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History on the 4th of May

History
Date Text
04 May 1911 WW2 USS Idaho departed Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. 
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04 May 1913 WW2 Feihong was launched by New York Shipbuilding in the United States without a buyer. 
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04 May 1921 WW2 Lieutenant General Heitaro Fukuda was named the commanding officer of the Taiwan Army. 
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04 May 1921 WW2 Harry Daghlian was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, United States. 
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04 May 1929 WW2 USS Arizona entered Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia, United States for modernization. 
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04 May 1939 WW2 Werner Mölders was awarded the Medalla de la Campaña and Medalla Militar by Spain. 
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04 May 1939 WW2 Chinese troops attacked Japanese positions at Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, China. 
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04 May 1939 WW2 27 Japanese bombers attacked Chongqing, China in the evening. 
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04 May 1940 WW2 German He 115 aircraft bombed British submarine HMS Seal in the Kattegat at 0230 hours. Seal dove from the surface to the depth of 30 meters in response while continuing to deploy mines, her primary mission. While evading anti-submarine trawlers at 1830 hours, she hit a mine and began to settle to the sea floor. 
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04 May 1940 WW2 30,000 Allied troops were present near Narvik, Norway, including units of the French Foreign Legion, French mountain troops, Polish troops, the British 24th Brigade, and Norwegian troops, aiming to take Narvik from the Germans. Meanwhile, German 2nd Gebirgsjäger Division's mountain troops began marching 350 miles north from Trondheim, Norway to relieve the German 139th Gebirgsjäger Regiment in Narvik; detecting this, the Allies deployed 300 to 500 men each at Mosjöen, Mo, and Bodö in an attempt to stop this movement. 
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04 May 1940 WW2 The keel of Shinano was laid down at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal in Yokosuka, Japan. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 Allied aircraft conducted a raid on Baghdad, Iraq. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 As the Axis offensive on Tobruk, Libya began to stall, Paulus ordered Rommel to besiege rather than eliminate Tobruk. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 German submarine U-38 sank Swedish ship Japan off the coast of French Guinea at 1915 hours; her deck gun exploded during the attack, injuring the gun crew. The entire crew of 54 of Japan survived. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 The German bombing on Liverpool, England, United Kingdom that began on the previous date ended before dawn on this date, killing 850 people and destroying ammunition ship Malakand in the harbor. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 In a speech, Adolf Hitler said Winston Churchill was not a capable leader, both on political and military fronts. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 HMS Edinburgh supported the raid on Lofoten Islands, Norway. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 29th Brigade of the Indian 5th Division launched another attack at Amba Alagi, Abyssinia, capturing 3 hills between 0415 and 0730 hours. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 German aircraft sank British minesweeper Fermoy in dock at Malta. 
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04 May 1941 WW2 The Politburo appointed Joseph Stalin the Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, thus taking over as the actual head of the Soviet government, which position was previously held by Vyacheslav Molotov. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 German submarine U-564 damaged US freighter Delisle just off the coast 10 kilometers south of Port St. Lucie, Florida, United States, killing 2 of 36 aboard. To the south, U-162 sank US ship Eastern Sword 12 miles north of Georgetown, British Guiana at 0943 hours; 16 were killed, 13 survived. Later in the day, U-162 struck again 40 miles northeast of Anna Regina at 1900 hours, stopping British schooner Florence M. Douglas, forcing her crew to abandon ship, and sinking the schooner with the deck gun. At 1904 hours, U-564 struck again, sinking British tanker Eclipse in shallow waters 3 miles off Daytona Beach, Florida; 2 were killed, 45 survived. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 In the late afternoon, German submarine U-507 sank US tankers Norlindo (killing 5 of 28 aboard), Munger T. Ball (killing 30 of 34 aboard), and Joseph M. Cudahy (killing 27 of 37 aboard) off the Florida Keys archipelago about 100 kilometers west of the tip of Florida, United States. At 2220 hours, U-125 sank US ship Tuscaloosa City 200 miles west of Jamaica; all 34 aboard survived. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 USS Gar reported sinking of a Japanese ship in daylight after hitting her with one of two torpedoes fired. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki became the flagship of Destroyer Division 23 upon the loss of destroyer Kikuzuki off Tulagi, Solomon Islands. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 USS Trout sank Japanese auxiliary gunboat Kongosan Maru southeast of Japan. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 USS Greenling sank Japanese armed merchant cruiser Kinjosan Maru 100 miles north of Truk, Caroline Islands at 1825 hours, killing all aboard. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 Allied aircraft were launched from Queensland and Horn Island in Australia and from Port Moresby, Australian Papua to detect Japanese naval movements. At 1035 hours, a B-25 Mitchell bomber spotted carrier Shoho and her group. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 Soviet destroyers Sokrushitelny and Gremyashchy made rendezvous with Allied convoy PQ-15. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 6 B-26 Marauder bombers from Port Moresby, Australian Papua struck Vunakanau airfield at Rabaul, New Britain, damaging 5 Japanese bombers on the ground, detonating fuel drums, and destroying 2 gas trucks. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 USS Yorktown launched 12 TBD Devastor and 28 SBD Dauntless aircraft at 0700 hours, which reached the new Japanese positions at Tulagi in the Solomon Islands at 0850 hours; the attack damaged minelayer Okinoshima and destroyer Kikuzuki. At 1210 hours, a second attack wave hit Tulagi, sinking minesweepers WA-1 and WA-2 and damaging minesweeper Tama Maru; 87 Japanese personnel were killed during this second attack. USS Yorktown lost 3 aircraft, but all air crew were rescued. The Japanese withdrew from Tulagi temporarily, but would very soon return to complete the construction of a seaplane base. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 USS Hammann rescued two downed fighter pilots on the coast of Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 Japanese troops captured Bhamo, Burma. Off the Burmese coast, with increasing malaria cases affecting the garrison's morale, Akyab Island was abandoned. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 Milton Miles arrived in Chongqing, China. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 121 British bombers (69 Wellington, 19 Hampden, 14 Lancaster, 12 Stirling, 7 Halifax) attacked Stuttgart, Germany, targeting the Bosch factory. All bombs missed the factory buildings but killed 13 civilians and wounded 37. One Stirling bomber was lost during the attack. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 Joseph Rochefort's cryptanalytic team in Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii intercepted a radio message from battleship Kirishima to Isoroku Yamamoto's headquarters noting that due to Kirishima's repair work the battleship would not be able to participate in the upcoming campaign. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 Kaga exited the drydocks of Sasebo, Japan and departed for the Inland Sea to join Carrier Division 1. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 The Japanese bombardment of Corregidor, Philippine Islands heightened to soften the defenses for invasion scheduled on the next day. On the beaches of nearby Bataan Peninsula, 2,000 Japanese troops began boarding 15 barges. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 HMS King George V arrived at Scapa Flow, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
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04 May 1942 WW2 USS Marblehead arrived at New York Navy Yard in Brooklyn, New York, United States to repair damages sustained during the Battle of Makassar Strait. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 Hitler postponed Operation Citadel, which ultimately would give the Soviets more time to prepare their defenses. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 RAF bombers conducted a raid on Dortmund, Germany late in the night and into the next day, killing almost 700. Log book of pilot J. H. Searby noted there were "considerable flak" and that he "took ciné (35mm) film hoping to get pictures to convince the 'public' that we do bomb Germany." 
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04 May 1943 WW2 The German Luftwaffe evacuation from Tunisia, Italian North Africa completed. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 A posthumous award of a Victoria Cross was made to Commander John Linton of HMS Turbulent after the submarine was declared lost. Turbulent had sunk one cruiser, a U-boat and 28 supply ships as well as destroying three trains with gunfire. She had been attacked 13 times and survived 250 depth charges. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 German submarine U-625 spotted Allied convoy ONS 5 in the North Atlantic at about 1200 hours local time. Several German submarines gathered and began attacking at dusk and lasted through the night into the next date, sinking 7 ships (British freighters L'Orient, North Britain, Harbury, Harpurley, Bristol City, and Wentworth; US freighter West Maximus). U-630 was lost during the attacks. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 The body of Glyndwr Michael was buried at the Cemetery of Solitude in Huelva, Spain as Major William Martin of the British Royal Marines. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 USS Sunfish departed for her third war patrol. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of 72nd Construction Battalion (72nd SeaBees) arrived on board. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 Satoru Anabuki, flying Ki-43 fighter "Fubuki", shot down a Hurricane fighter over Cox's Bazar, India (now Bangladesh), his 36th victory. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 USS Wahoo reconnoitered the northeastern tip of Etorofu, Japan (now Iturup, Russia), then damaged seaplane tender Kamikawa Maru, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 The Soviet Directorate of NKVD Troops for Guarding the Rear of the Red Army was elevated to form its own main directorate. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 The "Grado" Battalion of the "San Marco" naval infantry regiment of Italian Navy was relocated to the regimental headquarters at Bizerte. Tunisia. 
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04 May 1943 WW2 The Vatican Secretary of State reminded the Apostolic Delegate in London, England, United Kingdom that the Vatican opposed establishing a Jewish homeland in British Palestine due to the area's sacred status to Christianity as the birthplace of Jesus Christ. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 The United States government lifted rationing for most types of meat. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 RAF bombers struck Budapest, Hungary. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 A new German plan called for the deportation of 3,000 Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz Concentration Camp daily, starting on 15 May 1944. A meeting was held on this date in Vienna between German SS officials, Hungarian officials, and railroad officials to determine the logistics of such an operation. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 The US Joint Chiefs of Staff decided to preliminarily plan landing operations on Taiwan, Philippine Islands, and mainland China. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 James Johnson scored his 28th victory. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 USS Parche attacked a Japanese convoy south of Taiwan, sinking Taiyoku Maru and Shoryu Maru and damaging a third, hitting them with 7 of 10 torpedoes fired. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Blackout discontinued. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish departed Majuro, Marshall Islands for her tenth war patrol. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 USS Trepang sank Japanese Minesweeper Number 20 in the Yellow Sea. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Fedor von Bock passed away. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Orion was sunk off Swinemünde, Germany (now Swinoujscie, Poland) by bombs. About 4,000 people, most of whom refugees, were killed. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Charles Sweeney became the commanding officer of the 393rd Bombardment Squadron, Heavy which was a part of the USAAF 509th Composite Group designated to deliver the atomic bombs when they are ready. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 German forces in Denmark, the Netherlands, and northwestern Germany surrendered to British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, to be in effect at 0800 hours on the next day. Meanwhile, in Germany, US Ninth Army accepted surrender of German Ninth and Twelfth Armies and US Third Army accepted the surrender by Feldmarschall Paul von Kleist. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Operation Iceberg II was commenced by the Allies to support the campaign on Okinawa, Japan. Meanwhile, Japanese special attack aircraft sank two destroyers and damaged a number of other warships off the island, including British carrier HMS Formidable and American minesweeper USS Shea (hit by 1 of 7 Ohka special attack aircraft launched on this day). 
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04 May 1945 WW2 HMS King George V bombarded airfields in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Deutschland was decommissioned from service. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 The Fletcher-class destroyer USS Morrison was sunk by a Japanese special attack aircraft off Okinawa, Japan. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 The US submarine Lagarto was sunk by the Japanese minelayer Hatsutaka in the Gulf of Siam. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Kurt Schuschnigg was liberated by American troops. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 USS Cero sank a Japanese transport east of Japan, hitting her with 1 of 2 torpedoes fired; an additional 3 torpedoes were expended (but missed) in attacking other ships in the same convoy. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Pastor Hornig, Dr. Konrad, Bishop Ferche, and Canon Kramer, the three leading religious leaders in Breslau, Germany (now Wroclaw, Poland), unsuccessfully attempted to persuade German General of the Infantry Hermann Niehoff to surrender the city to the Soviets. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 German pilot Leutnant Rudolf Schmitt shot down a British Tempest fighter while flying a He 162 jet fighter. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 US Seventh Army occupied Innsbruck, Berchtesgaden, Germany and Salzburg, Austria. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 British troops entered Neuengamme Concentration Camp near Hamburg, Germany. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Hans Fritzsche was brought to the Chancellory in Berlin, Germany to identity the body of Joseph Goebbels. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 US Fifth Army moved up to the Brenner Pass on the Italo-Austrian border. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 Prince Philipp was arrested by US troops at Niederdorf in Sudtirolo (South Tyrol), Italy. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 USS Luce was attacked by two Japanese special attack aircraft off Okinawa, Japan. The first was shot down near the port side of the ship, and the blast of the explosion caused power failures throughout the ship. The second aircraft crashed into the aft portion of the destroyer, knocking out the port engine, jamming the rudder, and flooding engineering spaces. The commanding officer gave the order to abandon ship at 0814 hours. Of the 312 on board, 126 were killed in the attack and the sinking. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 USS Spot arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands, ending her second war patrol. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 USS Springer set sail toward waters south of Japan on lifeguard duty. 
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04 May 1945 WW2 USS Mingo entered Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States for overhaul. 
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04 May 1946 WW2 Launched by Mrs. J. Hamilton Stubbs, HMCS Athabaskan was the last Tribal-class destroyer to be completed. Commissioned on 20 Jan 1948 her first commanding officer was Commander J. S. Davis RCN. Athabaskan saw considerable service in the Korean War and remained in Canadian service until Sep 1964, after which she was gradually run down and finally broken up in Italy in Jul 1969. 
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04 May 1946 WW2 Allied repatriation ship Hikawa Maru completed its repairs at Uraga, Japan. 
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04 May 1946 WW2 N. A. Rozanov stepped down as GUKR SMERSH's chief in the 2nd Byelorussian Front. 
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04 May 1948 WW2 USS Chub departed New London, Connecticut, United States. 
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