Posted on 01/18/2012 7:21:39 AM PST by Homer_J_Simpson
Cross River Muar – 2-3
The International Situation – 3
Navy Scores Again (Trussell) – 4
M’Arthur Resists a Furious Assault – 5
Marshal von Reichenau is Dead; Berlin Gives Apoplexy as Cause (Brigham) – 6
22 are Found Dead in Wreck of Plane in Nevada Wilds – 7
Plane Tragedy Stuns Hollywood – 8
No Bar to Negroes as Blood Donors – 9
Aircraft Carrier Laughs at Tokyo – 9
The Texts of the Day’s Communiques on the Fighting in Various War Zones – 10-11
The News of the Week in Review
Twenty News Questions – 12
Campaign in Far East Now at Critical Point (Baldwin) – 13
Japanese Reveal Indies Strategy (Wales) – 14
In the Path of Japanese Advance Lies the Wealth of the Indies (map) – 15
Soviet Army Puts On Skis (Parker) – 16
The Battle of Libya Moves Into its Third Month (map) – 17
Middle East Expects Blows (by Joseph M. Levy) – 18-19
U-Boats Return to Our Shores (by Russell Owen) – 19
Answers to Twenty News Questions – 20
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1942/jan42/f18jan42.htm
Germans beaten back by Soviets
Sunday, January 18, 1942 www.onwar.com
On the Eastern Front... Troops from the South and Southwest Front attack crossing the Donets. Their aim is to swing south to the Sea of Azov trapping units from the German 6th and 17th Armies. In the Crimea, Germans have renewed their offensive to capture Feodosia. Northward, in the Moscow region, the Valdai Hill Offensive continues, Red Army units have reached to within 70 miles of Smolensk and threat Velikiye Luki.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/18.htm
January 18th, 1942
FRANCE: One of the greatest race horses of his time, Epinard, was stolen during the German occupation of France. On this day, newspaper accounts disclosed that the famous equine was being used as a delivery wagon horse. (Jack McKillop)
Paris: A Fireman called Kremer is severely wounded by a revolver fired by a resistant in Port Maillot.
GERMANY: German civilians are to get a taste of the fare being eaten by their soldiers at the front - in the form of “field-kitchen meals” to be served in all German restaurants on Mondays and Thursdays. Customers who bring meat, fat or bread vouchers are entitled to change them for the “voucher-free meal of the day” which usually consists of soup of boiled vegetables.
Neither meal - “served from the same pot as their soldiers” - appears to be winning popular approval. They tend to lack the calorie-rich foods like potatoes, peas or noodles, and there is precious little meat in them.
GERMANY, Italy, and Japan sign a new military pact in Berlin. (Jack McKillop)
U-275 is laid down. (Dave Shirlaw)
U.S.S.R.: Soviet paratroopers land behind enemy lines south-west of Vyazma. The Soviet Army encircles several German divisions at Demjansk near Lake Ilmen. In the Crimea, German troops of Army Group B recapture Feodosia and seal off the Soviet bridgehead at Kerch. (Jack McKillop)
GIBRALTAR: An explosion in Gibraltar sank ASW trawler HMS Erin and minesweeping trawler HMS Honjo. (Dave Shirlaw)
PALESTINE: Haifa: Burma’s prime minister, U Saw, was arrested here today when his plane touched down while he was returning to Burma from talks with British representatives. He had been trying unsuccessfully to secure a British promise of Burmese independence in return for supporting the war effort. The nationalist U Maung Saw is unpopular with the British authorities, who see him as a demagogue of suspect loyalty. This suspicion now seems justified, because he contacted Japan’s legation in Lisbon on his return flight. He was unaware that Britain had broken Japanese codes and knew of these overtures.
AUSTRALIA: Sixteen of the 17 P-40s of the USAAF’s Far East Air Force’s 17th Pursuit Squadron (Provisional) arrive in Darwin, Northern Territory, en route to Java. (Jack McKillop)
BORNEO: Due to heavy monsoonal rains and wind that continued throughout the day, the Japanese ships carrying the troops invading Sandakan, British North Borneo, must anchor in Sandakan Harbour. (Jack McKillop)
MALAYA: The Indian 45th Brigade, reinforced, repels further Japanese attacks in the Muar-Yong Peng area and destroys a number of tanks, but the landing of a strong Japanese force a few miles north of Batu Pahat increases the danger in this sector. In the evening, the Commander of West Force orders a withdrawal. The Entire Muar front is placed temporarily under Indian 3 Corps command. During the night of 18/19 January, the Indian 9th Division falls back behind the Muar River, as does the Australian 27th Brigade Group behind the Segamat River. The RAF bomber group withdraws from Singapore Island. to Sumatra, Netherlands East Indies. (Jack McKillop)
COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: On Bataan, the II Corps renews its efforts to restore its western flank positions. The U.S. 31st Infantry is still unable to gain the Balantay River line on the right and is under strong pressure along the river on the left. A battalion of the 45th Infantry, Philippine Scouts, reaches the Balantay River to the west of the 31st Infantry and is attached to 31st Infantry. Two other battalions of 45th Infantry advance toward the Balantay between the 31st Infantry and the 41st Division, Philippine Army, but are halted short of the objective. In the I Corps area, the Japanese increase pressure and force outposts to withdraw. A small Japanese force is moving eastward unopposed to outflank the eastern portion of line. (Jack McKillop)
PHOENIX ISLANDS: The USAAF’s Hawaiian Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses that are part of Task Group 8.9 begin flying antisubmarine patrols from Canton Island. (Jack McKillop)
JAPAN: The USN submarine USS Plunger (SS-179) torpedoes and sinks a Japanese merchant cargo ship off the mouth of Kii Suido, Honshu, in position 33.30N, 135.00E. (Jack McKillop)
TERRITORY OF ALASKA: ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: The first U.S. Army engineer troops arrive on Umnak Island to build Otter Point Airfield (renamed Cape Field in 1942). The airfield, which was part of Fort Glenn, is built in secret to protect Dutch Harbor, 70 miles (113 kilometres) to the east. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.A.: The first increment (1,400 men) of US forces to be sent to the United Kingdom sails for Northern Ireland. (Jack McKillop)
In baseball, New York Yankees center fielder Joe DiMaggio is named 1941’s Player of the Year. (Jack McKillop)
ATLANTIC OCEAN: German submarines attack three unarmed U.S. merchant ships off the east coast of NORTH AMERICA:
(1) At 0644, the unescorted and unarmed SS Frances Salman was hit by one torpedo from U-552 off Newfoundland, after being missed by four torpedoes in four unsuccessful attacks. The ship attempted to escape and several distress signals were sent, but were not heard by Allied stations. The torpedo, fired from about 500 yards, struck the after part of the ship, causing her to sink by the stern within ten minutes in rough seas. The bow remained above the water for about 25 minutes before disappearing. Some of the eight officers and 20 crewmen managed to launch a lifeboat, but due to the state of the seas, none of the men in the boat survived;
(2) The unarmed tanker SS Allan Jackson proceeding independently without routing instructions about 60 miles ENE of Diamond Shoals, North Carolina, when she was hit by two torpedoes from U-66 at 0833. The first hit the starboard side forward of the bridge in the forward tank and the second hit the starboard side aft of the deckhouse between #2 and #3 tanks and broke the ship in two about 25 feet forward of the midship house, nearly in line with the foremast. This caused both parts of the burning tanker to sink within 10 minutes. Flaming oil spewed from the tanker’s side and spread over the water hundreds of feet around the ship, making it hazardous for the crew to abandon ship. Many of the men burned to death because only the #3 boat with eight men could be launched. Five men jumped into the water and clung to wreckage. The lifeboat picked up the radio operator after 15 minutes. Destroyer USS Roe picked up the 2nd mate, the 3rd mate and an able seaman four hours later. The destroyer then picked up the occupants of the lifeboat and found the master after seven hours in the water. On 19 January, all survivors were landed at Norfolk, Virginia. Of the eight officers and 27 men aboard, only three officers and 10 men survived, eight of them injured; and
(3) a tanker is shelled and damaged by U-123 off Oregon Inlet, North Carolina; although the tanker is torpedoed by U-123 upon the U-boat’s return and damaged further, the holed tanker reaches Hampton Roads, Virginia, safely the next day; one man perishes in the shelling and four drown when the ship is abandoned after she is torpedoed. (Jack McKillop)
SS Dimitrios G Thermiotis sunk by U-86 while in Convoy SC-63 at 51N, 62W - Grid BC 4110. (Dave Shirlaw)
HMCS Lynx, an armed yacht (ex-SS Ramona), rescued the passengers and crew of the British merchantman MV Empire Kingfisher, which was sunk off Cape Sable by U-109, Kptlt Heinrich Bleichrodt, Knight’s Cross, Knight’s Cross with Oak Leaves, CO. The Newport News Shipbuilding Company, in Virginia built lynx in 1922. She was 181 feet long (o.a.) and displaced 495 tons. Commissioned into the RCN on 26 Aug 40, her first assignment was to the Sydney local escort force. She was plagued by chronic mechanical problems that were made worse by a lack of spare parts. Shortly after her rescue operation, Lynx was condemned as unfit for service at sea and was paid off on 23 Apr 43. She was sold for commercial service and was ultimately lost off the coast of Australia (date unknown). (Dave Shirlaw)
Neat thread...Fascinating stories today..the war and Carol Lombard’s death. Few recall today that at the time of her death, she was the top grossing and most popular female star.<P.
From a purely military perspective, the Jap invasion of Malaysia, the march through the jugle to take Singapore, is a remarkable achievement.. of course the fat the the Brit coastal guns faced the WRONG way and couldn’t be turned around didn’t hurt them...
Or that what could be pointed toward the mainland were of little use since all they had was armor piercing ammunition
Yeah, those anti-shipping rounds tend to just bury themselves when they hit terra firma.
"Walter von Reichenau, a Wehrmacht general who cooperated with Einsatzgruppen in Russia, dies of a heart attack."
"Germans executed many Soviet POWs, while many more were imprisoned and left to die.
Indeed, as a group, Soviet POWs were singled out for persecution and death more frequently than any others, save Jews.
The Nazis were encouraged to do this, in part, because the Soviet Union had declined to sign international agreements of 1907 and 1929 pertaining to the treatment of prisoners of war. Murderous hatred provided the remainder of the German motivation.
This photograph shows the mass grave of 3000 Soviet prisoners of war about 12 miles outside of Leningrad.
Hundreds of thousands of Soviet soldiers met similar fates at the hands of their German captors."
Most of the article about Reichenau’s career and death are relatively accurate. He was an ardent Nazi, but also a competent general officer. Kind of a prototype for Model, who will become the “Fuhrer’s Fireman.” As the article noted, Reichenau was a fitness buff before being a fitness buff was popularized. In Poland, he was the first German across the Vistula by swimming it. In addition to the stress associated with fighting on the Eastern Front, his exercise regimen was what brought about his death; he went for his “morning run” against medical advice when it was -20 degrees. That night he had his heart attack, Hitler ordered him flown in bad weather back to the Reich for treatment, and the plane crashed in Poland on the journey. Reichenau was dead by the time he arrived in Germany. The article speculates that Reichenau had fallen out of favor with Hitler and was sacked, with “health reasons” given as it had been with Bock, Rundstedt and Leeb. Not so; Reichenau was always a favorite of Hitler.
As an historical footnote, Reichenau was promoted to replace Rundstedt, and Reichenau’s spot at 6th Army was taken by Paulus. It was intended that Paulus get “command seasoning” under Reichenau’s tutelage, and then be promoted to Chief of Staff to replace Jodl, who had fallen into disfavor with Hitler. There is much historical debate over whether the loss of his mentor was a reason for Paulus’ apparent failures of command in Operation Blau.
Some other notes: The Times has not yet picked up on the significance of “Operation Drumbeat” along the Atlantic seaboard. While the article speaks of “some damage” being done to US shipping, they don’t seem to appreciate just how bad it is going to get in the next couple of months, and how totally unprepared the United States Navy is for the onslaught.
Final note: Hanson Baldwin believes he has divined the timing of the Japanese Blitzkrieg in the Pacific. He says that the Soviets stripping their Siberian armies to fight Germany was the go-ahead to move their forces out of Manchuria and attack south. He got it backwards: The Soviets knew that the Japanese were going south, which allowed them to strip the Siberian armies to save Moscow. Oh well, I doubt Hanson had ever heard of Richard Sorge.
I didn’t do so well on the quiz today—missed six.
I'll bet that in later years when the story came out he read of Sorge with great interest.
Is “Putrid Sea” a direct translation from “Sea of Azov”? I thought Crimea was supposed to be a hot vacation spot during peaceful times. I wouldn’t think Putrid Sea on the travel brochure would attract a lot of interest from folks looking for a romantic getaway.
The Putrid or Rotten Sea, Gniloye Morye in Russian, is a shallow and swampy gulf on the western side of the Sea of Azov. I've never been there and don't know if it lives up to its name, but the Black Sea coast of Crimea has a number of famous resorts, including Yalta, where czars--and other celebrities--once hung out.
Let’s not forget (as did the American people) the 2nd Battalion, 131st Field Artillery, a Texas unit that landed on Java January 11 to take up defensive positions and fought until the Dutch surrendered on January 21.
Paulus was a staff jockey, plain and simple. A very good staff jockey, but a staff jockey. He had little command time throughout his career, and had never commanded anything near as large as Sixth Army. Aside from doing one of the final drafts of Barbarossa, Paulus’ major contribution earlier in the war was spying on Rommel for Halder. Sort of a German version of Omar Bradley vis a viz George Patton.
Paulus’ operational plans at Stalingrad were pedestrian, unimaginative, and showed a total lack of understanding of how to handle armor. His refusal to break out early in the Stalingrad siege without a direct order from Hitler, as well as an almost complete lack of interest in his troops once he surrendered shows moral cowardice on a grand scale. And none of that is Reichenau’s fault.
The contra argument is that with Reichenau as a mentor at Army Group South, Paulus would have had firmer direction from above which was lacking in Operation Blau. And that’s what you’re supposed to have a Army Group C in C for.
Glantz paints a different picture of Paulus as army commander anyway. But we can discuss that next year.
Paulus was a product of the General Staff, the ultimate “Old Boys school”. If anyone was a mentor, it was Halder. I have no problem with Paulus being the Chief of Staff of Sixth Army. It’s what he did.
BUT, Reichenau shouldn’t have recommended him as a successor,Berlin should have opposed it, and Pauklus should never have commanded the largest single combat formation in the German Order of Battle.
And insofar as firmer direction from Reichenau [if he had lived], a couple of notes. First, Blau involved two distinct thrusts by AG South, and the primary one was the Caucasus. Paulus had what was initially, a subsidiary role as envisaged by the plan. Covering Kleist’s flank. So the amount of time Reichenau had to oversee Paulus is problematic. Second, as evidenced by subsequent events, Hitler was almost de facto commander of AG South himself, and we know how that turned out.
What Reichenau’s death did was remove one of the few military voices Hitler would listen to [like Model would be, later]. He just might have kept Hitler on plan, with the result that Paulkus would have been doing what he was charged with, and what he was potentially capable of, guarding a flank defensively.
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