Category Archives: 1942

SECOND WORLD WAR

October 1942

(Britain)

Twelve British commandos conducted Operation Basalt, a raid on the German occupied island of Sark on the 3/4th October 1942. The Channel Islands, which included Sark, had been invaded and occupied by the Germans since July 1940. Reconnaissance and capturing Germans as prisoners were the object of the raid. For further details of the raid and German Führer Adolf Hitler’s reaction see the separate article “U. K. Commando raid on Sark – Oct ‘42”. The successful raid provided the U.K. with useful undisclosed information regarding the German occupation of the Channel Islands.

The U.S. 1st Armoured Division, nicknamed “Old Ironsides”, moved from Northern Ireland to England on the 29th October 1942. The 1st Armoured Division was the first U.S. armoured division to see battle in the Second World War. In 1940 the 7th Cavalry Brigade was reorganised and expanded into the 1st Armoured Division. The division comprised tanks, artillery and infantry which was supported by tank destroyers, medical teams, supply teams and engineering battalions. Training began in the U.S. prior to America’s entry into the war until May 1942 when they deployed overseas to Northern Ireland. They further trained on the moors of Northern Ireland until the division, now commanded by Major General Orlando Ward, crossed the Irish Sea to England.

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(Atlantic)

In the early hours of the 14th October 1942 S.S. Caribou was sunk by a German U-boat in the North Atlantic. Caribou was a Newfoundland Railway passenger ferry that ran between Port aux Basques in Newfoundland and North Sydney, Nova Scotia. Caribou was about 60 km from her destination of Port aux Basques when she was spotted by German U-boat U-69, who was patrolling the area on the surface under the cover of darkness. Minesweeper HMCS Grandmére was screening Caribou from astern and both vessels were sailing without lights. Also in accordance with wartime regulations a constant change of course was employed. Remaining on the surface U-69 moved ahead of the two ships. At approximately 3.30am U-69 fired a torpedo at a range of 650 metres which struck Caribou amidships. The boiler exploded causing instantaneous and catastrophic damage includirng many lifeboats and rafts. Within minutes Caribou sank. Passengers and crew, many of whom were in their nightclothes, were in the water where they clung to any piece of debris available. A lucky few were able to scramble aboard the remaining lifeboats and rafts but survival was not guaranteed. After the torpedo struck Caribou, U-69 was briefly seen on the surface by Grandmére, who turned in order to ram her. U-69 immediately dived and managed to escape despite Grandmére dropping a pattern of depth charges. The minesweeper, whose radar was rudimentary, fired additional depth charges whenever fleeting contact was established. After about 2 hours Grandmére’s Captain Lieutenant James Cuthbert returned to pick up survivors. He managed to locate and pick up 103 survivors although two were to die later. At about 8.30am several other warships and Newfoundland fishing vessels took up the search for survivors. In total 31 crew and 136 passengers lost their lives. One of the survivors was Naval Nursing Sister Margaret Brooke who tried in vain to save the life of Nursing Sister Agnes Wilkie. For this act of compassion Sister Brooke was later made a Member of the Order of the British Empire.

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(Germany)

On the 3rd October 1942, a German rocket was successfully launched at Peenemunde, an island off Germany’s Baltic coast. German scientists had been developing these rockets since the 1930s. Three previous trial launches had ended in failure. Once launched the rocket travelled for 118 miles. With the successful launching the scientists, led by Wernher von Braun, developed the rocket into the deadly V-2 missile. Virtually impossible to intercept once launched, it would rise 6 miles vertically before proceeding on to an arched course. Dependant on the desired range the fuel supply would cut off.  The missile would tip over and fall onto its target at a speed of 4,000 mph. hitting the ground at such a force it would bury itself several feet before its 1 ton warhead exploded. With a potential of 200 miles range and the launching pads having been designed to be portable they would be almost impossible to detect before being launched. The first offensive launches did not occur until September 1944.

On the 18th October 1942 when Führer Adolf Hitler learnt of Operation Basalt he was furious. Operation Basalt was the successful British commando raid on the Channel Island of Sark. For details of Hitler’s fury and the U.K.’s involvement of events see the “U.K. Commando raid on Sark – Oct ‘42”.

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(Mediterranean and Desert War)

The Second Battle of El Alamein began on the 23rd October 1942 and ended on the 11th November 1942. Prior to the battle Field Marshall Erwin Rommel, commander of the Afrika Korps left North Africa for medical treatment in Germany on the 23rd September 1942. General Georg Stumme was given command as his replacement and his orders were to carry out Rommel’s directive. On the 13th August 1942 Lt. Gen. Bernard Montgomery was appointed as a replacement for General Claude Auchinleck as commander of the Eighth Army.

The First Battle of El Alamein was effectively ended on the 19th September 1942 when the Allies failed to recapture Tobruk from the Axis. The 64km (40 mile) stretch of desert extended from the coast in the north to the Qattara Depression in the south. The defensive line, set up by the Axis powers, was contested by the Afrika Korps to the west and the British Eighth Army to the east. Whilst the Allies were able reinforce their troops the Axis were awaiting hopeful replacements from the Eastern Front which never materialised. Rommel had laid an anti-tank minefield approximately in the centre of the line with tanks positioned either side. The Allies armoured army was distributed fairly evenly along the line. Montgomery had planned the battle to be the opposite of what was expected by the Axis. He used deception successfully by creating a fake flotilla of tanks and building a mock fuel pipeline to convince the Axis powers they would attack northward in a bid to cut off German armour.

By the 23rd October 1942 Montgomery had assembled a powerful multinational Allied force. On the night of the 23rd he launched Operation Lightfoot, a 1,000-gun barrage along the line which lasted for five and half hours. Part of the operation entailed the infantry attacking the minefield, which was named Devil’s Gardens. The anti-tank mines were not tripped by the infantry since they were too light.

 

Following the infantry, engineers cleared a path for the following tanks. The task was difficult and the desired outcome was not achieved because the depth of the Axis minefield was greater than expected. However, Montgomery ordered the clearance of the minefield be completed after an air reconnaissance showed very little change in the Axis tank formations. The plan was to break through the minefield but German Panzers attacked the British tanks who were stopped in their tracks on the 24th October1942 despite having penetrated 6 miles into the minefields. However, on the morning of the 24th October 1942 the German High Command were stunned by the British attack. During the ensuing battle General Stumme went forward to investigate and suffered a heart attack and died. Still not fully recovered Rommel hurriedly returned from his sickbed in Germany to yet again take charge of the Afrika Korps on the 25th October 1942. Rommel was forced into a more defensive role due to lack of fuel combined with the lack of much needed reinforcements. By the 31st October 1942 British were in a position to make a critical breakthrough and end the Second Battle of El Alamein on the 11th November 1942.       

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American General Mark Clark secretly landed in Algeria on the 20th October 1942.  The North African countries of Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia were part of the French colonial empire. They were formally aligned with Germany via Vichy France. In order to provide a pincer operation against the Axis powers in Libya the Allies proposed to attack these countries. With the British forces advancing from Egypt the Allies were confident the desert war could be ended. However, the loyalties of the colonial population in Algeria was mixed. Gibraltar based American General, Dwight D. Eisehower, as supreme commander of the Allied forces in the Mediterranean, was keen to capitalise on the situation. To gauge the mood of the Vichy French forces the American consulate to Algeria was successful in contacting French officers who were willing to support the Allies. The Vichy French officers requested a clandestine conference with a senior Allied General and Eisenhower dispatched senior commander General Clark aboard a submarine for a meeting in Algeria on the 20th October 1942. The meeting was concluded on the 22nd October 1942 when Clark returned to Gibraltar by submarine. The outcome was Operation Torch which began in November 1942. The Americans did not inform the Vichy French authorities for fear the French would object. The objection is likely to have been a grudge with Britain over the attack on the French Navy whilst at anchor in the harbour of Mers-el-Kébir thus preventing the Germans acquiring the vessels.

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(Pacific)

On Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands American Marines suffered a defeat by the Japanese by which they barely escaped. This was the first “Battle along the Matanikau” fought from the 23rd to 27th September 1942. A second action involving a far larger force of Marines successfully crossed the Matanikau River on the 7th October 1942. The Japanese had reinforced their troops in preparation for their planned major offensive against U. S. defences. The U.S. Marines attacked the newly landed troops and inflicted heavy losses which forced the Japanese from their position east of the Matanikau on the 9th October 1942.

In an effort to expand the Japanese forces on Guadalcanal it was necessary to operate “Tokyo Express” runs, to deliver troops from the 2nd Infantry Division based at Rabaul in Papua New Guinea. The “Tokyo Express” employed destroyers to deliver Japanese troops instead of the slow moving transports. Whilst the destroyers were able to reach Guadalcanal and return in a single night, most of the heavy equipment and supplies had to use the slow-moving transports.

Immediate reinforcements of U.S. Marines were urgently needed to defend the island against the next expected Japanese attack. On the 8th October 1942 nearly 3,000 men of the American 164th Infantry Regiment boarded ships at New Caledonia were expected to land at Guadalcanal on the 13th October 1942. Four cruisers and five destroyers escorted the ships carrying the U.S. Marines whose brief was to intercept and engage any Japanese ships approaching Guadalcanal.

The Japanese scheduled a large “Tokyo Express” run for the 11th October 1942 consisting of two seaplane tenders and five destroyers who would deliver 728 soldiers plus artillery and ammunition to the island. Running concurrently but in a separate mission three Japanese heavy cruisers and two destroyers were preparing to bombard Henderson Field whose objective was to destroy the airfield and airfield facilities.

On the night of the 11th October 1942 the U.S. escort vessels detected the Japanese vessels and the Battle of Cape Esperance commenced. The Japanese had not expected opposition as there had not been any attempt to oppose any of the “Tokyo Express” mission to Guadalcanal previously. With the U.S. warships in position they opened fire on the unsuspecting Japanese formation. One of the Japanese cruisers and one of the destroyers were sunk with another cruiser heavily damaged. With the mortal wounding of Rear Admiral Aritomo Goto, as commander of the Henderson Field attack force, the remainder of the ships abandoned the bombardment mission and retreated. One U.S. destroyer was sunk and one cruiser plus one destroyer was badly damaged during the exchange of gunfire.

In the meantime the “Tokyo Express” supply convoy began their return journey after successfully unloading their supplies on Guadalcanal without being discovered. On the morning of the 12th October 1942 four destroyers from the Japanese supply column turned back to assist the retreating Henderson Field damaged warships. Attacks by aircraft from Henderson Field sank two of these destroyers later in the day. The convoy of U.S. Marines arrived on the 13th October 1942 at Guadalcanal as scheduled and successfully delivered all the reinforcements.

Despite these reinforcements they were insufficient to repel the expected Japanese attack being delivered by the large “Tokyo Express” and supply convoy. The U.S. Guadalcanal Campaign was only just hanging on around Henderson Field. On the 18th October 1942 Admiral William Halsey arrived at Area Headquarters in Nouméa in New Caledonia. He was handed an order from Pacific Fleet Commander Chester Nimitz to take command of the South Pacific Area and South Pacific forces.

Despite the U.S. victory at the Battle of Cape Esperance, the Japanese continued their plan for the large offensive later in October 1942. Two Japanese battleships, one light cruiser and nine destroyers were sent to protect the slow-moving transports carrying the heavy equipment and supplies. By the 14th October 1942 they reached Guadalcanal and opened fire on Henderson Field. The bombardment lasted over an hour by which time both the runways were heavily damaged. 41 men were killed, 48 of the 90 aircraft were destroyed on the ground and most of the available aviation fuel was burnt. Upon completion of the bombardment the battleships immediately retired.

One of the runways was soon restored to operational condition by the efforts of the Henderson Fields personnel. 37 aircraft were quickly flown to the airfield as replacements and both Army and Marine transport aircraft began to supply aviation fuel. Aware of the Japanese reinforcement supply convoy which arrived at Guadalcanal at midnight on the 14th October 1942, U.S. aircraft bombed and strafed the unloading convoy. Three cargo ships were destroyed and the remainder departed whilst still having approximately one-third of the supplies still on board. In the meantime several Japanese heavy cruisers bombarded Henderson Field but apart from a few aircraft destroyed they failed to cause further damage to the airfield.  

The Japanese continued to deliver troops to their base west of the Matanikau River for their planned offensive against Henderson Field, despite the Marines success at Cape Esperance east of Matanikau. The offensive was scheduled for the 23rd October 1942, and with 20,000 troops at their disposal the Japanese decided the attack would be from the south of Henderson Field. Departing on the 12th October 1942 Japanese engineers began the 15 mile long (24km) trail called the “Maruyama Road” toward Henderson Field. The trail traversed dense jungle, steep ridges, numerous rivers/streams and muddy ravines which was some of the most difficult terrain on Guadalcanal. On the 16th October 1942 approximately 7,000 Japanese troops began the march through the jungle and finally arrived at the airfield’s southern perimeter on the 24th October 1942. The Americans, at that time, were unaware of the approaching Japanese troops. To distract the Americans from the planned southern attack, two battalions of the Japanese 4th Infantry Regiment and nine tanks attacked the U.S. Marine defences at the mouth of the Matanikau from the west. The attack was repulsed and all nine tanks were destroyed over the next two days. More than 1,500 Japanese troops were killed with the U.S. Marines suffering the loss of 60 troops. There were approximately 23,000 American troops on the island as against the Japanese estimate of 10,000. The southern attack force, having marched through the jungle, arrived at the perimeter of Henderson Field on the 24th October 1942 and conducted numerous frontal assaults. The Japanese suffered heavy losses and by the 26th October 1942 further attacks were called off. Coupled with the defeat of the western distraction attack the Japanese were ordered to retreat back to their base. They began arriving at their bases west of the Matanikau on the 4th November 1942, their forces having been decimated by battle deaths, injuries, malnutrition and topical diseases. For the rest of the Guadalcanal Campaign the Japanese fought as a defensive force along the coast as they were incapable of further offensive action, The battle for Henderson Field cost the Japanese 2,200- 3.000 killed whilst the Americans lost a total of approximately 80.

At the same time that Japanese troops were attacking the U.S. Marines at Guadalcanal, Japanese aircraft carriers and other large warships assembled near the southern Solomon Islands. Newly promoted Commander of the South Pacific forces, Admiral Halsey had hoped to meet the Japanese naval forces in battle. On the 26th October 1942 the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands commenced when the two opposing carrier forces confronted each other. Both sides launched search aircraft and located each other’s naval forces about the same time. Japanese aircraft attacked the American carrier force and sank one carrier and severely damaged another. They also sank one destroyer and severely damaged two others which forced the American fleet to retreat from the battle area. American aircraft inflicted significant damage to both Japanese carriers, a heavy cruiser and a light cruiser. Both sides had many aircraft destroyed. The Americans lost 81 aircraft and the Japanese lost 99 aircraft resulting in the Japanese fleet being forced to retire. Technically the Japanese could claim a tactical victory in the Guadalcanal Campaign. However, they were prevented from any further significant carrier participation as they were never able to replace the loss of veteran aircrew personnel. The Americans went on to longer term strategic advantage in the Pacific.

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Air Raid Damage Reports Brentwood Division Essex Fire Service September 1942.

Date                Time   Location         Damage

01/09/1942    14.00  Ramsden       2 small boys were playing with a cartridge

Bellhouse      (believed 303) when it exploded and caused slight injuries to both boys.

01/09/1942    Found  South            1 – H.E. unexploded bomb found 50 yards North

Benfleet       East of Boyce Golf Club House.  Believed to have fallen 7.11.40.  (Disposed of BDS 5.9.42).

05/09/1942    15.00  Great              2 – H.Es exploded in open fields 300 yards N.W. of

                                    Wakering       Abbott’s Hall.  No casualties or damage.

09/09/1942    07.00  Foulness       Found on shore off Eastwick Head part of a

barrage balloon with poles 8ft long and balloon fabric attached.  RAF informed.

12/09/1942    Found  South            1 – H.E. unexploded bomb found in the garden of

Benfleet       253 Philmead Road.  Report Centre informed.  (Disposed of BDS 6.10.42).

13/09/1942 Found  South              1 – Unexploded A.A. Shell found in a field 120

Benfleet           yards S.W. of Railway Bridge South Benfleet.  Date and time of falling unknown.  (Disposed of B.D.S. 28.9.42).

15/09/1942    15.00  Paglesham    1 – Unexploded A.A. Shell found in the garden of

“Red Croft” East End.  Time and date of falling unknown.  (Disposed of BDS 22.9.42).

THE LACONIA INCIDENT

Sailing alone in the Atlantic Ocean the armed RMS Laconia, a converted civilian ocean liner which had been requisitioned by the Royal Navy, was transporting Italian prisoners of war from Cape Town in South Africa to Freetown, Sierra Leonne. On board Laconia there were 1,793 Italian prisoners, a guard of 103 Polish soldiers, 286 British soldiers, 87 civilians and the Laconia crew consisting of 463 officers and men.German U-boat U-156 was patrolling off the west coast of Africa when her commander Werner Hartenstein spotted the lone vessel. Armed troopships and merchantmen were legitimate targets for attacks without warning, and as such U-156 attacked Laconia at around 10 pm on the 12th September 1942.

At 10.22 pm Laconia transmitted the “SSS” message and gave her position. “SSS” was the code sign signifying “under attack by submarine”. Although there were sufficient lifeboats for the ships complement including the prisoners, Laconia was listing heavily preventing half the lifeboats from being launched until the ship had settled. Most prisoners managed to escape from their locked cargo holds by battering down the hatches or climbing ventilator shafts. By the time the last lifeboat had been launched most of the survivors were in the water. When Laconia began to sink U-156 surfaced in order to capture the ship’s surviving senior officers but to their surprise they saw over 2,000 people struggling in the water. Once the captain of U-156 realised the passengers were mostly POW’s and civilians, he sent a coded message to Admiral Karl Dönitz, head of U-boat operations, for further orders. Whilst waiting for a reply he flew a Red Cross flag and began rescue operations. U-156 rescued nearly 200 survivors including 5 women who were crammed above and below decks. He towed 4 lifeboats with another 200 on board. At 6 am on the 13th September 1942 U-156 broadcasted a message in English, not in code, requesting assistance with the rescue mission. U-156 gave her position and an assurance he would not attack providing he was not attacked by ship or air.

Dönitz immediately ordered seven U-boats to divert to the scene to pick up survivors. Fuhrer Adolf Hitler was furious and ordered the rescue to be abandoned and Admiral Erich Raeder ordered Dönitz to disengage. However, Raeder did order U-boats U-506, U-507 and Italian submarine Comandante Cappelli to rendezvous with U-156 and rescue any Italians they could find. Raeder requested the Vichy French to send warships from the Ivory Coast to rescue Italian survivors, and the French who in turn sent one cruiser and two sloops. As ordered Dönitz disengaged the original U-boats and issued another order to U-156 to remain on station. U-156 remained on the surface for the next two and half days and by mid-day on the 15th September 1942 she was joined by U-506, U-507 and Comandante Cappellini. The four submarines with lifeboats being towed headed for the African coast and a rendezvous with the Vichy French warships.

The British in Freetown, Sierra Leone intercepted the open message from U-156 but refused to take any action believing it to be a ruse by the Germans. On the 15th September 1942 a message was passed on to the Americans which implied Laconia had been sunk that day and a British merchant vessel was the way to pick up survivors. However, there was not a mention of the German rescue involvement under a ceasefire or that Vichy French ships were heading toward the rescue area.

During the night of the 16th September 1942 U-156 became separated from the other three Axis submarines and was spotted by an American B-24 Liberator bomber.

The U-boat had a Red Cross flag draped across her gun-deck and signalled the pilot for assistance in both Morse code and English. A British RAF officer on board U-156 also signalled that Laconia survivors were on board. The B-24 pilot turned away without responding, but notified his airbase on Ascension Island of the situation. The American airbase had been set-up in secret as it provided vital fuel supplies to aircraft patrolling the Atlantic, also to resupply the air route to British forces in Egypt and Soviet forces in Russia.  Later claiming he knew nothing about the Red Cross-sanctioned German rescue operation the senior officer of the day ordered the B-24 to “sink the sub”. He had assumed the German U-boat would attack the two Allied freighters diverted by the British to the site, and would only rescue Italian POWs. The Liberator flew back to where U-156 was spotted and attacked her with bombs and depth charges. Dozens of survivors were killed when a bomb landed among the lifeboats being towed by U-156. A number of bombs landed either side of U-156 but caused very little damage. However the captain of U-156 cast adrift the remaining lifeboats still floating. Laconia’s survivors who were travelling on the gun-deck were ordered into the water and the U-boat submerged slowly in order they may escape being sucked down. Two of the lifeboats being towed by U-156 decided to head for Africa ignoring the captain’s request to stay in the area and be rescued by Vichy French ships. One of the lifeboats reached the coast of Africa 27 days later with only 16 survivors out of 68 who began the journey. A British trawler rescued the second lifeboat but only 4 of the 52 occupants survived after 40 days at sea.

U-506, U-507 and Cappellini continued to pick up survivors having been totally unaware U-156 had been attacked. The captain of Cappellini received a message to put the shipwrecked into rafts, with the exception of women, children, Italian POWs and British survivors and meet the French ships. German headquarters confirmed the attack on U-156 and requested the number of survivors held on each of the U-boats. U-507 replied they had 491, of whom 15 were women and 16 were children. U-506 reply was 151 including 9 women and children. The two U-boats chose to ignore the order from headquarters to cast adrift all British and Polish survivors, mark their positions and instruct them to remain where they were. Instead they began to tow them to the rescue rendezvous.

The American airbase on Ascension Island despatched five B-25s to search for the submarines. On the 17th September 1942 one B-25 located Laconia’s rafts and informed British merchant ship Empire Haven of their position. The original B-24 sighted U-506 and attacked. U-506 crash-dived but the B-24s bombs failed to drop. However, on the second run two 500 lb (237 kg) bombs and two 350 lb (159 kg) depth charges were dropped but not cause any damage. The commander of the Ascension Island airbase received an ambiguous message from the British in Freetown that three French ships were en route from Dakar. He assumed the French intended to invade the Ascensions and in order to prepare for an invasion he cancelled the submarine hunting.

The French cruiser Gloire picked up 52 British survivors whilst still 54 miles (100 km) from the rendezvous point. At approximately 2 pm on the 17th September 1942 she met up with the French sloop Annamite as well as U-507 and U-506 at the point of rendezvous. All survivors on the U-boats were transferred to the rescue ships with the exception of two British officers who were kept on board U-507. After the transfer Gloire sailed off on her own and within four hours had rescued another eleven lifeboats and by 10 pm she found another lifeboat then proceeded to the planned rendezvous. At about 1 am a light was spotted on the horizon and Gloire investigated and rescued another 84 survivors.

However, this meant Gloire had to arrange a new rendezvous of 9.30 am whereby Annamite transferred her survivors to Gloire. The survivors were recorded as 373 Italians, 70 Poles and 597 British which included 48 women and children. Gloire departed for Dakar to resupply on the 21st September 1942 then on to Casablanca. Arriving at Casablanca on the 25th September 1942 British Colonel Baldwin presented the captain of Cappellini with a letter of gratitude for the welfare to the survivors of Laconia.

The Italian submarine Cappellin radioed for instructions and waited for a reply as they were unable to locate the French warships. The French sloop Dumont d’Urville was sent to rendezvous with Cappellini, she stopped and rescued a lifeboat from torpedoed British cargo ship Trevilley en route which had been sunk on the 12th September 1942. They did not have any luck searching for other Trevilley survivors and proceeded to rendezvous with Cappellini on the 20th September 1942. The remaining survivors with the exception of six Italian and two British officers were transferred from Cappellini to Dumont d’Urville. In the meantime, the Italian POWs had been transferred to Annamite and arrived at Dakar on the 24th September 1942. Of the original 2,732 complement on board Laconia only 1,113 survived. Of the 1,619 who died, 1,420 were Italian POWs.

The Laconia Incident had far-reaching consequences because Dönitz issued an order prohibiting U-boat crews from attempting rescues and all survivors were to be left in the sea. Occasionally U-boat crews ignored the order and did provide aid for survivors by giving them food, water, simple medical kits for the wounded, and a compass bearing to the nearest landmass.

The Laconia Incident was a series of events and a lack of communications following the legitimate attack by U-156. The only person to come out of the incident with any credit was the commander of U-156, Korvettkapitän Werner Hartenstein. For his actions during the rescue mission he received a radio message, on the 17th September 1942, to say he had been awarded the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross.

Unfortunately he did not survive the war as he and his crew were killed in action, east of Barbados, on the 8th March 1943 by depth charges dropped from an American PBY Catalina aircraft.  

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OPERATION AGREEMENT

Operation Agreement was a disastrous raid by British, Rhodesian and New Zealand forces on the Axis held Tobruk in Libya.  To undermine the Axis war effort in North Africa was the object of Operation Agreement. This entailed destroying airfields, harbour facilities, supply ships, large oil stores and lorries. To achieve this Operation Agreement was assisted by three separate diversionary actions which were carried out on the 12th/13th September 1942.

The main attack on Tobruk was carried out by an amphibious force of about 700 Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders, Royal Northumberland Fusiliers and Royal Marines. The attack was split into two forces (“A” and “C”), and Royal Navy support which consisted of one cruiser, six destroyers and one submarine. Completing the complement were sixteen motor torpedo boats (MTB), 3 motor launches and thirty landing craft.

The intention was for Force “A” to land troops north of Tobruk while Force “C” were to defend the perimeter east of Tobruk. Force “B” consisted of approximately 150 Special Air Service (SAS) troops approaching from the desert. Bad sea conditions had contributed to submarine HMS Taku’s commandos of Force “A” failing to set up guiding beacons on the shore for the main attack force. Consequently the two destroyers bringing in the seaborne troops landed them on the wrong beach, west of the intended landing place.

The Axis garrison at Tobruk had been reinforced and guns of the Italian shore batteries hit and sank destroyer HMS Sikh, which led the landing attempt of Force “A”. She lost 122 crew members killed and the survivors rescued by landing craft of the attack force were eventually captured. The second destroyer HMS Zulu, alongside cruiser HMS Coventry and the remaining destroyers were returning to Alexandria on the 14th September 1942. Coventry was badly damaged by German dive bombers and finally scuttled by Zulu with the loss of 63 crew members. A short time after Zulu was damaged by German dive bombers and whilst under tow she sank and 39 crew members lost their lives.

There does not appear to be any records of the fate of the SAS troops of Force ”B” other than their commander Lt. Col. John Haselden was killed in action.

Of the motor launches and landing craft, only two launches landed the remnants of Force “C” at the target cove. Extremely heavy fire from Tobruk harbour, boom defences and a flotilla of Italian torpedo boats forced back three motor launches and seventeen MTBs. Three MTBs launched torpedoes at enemy naval vessels moored in the harbour but without success. One MTB was set on fire and scuttled, four were lost to Axis aircraft, and one was damaged and ran aground. 117 seamen and soldiers were captured by a German minesweeper. The remaining MTBs and surviving motor launch reached Alexandria despite being dive-bombed during their journey.

Operation Bigamy was a raid by the SAS on Benghazi, led by Lieutenant Colonel David Stirling. The SAS were supported by the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) with the intention of destroying the harbour and storage facilities. This was to be followed up by a raid on the airfield at Benina in cooperation with the RAF. An Italian reconnaissance unit discovered Stirling’s attack force at a road block during the gruelling journey around Libya’s southern edge of the Great Grand Sea. Stirling decided to withdraw to Kufra in S.E. Libya. On the barren terrain during the withdrawal the Luftwaffe accounted for the loss of 70 vehicles. The raid was a complete failure and the raid on Benina was never attempted.

The only successful action was Operation Caravan, the attack on the Italian held Barce airfield 1,155 miles (1,859 km) west of Tobruk. Forty-seven British and New Zealand troops reached and attacked the airfield where they destroyed 16 aircraft and damaged another 7. Motorised transport, military equipment and buildings were also destroyed or damaged. The success came at a cost with eight wounded, ten captured and missing were two Senussi “spies” who belonged to the Libyan Arab Force. Two 30 cwt. trucks and four jeeps were also destroyed. The troops retreated along the same route in vehicles and abandoned them once they broke down. The RAF airlifted the wounded to Kufra. The remainder marched and unconfirmed reports fail to show how many arrived back safely. Two DSOs, six MCs and two MMs were awarded following this action and were the only gallantry medals awarded during the whole Operation Agreement.                       

The capture of the Jalo oasis was another target which would deny the Axis forces access to a rendezvous point for retreating German/Italian troops at the forthcoming Second Battle of Alamein. The attack on Jalo Oasis, codenamed Operation Nicety, was an attempt to support the withdrawal of the forces involved in Operation Agreement, Operation Caravan and Operation Bigamy. The Italian garrison at Jalo had been forewarned and reinforced after the Germans had discovered the plans for all the operations. The attack was carried out by a battalion of the Sudan Defence Force (SDF). The SDF was a locally recruited British-led force formed to assist the police in the event of civil unrest in the Sudan and to maintain the Sudanese borders. The Italians easily repelled the attack and the SDF withdrew on the 19th September 1942 to avoid the Italian relief column approaching.

On 19th September 1942 the Allied attack on Tobruk had been repulsed by the Germans and Italians. Including naval personnel the Allies failure cost 800 killed in action and 576 taken prisoner. They also lost one cruiser, two destroyers, four MTBs, two MLs and several landing craft. On the Axis side they lost 15 Italian and 1 German, 43 Italian and 7 Germans wounded and 30 aircraft were destroyed or damaged.

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SECOND WORLD WAR

September 1942

(Britain)

During March 1942 Éamon de Velara, as head of the government of the Irish Free State, had complained about the arrival of American soldiers in Northern Ireland. The northern command of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) were encouraged to organise a new campaign against the British military and war effort in Northern Ireland. On Easter Sunday the 5th April 1942 the IRA engaged in a gunfight in Belfast with the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). During the course of the gunfight a constable of the RUC was killed and two others wounded, and the response from the RUC was that six members of the IRA were arrested. At their trial all six members were sentenced to death for the murder of the RUC constable. The executions were scheduled to take place on the 2nd September 1942 and a few days before that date five of the six had their sentence commuted. This was the result of a petition signed by two hundred thousand people calling for a reprieve. At Crumlin Road gaol in Belfast Tom Williams was hanged on the 2nd September 1942. As a result the IRA intensified their attacks against the RUC. On the same day, Patrick Dermody led twenty members of the IRA against the British Army barracks in Crossmaglen, County Armagh. Their aim was to capture a British officer and hang him but it would appear to have been unsuccessful. Throughout September 1942 police barracks were bombed in County Antrim, an IRA patrol was ambushed in Belfast. County Fermanagh police barracks were attacked but a mine failed to detonate. Attacks were launched against RUC officials in County Tyrone and County Dublin which resulted in the RUC and Irish Special Branch stepping up their campaign against the IRA. On the 30th September 1942 Patrick Dermody was killed by a member of the Irish Special Branch following a gun battle in County Cavan. A member of the Garda (Irish police) also died in the gunfight. The IRA campaign continued until December 1944 when the IRA was defeated,

Bomber Command of the Royal Air Force (RAF) continued their raids on Germany which were beginning to have the impact that was hoped for. RAF bombers made a concentrated heavy attack on Saarbrücken, the centre of Germany’s iron, coal and steel industries in the Saar Valley on the 2nd September 1942. The weather was good with the target clearly seen and the raid was an outstanding success. However, success came at a price as Bomber Command lost three aircraft. It has not been possible to record the number of aircraft involved in the raid. On the 10th September 1942 a total of 479 bombers blasted Düsseldorf with incendiary bombs and by 11pm when aerial photographs were taken the area was covered by widespread fire. Rising flames and smoke obscured the target area and did not permit the photographs to record the damage incurred. Of the 479 bombers involved in the operation it has not been possible to record how many aircraft returned from the raid. 

During the month of September 1942 Allied shipping lost 567,332 tons of supplies from America. Admiral Karl Dönitz as commander of the U-boat fleet, soon realised his U-boats would have more success by concentrating his fleet in the North Atlantic. He ordered the U-boats to the North Atlantic to attack the convoys from Canada to Britain and convoy losses quickly increased. 76% of the losses were attributed to German U-boats with over 250,000 tons sunk between Greenland and Iceland, where there was no air cover. Of the remainder, 10% were lost to aircraft and 4% to warships. Brazil had entered the war on the side of the Allies in July1942. Their navy joined with the American navy as escorts for the merchant shipping bringing supplies to Britain across the mid-Atlantic. With the increased number of escort vessels, merchant ship losses to the German U-boats quickly dropped. However, German U-boat losses also escalated, with one U-boat sunk for every 10 merchant vessels. Whereas in the first six months of September 1942 the losses were one U-boat for every 40 merchant vessels.                       

(America)

Three Russian students, female Lyudmila Pavlichenco, plus two males Vladimir Pchelintsev and Nikolai Krassavchenco arrived in Washington on the 27th August 1942. They had been invited by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to attend an international student assembly and were guests of the President and his wife Eleanor at the White House. The students had been selected because they had combat experience. Lyudmila Pavlichenko was included as she was the Soviet Union’s highest-scoring female sniper with 309 kills.

On the 2nd September 1942, dressed in their Red Army uniforms for the first session of the international student assembly at the White House, they immediately attracted journalistic attention. Eleanor Roosevelt was there to greet them and the other foreign delegates. Eleanor was persuaded by the press to have her photograph taken with their Soviet guests. The First Lady was happy to oblige and stood between Second Lieutenant Pchelintsev and Lyudmila and for the photograph Eleanor took both the delegates by the hand and this gesture symbolised the Russian-American military alliance against Fascism. Later that day, whilst still at the White House, Eleanor introduced the Soviet group to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was particularly interested in the Soviet Union’s battles with Germany. He asked Lyudmila to convey to Dictator Joseph Stalin the U.S. was not yet in a position to open a second front, but would do everything in their power to do so.

On the 6th September 1942 Lyudmila and her companions were informed their American partners had offered to extend their stay. On the same day they travelled to Eleanor and the President’s family home estate and spent a week there. Lyudmila and Eleanor had become friends and their friendship developed even further during this period. Upon returning to Washington the Soviet ambassador informed them the delegation, would be split into two. Lyudmila would go to the West and Midwest. The two men would set-off on a tour of the cities in the NE of the U.SA.

On the 24th September 1942, Lyudmila and Eleanor Roosevelt made a separate tour of the United States.

At the end of the tour Lyudmila corresponded regularly with Eleanor Roosevelt and they met a further three times. Once in England during November 1942 and twice in the Soviet Union in 1957 and 1958.

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On the 15th August 1942 Japanese submarine I-25, carrying the two seater “Glen”, left Yokosuka, Japan and travelled east toward the west coast of America. Submarine I-25 was a B1 type vessel with a surface displacement of 2,584 tons and 356 ft. long (109 m) with a range of16, 000 miles (26,000 km.) The B type submarine was fitted with a water-proof hanger located in front of the conning tower. The “Glen” was disassembled for storage in the hanger and reassembled prior to the mission.  For armament I-25 carried 17 conventional torpedoes and 6 incendiary bombs, sufficient for the planned three raids.

The only time mainland United States of America was ever bombed was on the 9th September 1942. A Japanese Yokosuka E14Y observation seaplane dropped two incendiary bombs over a forest in Oregon.  The mission of the seaplane, known to the Allies as “Glen”, was to trigger wild fires in the forest along the coast. However, light winds, wet weather conditions and two vigilant fire look-outs kept the fire under control. Following the raid the “Glen” returned and landed beside its transporting Japanese submarine. Later, on the same day, the submarine was bombed by a United States Army A-29 Hudson aircraft causing minor damage. A second raid on the 29th September 1942 was treated with more caution and the “Glen” was reassembled and launched in the pre-dawn darkness. A work crew on the Oregon coast heard the approaching “Glen”. No evidence has been found that the “Glen” dropped incendiary bombs. Upon returning to submarine 1-25 the Glen was reclaimed, but the commander of I-25, Captain Meiji Tagami, decided not to risk a third raid. He took I-25 to lie on the bottom of Port Orford harbour until night fall and evacuated the area. Less than a year later submarine I-25 was sunk by an unknown American vessel off the New Hebrides islands in the Pacific.

Three American Eagle Squadrons were officially transferred from the Royal Air Force (RAF) to the Eighth Air Force of the United States of America Army Air Force (USAAF) on the 30th September 1942.  After the transfer the pilots automatically became officers in the USAAF. Prior to America officially entering the war in December 1941 the Eagle Squadron was formed in September 1940 to serve in three fighter squadrons of the RAF which comprised volunteer pilots from the United States. The requirements of the RAF for pilots were a school diploma, good eyesight and aged between 20 and 31 years old. These requirements were not as strict as those for the same position in the United States Air Corp, but 300 hours certified flying time was essential to both forces. Once in Britain the pilots passed basic flight training then went for advanced operational training on Hurricane and Spitfire fighters. They were commissioned as RAF officers and posted to front-line RAF fighter squadrons. They retained their U.S. citizenship but wore standard RAF uniforms, which included the Eagle Squadron patch flanked by the letters “ES”. Only 244 Americans served in the Eagle Squadrons out of the thousands who volunteered, and served with distinction in the Battle of Britain in September 1941. The only time the three squadrons saw action together was at the Dieppe raid of August 1942. About 100 Eagle pilots had been killed, were missing or were captured and prisoners-of-war in the two years the squadron was in existence. During that period the Eagle pilots were awarded 12 Distinguished Flying Crosses and one Distinguished Service Order. A number of issues needed to be resolved between the USAAF and RAF regarding the transfer of the Eagle Squadron. When the volunteer pilots arrived in Britain they had not served in the USAAF therefore did not have US pilot wings. It was agreed they would be awarded USAAF pilot wings upon transfer. The USAAF permitted the Eagle Squadron to retain their reduced sized RAF wings on the opposite side of their uniform at the insistence of the pilots. It was also agreed the pilots would assume the equivalent rank in the USAAF to their RAF rank. Heavily investing in the three front-line squadrons the RAF wanted some compensation for the loss of the Eagle Squadrons but there is no evidence of compensation.

(France)

The Service du Travail Obligatoire (STO) was created on the 4th September 1942 by Vichy France whereby thousands of French workers were forcibly enlisted and deported to Nazi Germany. The STO law was signed by Philippe Petàin, Marshall of France and Chief of State of Vichy France, also Pierre Laval, Prime Minister in the Vichy region. The STO required all able-bodied men, aged 18 to 50 and single women aged 21 to 35 to be available to undertake any work the government deemed necessary. The German government promised that one French prisoner of war would be released for every three French workers sent. The Germans used the STO to replace the manpower who were enlisted into the German army and served on the Eastern Front.

(Eastern Front)

In the Caucasus the German army established a defensive line on the Volga River by the 23rd August 1942. The 3rd September 1942 is the recognised date for the start of the Battle of Stalingrad when the Luftwaffe heavily bombed the city killing many thousands of civilians. On the same day the Soviets ordered that everyone who could hold a rifle should join in the fight. The Soviet leadership had plenty of warning of the German advance. Realising how critical the situation was, Dictator Joseph Stalin ordered Soviet cattle, grain and railway cars be shipped across the Volga out of reach of Nazi troops. However, the 400,000 resident civilians of Stalingrad were refused permission to evacuate but to be prepared to defend the city. Stalin rushed all available troops, some from as far away as Siberia, to the east bank of the Volga. Once the reinforcements arrived at the Volga the Luftwaffe quickly destroyed the regular river ferries and then targeted troop barges being towed by tugs. On the 5th September 1942 two Soviet armies, the 24th and 66th, engaged in a massive attack against the German Panzers. However, within a few hours, the Luftwaffe helped to repel the offensive and the Soviets were forced to withdraw. Of the 120 Soviet tanks committed, 30 were lost to air attacks. By the 13th September 1942 Stalingrad was totally surrounded by the Germans. By the 18th September 1942 the German Luftwaffe had total control of the skies over Stalingrad. The Soviets were getting desperate as all supplies were subjected to dozens of daily air strikes by the Luftwaffe on the city and the perilous crossing of the River Volga.

General Vasily Chuikov was appointed commander of the 62nd Army on the 11th September 1942 and charged with the defence of the city of Stalingrad. He immediately set about preparing the defences by stabilising the threatened 62nd Army. He achieved this by his determination to instil confidence in the troops to defend the city against all odds. Chuikov encouraged his forces to adopt the tatic of “hugging the enemy” which entailed keeping the German army as close as possible to minimise the airpower enjoyed by the Luftwaffe. He had previously witnessed the blitzkrieg tactics the Nazis had employed so he drew the panzer units into the rubble of the city. Close range attacks on the panzer units by soviet artillery impeded the panzer advance and the Luftwaffe could not attack the soviet troops without endangering their own forces.

On the eastern coast of the Black Sea the city and port of Novorossiysk provided a stronghold against the Germans during the summer offensive of 1942. With the German advance in the Caucasus they reached Novorossiysk in August 1942. Bitter and intensive resistance by the Soviet army failed to stop the Germans from capturing the city on the 6th September 1942. The Soviets did however, retain possession of the eastern part of the bay thus denying the Germans the use of the port for supplies. The Soviet forces retook Novorossiysk in September 1943 after the German withdrew their army which effectively ended that period of fighting in the Caucasus. The title of “Hero City” was bestowed on Novorossiysk in 1973.

(The Mediterranean and Desert War)

Erwin Rommel, as commander of the Afrika Korps, launched the Battle of Alam el Halfa on the 30th August 1942. Owing to the terrain he was forced to order similar tactics to those he had used at the First Battle of El Alemein.  His tactics were to sweep round the south while a secondary attack was launched on the rest of the front line. The newly appointed commander of the British Eighth Army, Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery, by some unknown means, had allowed Rommel to acquire a falsified map of the terrain. The British had fortified the defensive line from El Alemein on the Mediterranean coast to the Qattara Depression on the edge of the Sahara Desert 35 miles to the south. By using the falsified terrain maps Rommel’s tanks became stranded in the unexpected patches of quicksand. British artillery from the well prepared positions, aircraft and increased number of mines laid in the southern sector took longer than Rommel’s plans allowed. He realised he could not outflank the British for lack of fuel. By the 2nd September 1942 the attack stalled and Rommel decided to withdraw as he realised it was impossible to win the battle. The New Zealand contingent of the Eighth Army launched an attack on the retreating Afrika Korps on the night of the 3rd September 1942. The rear-guard of the Afrika Korps repelled the attack and Montgomery called off any further action in order to preserve his strength. The Afrika Korps suffered 2940 casualties and lost 50 tanks during the attack. They also lost a similar number of guns and over 400 lorries which were vital for supplies. With the exception of the loss of 68 tanks the British losses were fewer. At this point Rommel realised the war in Africa could not be won owing to the numerical supremacy of the Allies over the Afrika Korps.

On the 23rd September 1942 Rommel left North Africa for medical treatment in Germany. Following the retreat from Alam el Halfa he needed to recover his health as he was physically exhausted as well as suffering from a liver infection and low blood pressure. In Rommel’s absence General Georg Stumme was left in command.

Operation Agreement was a disastrous raid by British, Rhodesian and New Zealand forces on the Axis held Tobruk in Libya. The object of Operation Agreement was to undermine the Axis war effort in North Africa. This entailed destroying airfields, harbour facilities, supply ships, large oil stores and lorries. The capture of the Jalo oasis would deny the Axis forces access to a rendezvous for retreating forces elsewhere. To achieve this Operation Agreement was assisted by three separate diversionary actions which were carried out on the 12th/13th September 1942. For additional information on the raid see the separate article of “Operation Agreement” dated 12th September 1942.                           

(Pacific)

On the 15th September 1942 aircraft carrier USS Wasp (CV-7) together with carrier USS Hornet, battleship USS North Carolina and ten other warships were escorting transport ships carrying troops to Guadalcanal. At about 14.45 a Japanese B1 Type Submarine 1-19 was patrolling the area when they spotted the escort vessels. Submarine 1-19 fired a spread of six torpedoes, three of which hit Wasp.  Wasp was a smaller version of the Yorktown-class aircraft carrier employed initially in the Atlantic campaign. She supported the occupation of Iceland in 1941 after which she transferred to the British Home Fleet in April 1942. Twice she ferried British fighters from Britain to Malta after which she was transferred to the Pacific in June 1942. The three torpedoes struck in quick succession in the vicinity of the fuel tanks and magazines which created a rapid series of explosions in the hanger deck. Fire almost instantaneously broke out in the hanger deck which detonated the ammunition of the forward anti-aircraft guns. Water was unavailable to fight the fires as the mains had been rendered inoperable by the explosions and Wasp listed to about 10 degrees to starboard. All firefighting was proving to be ineffective and, Captain Sherman of the Wasp, gave the order to abandon ship at about 16.00. Once all the injured had been lowered into rafts and rubber inflatable boats, the remaining crew and Captain Sherman abandoned the ship. Destroyer USS Lansdowne was ordered to torpedo Wasp as she was drifting on fire. Lansdowne fired 3 torpedoes at Wasp who stayed afloat for a considerable time and she finally sank at 21.00. 193 men died and 386 men were injured during the attack but 1946 men were successfully rescued following the abandonment. All the 46 aircraft remaining in the hanger deck were lost when the ship sank and all but one of the 26 airborne fighters made it safely to another carrier. The remaining three torpedoes fired by Submarine I-19 struck USS North Carolina and destroyer USS O’Brien. North Carolina was hit by one torpedo which tore a large hole in the port side of the ship causing her list 5.5 degrees. By counter-flooding the list was corrected and little serious damage occurred. After withdrawing from the area North Carolina was able to sail to Pearl Harbour for repairs. Two torpedoes were aimed at O’Brien, one passing close astern but the other hit her port bow. Other than severe structural stresses throughout the ship the explosion did very little obvious damage. After receiving temporary repairs she headed toward San Francisco Bay. She steamed nearly 3,000 miles when her bottom suddenly split open not too far away from Pago Pago on American Samoa. At about 07.00 on the 19th October 1942 the crew abandoned ship and about 08.00 she sank. All the crew members were saved. Submarine I-19 escaped safely avoiding the 80 depth charges despatched by the remaining U.S. destroyers,

During the Guadalcanal Campaign in the Solomon Islands, the Battle of Edson’s Ridge was fought between the Japanese army and the U.S. Marine Corps from the 12th to 14th  September 1942. U.S. Marines had taken Guadalcanal in August 1942 and set up defences on the island primarily at Henderson Field. The Japanese 35th Infantry Brigade was sent to Guadalcanal in response to the U.S. landings. The mission was expected to recapture the airfield and drive the Americans off the island. Edson’s Ridge was named after Lieutenant Colonel Merrill A. Edson who commanded the U.S. defenders. The Japanese underestimated the U.S. forces on the island, which was about 12,000 troops and the 6,000 Japanese assault troops conducted several night time frontal attacks south of Henderson Field. However, they almost overran the U.S. defenders but the attack was ultimately defeated with heavy Japanese losses. After Edson’s Ridge the Japanese continued to send troops to Guadalcanal for further attempts to retake Henderson Field. In the meantime another major Japanese offensive along the Kokoda track in New Guinea was being launched. By the 14th September 1942 they were 30 miles from Port Moresby when they were ordered to withdraw until the “Guadalcanal matter” was resolved. Following the Japanese withdrawal the Americans sent troops to Port Moresby to re-inforce the Australian defenders on the 15th September 1942. The Japanese were aware they did not have sufficient troops and materials to defeat the Allies at Guadalcanal and support the Port Moresby campaign. Whilst the U.S. forces concentrated on shoring up their defences and by bringing in additional support units and their equipment, the Japanese were regrouping west of the Matanikau River. Japanese survivors from the battle along Edson’s Ridge faced a 5 day march to meet up with their main forces at the river. The U.S. conducted a series of small units to mop up the scattered Japanese troops to prevent them from meeting up with the main forces at the Matanikau. The first of two “Battle along the Matanikau” occurred between 23rdand 27th September 1942. The 1st U.S. Marines attacked Japanese troops west of the Matanikau River but were repulsed by the Japanese. During this action the Marines were surrounded by Japanese troops and took heavy losses. They barely escaped but with the assistance from destroyer USS Monssen and landing craft manned by the U.S. Coast Guard they were evacuated. One of the landing craft was piloted by Douglas Munro, who was killed as he maneuvered his craft to protect the escaping Marines, and was the only member of the Coast Guard to be awarded the Medal of Honour. A second “Battle along the Matanikau River” occurred between the 6th to 9th October 1942.

(Other Theatres)

Sailing alone in the Atlantic Ocean the armed RMS Laconia was transporting Italian prisoners of war from Cape Town in South Africa to Freetown, Sierra Leonne. On board Laconia there were 1,793 Italian prisoners, a guard of 103 Polish soldiers, 286 British soldiers, 87 civilians and the Laconia crew consisting of 463 officers and men. German U-boat U-156 was patrolling off the Africa coast when her commander Werner Hartenstein spotted the lone vessel. Armed troopships and merchantmen were legitimate targets for attacks without warning, and as such U-156 attacked Laconia at around 1O pm on the 12th September 1942. The sinking and subsequent rescue attempts came to be known as the “Laconia Incident”. The series of events and a lack of communications surrounding the “Laconia Incident” involved German U-boats, an Italian submarine and two war ships. Three Vichy French war ships were also involved, as were an American bomber attack force. Of the original 2,732 complement on board Laconia only 1,113 survived. Of the 1,619 who died, 1,420 were Italian POWs. The only person to come out of the incident with any credit was the commander of U-156, Korvettkapitän Werner Hartenstein.  He received a radio message, on the 17th September 1942, to say he had been awarded the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross for his actions during the rescue mission. Unfortunately he did not survive the war as he and his crew were killed in action, east of Barbados, on the 8th March 1943 by depth charges dropped from an American PBY Catalina aircraft. For additional information see the separate article on the “Laconia Incident” dated the 12th September 1942.

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Air Raid Damage Reports Brentwood Division Essex Fire Service August 1942.

Date                Time   Location         Damage

03/08/1942    Found  Billericay      A quantity of small cellophane packets marked L.

1931, 3″ Mor., 100 grns., N.C. (Y) were found in the vicinity of Stock Road and Norsey Road Railway Bridges, Crown Road, Jackson’s Land and Sunnymeade Estate.  Military authorities stated that the packets contained an explosive for use with 3″ Trench Mortars as used by Infantry Regts. and are dangerous if ignited in a confined space, as has been ascertained by a boy age 9 yrs who was badly burned about the face by throwing one of the packets on to a fire he had made in a field.

10/08/1942    17.00  Canvey          1 – Naval Barrage Balloon grounded at Canvey

Island             Island and on marshes at Halfway House Farm Great Wakering.  (Removed by Naval Authorities 11.8.42).

13/08/1942    02.35  Barling           2 – H.E. bombs fell near Barling School Barling. 

Extensive damage was done to property.  Telephone wires and overhead electric cables were also damaged.  A number of Incendiary Bombs were dropped at the same time which burned out harmlessly also a parachute flare fell at Canewdon.  No damage was caused.

15/08/1942    12.15  Great              1 – A.A. Shell exploded in a field 300 yards South

Wakering       East of the Church, off New Road, believed to have been fired from a gun practicing at Shoeburyness Ranges.  No damage or casualties.

18/08/1942    12.30  South Weald Stanley George Allpress, 18 years, a member of

the Home Guard was fatally injured whilst engaged in bombing training in Weald Park, South Weald.  At the same time a H.G. Officer was also injured and conveyed to hospital.

18/08/1942    Found  Foulness      1 – 50 kg U.X.B. found 200 yards South East of

Island           Eastwick Farmhouse and 80 yards South of cart track, Foulness Island.  No damage or casualties.  (Disposed of BDS 29.8.42).

19/08/1942    12.00  Reconnaissance      Ground raised and cracked.  Suspected

Laindon         Camouflet Map Ref. M.144097.  In field 100 yards S.S.E. Home Lodge, Wash Road.  Date of falling unknown.  Apparent hole of entry 18ft from centre of mound.  Report Centre informed.  (BDS informed).

30/08/1942 15.15     Canvey          1 – A.A. Shell exploded in the garden of Milton

Island             Lodge, Central Wall Road, an unoccupied bungalow.  Slight damage was caused to bungalow.  No casualties.

SECOND WORLD WAR

August 1942

(Britain)

Britain had been bombing Germany since March 1940. Initially the attacks were made during daylight hours but heavy losses forced the RAF to switch to night time bombing. The effectiveness of the attacks was greatly reduced owing to the limited bomb aiming equipment available. When America entered the war in December 1941 the official Allied policy was the defeat of Germany took priority over the defeat of Japan. The U.S. Eighth Air Force began to arrive in Britain in February 1942. The first American attack on occupied Europe by B17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers was carried out on the 17th August 1942. Eighteen B17 bombers flew from their base at RAF Polebrook in Northamptonshire and bombed the railway marshalling yards at Rouen-Solleville in France, escorted by RAF Spitfire fighters they split into two separate groups. Six bombers flew along the French coast to act as a decoy diversion and the remaining twelve bombers flew to Rouen. Arriving over the target at about 5.30 pm they dropped 39,000lbs (17.1 tons) of general purpose bombs from a height of 23,000 ft. (7,010 m). The overall results were moderate but their accuracy was good owing to the Norden bomb sight developed in the U.S. The locomotive shed was one of the main targets and was destroyed by a direct hit. All eighteen B17’s returned safely to their air base although two had been damaged. The Boeing B17 Flying Fortress was a four engine heavy bomber which could carry a bomb load of 6,000lbs (26.8 ton) at 300mph (480k/h) and a range of 2,000 miles (3,200 km). It’s famous nickname of the “Flying Fortress” came from the fact that they carried 13 – 50 calibre M2 Browning machine guns and a legendary ability to absorb damage and still carry the crew home to safety.  

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On the 19th August 1942 the Allies carried out an amphibious raid on the German-occupied French port of Dieppe. The raid was codenamed Operation Jubilee, and intended to boost Allied morale. 

Operation Jubilee was planned to land over 6000 infantry supported by a regiment of tanks on six beaches, four in front of the town and two on the eastern and western flanks respectively. Armoured support was provided by fifty eight of the newly introduced Churchill tanks which were transported using the new landing-craft tank (LCT). The LCT’s were specially designed to carry one tank. The Royal Navy’s contribution was the supply of 237 ships and landing craft. Six Hunter-class destroyers provided pre-landing gun fire support which proved to be totally inadequate. The First Sea Lord Sir Dudley Pound was reluctant to risk capital ships in an area vulnerable to attacks by German aircraft.

Also aerial and naval support was insufficient to enable the infantry to achieve their objectives.

The RAF’s main aim was to provide a smoke screen over the cliffs surrounding the town, which would be dropped by Douglas Boston bombers. The smoke screen would be achieved by using 100lb (45kg) smoke bombs with the bombers taking off ahead of the raid without fighter escorts. However, air reconnaissance photographs had failed to spot the dug-in German gun positions and the opinion of the British planners was that Dieppe was not heavily defended. Coupled with the lack of information for the suitability of the beaches with regard to gradient and load bearing capabilities, the raid was a recipe for disaster. The assessment for the beaches was conducted by scanning holiday snapshots which led the planners to underestimate the terrain and German defensive strength.

French double-agents informed the Germans the British were showing interest in the area. The German Supreme Commander in the West Field Marshall Gerd von Rundstedt correctly concluded a raid would soon be forthcoming. Dieppe and the surrounding area was well defended. Luftwaffe fighters were on standby to oppose any landings. On the 18th /19th August 1942, following RAF Coastal Command patrols, minesweepers cleared paths through the English Channel. A flotilla of eight destroyers and Motor Gun Boats escorting the landing craft headed towards Dieppe.

The initial landing began early morning of the 19th August 1942 and the flotilla of landing craft engaged a small German convoy. The convoy was driven off but the landing craft were dispersed. Allied destroyers had noticed the engagement but did not come to their assistance as they assumed the landing craft had come under fire from shore batteries.

When the landing craft arrived at the beaches the tanks struggled to negotiate the shingle beaches and the commandoes faced a far greater number of defenders than were expected. Despite heavy fighting the commandoes were forced to begin a withdrawal from the beaches at 09.40 which was completed 14.00. The raids on the port of Dieppe were equally unsuccessful.    

3,357 of the nearly 5,000 Canadian contingent were either killed, wounded or taken prisoner. British commandoes lost 247 men out of 1,000 troops who entered the raid. The RAF lost one hundred and six aircraft and suffered the loss of 62 killed, 30 wounded and 17 captured. However, the Air Sea Rescue Service picked up about 20 pilots who had been shot down. The Royal Navy suffered the loss of one destroyer and thirty-three landing craft with five hundred and fifty men killed or wounded.

Despite the fact that the Raid on Dieppe was a complete disaster there were a number of gallantry medals awarded for the operation. Of the gallantry medals three soldiers were awarded the Victoria Cross, one British and two Canadian, one of whom was a padre. One British Major General was awarded the Distinguished Service Order, while one enlisted Canadian was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal. There were two Military Medals awarded, one Canadian and one American who incidentally was the first American in the Second World War to receive a British award for bravery in action.

The raid on Dieppe proved to be an example of “what not to do”. To achieve a future amphibious operation the lessons learnt were:-

(1) Proper intelligence concerning enemy fortifications.

(2) Load bearing properties and type of beach to be negotiated.

(3) Surprise.

(4) Preliminary artillery support, including freedom of the skies and aerial bombardment.

(5) Proper re-embarkation craft.

(6) Avoidance of a frontal attack on a defended port.

All the factors were taken into consideration when planning for D-Day, the Allied landings on Normandy in June 1944.

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 (America)

The U.S. ambassador to the Soviet Union, Averell Harriman, sent Stalin a copy of the telegram from President Franklin D. Roosevelt on the 3rd August 1942. The telegram announced that in September 1942 Washington would host an international student assembly. It was proposed that delegates from the four Allied Powers of the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain and China should attend. Roosevelt expressed his wish that the assembly be attended by two or three students, preferably those with combat experience against the Germans. Negotiations between Washington and Moscow finally agreed and three delegates had were selected to attend.

Nikolai Krassavchenko was head of the delegation. The second was senior lieutenant Vladimir Pchelintsev, hero of the Soviet Union. The third delegate was junior lieutenant Lyudmila Pavlichenko who was commander of a sniper platoon in the 32nd Guards Parachute Division. It was Stalin who agreed for Lyudmila Pavlichenko, as the only woman to attend as she was the highest-scoring female sniper with 309 kills.

The delegates left Moscow on a circuitous route via Egypt, Africa and America and arrived in Washington at 05.45 on the 27th August 1942. Despite the early hour arrival at the White House the delegation was met by the first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Upon showing the delegation to their rooms Mrs. Roosevelt announced breakfast would be served at 08.30.                        

At breakfast, thinking it was maybe some Soviet propaganda exercise, Mrs. Roosevelt asked Lyudmila would she actually kill an enemy soldier. To American women, whose country had not been invaded, this scenario was unthinkable. Lyudmila explained that the she had lost her husband, a fellow soldier, to the Germans at Sevastopol. After the Soviet Union had been invaded, the civilian population starved and subjected to mass slaughter, her duty was to defend her country. Yes that entailed her killing German soldiers. When she received the reply Eleanor realised that Lyudmila was a genuine front-line sniper.

Eleanor left the breakfast table and the delegates were given a tour of the White House. The delegations time table was subjected to a strict schedule which entailed TV and radio interviews. On the 30th August 1942 the delegation attended a performance of the opera “Madame Butterfly” at the National Theatre of Washington. The audience were invited to donate money for a fund to assist the Red Army. Following the opera the delegation enjoyed a banquet at the Soviet Embassy. Eleanor joined the delegates for breakfast the next morning prior to their tour of America.  After breakfast she bid the delegates farewell and departed.  Lyudmila and Eleanor Roosevelt corresponded regularly and were to become good friends.

—

On the 8th August 1942 six German saboteurs were executed in an American jail. The United States had declared war on Germany and Japan on the 11th December 1941 following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour four days earlier. German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler authorised a mission to sabotage the American war effort which was known as Operation Pastorius. The mission was headed by Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, chief of the German Abwehr military intelligence. He recruited eight German residents living in the United States into the Abwehr military intelligence of whom two were American citizens. They were Ernst Burger and Herbert Haupt.

The remaining six George John Dasch, Edward John Kerling, Richard Quinn, Heinrich Harm Heinck, Hermann Otto Neubaur and Werner Thiel who were working or had worked in the United States. The agents were given three weeks intensive training at the German High Command School near Berlin in Germany, especially in the manufacture and usage of all explosive devices. They were encouraged to converse in English and become familiar with American newspapers and magazines whilst their background “Histories” were developed by the Abwehr.

Upon arrival by two U-boats in the United States the agents were instructed to spread a wave of terror by planting explosives on selected targets. However, the mission was almost compromised before leaving Europe. The leader of the group, George Dasch left sensitive documents behind on a train whilst another agent, when drunk in a Paris bar, announced he was a secret agent. The first submarine landed at Long Island, about 100 miles east of New York City on the 12th June 1942. Four of the agent saboteurs, Dasch, Burger, Quinn and Heink came ashore wearing German Naval Uniforms. They would be classified as prisoners-of-war rather than spies if they were captured.

The explosive equipment they brought with them was buried in readiness for the forthcoming sabotage campaign. Dasch offered unarmed Coast Guard John Cullen a bribe after being discovered on the dunes. After feigning cooperation Cullen reported the encounter to the Coast Guard. In the meantime the Germans had taken a train from Long Island to Manhattan where they booked into a hotel. When the armed Coast Guards returned to the site they found the buried explosive equipment. A massive manhunt began.

The second U-boat landed the German agents at Ponte Vedra Beach in Florida on the 16th June 1942. They came ashore wearing bathing suits and German Naval hats. Upon landing the German agents, led by Kerling, discarded the hats and put on civilian clothes before boarding separate trains to Chicago in Illinois and Cincinnati in Ohio. On the 4th July 1942 the two teams met in a hotel in Cincinnati to coordinate their sabotage arrangements. Dasch and Burger agreed they had no intention of going through with the missions and would defect to the U.S. immediately. Dasch rang off when the FBI doubted his story after phoning the New York office of the FBI to explain who he was. On the 19th July 1942 he travelled by train to Washington D.C. and walked into the FBI headquarters. He managed to obtain an interview with Assistant Director D.M. Ladd and gained his attention by showing him the operational budget of $84,000. Dasch and Burger were the only two who knew of the betrayal. Over the next two weeks Burger and the other six agents were arrested.

No official evidence exists as to why Burger was arrested with the remaining six saboteurs. It is highly likely he was arrested because he had not voluntarily surrendered to the FBI, also to cover up for his wanting to abandon the mission.

FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover claimed the credit for the FBI by cracking the spy and sabotage ring. However, when presenting his report he forgot to mention that Dasch had turned himself in and passed on all the details. For Hoover, the fact that Burger was arrested with the other six saboteurs would have looked better on his claim to cracking the sabotage ring.

On the 2nd August 1942 President Roosevelt issued an Executive Proclamation to create a military tribunal as he feared a civilian court would be too lenient. The Germans were charged with four violations against the state and faced a seven-member military commission.

The trial for the eight agents began in the Assembly Hall No. 1 of the Department of Justice building in Washington D.C. began on the 8th July 1942and ended on the 1st August 1942. Two days later they were all found guilty and sentenced to death. Because they had turned themselves in Roosevelt commuted Dasch to 30 years imprisonment and Burger to life imprisonment. The other six saboteurs were executed on the 8th August 1942 in the electric chair in the District of Columbia jail. Admiral Canaris was rebuked by Hitler for the failure of Operation Pastorius. The United States never received any further sabotage attempts following the failure. Send note to Martin about this Paragraph

(Germany)

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is a small country bordered by Belgium, France and Germany. In May and June 1940 Nazi Germany invaded Western Europe and overran Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and much of France. Grand Duchess Charlotte and Prime Minister Pierre Dupong’s government fled to and finally settled in Canada via France, Portugal and the United Kingdom. Charlotte became an important symbol of national unity when in exile in London. When the Nazis occupied Luxembourg they began a programme of “germanisation” on the population. German was the only language permitted and the French language banned as were the names of streets, towns, shops and companies which were translated into German. The people of Luxembourg were made German citizens in January 1942. The Duchy of Luxembourg was formally annexed to the German Reich on the 30th August1942. When the Nazis announced that the men of the Duchy would be drafted into the German army, a mass general strike against conscription broke out across the country on the 31st August 1942. The uprising was quickly put down by the Nazis with extreme brutality including executions.

(The Eastern Front)

In Moscow on the 12th August 1942 British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Sir Alexander Cadogan of the Foreign Office were met by Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov and Chief of Staff Boris Shaposanikov. They were joined by U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union Averll Harriman and they inspected an honour guard. Churchill addressed the assembly by stating that the Allies would continue in their fight against the Nazi regime until it was beaten into the ground.

In May 1942 Molotov had met Churchill in London and they signed the “Treaty of Alliance”. Churchill stated that Britain was not in a position to launch a “Second Front” during 1942 in Europe in order to divert German troops away from the Eastern Front.  When British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden received a message on the 30th July 1942 from the British Ambassador to the Soviet Union Sir Archibald Clark Kerr he passed the message on to Churchill. The message indicated that Molotov’s letter to Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin, following his visit to London, in which Stalin had failed to interpret the Prime Minister’s intention. It was agreed that Churchill would meet Stalin in person in Moscow. Churchill left Britain on the 1st August 1942 and arrived in Cairo, on his way Moscow, on the 4th August 1942. Whilst in Cairo he dismissed General Sir Claude Auchinleck of his position as commander of the British Eighth Army.

He departed for Moscow on the 10th August 1942 and arrived in Moscow on the 12th August 1942. The conference began on the 12th August 1942 and ended on the 16th August 1942. In the conference Churchill had given his reasons why the “Second Front” could not be launched in 1942. Stalin would appear to have been in agreement with everything discussed at the conference. Churchill felt his visit had been a great success considering the disappointing news which could not have been achieved had it not been delivered personally.

Churchill left Moscow for Cairo on the 16th August 1942 and arrived back at RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire on the 26th August 1942 and was greeted by his wife Clementine.

—

As part of Operation Barbarossa of 1941 the Germans had launched Fall Blau (Case Blue) during late June 1942. By late July 1942 the German army, in the attempt to control Stalingrad, was slowed down by Soviet resistance in the Caucasus Mountains. The Germans reached the River Don by the 2nd August 1942 but were impeded by the lack of supplies caused by the poor state of the Soviet roads. German commanders were convinced the Sixth Army was not strong enough to cross the River Don therefore waited for the arrival of the Forth Panzer Army. By the 4th August 1942 the Germans were 97km (60 miles) from Stalingrad. By the 10th August 1942 the First Panzer Army had arrived and the Luftwaffe had sent over 300 Ju 52 transport aircraft with the necessary supplies. Although the roads were in poor condition the Germans had cleared the Red Army from most of the banks of the River Don. By the 23rd August 1942 despite several Soviet counter-attacks the Germans crossed the River Don and established a defensive line on one of its bends. Later that day the Germans reached the northern suburbs of Stalingrad. Effectively the five month Battle of Stalingrad was about to begin. 

(The Mediterranean and Desert War)

Malta was a military and naval fortress in the Mediterranean and the only Allied base between Gibraltar and Alexandria in Egypt. The Axis Powers of Germany and Italy recognised the strategic position that Malta occupied and reasoned the island needed to be bombed or starved into submission. Subsequently Malta had been besieged by the Axis Powers since 1940. With the arrival, in May and June 1942, of Spitfire fighter aircraft the Royal Air Force (RAF) had gained control of the skies. Despite the reduction of the Axis air attacks the situation on Malta was desperate. Food, water, ammunition and especially oil was in danger of running out. In June 1942 two convoys of the Royal Navy carrying vital supplies, despite serious losses, delivered 25,000 tons of supplies to the besieged island.

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was aware of the weariness of the British people on the continuous defeats to date in both the desert and Pacific campaigns. The loss of Malta after so many humiliations would be a crushing blow to the national spirit. Therefore in the summer of 1942 it was decided by the cabinet that Malta must be sent sustenance if they were not to be starved into surrender. Operation Pedestal, a British operation to carry supplies to the island of Malta during August 1942 was about to begin. Royal Naval planning for Operation Pedestal began in late July 1942. Under the direction of Vice-Admiral Neville Syfret, Rear-Admirals Lumley Lyster and Harold Burrough a conference was convened on 29th July 1942 to discuss the operation. Also planned were several smaller operations to be carried out concurrently with Pedestal. The U.S. fast tanker SS Ohio was the most important of the fourteen merchant vessels which comprised the convoy. The Ohio, on loan from the United States, was manned by a British crew and carried 12,000 tons of oil. As a safeguard the other thirteen merchant vessels carried fuel in oil-drums. The convoy was protected by the largest escort force ever previously assembled. The escort vessels consisted of two battleships, four- aircraft carriers, seven cruisers, thirty-two destroyers and seven submarines. The bulk of the convoy sailed from Britain on the 3rd August 1942 and the assembled convoy passed through the Strait of Gibraltar into the Mediterranean on the night of 9th/10th August 1942.

On that first morning the sea was calm, the sky was blue and visibility was excellent. Ahead of the convoy was 900 miles of sea before they reached their destination. They would have arrived in Malta in 50 hours of fast steaming but it took approximately 100 hours with the ships having to zigzag. Syfret dispatched a signal to all ships saying: ’Malta looks to us for help. We shall not fail them’. The bloodiest air-sea battle in the west was about to begin and not one person on board the convoy and escorts had any doubt the enemy would come.

Waiting for the convoy were 600 aircraft, 21 submarines and approximately 40 torpedo boats of the Axis powers of Germany and Italy. 0n the 11th August 1942 the enemy were first aware of the approach of Pedestal fleet when the hydrophone operators of U-boat U-73 detected propeller noises. Upon raising his periscope captain Helmet Rosembaum saw aircraft carrier HMS Eagle approaching fast before changing course in a zigzag pattern. He waited until Eagle was facing side on then promptly fired four torpedoes. Twenty feet below the water line the torpedoes struck her side and she immediately began to list to port. It was obvious to everyone as to the fate of the Eagle with thousands of tons of water pouring into her machinery spaces. She continued to list then turned over so that her bottom came to the surface. Within eight minutes Eagle sank in a fury of white foam.  The loss of Eagle so early in the operation did not bode well for the rest of the journey. 131 officers and ratings died but 67 officers and 862 sailors were pulled out of the sea and rescued. Also lost was approximately 20% of the fighter cover for the convoy. Immediately after the attack U-73 crash-dived in an attempt to put depth and distance before the inevitable depth-charge attack. She evaded being detected and managed to escape.

On the 11th/12th August 1942 a crucial failure on the part of the Italian navy occurred. The cruiser fleet was already at sea but naval intelligence had sighted four British cruisers and ten destroyers and thought they were heading to the Eastern Mediterranean to act as a decoy. Many Italian headquarter commanders decided to cancel the operation due to lack of air cover. Mussolini was in agreement when the issue was referred to him and rather than risk his ships by attacking Pedestal he recalled some of the cruisers to port and the rest to face the expected decoy convoy. The Italians threw away the opportunity for a crushing victory. In the meantime destroyer HMS Wolverine and four additional destroyers had been on anti-submarine patrols. Wolverine detected Italian submarine Dagabur at 4,900 yd. (4,500 m) range, she accelerated and made visual contact at 700 yd. (640 m) range. At a speed of 31 mph (50 k/h) Wolverine rammed Dagabur sinking her with all hands. Wolverine badly damaged her bow but managed to sail back to Gibraltar for repairs.

Having sailed through the U-boat attack zone and travelling nearly 700 miles they were approaching Tunisia on the North African coast. On the 12th August 1942 Operation Pedestal was faced with fast German and Italian torpedo boats and aircraft who were waiting for them, and out they came from Tunisia to stop the convoy. On the evening of the 12th August 1942 the convoy passed the island of Pantelleria. S.S. Ohio was an American oil tanker who formed part of the convoy. Axis aircraft attacked the convoy and in the mayhem an Italian submarine torpedoed Ohio amidships which immediately caught fire. The flames were extinguished and Ohio was constantly under attack until she finally came to a stop. HMS Penn began towing Ohio and the two ships were again attacked by aircraft. Ohio was hit yet again by a bomb and probably had her back broken. Ohio was sinking but with Penn and HMS Ledbury secured each side Ohio was towed into Valletta harbour in Malta on the 15th August 1942. A fleet auxiliary tanker RFA Boxol pumped 10,000 tons of fuel oil into her own tanks and as the last of the fuel was pumped out Ohio settled on the bottom.

Ohio’s English Captain Dudley William Mason was awarded the George Cross for successfully supplying vital fuel to Malta. Although Malta received vital supplies it came at a disastrous cost. Only Ohio and four merchant vessels got through, out of a combined convoy of fourteen merchant vessels. With the survival of Malta as a military and naval fortress the Axis Powers were denied the ability to easily supply Rommel’s desert campaign.

—

The First Battle of El Alamein ended on the 30th July 1942. The British Eighth Army, under the command of General Sir Claude Auchinleck (The Auk) set up a defensive position from El Alamein on the coast to the impassable Qattara Depression on the outskirts of the Sahara Desert. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was desperate for a victory in the desert campaign and constantly sought an offensive from The Auk even though the Eighth Army was exhausted. On route to Moscow to attend a conference with Stalin, Churchill and Alan Brooke, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, flew to Cairo in early August 1942 to meet The Auk. It transpires that both Churchill and Brooke had lost confidence in The Auk and he was relieved of his post. He was replaced as C-in-C by General Sir Harold Alexander with Lieutenant-General William Gott as commander of the Eighth Army. However, Gott was killed when his transport plane was shot down whilst flying to Cairo from the battle area. Churchill was persuaded by Brooke to appoint Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery (Monty) as commander of the Eighth Army on the 13th August 1942. The fighting spirit of the Eighth Army was transformed after Monty assumed command. He ordered the reinforcements of the 35 mile (56 km) front line at El Alamein and that all contingency plans for retreat be destroyed. The Auk, after having withdrawn to a strong defensive he had established did not have any plans for retreat. Monty made himself known to his troops by visiting them as often as possible wearing his famous black beret. When Brooke and Alexander visited the area on the 19th August 1942 they were astonished by the transformation of the general atmosphere. The Second Battle of El Alamein began on the 23rd 0ctober 19 A popular but unproven story was that Monty was supposed to have remarked: “After having an easy war things have now got much more difficult”. He was told by a colleague to cheer up. Monty’s reply was: “I’m not talking about me, I’m talking about Rommel”.

(The Pacific)

Operation Watchtower was the codename given to the Guadalcanal Campaign which was essential in denying the Japanese the bases that would allow them to threaten the Allied supply shipping between the U.S. and Australia. Allied forces, predominately American Marines landed on the Solomon Islands of Guadalcanal, Tulagi and Florida on the 7th August 1942. The Japanese, as part of their attempt for military supremacy in the Pacific, had occupied the islands since May 1942. The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) had constructed a seaplane base on Tulagi and was in the process of building an airfield on Guadalcanal. Bad weather had allowed the Allied invasion force to arrive unseen by the Japanese taking the defenders by surprise. The landing force split into two groups with one group assaulting Guadalcanal and the other group attacking Tulagi, Florida and the nearby islands. All the beaches were bombarded by Allied warships while U.S. carrier aircraft bombed Japanese positions and destroyed 15 Japanese seaplanes at their Tulagi base. 886 IJN personnel stationed at Tulagi and two nearby small islands fiercely resisted the 3,000 Marine attackers. The Marines lost 122 men and the Japanese defenders were killed almost to the last man.

The Allied landings at Guadalcanal had taken the Japanese by surprise. In response to the landings the Imperial Japanese Navy mobilised a task force to attack the Allied amphibious supporting fleet of screening ships. The Japanese task force, consisting of seven cruisers and one destroyer, sailed from their bases on the islands of New Britain and New Ireland under the command of Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa on the 8th August 1942. Of the eight cruisers and fifteen destroyers forming the Allied screening force, under the command of British Rear Admiral Victor Crutchley, only five cruisers and seven destroyers were involved in the battle.

Japanese aircraft, based at Rabaul on Papua New Guinea, attacked the Allied amphibious forces several times on the 7th and 8th August 1942. The attacks caused USS George F. Elliott to catch fire and sink within two days and heavily damage destroyer USS Jarvis. Over the two days the Japanese lost 36 aircraft and the U.S. lost 19 aircraft either in combat or carrier accidents. Concerned about the losses to his carrier fighter strength, commander of the Allied expeditionary force U.S. Vice Admiral Frank Fletcher withdrew his ships from Guadalcanal on the 9th August 1942. Because of the early withdrawal less than half of the supplies and heavy equipment had been unloaded which the troops on shore would need.

The landing of 11,000 U.S. Marines on Guadalcanal encountered far less resistance. The partially completed airstrip was taken following the Japanese abandonment complete with intact construction equipment, vehicles, food and supplies. The airstrip was named Henderson Field on the 12th August 1942 by the Marines and was named after Lofton R. Henderson, who was a Marine aviator killed at the Battle of Midway.

Work began immediately on the airstrip using mainly Japanese equipment plus the supplies the Allies had managed to land. The airstrip was ready for operation on the 18th August 1942. A total of 14 days of food was available by using captured Japanese provisions together with the landed stores. On the 20th August 1942 the escort carrier USS Long Island delivered 19 Grumman F4F Wildcat and 12 Douglas SBD Dauntless aircraft.

By the end of August 1942 a total of 64 aircraft of various types were stationed at Henderson Field. Between the 21st August and early September 1942 air battles between Allied aircraft and Japanese fighter/bombers were fought almost daily. The 1,120 mile (1,800 km) eight hour return trip from their base at Rabaul took their toll on the Japanese air force who were slowly losing the battle in the skies above Guadalcanal. The Battle of Guadalcanal lasted until February 1943 and marked the Allies transition from defensive to offensive roles in the Pacific theatre against the Japanese.

—

The Battle of Savo Island was the first major naval engagement of the Guadalcanal campaign. The Allies were unaware that the Japanese Navy had trained extensively in night-fighting tactics before the war. The Battle of Savo Island was primarily fought during the hours of darkness to avoid attacks from Allied aircraft which could not operate effectively at night. On the 7th August 1942 Mikawa’s warships headed east-southeast toward Guadalcanal. On the night of the 8th/9th August 1942 during the ensuing engagement the Japanese sank one Australian and three American cruisers. The Japanese suffered very little damage in return, but fearing Allied carrier air strikes against his fleet in daylight, Mikana decided to withdraw under the cover of darkness. Following the attack the Allied warships and the amphibious force supply ships withdrew earlier than planned. This left the ground forces on Guadalcanal with limited supplies, equipment and food to hold the beach head. Both the Americans and Japanese feared counter attacks and lost the opportunity for success. The Americans for not attacking the Japanese fleet with aircraft. The Japanese for not crippling the supplies to Guadalcanal which contributed to the eventual Japanese failure to capture the island. Despite the Japanese naval withdrawal, technically Japan was victorious at the Battle of Savo Island. Their casualties were two heavy cruisers and one light cruiser slightly damaged for the loss of 120 crewmen killed. The Allied fleet suffered the worst defeat in U.S, naval history, second only to Pearl Harbour. Of the twelve ships deployed three heavy cruisers were sunk and one was scuttled. One heavy cruiser and two destroyers were damaged, for the loss 1,077 Allied crewmen killed.

—

The American Raid on Makin Island (now known as Butaritari) was an attack on 17th/18th August 1942 by the U.S. Marine Corps Raiders on Japanese military installations on the island. 121 Marines were transported to the island by two submarines, and their objective was to destroy Japanese installations, take prisoners and to divert attention from the Allied landings during the Guadalcanal Campaign. The Makin Island Garrison was created by the Japanese navy in early 1942 with a total force of 71 armed personnel located at the Japanese seaplane base. A further 7 non-armed military personnel were based at the garrison. 2 civilian interpreters completed the contingent of defenders. The Marines were launched in rubber boats from the submarines just after midnight on the 17th August 1942 and successfully landed on the beach about 05.13. The marines advanced from the beach across the island, despite strong Japanese resistance whose snipers and machine guns stalled the advance and inflicting casualties. In an attempt to halt the marine advance the Japanese launched two suicides raids (banzai charges). The marines wiped them out, the result being most of the Japanese on the island were killed. Twelve Japanese planes arrived over Makin at 13.30. Two of the planes were flying boats, carrying Japanese re-enforcements, who attempted to land in the lagoon. Machine gun, rifle and anti-tank rifles caused one plane to crash and the other to burst into flames. No American casualties occurred when the remaining planes bombed and strafed the island.

The marines began to withdraw from the island using eighteen rubber boats at 19.30. The outboard engines of eleven of the boats were not working and only seven boats with 93 men made it to the submarines.  By 23.00 the remaining eleven boats failed to reach the submarines, despite hours of effort to breach the strong surf. The exhausted marines made it back to the beach. They linked up with the 20 fully armed rear guard marines who had been left to cover the withdrawal. At 09.00 on the 18th August 1942 the submarines sent a rescue boat with a stretch rope which would enable them to pull the rubber boats through the surf to the submarines. Japanese planes arrived just as the operation began and attacked the rescue ship and the submarines. The rescue boat was sunk and the submarines were forced to crash-dive and wait on the bottom all day. At 23.00 the undamaged submarines received a message from the beach to say they had built a raft of three rubber boats and two native canoes and to meet the marines at the entrance of Makin Lagoon. Using that raft, powered by the two remaining outboard engines, seventy-two exhausted marines were picked by the submarines after having sailed four miles from Makin Island to the mouth of the lagoon. Casualties for the marines were nineteen killed, seventeen wounded and twelve missing. For the Japanese forty-six were killed, untold numbers wounded or missing. Technically it was an American victory but they only achieved one of their objectives. The raid did provide a reliable test for raiding tactics but more importantly it was a massive morale booster for the marines.

—     

The Battle of Milne Bay in New Guinea has been described as the first major battle in the Pacific campaign where Allied troops defeated Japanese land forces. The battle was fought between the 25th August and the 7th September 1942 involving Japanese naval infantry troops and mostly Australian troops. Located at the eastern tip of the Territory of Papua (now part of Papua New Guinea) Milne Bay is a sheltered 22 mile (35km) long by 10 mile (16km) wide bay deep enough to allow large ships to enter. A number of airfields had been constructed and on the 22nd July 1942 Kittyhawk fighters of the Australian RAAF began to arrive at the bay. The Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces attacked the Allies on the 25th August 1942, and were completely unaware that the Allies had been forewarned by intelligence, had strengthened their defences. Nearly 2,000 Japanese land troops accompanied by Tanks landed on the coast despite suffering a setback at the outset when part of the invasion force was destroyed by RAAF aircraft. The Japanese began their advance towards the airfields where they encountered the Australian Militia troops who formed the first line of defence. Heavy fighting forced the militia to retreat. Unexpected Second Australian Imperial Forces coupled with Allied air superiority tipped the balance of power in the defenders favour. Suffering heavy casualties and lacking supplies the heavily outnumbered Japanese withdrew their forces. The fighting ended on the 7th September 1942 resulting in 635 Japanese killed and 311 wounded. The combined Australian and American losses were 181 killed or missing and 206 wounded. The Battle of Milne Bay was an Allied victory with Australian Corporal John French posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions against the Japanese on the 4th September 1942.

(Other Theatres)

India was on the silk route to the far-east and formally became a direct possession of the British crown in 1858. The British attempted to bring European culture into the country. By doing so they created a large Indian elite educated in Western values who began to question why India did not enjoy the same rights. These western educated elites began to oppose the British who had educated them. Mahatma Ghandi, a lawyer, was one of the elite who led the opposition. When the Second World War began in 1939 over 2.5 million Indian citizens volunteered and joined the British military. These volunteers fought with honour on the various fronts as members of the Allied forces, and ignored Ghandi’s campaign that India should not participate in the war. He was motivated in his belief that India should not be a party to fighting for democratic freedom against Germany and Japan while that freedom was denied to India itself. He also condemned Nazism and Fascism. As the war progressed Ghandi and members of the Congress Working Committee intensified their demands for independence. He called for the British to ‘Quit India’ in his 9th August 1942 speech in Mumbai (Bombay). This speech was seen by the British government as being Ghandi’s definitive revolt aimed at securing the exit by Britain from the Indian continent. The ‘Quit India’ speech resulted in the British government ordering Ghandi’s and Congress Working Committee’s immediate arrest. Retaliation against the arrests by the population was by damaging or burning hundreds of government owned police stations, railway stations and cutting down telegraph wires. Now nearly 73 years of age in 1942 Ghandi urged his people to stop co-operating with the British government. His request was that they did not kill or injure British people, but should be willing to die if the British officials initiated violence against them. He reasoned only ‘Organised anarchy’ would be the means to bring about eventual independence, He also urged his fellow Indians Karo ya maro (“Do or Die”) in the cause for their rights and freedom. Ghandi was held in the Aga Khan Palace in Pune (Poonah) and he and his followers arrest lasted two years.  Ghandi was released, owing to his failing health on the 6th May 1944, because the Indian authorities did not wish for him to die in prison and have him becoming a martyr to an enraged nation.

—

Brazil declared war on the Axis powers of Germany and Italy on the 22nd August 1942 and formally entered into the Second World War. Prior to the war Brazil traded with the Allies and Axis powers. When the war began in 1939 Brazil was a neutral country but after the beginning of the conflict trade with Europe became more difficult. Consequently they turned to the United States as a trading partner. America pressurised Brazil to join the Allies which led to a Brazil-U.S. Defence Commission. This commission was to counter any Axis influence in South America. On the 28th January 1942 Brazil agreed the United States could set up air bases to the north-east of her territory. As a result of Brazil’s decision twenty-one German and two Italian submarines sank thirty-six Brazilian merchant ships. 1,691 seamen were drowned and a further 1,079 casualties was the main reason for Brazil’s declaration of war on Germany and Italy. Brazil also broke off diplomatic relations with Germany and Italy on the 22nd August 1942. Brazil was the only county from South America to provide troops to fight with the Allies in the Italian Campaign. The Brazilian Navy and Air Force helped the Allies in the Atlantic from 1942 until the end of the war in 1945.

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Air Raid Damage Reports Brentwood Division Essex Fire Service July 1942.

Date                Time   Location         Damage

03/07/1942    Found  South            3 – 2″ British Trench Mortars near the Seaplane

Benfleet         obstructions, Benfleet Creek.  Removed to Canvey Island Police Station.

03/07/1942    Found  Billericay      1 – H.E. unexploded at Snail’s Farm Jackson’s

Lane.  Time of falling not known.  No damage or casualties.

07/07/1942    Found  Rayleigh      1 – H.E. unexploded in shrubland 75 yards North

West of junction of Warwick Road and The Drive (both are unmade roads).  Date of falling believed January 1941.  No damage or casualties.

09/07/1942    08.40  Raweth          Bombardier No 1474857 Harry Owens age 20

years, a single man of the 329th A.A. Heavy Battery R.A. was examining a hand grenade at the A.A. gun site when it exploded killing him instantly.  The Army Hut in which the explosion occurred was damaged.

09/07/1942    Found  South            1 – A.A. unexploded Shell in a field 200 yards

Benfleet         South of “Winifred” a house in Thundersley Park Road.  No damage or casualties.  Date and time of falling not known.

09/07/1942    Found  Canvey         1 – H.E. unexploded in a field at the Western end

Island           of Waterside Farm.  No damage or casualties.  Date of falling believed 24.10.40.  (Disposed of BDS   42).

15/07/1942    Found  Little             1 – H.E. exploded and formed a Camouflet in a

Burstead      field 500 yards S-SW of Stockwell Hall.  No damage or casualties.  Date of falling believed 1940.  (Disposed of BDS by explosive charge 23.7.42).

22/07/1942    12.20  Great              Mr Albert Collicut of “Seaview Road, age 57 years,

Wakering       was employed at “O” Battery, New Ranges, Shoeburyness fixing plates in the butt, when a round was fired from the gun killing him instantly.

28/07/1942                Foulness       1 – H.E unexploded found in a ditch 100 yards

Island             North of cart track and 300 yards South East of Eastwick Farm.  No damage or casualties.

30/07/1942    02.40  Langdon        1 – A.A. Shell exploded in a house “Nightingale”

Hills                Lee Chapel Lane, causing considerable damage.  There were no casualties.

SECOND WORLD WAR

July 1942

(Britain)

The first USAAF B-17 Flying Fortresses arrived in Britain on the 1st July 1942 and were distributed to various purpose built airfields in England, Administration staff had begun arriving at High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire during May 1942 in readiness for the deployment of American units to Britain to form the 97th Bombardment Group. With the arrival of the United States Army Air Force (USAAF), alongside RAF Bomber Command the Allies were in a position to attack Germany on a regular basis. The combined bombing forces were now able to undertake both daylight and night-time raids. The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress was a four-engine heavy bomber developed in the mid-1930s. The first B-17 flew in July 1935 and was introduced into service with the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) in April 1938. When the war began in 1939 the RAF did not have many heavy bombers until March 1942 when the Avro Lancaster bombers entered service. The Lancaster was developed from the twin-engine medium bomber Avro Manchester and soon became the principle heavy bomber for the RAF, overshadowing the Halifax and Stirling.

The first USAAF unit selected to bomb targets in occupied Europe was the 15th Bombardment Squadron and the raid was on the 4th July 1942. The raid had been specifically ordered by General Henry “Hap” Arnold who believed the 4th July American Independence Day would be the ideal day for the attack. After a few weeks of familiarisation training, six American crews from RAF Molesworth in Cambridgeshire joined up with six RAF crews from RAF Swanton Morley, Norfolk. Their targets were Luftwaffe airfields in the Netherlands. The attacks were made at low-level and the badly damaged aircraft of the 15th Bombardment Squadron commander, Captain Charles Kengleman, only just managed to return. For this action Kengleman was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and a British equivalent for his bravery and valour. Of the twelve attacking bombers three did not return, two American and one British.                                q                                                                    

A motion of censure was brought against Prime Minister Winston Churchill on the 2nd July 1942. Following two weeks of reversals on the North African Front, the House of Commons proposed they had no confidence in the general direction of the war. The House payed tribute to the endurance and heroism of the Armed Forces of the Crown in the most difficult of circumstances and directed their censure against Churchill’s leadership. Before the vote was taken Churchill gave a lengthy speech where he conceded the war had not been going well. With the campaign in North Africa stalling and the war in the Pacific being a series of disasters, Churchill assured the House that things would soon improve. Once the vast amounts of American military supplies began arriving the war in Europe would take a turn for the better. When the vote was finally taken the motion of censure was heavily defeated 475 to 25.

(Germany)

Four German submarines were commissioned between the 1st /4th July 1942. Three were Type VIIC and one was a Type IXC/40. Type VIIC was the workhorse of U-boat force which had limited range before being required to be refuelled. They had five torpedo tubes, four in the bows and one at the stern. One 8.8cm (3.46 inch) naval gun was supplied for deck armament. Type IXC/40 was a large ocean-going submarine capable of sustained operations far from support facilities. They had six torpedo tubes, four in the bows and two at the stern. One 10.5cm (4.1 inch) deck gun was supplied for surface firepower.

Commissioned on the 1st July 1942 was U-414 (Type VIIC, built in Danzig) and commanded by Oberleutnant zur See Walther Huth. She was deployed in the Battles of the Atlantic and Mediterranean.

Also commissioned on the same day was U-707 (Type VIIC, built in Hamburg) and commanded by Oberleutnant zur See Oberleutnant zur See Günther Gretschell. She was deployed in the Battle of the Atlantic.

Commissioned on the 2nd July 1942 was U-629 (Type VIIC, built in Hamburg) and commanded by Oberleutnant zur See Hans-Helmuth Bugs. She was deployed in the Battle of the Atlantic.

Commissioned on the 4th July 1942 was U-167 (Type IXC/40, built in Hamburg) and commanded by Kapitänleutnant Kurt Neubert. She was deployed in the Battle of the Atlantic.

—

Operation Outward was a British programme to attack Germany by means of free flying balloons. The balloons were surplus weather balloons and when fitted with simple timing and regulating systems were released to fly over to Germany. Nearly 100,000 balloons were released during the course of the war with half carrying incendiaries and half carrying trailing wires. The most successful 0peration 0utward raid was on the 12th July 1942 when a balloon fitted with a trailing wire struck an 110Kv power cable which caused the Böhlen power station to be destroyed by fire. The free flying balloon attacks were successful and had an economic impact on Germany far in excess of the cost to the British government.

The first successful test flight of the Jet Messerschmitt Me 262 fighter aircraft was carried out on the 18th July 1942 at Leipheimer near Günzburg in Germany. This version was the third variant air frame housing a jet powered engine. The engine had been developed and constructed by Hans Joachim Pabsi von Ohain in 1936. The gradual development of the aircraft entailed various flight tests ultimately leading to the first successful first jet powered flight. Frank Whittle, a 22 year old English RAF officer proposed the concept of the jet engine in 1930. When he presented the design to the RAF the idea was turned down as impractical. Whittle patented the idea in January 1930 but could not finance the patent renewal fee when it became due in 1935. Although he entered a partnership to set up Power Jets Ltd, finance was difficult to obtain for further development. The Germans were able to capitalise on Whittle’s design.

(France)  

Following France’s defeat and the signing of an armistice with Germany in 1940, Pierre Laval served two prominent roles in the Vichy French regime of Phillippe Pétain. His first role was vice-chairman of the Council of Ministers and from April 1942 as head of government. Laval had won the trust of German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler and increasingly Pétain was only a figurehead in the Vichy regime. As the effective premier of Vichy France Laval collaborated with the Nazis programme of genocide and oppression. In Paris, on the 16th July 1942 Laval encouraged the French police to carry out a massive arrest programme of Jewish families’ codenamed the “Vel’ d’Hiv Roundup”. The name of “Vel’ d’Hiv’ Roundup” was derived from Vélodrome d’Hiver (Winter Vélodrome). Aimed at eliminating the Jewish population in France, the roundup consisted of both Jews who resided in the German occupied zone in the north and the French free zone in the south. Over 14,000 Jews were arrested in Paris of which 4,000 were children. They were held at the Velodrome d’Hiver without food or water. The accommodation was crowded and with no sanitary facilities the conditions were appalling. The Jewish population of Paris were transferred to Auschwitz in rail cattle trucks where they systematically murdered.

(Eastern Front)

The Siege of Sevastopol began on the 19th May 1942 following the Battle of the Kerch Peninsular. Sevastopol is a port in the Crimea which is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea. The German/Romanian attack defeated the Soviet troops at Kerch on the 15th May 1942. The port of Sevastopol with approximately 162,000 Soviet soldiers were left stranded and completely surrounded by German soldiers. After a month’s delay the German commander Erich von Manstein turned his attention to the capture of Sevastopol. Using of the Luftwaffe and a large number of heavy artillery guns including super heavy 600 mm (24 inch) Kari-Gerät mortars and the 800 mm (31 inch) ‘Dora’ Railway Gun the assault began on the 2nd June 1942. The bombardment continued for another five days before the ground assault began. The troops who were victorious at the Battle of the Kerch Peninsular were the same soldiers attacking Sevastopol. Casualties were high on both sides as the month dragged on. A surprise amphibious attack was ordered by von Manstein on the 29th June 1942 which was a success as Soviet resistance was almost non-existent. On the 1st July 1942 the German army overran Sevastopol whilst the Soviet forces conducted a disorderly evacuation. The entire city of Sevastopol was in German hands on the 4th July 1942 and the siege was over. For his success German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler promoted von Manstein to Field-Marshal on the 1st July 1942.

When Germany invaded Poland in September 1939 they converted the Auschwitz army barracks into a prisoner-of-war camp for Polish political prisoners. Gas chambers had been added to the converted barracks in May 1940 and the first gassing of inmates began about the end of August 1941. Using concentration and extermination camps the Germans attempted to solve the “Final Solution to the Jewish Question”. As Director of the Reich Main Security Office, Gestapo Reinhard Heydrich outlined this solution at the Wannsee Conference in Berlin. The conference was held on the 20th January 1942. Jews from all occupied Europe would be transported by freight train and delivered to Auschwitz. Selected prisoners would be separated for slave labour and the remaining prisoners would be gassed on arrival. By the 4th July 1942 the Germans were systematically gassing Jews at Auschwitz. 

In April 1942 Treblinka in Poland was built as an extermination camp and equipped with gas chambers disguised as shower rooms and located 8Okm (50 mile) northwest of Warsaw. Treblinka first opened on the 22nd July 1942 when the systematic deportation of Jews from Warsaw Ghettos began. The camp comprised two separate units.Treblinka 1 was a forced-labour camp. Cutting wood in the forest to fuel the cremation pits was one of the tasks the prisoners were forced to undertake. When not cutting wood they worked in the gravel pits or the surrounding irrigation areas. Of the 20,000 inmates who resided in Treblinka 1 between 1942 and 1944, more than half died from starvation, disease, malnutrition or shooting. Treblinka 2, the second camp, was the extermination camp.Treblinka 2 was divided into three sections. The first was the guard’s quarters and administration compound, the second was the off-loading of incoming prisoners. The third was the location of the gas chambers.Treblinka 2 stopped gassing operations in 0ctober 1943 following a revolt by the prisoners in August 1943. The camps Treblinka I/2 were dismantled and a farmhouse built on to the site. In an attempt to hide the evidence of the gassing operations the ground was ploughed over. In the period between July 1942 and October 1943 when Treblinka 2 was operating an estimated 700,000 to 900,000 Jews were killed in the gas chambers. More Jews were killed at Treblinka Extermination Camp apart from Auschwitz-Birkenau. When the Soviet forces began approaching from the east in July 1944 the Germans had already destroyed Treblinka leaving very little evidence.

As a continuation of Operation Barbarossa of 1941 the Germans launched Fall Blau(Case Blue) on the 28th June 1942. Case Blue was intended to knock the Soviet Union out of the war. On the 26th June 1942 a two-pronged attack was proposed by German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler, one from the Axis left flank would advance toward Rostov-on-Don and on toward Stalingrad. This move was designed to protect the advance on the Baku oilfields. On the 28th June 1942 the Germans advanced 48km (30 miles), on the first day toward Rostov-on-Don. Their 1.37 million man army, assisted by the Luftwaffe, easily overran the 1.7 million Red Army troops. With the collapse of the Soviets the Germans captured Voronezh on the 5th July 1942 despite becoming embroiled in the battle to seize the city. The Soviet leaders had expected a German offensive on Moscow and for which they held back troops in reserve. Slowed down by their overstretched supply lines and constant counter-attacks by the newly deployed Red Army reserves the Germans reached and crossed the River Don near Stalingrad on the 24th July 1942. A three month battle for the control of Stalingrad began. After having the River Don crossing secured, even though his army was flagging through lack of supplies, Hitler issued the directive for the attack in the Caucasus on the 23rd July 1942. The Axis right flanks advanced over the Caucasus Mountains in order to seize the oilfields at Baku in Azerbaijan. However, the offensive slowed as it entered the Caucasus Mountains and the Germans were obliged to embrace a defensive mode as they had not reached their 1942 objectives.

(The Mediterranean and Desert War)

Malta was suffering a further German air raid on the 1st July 1942 when a flying boat approached the Grand Harbour in Valletta. Air Office Commander (AOC) Air Commodore Hugh Lloyd ordered the plane to stay clear until after the raid was over. However, the flying boat landed in the Harbour which was a flagrant disregard of an order by the AOC. Lloyd, intent on giving the pilot a dressing down, sent for him immediately. Instead of a junior pilot who entered his office, the man who walked in was Air Marshall Keith Park. In a firm but soft voice Park informed Lloyd he had arrived to take over command. Park, who went by the nickname of “Skipper” or by the Germans as “The Defender of London”, was one of The Few who had fought in the Battle of Britain in 1940.  He was Wing Commander of 11 Group Fighter Command and devised tactics to combat German air attacks. Over Malta, with plenty of Spitfires available, Park changed the strategy from purely defensive to intercepting incoming bombers and their fighter escorts. The impact of his Forward Interception Plan was virtually instantaneous as all German daylight raids were abandoned by the 31st July 1942.

—

With the fall of Tobruk during the Battle of Gazala on the 15th June 1942, the British Eighth Army, under the command of General Sir Claude Auchinleck (The Auk) retreated east into Egypt and took up a position near El Alamein. The line the British chose to defend straddled between the coast-line of the Mediterranean and the impassable Qattara Depression on the outskirts of the Sahara Desert, a distance of 35 miles (56 km). Alamein was a small hamlet with a railway station on the coast and approximately 10 miles (16 km) to the south was the stony Ruweisat Ridge which afforded excellent observation over the surrounding desert. The Ridge is a low east-west rocky outcropping and was defended by the infantry of the 18th Indian Brigade and included support by Nepalese Gurkhas. The Eighth Army had constructed three “boxes” with open desert between them. Each box was basically a defended dug-out and the open desert was covered by minefields and barbed wire. The nearest to El Alamein was complete, the one nearest Ruweisat Ridge was only partially completed owing to the rocky terrain whilst the one nearest the Depression had very little done to make it effective.  The Auk’s defensive plan was aimed at funnelling the Afrika Korps between the “boxes” and to attack them from the flanks. The First Battle of El Alamein began on the 1st July 1942 when the Afrika Korps of General Erwin Rommel (The Desert Fox) had acquired sufficient supplies to open the assault against the British defences.  His aim was to attack the defensive line at El Alamein with a combined Afrika Korps and Italian armoured forces. By the evening Rommel had managed to destroy and occupy the British positions on the Ridge’s western edge. The Indian Brigade controlled the eastern edge. He concentrated on the main area of El Alamein and the Ridge, as his favourite tactic of outflanking his opponent was curtailed by the impassable Qattara Depression. His supply line was unable to maintain the delivery of food, water, oil and ammunition and by the 11th July 1942 Rommel’s forces began to experience shortages, especially fuel. Attack and counter-attack occurred along the length of the line. On the 26th July 1942 The Auk attacked Rommel’s forces in an offensive but were driven back by the Afrika Korps. By the 30th July 1942 German supplies were not getting through. The British had halted Rommel’s advance toward Alexandria and the Suez Canal and both sides spent time re-supplying in readiness for the 2nd Battle of El Alamein in August 1942. The Auk had approximately 150,000 men and Rommel had approximately 96,000 men at their disposal at the beginning of the First Battle of El Alamein. At the stalemate by the end of the month the Eighth Army had suffered approximately 13,250 casualties and the Afrika Korps had suffered approximately 10,000 killed and wounded with 7,000 captured.

On the 15th July 1942 Captain Charles Upham was commanding a company of the 20th Battalion (Canterbury Regiment). The battalion was part of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) and was originally held back as reseve. The area around El Alamein was witnessing light skirmishing from both British and German troops. An attack had been ordered against the enemy-held Ruweisat Ridge. Whilst under fire and leading his company to attack the Ridge and crossing open ground Upham was wounded. However, he managed to destroy a truck load of German soldiers with hand grenades. Despite his wounds, and after being treated, he insisted on remaining with his company to take part in the final assault. Communications with the front assault troops had been broken and Upham received an order to send an officer to go up ahead to report on the progress of the attack. Armed with a sub machine gun, he opted to go himself, after several encounters with German machine gun posts he reported back with the required information. The reserve battalion was ordered forward and had almost reached the top of the Ridge when they ran into heavy fire from tanks and machine gun posts. He led his men against two defended positions and they knocked out the machine gun posts and a tank with hand grenades. In this engagement Upham was again wounded with a bullet through his elbow which broke his arm. Some of his men had become isolated and he went out to bring them back. Before having his wounds dressed he stayed with his men until they had beaten off a counter attack and consolidated their position. With his wounds dressed he returned to his company where he remained all day under heavy artillery fire. He was wounded for a third time and with 6 of his remaining men he fell into German hands when their position was overrun. For this action Upham was awarded a bar to his previously awarded Victoria Cross for his actions in Crete in 1941. He spent the remainder of the war as a prisoner of war eventually ending up in the infamous Colditz Castle. Upham was one of only three men to be awarded the VC and bar. Noel Chavasse and Arthur Martin-Leake were the other two.

(Pacific)

The “Flying Tigers” flew and fought their final engagement on the 3rd July 1942 and were replaced by the China Air Task Force on the 24th July 1942. The “Flying Tigers” was the nickname of the American Volunteer Group (AVG) of the Republic of China Air Force. Before America entered the war President Franklin D. Roosevelt recruited Brigadier General Claire Lee Chennault to form the “Flying Tigers”. The Sino-Japanese war between Japan and China had begun in 1937. Chennault had worked in China as military aviation advisor to Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek from that date. By the summer of 1940 fighter and bomber squadrons supplied by the Soviet Union to China had been withdrawn as they were required on the Eastern Front. Chiang sent Chennault to Washington as an adviser to China’s Ambassador to request for American combat aircraft and pilots. Chennault spent the winter of 1940 – 1941 in Washington following Roosevelt’s recruitment of Chennault. He supervised the purchase of 100 Curtiss P-40 fighters, the recruitment of 100 pilots and 200 ground crew and administration personnel. The “Flying Tigers” began arriving in China in April 1941. Their mission was to bomb Japan and defend the Republic of China. Many delays meant the AVG didn’t see combat until the 20th December 1941, 12 days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour. The AVG was composed of pilots from the United States Air Corps (USAAC), Navy (USN), and Marine Corps (USAMC) who was commanded by Chennault. Their Curtiss P-40 aircraft, marked with Chinese colours, flew under American control. Chennault had observed Soviet pilots in China and devised a different attack approach. Knowing his actual combat pilots and fighters were never greater than 62 he prohibited his pilots from entering a turning dogfight with the more manoeuvrable and superior numbers of Japanese fighters. His doctrine was to attack in teams from an altitude advantage. They were to execute a ‘dive and zoom’ approach where they attacked the Japanese fighters from above and zoomed away to set up another attack. Hundreds of villages throughout China were equipped with radios and telephones to give warning of the approaching Japanese air attack force. The AVG were in the air awaiting their arrival. When the AVG was replaced they were officially credited with 297 enemy aircraft destroyed including 229 in the air. Fourteen AVG pilots were either killed in action, captured or missing on combat missions. During the time of the “Flying Tigers” existence as a combat unit force two air crew died of wounds sustained in bombing raids. A further six were killed in accidents. Many of the AVG pilots received the Chinese Air Force Medal. Each AVG ace was awarded the Five Star Wing Medal. Finally 33 AVG pilots and 3 ground crew received the Order of the Cloud and Banner Medal.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

United States submarine USS Growler was on her maiden patrol under the command of Lieutenant Commander Howard W. Gilmore. Growler was built in Groton, Connecticut on the 2nd November 1941 and commissioned on the 20th March 1942. Growler’s first war patrol began on the 19th June 1942 when she cleared Pearl Harbour for her assigned patrol area around Dutch Harbour in Alaska. She stopped off at Midway Island on the 24th June 1942 and entered her patrol area on the 30th June 1942. Whilst patrolling off Attu Island on the 4th July 1942 Growler sighted three Japanese destroyers and she entered her first action. She was submerged when she closed in for the attack. She launched her torpedoes and surfaced. Growler’s torpedoes struck the Japanese destroyers Kasumi and Shiranui amidships and severely damaged them and putting them out of action. The third destroyer Arare was hit in the bow but before she sank she had launched two torpedoes at Growler, which passed either side of her. In the meantime Growler had dived deep but she was not subjected to attack by depth charges. Without finding any more targets Growler completed her patrol and on the 17th July 1942 she berthed at Pearl Harbour.

As part of the strategy to isolate Australia from the United States the Japanese objective was to seize Port Moresby on the Australian Territory of Papua New Guinea. Japanese forces landed and established a beachhead at Gona and Buna, on the north coast on the 20th July 1942. To enable the Japanese to seize Port Moresby the advance needed to be overland along the Kokoda Trail. The trail traversed the mountains and the Japanese pushed back the minimal Australian defenders and captured Kokoda and its strategically vital airfield on the 29th July 1942. The Japanese advanced to within sight of Port Moresby but they had outrun their supply line and withdrew in September 1942.

(Other Theatres)

British forces began the invasion of Vichy-French Madagascar on the 5th May 1942. When the Vichy defenders surrendered at Antanamitarana on the 7th May 1942, Vichy forces still held the south of the island. To consolidate the remainder of the area the British sent an invasion force to the Vichy held island of Mayotte on the 2nd July 1942. Mayotte is located north west of Madagascar in the Mozambique Channel. The island was an ideal base for British operations in the area as it would give control of the channel. Most of the Vichy defenders were either sleeping or taken completely unaware the British had invaded and were captured. The occupation of Mayotte included the capture of radthe io station and the whole operation was carried out with no loss of life or major damage.

In America the SS Alexander Macomb was a Liberty Ship built in the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland. Construction began on the 18th February 1942 and she was launched on the 6th May 1942. Final completion was carried out on the 2nd July 1942 and she sailed for New York on her maiden voyage. Leaving New York City on the 3rd July 1942 with a cargo of tanks, aircraft and explosives she joined Convoy BX-27. The convoy was forced to sail around Cape Cod instead of the northern end of Cape Cod Canal. The grounding of a cargo vessel in the canal was the cause of the diversion. On the evening of the 3rd July 1942 the convoy sailed into heavy fog. To avoid colliding with other ships of the convoy Alexander Macomb fell behind. Maintaining an intermittent zigzag course Alexander Macomb had hopes of re-joining the convoy in daylight. Within sight of the convoy Alexander Macomb was torpedoed by German submarine U-215. The torpedo caused her cargo of explosives to ignite and burst into flames and she sank at 1.00 pm on the 4th July 1942. In the meantime the crew of 8 officers, 33 of the 37 crewmen and 25 armed guards were able to abandon ship. They evacuated onto a raft and three lifeboats, one of which capsized after striking the still moving ship. Canadian corvette HMCS Regina picked up 14 crewmen and 11 armed guards and British trawler HMS Le Tiger picked up 23 crewmen and 8 armed guards. The remaining 6 armed guards and 4 crewmen died in the attack. U-215 attempted to escape but was pursued by Le Tiger and HMS Veteran who succeeded in sinking her, with the loss of her crew, by depth charges.

Off the east coast of America, the German submarine wolf-pack system entered what was known as the “Second Happy Hour”. This period lasted from January 1942 to August 1942 where German U-boats were able to inflict massive damage for little risk. 609 Allied merchant ships, totalling 3.1 million tons, were sunk for the loss of 22 U-boats. The “Second Happy Hour” was so successful because the United States defences were weak and disorganised and merchant ships had not formed into escorted convoys. With the Royal Navy and Canadian Royal Navy as escorts the convoy system developed whereby merchant shipping losses to U-boats began to drop. On the 19th July 1942 Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz ordered the last of his U-boats to withdraw from the United States Atlantic coast and shifted his attention back to the North Atlantic.

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Air Raid Damage Reports Brentwood Division Essex Fire Service June 1942.

Date                Time   Location         Damage

01/06/1942    Found  Shenfield     A portion of a German Meteorological Balloon on a

tree in Alwynne Avenue.  Subsequently sent to H.Q.

16/06/1942    Found  South            1 – 2″ British Trench Mortar Shell near the

                                    Benfleet         seaplane obstruction.  (Removed by BDS 22.6.42).

20/06/1942    11.30  Wallasea        Norman Sidney Hales of 4 Dogget’s Close

Island             Rochford an employee of the Stambridge Thrashing Machine Coy. Ltd. Was working on the Island when he was tampering with a German Cannon Shell which he had found at Hockley a few days previously which exploded.  Hales received the following injuries:- Tops of 3 fingers and thumb of left hand and ( Rest of entry on original missing).

22/06/1942    17.00  Hadleigh        1 – 2″ British Trench Mortar found in the creek near

the Old Jetty, opposite the Salvation Army Colony, removed to South Benfleet Police Station  (removed BDS 14.7.42).