Sarah Sundin's Blog, page 291
August 18, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 18, 1941
Pilot Officer John Gillespie Magee, Jr., 1 September 1941 (Royal Canadian Air Force photo)
75 Years Ago—Aug. 18, 1941: President Roosevelt signs extension of Selective Service Act, extending draftees’ service from 12 to 30 months.
Radio Belgrade plays obscure recording of “Lili Marleen” by Lale Andersen, which becomes an instant hit with German troops in North Africa.
John Gillespie Magee Jr., an American serving in the RCAF (age 19) writes his famous poem “High Flight.”
August 17, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 17, 1941
75 Years Ago—Aug. 17, 1941: Romanian troops (fighting as allies with Germany) surround Odessa, Ukraine.
August 16, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 16, 1941
75 Years Ago—Aug. 16, 1941: Germans take Novgorod, Russia and Nikolaev, Ukraine.
Soviets scuttle fleet at Nikolaev.
Stalin orders all deserters executed and their families arrested.
August 15, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 15, 1941
75 Years Ago—Aug. 15, 1941: Jews in Nazi-occupied USSR are banned from public places, can’t own cars or radios.
German spy Josef Jakobs becomes the last man to be executed in the Tower of London; he had parachuted into Britain and was captured 2/1/41.
Movie premiere of Life Begins for Andy Hardy, starring Lewis Stone, Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland.
August 14, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 14, 1941
Roosevelt and Churchill at the Atlantic Charter Conference, Placentia Bay, Newfoundland, Aug 1941 (US Naval History and Heritage Command)
75 Years Ago—Aug. 14, 1941: Roosevelt and Churchill sign the Atlantic Charter declaring general principles for a free post-war world.
President Roosevelt announces US will not allow U-boats to attack British shipping in western hemisphere.
Franciscan priest Maximilian Kolbe volunteers to be executed in place of a condemned man at Auschwitz; he will be canonized.
Fr. Maximilian Kolbe, 1940 (public domain)
August 13, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 13, 1941
75 Years Ago—Aug. 13, 1941: Canadian Women’s Army Corps established.
Australian Women’s Army Service (AWAS) formed.
August 12, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 12, 1941
Australian troops in a foxhole with Bren gun near Tobruk, Libya, Aug 1941 (Australian War Memorial)
75 Years Ago—Aug. 12, 1941: 6000 Polish troops land at besieged Tobruk to relieve Australians.
Japanese-Canadians required to carry registration cards with thumbprint & photo.
Art from the National Gallery in London placed in the Manod Quarry for safekeeping.
Movie premiere of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, starring Spencer Tracy, Ingrid Bergman, and Lana Turner.
August 11, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 11, 1941
USS McDougal alongside HMS Prince of Wales during Atlantic Charter Conference, Placentia Bay, Newfoundland, Aug 1941 (US Naval History and Heritage Command)
75 Years Ago—Aug. 11, 1941: At Atlantic Conference in Newfoundland, British and US military chiefs discuss war plans for first time.
Vichy France bans Jewish doctors from practicing medicine.
August 10, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 10, 1941
75 Years Ago—Aug. 10, 1941: Australian coastal towns test blackouts for fear of Japanese bombings.
August 9, 2016
Today in World War II History—Aug. 9, 1941
Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, and Roosevelt’s sons Franklin and Elliott aboard USS Augusta off Newfoundland, Aug 1941 (US Naval History and Heritage Command)
75 Years Ago—Aug. 9, 1941: Atlantic Conference begins—Roosevelt & Churchill meet on ship on Placentia Bay, Newfoundland to craft Atlantic Charter.
RAF Wing Commander Douglas Bader’s Spitfire collides with Me 109 over France; he bails, leaving behind one of his two artificial legs.
