Year 1942

WW2 War Diary for Thursday, December 31, 1942: Sea War Atlantic – BATTLE OF THE BARENTS SEA (Operation Regenbogen = ‘Rainbow’): Heavy cruisers Luetzow and Admiral Hipper make repeated, bungled, […]

WW2 War Diary for Wednesday, December 30, 1942: Air War Western Europe: B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberators bomb Lorient U-boat base. Northwest Africa: Night raid on Casablanca by Focke-Wulf

WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, December 29, 1942: Eastern Front Stalingrad: Kotelnikovo, important airfield 153 km southwest of Stalingrad, recaptured by Russians after house-to-house fighting.

WW2 War Diary for Monday, December 28, 1942: Eastern Front Caucasus: Hitler orders Army Group A to withdraw from dangerously exposed salient in the Caucasus. Poltics French Northwest Africa: De

WW2 War Diary for Sunday, December 27, 1942: Air War Pacific: Japanese parachute supplies to half-starved expeditionary forces on Guadalcanal.

WW2 War Diary for Saturday, December 26, 1942: Politics North Africa: Giraud appointed High Commissioner in French North Africa. Air War Southeast Asia: US 10th AAF bombers raid Lashio (Burma

WW2 War Diary for Friday, December 25, 1942: Africa Western Desert: British 8th Army captures Sirte. Eastern Front Caucasus: Russians recapture two towns near Nalchik and reopen ‘Ossetian Military Highway’.

WW2 War Diary for Thursday, December 24, 1942: Eastern Front Stalingrad: Russians throw back Hoth’s Stalingrad relief force from river Myshkova to river Aksay (December 24) and Kotelnikovo (December 29).

WW2 War Diary for Wednesday, December 23, 1942: Air War Western Europe: RAF Bostons and Venturas bomb St Malo and Den Helder.

WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, December 22, 1942: Air War Western Europe: RAF fighters, fighter-bombers and Boston light bombers make day and night attacks on rail communications in West Germany,

WW2 War Diary for Monday, December 21, 1942: Pacific New Guinea: Stuart tanks penetrate strongly held Japanese perimeter at Buna.

WW2 War Diary for Sunday, December 20, 1942: Air War Western Europe: US B-17 Fortress and B-24 Liberators (6 lost), escorted by 300 Allied fighters, bomb aircraft repair depot at

WW2 War Diary for Saturday, December 19, 1942: Africa East Africa: Major-General Dan Pienaar, GOC South African Division in Libya and leader of victorious South African troops during East African

WW2 War Diary for Friday, December 18, 1942: Eastern Front Stalingrad: Hoth makes repeated attempts to force the river Myshkova, 40 km southwest of Stalingrad (December 18-23), but without success.

WW2 War Diary for Thursday, December 17, 1942: Home Fronts Britain: Foreign Minister Eden announces that Germans ‘are now carrying into effect Hitler‘s oft-repeated intention to exterminate the Jewish people

WW2 War Diary for Wednesday, December 16, 1942: Eastern Front Operation Saturn: Russians smash Italian 8th Army along river Don, northwest of Stalingrad (December 16-18). Pacific New Guinea: Australian infantry

WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, December 15, 1942: Air War Western Desert: RAF and USAAF batter retreating German columns west of El Agheila throughout the day, against negligible Luftwaffe opposition;

WW2 War Diary for Monday, December 14, 1942: Africa Western Desert: Rommel skilfully evades 8th Army trap at El Agheila (December 14-18). Pacific New Guinea: Japanese reinforcements land near Buna.

WW2 War Diary for Sunday, December 13, 1942: Occupied Territories Holland: Anton Mussert, leader of Dutch Nazi Party (NSB), appointed ‘Leader of Netherlands People’ by Hitler. France: Laval says ‘without

WW2 War Diary for Saturday, December 12, 1942: Eastern Front Operation Wintersturm (‘Winter Storm’): 13 German divisions, under Manstein and Hoth, attempt to punch a corridor from Kotelnikovo to Stalingrad,