Hitler issued Directive No. 32, Plans following defeat of the Soviet Union:
The Führer and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces
Führer Headquarters, 11th July 1941.
9 draft copies
Directive No. 32
Preparations for the period after Barbarossa
After the destruction of the Soviet Armed Forces, Germany and Italy will be military masters of the European Continent – with the temporary exception of the Iberian Peninsula. No serious threat to Europe by land will then remain. The defense of this area, and foreseeable future offensive action, will require considerably smaller military forces than have been needed hitherto.
The main efforts of the armaments industry can be diverted to the Navy and Air Force.
Closer cooperation between Germany and France should and will tie down additional English forces, will eliminate the threat from the rear in the North African theatre of war, will further restrict the movements of the British Fleet in the Western Mediterranean and will protect the south-western flank of the European theatre, including the Atlantic seaboard of North and West Africa, from English attack.
In the near future Spain will have to face the question whether she is prepared to cooperate in driving the British from Gibraltar or not.
The possibility of exerting strong pressure on Turkey and Iran improves the prospect of making direct or indirect use of these countries in the struggle against England.
This situation, which will be created by the victorious conclusion of the campaign in the East, can confront the Armed Forces with the following strategic tasks for the late autumn of 1941 and the winter of 1941-42:
The newly conquered territories in the East must be organized, made secure and, in full cooperation with the Armed Forces, exploited economically.
The strength of the security forces required in Russia can only be forecast with certainty at a later date. In all probability, however, about sixty divisions and one Air Fleet will be sufficient, with allied and friendly forces, for our further duties in the East.
The struggle against the British positions in the Mediterranean and in Western Asia will be continued by converging attacks launched from Libya through Egypt, from Bulgaria through Turkey, and in certain circumstances also from Transcaucasia through Iran.
In North Africa it is important that Tobruk should be eliminated and conditions thereby established for the continuation of the German-Italian attack on the Suez Canal. This attack should be planned for about November on the understanding that the German Afrika Korps will be by then brought to the highest possible efficiency in personnel and equipment and with adequate reserves of all kinds under its own hand (by the conversion of 5th Light Division into a full armored division), so that it is not necessary to move further large German formations to North Africa.
The preparations for the attack require that the tempo of transport be quickened by all means available, including the employment of ports in French North Africa and, when possible, the new sea route from Southern Greece.
It will be the duty of the Navy, in cooperation with the Italian Navy, to arrange for the necessary tonnage by chartering French and neutral shipping.
The possibility of moving German motor torpedo boats to the Mediterranean will be examined.
The Italian Navy will be afforded all support in improving unloading facilities in North African ports.
Commander-in-Chief Air Force will transfer to the Africa Corps sufficient air units and anti-aircraft artillery for the operation, as these become superfluous in the East. He will also reinforce Italian protection of seaborne convoys by the use of German air formations.
In order to coordinate the handling of transport, the Supply and Transport Office of the Armed Forces Overseas [Heimatstab Ubersee] has been established, which will work on the lines laid down by the High Command of the Armed Forces, in cooperation with the German General at Italian Armed Forces Headquarters, and with Commander Armed Forces South-east.
In view of the expected British reinforcement of the Near and Middle East, especially for the defense of the Suez Canal, a German operation from Bulgaria through Turkey will be planned, with the aim of attacking the British position on the Suez Canal from the East also.
To this end plans must be made to assemble in Bulgaria as soon as possible sufficient forces to render Turkey politically amenable or to overpower her resistance.
If the collapse of the Soviet Union has created the necessary conditions, preparations will be made for the dispatch of a motorized expeditionary force from Transcaucasia against Iraq, in conjunction with operations mentioned in paragraph (b) above.
Exploitation of the Arab Freedom Movement. The situation of the English in the Middle East will be rendered more precarious, in the event of major German operations, if more British forces are tied down at the right moment by civil commotion or revolt. All military, political, and propaganda measures to this end must be closely coordinated during the preparatory period. As central agency abroad I nominate Special Staff F, which is to take part in all plans and actions in the Arab area, whose headquarters are to be in the area of the Commander Armed Forces South-east. The most competent available experts and agents will be made available to it.
The Chief of the High Command of the Armed Forces will specify the duties of Special Staff F, in agreement with the Foreign Minister where political questions are involved.
Closing of the Western Entrance to the Mediterranean by the elimination of Gibraltar:
Preparations for Operation Felix, already planned, will be resumed to the fullest extent even during the course of operations in the East. It may be assumed that unoccupied French territory may also be used, if not for German troop movements, then at least for the movement of supplies. The cooperation of French naval and air forces is also within the bounds of possibility.
After the capture of Gibraltar only such forces will be moved to Spanish Morocco as are necessary to protect the Strait.
The defense of the seaboard of North and West Africa, the elimination of English possessions in West Africa, and the recovery of the areas controlled by de Gaulle, will be the tasks of the French, who will be granted such reinforcements as the situation requires. The use of West African bases by the Navy and Air Force, and possibly also the occupation of the Atlantic Islands, will be facilitated by our control of the Strait.
In addition to these contemplated operations against the British position in the Mediterranean, the ‘Siege of England’ must be resumed with the utmost intensity by the Navy and Air Force after the conclusion of the campaign in the East.
All weapons and equipment required for this purpose will be given priority in the general armaments program. At the same time German Air Defenses will be strengthened to the maximum. Preparations for the invasion of England will serve the double purpose of tying down English forces at home and of bringing about a final English collapse through a landing in England.
The time at which the operations planned in the Mediterranean and the Near East can be undertaken cannot yet be foreseen. The strongest operational effect would be achieved by a simultaneous attack on Gibraltar, Egypt, and Palestine.
Whether this will, in fact, be possible depends upon a number of factors which cannot, at the moment, be foreseen, but chiefly on the power of the Air Force to provide the forces necessary for the simultaneous support of these three operations.
I request Commanders-in-Chief to begin the planning and organization of these operations as outlined above and to keep me informed of the results so that I may issue final directives before the campaign in the East is over.
[signed]
WARLIMONT
[Ed: Walter Warlimont was a German Army staff officer and general during World War II. He served as deputy chief of the Operations Staff, one of the departments in the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, the Armed Forces High Command. He was instrumental in planning major Nazi invasions. Following the war, he was convicted of war crimes and authored the post-war memoir “Inside Hitler’s Headquarters.”]
On 11 July 1941, the Soviets mount counterattacks against the advancing panzer spearheads of the Wehrmacht. The attack fails, as have all the others, and it is easy to forget about these bloody battles. However, there is a cumulative effect on the Germans that may not be apparent now — but will tell in the end.
Despite the spectacular successes of the past few weeks, Hitler, who has too much free time on his hands at Rastenburg, is worried. Field Marshal Keitel telephones General Halder, operations boss at OKH, at noon and lists Hitler’s concerns:
Some following units are closing up too slowly on the most advanced units;
The south flank of Army Group North and north flank of Army Group Center are not cooperating together properly, as Hitler thinks that von Bock’s troops to the south are not sufficiently helping von Leeb’s troops to the north;
General Hoepner’s 4th Panzer Group is “losing contact” with following infantry because it is moving too quickly.
Halder does not take these concerns very seriously. However, they reflect concerns that Hitler will return to repeatedly and, in some cases (such as the lack of cooperation between Army Groups), will pose real problems down the road as German forces get more stretched.
In the Far North, the Finnish offensive in Karelia toward the Svir River that began on 10 July continues. The Finns are pounding against strong Soviet defenses on the eastern shore of the Jänisjärvi Lake north of Lake Ladoga. Aggressive offensive operations are not a Finnish strength, they are better suited to defensive operations, but they continue attacking in order to open the way south.
Further north in the Salla area, the Finnish 3rd Division of III Corps continues beating against Soviet positions on the Vyonitsa River. Elsewhere, the front is stable today, and the Germans ask the Finns to send reinforcements to get their offensives rolling again. The Finns agree to send Infantry Regiment 14.
Major General Talvela’s VI Corps achieve a breakthrough and advance rapidly. However, Talvela is dissatisfied with the commander of the 5th Div Col. Koskimies and releases him from the command. Koskimies is replaced by Col. Ruben Lagus who had advanced rapidly with his Jäger Brigade. Maj. Gen. Hegglund’s VII Corps has much tougher time. The defending Soviet forces are experienced and fight vigorously.
In Lapland the attacking Germans are forced to recognize their operative mistakes and ask for reinforcements. Especially the SS-Division ‘Nord’ has been a disappointment. Finns send Infantry Regiment 14 which was originally meant to defend the Ahvenanmaa (Åland) islands in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Sweden.
Julius Björkland is appointed the first Field Bishop (Kenttäpiispa) for the Finnish Army. Björkland was the Senior Minister of the Defense Forces with the title of Kenttärovasti.
In the Army Group North sector, the Soviets launch counterattacks against General Hoepner’s 4th Panzer Group, but without much effect. The German Army Group is preparing for an advance to the southeast of Leningrad to isolate it. The Soviets are using Nevel as a “straggler collection point” that is setting up divisions to be sent back to the front.
In the Army Group Center, General Guderian’s Panzer Group 2 is across the Dnepr and attacking along two axes. General Hoth’s Panzer Group 3 is hit by Soviet counterattacks from the southeast and stopped. Hoth’s advance units on the south are on the Orsha-Vitebsk highway.
In the Army Group South sector, German Panzer Group 1 is within ten miles of Kyiv. XIV Panzer Corps (General Gustav von Wietersheim and 48 Panzer Corps (General Eberhard von Mackensen) advance to the south of Kyiv and reach the Dnepr River at Kremenchuk. The Germans are at the inner ring of Kiev’s defenses but choose not to attack frontally at this time. The Romanian forces on the right flank of the advance have been weakened by Soviet counterattacks and the Germans now feel that they are no longer capable of offensive operations. During the day, the Soviets launch counterattacks at Panzer Group 1 at Berdichev in the south and Zhytomyr in the north.
The Germans are keeping a close eye on the Soviet commanders. General Halder notes in his war diary that the commander of Soviet Northwest Front (opposing Army Group North) is Voroshilov, that of Western Front is Marshal Timoshenko, and of Southwest Front, Budenny (Budyonny). Overall, Halder is pleased with the day’s fighting, noting that “The bulk of the enemy forces apparently is being taken back to the east.”
Hitler talks late into the night with his cronies, expounding as usual on his philosophical theories. He notes that “Russian atheists know how to die.” However, Hitler has no use for atheism, concluding, “We don’t want to educate anyone in atheism.”
The Germans have taken 600,000 Russians prisoner.
The Germans, who took Vitebsk on 10 July, begin creating the Vitebsk Ghetto. The Germans will incarcerate 16,000 Jews in the ghetto, which will be notorious for its poor conditions.
It is the first day of executions at Ponary, Lithuania. A resident, Kazimierz Sakowicz, writes in his diary that he hears shots from a nearby forest where Jews have been taken, and that “the shots last an hour or two.” He puts the number of Jews at 200.
General Dentz accepts Armistice terms in Syria against Vichy instructions. There have been a total of 2,500 Allied and 3,500 French casualties. The Commonwealth troops continue converging on Beirut from all directions. The situation is hopeless, and the Vichy French navy has evacuated Beirut and headed to Tripoli.
Overhead, a Vichy French Dewoitine D.520 fighter shoots down a Curtiss P-40 Tomahawk — the only Tomahawk shot down during the entire campaign. Offshore, during the early morning hours, the Royal Navy sends a squadron from Haifa led by light cruisers HMS Ajax and Phoebe on a sweep along the coast looking for Vichy French shipping, but find none.
At his headquarters in Beirut, General Dentz is busy trying to arrange a ceasefire, followed by an armistice. He reaches an agreement for a ceasefire against the wishes of the Petain regime in France. The terms officially are to go into effect at one minute past midnight on 12 July, but in reality, the fighting is over around 21:00.
The British destroyer HMS Defender was bombed and subsequently scuttled off Sidi Barrani by a Junkers Ju 88 dive bomber piloted by Gerhard Stamp.
Wavell takes up his post as C-in-C India.
RAF Bomber Command, Day of 11 July 1941
6 Stirlings to Le Trait shipyard and Hazebrouck. No losses.
The RAF conducts Circus missions to Lille and Yainville, and a Rhubarb mission to Norrent-Fontes.
RAF Bomber Command, Night of 11/12 July 1941
Wilhelmshaven
36 Hampdens; good bombing results were claimed with no aircraft lost. Wilhelmshaven reports most of the bombs fell in open ground around the city and in the harbour. 1 fishing vessel was damaged and 1 barrack but burnt down. 2 people were killed.
Josef “Joschko” Fözö, Gruppenkommandeur of II/JG 51 in Russia, claims his 24th victory today. However, later in the day, he crashes on take-off at Stava Bychow and is hospitalized. Fözö is out of action until 3 May 1942.
Right before dawn, the Luftwaffe (Junkers Ju 88 aircraft of Lehrgeschwader 1, piloted by Gerhard Stamp) catches one of the nightly Royal Navy supply missions to Tobruk as it is withdrawing to Alexandria. At 05:20, the German planes damage destroyer HMS Defender about 60 miles east of Tobruk. Fellow destroyer Vendetta tows Defender for a while, but eventually, Defender settles too low in the water and has to be scuttled. It sinks about seven miles north of Sidi Barrani. There are no deaths and five wounded.
After dark, the Luftwaffe raids Port Said and Ismailia with 52 bombers.
In Malta, the Italians conduct a fierce fighter attack that begins at 13:21. The Macchi 200 fighters strafe Luqa Airfield and destroy a Wellington bomber, damage four Wellingtons, and damage two Marylands. Hawker Hurricanes of RAF No. 185 Squadron intercept the Italian planes and while chasing them north, shooting down three Italian fighters and damaging four others.
Destroyer HMS Eclipse departed Scapa Flow at 0700 providing escort for motor launches ML.122, ML.124, ML.125, ML.128, ML.208, ML.210, ML.213, ML.233 of the 4th Motor Launch Flotilla proceeding to Skaalefjord and thence to Reykjavik. The force arrived at Skaalefjord at 2300. The destroyer and the motor launches departed Skaalefjord on the 13th for Reykjavik, where they arrived at 1015 on the 15th. At 1800 on the same day, the destroyer departed to return to Scapa Flow, arriving at 0530 on the 17th.
Battleship HMS Nelson, escorted by destroyers HMS Lightning, ORP Krakowiak, and ORP Kujawiak departed Scapa Flow at 0830 for the Clyde. The ships arrived at Greenock at 1054 on the 12th. Destroyer Krakowiak, which had completed working up practices proceeded to Plymouth at 1500. Destroyer Kujawiak departed Greenock at 1430 for Scapa Flow, arriving at 1130 on the 13th. Destroyer Lightning remained at Greenock to escort convoy WS.9C.
Destroyer HMS Icarus, on completion of repairs, departed Ardrossan at 0500 escorting tanker Montenol to Loch Alsh. The destroyer then proceeded to Scapa Flow where she arrived at 1000 on the 12th.
Motor vessel River Trent (246grt) was damaged by a mine in 53N, 1-15E. The vessel was towed to Great Yarmouth.
During the night of 10/11 July, Light cruisers HMS Ajax and HMS Phoebe with destroyers HMS Jackal, HMS Griffin, HMS Kingston, HMS Hasty, and HMS Kimberley searched the Syrian coast for French merchant ships reported by air the previous day. There was no contact and the ships arrived back at Haifa at daylight. At midnight on 11/12 July, the Army ceased hostilities with French forces in Syria.
Destroyer HMS Defender and Australian destroyer HMAS Vendetta, after carrying supplies to Tobruk, were bombed by German aircraft at 0520 in 31-45N, 25-51E. Destroyer Defender was damaged. Destroyer Vendetta towed the damaged destroyer for a time before Defender sank seven miles north of Sidi Barrani. There was no loss of life in the destroyer. Five crewmen were wounded.
Gunboat HMS Cricket, in tow of tug St Issey, and gunboat HMS Gnat, sailing on one engine, departed Alexandria for docking at Port Said.
Aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal and light cruiser HMS Hermione departed Gibraltar to exercise in the Mediterranean. A Swordfish ditched during the exercises and its crew was picked up by destroyer HMS Fearless.
Submarines HMS Ursula and HMS P.33 departed Malta to intercept a convoy west of Lampedusa. Submarine Ursula was forced to return to Malta on the 12th with a defective generator.
Anti-submarine trawlers HMS Fandango, HMS Morris Dance, HMS Sarabande, HMS Syringa, HMS Norse, and HMS Cordelia, escorting British steamer Pinzon (1365grt), departed Gibraltar for Freetown, via Bathurst.
Convoy OB.345 departed Liverpool, escorted by destroyers HMS Arrow, HMS Bulldog, and HMS Georgetown, corvettes HMS Aubretia and HMS Nigella, and anti-submarine trawler HMS St Apollo. This group was detached on the 16th. On the 16th, armed merchant cruiser HMS California, destroyers HMS Chesterfield and HMCS Churchill, and corvettes HMCS Arrowhead, HMS Camellia, and HMCS Eyebright joined. This group was detached on the 24th. The convoy arrived at Halifax on the 26th.
Convoy HX.138 departed Halifax, escorted by destroyers HMCS Annapolis and HMCS St Croix and armed merchant cruiser HMS Aurania. Corvette HMCS Rimouski joined on the 12th and sloop HMS Leith and corvettes HMCS Dauphin and HMCS Napanee on the 13th. The corvettes were detached on the 13th. The armed merchant cruiser was detached on the 14th and the destroyers on the 15th. Destroyers HMS Broadwater and HMCS St Laurent and corvette HMS Polyanthus joined on the 15th and destroyers HMS Burwell and HMS Richmond and corvette HMCS Cobalt on the 16th. These escorts were detached on the 23rd when relieved by destroyers HMS Beagle, HMS Boadicea, and HMS Roxborough, corvettes HMS Heather, HMS Orchis, and HMS Picotee, and anti-submarine trawlers HMS Arab, HMS Lady Madeleine, and HMS St Loman. The destroyers and corvette Heather were detached on the 26th. The convoy arrived at Liverpool on the 27th with the remainder of the escort.
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Office of the Coordination of Information and named William Donovan as its director. This appointment would lead to the creation of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), which is the forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Both of those are based upon Donovan’s observations in Great Britain early in 1941 of the British intelligence service, MI6. The Presidential statement on the appointment states in part:
“In his capacity as Coordinator, Mr. Donovan will collect and assemble information and data bearing on national security from the various departments and agencies of the Government and will analyze and collate such materials for the use of the President and such other officials as the President may designate.”
Roosevelt asks for appropriations of $3,300 million (GBP 800 million) for the U.S. Navy, in addition to the $4,700 million (GBP 1,175 million) requested yesterday for the U.S. Army. These are all unheard-of sums, particularly stacked one upon the other, but Congress is firmly behind the war effort (with some notable isolationist exceptions).
A possibility developed tonight that the pending defense revenue bill might be split into two titles, with one containing only excise levies to be submitted at once and the other containing corporate excess profits and individual income surtaxes to be deferred.
President Roosevelt called today for a United States merchant ship construction program so vast as to equal or exceed the present rate of losses by Great Britain and her allies. Mr. Roosevelt asked congress for an additional $1,698,000,000 in cash and authorization for the maritime commission, which already has under way a $1,715,000,000 construction program. The commission said $1,216,650,000 of the money would be used to construct 566 ships of various types.
Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox told the Senate Naval Affairs Committee at a secret session today that a U.S. patrol vessel dropped a depth bomb In the Atlantic some time ago to “warn” an approaching submarine, the United Press was informed by a member of Congress. Knox declined to comment on the report. One committeeman, who heard Knox’s testimony, described as “most reassuring” the secretary’s report on the widely-discussed and heretofore emphatically denied incident.
The rapid expansion of the Navy and the need for quick expansion of senior-officer personnel prompted Secretary Knox today to advance the annual meeting of the Selection Board by about three months.
Word that American labor and materials are helping build British war bases in the British isles came today from both the White House and London. While senators opposed to the administration foreign policy continued to charge that American bases were under construction there, President Roosevelt told a press conference he would not be surprised if American workers and steel from this country were Involved in British bases at many points.
Seizure of eighteen Axis ships, seventeen Italian and one German, which are berthed in nine American ports, was ordered today by Secretary Morgenthau under the Espionage Act of 1917. Future proceedings soon are expected to make all of them available for use by the United States Maritime Commission.
President Roosevelt, in a message to Michael Kalinin, president of the Supreme Soviet, said today that the American people “are observing with sympathy and admiration the valiant struggle which the Russian people are waging at the present time in self-defense.”
Robert H. Jackson took the oath of office today as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court at a ceremony in President Roosevelt’s office. Just before the ceremony Jackson had attended his last cabinet meeting as attorney general. The cabinet remained to look on and more than three score additional guests also were present. Jackson became the seventh Roosevelt appointee to the highest tribunal, whose membership again was complete. The oath was administered by Charles Elmore Cropley, Supreme Court clerk.
Existence of a “blacklist” containing the names of about 2,000 Latin-American firms and individuals with Axis connections was disclosed today by the Office of the Coordinator of Commercial and Cultural Relations Between the American Republics, of which Nelson A. Rockefeller is the head.
Experts of the Office of Production Management held out the prospect to American housewives today that their contributions of aluminum ware in the nation-wide house-to-house collection campaign starting July 21 would probably produce a minimum of 15,000,000 pounds of usable aluminum, sufficient to make 2,000 fighting planes or 500 four-motored bombers.
U.S. Navy heavy cruiser USS Astoria completed her refit at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California.
Paramount Pictures releases “Forced Landing.” Starring Richard Arlen, Eva Gabor, J. Carrol Naish, Nils Asther and Evelyn Brent, “Forced Landing” follows the travails of a pilot in fictional, tropical “Mosaque” who must thwart plans by a treacherous foreigner to steal U.S. military secrets. This is Eva Gabor’s film debut.
Columbia Pictures releases “I’ll Never Heil Again,” starring the Three Stooges. A short, “I’ll Never Heil Again” follows the trio as they attempt to take over Europe along with their “Axel” partners. The film is notable because it is the first sequel to another film in the Three Stooges canon, and also because the Stooges break the fourth wall and directly address the audience.
Major League Baseball:
The Dodgers never gave the Reds a chance to take a deep breath. They pounced on the champions in the first inning at Ebbets Field yesterday, battered them with, a seven-run onslaught and made off with a 12–2 victory, their fifth straight. The Dodgers amass sixteen hits including three homers.
Sibby Sisti and the veteran Johnny Cooney took care of most of the Braves’ long-range hitting today when they gained a 7–2 victory to even the series with the Cubs. Sisti found three Chicago pitchers for three doubles and a single and Cooney contributed a two-bagger and two singles, accounting for five Boston runs.
Six-hit pitching by Edgar Smith, stocky southpaw who was the winning hurler in last Tuesday’s All-Star game at Detroit, and a two-run homer by Billy Knickerbocker led the Chicago White Sox to a 3–1 triumph today over the Senators.
Lefty Bob Grove gave only six hits today in trying for his 300th major league triumph, the same number as Buck Newsom allowed, but the 41-year-old veteran got little help at the plate and the Red Sox suffered a 2–0 shutout by the Tigers.
At Sportsmans Park in St. Louis, Missouri, the New York Yankees beat the St. Louis Browns, 6–2. Yankee centerfielder Joe DiMaggio goes 4-for-5 against Browns pitchers Bob Harris and Jack Kramer extending his hitting streak to 50 consecutive games.
Cincinnati Reds 2, Brooklyn Dodgers 12
Chicago Cubs 2, Boston Braves 7
Washington Senators 1, Chicago White Sox 3
Detroit Tigers 2, Boston Red Sox 0
New York Yankees 6, St. Louis Browns 2
The Peruvian Ambassador has informed Foreign Minister Enrique Ruiz Guinazu that Peru accepts “in principle” the offer of the United States, Brazil and Argentina to mediate the Peruvian-Ecuadorean border dispute, it was announced officially tonight. The announcement was made by Argentine Under-Secretary of Foreign Affairs Roberto Gaches, who said that the Peruvian acceptance contained reservations “which are not insoluble.”
In preparation for the super-emergency predicted by Foreign Minister Yosuke Matsuoka the Cabinet at an extraordinary session today decided on new basic financial and economic policies to provide for the utmost mobilization of the nation’s capital resources and “revolutionary” extension of government control over finance, industry, production and distribution in line with wartime planned economy.
Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier HIJMS Kaga arrived at Ariake Bay at Kyushu, Japan.
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 127.9 (+0.12)
Born:
Clive Puzey, Rhodesian racing driver (F-1), born in Bulawayo, Southern Rhodesia.
Henry Lowther, British jazz and session trumpeter, born in Leicester, England, United Kingdom.
Leslie Dilley, Welsh art director (Raiders of the Lost Ark; Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope), born in the Rhondda Valley, Wales, United Kingdom (d. 2025).
Wayne Bickerton, songwriter, record producer and music business executive, in Rhyl, Denbighshire, Wales, United Kingdom (d. 2015).
Tommy Vance, radio broadcaster, in Eynsham, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom (d. 2005).
Died:
Arthur Evans, 90, English archaeologist (discovered the Minoan palace of Knossos in Crete).
Naval Construction:
The U.S. Navy YMS-1-class auxiliary motor minesweeper USS YMS-89 is laid down by the Hubbards South Coast Co. (Newport Beach, California, U.S.A.).
The Royal Navy Hill-class ASW trawler HMS Dunkery (T 224) is laid down by Cook, Welton & Gemmill (Beverley, U.K.); completed by Holmes.
The Kriegsmarine (German Navy) Type VIIC U-boat U-664 is laid down by Howaldtswerke Hamburg AG, Hamburg (werk 813).
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary Dale-class fleet tanker RFA Ennerdale (X 73; postwar A173) is commissioned. Her first commanding officer is Captain Sidney T. Dunster, RFA.
The Royal Navy Fairmile B-class motor launch HMS ML 250 is commissioned.
The Royal Navy Fairmile C-class motor gun boat HMS MGB 323 is commissioned.
The Royal Navy Bangor-class (Reciprocating-engined) minesweeper HMS Felixstowe (J 126) is commissioned. Her first commanding officer is Lieutenant Commander Colin Henry Corbet-Singleton, DSC, RN.
The U.S. Navy 77-foot Elco patrol motor torpedo boat USS PT-33 is completed and placed into service with Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron One (PTRon 1).
The Royal Canadian Navy Flower-class corvette HMCS Algoma (K 127) is commissioned. Her first commanding officer is T/Lieutenant John Harding, RCNR.
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