http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1942/jan42/f02jan42.htm
Red Army winning in the winter
Friday, January 2, 1942 www.onwar.com
German troops surrender to Soviet soldiersOn the Eastern Front... Soviet advances continues, this time south of Moscow when Maloyaroslavets is retaken from the Germans.
In North Africa... The Axis garrison at Bardia on the Egyptian border surrenders. It has held out since the beginning of Operation Crusader.
In the Philippines... Japanese troops occupy the capital city, Manila. The American and Philippino Allies establish their defenses on the approaches to the Bataan Peninsula.
In Malaysia... Continued Japanese advances force the British and Commonwealth forces to retreat southward. The 15th Indian Brigade is forced back from Kampar.
It’s interesting that almost a month later, there’s still no real info on the scale of destruction at Pearl.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/02.htm
January 2nd, 1941
UNITED KINGDOM: The “Twenty Committee”, formed to co-ordinate the activities of double agents based in Britain, meets for the first time. Thus the XX or ‘double-cross’ tactic of using German agents in its service.
RAF Bomber Command: More than 20,000 incendiaries as well as tons of high explosives were dropped on the industrial arsenal of Bremen, starting a fire which could be seen by later waves of RAF bombers 120 miles away. In spite of 50 earlier raids against Bremen, there seem to have been a remarkable number and variety of targets still available. These included warships under construction in docks extending over 126 acres, the Focke-Wulf aircraft factory, oil refineries and food warehouses. The latest attack, by 95 aircraft, lasted over three hours and was pressed home through intense flak.
London: Anthony Eden informs de Gaulle of the arrest of Muselier. de Gaulle is highly suspicious and rather indignant at the way the whole matter has been handled.
ASW trawler HMS Sarabande commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
ÉIRE: Dublin: A 100-mile swathe of neutral Irish territory was bombed by German aircraft today for the second time in 48 hours. At Knockroe, Co. Carlow, a house containing five members of the Shannon family was hit and a woman aged 50, a 16-year-old girl and a man aged 40 were killed. Two men were injured. Including yesterdays attack 26 are injured in total.
Six counties bordering the Irish Sea were attacked. The first raid hit Drogheda, north of Dublin. On Curragh racecourse an incendiary bomb was identified as a German device. The attacks may not have been accidental. It is thought that they might be intended to intimidate the Irish into remaining neutral in spite of Anglo-American pressure for the use of Irish bases to protect convoys, though the Germans claim that high winds blew the bombers off course.
There are reports, too, of efforts by the Germans to augment their already large diplomatic team in Dublin with agents parachuted into the country to spy on British fleet activities in Ulster.
FRANCE: The bread ration is cut to ten ounces a day.
GERMANY: Berlin: Doenitz meets with Jodl to ask for better air-submarine co-operation and more air reconnaissance over the North Atlantic. He gets a daily reconnaissance sweep by 12 Focke-Wulf Kondors of 40 Group based in Bordeaux.
U-174, U-462, U-707, U-762 laid down
U-66 commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
MEDITERRANEAN SEA: HMS Terror, HMS Aphis and HMS Ladybird bombard Bardia in preparation for an assault on it.
U.S.A.: President Roosevelt announces the beginning of the Liberty Ship program, 200 merchant ships of a standardized design.
Submarine USS Tuna commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
ATLANTIC OCEAN:
At 2207, SS Nalgora, dispersed from convoy OB-261 on 22 December, was hit by one stern torpedo from U-65 about 350 miles north of the Cape Verde Islands and sunk 20 minutes later by 70 rounds from the deck gun. The master, 101 crewmembers and three passengers were rescued after eight days adrift in lifeboats. 52 survivors were picked up by the British merchantman Nolisement and landed at Freetown, while 34 survivors were picked up by the British merchant Umgeni in 21°35N/20°59W and landed in Glasgow on 13 January. 19 crewmembers in a lifeboat reached shore at San Antonio, Cape Verde Islands. (Dave Shirlaw)
U-38 was attacked by an escort with depth charges and suffered slight damage. (Dave Shirlaw)