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History on the year of 1944

History
Date Text
01 Jan 1944 WW2 Petr Novikov passed away. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 General Mark Clark became the commander of US Fifth and Seventh Armies. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Soviet forces closed to within 30 miles of the old Polish frontier. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Robert Saundby was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy 11th Air Fleet was reorganized to contain two air flotillas, one air group, one seaplane tender, and two destroyers. The 13th Air Fleet was assigned to the Southwest Area Fleet with two air flotillas and one air group. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Pintado was commissioned into service, Lieutenant Commander Bernard A. Clarey in command. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Finback sank a Japanese tanker in the East China Sea, hitting her with 5 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Puffer sank Japanese freighter Ryuyo Maru and damaged another ship south of the Philippine Islands; she expended 7 torpedoes and observed 4 hits. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Light carrier Hosho was assigned to Training Force of the 5th Force. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein was named the commanding officer of Nachtjagdgeschwader 2. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Ray sank Japanese converted gunboat Okuyo Maru in the mouth of Ambon Bay, Java, Dutch East Indies, hitting her with 3 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 George Giffard was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 15 B-24 bombers escorted by 68 fighters attacked Rabaul, New Britain. The Americans lost 1 B-24 bomber in combat, and another on landing after the mission was over; additionally, two returned bombers were noted as heavily damaged. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 40 Japanese aircraft arrived at Rabaul, New Britain. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Aircraft from carriers USS Monterey and USS Bunker Hill attacked Japanese positions at Kavieng, New Ireland, destroying 7 Japanese aircraft. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 500th Bomb Squadron (flying B-25 aircraft) of USAAF 345th Bomb Group was transferred from Port Moresby to Dobodura Airfield, Australian Papua. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Naka departed Truk, Caroline Islands and took damaged transport Kiyozumi Maru in tow southwest of Truk. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Syria gained independence from France. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 421 RAF Lancaster bombers attacked Berlin, Germany; 28 aircraft were lost. 15 Mosquito aircraft attacked Hamburg in diversion. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: More of 76th Construction Battalion (76th SeaBees) arrived. More of 72nd Construction Battalion (72nd SeaBees) arrived. Five officers and 240 men of the 56th Construction Battalion (56th SeaBees) departed. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 The Brigata Marina naval infantry unit of the pro-Allied government in southern Italy was renamed "San Marco". 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-55A arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Just three years after its creation the short lived Reconnaissance Corps was officially absorbed into the Royal Armoured Corps of the British Army. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Colonel Donald Blakeslee took control of USAAF 4th Fighter Group at RAF Debden in North Essex, England, United Kingdom. 
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01 Jan 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower arrived in Washington DC, United States where he and his wife would take a brief break from the war. 
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02 Jan 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Palau. 
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02 Jan 1944 WW2 Submarine Baya was launched, sponsored by the wife of US Navy Lieutenant Commander C. C. Kirkpatrick. 
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02 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Iowa departed for the Pacific Ocean. 
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02 Jan 1944 WW2 US Marine Corps 7th Regiment engaged a strong Japanese defense at Suicide Creek near Cape Gloucester, New Britain. 
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02 Jan 1944 WW2 20 F6F and 28 F4U fighters from Torokina Airfield in Bougainville conducted a fighter sweep over Rabaul, New Britain; two of these fighters turned back to Torokina due to mechanical problems. 80 A6M fighters rose to defend. The Americans reported 1 kill, 1 probable, and 2 Japanese aircraft damaged. 
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02 Jan 1944 WW2 383 RAF aircraft (362 Lancaster, 9 Halifax, and 12 Mosquito) attacked Berlin, Germany; 27 aircraft were lost. 
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02 Jan 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Kure, Japan. 
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02 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Rock departed Panama Canal Zone for Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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03 Jan 1944 WW2 In the Atlantic Ocean, the destroyer USS Somers intercepted the German blockade-runner, Weserland, and opened fire with her 5-in guns at 7,000 yards; continuing to fire until the German vessel stopped, exploded scuttling charges, and sank with the loss of five lives and her precious cargo of rubber from Japan. 133 survivors were rescued. 
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03 Jan 1944 WW2 US Marine Corps ace pilot Major Greg "Pappy" Boyington, flying a F4U Corsair fighter, was shot down by Japanese Navy pilot Captain Masajiro Kawato, flying a Zero fighter, over Rabaul, New Britain. Boyington's wingman, Captain George Ashmun, was also shot down. 
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03 Jan 1944 WW2 28 F4U and 16 F6F fighters were launched from Torokina Airfield on Bougainville at 0630 hours for a fighter sweep mission over Rabaul, New Britain; some of these fighters returned to base shortly after launch due to mechanical problems. 70 A6M fighters rose to defend Rabaul. 
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03 Jan 1944 WW2 8 RAF Mosquito aircraft attacked Solingen and Essen in Germany. 
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03 Jan 1944 WW2 In Italy, General Bernard Montgomery received orders to return to Britain for his new role as the commander of British troops in the Allied Expeditionary Force. 
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03 Jan 1944 WW2 US Fifth Army began its offensive against the Gustav Line in Italy. 
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03 Jan 1944 WW2 The US destroyer Turner mysteriously exploded in a harbor in New Jersey, United States, killing 153 crewmen. The lives of the 165 injured survivors were saved by the airlifting in by helicopter from Brooklyn, New York, United States of supplies of blood plasma. It was the first time that a rotary wing aircraft had been used in a rescue operation. 
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03 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Scorpion refueled at Midway Atoll. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 Germany called for the mobilization of school children to aid the war effort. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 Operation Carpetbagger: Allied aircraft began to drop supplies to resistance fighters in Axis-occupied Europe. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 In a conference attended by German leaders Heinrich Himmler, Wilhelm Keitel, Albert Speer, and Fritz Sauckel, it was decided that four million people were to be conscripted from occupied territories as forced laborers for war production. One million were to be drafted from France between 1 Feb and 31 Dec 1944. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 The fascist Italian Social Republic in Northern Italy passed laws to prohibit Jews from owning stock or land and to seize Jewish-owned assets. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 German government office RSHA released five Danish Jews of mixed descent per an agreement reached between Adolf Eichmann and the Danish administration. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla sank a Japanese transport in the late afternoon in the South China Sea, hitting her with 3 of 6 torpedoes fired. Six hours later, she attacked another oiler with 3 torpedoes, damaging her with 1. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 Sydir Kovpak was made a Hero of the Soviet Union for the second time. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Ray attacked two Japanese cargo ships south of the Philippine Islands, damaging one of them with 2 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 Lieutenant Douglas Bedkober, a coast watcher of Australian Z Special Unit, died while in captivity at Rabaul, New Britain. It was reported by fellow prisoners of war that he had refused to eat for several days prior to his death. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 80 British RAF aircraft attacked two German flying bomb sites in France. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 13 British Mosquito aircraft attacked Berlin, Germany. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 Artur Axmann was awarded the German Order. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ACORN-20 arrived. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Grayback arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her ninth war patrol. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 US II Corps attacked along Route 6 across the Bernhardt Line in Italy. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 Irako departed Yokosuka, Japan for Truk, Caroline Islands with destroyers Shigure and Harusame in escort. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish sank a Japanese oiler and damaged other ships in the South China Sea, hitting them with 3 of 13 torpedoes fired. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 At Auschwitz Concentration Camp, SS Doctor Eduard Wirths notified fellow medical officers at Auschwitz III-Monowitz that, as of this date, corpses of deceased prisoners should be identified and then sent directly to the crematoria, bypassing the previous procedure of sending the corpses to the morgue at Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau first. Death reports, however, must still be filed at the orderly room of prisoners' hospital in Auschwitz I by noon time of the same day that the corpses were sent to the crematoria. 
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04 Jan 1944 WW2 US Navy aircraft struck Japanese bases on Taiwan. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 Petrof Bay was launched. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Scorpion made rendezvous with USS Herring in the East China Sea, but the planned transfer of an injured sailor from Scorpion to Herring did not take place due to heavy seas. Some time after this date, she was lost, presumed mined in the Yellow Sea. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 The first land-based (Bougainville) SBD and TBF aircraft raid on Rabaul, New Britain was cancelled due to weather. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 Hansjürgen Reinicke was named the commanding officer of German cruiser Prinz Eugen. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 358 RAF aircraft (348 Lancaster and 10 Halifax) attacked Stettin, Germany, while 28 Mosquito aircraft attacked five other cities (13 against Berlin) in diversion; 16 aircraft were lost. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson shot down a German Fw 190 aircraft over Koblenz, Germany. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed Efate Island, New Hebrides Islands. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish attacked a Japanese transport in the South China Sea; all 3 torpedoes missed. 
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05 Jan 1944 WW2 Bruce Fraser was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 19 RAF Mosquito aircraft attacked Duisburg, Bristillerie, Dortmund, and Solingen in Germany. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 The families of the men lost during the 1943 sinking of battleship Mutsu was finally notified; they were not informed that the ship had been destroyed in an accident. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 HMS Wallasea was sunk by a German motor torpedo boat off Mount's Bay, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 P-38 and F4U aircraft attacked Rabaul, New Britain, many of which were turned back due to poor weather. 33 A6M fighters rose to defend. The Japanese lost 2 A6M fighters, while the Americans lost 2 P-38 fighters. Harry Johnson of US Marine Corps squadron VMF-214, flying a F4U Corsair fighter, scored one of the two victories; this would be the squadron's final victory of the war. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Snook departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her fifth war patrol. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her third war patrol. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 Shokaku left drydock. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 The Fast Carrier Task Force 50 was renumbered TF 58 and put under the command of Rear Admiral Marc A. Mitscher, one of the US Navy's most skilled aviators. With new carriers coming forward in such numbers it was now possible to provide the Task Force with six fleet carriers and six light fleet carriers with over 700 aircraft. Screened by six battleships and six cruisers it was the most powerful fleet in the world. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 Red Army units crossed the original 1939 Polish border, advancing nearly 200 miles in 2 weeks. 
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06 Jan 1944 WW2 James Doolittle, commanding officer of USAAF Eighth Air Force, ordered his fighter chief William Kepner to go on a fighter offensive, rather than focusing on bomber escort as he had instructed under the former commanding officer. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 11 RAF Mosquito aircraft attacked Krefeld and Duisburg in Germany. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Puffer sank a Japanese trawler in the South China Sea with her deck gun. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 Captain Yoshimasa Sutezawa was named the commanding officer of Naka. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel ended her third war patrol. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 US Navy and US Marine Corps aircraft attacked a Japanese radar site at Cape Saint George, New Ireland. 3 F6F and 4 SBD aircraft were lost on this mission. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Planes of Air Group 12 on board. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Sasebo, Japan. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Iowa transited the Panama Canal. 
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07 Jan 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower arrived at Prestwick, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 In Castel Vecchio in Italy, the trial began for Count Ciano and 18 other Fascists Mussolini held responsible for his downfall. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 Red Army troops captured Kirovograd, Ukraine. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 23 RAF Mosquito aircraft attacked Frankfurt, Solingen, Aachen, and Dortmund in Germany; 2 aircraft were lost. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 General Sir Henry Wilson replaced General Dwight Eisenhower as Supreme Allied Commander in the Mediterranean Theater. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi performed repair work for armed merchant cruiser Kiyosumi Maru at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 Naka arrived at Truk, Caroline Islands with damaged transport Kiyozumi Maru in tow. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 A Sino-American Cooperative Organization (SACO) team crossed the frozen Yellow River in Ningxia Province, China; they were headed toward Xamba, Suiyuan Province to establish the weather station Camp Four. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Tang arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 US II Corps captured Monte Chiaia and Monte Porchia, Italy. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 US Marine Corps squadron VMF-214 arrived at Turtle Bay fighter strip, Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-55B arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 Lockheed's XP-80 prototype jet fighter took its first flight; the test pilot was Milo Burcham. 
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08 Jan 1944 WW2 The first XP-80A prototype jet aircraft "Gray Ghost" took its first flight with test pilot Milo Burcham in the cockpit. 
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09 Jan 1944 WW2 The Countess Ciano managed to escape northern Italy to Switzerland, where she was interned. 
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09 Jan 1944 WW2 Submarine Hawkbill was launched, sponsored by the wife of the submarine's future commanding officer F. Worth Scanland, Jr. 
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09 Jan 1944 WW2 Prime Minister Hideki Tojo authorized the plans for Operation U-Go against northeastern India. 
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09 Jan 1944 WW2 16 TBF and 24 SBD aircraft from Piva Airfield on Bougainville, escorted by fighters, attacked Tobera Airfield in New Britain. 1 Japanese aircraft was destroyed on the ground, while the US lost 1 SBD aircraft and 3 fighters. 
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09 Jan 1944 WW2 Indian 5th Division captured the coastal port city of Maungdaw, Burma, but the attack on Donbaik was halted by the Japanese. 
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09 Jan 1944 WW2 The "Maestrale" naval infantry battalion of the Italian Navy mutinied against its superiors. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 Count Ciano and 17 of the other Fascist ministers were found guilty and sentenced to death. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 Deported Libyan Jews (most were from Bengazi) arrived at the Fossoli di Carpi transit camp in Italy. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 Department 7 of the Department for Public Security of the Hungarian Interior Ministry ordered foreigners to be held at the border. This order was given in light of the recent partisan victories in Croatia that caused large number of civilians to flee into neighboring Hungary. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 The last of the Jewish patients in Berlin psychiatric clinics were assembled for deportation to the east. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 A transport of 259 Jews from Stutthof Concentration Camp departed for Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-127 was grounded on the beach of Tanaga Island, Aleutian Islands in heavy weather. Salvaged by the US Coast Guard YMS-127, she could not be economically repaired and was written off in Sep 1944. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 Yamato departed Truk, Caroline Islands for Kure, Japan with three destroyers (Michishio, Asagumo, and Fujinami) in escort. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi completed the repair work for battleship Yamato and began repairing light cruiser Agano and tanker Hoyo Maru at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 French police arrested 228 Jews in and near Bordeaux and rounded them up at the Bordeaux synagogue. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 20 RAF Mosquito aircraft attacked Berlin, Solingen, Koblenz, and Krefeld in Germany. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of CASU-34 departed. Part of Air Group 6 departed. Part of Air Group 12 departed. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 In Italy the British X Corps crossed the Garigliano River. 
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10 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Wasp departed Boston, Massachusetts, United States for Hampton Roads off Virginia, United States. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 Yamato was spotted by USS Halibut at 1800 hours, but Halibut was unable to attack. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Cod completed her refit at Fremantle, Australia. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 The death sentence was carried out on Count Ciano and 17 others. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 US carrier aircraft attacked Japanese bases throughout Indochina. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 Several hundred Spanish Jews arrested in Greece and imprisoned at Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp were returned to Spain. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 US 8th Air Force launched over 600 bombers against Ascherleben, Braunschweig, and Magdeburg in Germany. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Moji, Japan to escort carrier Chitose to Singapore. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 Leighton McCarthy presented his letters of credentials to President of the United States Franklin Roosevelt, thus becoming the first Canadian ambassador to the United States. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 B-25 bombers of US 42nd Bomb Group attacked Rabaul, New Britain, damaging 8 aircraft on the ground at Vunakanau Airfield. This was the first land-based bomber attack on Rabaul from the Solomon Islands. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 Irako arrived at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. 
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11 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed San Diego, California, United States. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 Churchill and de Gaulle met at Marrakesh, Morocco. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 The keel of escort carrier Makin Island was laid down. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 HMS Activity embarked the No. 819 Naval Air Squadron. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Puffer arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her second war patrol. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Ray arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her second war patrol. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Cero entered Milne Bay, Australian Papua, ending her second war patrol. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Flier departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 In Italy the US 5th Army opened its offensive on the Gustav Line in appalling weather, capturing Cervaro, Italy. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 General Alphonse Juin's Free French Expeditionary Corps launched an attack inland of Monto Cassino towards Castel Sant'Elia in Italy. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 1,000 Jews from Stutthof Concentration Camp arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp; 120 men and 134 women were registered into the camp while 746 were gassed upon arrival. 
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12 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-56A departed Liverpool, England, United Kingdom; it was consisted of 20 freighters and was escorted by 2 cruisers and 9 destroyers. 
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13 Jan 1944 WW2 US Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau, Jr. received the "Report to the Secretary on the Acquiescence of this Government in the Murder of the Jews", exposing US State Department's efforts to avoid directly helping Jewish refugees. 
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13 Jan 1944 WW2 John Basilone was assigned to the 21st Infantry Regiment of the newly formed but not yet activated US 5th Marine Division. 
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13 Jan 1944 WW2 Irako supplied food to transport Heian Maru at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
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13 Jan 1944 WW2 Yolande Beekman was captured by German Gestapo agents in France. 
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13 Jan 1944 WW2 25 RAF Mosquito aircraft attacked Essen, Duisburg, Aachen, and Koblenz in Germany; 1 aircraft was lost. 
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13 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured the high ground north of Cervaro, Italy. 
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13 Jan 1944 WW2 Commander Junio Valerio Borghese was arrested in connection with the recent mutiny of the "Maestrale" naval infantry battalion of the Italian Navy. 
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13 Jan 1944 WW2 The Central Headquarters of the Partisan Movement (TsShPD) in the Soviet Union was disbanded. 
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14 Jan 1944 WW2 Yamato was detected by the radar of USS Batfish at 2330 hours, but Batfish was unable to close in for an attack. 
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14 Jan 1944 WW2 498 RAF aircraft (496 Lancaster and 2 Halifax) attacked Braunschweig, Germany, with 49 aircraft lost; German reports noted only 10 homes destroyed and 14 killed. As a diversion, 17 RAF Mosquito aircraft attacked Magdeburg and Berlin. 
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14 Jan 1944 WW2 German leader Ernst Kaltenbrunner ordered to insert more informers in the foreign forced laborers population. 
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14 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish began her sixth war patrol. 
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14 Jan 1944 WW2 36 SBD, 16 TBF, and about 80 fighters from Munda Airfield in New Georgia attacked Rabaul, New Britain after a stop at Piva Airfield on Bougainville to refuel. 84 A6M intercepted them over New Ireland, but most American aircraft were able to make their way to Rabaul to commence their attacks. The Japanese lost 3 A6M fighters and the Americans lost 2 SBD, 1 TBF, 5 F4U, and 2 F6F aircraft. Japanese shipping in Simpson Harbor at Rabaul suffered 3 direct hits and 16 near misses. 
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14 Jan 1944 WW2 About 17 prisoners of war were beheaded by men of 81st Naval Garrison Unit of the Japanese Navy at Rabaul, New Britain as reprisal for American air raids on the town. 
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14 Jan 1944 WW2 82 RAF aircraft attacked German flying bomb sites at Ailly, Bonneton, and Bristillerie in France. 
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14 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Whale received a message from USS Seawolf, noting that a Japanese convoy was heading her way. 
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15 Jan 1944 WW2 Soviet forces launched a new offensive near Leningrad, Russia. 
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15 Jan 1944 WW2 Prichett was commissioned into service. 
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15 Jan 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi completed the repair work for light cruiser Nagara at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
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15 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-56A sailed into a storm off the Faroe Islands; it was redirected to Akureyri, Iceland for shelter. 
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15 Jan 1944 WW2 German XIV Panzer Corps abandoned Monte Trocchio, Italy and fell back across the Rapido River; US II Corps would capture Monte Trocchio later in the same day. Meanwhile, General Juin's French troops captured Monte Santa Croce. 
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15 Jan 1944 WW2 Free French Expeditionary Corps reached Castel Sant'Elia, Italy. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 Aircraft from USS Guadalcanal's anti-submarine hunter-killer group sank German Type IXC/40 submarine U-544 in the U-Boat refueling zone northwest of the Azores. There were no survivors. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 The Americans repulsed the last Japanese counterattack to wrap up operations on New Britain. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 Irako supplied food to transport Heian Maru at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 Yamato arrived at Kure, Japan and docked in No. 4 drydock for repairs. Yamato would also receive a sloping plate fitted at a 45-degree angle across the lower corner of the upper void compartment between the two longitudinal inboard bulkheads. This modification, proposed to run the full length of the citadel, was installed only in Yamato in the area affected by the torpedo damage received in the previous month. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese cargo ship Nikko Maru off the Mariana Islands, hitting her with three of four torpedoes fired. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Whale made contact with a Japanese convoy she had been searching for for the past two days in the Philippine Sea, sinking Denmark Maru with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired, but suffered damage from depth charges. USS Seawolf herded Tarushima Maru toward USS Whale, and USS Whale successfully sank Tarushima Maru with torpedoes. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 General Eisenhower assumed the post as Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in England, United Kingdom. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 US Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau, Jr. and Treasury official Randolph Paul delivered the "Report to the Secretary on the Acquiescence of this Government in the Murder of the Jews" to President Franklin Roosevelt. 
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16 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Flier ran aground near Midway Atoll. USS Macaw attempted to pull Flier free, but Macaw would also run aground in the process, causing her to sink. She was eventually pulled free and put into Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for repairs. 
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17 Jan 1944 WW2 US aircraft attacked Rabaul, New Britain. The Japanese shot down 8 P-38, 1 F6F, 1 F4U, 1 SBD, and 1 TBF aircraft. 
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17 Jan 1944 WW2 US 45th Fighter Squadron, flying P-40 fighters, was transferred from Baker Island of Ellice Islands to Makin, Gilbert Islands. 
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17 Jan 1944 WW2 British X Corps attacked the western end of the German Gustav Line in Italy. 
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17 Jan 1944 WW2 An Italian motor torpedo boat raid on Allied-held Naples, Italy was aborted. 
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17 Jan 1944 WW2 Shokaku departed Yokosuka, Japan to join Zuikaku in the Inland Sea. 
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17 Jan 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho entered the drydocks at Innoshima, Hiroshima, Japan. 
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17 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Whale claimed sinking a Japanese freighter in the Philippine Sea, hiting her with 3 of 9 torpedoes fired. 
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18 Jan 1944 WW2 Repeated Soviet attacks near Vitebsk, Byelorussia were repulsed by German Armeegruppe Mitte. 
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18 Jan 1944 WW2 A Sino-American Cooperative Organization (SACO) team arrived at Xamba, Suiyuan Province to establish the weather station Camp Four. 
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18 Jan 1944 WW2 P-40N fighters of US 45th Fighter Squadron attacked Japanese positions on Jaluit and Mili in the Marshall Islands with bombs, experimental rockets, and machine guns. 
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18 Jan 1944 WW2 Lieutenant Alex George Horwood of the British Queen's Royal Regiment was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for outstanding conduct at Kyauchaw, Burma, during three days of continuous attacks. 
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19 Jan 1944 WW2 The three-day ANZAC Conference began in Canberra, Australia. 
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19 Jan 1944 WW2 USS San Juan arrived off Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii and rejoined USS Saratoga's task group. 
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19 Jan 1944 WW2 The Irish government announced the arrest of two Irish traitors, parachuted in from German aircraft. 
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19 Jan 1944 WW2 British 46th Infantry Division attacked German positions near the junction of the Garigliano River and the Liri River in Italy. 
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19 Jan 1944 WW2 An Italian motor torpedo boat raid on Allied-held Naples, Italy was aborted. 
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19 Jan 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Yokosuka, Japan for her 17th voyage with the Japanese Navy. 
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19 Jan 1944 WW2 German troops managed to avoid being encircled at Novgorod, Russia. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 Soviet forces captured Novgorod, Russia. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Gar sank Japanese cargo ship Koyu Maru off Palau Islands in daylight with two of three torpedoes fired. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Singapore. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 US aircraft attacked Rabaul, New Britain. The Japanese shot down 2 B-25, 2 P-38, and 3 F4U aircraft. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 Irako departed Truk, Caroline Islands. She was attacked by submarine USS Seadragon and suffered one torpedo hit to her bow on the starboard side. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 The heaviest RAF raid on Berlin to date was launched, with 769 aircraft (495 Lancaster, 264 Halifax, 10 Mosquito) dropping over 2,300 tons of explosives on the German capital. 13 Lancaster and 22 Halifax bombers were lost. Damage on Berlin was thought to be extensive, but this could not be confirmed due to bad weather on the next day. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein shot down three British aircraft near Berlin, Germany, increasing his victories to 78. His Ju 88 aircraft was damaged by the propeller of the third aircraft he shot down, a Lancaster bomber, and only barely made it back to the airfield and had to crash land. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Ten quonset huts for officers' quarters, 10 quonset huts for enlisted men's barracks, turned over to station. More of ARGUS-15 on board. Part of GROPAC-2 departed. Part of Task Group 19.19 departed. Part of ACORN-20 departed. Part of CASU-20 departed. Part of ARGUS-18 departed. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 After sundown, US 141st Regiment and 143rd Regiment attacked across the Rapido River in Italy. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 Japanese cargo ships Akibasan Maru was sunk at Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
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20 Jan 1944 WW2 Air Chief Marshal Sir William Sholto Douglas was appointed Commander-in-Chief of RAF Coastal Command. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 90 German bombers attacked southern British cities. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 648 RAF aircraft attacked Magdeburg, Germany; 55 British aircraft and 4 German fighters were destroyed during the engagement. It was the first time Magdeburg was raided by the Allies. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 Light cruiser USS Vincennes was commissioned with Captain Arthur D. Brown in command. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese cargo ship Yasukuni Maru and passenger-cargo ship Ikoma Maru in the Pacific Ocean, expending nine torpedoes, five of which scored hits. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 Cruiser Chokai reached the damaged food transport ship Irako to tow her to nearby Truk, Caroline Islands. They arrived at Truk at 1700 hours. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson shot down a German Fw 190 aircraft over Rouen, France. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein shot down 5 British bombers before he was shot down by British escorting fighters. He was killed as the Ju 88 aircraft crashed in a wooded area in Lübars, Germany. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Funafuti, Ellice Islands. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-56A continued her journey from Akureyri, Iceland. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 In the mid-morning, German 15th Panzergrenadier Division wiped out the US beachheads along the Rapido River in Italy, forcing the survivors to withdraw back across the river. During the day, German 29th Panzergrenadier Division and 90th Panzergrenadier Division arrived in the region as reinforcement. After dark, US 141st Regiment and 143rd Regiment crossed the river again and established precarious footholds. 
0
21 Jan 1944 WW2 Richard O'Connor was made the commanding officer of British VIII Corps, which included the Guards Armoured Division, 11th Armoured Division, 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division, 6th Guards Tank Brigade, 8th Group Royal Artillery, and 2nd Household Cavalry Regiment. 
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21 Jan 1944 WW2 The US 5th Marine Division ("The Spearhead") was activated at Camp Pendleton near San Diego, California, United States with the 26th, 27th and 28th Marines under command. The 28th Marines contained a cadre of men from the deactivated Marine parachute battalions. Artillery was provided the 13th Marines and Engineers (who did not deploy overseas) by the 16th Marines. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Gar attacked a Japanese convoy off Palau Islands at night, reporting six hits with ten torpedoes fired and reporting one sunk and one damaged. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9417 for the establishment of the War Refugee Board to help European Jews flee from Europe. The board was to be governed by the Secretaries of State, Treasury, and War. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Tang departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol to the Caroline and Mariana Islands area. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Enterprise departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 36,000 Allied troops landed at Anzio, Italy, facing little opposition. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 German 15th Panzergrenadier Division wiped out new beachheads on the Rapido River in Italy established by US 141st Regiment and 143rd Regiment through the previous night. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki completed her refitting at Ishikawa Shipyard and the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal, Japan. Her aft torpedo mount and two of her four main guns were removed in exchange for additional anti-aircraft machine guns and improved underwater sound detection equipment. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Sasebo, Japan. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 Viktor Abakumov requested the Soviet GKO for a new trial in Smolensk, Russia for 13 German defendants arrested by SMERSH. 
0
22 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-56B departed Liverpool, England, United Kingdom. 
0
23 Jan 1944 WW2 The destroyer HMS Janus was lost off Anzio, Italy. 
0
23 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Gar continued to attack a Japanese convoy off Palau Islands which had been attacked three hours prior on the previous date, sinking the already-damaged cargo ship Taian Maru with one of two torpedoes fired. 
0
23 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Snook sank Japanese converted gunboat Magane Maru off the Bonin Islands, hitting with 2 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
23 Jan 1944 WW2 Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein was awarded Swords to his Knight's Cross medal posthumously. 
0
23 Jan 1944 WW2 US aircraft attacked Rabaul, New Britain. The Japanese lost at least 13 fighters. 
0
23 Jan 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Hashirajima, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. 
0
24 Jan 1944 WW2 Roosevelt created the War Refugee Board in response to political pressure that demanded action to help Jews in occupied Europe. 
0
24 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of CASU-30 departed. 
0
24 Jan 1944 WW2 Hitler ordered that the Gustav Line in Italy was to be held at all costs. Meanwhile, French forces attacked north of Monte Cassino and US 34th Infantry Division attacked across the Rapido River north of Cassino. 
0
24 Jan 1944 WW2 At Anzio, Italy, Private George Mitchell charged alone through intense machine-gun fire, jumped into the weapon pit and killed the crew. Shortly afterwards, he similarly assaulted a second position, killing six of the enemy and taking 12 prisoners. He was killed moments later when one of the Germans who had supposedly surrendered snatched up a discarded rifle and shot him. Mitchell was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross medal. 
0
24 Jan 1944 WW2 German forces in the Anzio, Italy region increased to over 40,000 men. 
0
24 Jan 1944 WW2 Junio Valerio Borghese was released from imprisonment in Italy. 
0
24 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Whale spotted a Japanese submarine and gave chase, but a trim pump fire forced her to abandon chase. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 Captain Nobuei Morishita relieved Rear Admiral Takeji Ono as the commanding officer of Yamato. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 Nazi Gauleiter Hans Frank noted in his diary on this date that "At the present time we still have in the General Government perhaps 100,000 Jews." Prior to the German occupation, the area now called the General Government had a Jewish population of about 2,500,000. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-30 struck a mine and sank off Anzio, Italy. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Singapore to escort carrier Chitose and convoy HI-32 to Moji, Japan. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 The Wehrmachtbericht bulletin issued on this date by the Wehrmacht headquarters announced the death of nightfighter pilot Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 German submarine U-278 sank US freighter Penelope Barker (16 were killed, 56 survived) and U-360 damaged destroyer HMS Obdurate which was forced to leave the escort force of the Allied arctic convoy. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 The newly operational battleship, USS New Jersey (Captain Carl F. Holden), joined Rear Admiral Frederick C. Sherman's TG58.3 (Group Three of Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher's Task Force 58) in time to participate in Operation Flintlock, the occupation of the Marshall Islands. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 Carriers Junyo, Hiyo, and Ryuho delivered 62 A6M, 18 D3A, and 18 B5N aircraft to Rabaul, New Britain. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 Philipp was formally dismissed as the governor of Hessen-Nassau, Germany. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed Funafuti, Ellice Islands. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ARGUS-22 departed. More of ACORN-21 arrived. Part of ACORN-21 departed. 
0
25 Jan 1944 WW2 General Eberhard von Mackensen assumed overall control of forces in the Anzio, Italy area. 
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25 Jan 1944 RELIGIOUS In the Anglican Diocese of Hong Kong and South China, Florence Tim-Oi Lee of Macao was ordained a priest in Kwangtung Province, China. Although considered an emergency wartime measure (owing to the lack of male priests in Macao), it nevertheless made Florence Tim-Oi Lee the first-ever ordained female Anglican clergyperson.
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26 Jan 1944 WW2 U-869 was commissioned into service with Kapitänleutnant Hellmut Neuerburg in command. She was assigned to the German Navy 4th Submarine Flotilla for training. 
0
26 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander Enrique D. Haskins in command. 
0
26 Jan 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate and William Slim met at Comilla, India; Slim told Wingate that he would provide only one battalion for Wingate's second Chindit operation. 
0
26 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Skipjack prepared to attack a Japanese transport when she discovered a escorting destroyer, Suzukaze, nearby; Skipjack successfully shifted target and sank the destroyer. She suffered flooding from a valve door that failed to close, but she quickly remedied the situation and returned to attack the same convoy, sinking converted seaplane tender Okitsu Maru. 12 torpedoes were expended on this date. 
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26 Jan 1944 WW2 German submarine U-716 sank US freighter Andrew G. Curtin of Allied convoy JW-56A; 3 were killed, 68 survived. U-360 damaged British freighter Fort Bellingham (convoy civilian commodore's ship), which was later sunk by U-957; 36 were killed, 35 survived. 
0
26 Jan 1944 WW2 US 45th Fighter Squadron, flying P-40 fighters, shot down 10 Japanese aircraft in combat, with 2 further as probables. 
0
26 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Hoe departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her third war patrol. 
0
26 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Whale set sail for Midway Atoll. 
0
26 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
26 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island was commissioned into service at Astoria, Oregon, United States with Captain Charles F. Greber in command. 
0
27 Jan 1944 WW2 The 872-day siege of Leningrad, Russia was relieved by Soviet forces after suffering 200,000 military and 1,200,000 civilian deaths. The German 18.Armee in the region was withdrawn to the Luga River. 
0
27 Jan 1944 WW2 1st Ukrainian Front launches an attack towards Luzk and Rovno, Ukraine. 
0
27 Jan 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate and William Slim met at Comilla; Slim told Wingate that he could no longer provide any battalions for Wingate's second Chindit operation. Angrily, Wingate wrote a letter to Louis Mountbatten, criticizing Slim and asked to be relieved of duty since he could not perform his duties alongside of Slim; Slim was provided a carbon copy of the letter. Instead, via George Giffard, Mounbatten said he would find Wingate troops from the 81st West African Division. 
0
27 Jan 1944 WW2 Richard O'Connor was Mentioned in Despatches. 
0
27 Jan 1944 WW2 515 Lancaster and 15 Mosquito aircraft of the RAF attacked Berlin, Germany; 33 Lancaster bombers were lost. 
0
27 Jan 1944 WW2 To the west, Allied Major General John Lucas by now commanded 70,000 men, 237 tanks, 508 heavy guns, and 27,000 tons of supplies at Anzio, Italy, but he decided to still maintain a defensive posture. 
0
27 Jan 1944 WW2 Germans launched a counter attack against French troops near Cassino, Italy. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 In an effort to stop Spain from supplying Germany with war materials and to withdraw her troops from the Russian Front, the US and Britain announced an oil embargo. This embargo will last about 4 months until Franco finally gave in. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 Several German divisions were cut off and surrounded near Cherkassy, Ukraine. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Pompon arrived at Darwin, Australia, ending her third war patrol. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish ended her eighth war patrol. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse began an 80-hour chase of a Japanese convoy off the Palau Islands. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 677 RAF aircraft (432 Lancaster, 241 Halifax, and 4 Mosquito) attacked Berlin, Germany; 46 aircraft were lost. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 Canadian prisoner of war Lieutenant Bill Millar hid underneath a Germany truck at the Oflag IV-C camp at Colditz Castle in Germany during an air raid and was able to escape the camp later when the truck was driven out of the camp. His fate after the escape was unknown, however. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Task Group 19.18 departed. Part of ACORN-21 departed. Part of GROPAC-4 departed. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Grayback departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her tenth war patrol. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 German Field Marshal Albert Kesselring ordered a counterattack against the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho exited the drydocks at Innoshima, Hiroshima, Japan and moved to Kure, Japan. 
0
28 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-56A arrived at Arkhangelsk, Russia. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 The head of police of the Italian Social Republic in northern Italy ordered that all Jewish communities be dissolved by the next month. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 A transport of 245 prisoners sent by the Bialystok Gestapo arrived at Stutthof concentration camp. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 HMS Activity began convoy escort duties with the Second Escort Group. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 Battleship Missouri was launched, sponsored by Mary Magaret Truman, daughter of Senator Harry Truman. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 In Germany, the Duisburg and Herbouville flying bomb site were bombed by 22 Mosquito aircraft of the RAF. Meanwhile, RAF bombers attacked Berlin and USAAF bombers attacked Frankfurt am Main and Ludwigshafen. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 Total Allied strength at the Anzio, Italy beachhead totaled 69,000 men, 508 guns, and 208 tanks by the end of this day. On the other side of the lines, German strength rose to 71,500 men. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Alabama bombarded Japanese positions on Roi, Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein was buried at the cemetery at Deelen airfield in the Netherlands. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 Luftwaffe bombers attacked London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
29 Jan 1944 WW2 Rohan Amerasekera was promoted to the rank of flying officer in the British Royal Air Force. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 Submarine Becuna was launched, sponsored by the wife of Commander George C. Crawford. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Finback damaged a fishing trawler with gunfire in the East China Sea. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 German submarine U-278 fatally damaged Allied arctic convoy escort HMS Hardy; HMS Venus scuttled HMS Hardy after the damaged destroyer was abandoned. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese cargo ship Toko Maru south of Japan, which she had been chasing for many hours, hitting her with all three of three torpedoes fired. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 Camp Four of the Sino-American Cooperative Organization (SACO) in Xamba, Suiyuan Province, China sent its first weather report to the SACO headquarters in Chongqing, China. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 534 RAF aircraft (440 Lancaster, 82 Halifax, and 12 Mosquito) attacked Berlin, Germany; 33 aircraft were lost. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson shot down a German Me 410 heavy fighter and a Bf 109 fighter over Lingen, Germany. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 Allied forces attacked out of the Anzio, Italy beachhead, advancing toward Cisterna and Campoleone, but none of the two forces would be able to capture the objectives; during the process, an entire US Army Ranger battalion was destroyed. 
0
30 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Alabama bombarded Japanese positions on Namur, Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Rabaul, New Britain and departed later on the same day. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 Americans landed on Kwajalein and Majuro atolls in the Marshall Islands. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 Fleet aircraft carrier USS Franklin was commissioned into service with Captain James M. Shoemaker in command. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Finback sank a fishing trawler with gunfire in the East China Sea. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 The Royal Navy's Second Escort Group (Captain F. J. Walker) sank the German submarine U-592. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese cargo ship Toei Maru south of Japan, which she had been chasing for many hours, hitting her with two of eight torpedoes fired. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Luce completed a period of anti-submarine patrol off Attu in the Aleutian Islands. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ACORN-22 departed. Part of GROPAC-2 departed. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 US 34th Division crossed the Rapido River in Italy. Nearby, French Moroccan colonial troops were halted by troops of German 5th Mountain Division near Cassino and Monte Belvedere, Italy. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 The Soviet GKO issued two secret orders to deport ethnic Chechen and Ingush peoples to Kazakhstan and Kirghizia. 
0
31 Jan 1944 WW2 USS Wasp departed Hampton Roads off Virginia, United States for Trinidad. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 The British Air Headquarters Air Defences Eastern Mediterranean was renamed the Air Headquarters Eastern Mediterranean; Richard Saul remained its commanding officer despite the name change. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 Franz Kutschera passed away. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 Graph was decommissioned from service. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Luce departed Massacre Bay, Attu, Aleutian Islands for Paramushiru, Kurile Islands. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 The United States Marine Corps established a new 4th Marine Regiment at Tassafaronga, Guadalcanal (the original 4th Marine having been lost at Corregidor in the Philippine Islands in 1942) drawing its manpower from the deactivated Raider battalions. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 German 44th Infantry Division fell back near the Rapido River toward Monte Cassino, Italy. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 A new satellite camp of Auschwitz III (Monowitz), located at the Guenthergrube in Ledziny, Poland opened. This new satellite camp would house 300 prisoners for coal mining for the German industrial firm I. G. Farben. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-56B arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
01 Feb 1944 WW2 A personnel office and a naval infantry unit were established at Takao Guard District in southern Taiwan. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 Luzk and Rovno, Ukraine were captured by the Soviet 1st Ukrainian Front. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 The Warsaw area HSSPF, SS-Brigadeführer Franz Kutschera, was assassinated at the gate to his headquarters. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 Stalin allowed USAAF aircraft to use Russian bases. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 Light carrier Hosho was assigned to the Combined Fleet as a training carrier. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 Edmund Herring was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria, Australia. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ARGUS-15 departed. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 Germans defeated American troops in the Battle of Cisterna near Anzio, Italy. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 A transport from Trieste, Italy arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp. Most of the prisoners were sent to the gas chambers upon arrival. 
0
02 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Tunny completed her repairs at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, San Francisco, California, United States. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Truk and departed later on the same day. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 The concentration camp at Szebnie, Poland was closed, and its prisoners deported or executed; Amon Göth was placed in charge of this operation. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 German Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt issued additional orders that supported swift severe reprisals against any acts of resistance. The orders also explicitly attribute any potential innocent civilian casualties the fault of resistance group and not of the German occupation. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 Italian Fascists violated Vatican City sovereignty by dispatching troops to arrest several Jews hiding within Vatican City borders. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 Savo Island was commissioned into service. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 673rd Bomb Squadron (flying A-20 aircraft) of USAAF 417th Bomb Group was transferred from Cape Sudest Airfield to Dobodura Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 The Drancy Concentration Camp in Paris, France sent its 67th transport for Auschwitz Concentration Camp with more than 1,000 Jews. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ARGUS-22 departed. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 The American attempt to break out of the Anzio beachhead in Italy was halted, followed by the first German counterattack against the beachhead. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 Yamato undocked from Drydock No. 4 at Kure, Japan. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-56 departed at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Mingo departed Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States after her overhaul. 
0
03 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 German troops began operations to relieve the Korsun/Cherkassy pocket in Ukraine. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate issued the guidelines for the second Chindit operation. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Puffer departed Fremantle, Australia for her third war patrol. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Moji, Japan. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Luce began a period of anti-submarine patrol off Attu in the Aleutian Islands. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cero departed Milne Bay, Australian Papua for her third war patrol. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 672nd, 674th, and 675th Bomb Squadrons (all flying A-20 aircraft) of USAAF 417th Bomb Group were transferred from Cape Sudest Airfield to Dobodura Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 Major-General Francis Tuker, commanding 4th Indian Division, suffering a bad attack of a tropical illness that had recurrently bothered him for years, was obliged to hand over command to Brigadier Harry Dimoline. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 German troops penetrated Allied lines at the Anzio beachhead in Italy. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 In Italy, the Second New Zealand Corps was established with the task of exploiting any breach in the Gustav Line, should the depleted American 5th Army be successful in creating one. The title was one of convenience only, for the Corps was a multi-national force assembled from the 2nd New Zealand, 4th Indian and (later) 78th British Divisions plus a combat group of the 1st US Armored Division. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 British Royal Air Force formed No. 46 Group to control the five Dakota aircraft squadrons (Nos. 48, 233, 271, 512 and 575) which would carry the 3rd Parachute Brigade to Normandy, France in Jun 1944. 
0
04 Feb 1944 WW2 Shamrock Bay was launched in Vancouver, Washington, United States, sponsored by the wife of James R. Dudley. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 The German Naval High Command temporarily halted preparations for Operation Sealion, seeing that at this stage of the war an invasion of Britain was not likely to happen. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 Submarine Segundo was launched, sponsored by Mrs. John L. Sullivan. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 Piranha was commissioned into service. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 Oberstleutnant Egon Mayer became the first German Luftwaffe fighter pilot operating solely on the western front to reach 100 victories. He would claim just two more before being killed on 2 Mar 1944 whilst attacking a formation of B-17 bombers near Sedan, France. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Gar arrived at Open Bay on the northern coast of New Britain to pick up downed airmen who had been under the care of coast watchers. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 Troops of Sakurai Force of Japanese 55th Division penetrated lines held by Indian 7th Division in Arakan, Burma undetected. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ACORN-22 departed. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 US forces reached the outskirts of Cassino, Italy, but were held out of the town. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 German and Allied artillery pieces bombarded each other at Anzio, Italy. 
0
05 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel departed Midway Atoll for her fourth war patrol. 
0
06 Feb 1944 WW2 Shokaku departed Inland Sea by Tokuyama with Zuikaku for Singapore. 
0
06 Feb 1944 WW2 Harry Dimoline was promoted to the war time rank of major general. 
0
06 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Ray departed Fremantle, Australia for her third war patrol. 
0
06 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese attacked the forward headquarters of Indian 7th Division in Arakan, Burma by surprise. 
0
06 Feb 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ARGUS-22 departed. Part of CASU-30 departed. 
0
06 Feb 1944 WW2 German and Allied artillery pieces bombarded each other at Anzio, Italy. 
0
06 Feb 1944 WW2 Nachi refueled at Tokuyama Fuel Depot, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. 
0
06 Feb 1944 WW2 A transport from Drancy Concentration Camp in Paris, France arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 999 of the 1,214 Jews were sent to the gas chambers upon arrival; only 166 men and 49 women were registered into the camp. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 American troops completed the conquest of Kwajalein and Majuro Atolls in the Marshall Islands. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 Remy Van Lierde was assigned to RAF Manston in Kent, England, United Kingdom. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 British Air Marshal Ralph Cochrane ordered Leonard Cheshire's 617 Squadron to attack the important aero-engine plant at Limoges in mid-France. The War Office was extremely nervous about this operation as it was known, from resistance sources, that 500 French women were employed at the plant, and a large number of civilian fatalities would have serious political consequences. Instructions were therefore issued that no bombs were to be dropped until the factory was clear of workers. Arriving over the target Cheshire twice swooped his Lancaster bomber at 50 feet in order to alert the workers below. Then on the third pass a member of his crew said "There they go" and hundreds of women were seen running away from the factory. All this was recorded by a film cameraman worked by Moya of the RAF film unit. Just before midnight Cheshire dropped his markers right on top of the factory, and minutes later five 1200-lb bombs from 617 Squadron's Lancasters hit the factory and destroyed the greater part of it. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 Bruce Fraser was promoted to the rank of admiral. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 The headquarters of USAAF 417th Bomb Group was transferred from Cape Sudest Airfield to Dobodura Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured a divisional Anglo-Indian dressing station at Sinzweya, Burma and killed 35 medical staff and patients. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 Hiroshi Nemoto was named the commanding officer of the Third Army of the Japanese Kwangtung Army based in northeastern China. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 German and Allied artillery pieces bombarded each other at Anzio, Italy; at 2100 hours, Germans launched a full attack on the beachhead. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 US troops reached Point 445, a hill 370 meters away from the monastery at Monte Cassino, Italy. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Tokuyama, Japan. 
0
07 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga was launched at Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
08 Feb 1944 WW2 The Red Army captured Nikopol, Ukraine. Meanwhile, the German troops surrounded at Korsun were invited to surrender. 
0
08 Feb 1944 WW2 The RAF used its new 6-ton "Tall Boy" bomb on the Gnome-Rhone factory at Limoges, France. 
0
08 Feb 1944 WW2 Major William Sidney, 1st Viscount de L'Isle, led an attack on enemy positions at Anzio, Italy. Although wounded, he refused medical treatment until his objectives had been made secure. For this he would be awarded the Victoria Cross (following in the footsteps of his father-in-law, Field Marshal Lord Gort who had also been badly wounded whilst winning the same medal during the 1914-1918 war). 
0
08 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Snook attacked a Japanese convoy with four torpedoes in the East China Sea. Three of them hit, sinking Lima Maru and damaging freighter Shiranesan Maru. 
0
08 Feb 1944 WW2 Laffey (Allen M. Sumner-class) was commissioned into service. 
0
08 Feb 1944 WW2 The British Royal Navy's Second Escort Group (Captain F. J. Walker CB, DSO and three bars) sank the German submarine U-762. 
0
08 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Rock departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
08 Feb 1944 WW2 US troops began an major assault toward Monte Cassino, Italy. 
0
09 Feb 1944 WW2 Walter Heitz passed away. 
0
09 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Gar ended her tenth war patrol. 
0
09 Feb 1944 WW2 The Royal Navy's Second Escort Group (Captain F. J. Walker CB, DSO and three bars) sank the German submarines U-734 and U-238. 
0
09 Feb 1944 WW2 German troops captured Aprilia, Italy. 
0
09 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Beppu, Japan. 
0
09 Feb 1944 WW2 The German Foreign Ministry in the Hague reported back to Berlin that to date 108,000 Jews had been deported from the Netherlands. The Dutch population considered German methods brutal, and church circles were actively promoting disapproval for the deportations. 
0
09 Feb 1944 WW2 George Bell, Bishop of Chichester, in a speech in the House of Lords in Britain openly criticised the Government over the bombing of German cities. 
0
09 Feb 1944 WW2 Lieutenant Commander James Grady was named the commanding officer of USS Whale, relieving Lieutenant Commander Albert Burrows. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 During the night, 15 Soviet bombers attacked German battleship Tirpitz to little effect. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 The Korsun pocket in Ukraine received a blistering bombardment by Soviet forces as an inducement to surrender. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Snook fired four torpedoes at a Japanese patrol craft; all torpedoes missed. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 Winston Churchill wrote to Harold Alexander, urging him to order the field generals at Anzio, Italy to be more aggressive. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 59 SBD dive bombers, 24 TBF torpedo bombers, and 99 fighters attacked Vunakanau Airfield at Rabaul, New Britain. This attack was followed by another attack on Vunakanau Airfield by 24 B-25 bombers escorted by 20 fighters. Finally, a third attack wave with 21 B-24 bombers escorted by 28 fighters which targeted both Vunakanau Airfield and Tobera Airfield. Vunakanau's runways were hit by two 2,000-pound bombs by B-24 bombers. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 The Allies turned over control of southern Italy to the Italian royal government. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 German 4.Fallschirmjäger Division, with a Italian parachute regiment within its ranks, arrived at Anzio, Italy. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Beppu, Japan. 
0
10 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Permit damaged a Japanese cruiser in the Pacific Ocean, hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 German forces sent to relieve the Korsun pocket in Ukraine were now only 10 miles away. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 Ommaney Bay was commissioned into service. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 6 B-25 bombers escorted by 20 P-40 and P-51 fighters the US 14th Air Force and the Chinese 32nd Fighter Squadron attacked the Kai Tek Airfield, Hong Kong. Fighters of the Japanese 85th Sentai rose to intercept, shooting down one B-25 bomber, 4 P-40 fighters, and 2 P-51 fighters. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Finback arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her seventh war patrol. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 Major General John Lucas ordered a counterattack from the Anzio beachhead in Italy, which was repulsed by the Germans which had intercepted Allied radio communications and had prepared for this attack. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 The US II Corps attack toward Monte Cassino, Italy was halted by German troops. Major General Harry Dimoline of Indian 4th Division requested the aerial bombing of the abbey atop Monte Cassino. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Permit fired 4 torpedoes at a Japanese carrier in the Pacific Ocean; all torpedoes missed. 
0
11 Feb 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-56 arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 Soviet forces captured Luga, Ukraine. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 Plaice was commissioned into service. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 Aircraft of the British No. 617 Squadron made an attack on the Antheor Viaduct, a bottle-neck on the main railway line between Marseilles, France and Genoa, Italy. It had been attacked three times before without success and 100,000 tons of German supplies crossed it every week to keep Albert Kesselring's Italian armies in action. Cheshire in one Lancaster bomber and Martin in another, were to mark the target. They were met by a hail of flak and the night was completely black. The attack failed, although there were several near misses. This convinced Cheshire that they needed Mosquito aircraft instead of Lancaster bombers if low-level bombing was to achieve success. 
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12 Feb 1944 WW2 The troopship Khedive Ismail, en-route to India, was torpedoed and sunk in two minutes by the 2,000-ton Japanese submarine I-27 near the Maldives islands. Only 260 of the 1,297 passengers and crew were saved (only 113 of 754 Askaris of 301st Field Regiment, East African Artillery survived) including 9 out of 86 women, most of whom were below decks at a concert party. Escorts brought the submarine to the surface with depth charges and kept the crew from reaching her 5.5-inch deck gun with cannon fire, then eventually sank the submarine with torpedoes. The extent of the disaster was kept a closely guarded secret until after the war. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed to escort US carriers for the raid on Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 More than 200 US aircraft attacked Rabaul, New Britain. The Japanese launched about 50 fighters in defense. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki departed Truk, Caroline Islands, escorting Convoy No. 1,123. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 Irako completed her repairs at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Bernard Freyberg requested Allied air forces for the bombing of the abbey at Monte Cassino, Italy. 
0
12 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Kure, Japan. 
0
13 Feb 1944 WW2 Shokaku arrived at Singapore, the new advance base for decisive operations. 
0
13 Feb 1944 WW2 More than 200 US aircraft attacked Rabaul, New Britain. The Japanese launched about 50 fighters in defense. 
0
13 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Columbia arrived at Nissan, Green Islands to support the landings. 
0
13 Feb 1944 WW2 Irako departed Truk, Caroline Islands for Yokosuka, Japan as a part of convoy No. 4213. 
0
13 Feb 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Thirty aircraft (Model F6F-3) and 45 officers of Night Fighting Squadron 76 (VF(N)-76) departed. Air Group 2 arrived on board. 
0
13 Feb 1944 WW2 Americans stopped a German counter attack at Anzio, Italy. 
0
13 Feb 1944 WW2 The monastery at Monte Cassino, Italy was given advance warning of the aerial bombing to come. 
0
13 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro departed Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States for Chicago, Illinois, United States. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 SHAEF, the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force, established its headquarters in England, United Kingdom. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Snook sank Japanese freighter Nittoku Maru in the East China Sea, hitting with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 Irwin was commissioned into service. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 Shark (Balao-class) was commissioned into service. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 The British Royal Navy's Second Escort Group (Captain F. J. Walker) sank the German submarine U-424. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 At 0030 hours, 25 TBF torpedo bombers of US Marine Corps squadron VMTB-233 launched from Bougainville to mine Simpson Harbor near Rabaul, New Britain; one aircraft turned back due to mechanical problems. The Japanese shot down six TBF aircraft during the mining mission. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese launched a major attack on the Anglo-Indian defensive position "Admin Box" at Sinzweya, Burma, capturing one hill on the perimeter. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 Harold Alexander visited the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy and was dissatisfied with the commanding officer Major General John Lucas. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 13 Italian motor torpedo boats arrived at Fiumicino, Italy. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese aircraft from Rabaul, New Britain attacked the Allied convoy sailing for the Green Islands, damaging USS St. Louis with one hit and a few near misses (killing 23), but they would fail to stop the convoy. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler's orders to re-establish the Chelmno Concentration Camp in occupied Poland was received by German officials of Reichsgau Wartheland; the camp resumed extermination in May 1944. 
0
14 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 Captain Juji Kakumu became the new commanding officer of hospital ship Hikawa Maru. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 1,500 prisoners arrived at Mauthausen Concentration Camp in Austria from Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 Hitler not only authorized Model to withdraw to the Panther Line, but authorized a breakout from the Korsun pocket in Ukraine. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Snook sank Japanese cargo ship Hoshi Maru Number 2 in the East China Sea, hitting with 1 of 2 torpedoes fired. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 Despite being seriously wounded by cannon fire from a German night fighter (his foot had been almost shot off), Australian Flight Sergeant Geoffrey C. C. Smith of 156 Pathfinder Squadron RAF, the rear-gunner of Lancaster bomber GT-0 (ND444), refused to leave his position until the aircraft had safely recrossed the coast. For his stubborn heroism, Smith would be awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal for staying at his post to protect the bomber and its crew from further attack. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 New Zealand troops landed on Nissan Island, Green Islands, Australian New Guinea. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 A Japanese G4M bomber attempted to transfer six prisoners of war (including Gregory Boyington) from Rabaul in New Britain to Truk in the Caroline Islands, but the flight resulted in an emergency landing on another New Britain airfield as an Allied air raid was detected. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops recaptured a hill they lost on the previous night at Sinzweya, Burma, suffering heavy casualties in the process. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi completed the repair work for tanker Hoyo Maru at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 891 RAF aircraft (561 Lancaster, 314 Halifax, and 16 Mosquito) attacked Berlin, Germany, dropping over 2,500 tons of bombs in what was the heaviest raid to date. The industrial Siemensstadt area was damaged. 26 Lancaster and 17 Halifax bombers were lost. 
0
15 Feb 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Photographic Squadron 4 (VD-4) arrived on board. 
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15 Feb 1944 WW2 142 B-17 Flying Fortress bombers, 47 B-25 Mitchell bombers, and 40 B-26 Marauder bombers dropped 1,150 tons of high explosive and incendiary bombs on the historic Benedictine monastery atop Monte Cassino, Italy. The aerial bombing was augmented by artillery shelling as well. In the evening, a company of 1st Battalion of British Royal Sussex Regiment of Indian 4th Division attacked neraby Point 593, but failed to capture the position. 
0
16 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cod sank a sampan by surface gunfire. 
0
16 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Hoe attacked a Japanese convoy with 8 torpedoes, scoring 4 hits on 2 freighters. 
0
16 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed at New York, New York, United States. 
0
16 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Iowa was detached to raid Japanese shipping in the Truk, Caroline Islands area. 
0
16 Feb 1944 WW2 A Japanese G4M bomber attempted to transfer six prisoners of war (including Gregory Boyington) from Rabaul in New Britain to Truk in the Caroline Islands, but the flight resulted in an emergency landing on another New Britain airfield as an Allied air raid was detected. 
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16 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her third war patrol. 
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16 Feb 1944 WW2 The Germans launched Operation Fischfang, throwing 7 divisions against the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy. On the same day, Harold Alexander inserted Lucian Truscott and Vyvyan Evelegh under Major General John Lucas in an attempt to alleviate Lucas' poor performance at Anzio. 
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16 Feb 1944 WW2 Fighter-bombers attacked the already-destroyed historic Benedictine monastery atop Monte Cassino, Italy. 
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16 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted carriers while carrier aircraft attacked Truk, Caroline Islands. 
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16 Feb 1944 WW2 Bergall was launched at Groton, Connecticut, United States, sponsored by Mrs. J. A. Elkins. 
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17 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese transport Gyoten Maru, hitting her with three of four torpedoes fired. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 35,000 of ther 56,000 Germans encircled by the Soviets at Korsun, Ukraine managed to slip through the net but in doing so left behind all their armor and equipment. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Pintado departed Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maine, United States. 
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17 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cero fired four torpedoes at a Japanese transport north of Dutch New Guinea; all torpedoes missed. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki arrived at Rabaul, New Britain, Bismarck Islands with Convoy No. 1,123, which was to be the last convoy to successful reach Rabaul. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 After dark and into the next date, ships of US Navy Destroyer Squadron 12 bombarded Rabaul, New Britain, expending 3,800 5-inch shells. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 US carrier aircraft began a two-day attack on Truk in the Caroline Islands; by the end of 18 Feb 1944, 270 Japanese aircraft would be destroyed. 
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17 Feb 1944 WW2 Naka departed Truk, Caroline Islands. She was discovered, attacked, and sunk by the third attack wave of SB2C Helldiver and TBF Avenger carrier aircraft 65 kilometers west of Truk; about 240 were killed, 210 survived including commanding officer Captain Yoshimasa Sutezawa. 
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17 Feb 1944 WW2 Indian 4th Division attacked Monte Cassino, Italy, failing to make advances and suffering heavy casualties. In parallel, Maori troops of the New Zealand Division established a small bridgehead across the nearby Rapido River. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 Italian Admiral Giuseppe Sparzani was summoned to meet German Admiral Karl Dönitz. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 US Marines landed on Eniwetok Atoll in the Marshall Islands. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted carriers while carrier aircraft attacked Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
17 Feb 1944 WW2 G4M aircraft of Japanese Navy Air Group 744 damaged USS Intrepid with a torpedo hit. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 Soviet units captured Staraya Russa, Russia. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 German Armeegruppe Nord withdrew to the line Narva-Pleskau-Oposhka in northeastern Europe. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 Mosquito bombers of the RAF's No. 464 and No. 487 Squadrons attacked the German prison at Amiens, France in an attempt to allow the escape of French resistance fighters who were being held there under sentence of death. The leader of the raid, Group Captain P. C. Pickard, was shot down and killed in combat with Focke-Wulf fighters. 
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18 Feb 1944 WW2 Escort carrier USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80) was commissioned with Captain Joseph L. "Paddy" Kane in command. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki departed Rabaul and arrived at Qavuvu in the New Britain, Bismarck Islands. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 The Abwehr, German military intelligence, was officially dissolved. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 George Patton noted in his diary that "I wish was more of a soldier and less of a politician." 
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18 Feb 1944 WW2 11 G4M bombers withdrew from Rabaul, New Britain to the Mariana Islands, while a number of B5N torpedo bombers withdrew to Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Columbia departed Nissan, Green Islands. 
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18 Feb 1944 WW2 US carrier aircraft destroyed 270 Japanese aircraft at Truk in the Caroline Islands after a two-day raid. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 The Germans made progress at Anzio, Italy, but were finally beaten back by artillery and naval gunfire. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 German tanks eliminated the 28th (Maori) Battalion bridgehead on the Rapido River in Italy. 
0
18 Feb 1944 WW2 The German Luftwaffe's "Little Blitz" continued as London, England, United Kingdom was bombed again. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 Saboteurs in Denmark damaged rail lines around Aarhus. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 RAF bombers attacked Leipzig, Germany. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 141 Libyan Jews held at the Fossoli transit camp near Modena, Italy were deported to Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp in Germany. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 The British Royal Navy's Second Escort Group (Captain F. J. Walker CB, DSO and three bars) sank the German submarine U-264. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cero sank a Japanese transport north of Dutch New Guinea, hiting her with 2 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 The Japanese garrison on Nissan Island, Green Islands, Australian New Guinea sent the radio message "We are charging the enemy and beginning radio silence" before commencing a final attack. New Zealand troops who had landed on Nissan four days prior would defeat this final charge. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 48 SBD and 23 TBF aircraft attacked Lakunai Airfield at Rabaul, New Britain, followed by another attack on Lakunai Airfield and Tobera Airfield by 20 B-24 bombers and 35 fighters. 36 Japanese fighters rose to defend. The Japanese suffered 8 A6M fighters shot down and Lakunai airstrips temporarily taken out of action. The Americans suffered 1 F4U fighter shot down. 
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19 Feb 1944 WW2 Starting this date and into the next date, 40 A6M, 21 D3A, 4 D4Y, 13 G4M, and 7 B5N aircraft were withdrawn from Rabaul, New Britain. As a part of the same transfer, 400 ground troops and support personnel departed Rabaul aboard Kokai Maru and Kowa Maru; the convoy was escorted by submarine chaser CHa-48, submarine chaser CH-38, and repair tug Nagaura. When the transfer was complete, Rabaul would only have 10 operational A6M fighters and 2 B5N operational bombers. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Grayback sank two small Japanese transports in the South China Sea southwest of Taiwan. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 US Marine Corps squadron VMF-214 was reformed at Marine Corps Air Station Santa Barbara in California, United States. 2nd Lieutenant Ranson Tilton, fresh out of pilot training, was named the acting commanding officer. 
0
19 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Harder completed its scheduled overhaul at Mare Island Navy Yard in Vallejo, California, United States. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 The "Blue Legion" of the Germany Army, which was a regiment-sized unit of Spanish volunteers, began to be withdrawn from the front lines due to Spain's request. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 On Lake Tinnsjo, Norway, a ferry carrying the last of the heavy water produced was sunk by saboteurs. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki became the flagship of Rear Admiral Ko Nakagawa of Destroyer Squadron 3. She departed Rabaul, New Britain, Bismarck Islands as a part of the final destroyer transport mission out of Rabaul. She arrived at Qavuvu, New Britain later on the same day. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 I-53 was commissioned into service. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Kagoshima, Japan to escort carrier Chitose to Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weißenfeld was named the wing commander of Nachtjagdgeschwader 5. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi departed Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 USAAF launched the "Big Week", sending 970 bombers against Braunschweig, Hamburg, and Leipzig in Germany. The RAF followed through by hitting Stuttgart. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson shot down two Bf 110 aircraft over Dümmer Lake, Germany. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 The Germans called off Operation Fischfang aimed at the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Yokosuka, Japan for her 18th voyage with the Japanese Navy. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 Shokaku departed Singapore for Lingga, Dutch East Indies. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 American troops captured Eniwetok in the Marshall Islands. 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-57 departed Liverpool, England, United Kingdom. It was consisted of 42 merchant ships, was supported by 2 tankers and 1 rescue ship, and was escorted by 4 corvettes (and later reinforced with destroyers and frigates). 
0
20 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Marblehead arrived in New York, United States. 
0
21 Feb 1944 WW2 Submarine Sea Cat was launched, sponsored by Mrs. E. L. Cochrane. 
0
21 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Iowa was assigned to escort the Fast Carrier Task Force during a raid in the Mariana Islands. 
0
21 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cero damaged a Japanese transport north of Dutch New Guinea, hitting her with 2 of 9 torpedoes fired. 
0
21 Feb 1944 WW2 Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy, damaging USS PC-545 and USS Pioneer before dawn. 
0
21 Feb 1944 WW2 While at sea, USS Alabama's secondary gun mount No. 9 accidentally fired into secondary gun mount No. 5, killing 5 and wounding 11. 
0
21 Feb 1944 WW2 At 1440 hours, 15 B-25 aircraft modified for strafing attacked a Japanese convoy carrying military evacuees from Rabaul, New Britain. Submarine chaser CH-48, transport Kokai Maru, and converted gunboat Kowa Maru were sunk; submarine chaser CH-38 was damaged. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese transport Fukuyama Maru with four torpedoes. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 General Rodion Malinovsky's troops captured the mining area near Krivoi Rog, Ukraine. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 American aircraft bombed the Dutch towns of Nijmegen, Arnhem, Enschede, and Deventer by mistake due to weather, killing 800 civilians. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese aircraft attacked US Naval Task Force 58 approaching the Mariana Islands but suffered heavy losses. Meanwhile, another Allied forces operating around Rabaul and Kavieng encountered no Japanese aircraft, hinting that Japanese resources were now becoming scarce. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Stalin announced that 75% of Soviet territory occupied by the German invaders had now been liberated. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Filipp Golikov was awarded the Order of Kutuzov. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro completed her transit down the Mississippi River (towed in a drydock by Minnesota) and arrived at New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Pompon departed Darwin, Australia for her fourth war patrol. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Puffer sank Japanese transport Teikyo Maru off Singapore, hitting her with 4 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish departed for her ninth war patrol. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cero attacked a Japanese transport north of Dutch New Guinea; all four torpedoes missed. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 In Italy, 650 Italian Jews were embarked onto a train at the Fossoli transit camp near Carpi, Modena for Auschwitz; many of them would be sent to the gas chambers upon arrival on 26 Feb 1944. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Wasp departed Trinidad. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese Colonel Tanahashi, his troops beginning to starve while attacking Sinzweya, Burma, refused to make further attacks until food and supplies arrived. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Ray laid naval mines off Saigon, French Indochina. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese submarine I-37 sank British merchant ship British Chivalry in the Indian Ocean as the latter sailed between Melbourne, Australia and Abadan, Iran. The crew of I-37 killed 13 survivors by rifle fire. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Mark Clark replaced John Lucas with Lucian Truscott at Anzio, Italy. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Alabama patrolled in waters southeast of Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 US Navy Destroyer Squadron 23, consisted of five destroyers under the command of Captain Arleigh Burke, attacked a Japanese convoy carrying military evacuees from Rabaul, New Britain. Repair tug Nagaura was sunk and submarine chaser CH-38 was damaged. 150 survivors of Nagaura refused to be rescued by the Americans. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Auschwitz III commandant SS-Hauptsturmführer Schwarz ordered that night shift workers not be assigned to do any day shift work, the prisoners be given seven to eight hours of rest per day, and roll call be limited to five to ten minutes; his motivations were to maintain a high level of productivity from the forced laborers in his camp. On this date a total of 73,669 prisoners were in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp; Auschwitz I housed 17,177 male prisoners, Auschwitz II housed 18,378 male and 24,637 female prisoners, and Auschwitz III housed 13,477 male prisoners. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Boris Shaposhnikov was awarded the Order of Suvorov. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 Kliment Voroshilov was awarded the Order of Suvorov 1st Class. 
0
22 Feb 1944 WW2 US Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau declared in a press release that the United States would stop purchasing gold from countries that had not broken relations with Axis nations, for fear that the gold might be looted from conquered nations; he also announced that a similar declaration would soon be made by the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union. 
0
22 Feb 1944 RELIGIOUS English apologist C.S. Lewis wrote in a letter: 'Heaven enters wherever Christ enters, even in this life.'
0
23 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cod sank a Japanese merchant ship by torpedo. 
0
23 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese transport Yamashimo Maru with four torpedoes. 
0
23 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Snook attacked a large Japanese convoy in the Pacific Ocean. After sneaking past 11 escort vessels, she fired five torpedoes, two of which hit and sank the passenger-cargo ship Koyo Maru. 
0
23 Feb 1944 WW2 A British Swordfish aircraft sank German submarine U-713 near Allied convoy JW-57; all 50 aboard were killed. 
0
23 Feb 1944 WW2 Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and losing two boats. 
0
23 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish attacked a Japanese convoy off the Mariana Islands, sinking transports Kunishima Maru and Shinyubari Maru, hitting them with 7 of 13 torpedoes fired. 
0
23 Feb 1944 WW2 39 Polish boys between the age of 13 to 17 originally from the Zamosc region were brought from Auschwitz II-Birkenau to block 20 at Auschwitz I. They were told that they would be trained to be nurses, but that evening they were killed with phenol heart injections given by SS-Unterscharführer Scherpe. 
0
24 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank a Japanese freighter, hitting her with three of four torpedoes fired. 
0
24 Feb 1944 WW2 American submarine Rasher sank Japanese transports Tango Maru and Ryusei Maru in the Java Sea, not knowing that the former was carrying Allied prisoners of war and laborers. 3,000 POWs and laborers were killed aboard Tango Maru and nearly 5,000 soldiers were killed aboard Ryusei Maru. 
0
24 Feb 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi arrived at Palau Islands and performed repairs on herself. 
0
24 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese Colonel Tanahashi ordered a retreat from Sinzweya, Burma without authorization. 
0
24 Feb 1944 WW2 USAAF (day) and RAF (night) bombings were conducted on the ball bearing plants at Schweinfurt, Germany. 
0
24 Feb 1944 WW2 Two Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and losing one boat. 
0
24 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Grayback sank cargo ship Taikei Maru, sank cargo ship Toshin Maru, and damaged two others of Japanese convoy Hi-40 in the East China Sea. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 Battleship Musashi was reassigned to the Second Fleet. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese transport Echizen Maru. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Hoe sank Japanese tanker Nissho Maru with a night time surfaced torpedo attack. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki arrived at Palau Islands. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 A British Catalina aircraft sank German submarine U-601 near Allied convoy JW-57; all 51 aboard were killed. On the same day, U-990 sank destroyer HMS Mahratta 320 kilometers off North Cape, Norway at 2055 hours; 220 were killed, 16 survived. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 Bruce Fraser was awarded Soviet Order of Suvorov, First Class. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 The supply depot on the coast near Kokopo, New Britain was bombarded by US destroyers for 30 minutes starting at about 2330 hours; a warehouse was damaged by fires. 2,000 5-inch shells were expended by the US Navy on this bombardment. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 Five Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 Assigned to the Second Fleet, Yamato was drydocked at Kure, Japan to receive upgrades. Two beam triple 6.1 inch (155-mm) turrets were to be removed and replaced by six (3x2) 5-inch (127-mm) HA AA mounts. Twenty-four (8x3) and 26 single 25mm AA mounts were to be added. Shelters were also added on the upper deck for the increased AA crews. Type 13 air search and Type 22 Mod 4 surface search/gunnery control radars were to be installed. The main mast was to be altered. Two 150-mm searchlights were to be removed (later installed ashore at Kure, Japan). Yamato was to be fitted with Type 2 infrared (IR) Identification Friend-or-Foe (IFF)/signaling devices mounted midway up on each side of the bridge; the system might had been based on the German Seehund IR device, built around a telescopic sensor that received light-waves in the IR range and registered a readout in the radio shack. The IFF system also included a pair of 20-mm binoculars coaxially mounted with the transmitting IR lamp on the bridge so that another ship could use the IR detector for elementary signaling or as a formation light for station keeping. About this time, Yamato was also fitted with multiple E27 radar detectors copied from the German FuMB 1 Metox R.600. 
0
25 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Grayback sank tanker Nanho Maru and damaged freighter Asama Maru. 
0
26 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese transport Choko Maru. 
0
26 Feb 1944 WW2 The Japanese offensive on Sinzweya, Burma was called off, ending the Battle of the Admin Box. 
0
26 Feb 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
26 Feb 1944 WW2 Syria declared war on Germany and Japan. 
0
26 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
0
26 Feb 1944 WW2 650 Italian Jews from Fossoli transit camp near Carpi, Modena and 84 Soviet prisoners of war from the Lamsdorf (Lambinowice, Poland) POW camp arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland. Of the Italian Jews, 95 men and 29 women were registered into the camp; the remaining 526 were sent to the gas chambers. 
0
26 Feb 1944 WW2 Lavrentiy Beria authorized Operation Lentil, which aimed to deport the whole of Chechen and Ingush (Ghalghai) populations to Central Asia and Siberia. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cod sank a Japanese merchant ship by torpedo. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 70 SBD and TBF aircraft attacked Rabaul, New Britain. 1 Japanese G4M bomber was shot down. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 Lebanon declared war on Germany and Japan. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Tunny departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her fifth war patrol. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Harder arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 Irako arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Grayback sank freighter Ceylon Maru, hitting her with 1 of 2 torpedoes. She was sunk by the subsequent depth charging by aircraft and anti-submarine craft 100 kilometers southeast of Okinawa, Japan. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 The Soviet troops responsible for deporting the population of Khaibakh village in Chechnya in southern Russia could not complete their assignment due to a heavy snowstorm. Instead, Colonel Mikheil Gveshiani of the NKVD ordered the troops to force the entire population of 700 into a large stable, lock the doors, and set the stable on fire. 
0
27 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Wasp arrived at Boston, Massachusetts, United States. 
0
28 Feb 1944 WW2 German female aviator Hanna Reitsch presented a proposal of a squadron of suicide pilots to Adolf Hitler. 
0
28 Feb 1944 WW2 80th Fighter Squadron (flying P-38 aircraft) of USAAF 80th Fighter Group was transferred out of Dobodura Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
28 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Pollack departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her ninth war patrol. 
0
28 Feb 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-57 arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Cod attacked a Japanese merchant ship by torpedo. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 Operation Brewer: US troops invaded the Admiralty Islands. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 USS Rock attacked a Japanese convoy en route to Truk, Caroline Islands, but was detected by destroyer Asashimo. She fired a salvo of four torpedoes at the destroyer (none hit) and dove. She was subjected to a four-hour depth charge attack that cause much damage, forcing her to return for repairs. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 The Japanese submarine I-37 torpedoed the merchantman SS Ascot in the Indian Ocean and then machine-gunned the 52 survivors in the water, killing 45. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 The US submarine Trout was reported missing, presumed sunk, whilst on patrol northwest of the Philippine Islands. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 Oberfeldwebel Otto Meyer and Hauptmann Fritz Schmidtmann of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing were awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 Ships of US Navy Destroyer Squadron 22 gathered off Praed Point about 6.5 miles away from Rabaul, New Britain just before midnight at the end of this date. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 The Kempeitai staff at Rabaul, New Britain discussed moving its headquarters from the center of town to a safer location due to US bombing. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 Seventy "Comfort Girls", captive women forced into prostitution by the Japanese, were machine gunned on the island of Truk in the Caroline Islands as the Japanese tried to destroy evidence before the American invasion arrived. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 The third major German offensive was launched at Anzio, Italy, which would again fail to dislodge the Allies. 
0
29 Feb 1944 WW2 Nachi refueled from oiler Teiyo Maru in Mutsu Bay, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Cruiser Köln was towed from Kiel to Königsberg, Germany. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 British High Commissioner in Jerusalem Sir Harold MacMichael stated that the current quota of 75,000 Jewish immigrants would not be increased, and when the current quota expired on 31 Mar 1944, there would be no plan for further openings for immigrants. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Thousands of Italian workers in northern Italy went on a strike, stopping production in some factories for a week. Because it was found that the strike was organized by a underground resistance movement, as many as 2,000 workers who went on the strike were arrested; some of them were deported out of the country. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Hammerhead was commissioned into service. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 The keel of submarine Sea Robin was laid down. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Rear Admiral Hidehiko Nishio was named the chief of staff of the Japanese Southwest Area Fleet. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at Recife, Brazil. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Captain Kiyoshi Koda was named the commanding officer of light carrier Hosho. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 George Patton noted in his diary that " drank too much and is lonely", implying that the pressures of being the top Allied commander were taking a toll on his usually healthy and affable friend. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Heinrich Kreipe was made commanding officer of 22nd Air Landing Infantry Division. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Ships of US Navy Destroyer Squadron 22 bombarded Rabaul, New Britain from off Praed Point starting at about 0000 hours, expending 700 shells. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Italian Navy Xa MAS formed the Servizio Ausiliario Femminile organization, an all-female auxiliary corps. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Settsu was assigned to the Japanese Navy First Air Fleet. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Shokaku moved alternately between Singapore and Lingga, Dutch East Indies throughout the month of Mar 1944. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 Klavdia Kalugina received orders to move to the front lines. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 US fighter ace Lieutenant Charles F. Gumm, with seven confirmed victories to his credit, was tragically killed when the engine of his P-51B Mustang fighter failed during take-off from RAF Boxted in Essex, England, United Kingdom. Rather than bailing out (which would inevitably lead to his crippled aircraft crashing into the little village of Nayland) he gallantly stayed in the cockpit long enough to glide it towards open ground. By that time he was too low to parachute, and his body was found by local villagers near the burning wreckage. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro departed New Orleans, Louisiana, United States for Balboa, Panama Canal Zone. 
0
01 Mar 1944 WW2 German aircraft dropped six bombs over the Vatican City, littering the Court of Saint Damaso with debris. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 Leutze was commissioned into service. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 Walter Krupinski received Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross medal. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 James Johnson was named the commanding officer of the No. 144 (RCAF) Wing. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 Wilhelm Kratzer was named the acting civilian administrator of the Channel Islands. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Cero arrived at Brisbane, Australia, ending her third war patrol. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 US 1st Cavalry Division captured Hayne Airfield at Los Negros Island, Admiralty Islands. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 US aircraft carpet-bombed the center of Rabaul, New Britain. The Chinatown district received the most damage. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 German Luftwaffe ace Egon Mayer (102 victories) was shot down and killed when his Fw 190 aircraft was bounced by a pair of US 9th Air Force P-47 Thunderbolt aircraft whilst attacking a formation of B-17 bombers near Sedan, France. In a cruel twist of fate his award of Swords had been announced on that same day. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 421 Czech prisoners were transferred from Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland to Buchenwald Concentration Camp in Germany. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler signed Aktion K into effect, which decreed that captured escapees of prisoners of war camps would be sent to the Mauthausen Concentration Camp in occupied Austria, where they would face execution immediately upon arrival and their remains would be destroyed in the camp crematorium. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 On Mount Trocchio near Cassino, Italy, walking down a path that was supposed to have been cleared, Major-General Howard Kippenberger, the admirable commander of the 2nd New Zealand Division, stepped on one of the vicious little wooden "Schu" mines. One of his feet was blown off and the other had to be amputated. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Ray began pursuing a nine-ship Japanese convoy in the South China Sea. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-57 departed the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 Escort carrier USS Saginaw Bay (CVE-82) was commissioned with Captain Frank C. Sutton in command. 
0
02 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived at Midway Atoll. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 The number of British civilian casualties (50,324) became higher than military (50,103). 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 Under heavy Allied pressure, Spain ordered all remaining Spaniards in German service home, but some ignored the order, and would end up fighting in Berlin, Germany near the end of the European War. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 The German Security Police in Italy requested the Italians to assist them in enlarging the Fossoli transit camp because of the growing number of prisoners interned there. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 A transport of 1,390 prisoners, mostly Latvians and Russians, was sent from Stutthof Concentration Camp to Mauthausen Concentration Camp. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Gar began her eleventh war patrol which saw her on lifeguard duty off Palau Islands. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt announced to the American public that United States, United Kingdom, and Soviet Union were intended on dividing the Italian fleet evenly between the three powers as war reparations. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Ray fired four torpedoes at a nine-ship Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, damaging one tanker with one torpedo hit. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 US Marine Corps squadron VMF-223 conducted a reconnaissance sweep over Tobera Airfield in New Britain. Major Robert Keller recorded a kill, but Japanese records showed that all 7 A6M fighters scrambled to defend the airfield all returned safely. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 29 USAAF bombers attacked Berlin, Germany; the attack was "accidental", as it was actually called off, but the aircraft failed to receive the order. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Night Fighting Squadron 77 (VF(N)-77; Model F6F) departed. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. During the day, the Germans called off the attacks on the beachhead. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 Irako began repairs at Yokosuka, Japan and later Yokohama, Japan. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Alabama became the flagship of Vice Admiral Marc Mitscher of the US Navy Fast Carrier Task Force at Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish attacked a Japanese transport in the South China Sea; all 10 torpedoes missed. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 Joseph Stalin disbanded the Chechen–Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic as punishment for insurgency. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 An American B-29 bomber dropped a dummy atomic bomb at Muroc Army Air Force Base in California, United States at the altitude of 24,000 feet. The test bomb considerably damaged the aircraft's bomb bay doors as it exited the aircraft. 
0
03 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Tunny departed Midway Atoll. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 Zhukov's attack against Armeegruppe Süd in Ukraine was resumed. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 750 Jews from the Lodz ghetto were sent to the Hugo Schneider AG factories in Czestochowa, Poland as forced laborers. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy formed the 14th Air Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo with Rear Admiral Hideo Yano as his chief of staff; the fleet had the sgrenth of two air flotillas and one seaplane tender. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 About 31 prisoners of war were led out of their cells in Rabaul, New Britain and they were never to be seen again. After the war, the Japanese claimed that they were led to the Talili Bay area where a direct hit by a US bomber killed them all on 5 Mar 1944. A later study of US records showed that no missions were conducted in that region during the campaign, however. No conclusion had ever been reached on the fates of these prisoners of war, although many historians would venture that they were executed by their guards. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 USAAF launched its first major bombing raid on Berlin, Germany. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Composite Squadron 30 (VC-30) and Composite Squadron 25 (VC-25) on board. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 Nachi refueled from oiler Teiyo Maru in Mutsu Bay, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish sank a Japanese oiler in the South China Sea, hitting her with 3 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 Viktor Abakumov was awarded the Order of Suvorov 2nd Class. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 Lavrentiy Beria was awarded the Order of Suvorov 1st Class. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 Vsevolod Merkulov was awarded the Order of Kutuzov 1st Class. 
0
04 Mar 1944 WW2 Sterlet was commissioned into service with Commander O. C. Robbins in command. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 Soviet 2nd Ukrainian Front under Ivan Konev attacked toward Uman, Ukraine. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 Operation Thursday was launched. William Slim flew to Hailakandi, India to oversee the launch. One of the intended glider landing spots in Burma was found by pre-operation reconnaissance flights to be defended by newly-arrived Japanese troops, and Wingate accused Slim or the Chinese of betrayal (in actuality, Japanese Army lumberjacks had coincidentally started working in the region); troops originally intended to land at that spot were diverted to other landing areas. Several gliders were lost by the over-burdened glider towing aircraft, but the operation would still get underway. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Hoe arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her third war patrol. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 15 on board. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 William Slim requested his superiors to assign an additional division to defend Kohima and Dimapur, India. He would only receive two battalions of Indian parachute troops. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 732 Jews from the Westerbork transit camp arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau camp in Poland. 477 of them were sent to the gas chambers without being registered into the camp. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 Auschwitz-Birkenau camp officials decided to gas the Czech Jews of Theresienstadt camp (sector BIIb). They were given postcards post-dated 25-27 Mar 1944 with pre-printed message "we are healthy and fine" and were told to sign them. These prisoners were gassed on 8 Mar 1944 and the postcards were mailed after 25 Mar. 
0
05 Mar 1944 WW2 The second BTD Destroyer prototype aircraft took its first flight. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 The RAF Bomber Command began a major offensive over France to prepare for the Normandy invasion. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 HMCS Fennel and HMCS Chilliwack shared in the sinking of the German submarine U-744 in the Atlantic Ocean. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Finback completed refitting at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii and departed for her eighth war patrol. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 Louis Mountbatten arrived at Taihpa, Burma by transport aircraft escorted by 16 fighters to inspect Joseph Stilwell's headquarters; Stilwell privately complained that Mountbatten had used enough fuel on this trip for Stilwell to mount an offensive. Mountbatten would also visit the Walawbum battlefield 25 kilometers to the south. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Dragonet was commissioned into service with Commander Jack Hayden Lewis in command. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 Major General Masatake Kimihira noted in his diary that "more than half of the city has been reduced to ashes", referring to Rabaul, New Britain. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 Further glider operations brought in more men to join Operation Thursday at the Chowringhee site in Burma. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 Aircraft of US Navy Task Force 38 conducted a reconnaissance mission over Kagi Airfield in Kagi (now Chiayi), Taiwan. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 The US 8th Army Air Force journeyed all the way to Berlin, Germany for the first time. In all 474 bombers and their Mustang escort fighters flew to the German capital, facing a barrage of heavy flak and many Luftwaffe fighters. A total of 53 B-17 bombers and 16 fighters were lost. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson shot down a German Bf 110 aircraft over Dümmer Lake, Germany. 
0
06 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Snook arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her fifth war patrol. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 German Gauleiter Arthur Greiser, governor of the Wartheland in occupied Poland, reported to Heinrich Himmler that the Jewish population of Warthegau had nearly been wiped out. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 The United Nations War Crimes Commission organized a subcommittee to study the possibility of war criminals claiming that they were simply following orders in post-war trials. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 The Fascist government in northern Italy issued another order protecting Jews above the age of 70 and those with mixed ethnicities. Nevertheless, Germans in northern Italy continued to deport those within these two groups. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 Germans arrested Jewish hospices at Turin, Italy and sent them to the Fossoli transit camp. Many of them would be sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau camp in Poland later in the month. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 Taiho was commissioned into service. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate personally visited the Broadway site of Operation Thursday in Burma. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 A regiment from the Japanese 33rd Division crossed the Manipur River in Burma toward the Burmese-Indian border toward Tiddim, Burma. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 While traveling in a jeep in northern Burma, Louis Mountbatten was accidentally struck by fragments of a bamboo plant that rendered him temporarily blind due to internal haemorrhage. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 The 69th transport from Drancy Concentration Camp in Paris, France departed for Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland with 1,501 prisoners. It would arrive at Auschwitz on 10 Mar and 1,311 of them would be gassed upon arrival. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 Allied aircraft bombed the wreck of Algérie at Toulon, France, causing it to sink again; prior to the bombing the Italians had attempted to raise the wreck in sections. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler informed officials from the Security Police, the Security Service, and the SS Central Office for Economy and Administration that no prisoners were allowed to be released from the Mauthausen Concentration Camp during the war. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Skipjack arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her ninth war patrol. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
07 Mar 1944 WW2 38 Jews hiding at 84 Grojecka Street, Warsaw, Poland were arrested. The 6 Polish non-Jews who provided them food and shelter were also arrested. Historian Emmanuel Ringelblum, among those arrested, was executed within the next few days. 
0
08 Mar 1944 WW2 Battle of Hill 700: Japanese troops began a 5-day offensive against US positions at Bougainville. 
0
08 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops launched a major offensive across the Chindwin River in Burma toward Imphal, India. Meanwhile, another regiment from the Japanese 33rd Division crossed the Manipur River in Burma toward the Burmese-Indian border toward Tiddim, Burma. 
0
08 Mar 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate personally visited the Chowringhee site of Operation Thursday in Burma. 
0
08 Mar 1944 WW2 USAAF bombers attacked Berlin, Germany. 
0
08 Mar 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson participated in a large aerial battle over Steinhude Lake, Germany during which the Germans shot down 34 American bombers, but Johnson was able to claim two Bf 109 kills. 
0
08 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Alabama was relieved as the flagship of Vice Admiral Marc Mitscher of the US Navy Fast Carrier Task Force at Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
0
08 Mar 1944 WW2 3,791 Czech Jews were gassed at Auschwitz-Birkenau camp in occupied Poland. The men were killed in Crematorium III and the women and children in Crematorium II. 
0
08 Mar 1944 WW2 The keel of submarine Sennet was laid down at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maine, United States. 
0
09 Mar 1944 WW2 Sargent Bay was commissioned into service. 
0
09 Mar 1944 WW2 Wedderburn was commissioned into service. 
0
09 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Pompon attacked a Japanese convoy in the Dutch East Indies; all 4 torpedoes missed. 
0
09 Mar 1944 WW2 USAAF medium and heavy bombers attacked Rabaul, New Britain. This was to be the first of many unescorted raids by multi-engine bombers as the Japanese fighter strength at Rabaul began to be worn down by continuous Allied aerial attacks. 
0
09 Mar 1944 WW2 Gusen II, a satellite of Mauthausen Concentration Camp, opened at Sankt Georgen an der Gusen, Austria. Prisoners of Gusen II were used to build underground aircraft and weapons factories. 
0
09 Mar 1944 WW2 18 B-25 bombers of the Chinese-American Composite Wing escorted by 24 P-40 fighters attacked a foundry and floating docks at Huangshi, Hubei, China. Japanese fighters of 9th and 25th Sentai rose to intercept, shooting down 2 P-40 fighters. 
0
09 Mar 1944 WW2 In a letter to Hermann Göring, Heinrich Himmler noted that by this date, about 36,000 prisoners were employed for various purposes for the Luftwaffe. He informed Göring that plans were being considered to increase the number to 90,000. 
0
09 Mar 1944 WW2 One Italian motor torpedo boat attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 The Icelandic airline Lofteide HF was founded, which would inaugurate its initial service on 7 Apr 1944. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 HMS Asphodel (New Zealand Lieutenant M. A. Halliday) was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-575 whilst escorting convoy SL-150. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 2 bombers of the 2nd Bomber Squadron of the Chinese-American Composite Wing attacked Japanese ships in the Yangtze River in China. On the return flight, one of the B-25 bombers ran out of fuel and unsuccessfully crash landed, killing the entire crew. On the same day, B-25 bombers of the US 14th Air Force escorted by P-38 fighters attacked Anqing, Anhui, China, sinking a motor launch, damaged two cargo vessels, and damaged a barge; fighters of the Japanese 25th Sentai rose to intercept, shooting down on P-38 fighter. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi began repairing transport Bichu Maru at Palau Islands. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 US military leadership estimated that about 60% of Rabaul, New Britain had been destroyed. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 24 New Zealand Kittyhawk fighters, each armed with a 500-pound bomb, attacked Vunapope, New Britain. About 300 Japanese personnel were killed, 1 civilian was killed, and 7 civilians were wounded. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler lifted various laws against Jewish and Roma people as their "evacuation and isolation" had already been achieved. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 Ar 234B jet aircraft took its first flight with civilian test pilot Joachim Carl in the cockpit. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 Evripidis Bakirtzis became the head of the Political Committee of National Liberation (PEEA) of Greece. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Ominato Guard District, Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, Japan and refueled from oiler Teiyo Maru. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 1,501 Jews arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp from Drancy Concentration Camp in Paris. 110 men and 80 women were registered into the camp, while the remaining 1,311 were sent to the gas chambers. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 The Soviet 2nd Ukrainian Front captured Uman, Ukraine on its way toward the Bug and Dneiper Rivers. 
0
10 Mar 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-57 arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
11 Mar 1944 WW2 By this date, 9,000 men and 1,300 animals were delivered to northern Burma for Operation Thursday. 
0
11 Mar 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi received provisions from auxiliary storeship Kitakami Maru at Palau Islands. 
0
11 Mar 1944 WW2 Aircraft of No. 466 Squadron RAAF conducted minelaying operations off of Helgoland, Germany. 
0
11 Mar 1944 WW2 The British ambassador in Washington DC, United States voiced the opinion that revealing the Holocaust to the German people would not be an effective propaganda tool against the German leadership. 
0
11 Mar 1944 WW2 About 300 Jewish women and children of Split, Yugoslavia were rounded up, sent to Jasenovac Concentration Camp, and killed. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 Submarine Blackfin was launched, sponsored by the wife of US Navy Rear Admiral Charles A. Lockwood. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish sank a Japanese transport in the Western Pacific, hitting her with 2 of 2 torpedoes fired. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 In the Arakan region of Burma, Corpporal Nand Singh won the Victoria Cross for capturing Japanese positions despite being seriously wounded. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate sent Winston Churchill a message noting the initial successes of Operation Thursday in Burma. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 The Czechoslovakian government-in-exile called civilians to rise up against German occupation. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler ordered the occupation of Hungary, Operation Margarethe. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 The government of Ireland banned international travel. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 An errant V-1 flying bomb landed in Swedish territory. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 German troops and Ukrainian nationalists burned the village of Plikorov near Lvov, killing 385 people as reprisal against partisan operations. 
0
12 Mar 1944 WW2 All travel between Great Britain and neutral Ireland were banned to prevent details of the invasion of France being leaked to the enemy. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Cod arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her second war patrol. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 Italy and the Soviet Union resumed diplomatic relations. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 The governments of the United States and the United Kingdom demanded Sweden to stop selling ball bearings to Germany. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 US Eighth Air Force commander James Doolittle was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Geoffrey Scoones realized the Japanese attack on Tiddim, Burma was a part of a major offensive, and retracted his previous order, allowing troops at Tiddim to fall back. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 American ships and British RAF aircraft sank German submarine U-575 in the Atlantic Ocean. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 Australian troops captured Bogodjim, New Guinea. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 The Jewish ghetto of Kraków, Poland was closed down; as its residents were deported to the newly built Plaszów labor camp, 2,000 died en route. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Kherson, Ukraine. 
0
13 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at Midway Atoll. 
0
14 Mar 1944 WW2 The US Navy announced that USS Corvina was missing and presumed lost with 82 aboard. 
0
14 Mar 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi dispatched divers to inspect damage below the water line for patrol vessel PB-102 at Palau Islands. 
0
14 Mar 1944 WW2 United States Marine Corps Squadron VMB-413 equipped with PBJ-1 bombers (B-25 Mitchell bombers which had been purchased by the US Navy but subsequently transferred to the Marine Corps) commenced combat operations from Stirling Island, New Hebrides. Ultimately the USMC would form sixteen B-25 Squadrons, nine of which would see action in World War II. 
0
14 Mar 1944 WW2 US Joint Chiefs of Staff ordered Emirau Island to be taken, bypassing New Ireland in the South Pacific. 
0
14 Mar 1944 WW2 William Slim requested Louis Mountbatten to divert aircraft originally assigned to fly the Hump to instead bring men and supplies to Imphal, India. Mountbatten agreed, diverting 30 transport planes to bring the Indian 5th Division to Imphal and Dimapur, India. 
0
14 Mar 1944 WW2 One Italian motor torpedo boat attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. 
0
14 Mar 1944 WW2 "Barbarigo" naval infantry battalion of Italian Navy Xa MAS arrived at Anzio, Italy and was placed under the command of German 715th Division. 
0
14 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Whale departed Midway Atoll for her seventh war patrol. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 Zhukov's 1st Ukrainian Front reached the Bug River, the start line for Operation Barbarossa that began the Russo-German war. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 RAF bombers attacked Stuttgart, Germany, dropping over 3,000 tons of bombs from 863 bombers, of which 36 were lost. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 German troops gathered on the Hungarian border. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived in the Palau Islands. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 After dark, the Japanese 15th Division crossed the Chindwin River in Burma toward India as part of the second wave of the Japanese offensive. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell ordered the Chinese 22nd Division to attack the ridge of Jambu Bum in northern Burma. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish damaged a Japanese tanker off Okinawa, Japan, hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired. She would pursue the tanker into the next day. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson was promoted to the rank of captain. On the same day, he shot down a Fw 190 and a Bf 109 aircraft over Dümmer Lake, Germany. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Acetylene Generation and Oxygen Manifold building turned over to station. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 At 0830 hours, the third major Allied attempt to attack Monte Cassino, Italy began with a heavy bombardment that lasted more than three hours. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 Masafumi Arima was assigned to the aviation section of the Navy Ministry. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 Tirpitz began post-repair trials at Barbrudalen (Kåfjord) and Altafjord, Norway. 
0
15 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay was commissioned into service, Captain Frank T. Ward, Jr. in command. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 American aircraft attacked a Japanese convoy near Wewak, New Guinea. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 Captain Yoshi Matsuura was named the commanding officer of light carrier Ryuho. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish sank a Japanese transport and damaged a tanker off Okinawa, Japan, hitting them with 3 of 10 torpedoes fired. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 Allies troops captured Mawlu, a major rail link in central Burma. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 German Type IXC submarine U-505 left Brest, France on the submarine's 12th patrol, with Oberleutnant-zur-See Harald Lange in command. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her fourth war patrol. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Harder departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her fourth war patrol. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 Allied troops continued the attack on Monte Cassino, Italy. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 British civilian Oswald Job was hanged at Pentonville Prison in Islington, London, England, United Kingdom for spying. 
0
16 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Tang departed Midway, starting her second war patrol in the waters near Palau Islands, Caroline Islands, and south of the Philippine Islands. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Dubno, Ukraine, a major transportation hub. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 German submarine U-371 sank US troop transport Dempo in the Mediterranean Sea, killing 498. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 The first American bombing on Vienna, Austria from Italy took place. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 Soviet troops advanced near the Romanian border. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 Finland rejected the Soviet peace proposal. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese and Anglo-Indian troops clashed at Tonzang, Burma. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Columbia arrived at Emirau, Bismarck Islands to support the landings. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Eighteen aircraft (Model F6F-5), officers and men of Night Fighting Squadron 77 (VF(N)-77) arrived on board. 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 New Zealand troops captured the train station at Cassino, Italy. Nearby, Indian Gurkha troops captured Point 435 (nicknamed Hangman's Hill). 
0
17 Mar 1944 WW2 Edward Brooks became the commanding officer of the US 2nd Armored Division at Tidworth Barracks near Salisbury, England, United Kingdom. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 Aircraft of No. 466 Squadron RAAF conducted minelaying operations in the North Sea off of Helgoland, Germany. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 Chindit troops reached the railway at Kenu, Burma; the subsequent Battle of Pagoda Hill was characterized by savage hand-to-hand fighting that resulted in 23 Chindits and 42 Japanese killed. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 RAF bombers attacked Hamburg, Germany with approximately 3,000 tons of bombs. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Golet departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese 15th Division reached Ukhrul, India, which was about 50 miles from Imphal, India. Behind them, Japanese 31st Division crossed the Chindwin River in eight columns toward India. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese submarine I-165 sank British merchant ship Nancy Moller in the Indian Ocean. The submarine picked up six of the survivors and executed two of them by pistol and another two by drowning. The crew then opened fire on the life boat, killing 32 of the over 60 survivors aboard. Ultimately only 31 would survive, picked up by HMS Emerald four days later. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 New Zealand troops mounted a failed armored attack on Cassino, Italy, losing all 17 tanks in the process. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 Yamato exited drydocks at Kure, Japan. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Iowa bombarded Mili Atoll, Marshall Islands. She was hit by two 120-millimeter shells from Japanese coastal guns during the bombardment, suffering minor damage. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Pollack arrived off Nanpo Islands, Japan. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Ray fired six torpedoes at two Japanese destroyers and one patrol craft in the South China Sea; her crew reported hearing one explosion, but could not confirm it as the submarine dove in expectation of counterattacks. 
0
18 Mar 1944 WW2 At 1100 hours, Auschwitz Concentration Camp prisoner Rudolf Friemel married forced laborer Margarita Ferrer at the camp's Registry Office. It was the only case where a prisoner was allowed to marry in the camp. They had met in Spain when Rudolf Friemel, an Austrian, fought as a volunteer for the Spanish Republicans in the civil war. Friemel was executed by hanging on 30 Dec 1944 for a failed attempt to escape Auschwitz. Ferrer and their child survived the war. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young arrived at Pearl Harbor. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 German troops occupied Hungary. Adolf Eichmann arrived in Hungary to begin mass deportation of the 750,000 Hungarian Jews who, thus far, had been largely unmolested. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Former Vichy French Interior Minister Pierre Pucheu was killed in Algiers in North Africa. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Mogilev-Podolski and Vinnitsa, Ukraine. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Edson Burns took command of the Canadian First Corps. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Edmund Veesenmayer was assigned to the German embassy in Budapest, Hungary with plenipotentiary powers. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Louis Mountbatten recovered from his temporary blindness at Ledo, India, as pronounced by US Army eye specialist Captain Scheie. On the same day, he issued a reprimand against Orde Wingate for sending complaints of his fellow officers through clear text so that it could be read by all cipher and signals staff. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Chinese 66th Regiment captured Jambu Bum ridge in northern Burma, about 140 kilometers northwest of Myitkyina. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 US Marines landed on Emirau, Bismarck Islands; the landings were not opposed. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Officers and men of Air Group 100 arrived on board. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Allies launched Operation Strangle, which was consisted of air interdiction attacks on the rail yards at Sienna, Italy. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 British and New Zealand troops attacked German positions in the Cassino, Italy area, making very little progress in the face of German 1st Parachute Division. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, engaging in brief combat. 
0
19 Mar 1944 WW2 Vasily Chuikov was made a Hero of the Soviet Union for the first time and was awarded the Order of Lenin for the second time. 
0
19 Mar 1944 RELIGIOUS German Lutheran pastor and Nazi martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in a letter: 'We can have abundant life, even though many wishes remain unfulfilled.'
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Franklin set sail for Gulf of Paria, Trinidad for her shakedown cruise. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Vinnitsa, Ukraine, site of one of Hitler's Feldhauptquartiere. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 Romanian troops arrived in Hungary to assist in the German occupation. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 A Japanese aircraft attacked USS Tunny with eight light bombs near Toagel Mlungui Pass in the Palau Islands, causing no damage. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 Mason was commissioned into service. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Pollack sank Japanese freighter Hakuyo Maru in the Nanpo Islands area, Japan with one of two torpedoes fired. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla attacked a Japanese transport off British Malaya; all six torpedoes missed. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate visited the Aberdeen site in Meza valley, Burma. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Ukhrul, India, defeating the Indian Parachute Regiment and a brigade from the British 23rd Division. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 US 4th Marine Regiment secured Emirau, Bismarck Islands. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Officers and men of Air Group 100 arrived on board. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 British 78th Infantry Division joined in the attack of Cassino, Italy. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 The "Valanga" Guastatori naval infantry battalion was made a part of Xa MAS of Italian Navy. 
0
20 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Preston was commissioned into service with Commander Goldsborough S. Patrick in command. 
0
21 Mar 1944 WW2 British Chindit forces attacked Indaw, Burma. Meanwhile, Orde Wingate began moving his headquarters from Imphal to Sylhet in India, thus causing some confusion in the Indaw offensive. 
0
21 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Officers and men of Air Group 100 arrived on board. 
0
21 Mar 1944 WW2 A Junkers Ju 88A-14 from 8/KG6 of German Luftwaffe shot down during the night by a Mosquito of No. 488 Squadron RAF crashed on three B-26 Marauder bombers of the US 323rd Bombardment Group (Medium) at RAF Earls Colne at Earls Colne, Essex, England, United Kingdom. 
0
21 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Wasp arrived at San Diego, California, United States. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 RAF bombers attacked Frankfurt, Germany, killing 948 and leaving 120,000 homeless. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 Chinese and Canadian representatives signed a pact of mutual aid at Ottawa, Canada. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 Döme Sztójay formed a new government in Hungary. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops crossed the Burmes-Indian border into the Indian state of Manipur and attacked Sangshak from the north. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Mingo fired six torpedoes at a Japanese freighter; all missed. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Tunny detected a large Japanese convoy near Toagel Mlungui Pass in the Palau Islands. She fired six torpedoes toward 2 transports and observed hits on both. She then fired four torpedoes toward an escorting destroyer, scoring no hits, before diving. She endured a 4-hour counterattack which consisted of 87 depth charges. Later in the day she surfaced and observed debris and an oil slick. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 15 American commandos landed in Italy with the mission to sabotage the La Spezia-Genoa railway. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 William Slim met with Orde Wingate. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 One US Marine Corps PBJ bomber attacked Rabaul, New Britain at 2200 hours. 4 Japanese A6M fighters rose to intercept, shooting down the PBJ bomber. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weißenfeld died near Saint-Hubert, Belgium where his Bf 110 aircraft crashed in poor weather. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 Shokaku arrived at Lingga, Dutch East Indies. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 General Alexander ceased the frontal attacks at Cassino, Italy. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 Four Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and losing two boats. 
0
22 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Tunny made radar contact with Japanese submarine I-42 off Angaur Island, Palau Islands. At 2324, Tunny lauched four torpedoes at the range of 1,700 meters, hitting and sinking the Japanese submarine. 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate's headquarters completed its move to Sylhet, British India. 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops assaulted an Allied defensive position in the crater of an extinct volcano near Sangshak, India, initially failing to take the position. Shortly after, Allied aircraft dropped supplies to the Indian troops at Sangshak, India, but most of the supplies fell behind Japanese lines. As Indian 152nd Parachute Battalion attacked from the volcano crater to regain the supplies, the Japanese drove them back, causing heavy casualties. 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Columbia departed Emirau, Bismarck Islands. 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Air Group 19 on board. 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Whale made rendezvous with USS Pollack and formed a wolfpack to patrol Torishima of Izu Islands and the Bonin Islands (Ogasawara Islands). 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 V. T. Shirmanov stepped down as GUKR SMERSH's chief in the 1st Byelorussian Front. 
0
23 Mar 1944 WW2 Submarine Trepang was launched at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California, United States. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 In the Fosse Ardeantine caves outside of Rome, 355 Italians, 250 of them civilians, were shot by the SS under Standartenführer Herbert Kappler in reprisal for the killing of 35 Germans during a SS parade on the previous day by the members of the Italian resistance. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 Soviet tanks crossed the Dneiper River near the Czech border. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 British miners signed a 4-year contract for their wages. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 The Great Escape: A large escape of prisoners of war from Stalag Luft III in Sagan, Germany (now Zagan, Poland) was attempted; 76 would succeed. 50 prisoners who had failed would be executed for their involvement. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops mounted an unsuccessful suicide charge on Bougainville. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 The 15 American commandos who landed on the Italian coast aiming to sabotage the La Spezia-Genoa railway were captured. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 The 3rd Battalion of the Japanese 58th Regiment arrived in the Sangshak, India region as reinforcements. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 The headquarters of USAAF 475th Fighter Group was transferred out of Dobodura Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Franklin arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 810 RAF aircraft attacked Berlin, Germany; 72 aircraft were lost. After sundown, Frankfurt was bombed by the RAF for the third time in four nights. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 Orde Wingate visited the Broadway and White City sites of Operation Thursday in Burma in an attempt to raise the morale of the British 77th Brigade. At 1823 hours, his returning plane arrived at Imphal, India, and then off again shortly before 2000 hours for Hailakandi, India. The aircraft crashed into the Naga hill west of Imphal about 30 minutes after taking off, killing the American pilot Lieutenant Brian Hodges, Wingate, and the other 8 passengers and crew aboard. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 The Anzio beachhead in Italy was subjected to heavy German artillery and guided bomb attacks. Out at sea, an Italian motor torpedo boat attack sank one cargo ship; one Italian boat was sunk in the attack. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 The Allied attacks on the Gustav Line were persistently repulsed by German defenders. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 The control of Losey Field in Puerto Rico, now without any active air units, was turned over to US Army ground forces. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 Red Army units crossed the Bug River by the Black Sea on the Ukrainian coast. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 90 German bombers attacked London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
24 Mar 1944 WW2 417th Bombardment Squadron of 25th Bombardment Group of US Army Air Forces, operating B-18 Bolo bombers, was assigned to Alamogordo Army Air Field in New Mexico, United States. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 Hitler allowed German 1.Panzerarmee to break out west of Lvov, Ukraine. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 US declared Manus, Admiralty Islands secure. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 Churchill's recommendations to bomb German V-weapon sites were turned down by Eisenhower, who preferred to place priority on transportation and communications hubs. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Gar fired six torpedoes on a Japanese ship; all torpedoes missed. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Pollack sank Japanese Submarine Chaser No. 54 and damaged two freighters in the Nanpo Islands area, Japan; ten torpedoes were expended in this attack. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 The Hungarian Council of Ministers approved several anti-Semitic policies, including a law requiring Jews to wear the yellow Star of David to be effective on 5 Apr 1944. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 At Lingga, Dutch East Indies, Shokaku became the flagship of Admiral Ozawa Jisaburo's Third Fleet and the Mobile Fleet. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 811 RAF bombers raided Berlin, Germany; 122 aircraft were lost. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 The 3rd Battalion of the Japanese 60th Regiment attacked Allied positions at Sangshak, India. Meanwhile, Louis Mountbatten requested the Anglo-American Combined Chiefs of Staff for more aircraft to supply Imphal, India, which would be denied. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Whale set sail for East China Sea. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 184 Jews who had been recently arrested from their hiding places in the Hague in the Netherlands arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 
0
25 Mar 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt arrived at Hyde Park, New York, United States. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 Soviet units captured Kamenets-Podolsk, Ukraine, reaching the Romanian border on a wide front. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 British Prime Minister Churchill praised Yugoslavian partisans under Tito. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 The Greek Communist Party established a provisional government in the mountains of northern Greece. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese submarine I-8 damaged Dutch ship Tjisalak with a torpedo in the Indian Ocean, and then surfaced to exchange shellfire. After the ship sank, the Japanese attacked 97 survivors with swords, wrenches, and sledgehammers. They were then shot and dumped into the water. Six men survived. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 Anton Dostler ordered the execution of the 15 American commandos who were captured on 24 Mar 1944 while attempting to sabotage the La Spezia-Genoa rail line in Italy. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 Troops of Japanese 60th Regiment attacked Sangshak, India after dark, but got lost in the darkness, and many men were trapped in the open in the next morning. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 The US submarine Tullibee was sunk by one of her own torpedoes which malfunctioned when launched against Japanese vessels off Palau Islands. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 Oberleutnant Hans Bennemann and Oberfeldwebel Wilhelm Brennecke of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing were awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
26 Mar 1944 WW2 The New Zealand Corps headquarters, currently near Cassino, Italy, was dissolved. Surviving troops were incorporated into British XIII Corps. 
0
27 Mar 1944 WW2 Vichy French government allowed its citizens to join the German SS organization. 
0
27 Mar 1944 WW2 German SS troops massacred all Jewish children under the age of 13 in Kovno, Lithuania. 
0
27 Mar 1944 WW2 The government of the United Kingdom banned foreign travel. 
0
27 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese 58th Regiment launched an all-out attack on Sangshak, India. Brigadier Maxwell Hope-Thompson, commanding officer of the defending Allied troops, ordered a retreat from Sangshak at 1800 hours. On the same day, William Slim requested the British 2nd Division to help defend nearby Dimapur. 
0
27 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops attacked the Broadway site of Operation Thursday in Burma. 
0
27 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Ray arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her third war patrol. 
0
27 Mar 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-58 departed Liverpool, England, United Kingdom. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 Spanish volunteers of the recently disbanded German Army "Blue Legion" began to arrive in Spain; the final transport of these volunteers back to Spain would arrive on 12 Apr 1944. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 Red Army units captured Nikolaev as they entered Romania. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 German and Romanian forces began the evacuation of Odessa, Ukraine. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 About 300 patients from two hospitals and one psychiatric institution in Trieste, Italy were deported to Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops counterattacked Chinese troops near Jambu Bum ridge, Burma. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi completed the repair work for transport Bichu Maru at Palau Islands. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 418th Night Fighter Squadron (flying P-61 aircraft) of USAAF V Fighter Command was transferred out of Dobodura Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 The US Twentieth Bomber Command, under the command of General Kenneth B. Wolfe, established its headquarters at Kharagpur, India. 
0
28 Mar 1944 WW2 Joseph Rochefort testified before a Pearl Harbor raid investigation board in Washington DC, United States. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 Kiichi Hasegawa passed away. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 US naval aircraft bombed Japanese ships in the Palau Islands. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 Chinese troops captured Shaduzup, Burma. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 US Congress approved US$1,350,000,000 to fund the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Agency for assisting refugees in Europe. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Tunny observed a large number of small vessels leaving Malakal Island in the Palau Islands in the morning but did not attack. In the afternoon, she observed the arrival of battleship Musashi and other warships; Tunny fired six bow torpedoes at Musashi but failed to hit her. She endured a 38-depth charge counterattack. Later that night, she caught up with the force and damaged Musashi with another torpedo attack. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 12 P-40 and 3 P-51 fighters of the US 14th Air Force attacked the railroad station area in Nanchang, Jiangxi, China. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at Karachi, India. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 The US No. 1 Air Commando Group was redesignated as 1st Air Commando Group (nicknamed Cochrane's Flying Circus). 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Parche departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops cut the road between Imphal and Kohima, India. Meanwhile, the Anglo-American Combined Chiefs of Staff retracted a decision made earlier and diverted additional transport aircraft from the Mediterranean Sea theater of war to the Burma-India theater of war. Louis Mountbatten had requested them to help the defense of the Imphal region in India; incidentally, the initial aircraft embarked on transporting the Indian 5th Division to Imphal and Dimapur completed the task on this date after 758 sorties. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 Two Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and losing one boat. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Yokosuka, Japan to escort carrier Zuiho to Guam, Mariana Islands. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Alabama shared the credit in the downing of at least one Japanese aircraft which were attempting to attack US carriers. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish attacked a Japanese ship northeast of Borneo, Dutch East Indies; all 5 torpedoes missed. 
0
29 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Whale entered East China Sea. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler fired Paul von Kleist and Erich von Manstein, replacing them with Ferdinand Schörner and Walter Model. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 A 795-plane air raid (572 Lancaster, 214 Halifax, and 9 Mosquito) against Nürnberg, Germany; 82 aircraft were lost on the way to the attack, and a further 12 were lost on the return flight; nearly 700 lives were lost by the RAF. This was Bomber Command's heaviest single loss of the war. German casualties included 69 civilians and 59 foreign slave laborers. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 On the fatal Nürnberg, Germany raid, one of the aircraft was flown by British Pilot Officer Cyril Barton of 578 Squadron. Badly shot up on the way to the target, his Halifax bomber managed to bomb the target and made its way back to England before his fuel ran out. Barton sucessfully crash-landed his aircraft on dead engines, thus saving his crew, but was so fatally wounded himself that he died on his way to hospital. Barton was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 US troops landed on Pityilu, Admiralty Islands. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 Submarine Caiman was launched, sponsored by sponsored by Mrs. R. C. Bonjour. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Tunny performed lifeguard duties in the Palau Islands for airmen of the Fifth Fleet. Shortly after noon, she was mistaken for a Japanese submarine and was attacked, causing some damage. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Iowa joined Task Force 58. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed the Inland Sea in Japanese waters. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi sustained numerous bomb and rocket hits from US carrier aircraft and sank in shallow water north of Urukthapel Island, Palau Islands. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish attacked a Japanese transport off Okinawa, Japan; all 4 torpedoes fired missed. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 Paul von Kleist was awarded Swords to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross medal. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 Japanese troops besieged Imphal, India. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft attacked Japanese positions at Palau, Yap, Ulithi, and Woleai in the Caroline Islands. 
0
30 Mar 1944 WW2 US Navy listed USS Grayback as missing and presumed lost with all hands. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 Shokaku arrived off Singapore naval yard. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 Mineichi Koga passed away when the flying boat that carried him from Palau Islands to Philippine Islands crashed into the sea in bad weather. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 Aircraft from ships Beagle and Tracker in Allied convoy JW-58 sank German submarine U-355 in the Arctic Sea. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 Destroyer USS De Haven (DD-727) was commissioned with Commander J. B. Dimmick in command. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 Smalley was commissioned into service. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Pintado set sail for the Panama Canal. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 US Navy canceled its contracts signed prior to the Pacific War with civilian construction firms for projects across the Pacific Ocean. Those signed after the start of the war would continue. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze was assigned to Destroyer Division 17, Destroyer Squadron 10, 3rd Fleet. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish was attacked by a Japanese submarine; she was able to evade the torpedoes fired at her. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 The newly-formed German Jagdverband 44, flying Me 262 jet fighters, flew its first mission out of München (Munich), Germany. 
0
31 Mar 1944 WW2 Naka was struck from the Japanese Navy list. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Franklin crossed the International Date Line. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 Cruiser Köln was recommissioned for training of cadet engineers with Fregattenkapitän Hellmuth Strobel in command. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 US bombers unintentionally hit Schaffhausen, Switzerland, leading to official protests and reparation payments. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy 12th Air Fleet was reorganized to contain two air flotillas, one communication unit, one weather observation unit, and one air base unit. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 The Japanese attack on the Broadway site of Operation Thursday in Burma was repulsed. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish sank a Japanese transport off Okinawa, Japan, hitting her with 2 of 2 torpedoes fired. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 Masafumi Arima was assigned to the fleet command for the Central Pacific area. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 The crew of USS Harder rescued a downed aviator on a small island west of Woleai, Caroline Islands. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 100 commissioned this date. (AG-100 is a pilot replacement air group) 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Nippon Hill near Imphal, India. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied bombers attacked Schaffhausen, Switzerland, mistaking it for the German city of Ludwigshafen am Rhein, killing 40 people; interestingly, a group of small factories producing munitions and aircraft parts to be sold to Germany was destroyed in this accidental raid. 
0
01 Apr 1944 WW2 Fuel refinery No. 6 came online at Takao Guard District in southern Taiwan. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 Troops of the German 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitlerjugend" massacred 86 Belgians in retaliation of the bombing of their train by resistance fighters. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviet troops entered Romania. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviets threaten to shoot one third of all German prisoners of war if the German 1.Panzerarmee's 18 divisions would not surrender. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Tunny departed Palau Islands. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 The first B-29 bomber of US 58th Bomb Wing landed at Chakulia, near Calcutta to start working up for a new strategic bomber force equipped with B-29 bombers in India with advance bases in China from which targets in northeastern China (Manchuria) and Kyushu, Japan could be attacked. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 Nachi began a period of guard ship duty at Ominato Guard District, Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro departed Balboa, Panama Canal Zone. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina was made the commander of the all-female 1st Sniper Platoon of the Soviet 184th Rifle Division. 
0
02 Apr 1944 WW2 General Rikichi Ando was named the governor-general of Taiwan. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 Operation Tungsten: 41 British Barracuda dive bombers attacked German battleship Tirpitz, scoring 15 hits. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 Aircraft from HMS Activity and HMS Tracker sank German submarine U-288 in the Barents Sea. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Cero departed Brisbane, Australia for her fourth war patrol. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 Shokaku arrived at Lingga, Dutch East Indies. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Franklin arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed Karachi, India. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 General Montagu Stopford ordered Major General R. P. L. Ranking to move the Indian 161st Brigade from Kohima to Dimapur in India. Ranking believed this was a bad move as Kohima would be a Japanese target, and appealed to William Slim; Slim sided with Stopford. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Pollack damaged passenger-cargo ship Tosei Maru in the Nanpo Islands area, Japan, hitting her with two of four torpedoes. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 Evelyn Sharp passed away near Middleton, Pennsylvania, United States. 
0
03 Apr 1944 WW2 Condemning the oppression of the Stalin regime, Viktor Kravchenko, a member of the Soviet Lend-Lease Purchasing Commission, announced his defection to the New York Times. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 Shokaku returned to Singapore naval arsenal. The Third Fleet's flag was transferred ashore. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 German Armeegruppe Mitte counterattacked to reach those units surrounded for two weeks near Kovel, in the Pripet marsh area of Ukraine. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 The German Armeegruppe Süd was renamed Armeegruppe Nordukraine. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 De Gaulle was appointed head of Free French military forces. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 Going against precedent, British Foreign Office banned foreign embassies from sending coded messages, and stated that diplomatic pouches were subject to censorship, with the exception of British allies. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Hoe departed Fremantle, Australia for her fourth war patrol in the South China Sea. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 Kyne was commissioned into service. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 Steamer Bay was commissioned into service. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Puffer arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her third war patrol. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt's doctor noted the US President's high blood pressure and prescribed rest; Roosevelt would soon depart for Bernard Baruch's home in South Carolina, United States for a vacation. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Columbia departed Port Purvis, Nggela Islands (Florida Islands), Solomon Islands for a scheduled overhaul in San Francisco, California, United States. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Rock departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her second war patrol. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Air Group 14 arrived on board. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Wasp arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 On the Imphal front in India the Japanese 51st Regiment of 15th Division commenced attacks on 123rd Indian Brigade's positions, while the Japanese 31st Division attacked the village of Kohima. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 The Allies conducted the first reconnaissance mission over Auschwitz Concentration Camp. On the same day, a transport from two hospitals and one psychiatric institution in Trieste, Italy arrived at Auschwitz; 62 of the about 300 patients died en route, while another 103 were gassed upon arrival. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-58 arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
04 Apr 1944 WW2 The US Twentieth Air Force was established in Washington DC, United States for deployment to India with forward bases in China. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 USAAF and RAF coordinated to start round-the-clock raids on the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 The SS Economic and Administrative Office submitted a report to the Supreme Command of the German SS organization noting the existence of 20 concentration camps with 165 connected labor camps. In Hungary, Jews were required to wear the yellow Star of David. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviet troops entered Ternopil, Ukraine. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 Escort carrier Makin Island was launched. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 Oberleutnant Matthias Bermadinger of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina killed her first German soldier southeast of Vitebsk, Byelorussia. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 26 Japanese A6M Zero fighters of the Sanya Kokutai and the Kaiko Kokutai based in Hainan, China attacked Nanning, Guangxi, China, destroying 2 B-25 bombers and 3 P-40 fighters on the ground and shooting down 7 P-40 fighters in the air. 8 A6M fighters were lost. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 On the Imphal front in India, the Japanese 60th Regiment probed south towards a large store dump, where staff of the British 221st Advanced Ordnance depot, under continuous and heavy fire, repeatedly foiled the Japanese infiltration attacks for three days. Meanwhile, realizing that the movement of Indian 161st Brigade from Kohima to Dimapur was a poorly calculated move, he moved the brigade back; with no room in Kohima for the troops of the brigade, they settled down at Jotsoma 2.5 miles to the northwest to support from a distance. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 Siegfried Lederer escaped from Auschwitz-Birkenau camp and made it safely to Czechoslovakia; he warned the Elders of the Council at Theresienstadt about the atrocities being committed at Auschwitz. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Dorohoi, Romania. 
0
05 Apr 1944 WW2 At Los Alamos, New Mexico, United States, Emilio Segrè received the first sample of reactor-refined plutonium from Oak Ridge, Tennessee, United States. He would soon discover that the spontaneous fission rate of this plutonium was too high for use in a gun-type fission weapon. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Taiho became the flagship of the Third Fleet. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Ryunosuke Kusaka was named the chief of staff of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Rear Admiral Sadatoshi Tomioka was named the chief of staff of the Japanese Navy 11th Air Fleet. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied leadership in the South Pacific determined that 85% of Vunapope, New Britain had been destroyed, and there was no further need to continue the aerial bombardment campaign against Vunapope. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Cod departed Fremantle, Australia for her third war patrol. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fourth war patrol. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese troops attacked the White City site of Operation Thursday in Burma. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Indian 26th Division captured Point 551 hill in Burma. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Xinjin Airfield in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China became the forward headquarters of US XX Bomber Command. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Evacuees began to return to their homes in Gibraltar as the first group of 1,367 evacuees arrived from Britain. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Water Supply (water development project) turned over to station. Part of 125th Construction Battalion (125th SeaBees) arrived on board. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Abdul Hafiz of Indian 9th Jat Infantry Regiment led an attack by two sections of a platoon against a Japanese-held hill near Imphal, India. Despite being injured in the leg by enemy fire, he took out one machine position and led an attack on another; during the latter, he was fatally shot in the chest. He was awarded the Victoria Cross medal posthumously on 27 Jul, which was given to his widow Jugri Begum by Viceroy of India Archibald Wavell in Oct 1944 in Delhi, India. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 After dark, Japanese troops launched an attack at Kohima, India, reaching the buildings at the edge of the village before the attack was halted early in the next day. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 The United Kingdom introduced the PAYE (pay as you earn) tax system. 
0
06 Apr 1944 WW2 Joseph Rochefort was ordered to travel to Washington DC, United States to meet with Ernest King. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 The Icelandic airline Lofteide HF, founded in the previous month, inaugurated its initial flight service. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived at Milne Bay, New Guinea. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Five officers and 91 men of D-2, Unit 2, departed. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 No. 112 Squadron RAF, flying Kittyhawk fighters, shot down a German aircraft over Rieti Airfield in Italy; this would be the final Kittyhawk victory in the Mediterranean theater of WW2. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 Rudolf Vrba and Alfred Wetzler escaped from Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp in occupied Poland; they would cross the border to Slovakia three days later. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-58 departed the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 Nikolai Melnikov, the deputy of Soviet NKVD Directorate for Prisoners of War and Interned Persons (UPVI), committed suicide. He was replaced by Amayak Kobulov. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 Bernard Montgomery briefed his generals regarding the invasion of France, predicting the city of Caen would be captured on the first day of the invasion. 
0
07 Apr 1944 WW2 During a dinner with Dwight Eisenhower and other Allied generals in England, United Kingdom, George Patton suggested that divisions used for Operation Overlord should be made over-strength. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse detected a Japanese convoy off the Mariana Islands. After dark, attacked the convoy and sank cargo ship Kizugawa Maru, hitting her with four of eight torpedoes fired. After evading depth charges, she attacked again, sinking cargo ship Bisaku Maru, hitting her with two of six torpedoes fired. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 Red Army troops reached the Slovakian border and advanced into Romania. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 USAAF bombers attacked a Volkswagen factory near Hannover, Germany. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Anthony Eden issued a statement condemning German atrocities and called for those responsible to be brought to justice. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the VIII Corps of US Third Army. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 Rall was commissioned into service. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 The headquarters of USAAF 417th Bomb Group was transferred from Dobodura Airfield to Saidor Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese aircraft conducted raids across Henan Province, China. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese troops moved into the ground between Kohima and Jotsoma in India, cutting off the Indian 161st Brigade from being able to assist in the defense Kohima. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Whale sank Japanese freighter Honan Maru in the Korea Strait, hitting her with 2 of 7 torpedoes fired. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 Ivan Konev ordered Soviet 27th Army and 40th Army to attack Romanian positions near Târgu Frumos, Romania. 
0
08 Apr 1944 WW2 The Soviet forces began an offensive to retake Crimea, Russia and to destroy the German 17.Armee. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 In Ukraine, the remnants of German 1.Panzerarmee conducted a 150-mile forced march to reach German lines. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 A new German Bf 110 aircraft, piloted by a German defector, flew into Switzerland and made a landing at Dübendorf. Hermann Göring, fearful of the possiblity of Allied capture, wanted to dispatch commandos under Otto Skorzeny to destroy the aircraft. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 Submarine Kete was launched, sponsored by Mrs. E. S. Hutchinson. 
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09 Apr 1944 WW2 Depth charges from USS Guadalcanal's anti-submarine hunter-killer group escorts Pope, Pillsbury, Chatelain, and Flaherty brought German Type IXC submarine U-515 to the surface 650 miles off Casablanca where Guadalcanal's aircraft sank it with rockets. There were 44 survivors, including the U-Boat commander Korvettenkapitän Werner Henke. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson shot down a German Fw 190 aircraft over Kiel, Germany. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Kanglatongbi and began to surround the Anglo-Indian troops at Imphal, India. To the north at Kohima, India, Japanese troops captured GPT ridge, forcing the British troops to fall back to Garrison Hill. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 Masafumi Arima was named the commanding officer of 26th Air Flotilla based at Clark Airfield, Philippine Islands. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 In Romania, Soviet 27th Army captured Târgu Frumos while Soviet 42nd Guards Rifles Division wiped aside Romanian 6th Infantry Division and captured Pascani 14 miles to the west. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviet troops broke through German defensive lines at Kerch, Russia. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 Submarine Blenny was launched at Groton, Connecticut, United States, sponsored Florence King, daughter of Admiral Ernest King. 
0
09 Apr 1944 WW2 Stan Bailey was named the commanding officer of US Marine Corps squadron VMF-214 based in Marine Corps Air Station Santa Barbara in California, United States. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 Cruiser Köln began a three-month refit. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 Rudolf Vrba and Alfred Wetzler, who had escaped from Auschwitz Concentration Camp three days prior, arrived in Slovakia. They would later revealing information about the camp to outside world via the Papal Nuncio in Slovakia. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviet troops entered Odessa, Ukraine. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 Aleksandr Vasilevsky was awarded the Order of Victory for the first time. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 Rockets and aerial depth charges from USS Guadalcanal's anti-submarine hunter-killer group TBM Avenger aircraft sank German Type IXC submarine U-68 650 miles off Casablanca. There was one survivor. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 672nd Bomb Squadron and 675th Bomb Squadron (both flying A-20 aircraft) of USAAF 417th Bomb Group were transferred from Dobodura Airfield to Saidor Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Pompon arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her fourth war patrol. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 German Großdeutschland Division counterattacked westward from Podu Iloaiei toward Târgu Frumos, Romania. To the south of Târgu Frumos, Romanian 1st Guard Division and Romanian 7th Infantry Division attacked in concert. Soviet troops withdrew from Târgu Frumos by 2200 hours. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 Georgy Zhukov was awarded the Order of Victory for the first time; this was the very first Order of Victory given out by the Soviet Union. 
0
10 Apr 1944 WW2 The US Joint Chiefs of Staff formally approved Operation Matterhorn, the name allocated to the B-29 bomber offensive against Japanese cities. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 The German SS organization ordered that prisoners who have committed sabotage were to be publicly executed. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 Swiss authorities destroyed the new German Bf 110 aircraft that was brought into Switzerland by a defector pilot two days prior. In appreciation of this gesture, Germany provided Switzerland 12 Me 109 fighters. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived in Brisbane, Australia, ending her fifth war patrol. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 Fieberling was commissioned into service. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 Me 410 fighters shot down 10 B-17 bombers over Europe on this date. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian and Japanese troops began a four-day clash at Bunker Hill near Kohima, India. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 Yamato departed Kure, Japan for trials in the Iyo Nada; she arrived at Hashirajima island in Hiroshima Bay that evening. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish arrived at Majuro, Marshall Islands, ending her ninth war patrol. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 The Gestapo HQ in The Hague, Netherlands was attacked by RAF Mosquito aircraft. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Kerch, Russia. 
0
11 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Pollack arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her ninth war patrol. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 The last of the convoys carrying Spanish volunteers of the recently disbanded German Army "Blue Legion" arrived in Spain. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 The Soviet demands for peace were rejected by Finland. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 American troops cleared Pak Island off New Guinea. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 Realizing his earlier support of Mussolini's government was viewed with suspicion by the Allies, King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy transferred most of his power to Crown Prince Umberto, though he held on to the throne. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Finback attacked a six-ship Japanese convoy escorted by three patrol vessels east of Philippine Islands, firing 9 torpedoes and reporting 5 hits; she was then counterattacked with depth charges. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 Joseph Stalin signed the Soviet Stavka order to reform Western Front into 2nd and 3rd Byelorussian Fronts due to incapable leadership of the Western Front; the top officers of the Western Front were surprisingly not reprimanded seriously and were placed in other important positions. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse assumed lifeguard station duty for US aircraft attacking Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler authorized the withdrawal of German and Romanian forces from Sevastopol, Russia, but his delay in this decision caused heavier losses than necessary. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 German troops wiped out a small pocket of troops (elements of Soviet 206th Rifle Division and Soviet 3rd Guards Airborne Division) west of Târgu Frumos, Romania. 
0
12 Apr 1944 WW2 More than 61,000 German and Romanian troops began evacuation from the Crimea in Russia. 
0
13 Apr 1944 WW2 British Chindit units attacked the village of Sepein near Mawlu in Burma. 
0
13 Apr 1944 WW2 Drancy Concentration Camp in France dispatched its 71st convoy with 1,500 Jews for Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 
0
13 Apr 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson shot down two German Fw 190 aircraft over Kaiserslautern, Germany. 
0
13 Apr 1944 WW2 Martial law was lifted in the US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
13 Apr 1944 WW2 Italian motor torpedo boats claimed the sinking of an Allied corvette off Anzio, Italy; this sinking was not confirmed. 
0
13 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands. 
0
13 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Harder was spotted by a Japanese aircraft north of the western Caroline Islands, and destroyer Ikazuchi sortied to attack. Harder sank Ikazuchi in return, hitting her with 2 of 4 torpedoes. 
0
13 Apr 1944 WW2 Red Army units captured Eupatoria (Yevpatoriya), Feodosiya, and Simferol in Russia. Nearby, at Staryi Krym, German troops killed 589 people, about 200 of them children. 
0
14 Apr 1944 WW2 Red Army captured Tarnopol, Ukraine. 
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14 Apr 1944 WW2 The first transports of Greek Jews to Auschwitz Concentration Camp departed from Athens, Greece. On the same date, a transport of 500 prisoners was sent from Stutthof Concentration Camp to Neuengamme Concentration Camp. In France, mass arrests of Jews were ordered; to provide incentive for civilians to aid this effort, payments were offered to those who led authorities to Jews in hiding. 
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14 Apr 1944 WW2 SS Brigadier General Veesenmayer reported that Hungarian Prime Minister Sztojay promised that by the end of Apr 1944 at least 50,000 Hungarian Jews fit for work would be made available to the Germans, beginning with 5,000 Jews effective immediately and 5,000 more every three to four days until the number of 50,000 has been reached. An additional 50,000 Jews were to be made available in May, and the number of Jewish labor draftees inside Hungary is to be raised to 100,000 to 150,000. 
0
14 Apr 1944 WW2 A major Chinese offensive was launched across the Burmese border against the Japanese. 
0
14 Apr 1944 WW2 Destroyer USS Mansfield (DD-728) was commissioned with Commander Robert E. Brady, Jr. in command. 
0
14 Apr 1944 WW2 673rd Bomb Squadron (flying A-20 aircraft) of USAAF 417th Bomb Group was transferred from Dobodura Airfield to Saidor Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
14 Apr 1944 WW2 In Poland, the first Allied aerial photographs were taken of Auschwitz I camp, the town of Auschwitz (known as Oswiecim in Polish), the I. G. Farben factories, and the Auschwitz III camp complex (also known as Monowitz); this came 10 days after the first Allied reconnaissance flight over the camp. 
0
14 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-58 arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
14 Apr 1944 WW2 Mosquito aircraft of No. 627 Squadron of No. 8 (PFF) Group RAF arrived at RAF Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom. 
0
15 Apr 1944 WW2 Marshal Nikolai F. Vatutin died in hospital from wounds suffered when his car was ambushed by Ukrainian guerrillas on 28 Feb 1944. 
0
15 Apr 1944 WW2 Fleet aircraft carrier USS Hancock (CV-19) was commissioned with Captain Fred C. Dickey in command. 
0
15 Apr 1944 WW2 Hans Speidel became Erwin Rommel's chief of staff. 
0
15 Apr 1944 WW2 The support units of United States Marine Corps' I Marine Amphibious Corps (IMAC) were transferred to the V Amphibious Corps Administrative Command, and the tactical units are redesignated as III Amphibious Corps (IIIAC) with the mission of seizing Guam, Mariana Islands in Jul 1944. 
0
15 Apr 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: More of 116th Construction Battalion (116th SeaBees) arrived on board. Part of 72nd Construction Battalion (72nd SeaBees) departed. 
0
15 Apr 1944 WW2 The Indian 44th Airborne Division was established at Secunderabad, India under the command of Major General Ernest Down. 
0
15 Apr 1944 WW2 The German defensive Gustav Line in Italy began to fall. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 Red Army units cleared Yalta, Ukraine of remaining pockets of German resistance. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division arrived in England, United Kingdom in preparation for the Normandy, France invasion. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 Wisconsin was commissioned into service. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Parche reached waters south of Taiwan. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Finback conducted a reconnaissance mission at Oroluk Atoll, Caroline Islands, firing on a damaged ship and a tower on land during the mission. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 Indian 5th Brigade arrived at Jotsoma, India, allowing Indian 161st Brigade to prepare for an advance toward Kohima. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 In Italy, German Armeegruppe von Zangen placed the 800-strong "Lupo" Italian naval infantry battalion under German "Hermann Göring" Division for anti-partisan training. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 A transport of 1,500 Jews from Drancy Concentration Camp outside of Paris arrived at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp; it was the 71st transport from Drancy to Auschwitz. 165 men and 223 women were registered into the camp, while the remaining 1,112 were gassed. 
0
16 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Miami departed Boston, Massachusetts, United States. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 British Royal Navy and Royal Air Force Bomber Command commenced minelaying in the approaches of the English Channel in preparation for the forthcoming invasion of Europe. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 Louis Mountbatten's headquarters moved from Delhi, India to Kandy, Ceylon. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Skipjack departed the Pribilof Islands, US Territory of Alaska. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 674th Bomb Squadron (flying A-20 aircraft) of USAAF 417th Bomb Group was transferred from Dobodura Airfield to Saidor Airfield, Australian Papua. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina was awarded the Order of Glory 3rd Class while fighting in Byelorussia; she was the first woman of 3rd Byelorussian Front to receive this award. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ARGUS-17 arrived on board. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 General Renya Mutaguchi ordered Lieutenant General Kotoku Sato to capture Kohima, India by 29 Apr 1944. On the front, Anglo-Indian and Japanese troops clashed at Garrison Hill and FSD Hill near Kohima. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 Yamato arrived at Kure, Japan to load supplies. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Harder sank Matsue Maru and damaged an armed escort, firing four torpedoes and scoring one hit on each ship. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Whale spotted two small Japanese vessels in the East China Sea but failed to achieve attacking position. 
0
17 Apr 1944 WW2 A Constellation aircraft piloted by Howard Hughes and Jack Frye flew from Burbank, California, United States to Washington DC, United States in 6 hours and 57 minutes, breaking the record. 
0
18 Apr 1944 WW2 Aircraft of No. 466 Squadron RAAF conducted bombing operations against Helgoland, Germany. 
0
18 Apr 1944 WW2 The British Foreign Office banned all coded messages from foreign embassies and said that diplomatic bags were to be censored. Only the fighting Allies were to be excluded from the ban. 
0
18 Apr 1944 WW2 RAF bombers struck Rouen, Juvisi, Noisy-le-Sec, and Tergnier, killing 1,383 French civilians. 
0
18 Apr 1944 WW2 The US submarine Gudgeon was reported lost, presumed sunk, off the Maug Islands, Mariana Islands. 
0
18 Apr 1944 WW2 RAF Bomber Command's No. 5 Group made a precision attack on the Juvisy rail marshalling yards south of Paris, France, virtually destroying all of this strategically important target. 
0
18 Apr 1944 WW2 Evripidis Bakirtzis stepped down as the head of the Political Committee of National Liberation (PEEA) of Greece. 
0
18 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Balaklava, Russia. 
0
19 Apr 1944 WW2 Thomas Hitchcock was killed while test-flying a P-51 Mustang aircraft. 
0
19 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Finback sank a small Japanese vessel in the Pacific Ocean with her deck gun. 
0
19 Apr 1944 WW2 In order to forestall the bombing of the homeland by American B-29 bombers from bases at Guilin and Liuzhou in China and to seize the Beiping-Hong Kong railroad, Field Marshal Shunroku Hata, Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Army China Expeditionary Force launched the Ichi-Go (Number one) offensive with a force of some 620,000 men, which was the largest force ever assembled by Japan for a single campaign. The main thrust was a powerful drive southwards from Hankou by the 11th Army, designed to link up with a push westward by 23rd Army from Guangdong. 
0
19 Apr 1944 WW2 After sundown, the Japanese launched three separate attacks against Anglo-Indian positions near Imphal, India, some supported by medium tanks; none of the attacks achieved their objectives. 
0
19 Apr 1944 WW2 Ernest King met with Joseph Rochefort in Washington DC, United States and gave him the command of the Far Eastern Section of the US Navy Office of Naval Intelligence. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 The cruiser USS Milwaukee was transferred to the Soviet Navy, under Lend-Lease, and renamed Murmansk. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 Amon Göth was given the rank of SS-Hauptsturmführer in the reserve forces of the Waffen-SS. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 Oberstgeneral Hube was killed in a plane crash leaving Berchtesgaden, Germany. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese submarine RO-45 west of Saipan, Mariana Islands, hitting her with three of four torpedoes fired. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied leadership in the South Pacific determined that 90% of Rabaul, New Britain had been destroyed, and there was no further need to continue the aerial bombardment campaign against Rabaul. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Harder bombarded Woleai, Caroline Islands under the cover of a rain squall. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 Ding Delong was named the commanding officer of the Chinese 37th Army. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 The Japanese siege of Kohima, India was beginning to be lifted. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 Italian motor torpedo boats sank British landing ship LST-305 off Anzio, Italy. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Yokosuka, Japan for her 19th voyage with the Japanese Navy. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Kure, Japan to escort battleship Yamato and cruiser Maya to Lingga, Borneo. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Franklin transited through the Panama Canal. 
0
20 Apr 1944 WW2 No. 214 Squadron RAF (of No. 100 group based at RAF Oulton at Aylsham, England, United Kingdom), established in Nov 1943, flew the first operational sortie with their Fortress Mk. III (SD) aircraft. These were extensively modified B-17G aircraft fitted out with electronic countermeasures and radar jamming devices. This Squadron would fly more than 1,000 sorties up to May 1945 losing just eight aircraft on operations. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Croaker was commissioned into service with Commander John E. Lee in command. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 Operation Chattanooga: Allied aircraft destroyed German rail and other transportation targets. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied bombers conducted a raid on Belgrade, Yugoslavia. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 Colonel General Erhard Raus replaced Hans-Valentin Hube as the commander of the German 1.Panzerarmee. Hube was killed in a plane crash on the previous day. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Gar ended her eleventh war patrol. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol; her primary task was to conduct reconnaissance in the Mariana Islands area. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Thirty-seven aircraft (Model F6F-3), 19 aircraft (Model TBF), 77 officers and 92 men of Air Group 20 arrived on board. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Crete West hill near Imphal, India. 
0
21 Apr 1944 WW2 Yamato departed Kure, Japan for Okinoshima and loaded troops. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 Yugoslavian partisans took control of the island of Korcula in the Adriatic Sea, capturing 800 of the German defenders. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 Mussolini met with Hitler near Salzburg, Germany (Austria). 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 The RAF used of the new liquid incendiary device, J-Bomb, for the first time against Brunswick, Germany. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 Soviet Union ended peace talks with Finland. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Iowa began to escort carriers while the aircraft struck Japanese positions on New Guinea, Dutch East Indies. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied forces landed on Aitape, Australian Territory of New Guinea and Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea during Operation Persecution. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese attacks overran some Anglo-Indian defensive positions near Imphal, India, but no major progress was made. Near Kohima to the north, Anglo-Indian troops attacked Garrison Hill after sundown. Behind the Japanese lines, Lieutenant General Renya Mutaguchi visited the front lines and relieved Major General Motozo Yanakida for his perceived lack of aggressiveness, replacing him with Major General Nobuo Tanaka. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 Yamato departed Okinoshima, Japan with cruiser Maya, destroyer Shimakaze, destroyer Yukikaze, and two other destroyers. 
0
22 Apr 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Kure, Japan for Taira, Bonin Islands. 
0
23 Apr 1944 WW2 Erwin Rommel wrote to Alfred Jodl, noting that if given command over the nearby tank formations he would wipe out any Allied landing attempt in France. 
0
23 Apr 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops attacked Ningthoukhong, India. 
0
23 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Ray departed Fremantle, Australia for her fourth war patrol. 
0
23 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Pintado arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
23 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Whale was detected by a Japanese patrol boat 22 kilometers east of Akuseki Shima, Japan, but she was able to escape before the Japanese attacked. 
0
24 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Saipan. 
0
24 Apr 1944 WW2 British bombers attacked München, Germany. During this attack, the Spinosaurus fossil specimen BSP 1912 VIII 19 was destroyed at the Paläontologische Staatssammlung München (Bavarian State Collection of Paleontology). 
0
24 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied bombers conducted a raid on Belgrade, Yugoslavia. 
0
24 Apr 1944 WW2 After two days of heavy fighting Douglas MacArthur's forces subdued Hollandia and Aitape in Dutch New Guinea, cutting off 50,000 Japanese troops of the Pacific-based 18th Army. 
0
24 Apr 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ARGUS-15 departed. 
0
24 Apr 1944 RELIGIOUS In deciding the legal case "United States v. Ballard," the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the general principle that "the truth of religious claims is not for secular authority to determine."
0
25 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Saipan. 
0
25 Apr 1944 WW2 The Emsland concentration camps in Germany established the Kommandos Nord (Department North), which began to construct concentration camps in Norway north of the Arctic Circle; 1,404 prisoners were transferred there when completed. 
0
25 Apr 1944 WW2 Australian troops captured Madang, New Guinea. 
0
25 Apr 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops attacked Ningthoukhong, India. 
0
25 Apr 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler made his last major public appearance at Hans-Valentin Hube's funeral in Berlin, Germany. 
0
25 Apr 1944 WW2 George Patton was at a welcome club in Knutsford, England, United Kingdom as the guest of honor. Learning that his visit was supposed to be unofficial, he freely spoke of a post-war world in which the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union would together rule the world. A reporter carelessly missed writing down the Soviet Union, thus when the story was published several days later, it appeared as if Patton was disrespecting the Soviet Union. 
0
26 Apr 1944 WW2 Georgios Papandreou became the new Prime Minister of Greece after his predecessor resigned. 
0
26 Apr 1944 WW2 Pétain made his first and only visit to Paris, France to inspect damage from Allied bombings. 
0
26 Apr 1944 WW2 Heinrich Kreipe was kidnapped by British operatives at Archanes, Crete, Greece. 
0
26 Apr 1944 WW2 Prince Takahito's daughter Princess Yasuko was born. 
0
26 Apr 1944 WW2 Hamazasp Babadzhanian was made a Hero of the Soviet Union. 
0
26 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Franklin arrived at New York, New York, United States. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Truk and departed later on the same day. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Overseas civilian travel was banned by the British government. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 British Sergeant Norman Jackson's Lancaster bomber was attacked by a German nightfighter after a bombing run over Schweinfurt, Germany. As he observed that the starboard wing was on fire, he climbed outside with a parachute and a fire extinguisher. Holding on with one hand, he attempted to put out the fire while the aircraft traveled at 200 miles per hour at the altitude of 20,000 feet. He was eventually thrown off the aircraft as the German nightfighter returned for a second attack. He would survive the fall and would become captured. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki rescued survivors of sunken light cruiser Yubari. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Remy Van Lierde was assigned to No. 3 Squadron RAF, flying Tempest Mk. V fighters. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese cargo ship Akigawa Maru west of Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops attempted to attack the Japanese positions on the far side of the tennis court in Kohima, India. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Semyon Timoshenko was awarded the Order of Suvorov 1st Class for the third time. 
0
27 Apr 1944 WW2 Canadian and New Zealand prime ministers arrived in London, England, United Kingdom for the Imperial Conference. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 Yamato arrived at Manila, unloaded troops and supplies, and then departed. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young sortied from Manus, Admiralty Islands with Task Force 58 for carrier strikes in the Central Pacific. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 Frank Knox passed away. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 The keel of USS Tirante was laid down at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maine, United States. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 Slapton Sands Incident: German E-boats torpedoed American landing ships in amphibious exercises off of the Devon coast in England, United Kingdom, killing 198 sailors and 551 soldiers. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 Matsu was commissioned into service. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 26 B-24 bombers of the US 14th Air Force escorted by 10 P-51 fighters attacked Zhengzhou, Henan, China. Fighters of the Japanese 9th Sentai at nearby Xinxiang failed to react due to the faulty radar at Kaifeng. Storage warehouses, the Bawangcheng Bridge, and another nearby bridge on the Yellow River were damaged. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Iowa completed her escort mission for carriers off New Guinea, Dutch East Indies. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 A force of 4,000 Chinese troops, 1,400 American troops (Merrill's Marauders), and 600 Kachin scouts began marching for Myitkyina, Burma. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 Oberleutnant Wilhelm Johnen, Staffelkapitän of German night fighter Squadron 5./NJG 5, whilst chasing an RAF bomber strayed into Swiss airspace where he was hit by flak and forced to land at Dübendorf where his Messerschmitt Bf 110G-4B./R3, which was equipped with the latest Lichtenstein SN-2b radar, was interned by the Swiss authorities. Fearful that the top-secret radar (which was the Luftwaffe's answer to the Allies "Window" anti-radar system) might fall into the hands of the Allies, the Germans eventually traded twelve new Bf 109G fighters in exchange for a Swiss guarantee that the interned aircraft with its new radar would be completely destroyed. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-59 departed the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 The South African and Rhodesian prime ministers arrived in London, England, United Kingdom for the Imperial Conference. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Franklin entered New York Navy Yard, New York, United States for repairs. 
0
28 Apr 1944 WW2 Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd visited Franklin Roosevelt at Bernard Baruch's estate Hobcaw Barony near Georgetown, South Carolina, United States. 
0
29 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Tunny departed Brisbane, Australia for her sixth war patrol. 
0
29 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Parche attacked a Japanese convoy south of Taiwan and damaged one transport with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
29 Apr 1944 WW2 American troops captured the Japanese airfield at Hollandia, New Guinea. 
0
29 Apr 1944 WW2 After dark, Japanese troops launched a counterattack at Kohima, India. 
0
29 Apr 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Kure, Japan for Iwakuni, Japan. 
0
29 Apr 1944 WW2 Australian Prime Minister John Curtin arrived in London, England, United Kingdom for the Imperial Conference. 
0
29 Apr 1944 WW2 In England, United Kingdom, Dwight Eisenhower cabled Washington DC, United States, telling Marshall that he was pondering the notion of firing George Patton because "he simply does not keep his mouth shut", referring to the 25 Apr 1944 incident in which Patton spoke of his vision of a post-war world that, after being mis-quoted by a reporter, created another public relations row for Eisenhower's headquarters. 
0
29 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Barbero was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander Irvin S. Hartman in command. 
0
30 Apr 1944 WW2 USS Puffer departed Fremantle, Australia for her fourth war patrol. 
0
30 Apr 1944 RELIGIOUS English scholar J.R.R. Tolkien wrote in a letter: 'Evil labors with vast powers and perpetual success -- in vain: preparing always only the soil for unexpected good to sprout in. So it is in general, and so it is in our own lives.'
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01 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Palau and departed later on the same day. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 US Navy completed a two-day raid on Truk, which destroyed 120 Japanese aircraft. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 The first Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference began and would last until 16 May. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Australian Prime Minister John Curtin, New Zealand Prime Minister Peter Fraser, Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King, and South African Prime Minister Jan Smuts were in attendance. They would agree to support the Moscow Declaration and reached agreement regarding their respective roles in the overall Allied war effort. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 The Organizational Division of the German Prisoner of War Office reported that a total of 5,165,381 Soviet prisoners were in German captivity. 
0
01 May 1944 WW2 Submarine Macabi was laid down. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 Joseph Stalin justified taking the war into German borders by noting "ur tasks cannot be restricted by pushing the enemy out of our Motherland.... We must free our brothers from German Europe who have been conquered by Hitler's Germany." 
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01 May 1944 WW2 Yamato arrived at Lingga, Dutch East Indies south of Singapore. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Lingga, Dutch East Indies. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 British Squadron Leader Maurice Southgate, whose task it was to coordinate the various Marquis groups between the Loire River and the Pyrenees mountains, was arrested by the Gestapo in Paris, France. 
0
01 May 1944 WW2 USS Finback arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her eighth war patrol. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops attacked Crete West hill near Imphal, India. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 Italian Navy formed Divisione Decima (10th Division) with theoretical strength of 11 battalions; in actuality only 4 were operational at this time. 
0
01 May 1944 WW2 The newly formed Italian parachute regiment formally became a part of the Italian Air Force. 
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01 May 1944 WW2 Masafumi Arima was promoted to the rank of rear admiral. 
0
01 May 1944 WW2 Boris Shaposhnikov received the Medal for the Defense of Moscow. 
0
01 May 1944 WW2 The Yugoslavian partisan leader Tito's mission arrived in London, England, United Kingdom to discuss cooperation with the Allies and gained official recognition. 
0
01 May 1944 WW2 While in Britain, Robert Johnson was promoted to the rank of major. 
0
01 May 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet departed Key West, Florida, United States. 
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02 May 1944 WW2 54-year-old Leonard Dawe, a teacher, compiled a cross-puzzle which was published in the Daily Telegraph on this date. He was put under MI5 investigation as the crossword puzzle contained the code names of the American landing beaches in Normandy, France. 
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02 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: First mention made of Night Combat Training Unit. 
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02 May 1944 WW2 Nachi refueled from oiler Teiyo Maru at Ominato Guard District, Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
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02 May 1944 WW2 USS Whale made rendezvous with destroyer escort USS Fair. 
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02 May 1944 WW2 Two transports arrived at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp with 1,800 Jews from Budapest, Hungary and 2,000 from Topolya, Yugoslavia. 1,102 were registered into the camp, and the remaining 2,698 were sent to the gas chambers. 
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02 May 1944 WW2 Floating drydock USS ABSD-2 departed California, United States in 10 separate sections. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 Yamato was designated the flagship of Battleship Division 1 under Vice Admiral Matome Ugaki. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 Soemu Toyoda was named the commander-in-chief of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 USS Parche began pursuing a seven-ship Japanese convoy south of Taiwan spotted by wolfpack mate USS Tinosa. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse was relieved from lifeguard station duty in the Mariana Islands and set sail for Milne Bay, Australian Papua. 
0
03 May 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel started her fifth war patrol. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 USS Harder arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fourth war patrol. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 7 B-25 bombers of the Chinese-American Composite Wing attacked Japanese troop concentrations near Mihsien and Yueyang in Hunan, China and strafed the town of Hsiangcheng. On the same day, 10 P-40 fighters of the Chinese-American Composite Wing damaged the bridge on the Yellow River and destroyed 15 Japanese trucks northwest of Chenghsien near Luoyang, Henan, China. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 Indian 4th Brigade attacked GPT ridge near Kohima, India, which failed to capture all Japanese positions. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at Majuro, Marshall Islands, ending her seventh war patrol. 
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03 May 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower wrote George Patton a personal letter in which he informed Patton that Patton would be allowed to keep his post even after the public relations rows that Patton had created. 
0
03 May 1944 WW2 USS Golet arrived at Midway Atoll. 
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04 May 1944 WW2 The United States government lifted rationing for most types of meat. 
0
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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05 May 1944 WW2 Spain ceased export of Tungsten to Germany in exchange for American oil. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy 14th Air Fleet was reorganized to contain only one seaplane tender. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 The order for food transport ship Kusumi, the planned sister ship to Irako, was canceled. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 Six US Marine Corps PBJ bombers attacked Tobera, New Britain; one bomber was shot down by anti-aircraft fire. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Balikpapan, Dutch Borneo. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 Harold Alexander ordered for the preparation of Operation Buffalo, which called for an assault on Cisterna, Italy; Mark Clark, however, would modify this plan so that he could strike at Rome, Italy. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 Settsu was assigned to the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 Soviet Army began its assault on Sevastopol, Russia destroying German 17.Armee and taking 36,000 prisoners. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 Lavrentiy Beria was named the deputy chairman of the Soviet State Defense Committee (GKO) and the chairman of the Operational Bureau of the GKO. 
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05 May 1944 WW2 USS Franklin departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 Younger workers in the Lodz ghetto in Poland began a hunger strike in protest of the watery soup that made up the bulk of their daily food intake. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 In India, Mahatma Gandhi was released from imprisonment due to health reasons. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 British Army junior officer John Randle took out a Japanese machine gun position in Burma, then purposefully sacrificed himself to take out a bunker with a grenade. He was posthumously awarded a Victoria Cross. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 The A7M1 Reppu fighter took its first flight. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 During the day, 25 Japanese Zero fighters attacked Bishenpur, India. After sundown, Japanese troops attacked Tengnoupal, India. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Balikpapan, Dutch Borneo. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 USS Pompon departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her fifth war patrol. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ARGUS-17 departed. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 USS Miami arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 Soviet troops bombarded Sevastopol, Russia with Katyusha rocket launchers. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-59 arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
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06 May 1944 WW2 USS Pollack departed Midway Atoll for her tenth war patrol. 
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07 May 1944 WW2 1,500 bombers of the US 8th Air Force attacked Berlin, Germany. 
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07 May 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
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07 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Composite Squadron 28 (VC-28) arrived on board. 
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07 May 1944 WW2 During the day, Anglo-Indian troops attacked Jail Hill near Kohima, India, which was repelled by Japanese troops and suffered heavy losses. To the south, the British offensive from Imphal, India into Burma was called off after lack of success. After sundown, Japanese troops attacked Tengnoupal, India and overran some Allied defensive positions. 
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07 May 1944 WW2 USS Permit began lifeguard duty in the Caroline Islands. 
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07 May 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt arrived in Washington DC, United States. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 Eisenhower set the date for the cross-Channel invasion at 5 Jun 1944. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 USS Rock arrived at Majuro, Marshall Islands, ending her second war patrol. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 USS Hoe attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, damaging a tanker and a freigther with 2 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 USAAF fighter ace Robert Johnson scored his 27th victory, exceeding the 26 victories achieved by Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, making him the second-highest scoring American fighter pilot in Europe. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 Brigadier William Lentaigne, commander of the Chindit, flew to the front lines in Burma to meet with Michael Calvert, repeating the order to abandon the Broadway and White City sites of Operation Thursday in order to build a new forward base, Blackpool. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson flew his final mission, shooting down a Bf 109G aircraft and a Fw 190 aircraft over Celle, Germany. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Two officers and 97 men of ARGUS-8 arrived on board. Two officers and 91 men of ARGUS-7 arrived on board. Parts of Air Group 11 arrived on board. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 Nachi refueled from oiler Teiyo Maru in Kawauchi Bay, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 Rudolf Höss returned to Auschwitz Concentration Camp to supervise Aktion Höss, the extermination of 430,000 Hugarian Jews. 
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08 May 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga was commissioned at the Norfolk Navy Yard in Portsmouth, Virginia, United States with Dixie Kiefer in command. 
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09 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Ambon, Molucca Islands and departed later on the same day. 
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09 May 1944 WW2 108 prisoners of the Pithiviers Transit Camp in France were sent to La Rochelle, France to build fortifications at the mouth of the Gironde River on the Atlantic coast. 
0
09 May 1944 WW2 The Allies began an aerial campaign against airfields and rail lines in France in preparation for the cross-Channel invasion. 
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09 May 1944 WW2 USS Mingo arrived at Brisbane, Australia, ending her third war patrol. 
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09 May 1944 WW2 USS Makin Island was commissioned into service at Astoria, Oregon, United States with Commander William B. Whaley in command. 
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09 May 1944 WW2 USS Segundo was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander James D. Fulp, Jr. in command. 
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09 May 1944 WW2 Rudolf Höss returned to Auschwitz Concentration Camp and ordered the expansion of the rail platforms, the activation of Crematorium V, the reactivation of Bunker 2 (gas chamber), the digging of five pits, among other items, in preparation for the arrival of Hungarian Jews at Auschwitz. 
0
09 May 1944 WW2 Red Army recaptured Sevastopol, Russia. 
0
10 May 1944 WW2 USS Cod sank Japanese destroyer Karukaya and a cargo ship by torpedoes and survived a heavy depth charge barrage. 
0
10 May 1944 WW2 The French Resistance claimed a membership of over 100,000 and requested more military aid from the Allies. 
0
10 May 1944 WW2 Repair ship Akashi was removed from the Japanese Navy List. 
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10 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: More of ARGUS-17 departed. 
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10 May 1944 WW2 Japanese troops attacked Scraggy Hill near Imphal, India. 30 kilometers to the southwest, Bishenpur was attacked by a group of Japanese Zero fighters. 
0
10 May 1944 WW2 Aleksandr Vasilevsky was wounded in the head at Sevastopol, Russia after his car drove over a mine and was evacuated to Moscow, Russia for treatment. 
0
10 May 1944 WW2 Henry Arnold suffered his third heart attack. 
0
11 May 1944 WW2 Pressured by the respective governments, German authorities in Italy released from captivity Jews of Turkish, Spanish, Portuguese, Swiss, Swedish, and Finnish citizenship. 
0
11 May 1944 WW2 Chinese troops crossed the Salween River in Burma. 
0
11 May 1944 WW2 Japanese Navy devised Operation A-Go for the defense of the Mariana Islands; it would be launched in Jun 1944. 
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11 May 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived in the Mariana Islands. 
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11 May 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Saeki, Japan for Tawi-Tawi, Mindanao, Philippine Islands. 
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11 May 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse arrived at Brisbane, Australia, ending her fourth war patrol. 
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11 May 1944 WW2 Yamato departed from Lingga, Dutch East Indies for Tawi-Tawi, Philippine Islands with Mobile Fleet under Vice Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa. 
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11 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Composite Squadron 5 (VC-5) and Composite Squadron 10 (VC-10) on board. 
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11 May 1944 WW2 Operation Diadem, the fourth Allied attempt at attacking Cassino, Italy, was launched at 2300 hours with 1,660 artillery pieces firing on German defensive positions. Troops of US Fifth and British Eighth Armies advanced toward German positions behind the artillery barrage. 
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11 May 1944 WW2 USS Franklin transited through the Panama Canal. 
0
11 May 1944 WW2 German SS Sturmbannführer Richard Baer was appointed the commandant of Auschwitz I after his predecessor Liebehenschel was transferred to Majdanek Concentration Camp. 
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11 May 1944 WW2 German Luftwaffe units I./KG 55 and II./KG 55 were sent to Focsani, Romania; they would cover the evacuation by sea of the last German ground forces fighting in the Crimea region of Russia for the subsequent five days. 
0
12 May 1944 WW2 The German synthetic fuel plants at Brüx in southern Germany (post-war Most, Czechoslovakia) and Lüna-Merseburg, Lützkendorf, and Zeitz in eastern Germany were hit by 800 US bombers. 
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12 May 1944 WW2 Kamal Ram of Indian 8th Punjab Regiment single-handedly took out two German defensive positions and joined another against a third near the Gari River in Italy. Later in the same day, he charged at a house held by the Germans, capturing two and killing one. He was later awarded the Victoria Cross, with King George VI pinning the medal onto his uniform in Jul 1944. 
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12 May 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops counterattacked at Tengnoupal, India, regaining territory lost during the Japanese attacks between 6 and 8 May 1944. 
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12 May 1944 WW2 Shokaku departed Lingga, Dutch East Indies for the Tawi-Tawi anchorage in the Philippine Islands. 
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12 May 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Lingga, Dutch East Indies. 
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12 May 1944 WW2 Near Cassino, Italy, engineers of Indian 8th Division successfully established a bridge to allow tanks of Canadian 1st Armoured Brigade to cross the Rapido River, while Polish troops engaged in fierce fighting with troops of German 1st Parachute Division at Point 593. 
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12 May 1944 WW2 39 German Sinti children, 20 boys and 19 girls, arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp. They were separated from their parents as a part of Eva Justin's dissertation "The fate of Gypsy children and their offspring raised in alien environments". She became a professor at Berlin University in 1943 and the paper was published in 1944. 
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12 May 1944 WW2 The remains of German 17.Armee surrendered in the Crimea in Russia. 
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12 May 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
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13 May 1944 WW2 US destroyer escort USS Francis M. Robinson of Task Group 22.2 sank Japanese submarine RO-501, formerly German submarine U-1224, off the Cape Verde islands, killing the entire crew of 52 including Lieutenant Commander Norita Sadatoshi. RO-501 had a cargo of mercury, lead, steel, aluminum drawings, optical glass, IXC-type submarine blueprints, and Me 163A Komet jet fighter blue prints on board. USS Francis M. Robinson would later receive the Presidential Unit Citation for this action. 
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13 May 1944 WW2 Major Wolfgang Späte, in a Me 163 jet aircraft launched from Bad Zwischenahn in northern Germany, pursued two USAAF P-47 fighters. Mechanical problems with the aircraft cause Späte to eventually lose contact with the US fighters. 
0
13 May 1944 WW2 Japanese troops attacked Luoyang, China. 
0
13 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Surabaya, Java. 
0
13 May 1944 WW2 By this date, Anglo-Indian troops had control of Jail Hill, GPT ridge, and FSD ridge near Kohima, India. 
0
13 May 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Ponte Sant'Angelo and Castelforte, Italy. 
0
14 May 1944 WW2 Yamato arrived at Tawi-Tawi, where she would remain for gunnery drills at range of nearly 22 miles with sister ship Musashi through Jun 1944. 
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14 May 1944 WW2 Musashi arrived at Tawi Tawi, where she would remain for gunnery drills at range of nearly 22 miles with sister ship Yamato through Jun 1944. 
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14 May 1944 WW2 Luftwaffe Leutnant August Lambert was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross medal for 90 kills. Of the nearly 250 Soviet aircraft shot down by II/SG2 during the Gruppe's six-month defence of the Crimea region in Ukraine, more than a third had fallen to Lambert's guns. 
0
14 May 1944 WW2 1st Anti-Fascist Partisan Brigade commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Vladimir Gil, who was also known as I. G. Rodionov, was killed in action. 
0
14 May 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Marcus and Wake Islands. 
0
14 May 1944 WW2 Heinrich Kreipe and his captors were picked up by a British ship at near Rodakino, Crete, Greece. 
0
14 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Grading for the foundation began on the engine overhaul facility. 
0
14 May 1944 WW2 French Moroccan colonial troops outflanked German defenses in the Liri River valley in Italy. 
0
15 May 1944 WW2 Shokaku arrived at Tawi-Tawi, Philippine Islands. 
0
15 May 1944 WW2 Hungarian Jews began to be deported to Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland. 
0
15 May 1944 WW2 Hans Speidel arranged a meeting between Erwin Rommel and anti-Hitler conspirators, but he would ultimately attend on his stead. 
0
15 May 1944 WW2 The Chinese-American-Kachin force outside of Myitkyina, Burma transmitted the code phrase "strawberry sundae", signifying that it was in position to strike the Japanese-occupied city. 
0
15 May 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Tawi-Tawi, Philippine Islands. 
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15 May 1944 WW2 Over the following three days, about 7,500 prisoners of the Theresienstadt Concentration Camp in occupied Czechoslovakia were transferred to the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland; part of the reason was to relieve Theresienstadt's overcrowded condition in preparation of a visit by the International Red Cross and the Danish Red Cross in the following month. 
0
15 May 1944 WW2 US Navy 127th Construction Battalion relieved the 48th Construction Battalion in the work to build aviation gasoline facilities at Maui, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
15 May 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops pushed Japanese troops out of Potsangbam, 2 miles south of Bishenpur, India. To the north near Kohima, Indian 33rd Brigade captured Treasury Hill with little Japanese opposition. 
0
15 May 1944 WW2 British 78th Division joined in on the attack of Cassino, Italy as German troops withdrew from Gustav Line to Hitler Line 30 miles to the south of Rome, Italy. 
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15 May 1944 WW2 Anti-submarine hunter-killer Task Group 22.3 departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States with Escort Carrier USS Guadalcanal as flagship and Captain Daniel V. Gallery in command. The remainder of the Task Group consisted of Destroyer Escorts, USS Pillsbury, USS Pope, USS Flaherty, USS Chatelain, and USS Jenks. 
0
16 May 1944 WW2 USS Sea Cat was commissioned into service. 
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16 May 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Tawi-Tawi, Mindanao, Philippine Islands. 
0
16 May 1944 WW2 Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel issued Adolf Hitler's directive for Operation Kirshkern ("Cherry Stone") to commence the bombardment of England, United Kingdom by long-range weapons. 
0
16 May 1944 WW2 USS Pintado departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
16 May 1944 WW2 Major General Nobuo Tanaka ordered a two-pronged offensive toward Bishenpur and the plains near Imphal in India. 
0
16 May 1944 WW2 British fusilier Frank Jefferson used a PIAT anti-tank launcher to destroy a German Panzer IV tank along the Gustav Line in Italy, which led to his unit repulsing a German counterattack which was spearheaded by the tank. He would later be awarded the Victoria Cross for this action. 
0
16 May 1944 WW2 A transport of Jews from Hungary arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland. Adolf Eichmann, in charge of all transports to the camps, arrived to oversee and speed up the extermination process personally. 
0
17 May 1944 WW2 USS Hoe damaged a Japanese freighter with 1 of 5 torpedoes fired. 
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17 May 1944 WW2 USS Tunny received reports of a Japanese convoy from USS Sand Lance and intercepted the 3-ship and 3-destroyer convoy just after sunset in the Mariana Islands. She launched three torpedoes each against two cargo ships, sinking Nichiwa Maru. She endured a counterattack consisted of 81 depth charges, suffering no damage. 
0
17 May 1944 WW2 USS Astoria was commissioned into service with Captain George Dye in command. 
0
17 May 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander F. Worth Scanland, Jr. in command. 
0
17 May 1944 WW2 The Japanese attack on the Blackpool site of Operation Thursday in Burma was repulsed. On the same day, William Slim handed operational control of the Chindits over to Joseph Stilwell. 
0
17 May 1944 WW2 American, Chinese, and Kachin troops began the assault on Myitkyina, Burma. The attack began at 1000 hours, and by 1050 the airfield was captured. 
0
17 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Surabaya, Java. 
0
17 May 1944 WW2 German troops evacuated Cassino, Italy. Meanwhile, the French penetration of the Gustav Line reached 25 miles. Nearby, Polish troops launched what was to become the final attack on Monte Cassino. 
0
18 May 1944 WW2 Allied bombers conducted a raid on Belgrade, Yugoslavia. 
0
18 May 1944 WW2 USS Puffer attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, firing 9 torpedoes, 2 of which hit and sank freighter Shinryu Maru. 
0
18 May 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops attacked Japanese positions at Ninthoukgong, India. 
0
18 May 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell arrived at the Myitkyina airfield in Burma just a day after the airfield was captured, congratulating Frank Merrill in advance for the capture of the rest of the city, which he believed would be achieved within days. Later on the same day, Merrill dispatched a Chinese unit to attack the city; the attack was called off when two Chinese battalions mistakenly engaged each other in a fierce firefight. 
0
18 May 1944 WW2 The Buckley-class destroyer-escort USS England (Commander W. B. Pendleton) attacked and sank Japanese submarine I-16, the first of six enemy submarines to be sunk by USS England over a twelve-day period. 
0
18 May 1944 WW2 British 78th Division linked up with the Polish Corps in the Liri River valley 3.2 kilometers west of Cassino, Italy. Later on the same day, Polish troops captured the ruins of the Monte Cassino monastery. 
0
18 May 1944 WW2 Kichisaburo Nomura was made a Privy Councillor. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Singapore. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 James Forrestal became the Secretary of the Navy of the United States. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 Joel Brand of the Hungarian Zionist Relief and Rescue Committee and Gestapo Agent Bandi Grosz (alias Andre Gyorgy) arrived in Istanbul, Turkey to deliver a message for the Allied powers: Germany would spare the lives of 700,000 Hungarian Jews if the Allies would provide Germany with 10,000 trucks, 2 million bars of soap, 800 tons of coffee, 200 tons of cocoa, and 800 tons of tea. The British government concluded that it was a German scheme to install suspicion in the Soviet Union toward the Western Allies. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 USS Hoe claimed damaging a Japanese ship and sinking another after scoring 2 torpedoes on each of the ships; a total of 10 torpedoes were fired. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 An Anglo-Indian attack on Naga, India was repulsed with heavy casualties. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 Three Chinese battalions attacked each other in confusion while assaulting Myitkyina, Burma. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 Frank Merrill suffered another heart attack. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 USS Parche attacked a Japanese trawler with her deck gun, scoring no hits. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 I. von Heider was named the civilian administrator of the Channel Islands. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 British troops captured the airfield at Aquino outside of Rome, Italy. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 French Moroccan colonial troops plundered villages near Cassino, Italy. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 "Barbarigo" naval infantry battalion of Italian Navy reported a strength of 714 men. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions in support of the upcoming Mariana Islands invasion. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 USS Franklin arrived at San Diego, California, United States. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island embarked aircraft on the west coast of the United States for ferrying to the South Pacific. 
0
19 May 1944 WW2 Submarine Spot was launched at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California, United States, sponsored by Mrs. A. A. Gieselmann. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 Eisenhower addressed French Resistance groups via a broadcast in preparation for the planned cross-Channel invasion. On the same day, 5,000 Allied bombers conducted coordinated strikes against many rail targets and 9 airfields in France and Belgium. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 Members of the Polish underground captured a top secret V2 rocket intact. Since the Germans set up a test site at Bliza, Poland, the underground had operated a chain of small units responsible for bearing the Germans to the sites of crashed test rockets and salvaging whatever they could before the soldiers arrived. One V2 landed in a marsh close to the banks of the River Bug 80 miles east of Warsaw. The resistance got there first and found it sticking out of the mud. They pushed it deeper into the water to hide it and later dismantled the missile and flew vital parts to England, United Kingdom via an RAF Dakota aircraft. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 USS Gar began her twelfth war patrol. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 Destroyer USS Taussig (DD-746) was commissioned with Commander Joseph A. Robbins in command. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 USS Baya was commissioned into service with Commander A. H. Holtz in command. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 Iceland began a four-day plebiscite on whether to terminate the personal union with the King of Denmark and establish a republic. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 Japanese troops evacuated the forward-most positions near Imphal, India. Meanwhile, a bloody clash took place between Japanese and Anglo-Indian troops at Torbung. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 US Fifth Army captured Gaeta, Italy. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions in support of the upcoming Mariana Islands invasion. 
0
20 May 1944 WW2 USS Pintado arrived at Midway Atoll. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler ordered downed Allied airmen to be shot without trial. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops captured Kanglatongbi, India. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 USS Ray began pursuing a nine-ship Japanese convoy south of the Philippine Islands. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 USS Flier completed her repairs and resumed her first war patrol. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 USS Cero damaged a Japanese transport north of Dutch New Guinea, hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 24 TBF, 20 SBD, a number of B-24, a number of P-39, and a number of New Zealand fighters and dive bombers attacked Vunakanau Airfield at Rabaul, New Britain. 1 TBF aircraft was shot down by anti-aircraft fire, and its crew was captured by the Japanese. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 An explosion on a LST moored in Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii set off a chain reaction that caused massive damage to shipping and installations and heavy loss of life. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 USS Wasp set sail for Wake Island. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 Four trains arrived at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland with 12,438 Hungarian Jews (3,013 from Viseu de Sus (Felsövisó), 3,274 from Nyiregyháza, 3,290 from Sátoraljaújhely, and 2,861 from Mukacevo (Munkács)) and 2,000 Jews from Yugoslavia. 1,102 were registered into the camp; 2,698 were sent to the gas chambers. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 Submarine Boarfish was launched at Groton, Connecticut, United States, sponsored by Miss Barbara Walsh, daughter of Senator Arthur Walsh of the US state of New Jersey. 
0
21 May 1944 WW2 USS Pintado departed Midway Atoll. 
0
21 May 1944 RELIGIOUS German Lutheran theologian and Nazi martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in a letter from prison: 'God alone protects; otherwise there is nothing.'
0
22 May 1944 WW2 U-530 departed Lorient, France for Trinidad. Aboard, she carried a Naxos radar detector to be given to the Japanese when she was to meet with Japanese submarine I-52. 
0
22 May 1944 WW2 USS Trepang was commissioned into service. 
0
22 May 1944 WW2 Lieutenant Colonel Francis Gabreski of US 56th Fighter Group shot down three German Focke-Wulf Fw.190 aircraft in one day. 
0
22 May 1944 WW2 USS Pollack attacked a Japanese convoy in the Pacific Ocean, sinking destroyer Asanagi and damaging a freighter; ten torpedoes were expended in this tatack. 
0
22 May 1944 WW2 USS Puffer attacked a Japanese carrier in the South China Sea, firing 6 torpedoes and claiming 1 hit. 
0
22 May 1944 WW2 Lieutenant Kenneth Elliot Meredith was named the commanding officer of HMCS Trillium. 
0
22 May 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze suffered minor propeller damage when it accidentally struck a reef near Tawi-Tawi, Philippine Islands. 
0
22 May 1944 WW2 USS Ray attacked a nine-ship Japanese convoy south of the Philippine Islands with seven torpedoes, scoring five hits; Tempei Maru was sunk and two other ships were damaged. A short moment later, she fired another torpedo from a stern tube, damaging another ship. 
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22 May 1944 WW2 In a Daily Telegraph crossword puzzle the word "Omaha" appeared as one of the answers. This caused considerable consternation among Allied invasion planners as "Omaha" was the codename for the French beach due to be assaulted by the US 1st Division on D-Day. 
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22 May 1944 RELIGIOUS The Gospel Mission of South America was founded by William M. Strong in Concepcion, Chile. An interdenominational Protestant missions agency, its headquarters moved to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida in 1975.
0
23 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Singapore. 
0
23 May 1944 WW2 Muriel Byck passed away. 
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23 May 1944 WW2 General Hans Cramer, last commander of the German Afrika Korps, was repatriated due to ill health; before he departed Britain, he was shown evidence of the massive Allied build-up, but was misinformed as to the location of these forces; when he was later debriefed in Berlin, Germany, this misinformation helped deceive the Germans as to the actual target of the invasion. On the same day Cramer was repatriated, a single USAAF B-24 bomber ("Lorelei" 41-29300), escorted by eight P-51 fighters, loaded with the new top-secret Azon bombs successfully destroyed four bridges leading into Normandie, France; Lieutenant Colonel F. M. O'Neil (commanding officer of 753rd Squadron) and Captain Fred DeNeffe were the mission pilots; the entire crew was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. 
0
23 May 1944 WW2 USS Ray fired ten torpedoes at two radar contacts south of the Philippine Islands, sinking one ship and damaging another with six torpedo hits. 
0
23 May 1944 WW2 USS Cero attacked a Japanese convoy off the Palau Islands, sinking a freighter and damaging a tanker, hitting them with 4 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
23 May 1944 WW2 Troops of Polish II Corps and Canadian 1st Infantry Division attacked Piedimonte, Italy. 
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23 May 1944 WW2 Three US and two British divisions launched a new assault out of the Anzio, Italy beachhead at dawn, inflicting heavy casualties on German formations but also suffering similarly. 
0
23 May 1944 WW2 USS Permit damaged a Japanese ship in the Pacific Ocean with her deck gun. 
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23 May 1944 WW2 Four trains arrived at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland with 12,674 Hungarian Jews (3,023 from Viseu de Sus (Felsovisó), 3,272 from Nyiregyháza, 3,269 from Mukacevo (Munkács), and 3,110 from Oradea (Nagyvárad)). 5 women were registered into the camp; 12,669 were sent to the gas chambers. 
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23 May 1944 WW2 USS Parche arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her first war patrol. 
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24 May 1944 WW2 British Prime Minister Churchill formally announced that Spain would not be a target of the forthcoming Allied invasion on continental western Europe. 
0
24 May 1944 WW2 SS official Adolf Eichmann's office in Budapest reported that 116,000 Hungarian Jews had already been deported, and another 200,000 were awaiting deportation, most of which were from Carpatho-Ruthenia and Transylvania. 
0
24 May 1944 WW2 A transport of 859 prisoners from the Pawiak prison in Warsaw, Poland arrived at Stutthof Concentration Camp. 
0
24 May 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla damaged a Japanese ship east of Borneo, hitting her with 1 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
24 May 1944 WW2 Japanese troops penetrated Chindit defense lines near the Blackpool site in Burma. 
0
24 May 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish attempted to attack a Japanese convoy; all 4 torpedoes fired missed. She was detected and was subjected to a depth charge counterattack. 
0
24 May 1944 WW2 Iceland's four-day plebiscite ended; the result would show that 97% of the population wished to terminate the personal union with the King of Denmark, and 95% of the population wished to establish a new republic. 
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24 May 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Gibraltar Hill and attacked Lone Tree Hill near Imphal, India. To the north at Kohima, Indian 7th Division began an offensive against Dyer Hill, Pimple Hill, and Big Tree Hill. 
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24 May 1944 WW2 US forces captured Terracina, Italy. 
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24 May 1944 WW2 The German Senger Line south of Rome, Italy was breached by troops of Canadian 1st Infantry Division, Canadian 5th Armoured Division, and II Polish Corps. 
0
24 May 1944 WW2 Inigo Campioni was executed by firing squad in Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. 
0
24 May 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Wake Island. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 Germans launched combined ground-airborne assault on Tito's headquarters in Drvar, Bosnia, Yugoslavia. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 Submarine Sea Robin was launched, sponsored by the wife of US Navy Captain Homer Ambrose, the production superintendent at the Portsmouth Navy Yard in Kittery, Maine, United States where the submarine was built. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 USS Pollack fired four torpedoes at a Japanese destroyer in the Pacific Ocean; all torpedoes missed. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 Chindit forces abandoned the Blackpool site in Burma. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish sank a Japanese transport and damaged another transport at dawn off the Philippine Islands, hitting them with 4 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 William Halsey gave a farewell speech to SOPAC personnel at Emirau, Bismarck Islands. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Luoyang, China. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 US 3rd Division captured Cisterna, Italy after house-to-house fighting, nearly wiping out 362nd Infantry Division in the process; nearby, US 1st Armored Division engaged German Herman Göring Division at Valmontone while US Fifth Army troops linked up with the Anzio contingent. At the end of the day, Mark Clark ordered Lucian Truscott to turn north toward Rome without informing Harold Alexander. 
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25 May 1944 WW2 Polish troops captured Piedimonte, Italy. 
0
26 May 1944 WW2 To the dismay of Roosevelt and Churchill, de Gaulle proclaimed the Free French movement to be the "Provisional Government of the French Republic"; de Gaulle received recognition from most Allied governments, but this caused him to be left out of the planning for Operation Overlord. 
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26 May 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler delivered a speech at Der Platterhof hotel in Obersalzberg, Germany, justifying the continuation of the war. 
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26 May 1944 WW2 The first Australian-built Beaufighter Mk.21 aircraft (A9-1) made its maiden flight. 364 aircraft would be built by the Mascot and Fishermen's Bend factories by the end of 1945. 
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26 May 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla attacked a Japanese convoy in the Dutch East Indies with six torpedoes; four of them struck and sank a transport. 
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26 May 1944 WW2 USS Harder departed Fremantle, Australia for her fifth war patrol. 
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26 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Housing for gunairstructors, 3 quonset huts, turned over to station. 
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26 May 1944 WW2 After US 1st Armored Division had already been ordered north toward Rome, Italy, Mark Clark belatedly reported to Harold Alexander such a change in orders; he left only 1 division to attack the remaining German forces at Valmontone. In the area, US troops captured Cori. 
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26 May 1944 WW2 USS Permit claimed the sinking of a Japanese submarine off Truk, Carolin Islands, hitting her with 1 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
27 May 1944 WW2 The first Shinyo special attack boats were completed. 
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27 May 1944 WW2 USS Becuna was commissioned into service, Lieutenant Commander H. D. Sturr in command. 
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27 May 1944 WW2 Brigadier William Lentaigne ordered Michael Calvert to capture Mogaung, Burma by 5 Jun 1944. 
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27 May 1944 WW2 Hans Speidel, Konstantin von Neurath, and Karl Stroelin met at Stroelin's home in Freudenstadt, Germany to discuss the overthrow of Adolf Hitler. They concluded that Erwin Rommel was the ideal candidate to be the interim head of Germany or as the chief of the Germany military after Hitler's death as the Western Allies were more likely to negotiate peace with him than any of the officials in Berlin. They believed that a united European front could be formed to fight against Bolshevism. 
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27 May 1944 WW2 Italian "Folgore" parachute regiment reported a strength of 1,200 Italians and 130 Germans. 
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27 May 1944 WW2 In a Daily Telegraph crossword puzzle the word "Overlord" appeared as one of the answers. This caused considerable consternation among Allied invasion planners as "Overlord" was the codename for the whole D-Day operation. 
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28 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Manila, Philippine Islands. 
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28 May 1944 WW2 USAAF again bombed the synthetic oil plant at Lüne-Merseburg in eastern Germany. 
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28 May 1944 WW2 Submarine Charr was launched, sponsored by Mrs. William Orkney. 
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28 May 1944 WW2 USS Pompon attacked a Japanese transport south of Japan; all 3 torpedoes missed. 
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28 May 1944 WW2 British entertainer Noël Coward arrived in Ceylon aboard destroyer HMS Rapid. 
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28 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Parts of Air Group 18 on board. 
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28 May 1944 WW2 USS Whale departed Majuro, Marshall Islands for her eighth war patrol; destroyer USS Cassin escorted her out to sea. 
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28 May 1944 WW2 USS Golet departed Midway Atoll with Lieutenant James S. Clark as her new commanding officer. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 Taking advantage of their range, US bombers began hitting Marienburg and Posen in eastern Germany. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 The escort carrier USS Block Island was torpedoed by a German U-boat while on anti-submarine patrol near the Azores. This was the first and only US Navy Aircraft Carrier to be lost in the Atlantic Ocean. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 The Anglo-Indian attack on Ninthoukgong, India was halted after capturing the northern half of the town. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Air Group 28 arrived on board. Part of CASU-48, CASU-49, arrived on board. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 US 1st Armored Division engaged German defensive positions of the Caesar C Line south of Rome, Italy. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki arrived at Sasebo, Japan for refitting. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 Nachi refueled from oiler Teiyo Maru in Kawauchi Bay, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 USS Whale released destroyer USS Cassin from escort duty off Majuro, Marshall Islands. 
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29 May 1944 WW2 USS Permit damaged a Japanese transport between Caroline Islands and Mariana Islands, hitting her with 1 of 8 torpedoes fired. 
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29 May 1944 RELIGIOUS German Lutheran theologian and Nazi martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in a letter: 'We are to find God in what we know, not in what we don't know; God wants us to realize His presence, not in unsolved problems, but in those that are solved.'
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30 May 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Manila, Philippine Islands. 
0
30 May 1944 WW2 Royal Sovereign was decommissioned from service. 
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30 May 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro sank the heavily-escorted cargo ship Shisen Maru off Taiwan, hitting her with two of the three torpedoes fired. 
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30 May 1944 WW2 USS Finback completed refitting at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii and departed for her ninth war patrol. 
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30 May 1944 WW2 USS Pompon sank cargo ship Shiga Maru off Murotosaki, Shikoku, Japan, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
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30 May 1944 WW2 Major General Nobuo Tanaka canceled his offensive in the Imphal region in India after incurring heavy losses. To the north at Kohima, the Indian 7th Division assault on Dyer Hill, Pimple Hill, and Big Tree Hill, which began on 24 May, was repulsed with heavy casualties. 
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30 May 1944 WW2 British troops captured Arce, Italy; US 36th Infantry Division penetrated between German 1st Parachute Corps and LXXVI Panzer Corps on the Caesar C Line. Also on this day, after seven German divisions successfully withdraw along Route 6 in Italy, Albert Kesselring allowed his troops in the Velletri gap to slowly fall back. 
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30 May 1944 WW2 In a Daily Telegraph crossword puzzle the word "Mulberry" appeared as one of the answers. This caused considerable consternation among Allied invasion planners as "Mulberry" was the codename for the floating harbours and facilities to be used during the invasion landings in France. 
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31 May 1944 WW2 Stalin approved the plan for Operation Bagration, aimed at the destruction of German Armeegruppe Mitte. 
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31 May 1944 WW2 USS Pintado began tracking a Japanese convoy in the Philippine Sea. 
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31 May 1944 WW2 A German counterattack near Iasi, Romania was repulsed. 
0
01 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Cod arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her third war patrol. 
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01 Jun 1944 WW2 The US submarine Herring was reported lost in the Kurile Islands, presumed sunk by Japanese shore batteries on Matua Island, whilst on patrol near Matsuwa Island. 
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01 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Pintado fired six torpedoes at a Japanese convoy in the Philippine Sea, scoring several hits, sinking Toho Maru and damaging another. 
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01 Jun 1944 WW2 In his diary, William Slim privately complained of Louis Mountbatten's lack of vision and Henry Pownall's laziness. 
0
01 Jun 1944 WW2 US Brigadier General Haydon L. Boatner was appointed to command the Myitkyina Task Force in Burma. 
0
01 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Permit completed lifeguard duty in the Caroline Islands. 
0
01 Jun 1944 WW2 British troops captured Frosinone, Italy. 
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01 Jun 1944 WW2 In a Daily Telegraph crossword puzzle the solution to 15 Down was "Neptune", the codename for the D-Day naval assault. 
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01 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Franklin departed San Diego, California, United States. 
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01 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill departed Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States. 
0
02 Jun 1944 WW2 The Bulgarian government approached the Western Allies for terms of surrender. 
0
02 Jun 1944 WW2 US launched Operation Frantic, its first shuttle bombing operation. 130 15th Air Force B-17 bombers were launched from Tripoli, Libya to bomb Debrecen, Hungary and to land in Ukraine. 
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02 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Hoe arrved at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fourth war patrol. 
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02 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro sank frigate Awaii off Taiwan in the early morning, hitting her with three of the six torpedoes fired. At the end of the day, she claimed sinking a Japanese destroyer, hitting her with one of the two torpedoes fired. 
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02 Jun 1944 WW2 Shunroku Hata was promoted to the rank of field marshal. 
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02 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Cero arrived at Seeadler Harbor, Manus, Admiralty Islands, ending her fourth war patrol. 
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02 Jun 1944 WW2 7 P-40N fighters of the 7th fighter Squadron of the Chinese-American Composite Wing attacked the Japanese airfield at Zhengzhou, Henan, China. 7 Ki-44 fighters of the Japanese 9th Sentai rose to intercept, shooting down 5. One Ki-44 fighter was shot down over Bawangcheng. 
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02 Jun 1944 WW2 Typhoon fighter-bombers of No. 98 and No. 609 Squadrons RAF attacked and destroyed the enemy radar station at Dieppe/Caudecotein France as an important prelude to the Normandy Invasion; this installation would have given the Germans advance warning of the Allied invasion fleet.  
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02 Jun 1944 WW2 Major General Nobuo Tanaka ordered a final attack at Imphal, India despite overwhelming odds. Near Kohima to the north, Japanese troops evacuated from the village of Naga. 
0
02 Jun 1944 WW2 Allied forces overran the German Caesar C Line south of Rome, Italy; Adolf Hitler ordered Albert Kesselring that the Italian capital would be abandoned. 
0
02 Jun 1944 WW2 Secret peace talks began between Romania and the Soviet Union in Stockholm, Sweden. 
0
02 Jun 1944 WW2 Two midget submarines (X-20 and X-23) set off from England, United Kingdom to sail submerged across the English Channel to the French Normandy coast where they would position themselves ready to guide the invasion fleet with coloured lights as navigation beacons. 
0
02 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Escolar was commissioned into service with Commander W. J. Millican in command. 
0
03 Jun 1944 WW2 RAF aircraft conducted raids in the Pas-de-Calais and Cherbourg areas of France. 
0
03 Jun 1944 WW2 US XIII Bomber Command established its headquarters at Momote Airfield, Los Negros Island, Admiralty Islands. 
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03 Jun 1944 WW2 Engineers at Curtiss-Wright published an internal memorandum noting the defects of the current generation of SB2C Helldiver aircraft (bell cranks might break during high speed dives) but the company failed to address the issue even for the aircraft built but not yet delivered to the US Navy. A number of aviators would be killed or injured due to this defect for the next month to come or perhaps longer due to this defect. 
0
03 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla sank a Japanese coastal patrol boat with her deck gun off Borneo. 
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03 Jun 1944 WW2 Louis Mountbatten received the latest orders from the Anglo-American combined chiefs; to his disappointment, there was not to be any amphibious operations in Burma, and instead focus was to be placed on China. Mountbatten would decide to disobey the orders and instead planned on ground offensives from India into Burma. 
0
03 Jun 1944 WW2 Albert Kesselring declared Rome, Italy an open city. 
0
03 Jun 1944 WW2 Auschwitz II-Birkenau camp's electric fence, which had previously been turned off during the daylight hours to save energy, was now on throughout the entire day in response to the numerous escape attempts by Hungarian Jews. On the same day, four transports brought 11,569 Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz (2,937 from Nagyszölös (Vinogradov), 2,499 from Kassa Kosice, 2,972 from Nagyvárad (Oradea), and 3,161 from Szilágysomló (Simleu Silvaniei)). 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy, France, was postponed due to weather. Meanwhile, RAF bombers struck German coastal fortifications along the French coast. 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Pintado helped in the wolfpack attack against a Japanese convoy in the Philippine Sea, but did not earn any sinkings during the attack. 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla sank a Japanese coastal patrol boat with her deck gun off Borneo. 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Flier attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, sinking transport Hakusan Maru and damaging another ship; 6 torpedoes were expended in this attack, 3 of which scored hits. 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Guadalcanal's anti-submarine hunter-killer group with Captain Daniel V. Gallery in command captured the German U-505 in-tact, including all code books, two Enigma machines, and two Zaunkönig acoustically-guided torpedoes. One German crew member was killed in the initial attack but all others, including the U-Boat commander Oberleutnant-zur-See Harald Lange, were captured. The U-Boat was taken under tow bound for Bermuda. This was the US Navy's first capture of an enemy warship on the high seas since the War of 1812. The US leader of the initial boarding party, Lieutenant (jg) Albert L. David, was awarded the Medal of Honor. 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 Two replacement battalions for Galahad arrived at Myitkyina, Burma direct from the United States, but not being acclimatized proved of little immediate value. 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of CASU-48 departed. 
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04 Jun 1944 WW2 Mark Clark and the US 5th Army entered Rome, Italy unopposed; Clark immediately held a press conference on the steps of the Town Hall on the Capitoline Hill. Some fellow Allied generals thought Clark had failed to trap the German 10th Army. Nearby, the Italian motor torpedo boat base at Terracina was evacuated. 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Sasebo, Japan. 
0
04 Jun 1944 WW2 The work to construct two prototypes of the J7W1 Shinden short-range interceptor fighter commenced at the aircraft factory at Zasshonokuma in Fukuoka, Japan. 
0
05 Jun 1944 WW2 The first B-29 combat mission was flown from Kharagpur, British India to Bangkok, Thailand; the worst problem was an unexpected tropical storm. 
0
05 Jun 1944 WW2 Józef Beck passed away. 
0
05 Jun 1944 WW2 Erwin Rommel noted to Gerd von Rundstedt that there was no sign of an Allied invasion on the French coast. 
0
05 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Puffer sank Japanese tankers Ashizuri and Takasaki in the South China Sea, hitting them all 7 of the torpedoes fired. 
0
05 Jun 1944 WW2 The British government issued a protest to the Japanese Foreign Ministry, via the Swiss Foreign Ministry, over the brutal treatment by Japanese submariners toward survivors of their conquests. The British demanded "immediate instructions to prevent the repetition of similar atrocities and to take disciplinary action against those responsible". 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 130,000 to 150,000 Allied troops, roughly half American and half British and Commonwealth, invaded the beaches of Normandy, France; it was the largest amphibious operation. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 Allied bombers conducted a raid on Belgrade, Yugoslavia. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Pintado ten torpedoes against a Japanese convoy in the Philippine Sea, sinking Havre Maru and Kashimasan Maru. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 British Company Sergeant-Major Stanley Hollis, using a PIAT launcher, took down several German pillboxes and a field gun during the Normandy invasion in France and was credited for saving the lives of many men. He was awarded the Victoria Cross, the only awarded for actions on the initial day of the invasion. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending first war patrol. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 French troops captured Tivoli, Italy. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Harder attempted to attack a Japanese convoy in the Sibutu Passage between Tawi-Tawi of Philippine Islands and Borneo, but was in turn targeted by two destroyers. Submerging and sailing away from the convoy, Harder fired three torpedoes out of her stern torpedo tubes, hitting destroyer Minazuki twice, sinking her. She fired another spread of torpedoes at the second destroyer shortly after; all six torpedoes missed. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Wasp was assigned to US Navy Task Group 58.2. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 The Davao Penal Colony on Mindanao, Philippine Islands was closed; the American and Filipino prisoners were transferred to Cebu island. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 Submarine Sennet was launched at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maine, United States, sponsored by the wife of Roscoe W. Downs. 
0
06 Jun 1944 WW2 Robert Johnson returned to the United States. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 British Air Vice Marshal W. Elliot took over command of the new Balkan Air Force tasked with providing air support to Tito's partisans in Yugoslavia. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 British troops captured Bayeux, France. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 British Flying Officers McIntosh and Shepherd, the rear-gunner and mid-upper gunner respectively in Wing Commander John Grey's Lancaster bomber, combined to shoot down three German night-fighters during the course of a mission to Normandy, France. They would both be awarded the Distinguished Flying Crosses for this almost unique achievement. McIntosh would survive the war with eight confirmed and one probable kills to his credit. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 HMS Rodney collided with LCT 427 off Normandie, France, killing 13 British Royal Navy personnel. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 On the morning after the D-day landings, police raid a brothel that French prostitutes had established in a wrecked landing craft. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Pollack arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her tenth war patrol. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian and Japanese troops engaged in a bloody clash at Ninthoukgong, India. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 US troops captured Civitavecchia, Italy. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Whale attacked a Japanese convoy in the Pacific Ocean, damaging two transports, hitting them with 3 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Harder was detected by a Japanese aircraft in the Celebes Sea, which called in destroyer Hayanami to attack. Harder fired three torpedoes at Hayanami, two of which hit, sinking her. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 The administration of the crematoriums in Auschwitz II-Birkenau concentration camp ordered four sieves from the manufacturing firm Deutsche Ausrüstungswerke (DAW) to sift through human ashes. The sieves were to be equipped with an iron frame and the openings of the sieve screens were to be 10 millimeters in size. 
0
07 Jun 1944 WW2 Henry Arnold arrived in London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
08 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tunny made rendezvous with USS Pilotfish and USS Pintado and formed a wolfpack; the group was nicknamed Blair Blasters. 
0
08 Jun 1944 WW2 Former Chinese light cruiser Ninghai, now in Japanese service, was renamed Ioshima. 
0
08 Jun 1944 WW2 Edward Brooks arrived in Normandy, France ahead of his US 2nd Armored Division. 
0
08 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tang departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, starting her third war patrol in the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea. 
0
08 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of CASU-43 arrived on board. 
0
08 Jun 1944 WW2 US Fifth Army captured Civita Castellana, Italy. 
0
08 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Harder boarded six British coast watcher on the coast of North Borneo. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 US troops captured St. Mére-Eglise, France, cutting major road and rail links to the Cherbourg Peninsula. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 In an attempt to push Finland out of the war, Soviet forces launched a major assault against Finnish troops on the Karelian Isthmus. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Gar reported damaging a Japanese ship with her deck gun. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 The Avro Lincoln bomber took its first flight. Originally known as the Lancaster IV, the Lincoln was produced to meet an Air Ministry requirement for a Lancaster replacement, but in 1943 the requirement was changed to developing a long-range bomber for operations in the Pacific Theatre (Tiger Force). The first Lincoln bombers would reach RAF Squadrons in Aug 1945, just too late to see service in World War II. They were however later used in operations against communist guerrillas in Malaya and against Mau Mau bandits in Kenya. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 The Japanese frontal-attack on Gurkha positions on Scraggy Hill was met with heavy losses, particularly to superior British firepower and air support. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 Fahnenjunker-Feldwebel Willi Braun and Fahnenjunker-Feldwebel Gerhard Dietrich of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing were awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 Soviet Stavka ordered a general offensive against Finland. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 Charles Lindbergh, as an employee of the firm United Aircraft, flew a F4U fighter ostensibly as an observer, accompany other combat aircraft over Rabaul, New Britain. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 No. 617 Squadron RAF (The Dambusters) dropped Barnes Wallis' new 12,000-lb "Tallboy" bomb for the first time on the Saumur railway tunnel in central France, which was being used by German reinforcements moving towards Normandie, France. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Harder attacked two Japanese destroyers between Tawi-Tawi and Jolo in the Philippine islands with 4 torpedoes, sinking Tanikaze with 2 hits and sinking another with 1 hit; 4 torpedoes were expended in this attack. 
0
09 Jun 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina was featured on the front page of the Soviet newspaper Unichtozhim Vraga. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 Yamato departed Tawi-Tawi for Batjan, Halmahera at 1600 hours for Operation KON; this was reported by American Submarine USS Harder. Shortly after, the Japanese fleet spotted a periscope and carried out evasive maneuvers that nearly resulted in a collision between Yamato and Musashi. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 The town of Oradour-sur-Glane in central France was destroyed. Nearly all of its 652 inhabitants were killed by troops of the SS Division Das Reich; only 10 survived the massacre with fire and machine gunning. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Mingo arrived at Manus, Admiralty Islands for training. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 German SS troops massacred 218 civilians at Distomo, central Greece, in revenge for losing seven men in a partisan ambush. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill arrived at New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 Chinese troops captured Lungling, Yunnan Province, China. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 Former Chinese light cruiser Pinghai was renamed Yasoshima. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 Kittyhawk fighters of No. 80 Squadron RAAF shot down a Japanese Ki-61 aircraft over New Guinea island. This was the last Commonwealth Kittyhawk fighter victory of the war. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 RAF Lancaster and Halifax bombers attacked four airfields in France. At Leval, where German fighter-bombers were operating in attacks on the invasion beaches, the runway was cratered in several places, interrupting sorties for 48 hours. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 The German High Command commended Italian "Folgore" parachute regiment. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Parts of Air Group 19 on board. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Harder detected a Japanese fleet in the Celebes Sea consisted of three battleships, four cruisers, and a number of destroyers, but was in turn spotted by a Japanese aircraft. As destroyers approached her position, she moved forward and fired three torpedoes before diving, hitting one destroyer with 2 hits. She survived a two-hour depth charge attack. 
0
10 Jun 1944 WW2 The US Eighth Army was activated in the United States under the command of Lieutenant General Robert Eichelberger. 
0
11 Jun 1944 WW2 Missouri was commissioned into service. 
0
11 Jun 1944 WW2 The United States Marine Corps established the Administrative Command FMFPac (redesignated Supply Service FMFPac in Aug 1944) from the existing VAC Administrative Command to take responsibility for providing beach logistic supply on a hostile shore. 
0
11 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse departed Brisbane, Australia for her fifth war patrol. 
0
11 Jun 1944 WW2 Richard O'Connor and his British VIII Corps arrived at Normandie, France. 
0
11 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of CASU-45 arrived on board. Part of ARGUS-22 arrived. 
0
11 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Saipan and Tinian in the Mariana Islands. 
0
11 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young arrived at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
11 Jun 1944 WW2 While USS Harder reconnoitered the Tawi-Tawi anchorage in southern Philippine Islands, she detected Japanese cruisers and destroyers. She did not attack; instead, she sailed out to open sea to report the finding. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 Yamato arrived at Batjan, Halmahera after Operation KON was postponed. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 US and British forces linked up near Carentan, France, forming a solid 50-mile battle line, with 326,000 men and 54,000 vehicles on the beachhead. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 German Reich Minister for the Eastern Occupied Territories Alfred Rosenberg ordered the start of Heuaktion, which called for the kidnapping of 40,000 Polish children between the age of 10 and 14; they were to be transported to Germany as slave laborers. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 With his company under heavy machine gun and tank fire in Burma, Rifleman Ganjo Lama crawled forward alone with a PIAT and destroyed two tanks. Despite a broken wrist and serious wounds to both hands, he knocked out a third tank by eliminating the crew. His actions earned him the Victoria Cross. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 Canadian Destroyer HMCS Haida under Commander H. C. DeWolf sank the German submarine U-971. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Iowa escroted carriers while the aircraft struck Japanese positions in the Mariana Islands. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 In China, about 100 P-40 and P-51 fighters of the US 14th Air Force attacked Japanese vessels on Dongting Lake, docks and warehouses at Yuanjiang in Hunan Province, and troop concentrations in Changsha in Hunan Province. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 Carl G. E. Mannerheim appealed for German reinforcement to fight against the recent Soviet offensive. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Fifteen aircraft (Model F6F), 2 aircraft (Model TBF), 28 officers and 25 men of Night Fighting Squadron 78 (VF(N)-78) arrived on board. Thirteen aircraft (Model F6F), 5 aircraft (Model TBF), 29 officers and 16 men of Night Fighting Squadron 79 (VF(N)-79) arrived on board. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 Ethnic Bhutia rifleman Ganju Lama of the British Indian Army, using a PIAT anti-tank launcher, knocked out two Japanese tanks under heavy machine gun fire at Ningthoukhong, Manipur, India. Despite a broken wrist and wounds to both hands, he engaged and killed the surviving Japanese tankers. He would be awarded the Victoria Cross for this action. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Saipan and Tinian in the Mariana Islands. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish attacked a Japanese ship in the Makassar Strait; all 6 torpedoes missed. 
0
12 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Bergall was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander J. M. Hyde in command. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 Shokaku departed Tawitawi to reinforce Saipan. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 Yamato departed Batjan, Halmahera at 2200 hours to rendezvous with the Mobile Fleet. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 German troops launched a counter attack on Carentan, France. Meanwhile, near Villers-Bocage, Hauptsturmführer Michael Wittmann's lone Tiger tank destroyed 25 tanks and vehicles of the British 7th Armoured Division. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 Lieutenant Commander Everett Hartwell Steinmetz was named the commanding officer of USS Pollack. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Iowa bombarded Saipan and Tinian, Mariana Islands. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Tawi-Tawi, Mindanao, Philippine Islands. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Flier attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, damaging a tanker with 2 of 4 torpedoes fired; she was subjected to a heavy counterattack. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Sasebo, Japan. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Luce bombarded Matsuwa (Matua), Kurile Islands. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Alabama bombarded Japanese positions on Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Saipan and Tinian in the Mariana Islands. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 An A4 rocket fired from Peenemünde to test radio-control gear for an anti-aircraft rocket veered off course and landed 200 miles away in neutral Sweden. Considerable amounts of the rocket were salvaged by the Swedish authorities and later passed on to the British. 
0
13 Jun 1944 WW2 Germans launched the first V-1 Flying Bomb attack on England, United Kingdom; only four of the eleven bombs actually hit their targets. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 Shokaku arrived at Guimaras. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 American troops captured Carentan, France. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tunny passed through Balintang Channel, Philippine Islands. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Guimaras, Philippine Islands. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Ray arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fourth war patrol. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 Finnish troops failed a counterattack against the recent Soviet offensive; Soviet troops pursued the withdrawing Finns and breached the Vammelsuu-Taipale defensive line in Finland. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 3 on board. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Orvieto, Italy. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
14 Jun 1944 WW2 The US submarine Golet became missing; she was believed to be sunk by Japanese naval vessels off Honshu, Japan. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 Yamato was sighted and reported by USS Seahorse east of Mindanao, Philippine Islands. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young provided support for the Mariana Islands invasion. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 Soviet forces battered the Finnish secondary defense lines on the Karelian Isthmus. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 American B-29 bombers based in China conducted a raid on Japan. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 American troops invaded Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 US Thirteenth Air Force established its headquarters at Momote Airfield, Los Negros Island, Admiralty Islands. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tunny sighted Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy formed the 2nd Air Fleet with 141st, 345th, and 762nd Air Groups with Vice Admiral Shigeru Fukudome in overall command and Rear Admiral Ushie Sugimoto as the chief of staff. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Guimaras, Philippine Islands to join what would become the Battle of the Philippine Sea. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish detected a Japanese carrier force and reported the information to fellow submarines; this would lead to the sinking of carrier Shokaku by USS Cavalla several days later. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 RAF bombers struck Boulogne and Le Havre, France. Meanwhile, US VIII Corps (Major General Troy Middleton) became operational with the 90th Infantry Division and both US Airborne Divisions under its command, and was tasked with protecting the rear of the imminent attack to capture Cherbourg. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 US Navy 142nd Construction Battalion relieved the 39th Construction Battalion in the construction of the Naval Air Station Kahului in US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Parts of Air Group 20 on board. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish attacked a Japanese transport in the Celebes Sea; all 5 torpedoes missed., 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 Shokaku departed Guimaras, Philippine Islands with Mobile Fleet to counter the American invasion of the Mariana Islands. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Segundo arrived at New London, Connecticut, United States. 
0
15 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
16 Jun 1944 WW2 V-1 rockets began landing in England, United Kingdom before 0600 hours, with over 240 landing throughout what the Germans called the "Day of Vengeance". 
0
16 Jun 1944 WW2 US submarines detected two large Japanese fleets near the Philippine Islands, headed towards the Mariana Islands. 
0
16 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tunny sank a small sampan with gunfire in the Philippine Islands. 
0
16 Jun 1944 WW2 Additional German troops began arriving in Finland to counter the recent Soviet offensive. 
0
16 Jun 1944 WW2 British Eighth Army captured Foligno and Spoleto, Italy. 
0
16 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish sank a Japanese transport in the Celebes Sea, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
0
16 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill departed New Orleans, Louisiana, United States for the Panama Canal Zone. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 Yamato refueled from oilers of the 1st Supply Force, then joined the Mobile Fleet. Later, the Mobile Fleet was sighted by USS Cavalla in the Philippine Sea. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 Alaska was commissioned into service. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler met with Erwin Rommel and Hans Speidel in France; Hitler agreed to visit the front lines in France, but ultimately this would not take place. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Parche began her second war patrol. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 Eighteen Lancaster bombers from British No. 617 Squadron attacked German V-1 launch sites on the coast of the English Channel. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 Iceland declared independence from Denmark, becoming a republic with Sveinn Björnsson as its first president. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 General de Lattre's Free French force landed on the island of Elba, Italy, starting a two-day campaign to secure the island from German forces. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 Wladyslaw Anders was made the Allied commander of the Adriatic sector of the Italian theater of war. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 British XIII Corps engaged in heavy fighting with German forces at Città della Pieve, Italy. 
0
17 Jun 1944 WW2 USAAF First Lieutenant William "Swede" Anderson of the 356th Fighter Squadron, 354th Fighter Group, returning to base after a ground-strafing sortie over France in his P-51B "Swede's Steed II" spotted, at about 2000 hours, a V1 Flying bomb and promptly shot it down. In doing so he became the first USAAF pilot to record a V1 kill. After landing the 23-year-old Anderson excitedly asked "How many 'Doodlebugs' make an ace?" 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 Carrier Shokaku sailed in company with flagship Taiho and sister ship Zuikaku for the Mariana Islands. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 US First Army isolated Cherbourg, France. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division arrived in Normandy, France. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Mingo departed Manus, Admiralty Islands for her fourth war patrol. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 Gurkha troops of the Chindits made contact with Chinese troops at the village of Lakum in northern Burma. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 In China, the strategic city of Changsha, 200 miles south of Hankou, fell to the Japanese, having successfully defied them three times before. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 British No. 617 Squadron attacked the 20-foot thick concrete dome containing V-2 rockets at Wizernes, France without success. They would return to this target on multiple occasions in the following month. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Air Group 11 arrived on board. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 British troops captured Assisi, Italy. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 A V-1 rocket struck the Guards Chapel across from Buckingham Palace in London, England, United Kingdom during worship services, killing 119. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 Winston Churchill impressed on Dwight Eisenhower that there must be no change of plans as a result of the V-1 attacks; London and the South-east would endure the bombardment as long as was necessary. 
0
18 Jun 1944 WW2 Submarine Chub was launched at Groton, Connecticut, United States, sponsored by Mrs. T. A. Risch. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 Yamato fired Sanshiki-dan anti-aircraft shells in combat for the first time against incoming aircraft, but it was discovered that they were friendly. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 The US Mulberry Harbor at Omaha Beach off Normandy, France was wrecked by a storm. By this date, however, the Allies had 20 divisions ashore in France, while the Germans fielded only 16 in the region. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 US carrier aircraft won a decisive victory over their Japanese counterparts in the Mariana Islands, shooting down over 200 planes with only 20 losses in what became known as the Marianas Turkey Shoot, or, officially, Battle of the Philippine Sea. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro arrived at Darwin, Australia. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 Following a massive public outcry, US Commander-in-Chief General Dwight Eisenhower announced that he considered the conviction of Leroy Henry to be unsafe due to lack of evidence. Henry, a black truck driver from Missouri, United States, had been accused and sentenced to death by hanging for the supposed knifepoint rape of a white British woman at Combe Down, a suburb of Bath, England, United Kingdom. Henry was sent back to his unit. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Guadalcanal's anti-submarine hunter-killer group with the captured German Type IXC submarine U-505 in tow arrived in Bermuda where the U-Boat would remain for the rest of the war to preserve the secret of its capture. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 In a report to Gerd von Rundstedt, Erwin Rommel predicted that a further Allied landing could be expected on the English Channel coast of France on both sides of Cap Gris Nez or between the Somme and Le Havre. The landing was to coincide with a general offensive from the Normandy Bridgehead. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 Nachi deprated Ominato Guard District, Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
0
19 Jun 1944 WW2 At dawn, Shokaku launched 17 A6M fighters for combat air patrol duties. At 1100 hours, she recovered 10 fighters; while still recovering fighters, at 1122, she was hit by three torpedoes from USS Cavalla on the starboard side; two forward near the switchboard and generator room, one aft of amidships. Large fuel fires were ignited in the hangar and No. 1 boiler room went offline. Shokaku remained underway, but began to list to starboard. Counterflooding over-compensated, giving her a port list. Meanwhile flooding and heat of the fires forced shutting down of the boiler rooms. She continued to settle forward. Though damage control initially hoped to save her, the flooding forward and the fires intensify in the following hours. By 1210 hours she had come to a halt when fires detonate an aerial bomb on the hangar, setting off volatile gases from a cracked forward tank. Large induced explosions wrecked the carrier, and hope began to fade. The list to port and bow trim both increased. At 1350 hours, her strike planes returned, but were ordered away, having to be directed to Zuikaku and Taiho. At this time Captain Matsubara had ordered abandon ship and the crew mustered on the flight deck for flag lowering. However, before the evacuation can proceed far, the bow dipped under and water pours into No. 1 elevator well, causing the carrier to corkscew to port and up-end. She went down by the bow at 1401 hours, stern raised high. Between 1408 and 1411, four underwater explosions were registered. 58 officers, 830 petty officers and men, 376 members of Air Group 601, and 8 civilians were killed, totalling 1,272 deaths. Light cruiser Yahagi and destroyers Urakaze and Hatsuzuki rescued Captain Hiroshi Matsubara among 570 other survivors. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 The Americans launched their first attack on Cherbourg, France. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 Soviets captured Viipuri on the Karelian Isthmus. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 Bernard Montgomery was awarded the title of Grand Commander of the Order of King George I of Greece. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Astoria departed Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States for her shakedown cruise. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho was slightly damaged by US TBF aircraft at 1810 hours during the Battle of the Philippine Sea. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze rescued survivors of transport Seiyo Maru during the Battle of the Philippine Sea then scuttled the transport with a torpedo. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 The US Tenth Army, consisting of the XXIV Corps (US Army) and the III Amphibious Corps (US Marine Corps) was activated under the command of Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 Viipuri, Finland was captured by the Soviets. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Forest Hill near Imphal, India but failed to capture Plum Hill, another nearby objective. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 British troops captured Perugia, Italy. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki completed her refitting at Sasebo, Japan. She received a Type 13 radar on her main mast, exchanged twin 13-mm machine gun mounts for single 25-mm machine gun mounts. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish pursued a Japanese transport in the Makassar Strait, expending 5 torpedoes., 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 Jakob Edelstein, the former senior Jewish elder ("Judenaeltester") of the Theresienstadt Concentration Camp, and his family were shot in Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland. 
0
20 Jun 1944 WW2 The underground Directorate of Civil Defense in Warsaw, Poland sent a radio message to London, England, United Kingdom: "Since May 15, mass murders have been carried out in Auschwitz. Jews are taken first, then Soviet prisoners of war, and the so-called sick. Mass transports of Hungarian Jews arrive. Thirteen trains per day, 40-50 cars each. Victims convinced they will be exchanged for POWs or resettled in the East. Corpses are burned in crematoria and out in the open. Over 100,000 people from Hungary have been gassed to date." 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 Soviet forces began another offensive against the Finns between Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega in northern Russia. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 Mussolini transformed the Partito Fascista Repubblicano into a military organization. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro departed Darwin, Australia. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Puffer arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fourth war patrol. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Harder arrived at Darwin, Australia and took on additional torpedoes. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 US Vice President Henry Wallace arrived in Chongqing, China. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 Finland attempted to negotiate for peace with the Soviet Union; Soviets expressed that they would only accept unconditional surrender. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 More than 1,300 US 8th Air Force bombers took off from airfields in Britain to attack Berlin, Lüne-Merseburg, and the hydrogenation plant at Ruhland in the Gau of Mark Brandenburg. The 163 that attacked Ruhland went on to Ukraine instead of returning to Britain, and this was noticed by the German Luftwaffe, which had plans to counter such an attempt for a shuttle bombing operation. He 111 bombers from various units of KG 4 (pathfinders), KG 53, and KG 55 took off for Poltava and Mirgorod (Myrhorod) Airfields in Ukraine. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 British XIII Corps engaged in heavy fighting with German forces at San Fatucchio, Italy. Further east, Polish II Corps reached the Chienti River. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Yokosuka, Japan for refitting. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish sank the Japanese transport she had been pursuing for several hours in the Makassar Strait, hitting her with 2 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Wasp was attached to Willis Lee's battleship group, which was sent in pursuit of the retreating Japanese ships after the Battle of the Philippine Sea. The group would fail to find any targets. 
0
21 Jun 1944 WW2 The keel of submarine Menhaden was laid down by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 The Mobile Fleet, including Yamato, arrived at Nakagusuku, Okinawa. The destroyers were refueled before the Mobile Fleet departed again. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 60 Luftwaffe aircraft made a night raid on the USAAF base in Poltava, Ukraine, destroying 44 bombers and large quantities of fuel. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Soviet forces launched Operation Bagration, a major offensive against German forces in Byelorussia, with 1.2 million men, 31,000 heavy guns, 5,200 tanks, and 6,000 aircraft. The plan was to smash through Warsaw, Poland and East Prussia, Germanny to the Baltic coast; in doing so, they would trap German and Finnish forces in the north and isolate the German, Romanian, and Bulgarian armies in the south. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 The Americans launched a major attack on Cherbourg, France. Allied aircraft dropped over 1,000 tons of bombs on the city during the attack. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 The Danish Civil Partisan group, BOPA, attacked the Riffelsyndikatet arms factory in Copenhagen, Denmark. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Prisoners of the Alderney Concentration Camp in the Channel Islands were deported to Sollstedt in Germany. They would arrive in Sep 1944, where they would be transferred to Buchenwald Concentration Camp. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Rock departed Majuro, Marshall Islands for her third war patrol. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt signed the G. I. Bill of Rights which provided education and other assistance to veterans of the US military. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tunny set sail for home from the Philippine Sea. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Japanese Emperor Showa, in conversation with his younger brother Prince Takamatsu, gave approval "in principle" to the use of special attacks. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Frank Merrill radioed Joseph Stilwell to warn him that Louis Mountbatten was intriguing to replace Stilwell with another American commander who was more likely to be subject to Mountbatten's authority. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Okinawa, Japan. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Flier gave pursuit to a large Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, scoring hits with 4 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Floating drydock USS ABSD-2, in 10 separate sections, arrived at Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina, with the rest of female snipers in her platoon, received orders to be withdrawn from front line combat. She disobeyed her orders and continued to fight with an infantry unit in Byelorussia. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Soviet troops reached the villages of Tali (now Paltsevo) and village of Ihantala (now Petrovka) near Viipuri, Finland (now Vyborg, Russia). 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop visited Finland, offering German reinforcement against the recent Soviet offensive, but also demanding Finland to fight until the very end. Finnish President Risto Ryti agreed. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Claus von Stauffenberg met with representatives from the German communists in eastern Berlin, Germany, not knowing one of them was a Gestapo spy. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her seventh war patrol. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 In India, Indian 6th Brigade from Kohima made contact with Indian 9th Brigade from Imphal on the Imphal-Kohima Road that had been held by the Japanese. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 A group of Italian Navy commandos loyal to the co-belligerent government in the south raided La Spezia, Italy using British Chariot manned torpedoes; they succeeded in capsizing Italian cruiser Bolzano. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 He 111 bombers from various units of German Luftwaffe KG 4 (pathfinders), KG 53, and KG 55 were launched to attack US bombers at Poltava and Mirgorod (Myrhorod) Airfields in Ukraine; navigation errors led to all bombers attacking Poltava, starting from 2355 hours on the previous date into this date. 44 US B-17 bombers and 15 various other US and Soviet aircraft were destroyed; 26 US B-17 bombers were damaged. All German bombers returned to their bases safely. 
0
22 Jun 1944 WW2 Nicholas Winton was promoted to the brevet rank of pilot officer. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 German submarine U-530 and Japanese submarine I-52 made rendezvous in the mid-Atlantic 850 miles west of Cape Verde islands. U-530 transferred a Naxos radar detector, a radar operator, and a navigator to I-52. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Franklin departed Pearl Harbor. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Captain Michael Allmand of the Gurkha Rifles won the Victoria Cross after charging ahead of his troops three times to clear the way of enemy positions in northern Burma; on the third time, he was seriously wounded. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Over France, with two engines out and the fuselage on fire, Pilot Officer Andrew Mynarski, a Canadian gunner in a No. 419 Squadron Lancaster, was ordered to bale out. However, he saw that the rear gunner was trapped and tried to free him even though his own clothing and parachute were on fire. Hopelessly stuck, the rear gunner signaled to Mynarski that he should save himself. The Canadian gallantly stood to attention and saluted his comrade before jumping out. He was found by the French but died later of his terrible injuries. Amazingly, the gunner was thrown clear when the Lancaster crashed and survived, as did the other crew members who had jumped. When they returned and told their story after the war, Mynarski was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 In Burma, Tulbahadur Pun of the Gurkha Rifles won the Victoria Cross for single-handedly crossing 30 yards of open swampy ground under concentrated enemy fire to destroy a position that had virtually wiped out his section. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Corporal Sefanaia Sukanaivalu became the only Fijian to win the Victoria Cross during the fighting on Bougainville in the Solomon Islands. After rescuing two wounded comrades he was hit in the groin whilst attempting to rescue a third. Unable to move and knowing that his comrades would not leave him whilst he remained alive, Sukanaivalu selflessly raised himself in full view of the enemy, and died in a hail of bullets. The award was made posthumously. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Finnish fighter pilot Hans Wind flying a Bf 109 fighter downed four aircraft in a single sorte. Over a ten day period in Jun 1944 he would account for 25 opponents from his final tally of 75 kills throughout the war. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Generaloberst Eduard Dietl of the German 20.Gebirgsarmee was killed in a plane crash. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Martti Aho was promoted to the rank of colonel. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Churchill, with misgivings, gave in to pressure from the Americans and sanctioned operation Anvil (the proposed US-French invasion of the south of France). Churchill called this a "Bleak and sterile exercise". 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Chindit and Japanese troops engaged in fierce fighting at Mogaung, Burma. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Okinawa, Japan. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Guimarras, Philippine Islands. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish set sail for Manus, Australian New Guinea. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 In the South China Sea, USS Flier continued to attack the same Japanese convoy which she had been pursuing since the previous day, sinking a transport with 3 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 In the Unite States, the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives of the US Congress drafted a resolution that supported the War Refugee Board and promised retribution against those responsible for atrocities in occupied Europe (Hungary in particular). 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Two representatives (one Danish and one Swiss) of the International Red Cross and one representative of the Danish Red Cross visited Theresienstadt Concentration Camp in occupied Czechoslovakia for six hours; the prisoners gave them positive reports about the living conditions as they were instructed to do by the camp administration. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Parts of ARGUS-15, ARGUS-17, and ARGUS-23 departed. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Wasp set sail for Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
23 Jun 1944 WW2 A major deportation began at the Jewish ghetto at Lodz, Poland; through 14 Jul 1944, 7,196 would be sent to Chelmno Concentration Camp where they would be killed. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked a Japanese convoy southwest of Kagoshima, Japan and reported sinking two ships. Post war Japanese records showed that four ships of that convoy, Tamahoko Maru, Tainan Maru, Nasusan Maru, and Kennichi Maru, were attacked and sunk on that date. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Hitler ordered all but one division of LIII Korps, encircled near Vitebsk, Byelorussia, to break out. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Chinese troops, supported by heavy artillery, attacked Mogaung, Burma in support of the British Chindit operation. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 British Lieutenant General Geoffrey Scoones, due to poor intelligence, failed to pursue retreating Japanese troops from northeastern India, thinking that the Japanese might be planning a counterattack from Tamu and Bishenpur. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Parche sank a Japanese patrol vessel with her deck gun. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Alexander Novikov was awarded the Legion of Merit by the United States. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Saburo Sakai mis-identified a group of 15 F6F Hellcat fighters as friendly, but he was able to escape from their attacks unscathed. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Flight Lieutenant David Hornell, on a routine patrol in a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Catalina aircraft, sighted a surfaced German U-Boat in the North Atlantic, but a hail of anti-aircraft fire came up to meet the Catalina as it made its bombing run. Although two large holes appeared in the starboard wing and oil was seen to be pouring from the burning starboard engine, Hornell managed to hold the blazing aircraft on course, and from low-level was able to straddle the enemy submarine with depth charges; which was then seen to thrust its bows abruptly into the air while the crew abandoned ship. The Catalina aircraft's engine tore itself away from the burning wing and Hornell needed all his skill to put the machine down on the heavy swell. Blazing furiously it began to sink immediately. The survivors had to wait 21 hours before they were picked up, by which time two men had already died of exposure and Hornell himself succumbed soon after being rescued. For his outstanding gallantry David Hornell would be awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 US Vice President Henry Wallace departed Chongqing, China. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 British No. 617 Squadron attacked the 20-foot thick concrete dome containing V-2 rockets at Wizernes, France with "Tallboy" bombs. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Parts of ARGUS-15, ARGUS-17, and ARGUS-23 departed. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Troops of British XIII Corps linked up with Indian troops of British X Corps in Italy. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 The Mobile Fleet, including Yamato, arrived at Hashirajima island in Hiroshima Bay, Japan. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Hashirajima, Japan. 
0
24 Jun 1944 WW2 Prisoners Edward Galinski and Mala Zimetbaum escaped from Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland but they would be re-captured in Jul 1944. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 Operation Epsom began with British Second Army's offensive near Caen, France. To the west, with naval gunfire support, American ground forces engaged in street fighting in Cherbourg. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 General Kœnig was made the head of Free French Forces. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry was temporarily attached to the VIII Corps of US First Army. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 Gurkha troops of the Chindits attacked Mogaung, Burma cautiously, having suffered heavy casualties during the assault two days prior. Meanwhile, the Japanese began to fall back from the town. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 Captain Maurice E. Curts was named the commanding officer of USS Columbia, relieving Captain Frank E. Beatty, Jr. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 Soviet troops launched a three-prong offensive at 0730 hours against Tali (now Paltsevo), Finland after a heavy artillery and air bombardment. Only the western prong breached Finnish lines, but it threatened to cut off the Finnish front lines. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 British No. 617 Squadron attacked the German V-2 store at Siracourt, France with 17 Lancaster, two Mosquito, and a Mustang (a gift from the USAAF) aircraft; the Mustang fighter was flown by Leonard Cheshire and used as a low-level marker aircraft. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Parts of ARGUS-15, ARGUS-17, and ARGUS-23 departed. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 At the Imperial Conference in Tokyo, Japan, Prince Hiroyasu advocated the use of special attacks by all branches of the military. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 Following a visit to British No. 617 Squadron at Woodhall Spa in England, United Kingdom by USAAF Generals Carl Spaatz and James Doolittle, a crated Mustang fighter was delivered as a gift from the United States to Wing Commander Leonard Cheshire. Cheshire wanted to use it that evening for a raid on the V-bomb site at Siracourt, France, and his mechanics worked all day removing the grease and the guns. One hour after the Lancaster bombers had taken off Cheshire followed in the Mustang fighter (which type he had never flown before) and he arrived in time to mark the target at low level for the heavy bombers. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Baya departed New London, Connecticut, United States for Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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25 Jun 1944 WW2 The FR Fireball piston-jet mix-powered fighter took its first flight with only the piston engine equipped. 
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25 Jun 1944 WW2 Submarine Brill was launched at Groton, Connecticut, United States, sponsored by the wife of Rear Admiral Francis Low. 
0
25 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Pompon arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her fifth war patrol. 
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26 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked a Japanese cargo ship with four torpedoes without success. 
0
26 Jun 1944 WW2 Red Army captured Vitebsk, Byelorussia. 
0
26 Jun 1944 WW2 General von Schlieben, commander of the German garrison in Cherbourg, France, was captured by US troops. 
0
26 Jun 1944 WW2 Germans instituted a curfew in Copenhagen, Denmark in response to a wave of sabotage. In retaliation, the people of Copenhagen underwent a massive civil strike. 
0
26 Jun 1944 WW2 Gurkha troops of the Chindits captured Mogaung, Burma. 
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26 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Cero departed Manus, Admiralty Islands for her fifth war patrol. 
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26 Jun 1944 WW2 Brigadier-General Theodore F. Weasels took over command of the Myitkyina Task Force from the sick Brigadier-General Boatner following another bout of malaria. 
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26 Jun 1944 WW2 Japanese troops reached Hengyang, Hunan Province, China, site of an important US air base, but were checked by the 15,000-strong Chinese 10th Army supported by US 14th Air Force's B-25 Mitchell and P-47 Thunderbolt aircraft which made constant attacks on the Japanese supply lines. 
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26 Jun 1944 WW2 A transport of 3,119 Jews from Szeged, Hungary crossed into Poland at Kosice, Czechoslovakia. The train was destined for Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland. 
0
26 Jun 1944 WW2 Finnish troops counterattacked Soviet troops west of Lake Leitimojärvi near Tali (Paltsevo), Finland, destroying the Soviet 27th Tank Regiment and pushing the Soviets back to the line the Soviets held one day prior. 
0
26 Jun 1944 WW2 Alexander Löhr was mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht daily radio report. 
0
26 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Croaker arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
26 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Luce bombarded Paramushiru (Paramushir), Kurile Islands. 
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26 Jun 1944 WW2 The crematoria in Auschwitz-II Birkenau in occupied Poland received four sieves for sifting bones out of human ashes. Up above, Allied aircraft took photographs of the Auschwitz camps complex at the altitude of about 30,000 feet (about 10,000 meters). 
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26 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States for Trinidad. 
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26 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Segundo departed New London, Connecticut, United States. 
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27 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Blenny was commissioned into service Lieutenant Commander W. H. Hazzard in command. 
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27 Jun 1944 WW2 Soviet units captured Orsha, Byelorussia on the Dneiper River, while near Vitebsk German LIII Korps was finally destroyed. 
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27 Jun 1944 WW2 Members of the Polish underground Armia Krajowa sent a messaged to the United Kingdom, noting that their intelligence suggested that the Germans were developing a rocket estimated to be 40 feet (12.2 meters) long and 6 feet (2.7 meters) wide. 
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27 Jun 1944 WW2 HMS Pink (Commander G. V. Legassick) was hit by a torpedo fired from the German submarine U-988 off the Normandy beaches, France, and was so badly damaged that she was declared as a constructive total loss. 
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27 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro arrived at Frementle, Australia, ending her first war patrol. 
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27 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese tanker Medan Maru and damage two other ships off Taiwan, hitting them with five of six torpedoes fired. 
0
27 Jun 1944 WW2 A Finnish-German offensive east of Lake Leitimojärvi in Finland resulted in failure. 
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27 Jun 1944 WW2 In France, US troops captured Cherbourg while British forces took Hill 112 near Caen. Elsewhere in France, the British 3rd Infantry Division and tanks launched Operation Mitten to seize two German occupied chateaus, la Londe and la Landel; the evening assault was repulsed. 
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27 Jun 1944 WW2 Troops of French Expeditionary Corps arrived at the Orcia River west of Lake Trasimene in Italy. 
0
27 Jun 1944 WW2 British bombers attacked San Marino, killing 35. 
0
28 Jun 1944 WW2 German 9.Armee became surrounded after Soviet forces captured Mogilev, Byelorussia and crossed the Berezina River. 
0
28 Jun 1944 WW2 French resistance fighters killed Minister of Information and local Milice leader Phillipe Henriot. Milice leader in Lyon, Paul Touvier, was ordered to conduct reprisal killings. 
0
28 Jun 1944 WW2 Communist-sponsored Hungarian-language Radio Kossuth announced that 200,000 Hungarian Jews had been killed in the past few months. 
0
28 Jun 1944 WW2 The British War Cabinet approved a memorandum by the Lord Chancellor which included a note that Britain would gather evidence of German atrocities against Jews only in occupied countries but not within Germany itself, for atrocities committed domestically did not constitute war crimes. 
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28 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Gar reported sinking a Japanese ship in daylight with her deck gun. 
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28 Jun 1944 WW2 Ioshima received orders to move to the front. 
0
28 Jun 1944 WW2 Karl Lennart Oesch ordered Finnish troops to fall back to the Vakkila-Ihantalajärvi-Kokkoselkä-Noskuanselkä Line in Finland. Soviet troops pursued the withdrawing Finns and caused heavy casualties. 
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28 Jun 1944 WW2 In the morning, British 3rd Infantry Division and tanks captured two German occupied chateaus, la Londe and la Landel, in France during Operation Mitten; the operation cost at least three British tanks and 268 men; historian Terry Copp had described the fighting for these chateaus as the "bloodiest square mile in Normandy". On the same day, German defenses halted Operation Epsom near Caen, France. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 Yamato departed for Kure, Japan to receive five new triple-mount 25mm AA guns; during the installation, the entire hinoki deck would also be replaced. 
0
29 Jun 1944 WW2 Bo Seng Lim passed away. 
0
29 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked the unescorted Japanese transport Nikkin Maru between Kyushu, Japan and Dalian, China with two torpedoes without success. 
0
29 Jun 1944 WW2 The 70,000 remaining troops of German Armeegruppe Mitte, surrounded near Bobruisk, Byelorussia, surrendered. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 The last harbor fort at Cherbourg, France was captured by US troops. Meanwhile, a planned German offensive by the 2nd and 9th Panzer Divisions at Villers-Bocage, west of Caen, was abandoned when their armored columns were blasted by 260 RAF heavy bombers. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 A transport of 2,502 Hungarian Jews from Auschwitz Concentration Camp arrived at Stutthof Concentration Camp. 
0
29 Jun 1944 WW2 Konstantin Rokossovsky was promoted to the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union. 
0
29 Jun 1944 WW2 Martti Aho was wounded in battle at Tali-Ihantala, Finland. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Hoe departed Fremantle, Australia for her fifth war patrol in the South China Sea. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 Erwin Rommel and Gerd von Rundstedt met with Adolf Hitler at Hitler's residence in Berchtesgaden, southern Germany. They urged Hitler to pursue peace, but Htiler rejected such a notion, saying that the V weapons would soon turn the tide of war. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 Finnish troops repulsed the pursuing Soviet troops and re-established the Vakkila-Ihantalajärvi-Kokkoselkä-Noskuanselkä Line in Finland. 
0
29 Jun 1944 WW2 Out of about 1,100 prisoners at Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp in Germany with valid entry certificates for Palestine, 221 Jews were allowed to go; they would arrive in Haifa at 1700 hours on 10 Jul. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her second war patrol. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Camera Repair School (quonset hut) turned over to station. Parts of Air Group 21 on board. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 Divisione Decima (10th Division) of Italian Navy was placed under the command of SS-General Karl Wolff. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Yokosuka, Japan. 
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29 Jun 1944 WW2 Richard Saul retired from the British Royal Air Force. 
0
29 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived at Midway Atoll. 
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30 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank the unescorted Japanese transport Nikkin Maru with one torpedo between Kyushu, Japan and Dalian, China. 
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30 Jun 1944 WW2 Milice leader in French city of Lyon, Paul Touvier, selected 7 Jewish prisoners to be executed by firing squad as reprisal for the killing of Minister of Information and local Milice leader Phillipe Henriot two days earlier by the French resistance. 
0
30 Jun 1944 WW2 The final 6,000 German troops in Cherbourg, France surrendered. At Caen, German troops recaptured Hill 112. 
0
30 Jun 1944 WW2 The Chindits, by this date, would have been hard pushed to find anyone still fit enough to lift a camera, but they kept on marching and fighting even when one brigade, the 111th, was reduced to less than the strength of a company. 
0
30 Jun 1944 WW2 James Johnson shot down a German Bf 109 fighter, his 33th victory. 
0
30 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Permit departed Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands, starting her thirteenth war patrol. 
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30 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Wasp departed Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
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30 Jun 1944 WW2 A transport of 2,044 Jews from Athens and Corfu Island in Greece arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland; 455 men and 175 women were registered into the camp while the remainder were gassed. On the same day, another transport of 1,000 Jews from the Fossoli di Carpi transit camp in Italy also arrived; 180 men and 51 women were registered while the remainder were gassed. 
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30 Jun 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga arrived at Port of Spain, Trinidad. 
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01 Jul 1944 WW2 Cruiser Köln began a three-month training operation. 
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01 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese freighter Taiun Maru No. 2 in the morning, and chased tanker Takatori Maru all day, finally sinking the tanker after sundown. 
0
01 Jul 1944 WW2 5th Guards Tank Army of the Soviet 3rd Byelorussian Front captured Borisov, Byelorussia. 
0
01 Jul 1944 WW2 The Bretton Woods conference opened to discuss financial and economic concerns in post-war Europe; International Monetary Fund for Reconstruction and Development would be established as the result. 
0
01 Jul 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the US VII Corps. 
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01 Jul 1944 WW2 Russian fighter ace Grigori Rechkalov received his second Hero of the Soviet Union award when his score stood at 48 individual and six shared victories. Rechkalov would be relieved of his command by General Utin shortly after for "lack of leadership" but would eventually be officially listed as the Soviet Union's third highest scoring ace of all time with 57 aerial victories credited to his name. 
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01 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Pintado arrived ta Majuro, Marshall Islands, ending her first war patrol. 
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01 Jul 1944 WW2 Greek 3rd Mountain Brigade was activated in French Syria-Lebanon under the command of Colonel Thrasyvoulos Tsakalotos. 
0
01 Jul 1944 WW2 Josias was promoted to the rank of General der Waffen-SS. 
0
01 Jul 1944 WW2 Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller was mad the commanding officer of all occupation forces at Crete, Greece. 
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01 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Preston departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
01 Jul 1944 WW2 US IV Corps crossed the Cecina River near Livorno, Italy. 
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01 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Yokosuka, Japan for her 20th voyage with the Japanese Navy. 
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01 Jul 1944 WW2 Nachi began a period of guard ship duty at Ominato Guard District, Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
0
01 Jul 1944 WW2 The Taichu Prisoners of War Camp near Taichu (now Taichung), Taiwan was closed; on the same day, the Inrin Prisoners of War Camp in central Taiwan was opened. 
0
01 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Becuna departed New London, Connecticut, United States. 
0
02 Jul 1944 WW2 Feldmarschal Günther von Kluge replaced Gerd von Rundstedt as the commanding officer of the German forces in the West (Oberbefehlshaber West). 
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02 Jul 1944 WW2 Submarine Bugara was launched, sponsored by the wife of US Navy Captain Lyman S. Perry. 
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02 Jul 1944 WW2 A TBM Avenger aircraft from USS Wake Island sank German submarine U-543 between the Canary and Cape Verde Islands. 
0
02 Jul 1944 WW2 General Sir Henry Maitland Wilson (Supreme Commander, Mediterranean) received orders from London, England, United Kingdom to organize the invasion of Provence, France. The name of this operation was changed by British Prime Minister Churchill to "Dragoon". 
0
02 Jul 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-350 struck a mine and sank off Utah Beach, Normandy, France. 
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02 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet 63rd Division and Soviet 30th Armored Brigade were ordered to attack Ihantala, Finland (now Petrovka, Russia) on the following day. This message was intercepted by the Finns. 
0
02 Jul 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of CASU-43 departed. 
0
02 Jul 1944 WW2 Germans evacuated Siena, Italy. 
0
02 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Bonin Islands. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 USS S-28 began anti-submarine warfare exercises with United States Coast Guard cutter Reliance off Oahu, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Cod departed Fremantle, Australia for her fourth war patrol. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet forces recaptured Minsk, Byelorussia, trapping over 100,000 Germans in the pocket. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 US VIII Corps advanced toward Coutances, France. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 John Basilone re-enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese cargo ship Nitta Maru and passenger-cargo ship Gyoyu Maru off Taiwan, hitting her with four of five torpedoes fired. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Harder arrived at Darwin, Australia, ending her fifth war patrol. 
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03 Jul 1944 WW2 At 0358 hours, having intercepted the intelligence that a Soviet offensive was to be launched on this day, 40 Finnish and 40 German aircraft attacked Soviet staging points in Finland, followed by an artillery bombardment. The Soviet offensive was delayed until 0600 hours, and it achieved little. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 After sundown, Japanese commandos raided a British airfield near Imphal, India and destroyed eight parked aircraft. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 French Expeditionary Corps captured Siena, Italy. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
03 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Iwo Jima and Chichi Jima of the Bonin Islands. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Bonin Islands. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 At 1820 hours, radio communications between USS S-28 and United States Coast Guard cutter Reliance was broken, and S-28 was never heard from again. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Blackfin was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander George Laird, Jr. in command. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 In the morning, USS Tang sank Japanese freighter Asukazan Maru, hitting her with two of three torpedoes fired. In the afternoon, the transport Yamaoka Maru was sunk with two torpedoes. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 After a week of strikes in Copenhagen, the Germans rescinded their curfew to avoid such uprisings. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Astoria remained at Port of Spain, Trinidad; her crew was allowed a short liberty in celebration of the Independence Day holiday of the United States. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 With intelligence obtained by infiltrating the meeting in Berlin, Germany on 22 Jun 1944 between Claus von Stauffenberg and German communists, the Gestapo made several arrests. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 General Wazakazu Kawabe officially terminated Operation U-Go in India. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Parche was attacked by a Japanese cruiser and a destroyer, but Parche was able to escape. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank Japanese cargo ship Kyodo Maru No. 28 off Taiwan, hitting her with five of her last six torpedoes. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel ended her fifth war patrol. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 The Soviet 1st Baltic Front captured Polotsk, Byelorussia on its way towards Riga, Latvia, moving to cut off German Armeegruppe Nord as it retreated from Estonia. The Soviet troops were now roughly on the 1939 German-Soviet border. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 In Finland, Soviet 59th Army attacked Viipuri and Soviet 23rd Army crossed Vuoksi River to attack Vuosalmi. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of ARGUS-15 departed. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Iwo Jima and Chichi Jima of the Bonin Islands. 
0
04 Jul 1944 WW2 J. Robert Oppenheimer revealed Emilio Segrè's final measurements to the Manhattan Project scientists at Los Alamos, New Mexico, which concluded that the "Thin Man" design for a gun-type plutonium weapon was not feasible. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Gar ended her twelfth war patrol. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 Oberon was decommissioned from service. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 Lieutenant Colonel Francis Gabreski of US 56th Fighter Group became the top scoring USAAF ace in Europe with 28 victories. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 HMS Ganilly was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-390 off Utah beach, Normandy, France. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 Saburo Sakai led a special attack mission against US naval units, but returned to base after failing to locate any targets. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish arrived at Brisbane, Australia, ending her tenth war patrol. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Flier arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her first war patrol. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Guam and Rota of the Mariana Islands. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze was docked at Kure, Japan for repairs. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 While undergoing repairs at Yokosuka and Yokohama, Japan, Irako was assigned to the Southwest Area Fleet based at Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Whale set sail for Midway Atoll. 
0
05 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish sank Japanese passenger-cargo ship Shanmai Maru off the Kurile Islands, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Franklin arrived in the Mariana Islands area; she was to remain through 22 Jul 1944 to launch strikes against Japanese position on Rota and Guam islands. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank the 39,100-ton Japanese transport Dori Maru off Dalian, China at about 0300 hours with two torpedoes. With this sinking, she obtained the record of the greatest total tonnage sunk by an American submarine during one war patrol. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Kovel, Ukraine. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Chaim Weizmann, the future Israeli president, messaged British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden, requesting the rail lines leading to Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland to be bombed. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Captain Yujiro Takarada was named the commanding officer of light carrier Hosho. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Colonel (temporary Lieutenant General) George Patton, Jr. secretly flew into the Cotentin Peninsula in France. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Wing Commamner Leonard Cheshire led a "Tallboy" attack on the V-3 gun structure at Mimoyecque. After this mission, the last of his fourth tour, he was ordered to rest (he never flew operations again) and two months later he was awarded the Victoria Cross. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Sixteen men of WIMU (special ordinance project) arrived on board. Part of Air Group 22 arrived. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 British Eighth Army captured Osimo, Italy. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Chuichi Nagumo committed suicide for his failure to hold Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Yoshitsugu Saito announced that he would fight to the death alongside his troops on Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish sank Soviet merchant ship Ob in the Kurile Islands, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Prisoners Edward Galinski and Mala Zimetbaum, escaped from Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland in Jun 1944, were re-captured. They would later be executed for this attempt. 
0
06 Jul 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt met with Charles de Gaulle in Washington DC, United States. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 American attacks near Carentan, France were held off by German counterattacks. In support of ground troops and to prepare for a new offensive to be launched on the next day, RAF bombers dropped 2,300 tons of explosives on the Germans in and around Caen, France. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Mingo attacked a Japanese convoy off Luzon, Philippine Islands during the night, sinking destroyer Tamanami by hitting her with 3 of 8 torpedoes fired. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 Miklós Horthy suspended the deportation of Hungarian Jews to concentration camps. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 Raoul Wallenberg departed for Berlin, Germany. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 John Basilone and Lena Mae Riggi completed the application for a marriage certificate. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Becuna detected a hostile submarine in the Atlantic Ocean and fired four torpedoes at the target; all torpedoes missed and contact with the enemy submarine was lost. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 Ivan Bagramyan was made a Hero of the Soviet Union for the first time. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler attended an inspection of newly designed uniforms at Schloss Klessheim at Wals-Siezenheim, Austria. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 A large raid to attack targets in the Leipzig, Germany area by the US 8th Air Force with 1,129 B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator bombers and more than 700 escorts was met by a Gefechtsverband, led by Major Walther Dahl. Among the total of about ninety Luftwaffe fighters committed was the newly raised IV (Sturm)/JG3, an elite unit of volunteer pilots flying Fw 190A-8 aircraft armed with 30mm cannon, firing high explosive shells, and with additional armour protection to enable them to get within close range of their target. The Fw 190 fighters would attack the rear of the bomber bomber stream while two Bf 109 Gruppen kept the American fighters at bay. The tactic proved successful with eleven B-24 bombers of the low squadron destroyed within a minute and, by the end of the day, the 2nd Air Division had suffered 28 Liberators lost at a cost of nine IV/JG3 fighters shot down and three damaged. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Kotoku Sato was relieved for the defeat at Kohima, India. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish sank 13 Japanese sampans and a small patrol vessel with her deck gun in the Kurile Islands. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 Six trains carrying 14,846 Hungarian Jews (3,077 from Sopron, 2,793 from Pápa, 1,072 from Paks, 3,549 from Monor, 3,151 from Óbuda, and 2,204 from Sárvár) acrossed into occupied Poland, destined for the Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 Southampton, England, United Kingdom was attacked by a V-1 flying bomb air-launched from a Heinkel He.111 aircraft but causing little damage. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Wisconsin departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States for Trinidad in the British West Indies. 
0
07 Jul 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt had dinner with Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd, Ana Roosevelt Boettiger, and John Boettiger in Washington DC, United States. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 As Baranovichi, Byelorussia fell to the Soviets, German XII Corps surrendered its last 57,000 men. The German Armeegruppe Mitte alone had lost nearly 30 divisions in less than a month. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 British Second Army launched Operation Charnwood against Caen, France. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Jewish ghettos in Kovno, Lithuania began to be evacuated by German authorities. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Allied bombers conducted a raid on Belgrade, Yugoslavia. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Takeo Takagi was killed in action on Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Chuichi Nagumo was posthumously promoted to the rank of admiral. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Wing Commander Bill Deas, Commanding Officer of No. 630 Squadron of the British Royal Air Force, was killed in a disastrous raid on a V-bomb storage dump at Saint-Leu-d'Esserent, France. His was one of 29 aircraft lost when the force was intercepted by German night fighters. He was on his 69th operation. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Raoul Wallenberg landed at Tempelhof, Berlin, Germany and traveled to his sister's residence in the southwestern suburb of the city. He would experience his first air raid during that night. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Renya Mutaguchi withdrew the remnants of the Japanese 33rd Division from Imphal, India back into Burma. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Yamato departed Kure, Japan for Okinawa, Japan with the 106th Infantry Regiment of the 49th Division on board. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Haruki Isayama was named the chief of staff of the Taiwan Army. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Air Group 80 and ship's crew in support of the air group aboard USS Ticonderoga were given a day's rest while off Trinidad. 
0
08 Jul 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt and Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd visited Shangri-La (now Camp David) near Thurmont, Maryland, United States. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Palau and departed later on the same day. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 British and Canadian forces entered the rubble that was Caen, France. Meanwhile, US XIX Corps began advancing toward Saint-Lô, France. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 Aiming to cut off German Armeegruppe Nord, Soviet 2nd Byelorussian Front attacked from Vitebsk, Byelorussia, Soviet 3rd Byelorussian Front attacked from Psovsk, and the Soviet Leningrad Front attacked toward Narva, Estonia. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 Raoul Wallenberg boarded the 1721 train from Berlin, Germany for Budapest, Hungary, arriving later that night. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 Major Frank Blaker of the British Royal Gurkha Rifles regiment won the Victoria Cross at Taunghi, Burma. Charging Japanese positions he was hit three times but continued to urge his men forward even as he lays dying. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 British Royal Navy Captain F. J. Walker of the Second Escort Group died of a stroke brought on by heavy strain and overwork. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler departed the Wolfsschlucht II headquarters in Margival, France for the Wolfsschanze headquarters in East Prussia, Germany. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 A message was sent to USS Golet, but the submarine did not respond. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Ray departed Fremantle, Australia for her fifth war patrol. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 Finnish troops withdrew from the Äyräpää ridge near Vuosalmi, Finland. On the Soviet side, a number of formations began to be withdrawn from the nearby Tali-Ihantala region for the campaign in Estonia. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 The British The North Staffordshire Regiment captured the fortified village of Malan, Italy. Facing dug-in Tiger tanks, the Staffords suffer 25% casualties in the battle. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish sank Japanese cargo ship Taihei Maru in the Kurile Islands, hitting her with 4 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Segundo departed Balboa, Panama Canal Zone. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 Five trains carrying 14,212 Hungarian Jews (3,065 from Monor, 3,072 from Óbuda, 3,072 from Budakalász, 3,079 from Monor, and 1,924 from Békesmegyer) acrossed the border into occupied Poland, destined for Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 
0
09 Jul 1944 WW2 Torpedo Squadron 80 aboard USS Ticonderoga resumed flight training off Trinidad. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 Erwin Rommel received the Romanian Order of Michael the Brave 3rd Class and 2nd Class. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 221 former prisoners of Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp and 61 former internees in Vittel, France who had been given permission by Germany to go to Palestine arrived in Haifa at 1700 hours. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 Raoul Wallenberg reported to the Swedish embassy in Budapest, Hungary as a secretary; in this role he would issue protective passports and commit in other acts that would save the lives of thousands of Jews. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy 2nd Air Fleet was attached to the Combined Fleet, and its strength group to include two air flotillas and six air groups. On the same day, the 3rd Air Fleet was established under the command of Vice Admiral Shunichi Kira with Rear Admiral Kanzo Miura as the chief of staff; it was also attached to the Combined Fleet. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho was transferred from Carrier Division 2 to Carrier Division 1 within the 3rd Fleet. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 Naoshi Kanno was made a squadron commander with the 343rd Air Group. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 Karl von Le Suire stepped down as the commanding officer of German 117th Jäger Division. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 Yamato arrived at Okinawa, Japan then departed for Lingga, Dutch East Indies. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy established the 1st Special Submarine Training Base Group at Otsujima in Tokuyama Bay, 80 kilometers southwest of Hiroshima, Japan, under the command of Rear Admiral Mitsuri Nagai. The unit was to train future manned-torpedo pilots. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 Yoshitsugu Saito committed ritual suicide in a cave near Tanapag, Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 The crew of USS Ticonderoga had a day of rest off the ship in Scotland Bay, Trinidad. 
0
10 Jul 1944 WW2 John Basilone married Sergeant Lena Mae Riggi at St. Mary's Star of the Sea Church in Oceanside, California, United States. 
0
11 Jul 1944 WW2 US VII Corps met resistance attacking toward Saint-Lô, France. 
0
11 Jul 1944 WW2 The last 35,000 men of German 4.Armee surrendered to Soviet troops at Minsk, Byelorussia. 
0
11 Jul 1944 WW2 Claus von Stauffenberg was summoned to see Adolf Hitler in Berchtesgaden, Germany regarding the situation of the Home Army. 
0
11 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese 18th Army under Lieutenant General Hatazo Adachi launched a counterattack in the Aitape-New Hollandia area in New Guinea, placing pressure on American troops but sustaining heavy casualties. 
0
11 Jul 1944 WW2 The full strength of Soviet 115th Corps was now located on the northern bank of the Vuoksi River in Finland. 
0
11 Jul 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho entered the drydocks at Kure, Japan. 
0
11 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her eighth war patrol. 
0
12 Jul 1944 WW2 US VII Corps made limited progress toward Saint-Lô, France. 
0
12 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Snook fired four torpedoes at two Japanese freighters; one hit, causing damage but not sinking the target. 
0
12 Jul 1944 WW2 US Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. passed away from a heart attack in Normandy, France. 
0
12 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet Union began probing Finland for possible peace terms after the Finns successfully repulsed Soviet offensives at the Tali-Ihantala region in Finland. 
0
12 Jul 1944 WW2 Omar Bradley, his staff, and his generals met and created a preliminary plan for what was to become the Operation Cobra offensive in France. 
0
12 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Whale departed Midway Atoll. 
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12 Jul 1944 RELIGIOUS Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary was chartered in Mill Valley, CA, undersponsorship of the Southern Baptist Church.
0
13 Jul 1944 WW2 Red Army units captured Vilna, Lithuania. 
0
13 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Hornet spent the day conducting refueling operations. 
0
13 Jul 1944 WW2 The secret of the German FuG 227 Flensburg equipment, which could home-in on RAF Monica radars, was revealed when a Luftwaffe pilot landed his Junkers Ju 88G-1 night fighter by mistake at RAF Woodbridge in Suffolk, England, United Kingdom. In addition the capture of this aircraft's FuG 220 radar would permit British scientist to find a way of jamming its signal within a matter of weeks. 
0
13 Jul 1944 WW2 Captain Williams Mullen was named the commanding officer of USS San Diego. 
0
13 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Truk, Caroline Islands. 
0
13 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese 18th Army under Lieutenant General Hatazo Adachi was divided by an American attack in the Aitape-New Hollandia area in New Guinea, making them effectively useless until their final defeat on 10 Aug. 
0
13 Jul 1944 WW2 US Marines gave Japanese Lieutenant General Yoshitsugu Saito a military burial near Tanapag, Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
13 Jul 1944 WW2 USAAF 332nd Fighter Group, consisted of all African-American pilots, flew its first mission over Ploesti, Romania. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Pinsk, Byelorussia was captured by the Soviet forces. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 British rescue tug HMS Turmoil was launched. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Submarine HMS Selene was commissioned into service. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer HMS Wrangler was commissioned into service. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 The minesweeping of the western section of Cherbourg harbour in France was completed. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 From the North Sea, British carrier task force under Admiral Moore unsuccessfully attacked German battleship Tirpitz in Kaafiord, Norway. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 German SS member Heinrich Boere took part in Operation Silbertanne during which 54 civilians were killed in retaliation for the assassination of Dutch Nazi leaders by Dutch resistance fighters. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of German submarine U-2334 was laid down. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of German submarine U-3506 was laid down. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet ambassador to Sweden Alexandra Kollontai announced that the Soviet Union was interested in peace discussions with Finland without any mention of the unconditional surrender that the Soviets had previously demanded. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 US bombers attacked the oil refineries at Budapest and Petfurdo, Hungary and the rail marshaling yard at Mantua, Italy, while in Italy US fighters and fighter-bombers attacked trains north of La Spazia and the airfield at Ghedi. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Nautilus delivered two men and 30 tons of supplies at Lagoma, Leyte, Philippine Islands. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 The Japanese government announced the conscription of females between the ages of 12 and 40 for war-related work. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 In the Mariana Islands, US Seventh Air Force P-47 Thunderbolt fighters based on Saipan again struck Tinian Island. At Guam, US battleships joined in on the pre-invasion bombardment while transport USS Dickerson delivered US Navy underwater demolition specialists to survey landing beaches on the island. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer USS William C. Miller sank Japanese submarine I-6 off Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Corvette HMCS Petrolia was commissioned into service. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-415 struck a mine and sank off Brest, France at 0915 hours. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of destroyer Gurke was laid down. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Claus von Stauffenberg was summoned to see Adolf Hitler in Rastenburg, East Prussia, Germany on the following day. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 In northern Burma, the Morris Force of the Chindits was now down to three platoons in strength. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Puffer departed Fremantle, Australia for her fifth war patrol. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 The US Eighth Air Force based in Britain flew several missions over France, with 319 B-17 bombers dropping 3,700 containers to supply Allied forces fighting in southern France, 131 B-24 bombers attacking Montdidier and Peronne airfields, and 94 P-38 fighter-bombers attacking targets near Paris (1 P-38 aircraft lost). Meanwhile, other Allied aircraft attacked targets in the French railway system in or near Bourth, Merey, Periers, Chateaudun, and other locations; some of these attacks were conducted using Oboe, a British aerial blind bombing targeting technology. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Prisoners in the Santé prison in Paris, France revolted, starting a fire in the prison compound. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Hitler departed his Berghof residence Berchtesgaden, Germany, never to return there again. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Iwo Jima, Chichi Jima, and Haha Jima were the targets of land-based aircraft for the first time as US Navy Bombing Squadron 109 PB4Y Liberator bombers based at Isley Field, Saipan, Mariana Islands dropped bombed on their airfields. In the United States, USAAF chief General Hap Arnold warned the Joint Planning Staff about the new Japanese Ki-84 fighters. As a precaution, he recommended seizing Iwo Jima to provide emergency airfields for bombers that might be damaged by new Japanese fighters such as the Ki-84. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Alabama, flagship of Rear Admiral E. W. Hanson, departed Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet troops under Rodion Malinovsky captured Iasi, Romania. 
0
14 Jul 1944 WW2 US Army ship FS-390 was commissioned into service at Los Angeles, California, United States under the command of US Coast Guard Lieutenant G. E. Oliver. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Truk and arrived at Mereyon, Yap; she would depart later on the same day. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Rommel communicated to Hitler that Germany should seriously consider ending the war on favorable terms when it was still possible; for a unknown reason, this letter was delayed in its delivery, not reaching Hitler until 20 Jul. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the US VIII Corps. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 A British No. 206 Squadron RAF Liberator bomber sank German submarine U-319 with depth charges in the North Sea; the aircraft was also lost during the successful attack. Also in the North Sea, another Liberator bomber from No. 159 Squadron RAF attacked U-561, but was shot down by German anti-aircraft fire. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Claus von Stauffenberg aborted an assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler when Hitler departed a conference earlier than expected. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 US Fifteenth Air Force in Italy launched more than 600 bombers to attack four oil refineries in the Ploesti and Teleajenul areas in Romania. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese-American Staff Sergeant Kazuo Otani of the US 442nd Infantry Regiment was killed while fighting near Pieve di Santa Luce, Italy. He repeated exposed himself to German fire in order to give directions to his platoon, and crawled under fire to give medical aid to a wounded soldier. He would later be awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet forces launched an offensive at the Finnish line in northern Karelia on the border of Finland and Russia; Finnish 5th Division counterattacked near Nietjrvi in the afternoon. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 The Soviet Second Baltic Front captured Opochka, Russia. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-679 damaged Soviet torpedo boat TK-57. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-181 sank transport Tanda in the Indian Ocean. In the Mozambique Channel between continental Africa and Madagascar, U-198 sank transport Director; 1 was killed, 56 survived. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 In the Mariana Islands, US Seventh Air Force P-47 fighters based on Saipan attacked targets on Tinian. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 US Navy Bombing Squadron109 PB4Y Liberator bombers based at Isley Field on Saipan, Mariana Islands attacked Iwo Jima, Chichi Jima, and Haha Jima. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Minesweeper HMCS Rossland was commissioned into service. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 American minesweeper Ptarmigan was launched. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Minesweeper USS Diploma was commissioned into service. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 In the Caroline Islands, US B-24 bombers attacked Truk and Yap. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 The US Eighth Air Force based in Britain launched two missions over France, with 169 P-38 Lightning and P-47 Thunderbolt fighter-bombers attacking German transportation southeast of Paris (3 aircraft lost) and 6 B-17 Flying Fortress bombers dropping propaganda leaflets over French cities after sundown. Four B-26 Marauder bombers of the US Ninth Air Force hit the L'Aigle rail bridge in the afternoon, while fighters also of the Ninth Air Force attacked various targets at Saint-Lô, Argentan, and Falaise. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 French Milice members executed 28 prisoners who participated in a revolt on the previous day at Santé Prison in Paris, France. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Claus von Stauffenberg met with Adolf Hitler at Rastenburg, East Prussia, Germany at 1300 hours. General Friedrich Olbricht activated Valkyrie in Berlin, Germany two hours prior to the meeting, expecting his troops to be in position to seize key positions in the capital at about the same moment Hitler was to be killed by a bomb that Stauffenberg brought into the meeting. Hitler departed the meeting early unexpectedly, and Olbricht hastily called off the operation, announcing that the troop movement was simply a drill. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Pollack departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her eleventh war patrol. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 Two divisions of the British 8th Army attacked Arezzo, Italy. 
0
15 Jul 1944 WW2 US President Roosevelt arrived in Chicago, Illinois, United States aboard his personal train Ferdinand Magellan and met with the chairman of the Democratic Convention Robert Hannegan to discuss the upcoming re-election. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 Yet another pocket began to form in Ukraine as over 40,000 German troops were about to be encircled near Brody. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 After dark, New Zealand Lieutenant-Commander R. B. Goodwin became the only prisoner of war to make a successful escape from Hong Kong. He went over the Shamsuipo camp wire during the night and swam to the mainland of China, travelling overland to Kunming. He arrived back in New Zealand in Nov 1944. 
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16 Jul 1944 WW2 A total of 1,087 B-17 Flying Fortress bombers USAAF Eighth Air Force attacked Germany in three waves (407, 238, and 407 bombers, respectively), escorted by 240, 214, and 169 fighters, respectively, with most of the bombers targeting Munich, Stuggart, Augsburg, and Saarbrucken; a total of 11 bombers and 3 fighters were lost. 
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16 Jul 1944 WW2 During the day, about 375 USAAF Ninth Air Force aircraft attacked German positions in the Saint-Lô and Rennes areas in France throughout the day. After dark, 5 B-17 bombers were launched to drop propaganda leaflets over France and another group of 24 B-17 bombers flew in support of French resistance groups. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 About 380 USAAF Fifteenth Air Force aircraft from Italy attacked Munchendorf Airfield, Winterhafen oil depot, Vienna marshalling yard, and the Wiener Neudorf engine factory in and near Vienna, Austria. 10 bombers were shot down while American escorting fighters claimed to have shot down 30 of the 100 German fighters which rose to defend Vienna. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 British destroyers HMS Chelsea (former USS Crowninshield), HMS Brighton (former USS Cowell), HMS Richmond (former USS Fairfax), and HMS St Albans (former USS Thomas) were transferred to the Soviet Union. They were renamed Dzerki, Zharki, Zhivuchi, and Dostoinyi, respectively. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet forces attacked Grodno, Byelorussia. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet aircraft sank German anti-aircraft cruiser Niobe in Kotka harbor, Finland; the Soviet pilots mis-identified their victim as Finnish coastal defence ship Väinämöinen. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 In the Mariana Islands, P-47 Thunderbolt aircraft of US Seventh Air Force from Saipan attacked Japanese targets at Tinian. At Merizo, Guam, Japanese Army troops massacred 30 civilians. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 Submarines USS Guardfish, USS Piranha, and USS Thresher attacked Japanese convoy Tama 21C, en route from Takao in Taiwan to Manila in the Philippine Islands; 4 ships were sunk, 2 ships were damaged. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 USAAF declared Kamiri airfield at Noemfoor, Biak Islands operational as a fighter base. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 US submarine Bullhead was launched. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 US destroyer Hugh W. Hadley was launched. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of US destroyer Fred T Berry was laid down. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 British aircraft attacked German submarine U-299, wounding the German commanding officer. U-299 would be forced to return to Norway for repairs. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 Dragon was decommissioned from service. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Astoria departed Trinidad for Puerto Rico. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 Claus von Stauffenberg hosted a party at his home at Wannsee, Germany, which was attended by several anti-Hitler conspirators. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla sank a Japanese transport between Borneo and Philippine Islands, hitting her with 2 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 General Dwight Eisenhower recommended the formation of a combined Anglo-American airborne Army and nominated Lieutenant General Lewis Brereton to command with Lieutenant General Frederick Browning (who was actually senior) as his deputy. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 B-24 bombers of US Fifth Air Force attacked Yap, Caroline Islands. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 Troops of the British 8th Army captured Arezzo, Italy while troops of the British XIII Corps crossed the Arno River. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 Brazilian 6th Infantry Regiment arrived in Naples, Italy. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed Port of Spain, Trinidad for Norfolk, Virginia, United States. She was escorted by destroyers USS Broome, USS Simpson, and USS Winslow. 
0
16 Jul 1944 WW2 The Polish government-in-exile in London, England, United Kingdom published a paper which laid claim to the German territory of East Prussia and the Free City of Danzig; the paper also reasserted the territory that the Germans called "Polish Corridor" was to remain within Polish borders. 
0
16 Jul 1944 RELIGIOUS German Lutheran theologian and Nazi martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in a letterfrom prison: 'One has to live for some time in a community to understand how Christ is"formed" in it (Gal 4:19).'
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 44 Barracuda dive bombers, 18 Hellcat fighters, and 30 other fighters from carriers HMS Formidable, HMS Indefatigable, and HMS Furious attacked the German battleship Tirpitz in Norway in Operation Mascot, scoring no hits. 
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17 Jul 1944 WW2 Erwin Rommel was injured when his staff car was attacked by a British fighter in Sainte-Foy-de-Montgommery, Calvados, France at 1830 hours. The aircraft was piloted by Squadron-Leader J. J. Le Roux of No. 602 Squadron RAF. Rommel was en route from Bourguébus Ridge to his headquarters at La Roche-Guyon. The unconscious Rommel would be sent to the hospital at Bernay for treatment. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Caiman was commissioned into service with Commander J. B. Azer in command. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 The Royal Navy submarine HMS/m Telemachus (Commander William King) torpedoed and sank the large Japanese submarine I-166 in the Malacca Straits. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 An inspection of the Indian 111th Infantry Brigade, a Chindit formation, found that only 118 were completely fit for active service; many of the remaining about 2,200 men suffered from malaria, foot rot, septic sores, typhus, or other ailments related to the Burma jungles. Joseph Stilwell withheld the brigade to guard a Chinese artillery battery for two weeks until conditions improved. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 In the morning, 670 B-17 and B-24 bombers of the US Eighth Air Force, escorted by 433 fighters, attacked targets in France (1 B-17 bomber and 1 P-47 fighter were lost); in diversion, B-26B bombers of the US VIII Air Support Command attacked Cayeux, France to draw away German fighters. At Coutances, napalm was used for the first time. On the ground, American troops entered Saint-Lô. In the evening, 34 B-17 and 106 B-24 bombers, escorted by 209 P-51 fighters, attacked 12 German V-weapon launching sites in the Pas de Calais, France area. After sundown, 5 B-17 bombers dropped propagadan leaflets in France and the Netherlands while 16 B-24 bombers flew in support of French resistance activities. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer HMS Cambrian was commissioned into service. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer HMS Leamington was transferred to the Soviet Union and was renamed Zhguchi. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 In southern France, 162 B-24 bombers of the US Fifteenth Air Force based in Italy attacked targets in southern France, including the rail marshalling yard at Avignon and railroad bridges at Arles and Tarascon. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet First Ukrainian Front encircled 40,000 German troops at Brody, Poland (now in Ukraine). Across the wider region, Soviet troops crossed the Bug River on a 40-mile front. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 57,600 German prisoners of war were paraded through the streets of Moscow, Russia. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 US Navy underwater demolition teams began destroying beach obstacles at Guam, Mariana Islands. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Task Group 17.16 (USS Guardfish, USS Piranha, and USS Thresher) sank a freighter and a cargo ship in the South China Sea. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Corvette HMCS Peterborough arrived at Bermuda. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Corvette HMCS Barrie completed refitting at Liverpool, Nova Scotia, Canada. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 HMS/M Seawolf arrived at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States for refitting. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Frigate HMCS Loch Morlich was commissioned into service. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 US President Roosevelt announced that he would allow the Democratic Convention to select a running mate for him rather than naming one himself. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Submarine USS Sea Owl was commissioned into service. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 A British Catalina aircraft of No. 210 Squadron RAF flown by Flying Officer John Alexander Cruickshank attacked German submarine U-742, which fought back with her deck gun. One crew member aboard the Catalina aircraft was killed and three others were wounded, including Cruickshank. Despite his wounds, he brought the aircraft around for a second attack run with depth charges, which successfully sank the submarine. He would later win the Victoria Cross for this action. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Off Narvik, Norway, a Liberator aircraft of No. 86 Squadron RAF sank German submarine U-347 (all 49 aboard were killed) and a Catalina aircraft of No. 210 Squadron RAF sank German submarine U-361 (all 52 aboard were killed). Off Bergen, No. 333 Squadron RAF (Norwegian pilots) damaged German submarine U-994 off Norway, wounding 5 men. U-994 would be able to sail to Bergen, Norway for repairs later on the same day. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla made a night time attack against a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, sinking an oiler and two transports, hitting them with 5 of 9 torpedoes fired. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan sank a Japanese minesweeper south of Japan, hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired; the victim was logged as a destroyer in a case of mis-identification. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Yamato arrived at Lingga, Dutch East Indies where she was to remain in the following three months for training. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 The Soviet offensive near Vuosalmi, Finland ground to a halt. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 Allied troops attacked toward Ancona, Italy, with Polish armored units capturing Monte della Crescia and Casenuove, and supporting British units capturing Montecchio and Croce di San Vincenzo. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Preston arrived off Guam. 
0
17 Jul 1944 WW2 The Liberty ship A. E. Bryan exploded whilst loading ammunition and explosives at Port Chicago, California, United States, taking with her the Victory ship Quinalt Victory berthed nearby. Ninety-seven men on the two ships were vapourised and even a 12 ton locomotive on the dockside vanished without trace. In total, 320 men were killed and 290 injured. More than 200 of the dead were black sailors being used as loaders. Later many sailors refused to work until safety was improved. Fifty were court martialled, convicted of mutiny and jailed. A public outcry led to their release but they were still deprived of all veteran's benefits for the rest of their lives. The last surviving "mutineer" Freddy Meeks was finally pardoned by President Bill Clinton in 1999. Four years later he died, aged 83. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 German Luftwaffe Hauptmann Werner Thierfelder, commander of the special test unit (Eprobungskommando) tasked with evolving tactics for the new Me 262 jet-powered fighter was killed when his plane crashed in flames near Landsberg, Germany. The cause of the crash was not determined, but it was likely to be either a mechanical failure or due to poor fuel quality. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 US XIX Corps troops entered Saint-Lô, France. British troops launched Operation Goodwood against Caen with Allied 2,200 aircraft supporting the ground assault, but stubborn German defense cost the British VIII Corps 200 tanks and 1,500 men, while just over 100 Panzers were destroyed. After sundown, 25 American B-24 bombers flew in support of resistance activities. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet First Byelorussian Front launched a heavy attack across the Bug River aimed at Lublin in Poland, the Third Baltic Front attacked toward Pskov in Russia, while the First Ukraine Front advanced toward Lvov in Ukraine. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 In Germany, 291 American B-17 bombers, escorted by 48 P-38 and 84 P-51 fighters, attacked the port facilities at Kiel and oil refineries at Cuxhaven. To the east, 377 American B-17 bombers, escorted by 294 fighters, attacked Peenemünde, Zinnowitz, and Stralsund. In southern Germany, B-17 and B-24 bombers of US Fifteenth Air Force attacked Memmingen Airfield and the Dornier factories at Manzell; 20 aircraft were lost. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of British minesweeper Styx was laid down. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 British destroyer HMS Zambesi was commissioned into service. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 British frigate HMS Balfour sank German submarine U-672 with depth charges north of Guernsey in the English Channel. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 A Mosquito aircraft of the British No. 333 (Norwegian) Squadron RAF damaged German submarine U-286 in the North Sea; 1 was killed, 7 were wounded. U-286 would be able to sail to Kristiansand, Norway later on the same day. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 A Catalina aircraft of British No. 210 Squadron RAF sank German submarine U-742 west of Narvik, Norway; all 52 aboard were killed. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-2504 was launched. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-3003 was launched. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-327 was commissioned into service. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-2323 was commissioned into service. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 German troops round up the 2,000 Jews at Rhodes and Kos in Greece; most of them would soon be deported to the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-479 fired a spread of two torpedoes at Soviet submarine chaser MO-304 in Vyborg Bay, Russia; U-479 reported that the attack had failed, but one of the torpedoes actually struck MO-304, which required towing back into port. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 In the Mariana Islands, American P-47 fighters based on Saipan attacked Japanese positions on Tinian and Pagan. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 Hideki Tojo submitted his letter of resignation for his position as the Prime Minister of Japan. He would be officially replaced by Kuniaki Koiso four days later. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 American destroyer escort USS Ulvert M. Moore was commissioned into service. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa was named the commanding officer of the Southwest Area Fleet. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy 14th Air Fleet was officially disbanded; it had been wiped out at Saipan, Mariana Islands ten days earlier. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Ray sank Japanese tanker Janbi Maru in the South China Sea, expending 22 torpedoes during the pursuit, 8 of which hit. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 In the Caroline Islands, aircraft of the Allied Far East Air Forces attacked Yap and Sorol, while 25 B-24 bombers of the US Seventh Air Force attacked Truk. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 Otozo Yamada succeeded Yoshijiro Umezu as the commanding officer of the Japanese Kwantung Army in northeastern China. 
0
18 Jul 1944 WW2 As Polish II Corps advanced toward Ancona, Italy, it captured Agugliano, Chiaravalle, and finally the port city itself by 1430 hours. Meanwhile, troops of US IV Corps began an attack on Leghorn. In the air, US Fifteenth Air Force attacked various German positions throughout the country. 
0
18 Jul 1944 RELIGIOUS German theologian and Nazi martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote from prison: 'Thereligious act is always something partial; "faith" is something whole, involving the wholeof one's life. Jesus calls us not to new religion but to life.'
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Davao, Philippine Islands; she was damaged by a mine just prior to arrival. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Günther von Kluge was appointed the commanding officer of the German Army Group B (Heeresgruppe B). 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Rock detected a Japanese convoy in the Luzon Strait and attacked with ten torpedoes. She recorded six detonations, but was not able to observe whether any of the ships sank. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt was nominated to run for a fourth term as the President of the United States. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Raoul Wallenberg might have met with Adolf Eichmann at the Hotel Majestic in Budapest, Hungary. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Claus von Stauffenberg was summoned to see Adolf Hitler at Rastenburg, East Prussia, Germany on the following day. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Pompon departed for her sixth war patrol. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-968 was attacked by a British RAF Liberator bomber in the Atlantic Ocean; 1 was killed, 6 were wounded. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of US minesweeper Minivet was laid down. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 US destroyer Zellars was launched. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer escort USS Wyman sank Japanese submarine I-5 360 miles east of Guam, Mariana Islands. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-2502 was commissioned into service. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of German submarine U-2513 was laid down. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of German submarine U-3507 was laid down. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 British minesweeper HMS Mameluke was launched. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 British destroyer HMS Saintes was launched. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer escort USS Kenneth M. Willet was commissioned into service. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 US Far East Air Force dispatched B-24 aircraft to attack Yap, Ngulu, and Sorol in the Caroline Islands. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 In France, Canadian troops cleared Caen's southern suburbs, capturing Vaucelles, Louvigny, and Flery-sur-Orne, while British 11th Armoured Division captured Bras and Hubert-Follie. In the afternoon, 262 US 9th Air Force B-26 Marauder and A-20 Havoc aircraft attacked bridges on the Loire River and Seine River and a fuel dump at Bruz, France. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 From Britain, US 8th Air Force dispatched 5 B-17 bombers to drop propaganda leaflets in France and Belgium while 5 B-24 bombers paradropped supplies to French resistance fighters. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 1,082 B-17 and B-24 bombers, escorted by 670 P-38, P-47, and P-51 fighters attacked factories (hydrogen peroxide, chemical, aircraft, and ball bearing), six rail marshalling yards, a dam, and four airfields in western and southwestern Germany; 17 bombers and 7 fighters were lost. From Italy, US 15th Air Force launched 400 B-17 and B-24 bombers attacked an ordnance depot, an aircraft factory, an automobile factory, and an airfield in the München (Munich) area; 16 US aircraft were lost. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Croaker departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse sank arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her fifth war patrol. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Pouring began on the foundation for the engine overahaul facility. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 US 34th Division captured Livorno, Italy. The Germans set up about 25,000 booby traps as they evacuated the city. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet troops crossed the border into Latvia. 
0
19 Jul 1944 WW2 In the Mariana Islands, US 7th Air Force launched P-47 aircraft based on Saipan to attack Tinian. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 Ludwig Beck passed away. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 French troops began withdrawing from Italy in preparation for the invasion of southern France. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 The British Operation Goodwood in France was stalled by heavy weather; thus far, over 400 tanks were lost. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Hoe fired 4 torpedoes at a Japanese freighter, scoring no hits. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at Hampton Roads, Virginia, United States. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 Benito Mussolini met with Adolf Hitler at Rastenburg, East Prussia, Germany shortly after the failed assassination attempt on Hitler. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 The US Army formed the Pearl Harbor Board to analyze the Japanese attack of Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii of 7 Dec 1941. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 Allied aircraft attacked German submarine U-965 in the Atlantic Ocean, killing 1 and wounding 1. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-861 sank Brazilian troop transport Vital de Oliviera off Brazil. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 Austrian-born Oberfeldwebel Hermann Buchner was awarded the Knight's Cross medal for 600 combat sorties and 456 aerial victories. Buchner would survive the war with a combined total of 58 kills (four of these whilst flying Me 262 jet fighters), plus 46 tanks and one armoured train destroyed. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 Canadian corvette HMCS Cobalt completed its forecastle extension work at Liverpool, Nova Scotia, Canada. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 US Far East Air Force B-24 bombers attacked Yap, Caroline Islands. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 6 US B-17 bombers were launched after sundown to drop propaganda leaflets over France while 12 B-24 bombers dropped supplies to resistance fighters. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 British destroyer HMS Isis was sunk, either by a German naval mine or by a German Neger manned torpedo off Normandy, France. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 Canadian frigate HMCS Matane was damaged by a glider bomb off Brest, France, killing 2. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 Operation Valkyrie was launched to assassinate Hitler and to overthrow the Nazi German government. It failed, leading to the arrest and execution of many who became implicated in the plot. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 Bombers of US 8th Air Force in Britain and US 15th Air Force in Italy attacked Dessau, Kothen, Leipzig, Nordhuasen, Rudolstadt, Merseburg, Bad Nauheim, Koblenz, and many other targets across Germany. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-3001 was commissioned into service. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of German submarine U-2335 was laid down. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho completed her flight deck repairs and exited the drydocks at Kure, Japan. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 PB4Y-1 Liberator bombers of US Navy Patrol Bomber Squadron 109 from Saipan, Mariana Islands attacked Iwo Jima, Haha Jima, and Chichi Jima in the Bonin Islands. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 P-47 aircraft of US 7th Air Force continued to attack Japanese positions on Tinian while US Navy warships bombarded Guam in the Mariana Islands. Meanwhile, underwater demolition teams conducted their final missions to remove obstacles on the invasion beaches at Asan and Agat on Guam. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 British destroyer HMS Crescent was launched at Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 British minesweeper HMS Jewel was launched. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 British boom defense vessel HMS Precise was launched. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 British submarine HMS Vengeful was launched. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 British destroyers HMS Whirlwind was commissioned into service. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 British destroyers HMS Zest was commissioned into service. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 The staff at the Los Alamos site of the Manhattan Project shifted focus to work on the implosion mechanism for the atomic bomb. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 US escort carrier Gilbert Islands was launched. 
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20 Jul 1944 WW2 US submarine USS Tigrone was launched. 
0
20 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island embarked US Navy squadron VC-21 at San Diego, California, United States. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Rock detected a Japanese convoy in the Luzon Strait and attacked with four torpedoes. She recorded two detonations, but was not able to observe whether any of the ships sank. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Heinz Guderian was appointed Chief of the Army General Staff. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro departed Frementle, Australia for her second war patrol. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 A military and damage control inspection party from USS Wyoming, headed by Rear Admiral D. B. Beary, boarded USS Astoria at Virginia, United States for an inspection. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Heinz Brandt died from wounds suffered during the 20 Jul 1944 assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler in Rastenburg, East Prussia, Germany. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Finback arrived at Majuro, Marshall Islands, ending her ninth war patrol. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 8 B-17 bombers of US 8th Air Force dropped propaganda leaflets over France after sundown. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 British frigates HMS Curzon and HMS Ekins sank German submarine U-212 with depth charges south of Brighton, England, United Kingdom; all 49 aboard were killed. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of German submarine U-3009 was laid down. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 German submarine U-1110 was launched. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Canadian tug HMCS Glenlivit was commissioned into service. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Canadian frigate HMCS Levis was commissioned into service. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Canadian frigate HMCS Stone Town was commissioned into service. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer escort USS Dufilho was commissioned into service. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Destroyer USS John W. Weeks was commissioned into service with Commander Robert A. Theobald. Jr. in command. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Brazilian corvette Camaquã was struck by a series of large waves and sank 27 miles off Recife, Brazil while escorting Allied convoy JT-18; 35 were killed. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 B-17 and B-24 bombers of US 15th Air Force based in Italy attacked Brüx in Czechoslovakia (Czech name "Most"), targeting the synthetic oil refinery. 
0
21 Jul 1944 WW2 Claus von Stauffenberg was executed in Berlin, Germany. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 1,110 bombers of US 8th Air Force were launched from England, United Kingdom against Germany, hitting München (Munich), Saarbrücken (targeting rail marshalling yards), Oberpfeffenhofen, Walldrun (targeting rail marshalling yards), Regensburg, Stuttgart, Schweinfurt, and other locations; a total of 31 bombers and 8 escorting fighters were lost. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Field Marshal Erwin von Witzleben was arrested by the Gestapo. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 US 3rd Marine Division landed near Agana and US 1st Provisional Marine Brigade landed near Agat on Guam, Mariana Islands; the landing was supported by US Navy Task Force 53. US Navy and US Army aircraft attacked Tinian of Mariana Islands, Eniwetok of Marshall Islands, and Truk and Yap of Caroline Islands as indirect support. Troops of the US Army 77th Infantry Division arrived in the afternoon; their landing was difficult due to the lack of LVT vehicles. A mile-deep beachhead was established at both landing sites by sundown. The Japanese attempted a counterattack during the night, which was repulsed. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft provided aerial cover for the invasion of Guam, Mariana Islands. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Recreation facilities - 6 handball courts and one basketball court for officers; and 2 handball courts, 2 basketball courts, and one athletic field for enlisted men, turned over to station. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 The French Expeditionary Corps and the US VI Corps began to be withdrawn from the front lines in Italy to prepare for the invasion of Southern France. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Guam, Mariana Islands. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Kashii arrived at Manila, Philippine Islands. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 The Soviet Third Baltic Front captured Ostrov, Pskov Oblast, Russia. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 In Moscow, Russia, the Soviet Union announced the establishment of the Polish Committee of National Liberation to administer areas of liberated Poland, angering the Polish government-in-exile based in Britain. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 No. 616 Squadron RAF, equipped with Meteor Mk I jet fighters, was transferred to RAF Manston in southern England, United Kingdom. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Baltimore depart San Diego, California, United States, with destroyer USS Fanning in escort and US President Franklin Roosevelt aboard, for Adak, Aleutian Islands. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 At Chicago, Illinois, United States, the Democratic National Convention nominated Senator Harry Truman to run as Franklin Roosevelt's vice presidential candidate in the upcoming election. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 US Army transport FS-185 was commissioned into service at New Orleans, Louisiana, United States under the command of US Coast Guard Lieutenant (jg) L. C. Rickert. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 US Army transport FS-186 was commissioned into service at New Orleans, Louisiana, United States under the command of US Coast Guard Lieutenant F. D. Obrian. 
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21 Jul 1944 WW2 Air Group 80 flew off of USS Ticonderoga and landed in Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 In Ukraine, the Brody Pocket was eliminated; Soviet forces captured 17,000 German prisoners of war. To the north, Soviet units captured Panevezys, Lithuania. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 Kuniaki Koiso was named the 41st Prime Minister of Japan. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 Rear Admiral D. B. Beary continued his inspection of USS Astoria at Virginia, United States. Later in the day, USS Astoria conducted a battle problem with USS Decatur and target ship Daniel A. Joy. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 British minesweeper HMS Chamois struck a mine in Baie de Seine north of Normandie, France and was damaged. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Cero fired six torpedoes at a Japanese transport north of Dutch New Guinea; all torpedoes missed. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 American aircraft raided Japanese positions in Shanghai, China. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 The German Gestapo arrested the head of German intelligence unit Abwehr I Colonel Georg Hansen. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 In Italy, American troops entered the outskirts of Pisa while troops of from both the 8th and 5th armies advanced to within 15 miles of Florence; the towns of Castelfiorentino and Tavernelle were occupied and Polish troops in the Adriatic area pressed northwards from Ancona. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Wasp set sail for the Caroline Islands. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga began her first overhaul at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia, United States. Her flight deck was to be reconfigured to add 11 feet forward and 7 feet aft, and her anti-aircraft directors were to be repositioned. 
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22 Jul 1944 WW2 The keel of submarine Mero was laid down by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States. 
0
23 Jul 1944 WW2 Hitler required that the Wehrmacht use the Hitler Gruß, the Nazi salute, in the aftermath of July Plot. 
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23 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Pskov, Byelorussia. 
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23 Jul 1944 WW2 After dark, a large group of British bombers attacked Kiel, Germany; the attack lasted through midnight into the next date. The German fighters summoned to intercept went after the decoy force rather than the main force. 
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23 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. 
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23 Jul 1944 WW2 In response to the American request for Chiang Kaishek to accept communist forces in his army, Chiang expressed that he would accept the request only if the Nationalist reserve forces would be off-limits to Joseph Stilwell, and if American Lend-Lease supplies would be controlled by Chiang. This counteroffer was to be rejected in the following month. 
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23 Jul 1944 WW2 The 1st Canadian Army (General H. D. G. Crerar) became operational in Normandy, France. 
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23 Jul 1944 WW2 The German Gestapo arrested the head of German Abwehr Wilhelm Canaris. 
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23 Jul 1944 WW2 US 34th Division captured Pisa, Italy. 
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23 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet sank a small Japanese transport with three torpedoes (all missed) and her deck guns in the Pacific Ocean. 
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24 Jul 1944 WW2 As Soviet units crossed the River San north of Lublin, Poland, German troops began evacuating that city. 
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24 Jul 1944 WW2 American troops landed on Tinian, Mariana Islands. 
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24 Jul 1944 WW2 The British bombing of Kiel, Germany that began on the previous date ended before dawn. The damage was extensive, causing the city to have no running water for 3 days, the trains and buses were out of commission for 8 days, and gas service was out for nearly 3 weeks. 
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24 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Permit sank a Japanese transport off Yap, Caroline Islands, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
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24 Jul 1944 WW2 Majdanek Concentration Camp became the first concentration camp to be liberated by Soviet troops (and the first to be liberated overall). 
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25 Jul 1944 WW2 The first preliminary test of the RaLa Experiment was performed by the scientists of the Manhattan Project; it was the first in a series of experiments attempting to create a spherical implosion to detonate a nuclear weapon. 
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25 Jul 1944 WW2 Operation Cobra, the US breakout operation in France, began. Canadian troops attacked south of Caen, France. 
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25 Jul 1944 WW2 In Berlin, Germany, Goebbels was designated the Reich Plenipotentiary for Total War. 
0
25 Jul 1944 WW2 German authorities completed the evacuation of Jewish ghettos in Kovno, Lithuania. 
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25 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet units reached the Vistula River in Poland. To the north, the Germans evacuated Narva, Estonia, taking up defensive positions to the west. 
0
25 Jul 1944 WW2 USS hoe fired 6 torpedoes at a Japanese submarine, scoring no hits. 
0
25 Jul 1944 WW2 George Bush shared the credit for sinking of a Japanese cargo ship off the Palau Islands. 
0
25 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Palau Islands, Yap Island, and Ulithi Atoll through 27 Jul 1944. 
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25 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions in the Palau Islands. 
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25 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Segundo arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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25 Jul 1944 WW2 Production of P-39 Airacobra fighters ceased. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Davao, Philippine Islands. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 US forces broke through near Saint-Lô, France, forcing a German withdrawal from the Normandy region. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 United States Army 5332nd Brigade (Provisional) was activated in India. Known as the Mars Task Force, the Brigade consisted of 475th Infantry Regiment (largely of Galahad and New Galahad veterans), 124th cavalry Regiment (Special) (formerly the Texas National Guard and now serving as infantry), and the 612th and 613th Artillery Battalions (Pack) with mule-borne 75mm Howitzers. The Galahad veterans appeared to have been extremely unwilling to return to the front but after their grievances were addressed went back into battle again. By the time the brigade was withdrawn (redeployed to China) in Feb 1945 it had suffered 122 dead, 938 wounded, and 1 missing. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Marlin collided with SC-642 while undergoing training, sustaining light damage. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 The US submarine Robalo struck a mine and sank whilst on patrol off the western coast of Palawan, Philippine Islands. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 Soviet forces captured Narva as they crossed the Estonian border. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 The head of German intelligence unit Abwehr II Colonel Wessel von Freytag-Loringhoven committed suicide just prior to his arrest by the German Gestapo. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 Leutnant Alfred Schreiber, flying a Me 262A-1a jet fighter, damaged a Mosquito aircraft crewed by Flight Lieutenant Albert Wall and navigator Albert Lobban No. 544 Squadron RAF. This was the first air-to-air combat involving a jet aircraft. Although the Mosquito aircraft would ultimately make an emergency landing at Fermo, Italy, Schreiber received a victory for the engagement because he had observed a large piece broken off from the British aircraft and was convinced that the aircraft could not be in flight for long; the piece he observed was actually just the outer hatch door. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 Douglas MacArthur and Chester Nimitz presented each of their plans to Franklin Roosevelt on how to approach Japan during the Pacific Strategy Conference in US Territory of Hawaii. MacArthur wanted to target the Philippine Islands to recover American territory, while Nimitz preferred to invade Taiwan which would serve as gateway to both Japan and China. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Twenty-two officers of D-1, IRON-74, arrived on board. 
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26 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Golet was officially presumed lost in the Pacific Ocean. 
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27 Jul 1944 WW2 Bialystok in Poland, Dunaburg (Daugavpils) in Latvia, and Lvov in Ukraine were captured by Soviet forces; meanwhile, a major bridgehead was also established across the Vistula River near Magnuszew, Poland. 
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27 Jul 1944 WW2 Meteor F.Mk I jet fighters of No. 616 Squadron based at Manston in Kent, England, United Kingdom performed their first V-1 intercept mission. 
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27 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Rock changed course for Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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27 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Snook fired 6 torpedoes at a Japanese freighter; all torpedoes missed. 
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27 Jul 1944 WW2 Sunfish (S-class) was decommissioned from service. 
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27 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Pompon sank a Japanese trawler off Japan with her deck gun. 
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27 Jul 1944 WW2 While flying with the elite 433rd Fighter Squadron, 475th Fighter Group, US 5th Air Force, the famous American civilian aviator Charles Lindbergh, who was only there to demonstrate effective ways of increasing the range of the P-38 fighter, accounted for a Japanese Ki-51 aircraft near Ceram Island (now spelled Seram), Dutch East Indies. The Japanese aircraft was piloted by Captain Saburo Shimada, the commanding officer of the 73rd Independent Squadron. The 433rd Fighter Squadron commander, Colonel Charles Macdonald, would later receive quite a rocket from Fifth Air Force HQ when they heard that such a distinguished civilian had been allowed to participate in a combat mission. 
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28 Jul 1944 WW2 American troops captured Coutances, France. 
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28 Jul 1944 WW2 Brest-Litovsk, Byelorussia, site of a joint German-Soviet victory parade in 1939, was captured by Soviet forces after heavy fighting. 
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28 Jul 1944 WW2 With Geoffrey de Havilland Jr. at the controls, the de Havilland Hornet aircraft made its maiden flight. The Hornet entered service in 1946. 
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28 Jul 1944 WW2 The Dutch government issued a protest over the atrocities committed by the crew of Japanese I-8 against the survivors of sunken merchant ship Tjisalak. 
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28 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Ray departed Fremantle, Australia after restocking her store of torpedoes. 
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28 Jul 1944 WW2 US Marines captured the old US Marine Corps parade ground on Guam, Mariana Islands. Elsewhere on the island, Lieutenant General Takeshi Takashina, commanding the 19,000 Japanese garrison on Guam, was killed by machine gun fire. 
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28 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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28 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Copahee arrived at San Diego, California, United States with 14 captured Japanese aircraft and 37 captured engines. 
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29 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Puffer attacked a Japanese freighter in the Dutch East Indies; all 6 torpedoes missed. 
0
29 Jul 1944 WW2 Aleksandr Vasilevsky was made a Hero of the Soviet Union and was awarded his second Order of Lenin. 
0
29 Jul 1944 WW2 Ivan Bagramyan was awarded the Order of Lenin for the first time. 
0
29 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel started her sixth war patrol. 
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29 Jul 1944 WW2 B-29 Superfortress bombers of the 20th USAAF flying from advanced airfields near Chengdu in China attacked the Showa steel works at Anshan in Liaoning, northeastern China. During the raid B-29 bomber 42-5256 piloted by Captain Howard R. Jarrell was struck by a shell and badly damaged. Unable to make the 1,500 mile journey home, Captain Jarrell decided to try to reach Vladivostock in the USSR. Intercepted by Soviet Yak-9 fighters the crippled bomber was forced to land at the small strip at Tavrichanka where the aircraft and its crew were interned by the Soviet authorities. 
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29 Jul 1944 WW2 A Me 163 jet fighter attempted to disrupt a B-17 raid on Mersburg, Germany but was instead pursued by Captain Arthur Jeffrey in a P-38 fighter. Jeffrey chased the Me 163 jet fighter to a very low altitude and confidently reported a victory, but post war records indicated that there was no Me 163 lost on this particular date. 
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29 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Becuna arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
29 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Marblehead arrived in Palermo, Sicily, Italy. 
0
29 Jul 1944 WW2 German Armeegruppe Nord was cut off as the Red Army reached the Baltic coast west of Riga, Latvia. 
0
29 Jul 1944 WW2 Georgy Zhukov was made a Hero of the Soviet Union for the second time. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 British troops attack Caumont, France, east of Saint-Lô. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Mingo arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fourth war patrol. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy ordered Mitsubishi to stop development of the A7M fighter design; Mitsubishi was able to secure permission to continue given that the company was to use existing engines rather than develop new ones. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 Günther von Kluge wrote to Adolf Hitler, warning that the entire western front was on the brink of collapse. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-304 struck a mine and sank off the coast of Normandy, France. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-378 struck a mine and was severely damaged, beyond repair, off the coast of Normandy, France. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 Leaders of US Navy ComAirSols (Commander Air Solomons) was given a demonstration of unmanned TDR drones. Four of them took flight and each released a 2,000-pound bomb on Yamazuki Maru which was beached at Guadalcanal. 3 of the bombs hit, although 1 of the failed to detonate. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of CASU-49 departed. 
0
30 Jul 1944 WW2 The Soviet First Baltic Front reached Tukums, Latvia. 
0
31 Jul 1944 WW2 Tirpitz conducted exercises at sea with five destroyers. 
0
31 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Tang departed for her fourth war patrol off Honshu, Japan. 
0
31 Jul 1944 WW2 British VIII Corps launched Operation Bluecoat towards Vire River in Normandy, France. Meanwhile, US 4th Armored Division captured Avranches and 20,000 prisoners of war in 6 days. 
0
31 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Kete was commissioned into service with Commander R. L. Rutter in command. 
0
31 Jul 1944 WW2 The British 9th Armoured Division (Major General John D'Arcy) was disbanded. 
0
31 Jul 1944 WW2 USS Parche attacked a Japanese convoy off Taiwan and sank cargo ship Manko Maru and tanker Koei Maru; she also shared the credit with USS Steelhead for sinking another transport. She expended 19 torpedoes during this attack. Parche's commanding officer, Commander Lawson Ramage would later be awarded the Medal of Honor for this attack while the crew received the Presidental Unit Citation. 
0
31 Jul 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Ominato Guard District, Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 Tirpitz completed exercises at sea. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 Manuel Quezon passed away. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet forces captured Lithuania, cutting all roads between Germany and the Baltic States. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 President Risto Ryti of Finland resigned; he was to be replaced by Marshal Carl Mannerheim. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the XV Corps of the Third Army of the US 12th Army Group. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 The US 12th Army Group came into existence under the command of Lieutenant General Omar Bradley. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 General Philippe Leclerc's 2nd French Division landed on "Utah" beach, Normandy, France. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 Captain Taro Taguchi was named the chief of staff of the Japanese Navy 3rd Air Fleet. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 George Bush was promoted to the rank of lieutenant (jg). 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Puffer attacked a Japanese convoy in the Dutch East Indies, firing 8 torpedoes and claiming 2 hits which sank a ship. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 The Indian 111th Infantry Brigade, a Chindit formation, was allowed to return to front line service in Burma after health conditions improved. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell met with Louis Mountbatten at Kandy, Ceylon to discuss Stilwell's temporary command over Mountbatten's theater while Mountbatten planned for a trip to Britain. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Parche set sail for Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish departed Brisbane, Australia for her eleventh war patrol. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pollack served on lifeguard station in support of the air strikes on Woleai, Caroline Islands. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 Two brand-new Allied armoured divisions, the 4th Canadian and 1st Polish, arrived in Normandy, France. They were tasked with executing the final great break-out from the British sector to trap and destroy the German armies in Normandy or send them reeling back to the Seine. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet 1st Byelorussian Front under Konstantin Rokossovsky arrived in the suburbs of Warsaw, Poland. Seeing the arrival of friendly forces, the Polish Home Army rose up against German occupation troops. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 The Soviet-backed Polish Committee of National Liberation established its headquarters in Lublin, Poland. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 The second XP-80A prototype jet aircraft "Silver Ghost" took its first flight. 
0
01 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her seventh war patrol. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 US VIII Corps moved west along Brittany coast from Avranches, France. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 Turkey severed diplomatic relations with Germany. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 The Soviet-sponsored 1st Polish Army established a bridgehead over the Vistula River south of Warsaw, Poland. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 German submarine U-804 sank American destroyer escort USS Fiske with torpedoes in the central Atlantic. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Flier departed Fremantle, Australia for her second war patrol. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 Leutnant Erich Sommer flew an Ar 234 V7 prototype aircraft over the Allied Normandy beachheads in France while the two Rb 50/30 cameras on board took a photograph every 11 seconds. This was the first jet aircraft reconnaissance mission in aviation history. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Kure Naval Arsenal, Japan. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Wasp arrived at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
02 Aug 1944 WW2 Zigeunernacht ("Gypsy Night"): 4,000 Roma were killed and cremated at Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 
0
03 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Cod sank a Japanese merchant ship. 
0
03 Aug 1944 WW2 A two-month siege by US and Chinese forces at Myitkyina in Burma finally succeeded in capturing it. 
0
03 Aug 1944 WW2 Hitler ordered a counterattack east of Avranches, France to regain the coast. 
0
03 Aug 1944 WW2 The first Soviet attacks east of Warsaw, Poland were repulsed by the Germans. 
0
03 Aug 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the US VIII Corps. 
0
03 Aug 1944 WW2 King George VI of the United Kingdom gave Royal approval to R. A. Butler's Education Act which introduced wide ranging changes to secondary school education in England and Wales. 
0
03 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Spot was commissioned into service with Commander William S. Post, Jr. in command. 
0
03 Aug 1944 WW2 Submarine Springer was launched at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California, United States, sponsored by the wife of M. S. Tisdale. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 Anne Frank and her family were arrested in Amsterdam, the Netherlands by the Gestapo. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 Allies captured Rennes, France. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet forces gained another bridgehead over the Vistula River in Poland near Baranov. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 Harold Alexander met with Oliver Leese, who convinced Alexander to attack the Gothic Line in Italy by a thrust along the coast of the Adriatic Sea. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 Colonel Charles Hunter was relieved of his command and returned to the United States by ship. Morale among the "Marauders" (most of whom were recovering from their ordeal in hospital beds) collapsed completely as a consequence, and soon after the entire force was despicably disbanded. Back in the United States, the obnoxious Stilwell's treatment of Hunter's "Marauders" had become a public scandal eventually leading to a full inquiry. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 An extensively modified Thunderbolt fighter (XP-47J) became the first airscrew driven aircraft to exceed 500 mph in level flight with a recorded speed of 504 mph. However the P-47J did not go into production as the Republic development team chose to concentrate on the more advanced XP-72 project. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 HMS Gairsay was sunk by a German explosive motor boat off the coast of Normandy, France. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Brian Horrocks assumed command of the British XXX Corps in France. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Ray sank Japanese cargo ship Koshu Maru at the southern opening of the Makassar Strait between Borneo and Celebes in the Dutch East Indies, hitting her with 3 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 The USAAF launched two "babies" against V-1 sites. Both missions ended in failure. One went out off control and into a spin; the crew baled out but the pilot was killed. The second made it across the English Channel, but was lost during the descent and crashed some distance short of the target. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pollack served on lifeguard station off Yap, Caroline Islands in support of air strikes in the region. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tunny departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her seventh war patrol with the wolfpack "Ed's Eradicators". 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Parts of Night Air Group 102 on board. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 Germans evacuated Florence, Italy. 
0
04 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet fired four torpedoes at a Japanese convoy in the Pacific Ocean, sinking a transport with three hits. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 The neutral Turkish ship, Mefkure, sailing from Romania to Istanbul, Turkey with 325 passengers, mainly Jews fleeing from Romania, Poland and Hungary, was torpedoed, shelled and sunk by an unidentified submarine, believed to be the Soviet submarine SC-215. The survivors were machine gunned in the water and only 11 escape. The dead include 37 children. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Cero sank a Japanese tanker north of Dutch New Guinea, hitting her with 4 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 Karl von Le Suire was named the commanding officer of German XXXXIX. Gebirgskorps. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Harder departed Fremantle, Australia for her sixth war patrol. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pollack again served on lifeguard station off Yap, Caroline Islands in support of air strikes in the region. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 Finding an unguarded track, Captain Denny of the 13/18th Hussars of the British Army led two troops of tanks to the summit of Mont Pinçon, the most formidable feature in Normandy, France. During the night his small force was reinforced by the battle-weary 4th Wiltshires (Lieutenant Colonel Luce) which on the following day then repulsed a rather half-hearted German counter-attack to regain the feature. Elsewhere, to the south, US XV Corps reached Mayenne, France. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Parche arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 Representatives from Belgium, Canada, Free France, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the United States signed an agreement on the control of merchant shipping in London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
05 Aug 1944 WW2 Louis Mountbatten arrived in London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
06 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Croaker fired 7 torpedoes at a Japanese freighter, all of which missed. 
0
06 Aug 1944 WW2 In France, US 4th Armored Division advanced to Lorient and US 6th Armored Division advanced toward Brest. 
0
06 Aug 1944 WW2 The refinery city of Drohobyez, Poland was captured by the Red Army. 
0
06 Aug 1944 WW2 US XX Corps reached Laval, France. 
0
06 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pintado sank Japanese cargo ship Shonan Maru and damaged another in the East China Sea; six torpedoes were expended and four of them made contact (two on each target). 
0
06 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Twelve ready-service magazines turned over to station. 
0
06 Aug 1944 WW2 Unryu was commissioned into service at Yokosuka, Japan with Captain Konishi Kaname in command. She was assigned to Carrier Division 1 of Japanese 3rd Fleet. 
0
06 Aug 1944 WW2 Lodz, the last Jewish ghetto in Poland, was liquidated; its 60,000 residences were sent to Auschwitz Concentration Camp. 27,000 prisoners of various concentration camps east of the Vistula River in Poland were transferred to camps to the west. The evacuation of Kaiserwald Concentration Camp outside of Riga, Latvia began. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 Erwin Rommel received the Wound Badge in Gold. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Croaker sank Japanese light cruiser Nagara after hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 A Japanese aircraft made the first aerial ramming attempt at an American bomber. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sea Robin was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander Paul Stimson in command. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro attacked a Japanese convoy off Luzon, Philippine Islands in the South China Sea, sinking frigate Kusakaki with three of the six torpedoes fired. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pompon attacked a Japanese transport off Sakhalin island; all 4 torpedoes missed. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Puffer attacked a Japanese convoy off the Philippine Islands and sank a freighter, hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 The Indian 36th Division became the last Chindit formation to engaged in combat in Burma. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 During a strategy conference in London, England, United Kingdom, Alan Brooke determined that the next Allied target in Burma should be Rangoon, and the best method of attack would be an airborne assault. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 German troops counterattacked in Avranches, France; the offensive was code named Operation Lüttich. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 Field Marshal Erwin von Witzleben was tried and sentenced to death. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet fired seven torpedoes at a Japanese convoy in the Pacific Ocean, sinking a transport with two hits. 
0
07 Aug 1944 WW2 German prisoners of war Georg Jantschi and Karl Kosch were transferred from the Lefortovo Prison in Moscow, Russia to the special Prisoner of War Camp No. 27 in the city's suburbs. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 German SS Lieutenant General Hans Kammler was named the Special Commissioner for the A-4 rocket program. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro sank a small vessel off Luzon, Philippine Islands in the South China Sea with her deck gun. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 Winston Churchill, Alan Brooke, Louis Mountbatten, Clement Attlee, Anthony Eden, Oliver Lyttelton, and Albert Wedemeyer met in London, England, United Kingdom to discuss the future direction of war efforts in southeastern Asia. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Luce completed a period of anti-submarine patrol off Attu in the Aleutian Islands and departed for San Francisco, California, United States. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 HMS Howe arrived at Trincomalee, Ceylon. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 HMS Valiant was damaged at Trincomalee, Ceylon when the floating drydock in which she was docked suddenly collapsed. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 The German offensive at Mortain, France, Operation Lüttich, was called off after it suffered severe losses to armoured columns from Allied air attacks. Inaccuracy of the American bombing, however, would kill many Canadians, Polish and British ground troops and would wound Major General R. F. L. Keller, commanding officer of Canadian 3rd Infantry Division. Meanwhile, Canadian forces launched Operation Totalize to the south of Caen while the US 15th Army Corp occupied Le Mans, France.
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 SS-Hauptsturmführer Michael Wittmann, the "ace of tank aces", was killed when his Tiger tank was knocked out leading an attack parallel to the main Caen-Falais Road in France. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Preston arrived at Apra harbor, Guam. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet sank a Japanese transport in the Pacific Ocean, hitting her with four of four torpedoes. 
0
08 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet convoy BD-5 departed Arkhangelsk, Russia, escorted by 3 trawlers. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tirante was launched. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 Eisenhower moved his headquarters to France. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 US President Roosevelt informed MacArthur that MacArthur's plan to invade the Philippine Islands had been approved, which necessarily meant that Nimitz's plan to land on Taiwan, thus bypassing the Philippine Islands, was rejected. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 The Vyborg-Petrozavodsk Offensive, the largest Soviet offensive against Finland, ended in a strategic stalemate. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 The US Forest Service and the US Wartime Advertising Council released posters featuring Smokey Bear for the first time. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pollack attacked a Japanese destroyer with four torpedoes west of the Caroline Islands; all torpedoes missed. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Barbero departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of for her first war patrol. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of 125th Construction Battalion (125th SeaBees) departed. 
0
09 Aug 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt assigned Patrick Hurley to as an intermediary between Chiang Kaishek and Joseph Stilwell. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked but failed to hit a tanker near Omaezaki, Japan. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 US 5th and French 2nd Armored Divisions moved to Alençon, France. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 Captain David Jamieson of the UK Royal Norfolk Regiment won the Victoria Cross. Despite being wounded in the eye and arm, he refused to be evacuated as a casualty as he was the only officer remaining functioning, and with only 100 men held off seven repeated attacks by superior forces against his bridgehead over the River Orne, Normandy, France. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 Amagi was commissioned into service. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower inspected paratroopers of the US 101st Airborne Division at Hunkerford, Hungerford, England, United Kingdom. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro attacked a Japanese convoy off Luzon, Philippine Islands and sank tanker Shinei Maru; she expended eight torpedoes in this attack and claimed a total of five hits; Guitarro suffered superficial damage from the subsequent depth charging. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho was assigned to Carrier Division 4 of the 3rd Fleet. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 Japanese 18th Army under Lieutenant General Hatazo Adachi was wiped out by the Americans in the Aitape-New Hollandia area in New Guinea. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 The railwaymen of Paris, France went on strike, and hundreds of soldiers awaiting evacuation back to Germany found themselves marooned on station platforms. The acts of random sabotage quickly escalated and within two days, instead of carrying the Germans away from the perils of Paris, the strikers were actively cutting off the German retreat by pulling up rails, wrecking points and crippling locomotives. Even with replacement German drivers the trains were unable to run and all Parisian rail links to the outside world had been effectively destroyed. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 US forces declared Guam, Mariana Islands secured. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Preston departed Apra harbor, Guam for Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 "Colleoni" Group of Divisione Decima (10th Division) of Italian Navy was sent to Canavese region of northwestern Italian to fight partisans. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 Irako departed Imari Bay, Kyushu, Japan as a part of convoy HI-71. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 Unryu was assigned to 7th Base Air Force Air Attack Force under operational command of Japanese 3rd Air Fleet, although officially she remained with Carrier Division 1 of Japanese 3rd Fleet. 
0
10 Aug 1944 WW2 Captain Masanao Ofuji was named the commanding officer of Settsu. 
0
11 Aug 1944 WW2 Hideyoshi Obata passed away. 
0
11 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Roko Maru and damaged another freighter with a total of five torpedoes, then endured a 38-minute-long depth charge attack. 
0
11 Aug 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Guy Simmonds of the 11 Canadian Corps called off Operation Totalize after it became clear that the expected breakthrough would not be achieved. Nevertheless the Canadian and Polish armoured divisions had advanced eight miles, against numerous well-constructed enemy bunkers which were immune to bombing, and were now half way between Caen and Falais. Whilst Simmonds blamed ther lack of success on the inexperience of the two divisions, General Maczek of the Polish Armoured Division was more realistic in stating that the troops had been given just too much to do. The Poles had lost 66 tanks and the Canadian slightly more during Operation Totalize. On the same day, US forces captured Nantes and Angers and then moved across the Loire River; in response, the German Navy scuttled 26 warships and 28 merchant vessels stranded at Nantes, Bordeaux, and in the Gironde and Seine estuaries. 
0
11 Aug 1944 WW2 In northern Burma the Chindits' 7th Leicesters fought their way into Taungni cutting the rail line. 
0
11 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island detached from Allied convoy UC-32. 
0
11 Aug 1944 WW2 Greek 3rd Mountain Brigade arrived in Italy from French Syria-Lebanon. 
0
11 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 The Soviet minesweeper T.118 (formerly the USS Armada) was sunk by the German submarine U-365 in the Kara Sea. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pompon attacked a Japanese convoy off Sakhalin island during the night, damaging a tanker and sinking transport Mikage Maru No. 20; she expended 14 torpedoes and observed 4 hits. During the attack, one of her own torpedoes circled back and nearly struck her. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Puffer attacked an escorted Japanese convoy of ten freighters and tankers off the Philippine Islands, sinking tanker Teikon Maru and a freighter, and damaging another tanker; she expended 6 torpedoes and observed 5 hits. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 German submarine U-365 sank Russian freighter Marina Raskova and Soviet trawler T-114 of Soviet convoy BD-5 in western Kara Sea off northern Russia; a total of 362 were killed and 256 survived. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Whale completed refitting at Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 Irako collided with Teia Maru off Ryukyu Islands, Japan, suffering superficial damage. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 The first transport of civilians arrested in Warsaw, Poland after the start of Warsaw Uprising reached Auschwitz II-Birkenau concentration camp via Pruszków transit camp. 1,984 males and over 3,800 females were in this transport. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 German Luftwaffe wing KG 55 flew its final eastern front bombing mission as its He 111 bombers attacked bridges on the Vistula River near Warsaw, Poland. The wing would later be converted into a fighter unit under the new designation of KG(J) 55. 
0
12 Aug 1944 WW2 Joseph Kennedy, Jr., the older brother of future US President John F. Kennedy, was killed in a flying accident over East Suffolk, England, United Kingdom. 
0
13 Aug 1944 WW2 The Soviet minesweeper T.114 (formerly the USS Alchemy) was sunk by the German submarine U-365 in the Kara Sea in the Arctic Circle. 
0
13 Aug 1944 WW2 At the end of the day, USS Ray began pursuing a small Japanese convoy off Borneo, Dutch East Indies, firing 4 torpedoes, all of which missed. 
0
13 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Permit arrived at Brisbane, Australia, ending her thirteenth war patrol. 
0
13 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Night Fighting Squadron 79 (VF(N)-79) departed. 
0
13 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Bergall arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
13 Aug 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Kure, Japan and arrived at Hashirajima, Japan. 
0
13 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young arrived at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
13 Aug 1944 WW2 The US submarine Flier struck a naval mine and sank in the Balacbac Strait just off the southern tip of Palawan in the Philippine Islands. 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Cod sank the Japanese landing craft LSV-129. 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked a Japanese armed yacht with her deck gun. 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Croaker sank a Japanese freighter with 2 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 British troops launched Operation Tractable towards Falaise, France, preceded by 800 bombers. 150 Polish soldiers were killed as the second of the three waves of RAF Lancaster bombers released their bombs too early. 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet forces launched an assault from their Vistula bridgeheads in Poland. 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Gar began her thirteenth war patrol. 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Ray continued to attack a small Japanese convoy off Borneo, Dutch East Indies, sinking tanker Zuisho Maru (hitting her with 3 of 3 torpedoes fired) and damaged a transport (hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired). 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 HMS Mauritius sank German minesweeper Sperrbrecher 157 off France. 
0
14 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Snook arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
14 Aug 1944 RELIGIOUS German Lutheran theologian and Nazi martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in a letter from prison: 'God does not give us everything we want, but He does fulfill all His promises ... leading us along the best and straightest paths to Himself.'
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Trepang departed for Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Colonel General Gotthard Heinrici replaced Erhard Raus as the commander of the German 1.Panzerarmee. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Operation Dragoon, the invasion of southern France, began. On the same day, Saint-Tropez, Var, France was captured by the 15th Infantry Regiment of 3rd US Infantry Division. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Feldwebel Helmut Lennartz scored the Luftwaffe's first Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter kill on an American B-17 Flying Fortress bomber. Lennartz survived the war with eight Me 262 and five Bf 109 victories to his name. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy 11th Air Fleet was reorganized to contain the 958th Air Group and the 105th Air Base Unit. The 13th Air Fleet was reorganized tow contain one air flotilla, one air group, and two air base units. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa was named the commanding officer of the 3rd Southern Expeditionary Fleet while still holding command of the Southwest Area Fleet. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Marblehead bombarded Axis positions near Saint-Raphaël, France. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Night Fighting Squadron 78 (VF(N)-78) departed. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze completed her repairs at Kure, Japan. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Rear Admiral Chitoshi Ishizuka was named the chief of staff of Chinkai Guard District in southern Korea. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Irako arrived at Mako, Pescadores Islands, Taiwan. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-59 departed Liverpool, England, United Kingdom; it was consisted of 33 freighters. 
0
15 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 George Patton was promoted to the permanent rank of major general, bypassing the permanent rank of brigadier general. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Craoker sank a Japanese patrol vessel with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 French resistance fighters captured three German posts along the Swiss border. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 At Bafour, France, British Lieutenant Tasker Watkins captured two German machine gun posts, eliminated an anti-tank gun, led in a defense of a German counterattack, and while the company attempted to return to Allied lines silenced another machine gun position by himself. He would later win the Victoria Cross. Later in life he served as a Lord Justice of Appeal and deputy Lord Chief Justice of the United Kingdom. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Finback, with the new commanding officer Lieutenant Commander Robert Russell Williams, Jr., departed Majuro, Marshall Islands for her tenth war patrol. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 Allied aircraft sank French cruiser Dupleix. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 Japanese troops entered northeastern Guangxi Province, China. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMSA-24 struck a mine and sank off Saint-Tropez, France. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 Jean de Lattre de Tassigny arrived in Provence, France. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Marblehead bombarded Axis positions near Saint-Raphaël, France. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Parche arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her second war patrol. 
0
16 Aug 1944 WW2 The Naval Air Technical Arsenal at Yokosuka, Japan formally began the development of the aircraft that would later be known as the Ohka. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sargent Bay joined US Navy 3rd Fleet at Pearl Harbor. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Croaker sank two Japanese oilers with 2 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 Walter Model was appointed the commanding officer of the German Army Group B (Heeresgruppe B), replacing Günther von Kluge. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 Remnants of Vichy government fled for Germany as French Resistance began taking Parisian strongpoints. Pétain and his staff were interned by Hitler, while Laval's government resigned. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 Canadian troops captured Falaise, France, and the German troops in the region began to be threatened with being surrounded. Montgomery ordered troops to move to seal the pocket. Meanwhile, US forces captured Chartres, Orleans, and Chateaudun. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 British 14th Brigade, 3rd West African Brigade, and elements of the British 36th Infantry Division received orders to withdraw from northern Burma. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Marblehead bombarded Axis positions near Saint-Raphaël, France. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet troops reached the East Prussian border. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Third commanding officer, Capt Erl CB Gould USNR assumed command of station. Sixteen aircraft (Model F6F), 33 officers and 24 men of Night Fighting Squadron 103 (VF(N)-103) arrived on board. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish and USS Puffer sank a Japanese oiler off of Mindoro, Philippine Islands; USS Bluefish hit her with 1 of 1 torpedo fired. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 Ion Antonescu signed an armistice with the anti-German opposition in Romania; this was viewed as an act of betrayal by the Germans. 
0
17 Aug 1944 WW2 Nicholas Winton was promoted to the brevet rank of pilot officer. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 German Seventh Army retreated across Orne River in France, leaving 18,000 men behind to be captured. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 In southern France, Germans began evacuating from areas of Spanish border and Bay of Biscay. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 Air Marshal Sir Frederick Bowhill was appointed the Commander-in-Chief of RAF Coastal Command. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan completed her second war patrol. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Ray attacked a Japanese convoy and sank Japanese tanker Nansei Maru (hitting her with 3 of 4 torpedoes fired) and transport Taketoyo Maru (hitting her with 1 of 2 torpedoes fired) north of the Balabac Strait in the Philippine Islands. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 Foch's wreck was sunk at the mouth of Toulon harbor, France as a blockship. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Marblehead arrived at Corsica, France. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sargent Bay departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii to deliver aircraft to Eniwetok and Manus. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Night Attack and Combat Training Unit commissioned, Capt JH Griffin, commanding. On this date it was composed of 21 F6F's, 10 TBM's, 4 F4U's, 2 SB2C's, and 1 SNV. Compliment: 11 officers and 24 men. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel attacked a Japanese transport with her deck gun in the South China Sea, causing no damage. 
0
18 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet forces captured Sandomierz, Poland. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 German troops in the Falaise pocket in France were ordered to break out. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet forces began an offensive toward the Balkan Peninsula. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Segundo began taking on ammunition and supplies for a war patrol. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 Hauptmann Werner Schmidt of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 Field Marshal Günther von Kluge committed suicide by taking cyanide near Metz, France after being relieved of his command and recalled to Berlin, Germany. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 In Paris, France Raoul Nordling, the Swedish Consul-General went to General Dietrich Choltitz, military Commander of Paris, with a proposal to barter 600 Germans captured by the Resistance for 4,213 French prisoners held by the Germans in the Paris area. This was something of a showpiece exchange designed to impress Berlin, for the French prisoners not only vastly outnumbered the German captives but, unlike them, were to be released immediately. Outside the city, American troops began to reach the Seine River. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 Italian 10th MAS Flotilla established the "Mataluno Column" at Sesto Calende, Italy. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Bluefish sank a Japanese transport and a Japanese oiler in the South China Sea, hitting them with 9 of 12 torpedoes fired. 
0
19 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish completed her refit at Midway Atoll. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 French resistance fighters liberated Toulouse, France. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 At Falaise, France, Major David Currie became the only Canadian to win the Victoria Cross during the Normandy campaign. In three days of non-stop action, his little force of tanks, self-propelled anti-tank guns and infantry had destroyed seven Panzers, 12 heavy guns and 40 other vehicles, killing more than 1,000 of the enemy and taking 11,000 prisoners. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 Members of the Armia Krajowa attacked the State Telephone Exchange high-rise building in Warsaw, Poland. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Segundo completed taking on ammunition and supplies for a war patrol. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki was assigned to Destroyer Division 30 of Escort Squadron 31 of the Combined Fleet as the division's flagship under Captain Seiji Sawamura. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 Remy Van Lierde became the commanding officer of No. 164 Squadron RAF. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 The US Liberty ship, SS Richard Montgomery, with a cargo of explosives, ran aground and broke her back on a sandbank off Sheerness, Kent, England, United Kingdom. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Cero arrived at Brisbane, Australia, ending her fifth war patrol. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 The Falaise pocket in France began to close around German troops; the Allies captured over 4,000 prisoners of war. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 US 79th Division reached Seine River above Paris, France. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 Charles De Gaulle landed at Cherbourg, France. Meeting Dwight Eisenhower later in the day, he convinced the Allied commander that the French capital of Paris should be a priority objective that should not be bypassed. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 Pierre Laval stepped down as the Prime Minister of France. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 Blockship Foch was hit by two aerial bombs at the mouth of the Toulon harbor, France. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Thirteen men of D-1, Unit 5, arrived on board. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 Captain Enpei Kanoka was named the commanding officer of Nachi while the ship was at Kure Naval Arsenal, Japan. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel attacked a Japanese transport in the South China Sea; all 9 torpedoes missed. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 2nd Ukrainian Front and 3rd Ukrainian Front launched the Second Jassy-Kishinev Offensive into northeastern Romania. The Romanian 3rd Army was broken, while Axis shipping was attacked by Soviet aircraft on the Romanian coast. 
0
20 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Kete departed Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked a Japanese cargo ship with three torpedoes without success. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 With Kriegsmarine support, the Germans opened a coastal corridor to German Armeegruppe Nord, but Hitler refused to authorize their withdrawal. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 HMS Orchis (Lieutenant Commander B. Harris) was mined and beached off Juno beach, Normandy, France. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro attacked a Japanese convoy off Luzon, Philippine Islands and sank cargo ship Uga Maru, hitting her with two of the four torpedoes fired. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Ray damaged a Japanese transport in the Philippine Islands, hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 French First Army enveloped Toulon, France. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 US Third Army reached Reims and Troyes southeast of Paris, France. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 James Johnson shot down two German Fw 190 fighters near Paris, France. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Segundo departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Harder assisted her wolfpack in the attack of a Japanese convoy off Palawan Bay, Mindoro, Philippine Islands. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet 6th Guards Mechanized Corps separated German 6.Armee from the Romanian 3rd Army in northeastern Romania; as the Germans under Generaloberst Johannes Frießner fell back, Romanian troops began to refuse orders from German officers to engage the Soviets. 
0
21 Aug 1944 WW2 The US 15th Army was activated at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, United States by a transfer of a group of personnel from the US 4th Army. No general officer was included in the transfer. Major General John P. Lucas was commanding general designate of the new 15th Army in addition to his other duties. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 Operation Goodwood I and Goodwood II: British carrier aircraft (32 Barracuda dive bombers and 43 fighters) from HMS Formidable, Indefatigable, Furious, Nabob, and Trumpeter attacked German battleship Tirpitz to little effect. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 American submarine USS Bowfin attacked Japanese convoy Namo 103 and sank passenger ship Tsushima Maru near the island of Akusekijima. 2,251 aboard were killed, including 767 children; most of those killed were civilian evacuees from Okinawa. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese patrol boat Nansatsu Maru No. 2, hitting her with one of four torpedoes fired. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pintado detected a 11-ship Japanese convoy during the day. After sundown, she fired ten torpedoes at the convoy, sinking the large tanker Tonan Maru No. 2 and damaging two other ships with a total of four hits. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sennet was commissioned into service with Commander George E. Porter in command. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 HMS Mauritius sank five German coastal patrol Vorpostenboot vessels off France. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish attacked a Japanese transport in the Dutch East Indies; all 3 torpedoes fired missed. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 Having been convinced by Charles de Gaulle two days prior that Paris, France must be captured with haste, Dwight Eisenhower traveled to Omar Bradley's headquarters to discuss the logistics. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Hashirajima, Japan for Yashima, Japan. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel attacked a Japanese transport in the South China Sea; all 6 torpedoes missed. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Harder assisted in the sinking of Japanese frigates Matsuwa and Hiburi off Bataan, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
22 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish departed Midway Atoll for her eighth war patrol. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese transport Tsukushi Maru, hitting her with two of three torpedoes fired. 
1
23 Aug 1944 WW2 US troops from the north and French troops from the south met near Bordeaux, France. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 German V-1 rocket killed 211 people in East Barnet, Hertfordshire in southeastern England, United Kingdom. 
1
23 Aug 1944 WW2 A B-24 bomber crashed into a school at Freckleton, Lancashire in northwestern England, United Kingdom, killing 57, 35 of whom were children. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Hoe arrved at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fifth war patrol. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 Vasily Chuikov was awarded the Order of Suvorov 1st Class for the second time. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 Ferdinand Catlos failed to secure Soviet backing for his plan to overthrow the pro-German Slovak government. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 In Paris, France, the Drancy Concentration Camp, a transit camp for French Jews used during German occupation, was liberated by Allied troops. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 Allied troops reached the Seine River near Paris, France. Adolf Hitler ordered all bridges in the Paris area to be destroyed, even those viewed as cultural treasures; Hans Speidel would refuse to carry out this order. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Baya departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. Initially ordered to patrol between the Philippine Islands and the Palau Islands, her patrol area was later shifted to the South China Sea. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Becuna departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
2
23 Aug 1944 WW2 In Bucharest, Romania, King Mihai I removed Marshal Ion Antonescu from power and began to publicly engage the Soviet Union diplomatically. To the northeast, Soviet 2nd Ukrainian Front and 3rd Ukrainian Front encircled German 6th Army. 
0
23 Aug 1944 WW2 A US B-24 Liberator bomber crashed into the village of Freckleton in Lancashire County, England, United Kingdom at about 1047 hours, destroying the Holy Trinity Church of England School (6 adults and 38 children were killed), three houses (2 were killed), and the Sad Sack Snack Bar (7 American servicemen, 4 British servicemen, and 3 civilians were killed). All 3 members of crew aboard the B-24 bomber were killed. 
-1
23 Aug 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt rejected Chiang Kaishek's counteroffer of 23 Jul 1944 regarding the American wish for Chiang to include communists in the war against Japan. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Operation Goodwood III: British carrier aircraft (33 Barracuda dive bombers, 10 Hellcat fighters, 5 Corsair fighters, 29 other fighters) from HMS Indefatigable, Furious, and Formidable attacked German battleship Tirpitz, scoring 2 hits. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Aircraft of No. 466 Squadron RAAF conducted minelaying operations off of Helgoland, Germany. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Germans evacuated Bordeaux, France and took up fortified positions on the Gironde River outside the city. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Six members of a Liberator bomber crew shot down near Hanover, Germany were beaten to death by a mob of German civilians led by sisters Margarethe Witzler and Kathe Reinhardt. One of the victims, left for dead in the pile of battered bodies, survived to tell the tale. In Aug 1945, seven of the mob, including the sisters, were sentenced to hang by a US military commission. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Allied forces liberated Cannes in southern France. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Distrustful of the Army, Adolf Hitler ordered construction of a new Westwall under Nazi Party supervision. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured Kishinev, Moldova. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pollack attacked a Japanese freighter with three torpedoes in the Pacific Ocean; all torpedoes missed. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Louis Mountbatten arrived in Colombo, Ceylon. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island arrived at Tulagi, Solomon Islands. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Columbia arrived in the Solomon Islands. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Italian 10th MAS Flotilla's "Mataluno Column" was relocated from Sesto Calende, Italy to Villefranche-sur-Mer, France. Operations began on the same day. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Princess Mafalda of the House of Savoy, wife if Prince Philipp of the House of Hesse, was seriously injured by Allied bombing at Buchenwald Concentration Camp near Weimar, Germany, where she was imprisoned. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Whale departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her ninth war patrol. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 Submarines USS Harder and USS Hake attacked two Japanese destroyers off Dasol Bay, Luzon, Philippine Islands, but was in turn subjected to a heavy depth charge attack. USS Harder was sunk with all hands lost. 
0
24 Aug 1944 WW2 The Romanian Royal Guards blocked the German attempt to occupy Bucharest as Romania declared war on Germany. German Luftwaffe responded by bombing the Royal Palace. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Cod arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fourth war patrol. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese tanker Nanko Maru No. 8 with two torpedoes. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 Finland began secret negotiations with the Soviet Union. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived in the South China Sea. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet 3rd Baltic Front captured Tartu, Estonia. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 The French 2nd Armoured Division entered Paris, France. De Gaulle moved his headquarters into the War Ministry in Paris on the same day with the approval of Eisenhower. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Night Air Group 42 (CVLG(N)-42) commissioned. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 British 8th Army launched Operation Olive against the eastern end of the German Gothic Line in Italy, with Polish and Canadian troops on the spearhead. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 Irako departed Moji, Japan as a part of convoy HI-73 at 0630 hours. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 Italian motor torpedo boats claimed the sinking of an Allied destroyer in the Mediterranean Sea; this sinking was not confirmed. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 Allied reconnaissance aircraft flew over Auschwitz Concentration Camp and took photographs of the complex. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 The headquarters of NKVD rear guard troops of Soviet 3rd Byelorussian Front ordered Soviet troops to disarm and detain all Polish Home Army troops who were attempting to pass through Soviet lines toward Warsaw, Poland. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 King Mihai I of Romania called for war with Germany. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-59 arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 US reconnaissance aircraft took photographs of Okayama Airfield and Okayama Aircraft Factory north of Takao (now Kaohsiung), Taiwan.  
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island completed her repairs at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia, United States. 
0
25 Aug 1944 WW2 Max Merten received orders to evacuate from Yugoslavia. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 Hitler ordered his troops to withdraw from Greece. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 French troops captured Tarascon and Avignon, France. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Becuna crossed the International Date Line, sailing westward. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 The Bulgarian Fatherland Front began an armed rebellion against the Bulgarian government; it declared Bulgaria to be neutral in the Axis war against the Soviet Union. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 A German air raid on Paris, France destroyed several residential neighborhoods. To the east, Allied troops crossed the Seine River. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower traveled to Omar Bradley's headquarters in France and invited him to visit the recently captured Paris, France with him on the following day. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Hashirajima, Japan and was transferred from Carrier Division 1 to Carrier Division 4 within the 3rd Fleet. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 German forces led by Lieutenant General Reiner Stahel attacked Bucharest, Romania. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 The US 17th Airborne Division arrived in Britain where it was placed under XVIII Airborne Corps. The Division however would not be sent to France until late in Dec 1944. 
0
26 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet arrived at Midway, ending her first war patrol. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Mingo departed Fremantle, Australia for her fifth war patrol. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro attacked three small Japanese tankers, firing two torpedoes while submerged (both missed) then surfaced to sink Nanshin Maru with the deck gun. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 The last of the Chindits left Burma. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pollack bombarded the Japanese phosphate plant at Fais Island, Caroline Islands. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 The last German troops in Toulon, France surrendered. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower and Omar Bradley made a visit to recently captured Paris, France. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 Princess Mafalda of the House of Savoy, wife of Prince Philipp of the House of Hesse, passed away from wounds suffered from Allied bombing at Buchenwald Concentration Camp near Weimar, Germany, where she was imprisoned. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 Albert Kesselring noted that the recent Allied attack on the eastern end of the Gothic Line in Italy could be a diversion, thus he decided to hold on to his reserves. 
0
27 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga completed her first overhaul at Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 Chaim Rumkowski passed away. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 US troops crossed the Marne River in France. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 The German garrison in Marseilles, France surrendered to French forces. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 32 P-40 fighters of the US 14th Air Force (including several flown by Chinese pilots) attacked the Japanese airfield near Hengyang, Hunan, China. Ki-43 fighters of the Japanese 48th Sentai and Ki-84 fighters of the Japanese 22nd Sentai rose the intercept, shooting down 1 Chinese P-40 fighter and 3 American P-40 fighters; 6 Japanese fighters were lost. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 Additional German troops entered Slovakia in response to partisan activities in Slovakia and Romania, effecting a total occupation. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 FR.11 was captured by the Allies at Toulon, France. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 Oberfeldwebel Hieronymus Lauer became the first to be shot down by US fighters while flying a jet aircraft. His Me 262 fighter was shot down by Major Joseph Myers and 2nd Lieutenant Manford Croy, Jr. of 82nd Fighter Squadron of USAAF 78th Fighter Group, both flying P-47 fighters. When Lauer was shot down at 1915 hours, his guns were not even loaded, as he was on a ferry flight between Juvincourt, France and Chievres, Belgium. Lauer survived the subsequent crash landing. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 Robert von Greim was awarded Swords to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross medal. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 Albert Kesselring was given a captured copy of the Allied Operation Olive plans and learned that the recent Allied attack on the eastern end of the Gothic Line in Italy was part of a major offensive; he gave the order to move three reserve divisions from Bologna to the east coast. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Wasp departed Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-59A departed the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
28 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sea Cat departed New London, Connecticut, United States for US Territory of Hawaii via the Panama Canal. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 Operation Goodwood IV: British carrier aircraft (26 Barracuda dive bombers, 2 Corsair fighters, 3 Hellcat fighters, 25 other fighters) from HMS Formidable and Indefatigable attacked German battleship Tirpitz, scoring several near misses. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young screened carriers of Task Group 38.3 as their aircraft struck Palau and Philippine Islands. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 In northern France, British forces attacked Amiens, US forces captured Soissons, and Canadian troops captured Rouen. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 French troops captured Montélimar in southern France. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 Slovakians began rising up against Dr. Jozef Tiso's pro-German government. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 11 B-17 Flying Fortress bombers and 34 B-24 Liberator bombers attacked Helgoland, Germany, escorted by 169 P-38 Lightning and P-51 Mustang fighters; 3 Liberator bombers were damaged. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 13 P-40 fighters of the 3rd Fighter Group of the Chinese-American Composite Wing attacked Japanese shipping and dock facilities at Shayang, Hubei, China; in the return flight, 21 Japanese fighters intercepted the formation near Jiayu, Hubei, China; 1 Chinese fighter and 7 Japanese fighters were shot down in the engagement. On the same day, 13 Ki-84 fighters of Japanese 22nd Sentai and 16 Ki-43 fighters of Japanese 25th Sentai intercepted a formation of B-24 bombers escorted by P-40 and P-51 fighters of the US 14th Air Force near Yueyang, Hunan, China; 5 American fighters and 2 Japanese fighters were shot down in the engagement. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 Slovakian Defense Minister Ferdinand Catlos announced over the radio that German troops had occupied the country. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 Slovakian resistance leader Ján Golian ordered the launch of the planned general uprising. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish arrived at Mios Woendi, Schouten Islands, Dutch East Indies for refueling. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 Major General Curtis E. LeMay arrived in India as the newly appointed commander of the US Twentieth Air Force. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 Allied forces entered the Foglia Valley on the eastern end of the German Gothic Line in Italy. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Preston departed Eniwetok, Marshall Islands with Task Force 38. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 As of this date, at Auschwitz Concentration Camp, the number of prisoners in the Sonderkommando, the work group created by the Germans to operate the gas chambers and crematoria, was 874. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet 2nd Ukrainian Front captured the Ploesti oilfields in Romania. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 Irako arrived at Takao (now Kaohsiung), Taiwan; later on the same day she moved to a mooring in the Zuoying District of Takao. 
0
29 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States for Quonset Point, Rhode Island, United States. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 German troops withdrew from Bulgaria. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Pollack again bombarded the Japanese phosphate plant at Fais Island, Caroline Islands. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell departed Kandy, Ceylon for Delhi, India to meet with Patrick Hurley. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 Slovakian resistance fighters captured Banská Bystrica, Czechoslovakia. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 While at port at Stettin, Germany, submarine U-869 lost one crew member to British bombing when several bombs hit the barracks where the crew was bunked. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 Canadian armored units attacked Pesaro, Italy, but they were beaten back, losing 32 of 50 tanks in the process. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 The Italian motor torpedo boat base Base West was moved from Villefranche-sur-Mer, France to Sanremo, Italy. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 After dark, USS Redfin picked up the 8 survivors of USS Flier from Mantangula Island, Palawan Province, Philippine Islands. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 Irako departed Takao (now Kaohsiung), Taiwan for Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
30 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States at 1407 hours for the Panama Canal. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Iwo Jima and Chichi Jima through 2 Sep 1944. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 British 11th Armoured Division captured Amiens, France. Meanwhile, US Third Army reached the Meuse River. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 While attacking a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea with other submarines of her wolfpack, USS Tunny was attacked by gunfire and depth charges. Tunny did not fire any torpedoes. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed Quonset Point, Rhode Island, United States. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 Captain R. C. Parker was named the commanding officer of USS ABSD-1. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina reached 42 confirmed kills. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Luce arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Ray arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her fifth war patrol. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 Two divisions of Slovakian resistance fighters were disarmed by German troops at Presov, Czechoslovakia. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 US 5th Army crossed the Arno River in northern Italy as British 8th Army attacked the Gothic Line. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish fired a torpedo a small Japanese vessel south of Japan; the torpedo missed. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 Soviet forces captured Bucharest, Romania. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt departed Washington DC, United States by train. 
0
31 Aug 1944 WW2 USS Croaker arrived at Midway for refitting, ending her first war patrol. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 Cruiser Köln conducted minelaying operations off southern Norway during this month. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 Montgomery was promoted to the rank of field marshal. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 In France, British XII Corps crossed the Somme River, Canadian forces captured Dieppe, and US Third Army captured Verdun. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 A Japanese aircraft attacked USS Tunny with four bombs, the first two of which caused a leak in a vent riser, among other damage. Her commanding officer decided to end the patrol early to receive repairs. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 Mutsu was struck from the Japanese Navy list. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-21 was lost after striking a mine off Toulon, France. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Pintado set sail for Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Becuna came across a Japanese soldier in a small boat; after taking the soldier prisoner, she sank the boat with machine gun fire. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish departed Mios Woendi, Schouten Islands, Dutch East Indies. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 US troops began their attack on Brest, France. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower took direct command of all three Allied army groups operating in France, relieving Bernard Montgomery of this role. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 Having established a bridgehead over the Meuse River at Commercy and Verdun in France, the US Third Army runs out of petrol after outrunning their communications. It would not be until 5 Sep 1944 that some petrol was flown in to allow the advance to continue, but the Germans had been given vital days to arrange their defences and prepare to make a stand. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Bomb-proof powerhouse and equipment usably complete. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 Gurkha troops attacked Tavoleto, Italy. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden responded to Chaim Weizmann's 6 Jul 1944 request, rejecting Weizmann's request to bomb rail lines leading to Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland. 
0
01 Sep 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt visited Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd in Allamuchy, New Jersey, United States. After dinner, he departed for Hyde Park, New York, United States by train. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 German troops began evacuating the Aegean Islands. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 Canadian troops crossed into Belgium. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Tunny surfaced late at night and set sail for home. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Finback rescued downed aviator and future President of the United States George Bush off Chichi Jima, Bonin Islands. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet Union declared war on Bulgaria having refused a plea from Tsar Simeon II that the country desired to withdraw from its war with Britain and America and become a neutral. A little more than five hours later, Bulgaria called for an armistice. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 Slovakian Defense Minister Ferdinand Catlos abandoned his post and joined the partisan fighters. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 Vojtech Tuka resigned as the Prime Minister of the German puppet nation Slovak Republic, citing poor health. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 The British 51st Highland Division entered Saint-Valery-en-Caux, France, where most of the original division had been taken prisoner in Jun 1940. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 Edward Brooks personally led an attack on a 165-vehicle German convoy near Marchiennes, France; this action would earn him the Oak Leaf Cluster to his Silver Star medal. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 The German V-2 weapon was declared operational. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Yokosuka, Japan for her 21th voyage with the Japanese Navy. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 Irako arrived at Manila Bay, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 Romanian troops entered the German legation in Bucharest, Romania. German Minister Manfred von Killinger shot himself after citing that a ship's captain should also go down with a sinking ship; Romanians arrested the remaining diplomats and military attachés including General Erik Hansen, Admiral Werner Tillessen, General Alfred Gertenberg, and General Karl Spalcke. 
0
02 Sep 1944 WW2 While attempting to unclog a uranium enrichment device at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, Pennsylvania, United States for the Manhattan Project, chemists Peter Bragg, Douglas Meigs, and Arnold Kramish accidentally set of an explosion, which sprayed liquid uranium hexafluoride and hydrofuoric acid on them. Bragg and Meigs were killed, while Kramish and two soldliers, George LeFevre and John Tompkins, were seriously injured. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 In Belgium, British Second Army captured Brussels and US First Army captured Tournai. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 US and French troops reached Lyon, France. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 Feldmarschal von Rundstedt took command of German forces in the West. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied bombers conducted a raid on Belgrade, Yugoslavia. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 A B-17 Flying Fortress bomber was mistakenly directed to Düne Island, Helgoland, Germany; its original target was a German submarine pen. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 A National Day of Prayer was declared in Britain on the 5th anniversary of the start of the war for the United Kingdom. British casualties to-date were revealed as 242,995 killed, 80,603 missing, 311,500 wounded, and 290,381 captured. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Segundo arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 In the Pacific Ocean, USS Becuna spotted an aircraft in the distance and believed it to be a friendly Liberator bomber. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 At a meeting with Omar Bradley, Bernard Montgomery hinted at trying an operation to seize the bridges over the Lower Rhine at Arnhem, the Netherlands for an armoured thrust to follow up. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Tang arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her fourth war patrol. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Pompon arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 Canadian troops penetrated German lines and reached the Green II defensive positions on the Gothic Line in Italy. To the west, troops of British V Corps attacked German positions along the Coriano Ridge and advanced to the Marano River. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
03 Sep 1944 WW2 Ion Antonescu with his wife Maria, Mihai Antonescu, Kristia Pantasi, Konstantin Vasiliu, Eugen Kristesku, Gheorghe Alexianu, Radu Lekka, and other arrested Romanian leaders were placed aboard a special train for Moscow, Russia. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 Finland and the Soviet Union reached an agreement for a cease fire; one of the provisions was the removal of all German forces from Finland by 15 Sep 1944. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 Allies launched Operation Ratweek, consisting of mostly air operations with some commando and partisan participation, with the intention of hindering German operations and withdrawals in the Balkan Peninsula. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 British 11th Armoured Division captured Antwerp, Belgium. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Segundo departed Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Becuna moored next to submarine tender USS Holland, took on 43,800 gallons of fuel oil, received repairs, and transferred the Japanese prisoner off board. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 British troops launched the first of eleven failed assaults on Gemmano, Italy. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at Tanapag Harbor, Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga transited through the Panama Canal. 
0
04 Sep 1944 WW2 In the United States, a Federal Bureau of Investigation internal memorandum to J. Edgar Hoover noted that Argentina, with its sizable and influential German community, could provide refuge for Adolf Hitler and other top Nazi German leaders. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 US Third Army crossed the Meuse River while the British forces reached Ghent, Belgium. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 Jewish ghettos at Lodz, Poland were evacuated by German authorities. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the VIII Corps of the Ninth Army of the US 12th Army Group. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 Ján Golian was given the rank of general and was given responsibility to direct the Slovak National Uprising. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Night Air Group 104 on board. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Kure, Japan. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Whale departed Tanapag Harbor, Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Kete arrived at the Panama Canal Zone. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet forces repulsed a German-Hungarian counter attack near Klausenberg, Romania. 
0
05 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-59A arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 The German garrison in Calais, France became surrounded by Canadian troops. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 Hans Speidel visited Erwin Rommel at Rommel's home in Herrlingen, Germany. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Columbia departed Port Purvis, Nggela Islands (Florida Islands), Solomon Islands. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Yap Island and Ulithi Atoll through 8 Sep 1944. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Gar bombarded Japanese positions at Yap, Caroline Islands for the following two days. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions in the Palau Islands. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft attacked Japanese positions in the Caroline Islands. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Palau Islands. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 Red Army units captured Turnu-Severin, Romania on the Danube River and advanced toward the Yugoslavian border. 
0
06 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Puffer entered Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States for a scheduled overhaul. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 British 11th Armoured Division crossed the Albert Canal in Belgium. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 US Third Army crossed Moselle River. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 Hans Speidel was arrested. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions in the Palau Islands. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 Chiang Kaishek met with Joseph Stilwell, Patrick Hurley, and Donald Nelson in Chongqing, China. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 A Soviet military mission was established under Major Ivan Skripka in Slovakia to aid the Slovak National Uprising. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish reported a new Japanese airfield at Celebes, Dutch East Indies and reported this discovery. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 The first two German V-2 rockets were fired against the Allies by German 444 and 485 Mobile Artillery Detachments at 1030 and 1140 hours, respectively. They both targeted Paris, France, but both crashed immediately after launch. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft attacked Japanese positions in the Caroline Islands. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Barbero attacked a Japanese trawler east of the Philippine Islands; the torpedo missed. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Miami escorted aircraft carriers while the carrier aircraft struck Peleliu and Angaur of the Palau Islands. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Palau Islands. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 Romania declared war on Hungary. 
0
07 Sep 1944 WW2 British Member of Parliament Duncan Sandys, Winston Churchill's son-in-law who had been made responsible for coordinating the defences against the V-1 flying bombs, confidently predicted that "Except fot a few shots, the Battle for London is over". It was not within a day the V-2s (the second of Adolf Hitler's secret weapons) would begin to fall on the British capital. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 In Belgium, US First Army captured Liége and Canadian forces captured Ostend. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki departed Moji, Japan, escorting Convoy HI-75 for Singapore. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro arrived at Fremantle, Austrialia, ending her second war patrol. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions in the Palau Islands. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell rejected Chiang Kaishek and Patrick Hurley's recommendation to march on Bhamo, Buma, citing troop exhaustion. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 The third German V-2 rocket fired in anger became the first to successfully hit the intended target, hitting an area in the suburbs of Paris, France. The fourth and fifth rockets, aimed at London, England, United Kingdom, also found their targets. The fourth rocket fired at 1738 hours London time or 1838 hours German time landed in the Borough of Chiswick at 1843 hours London time; it landed on Staveley Road, collapsed three houses, killed 3 civilians and 1 off-duty Royal Engineers soldier, and made a crater 40 feet wide and between 10 and 20 feet deep. The fifth rocket landed 16 seconds later in Epping, which was 18 miles northeast of Whitehall and 20 miles from Chiswick; this rocket destroyed some wodden huts and made a crater 30 feet wide and 16 feet deep. The British government censored all these incidents in fear of potential demoralizing effects. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 RAF Bomber Command's last operation with the Short Stirling bomber was made by No. 148 Squadron against Le Havre, France. The Stirling bombers would then be relegated to troop-transport and glider tug missions only. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 Former German intelligence officer Colonel Georg Hansen was executed at the Plötzensee Prison in Berlin, Germany. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 The German Air Ministry issued a requirement for a simple, lightweight, and easy to operate jet fighter. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Bergall departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft attacked Japanese positions in the Caroline Islands. 
0
08 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Palau Islands. 
0
09 Sep 1944 WW2 General de Gaulle created a provisional government which included Communards. 
0
09 Sep 1944 WW2 The Bulgarian Fatherland Front successfully overthrew the government and declared war on Germany. 
0
09 Sep 1944 WW2 Robert von Greim was mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht radio report. 
0
09 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Rock departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her fourth war patrol. 
0
09 Sep 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Takazumi Oka was named the commanding officer of Chinkai Guard District in southern Korea. 
0
09 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Mindanao, Philippine Islands. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Franklin provided support for campaign in the Palau Islands through 16 Sep 1944. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 US First Army captured Luxembourg. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied patrols in Belgium crossed the German border near Aachen, Germany. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the Ninth Army of US 12th Army Group. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler ordered that all deserters would be shot, along with their families. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Finback fired 6 torpedoes at a Japanese destroyer escort in the Western Pacific; all torpedoes missed. She would continue to shadow the convoy the warship was escorting. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Parche began her third war patrol. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 British Army Major William Cavendish, Lord Hartington, the husband of the sister of future US President John F. Kennedy, was killed in action at Heppen, Belgium at the hands of a German sniper. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 Bernard Montgomery received a visit from Dwight Eisenhower at Brussels, Belgium during which Montgomery criticized Eisenhower's broad front strategy and demanded his army group to be the sole offensive force as current strategy placed the other two army groups in poor positions to launch attacks into Germany. Eisenhower responded "teady Monty, you can't talk to me like that. I'm your boss." 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 The British 1st Corps (49th West Riding and 51st Highland Divisions) of the Canadian Army commenced the siege of Le Havre, the largest port in northern France, which had been earmarked for American use. The approaches to Le Havre were well protected by flooding, mines, anti-tank ditches and huge concrete gun emplacements primarily designed for sea defence. The German garrison of 11,000 (underestimated by Allied Intelligence as being around 8,700) was strongly provided with artillery. The siege opened with Allied aircraft dropping 4,000 tons of bombs on to the defences (followed by a further 5,500 tons over the two day battle). The 15-inch guns of HMS Erebus and Warspite were also brought to bear on the largest gun emplacements, although Erebus did receive some damage from return fire from the shore batteries. In addition, two heavy and six medium batteries added their support to the Divisional artillery Regiments during the softening-up process. The German resistance however proved less tenacious than expected resulting in a comparatively light Allied casualty rate of less than 400. Nevertheless on its capture the docks were found to have been thoroughly wrecked and it was over four weeks before the port could be used. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 After sundown, the two companies that the US 7th Armoured Division had managed to get across the Moselle River in France were counterattacked by German SS troops. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Hashirajima, Japan for Yashima, Japan. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish attacked a Japanese convoy in the Tsushima Strait, sinking Chihaya Maru and damaging two others, hitting them with 4 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Mindanao, Philippine Islands. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 Downed US and British airmen previously interned in Bulgaria were evacuated by train to Istanbul, Turkey. 
0
10 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Marlin arrived at New London, Connecticut, United States. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 Scottish 15th Division crossed into the Netherlands near Antwerp, Belgium. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 US Third Army reached German border near Trier, Germany. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Finback attacked a Japanese convoy in the Western Pacific, sinking a tanker and a transport, hitting them with 3 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 Nationalist Chinese Wu Zhongxin replaced warlord Sheng Shicai as the governor of Xinjiang Province, China. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 French 1st Division captured Dijon, France. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 The two companies that the US 7th Armoured Division had managed to get across the Moselle River in France abandoned their positions after a fierce counterattack by German SS troops which began on the previous date. The loss was not too serious as a better crossing had been established further south at Arnaville, but even there bridging operations were still hampered by artillery fire from Fort Driant. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 Carl Spaatz ordered large raids on German synthetic oil plants, dispatching 1,136 aircraft; the German Luftwaffe lost heavily in air battles. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 36 B-17 bombers of 100th Bomber Group of US 8th Air Force, en route to attack the Schwarzheide synthetic fuel factory in eastern Germany, were intercepted by 60 Fw 190A and Bf 109 fighters of German Jagdgeschwader 4. In the first attack wave, 14 US bombers were shot down uncontested by American fighter escort, which had not yet arrived. In the second attack wave, US fighters were able to shoot down 32 German fighters (29 pilots killed). The air battle took place roughly over the village of Oberwiesenthal in southern Germany. Surviving bombers were able to drop 53 tons of bombs on the Schwarzheide synthetic fuel factory. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 Noor Inayat Khan was transferred to Dachau Concentration Camp, Germany. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Blackfin arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
11 Sep 1944 WW2 Bulgarian communist leader Georgi Dimitrov ordered, from Moscow in Russia, the creation of the People's Court to try Bulgarian leaders responsible for Bulgarian involvement in the European War on the side of the Germans. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Manila, Philippine Islands. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 The German garrison at Le Havre, France surrendered only after bitter fighting. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 German garrisons evacuated Greek islands in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Pollack arrived at Brisbane, Australia, ending her eleventh war patrol. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-409 foundered and sank off the east coast of the United States during a storm. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 Edward Brooks was relieved as the commanding officer of the US 2nd Armored Division and was placed in charge on a temporary basis over the US V Corps. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island launched aircraft against Japanese positions on Peleliu and Angaur in the Palau Islands. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 Two separate groups of the 5th Fighter Group of the Chinese-American Composite Wing engaged Japanese aircraft over Hunan Province, China. Several fighters on either side were lost. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 Carl Spaatz ordered large raids on German synthetic oil plants, dispatching 888 aircraft; the German Luftwaffe lost heavily in air battles. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 Yolande Beekman was transferred out of her prison in Karlsruhe, Germany. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 Yolande Beekman arrived at Dauchau Concentration Camp in southern Germany. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 In the Apennine Mountains, US 5th Army launched a major offensive against the German Gothic Line in Italy. To the east, Canadian 5th Armoured Division and British 1st Armoured Division attacked Coriano, Italy. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft began attacking Japanese positions in the Philippine Islands. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off the Philippine Islands in indirect support of the Palau Islands campaign. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions in central Philippine Islands. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 German and Hungarian troops launched an offensive towards Arad and Timisoara, Romania. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 An armistice was signed between Romania and the Soviet Union. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 Semyon Timoshenko was awarded the Order of Suvorov 1st Class for the second time. 
0
12 Sep 1944 WW2 One of the four German V-2 rockets launched on this date hit Chrysler vehicle works in Mortlake Road, Kew, southwestern London, England, United Kingdom. 8 were killed, 14 were wounded, and property damage was significant. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Amon Göth was relieved of his position as the commandant of Plaszów labor camp and was assigned to the SS Office of Economics and Administration. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 The German garrison at Brest, France maintained heavy resistance against US Ninth Army. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 One German V-2 rocket hit Britain. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet troops reached the Slovakian border. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Mingo fired three torpedoes at a Japanese ship; all missed. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 The first authorized special attack was conducted by two aircraft from the Japanese Army 31st Fighter Squadron based at Los Negros, Philippine Islands. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla departed Fremantle, Australia for her sixth war patrol. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 The 10 separate sections of floating drydock USS ABSD-2 were assembled, and the floating drydock became operational for ship repair work at Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell told leader Mao Zedong's envoys that he would begin to arrange Lend-Lease supplies for the Chinese communists. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Cruiser Georges Leygues arrived at Toulon, France. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Carl Spaatz ordered large raids on German synthetic oil plants, dispatching 748 aircraft; the German Luftwaffe lost heavily in air battles. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Noor Inayat Khan was brutally beaten then executed by gunfire in the back of the head at Dachau Concentration Camp, Germany. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Yolande Beekman was executed at Dachau Concentration Camp in southern Germany. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Trepang departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Coriano Ridge, part of the Gothic Line in Italy, was captured by Canadian troops. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft began attacking Japanese positions in the Philippine Islands. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish attacked a Japanese convoy in the Yellow Sea, sinking Etajima Maru and damaging another, hitting them with 5 of 13 torpedoes fired. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off the Philippine Islands in indirect support of the Palau Islands campaign. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions in central Philippine Islands. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet Marshal Rodion Malinovsky signed an armistice agreement with his Romanian counterparts. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 Ferdinand Catlos was arrested by the Soviets in Kiev, Ukraine. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga arrived at San Diego, California, United States. 
0
13 Sep 1944 WW2 YP-80A jet aircraft took its first flight; the flight lasted about 45 minutes. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet troops reached the suburbs of Warsaw, Poland and began air dropping supplies to the Armia Krajowa. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Maastricht, Gulpen, and Meerssen in the Netherlands. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 Winston Churchill approved the transfer of Oliver Leese to Southeast Asia for a high command position. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell visited Guilin, China and ordered the nearby airfields to be abandoned and gas stores destroyed to prevent Japanese capture. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Pintado arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her second war patrol. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 Canadian 5th Armoured Division and British 1st Armoured Division captured Coriano, Italy. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet First Baltic Front, Second Baltic Front, and Third Baltic Front launched a massive assault against German Armeegruppe Nord, pushing it back to Riga, Latvia. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft began attacking Japanese positions in the Philippine Islands. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish fired 4 torpedoes at a Japanese transport in the Yellow Sea; all torpedoes missed. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off the Philippine Islands in indirect support of the Palau Islands campaign. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 Three German V-2 rockets hit Britain. One of them hit the center of Walthamstow, London, England, United Kingdom at 0455 hours, killing six immediately and another one later from wounds. The resulting crater was 50 feet wide and 10 feet deep. 
0
14 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet and Bulgarian troops marched into eastern Yugoslavia from Bulgaria. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Manila, Philippine Islands. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Operation Paravane: 21 British Lancaster bombers based in Yagodnik, Russia attacked German battleship Tirpitz, scoring two hits on the forecastle and putting her out of action. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 US First Army engaged the Siegfried Line/Westwall east of Aachen, Germany and captured Nancy, France. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Maastricht and Eysden, the Netherlands. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 US Army troops landed on Morotai, Maluku Islands. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 US Marines landed on Peleliu in the Palau Islands. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Hoe departed Fremantle, Australia for her sixth war patrol in the South China Sea. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Eiji Goto was named the commanding officer of the Japanese Navy 12th Air Fleet. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet 6th Guard Tank Brigade, 33rd Guard Tank Brigade, and 63rd Guard Tank Brigade were assigned T-44 prototype medium tanks for training purposes. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill signed a secret agreement, granting Joseph Stalin's demands for Sakhalin Island, Kurile Islands, and a portion of Korea in return for a Soviet declaration of war on Japan. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island launched aircraft to provide cover for the Peleliu, Palau Islands invasion. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Preston supported the invasion of Palau Islands. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp supported the Palau Islands invasion from the position 80 kilometers off Morotai, Maluku Islands. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 The firm Heinkel was given the contract to produce the simple, lightweight, and easy to operate jet fighters that the German Air Ministry requested seven days prior. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Indian 4th Division drove out German 98th Division and captured Gemmano, Italy. To the north, British 56th Division captured Corce. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Nachi received 2 twin-mount and 20 single-mount Type 96 25-millimeter anti-aircraft guns at Kure Naval Arsenal, Japan. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off the Philippine Islands in indirect support of the Palau Islands campaign. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Prisoners Edward Galinski and Mala Zimetbaum were executed at Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland for their attempted escape from Auschwitz II–Birkenau in Jun 1944. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 The GUKR SMERSH completed a list of Japanese intelligence personnel and Russian émigré living in northeastern China for arrests when Soviet troops invaded the region. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-60 departed Liverpool, England, United Kingdom. 
0
15 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet 17th Air Army of the 3rd Ukrainian Front began a six-day campaign attacking railroad bridges near Niš, Skopje, Kruševo and other towns in southern Yugoslavia of transportation importance to isolate German troops in southern Yugoslavia and nothern Greece. 
0
16 Sep 1944 WW2 British troops landed unopposed on the island of Kythera in the Peloponnese peninsula in Greece. 
0
16 Sep 1944 WW2 A speech by Goebbels called for resistance by all Germans with utmost fanaticism. 
0
16 Sep 1944 WW2 US 803rd Tank Destroyer Battalion captured Simpelveld in the Netherlands. 
0
16 Sep 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina was awarded the Order of Glory 2nd Class. 
0
16 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet troops entered Sofia, Bulgaria. 
0
16 Sep 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops began crossing the Manipur River in India toward Burma. 
0
16 Sep 1944 WW2 Saint Paul was launched at Quincy, Massachusetts, United States, sponsored by the wife of John J. McDonough. 
0
16 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet troops, Bulgarian troops, and Yugoslavian partisans defeated Chetnik fighters and Serbian Frontier Guards and captured Vlasotince, Yugoslavia. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 US 85th Division captured Monte Altuzzo, Italy; other US units captured Monte Pratone. To the east, Indian 4th Division attacked German 278th Infantry Division in San Marino. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Guam was commissioned with Captain Leland P. Lovette in command. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 Hans Thurner was awarded Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 The Red Army broke through near Narva, Estonia. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 The siege of Boulogne, Pas-de-Calais, France began. With 1 Corps grounded from lack of transport, the only available formation was 3rd Canadian Division, less one brigade, but reinforced with some armour and medium regiments of artillery. Despite being smaller than Le Havre, Boulogne proved to be a hard nut to crack, with deep underground fortifications, as well as surrounding forts, minefields and anti-tank ditches. Heavy bombing on the opening day failed to destroy the many German gun batteries, making the siege more difficult than expected. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 Lorraine departed waters off southern France. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her seventh war patrol. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 The Allies launched Operation Market Garden, an airborne-ground combined attack to penetrate into northern Germany via the Netherlands, capturing Sint-Oedenrode and Veghel. US 56th Fighter Group lost sixteen out of thirty-nine P-47D Thunderbolt aircraft on flak suppression duties in support of the operation. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet newspaper Unichtozhim Vraga credited Roza Shanina with 51 kills. 
0
17 Sep 1944 WW2 British Blackout regulations, which had been in force since the start of the war, were finally abolished. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Cod departed Fremantle, Australia for her fifth war patrol. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 Cruiser USS Duluth (CL-87) was commissioned with Captain Donald Roderick Osborn, Jr. in command. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 US Ninth Army captured Brest, France. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 In the Netherlands, German troops launched a heavy counter attack near Arnhem while Allied troops captured Eindhoven. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Sennet completed her fitting out. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 Indian troops captured Point 343 in San Marino. Brazilian troops captured Camaiore, Italy. British troops captured San Godenzo Pass, also in Italy. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet departed Midway for her second war patrol. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Escolar departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first and only war patrol. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 Nazi German SS doctors conducted a selection in the infirmaries of Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland. 330 men and 65 boys, all Jews, were selected and sent to the gas chambers. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 A transport with 2,500 Jews arrived at Auschwitz Concentration Camp from the Lodz ghetto in occupied Poland; about 80% of this transport were children between 13 and 16 years of age. 150 were registered into the camp, the remaining were all killed in the gas chambers. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed San Diego, California, United States for Pearl Harbor. 
0
18 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Spot completed fitting out at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California, United States. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Wing Commander Guy Gibson VC, the leader of the Dambusters raid in 1943, was killed when his aircraft crashed near Steenbergen, the Netherlands. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 The Belgian Parliament met for the first time since May 1940. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 In the Netherlands, British airborne troopers defended against heavy German attacks in Arnhem while other troops captured Veldhoven. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 While flying a Dakota aircraft on a supply run for British troops at Arnhem, the Netherlands, Flight Lieutenant David Lord flew several runs over the drop zone despite the starboard wing being hit and became aflame. Having dropped all supplies, he ordered his crew to bail out while he made no attempt to jump, remaining in the pilot's seat to keep the aircraft steady. The aircraft eventually exploded in mid-war. Lord was later awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross medal. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Submarine Macabi was launched, sponsored by the wife of Rear Admiral Arthur S. Carpender. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki broke off from Convoy HI-75 and sailed for Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Ioshima was sunk off Japan by USS Shad. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Essex crossed the Equator in the Pacific Ocean on a southward course. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Cero departed Darwin, Australia for her sixth war patrol. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Elements of US 68th Composite Wing arrived at Baishiyi Airfield near Chongqing, China, establishing it as a command and control base. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell personally handed Chiang Kaishek a message from Franklin Roosevelt which noted that Stilwell was to be given unrestricted powers in China. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 The Allied Control Commission arrived in Helsinki demanding to see the plans for the internment of Germans in Finland, which Carl Mannerheim knew did not exist. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Garland and two other British destroyers jointly sank German submarine U-407 off Santorini, Greece. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 A Finnish delegate signed a temporary peace treaty with the Soviet Union in Moscow, Russia. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Indian 4th Division reached the outskirts of the city of San Marino. 
0
19 Sep 1944 WW2 Winston Churchill departed Hyde Park, New York, United States for nearby New York City, where he was to begin his journey back to Britain. 
0
20 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Franklin crossed the Equator. 
0
20 Sep 1944 WW2 Indian 4th Division captured San Marino in the early afternoon. In nearby Italy, Canadian troops broke through German lines along the Ausa River. At Rimini, Italy, Greek troops reached the southern outskirts of the city. 
0
20 Sep 1944 WW2 British XXX Corps linked up with US airborne troops at Nijmegen, the Netherlands; nearby, Geldrop, Someren, and Terneuzen were captured by Allied troops. 
0
20 Sep 1944 WW2 From his headquarters in Chongqing, China, Milton Miles sent SACO's first comprehensive weather map to US Navy Pacific Fleet Command. These reports would continue daily until the end of the war for the planning of Leyte, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa invasions. 
0
20 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Surabaya, Java. 
0
20 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Tunny departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
20 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at waters southeast of Taiwan. 
0
20 Sep 1944 WW2 The FR Fireball fighter took its first piston-jet mix-powered flight. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 In the morning, troops of Greek 3rd Mountain Brigade captured Rimini, Italy, which had been evacuated by the Germans overnight, and raised a Greek flag on the balcony of the municipal building; the mayor officially surrendered the city at 0745 hours. US 85th Division captured Firenzuola, Italy. Indian 4th Division withdrew from San Marino. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 German Armeegruppe E evacuated the Peloponnese Peninsula in Greece. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the Third Army of US 12th Army Group. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 The second authorized special attack was conducted by three Japanese Army aircraft. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Permit departed Brisbane, Australia, starting her fourtheenth war patrol. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 George Patton traveled to Paris, France to meet with Dwight Eisenhower over lunch. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 Men of Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade landed between Arnhem and Nijmegen in the Netherlands as British airborne troops in Arnhem were becoming overwhelmed. Nearby, Schijndel was captured by the Allies. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft began attacking Japanese positions in the Manila Bay area in the Philippine Islands. 
0
21 Sep 1944 WW2 Josip Broz Tito arrived in Romania. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel ended her sixth war patrol. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 Red Army units captured Tallinn and Reval, Estonia. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 The German garrison in Boulogne, France surrendered to Canadian troops. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 US First Army halted its offensive on Aachen, Germany. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 US troops captured the Il Giogo pass on the Gothic Line in Italy. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Kure, Japan to escort battleships Fuso and Yamashiro to Lingga, Borneo. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft began attacking Japanese positions in the Manila Bay area in the Philippine Islands. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 Irako departed Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands at 0300 hours with a deck load of reconnaissance floatplanes for Coron Bay, Calamian Islands, Philippine Islands. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 The leading Divisions of Marshal Fedor Tolbukhin's 3rd Ukrainian Front commenced a crossing of the River Danube near Turnu Severin, Romania, meeting strong opposition from German Army alpine and German Waffen-SS troops under Field Marshal Maximilian Freiherr von Weich's command. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 The Taiwan Army was absorbed into the Japanese Tenth Area Army with General Rikichi Ando remaining as its commanding officer. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 British scientists, returning from studying a German rocket research site at Blizna, Poland, found that the crates of rocket parts collected had been switched to ordinary aircraft parts, presumably by the Soviets who wished to retain the rocket parts for their own weapons research. 
0
22 Sep 1944 WW2 The first RaLa Experiment of the Manhattan Project with a radioactive source was performed. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 Canadian troops formed a bridgehead across the Escaut Canal in Belgium. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt denounced Republican Party attacks during a speech at the Teamster's Union dinner; the Republicans had accused Roosevelt of inappropriately using a US Navy destroyer to fetch his pet dog Fala, abusing his presidential powers. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 The tiny republic of San Marino in northern Italy declared war on Germany after its 300-man army was rounded up by a mere platoon of German soldiers. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 The Republic of China established the Order of Loyalty and Diligence. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 Patrick Hurley asked Chiang Kaishek to accept communist assistance in the war against Japan; Chiang rejected the request. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Ray departed Fremantle, Australia for her sixth war patrol. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 Jewish prisoners of concentration camp in Kluga, Estonia were massacred. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 After a six-day siege, Canadian troops forced the German troops at Boulogne, Pas-de-Calais, France to surrender. The Canadians suffered 634 casualties and captured 9,500 prisoners (many driven from their bunkers by driving flame down the ventilation shafts). 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet and Romanian forces entered Hungary just beyond Arad, Romania. Hungarian Baron Ede Atzel led a delegation across the Soviet front lines in an attempt to negotiate an armistice. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 Irako dropped anchor between Tangat Island and Lusong Island just off the southern coast of Busuanga, Philippine Islands. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-60 arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Charr was commissioned into service at 1030 hours at the US Submarine Base, New London, Connecticut, United States with Commander Francis Boyle in command. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 Joseph Rochefort was promoted to the rank of captain. His superior Joseph Redman sent him a three-word letter "Delivered with congratulations" for this occasion. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Boarfish was commissioned into service with Commander Royce L. Gross in command. 
0
23 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Croaker completed her refitting at Midway and began her second war patrol. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 British Second Army reached the Rhine River, while the Germans sealed off US Third Army's bridgeheads across the Moselle River, south of Aachen, Germany. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 The Soviet minesweeper T.120 (formerly the USS Assail) was sunk by the German submarine U-739 in the Kara Sea in the Arctic Circle. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-19 was lost after striking a Japeanese mine southeast of Angaur, Palau Islands. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Becuna fired three torpedoes at a Japanese transport in the Luzon Strait south of Taiwan; all torpedoes missed. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Tang departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, starting her fifth war patrol in the Taiwan Strait. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 British XIII Corps captured Marradi, Italy. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 The STAVKA ordered the Soviet First Baltic Front to halt on the advance to Riga, Latvia, leaving the job to the Second Baltic Front and Third Baltic Front, and instead march toward Memel (now Klaipeda, Lithuania). 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 British troops captured Deurne, the Netherlands. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers as carrier aircraft began attacking Japanese positions in the central area of the Philippine Islands. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 Irako was attacked by US carrier aircraft and sank in Coron Bay, Busuanga, Philippine Islands. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 The Soviet GKO issued an order to increase food rations of NKVD, NKGB, and SMERSH operatives and officers. 
0
24 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wisconsin departed Philadelphia Navy Yard in Pennsylvania, United States. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 Iro Ilk was shot down and killed near Moers, Germany. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 Germany formed the Volkssturm. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 The remaining 2,163 British airborne troops were evacuated from Arnhem, the Netherlands; the original strength was about 10,000. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 Norwegian ministers urged Germany to withdraw from Norwegian occupation. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Snook arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands for repairs. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Becuna fired three torpedoes at a Japanese destroyer in the Luzon Strait south of Taiwan; all torpedoes missed. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 Yasoshima received orders to move to the front. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 French Army B was redesignated French 1st Army; Jean de Lattre de Tassigny remained the unit's commanding officer. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Surabaya, Java and arrived at Jamuan. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 Having taken Boulogne, France, Canadian 3rd Division assaulted Calais where their operation to capture the port would be complicated by the presence of 20,000 French civilians who have not been evacuated. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 British prisoner of war Lieutenant Mike Sinclair was killed by a German guard while attempting to escape from the Oflag IV-C camp at Colditz Castle in Germany. He had attempted to escape several times prior, and through these attempted had earned the respect of his captors, who allowed the British prisoners to bury Sinclair with full military honors. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at Bashi Channel between Taiwan and Philippine Islands. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Astoria transited the Panama Canal and then made port call at Balboa, Panama. 
0
25 Sep 1944 WW2 Slovakian Captain Frantisek Urban, tricked by the Soviets to visit Moscow in Russia, was arrested by SMERSH and was transferred to the Lubyanka Prison. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Mook, the Netherlands. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 German shore batteries, cut off behind Allied lines around Calais in France, bombarded Dover, England, United Kingdom, killing 49 people. The Royal Air Force retaliated with a series of bombing raids in which the gun sites were pounded into silence. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 Lord Gort stepped down as the Governor of Malta. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan began her third war patrol in Japanese home island waters. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 US and British intelligence missions were forced out of Sofia, Bulgaria by political pressure asserted by the Soviet Union. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Jamuan. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 All of Estonia was occupied by the Red Army. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 British 8th Army drove out German positions along the Uso River north of Rimini, Italy. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 Unryu departed Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Whale patrolled in the Bashi Channel between Taiwan and Philippine Islands. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 Soviet troops fortified positions along the Danube River on the Romanian-Yugoslavian and Romanian-Bulgarian borders. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 Joseph Stalin issued an order stating that all arrests of former top level Bulgarian and Romanian leaders could be done only with authorization of the Soviet Stavka. 
0
26 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Tunny arrived at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, San Francisco, United States. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Flasher sank Japanese transport ship Ural Maru, killing about 2,000. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 German Armeegruppe E withdrew from western Greece. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 2,000 fighters of the Armia Krajowa surrendered in Warsaw, Poland. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Helmond and Oss in the Netherlands. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her eighth war patrol. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 Unryu arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 James Johnson shot down a German Bf 109 fighter over Nijmegen, the Netherlands, scoring his final kill of the war. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Whale was spotted by a Japanese patrol craft between Taiwan and Philippine Islands but was able to escape. 
0
27 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Tang departed Midway, where she stopped to refuel. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 USMC landed on Ngesebus of Palau Islands to eliminate a Japanese artillery position. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 RAF bombers dropped 909 tons of bombs on Kaiserslautern, Germany, destroying 36% of the town. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 Apart from a few isolated pockets of resistance, the Germans surrendered Calais Citadel in France after further intensive bombing raids by British bombers. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Columbia arrived at Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 The grand Shinto shrine in Lushun, puppet nation of Manchukuo (Liaoning Province, China), its contruction completed in Mar 1944, held its opening ceremony. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived in Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Whale patrolled waters south of Taiwan. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Kete departed the Panama Canal Zone. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 Beginning on this date and through the following month, about 18,402 prisoners from Theresienstadt Concentration Camp in occupied Czechoslovakia were transferred to Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-60 departed the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 During a speech in the House of Commons, Winston Churchill condemned Bulgaria, reminding the members that Bulgarians have been responsible for many war crimes in Greece and Yugoslavia, and that (as far as Great Britain was concerned) they were not welcome as co-belligerents, until they demonstrate atonement for their former misdeeds. 
0
28 Sep 1944 WW2 In Moscow, Russia, Josip Tito formally authorized Soviet troops to enter Yugoslavia. Soviet 57th Army began marching toward Belgrade, Yugoslavia in three columns, with 64th Rifle Corps crossing the Morava River at Paracin, 68th Rifle Corps advancing from Vidin toward Mladenovac, and 75th Rifle Corps advancing from Turnu toward Pozarevac. 
0
29 Sep 1944 WW2 Canadian troops captured Cape Gris Nez near Calais, France; the Germans and Canadians in the region agreed on a 24-hour truce so that civilians in the area could be evacuated. The news that the Canadians had captured the last remaining gun batteries in the Calais area was greeted with jubilation in the streets of Dover, England, United Kingdom. Since the start of the war, Dover had experienced 187 shelling attacks in addition to numerous bombing and V1 attacks. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 15 British Lancaster bombers conducted minelaying operation in the Kattegat and off Helgoland, Germany. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 Corporal John Harper of the British York and Lancaster Regiment led his section across 300 yards of open ground under heavy fire to take enemy positions at Antwerp, Belgium. He then went on alone to clear the advance with grenades until he was killed. For this he would be posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Wasp arrived at Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Balikpapan, Dutch Borneo. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 British 8th Army reached the Fiumicino River in Italy. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Hashirajima, Japan. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Miami arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Whale made rendezvous with USS Seahorse and received orders to patrol waters in the South China Sea southwest of Taiwan. 
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29 Sep 1944 WW2 21 American OSS agents (under Lieutenant Commander Frank Wisner) were dropped into Bucharest, Romania to liberate 1,888 interned Allied airmen. As they evacuated the airmen, they also brought out with them many Romania diplomatic documents to prevent Soviet capture. 
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30 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Blackfin departed from Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
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30 Sep 1944 WW2 The last of the German guns at Calais, France that had been shelling the Dover, England, United Kingdom for three years was destroyed. Shortly after, the 7,500 German garrison at Calais surrendered to Canadian troops. 
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30 Sep 1944 WW2 Italian minelayer FR 71, captured from the French Navy in 1942, was returned to France. 
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30 Sep 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Balikpapan, Dutch Borneo. 
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30 Sep 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki arrived at Sasebo, Japan for a scheduled overhaul. 
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30 Sep 1944 WW2 Unryu departed Kure, Japan. 
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30 Sep 1944 WW2 USS Escolar sent out a distress radio signal noting that she was under enemy gunboat attack. 
0
01 Oct 1944 WW2 U-530 was assigned to the 33. Unterseebootflottille (33th Submarine Flotilla). 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Cruiser Köln conducted convoy operation between Norway and Denmark over the following two months. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Trepang attacked a Japanese convoy, sinking freighter Takunan Maru. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Finnish troops attacked German troops in Tornio, Finland. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, sinking two transports with 4 of 10 torpedoes fired. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell's diary entry for this date noted that he felt he was about to be ousted by Franklin Roosevelt. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Oberstleutnant Wilhelm Antrup stepped down as the commanding officer of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-385 was mined and sunk in the Zowariau Channel, Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Emperor Showa's personal representative arrived in Lushun, puppet nation of Manchukuo (Liaoning Province, China) to perform a blessing ceremony for the newly opened grand Shinto shrine. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 The Slovakian resistance fighters named themselves the Czechoslovakian 1st Army in Slovakia. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 The German garrison at Calais, France capitulated. The 3rd Canadian Division had suffered just 300 casualties in the siege of the town but had captured 7,500 Germans bringing their toll of prisoners taken in clearing the Channel ports to almost 30,000. Wreckage to the dock facilities were however extensive and the port would not be available for shipping until Nov 1944. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Karl von Le Suire was awarded the Kuban Shield medal. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 After a 4-day fight, the US 5th Army captured Monte Battaglia, Italy, a part of the Gothic Line defenses. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Most of the crew of Shinano boarded the carrier at Yokosuka, Japan by this date. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 The German-occupied island of Jersey was declared a Fortress. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Unbeknownst to the Germans, a Hungarian delegation arrived in Moscow, Russia to discuss an armistice with the Soviet Union. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Submarine Capitaine was launched at Groton, Connecticut, United States, sponsored by Mrs. J. A. Rondomanski. 
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01 Oct 1944 WW2 Red Army units crossed the Danube River into Yugoslavia. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 2nd Canadian Infantry Division marched north from Antwerp, Belgium toward South Beveland, the Netherlands. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Mingo sank four small Japanese ships with her deck gun. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 Friedrich Christiansen ordered a raid on the village of Putten, Gelderland, the Netherlands as retaliation for the killing of his subordinate Leutnant Sommers by resistance fighters. Many civilians were subsequently executed and 661 men were deported to labor camps. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wisconsin was attached to the US Navy Pacific Fleet. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 P-47 fighters of USAAF 386th Fighter Squadron encountered the Me 262 jet fighter flown by Oberfeldwebel Hieronymus Lauer; US pilot Val Beaudrault shot down Lauer. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island departed Palau Islands. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 In Lapland, Finland, General Lothar Rendulic ordered the German 20th Mountain Army to open hostilities against the Finnish III Army Corps. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 US 5th Army reached Monghidoro, Italy. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 Unryu departed Hashirajima near Hiroshima, Japan and arrived at Matsuyama, Ehime, Japan. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Davao, Philippine Islands and departed later on the same day. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 The Warsaw Uprising ended in failure after 63 days of fighting largely due to lack of food and ammunition. 15,200 insurgents and 200,000 civilians were killed, while the German occupation forces suffered 16,000 killed. Many buildings were destroyed in the fighting. 
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02 Oct 1944 WW2 Vsevolod Merkulov submitted a report to Lavrentiy Beria detailing the intelligence he had gained from an American atomic scientist. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 The United Kingdom stood down the Home Guard. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 A 60-hour truce began in Dunkirk, France between Allied and German troops to allow the evacuation of civilians. Elsewhere in France, US Third Army began a 10-day attack on Fort Driant, Metz. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit the Hellesdon Golf Course near Norwich, England, United Kingdom at 1950 hours, injuring 1 person and damaging a glasshouse, 5 farm buildings/barns, several haystacks, and 1 acre of sugar beet. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 Katsuragi was commissioned into service. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 Sanborn was commissioned into service. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 The first Messerschmitt Me 262 fighter unit was established at Achmer and Hesepe near Osnabrück, Germany under the command of Austrian-born ace Major Walter Nowotny. The unit had 30 aircraft distributed among two squadrons and was given the task of intercepting USAAF day bomber raids on the heart of Germany. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 The US submarine Seawolf was sunk by depth charges fired from the destroyer escort USS Richard M. Rowell off Morotai, Maluku Islands, Dutch East Indies. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese troops evacuated Tiddim, Burma. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Bergall attacked a small vessel east of French Indochina with her deck gun, causing no damage. 
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03 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at San Diego, California, United States. 
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04 Oct 1944 WW2 British 2nd Airborne Brigade landed at Patras, Greece as well as Crete and other Greek islands in the Aegean Sea. 
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04 Oct 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Rockland St Mary 6 miles southeast of Norwich, England, United Kingdom. It hit the village school directly, injuring 2 adults and 34 children, and the blast damaged 23 houses nearby. It was the worst attack on the Norwich region during the war. 
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04 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Snook completed her repairs at Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
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04 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island arrived at Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
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04 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp departed Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
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04 Oct 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Lingga, Dutch East Indies. 
0
04 Oct 1944 WW2 K. L. Prokhorenko stepped down as GUKR SMERSH's chief in the 1st Ukrainian Front. 
0
05 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cod sank a Japanese cargo ship. 
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05 Oct 1944 WW2 The Germans lost 36 Linsen boats - small motorboats packed with explosives - attempting to disrupt traffic in the Scheldt estuary controlling the approach to the port of Antwerp, Belgium. On the same day, Canadian forces entered the Netherlands, capturing Kerkrade. 
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05 Oct 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Acle near Norwich, England, United Kingdom, temporarily causing blockage to a road. Another rocket hit Surlingham, downing several telephone lines. 
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05 Oct 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt told Chiang Kaishek that Joseph Stilwell was to be relieved as Chiang's chief of staff and as the Lend-Lease director, but he would remain in China as the commanding officer of American troops in China and Burma. 
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05 Oct 1944 WW2 US II Corps, with British troops in support, launched a new attack toward Bologna, Italy. To the east, Indian 10th Infantry Division crossed the Fiumicino River, forcing German 10th Army to pull back toward Bologna. 
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05 Oct 1944 WW2 Soviet First Baltic Front resumed the offensive toward Memel (now Klaipeda, Lithuania) to cut off German Armeegruppe Nord. 
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05 Oct 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-60 arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 Canadian 3rd Division assaulted the German pocket at Breskena, Belgium, south of the Scheldt Estuary. To the north, Allied troops captured Ossendrecht, the Netherlands. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Shotesham All Saints 5 miles south of Norwich, England, United Kingdom, slightly injuring 1 person while damaging 20 houses, 1 church, and 1 school. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Pollack departed Brisbane, Australia for an exercise with HMAS Geelong. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea during the day, sinking an oiler and a transport, hitting them with 5 of 6 torpedoes fired. After sundown, she attacked a destroyer escort with 4 torpedoes, all of which missed. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 Feldwebel Viktor König of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Ray gave chase to a Japanese tanker in the South China Sea, damaging her with 1 torpedo hit (of 6 torpedoes fired) but did not sink her. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse claimed the sinking of a Japanese destroyer off Taiwan with one torpedo hit of six torpedoes fired. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Segundo was damaged by a bomb from a Japanese aircraft in the Surigao Strait in Philippine waters, damaging the deck gun, destroying an engine exhaust muffler, and cracking generator foundation mounts. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Preston set sail with Task Force 38. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina began keeping a combat diary against orders. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Columbia departed Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese troops evacuated Tiddam, Burma. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands with Task Group 38.3. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 Unryu departed Matsuyama, Japan and arrived at Yashiro-jima across the Inland Sea. 
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06 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Whale attacked a Japanese convoy as a part of a wolfpack in the South China Sea, sinking Japanese transport Akane Maru, hitting her with 5 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cod damaged a Japanese tanker. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 British troops captured Nauplion and the island of Samos in Greece. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 German 20.Gebirgsarmee began a fighting-withdrawal from Finland toward Norway. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 In the United Kingdom, the Cabinet decided to continue the censorship of reports of rocket attacks. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Hoe fired 7 torpedoes at a Japanese convoy, scoring 3 hits on 2 freighters, sinking 1 of them. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Baya sank a Japanese transport in the South China Sea, hitting her with 2 of 6 torpedoes fired. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla sank a Japanese transport in the South China Sea, hitting her with 3 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill detected a Japanese carrier in the South China Sea, but was driven off by destroyers. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Ray attacked the same Japanese tanker she had been chasing since the previous day in the Southe China Sea, hitting her with another 3 torpedo hits (of 6 torpedoes fired), but could not determine whether she had been sunk. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 From his headquarters in Chongqing, China, Milton Miles sent US Navy Pacific Fleet Command a daily weather map of China; for the first time, the map covered the entire Chinese coast and 500 miles out into the sea. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 General Rudolf Viest was made the commander of the Slovak National Uprising; previous commander, General Ján Golian, stepped down to become Viest's deputy. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 1st Lieutenant Elmer Taylor and 1st Lieutenant Willard Erfkamp of USAAF 364th Fighter Group, flying P-51 fighters, together shot down the German Me 163 rocket fighter piloted by Husser; Husser would survive the subsequent crash landing. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 Major Richard Conner of USAAF 78th Fighter Group, flying a P-47 fighter, shot down a Me 262 jet aircraft over Osnabrück, Germany; the German pilot was observed to have bailed out before the jet crashed. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 1st Lieutenant Urban Drew, flying a P-51 fighter, shot down two Me 262 fighters (flown by Oberfeldwebel Heinz Arnold and Leutnant Gerhard Kobert) as they were taking off from Achmer Airfield. The only witness to the town victories, his wingman 2nd Lieutenant Robert McCandliss, was shot down by anti-aircraft fire and captured before the end of the mission, so Drew did not receive credit for these two downings until after the war when McCandliss was released from captivity. This was the first and only time in the war a pilot scored two jet victories in one mission. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 British 8th Army resumed attacks on the Gothic Line in Italy. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Whale received orders to move to waters northwest of Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp made rendezvous with Task Force 38 in the Philippine Sea in the evening. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 Takijiro Onishi arrived in Manila, Philippine Islands. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 Jewish prisoners of the Sonderkommando of Auschwitz II-Birkenau Concentration Camp organized a large revolt and escape. Crematorium IV was set on fire, while SS guards came under attack. During the havoc, some of the prisoners were successful in cutting through the perimeter fencing and got outside, but the SS guard responded and successfully rounded up all escapees and killed them all. After the revolt was put down in the camp, about 250 prisoners, including leader Zalmen Gradowski and Józef Deresinski, were dead. Three SS men were also killed; ten were wounded. Four Jewish women who had stolen the explosives from their workplace at the Union-Werke armaments factory, which were used during this revolt, were later hanged. 
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07 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at San Francisco, California, United States and entered the Mare Island Naval Shipyard to repair the damaged turbine. 
0
08 Oct 1944 WW2 Czechoslovakian 1st Armored Brigade was deployed to the British 2nd Army in France. 
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08 Oct 1944 WW2 Elements of US Ninth Army reached Aachen, Germany. 
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08 Oct 1944 WW2 The US Navy canceled Project Pigeon/Project Orcon, which was University of Minnesota professor B. F. Skinner's attempt to design missiles piloted by pigeons. He complained that, even if the project was a success, people would not take this project seriously. 
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08 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Hoe fired 17 torpedoes at a Japanese convoy, scoring 5 hits, sinking 1 freighter and damaging 3 other ships. 
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08 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Becuna damaged Japanese tanker Kimikawa Maru in the South China Sea with two of four torpedoes fired. 
0
08 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro departed Frementle, Australia for her third war patrol. 
0
08 Oct 1944 WW2 Unryu departed Yashiro-jima, Japan and arrived at Yashima, Kagawa, Japan. 
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08 Oct 1944 WW2 Shinano was launched at Yokosuka, Japan. During the launch, one of the caissons at the end of the dock lifted unexpectedly, causing her to move forward, damaging the bow. 
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08 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp refueled from an oiler in the Philippine Sea. 
0
08 Oct 1944 WW2 Bulgarian troops engaged German troops at Bela Palanka, Yugoslavia. Elsewhere in Yugoslavia, Yugoslavian troops captured two German bridgeheads on the Morawa River near Velika Plana and Palanka. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 The US surrender ultimatum to the garrison at Aachen, Germany was rejected. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 Canadian troops used amphibious vehicles to enter the Breskens Pocket in the Netherlands. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Gar arrived at Brisbane, Australia, ending her thirteenth war patrol. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Croaker sank a Japanese freighter with 4 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Becuna attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, claiming two sunk and two damaged; ten torpedoes were expended, seven of them made contact. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China sea with USS Becuna, damaging several ships with her torpedoes. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Bergall sank a Japanese transport off the coast of French Indochina, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Pintado departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her third war patrol. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Dragonet arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Night Air Group 106 on board. 
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09 Oct 1944 WW2 Submarine I-369 was completed at the Yokosuka Navy Yard, Japan as a Type D1 Tei-gata transport submarine. She was commissioned into service under the command of Lieutenant Shigeo Matsushima. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese submarine I-8 arrived at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet sank a Japanese fishing boat off the eastern coast of Okinawa, Japan with her deck gun. 
0
09 Oct 1944 WW2 Bulgarian 1st Army attacked Nis, Yugoslavia. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Okinawa. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 10 Lancaster bombers conducted minelaying operations off Helgoland, Germany. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 British troops captured Corinth, Greece. On the same day, German Armeegruppe E started its final retreat from Greece. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 Soviet units reached the Baltic coast at Memel (now Klaipeda, Lithuania), cutting off the 26 divisions of German Armeegruppe Nord once and for all. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 German Army put down the anti-Tiso rebellion in Slovakia. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 Stanley Hollis received the Victoria Cross medal from King George VI. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Makin Island became the flagship of Rear Admiral Calvin T. Durgin of an escort carrier task unit. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 Miklós Horthy, Jr., son of the Hungarian leader, met with Yugoslavians. German intelligence learned of this anti-German act, but decided not to take any action. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Pollack completed the exercise with HMAS Geelong off Brisbane, Australia and sailed for the Hawaii Islands. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Iowa arrived off Okinawa, Japan to cover carriers while the carrier aircraft struck targets in the Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 Auxiliary escort Kari was sunk by US Task Force 38 carrier aircraft off Okinawa, Japan. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 Walter Stettner von Grabenhofen stepped down as the commanding officer of 1st Mountain Division. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Sasebo, Japan. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked positions on Okinawa, Anami, and Miyaki of the Ryukyu Islands, Japan. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off Okinawa, Japan. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 A Soviet military tribunal sentenced Rudolf Körpert, Otto Mäder, and four other former officers of German-run prisoners of war camps to death. 
0
10 Oct 1944 WW2 Red Army cracked the German line in the Serbia region of Yugoslavia en route to Belgrade. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes Aparri, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Trepang attacked a Japanese convoy, claiming the sinking of one freighter. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Tang sank Japanese transports Joshu Go at about 0500 hours, hitting her with two of three torpedoes fired. Later in the day, at about 2100 hours, she sank Oita Maru with one torpedo. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 USAAF raids began on the island of Okinawa, Japan. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Rockland St Mary 6 miles southeast of Norwich, England, United Kingdom, which was the second rocket to hit the village during the war (first being on 4 Oct 1944). It damaged 14 houses. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the VIII Corps of the Ninth Army of US 12th Army Group. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 Hakusan Maru arrived at Hong Kong. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Luce departed Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 Hungary and the Soviet Union began to finalize a cease fire agreement. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off Okinawa, Japan. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 Soviet troops of the 2nd Ukranian Front assaulted and captured the town of Cluj in Romania, the capital of Transylvania. 
0
11 Oct 1944 WW2 Patrick Hurley recommended Franklin Roosevelt to remove Joseph Stilwell from China. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Trepang claimed damaging a Japanese battleship and sinking one destroyer during an attack conducted at 2100 hours, earning Commander Roy Davenport a Navy Cross. Post-war studies could not confirm this success, however. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 German troops withdrew across the Lower Rhine near Arnhem, the Netherlands. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Ingworth 14 miles north of Norwich, England, United Kingdom, slightly injuring 2 people and causing damage to 20 houses and 1 school. This rocket was the 28th rocket to hit the Norwich region, and was to be the last of the current rocket campaign against Norwich. None of the 28 rockets targeted at this area killed anyone, and property damage was relatively light. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Athens, Greece was liberated by Resistance forces who were supported by British glider-landed reinforcements. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Croaker sank a Japanese merchant ship with 3 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 The first B-29 bombers of the US 73rd Bomb Wing (VH) arrived at Isley Field on Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Ray sank Japanese cargo ship Toko Maru in the South China Sea, hitting her with 2 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Colonel Rudolf von Margona-Redwitz, head of German military intelligence in Vienna (Abwehrstelle Wien) until Apr 1944, was sentenced to death and executed in connection with the July Plot against Adolf Hitler. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Robert Cole of No. 3 Squadron RAF, flying a Tempest V fighter, shot down a Me 262 jet fighter which was escorting bombers of German Kampfgeschwader 51. This was the first victory of a jet aircraft by a Tempest fighter. The German pilot, Unteroffizier Edmond Delatowski, bailed out and survived. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island departed Manus, Admiralty Islands with Task Group 77.4. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 The docks at Boulogne, France were reopened, thus helping the Allied supply crisis to the armies north of the Seine River, which up to now had been reliant on Dieppe and Ostend whose combined capacity was only about 10,000 tons daily. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 American "Buffalo Soldiers" broke through the Gothic Line in northern Italy. The 92nd Infantry Division was the only black unit (with white officers) to see combat in Europe, going into action in Italy after the capture of Rome. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Latvian capital Riga was captured by the Soviets, ending any hope of a breakout by Army Group North. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 The German 485 Mobile Artillery Detachment, responsible for launching V-2 rockets, began their move from Friesland to the Hague in the Netherlands. On the same day, Adolf Hitler ordered that London, England, United Kingdom was to be the only target for V-2 rockets in Britain; attacks on other continental cities such as Antwerp were to continue. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off Okinawa, Japan. After dark, she shot down a Japanese aircraft and assisted in the downing of another. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sea Robin transited the Panama Canal. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Tainan, Taiwan. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 VT-44 squadron TBM aircraft from USS Langley attacked Kagi Airfield in Kagi (now Chiayi), Taiwan. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Aircraft from USS Wasp attacked the Okayama Airfield north of Takao (now Kaohsiung), Taiwan. Nearby targets of opportunity such as the seaplane base at Toko Bay (now Dapeng Bay), the naval port at Toshien (now Zuoying), and the Japanese Army airfield at present-day Kaohsiung International Airport were also attacked. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 US Navy carrier aircraft attacked the Japanese Navy base at Mako (now Makung), Pescadores Islands in the Taiwan Strait. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Aircraft from USS Hancock attacked the Karenko Airfield in Karenko (now Hualien) in eastern Taiwan; nearly Japan Aluminum Company and Toho Metallury Company industrial facilities were also damaged. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 VT-18 squadron aircraft from USS Intrepid attacked Shinchiku Airfield in Shinchiku (now Hsinchu) in northern Taiwan. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 VT-18 squadron aircraft from USS Intrepid attacked the Rising Sun Petroleum Company facilities in Tamsui and the military seaplane base immediately next to Rising Sun facilities in northern Taiwan. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Carrier aircraft from USS Bunker Hill attacked Matsuyama Airfield in Taihoku (now Taipei), Taiwan. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Carrier aircraft from USS Bunker Hill attacked Shinchiku Airfield in Shinchiku (now Hsinchu), Taiwan. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Carrier aircraft from USS Lexington attacked Shoka Airfield in Shoka (now Changhua), Taiwan. 
0
12 Oct 1944 WW2 Bulgarian troops captured Leskovac, Yugoslavia. Elsehwere in Yogoslavia, Soviet 4th Guards Mechanized Corps began advancing toward Belgrade from the bridgeheads at Velika Plana and Palanka. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Mingo arrivedat Fremantle, Australia, ending her fifth war patrol. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 The A7M2 Reppu fighter, equipped with the Ha-43 engine, took its first flight. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Bergall sank a Japanese transport 10 kilometers east of Cam Rahn Bay, French Indochina, hitting her with 2 of 4 torpedoes. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 Salaspils Concentration Camp near Riga, Latvia ceased operations. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 German Armeegruppe Nord withdrew to the Kurland (Latvian: Courland) pocket in western Latvia. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Permit sank a Japanese patrol craft off Truk, Caroline Islands, hitting her with 1 of torpedoes fired. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off Okinawa, Japan. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Tainan, Taiwan. A Japanese special attack aircraft caused light damage to the flight deck. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 Carrier aircraft from USS Lexington attacked the rail marshaling yard at Shinei District (now Xinying District), Tainan, Taiwan. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 US Navy carrier aircraft attacked Shinchiku Airfield in Shinchiku (now Hsinchu), Taiwan, destroying 4 hangars, 8 shops, and 2 barracks. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Hornet launched a reconnaissance mission over the Japanese Navy seaplane base at Toko Bay (now Dapeng Bay), southern Taiwan. 
0
13 Oct 1944 WW2 The first FR Fireball prototype aircraft was destroyed in a crash at Naval Air Station China Lake, California, United States. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes against Aparri, Manila, and Legaspi in the Philippine Islands through 19 Oct 1944. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel committed suicide with a cyanide capsule given by General Wilhelm Burgdorf. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 British troops entered Athens, Corfu Island, and Piraeus, Greece. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 Ann Baumgartner became the first American woman to fly a jet aircraft. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill transited the Lombok Strait, Dutch East Indies. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 The British 14th Army in Burma recorded a 84% malaria rate. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Ray's conning tower suffered flooding while she dove to escape an approaching Japanese patrol aircraft in the South China Sea; she would sail to Mios Woendi near Biak, Dutch East Indies for repairs. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi received a Type 13 air search radar at Kure Naval Arsenal, Japan. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Kure, Japan with Cruiser Division 21. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Alabama shot down three attacking Japanese aircraft while operating south of Taiwan. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Miami operated off Okinawa, Japan. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young shot down several Japanese aircraft off Taiwan, suffered five men wounded by machine gun fire. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 Carrier aircraft from USS Intrepid attacked Shinchiku Airfield in Shinchiku (now Hsinchu), Taiwan, destroying 1 Ki-44 aircraft on the ground, 5 twin-engine aircraft on the ground, and 1 hangar building. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 132 B-29 bombers of USAAF 40th, 444th, 462th, and 486th Bombardment Groups launched from the Chengdu, China area airfields to attack the Okayama Aircraft Factory north of Takao (now Kaohsiung), Taiwan. 106 of them dropped their bomb loads on the primary targets, while 12 bombed secondary targets. 2 bombers were lost on this mission. 
0
14 Oct 1944 WW2 Soviet 4th Guards Mechanized Corps and Yugoslavian 12th Corps, accompanied by Yugoslav partisans, penetrated Axis defensive lines south of Belgrade, Yugoslavia. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese Navy Captain Nobuei Morishita, commanding officer of Yamato, was promoted to the rank of rear admiral. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Prinz Eugen collided with light cruiser Leipzig by accident north of Hela (Hel, Poland) in the Baltic Sea, causing light damage. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Damaged German battleship Tirpitz set sail for Tromsø, Norway at the speed of 10 knots. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin was attacked by Japanese aircraft off of Luzon, Philippine Islands; 1 bomb hit and 2 near misses caused damage. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Shortly after announcing that Hungary would withdraw from the war, Admiral Miklós Horthy's son Miklós Horthy, Jr. was abducted by Sturmbannführer Otto Skorzeny's commandos. In Horthy's place, the new head of state, Fenenc Szalasi promised to maintain the alliance with Germany. Among the first pro-German policies implemented was the resumption of the deportation of Hungarian Jews. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Rettendon, Essex, England, United Kingdom. The village pub was damaged and two were slightly injured. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Rear Admiral Masafumi Arima of the Japanese 26th Air Flotilla in the Philippine Islands attempted a special attack with a D4Y Suisei aircraft against an American carrier; it was said that "This act of self-sacrifice by a high flag officer spurred the flying units in forward combat areas and provided the spark that touched off the organized use of suicide attacks in the battle for Leyte." 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Submarine Carbonero was launched, sponsored by Mrs. S. S. Murray. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 1st Lieutenant Hugh Foster, flying a P-47 fighter, damaged a Me 262 jet fighter. His fellow USAAF 78th Fighter Group pilot 2nd Lieutenant Huie Lamb, Jr., also flying a P-47 fighter, shot down a Me 262 jet fighter, flown by Feldwebel Edgar Junghans, during the same mission. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Raizo Tanaka was promoted to the rank of vice admiral. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Kete arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Aircraft storage area of 150 acres near Iroquois Point opened. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 Miklós Horthy announced that Hungary and Soviet Union had signed an armistice and asked the Hungary troops to lay down their arms; the order was rejected by the Hungarian generals, and the troops continued to fight against the invading Soviets. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Alabama supported landing operations on Leyte, Philippine Islands. 
0
15 Oct 1944 WW2 On or about this date, Masafumi Arima personally led a flight of special attack aircraft out of Clark Airfield, Luzon, Philippine Islands and never returned; it was unknown whether his flight was able to hit any targets. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 US First Army surrounded Aachen, Germany. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 Soviet units entered German territory as Goldap, East Prussia was captured. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 Martti Aho was awarded his second Mannerheim Cross medal. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler visited Nürnberg, Germany to personally inspect the repairs to the bunker which housed the Imperial Regalia of the Holy Roman Empire. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 ShCh-307 attacked a merchant ship; both torpedoes missed. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 4 on board. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 US 5th Army launched a new offensive toward Bologna, Italy. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 Unryu arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Amami Oshima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan with Cruiser Division 21. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Whale was spotted and attacked by Japanese aircraft in the South China Sea, but suffered no damage. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 USAAF XX Bomber Command B-29 bombers attacked Okayama Airfield north of Takao (now Kaohsiung), Taiwan. 
0
16 Oct 1944 WW2 USAAF XX Bomber Command B-29 bombers attacked Heito Airfield in Heito (now Pingtung), Taiwan. Several bombers attacked the rail marshaling yard and the harbor in nearby Toshien District, Takao (now Zuoying District, Kaohsiung), Taiwan, which were secondary targets. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 Pavel Haas passed away. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 Adolf Eichmann returned to Hungary. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Croaker damaged a small Japanese sampan with the deck gun. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Takijiro Onishi took command of the 1st Air Fleet based in the Philippine Islands. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 The US coastal minesweeper YMS-70 was lost in a storm off Leyte, Philippine Islands. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her first war patrol. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 Lavrentiy Beria informed Joseph Stalin that Viktor Abakumov had transferred 100 SMERSH personnel to reinforce the staff of the Main Information Directorate (under Piotr Kozuszko) of the Soviet-backed Polish Committee of National Liberation. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 Karl von Le Suire was mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht daily radio report. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 The major Soviet attacks near Debrecen, Hungary, were held off by German troops. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Sasebo, Japan. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Escolar sent her final ship-to-ship message to her wolfpack mates USS Perch, after which she was never heard from again. She was probably mined in the Yellow Sea on or shortly after this day. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Columbia supported landing operations at Dinagat Islands, Philippine Islands. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina visited her family in Arkhangelsk, Russia. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 B-29 bombers of 40th Bombardment Group attacked Takao harbor, Taiwan. 
0
17 Oct 1944 WW2 Bulgarian troops captured Kursumlija, Yugoslavia. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young screened carriers of Task Force 38 east of Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Erwin Rommel was given a state funeral. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Germany ordered the first Volkssturm call-up for all able-bodied men between the ages of 16-60. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 National German radio reported 50,000 officers have been killed since Sep 1939. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Himmler was appointed as Commander of Heeresgruppe Oberrhein. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Red Army units crossed the Norwegian border. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Venray, the Netherlands. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Otto Skorzeny escorted Hungarian leader Miklós Horthy to Schloss Hirschberg in Franken, Germany via a special train. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Yamato's deck was painted black with soot for the intended night operation in the San Bernardino Strait before departing Lingga for Brunei Bay, Boreno in the Dutch East Indies. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Musashi's deck was painted black with soot for the intended night operation in the San Bernardino Strait before departing Lingga for Brunei Bay, Boreno in the Dutch East Indies. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Lingga to escort a task force to Brunei, Borneo in the Dutch East Indies. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Air Group 45 on board. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Amami Oshima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan with Cruiser Division 21 and Destroyer Squadron 1. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet spotted a Japanese task force consisted of six destroyers and three cruisers; she failed to get into an attacking position. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island launched aircarft against Japanese positions in the Philippine Islands. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Springer was commissioned into service with Commander Russell Kefauver in command. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 Commander William Henry Ashford, Jr. was named the commanding officer of USS Sable. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Flying Fish arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her eleventh war patrol. 
0
18 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Seahorse arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 Feldmarschal Model called off the attempts to relieve Aachen, Germany. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 Hitler ordered the complete and total destruction of the city of Warsaw, Poland. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 German 4.Armee withdrew from around Tilsit, East Prussia, Germany. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched an attack on the Japanese on Manila Bay, Philippine Islands sinking several ships and downing 11 aircraft. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 A state funeral was held in Budapest, Hungary for the 26 Hungarian and German personnel killed during the kidnapping of Miklós Horthy, Jr. four days prior. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt relieved Joseph Stilwell from all commands in China and recalled him to the United States. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Whale set sale for Midway Atoll. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 Takijiro Onishi met with the senior staff officers of Japanese 201st Kokutai at Mabalacat airfield north of Manila, Philippine Islands, and asked for volunteers to form a special attack unit. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Luzon, Philippine Islands; Manila was attacked by US aircraft for the first time. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 German troops evacuated Belgrade, Yugoslavia. 
0
19 Oct 1944 WW2 Walter Stettner von Grabenhofen was killed by Yugoslavian partisan fighters in Montenegro, Yugoslavia. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin provided support for campaign for the invasion of Leyte, Philippine Islands. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 The "I have returned" speech was made by MacArthur as he landed at Leyte, Philippine Islands. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Musashi refueled in Brunei Bay. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Brunei. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell bid his final farewell to Chiang Kaishek at Chiang's home in Chongqing, China. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Otto Skorzeny arrived in Berlin, Germany. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 US 88th Division captured Monte Grande, Italy. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Yamato refueled in Brunei Bay. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft supported the US landings on Leyte, Philippine Islands. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Mako, Pescadores Islands with Cruiser Division 21. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Croydon, London, England, United Kingdom, killing 6 and seriously injuring 14. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-61 departed Liverpool, England, United Kingdom. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Test pilot Milo Burcham was killed when the YP-80A jet aircraft he piloted crashed shortly after takeoff in Burbank, California, United States. 
0
20 Oct 1944 WW2 Soviet troops and Yugoslavian partisans liberated Belgrade, Yugoslavia in a joint operation known as the Belgrade Offensive; Dubrovnik was captured by Yugoslavian partisans. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 German troops surrendered at Aachen, Germany. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 Canadian troops captured Breskens, the Netherlands. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 German Jews who were previously protected by their Aryan spouses were now deported from Germany. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 The German RSHA office ordered that the Gestapo were given the permission to execute foreign laborers. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Segundo arrived at Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands, ending her first war patrol. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 Otto Skorzeny arrived at Wolfsschanze in East Prussia, Germany. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 HMAS Australia was hit by a special attack aircraft off the Philippine Islands; it was unsure whether this was a Japanese Army or Navy aircraft as both branches launched tokko attacks on this date. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Chub was commissioned into service, Commander C. D. Rhymes, Jr. in command. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel started her seventh war patrol. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 Joseph Stilwell departed Chongqing, China in the afternoon for the United States via India. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 British V Corps crossed the Savio River in Italy. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 After dark, on the Savio River in northeastern Italy, Canadian Army Seaforth Highlanders Private Ernest Alvia Smith used a PIAT anti-tank launcher to destroy a German Panther tank and two self-propelled guns and then used a Thompson submachine gun to kill or repel 30 German soldiers. He would later be awarded the Victoria Cross for this action. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet attacked a Japanese cargo ship off the southwestern coast of Amami Oshima, Japan; all three torpedoes missed. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp refueled off Philippine Islands. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Manila, Philippine Islands. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Mako, Pescadores Islands with Cruiser Division 21. 
0
21 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Astoria completed her repairs at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 Yamato received Mitsubishi F1M2 aircraft from Nagato, then set sail for Operation SHO-I-GO. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes in the Manila Bay area at Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese fleets set sail for the Philippine Islands in search of a decisive confrontation with the US Navy. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the VIII Corps of the First Army of US 12th Army Group. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Hoe arrved at Fremantle, Australia, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 The prototype Lockheed XP-58 aircraft, a two-seat bomber version of the P-38 Lightning fighter, was delivered to Wright Field for US Army Air Force acceptance tests, but maintenance proved such a liability that no further development was undertaken and construction of a second prototype was abandoned. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 In an one-on-one conversation between Adolf Hitler and Otto Skorzeny, Skorzeny narrated the kidnapping of Miklós Horthy, Jr. and the attack on Castle Hill in Budapest, Hungary on 15 Oct 1944. Later in the same conversation, Hitler revealed to Skorzeny the plans for the Ardennes Offensive and asked him to plan a commando operation behind enemy lines in captured uniforms. When questioned the legal concerns of wearing enemy uniforms, Hitler told him that German intelligence informed him that the Americans had done the same in the Aachen, Germany area. Hitler ordered Skorzeny to have complete the planning by 2 Dec 1944. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Baya arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her first war patrol. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sennet completed her training exercises off Connecticut and Rhode Island, United States. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Permit fired 2 torpdoes at a Japanese patrol craft at Truk, Caroline Islands; both torpedoes missed. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 The German 485 Mobile Artillery Detachment, responsible for launching V-2 rockets, arrived at the Hague, the Netherlands. It immediately began to set up their equipment for a renewed rocket campaign against London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 The Canadian II Corps launched an attack on Fort Frederick Hendriks, close to the mouth of the Scheldt, opposite Vlissingen (Flushing), The Netherlands. The Fort fell after three days heavy fighting. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp set sail for Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
22 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Manila, Philippine Islands. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin launched strikes in the Manila Bay area at Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Trepang arrived at Majuro, Marshall Islands, ending her first war patrol. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked an escorted Japanese convoy consisted of three tankers, one transport, and one freighter. She penetrated to the center of the convoy without being detected and fired nine torpedoes, eight of which found targets. All five ships were sunk, and Tang was able to escape unharmed. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Snook attacked a Japanese convoy over the course of the day, firing a total of 20 torpedoes. Scoring 7 total hits, she sank passenger-cargo ship Shinsei Maru Number 1, tanker Kikusui Maru, and passenger ship Arisan Maru (which was carrying 1,800 American prisoners of war, many of whom did not survive). 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Croaker sank a Japanese freighter with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired and damaged a schooner. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 The first unmanned flight of the prototype Ohka aircraft was conducted over Sagami Bay, Japan. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 HMS Activity arrived in Trincomalee, Ceylon. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 After dark, USS Guitarro spotted the Japanese Center Force sailing toward the Philippine Islands and tracked this fleet through the Mindoro Strait. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 Captain Charles Alfred Evelyn Stanfield was named the commanding officer of HMS Mauritius. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 German III.Panzer Korps launched a counter attack near Debrecen, Hungary. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 Hungarian and German soldiers rounded up Jews in the city of Budapest, Hungary. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 British 78th Division captured Monte Spaduro, Italy. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita transferred his flag aboard Yamato after his former flagship Atago was sunk by submarine USS Darter. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 US submarines Darter and Dace detected a Japanese fleet in the Palawan Strait and reported the movement. Darter sank cruisers Atago and Maya. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish arrived at the Yellow Sea. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Coron, Palawan, Philippine Islands. 
0
23 Oct 1944 WW2 A passenger aircraft crashed near the Taiwan Grand Shrine on Yuanshan Mountain in Taihoku (now Taipei), Taiwan, destroying a torii gate and other important structures of the shrine. 
0
24 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese freighter Arisan Maru, carrying 1,782 Allied prisoners of war, was sunk by an American submarine. Only 9 POWs survived the sinking. 
0
24 Oct 1944 WW2 Shoji Nishimura passed away. 
0
24 Oct 1944 WW2 Toshihira Inoguchi passed away. 
0
24 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Croaker attacked a Japanese convoy; firing a total of 13 torpedoes, 6 of them made contact, damaging two ships and sinking one freighter. 
0
24 Oct 1944 WW2 Oberleutnant Alfred Veith of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
24 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked an escorted Japanese convoy in the Taiwan Strait off the island of Niushandao, China, sinking five transports and tankers and one destroyer; among the sunken were, Kogen Maru and Matsumoto Maru. 
0
24 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese battleship Musashi was lost in the Battle of Sibuyan Sea to overwhelming American air power. 
0
24 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Coron, Palawan, Philippine Islands. At 0427, she fired eight torpedoes at a radar target in Surigao Strait, scoring no hits. Two minutes later, she collided with cruiser Mogami, forcing the force to retire. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 During the first major special attack conducted by the Japanese Navy, pilot Yukio Seki sank carrier USS St. Lo while another suicide pilot damaged carrier USS Santee. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler issued orders on combating youth gangs such as Edelweiss Pirates, which had been known to harbor deserters, escaped prisoners of war, and escaped concentration camp prisoners. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 Soviet troops captured the German base at Kirkenes, Norway. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cassin Young screened carriers while their aircraft engaged in the Battle off Cape Engaño. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cod attacked a large Japanese convoy with all of her remaining torpedoes; all torpedoes missed. She shadowed the convoy for another day to report its movements before returning to her home port. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 Ernest Evans passed away. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Tang attacked a Japanese transport, but the torpedo fired circled back and hit Tang, sinking her. Only 9 of the crew of 83 survived the sinking. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 34 American B-24 Liberator bombers that were originally destined for the synthetic oil plans at Gelsenkirchen, Germany were diverted to Münster instead, causing much destruction. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 The Fletcher-class destroyer USS Hoel was sunk by the Japanese cruiser Kongo off Samar, Philippine Islands. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Pintado chased Japanese light cruiser Tama in assistance of USS Jallao off the Philippine Islands. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cabrilla arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze assisted in the sinking of USS Johnston during the Battle off Samar off the Philippine Islands. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 Edward Brooks took command of the US VI Corps. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 British V Corps crossed the Ronco River in Italy. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Sasebo, Japan. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet attacked a Japanese convoy with two salvos of torpedoes southwest of Kagoshima, Japan. All four torpedoes of the first salvo missed. Four of the six torpedoes of the second salvo made contact, three hitting (and sinking) oil tanker Jinei Maru and one hitting a freighter. She remained under water for several hours due to counterattacks by the convoy escorts. Surfacing later, she spotted a Japanese hospital ship and allowed it to continue her journey. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga arrived at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Coron, Palawan, Philippine Islands. 
0
25 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Astoria departed San Francisco, California, United States. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 10 Lancaster bombers of No. 1 Group RAF conducted minelaying operations off Helgoland, Germany; one bomber was lost. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Rock sank Japanese tanker Takasago Maru No. 7 with three torpedoes in the South China Sea. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 George Giffard was mentioned in a despatch for his service in Burma and India. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 B-24 and B-25 bombers of the US 14th Air Force attacked Japanese shipping off Leizhou Peninsula, Guangdong, China. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 Shinano completed bow repairs at Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed Eniwetok, Marshall islands for Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island launched 12 aircraft to attack and shared the credit for the sinkings of Kinu and Uranami in the Vasayan Sea in the Philippine Islands. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi refueled from oiler Nichiei Maru at Coron, Palawan, Philippine Islands. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Palmers Green Station in North London, England, United Kingdom at 1845 hours; detonating next to a stationary train, it seriously injured 15 people, while 38 suffered minor injuries. Elsewhere, another rocket hit Ilford, London, killing 8, seriously injuring 15, and lightly injuring 20. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 Archbishop of Canterbury, William Temple, passed away at Westgate-on-Sea, Kent, England, United Kingdom. He was the last Archbishop of Canterbury to die in office and had only recently returned from visiting the Normandy battlefield - the first Archbishop of Canterbury to go into battle since medieval times. 
0
26 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Brill was commissioned into service with Commander H. B. Dodge in command. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin provided support for campaign at Leyte, Philippine Islands through 30 Oct 1944. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Rock fired nine torpedoes to scuttle the damaged submarine USS Darter on Bombay Shoal in the Spratly Islands; three hits were recorded. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Den Bosch, Tilburg, and Bergen op Zoom in the Netherlands. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Snook fired 3 torpedoes at a Japanese tanker; all torpedoes missed the target, but another Japanese ship was hit by one of them, causing damage. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 Rear Admiral Tomozo Kikuchi was named the chief of staff of the Japanese Navy 2nd Air Fleet. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Cero damaged two small Japanese boats with gunfire west of the Philippine Islands. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina was awarded the Medal for Courage. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 Unmanned TDR drones attacked Rabaul, New Britain with bombs, damaging some buildings. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 Slovakian resistance fighters abandoned their headquarters in Banská Bystrica, Czechoslovakia. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Bergall sank a Japanese transport in the South China Sea, hitting her with 4 of 6 torpedoes. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi departed Coron, Palawan, Philippine Islands. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Kirun (now Keelung), Taiwan and disembarked aviation materials. 
0
27 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, United States, completing her second ferrying mission across the Atlantic Ocean. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 German forces evacuated Albania. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 German forces in Netherlands started withdrawing to Walcheren in the face of Canadian pressure. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 German 4.Armee stubbornly resisted around Goldap, East Prussia, Germany, halting the Soviet advance. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 The Finnmark region of Norway was ordered by the Germans to be evacuated and destroyed. Nearly 50,000 people were forced to flee and over 10,000 homes are destroyed. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 One day after a mission over Rabaul, New Britain in which unmanned TDR drones damaged some buildings, the US Navy canceled the TDR project. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Brunei. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 General Rudolf Viest sent a message to the Czechoslovakian government-in-exile in Britain that the organized resistance had ended. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sea Cat departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Composite Squadron 90 (VC-90) on board. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 The US 5th Army offensive Bologna, Italy began to stall. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 Unryu departed Kure, Japan. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Wasp departed waters off Philippine Islands for Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 Nachi arrived at Manila Bay, Philippine Islands and entered drydock at No. 103 Repair Facility at Cavite for repairs. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-61 arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
28 Oct 1944 WW2 HMS King George V departed Scapa Flow, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 Captain and Surgeon Shunroku Kagiyama became the commanding officer of hospital ship Hikawa Maru. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 Operation Obviate: 39 British Lancaster bombers attacked German battleship Tirpitz, scoring one near miss 15 meters to port. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 The Köln, Germany archive noted that, overnight, British bombers dropped about 4,000 high explosive bombs and 200,000 incendiary bombs on the city. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Breda, the Netherlands. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 Dr. Graeme Warrack, a RAMC Colonel with 1st Airborne Division, who had been in hiding after the last Arnhem casualties in the Netherlands were transferred from hospital to POW camps, escaped and eventually, with the help of the Dutch Resistance, made his way back into the Allied lines. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 Major Fred Bollmann and Oberleutnant Werner Thoß of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing were awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 Lavrentiy Beria informed Joseph Stalin that two NKVD regiments were being relocated to the Bialystok, Poland area to bolster total NKVD strength in the region to 4,000 men. The troops were used to suppress the activities of the Polish Home Army. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands and joined Task Force 38 of Task Group 38.3. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 Leutnant ALfred Shreiber, flying a Me 262 jet fighter, shot down a P-38 or F-5 Lightning aircraft. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet sank a small Japanese freighter in the Pacific Ocean with four torpedoes (all missed) and her deck guns. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Boarfish departed New London, Connecticut, United States for the Panama Canal Zone. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 While in the drydock at No. 103 Repair Facility at Cavite, Philippine Islands, she was hit by a bomb and was strafed by a US Navy carrier aircraft, killing 53. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit the Beckton Gas Works in London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
29 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her ninth war patrol. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Franklin was struck by a special attack aircraft, causing serious damage. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Tholen and Goes in the Netherlands. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 During an audience with Navy Minister Admiral Mitsumasa Yonai, Emperor Showa noted "It is truly regrettable that it should be necessary to go to this extreme, but they have done well", referring to the suicide tokko attacks on American naval vessels. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro made rendezvous with submarines USS Bream and USS Raton. After sundown, the wolfpack began attacking a Japanese convoy off Cape Bolinao, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 German SS-General Hermann Höfle and leader of the Slovakian government Jozef Tiso jointly announced the victory over the uprising at Banská Bystrica, Czechoslovakia. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 The German counterattack near Debrecen, Hungary was called off, with the Germans claiming 25,000 enemy troops killed and 600 tanks destroyed; Soviet forces responded by starting their own offensive in the region. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 British 8th Army reached Forlì, Italy. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki departed Sasebo, Japan, escorting carrier Junyo and cruiser Kiso for the Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 Unryu arrived at Kure, Japan and became the flagship of Vice Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa's Mobile Fleet. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island departed the Philippine Islands. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Kirun (now Keelung), Taiwan. 
0
30 Oct 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit the Royal Victoria Dock at Earlham Grove, West Ham, London, England, United Kingdom at 1200 hours. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 Commander John Ailes III became the commanding officer of USS Cassin Young. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 British troops occupied Salonika, Greece in order to prevent Greek Communists from taking over in the vacuum left by the retreating Germans. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 British troops established a bridgehead over the River Maas south of Rotterdam, the Netherlands. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 Canadian troops reached Walcheren, the Netherlands. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 Bernard Montgomery was awarded the Virtuti Militari V Class of Poland. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 The US submarine Nautilus finished off the abandoned US submarine Darter with her 6-inch guns. The Darter had foundered on Bombay Shoal, Spratly Islands off Palawan, Philippine Islands on 25 Oct 1944 whilst in pursuit of the damaged Japanese cruiser Takao. All Darter's crew were rescued by the US submarine Dace. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 The first manned flight of the prototype Ohka aircraft was conducted; the aircraft was equipped with two wing-mounted rockets and no fuselage-mounted rockets. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro fired eight torpedoes at 0847 hours at the Japanese convoy that she had been attacking since the previous day; six torpedoes made contact, and Guitarro claimed three sinkings, although only one sinking was confirmed. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan sank oceanographic research vessel Kaiyo No. 6 in Japanese home island waters, hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 Robert von Greim was mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht radio report. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Kete departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet attacked a Japanese tanker in the Pacific Ocean after sundown, sinking her with six torpedoes. She shared the credit with USS Trigger, which had previously damaged the tanker. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 14,000 Jews were transported from Slovakia to Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Swedish Yard of Surrey Commercial Docks in Bermondsey, London at 0256 hours, damaging several wheat containers. Another rocket hit the Royal Victoria Dock at Earlham Grove, West Ham in the afternoon. 
0
31 Oct 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-61A departed Liverpool, England, United Kingdom. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Jinwei Wang passed away. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Blackfin sank Japanese cargo ship Unkai Maru #12. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Commandos and Royal Marines landed on Walcheren Island in the Netherlands to aid clearing German troops from Scheldt Estuary, capturing the towns of Vlissingen and Westkapelle. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Lord Gort was appointed the High Commissioner of the British Mandate of Palestine. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 The Fletcher-class destroyer USS Abner Read was sunk by a Japanese dive bomber attack in Leyte Gulf, Philippine Islands. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Denshichi Okawachi was named the commanding officer of the Southwest Area Fleet and the 3rd Southern Expeditionary Fleet; Rear Admiral Kaoru Arima was named his chief of staff. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ray attacked a five-ship Japanese convoy, sinking cargo ship Horai Maru No. 7 and damaging a small tanker; all 3 torpedoes fired in this attack found their targets. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 USAAF pilots 1st Lieutenant Walter Groce and 2nd Lieutenant William Gerbe, Jr., both flying P-47 fighters, shared credit for the downing of a German Me 262 jet fighter. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Luce departed Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese troops reached Guilin, China. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 In Germany, Buchenwald Concentration Camp's satellite camp Dora became an independent camp called Mittelbau-Dora; it was to become an underground aircraft and V-weapon production site. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 British forces entered Salonika (Thessaloniki), Greece. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Dragonet departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Part of Night Air Group 90 on board. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Barbero attacked a Japanese patrol boat with her deck gun in the Dutch East Indies, causing no damage. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Italian Navy Xa MAS reported a strength of 7,615 men. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Italian "Folgore" parachute regiment was officially renamed "1° Reggimento Arditi Paracadutisti 'Folgore'", differing from the prior name by the preceding "1°". Lieutenant Colonel Edvino Dalmas renamed the regiment's commanding officer. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Nobukiyo Nambu arrived at the headquarters of the 6th Fleet at the Sasebo Submarine Base, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 The gas chamber at Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland was used for the last time, killing 206 Jews. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 Roosevelt Roads Naval Base in Puerto Rico was downgraded to naval station status. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Eglington Road in Woolwich, London, England, United Kingdom at 0210 hours, killing 7 people. At 0510 hours, another rocket hit Friern Road in Camberwell, London, killing 24 and injuring 17. A third rocket hit Shardeloes Road in Deptford, London at 1830 hours, killing 31, seriously injuring 62, and lightly injuring 90. Two other rockets hit London that day, though causing little damage. 
0
01 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Satoshi Inoguchi passed away. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Canadian forces captured Zeebrugge, which was the last pocket of German occupation in Belgium. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Canadian 2nd Division withdrew from its Walcheren, the Netherlands bridgehead. Nearby, Allied troops captured Wissenkerke and Zoutelande. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 All eligible German males were ordered to enlist in the Volkssturm under penalty of military court-martial. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Bombers of the No. 550 Squadron RAF attacked Düsseldorf, Germany. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 HMS Colsay was sunk by a German "Neger" human torpedo at Ostend, Belgium. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 In accordance with Dwight Eisenhower's plan, Bernard Montgomery ordered a complete redeployment of his Army Group in Europe. First Canadian Army now assumed responsibility for the front from the sea to the Reichsward near Kleve in Germany, whilst Second British Army was ordered to clear the Germans west of the Maas River from the huge pocket between Venray and Roermond in the Netherlands, and then to take over the American front north of Geilenkirchen in Germany known as the Heinberg Salientl. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 British Army Royal Northumberland Fusiliers Captain (temporary Major) Robert Henry Cain was awarded the Victoria Cross for effectively using a PIAT anti-tank launcher against German tanks on multiple occasions between 19 and 25 Sep 1944 during the Battle of Arnhem in the Netherlands.  
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Franklin arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands for temporary repairs. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 About 12 Me 163 rocket fighters of German Jagdgeschwader 400 fighter wing intercepted a group of US bombers escorted by P-51 fighters east of Leipzig, Germany. The Germans shot down two bombers, while the American fighters shot down four Me 163 rocket fighters; the four German pilots shot down were Oberfeldwebel Horst Rolly, Oberfeldwebel Herbert Straznicky, Oberfeldwebel Gunther Andreas, and Jacob Bollenrath (rank unknown). Bollenrath's fighter would be the final Me 163 downing by a P-51 fighter. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Soviet units entered the suburbs of Budapest, Hungary. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Barbero sank Japanese transport Kuramasan Maru in the Dutch East Indies, hitting her with 2 of 9 torpedoes fired.,  
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Nachi's repairs in the drydock at No. 103 Repair Facility at Cavite, Philippine Islands was completed. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 The US X Corps captured the coastal town of Carigara, Philippines at the head of the Leyte valley which would permit an advance on the port of Ormoc from two directions thereby cutting the Japanese reinforcement route. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Viktor Abakumov reported to Lavrentiy that up to 1 Nov 1944 his SMERSH personnel in Poland had arrested 499 persons, 82 of whom were already transferred to the Soviet Union while the remaining were detained at the Bialystok city prison in Poland. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-61 departed the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 Four German V-2 rockets hit London, England, United Kingdom on this date. One of them hit outside of a mental hospital at Banstead, killing 3 and seriously injuring 11. Another hit Deptford, killing 31. 
0
02 Nov 1944 WW2 After halting the Soviet advance near Kresevo, Yugoslavia, German 2.Panzerarmee established a defensive line west of Belgrade. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Gar began her fourteenth war patrol. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Snook rescued a downed American airman in the Pacific Ocean. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Pintado fired six torpedoes at a Japanese carrier off the Philippine Islands, but hit escorting destroyer Akikaze instead, damaging but not failing to sink the destroyer. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Filipp Golikov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for the third time. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Aleksandr Vasilevsky was awarded the Order of Red Banner for the first time. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Off Akmenrags, Latvia, ShCh-307 attacked a merchant ship at 2157 hours and another at 2213 hours; all four torpedoes missed. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Halsey personally inspected USS Franklin at Ulithi, Caroline Islands; she was the first major American ship to be damaged by "kamikaze" special attacks. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Slovakian resistance leaders Rudolf Viest and Ján Golian were captured in Pohronsky Bukovec, Czechoslovakia. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Test pilot Erich Klöckner manned the prototype BP20 M1 for a successful gliding test at Neuburg an der Donau, Germany. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 The Japanese commenced the Fu-Go (balloon bomb) campaign against the continental United States. The balloons employed an altitude-keeping device which kept them in the prevailing west-east wind along the 40th parallel. A timing device caused the balloon to crash on arrival over the US where its small bombload would then detonate. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Cero disembarked 15 tons of supplies and 16 troops north of Manila, Philippine Islands and took on four evacuees. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Boris Shaposhnikov was awarded his second Order of the Red Banner. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Semyon Timoshenko was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for the fourth time. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Georgy Zhukov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for the second time. 
0
03 Nov 1944 WW2 Kliment Voroshilov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for the fifth time. 
0
04 Nov 1944 WW2 Field Marshall Sir John Dill, the senior British representative on the Combined Chiefs of Staff, died from an illness at Walter Reed General Hospital, Washington, DC, United States. He was subsequently buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia, United States. 
0
04 Nov 1944 WW2 Bombers of the No. 550 Squadron RAF attacked Bochum, Germany. Airman John Riley Bryne noted in his diary that "the target was a blazing inferno". 
0
04 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro and USS Bream shared the credit for the sinking of Japanese cargo ship Kagu Maru off Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
04 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ray spotted Japanese cargo ship Kagu Maru, already burning from an attack by USS Bream, in the Philippine Islands; Ray fired two torpedoes at Kagu Maru, hitting her with one of them, blowing off her bow and sinking her. 
0
04 Nov 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit the golf course at Ilford, London, England, United Kingdom without causing any injuries. 
0
04 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Kete refueled at Midway. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 British troops began landing at Salonika, Greece. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 German 4.Armee recaptured Goldap, East Prussia, Germany. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 British troops captured Ravenna, Italy, cutting the rail line to Bologna. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Yokosuka, Japan for her 22th voyage with the Japanese Navy. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Makin Island arrived at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Philippine Islands. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for strikes on Manila and surrounding targets on Luzon, Philippine Islands; 10 men and 5 aircraft were lost. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese airfields on Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 While in Manila Bay, Philippine Islands, Nachi survived the first two waves of a US Navy carrier attack, but was caught by about 60 aircraft from a third wave from USS Ticonderoga and USS Lexington at 1250 hours. She was disabled by five bombs and two or three torpedoes. At 1400 hours, she was able to even her list and prepared to be towed away by destroyer Akebono. At 1445 hours, another wave from USS Lexington hit Nachi with five torpedoes, twenty bombs, and sixteen rockets. Nachi sank at 1450 hours. 807, including Captain Enpei Kanoka, were killed; 220 survived. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit Collier Row in Essex County near London (now a part of London), England, United Kingdom at 0035 hours. Another rocket hit Penhurst, Kent, southern England at 0130 hours. At 0745, a third rocket hit Tooting Bec Common in southwest London. A fourth rocket hit an iron bridge in Southwark Park Road, Bermundsey, London at 1045 hours, damaging 250 feet of railway. At 1713 hours, yet another rocket hit Grovedale Road, Islington, London, killing 31 and seriously injuring 84. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Charr departed New London, Connecticut, United States. 
0
05 Nov 1944 WW2 Bulgarian troops captured Podujevo, Yugoslavia. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sargent Bay departed to deliver aircraft to Philippine Islands area. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Tirante was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander George L. Street III in command. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 The German garrison at Middelburg, the Netherlands surrendered to the Allies. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 Bombers of the No. 550 Squadron RAF attacked Gelsenkirchen, Germany. Airman John Riley Bryne noted in his diary that "t was really wonderful experience to see hundreds of kite's attacking the hun". 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 The wolfpack consisted of submarines USS Batfish, USS Guitarro, USS Bream, USS Raton, and USS Ray attacked Japanese convoy Ma-Ta 31 off Luzon, Philippine Islands. USS Guitarro scored three torpedo hits (nine torpedoes were expended) on Kumano while USS Ray's attack disabled the light cruiser. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Skipjack damaged a Japanese transport east of Hokkaido, Japan, hitting her with one of four torpedoes fired. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ray attacked a Japanese convoy escorted by two cruiser, escorting vessels, and aircraft in the Philippine Islands; she fired four torpedoes, one damaging cruiser Kumano. When diving to escape the counterattack, she hit ground, causing flooding in the torpedo room. When she rose to periscope depth and observed Kumano being towed away. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 Jewish terrorists murdered Lord Moyne in Cairo, Egypt. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 US pilot 1st Lieutenant William Quinn, flying a P-47 fighter, shot down a German Me 262 jet fighter. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 Captain Charles Yeager of USAAF 357th Fighter Group shot down a German Me 262 fighter while it was landing at Achmer Airfield in Germany; the German pilot, Oberfeldwebel Freutzer, survived the crash caused by the wing being shot off by Yeager. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Observation Fighting Squadron 1 (VOF-1) on board. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Kure, Japan, arriving at Otake, Japan later on the same day. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for strikes on Manila and surrounding targets on Luzon, Philippine Islands, destroying 35 Japanese aircraft. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese airfields on Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-61A arrived at Murmansk, Russia. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket fired from the Hague, the Netherlands intended for London, England, United Kingdom went astray, hitting Biscot Road, Luton 32 miles north of London instead. It killed 19 people and injured 196, while destroying 17 houses and damaging 1,500 others. 
0
06 Nov 1944 WW2 Yugoslav partisans captured Monastir, Yugoslavia (now Bitola, Macedonia) which gave them complete control over the Greco-Yugoslav border. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 Captain L. E. Gehres relieved Captain J. M. Shoemaker as the commanding officer of USS Franklin. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt was re-elected to serve his fourth term as the President of the United States. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Naosaburo Irifune was named the chief of staff of the Japanese Navy 11th Air Fleet. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 Adolf Galland inspected the newly created Jagdgeschwader 7 wing at Achmer Airfield in Germany, which was equipped with Me 262 jet fighters. He repeated his orders for Walter Nowotny to keep a cover of Fw 190 fighters above the airfield when the jet fighters were taking off or landing, in order to prevent the situation that took place on the previous day. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Otake, Japan and arrived at Kure, Japan later on the same day. Upon arrival at Kure, she was made the flagship of Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 Unryu was relieved as the flagship of the Mobile Fleet. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 1,030 arrested Polish Home Army and other partisan fighters were placed on a special train at Bialystok, Poland for the NKVD-run Ostashkov Special Camp in Tver Oblast, Russia. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 Colonel Otto Hatz, Hungarian military attaché to Ankara, Turkey, defected to the Soviets, bringing with him documents about the Hungarian Army and fortifications on the Danube River. In retaliation the Germans would put his parents and brother in a concentration camp, where his mother would die. 
0
07 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Hackleback was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander Frederick E. Janney in command. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 For the first time, Hitler did not appear at the celebration of the Beer Hall Putsch anniversary; instead, he had Himmler read his speech for him. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 At 1419 hours, German radio revealed the on-going V-2 rocket campaign against Britain to the world for the first time. The message was picked up by the BBC in Britain shortly after. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 25,000 Jews were forced to walk over 100 miles in rain and snow from Budapest, Hungary to the Austrian border, followed by a second forced march of 50,000 persons, ending at Mauthausen Concentration Camp. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the Third Army of the US 12th Army Group. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Veere and Koudekerke in the Netherlands. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 The first Operation Gen mission featuring special attack Kaiten submarines was launched from Otsujima in Tokuyama Bay in southwestern Honshu, Japan. This mission was launched more than a month behind schedule. Submarines I-36, I-37, and I-47 eached carried four Kaiten submarines for this mission. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 The US submarine Growler was lost, presumed sunk by Japanese escort vessels, whilst attacking a Japanese convoy west of the Philippine Islands. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 Louis Mountbatten freed William Slim the responsibility in the Arakan region of Burma so he could focus on northern Burma. Additionally, Slim was also given the Indian 25th Division and the West African 2nd Division. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 Viktor Abakumov and Lavrentiy Tsanava reported to Lavrentiy Beria that 1,200 Polish Home Army and other partisan troops were captured in Poland by this date. 1,030 of them were sent to the NKVD-run Ostashkov Special Camp in Tver Oblast, Russia by a special train on the previous day. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 German Luftwaffe ace Major Walter Nowotny claimed his 258th victory as he shot down a B-24 Liberator bomber over Hesepe near Osnabrück, Germany. Moments later, his Me 262 jet fighter was hit by a US P-51 fighter, possibly the one piloted by 1st Lieutenant Richard Stevens. Nowotny's final words were reported to be "my god, I'm burning!" His subsequent crash and explosion was witnessed by his commanding officer Adolf Galland and other officers, who immediately rushed to the crash site; they failed to find Nowotny's remains, only able to locate broken pieces of the pilot's Knight's Cross medal. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 Adolf Galland monitored the progress of the operation "Big Blow" from the radio shack at Achmer Airfield, Germany. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 US pilot 1st Lieutenant Warren Corwin, flying a P-51 fighter, shot down the Me 262 A-1a jet fighter flown by Oberleutnant Franz Schall; Schall survived the engagement by bailing out. Corwin's fellow pilot 1st Lieutenant James Kenney also shot down a Me 262 fighter, while 1st Lieutenant Ernest Fiebelkorn, Jr. and 1st Lieutenant Edward Haydon shared the credit for yet another Me 262 victory. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 Oliver Leese arrived in Delhi, India. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel sank Japanese motor torpedo boat Sagi in the South China Sea, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. 
0
08 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Barbero sank Japanese tanker Shimotsu Maru in the South China Sea, hitting her with 3 of 11 torpedoes fired. 
0
09 Nov 1944 WW2 German troops on Walcheren Island, the Netherlands surrendered. Nearby, German troops withdrew from the Moerdijk bridgehead in the Netherlands across the Meuse River. 
0
09 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Brunei to escort a task force into the Sulu Sea. 
0
09 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied troops crossed the Montone River in Italy. 
0
09 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga set sail for Guam, Mariana Islands. 
0
09 Nov 1944 WW2 The Inrin Temporary Prisoners of War Camp and the Toroku Prisoners of War Camp, both in central Taiwan, were opened; Inrin was established at the site of a former school. 
0
09 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-61 arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki arrived at Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 Friedrich Christiansen was named the commanding officer of the German 25th Army. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured the airfields at Guilin and Liuchow in China only to find that there were no B-29 facilities at either location. The American B-29 bases were actually further to the northwest at Chengdu in Sichuan Province. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina recorded in her diary the death of her lover Misha Panarin. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Croaker arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her second war patrol. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet departed Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga reversed course and traveled for the Philippine Islands at flank speed; she was located about 800 miles east of the Philippine Islands. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 British government lifted the ban on reporting rocket attacks on Britain after Prime Minister Churchill announced to the Parliament that British cities had been under rocket attack "for the last few weeks"; German V-2 rocket attacks had in fact started on 8 Sep 1944, or more than two months prior to Churchill's announcement. On the same day, a V-2 rocket hit Goulson Street in Stepney, London, England United Kingdom, killing 19, seriously injuring 97, and lightly injuring 323. 
0
10 Nov 1944 WW2 Hazel Lee was ordered to go to the Bell Aircraft factory at Niagara Falls, New York, United States to ferry a P-63 Kingcobra fighter to Great Falls, Montana, United States. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 US Third Army established 3 bridgeheads across the Moselle River in northern France. In response, German First Armee moved its headquarters out of Metz. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 The Aircraft Carrier USS Lexington (CV-16) was damaged by a kamikaze attack. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the VIII Corps of the First Army of US 12th Army Group. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki departed Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands, escorting carrier Junyo and cruiser Tone. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 In Italy, 1st Brazilian Fighter Group (12th Air Force) commenced P-47 operations in squadrons formed exclusively by their own pilots and picking their own targets. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sennet departed northeastern United States for the Panama Canal Zone. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Franklin departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Permit arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her fourtheenth war patrol. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 The first Brazilian Fighter Squadron (flying P-47D Thunderbolt aircraft) commenced operations with the 12th Air Force in Italy. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 The US submarine Scamp was depth charged and sunk by Japanese aircraft whilst on patrol south of Tokyo Bay, Japan. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Kure, Japan and arrived at Uji, Japan later on the same day. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for strikes on Ormoc Bay, Leyte, Philippine Islands; 3 men and 1 aircraft were lost. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-61A departed the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Shooters Hill, London, England, United Kingdom at 1830 hours, killing 24. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
11 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 Operation Catechism: 31 British Lancaster bombers attacked German battleship Tirpitz with Tallboy bombs, scoring three hits and several near misses. Tirpitz capsized, killing 971 out of the about 1,700 aboard. None of the Lancaster bombers were lost. 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 The Japanese Army Banda Squadron in the Philippine Islands launched its first tokko mission against American ships in Leyte Gulf, claiming the sinking of a battleship and a transport although the actual damage done to the Americans was minimal. 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 According to later statement by Indian soldier Havildar Changdi Ram, who was a forced laborer for the Japanese in New Britain, the Japanese Kempeitai beheaded an Allied pilot, cut flesh from his arms, legs, hips, and buttocks, and proceed to cook the flesh. The human flesh was consumed in the evening after a speech was made by a Japanese major general. 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 Lieutenant-General Sir Oliver Leese was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Allied Land Forces South East Asia (ALFSEA). 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Uji, Japan and arrived at Kure, Japan later on the same day. 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands, ending her third war patrol. 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 1,014 arrested Polish Home Army and other partisan fighters were placed on a special train at Bialystok, Poland for the NKVD-run Ostashkov Special Camp in Tver Oblast, Russia. 
0
12 Nov 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit the Bromley Gas Works in West Ham, London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
13 Nov 1944 WW2 General LeClerc's Free French troops attacked to the Upper Rhine out of Alsace, France. 
0
13 Nov 1944 WW2 The Japanese Army Fugaki Squadron, based in the Philippine Islands, conducted its first tokko mission with five converted Ki-67-I Kai To-Go aircraft, without success. 
0
13 Nov 1944 WW2 Colonel George E. Price received the go-ahead for Project Extraversion, which called for four YP-80A jet aircraft to move to the front lines of the European Theater of Operations for combat testing. 
0
13 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Caiman departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
13 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for strikes on Manila and surrounding targets on Luzon, Philippine Islands; 2 men and 4 aircraft were lost. 
0
13 Nov 1944 WW2 Civil air service was restored to London, England, United Kingdom for the first time since Sep 1939 when Railway Air Services began flight operations on a Croydon-Liverpool-Belfast route. 
0
13 Nov 1944 WW2 German forces withdraw from Skopje, Yugoslavia. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 General De Lattres's Free French troops launched a snow-bound attack against Belfort, France. To the north, US 95th Division started capturing forts around Metz, France. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 British troops attacked Andelse Maas, the Netherlands. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 American and Chinese troops began the main attack on the Burmese town of Bhamo. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 Air Chief Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory died in an air crash; his body was not found until 4 Jun 1945. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Pintado set sail for Saipan, Mariana Islands, escorting the damaged submarine USS Halibut. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Skipjack sank a small Japanese vessel in the Kurile Islands with her deck gun. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ray attacked a three-ship Japanese convoy in the Philippine Islands with a spread of 6 torpedoes; one hit a transport and another hit escort vessel. She claimed that both were sunk. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Spot arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Nine PBY's of Headquarters Squadron Fleet Air Wing 2 (HEDRON FAW-2) on board. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for strikes on Manila and surrounding targets on Luzon, Philippine Islands; 1 aircraft was lost. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 Lavrentiy Beria reported to Joseph Stalin that the arrest of Polish Home Army and other partisan fighters was nearly complete, and Viktor Abakumov and Lavrentiy Tsanava should be released from this task. This would be approved by Stalin shortly after. 
0
14 Nov 1944 WW2 Joseph Rochefort's appointment to lead the Pacific Strategic Intelligence Section of the US Navy was made official. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 Seisho Maru departed from Moji, Japan with convoy MI-27 for Miri, Borneo. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Kete reached her patrol area in the East China Sea. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Bugara was commissioned into service with Commander A. F. Schade in command. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill departed Fremantle, Australia for her second war patrol. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho disembarked Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa and was relieved of duty as the admiral's flagship. As the Mobile Fleet was disbanded, she was transferred to Carrier Division 1 of the Combined Fleet. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 Oliver Leese set up his headquarters at Barrackpore, India. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 Unryu was assigned to Carrier Division 1. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese Navy pilot Ensign Katsuo Takahashi was dispatched to Aichi's factory to take delivery of a completed Seiran aircraft for flight testing. 
0
15 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet attacked a Japanese patrol vessel in the Pacific Ocean with her deck gun. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Trepang departed for her second war patrol. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 US First and Ninth Armies began attacking east of Aachen, Germany, aimed at the Roer Dams. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 With sufficient ports now usable by the Allies in Europe, the Red Ball Express was shut down. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Collier Row in Romford, Essex, England, United Kingdom, killing 12 and injuring 32. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Becuna departed Fremantle, Australia for her second war patrol. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her third war patrol. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ray fired two torpedoes at a grounded Japanese transport in the Philippine Islands; both torpedoes missed. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Astoria departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for Eniwetok, Marshall Islands after conducting 16 days of gunnery exercises in Hawaiian waters. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Brunei, Borneo to escort a task force to Kure, Japan. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Segundo departed Majuro, Marshall Islands for her second war patrol. 
0
16 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet sank a small Japanese submarine chaser in the Pacific Ocean, hitting her with one of four torpedoes. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese physicist Yoshio Nishina reported to his army liaison officer Major General Nobuji that the atomic bomb research project under him had not made much progress in the past nine months. This was partly because his cyclotron could not operate at full power due to the poor quality vacuum tubes. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 Seisho Maru was damaged by a torpedo from USS Sunfish in the East China Sea. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 Vice Admiral Kinpei Teraoka was named the commanding officer of the Japanese Navy 3rd Air Fleet. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Becuna damaged four Japanese ships: tanker San Luis Maru, tanker Tokuwa Maru, a transport, and cargo ship. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands together with other ships of Task Group 38.3. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel attacked a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, sinking passenger-cargo ship Shunten Maru and damaging several ships; 16 torpedoes were expended during this attack, 7 of which scored hits. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish attacked a Japanese convoy in the Yellow Sea, sinking Edogawa Maru and Seisho Maru, hitting them with 6 of 16 torpedoes fired; her wolfpack mates USS Peto and USS Spadefish claimed several other ships. 
0
17 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-61A arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Singapore. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish sank Japanese transport Seisho Maru in the East China Sea at 0317 hours. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 Adolf Eichmann ordered the deportation of 18,000 Jews from Budapest, Hungary to concentration camps. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 US Third Army entered Germany proper. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 US XX Corps surrounded Metz, France. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 The Ki-83 heavy fighter took its first flight. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Astoria crossed the International Date Line. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 Antrup Wilhelm was awarded Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 Heinrich Höfer was awarded Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 The C-0101 transport aircraft completed its first operational flight from Chongqing, China to Taipingsi Airport in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Snook arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her seventh war patrol. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Pollack arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 23 on board. 
0
18 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay transited the Panama Canal. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 US 95th Division fought its way into Metz, France, but fighting would continue for several more days. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 French 1st Armored Division reached the Rhine River near Strasbourg, France. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 Czechoslovakian communists issued a resolution from the city of Mukachevo, Slovak Republic requesting the separation of Subcarpathian Ruthenia from Czechoslovakia so that it could join Ukraine. The resolution was backed by the Soviet Union, but the Soviet Union agreed to put off negotiations for such a border change until the end of the war. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Kete departed East China Sea due to heavy weather and malfunctioning bow planes. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 The first successful test of a rocket-powered Ohka aircraft was conducted, leading to the formal authorization of production. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Pintado arrived at Tanapag Harbor, Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Baya departed Fremantle, Australia for her second war patrol in the South China Sea. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ray rescued a downed pilot from USS Cowpens. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese submarine I-37 was sunk by American ships off Ulithi, Caroline Islands; the four Kaiten submarines aboard that she was supposed to deliver for Operation Gen were also lost. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 Shinano was comissioned into service at Yokosuka, Japan with Captain Toshio Abe in command. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 1,030 arrested Polish Home Army and other partisan fighters arrived at the NKVD-run Ostashkov Special Camp in Tver Oblast, Russia by a special train after a 7-day journey. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit a car park at Southborough Lane, Bromley in southeast London, England, United Kingdom, across from a crowded pub, at 2115 hours. 23 were killed and 63 were injured. 
0
19 Nov 1944 WW2 Evacuating Germans faced an 85-mile traffic jam after the RAF destroyed the Drina bridge near Visegrad, Yugoslavia. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 For the last time, Hitler left the Wolfsschanze Headquarters for Berlin, Germany. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 Chen Cheng was named the head of the political bureau of the Nationalist military. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 William Menefee Wilcox was named the commanding officer of USS Pollack. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 Chinese troops captured Mangshih, Yunnan Province, China. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese submarines I-36 and I-47 each delivered four Kaiten submarines off Ulithi, Caroline Islands. Only one of the Kaiten submarines would find a target, setting the fleet oiler Mississinewa, full of aviation fuel, aflame. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 He Yingqin stepped down as Chiang Kaishek's chief of staff for military affairs. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 Jean de Lattre de Tassigny was awarded the Ordre de la Libération. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Cod arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: The first engine overhauled in the new progressive engine overall plant, completed its test stand run. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 Garland set sail from the Eastern Mediterranean Sea for Britain. 
0
20 Nov 1944 WW2 1,014 arrested Polish Home Army and other partisan fighters arrived at the NKVD-run Ostashkov Special Camp in Tver Oblast, Russia by a special train after an 8-day journey. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Franklin arrived at Pearl Harbor. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 Albanian partisan units liberated the capital city of Tirana, Albania. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Whale began her tenth war patrol. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 The French 1st Corps captured the city of Belfort in the Vosges region, but the Germans clung so tenaciously to defences beyond the city that it would not be until 25 November 1944 that the French advance could be resumed. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 The Hinzert Concentration Camp administratively became a satellite camp of Buchenwald Concentration Camp. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Kure, Japan and arrived at Matsuyama, Japan later on the same day. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Boarfish transited the Panama Canal. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Puffer completed her scheduled overhaul at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States. 
0
21 Nov 1944 WW2 Bulgarian troops captured Pristina, Yugoslavia. 
0
22 Nov 1944 WW2 Metz, France was captured by the Allies, although several of the surrounding forts refused to surrender. 
0
22 Nov 1944 WW2 10 Lancaster bombers conducted minelaying operations off Helgoland and at the mouth of River Elbe, Germany. 
0
22 Nov 1944 WW2 Viktor Abakumov reported to Lavrentiy Beria that by 15 Nov 1944 59 Romanian-German intelligence personnel, 546 Romanian intelligence personnel, 180 German intelligence personnel, and 9 Hungarian intelligence personnel were arrested by SMERSH in Romania. 
0
22 Nov 1944 WW2 In Arakan, Burma, already wounded Sepoy Rhandari Ram crawled over open ground to attack a machine gun position pinning down his comrades. Shot again at point blank range, he still silenced the enemy with a grenade. He was later awarded the Victoria Cross. 
0
22 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
22 Nov 1944 WW2 Hiroshi Nemoto stepped down as the commanding officer of the Third Army of the Japanese Kwangtung Army and was transferred to command the Japanese Mongolian Garrison Army. 
0
22 Nov 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Totty Street, Bethnal Green in the East End of London, England, United Kingdom. 25 were killed and 44 were injured. 
0
22 Nov 1944 WW2 The 15,000th P-40 fighter was built at the Curtiss-Wright factory in Buffalo, New York, United States. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 Soviet troops entered Czechoslovakia. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 Four RAF Mosquito aircraft patrolled near Heligoland, Germany. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 Hazel Lee took off from Fargo, North Dakota, United States with a P-63 Kingcobra fighter, landing at Great Falls, Montana, United States shortly after 1400 hours. On the ground, her aircraft collided with another aircraft, causing serious burns. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Gar landed 16 men and 25 tons of supplies to Santiago Cove, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Hoe departed Fremantle, Australia for her seventh war patrol. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 T-44 medium tanks officially entered Soviet Army service. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 Fanni Luukkonen stepped down from her position as the chairman of Lotta Svärd as the Finnish organization was forcibly disbanded by the Soviet Union. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied troops crossed the Cosina River in Italy. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki departed Kure, Japan, escorting carrier Junyo. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands and celebrated the American holiday of Thanksgiving. Later in the day she departed for Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
23 Nov 1944 WW2 The Macedonian area of Yugoslavia was declared free of Germans. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 The Royal Canadian Navy corvette Shawinigan was torpedoed off Newfoundland and went down with all 91 hands. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied troops crossed the Saar River on the border of France and Germany. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 French 2nd Armored Division captured Strasbourg, France while French First Army captured Mühlhausen in Alsace, France. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Kete arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 Chinese troops captured Mengka, Yunnan Province, China. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 The first B-29 bombing raid against Tokyo, Japan from Tinian in the Mariana Islands took place; 88 American aircraft participated in this mission. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Kure, Japan. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 Japanese Navy officially accepted M6A Seiran seaplane for service. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit McCullum Road, Poplar in East End of London, England, United Kingdom at 2030 hours. 18 were killed and 53 were injured. 
0
24 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Escolar was officially listed as lost. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 Yoshimi Minami passed away. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 French troops captured Belfort, France. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 Hazel Lee died from the wounds received during the landing accident two days prior. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Gar reported sinking a Japanese ship in daylight with her deck gun. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Mingo sank a Japanese tanker in a night time torpedo attack, hitting her with three of six torpedoes fired. She also damaged an escorting vessel with one of four torpedoes fired. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 Yasoshima was sunk by American carrier aircraft west of Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 He Yingqin was named the commanding officer of all ground troops in the China War Area, with headquarters in Kunming, Yunnan Province, China. In this role he was responsible for all actions in southwestern China. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 US and Brazilian troops attacked Monte Castello 61 kilometers southwest of Bologna, Italy. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Kure, Japan to escort battleship Nagato to Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for strikes on Japanese positions in northern Luzon, Philippine Islands; 2 men and 2 aircraft were lost. 
0
25 Nov 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hit near the intersection of High Holborn and Chancery Lane, Holborn, London, England, United Kingdom at 1115 hours, killing 6 and injuring 292. At 1225 hours, another V-2 rocket hit across the street from the Woolworths store in Deptford, London, destroying the store and many nearby building, killing 160 and injuring 199 (77 seriously). 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 Germany began V-1 and V-2 rocket attacks on Antwerp, Belgium. 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Makin crossed the Equator. In the line cross ceremony, 800 pollywogs, including Rear Admiral Calvin Durgin and Captain William Whaley, were hazed and initiated by shellbacks who had previously crossed the line. 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 Karl von Le Suire was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 US troops captured Monte Belvedere and Monte Castello 61 kilometers southwest of Bologna, Italy; a subsequent German counterattack would recapture Monte Castello. 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Wasp set sail for Ulithi, Caroline Islands as US Army Air Forces took over the responsibility of providing air cover for troops operating on Leyte, Philippine Islands. 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler ordered the destruction of the crematoria at Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp in attempt to hide evidence of mass killings. Dismantling work of Crematorium II of Auschwitz Concentration Camp began on the same day. First, the motor that pumped the air out of the gas chamber was removed and sent to Mauthausen Concentration Camp. Then, pipes were removed and sent to Gross-Rosen Concentration camp. Other equipment were removed in order and shipped into various parts of Germany. 
0
26 Nov 1944 WW2 A German V-2 rocket hits a Woolworth's shop on New Cross High Street, London, England, United Kingdom, killing 168 shoppers. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Franklin arrived at Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Washington, United States for repairs. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 A mistake by an armourer at an underground bomb dump at Hanbury, near Burton-on-Trent, England, United Kingdom triggered a massive explosion as 4,000 tons of bombs went off at once. The blast instantly gouged a 12 acre hole in the ground and the tremors were picked up by seismolograph in Geneva, Switzerland and Casablanca, French Morocco. Forty people were killed in the blast, by falling debris or by suffocation trapped underground. The blast caused a nearby reservoir to collapse and six million gallons of rubble-filled water poured down into the bomb dump, killing 27 men working in the offices on the surface. The blast represented only 10 percent of the explosives in the dump. If the lot had gone off, it would have cause a bigger explosion than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan. Today there is still a crater a quarter-mile wide and 100 feet deep at the site which is sealed off because of the unexploded bombs still lying beneath the surface. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 The German prison ship, Rigel, carrying 2,248 Soviet prisoners of war, was sunk in error by British carrier-borne aircraft off the coast of Norway. Only 415 survived. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 The US submarine chaser SC-744 was sunk by a Japanese special attack aircraft in Leyte Gulf, Philippine Islands. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 Intelligence officer Captain Fritz Ringwald of USAAF 415th Night Fighter Squadron reported that the Beaufighter flown by Don Meiers and Ed Schleuter was chased by unidentified "foo fighters", which was a term coined by Meiers. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 Richard O'Connor stepped down as the commanding officer of VIII Corps and was made the commanding officer of Eastern Command in India. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 Soviet forces pierced the German-Hungarian defense and captured Mohács, Hungary. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 Unryu departed Kure, Japan. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt departed Washington DC, United States for Warm Springs, Georgia, United States by train. 
0
27 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay arrived at San Diego, California, United States. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 Allies began to operate the port in Antwerp, Belgium. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 US Ninth Army reached the Roer River in Germany. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 French First Army surrounded Burnhaupt-le-Bas, France, but not before most of German LXIII Korps escaped. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 Albania was liberated by the Albanian partisans. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 Anglo-Indian troops captured Kalewa, Burma. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 Louis Mountbatten sent Air Marshal Richard Peirse and Lady Auchinleck back to England when their affair became common knowledge in India. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 German troops captured Monte Belvedere 61 kilometers southwest of Bologna, Italy. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 Shinano departed Yokosuka, Japan with 2,175 officers and crew, 300 shipyard workers, and 40 civilians on board at 1800 hours, escorted by destroyers Isokaze, Yukikaze, and Hamakaze. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
28 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at San Francisco, California, United States. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze rescued survivors of carrier Shinano in the Inland Sea in Japan. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 Soviet and Yugoslavian troops crossed the Danube River, taking large swathes of southwestern Hungary. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 Three Brazilian battalions attacked Monte Castello 61 kilometers southwest of Bologna, Italy at 0700 hours. The poor weather precluded support from the air and by the attached three platoons of US tanks. The attack was repulsed by the afternoon. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Archer-Fish damaged Shinano at 0315 hours with 4 of 6 torpedoes fired, causing flooding on the starboard side of the carrier. Shinano would capsize at 1057 hours. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish sank Japanese ship Daiboshi Maru in the Yellow Sea. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sennet departed Balboa, Panama Canal Zone. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-62 departed Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
29 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island took on two new air squadrons and departed San Francisco, California, United States. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Gar arrived at Mios Woendi, Biak Islands, ending her fourtheenth war patrol. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki arrived at Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 Sakawa was commissioned into service. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 U-869 was detached from the German Navy 4th Submarine Flotilla. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 Ivan Bagramyan was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for the second time. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sterlet arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her second war patrol. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish sank Japanese transport Dairen Maru in the Yellow Sea, hitting her with 1 of 5 torpedoes fired. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 Former commandant and guards of Majdanek Concentration Camp were put on trial in Poland. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket at Shooters Hill, London, England, United Kingdom at 0100 hours, killing 23. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 At a cost of £9,000,000 (excluding the cost of her guns and their mountings), Britain's last Battleship, HMS Vanguard, was launched at Clydebank, Scotland, United Kingdom. Too late to see service in World War II, Vanguard would eventually be completed in Apr 1946. 
0
30 Nov 1944 WW2 Production of P-40 fighters ceased. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 Jules Bastin passed away in the Groß-Rosen Concentration Camp in Germany. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 HMS King George V departed Alexandria, Egypt. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 Malaya was decommissioned from service. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 U-869 was assigned to the German Navy 33rd Submarine Flotilla. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 Chinese troops captured Chefang, Yunnan Province, China. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Skipjack attacked a Japanese destroyer in the Kurile Islands; all four torpedoes missed. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 Walther Schellenberg was given command of the anti-Soviet counterintelligence units Walli I and Walli III, which he combined into Branch F of the Militärisches Amt (Mil Amt). 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Astoria conducted training operations off Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 Hungarian Second Army was disbanded due to heavy casualties; the surviving units were incorporated into the Hungarian Third Army. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Segundo arrived on station in the Luzon Strait 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel embarked 11 US naval aviators at Palawan, Philippine Islands. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 Heinrich Himmler ordered the crematoriums and gas chambers of Auschwitz Concentration Camp dismantled and blown up. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 Lieutenant General Ivan Gorbatyuk was named the head of the Soviet Directorate of the NKVD Troops for Guarding the Rear of the Red Army. 
0
01 Dec 1944 WW2 Takao Naval Air Group was established at Takao Guard District in southern Taiwan. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 Edward R. Stettinius Jr. became secretary of state of the United States after the retirement of Cordell Hull. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Hoe fired 7 torpedoes at a Japanese tanker, damaging her with 2 hits. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Parche ended her third war patrol. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 He Yingqin traveled from Chongqing to Guiyang, Guizhou Province, China. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Boarfish arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 SMERSH operatives attached to Soviet 3rd Ukrainian Front arrested Hungarian Count István Bethlen in Hungary. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
02 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay embarked the aircraft of US Navy squadron VC-93 at San Diego, California, United States; the aircraft of VC-42 were already on board. 
0
03 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Sea Cat claimed sinking of a 10,000-ton Japanese ship; the credit was removed after the war. 
0
03 Dec 1944 WW2 US Third Army armored units penetrated the German Westwall defenses near Saarlautern, Germany. Meanwhile, the British 2nd Army mopped up the last German resistance west of the River Maas. 
0
03 Dec 1944 WW2 Communist-controlled National Liberation Front (EAM) party in Greece staged a large demonstration in Athens, which broke out in violence; 28 were killed and 148 were injured. EAM forces attempted further attacks on government forces, but they were largely defeated jointly by British and Greek government forces by Jan 1945. This was to be a prelude episode to the 1946-1949 Greek civil war. 
0
03 Dec 1944 WW2 The British Home Guard was ordered to stand down. 
0
03 Dec 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Blerick, the Netherlands. 
0
03 Dec 1944 WW2 The Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer USS Cooper was torpedoed and sunk by the Japanese destroyer Take in the Leyte Gulf, Philippine Islands. 
0
03 Dec 1944 WW2 Indian 20th Division crossed the Chindwin River into Burma. 
0
03 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Springer departed San Diego, California, United States. 
0
04 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Sea Cat claimed partial credit in the sinking of a 5,000-ton Japanese ship; the credit was removed after the war. 
0
04 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Gar began her fifteenth war patrol. 
0
04 Dec 1944 WW2 Song Ziwen was named the acting chief of the Executive Yuan. 
0
04 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Spot departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
04 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: First overall of Mk 13 torpedo completed at the newly upgraded torpedo shop. 
0
04 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Whale arrived in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan. 
0
04 Dec 1944 WW2 The US publication Time reported that Tito had announced a provisional socialist Yugoslavian government from Moscow, Russia. 
0
05 Dec 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy 12th Air Fleet was reorganized to contain two air groups and one base force. 
0
05 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii and disembarked the aircraft she was ferrying. 
0
05 Dec 1944 WW2 Two Soviet Armies under General Malinovsky advanced 60 miles in Romania and Hungary in 8 days. 
0
05 Dec 1944 WW2 The Brazilian Expeditionary Force was given the order to capture Monte Della Torraca southwest of Bologna, Italy. 
0
05 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Cero entered Mare Island Navy Shipyard in Vallejo, California, United States for a scheduled overhaul. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Trepang reached the Philippine Islands area off Luzon; in the evening, she attacked a Japanese convoy and sank three freighters. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 The British 2nd Army was denied the prize of Arnhem in the Netherlands when the Germans demolished dykes and flooded the area between Arnhem and Nijmegen. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 Heinkel's He 162 jet fighter made its maiden flight. Manufacture of the He 162 was protected from Allied air attack by being built in an underground factory in a former salt mine at Tarthun near Magdeburg, Germany. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 Submarines USS Segundo, USS Trepang, and USS Razorback sank all ships in a 7-ship Japanese convoy, escorted by destroyer Kuretake and submarine chaser CH-33, in the South China Sea. Segundo was credited with damaging Yasukuni Maru (later scuttled) and sinking a unidentified ammunition ship. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 Kaganovich was commissioned into service. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 Leutnant Erich Herkner of the German Kampfgeschwader 55 wing was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 33 arrived on board. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 The Taihoku Prisoners of War Camp No. 5 near Taihoku (now Taipei), Taiwan was closed. 
0
06 Dec 1944 WW2 F-14A jet reconnaissance aircraft took its first flight with Lockheed test pilot Perry E. Claypool, Jr. in the cockpit. 
0
07 Dec 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of US VII Corps. 
0
07 Dec 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower, Bernard Montgomery, Omar Bradley, Arthur Tedder, and other Allied military leaders convened to discuss strategy. Eisenhower transferred US 9th Army to Montgomery's army group, but rejected Montgomery's notion that the southern army groups should be halted in order to make Montgomery's army group the sole attacking force. 
0
07 Dec 1944 WW2 Unryu was assigned to emergency reinforcement duty for Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
07 Dec 1944 WW2 An earthquake lasting five minutes struck Nagoya region, Japan, killing 1,000 people and causing damage to many factories. 
0
07 Dec 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-62 arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
0
07 Dec 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Canley Road in Hackney, London, England, United Kingdom. 
0
07 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Brill departed New London, Connecticut, United States. 
0
08 Dec 1944 WW2 Germans troops withdrew from Jülich, Germany. 
0
08 Dec 1944 WW2 The first unpowered prototype of the J8M Shusui/Ki-200 aircraft took flight. 
0
08 Dec 1944 WW2 U-869 departed Norway for the Atlantic Ocean for her first and only war patrol. 
0
08 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
08 Dec 1944 WW2 Japanese troops captured Tushan, Jiangsu Province, China. 
0
08 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ray arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
08 Dec 1944 WW2 In Hungary, Soviet SMERSH operatives attached to 2nd Ukrainian Front arrested Dutch operative Gerrit van der Waals of British SOE, who had naively turned himself in to the approaching Soviet forces thinking the Soviets would help him return to Britain. His fellow Hungarian operative also under the employment of SOE Karoly Schandl was similarly detained. 
0
09 Dec 1944 WW2 The US Army Air Forces established the 509th Composite Group for atomic weapon delivery. 
0
09 Dec 1944 WW2 Whilst defending a position at Faenza, Italy, Captain John Blunt, age 22,of the British Lincolnshire Regiment used anti-tank PIATs, Bren guns and a 2-inch mortar to drive the enemy back. Later he turned another attack, blazing away with a Bren from the top of a tank. His conduct earned him the Victoria Cross but he did not live to know it. Supposedly safe by this time, he was killed on the following day by shellfire. 
0
09 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wisconsin was attached to the US Navy Third Fleet. 
0
09 Dec 1944 WW2 Fort Jeanne d'Arc, the last German garrison (some 500 men of the Fuesilier Battalion, 462nd Volksgrenadier Division) which had been holding out before Metz, France surrendered, through lack of food and water, to Brigadier General Harlan N. Harness of the US 26th Division. However, through bad weather, flooding, and American underestimation of the strength of the forts, had by this time, enabled the German 82nd Corps and 13 SS Corps to make a successful withdrawal to a new defensive line on the River Sarre. 
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09 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Charr arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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09 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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09 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Experiments with jet propulsion on planes were conducted on this station. Air Group 9 on board. 
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09 Dec 1944 WW2 Soviet troops reached the Danube River north of Budapest, Hungary. 
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09 Dec 1944 WW2 In Italy, British Army Sherwood Foresters Lieutenant (temporary Captain) John Henry Cound Brunt used a PIAT and other weapons to fire on advancing Germans, and then jumped on top of a Sherman tank to help direct the tank gun fire, both of which contributed in repulsing a German counterattack by 90th Panzergrenadier Division. He would later be awarded the Victoria Cross, posthumously, for this action. 
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09 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Segundo recorded stormy weather with winds measuring 8 on the 12-point Beaufort scale. When a large wave hit her, Fireman 1st Class G. H. Saunders was washed overboard and was lost; he was USS Segundo's first casualty. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 US Third Army captured Haguenau and Sarreguemines in northeastern France. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki departed Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands, escorting troop convoy TA No. 9 for Ormoc, Leyte, Philippine Islands. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler arrived at the Adlerhorst headquarters in Wetterau, Germany. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 The world's longest Bailey bridge (at the length of 1,154 feet) was completed over the Chindwin River in Burma by the Anglo-Indian troops. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departs Ulithi, Caroline Islands with Task Group 38.3. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island departed Kossol Roads, Palau Islands. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wasp departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 Unryu arrived at Kure, Japan. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 The Soviet Foreign Commissariat began to expel US and UK intelligence personnel from Romania. 
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10 Dec 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-62 departed the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. 
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11 Dec 1944 WW2 The last gassing at the Hartheim Castle in Austria for the euthanasia program took place. 
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11 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Gar delivered 35 tons of supplies to an American position near Duriagaos Inlet, Luzon, Philippine Islands and picked up intelligence documents. 
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11 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro departed Fremantle, Australia for her fourth war patrol. 
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11 Dec 1944 WW2 Adolf Hitler held a meeting with top German military commanders at the Adlerhorst headquarters in Wetterau, Germany, stressing the importance of the upcoming Ardennes Offensive. 
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11 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Astoria set sail for the Philippine Islands. 
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11 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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11 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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11 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Skipjack arrived at Midway Atoll. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 US Third Army captured the V-rocket factory at Wittring in eastern France. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 The American invasion fleet for Mindoro, Philippine Islands set sail. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 After sundown, USS Pintado sank Japanese Transport No. 12 and Japanese Transport No. 104 in the Luzon Strait between Taiwan and the Philippine Islands, hitting them with three of six torpedoes fired. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 Roza Shanina was wounded in the right shoulder by a German sniper. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Luce supported landing operations at Huon Gulf, Australian New Guinea. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 Allied troops attacked the Arakan region of Burma. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 German pilot Willi Kriessmann ferried an Ar 234 jet bomber from Hamburg, Germany to German Luftwaffe bomber group Kampfgeschwader 76. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 Brazilian troops attacked Monte Della Torraca southwest of Bologna, Italy. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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12 Dec 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower arrived in London, England, United Kingdom and secured Winston Churchill's agreement on Eisenhower's strategy for the war in Europe for the foreseeable future. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 Cruiser Köln's power stations and starboard engine were destroyed by Allied aerial attacks. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 German 7.Armee withdrew to fortified positions on the Westwall on the French-German border. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Pintado fired ten torepdoes at Japanese Transport No. 106 in the Luzon Strait between Taiwan and the Philippine Islands; she claimed a sinking after observing one torpedo hit, but this kill was not awarded. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 In the late afternoon west of Mindoro, Philippine Islands, a special attack aircraft struck light cruiser USS Nashville amidships, killing 131 and wounding 192. Two hours later, another special attack aircraft struck, hitting destroyer USS Haraden. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Pompon departed for her seventh war patrol. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho received orders to embark Ohka weapons for delivery to Taiwan and Philippine Islands. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Croaker departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her third war patrol in the Philippines Islands and South China Sea areas. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 Unryu embarked 30 MXY-7 Ohka special attack aircraft at Kure, Japan. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 US submarine USS Bergall and Japanese heavy cruiser Myoko engaged in a brief combat south of French Indochina during in which both vessels sustained damage; Myoko was hit by one torpedo (of six fired) on the aft port side while Bergall was damaged by an 8-inch shell that passed through without detonating. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for strikes on Japanese positions in northern Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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13 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island transited Surigao Strait in the Philippine Islands. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Blenny reported sinking a small Japanese craft with her deck gun in the morning; in the evening at about 2200 hours, she sank a destroyer escort with two torpedoes (three were fired). 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 Fearing they were about to be invaded, Japanese defenders in Palawan in the Philippine Islands murdered 145 American prisoners of war by shooting, bayoneting, clubbing and setting them on fire while still alive. Far to the east, the US Navy Fast Carrier Task Force arrived 90 miles east of Luzon, Philippine Islands and began to launch aircraft to cover the landings on Mindoro. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Rock departed Fremantle, Australia for her fifth war patrol. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 The RaLa Experiment of the Manhattan Project yielded evidence that spherical implosion was possible for compression of the plutonium pit of an atomic bomb. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 Otto Skorzeny took command of German Armored Brigade 150. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 US Congress established the rank of Fleet Admiral in the active list of the US Navy and the rank of General of the Army in the active list of the US Army. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island's air group shot down one Japanese aircraft. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Astoria escorted fleet carriers east of Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Alabama escorted US carriers off Luzon, Philippine Islands as carrier aircraft began attacking Japanese positions in the area. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 One of USS Columbia's 127-millimeter guns misfired during combat off the Philippine Islands, killing four. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for 7 strikes against Japanese positions in northern Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese airfields on Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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14 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Missouri departed Norfolk, Virginia, United States. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 The US 7th Army crossed into Germany from Alsace, France. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 US troops landed on Mindoro, Philippine Islands. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 Submarine I-369 was assigned to Submarine Squadron 7 of the Japanese 6th Fleet. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 HMS King George V arrived at Trincomalee, Ceylon. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 The Japanese Navy 3rd Air Fleet attached to the Combined Fleet grew to the strength of two air flotillas and 10 air groups. The 13th Air Group attached to the Southwest Area Fleet was reorganized to contain one air flotilla and two air groups. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Pintado set sail for Australia. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Hawkbill sank Japanese destroyer Momo. 
0
15 Dec 1944 WW2 Noted American dance band leader Glenn Miller was killed whilst on a flight across the English Channel. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Simulated amphibious maneuvers were held just off the southwest corner of this base. Attending the maneuvers, and guests at this station, included Vice Admirals Mark A Mitscher, and George D Murray. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Dragonet struck an underwater obstruction near Matsuwa in the Kurile Islands, Japan (now Matua, Russia) in the morning and flooded her forward torpedo room, forcing her to surface and escape. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 Japanese Navy 6th Fleet established Submarine Squadron 1 for the operation of long range carrier submarines. By this time, however, none of the Seiran attack aircraft were ready for operational service. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 Japanese Navy formed 631st Naval Air Group for the operation of submarine-borne attack seaplanes. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Spot arrived at Saipan, Mariana Islands. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga launched Air Group 80 aircraft for 6 strikes against Japanese positions in northern Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island's air group shot down three Japanese aircraft off Mindoro, Philippine Islands; two aircraft crashed in the water near her and caused minor damage and some casualties. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese airfields on Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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15 Dec 1944 WW2 William Leahy was promoted to the rank of fleet admiral. 
0
16 Dec 1944 WW2 Mauthausen Concentration Camp's satellite camp Gusen III began operations in the town of Lungitz with 262 prisoners; it would eventually grow to house 67,667 prisoners before the end of the war, about half of which would not survive. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 Royal Indian Artillery Sergeant Umrao Singh won the Victoria Cross for defending his advanced gun battery against a determined Japanese attack in Burma. The fighting was frequently hand-to-hand and when Sergeant Singh was found wounded and exhausted, ten enemy bodies surrounded his gun. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 The US Navy Fast Carrier Task Force retired from Philippine waters after three consecutive days of air operations. 
0
16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Finback attacked a Japanese convoy in the Western Pacific, firing a total of 20 torpedoes but making only 2 hits, sinking a transport. 
0
16 Dec 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower learned that he was about to be promoted to the rank of 5-star general. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 A German V2 rocket fell on the Rex Cinema in Antwerp, Belgium which was packed for the matinee performance. The blast killed 567 people, 296 of them Allied servicemen, and injured 291, half of them soldiers. It took six days to dig out all the bodies, many of which were still sitting upright in their seats. It was the highest death toll from a V-weapon attack during the entire war and resulted in the cinemas and theatres of Antwerp being closed "for the duration" and gatherings of more than 50 people in any one place being banned. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Astoria set sail for Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 German troops launched Operation Wacht am Rhein, crossing the German border toward Belgium, opening the Battle of the Bulge. 
0
16 Dec 1944 WW2 German Army engineers were awarded at the Peenemünde Army Research Center in Germany. 
0
16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Puffer departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her sixth war patrol. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Sennet arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. 
0
16 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 42 departed. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Dragonet's crew conducted emergency repairs on the bow planes while at sea in the Kurile Islands. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 Japanese submarine I-13 was commissioned into service with Commander Katsuo Ohashi in command. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wasp transited the Luzon Strait north of the Philippine Islands. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 Air Group 80 aircraft from USS Ticonderoga flew 6 strikes against Japanese positions in northern Luzon, Philippine Islands; 1 man and 1 aircraft were lost. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island departed Mindoro, Philippine Islands. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese airfields on Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 HMS Colossus was commissioned into service. 
0
16 Dec 1944 WW2 George Marshall was promoted to the rank of general of the army. 
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16 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ray arrived at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California, United States. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 The newly established USAAF 509th Composite Group was activated. The group's mission was to deliver atomic weapons. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 British bombers attacked Ulm, Germany. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 In a P-38 Lightning aircraft, US ace Richard Ira Bong scored his 40th kill to become America's leading fighter ace of the war. 
0
17 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Baya fired six torpedoes at a Japanese transport in the South China Sea; all torpedoes missed. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Guitarro transited the Lombok Strait between the islands of Bali and Lombok, Dutch East Indies. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Spot set sail for the Yellow Sea between China and Korea. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 150 prisoners of war of US 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion were massacred by Waffen-SS forces at Malmédy, Belgium. Only 43 survived. 
0
17 Dec 1944 WW2 Allied troops captured Faenza, Italy. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 Unryu departed Kure, Japan at 0830 hours. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Alabama departed waters off Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Segundo encountered a typhoon while at sea, registering sustained winds at 145 miles per hour, with occasional gusts up to 185 miles per hour. 
0
17 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
17 Dec 1944 WW2 Franklin Roosevelt departed Warm Springs, Georgia, United States by train. He made a brief stop at Atlanta, Georgia to meet with Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd. 
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17 Dec 1944 WW2 Ernest King was promoted to the rank of fleet admiral. 
0
18 Dec 1944 WW2 Douglas MacArthur was promoted to the rank of General of the Army. 
0
18 Dec 1944 WW2 Nikolaus von Falkenhorst was relieved as the commanding officer of German forces in Norway. 
0
18 Dec 1944 WW2 The Fletcher-class destroyer USS Spence capsized and sank in a typhoon off Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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18 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Manta was commissioned into service with Lieutenant Commander Edward P. Madley in command. 
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18 Dec 1944 WW2 84 B-29 bombers made a daylight incendiary raid on the Yangtze River port of Hankou, the main supply base of the Japanese Army China Expeditionary Force and springboard for the recently ended Ichi-go offensive. The B-29 bombers were followed in by Liberator bombers, Mitchell bombers, and Mustangs fighters of the US 14th Air Force. Warehouses and storage sheds in Hankou blazed fiercely for three days after the attack. 
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18 Dec 1944 WW2 The German offensive in the Ardennes Forest in Belgium began to stall after Americans began to fight back. 
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18 Dec 1944 WW2 William Slim met with Montagu Stopford of Indian 33rd Corps and Frank Messervy of Indian 4th Corps regarding Operation Extended Capital which aimed at the total defeat of Japanese forces in Burma. 
0
18 Dec 1944 WW2 The Yangtze River Raiders of Sino-American Special Technical Cooperative Organization (SACO) rescued P-51 fighter pilot John Wheeler near Xiushui, Jiangxi Province, China. 
0
18 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga sailed through Typhoon Cobra without casualties. 
0
18 Dec 1944 WW2 Heavy seas caused by Typhoon Cobra damaged the two OS2U Kingfisher floatplanes aboard USS Alabama. 
0
18 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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18 Dec 1944 WW2 Two aircraft from the US 9th Air Force based at RAF Barkston Heath in Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom were involved in a mid-air collision. The crash involved a new C-109 flown by Lieutenant Dan Wolf and an elderly B-24 Liberator, known as Lazy Lou, which had already survived two combat tours and was now being used to train C-109 crews. The C-109 was a B-24 Liberator converted into a fuel tanker aircraft with additional internal fuel tanks to carry aviation fuel to Allied airfields in liberated Europe. The C-109 plummeted into the ground killing the entire crew. Lazy Lou lost two engines and her commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Lewis Frederick, struggled desperately with the controls in an attempt to land at RAF Cranwell but crashed short of the runway killing Colonel Frederick and Flight Engineer Paul Sattler, while "Major Jerry" was severely injured. Major Jerry was, in fact, the pet dog of Lewis Frederick who not only had his own rank but also his own log book and parachute. American personnel paid for Jerry's vet bills to ensure he received the best care in the supply section armament tent, but sadly the animal died on Boxing Day (December 26) greatly mourned by the personnel of Barkston Heath. 
0
19 Dec 1944 WW2 Chester Nimitz was promoted to the rank of fleet admiral. 
0
19 Dec 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Chelmsford, Essex, England, United Kingdom at 0130 hours. The war factory was hit, killing 39 and seriously injuring 33. 
0
19 Dec 1944 WW2 Germans captured 9,000 surrounded US troops in the Schnee Eifel region on the Belgian-German border. Meanwhile, the US 101st Airborne of the Allied reserves and 10th Armored Divisions of the US Third Army were sent to Bastogne to hold the vital road junction in Belgium. 
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19 Dec 1944 WW2 William Slim completed a two-day meeting with Montagu Stopford and Frank Messervy regarding Operation Extended Capital. Meanwhile, in the field, Indian 2nd Division relieved Indian 20th Division and began marching for Shwebo, Burma 40 miles northwest of Mandalay. Finally, Indian 19th Division captured Wuntho en route to Pinlebu and Pinbon, Burma. 
0
19 Dec 1944 WW2 Colonel Edward Rector, one of the original Flying Tigers pilots, was shot down by anti-aircraft fire near Jinmen Island, Fujian Province, China while flying a P-51 fighter. He was rescued by Chinese civilians, who also helped him to reach the Sino-American Special Technical Cooperative Organization (SACO) headquarters in Zhangzhou, Fujian. He would later make a 200-kilometer trek inland to Longyan airfield to be picked up by a 14th Air Force aircraft to Kunming, Yunnan Province, China. 
0
19 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Officers moved into the first of 3 new JOQs.  
0
19 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Sunfish arrived at Majuro, Marshall Islands, ending her ninth war patrol. 
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19 Dec 1944 WW2 Unryu was hit by a torpedo from USS Redfish about 200 kilometers southeast of Shanghai, China, which rendered her dead in the water and afire. At 1650 hours, just as some power was restored, USS Redfish hit her again at 1650 hours, igniting aviation gas and sank within seven minutes. 1,241 were killed (including commanding officer Captain Konishi Kaname); 147 survived and were rescued by destroyer Shigure. 
0
19 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
19 Dec 1944 WW2 Allied convoy RA-62 arrived at Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
0
19 Dec 1944 RELIGIOUS Birth of Andrew Robert Culverwell, American sacred music songwriter. This contemporary music artist has written such popular Christian songs as "Born Again" and "Come On, Ring Those Bells."
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20 Dec 1944 WW2 US 83rd Division, as part of the US First Army, was attached to the British 21st Army Group. 
0
20 Dec 1944 WW2 Dwight Eisenhower was officially promoted to the rank of General of the Army, a 5-star general rank. 
0
20 Dec 1944 WW2 Armored elements of German 6.SS-Panzerarmee captured Stavelot, Belgium, capturing the US fuel supply stored there for their own use. 
0
20 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
20 Dec 1944 WW2 Submarine Menhaden was launched at Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States, sponsored by Miss Mirium R. Johnson. 
0
20 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Dragonet arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her first war patrol. 
0
21 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wasp's aircraft attacked Japanese positions on Taiwan and in the Ryukyu Islands. 
0
21 Dec 1944 WW2 USAAF pilot Donald Bryan damaged a German Ar 234 aircraft. 
0
21 Dec 1944 WW2 US forces captured Stavelot, Belgium, while the Germans surrounded Bastogne and captured St. Vith. 
0
21 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 42 returned to station. 
0
21 Dec 1944 WW2 Italian Marshal Rodolfo Graziani and General Mario Carloni inspected troops of the 4th Alpine Division "Monte Rosa" in the Garfagnana area of Toscana, Italy. 
0
21 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Whale attacked a Japanese trawler in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan; all 4 torpedoes missed. 
0
21 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston guarded carriers while the carriers launched strikes against Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
0
21 Dec 1944 WW2 Henry Arnold was promoted to the temporary rank of General of the Army. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 The British government called up 250,000 new conscripts. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 The Vietnam People's Army was formed, initially as an anti-Japanese resistance force. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Chelmsford, Essex, England, United Kingdom, seriously injuring one person. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 Two Ukrainian peasants, Hermann and Emma Kurras, were executed after a trial for hiding thirteen Jews who had escaped from a concentration camp. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the XIX Corps of US Ninth Army while being attached to the British 21st Army Group. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Hoe fired 3 torpedoes at a Japanese tanker at periscope depth; all torpedoes missed. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 M26 Pershing heavy tanks were ordered to be deployed to forward US Army units. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 In Bastogne, Belgium, the German surrender demand is rebuffed by General McAuliffe with the famous response "Nuts!"; meanwhile, the US Third Army shifted its axis of advance in attempt to relieve Bastogne. In Germany, Rundstedt suggested a tactical withdrawal, but the suggestion was refused by Hitler. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 43 arrived on board. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 Destroyer Shigure disembarked the 147 survivors of Unryu (sank three days prior) at Sasebo, Japan. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Whale attacked a Japanese trawler in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan; all 3 torpedoes missed. 
0
22 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Shamrock Bay was assigned to US Navy 7th Fleet. 
0
23 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Blenny reported sinking a Japanese transport with torpedoes. 
0
23 Dec 1944 WW2 Adolf Eichmann fled Budapest, Hungary before dawn. 
0
23 Dec 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yuzuki was sunk by US Marine Corps aircraft 105 kilometers north-northwest of Cebu, Philippine Islands; 20 crewmen were killed, 217 survived and rescued by destroyer Kiri. 
0
23 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island arrived at the Admiralty Islands. 
0
23 Dec 1944 WW2 Indian 2nd and 20th Divisions reached Pyingaing, Burma, which was not defended by the Japanese. 
0
23 Dec 1944 WW2 While leading 16 Mustang fighters of 118th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron back from an attack on the Wuchang-Hankou ferry terminals in Hubei Province, China, Lieutenant Colonel Edward McComas strafed the Japanese airfields at Wuchang and Erdaokou, destroying (in less than an hour) five Ki-43 fighters in the air and another two Japanese aircraft on the ground. 
0
23 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Whale sank four Japanese fishing trawlers with her deck gun off Nakano Shima in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 The troopship Leopoldville, carrying 2,000 American soldiers across the English Channel, was torpedoed by German submarine U-486. Escorting warships lifted off many soldiers, although quite a few who suffered broken bones jumping onto the wildly pitching steel decks, but 819 men perished. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands together with other ships of Task Group 38.3. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Astoria arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Alabama arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Cero arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her sixth war patrol. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Boarfish departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 90 departed. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 Fighting between German and Soviet forces began inside of Budapest, Hungary. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Kete departed Saipan, Mariana Islands, resuming her first war patrol. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Barbero sank Japanese tanker Junpo Maru and damaged a transport in the South China Sea, hitting them with 9 of 14 torpedoes fired. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 Fifty German Heinkel bombers air-launched V1 flying bombs from off the eastern coast of Britain targeting the Manchester area. Most fell harmlessly all over the north of England but a handful came down in the Oldham area, killing 42 and injuring more than 100. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Missouri arrived at San Francisco, California, United States. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Hackleback arrived at the Fleet Sonar School at Key West, Florida, United States. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Finback arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her eleventh war patrol. 
0
24 Dec 1944 WW2 Soviet UKR operatives attached to Soviet 3rd Ukrainian Front arrested Russian monarchist Vasili Shulgin, who had not been active in politics for many years, in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia. 
0
25 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Mingo attacked a Japanese convoy between Singapore and Brunei, Borneo, damaging an escorting gunboat and sinking tanker Manila Maru. 
0
25 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Snook began her eighth war patrol. 
0
25 Dec 1944 WW2 US 2nd Armored Division, with British help, stopped German 2.Panzer Division just 4 miles from the Meuse River in Belgium. 
0
25 Dec 1944 WW2 The small US and British military missions previously sent to eastern Czechoslovakia to aid the Slovak National Uprising were captured by the Germans. 
0
25 Dec 1944 WW2 Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. 
0
25 Dec 1944 WW2 Three baby girls were born in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in occupied Poland. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 US 83rd Infantry Division became part of the VII Corps of US First Army while being attached to the British 21st Army Group. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 US Third Army under George Patton relieved the besieged city of Bastogne, Belgium. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 William Slim transferred 19th Division and 268th Armored Brigade from the Indian 4th Corps to the Indian 33rd Corps to hide from Japanese intelligence the fact that the 4th Corps was about to secretly move through the Gangaw Valley along the Myittha River for Meiktila, Burma. A fake 4th Corps headquarters was also to be set up at Tamu. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz held an official court of inquiry aboard destroyer tender USS Cascade at Ulithi, Caroline Islands over the losses during Typhoon Cobra. No conclusions would be made on this date. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wasp arrived at Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 Soviet armies surrounded Budapest, beginning a siege on the Hungarian capital that would last 102 days. More than a million civilians were trapped in the city during the fighting. By the time the city surrendered in Apr 1945, the Russians had lost 80,000 troops killed and 240,000 wounded; the Germans and Hungarians 38,000 dead and 62,000 wounded; 38,000 civilians had perished. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 Two Italian divisions and three German battalions launched an offensive in Toscana, Italy, capturing several towns and villages. On the same day, 19th Infantry Brigade of Indian 8th Infantry Division began to arrive in the region. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Segundo sailed through rough seas with crests up to 40 feet. A particularly large wave crashed over the submarine unexpectedly, and the great amount of water that got in damaged both master and auxiliary compasses. 
0
26 Dec 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit Islington, London, England, United Kingdom at 2126 hours, killing 68 and seriously injuring 99. The rocket left two craters, one 40 feet wide and 12 feet deep, the other 10 feet wide and 4 feet deep. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 US submarines reported the sinking of 27 enemy vessels throughout the Pacific and Far Eastern waters. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Caiman detected a small Japanese armed ship in the South China Sea and fired 3 torpedoes; they failed to hit the target. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Makin Island departed Manus, Admiralty Islands. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Wake Island arrived at Manus Island, Admiralty Islands. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Luce departed Huon Gulf, Australian New Guinea. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 US troops began pushing German troops back in the Ardennes region, thus ending the German offensive. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Gar arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her fifteenth and final war patrol. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 Axis troops captured Pian di Coreglia, Italy and would penetrate the Allied lines by 25 kilometers by the afternoon. The presence of fresh Indian troops, however, stopped the Axis momentum. 
0
27 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Barbero was damaged by a Japanese aircraft. 
0
28 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Kete arrived north of Okinawa, Japan. 
0
28 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Gunnel ended her seventh war patrol. 
0
28 Dec 1944 WW2 The Infantry Landing Ship Empire Javelin was torpedoed and sunk by the German Submarine U-772 in the English Channel. Among the passengers were 208 officers and 624 enlisted men of the main body of the newly raised US 15th Army. Most were rescued by the French frigate L'Escarmouche, but thirteen men were reported as missing in action and 20 others sustained injuries. 
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28 Dec 1944 WW2 American troops began gaining ground in their counteroffensive in the Battle of the Bulge. Adolf Hitler ordered renewed offensives in Alsace and Ardennes regions against the advice of his generals. 
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28 Dec 1944 WW2 21st Brigade of Indian 8th Infantry Division arrived on the western end of the German Gothic Line in Toscana, Italy. 
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28 Dec 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Kure, Japan for Moji, Japan. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Mingo arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her sixth war patrol. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 The Golden Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds to the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross award was established in Germany. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 U-869 received the order to head to American waters southeast of New York City, New York, United States. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 Following the death of Sir John Dill, General Sir Henry Maitland Wilson was promoted Field Marshal, relieved as Supreme Commander in the Mediterranean, and appointed to Chief of the British Joint Staff Mission in Washington, United States. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Gabilan departed Fremantle, Australia for her fourth war patrol. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Marcus Island departed the Admiralty Islands. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 Indian troops advanced to make contact with Axis troops that had recently attacked in Toscana, Italy but seemed to have fallen back. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 Destroyer Yukikaze departed Moji, Japan to escort a troop convoy to Taiwan. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 Chechen rebel leader Khasan Israilov was betrayed by his own men and was killed. 
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29 Dec 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit a house on Croham Valley Road, Croydon, London, England, United Kingdom, killing all occupants. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 King George II of Greece declared a regency, leaving the throne vacant. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 I-400 was commissioned into service. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 German submarine control requested a passage report from U-869, which did not respond. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Parche began her fourth war patrol. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 Germans again attacked in the Bastogne corridor in Belgium. Meanwhile, British troops attacked Houffalize, Belgium, but they were stopped by fierce German defense. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Ticonderoga departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 The US Navy Fast Carrier Task Force sortied from Ulithi, Caroline Islands for the invasion of Luzon, Philippine Islands. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Astoria departed Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Charr departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Air Group 48 arrived on board. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 Allied troops regained most of the territory lost in Tuscany, Italy over the past few days from the latest Axis offensive. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 USS Preston departed waters off Philippine Islands for Ulithi, Caroline Islands. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 150 female prisoners of Auschwitz Concentration Camp were employed in the demolition squad (Abbruchkommando), working on the demolition of crematorium III. 50 female prisoners worked in the forestry-demolition squad (Gehölz-Abbruchkommando), which was filling in the incineration pits and covering them with grass and planting small trees on the grounds of crematorium IV. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 Two YP-80A jet fighters arrived in Burtonwood, England, United Kingdom. 
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30 Dec 1944 WW2 Allied convoy JW-63 departed Loch Ewe, Scotland, United Kingdom. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 Cruiser Köln was damaged by Allied aerial attacks. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 The British Home Guard was officially disbanded. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 One B-17 Flying Fortress bomber of USAAF 8th Air Force attacked Helgoland, Germany. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 German troops launched Operation Sylvester/Operation Nordwind, attacking south near Strasbourg, France. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 Otto Skorzeny arrived at Wolfsschanze in East Prussia, Germany. He received care for his wounded left eye from Hitler's personal doctor Stumpfecker. Later in the day, he reported to Hitler regarding his commando mission during the Ardennes Offensive. As he departed, Wilhelm Keitel invited him to remain to join the rest of the German leaders for the New Year's celebration, but Skorzeny declined, opting to re-join his men in Cologne, Germany instead. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 Theodor Osterkamp retired from the German Luftwaffe with the rank of Generalleutnant (equivalent to Air Vice Marshal in the British RAF). 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 Light carrier Ryuho departed Moji, Japan with convoy HI-87 with 58 Ohka weapons on board. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 Lieutenant-General Sir Richard McCreery took over command of the British Eighth Army in Italy from Lieutenant-General Sir Oliver Leese.  
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 US troops re-captured Rochefort, Belgium, while the US Third Army began an offensive from Bastogne. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 Japanese troops evacuated Akyab (now Sittwe), Burma. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 Archbishop Damaskinos of Athens was invested with the royal powers of Greece pending his regency and called upon General Nikolaos Plastiras to form a Government. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 The Hungarian Provisional Government switched sides and declared war on Germany. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 German V-2 rocket hit near the intersection of Stroud Green Road and Stapledon Hall Road in Crouch Hill, London, England, United Kingdom at 2340 hours, killing 15 and seriously injuring 34. 15 homes were destroyed by this attack. This rocket was the 382nd, and the last, rocket to hit England in 1944. 
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31 Dec 1944 WW2 Lockheed delivered 13 YP-80A jet aircraft to the USAAF. 
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