Year 1942

WW2 War Diary for Friday, March 6, 1942: Southeast Asia East Indies: Japanese occupy Batavia. Sea War Arctic: German battleship Tirpitz leaves Trondheim for unsuccessful sortie against Arctic Convoy QP.8 […]

WW2 War Diary for Thursday, March 5, 1942: Eastern Front Central Sector: Russians recapture Yukhnov, east of Smolensk. Southeast Asia East Indies: Dutch evacuate Batavia, which becomes ‘open city’. Burma:

WW2 War Diary for Wednesday, March 4, 1942: Air War Mediterranean: 394 raids on Malta, by day and night, over previous 2 months. Pacific East Indies: Lieutenant General Hein ter

WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, March 3, 1942: Air War Western Europe: Renault works at Billancourt (Paris) severely damaged in RAF night raid: some casualties among 3,000-strong French workforce. Avro

WW2 War Diary for Monday, March 2, 1942: Home Front Australia: All civilians now liable for compulsory war service. Air War Mediterranean: Wellington bombers destroy munition ship Cuma at Palermo

WW2 War Diary for Sunday, March 1, 1942: Sea War Pacific: HMS Exeter sunk by Japanese cruisers and destroyers south of Borneo. US destroyer Pope crippled by dive bombers and

WW2 War Diary for Saturday, February 28, 1942: Home Fronts Germany: Dr Mansfeld appointed Reich Labour Controller with overall responsibility for the exploitation of foreign workers and PoWs in the

WW2 War Diary for Friday, February 27, 1942: Home Fronts Germany: Orders given for the building of 5 crematoria at Auschwitz, capable of ‘processing’ 12,000 gas chamber victims per day.

WW2 War Diary for Thursday, February 26, 1942: Air War Germany: RAF cripples German battlecruiser Gneisenau at Kiel; a complete rebuilding (with the original 38-cm guns) is planned, but never

WW2 War Diary for Wednesday, February 25, 1942: Air War Germany: RAF night raid on Kiel (repeated next 2 nights). Southeast Asia Burma: Retreating British use ‘scorched earth’ tactics in

WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, February 24, 1942: Sea War Pacific: WAKE ISLAND RAID. US carrier Enterprise launches air strike against Wake Island (similar attack on nearby Marcus Island, March

WW2 War Diary for Monday, February 23, 1942: Eastern Front Central sector: Russian troops recapture Dorogobuzh, east of Smolensk. Southern sector: Russian troops reach river Dnieper in strength. Politics Mutual

WW2 War Diary for Sunday, February 22, 1942: Air War Britain: Air Marshal Harris becomes AOC-in-C RAF Bomber Command. Home Fronts Britain: Colonel Llewellyn appointed Minister of Aircraft Production; Grigg

WW2 War Diary for Saturday, February 21, 1942: Southeast Asia Burma: British troops begin withdrawal over river Sittang (night February 21-22). Politics Portugal: Salazar makes ‘energetic protest’ against Japanese occupation

WW2 War Diary for Friday, February 20, 1942: Air War Eastern Front – Demiansk Airlift: force of Ju 52s (increasing from 40 in February to 300 in May) maintains trapped

WW2 War Diary for Thursday, February 19, 1942: Sea War Pacific: THE DARWIN RAID. Japanese Carrier Force and land-based bombers make devastating strikes on Port Darwin, sinking or damaging 16

WW2 War Diary for Sunday, February 18, 1942: Sea War Atlantic: Free French submarine Surcouf (world’s largest sub) sunk in collision with US merchantman. Air War Pacific: RAF and RAAF

WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, February 17, 1942: Home Fronts Britain: Commons debate on escape of German battlecruisers from Brest. Churchill announces setting up of commission of inquiry under Mr

WW2 War Diary for Monday, February 16, 1942: Sea War Atlantic – Operation Neuland: 2 U-boats make simultaneous attacks on oil installations and tankers at Curacao and Aruba. 7 tankers

WW2 War Diary for Sunday, February 15, 1942: Far East Malaya: FALL OF SINGAPORE. General Percival surrenders unconditionally to General Yamashita, who was outnumbered more than 1-to-3. 80,000 PoWs taken,