OnWar.com

Chronology of World War II

Image of War
Rashid Ali

Tuesday, April 1, 1941

In Iraq... A coup is led by the nationalist politician Rashid Ali and a group of officers calling themselves the "Golden Square." They are opposed to the British presence in the country. The Regent Faisal escapes to Transjordan. By April 3rd, a new government has been installed. The British send troops from India and the Middle East to ensure access to the vital oil supplies.

In North Africa... The British withdraw from Mersa Brega, abandoning almost the only available defensive position before the open space of the Cyrenaica Plateau.

In East Africa... Asmara, the capital of Eritrea, is taken by the British forces led by General Platt.


Image of War
Storch scout planes were used by Rommel

Wednesday, April 2, 1941

In North Africa... The Axis advance begins to gather momentum. Abegabia is taken and the Axis forces now have the option of striking out across Cyrenaica on various routes or following the coast. The German units divide into three columns taking two main routes to Msus and Mechili. Italian forces and a small German unit are sent along the coast to Benghazi under a German commander. Rommel flies from column to column in his scout plane, urging the advance on. Meanwhile, Wavell comes up to the front from Cairo and decides that O'Connor must be brought from convalescence to replace Neame. (O'Connor agrees only to act as an adviser.) The exiguous British tank force is split up on Wavell's order and is further weakened by breakdowns.

In Mediterranean... The carrier Ark Royal flies a small contingent of Hurricane fighters to Malta.

In Hungary... Prime Minister Count Teleki commits suicide because he does not wish to lead his country in collaboration with Germany. The regent, Admiral Horth, and the new prime minister, Laszlo Bardossy, continue to work with the Germans.

In Washington... Roosevelt orders the transfer of 10 coastguard cutters to the Royal Navy. These are very useful vessels for escort work, having a long range and good sea keeping qualities. They will be in Royal Navy service by June.


Thursday, April 3, 1941

In Belgrade... German diplomats leave the city.

From London... The British government severs diplomatic relations with Hungary.


Image of War
Italian and German soldiers in Benghazi

Friday, April 4, 1941

In North Africa... Benghazi, on the coast, is taken by the Italian forces and the accompanying German battalion. The force heading for Msus is making only slow progress but the third group, the most southerly, with part of the German 5th Light Division and the Italian Ariete Division, is going well toward Mechili.

In Washington... Roosevelt agrees to allow Royal Navy warships to be repaired in the US. Among the first ships to benefit from this order are the battleships Malaya and Resolution. RN warships are also to be allowed to refuel in the US when on combat missions.

In the North Atlantic... The German raider Thor meets and sinks the British armed merchant cruiser Voltaire.


Image of War
Victorious German unit in the desert

Saturday, April 5, 1941

In North Africa... The Axis advance continues. On the coast Barce is taken while inland Tengeder falls and Mechili is threatened.

In Moscow... A Soviet-Yugoslav Nonaggression Pact is agreed and is signed in the early hours of April 6th but is too late to have any effect in halting the imminent German attack.


Image of War
German armored column advancing in the Balkans

Sunday, April 6, 1941

In the Balkans... German forces invade Yugoslavia and Greece. The attack begins with advances by List's Twelfth Army from Bulgaria and with bombing raids on Belgrade and targets in Greece. The main German attack on the first day falls on Greek troops in forward positions. The German 30th Corps attacks the center attacks the center and right of the Metaxas Line. A second corps attacks the left of the line but sends more of its force into Yugoslavia toward Strumica. The third corps moves into Yugoslavia farther north heading for Skopje. There is heavy fighting on the Greek border but the Yugoslav frontier is easily crossed by the Germans. During the night there is an important air raid on the port of the Piraeus in which a British ammunition ship blows up, sinking many other vessels and extensively damaging the port installations.

In North Africa... The German and Italian advance is maintained. On the coast the Australian Division is beginning to pull back to Tobruk from Derna. General O'Connor has now arrived at the front to advise Neame but both are captured during the night by a German patrol. O'Connor, the architect of the British victory at Beda Fomm, is an especially serious loss.

In the North Atlantic... The German battle cruiser Gneisenau is badly hit by a British torpedo plane while on exercise just outside the port of Brest.

In East Africa... Addis Ababa, Abyssinia, is taken in the continuing Allied advance. The Duke of Aosta is withdrawing to the north toward Amba Alagi with the remains of the main Italian force. General Frusci is in tactical command of these troops. Elsewhere in the country the Italians have about 80,000 more men. General Nasi commands in the Gondar area with half this force and General Gazzera in the south and southwest with the rest. The port of Massawa in Eritrea is attacked by the Allied forces with support from British naval vessels lying offshore.


Monday, April 7, 1941

In North Africa... On the coast Derna is overrun in the continuing Axis advance. Inland near Mechili an armored battle begins between the German 5th Panzer Regiment and the remnants of the British 2nd Armored Division.

In the Balkans... As well as the frontal pressure on the Metaxas Line its left flank is being threatened by a German armored division which is moving south into Greece after having reached Strumica in the advance in Yugoslavia. The Greek Commander in Chief, General Papagos, further weakens the Aliakmon Line by sending forward a Greek force from it to try to block this last German advance. Also, after a rapid advance troops from the German 40th Panzer Corps enter Skopje in Yugoslavia late in the day.

In the Caribbean... US naval and air bases open in Bermuda. The carrier Ranger and other ships are to be based there as the Central Atlantic Neutrality Patrol. These forces will be considerably increased by three battleships and two carriers later in April and during May and June.


Image of War
German armor entering Yugoslavia

Tuesday, April 8, 1941

In the Balkans... The German offensive is extended with the start of attacks by Kleist's 1st Panzer Group. They advance west, into Yugoslavia, over the Bulgarian border and by evening have destroyed the Yugoslav forces on the frontier and have advanced as far as Nis. In East Africa... Massawa falls to the Allied forces. Seventeen large Axis merchant ships are taken, in the port along with many smaller military and civilian vessels. The 4th Indian Division, which has played a large part in the Allied campaign in Eritrea, is immediately prepared for shipping to Egypt where the Allied forces are under great pressure. The priority in the East African campaign is now to clear the road between Asmara and Addis Ababa. Forces are being sent to this task from both ends of the road. In North Africa... Mechili falls to the German attacks in the morning and Rommel immediately begins to organize an advance to Tobruk.

Image of War
Defensive postion on the Metaxas Line

Wednesday, April 9, 1941

In the Balkans... The resistance of the Greek forces in the Metaxas Line collapses. Thessaloniki is taken by the 2nd Panzer Division. The Greek 2nd Army, the force defending the Metaxas Line, surrenders. Other German units have taken Monastir in Yugoslavia and are moving south through the Monastir Gap. It will not be possible to hold a strong attack here, although General Wilson (commanding British and Anzac forces in Greece) has strengthened the defending force and it will, therefore, be necessary to withdraw from some of the Aliakmon positions. This possibility is discussed with Greek Commander in Chief, General Papagos, and he concurs. Meanwhile, farther north, the German 2nd Army (commanded by Weichs) joins the attack on Yugoslavia. Two corps move south over the Austrian border, quickly taking Maribor. The third corps, 46th Panzer Corps, is based in Hungary and begins to seize crossings over the Drava River. The two corps from Kleist's force which began the attack on Yugoslavia have now moved through the southern part of the country and into Greece.


Thursday, April 10, 1941

In the Balkans... In the advance of the German 2nd Army, Zagreb is captured. The German advance is helped by the desertion of many Croat troops from the Yugoslav army. During the day Zagreb radio proclaims the establishment of an independent Croatian republic. The Croatian nationalist leader, Pavelic, is in Rome. Meanwhile, to the south, the Germans begin their attacks through the Monastir Gap route into Greece from Yugoslavia.

In Occupied France... In Brest, during the night of April 10-11, the Gneisenau is hit four times by bombs during a British air raid. The Scharnhorst is also in the port undergoing engine repairs. Neither battle cruiser will be able to join the Bismark in its cruise in May.

In North Africa... Rommel's troops begin to attack Tobruk with a small improvised force but are beaten off.


Friday, April 11, 1941

North Africa... The isolation of Tobruk is now complete, all the remainder of the Allied force having retreated to the Egyptian border. The German attack on Tobruk continues but the combination of Australian infantry and British artillery defending proves too strong and they fail to break through.

In the Balkans... The Germans repeat their attacks, with growing strength, through the Monastir Gap route into Greece from Yugoslavia. Meanwile, the Italian Second Army, led by General Ambrosio, begins a cautious advance from the Triest area toward Ljubljana but Weich's forces arrive there first. Other Italian units begin to advance south along the Dalmatian coast. The German 12th Corps also begins to advance over the Romanian border toward Belgrade. The Hungarians also join in with an advance from the Szeged are toward Novi Sad. They are held up more by resistance from Yugoslav civilians than by the Yugoslav army.

From Washington... Roosevelt tells Churchill that the US Navy will extend the American Defense Zone up to the line of 26 degrees West. The Red Sea is declared to be no longer a "combat zone" and under the terms of American law US ships may now carry cargos to ports there including supplies for the British in Egypt.

In Washington... President Roosevelt creates the Office of Price Administrations under the direction of Leon Henderson. It is given the task of controlling prices and profits and balancing civilian and defense needs. This bureau will play an important part in holding back many increases in prices and containing inflation despite the pressures that will develop in the war economy.


Image of War
German column moves through Yugoslavia

Saturday, April 12, 1941

In the Balkans... British and Australian forces defending the Monastir Gap pull back. Meanwhile, Allied forces to the east are pulling back from the Aliakmon Line to a position hinging on Mount Olympus. Meanwhile, in Yugoslavia, the city Belgrade surrenders, in the evening, to General Kleist's forces who have advanced down the Morava valley from Nis. They only reach Belgrade a little before other German units from the north and east.


Image of War
USSR and Japanese officials sign neutrality agreement

Sunday, April 13, 1941

In Moscow... The USSR and Japan sign a five year Neutrality Agreement. For Stalin this is an invaluable piece of diplomacy which, backed by secret information from Soviet spies in Tokyo, will allow him to transfer forces from Siberia to face a possible German attack. These moves begin now. The agreement represents a complete change in Japanese policy and marks the growing concern of the Japanese military leaders and statesmen to look south to the resources of the East Indies. The agreement has been negotiated almost alone by Foreign Minister Matsuoka, in Moscow on the way back from a European visit.

In the Balkans... In Greece, the withdrawal to the Mount Olympus position is not yet complete but the British and Greeks decide that they must retreat farther to shorter lines near Thermopylae.

In North Africa... German-Italian attacks on Tobruk are held.


Image of War
German soldier in Greece approaches barbed wire

Monday, April 14, 1941

In the Balkans... In Greece, the Allied forces on the Olympus positions are attacked by the advancing Germans. In the Monastir Gap the Allied rearguards are also under pressure as they try to retire through Kozani.

In North Africa... German-Italian attacks on Tobruk are held.

In Yugoslavia... King Peter leaves Yugoslavia and flies to Athens.

In New York... There are secret talks between Americans and the Icelandic consul. The Icelandic officials agree to do nothing to resist an American occupation to replace the present British force.


Image of War
Allied defenses at Tobruk

Tuesday, April 15, 1941

In North Africa... German-Italian attacks on Tobruk are held.

In Washington... Harry Hopkins is appointed to be Roosevelt's personal representative in charge of running the Lend-Lease program.

In Yugoslavia... The Simovic government flees to Athens.

From London... RAF Coastal Command is brought under the operational control of the Admiralty which will lead to an increase in its effectiveness in the battle against the U-boats.


Wednesday, April 16, 1941

In Occupied Yugoslavia... Ante Pavelic is sworn in to head the new Croat republic. Over the next few months his Ustase followers, Roman Catholic Croats, will murder about 500,000 people, most of them Orthodox Serbs, who will be presented with a choice between rebaptism and death. Many Jews are also killed. Unusually the local Catholic priests will be involved in the massacres.

In North Africa... German-Italian attacks on Tobruk are held.

In the Balkans... Wavell gives orders, on the basis of the situation both in North Africa and Greece, that the sailing of the 7th Australian Division and the Polish Brigade from Egypt is to be cancelled. This is effectively a decision to abandon the Greek campaign and indeed Papagos is already suggesting that the British leave Greece in order to minimize the damage to his country.

In the Mediterranean... An important German convoy of five transports escorted by three Italian destroyers is attacked by four British destroyers near Kerkinnah Island. One of the British ships is sunk in the engagement as are all of the Axis vessels. About 1250 of the 3000 German troops are rescued by Axis forces.

Over Britain... During the night of April 16-17th, a very heavy German bombing of London takes place with about 700 Luftwaffe planes being involved.


Image of War
Yugoslavians surrender to German soldiers

Thursday, April 17, 1941

In the Balkans... On the Dalmatian coast the Italians enter Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia. The former prime minister, Cincar-Markovic (deposed March 27th), signs an armistice with the Germans. In the course of overrunning the country the Germans have lost less than 200 dead.

In North Africa... German-Italian attacks on Tobruk are held.


Image of War
XXX

Friday, April 18, 1941

In the Balkans... The campaign continues in Greece, with the Olympus position abandoned by the Allies. The rearguard will be considerably harried by the Luftwaffe as they fall back on Thermopylae.

In Athens... Greek Prime Minister Korizis commits suicide.


Saturday, April 19, 1941

Over Britain... During the night of April 19-20th, a very heavy German bombing raid of London takes place with about 700 Luftwaffe planes being involved.

In Iraq... A British convoy begins to land troops from the 20th Indian Brigade at Basra. A small British contingent has already been sent in by air to protect the air base at Shaibah, near Basra. By the treaty of 1930 the British are entitled to send troops across Iraq to and from Palestine and with no prospect of immediate German help of any size Rashid Ali's new government cannot object at first to the British landings. In diplomatic exchanges they unsuccessfully oppose any addition to the British force.

In Britain... The first registration of women for war work under a new Employment Order begins.

In the Balkans... Wavell is in Athens to meet General Wilson and General Blamey, the commander of the Australian forces. They decide that it will probably be necessary to evacuate their troops from Greece, but promise the Greeks that they will keep fighting as long as the Greeks themselves do so.

In East Africa... The 1st South African Brigade has been sent north from Addis Ababa along the road to Asmara in Eritrea and now comes up to Italian positions south of Dessie. A battle ensues.


Sunday, April 20, 1941

In the Balkans... Allied forces still active have all passed through the Thermopylae position. The Greek forces in Epirus that have been fighting the Albanian campaign are forced to surrender to the SS Leibstandart Adolf Hitler Division.

East Africa... The 1st South African Brigade is fighting Italians in defensive positions south of Dessie.


Image of War
British troops evacuated from Greece

Monday, April 21, 1941

In the Balkans... Greek Commander in Chief Papagos recommends that the Allies leave and permission for the evacuation is given from London.

In East Africa... The 1st South African Brigade is fighting Italians in defensive positions south of Dessie.

In North Africa... Three battleships from the Mediterranean Fleet shell Tripoli on their return from escorting a Malta convoy. Cunningham has only undertaken this operation under protest and with direct orders from Churchill. At first Churchill wished to try to block the post by sinking the battleship Barham in the entrance to Tripoli Harbor.


Tuesday, April 22, 1941

In East Africa... After four days of fighting the 1st South African Brigade, the Italians in defensive positions south of Dessie fall back.

In the Balkans... In Greece, German forces begin to arrive at the Thermopylae position but do not mount a large attack.


Image of War
The German merchant raider Thor

Wednesday, April 23, 1941

In the North Atlantic... The German raider Thor returns to Brest after a cruise of 322 days in which 11 merchant ships and one British auxiliary cruiser have been sunk and two more auxiliaries damaged.

In Greece... King George and his government are evacuated to Crete.


Image of War
Germans occupy abandoned position at Thermopylae

Thursday, April 24, 1941

In the Balkans... In Greece, German forces mount an assault on the Thermopylae position but are held off. During the night the defending troops fall back, leaving a further rearguard at Thebes.

From Washington... Roosevelt formally orders US warships to report the movements of German warships west of Iceland. This is happening unofficially already. The information is usually passed one way or another to the British.


Image of War
Defeated Greek soldiers in the midst of German column

Friday, April 25, 1941

In the Balkans... In Greece, there is little fighting as the Germans advance and the Allies retreat.

From Berlin... Hitler issues Directive 28 giving the order for Operation Merkur, the airborne invasion of Crete.


Image of War
The bridge at Corinth being blown up

Saturday, April 26, 1941

In the Balkans... The main German advance is halted by the Allied rearguard at Thebes. The rearguard falls back during the night. Meanwhile, there are two German attempts to move into the Peloponnese to interfere with the evacuation of the Allied troops. A paratroop force is dropped at Corinth to take a vital canal bridge but it is blown up before they can do so. At the west end of the Gulf of Corinth, the German SS Leibstandart Adolf Hitler Division begins to cross over the Patras.

In East Africa... The Allied forces take Dessie with 8000 Italian prisoners.


Sunday, April 27, 1941

In the Balkans... The Germans enter Athens in Greece. An Allied transport is bombed off Nauplia and two destroyers that come to the rescue are also sunk. Many of the soldiers on all three ships are lost.

In North Africa... General Paulus arrives in North Africa on an inspection tour of Rommel's force. He has orders from OKH to try to bring Rommel under control and sort out a situation which, from Germany, seems very confused. He immediately halts preparations for more attacks on Tobruk. German reconnaissance units enter Egypt and occupy the Halfaya Pass, one of the few routes from Egypt by which the Cyrenaica plateau can be reached.

In the Mediterranean... The carrier Ark Royal flies a further 23 Hurricane fighters to Malta. A small convoy also arrives at the island with some supplies from Gibraltar and some reinforcements which are to join the Mediterranean Fleet at Alexandria.


Image of War
British soldiers left behind after the fall of Greece

Monday, April 28, 1941

In the Balkans... In Greece, at Nauplia a burning merchant ship blocks the pier and 1700 men have to be left behind. At Kalamata (an Allied evacuation center) a German force bursts into the town but is eventually defeated by the 7000 troops awaiting evacuation. The naval force off the port sees the fighting and withdraws before the Germans are subdued. About 5000 troops are evacuated on the night of April 28-29th, the last night of the evacuation. It has taken Germany less than a month to overrun Greece and Yugoslavia.


Tuesday, April 29, 1941

In Iraq... British reinforcements arrive at Basra. By this time the Iraqis have decided to fight the British.

In East Africa... Advance forces from 5th Indian Division reach the north side of the Italian position at Amba Alagi, in Abyssinia.


Wednesday, April 30, 1941

In North Africa... After General Paulus has decided to allow a further effort against Tobruk the heaviest German attack yet goes in after a bombardment by artillery and many Stuka bombers. A salient in the western section of the perimeter around the Ras el Madauar hill is gained by the attack but vigorous defense halts it there.

Copyright © 2018 Ralph Zuljan