Category Archives: World War II

This week in the War, 12–18 July 1943: Hitler calls an end to the Battle of Kursk

Posted on July 17, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 12 July 1943, Hitler summoned two of his generals, Günther von Kluge and Erich von Manstein, to his headquarters in East Prussia (the Wolf’s Lair) and ordered them to end the massive tank battle raging near the Soviet … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 5 July–11 July 1943: The invasion of Sicily—Operation Husky

Posted on July 6, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on the night of 9/10 July 1943, the Allies launched Operation Husky, an amphibious and airborne invasion of Sicily that foreshadowed the similar but much larger invasion of Normandy (D-Day). The aim of the Sicily/Italian campaign … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 28 June–4 July 1943: The United States Women’s Army Corps

Posted on July 1, 2015 by secondbysecond

In the USA this week in the war, on 1 July 1943, the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps was renamed the Women’s Army Corps and the organization was granted full status. Possibilities for employment within the WAC included telephone operator, baker, seamstress, and … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 21–27 June 1943: Baldur von Schirach falls from grace

Posted on June 25, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 24 June 1943, the one-time Hitler Youth Leader (Reichsjugendführer) Baldur von Schirach quarreled with Hitler over the need to make peace with the Allies. Although Hitler did not dismiss him from his post of … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 14–20 June 1943: The Tuskegee Airmen

Posted on June 15, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 18 June 1943, six American P-40 Warhawks, piloted by some of the soon-to-be-famous Tuskegee Airmen, were attacked by German Focke-Wulfs over the Mediterranean island of Pantelleria—which had recently fallen into Allied hands. The ‘Tuskegee Airmen’ … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 7–13 June 1943: Pantelleria

Posted on June 11, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 11 June 1943, the garrison of the Italian island of Pantelleria surrendered when troops of the British 1st Division landed. The tiny island of Lampedusa surrendered the following day. Pantelleria is 100km southwest of Sicily, … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 31 May–6 June 1943: Death of Leslie Howard

Posted on June 3, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 1 June 1943, British actor Leslie Howard died when his plane was shot down over the Bay of Biscay. Howard was a star of both stage and screen and famous for playing the title role in … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 24–30 May 1943: Jean Moulin calls a meeting

Posted on May 29, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 27 May 1943, French Resistance leader Jean Moulin called a meeting on rue du Four in Paris. Representatives of eight different resistance groups were in attendance. Jean Moulin was the personal envoy of Charles … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 17–23 May 1943: ENIAC at the University of Pennsylvania

Posted on May 19, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war saw the beginnings of one of the landmarks of the computer age: on 17 May 1943, the US Army contracted the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering to build the ENIAC: Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer. The … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 3–9 May 1943: The fall of Tunis

Posted on May 4, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, 0n 7 May 1943, tanks of the British 7th Armoured Division (newly detached from the British Eighth Army to join the American First Army) entered Tunis. On the same day as the fall of the … Continue reading →

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