military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (06/06/90)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Tuesday, 4 June, 1940 A few hours after the destroyer Shikari leaves Dunkirk, German troops capture the remainder of the trapped soldiers, some 40,000 men, mostly Frenchmen. Operation Dynamo suceeded in rescuing some 338,226 men, about 120,000 of them French or Belgian. Against this amazing effort is weighed the cost of the operation: 243 vessels of various types sunk and many more damaged and 106 RAF fighters lost (including 87 pilots killed or captured) and another 70 Frengh aircraft downed (versus 140 German planes destroyed). Left behind are 2500 guns, 84,000 vehicles, 76,000 tons of ammunition, and nearly 600,000 tons of fuel and supplies. Britain is virtually disarmed by the loss. Only about 500 guns remain on the isle, many of them antiques. Churchill speaks before the House of Commons, pledging Britain's determination to continue and win the war. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@cbnews.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France; we shall fight on the seas and oceans; we shall fight with growing confidence of strength in the air; we shall fight on the beaches; we shall fight on the landing grounds; we shall fight in the fields, streets, and hills. We shall never surrender and even if - which I do not for a moment believe - this island or a large part of it is subjugated and starving, then our empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, will carry on the struggle until in God's good time the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the liberation and rescue of the Old." - Prime Minister Winston Churchill
military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (06/06/90)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Wednesday, 5 June, 1940 German forces launch "Fall Rot" (Operation Red), the second phase of the French campaign. 119 German divisions stand ready to attack the remaining 65 French and 1 British divisions. The Allies defend along the Somme and Aisne rivers, informally known as the "Weygand Line", and flanked to the east by the Maginot Line. The river lines have been well prepared, with fortified villages at key points, and the defenders fight vigorously despite intense German air and artillery bombardment. The initial blow falls in western France, where Hoth's panzercorp leads the crossing at several Somme bridgeheads. In the east, German tanks are still reforming after their return from the Channel coast. Hauptman (Captain) Werner Moelders, Germany's leading fighter ace, is shot down newar Compiegne and captured by French troops. Premier Reynaud again shuffles his cabinet; former Premier Daladier leaves the government, while Charles de Gaulle is appointed Under-Secretary for Defense. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@cbnews.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "Let the thoughts of our country's sufferings inspire in you the firm resolve to resist. The fate of the nation and the future of our children depend on your determination." - General Maxime Weygand
military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (08/29/90)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Thursday, 29 August, 1940 German increases the number of fighter sweeps over Britain, employing over 700 Messerschmitts in this role. British fighters avoid the German fighters, conserving themselves for bombers. The day's losses are 17 German to 9 British. The South African air force enters the war by launching attacks Italian Somaliland. German high command explains that anti-aircraft fire was ineffective during the British raid on Berlin because the RAF bombers are painted with a special varnish which makes them invisible to searchlights. Moscow files protests over alleged provocations by Rumanian troops. The USSR warns that further incidents would not be tolerated. The US Senate passes a $5 billion defense bill. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@att.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "But I want to emphasize that replacement of Roosevelt, even if it were by the most patriotic leadership that could be found, would cause Hitler to rejoice." - Henry A. Wallace
military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (04/20/91)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Sunday, 20 April, 1941 The Greek forces in Albania and western Greece surrender. In Ahmedabad, Bombay, a riot breaks out between Sikhs and Moslems, leaving 400 dead and injured. A flight of 90 German aircraft raid Athens, and are intercepted by a group of RAF Hurricanes. 15 German aircraft and 7 Hurricanes are shot down, and Britain's leading ace, Squadron Leader Pattle (41 victories) is killed. Three British battleships, together with their escorts, bombard Tripoli by night, damaging seven Axis ships and starting fires in the oil storage facilities there. HMS Valiant strikes a mine and is damaged while returning to Alexandria. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@att.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "We have heard a great deal about the German victories being due to their mechanized force. Will not history books of the future credit the French victory at the Marne in the World War to their use of "mechanized force" ? Was not the "taxicab" army of the French the fore-runner of the present mobile troops ?" - Lary Rogers, in a letter to the New York Times
military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (06/28/91)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Saturday, 28 June, 1941 Fighting continues for the citadel at Brest-Litovsk, where a Russian garrison has held out for nearly a week. German bombers attack the fortress with 1800-kg bombs. The second phase of the double encirclement of the Bialystok pocket is concluded when two pincers meet at Minsk, 200 miles within the USSR. Three Soviet armies, the bulk of the defense in the north center of the front, are trapped within. Rapid progress continues along the front, and Finnish troops attack across the 1940 armistice border. Some 3800 Lithuanian Jews are killed in a pogrom in Kaunas. Albania, an Italian protectorate, declares war on the Soviet Union. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker Moderator, sci.military military-request@att.att.com (614) 860-5294 Send submissions to military@att.att.com "We are still training for a 1917 war." - Hanson W. Baldwin, reporting for the New York Times