Posted on 11/26/2010 6:15:30 AM PST by Homer_J_Simpson
William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
Winston S. Churchill, Their Finest Hour
Winston S. Churchill, The Grand Alliance
* This doesn’t make the Germans sound much like loyal allies of the Italians.
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1940/nov40/f26nov40.htm
Nazis segregate Jews in Warsaw
Tuesday, November 26, 1940 www.onwar.com
In Occupied Poland... Work begins on the creation of a Jewish ghetto in Warsaw in which the Germans intend to herd the local Jewish population under dreadful living conditions. The Germans describe the move as a “health measure.”
In the Mediterranean... Aircraft from the British carrier Eagle raid Tripoli. In another operation the carrier Illustrious attacks targets on Rhodes.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/26.htm
November 26th, 1940
UNITED KINGDOM: Yes, we will have no bananas after Christmas. After present stocks run out the government will allow no further imports, to save shipping space for essentials. Lemons and onions are also very scarce. People are asking why, as soon as unrationed foods are price-controlled, they disappear from the shops. The reason is that supplies are diverted to the Black Market for people who are prepared to pay more. Lord Woolton promises a little extra tea and sugar for Christmas.
Westminster: Churchill telegrams to Wavell:
Re:- Operation Compass... am having a Staff study made of possibilities open to us, if all goes well, for moving troops and also reserve forward by sea in long hops along the coast, and setting up new supply bases to which pursuing armoured vehicles and units might resort.
USS Bailey (DD-269), commissioned as HMS Reading (G-71), USS Meade (DD-274), commissioned as HMS Ramsey (G-60), USS Shubriak (DD-268), commissioned as HMS Ripley (G-79), USS Swasey (DD-273), commissioned as HMS Rockingham (G-58), and USS Fairfax (D-93), commissioned as HMS Richmond (G-88), as part of the destroyers-for-bases deal. (Ron Babuka)
Corvettes HMS Eyebright and Snowberry commissioned with Canadian crews. Later transferred to RCN. (Dave Shirlaw)
POLAND: Warsaw:
Work began today on sealing Warsaw’s Jewish ghetto, the aim being to cut off its 400,000 inhabitants, living six to a room, from the outside world. Jewish workmen are being forced to build a nine-foot high wall around the streets that have become their prison. They are whipped and beaten if they slow down.
Last month, the Nazis deported the 113,000 Poles who used to live in this dilapidated part of the city in order to make room for the 138,000 Jews from other parts of the city. Then, the ghetto was sealed: there are just 28 exit points, all guarded by German and Polish militia assisted by the ghetto’s own Jewish police force. only 53,000 people have permits to leave the ghetto: the rest must stay inside on pain of death.
Over 150,000 people, unable to leave the ghetto’s confines in order to work, roam the streets begging for a new job. All wireless sets have been confiscated; telephones have been cut.
The Nazis have appointed a Judenrat [Jewish Council] to run the ghetto’s affairs, including supervising its economy and providing a Jewish Police force. Its leader, Adam Czerniakow, tries to cushion his people from the constant German demands for enormous bribes and slave labour, but finds himself in the role of collaborator and hated by his people.
U.S.S.R.: Moscow: Stalin informs the German ambassador that Russia is prepared to join the four-power pact provided that:
1. German troops are immediately withdrawn from Finland.
2. That within the next few months the security of the Soviet Union in the Straits is assured by the conclusion of a mutual-assistance pact with Bulgaria, ... and by the establishment of a base for land and naval forces by the Soviet Union within range of the Bosphorus and Dardanelles.
3. That the area south of Batum and Baku in the general direction of the Persian Gulf is recognised as the centre of the aspirations of the Soviet Union.
4. That Japan renounce her rights to concessions for coal and oil in northern Sakhalin.
GREECE: Elements of the Greek Army’s III Corps, including Steve Sttatharos’s grandfathers unit, have been fighting their way North toward Lake Ohrida since the capture of Koritsa on the 22nd. The snow and freezing weather hamper the effectiveness of both sides but the Greek advance continues steadily. (Steven Sttatharos)
MEDITERRANEAN SEA: A fast convoy under the codename Operation ‘Collar’ sails from Gibraltar with ships for Malta and Alexandria. Cover as usual is provided by Force H with HMS Renown, HMS Ark Royal, cruisers HMS Despatch and HMS Sheffield.
Meanwhile, units of the Mediterranean Fleet including HMS Ramillies and cruisers HMS Newcastle, HMS Berwick and HMS Coventry head for a position south of Sardinia to meet them. Others accompany the two Mediterranean Fleet carriers in separate attacks on Italian targets - Eagle on Tripoli, Libya and Illustrious on Rhodes.
AFRICA: The Belgian Congo declares war on Italy.
BERMUDA: Lord Rothermere dies aged 72. As early as 1935 he had called attention of the British government to the building of the German air force.
http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/
Day 453 November 26, 1940
Operation Collar. As a distraction for convoy ME4, aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious, cruisers HMS Glasgow and Gloucester plus 4 destroyers from Alexandria, Egypt, raid the Italian seaplane base at Port Laki on the Agean island of Leros at 6 AM. However, Italian Navy is aware of the convoy ME4 and escort warships moving from Gibraltar to Malta. 2 battleships (Vittorio Veneto and Giulio Cesare) and 3 cruisers (Fiume, Gorizia and Pola) plus 11 destroyers leave Naples and 3 more cruisers (Trieste, Trento and Bolzano) plus 3 destroyers depart Messina, Sicily. They rendezvous South of Naples in the Tyrrhenian Sea at 6 PM and sail West to engage the British fleet South of Sardinia. They will be joined by 4 torpedo boats, 7 submarines and 10 motor torpedo (MAS) boats.
At 5.20 AM, 8 Fairey Swordfish from British aircraft carrier HMS Eagle bomb the capital of Italian-held Libya, Tripoli. Royal Navy does not attempt much deception, naming the strike Operation Tripe.
Free French armed patrol coaster Medoc (under Polish Commander Stankiewicz) is sunk by a German aircraft torpedo in the English Channel. All 41 crew (3 Poles, 38 British) are lost.
10 more US Navy destroyers are assigned to the Britain under the “destroyers for bases” deal struck by Churchill and Roosevelt. Although these old destroyers have numerous problems, they significantly increase Royal Navy’s ability to escort convoys and patrol the British coast.
Italian Breda 20mm AAA gun.
Nomura had the misfortune to be one of the two diplomats delivering the "14 part message" to Secretary of State Cordell Hull on the afternoon of December 7th, 1941. Because of decoding and typing difficulties they, delivered their message over an hour after the attack on Pearl Harbor, instead of hours before. Oops.
Thank you for all your work, even on this holiday.
So interesting!
Hope you and your family have a terrific time.
I’ll be driving around Santa Cruz tomorrow with my Mom.
More on the Patria -
Historical Background
These were Jews who were allowed to leave German controlled territory a year into the war. Keep in mind, it was the British (Churchill) who was trying to cut off the escape of the Jews from the Nazis, not the Nazis themselves. The Germans would turn to extermination only when the British efforts proved successful. The ship itself held refugees from several other ships that had been detained by the British. The British packed the ship to about 2.5 times its capacity, contributing to the disaster (without making provision for additional lifeboats).
The explosion
The explosion was not carried out by the Nazis, or even the Muslims - it was carried out by Jewish Palestinians under the direction of the Haganah. They apparently misjudged the size and placement of the explosives. The purpose wasn’t to kill the central European Jews, but rather to disable the ship so that the refugees couldn’t be transported to British camps in Mauritius.
The action must be deemed a success, as well over 1000 survivors were allowed to land (although they were initially held at a concentration camp in Palestine). 260 were killed, and over 170 were injured by the blast or from being trapped below the waterline. On the other hand, a similar number of refugees on another captured ship were transported to the camps in Mauritius.
I found the article on page five interesting, “Nomura appointed ambassador to United States”
Thanks. I hope you also have an enjoyable holiday. Tell your mother to bundle up. AGW has reached the mini-ice age phase over here.
Italian Truck mounted artillery in action.
Saw that on the news this morning. LOL
Luckily, she’s from Oklahoma and came prepared for cold weather as if she were back home.
Thank you again.
LTV-1 Alligator prototype in 1940:
LTV-4 unloading Jeep:
Note, the final weight came in at 16 tons, not the 8,000 pounds reported in this NYT article.
For context, as of "today" the Nazis are still considering transporting Jews to French Madagascar.
As you say, they turned to extermination after other options for a "final solution" seemed impossible.
From the British perspective, allowing more Jews into Palestine would put their friendly relations with Arabs at risk, and make it more difficult to defend the Middle East against future Axis invasions -- in North Africa, for example.
British fears of Muslim reactions might seem overblown, until you consider that many British Commonwealth units came from Muslim countries.
So it wasn't just a matter of Arabs opposing the British military.
It was also a question of the loyalty of some British units.
How did it work out when the British tried to raise equal sized units of Jews and Arabs? (And remember, at that point, a significant percentage of Arabs in Palestine were Christians.)
For context, as of "today" the Nazis are still considering transporting Jews to French Madagascar.
Yes, the Nazis were open to considering a number of options. Madagascar was just one of several destinations considered.
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