military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (05/08/91)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Wednesday, 7 May, 1941 German bombers conclude their long series of attacks on Liverpool. Damage there has been heavy, with 1450 killed and 1100 wounded. Over 76,000 have been left homeless and 33 ships sunk or damaged. The Luftwaffe now shifts its attention to Hull. British destroyers find and capture the German weather ship Muenchen in the Arctic Ocean. Weather reports from this region are vital to the conduct of air and naval operations over Britain and the North Sea. Moreover, the ship's Enigma coding machine and cipher book are captured, helping Britain break the German naval code. British battleships shell Benghazi harbor, sinking two ships there. Parliament affirms its confidence in Winston Churchill by a vote of 447 to 3. The US House of Representatives votes to allow the transfer to Great Britain of foreign ships interned in US ports. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@att.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "Stop and think what it would mean if the bridge of ships were not maintained and if Britain starved. Contemplate that black picture." - US Secretary of the Navy Knox