Wilhelmshaven and rams it. U-15 (Kapitänleutnant Peter Frahm) goes down with all 25 hands lost.

The British at Gibraltar release US freighter Cold Harbor.

Air War over Europe

Strong Luftwaffe raids along the British coast continue. A Heinkel He shots short down near the Northumbrian coast by RAF fighters. The Heinkels attack shipping in the Great Yarmouth roadstead. Operations on both sides are hampered by poor visibility.

German Government

As is his tradition, Hitler speaks on the anniversary of his accession to power in 1933. At the Berlin Sportpalast, he makes several sharp comments about British PM Chamberlain ("pious and Bible-believing") and Premier Daladier. "They started the war, and they will get all the war they want," he says. He also reiterates a point from his "Mein Kampf" that Germany still needs Lebensraum ("living space"), which can only come in the east. The war, he hints, is now going to become more of a strategic bombing campaign, saying it will be a "war of bombs." He is particularly contemptuous of Britain's "wonderful war aims."

[lordroel]

Day 153 of World War II, January 31st 1940

Battle of the Atlantic

Totals of vessels lost in the Atlantic for January 1940 from all causes:

73 Allied ships.

214,506 tons of shipping.

2 U-boats.
Today, U-13 (Max-Martin Schulte) torpedoes and sinks 1,168 Norwegian freighter Start off of eastern Scotland just after 24:00. All 16 crew perish.

U-21 (Wolf-Harro Stiebler) torpedoes 1,353-ton Danish coal ship Vidar 100 miles east of the Moray Firth, Scotland. Sixteen people perish and there are 18 survivors. The ship remains afloat throughout the day before sinking next morning. Stiebler has to fire three torpedoes because the first two malfunction and he loses a later "kill" later when another torpedo misfires.

At Gibraltar, the British detain US passenger liner Washington for a few hours before waving it on. They also detain US freighter Jomar and release US freighter Examelia.

Convoy OA 83 GF departs Southend, OG 16 forms at Gibraltar, and Convoy HX 18 departs from Halifax.

British Military

A British commission led by Lord Hardwick and Air Ministry representatives, which has been in Italy since December, issues an order to purchase (along with marine engines, armaments, and light reconnaissance bombers) 300 Caproni-Reggiane Re.2000 Falco I. The Director of Aircraft Contracts confirms the British order today. The Falco I is a modern fighter and largely a copy of the US Seversky P-35, but the Italian Air Force itself does not like it.

A Royal Commission issues the "Barlow Report" regarding the "Distribution of the Industrial Population." The main prescription for the future is to spread out manufacturing through the creation of new towns.

British Homefront

Prime Minister Winston Chamberlain makes a speech lauding the "rising might" of Great Britain.

China

Chinese 5th War Area goes over to the defensive.

[lordroel]

Day 154 of World War II, February 1st 1940

Battle of the Atlantic

US President Roosevelt writes to his friend, First Lord of the Admiralty, and informs him that the British policy of detaining US freighters was hurting Anglo/US relations. "The general feeling is," Roosevelt writes, "that the net benefit to your people and the French is hardly worth the definite annoyance caused to us."

U-13 (Max-Martin Schulte) torpedoes 2,491 ton Swedish freighter Fram at 13:43 while it is lying at anchor in Aberdour Bay, Scotland. There are 14 survivors, and 9 perish.

U-59 (Oberleutnant zur See Harald Jürst) torpedoes and sinks 498 ton British freighter Ellen M. 20 milese northeast of Lowestoft, England at 20:44. All 9 crew members perish.

The British at Gibraltar detain US freighter Exminster, and they release US freighter Exochorda.

Convoy OB 83 departs from Liverpool, SL 19 departs from Freetown and HG 17 departs from Gibraltar.

Balkan Relations: The foreign ministers of Yugoslavia, Turkey, Romania and Greece meet Belgrade to discuss issues of mutual concern.

German Military

General Erich von Manstein, chief of staff to Army Group A, is transferred to command of German XXXVIII Korps. This is done by his superiors partly in an effort to get him away from the center of power, as his innovative ideas about Fall Gelb are not appreciated. However, Hitler has heard about them and is intrigued. The Generals' plan backfires when Hitler manages to meet with Manstein at a formal reception honoring his (and other Korps commanders') appointment, where the two chat about how to attack in the West.

British Government

The Admiralty takes control of merchant ship building and repair.

Japanese Government

The new government embarks upon a five-year rearmament program. It presents a record budget, with almost half devoted to the military.

The government also officially protests the British seizure of 21 German nationals from the Asama Maru Incident of 21 January 1940. It demand the return of the Germans.

British Homefront

The Lord Mayor's Red Cross and St. John's Fund passes the £1,000,000 level.

China

Communist leader Mao Tse-tung issues an appeal to the American Government to stand firm in its opposition to Japanese aggression.

In the dwindling Winter Offensive, Chinese 2d War Area halts operations and withdraws from the Japanese-held city of Changtze.

At the Battle of South Kwangsi, the Japanese attack around Pinyang.

The Imperial Japanese Air Force attacks Chinese airfields around Chinhua, Yushan, and Chushien.

[lordroel]

Day 155 of World War II, February 2nd 1940



From World War II Realtime Instagram Account

The members of the Balkan Pact meet in Belgrade for the last time to discuss mutual defence. See, the Balkan Entente, a cooperative treaty signed by Turkey, Greece, Yugoslavia and Romania in 1934 to form a power block against other states that played claim to entente territories, wanted to – in theory, keep the four countries as a big and neutral bufferzone during the war.

When Turkey signed the Anglo-Turkish declaration in 1939, other countries of the entente, mainly Yugoslavia, feared that bringing an outside country into the equation might provoke German, Italian or Soviet agitation – even though those countries were already quite busy establishing their influence in the region. Italy had already invaded Albania in 1939 for example. During this meeting, Turkey tried to convince the other nations that they did in fact vision a mutual defence agreement with the entente. They did not succeed.

Battle of the Atlantic

U-59 (Kapitänleutnant Harald Jürst) torpedoes and sinks 839 ton British tanker Creofield 20 miles East of Lowestoft, Suffolk, England. All 16 crew perish.

The U-59 also torpedoes and sinks 1,064 ton British freighter Portelet. There are 9 survivors and 2 perish.

British tanker Councillor hits a mine and sinks.

US light cruiser Helena, taking a shakedown cruise at Montevideo, Uruguay, sends a party to board the derelict Admiral Graf Spee and take photographs.

The French auxiliary patrol vessel FS Vaillant stops the US passenger liner Manhattan 25 miles south of Cape Vincent, Portugal. The Manhattan is ordered to proceed to Gibraltar.

Convoy OA 84 departs from Southend, while OB 84 departs from Liverpool.

The light cruiser USS Helena (CL 50), at Montevideo, Uruguay, on her shakedown cruise, sent a party to inspect the wreck of The German pocket battleship SMS Admiral Graf Spee.

China

At the Battle of South Kwangsi, the Japanese capture Pinyang and Szelung and attack Wuning.

[lordroel]

Day 156 of World War II, February 3rd 1940

Battle of the Atlantic

U-25 (Korvettenkapitän Viktor Schütze) torpedoes and sinks 6,805 ton British freighter Armanistan, which is sailing with convoy OG-16, at 14:32 100 miles west of Lisbon. Everyone on board survives and is landed on Tenerife.

U-58 (Korvettenkapitän Werner Hartmann) torpedoes and sinks 815 ton Estonian freighter Reet in the North Sea. All 18 on board perish. Hartmann is determined to get the tiny vessel, and he chases it from Stavanger, Norway almost to Aberdeen, Scotland over the course of 13 hours, ending at 09:36. He also wastes three torpedoes on it.

US passenger liner Manhattan, which was directed to Gibraltar by a French patrol, is detained there.

Convoy OA 85G departs from Southend and OG 17F forms at Gibraltar.

Air war over Europe

The Luftwaffe continues its attacks on British shipping, sending 20 Heinkel He 111 bombers. The sink two ships, but lose three of their own number to RAF fighter sweeps. One crashes in Yorkshire, the other in the sea off the River Tyne. The British minesweeper HMS Sphinx (Commander John R. N. Taylor) is hit and heavily damaged, but not taking on water. Taken in tow by fellow minesweeper HMS Speedwell, she eventually capsizes and sinks in heavy seas. There are 41-54 dead (accounts vary), including Commander Taylor.

China

The First Battle of Wuyuan begins, as Japanese forces brush aside the Chinese 8th War Area forces and capture Wuyuan.

At the Battle of South Kwangsi, Japanese forces capture Tsouhsu and attack Wuning, while a Chinese counterattack takes Kantang and Kula. This poses a threat to the lead Japanese formations.