This week in the War, 6–12 October 1941: Assault on Moscow

Posted on October 10, 2013 by secondbysecond

Collective farmers handing over tanks to Soviet troops, Moscow 1941 [RIA Novosti archive, image #87961 / CC-BY-SA 3.0]

Collective farmers handing over tanks to Soviet troops, Moscow 1941 [RIA Novosti archive, image #87961 / CC-BY-SA 3.0]

This week in the war on 6 October 1941, the German army launched a two-pronged offensive against Moscow as part of Operation Taifun (Typhoon). Hitler had announced that the Soviet Union ‘has already been broken and would never rise again.’

The German army advanced to within 50 miles of Moscow, while heavy fighting continued on the whole of the Eastern Front. On 10 October, General Georgi Zhukov took control of the front responsible for defending the city. Women and children began to be evacuated to the east.

The Russian soldiers were poorly trained but (as Churchill was fond of saying) ‘they could always take one with them.’ The Russians also had the advantage of being well-clothed. A lack of warm clothing would eventually cost the Germans dearly.

The first snow fell on the night of 6/7 October. The cold weather set in unusually early. There was no anti-freeze for trucks or tanks. No chains were available for the wheeled vehicles, many of which were soon immobilized. It was still snowing on 12 October.

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This week in the War, 29 Sept–5 Oct 1941: The Maltese Falcon

Posted on October 3, 2013 by secondbysecond

The Maltese Falcon ----- by Dashiell Hammett (Knopf 1929/Vintage 1957) [Photograph by Edith-Mary Smith]

The Maltese Falcon —– by Dashiell Hammett (Knopf 1929/Vintage 1957) [Photograph by Edith-Mary Smith]

The Maltese Falcon was one of Dashiell Hammett’s most successful novels. According to the London Times Literary Supplement: “This is not only probably the best detective story we have ever read, it is an exceedingly well written novel.”

How true. In my view, in regard to crime novel classics, only Conan Doyle’s masterful tales of Sherlock Holmes come close.

The book is a pleasure to read, with its realistic and punchy dialogue, and detailed descriptions of the characters. And what characters! Sam Spade is the definitive private eye—smart and surly, and somewhat flawed. The reader is made aware of how Spade once yielded to the advances of his partner’s wife.

The Maltese Falcon ----- starring Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor [Photograph by Edith-Mary Smith]

The Maltese Falcon —– starring Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor [Photograph by Edith-Mary Smith]

Kasper Gutman (‘The Fat Man’) is a ruthless but likeable villain. Joel Cairo is somewhat of a villain and, which was unusual for literature of the 1920s/30s, is recognizably gay. Perhaps most villainous of all is the story’s love-interest, a woman who goes by many names and is intent on killing or seducing anyone who stands between her and the ‘Black Bird,’ the legendary and jewel-encrusted Maltese Falcon.

This week in the war, on 3 October 1941, the screen version of The Maltese Falcon premiered in New York City. The movie is the equal in the book.

Humphrey Bogart played Sam Spade and Mary Astor played femme fatale Brigid O’Shaughnessy: “Now you are lying. You’re lying if you say you don’t know down in your heart that, in spite of anything I’ve done, I love you.”

Crusty private eye Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) confronts femme fatale Brigid O'Shaughnessy (Mary Astor) in the movie 'The Maltese Falcon' [Public domain, wiki]

Crusty private eye Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) confronts femme fatale Brigid O’Shaughnessy (Mary Astor) in the movie ‘The Maltese Falcon’ [Public domain, wiki]

Wow. In fact much of Hammett’s dialogue was taken from the novel and inserted directly into the movie.

Mary Astor was nominated for an Oscar, as was Sydney Greenstreet for his role as ‘The Fat Man.’

Peter Lorre played Joel Cairo, with the gay aspect de-emphasized to placate the censors.

 

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This week in the War, 22–28 September 1941: The Liberty Ships

Posted on September 25, 2013 by secondbysecond

Liberty Ship under construction in Baltimore, Maryland [Public domain/wiki]

Liberty Ship under construction in Baltimore, Maryland [Public domain/wiki]

The first ‘Liberty Ship’, the Patrick Henry, was launched in Baltimore on 27 September 1941. Thousands of these 10,000-ton cargo vessels would be built in the USA before the war finally ended in 1945. By that time, the industrial capacity of the Unites States was 25 times what it had been in 1939.

The early Liberty Ships took 200 days to build. (Britain had originally placed the order for such ships in 1940). It was essential that Britain acquire cargo ships and send them into the Atlantic at a faster rate than the German U-boats were sinking them.

Improved design and streamlined production reduced the time to build a Liberty Ship to as little as 24 days and (by 1944) to an amazing 17 days . The key was to employ welding instead of riveting.

A Liberty Ship can be seen in the background, sailing under the protection of escort vessel HMS Badsworth [Public domain/wiki]

A Liberty Ship can be seen in the background, sailing under the protection of escort vessel HMS Badsworth [Public domain/wiki]

The USA would become the only country to enter WWII and experience a rise in standard of living. Unemployment, which had been several million before the war, would drop to zero.

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This week in the War, 15–21 September 1941: More help from America

Posted on September 18, 2013 by secondbysecond

British 'land girl' demonstrates a Chicago-built Lend-Lease tractor to visiting American farmers, somewhere in Buckinghamshire, England [Public domain, IWM/wiki]

British ‘land girl’ demonstrates a Chicago-built Lend-Lease tractor to visiting American farmers, somewhere in Buckinghamshire, England [Public domain, IWM/wiki]

This week in the war, on 16 September 1941, the United States announced that US warships would protect convoys as far east as the 26°W meridian if they were carrying materials to countries receiving Lend-Lease aid. Such countries notably included Britain and the Soviet Union. President Roosevelt had already received support from the majority of the American people for his ‘shoot on sight’ policy directed against German U-boats that were discovered in US defensive zones.

On 18 September, Roosevelt asked Congress for additional monies for Lend-Lease assistance. On 20 September, Congress passed the Revenue Bill, thereby raising taxes for corporations and individuals across the nation. The President was stocking up his war chest.

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This week in the War, 8–14 September 1941: The siege of Leningrad

Posted on September 11, 2013 by secondbysecond

Inspirational posters outside Kazan Cathedral in Leningrad, 1941 [RIA Novosti archive, image #637354 / Anatoliy Garanin / CC-BY-SA 3.0]

Inspirational posters outside Kazan Cathedral in Leningrad, 1941 [RIA Novosti archive, image #637354 / Anatoliy Garanin / CC-BY-SA 3.0]

The siege of Leningrad began this week in the war on 8 September 1941, when the Finns cut off the last remaining land route to the city by severing the Leningrad-Murmansk rail line. The situation was desperate by 11 September, with no lighting or heat, and food supplies fast diminishing. The Russian commanding general, Kliment Voroshilov, was dismissed and went to the front line to seek a hero’s death. He was replaced by Georgi Zhukov. German troops were ordered to shoot down anyone fleeing the city towards their lines. Hitler did not want to take Leningrad by storm. He intended to starve the city into submission.

Leningrad: State of Siege ----- by Michael Jones (Murray, 2008) [Photograph by Edith-Mary Smith]

Leningrad: State of Siege —– by Michael Jones (Murray, 2008) [Photograph by Edith-Mary Smith]

In his book Leningrad—State of Siege, Michael Jones details the resilience and the suffering of the citizens of the city, of people eating books and belts (and sometimes other people), and of the cultural triumphs during the days of siege, such as the concert in the Leningrad Philharmonic Hall performed to a house packed with starving citizens and soldiers in uniform who had come directly from the front.

The siege lasted 872 days and was finally lifted on 27 January 1944. More than a million people died.

 

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This week in the War, 1–7 September 1941: The yellow star

Posted on September 3, 2013 by secondbysecond

Yellow star (Judenstern) [Author: Daniel Ullrick, GNU FDL/wiki]

Yellow star (Judenstern) [Author: Daniel Ullrick, GNU FDL/wiki]

Woman in Berlin, September 1941 [Bundesarchiv/wiki]

Woman in Berlin, September 1941 [Bundesarchiv/wiki]

On 1 September 1941, the German Government ordered that all Jews in Germany above six-years-old must wear the yellow star, the Judenstern—a Star of David that was coloured yellow and inscribed Jude (Jew) in mock-Hebrew lettering. The supposed mark of shame would, in postwar years, become a symbol of persecution and of the Holocaust itself.

The practice of forcing Jews to distinguish themselves had been known since the Middle Ages. The Nazis had already demanded that Jews in the East, including Poland, wear the Star of David (although in blue instead of yellow).

Berlin, September 1941 [Bundesarchiv/wiki]

Berlin, September 1941 [Bundesarchiv/wiki]

Yellow star, as worn in France [Creative Commons Share Alike 2.0 France]

Yellow star, as worn in France [Creative Commons Share Alike 2.0 France, Musee de l’armee]

Following the yellow star law, many decent Germans would tip their hats as a sign of respect when passing Jewish people in the street. Later, the German authorities expressly forbade the practice.

In the Occupied Zone of France, the Germans did not impose the yellow star until June of 1942. Vichy, which had been so proactive in persecuting Jews in the Free Zone, did not follow suit.

 

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This week in the War, 25–31 August 1941: British and Soviets invade Iran

Posted on August 26, 2013 by secondbysecond

Soviet and British troops meet in the Iranian desert, August 1941 [Public domain, wiki]

Soviet and British troops meet in the Iranian desert, August 1941 [Public domain, wiki]

On 25 August 1941, the British and Soviet ambassadors each presented an ultimatum to the government of Iran (Persia). That day, Soviet troops invaded the country from the north, and British and India troops invaded from Iraq and the Persian Gulf. (The force invading from Iraq was commanded on the radio from India by Major-General William Slim—later to distinguish himself as C-in-C of the British Fourteenth Army in Burma).

The Soviets cited the previously-signed Soviet-Iranian agreement which allowed the Soviet Union to station troops in Iran if both countries were threatened by a third. The occupation would prevent Germany from taking control of Iranian oilfields or using Iran as a base to strike against the Soviets. Also, a new route would be opened up for supplies that Britain and the United States were sending to the Soviet Union. (The supply route through the Arctic Circle to Archangel and Murmansk was difficult and dangerous).

The invasion of Iran by Allied forces confirmed the view in Turkey that their country should remain neutral. (The Turks had entered the previous world war, but on the side of Germany).

Soviet armoured car leads British supply column, Iran 1941 [Public domain, wiki]

Soviet armoured car leads British supply column, Iran 1941 [Public domain, wiki]

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Vignette: Battle of the Atlantic

Posted on August 21, 2013 by secondbysecond

SS Geraldine Mary, 2 August 1940 [Public domain]

SS Geraldine Mary, 2 August 1940 [Public domain]

These sad and dramatic pictures are of the cargo ship SS Geraldine Mary that was torpedoed by a U-boat in the North Atlantic, 2 August 1940. The pictures were taken from a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF 10 Squadron) Sunderland flying boat that was circling above the sinking ship.

The Battle of the Atlantic was the longest battle of the war. Its start and finish matching the start and finish of the war in Europe.

SS Geraldine Mary [Public domain]

SS Geraldine Mary [Public domain]

In terms of its importance, the Battle of the Atlantic ranked alongside and possibly surpassed other battles whose outcomes were essential to Allied victory: the Battle of Britain, the Battle of Stalingrad, the Battle of El Alamein, the Battle of Normandy,… (One should not forget the battles that did not take place in a theatre of war, for example: the fight to convince the American public of the wisdom of Lend-Lease and the effort required to drive that legislation through the American Senate and the House of Representatives).

SS Geraldine Mary [Public domain]

SS Geraldine Mary [Public domain]

Germany’s main weapon was the U-boat, although surface raiders should not be discounted. The Allies’ weapons were their warships and their aircraft, and the depth charges that could be dropped from both. Detection technology, such as asdic/sonar, and the efforts of British code-breakers were also of paramount importance.

Following the fall of France, Germany had the added advantage of naval bases (such as Lorient)  that were on the French Atlantic coast.

SS Geraldine Mary [Public domain]

SS Geraldine Mary [Public domain]

The Battle of the Atlantic had four phases.

Phase 1: July 1940 to December 1941. Britain was on her own. The U-boat wolf-packs enjoyed considerable success.

Phase 2: December 1940 to March 1943. The USA had entered the war and the U-boats continued to gain in strength. (There was a vast increase in targets and in coastline for the Allies to defend).

Phase 3: April to May 1943. Following the ‘climax’ of the battle in March (when Allied losses were heavy), an improvement in defences—detection, air cover, tactics—served to tip the balance in favour of the Allies. The surviving U-boats pulled back to lick their wounds.

SS Geraldine Mary

SS Geraldine Mary

Phase 4: June 1943 to May 1945. With improved sonar, radar and codebreaking, and many more ships and aircraft, the Allies went on the offensive and defeated the U-boats once and for all.

During the Battle of the Atlantic, more than 6,000 Allied ships and over 780 U-boats were sunk.

 

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This week in the War, 18–24 August 1941: Pierre Georges fires the first shot in Nazi-occupied Paris

Posted on August 19, 2013 by secondbysecond

German notice proclaiming that, as the result of the killing of a member of the German armed forces on 21 August [1941], Frenchmen under arrest would be considered as hostages and could be shot as a reprisal for future killings of German personal. [Public domain, wiki]

German notice proclaiming that, as the result of the killing of a member of the German armed forces on 21 August [1941], Frenchmen under arrest would be considered as hostages and could be shot as a reprisal for future killings of German personal. [Public domain, wiki]

On 21 August 1941, a German naval adjutant named Alfons Moser was shot and killed at the Barbès-Rochechouart métro station in Paris. The act marked the beginning of an armed struggle against the Nazi occupation.

The shot was fired by a communist named Pierre Georges, also known in the Resistance as Fredo, and later as Colonel Fabien. He was an experienced fighter, having served with the International Brigades during the Spanish civil war.

Command post of Pierre Georges (Colonel Fabien) during the 1944 Paris uprising, 34 rue Gandon, XIIIe arrondissement [Creative Commons Share Alike 3.0 unported]

Command post of Pierre Georges (Colonel Fabien) during the 1944 Paris uprising, 34 rue Gandon, XIIIe arrondissement [Creative Commons Share Alike 3.0 unported]

The cycle of killings and reprisals continued in Paris and in other French cities in the occupied zone. (Six Frenchmen were shot by firing squad as a result of the Barbès-Rochechouart killing).

Georges was captured, tortured but escaped to play a role in the uprising that helped liberate Paris in 1944. He died later in the war as a result of a landmine.

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This week in the War, 11–17 August 1941: The evil wind

Posted on August 13, 2013 by secondbysecond

Marechal Philippe Petain [Public domain, wiki]

Marechal Philippe Petain [Public domain, wiki]

On 12 August 1941, Vichy’s head of state Marshal Philippe Pétain made a radio broadcast to the people of France. He had felt an evil wind (vent mauvais) blowing across many areas of France, he told them.

He said that the National Revolution was still unrealized, that the new order he was seeking to impose had not yet come about. Freemasons, political parties and those who put their personal interests ahead of their country were all to blame. The British radio, the BBC, had helped add to the confusion, Pétain said.

Pétain then announced a series of totalitarian measures: the suspending of all political parties, the introduction of special courts and the doubling in size of the police force. He appointed Admiral Jean-François Darlan as Vichy Minister of National Defence. (Although anti-British, Darlan would fulfil the promise that he once made to Churchill: no ship of the French fleet would be allowed to fall into German hands).

Pétain praised the country’s farmers and miners, who continued to toil and received little in return, and he spoke well of the million plus French soldiers who still languished in prison camps in Germany.

Finally (as quoted the following day in the New York Times), he ended on an inspirational note: “If a beaten country is divided against itself, it dies. If a beaten country can unite, it is reborn. Vive la France!”

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