military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (06/06/91)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Saturday, 7 June, 1941 A night raid on Alexandria, the second in four days, leave 230 dead, and the Egyptian government begins an evacuation of 40,000 civilians from the city. RAF bombers meanwhile attack Brest, where the battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau and the cruiser Prinz Eugen, now representing the main bulk of Germany's surface fleet, lie harbored. This is the beginning of an ongoing effort to cripple these ships. Berlin accuses President Roosevelt of trying to provoke Germany into providing an excuse for American entry into the war. The newest American battleship, USS South Dakota, is launched. Her place on the ways is immediately taken by the keel of the cruiser USS Santa Fe. References: C.Argyle, _Chronology of World War II_ R.Dupuy and T.Dupuy, _The Encyclopedia of Military History_ R.Goralski, _World War II Almanac, 1931-1945_ J.Keegan, ed., _The Times Atlas of the Second World War_ C.Messenger, _Atlas of World War Two_ J.Piekalkiewicz, _Tank War 1939-1940_ Royal Institute of International Affairs, _Chronology of the Second World War_ C.Salmaggi and A.Pallavisini, _2194 Days of War_ Brig. P.Young, _The World Almanac of World War II_ The New York Times, daily editions Time magazine Newsweek -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@att.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "It would seem scarcely believable that the French Government at Vichy should adopt the policy of collaboration with other powers for the purpose of aggression and oppression -- despite indications appearing in our preliminary reports." - US Secretary of State Cordell Hull