19 December 1939

UNITED KINGDOM: The British Broadcasting Company's (BBCs) Empire Service is inaugurated, transmitting from the UK on two short-wave transmitters at Daventry, Northamptonshire, England.

UNITED KINGDOM: The London Naval Disarmament Conference began in October with the major naval powers making a last attempt at negotiating a naval disarmament treaty in London. With mounting political tensions, the conference collapses today without agreement.

SPAIN: The Spanish Republicans succeed in wresting Teruel from Francisco Franco's Nationalists. The lack of military supplies and equipment, however, prevents the Republicans from sustaining their offensive, which grinds to a halt.

FREE CITY OF DANZIG: Jews ordered by the Nazi Government of Danzig to leave by 1 April 1939. The Danzig Government had adopted the Nazi racial policy on 23 November.

FRANCE: Paris: The fourth meeting of the Allied Supreme War Council discusses the possibility of military help to Finland for the first time.

U.S. freighter SS Nishmaha is free to sail from Marseilles to continue her voyage, but port conditions and weather prevent her from sailing as scheduled.

Destroyer HMS Blankney launched.

Destroyer HMS Legion commissioned.

Kyösti Kallio had been the President of the Republic since 1937. The Winter War had been an especially hard time for him, even if the more immediate decision making had in practice been in other hands, in civilian affairs with PM Ryti and Foreign Minister Väinö Tanner, and in military matters with Marshal Mannerheim. When Kallio on 12 March 1940 gave the Finnish negotiators the powers to sign the harsh peace treaty, he uttered the famous words "May wither the hand that has signed a paper like this!" The next summer (1940) Kallio suffered a stroke that left his right arm paralysed.

Kallio's health deteriorated during the summer and autumn of 1940, and finally in December 19th, 1940 he gave up the presidency. The President was normally elected by a chamber of electors elected by popular vote. This time this process was dispensed with and the new President was elected by the electors of 1937. The new President Risto Ryti had been the Prime Minister during the Winter War and the Director of the Bank of Finland before that.

Later on the same day Kyösti Kallio left Helsinki for his estate in Nivala. But at the Helsinki railway station, as he was seen off by the Finnish political and military leadership, he suffered the final fatal stroke and died in the arms of his senior adjutant Colonel Aladar Paasonen.

EGYPT:
Wavell replies to Churchill asking for more planes, "every good gift and every perfect gift is from above" (James I, 17).
He also telegrams the CIGS:
Italians have decided to hold Bardia and reconnaissance's have drawn fire from defences... You must not expect rapid progress. Defences are strong, supply situation is difficult and all vehicles are showing signs of hard work. Enemy air force is superior in numbers ... our aircraft want time to establish in advanced aerodromes.

MEDITERRANEAN SEA: Submarine FS Sfax sunk off Cape Juby, Morocco by U-37.

TURKEY:
In a report from Istanbul, the newspaper 'Tan' states that Hitler "has either already recommended or will recommend to Premier Mussolini that he withdraw altogether from Albania.

CANADA: Fairmile B-class HMC ML 066, 067, 068, ML 069, ML 070, ML 071 ordered.

U.S.A.:
Washington: At five o' clock this morning, the British Purchasing Commission finished a $750 million shopping list of war orders. The list has been prepared at President Roosevelt's request, but contracts will not be signed until Congress has been consulted. The first contract, the US Treasury Secretary, Henry Morgenthau, said today, will be for 60 merchant ships, to be completed within 12 months. The biggest single item will be 12,000 aircraft, costing about $300 million. Guns, tanks and other war supplied for Britain will total $425 million.

The motion picture "One Night in the Tropics" opens at the Roxy Theater in New York City. Directed by Edward Stutherland, this comedy based on an Earl Derr Biggers novel, stars Allan Jones, Nancy Kelly, Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Robert Cummings and Leo Carrillo. This was Abbott and Costello's film debut.

CLEARWATER - Maj. George Hatji Stavris, officer in the Greek army, told members of Turner-Brandon post of the American Legion last night that the Greeks are looking to the United States for aid in their struggle against Italy more than to any other nation.

Major Stavris, speaking with the assistance of interpreter Spyros Bossen, extended the thanks of the Greeks for help given by America. The Greeks, he said, are outnumbered 12 to 1 by the Italians but will win the war if the United States will aid them with supplies and equipment. Albania, the general said, is a land of little more than "sheep and mountains."

The Greek officer arrived in the United States 36 days ago for the purpose of seeking volunteers for army duty. He will leave soon, proceeding by clipper to England and then to Crete.

The Clearwater post voted to join with Tarpon Springs on Jan. 18. Mayor-elect George Seavy will proclaim that day Greek Relief Fund Day, and Greek girls from Tarpon Springs will come here to solicit funds.

At the invitation of Charles Criticos of Clearwater, the post will send a color guard and delegation to Greek Cross Day in Tarpon Springs on Jan. 6. The ceremonies will include public prayers for the Greek army and British navy.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-37 mistakenly attacks two Vichy French submarines and sinks FR Sfax off Cape Juby, French Morocco. Also attacks FR Rhône.

UNITED KINGDOM: Some 200 troops watched the heir to the throne and her sister perform in a royal pantomime of Cinderella today. The show, "somewhere in England", was in aid of the Royal Household wool fund.

Margaret Rose was the star as a pretty little Cinders, while Princess Elizabeth was her dashing Prince Charming. Accompanied by a military orchestra, the princesses sang many of the old favourites, inviting the audience to join in the choruses. The pumpkin-turned-carriage was a sedan chair used by Queen Anne.

The rest of the cast was made up of children from the local village, all of whom had been coached by the local schoolmaster. Buttons, played by the brother of one of Queen Elizabeth's maids, was singled out for special praise.

Destroyer HMS Stanley (I-73) is sunk by U-574. She has been part of the escort for convoy HG76 from Gibraltar and reported the presence of a U-boat while on station astern of the convoy. Half an hour later U-574 scored a direct hit; HMS Stanley exploded and sank (38° 12' N.; 17° 23' W.) with the loss of all but 25 of her crew. Within 12 minutes, however, sloop HMS Stork gained revenge by sinking the submarine near Punta Delgada, by ramming and depth charges; 28 dead and 16 survivors who are picked up. Formerly USS MCCalla (DD_253) she was part of the destroyers-for-bases deal, commissioned into the RN on 12 Oct. 1940. (Ron Babuka)

Vintage submarine HMS H. 31 is lost, cause unknown NW of the coast of Spain. (Alex Gordon)(108)

Minesweeper HMS Seaham commissioned.

Minesweeper HMS Clacton launched.

Light cruiser HMS Newfoundland launched.

Submarine HMS Unruffled launched.

GERMANY: Brauchitsch is formally removed as Commander-in-Chief. Hitler assumes the duties. Initial success in leads Hitler to a hypnotic belief in his ability. When the success turns, Hitler remains convinced and therefore believes that the efforts of others is at fault.

ITALY: Benito Mussolini requests German assistance for his hard-pressed troops in Cyrenaica in the form of a Panzer Division and various logistical support.

U.S.S.R.: The German attacks on Sevastopol continue. The Soviets bring in 14,000 reinforcements via sea between today and the 25th.

MEDITERRANEAN SEA: The Royal Navy is reeling from a series of heavy blows which have left senior admiralty figures contemplating total withdrawal from the Mediterranean.

The sinking by a U-boat of the cruiser HMS GALATEA near Alexandria, was the beginning of the present difficulties. Two days later, Axis aircraft attacked the four cruisers and sixteen destroyers escorting the supply ship Breconshire on one of her many trips to Malta.

Yesterday evening the convoy ran straight into an enemy convoy heading for Benghazi. The Italians opened fire, but beat a retreat when the British mounted a counter-attack. Tragedy struck early this morning after the Breconshire had been delivered to Malta: the escorts sailed into a minefield. The cruiser HMS NEPTUNE is mined 20 miles north of Tripoli at 33 15N, 33 30E, Neptune sets off four mines, and other ships attempting rescue are also mined, the destroyer HMS KANDAHAR's stern has been blown off, and the cruisers HMS PENELOPE and HMS AURORA have been damaged. Consequently there are 763 casualties and just one survivor of the sinking, Able Seaman (later Petty Officer) Norman Walton (January 15, 1921 - April 20, 2005). The loss of Neptune occurred on the night of December 19. Commanded by Captain Rory O'Conor, she was leading Force K, a cruiser raiding squadron sent to intercept and destroy an important Italian convoy carrying Panzer tanks, troops and supplies to Tripoli. Having become trapped in a minefield 12 miles offshore, Neptune struck four mines in three hours and sank with the loss of 764 officers and men. Thanks to his courage, tenacity and supreme physical fitness, Able Seaman Walton, then aged 20, survived three days in the water and two on a raft before being picked up by an Italian torpedo boat; after 15 months in Italian PoW camps, he was released in 1943. Walton later gave a dramatic account of the sinking: "We had been at action stations since 8pm, when soon after midnight there was an explosion off our starboard bow. The captain stopped engines and went astern but we hit another mine, blowing the screws and most of the stern away. Then we were hit abaft the funnel. We were ordered up top and had a bad list to port and were down in the stern. The destroyer HMS Kandahar came up to take us in tow. "With seven others, I was asked to go forward to help with the tow, but Kandahar then hit a mine and slewed off. Then we hit a fourth mine and we were lifted up and dropped back again. I got the Petty Officer off the forecastle from beneath the anchor chain but he had broken his back. Four of us - Price, Middleton, Quinn and me - climbed down the anchor. They jumped in, but I wanted somewhere to swim to, not just float around, and when I saw a Carley raft I jumped in and swam to it. "I took the tow rope back to Middleton, who had no lifejacket, and when we got back to the raft it was crowded - about 30 people on and around it. We saw the ship capsize and sink, and gave her a cheer as she went down. We picked up Captain O'Conor, who was clinging to what looked like an anchor buoy, and he and three other officers finished up on a cork raft attached to ours. The sea was thick with oil and most of us had swallowed a lot of it. A few died around us that night and at daylight there were 16 of us left. The weather was pretty rough, and two officers tried to swim towards the Kandahar, but they never made it." Since there was no room for him on the raft, Walton simply hung on to it - periodically swimming around it in circles in order to keep warm. "By the fourth day there were only four of us left, including the captain, who died in my arms that night. I was in the water for three days before being able to find room aboard the raft. Most of the lads just gave up the ghost, but I was very fit because of playing so much sport and this is probably why I survived. "I had a smashed leg, and by Christmas Eve on the fifth day there was only Price and myself left. I saw an aircraft, waved to it and an hour later an Italian torpedo boat came alongside and threw me a line. I collapsed when I got on board and woke up on Christmas Day in a Tripoli hospital. They told me Price was dead." When he was picked up, Walton found that the oil in the water had temporarily blinded him: "On Boxing Day I got my sight back and looked in a mirror. My tongue was swollen to twice its size and my nose spread across my face, which was black from the oil and from exposure. Still, apart from my broken leg I was almost back to normal by New Year's Day, when I was put on a ship bound for Italy full of German and Italian troops going on leave." (Telegraph Group Limited)

After the war Norman became a professional boxer, fighting under the name of Patsy Dodds, although he still fought bare-knuckle and at fairgrounds. One of the other middleweights he fought was my father, John Thomas Etherington. (Don't know who won though!)

Allied troops of the 4th Indian Division today added Derna to the list of towns captured since the 8th Army launched Operation Crusader barely a month ago. Rommel signalled the retreat on 16 December after the Allies attacked his defensive line at Gazala.

A counter-attack by Panzers had bought time, but only at a price: Rommel was left with fewer than 40 tanks for the Afrika Korps against nearly 200 for the 8th Army. He decided to move a long way back - into Cyrenaica - in order to await reinforcements from a secure position. By the time Britain's 4th Armoured Brigade began the pursuit, Rommel and his Italian allies were well on their way.

The Afrika Korps and the Italian Mobile Corps are heading west by an inland desert route, while the Italian infantry divisions have marched along the coast road. Like the vanquished, the British are also running short of supplies: a large proportion of their forces is in danger of being stalled for lack of petrol. In fact, both sides are weary after a month of blood fighting, never more so than at Sidi Rezegh and at Tobruk, the main prize of this campaign to date.

EGYPT: During the night of 18/19 December, the Italian submarine R.Smg. Sciro launches three SLC (Slow Moving Torpedo) human torpedoes off the British naval base at Alexandria. The SLCs are a 21-inch (53 centimeter) torpedo fitted with an electric motor powered by batteries with an explosive charge in the detachable head. The weapon is manned by two operators using breathing apparatus. After release the SLCs, the submarine returns to La Spezia, Italy. Anticipating the return of the British Force B to Alexandria, the harbor nets are left open allowing the three SLCs to slip in and direct their weapons toward the designated targets. Since the expected aircraft carrier HMS Eagle (94) is no longer in the harbor, the three attach their explosive charges to the battleships HMS Valiant (02) and Queen Elizabeth (00) and the large tanker SS Sagona. Two Italian frogmen are captured, Lieutenants Luigi Durand de la Penne and Bianchi. They refuse to divulge any information until moments before the explosion (because they are being interrogated right above the area of the keel where the explosion is to occur). At 0600 hours local, the first charge detonates under the tanker SS Sagona and badly damages both the tanker and the destroyer HMS Jervis (F 00), which is moored alongside for refueling. The charge under HMS Valiant detonates at 0620 hours, and the one under HMS Queen Elizabeth at 0624 hours. The depth of water is 15 to 50 feet (4,6 to 15 meters) and the charges weighed about 300 kilograms (661 pounds). Both battleships were severely damaged and remained out of the war for a period of time. The Italians are interned in a POW camp for the rest of the war. This attack, which neutralizes the ability of the British to oppose the Italian Regia Marina with its battleships, allows deeply needed convoys to supply Axis forces in Africa. Additionally, de la Penne and Bianchi are awarded the Gold Medal for Military Valour in 1945 by Vice-Admiral Charles Morgan, t he Valiant's skipper at the time. (John Nicholas, Tom Hickcox and Jack McKillop)

BURMA: The Japanese overrun Bokpyin, a village about 100 miles (161 kilometres) north of Victoria Point. A controversy. known as the “Tulsa” Incident, arises as a U.S. officer asks the Government of Burma to Impound lend-lease material at Rangoon (a valuable part of which is loaded on the SS Tulsa in the harbor), pending a decision on its use. At the suggestion of the senior Chinese representative in Burma, a committee is subsequently formed to determine the division of supplies.

General Claire L. Chennault and his "Flying Tigers," a group of "volunteer" pilots, set up headquarters 150 miles (241 kilometers) from Rangoon. From today until 4 July 1942, they destroy 297 Japanese planes and kill some 500 of the enemy. (Tom Hickcox)

MALAYA: The Japanese are active against the right flank of the Krian River line; on the Grik road, the Japanese frustrates the efforts of the Indian 3 Corps to recover lost ground. RAF fighters based at Ipoh are forced to withdraw to Kuala Lumpur. The Indian 9th Division continues their withdrawal southward in eastern Malaya and abandons the Kuala Krai railhead.

COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: On Luzon, the Japanese Legaspi detachment reaches Sipoco and is reported to be pushing toward Daet.
On Mindanao, two enemy task forces from the Palau Islands, totaling about 5,000 men, arrive off Davao during the night of 19/20 December. Enemy aircraft discover and attack Del Monte airfield.

HONG KONG: Japanese troops surround the headquarters of Canadian Brigadier J. K. Lawson at Wong Nei Chong Gap on Hong Kong Island. Lawson is killed in attempted breakout becoming the first Canadian General killed in WWII.
Canadian Sergeant Major (WOII) John Robert Osborn (b. 1899) of The Winnepeg Grenadiers dies during an attempt to recapture Mount Butler. Osborn Lawson falls on a grenade to save others in the company and is posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.

Five British naval ships are scuttled to prevent capture by the Japanese: (1) the barrage/gate vessels HMS Aldgate (Z 68) and Watergate (Z 56), (2) the tugs HMS Alliance (W 77) and Poet Chaucer and (3) the boom defense vessel HMS Barlight (Z 57). Barlight is raised by the Japanese and commissioned on 20 September 1942 as Netlayer 101. She is sunk on 15 June 1944 in Tanapag Harbor Saipan Island, Mariana Islands by USN destroyer USS Halsey Powell (DD-686).

AUSTRALIA: The air echelon of the USAAF’s 93d Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 19th Bombardment Group (Heavy) transfers from Clark Field, Luzon to Batchelor Field near Darwin, Northern Territory, with B-17s. The ground echelon is attached to the 5th Interceptor Command (Provisional) and will fight as infantry on Luzon and Mindanao Islands in the Philippines.

TERRITORY OF HAWAII: The USN’s Task Force 8 (TF 8) (Vice Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr.), formed around the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CV-6), heavy cruisers, and destroyers, sails from Pearl Harbor proceeding to waters west of Johnston Island and south of Midway to cover TF 11 and TF 14 operations. (TF 11 is en route to the Marshall Islands while TF 14 is en route to Wake Island.) Destroyer USS Craven (DD-382), in TF 8, is damaged by heavy sea soon after departure, however, and returns to Pearl for repairs.

WAKE ISLAND: Japanese Mitsubishi G3M2, Navy Type 96 Attack Bombers (given the Allied Code Name “Nell” in 1942) assigned to the Chitose Kokutai (Chitose Naval Air Corps), bomb Wake Island, targeting installations on Wake and Peale islets.

PACIFIC OCEAN: Japanese submarine HIJMS I-172 torpedoes and sinks a 5,113 ton unarmed U.S. freighter about 296 nautical miles (549 kilometers) south-southeast of Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii. Twenty five crewmen survive and are rescued.

In the South China Sea, the Dutch submarine HNMS O2 is scuttled by her own crew, about 22 nautical miles (40 kilometers) east of Kota Bharu, Malaya, to prevent her capture by the Japanese. The sub was damaged by depth charges from two Japanese destroyers earlier in the day.

CANADA: Algerine-class minesweepers HMS Melita, Octavia, Persian, Postillion, Scorpion (ex-HMCS Sole Bay), Thisbe, Truelove, Welfare ordered in Canada.

U.S.A.: The US Selective Service (draft) Act is amended requiring the registration of all males 18-64. The age for those subject to military service is 20-44.

Other powers granted by Congress to the president include press censorship; control of an estimated $7 billion of enemy property in the United States; and that to let contracts without competitive tendering.

The president is authorised to re-organize the executive branch of the government in any way that he pleases to prosecute the war more effectively.

The executive news editor of the Associated Press, Byron Price, aged 50, has been appointed "director of censorship". The president has appointed Mr Justice Owen Roberts of the Supreme Court as chairman of the board of inquiry into American unpreparedness for the Pearl Harbor raid.

The USAAF’s 1st Air Force is reassigned from the Air Force Combat Command to the Eastern Theater of Operations, US Army which is subsequently redesignated the Eastern defence Command.

Escort carrier USS Altamaha laid down.

Destroyer USS Beale laid down.

Destroyer USS Bailey launched.

MEXICO: Mexico breaks diplomatic relations with Hungary.

NICARAGUA: Nicaragua declares war on Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania.

FRANCE: During the night of 19/20 December, RAF Bomber Command Wellingtons lay mines off three ports on the Bay of Biscay: six lay mines off Lorient, five off St. Nazaire and four off Brest.

GERMANY: Chancellor Adolf Hitler receives French Prime Minister Pierre Laval at his headquarters in the presence of Italian Foreign Minister Count Gian Ciano, Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring, head of the German Air Force; and German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, to discuss "the existing problems of France."

Berlin: With his armies in Russia crippled by heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures, Hitler today abruptly sacked his commander-in-chief and took over the job himself, "following his own intuitions", as the official announcement put it.

Field Marshal von Brauchitsch, appointed C-in-C in 1938, is reported to be deeply dismayed by the army's desperate plight in Russia, caused by the Führer's order that there must be no retreats in any circumstances. Field Marshal von Rundstedt has already been sacked for quitting Rostov-on-Don.

Hitler - failed artist and ex-corporal, Führer and chancellor of the German Reich, supreme commander of the armed forces and C-in-C - says that von Brauchitsch is a nincompoop.

U-248, U-999 laid down.

U-389, U-425 launched.

U-235 commissioned.

U.S.S.R.: Kantemirovka, between the Donets and Don rivers, is retaken by the Russian Army on the Eastern Front.
Hoth's relief column has been making smaller gains and is now at the Myshkova River. His 6th Army Chief of Staff, General Schmidt, a committed Nazi Party member is an important figure in the decision.

Citing fuel shortages, German General Friedrich Paulus, commander of the Sixth Army, refuses to breakout from Stalingrad. The Sixth Army Chief of Staff, General Schmidt, a committed Nazi Party member, is an important figure in the decision. Meanwhile, the Fourth Panzer Armyâ€™s relief column has been making smaller gains and is now at the Myshkova River.

Black Sea Fleet and Azov Flotilla: Submarine "Sch-212" - sunk by aviation, North to cape Sinop (Sergey Anisimov)(69)

MEDITERRANEAN SEA: Whilst escorting a convoy to Benghazi, Flower class corvette HMS Snapdragon (K 10) is bombed by German aircraft and sinks within 3 minutes of an amidship hit. Location: off Benghazi at 32 18N 19 54E. There are 59 survivors. (Alex Gordon)(108)

TUNISIA: Rain curtails most aerial operations but USAAF Twelfth Air Force A-20 Havocs and DB-7 Bostons, with fighter escort, hit the marshaling yard at Sfax.

BURMA: Maungdaw: The 14th Indian Division, having advanced 150 miles cross-country from India to the Maungdaw/Buthidaung line between the Burmese coast and the Arakan mountains, is pushing on. Its goal is the Japanese air base on the offshore island of Akyab, 60 miles south.

The campaign is a limited one, to secure an airfield in striking range of Rangoon. Originally General Wavell, the C-in-C in India, had hoped to make a seaborne assault, but there were no landing craft. A land attack was his second choice.

So far there has been little fighting and Japanese forward posts have been withdrawn. Akyab is defended by only one regiment, the 213th, but two divisions, the 55th and the 33rd, are near.

NEW GUINEA: Continuing the assault on the Sanananda front in Papua New Guinea, the Australians reduce several Japanese positions just beyond the track junction in a frontal drive; flanking elements reach positions near the roadblock. A Japanese attack on the block is repulsed. Australian cavalrymen destroy a Japanese force 300 yards (274 meters) north of the block and establish a new perimeter, which they call â€œKano.â€ The Urbana Force, after air and mortar preparation, attacks the Triangle, Companies E and G of the U.S. 126th Infantry Regiment driving south on it while Company F blocks from below. The attack is soon halted by cross fire, which causes heavy casualties. The battalion commander is lost in this action. Troops on the Warren front regroup. The rest of Australian 2/10th Battalion, 18th Brigade, 7th Division, arrives at the front after dark. U.S. troops are to operate the Oro Bay port and the engineers charged with the construction of a road from Oro Bay to Dobod ura airfields land at Oro Bay during the night of 19/20 December. Additional cargo is also brought ashore.

In Papua New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20 Havocs and B-25 Mitchells hit the Buna Mission area. B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberators attack warships, transports and cargo vessels off Madang in Astrolabe Bay and north northwest of Finschhafen off the coast of Huon Peninsula damaging a destroyer. Meanwhile, B-25s bomb Lae Airfield.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: The 3rd Btn, backed up by 1st Btn, of the 132nd Infantry has spent two days moving into contact with Japanese forces in the area that will become known as "The Gifu" on Mt. Austen on Guadalcanal. After artillery and aerial bombardment, Colonel William Wright, Battalion commanding officer, is mortally wounded. The action is stalemated for the rest of the day, until the Btn XO can move forward. The next few days will show small gains as the US forces aggressively patrol in their attempts to locate the Japanese forces. The Japanese will continue to sent forward infiltration parties, making the front lines of the US forces jittery and harassing the rear supply forces.

USAAF B-17 Flying Fortresses, escorted by P-38 Lightnings, hit the airfield at Munda on New Georgia Island. They are attacked by 20 Japanese Zeke fighters (Mitsubishi A6M, Navy Type 0 Carrier Fighters); the Americans claim three Zekes with no American losses.

TERRITORY OF ALASKA: ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: The American reconnaissance team that landed on Amchitka Island on 17 December leaves the island.

Two USAAF Eleventh Air Force B-24 Liberators fly reconnaissance and patrol over Amchitka and Kiska Islands. Four escorting P-38 Lightnings turn back due to weather and mechanical difficulties.

Minesweeper HMCS Kapuskasing laid down Port Arthur, Ontario.

Frigate HMCS Swansea launched Esquimalt, British Columbia.

Minesweeper HMCS Transcona arrived Halifax from builder Sorel, Province of Quebec.

Destroyer USS Hoel launched.

Destroyer USS Stockham laid down.

Destroyer escort USS Wileman launched.

Destroyer USS McLanahan commissioned.

UNITED KINGDOM: The USAAF Eighth Air Force's VIII Bomber Command flies Mission 158: five B-17 Flying Fortresses drop one million leaflets on Paris, Amiens and Chartres at 2059-2135 hours.

GERMANY: *Erprobungskommando 262* (Ekdo262) or "Operational Test Detachment 262," is activated. This is by the urgent persuasion of General der Jagdflieger Adolf Galland of his RLM masters,the test unit was to be stationed at Lager-Lechfeld (Bayern), south of the main Messerschmitt facility at Augsburg. It had been largely due to Galland's enthusiasm after flying the 4th prototype of the Me262 (code PC+UD werknummer 262 000004). (Russ Folsom)

Forty USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb the Messerschmidt aircraft factory at Augsburg; one aircraft is lost.

During the night of 19/20 December, six RAF Bomber Command Wellingtons drop leaflets over several towns.

AUSTRIA: USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb two targets: 73 hit the Main marshalling yard at Innsbruck with the loss of two aircraft and 17 attack Kattenberg with the loss of three aircraft.

U.S.S.R.: Kharkov: The three German war criminals, Gestapo officers Captain Wilhelm Langheld, Reinhardt Retelav and Hans Ritz and their Russian accomplice driver Mikhail Bulanov, were hanged this cold grey morning in the market square of Kharkov, the war-scarred city where they had carried out massacres with the utmost brutality. They were found guilty of war crimes by a Soviet Military Court. A crowd estimated at 50,000 watched as nooses were placed round their necks and the lorries of which they stood were driven away to leave them dangling from the scaffold of rough pine logs.

The Nazis themselves often used this method for executions in the Soviet Union as in the case of Kieper and Kogan, two members of the Soviet Regional Court who were hanged on 17 August 1941, at Zhitomir. Forced to watch the hangings, 400 Jews were rounded up in the city. After the executions, the Jews were taken outside the town and shot into a pit 10 to 15 meters (33 to 49 feet) wide and 4 meters (13 feet) deep.

ITALY: In U.S. Fifth Army's II Corps area, the 36th Infantry Divisionâ€™s 143d and 141st Infantry Regiments attempt to clear the southern and western slopes of Mt. Sammucro from which the Germans are barring access to Highway 6 and the Mignano Gap, but make little headway.

USAAF Twelfth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bomb the Terni marshalling yard and the Orte marshalling yard and airfield; A-20 Havocs attack road, bridge, and the town of Orte and hit Cassino; P-40s bomb Orsogna, Sant' Elia Fiumerapido, and a dump near Arce. A-36 Apaches hit the railroad and harbor area at Civitavecchia.

USAAF Fifteenth Air Force P-47 Thunderbolt, dispatched for escort duty, miss the rendezvous with the heavy bombers and instead strafe Ancona Airfield, truck convoys at Porto Civitsnova, a train near Senigallia, and a vessel at Roseto degli Abruzzi. B-26 Marauders bomb the Perugia railroad installations and marshalling yards at Castiglione della Valle and Foligno.

YUGOSLAVIA: USAAF Twelfth Air Force P-40s hit shipping at Split, Trogir, and Solin.

CHINA: Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek rejects the proposal by British Admiral Louis Mountbatten, Supreme Allied Commander South East Asia Command, for a major attack.

About 35 Japanese bombers and fighters attack Hengyang Airfield; 26 USAAF Fourteenth Air Force P-40s are sent up against the attacking force and shoot down nine; two P-40s are lost. Twelve B-25 Mitchells and eight P-40s attack Nanhsien and Ansiang.

THAILAND: Twenty USAAF Tenth Air Force B-24 Liberators fly a night strike against a newly expanded dock area at Bangkok causing considerable destruction.

NEW GUINEA: Wareo: With only days to go before the main Allied invasion of New Britain, Australian 9th Division troops have captured the last Japanese coastal stronghold overlooking the crucial Vitiaz Straits that separate New Guinea from New Britain. Fighting in torrential conditions and in dense jungle, the 9th today routed the last Japanese defending the Mandang Wareo trail on the Huon Peninsula. Since taking Salamaua and Lae in September the 9th has inflicted heavy casualties, killing 3,099 Japanese (but only capturing 38). The 9th has lost 283 killed and 745 wounded.

In Northeast New Guinea, about 30 USAAF Fifth Air Force B-25 Mitchells, A-20 Havocs, and P-39 Airacobras hit barges, bivouac areas, and gun positions north and west of Finschhafen. Thirty 30 B-25s and B-26 Marauders bomb Madang and P-47 Thunderbolts sweep the coastline.

NEW BRITAIN: The Japanese airfield on Arawe is captured by US forces. The Japanese counterattacks are defeated.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: The Japanese airfield on Arawe is captured by U.S. forces. The Japanese counterattacks are defeated.

On New Britain Island, Cape Gloucester is bombed by more than 140 USAAF Fifth Air Force B-24 Liberators, B-25 Mitchells, and B-26 Marauders as pre-invasion operations increase. Thirty seven P-40s hit Gasmata on the south coast of New Britain and 20 A-20 Havocs attack forces northeast of Arawe.

Sixteen USAAF Thirteenth Air Force B-24 Liberators, escorted by 48 P-38 Lightnings and New Zealand (P-40) Kittyhawks, bomb the town of Rabaul and Simpson Harbor on New Britain Island.

MARSHALL ISLANDS: Twenty nine USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators from the Ellice Islands and Baker Island bomb barracks, hangars, and wharf areas on Mili and Maloelap Atolls; they claim seven fighters shot down. P-39 Airacobras from Makin Island in the Gilbert Islands strafe Mili Atoll, destroying three airplanes and firing an oil dump; two P-39 Airacobras are lost.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Bougainville, 24 USAAF Thirteenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bomb the Moisuru bivouac and supply dump; other planes on armed reconnaissance hit targets of opportunity at Buka, Bonis, Ratsua, Poporang, Kara, Kahili, Koiaris, and on Nissan Island.

PACIFIC OCEAN: USN submarine USS Grayback (SS-208) sinks Japanese destroyer HIJMS Numakaze about 45 nautical miles (83 kilometers) east-northeast of Naha, Okinawa, in position 26.30N, 128.26E.

48-ft patrol craft HMC HPC 33, HPC 34, HPC 35, HPC 36, HPC 37, HPC 38, HPC 39, HPC 40, HPC 41 ordered

Corvette HMCS Moose Jaw arrived Liverpool, Nova Scotia for refit.

NEWFOUNDLAND: Corvette HMCS Prescott departed St John's to join EG-6 in Londonderry.

Destroyer escort USS Traw laid down.

Destroyer USS Van Valkenburgh launched.

Submarine USS Croaker launched.

UNITED KINGDOM: Weather grounds the USAAF Ninth Air Force bombers. Fighters fly armed reconnaissance in western Germany, escort RAF Lancasters, fly patrols from Belgium to the Rhine River, support the U.S. 1st, 2d, 99th, and 106th Infantry Divisions, and 7th Armored Division (north and east of Malmedy, Belgium, and southeast and southwest of Saint-Vith, Belgium), and fly cover for U.S. Twelfth Army troops and the XII Corps near Verdun and Saint- Avold, France.

EIRE: An RAF Catalina Mk. IV assigned to No. 202 Squadron, RAF Coastal Command based at RAF Castle Archdale, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, crashes on Stradbally Mountain, County Kerry. The wreckage is finally removed in 1978.

FRANCE: Versailles: Confined to his headquarters office by assassination threats, Eisenhower gives temporary command of the US First and Ninth Armies to Montgomery. Montgomery and Bradley are placed in command of the northern and southern sectors of the German offensive. A public announcement of this move will not occur until 5th January, 1945.

Late in the evening of 19 Dec Eisenhower studied the situation map in his office and drew a line from Givet, on the Muese River through the Ardennes and across the German frontier to Prum. All Allied units north of the line were placed under command of Montgomery which meant that he commanded the US First and Ninth Armies. South of the line Bradley would command the US Third Army. He ordered that the change take effect on 1200 of 20 Dec.

This was a meeting of American, not Allied, commanders. No British commanders were present, although Montgomery was represented by his chief of staff de Guingand which meant that the British did not want their presence to complicate matters. At the meeting Patton was ordered to attack toward Bastogne with the newly designated III Corps, commanded by Major General John Millikin. III Corps was to advance north toward St. Vith. Three divisions were attached to the corps: the 80th Infantry Division was on the right and maintained contact with XII Corps. The 26th Infantry Division was in the center, and the 4th Armored Division on the left. Bastogne was in its zone. This was the initial combat for Headquarters, III Corps and its commander, General Millikin. All of its attached divisions had been seen combat.

While the mission of the 101st Airborne Division and attached units was to defend Bastogne, the digging in was done at positions five to seven kilometres from Bastogne.

The Germans reach Stavelot and Houffalize areas, with US forces holding their ground in between near Gouvy and St. Vith. The US 82nd Airborne will hold Houffalize for several days, while the US 101st Airborne digs in at Bastogne.

The fog of war was at its height during the initial days of the Battle of the Ardennes. When the 82nd and 101st were released to VIII Corps, Major General Troy Middleton, the commander, intended to employ the 101st at Bastogne and the 82nd at Houffalize. However, as the post above indicates the Germans were already at Houffalize. At this time First Army became concerned about the advance of Kampfgruppe Peiper and so the 82nd was attached to V Corps on the northern side of the German penetration and assembled at Werbomont. (Jay Stone)

The U.S. Seventh Army is ordered to go on the defensive. In the XV Corps area, the 44th Infantry Division finds that the Germans have abandoned Fort Simershof and Hottviller. Fort Schiesseck, barring access to Bitche, continues to hold out.

BELGIUM: SS troops under Lieutenant-Colonel Joachim Peiper massacre 130 civilians who they claim were harbouring US soldiers.

Because of the German Ardennes counteroffensive, Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, Commander in Chief 21st Army Group, abandons a plan to employ XXX Corps, British Second Army, in the Nijmegen, The Netherlands, area and orders it to assemble in the Louvain-St Trond-Hasselt region to hold the Meuse River line.

The Germans reach the Stavelot and Houffalize areas, with U.S. forces holding their ground in between near Gouvy and St. Vith. The U.S. 101st Airborne Division digs in at Bastogne. While the mission of the 101st Airborne Division and attached units is to defend Bastogne, the digging in was done at positions five to seven kilometers (3.1 to 4.3 miles) from Bastogne. (John Nicholas and Jay Stone)

In the U.S. First Army area, VII Corps remains generally in place. In V the Corps area, the 2d and 99th Infantry Divisions repel further attacks and start toward new defensive positions from which they will defend the Elsenborn ridge. The 9th Infantry Division (less Regimental Combat Team 47 which is already in the corps zone, and Regimental Combat Team 6o) takes up defensive positions in the 2d Infantry Division zone, relieving elements of the 2d and 99th Infantry Divisions. The 1st Infantry Division holds the line east of MalmÃ©dy. Combat Command A, 3d Armored Division, relieves the 18th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, of the defense of Eupen. The 30th Infantry Division holds at Stavelot and engineers blow a bridge across the Ambleve River there; this keeps the Germans from Stoumont in a costly battle. Combat Command B, 3d Armored Division, is attached to the corps to assist the 30th Infantry Division. The XVIII Corps (Airborne) takes responsibility for the r egion generally south of the Ambleve River, including Houffalize, a key road center between St Vith and Bastogne, with the mission of holding the northern flank of the Germans. The 82d Airborne Division, which reverts to the corps, upon closing at Werbomont relieves the 30th Infantry Division troops in that region. The 3d Armored Division, less Combat Command A and B, passes to corps control and starts toward the Hotton-Le Grand PrÃ© area. In the VIII Corps area, hope of relieving the beleaguered 422d and 423d Infantry Regiments of the 106th Infantry Division in the Schnee Eifel fades. The 7th and 9th Armored Divisions (-) are aggressively defending the region just east of St Vith. The 112th Infantry Regiment, 28th Infantry Division, is attached to the 106th Infantry Division. The28th Infantry Division is ordered to abandon Wiltz and return to friendly lines by infiltration withdraws from Diekirch area. The 101st Airborne Division arrives at Bastogne, which the Germans have almost encircled. Also employed in the defense of the Bastogne area are Combat Command B of the 10th Armored Division and remnants of Combat Command R, 9th Armored Division, the latter coming under control of the 101st Airborne Division.

LUXEMBOURG: The U.S. Third Army forms a provisional corps from former First Army units south of the Ardennes salient, the 4th Infantry Division and the 10th Armored Division (- Combat Command B); the corps is to hold the Germans on the south flank of the penetration and plug a gap existing between it and elements of the 9th Armored Division and 28th Infantry Division near Ettelbruck.

NORTH SEA: U-737 sank in Vestfjorden, position 68.09N, 15.39E, after a collision with MRS 25. 31 dead and 20 survivors.

BALTIC SEA: During the night of 19/20 December, 12 RAF Bomber Command Lancasters lay mines in the Cadet Channel, the strait between Storstrom Island, Denmark, and Germany.

The U.S. Third Army's XX Corps begins withdrawal from hard-won positions east of the Sarre River. The 5th Infantry Division maintains a foothold east of the river at Saarlautern, but the 378th Infantry Regiment, 95th Infantry Division, is ordered to withdraw from Ensdorf. The III Corps is ordered north for an attack against the southern flank of enemy in the â€œBulge.â€ In the XII Corps area, the 35th Infantry Division halts an attack to consolidate in preparation for relief. The 4th Armored Division and 80th Infantry Division are being transferred to III Corps.

The USAAF Eighth Air Force flies Mission 756: 328 bombers and 45 fighters are dispatched to hit tactical targets (rail and road junctions, rail and road chokepoints and railheads) to impede the German counteroffensive launched in the Ardennes: 65 aircraft hit the Ehrang marshalling yard (M/Y) at Trier, 49 bomb a railroad junction at Kall, 40 attack Kyllburg, 28 hit the M/Y at Gemund, 25 bomb Blankenheim, 23 attack Bitburg, 22 bomb Hildersheim, 13 each bomb the Lutzel M/Y at Koblenz and a highway choke point at Schleiden, 12 attack a highway choke point at Glaadt and nine bomb Stadtkyll. The missions above are escorted by 37 P-47 Thunderbolts; they claim 7-0-1 Luftwaffe aircraft.

USAAF Fifteenth Air Force bombers attack oil and rail targets: at Blechhammer, 114 bomb the North I.G. Farben synthetic refinery and 47 hit the South refinery with the loss of five aircraft; at Rosenheim, 26 hit the West marshalling yard and 24 hit the Main marshalling yard; one other aircraft bombs Kassel.

During the day, 30 RAF Bomber Command Lancasters, escorted by USAAF Ninth Air Force P-47 Thunderbolts, carry out a G-H raid on the railway yards in Trier behind the front on which the Germans are attacking in the Ardennes.

AUSTRIA: USAAF Fifteenth Air Force bombers hit rail targets: 35 bomb the Stroszhof marshalling yard (M/Y) in Vienna, 28 hit the Main M/Y at Graz, 19 bomb the South M/Y at Villach and two hit the North M/Y, 16 bomb the Main M/Y at Innsbruck and 14 bomb the North M/Y at Klagenfurt.

CZECHOSLOVAKIA: Seven USAAF Fifteenth Air Force bombers bomb a synthetic oil refinery at Ostrava Moravaska and three other bombers hit targets of opportunity.

ITALY: In the British Eighth Army area, V Corps, renewing their offensive during the night of 19/20 December, clears the Faenza area sufficiently for deployment of the 56th Division. The Canadian I Corps begins an attack, during the night of 19/20 December to break out of the Naviglio Canal bridgehead.

Weather grounds USAAF Twelfth Air Force medium bombers. XXII Tactical Air Command fighters and fighter-bombers, unable to reach the primary targets further north, hit communications north of the battle area but concentrate mainly on gun positions in the La Spezia area. During the night of 19/20 December, A-20 Havocs attack lights at five locations in the eastern Po Valley.

GREECE: RAF Air Headquarters Greece at Kifisia is attacked by Communist Hellenic People's Army (ELAS) troops. Despite the best efforts of No.2933 Squadron RAF Regiment, the headquarters is overrun tomorrow and a large number of British prisoners are taken and marched north. Supplies are dropped to the column by Wellington Mk. XIIIs of No.221 Squadron RAF.

YUGOSLAVIA: Forty nine USAAF Fifteenth Air Force bombers bomb two marshalling yards in Maribor with the loss of one aircraft.

During the day, RAF bombers of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bomb three targets: 36 bomb tactical targets at Kolasin, 12 hit the West marshalling yard at Sarajevo and four attack a highway bridge at Matesevo.

CHINA: Sixteen USAAF Fourteenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells, escorted by 24 P-40s, attack Pengpu. Four P-51s claim two freighters sunk off Hong Kong and two P-40s destroy three locomotives and a truck at Sinyang.

BURMA: In the British Fourteenth Army's IV Corps area, the Indian 19th Division takes Wunthe. In the XXXIII Corps area, the British 2nd Division, having moved forward from Kohima, crosses the Chindwin River at Kalewa and is relieving the East African 11th Division.

Twelve USAAF Tenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells hit road junctions at Mongmit and south of Kyaukme, the Kyaukme railroad station, and Hsenwi bridge. Seven P-47 Thunderbolts severely damage the Tonbo road bridge, and 11 others hit targets of opportunity during a Onmaka-Hsoplong rail sweep. Forty two P-47s attack supply and personnel areas and troops at Myadaung, Tantabin, and Twinnge, the village of Nyaugbintha, and a truck park near Humon.

Four USAAF Fourteenth Air Force P-38 Lightnings bomb the Wanling-Mongyu road causing a traffic block.

JAPAN: The USAAF Twentieth Air Force's XX Bomber Command flies Mission 22: 36 B-29 Superfortresses, from the Chengtu, China area, are dispatched to hit an aircraft plant at Omura; 17 hit the primary target and 13 others hit secondary target, Shanghai, China, and another two strike other alternates; they claim 5-4-12 Japanese aircraft; two B-29s are lost.

VOLCANO ISLANDS: Twenty seven USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators from Saipan and 25 from Guam, Mariana Islands, strike Iwo Jima. Fourteen P-38 Lightnings from Saipan, with three Twentieth Air Force XXI Bomber Command B-29 Superfortresses as navigational escort, strafe airfields on Iwo Jima. Four B-25 Mitchells from Guam and Saipan carry out three snooper strikes against Iwo Jima during the night of 19/20 December.

PACIFIC OCEAN: In the East China Sea, the Japanese aircraft carrier HIJMS Unryu is torpedoed and sunk by the USN submarine USS Redfish (SS-395) about 204 nautical miles (379 kilometers) northwest of Naha, Okinawa, in position 28.19N, 124.40E. This was the first war voyage for HIJMS Unryu. The ship is carrying a special cargo of 30 Yokosuka MXY7 Navy Suicide Attacker Ohka (Cherry Blossom) Model 11 rocket propelled suicide aircraft before being sent on her way to confront the U.S. invasion forces in the Philippine Islands. The first torpedo strikes Unryu on the starboard side under the bridge; the second torpedo struck 15 minutes later under the forward elevator setting off the deadly Ohka bombs and aviation gas stored in the lower hanger deck. The detonations literally blows the bow area apart. After the boiler rooms flood, the ship lists to over 30 degrees and the order to abandon ship is given. Minutes later, with a 90 degree list, the carrier plunges headfirst into the wate r. There are only 147 survivors of the 1,241 crew plus an unknown number of passengers. Redfish is damaged in the resultant depth charging, and is forced to terminate her patrol.

COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: While the fighting on Leyte, continues, the Japanese high command decides that no more reinforcements or supplies will be sent to the 35th Army.

In the U.S. Army's X Corps area on Leyte Island, the 127th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division continues to battle the Japanese south of Limon. The 12th Cavalry Regiment (Infantry), 1st Cavalry Division, attacks toward Lonoy, on Highway 2, and seizes this barrio. In the XXIV Corps area, the 307th Infantry Regiment, 77th Infantry Division attacks north astride Highway 2 toward Libongao, gaining nearly 3 miles (4,8 kilometers); the 306th Infantry Regiment to the west pushes toward the Palompon road, which patrols reach. On Mindoro Island, the Western Visayan Task Force, helped by Mindoro guerrillas, begins a series of patrol actions along the south, west and northwest shores of Mindoro and a reconnaissance of small islands offshore.

USAAF Far East Air Forces fighter-supported B-25 Mitchells bomb Fabrica Airfield on Negros Island. Fighters on a sweep over Ponay, and Leyte Islands hit Fabrica, Bacolod, Silay, Dumaguete and Alicante Airfields, and the town of Palompon on Leyte Island. On Luzon, B-24 Liberators bomb Legaspi Airfield while P-38 Lightnings hit Batangas Airfield.

The planned bombardment of Luzon by the large carriers of U.S. Third Fleet is canceled because of weather conditions.

NEW GUINEA: Australian Lieutenant General Frank Berryman, Chief of Staff Advanced Headquarter Allied Land Forces South West Pacific, is convinced that U.S. Lieutenant General Richard Sutherland, Chief of Staff South West Pacific Area, is trying to hinder Australian liaison with General Headquarters, and sends a message to U.S. General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, Commander in Chief South West Pacific Area, stating: "General (Thomas) Blamey (Commander in Chief Allied Land Forces South West Pacific and Commander in Chief Australian Military Force) desires direct liaison and would appreciate attachment of Lieutenant General Berryman and small personal staff to Advanced General Headquarters (at Hollandia) as early as convenient to you."

MARCUS ISLAND: Three USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators on armed reconnaissance from Guam bomb Marcus Island. The island is located in the North Pacific about 768 nautical miles (1 422 kilometers) west-northwest of Wake Island and is used as a refueling point for Japanese aircraft en route to the Central Pacific.

EAST INDIES: In the Netherlands East Indies (NEI), USAAF Far East Air Forces B-25 Mitchells, A-20 Havocs, and P-38 Lightnings attack the Kairatoe area on Celebes Island. Other FEAF aircraft on armed reconnaissance, sweeps, and small strikes hit targets of opportunity at many locations throughout the NEI.

A 3 by 4 feet (0,9 by 1,2 meter) piece from a paper Japanese Fu-Go balloon is found at Manderson, Wyoming. The date of the landing cannot be determined. Manderson is located about 105 miles (169 kilometers) south of Billings, Montana.

Four fighters of the USAAF Fourth Air Force, directed by the Los Angeles Control Group to search for a Japanese Fu-Go balloon reported over Santa Monica, California, are unable to locate the target.

UNITED KINGDOM: HMS TORBAY a T Class submarine, launched on 9th April 1940, is sold for scrap. On 5th July, 1941 she sank the Italian submarine Jantina in the Mediterranean north of Egypt and carried out attacks on shipping off Corfu on 4th March 1942, torpedoeing two merchantmen. Commander Anthony Miers was awarded a VC while commanding HMS TORBAY.