Chronology of World War II

Thursday, August 1, 1940

From Berlin... Hitler issues his Directive 17 on the invasion of Britain. The army plans have now been revised to take some note of naval problems and on account of these it is laid down that preparations are to be complete by September 15th for the operation to take place between the 19th and 26th. The order is to be given about 14 days after the main Luftwaffe offensive to gain air supremacy has begun.

In Tokyo... A public policy declaration is made concerning Japan's support for a "New Order" in East Asia.

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

Friday, August 2, 1940

In the Mediterranean... The carrier Ark Royal with Force H attacks the Italian base on Sardinia at Cagliari. The old carrier Argus which is also based on Gibraltar, is at sea to fly off a cargo of Hurricane fighter aircraft to Malta.

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

In London... Lord Beaverbrook, Minister of Aircraft Production is taken into the inner circle of Churchill's War Cabinet.

Saturday, August 3, 1940

In East Africa... The Italians invade British Somaliland. In Abyssinia the Italians have a total force of 350,000 men of whom 70 percent are native troops. The British forces in East Africa, also including many colonial troops, are less than 25,000 men of whom only four battalions are in Somaliland. The Italians allot seven times this force to the invasion along with an overwhelmingly superior artillery contingent. General Nasi is in command. There are three main lines of advance: toward Zeila in the north, Hargeisa in the center and Odweina on the right.

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

Sunday, August 4, 1940

In the Mediterranean... British Force H leaves Gibraltar for home waters to counter the German invasion threat.

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

Monday, August 5, 1940

In East Africa... Zeila in the north of British Somaliland and Hargeisa on the main road to Berbera are both taken by the Italians.

In Berlin... The first operational plans for the German invasion of the Soviet Union are presented to General Halder, the Chief of Staff at OKH, by one of his officers, General Marcks. They envisage a two-pronged attack with the major effort being directed toward Moscow and a minor advance being made toward Kiev. Work continues on the plans at both OKH and OKW.

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

Tuesday, August 6, 1940

In the Mediterranean... The Italians place extensive minefields in the Sicilian Channel.

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

In East Africa... Odweina is taken by the Italians.

Wednesday, August 7, 1940

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

In East Africa... The last reinforcements (the 2nd Battalion of the Black Watch) reach British Somaliland

Thursday, August 8, 1940

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping. On this day the Germans lose 31 planes and the RAF 20. Overall the losses are less favorable for the Luftwaffe. Between August 1st and 10th the Luftwaffe loses 62 aircraft while the RAF loses 27.

Friday, August 9, 1940

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

In London... The British government announces that it is abandoning the British presence in Shanghai and Tientsin province, in China. The forces concerned move out later in the month. Also, General de Gaulle announces that he has the support of the French New Hebrides colony. [Later in the month Chad, French Equatorial Africa, Cameroon and several of the French Pacific islands also declare for the Free French. The leader of the Free French forces who brings Cameroon over to de Gaulle is Captain de Hautecloque who will later change his name and be better known as Leclerc. This is in order to avoid persecution of his family. Another prominent officer who joins de Gaulle is General Larminat who is in command at Brazzaville.]

Saturday, August 10, 1940

In London... The decision is taken to send a large part of the country's total stock of tanks out to the Middle East although there is the threat of a German invasion. Churchill takes much of the credit for this brave decision which, although not his idea, is necessarily carried out on his instructions.

In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.

Sunday, August 11, 1940

In East Africa... In British Somaliland the Italians advance to and attack the main British positions on the Hargeisa-Berbera road at Tug Argan. General Godwin-Austen has arrived to command the British force.

Over Britain... There are German air raids on Weymouth and Portland. The RAF loses 32 planes and the Luftwaffe 38.

Monday, August 12, 1940

In East Africa... A British mission is sent into Abyssinia from the Sudan to organize resistance, especially in the Gojjam district, and to prepare for the return of the emperor to the country. The mission is led by a Colonel Sandford and one of the officers later employed on this task will be Major Wingate.

In the Soviet Union... The power of the commissars in the Rea Army is reduced. Formal military ranks are restored and the military commanders are made solely responsible for operational decisions.

Over Britain... There are German raids on Portsmouth and the British airfields in Kent at Manston, Lympne and Hawkinge. The radar station at Ventnor on the Isle of Wight is attacked and damaged, putting it out of action for two weeks. This leaves a significant gap in British radar cover. The Germans fully understand the technical capabilities of radar, but they do not envisage that its contribution to fighter defense can be as great as is in fact the case. The Germans believe too that the radar masts are more difficult to destroy than they really are. The losses for the day are 22 British and 31 German.

Tuesday, August 13, 1940

Over Britain... This is Adlertag (Eagle Day) which is to mark the beginning of the all-out Luftwaffe offensive against the RAF. The German objective is to cripple the British defenses and clear the sky over southern England within four days and, then, to eliminate RAF resistance completely within four weeks. The events of Eagle Day go strongly in favor of the RAF. The Germans fly about 1500 sorties, 1000 by fighters, and the British about 700 exclusively by fighters. The Germans lose 45 planes, the British only 13 and from these six pilots are able to return to their units and new machines.

Wednesday, August 14, 1940

In the United States... Sir Henry Tizard heads a British scientific mission to the United States, carrying with him details of all of Britain's most advanced thinking in several vital fields. There are ideas on jet engines, explosives, gun turrets and above all a little device called the cavity magnetron. This valve is vital for the development of more advanced types of radar, including the versions used in proximity fuses later and the types working on centimetric wavelengths which will be vital at sea in the U-boat war. The US Official History will later describe this collection as the "most valuable cargo ever brought to our shores."

Over Britain... The weather is less good for flying, and the Luftwaffe confines itself to small-scale operations which include raids on Hastings and Southampton. About 500 sorties are flown by each side. The RAF loses eight planes, the German 19.

Thursday, August 15, 1940

From Berlin... Goring takes two significant decisions. He decides that because the RAF has been so reduced in strength it is wasting effort to continue to attack any radar stations. This seems to contradict his other decision that the escorting fighters must fly a considerable portion of their strength very close to the bomber formations because of bomber casualties and poor morale among their crews. This drastically reduces the fighter's effectiveness and increases the number needed to escort each raid. It is strongly resented by the fighter pilots.

Over Britain... The Germans fly almost 1800 sorties, the greatest number they will achieve during the battle, and the RAF almost 1000. The attacks of Kesselring and Sperrle from northern France are joined according to plan by Stumpff's forces from Norway and Denmark which send attacks against targets in northeast England. The distances to be flown here prevent any Me109s from giving cover, and the Me110s which are sent to fill the escort's role have to be fitted with extra fuel tanks in lieu of the rear gunners, further reducing their already limited combat capability. The Luftwaffe believes that because of the earlier attacks Dowding will have been forced to station all his few remaining fighters in the south and will have nothing left to meet this assault. In fact the Germans suffer heavily, losing 23 aircraft from a force of about 150, shooting no enemy aircraft down and doing little damage with their bombs. In the south the day's events are much less one-sided. In several engagements the RAF comes off worse but not all. By the end of the day the overall score shows the RAF as having lost 34 planes, all fighters, and the Germans 75 altogether. Several RAF airfields have been damaged but not yet seriously enough to prevent rapid repairs.

In East Africa... The British forces begin to pull out of their positions around Tug Argan in British Somaliland after a notable defense.

Friday, August 16, 1940

Over Britain... The Luftwaffe flies 1715 sorties and the RAF 776. In the fighting the Germans lose 45 planes and the British 21 in the air and a number on the ground. Among the targets attacked by the Germans are several Fighter Command airfields and these are quite heavily damaged.

In Berlin... Hitler intervenes in the quarrel between his army and naval staffs as to whether the invasion of Britain should be conducted on a broad front, as the army prefers or the narrow front more suited to naval limitations. He orders them to reach a compromise. The army has previously talked of using 40 divisions in the first three days of the operation, but now consider using 13.

Over Italy... The RAF sends attacks against Fiat works in Turin and the Caproni works in Milan.

In Washington... Roosevelt announces that there have been conversations with the UK on the acquisition of bases for western hemisphere defense. He does not disclose as yet that Britain wants some old US destroyers in return.

In East Africa... In British Somaliland the British forces begin to embark at Berbera for evacuation to Aden.

Saturday, August 17, 1940

In the Mediterranean... Admiral Cunningham leads three battleships and several other vessels of the British Mediterranean Fleet to bombard the Italian positions at Bardia and Fort Capuzzo. Air attacks on the ships are beaten off.

Over Germany... The RAF sends a raid against the armament works at Leuna. Although at this stage of the war the RAF intends to hit only military targets, it cannot achieve the necessary accuracy in night bombing.

In Greece... Following recently increased tension with Italy, the Greek armed forces are partially mobilized with a call-up in some districts. Among the provocations is the sinking of the Greek cruiser Helle by an Italian submarine.

Over Britain... There are no major German attacks even though the weather is reasonably good. In response to pleas from Dowding the Air Ministry agrees to give Fighter Command some extra pilots from other RAF branches and to shorten the training period for new pilots even though this has obvious disadvantages.

Sunday, August 18, 1940

Over Britain... The Germans make another big effort. Their targets are still mostly airfields but not all the attacks are well organized. Biggin Hill escapes comparatively lightly, but Kenley is so disrupted that part of the fighter force has to be withdrawn to another airfield. The Germans lose very heavily, 71 aircraft to Fighter Command's 27. The British originally claim that 155 have been shot down. Owing to heavy losses the Ju87 Stuka dive-bomber is withdrawn from attacks on targets inland.

Monday, August 19, 1940

In East Africa... The evacuation of British forces from Berbera to Aden is completed. Altogether nearly 5700 service personnel and civilians are taken off by Royal Navy cruisers and destroyers. The British have suffered 260 casualties in the brief campaign and the Italian forces 2050. Churchill criticizes the performance of the British forces despite the balance. They are defended, however, by General Wavell, whose Middle East command they are part of.

Tuesday, August 20, 1940

From London... Churchill produces another of his famous fighting speeches. His message is a tribute to the RAF fighter pilots: "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few." In addition, and of more concrete importance to the course of the war, is an official announcement that bases will be leased to the United States.

Wednesday, August 21, 1940

In Mexico... Leon Trotsky is assassinated in Mexico City. Trotsky has been an enemy of Stalin throughout the latter's career, and it seems that the assassin has been working on Soviet orders.

Thursday, August 22, 1940

In the English Channel... German artillery bombards a coastal convoy, near Dover, for 80 minutes without achieving any hits. In the evening, the guns bombard the town of Dover in England. A British 14-inch gun returns fire in what is the first of many cross-Channel artillery duels.

Friday, August 23, 1940

In Moray Firth... Off the eastern coast of Scotland, German He115 seaplanes, armed with torpedoes, sink 2 cargo ships and damage a third.

In the Mediterranean... The British destroyer Hostile is sunk by an Italian mine in the Sicilian Channel.

Saturday, August 24, 1940

Over Britain...After a lull of five days of poor weather the Germans again resume major operations. Their bombers now have really strong escorts and it is in consequence very difficult for the British fighters to get among the formations. The small airfield at Manston is so badly damaged that it cannot be used. There is also a damaging attack on Portsmouth. The losses for the day are nearer the figures required by the Germans, with the Luftwaffe losing 38 and the RAF 22. During the night the Germans continue their efforts, sending 170 bombers on various missions. Some of these, unable to find their targets, scatter their bombs aimlessly on south London despite specific orders to avoid this -- a serious and significant error. During the night only two German bombers are lost.

Sunday, August 25, 1940

Over Britain... The main German attack is against the fighter airfield at Warmwell. The attack is heavily escorted and, despite powerful British fighter forces being sent, the Germans only lose one bomber and each side loses 11 fighters. In total the Germans lose 20 aircraft and the British 16. This ratio favors the Germans in the long run. During the night the Germans attack Birmingham and other targets.

Over Germany... In response to the events of the previous night the RAF bombs Berlin. This is something of a shock to the German leaders who have claimed extravagantly that this is impossible.

Monday, August 26, 1940

Over Britain... The German attacks continue. They send three major raids against RAF airfields and one on Portsmouth. One of the airfield raids gets through almost undamaged but all the others are heavily engaged by the RAF. The day's losses are 31 RAF fighters and 19 German bombers and 26 fighters. According to the original timetable Hitler ought to decide now whether the invasion should be attempted.

Tuesday, August 27, 1940

In Iceland... The Costal Command of the RAF establishes an air base to help in convoy protection. At this stage there are only outdated Fairey Battle aircraft situated there, but this base will soon expand.

Wednesday, August 28, 1940

Over Britain... After a lull on the 27th, the Germans attack again. They lose 30 aircraft and Fighter Command 20. One attack is made by fighters alone and the British commanders are tricked into engaging it on the assumption that it is a mixed formation. During the night there is the first of a series of four raids on Liverpool. Around 160 aircraft are sent each night.

In the North Atlantic... The British armed merchant cruiser Dunvegan Castle is sunk by a German U-boat.

Thursday, August 29, 1940

Over Britain... There are more German fighter sweeps but no major efforts by the daytime bomber force. The losses are 17 German and nine British aircraft.

Friday, August 30, 1940

Over Britain... The Germans attack airfields in Kent and an aircraft factory at Luton. The important Biggin Hill sector station is severely hit as is the Luton airport. The Germans lose 36 planes and the RAF 26.

In Germany... A German sponsored conference concludes in Vienna. Hungary and Bulgaria have been recently trying to pick quarrel with Romania so that, following the example of the USSR, they can seize portions of Romanian territory. The Germans do not wish their grain and oil supplies to be threatened by a Balkan war and, therefore, intervene to adjudicate the dispute. A conference is called at Vienna and by the Vienna Award Hungary is given a large part of Transylvania and Bulgaria is given southern Dobruja. Romania can only acquiesce.

In Berlin... Hitler announces that he will make a decision on Operation Sealion (the invasion of England) about September 10th. This will mean that the landings will be on September 21st.

Saturday, August 31, 1940

Over Britain... The Germans maintain their concentrated attacks on the British airfields. Biggin Hill is almost put out of action and Debden and Hornchurch are severely hit. The RAF loses 39 aircraft in the air and several more are hit on the ground. The Luftwaffe losses are 41. Goring is now in measurable distance of achieving his objective of air superiority over southeast England. The RAF airfields at Biggin Hill, Manston, West Malling, Lympne and Hawkinge are all more or less out of the fight. There are only two RAF sector stations in commission south of the Thames and three more airfields which might be used for that role. There is no reason why these might not be similarly damaged, three having already been hit. This is the RAF's most difficult period of the battle.