July 11th, 1940 (THURSDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). Bombing - Leverkusen.58 Sqn. Eight aircraft sent, one bombed primary and remainder attacked alternative targets. One FTR.
London: Lord Beaverbrook appeals for housewives to hand over aluminium artefacts for the war effort; Lady Reading, the head of the Women’s Voluntary Service, will handle the collection of donations.
The RAF raids enemy airstrips in the Netherlands and munitions factories in Germany.
FRANCE: Paris: The first issue of La Gerbe, a collaborationist weekly paper,
appears.
Marshal Petain issues his first decree as the new Vichy Head of State which begins:
"Nous, Philippe Petain".
ROMANIA: The government withdraws from the League of Nations.
MEDITERRANEAN SEA: Force H, which has now put to sea on receiving reports of the Italian
fleet, is now returning to Gibraltar, when screening destroyer HMS Escort is
attacked by Italian submarine 'Marconi' north of Algiers at 36 11N, 03 36E.
Escort is sunk some hour later after all her crew has been transferred to
HMS FORESTER. There are no casualties. (Alex Gordon)(108)
Regia Aeronautica delivers a series of 16 raids on the British Mediterranean Fleet in the
Ionian Sea. The sole aerial defence of the fleet is provided by the four Sea Gladiators of
813 Fighter Flight (N5512, N5513, N5517, N5567), which was formed on
16 June. The aircraft
are flown by Eagle's Commander Air (Commander Charles Lindsay Keighly-Peach, RN) and three
volunteer Swordfish pilots of 813 Sqn, FAA (Lieutenant (A) L. K. Keith, RN , Lieutenant
(A) P. W. V. Massy, RN, and Lieutenant A. N. Young, RN). In the series of actions, the Sea
Gladiators break up several attacks during which Cdr. Keighly-Peach downs an S-79 while
Lt. Keith damages another. Despite an estimated 126 sorties, the Italians are able
to obtain only a single bomb hit on HMS Gloucester. (Mark Horan)
U.S.A.: William Franklin (Frank) Knox, publisher of the Chicago
Daily News, takes the oath of office as U.S. Secretary of the Navy.