About 4,000 Norwegian troops trapped at Lillehammer surrendered to the Germans.
3,500 isolated troops of Norwegian 4th Infantry Brigade surrender between Oslo and Bergen. German forces at Oslo and Bergen link up. Norwegian General William Steffens, who previously evacuated Voss and had set up his headquarters at Førde, disbands his troops. About 3,500 Norwegian 4th Infantry Brigade troops surrender, but the Germans allow them to simply disband and go home. Steffens leaves during the night for Tromsø with three naval aircraft. This effectively ends the campaign in southwest Norway, though there are still some Norwegian troops here and there who are un-noticed and remain active.
A battalion of German 2nd Mountain Division airlifted into Trondheim from Denmark.
King Haakon, Prime Minister Nygaardsvold, and Norwegian government arrive in Tromsø aboard Royal Navy cruiser HMS Glasgow and establish provisional capital.
En route to Åndalsnes, Norway for evacuation, the train carrying troops of the British 15th Brigade crashed into a bomb crater at 0115 hours, killing 8 and wounding 30; the surviving troops marched 17 miles through deep snow, arriving at Åndalsnes at 0900 hours.
British operation BRICK 2, the evacuation of southern Norway which began on 30 April, continued. Vice Admiral Geoffrey Layton’s flotilla arrived at Åndalsnes to evacuate the 148th Brigade and the 15th Brigade. The destroyers HMS Inglefield (D 02), HMS Diana (H 49), and HMS Delight (H 38) ferried troops from the dock to the light cruisers HMS Manchester (15) and HMS Birmingham (19). As the Germans close on in Åndalsnes, the Allied evacuate about 4,000 men from the port but are forced to leave behind their equipment. With daylight the Luftwaffe arrive in force, driving out to sea the two WW1 vintage British cruisers converted for AA duty, which had been sent to protect the port. After twilight two more cruisers and five destroyers come in and pick up about 1,300 additional men. They left for Scapa Flow by 2 AM the following day (May 2, 1940) unnoticed by the Lutfwaffe. More troops remained on shore – their number uncounted in the darkness and the confusion. The British left behind 1301 men killed, missing or captured at Åndalsnes. Joining the British evacuation was Norwegian General Ruge, who departed Åndalsnes aboard British destroyer HMS Diana to join the Norwegian government at Tromsø.
Commander Lord Louis Mountbatten’s 4 destroyers arrived at Namsos to evacuate General de Wiart’s 146th Brigade. Overnight fog prevented them all entering Namsenfjord, so only the 850 French Chasseurs Alpins were embarked.
RAF Bomber Command dispatches 12 aircraft to attack Stavanger airfield during the day.
RAF Bomber Command dispatches aircraft to attack Stavanger airfield and Oslo airfield overnight.
RAF Bomber Command dispatches aircraft to attack Aalborg airfield in Denmark overnight.
Royal Navy submarine HMS Narwhal at 0727 laid a minefield, designated FD.6, off Frederikstavn in 57-30N, 10-43E.
The Royal Navy submarine HMS Narwhal, commanded by Lt. Commander Ronald J. Burch, attacked the German merchant convoy carrying parts of 2nd Gebirgsjager Division to Norway and torpedoed and sank the German troop transport Buenos Aires and torpedoed and damaged the German troop transport Bahia Castillo in the Kattegat about 20 nautical miles north of Anholt, Denmark. The Bahia Castillo was towed into Frederikshavn, and it was scrapped at Kiel, Germany in September 1940.
Royal Navy battleship HMS Resolution and light cruisers HMS Effingham (Commander in Chief Norway aboard) and HMS Aurora bombarded German positions in Ofotfjord in the Ankenes area.
The 1,296 ton Swedish merchant Haga hit a mine laid by the British submarine HMS Narwhal on the same day in the Skaggerak east of Cape Skagen.
The Kriegsmarine (formerly Royal Norwegian Navy, captured and pressed into service) minelayer HNoMS Uller, a former Vale-class gunboat, was bombed and damaged in Sognefjord by Heinkel He 115 aircraft of the Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service. She was beached and subsequently scuttled by the minelayer Tyr (also originally Norwegian, captured and pressed into Kriegsmarine service).
The Royal Norwegian Navy guard ship HNoMS Veslefrikk was run aground in Lønnefjord, Sogn og Fjordane, Norway, to prevent capture by the Germans.
The Norwegian tanker Beaufort was bombed and damaged at Øye in Norangfjord by Luftwaffe aircraft, then scuttled by own crew on May 1. Raised in September 1941, laid up, repaired post-war.
The Norwegian hospital ship Dronning Maud was bombed and sunk in Gratangen, off Foldvik by aircraft of Lehrgeschwader 1, Luftwaffe, with the loss of 20 lives.
The Swedish cargo ship Haga struck a mine and sank in the Kattegat with the loss of four crew.
The French trawler La Cancalaise struck a mine and sank in the North Sea off the Dyck Lightship with the loss of more than 12 crew.
The Norwegian coaster Pioner I was bombed and sunk at Hjørungavåg, Møre og Romsdal by Luftwaffe aircraft. Later raised, repaired and entered Kriegsmarine service as Raeter.
Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Glorious rendezvoused with HMS Ark Royal and the rest of the Home Fleet at 0835. Shortly after, the planned bombardment of Trondheim Leeds is called off.
Adolf Hitler set a date of May 5 for the western offensive. This date would be postponed a few more times prior to May 10 due to weather.
Hitler is goaded on by public opinion, as expressed by journalist William Shirer broadcasting from Berlin: “What kind of war is this, where the world’s two greatest armies stand facing but refrain from killing?” He recalls a typical scene: “200 yards from the Rhine, in sight of a French blockhouse, German soldiers play football.”
The government designates a Krupp armaments plant at Essen as a “National Socialist model plant.”
The May Day holiday passed quietly throughout the Reich today. Official quarters had decreed that there would be no flags displayed and no public demonstrations and as a result, in contrast to previous years, display was lacking from today’s picture.
General Johannes Blaskowitz takes command of German 9th Army.
Otto Skorzeny was promoted to the rank of Unterscharführer.
Rudolf Höss was appointed the first Commandant of Auschwitz Concentration Camp in German-occupied Poland.
The Łódź Ghetto, containing 160,000 Jews, is sealed off from the outside world.
Premier Benito Mussolini and Foreign Minister Count Galeazzo Ciano today assured the United States and Great Britain that Italy has no intention “at the present moment” of entering the war on Germany’s side, it was stated authoritatively tonight. Mussolini personally gave the assurance to United States Ambassador William Phillips during a 45-minute conference this morning at Viminale palace just before II Duce opened the monthly meeting of his council of ministers, it was said, and the envoy reported the promise to the State Department in Washington. Meanwhile, Count Ciano made a similar statement to the British Charge d’Affaires, Sir Noel Charles.
It is reported by a reliable source that the 1919 class of Yugoslav soldiers will be called up for training by the end of the week. This will add about 90,000 effectives to the present strength of the army.
Rows of wrecked homes, a list of more than 160 casualties and a great crater in the center of the quiet resort town of Clacton-on-Sea tonight marked the end of the trail of havoc of a crippled German bomber which crashed last night with its load of mines and bombs. The giant minelayer, victim of British fighting planes and antiaircraft guns, ploughed through two streets of small red brick villas with a vast roar. Tonight England’s first civilian air raid casualties were listed as follows: Two are killed, some 160 injured, 34 seriously. In addition the four crewmen of the Heinkel bomber were killed. The small town looked as though it had been hit by a heavy artillery bombardment. Between 25 and 30 houses were wrecked, more than 50 others made unsafe. Windows were shattered all over town. Unofficial estimates placed the damage at $350,000.
The feeling is growing in London that “somebody blundered” in the Norwegian campaign and the government is likely to be asked very soon to say who it was. In other words, Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain’s government is facing the most serious crisis. since the war broke out, but the betting odds are that the adroit Mr. Chamberlain will be able to weather the storm by loading some of his associates into the tumbrils, provided the repercussions do not cause the downfall of the Reynaud government in France.
The British Prime Minister, pleading the necessities of keeping military secrets, until now has avoided giving a statement on the situation of the Allied forces sent to the relief of Norway, but he has indicated he will have something to say about it tomorrow. However, it was indicated tonight that he would tell the story in serial form, by devoting himself chiefly in the opening chapter to speaking of the success of the British landing operations in a country that the Germans had occupied.
The second chapter of the story, therefore, will not be told until the House of Commons reconvenes next week. By this means the Prime Minister gains time to gather more facts on the situation, of which officialdom appears to have only the most meager details because of the difficulties of communications, and this forestalls immediate criticism by the responsible leaders of the Opposition.
The British government passed a trade union agreement which allowed women to work in munitions factories.
General Ismay announced as chief staff officer for Churchill’s Military Co-ordination Committee. The Military Coordination Committee (MCC) is reorganized in such a fashion as to give its leader (in the absence of Prime Minister Chamberlain) Winston Churchill more direct control over all military operations. General Ismay becomes Churchill’s chief staff officer at the MCC.
The Irish Government refuses a British offer of a “defense alliance.” It re-asserts its neutrality and calls upon the US to guarantee it.
A Communist May Day article in Moscow charges that the United States greedily eyes Greenland, Iceland and allied possessions in the West Indies, condemns Anglo-French “incendiaries of war,” and calls on women of world to demand return of their men from war fronts.
Discovery of a plot against the government of Premier George Tatarescu of Rumania, timed to coincide with similar “Trojan horse” action in neighboring Yugoslavia, was reported here tonight after a police move to deport 300 suspected persons, mostly Germans. Rumanian secret police were understood to have tracked down the plot to “force important government changes,” after which King Carol II and Prince Paul, regent of Yugoslavia, met secretly at the frontier during Orthodox Easter holidays and discussed these internal menaces. The reported discovery of the plot against the government was said to have resulted in Rumania’s recent extraordinary military measures. About 8,000 picked gendarmes were sent into Transylvania, the province which Rumania acquired from the old Austro-Hungarian Empire after the World War, to assist local police. Sixty “mysterious strangers” were reported yesterday to have been rounded up in the Ploesti oil field region and there were predictions at that time that as many as 60 German agents would be expelled from Bucharest alone.
Pope Pius is reported to be striving to placate British-Italian relations on the basis of a four-point proposal by Mussolini.
Swiss intelligence learned of a potential attack on France to be launched soon and informed the French military attaché, who promptly reported this to Paris.
Swedish Prime Minister Per Albin Hansson declared that Sweden would defend its neutrality “with all the means in our power.” Some 150,000 persons, about one-fourth of the population of Stockholm, met in Gaerdet Field today in a non-partisan national demonstration to express Sweden’s unity and determination to defend herself against any attempt to impair her neutrality or independence.
The 1940 Olympics, scheduled to be held in Helsinki, Finland, were cancelled.
RAF Bomber Command dispatches 11 aircraft on minelaying operations overnight.
The Luftwaffe conducts minelaying operations along the British coast.
The German auxiliary cruiser / commerce raider Orion crossed the Equator.
German raider Widder heads for central Atlantic operations before her return to France in six months’ time.
140 Palestinian Jews die as German planes bomb their ship
On her way into the Indian Ocean, the German raider Atlantis lays mines off South Africa.
Royal Navy destroyers HMS Veteran, HMS Viscount, and HMS Vansittart departed Scapa Flow at 0500 with French convoy FS.3, consisting of British steamers Margot (4545grt) and Sepia (6214grt), British tanker British Lord (6098grt), British base ship Mashobra (8324grt), French steamers Alberte Le Borgne (3921grt), Enseigne Maurice Prechac (4578grt), Sainte Clare (3824grt), Vulcain (4362grt).
These ships had been escorted to Scapa Flow by Escort ships HMS Jason and HMS Gleaner and anti-submarine trawlers. On arrival at Scapa Flow on 28 April, the escorts returned to the Clyde.
Off Scapa Flow, these ships were joined by destroyers HMS Isis, HMS Imogen, and HMS Ilex with British steamers Bellerophon (9019grt) and Lycaon (7350grt) which had departed the Clyde on 30 April.
When the two groups rendezvoused, destroyers Veteran and Viscount took base ship HMS Mashobra to the Clyde arriving on the 2nd. The convoy and its escorts arrived safely at Harstad on the 6th.
French convoy FP.3 with French troopships Ville D’alger (10,172grt), Colombie (13,391grt), Chenonceaux (14,825grt), Mexique (12,220grt) and British troopship Monarch Of Bermuda (22,424grt) departed the Clyde at 0700/1st carrying the last contingent of the 1st Chasseurs Light Division, the French Legion Demi Brigade, the Polish Brigade. These troopships were escorted by destroyers HMS Atherstone, and HMS Warwick, French destroyers Epervier and Foudroyant, Patrol vessels HMS Jason and HMS Gleaner of the 3rd Anti-submarine Striking Force. Destroyer HMS Whirlwind departed the Clyde at 1300 and joined the convoy. British troopships Empress Of Australia, Reina Del Pacifico, Lancastria, Duchess Of Atholl and Polish troopships Batory and Sobieski proceeded in company in the convoy for Scapa Flow. The escort vessels Jason and Gleaner escorted this section into Scapa Flow. Destroyer Atherstone was detached for refuelling at Scapa Flow. Troopship Ville D’alger took the place of French liner General Metzinger (9312grt) which was damaged in St George’s Channel while en route to Greenock. British Steamer Monarch Of Bermuda Replaced French Liner Providence (11996grt). Destroyer HMS Echo Departed Rosyth At 0900/1st and passed May Island at 0900. She arrived at Scapa Flow at 0700/2nd escorting British tanker British Governor (6840grt) from Aberdeen. Destroyer Echo departed Scapa Flow at 1300/2nd to escort convoy FP.3, but was recalled at 1351 to Scapa Flow. At Scapa Flow, the destroyer went alongside troopship Ulster Prince and embarked the Norwegian Naval Commander in Chief Admiral Deisan, three staff officers, three Swedish officers for passage to Tromso. She then proceeded to join the convoy. Destroyers HMS Amazon and HMS Brazen departed Scapa Flow at 0340/2nd to join the convoy. Destroyer Echo joined the convoy escort on the 4th. Troopships Ville D’alger and Monarch Of Bermuda arrived at Harstad on the 5th and the rest of the convoy safely arrived at Tromso on the 5th. On the 7th, escorted by destroyers Brazen and Echo and French destroyer Epervier, troopships Chenonceaux and Colombie disembarked at Harstad and Mexique disembarked at Salangen and Balangen.
Convoy OA.139 departed Southend escorted by sloop HMS Enchantress.
Convoy BC.36 of steamers Atlantic Coast, Baron Nairn (Commodore), Cameo, City Of Lancaster, Dorset Coast, Marslew departed Bristol Channel escorted by destroyer HMS Montrose. The convoy arrived at Loire on the 3rd.
Convoy SA.39 of one steamer arrived at St Malo from Southampton.
Convoy FN.159 departed Southend, escorted by destroyer HMS Woolston and armed patrol yacht HMS Breda. The convoy arrived at the Tyne on the 3rd.
Convoy MT.62 departed Methil, escorted by sloops HMS Egret and HMS Weston. The convoy arrived in the Tyne later that day.
Convoy FS.159 departed the Tyne, escorted by destroyers HMS Valorous and HMS Wallace. The convoy arrived at Southend on the 3rd.
Convoy FS.160 departed the Tyne, escorted by destroyer HMS Valentine and sloop HMS Weston. The convoy arrived at Southend on the 3rd.
Convoy SL. 30 departed Freetown escorted by armed merchant cruiser HMS Carnarvon Castle until 15 May. The convoy arrived at Liverpool on the 18th.
Convoy OG.28F was formed at sea from convoy OA.138GF, which departed Southend on 28 April escorted by sloop HMS Scarborough. OB.138GF, which had departed Liverpool on 28 April, was escorted by destroyer HMS Versatile, with forty five ships. Sloop HMS Scarborough escorted the convoy on the 1st and was then detached to convoy HG.28 F. Sloop HMS Folkestone and anti-submarine whaler HMS William Scoresby escorted the convoy from 1 to 6 May. The convoy arrived at Gibraltar on the 6th.
Australian troop convoy US.3 departed Wellington with troopships Aquitania (45,647grt), Empress Of Britain (42,348grt), Empress Of Japan (26,032grt), escorted by Australian heavy cruiser HMAS Australia and New Zealand Division light cruiser HMS Leander. Light cruiser Leander had arrived at Wellington on 24 April in preparation for this convoy duty. Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney, en route to join this convoy on the 1st, was ordered to Colombo, via the Sunda Strait and Singapore. The cruiser arrived at Singapore on the 5th. After refueling, the cruiser departed Singapore later the same day and arrived at Colombo on the 8th. She departed Colombo on the 12th to meet convoy US.3 in the area of the Coco Islands, but was recalled to Colombo to sail for the Mediterranean. Troopship Andes (25,689grt) joined en route, escorted by Australian heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra, all arrived safely off Sydney on the 5th under the escort of Australian heavy cruisers Australia and Canberra and light cruiser Leander. At Sydney, the convoy was joined by troopships Mauretania (35,738grt) and Queen Mary (80,774grt), escorted by Australian light cruiser HMAS Perth, the next day off Melbourne by troopship Empress Of Canada (21,517grt). Light cruiser Perth was detached when the convoy formed for ocean passage. Convoy US.3 was at Fremantle from 10 to 12 May when the convoy put back out to sea. light cruiser Leander was detached on the 16th and proceeded on other duties. The light cruiser Leander arrived at Colombo on the 19th.
The War at Sea, Wednesday, 1 May 1940 (naval-history.net)
Norwegian hospital ship DRONNING MAUD (1488grt) was badly damaged by German bombing at Gratangen.
There were twenty casualties on the Norwegian ship.
Hospital ship DRONNING MAUD was a total loss and was not salved.
Submarine NARWHAL at 0727 laid a minefield, designated FD.6, off Frederikstavn in 57-30N, 10-43E.
On 3 May, German auxiliary minesweeper M. 1102 (trawler H.A. W. MULLER, 460grt) was slightly damaged on this minefield.
Submarine NARWHAL at 1825 attacked a German convoy, carrying the 2nd Gebirgsjager Division, nine miles east of Skagen near Hertha, in 57-39N, 11-02. 5E.
Submarine NARWHAL fired six torpedoes at a convoy of four merchant ships, German steamers BUENAS AIRES (6097grt), BAHIA CASTILLO (8579grt), KRETA (2359grt), WIEGAND (5869grt).
German steamer BUENAS AIRES (6097grt) was sunk and German steamer BAHIA CASTILLO (8579grt) was badly damaged losing her rudder and screws.
Sixty men and two hundred and forty horses were lost and sixty-four men wounded on the steamer BUENAS AIRES. Ten men and twenty-six horses were lost and twenty-three men wounded on the steamer BAHIA CASTILLO.
Steamer BAHIA CASTILLO was towed to Frederickshavn and was later broken up.
French submarines CASABIANCA and SFAX arrived at Dundee from patrol.
French minelaying submarine RUBIS (Lieutenant de Vaisseau G. Cabanier) arrived at Harwich for minelaying operations off the Norwegian coast.
Destroyers VETERAN, VISCOUNT, and VANSITTART departed Scapa Flow at 0500 with French convoy FS.3, consisting of British steamers MARGOT (4545grt) and SEPIA (6214grt), British tanker BRITISH LORD (6098grt), British base ship MASHOBRA (8324grt), French steamers ALBERTE LE BORGNE (3921grt), ENSEIGNE MAURICE PRECHAC (4578grt), SAINTE CLARE (3824grt), and VULCAIN (4362grt).
These ships had been escorted to Scapa Flow by Escort ships JASON and GLEANER and anti-submarine trawlers. On arrival at Scapa Flow on 28 April, the escorts returned to the Clyde.
Off Scapa Flow, these ships were joined by destroyers ISIS, IMOGEN, and ILEX with British steamers BELLEROPHON (9019grt) and LYCAON (7350grt) which had departed the Clyde on 30 April.
When the two groups rendezvoused, destroyers VETERAN and VISCOUNT took base ship MASHOBRA to the Clyde arriving on the 2nd. The convoy and its escorts arrived safely at Harstad on the 6th. French steamer PAUL EMILE JAVARY (2471grt) of the convoy was damaged in a collision on 28 April with British steamer PIZARRO (1367grt) sixteen miles east, northeast of Stornoway. She was able to leave Scapa Flow on the 3rd and arrived at Harstad on the 9th.
Destroyers ESK, EXPRESS, and INTREPID with mines for the Narvik area were ordered to return to Immingham.
The destroyers departed Scapa Flow at 0540 and arrived at Immingham at 2030.
French destroyer FOUDROYANT arrived at Greenock escorting French troopship VILLE D’ALGER (10,172grt). She departed that day and arrived at Scapa Flow the next day.
French convoy FP.3 with French troopships VILLE D’ALGER (10,172grt), COLOMBIE (13,391grt), CHENONCEAUX (14,825grt), MEXIQUE (12,220grt) and British troopship MONARCH OF BERMUDA (22,424grt) departed the Clyde at 0700/1st carrying the last contingent of the 1st Chasseurs Light Division, the French Legion Demi Brigade, the Polish Brigade.
These troopships were escorted by destroyers ATHERSTONE, WARWICK, French destroyers EPERVIER and FOUDROYANT, Patrol vessels JASON and GLEANER of the 3rd Anti-submarine Striking Force.
Destroyer WHIRLWIND departed the Clyde at 1300 and joined the convoy.
British troopships EMPRESS OF AUSTRALIA, REINA DEL PACIFICO, LANCASTRIA, and DUCHESS OF ATHOLL and Polish troopships BATORY and SOBIESKI proceeded in company in the convoy for Scapa Flow. The escort vessels JASON and GLEANER escorted this section into Scapa Flow.
Destroyer ATHERSTONE was detached for refueling at Scapa Flow.
Troopship VILLE D’ALGER took the place of French liner GENERAL METZINGER (9312grt) which was damaged in St George’s Channel while en route to Greenock. British steamer MONARCH OF BERMUDA replaced French liner PROVIDENCE (11996grt).
Destroyer ECHO departed Rosyth at 0900/1st and passed May Island at 0900. She arrived at Scapa Flow at 0700/2nd escorting British tanker BRITISH GOVERNOR (6840grt) from Aberdeen.
Destroyer ECHO departed Scapa Flow at 1300/2nd to escort convoy FP.3, but was recalled at 1351 to Scapa Flow. At Scapa Flow, the destroyer went alongside troopship ULSTER PRINCE and embarked the Norwegian Naval Commander in Chief Admiral Deisan, three staff officers, three Swedish officers for passage to Tromso. She then proceeded to join the convoy.
Destroyers AMAZON and BRAZEN departed Scapa Flow at 0340/2nd to join the convoy.
Destroyer ECHO joined the convoy escort on the 4th.
Troopships VILLE D’ALGER and MONARCH OF BERMUDA arrived at Harstad on the 5th and the rest of the convoy safely arrived at Tromso on the 5th.
On the 7th, escorted by destroyers BRAZEN and ECHO and French destroyer EPERVIER, troopships CHENONCEAUX and COLOMBIE disembarked at Harstad and MEXIQUE disembarked at Salangen and Balangen.
Battleship RESOLUTION and light cruisers EFFINGHAM (Commander in Chief Norway aboard) and AURORA bombarded German positions in Ofotfjord in the Ankenes area.
Anti-aircraft ship CURLEW arrived at Scapa Flow.
Destroyers WOLVERINE and BRAZEN arrived at Scapa Flow at 0525 with details on board from the Namsos area.
Anti-submarine trawler NORTHERN PRIDE ran aground at Tjelsundet.
The trawler was assisted by destroyer WALKER.
Destroyer JUNO from Scapa Flow arrived at Sullom Voe at 1800 to refuel.
Destroyer WANDERER searched for a German submarine reported by air at 1515 in 61 20N, 00 18E. She searched from 1744 to 2103 and then proceeded to Sullom Voe to refuel.
Destroyer WANDERER arrived at daylight at 0635/2nd. She embarked troops in destroyer WALKER.
Destroyer KIMBERLEY departed Sullom Voe at 0915 after refueling.
British operation BRICK 2, the evacuation of southern Norway which began on 30 April, continued.
At Romdalsfjord, anti-aircraft cruiser CALCUTTA and sloop AUCKLAND were heavily attacked by German bombers and both ships, almost out of ammunition, were withdrawn at 1600 from the Fjord.
That night, a British force under Vice Admiral G. Layton, CB DSO, which departed Scapa Flow at 1700 on 30 April, entered the Romdalsfjord to embark troops with Light cruisers MANCHESTER (CS 18) and BIRMINGHAM, destroyers INGLEFIELD, DIANA, and DELIGHT. They joined anti-aircraft cruiser CALCUTTA and sloop AUCKLAND already in the area.
As cruisers MANCHESTER and BIRMINGHAM were too large the use the pier, destroyers INGLEFIELD, DIANA, and DELIGHT ferried the troops out into the harbour for embarkation on the cruisers.
Destroyer SOMALI embarked the PRIMROSE detachment at Aalesund.
Destroyer DIANA embarked Norwegian General Ruge and took him, along with his staff, to Tromso arriving at 1100/3rd.
Layton with light cruisers BIRMINGHAM and MANCHESTER and destroyers INGLEFIELD and DELIGHT returned to Scapa Flow at 0015/3rd sustaining no casualties in the evacuation.
Destroyer SOMALI arrived Scapa Flow at 1630/2nd.
Anti-aircraft ship CALCUTTA and destroyer MASHONA arrived at Scapa Flow at 0730/3rd. CALCUTTA had forty-one officers and seven hundred and fifteen men evacuated from Aandalsnes. MASHONA carried one officer and nine men, all wounded, the crew of trawler CAPE CHELYUSKIN.
Sloop AUCKLAND arrived at Scapa Flow at 1015/3rd.
Aircraft carrier GLORIOUS, escorted by destroyers ACHERON, ANTELOPE, and BEAGLE, arrived off Norway with new aircraft after having been withdrawn for refueling and aircraft on 27 April.
A Skua from aircraft carrier GLORIOUS 803 Squadron was shot down in error by British ships off Namsos. S/Lt G. W. Brokensha and Petty Officer S. E. Andrews were picked up by destroyer NUBIAN.
Destroyers HYPERION and BEAGLE were detached from the aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL’s screen for refueling at Sullom Voe.
Destroyers WITHERINGTON and WOLVERINE departed Scapa Flow at 2107 with Polish troopship CHROBRY (11,442grt) and British troopship ORION (23,456grt) to Rosyth, arriving at 1130/2nd.
In Operation KLAXON 1 and 2, Namsos was to have been evacuated over two days, but when word of a battalion of French troops having gotten away, the entire operation was set to take place on the 1st.
The British evacuating force arrived off the coast and found it fog covered.
Late on the 1st, destroyer MAORI reached Kya Light off Namsenfjord and Vice Admiral J. Cunningham sent destroyers KELLY, GRENADE, GRIFFIN, French BISON to join her.
As the destroyers went up Namsenfjord in dense fog early on the 2nd, destroyer MAORI was damaged by near misses of air bombs and sustained twenty-three casualties (five dying of wounds). Cdr G. N. Brewer, Lt Cdr (E) T. T. Brandreth and Acting Gunner (T) S. C. White were among the wounded.
The evacuation attempt was aborted at that time due to the German’s knowledge of their intentions and operation was rescheduled for the night of 2/3 May.
Destroyer MAORI withdrew with her casualties.
Destroyer MAORI was able to participate in evacuation the next night.
Destroyer MAORI departed Scapa Flow at 0001/6th. Off Sumburgh Head, she met destroyer ECLIPSE, which departed Lerwick at 0420 with one operable engine, escorted her to the Clyde.
Destroyer ECLIPSE arrived at Greenock at 1800/7th.
Destroyer MAORI went on to Bootle, near Liverpool, where her repairs were completed on the 20th.
S/Lt H.G. Aitchison was killed when his Hornet Moth aircraft crashed at Golspie.
Convoy BC.36 of steamers ATLANTIC COAST, BARON NAIRN (Commodore), CAMEO, CITY OF LANCASTER, DORSET COAST, and MARSLEW departed Bristol Channel escorted by destroyer MONTROSE. The convoy arrived at Loire on the 3rd.
Convoy SA.39 of one steamer arrived at St Malo from Southampton.
Convoy FN.159 departed Southend, escorted by destroyer WOOLSTON and armed patrol yacht BREDA. The convoy arrived at the Tyne on the 3rd.
Convoy MT.62 departed Methil, escorted by sloops EGRET and WESTON. The convoy arrived in the Tyne later that day.
Convoy FS.159 departed the Tyne, escorted by destroyers VALOROUS and WALLACE. The convoy arrived at Southend on the 3rd.
Convoy FS.160 departed the Tyne, escorted by destroyer VALENTINE and sloop WESTON. The convoy arrived at Southend on the 3rd.
Destroyer BOREAS arrived at Dover from Chatham after refitting.
Convoy OG.28F was formed from convoys OA.138GF, which departed Southend on 28 April escorted by sloop SCARBOROUGH, OB.138GF, which departed Liverpool on 28 April, escorted by destroyer VERSATILE, with forty-five ships.
Sloop SCARBOROUGH escorted the convoy on the 1st and was then detached to convoy HG.28 F.
Sloop FOLKESTONE and anti-submarine whaler WILLIAM SCORESBY escorted the convoy from 1 to 6 May. The convoy arrived at Gibraltar on the 6th.
French anti-submarine trawlers LA CANCALAISE (former British SAINT AMANDUS, 400grt), LA NANTAISE (former British SAINT ARCADIUS, 399grt), and LA L’LORIENTAISE (former British SAINT ANDRONICUS, 398grt) departed Dover for Dunkirk.
Trawler L’LORIENTAISE, damaged on 26 April, was under the tow of French tug BARFLEUR (TUMULTE in some sources).
Near Dyck Light Vessel shoal, trawler LA CANCALAISE struck a mine and sank.
Twelve plus crew were lost on the French trawler.
Convoy OA.139 departed Southend escorted by sloop ENCHANTRESS.
Battleships MALAYA and ROYAL SOVEREIGN, French battleships LORRAINE, BRETAGNE, and PROVENCE, from Mer el Kebir, French cruisers TOURVILLE, DUQUESNE, and DUGUAY TROUIN escorted by destroyers DEFENDER and DECOY, Australian destroyers HMAS STUART and HMAS VAMPIRE, six French destroyers, one French torpedo boat passed Malta en route to reinforce the Mediterranean Fleet.
Destroyers VELOX and WATCHMAN, escorting the battleships, entered Malta, arrived back at Gibraltar on the 4th.
Battleships MALAYA and ROYAL SOVEREIGN, Australian destroyers HMAS STUART and HMAS VAMPIRE, French battleships PROVENCE, LORRAINE, and BRETAGNE, destroyers TIGRE, LYNX, and FORBIN arrived at Alexandria at 1820/3rd.
Destroyer FORBIN was a replacement for originally designated destroyer PANTHERE which was under repair at Toulon.
Convoy SL. 30 departed Freetown escorted by armed merchant cruiser CARNARVON CASTLE until 15 May. The convoy arrived at Liverpool on the 18th.
Australian troop convoy US.3 departed Wellington with troopships AQUITANIA (45,647grt), EMPRESS OF BRITAIN (42,348grt), EMPRESS OF JAPAN (26,032grt), escorted by Australian heavy cruiser HMAS AUSTRALIA and New Zealand light cruiser HMNZS LEANDER.
Light cruiser LEANDER had arrived at Wellington on 24 April in preparation for this convoy duty.
Australian light cruiser HMAS SYDNEY, en route to join this convoy on the 1st, was ordered to Colombo, via Sunda Strait and Singapore. The cruiser arrived at Singapore on the 5th. After refueling, the cruiser departed Singapore later the same day and arrived at Colombo on the 8th. She departed Colombo on the 12th to meet convoy US.3 in the area of the Coco Islands, but was recalled to Colombo to sail for the Mediterranean.
Troopship ANDES (25,689grt) joined en route, escorted by Australian heavy cruiser HMAS CANBERRA, all arrived safely off Sydney on the 5th under the escort of Australian heavy cruisers AUSTRALIA and CANBERRA and New Zealand light cruiser LEANDER.
At Sydney, the convoy was joined by troopships MAURETANIA (35,738grt) and QUEEN MARY (80,774grt), escorted by Australian light cruiser HMAS PERTH, the next day off Melbourne by troopship EMPRESS OF CANADA (21,517grt).
Light cruiser PERTH was detached when the convoy formed for ocean passage.
Convoy US.3 was at Fremantle from 10 to 12 May when the convoy put back out to sea. New Zealand light cruiser LEANDER was detached on the 16th and proceeded on other duties. The light cruiser LEANDER arrived at Colombo on the 19th.
Light cruiser DAUNTLESS was refitting at Hong Kong from this date to 4 June.
In Washington today, President Roosevelt conferred with members of the House Committee on Government Organization and transacted other administrative business.
The Senate debated the Townsend bill to repeal the Silver Purchase Act, heard criticism of the President’s fourth reorganization order, confirmed the reappointments of Thomas M. Woodward to the Maritime Commission and Rear Admiral Waesche as commandant of the Coast Guard, and recessed at 4:38 PM until noon tomorrow.
The House debated the Norton wages and hours amendments, completed Congressional action on the resolution authorizing the freezing of Danish and Norwegian credits in this country and adjourned at 5:15 PM until noon tomorrow. The Judiciary Committee tabled the Hatch bill.
The Senate-approved Hatch bill to extend the Hatch “Clean Politics” Act to State employees paid wholly or in part from Federal funds was tabled today by the House Judiciary Committee. Its sponsors immediately started moves to bring the legislation before the House. Representative Sumners of Texas, chairman of the committee, announced the action tersely. “The Hatch bill is tabled,” he said, and refused to elaborate, although he said a statement might be issued tomorrow. Representative Dempsey of New Mexico, who with Senator Hatch is sponsoring the legislation, immediately announced that he had introduced a rule by which he would try to bring the bill to the floor notwithstanding the action of the Judiciary Committee.
Mr. Dempsey said he would file a discharge petition tomorrow on the Speaker’s desk, which is another but more tedious way of trying to get the measure before the House for consideration. It requires the signatures of 218 members, and Mr. Dempsey said he would appeal not only to his Democratic friends, but also to Republicans, to sign the petition. “I recognize,” Mr. Dempsey said, “that there are members of the House against this bill, and that some members would like to see it | scuttled in committee. But the country is for this bill.” Representative Martin of Massachusetts, minority leader, joined the discussion just before House adjournment. “I am heartily in sympathy with the efforts of the gentleman to get this legislation before the House,” Mr. Martin stated.
Mr. Dempsey also appealed to the Republican members of the Rules Committee, of which he is a member, for favorable action on his rule. With four votes from the Republican side he believed he could obtain a majority in the committee. Representative Barton of New York asked Mr. Dempsey if he could disclose the vote by which the measure was tabled. “The proceedings of the Judiciary Committee were executive,” Mr. Dempsey replied, “and I might say in the extreme.”
The Administration began today to rally its forces for the fight which faces President Roosevelt’s fourth reorganization order in Congress. This is the order which includes making the Civil Aeronautics Authority a board in the Department of Commerce and would abolish the Air Safety Board.
Elliott Roosevelt predicted tonight that his father, the president, would decide “just prior to or during the Democratic national convention in July” whether to seek a third term. Young Roosevelt said in a radio broadcast that only public demand would cause his father to ask another four years in the White House, and that the decision did not rest with the president. “I have heard members of the president’s family make the statement that they hoped for his own sake and for theirs that he will be able to retire to private life.”
Attachés of the National Labor Relations Board were active in 1936 in pressing the A.F. of L. steel union to accept the C.I.O. proposal for organization of the industry, according to testimony and documents adduced today before the Smith committee investigating the NLRB.
The Chicago Milk Wagon Drivers union voted to strike today, halting virtually all home delivery of milk in the Chicago metropolitan area. The strike followed a breakdown in wage negotiations with the Associated Milk Dealers of Chicago. More than 1.503,000 quarts of milk are consumed daily in the area.
Secretary of the Navy Charles Edison called on Japan today to prove the incorrectness of the United States Navy’s information that the Japanese Navy was secretly building eight to twelve superdreadnoughts. He offered to exchange naval building information with Japan.
Secretary Edison declared today that airplanes have a “temporary” advantage over battleships under modern conditions of warfare. He proposed the rebuilding of the “topsides” of existing battleships and “a real basic change” in the design of new ones.
The U.S. Navy established the Naval Air Station, San Juan, Puerto Rico as a part of the Tenth Naval District. The first commanding officer of the base was Captain Virgil C. Griffin, Jr.
The first production Douglas scout bomber (SBD-1), Bu. No. 1596 (s/n 549), made its first flight at El Segundo, California is first flown prior to delivery on September 6 to the U.S. Navy. The aircraft is given the name “Dauntless.” It is a solid aircraft, but not spectacualr…. and it will break the Imperial Japanese Navy’s heart, and change the course of the Pacific War in ten fateful minutes.
The Douglas SBD-1 Dauntless dive bomber was a single-engine, low-wing monoplane with retractable landing gear. It was developed from the Northrop BT-2. The flight crew consisted of a pilot and an aerial gunner. The SBD-1 was 32 feet, 2 inches (9.804 meters) long with a wingspan of 41 feet, 7 inches (12.675 meters) and height of 13 feet, 7 inches (4.140 meters). The wing area was 325 square feet (30.19 square meters). It had an empty weight of 5,903 pounds (2,678 kilograms) and maximum gross weight of 9,790 pounds (4,441 kilograms) with one 1,600 pound (726 kilogram) bomb. Large, perforated split flaps were used to stabilize the airplane during steep dives.
The Canadian cargo ship Arlington sank during a storm in Lake Superior.
Major League Baseball:
The Reds Bill Werber has just 2 hits, but his homer and double come in an 8–run 4th inning. Ernie Lombardi adds a grand slam as the Reds beat Hugh Casey and Brooklyn, 9–2. The Dodgers had their first loss after nine consecutive victories.
Nelson Potter of the Athletics allowed seven scattered hits today in setting back the Indians, 5–1. A crowd of only 1,500 saw the righthander turn in his first victory of the year and snap the A’s three-game losing streak.
Four Washington pitchers walked fifteen men today to hand the Tigers a 10–7 victory. Lynn Nelson, who relieved Buck Newsom for Detroit in the fifth, held the Senators to two hits and no runs.
Chicago White Sox 4, Boston Red Sox 12
Brooklyn Dodgers 2, Cincinnati Reds 9
St. Louis Browns 3, New York Yankees 5
Cleveland Indians 1, Philadelphia Athletics 5
Detroit Tigers 10, Washington Senators 7
Mexico celebrated the labor holiday today with an enormous May Day parade In it the “workers’ militia,” organized by the C.T.M. [Confederation of Mexican Workers] to “defend the conquests of the proletariat,” made its first public appearance.
The British refrigerated cargo ship Matakana ran aground in the Caribbean off Mayaguana, Bahamas and was wrecked. Her 78 crew were rescued by the American ship Panama.
The Battle of Tsaoyang-Ichang (Zaoyang–Yichang) began in China. Japanese 11th Army opens offensive from Hsinyang, Sui Hsien, and Chunghsiang toward Tsaoyang and rice granary areas in Hupei province, advancing in five columns. Japanese 11th Army captures Mingkang, Lion’s bridge, and Hsiaolintien.
Japanese Army Air Force 3rd Air Brigade, based at Hankow, provides air support for 11th Army during Tsaoyang-Ichang operation.
Madame Sun Yat-sen, in a visit to Chungking, denounces Nanking collaborator Wang Ching-wei as a traitor to her late husband’s memory and principles.
Almost 1,000 civilians were killed or injured in Japanese air raids in Chingking and Kweiyang on successive days this week. Dropping bombs in the center of the city of Kweiyang yesterday, the Japanese raiders reportedly exacted a toll of 500 casualties. The Central Hospital was among the buildings hit. Japanese bombers killed or injured 300 persons on Monday night in a raid here, medical circles reveal today. Bombs dropped on the outskirts of the city hit a building housing almost 200 laborers and killed most of them. Other bombs took a heavy toll of peasants and workers in nearby fields.
The outlook for a renewal of United States-Japanese conversations aiming at clearing up American grievances resulting from the war in China has improved, and Joseph C. Grew, the United States Ambassador, has abandoned plans for a vacation in the United States. Sir Robert Craigie, the British Ambassador, also has given up a scheduled trip, and both Ambassadors expect to remain in Japan all Summer. At a dinner party in the United States Embassy last Friday Hachiro Arita, the Japanese Foreign Minister, began informal discussions with Mr. Grew. Their conversation lasted forty-five minutes and covered virtually the whole range of Japanese-American issues. The Foreign Office today gave this unarranged talk diplomatic importance by announcing that it had taken place, thereby preparing the Japanese public for the resumption of formal talks.
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 147.13 (-1.3)
Born:
Joy Harmon, American actress (“Cool Hand Luke”), in Flushing, New York.
Art Perkins, NFL fullback and halfback (Los Angeles Rams), in Fort Worth, Texas.
Elsa Peretti, Italian jewelry designer, in Florence, Italy (d. 2021).
Naval Construction:
The Royal Navy Bar-class boom defense vessel HMS Barsing (Z 75) is laid down by W. Simons & Co. Ltd. (Renfrew, Scotland).
The Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy) O 21-class submarine HrMs (HNMS) O 25 is launched by Wilton-Feijenoord (Schiedam, Holland). The ship will be captured in a few days during the German invasion of Holland. She will be commissioned into Kriegsmarine service as submarine U-D3.
History Diaries 