Year 1940

Diary for Wednesday, April 10, 1940: Sea War FIRST BATTLE OF NARVIK. 5 British destroyers engage 10 German destroyers and shore batteries in Ofot Fjord, west of Narvik. Destroyers Hardy, […]

Diary for Tuesday, April 9, 1940: Norway GERMAN INVASION OF NORWAY (Weserübung Nord = Operation Weser Crossing North) with 6 regiments, 1 parachute battalion, 888 aircraft (345 bomber, dive-bomber and

Diary for Monday, April 8, 1940: Sea War British destroyers lay mines in Norwegian territorial waters, southwest of Narvik (Operation Wilfred). HMS Glowworm becomes detached and encounters German naval force

Diary for Sunday, April 7, 1940: Sea War Atlantic: British Home Fleet leaves Scapa Flow for Norwegian Sea.

Diary for Saturday, April 6, 1940: Air War RAF Bomber Command ends its leaflet (‘Operation Nickel’) raids on Germany: 65 Million leaflets and propaganda ‘newspapers’ dropped since September 3, 1939.

Diary for Thursday, April 5, 1940: Sea War First captured German merchant ship – the Uhenfels (renamed Empire Ability) – brought up river Thames. Politics Anglo-French note to Norway: warning

Diary for Thursday, April 4, 1940: Home Fronts Britain: Chamberlain tells Conservative Party meeting in London that, by not taking maximum advantage of Germany’s military superiority over Britain in September

Diary for Wednesday, April 3, 1940: Sea War First German Norway invasion ships sail. Air War Sunderland flying boat disperses formation of 6 Ju 88s attacking convoy in North Sea

Diary for Tuesday, April 2, 1940: Air War German aircraft raid Scapa Flow; on return flight they attack lighthouses, at Duncansby Head and Stroma Island.

Diary for Monday, April 1, 1940: China Sino-Japanese War: Japanese-sponsored ‘Central Government of China’ established at Nanking, under Wang Ching-wei, a former colleague of Chiang Kai-shek. The Government is not

Diary for Sunday, March 31, 1940: Home Fronts Britain: A large proportion of people evacuated from cities in September 1939 have now drifted back home; only 300,000 schoolchildren, out of

Diary for Saturday, March 30, 1940: Home Fronts Britain: Sir John Gilmour, Minister of Shipping, dies aged 63.

Diary for Friday, March 29, 1940: Air War Capitan Antoine de Saint-Exupery flies first recce sortie over West Germany in the Bloch 174 (max. speed 530 km/hour). Air Marshal Portal

Diary for Thursday, March 28, 1940: Sea War Pacific: Russian cargo ships Selenga and Vladimir Mayakovski (carrying metallic ores to Vladivostok for trans-shipment to Germany) ordered to Hong Kong by

Diary for Wednesday, March 27, 1940: Western Front Phony War continues: French and German artillery exchange fire in Saar and Vosges sectors.

Diary for Tuesday, March 26, 1940: Western Front British 51st (Highland) Division takes over section of French front in Saar region. Home Fronts Canada: General Election. Liberals win 178 seats,

Diary for Monday, March 25, 1940: Home Fronts Germany: British PoWs forbidden by British Government to broadcast for the enemy.

Diary for Sunday, March 24, 1940: Western Front French and German patrols active at various points.

Diary for Saturday, March 23, 1940: Sea War British Malaya Force formed to shadow 17 German merchant ships trapped in Dutch East Indies ports.

Diary for Friday, March 22, 1940: Air War RAF bombers on recce/leaflet dropping operations over the Ruhr and northwest Germany have first encounters with German night fighters. Hampden slightly damaged