Posted on 06/17/2011 5:16:50 AM PDT by Homer_J_Simpson
Plus a special guest map from Churchill’s The Grand Alliance -
Diagram to Illustrate Operation “Battleaxe”
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1941/jun41/f17jun41.htm
British offensive falters
Tuesday, June 17, 1941 www.onwar.com
In North Africa... Rommel attempts to move his tanks forces together early in the day to threaten the now-weakened British armor guarding the inland flank. After some confusion the whole British force begins to withdraw and Wavell is left to signal the failure of Operation Battleaxe to Churchill.
In Syria... Australian troops take Jezzine, just inland from Sidon. The Habforce group, which had an important role in the fighting in Iraq and is now made up of a cavalry brigade and some small infantry units, is ordered to begin an advance from Iraq due west along the main oil pipeline leading to Palmyra.
In Berlin... Hitler decides that the attack on the Soviet Union will commence on June 22, 1941.
In Iceland... A regent is appointed.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/17.htm
June 17th, 1941
UNITED KINGDOM: RAF Bomber Command: The RAF bombs Cologne, Duisburg and Dusseldorf.
Minesweeper HMS Blyth commissioned.
ASW trawler HMS Polka commissioned.
Destroyer ORP Kujawiak (ex-HMS Oakley) commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
FRANCE: Corvette FS Alysse commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
GERMANY: Hitler decides on June 22, 1941 for the invasion of Russia, Operation Barbarossa.
London:
This evening the British public was let into the secret of radio-location (also known as RDF, or radar) for the first time. Air Chief Marshal Sir Philip Joubert, who last week took over RAF Coastal Command, paid tribute to Robert Watson-Watt, the scientist who pioneered the system which did much to help win the Battle of Britain. He gave no technical details, but he did say that it was a system of rays “which are unaffected by fog or darkness. Any aircraft or ship in the path of this ray immediately sends back a signal to the detecting station.” Watson-Watt himself, who has been made a CB and Fellow of the Royal Society, insists: “I am just an ordinary man.”
FINLAND: Helsinki: Finland today ordered general mobilisation of its armed forces, effective in three days time. Notices on street corners order all reservists up to the age of 44 to report for duty.
Tension is running high here as rumours that Hitler is preparing to march on the Soviet Union sweep the city. There is no doubt that if the Germans do attack Russia the Finns will fight alongside them. The bitter memories of the “Winter War” in which the Russians crushed Finland despite its gallant defence run too deep for any other course; there are reports that the 10,000 German troops who arrives in Finland recently, ostensibly on their way to northern Norway, are still in Finland preparing for a joint thrust with the Finns at Leningrad.
The Finnish army, with its knowledge of the country and ability to use the terrain, would also be able to hold the Russian army in the north while the Germans launched a Blitzkrieg towards Moscow. Many in Britain will be sad to see the Finns allying with Hitler, but hatred of Russia outweighs all other considerations.
EGYPT: Cairo:
A grim faced Commander-in-Chief flew in from the Western Desert today and dictated a cable to London which began: “I regret to report the failure of ‘Battleaxe’.” General Wavell’s first major counter-offensive has ended in defeat, with 91 British tanks destroyed against German losses of 25. On London, Churchill - who had sent a fast convoy of reinforcement tanks under the code name “Tiger” and had high hopes for Battleaxe - took the news calmly. He has already decided to replace Wavell.
Wavell, too, had been optimistic, although he had grave doubts about the mechanical capacity of many of his tanks. He had not allowed for Rommel’s intelligence which forewarned of the attack; or the devastating use by the Afrika Korps of the 88mm “ack ack” gun as an anti-tank weapon. With armoured support, Indian troops fought hard to take the Halfaya Pass; but a hastily improvised Panzer counter-attack was the decisive factor.
The British forces by now are 30 miles east of the position they started out from three days ago and morale is low. Although losses are not large, less than a thousand men killed, wounded and missing, 91 tanks had been lost and 80% of the British tanks were out of action. The Germans lost 12 tanks.
LIBYA: Halfaya Pass: In the evening the Germans advanced upon the British forcing them to retire, firing as they left. Within 15 minutes the 2nd RTR had only five tanks left and they were unable to hold the rapid advance of the Germans. With the enemy occupation if Sidi Suleiman the action ended.
SYRIA: Concerned that the French counter-attack may swing westward and cut off 7 Division in the mountains of Lebanon, Lt-Gen Lavarack orders 21 Brigade (Brig Stevens) to halt the coastal advance and detach a battalion to reinforce Jezzine. On the Eastern axis 2nd Bn Queens attack from Deraa and drive French forces out of El Quneitra. An initial thrust by Free French Senegalese against Ezraa is repulsed but a second attempt drives out the French forces and take 160 prisoners. In the central sector the French again attack Jezzine but are driven off by elements of 25 Aust Bde. 70 weary and hungry Vichy Senegalese troops are taken prisoner. 2/2 Pioneer and 2/25 Bns under Brig Berryman attack Merdjayoun but are driven back by fierce French resistance. (Michael Alexander)
CANADA: Minesweeper HMCS Lockeport laid down North Vancouver.
Lt Denis James Patrick O’Hagan RCNVR awarded George Medal.
United States and Canada set up Joint Economic Committees. (“ . . .to study and to report to their respective governments on the possibilities of (1) effecting a more economic, more efficient, and more coordinated utilization of the combined resources of the two countries in the production of defence requirements (to the extent that this is not now being done) and (2) reducing the probable post-war economic dislocation consequent upon the changes which the economy in each country is presently undergoing”
Destroyer HMCS St Clair is heavily damaged in a collision with the oiler Clam soon after joining the Newfoundland Escort Force. St Clair is diverted to St. John’s for repairs that will last until 2nd December 1941. It is highly unlikely that Clam and St Clair were engaged in underway refuelling at the time of the collision. Clam was used for ‘afloat tankage’ and for shuttling fuel to St. John’s from Halifax. Fuelling was done alongside the oilers while they lay either at a berth or at mooring buoys. This was also the RN practice at Greenock. (Dave Shirlaw)
Corvette HMCS Rosthern commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
U.S.A.: Washington:
President Roosevelt has ordered all 24 German consulates in the USA to shut by 15 July and all consular staff to be expelled. Diplomats in the embassy here are not affected.
Although US-German relations are deteriorating generally, the administration complains that the consulates are not being shut down for that reason but because they were being used for espionage and fifth-column activities “wholly outside the scope of their legitimate duties.” The reason why the administration did not take this step sooner is that it is bound to lead the Germans to close US consulates, which are useful listening posts inside Europe.
In the U.S., baseball star Joe DiMaggio of the New York Yankees extends his hitting streak to 30 games in a row in a game against the Chicago White Sox. This breaks the team record held by Roger Peckinpaugh and Earl Coombs. (Jack McKillop)
http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/2011/06/day-656-june-17-1941.html
Day 656 June 17, 1941
Operation Battleaxe. Starting at 4.30 AM, German 5th Light and 15th Panzer Divisions drive East to cut off the British still attacking Halfaya Pass. General Messervy senses the trap and orders 22nd Guards Brigade at Fort Capuzzo and 11th Indian Brigade at Halfaya Pass to retreat. 7th Armoured Division tanks form a screen against the advancing Panzers until 4 PM, allowing the retreating infantry to avoid the German encirclement. British losses during Battleaxe are 381 killed and missing, 588 wounded, 91 tanks (27 cruiser tanks and 64 Matildas), 33 RAF fighters and 3 bombers. Wavell will be replaced as CIC Middle East by Churchill for this failure to relieve Tobruk with the new tanks from the Tiger convoy. Germans lose 328 killed and missing, 350 wounded, only 12 tanks and 10 aircraft. Although Egypt lies undefended before him, Rommel cannot exploit this success due to long supply lines from Tripoli and the threat from Allied forces at Tobruk.
At 3.15 AM 250 miles Southwest of Ireland, U-43 sinks British MV Cathrine (24 crew lost, 3 in a lifeboat rescued after 33 days by the British trawler Boreas).
Composition of the Axis forces for Operation Barbarossa
Franz Halder as the Chief of General Staff OKH concentrated the following Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe forces for the operation:
Army Group North (Heeresgruppe Nord) (Wilhelm Ritter von Leeb) staged in East Prussia with (29 divisions): 16th Army (16. Armee) (Ernst Busch)
4th Panzer Group (Panzergruppe 4) (Erich Hoepner)
18th Army (18. Armee) (Georg von Küchler)
Air Fleet 1 (Luftflotte eins) (Alfred Keller)
Army Group Centre (Heeresgruppe Mitte) (Fedor von Bock) staged in Eastern Poland with (49 divisions):
4th Army (4. Armee) (Günther von Kluge)
2nd Panzer Group (Panzergruppe 2) (Heinz Guderian)
3rd Panzer Group (Panzergruppe 3) (Hermann Hoth)
9th Army (9. Armee) (Adolf Strauß)
Air Fleet 2 (Luftflotte zwei) (Albert Kesselring)
Army Group South (Heeresgruppe Süd) (Gerd von Rundstedt) was staged in Southern Poland and Romania with (41 divisions):
17th Army (17. Armee) (Carl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel)
Slovak Expeditionary Force (Ferdinand Čatloš)
Royal Hungarian Army "Fast Moving Army Corps"(Béla Miklós) - Initially part of a larger "Karpat Group" (Karpat Gruppe)
1st Panzer Group (Panzergruppe 1) (Ewald von Kleist)
11th Army (11. Armee) (Eugen Ritter von Schobert)
Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia (Corpo di Spedizione Italiano in Russia, CSIR) (Giovanni Messe)
6th Army (6. Armee) (Walther von Reichenau)
Romanian 3rd Army (Petre Dumitrescu)
Romanian 4th Army (Tancred Constantinescu)
Air Fleet 4 (Luftflotte vier) (Alexander Löhr)
Staged from Norway a smaller group of forces consisted of:
Army High Command Norway (Armee-Oberkommando Norwegen) (Nikolaus von Falkenhorst) with two Corps
Air Fleet 5 (Luftflotte fünf) (Hans-Jürgen Stumpff)
Numerous smaller units from all over Nazi-occupied Europe, like the "Legion of French Volunteers Against Bolshevism" (Légion des Volontaires Français contre le Bolchévisme), supported the German war effort.
I don’t know HOW Wavell would not have factored Rommel’s use of the 88s at Halfaya Pass as anti-tank guns.
While there is some anecdotal evidence the Germans first used 88s in the AT role in Spain, it’s an established fact that Rommel, while CG of 7th Panzer, used a screen of 88s at Arras in 1940, to break the back of the British counterattack that so upset Hitler.
A review of “Battleaxe”shows the template of British operations [and the reasons for so many failures]in the desert [and beyond]: Tanks attack without infantry. Tanks attack in small formations, or “penny packets” [battalions, regiments, brigades]. Tanks attack [or defend] without being able to mutually support each other. Tanks fail. Then infantry attacks.
Germans concentrate armor. Germans use armor as part of ‘package’ with anti-tank screen and infantry. Germans beat British armor in detail. German armor, infantry and AT elements then defeat infantry. British leave.
Field Marshal Walter Von Brauchitsch, C in C, German Army.
Thanks for the correction.
A war of nerves developed in this manoeuvre area of Middle Tennessee when early today fast reconnaissance units of the Second Armored Division, described by its commander, Major Gen. George S.Patton Jr., as "the strongest force ever devised by the mind of man," . . .
That's a little more pithy than the list of medals from yesterday's article.
The failure of operation BATTLEAXE against Axis troops in North Africa costs Wavell 100 British tanks.
A trial alert is ordered by Washington to Pearl Harbor. The text of the alert reads:
"Immediately alert complete defensive organization to deal with possible trans-Pacific raid, to the greatest extent possible without creating public hysteria or provoking undue curiosity of newspapers or alien agents. Suggest maneuver basis. Maintain alert until further orders. Instructions for secret communications direct with Chief of Staff will be furnished you shortly. Acknowledge." - War Department alert exercise sent to Pearl Harbor station
I also liked how he states that he will be delivering “Caesar’s message” twenty four hours after he attacks. That’s more of the showmanship that we can expect from old Blood and Guts.
He wrote quite a bit. Technically he doesn’t have a memoir per se, but his book “War As I Knew It” published by his family in 1947 is his war diary from the Second World War. This is a great read on the man.
Another good source is two books written by Martin Blumenson is “The Patton Papers”. The first book covers 1885-1940 and the second one covers 1940-1945. This book is a collection of his diary entries as well as orders he issued, commendations he recommended, and speeches he made. It also had letters and messages addressed to Patton with those he served and corresponded with. Blumenson’s book is the one I cite most often in reference to George S. Patton.
""Immediately alert complete defensive organization to deal with possible trans-Pacific raid, to the greatest extent possible without creating public hysteria or provoking undue curiosity of newspapers or alien agents. Suggest maneuver basis. Maintain alert until further orders. Instructions for secret communications direct with Chief of Staff will be furnished you shortly. Acknowledge." - War Department alert exercise sent to Pearl Harbor station"
Cougar, I've been reading your buddy-pal Henry Claussen, and I know he makes a big deal out of this alert / exercise.
But I also know it didn't happen on June 17, 1941 -- it was back on June 17, 1940, and was conducted successfully by Short's predicessor, General Charles Herron.
The key point Claussen makes about this exercise is (p185):
"The testimony of everyone to whom I spoke in Hawaii during my investigation was consistent: Herron had conducted these maneuvers successfully. The civilian population of Hawaii had been unconcerned.
General Short also conducted "the greatest war drills ever staged." -- according to the Honolulu Star Bulletin, May 12, 1941.
Quoting Prange, page 124 (I think Homer also posted this):
"This included a strong force of defending bombers which attacked 'enemy' flattops several hundred miles at sea. 'Defending bombers swept down on the mythical carriers, assumed to be harassing the Hawaiian Islands, just as one carrier was in the act of sending a flight of ploanes off her decks, maneuver authorities said.'..." -- from the Honolulu Advertiser, May 13, 1941
Indeed, Kimmel himself conducted a highly realistic Exercise 191, starting on Sunday, November 23, 1941, which aroused no alarm amongst civilians.
So Claussen's big point here is that these exercises were conducted without alarming the civilian population, and therefore: Short's excuse is bogus, about not going to higher levels of alert in December 1941 because he didn't want to alarm civilians.
But one has to wonder if overall underlying conditions in December 1941 weren't potentially more alarming to civilians than they had been earlier?
I stopped reading right there. I never knew the man and you are an idiot to make such an assertion based solely on the fact that I've read his book.
You've done much more than that -- you've recommended Claussen's book and suggested that because he was there at the time, his conclusions are more valid than those of later commers like Stinnett or Toland, etc.
My impression of Claussen is that he was far more lawyer than scholar, that he was always aggressive, sometimes intimidating and obviously motivated to defend General Marshall along with other higher-ups.
Regardless, in this particular case, Claussen was semi-correct -- that military exercises, in and of themselves, had never before alarmed the civilian population of Hawaii, and therefore any excuse to that effect should be looked at rather carefully.
Sorry, didn't intend to insult you by implying that you rather liked Claussen's work... ;-)
His conclusion at more sound just in general. I have been clear that there is an expected degree of bias in a first hand account.
Toland’s work has been soundly refuted by many and Stinnett has some serious flaws in his work as well which we have covered only a portion of.
I’m not insulted, I don’t care enough about your opinion to be insulted by you. I am however, busy right now so I don’t have time to suffer fools. Maybe a couple of months from now I will have more time for you again.
Then simply take note of the fact that the quote you cite from June 17, 1941 is actually from June 17, 1940 and went to General Short's predecessor, General Herron.
I take this fact from your "pal" Claussen, and invite you to notice the point he tries to make with it.
I don't consider Claussen's point totally invalid, however suggest there might be some differences between practice alerts and the real thing.
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