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1921   (TUESDAY) 

ROMANIA: Today is the Birthday of King Mihai I of Romania, born in Sinaia at the Foisor Castle. On 6 September 1940, King Carol II abdicated in favor of his son, Prince Michael who became King for the second time. But the King is left with a purely symbolic role as then Iron Guard (a right extremist movement) government is formed under the leadership of Horia Sima and General Ion Antonescu. On 30 December 1947, the Royal Palace in Bucharest is surrounded by Soviet troops and a few Romanian units loyal to the communists. The Prime Minister threatened to kill the students arrested during pro-monarchist meetings if Michael did not abdicate. The King is forced by Petru Groza, with Soviet backing, to sign an abdication document or face a bloody civil war. The communists quickly declared Romania a People's Republic. (Glenn Stenberg)

1936   (SUNDAY) 

GERMANY: The Italian Foreign Minister, Count Nobile Ciano, conducted a two-day visit to Germany which resulted in the Rome-Berlin Axis Pact. The agreement strengthened the positions of Germany and Italy against Britain and France by establishing a league of revisionist powers against a league of status quo states. Cooperation between Germany and Italy in Spain has helped cement a vague understanding, which is now formally concluded. Italian Premier Benito Mussolini proclaims the agreement in Rome on 1 November.

1938   (TUESDAY) 

AUSTRALIA: The British government appoints the Duke of Kent as the new Governor-General of Australia. This appointment reflects the growing interdependence between Britain and the Dominions in light of the worsening international situation.  

CHINA: The Japanese seizure of Hankou (Hankow) forces the Chinese government and army to withdraw west, up the Yangtze River. The Nationalist Chinese government set up a new capital in Chongqing (Chungking). Japanese control over Chinese territory south of Hankou becomes increasing rigid and several Western powers protest against the Japanese violation of their treaty rights.  

ITALY: The government declares that Libya is an integral part of Italy.

October 25th, 1939 (WEDNESDAY)

Corvette HMS Bluebell laid down.

ENGLISH CHANNEL: U-16 sunk near Dover, in position 51.09N, 01.28E, by depth charges from the British submarine chasers HMS Cayton Wyke and Puffin. 28 dead (all hands lost).

GERMANY: Three days after leaving Kiel, U-60 had to return to the base due to serious engine trouble.

MEXICO: MEXICO City: Leon Trotsky is reported to have said, "Stalin is afraid of Hitler, and is right to be so."

Trotsky had met Vladimir Ilich (Lenin) in 1902 and they began working together on a newspaper the next year. In 1917, as the Russian Tsar abdicated, Trotsky returned to Russia, and in August that year he became a member of the Central Committee of the Bolshevik Party, which had Lenin as its uncontested leader and visionary. In this capacity Trotsky became second in command after Lenin. In 1918 Trotsky was appointed People's Commissar for Military and Naval Affairs, and as such he managed the founding of the Red Army. As Lenin became ill in 1922, and died two years later, Stalin gained the control of the Soviet Union. Stalin disliked and opposed Trotsky, and in 1927 he was expelled from the Executive Committee of Comintern. In 1928 Trotsky was banished to Alma Ata in Kazakhstan, and from there deported to Turkey in 1929. He was allowed to come to Mexico in 1937.

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October 25th, 1940 (FRIDAY)

Battle of Britain: Luftwaffe attacks the airfield at Montrose (Scotland). Last night the Germans reluctantly allow the Italian Expeditionary Force (based in Belgium) to join in the bombing of Harwich, but with dismal results.

The weather is fair but overcast. During the day Luftwaffe aircraft activity is on a larger scale than during the last few days and is almost continuous, most of the effort being centered on London and the Home Counties. At night, activity recommences at about 1830 hours, when London and Birmingham again appear to be the main targets. In Birmingham, a large number of incendiary bombs are used causing about 100 fires, the largest of which is in the Balsall Heath area where a number of small factories are set alight. Many gas and water mains are damaged, and at Bordesley this is reported to have flooded the Great Western Railway and the lines are said to be unusable. Also hit are South Wales and the Midlands as far north as Liverpool. At night the Germans reluctantly allow the Italian Expeditionary Force (based in Belgium) to join in the bombing of Harwich, but with dismal results. RAF Fighter Command claims 14-12-16 aircraft; the RAF losses are ten aircraft and three pilots.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: 3 Hudson aircraft from the 228th RAF Squadron attacked U-46 and one man was fatally wounded and died the next day. [Matrosengefreiter Plaep].

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October 25th, 1941 (SATURDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Battleship HMS Prince of Wales (53) and the destroyers HMS Electra (H 27) and Express (H 61) sails the Clyde for the Far East. Admiral  Tom Phillips is aboard and will command the newly constituted British Far  East Fleet.

London: Churchill condemns German reprisal killings in occupied territories.

USS Wickes (DD-75) is re-commissioned as HMS MONTGOMERY as part of the destroyers for bases deal. (Ron Babuka)

Submarine HMS Seraph launched.

GERMANY:

U-117, U-171, U-437 commissioned.

U-90, U-178 launched.

U-471 laid down.

MEDITERRANEAN SEA: Whilst running supplies to the garrison at Tobruk, fast minelayer HMS Latona (M 76) and the destroyers HMS Encounter (H 10), Hero (H 99) and Hotspur (H 01) are attacked and bombed by German aircraft north of Bardia at 32 15N 24 14E. The cargo and the ship’s ammunition explode, causing the death of 4 officers, 20 ratings and 7 soldiers, but the remainder are taken off by HMS Hero and Encounter. There are 37 casualties. (Alex Gordon)(108)

CANADA:

Minesweepers ordered in Canada - HMS MMS 197, MMS 198, MMS 199, MMS 200 and MMS 201.

Corvette HMCS La Malbaie (ex-Fort William) launched Sorel, Province of Quebec.

U.S.A.: In a Department of State Bulletin, President Franklin D. Roosevelt comments on the execution of hostages by the Nazis: "The practice of executing scores of innocent hostages in reprisal for isolated attacks on Germans in countries temporarily under the Nazi heel revolts a world already inured to suffering and brutality. Civilized peoples long ago adopted the basic principle that no man should be punished for the deed. of another. Unable to apprehend the persons involved in these attacks the Nazis characteristically slaughter fifty or a hundred innocent persons. Those who would "collaborate" with Hitler or try to appease him cannot ignore this ghastly warning."

Anti-Aircraft cruiser USS Juneau launched.

Aircraft carrier USS Hornet commissioned.

ATLANTIC OCEAN:

RCAF Eastern Command makes first attack on a U-boat off Newfoundland.

In the mid-Atlantic, U-107 transferred two ill crewmembers to U-125, which then returned to base.

The Italian submarine R. Smg. Ferraris is damaged by bombs from a British (PBY-5B) Catalina Mk. IB of No. 202 Squadron based at Gibraltar. The sub is unable to dive and the British escort destroyer HMS Lamerton (L 88) rushes to the scene and after a long gun duel Ferraris is scuttled about 264 nautical miles (489 kilometers) west-southwest of Lisbon, Portugal, in position 37.07N, 14.19W.

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October 25th, 1942 (SUNDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: From tomorrow, British cake will become even plainer than it is already. Confectioners will be allowed to add only one layer of jam or chocolate to cakes after baking. White sugar icing has been forbidden since 1940. Cake must now contain no more than 20% fats or 30% sugar. The maximum price will be 1/6 a pound.

The milk allowance is being cut to 2.5 pints a week for adults. A further cut to two pints a week is expected. Pregnant women get an extra pint a day.

Destroyer HMS Wessex laid down.

RAF Bomber Command forms No. 6 (Royal Canadian Air Force) Group, Bomber Command. All squadrons in the Group are manned by Canadian airmen.

FRANCE: During the day, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 12 Douglas (A-20) Bostons to Le Havre to attack the large merchant ship there but they have to turn back because of lack of cloud cover.

U.S.S.R.: The German III Panzer Corps begins their attack south of the Terek River in  the Caucasus.

ITALY: Milan: The RAF completes an overnight attack, after a daytime raid yesterday.

EGYPT: General Montgomery issues decisive orders for the British X Corps  to advance in the Battle of El Alamein. By the end of the day X Corps has  lost about 250 tanks, but 15th Panzer Division has only 40 tanks left. 
 The 9th Australian Division attacks in the northern end of the El Alamein  battlefield. It makes impressive gains which attract Rommel's attention  when he returns from Germany. 

At about 0100 on 25 October, Lumsden asked for a postponement of the attack. Montgomery summoned his corps commanders to a conference at 0330. After listening to what they had to say, Montgomery reiterated his orders for the armoured attack to go through, and took Lumsden (X Armoured Corps) aside to reinforce this.

So X Armoured Corps pressed the attack in the early hours of the morning, took heavy casualties, and then withdrew, but without telling Montgomery!

Only Freyberg's own armour - his attached 9th armoured brigade and his divisional cavalry regiment - stayed on the front line. Montgomery visited the front-line at dawn to confront a livid Freyberg. Freyberg said his New Zealanders would carry the attack themselves with just infantry and artillery, and use his own armour for exploitation. Lumsden lamely agreed.

Montgomery disagreed. He decided to withdraw X Armoured Corps, hoping that a rest and refit would give Lumsden and his divisional commanders the chance to find their lost backbone. He kept Freyberg on the defensive and switched the emphasis of the attack to 9th Australian Division in the north. Morshead would thrust west and north over several days towards the Mediterranean, threatening to cut off and annihilate 125th PzGren Regt on the German extreme left flank.

This is probably where Rommel lost the battle. In retrospect he should have abandoned 125th PG Regt to its fate, but Rrommel and the Axis commanders did not believe they were going to lose the battle. So he tried to save 125 PzGren Regt by throwing in his reserves. In an incredibly violent battle along the Ruweisat Ridge over several days the Australians and Axis beat each other to pulp. British armour under Australian command fought ferociously, the battlefield littered with burning Valentine and German tanks (contrast the poorer performance by X Armoured Corps to the south, with better tanks). (Michael Alexander)

     U.S. Army, Middle East Air Force B-25 Mitchells disperse motor transport and other targets in support of ground forces; P-40s on escort attack vehicles and other targets; fighters claim several airplanes destroyed in combat.

INDIA: Japanese aircraft attack airfields connected with the India-China air transport route, heavily bombing Dinjan and Chabua fields and scoring hits also at Mohanbari and Sookerating; ten US aircraft are destroyed and 17 badly damaged; nine Japanese aircraft are downed.

CHINA: Twelve B-25 Mitchells and seven P-40s of the USAAF Tenth Air Force's China Air Task Force (CATF), hit Kowloon Docks at Hong Kong; 21 aircraft intercept and a B-25 and a P-40 are shot down; this marks the first loss of a CATF B-25 in combat; the Japanese interceptors are virtually annihilated; during the night of 25/26 October, six B-25s, on the first CATF night strike, continue bombing Hong Kong, hitting the North Point power plant which provides electricity for the shipyards; three other B-25s bomb the secondary target, the Canton warehouse area, causing several large explosions and fires.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20 Havocs bomb and strafe the Isurava-Kokoda Track, the west bank of the Kumusi River, and the area north of Asisi as Australian ground forces push toward Kokoda in the Owen Stanley Range.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: With the Japanese Army bogged down in the jungles of Guadalcanal for the  past several days, the Japanese Navy must take action or return for fuel. 

Their carriers Shokaku, Zuikaku, Zhiho and Junyo with supporting ships are  steaming NE of Guadalcanal. The US Navy has Hornet and Enterprise with  escorts. The Japanese have 199 operational aircraft with the US carriers showing  133 operational aircraft.

With both sides receiving assistance from land based aircraft, they have spotted both sides carriers. The Battle of the Santa  Cruz Islands will occur tomorrow.

 The Japanese Army on Guadalcanal finally reach the Marine Defensive Line,  south of Henderson Field in force, between Midnight and 1:00 am. The  battle first involved 1st Battalion 7th Marines and the machineguns of Sgt  John Basilone kept the Japanese off balance. Sgt. Basilone is awarded the  MOH for action this night. As the battle progressed, Lt. Col. (Chesty)  Puller brought in his reserves, platoons of 3rd Btn, 164th USA. By 2:00 the entire 3rd Btn is ordered to the line. The soldiers are placed with  Marines rather than as a unit. The attack continues until dawn with the  center of the line pulling back and absorbing the attack. Isolated small  groups of Japanese have gotten through the line. Marine patrols find 67  during the day. 300 more Japanese have fallen in front of the Marine  Lines. Artillery and mortars have claimed uncounted soldiers in the jungle  and woods beyond the perimeter. 

 The daylight occupies the Americans with 4 air strikes, between 2:20 pm and  3:15 pm, from Rabaul and naval bombardments. The first was from a cruiser,  5 destroyers and a minelayer. The Japanese move in and sink the tug  Seminole and gunboat YP-284 during a ferry run from Tulagi. Shortly after  beginning their bombardment, a Marine battery hits a gun mount on Akatsuki.  They retire under a smoke screen. During this retirement the Cactus AF has  4 Wildcats of VMF-121 strafe them.

 The second Japanese bombardment fleet is spotted by the Cactus AF and 5  SBDs of VS-71 attack at 1:00 pm. Light Cruiser Yura is struck with a 1000  pound and a 500 pound bomb. Destroyer Akizuki suffers a near miss. 2 more  attacks from the Cactus AF do no damage. Then an attack from 5 SBDs of  VS-71, 4 P-39s with bombs and 3 Wildcats, followed immediately by an attack  from 6 B-17s finishes off Yura and damages another destroyer.

 The Japanese raid, at 3:00 pm hits the Henderson Field graveyard of wrecked  aircraft. Losses include 10 Zeros, 2 Bettys and 2 Wildcats. The Wildcat  pilots are rescued. 

 Today will become known as Dugout Sunday on Guadalcanal.

 At 7:30 Japanese artillery begins firing on Marine positions near the coast  on the west side of the perimeter. Between 8:00 and Midnight the Japanese  column fights the jungle to reach their attack positions. 

 The Marines of 1st - 7th Marines and soldiers of the 3rd -164th sort out  their units and settle their sector, south of Henderson Field. At 8:00 pm  Japanese artillery fire hits this sector, for about 1 hour. Then 3 hours of  small actions against the 3rd - 164th line. Groups of 30 - 200 attack  piecemeal.

 At 7:30 Japanese artillery begins firing on Marine positions near the coast  on the west side of the perimeter. Between 8:00 and Midnight the Japanese  column fights the jungle to reach their attack positions.

The US Army 147th Regiment lands on Guadalcanal.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: Thirteen USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb shipping at Rabaul, New Britain Island.

PACIFIC OCEAN: 1100 hours: USS Nautilus (SS-168) sinks a sampan at 41-45 N, 145-32 E. USS Whale (SS-239) sinks a armed tanker at 33- N, 135- E, off Hinominsaki. (Skip Guidry)

- USS Whale (SS-239) lays mines off Honshu, Japan, at the entrance to Inland Sea and later sinks an armed tanker about 68 nautical miles (125 kilometers) south-southeast of Tokushima, Shikoku, Japan, in approximate position 33.00N, 135.00E. (Skip Guidry)

     In the Coral Sea during the afternoon, a USAAF B-17 Flying Fortress on a sea-search mission sights a powerful Japanese Task Force northwest of Santa Cruz Island, Solomon Islands, heading for Guadalcanal. With the Japanese Army bogged down in the jungles of Guadalcanal for the past several days, the Japanese Navy must take action or return for fuel. Their aircraft carriers HIJMS Shokaku, Zuikaku, Zhiho and Junyo, with supporting ships, are steaming northeast of Guadalcanal. The USN has the aircraft carriers USS Hornet (CV-8) and Enterprise (CV-6) with escorts. The Japanese have 199 operational aircraft with the U.S. carriers showing 133 operational aircraft. With both sides receiving assistance from land based aircraft, they have spotted both sides carriers. The Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands will occur tomorrow.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-67 sank SS Primero. After achieving a hit on the ship Primero, U-67 collided with her victim and damaged her periscope.

The commander and the I WO of U-441 were swept overboard in the North Atlantic, but both were rescued by the crew within eight minutes.

BERMUDA: A squadron of US aircraft carriers sails for North Africa to take part in the TORCH landings.

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October 25th, 1943 (MONDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: The anti-Nazi Clandestine Radio, Soldatsender Calais begins transmitting from Crowborough, Sussex. The station carries a program of news bulletins and entertainment for the German forces and adopts the convention of speaking as a German soldiers` station situated somewhere in France. The program is transmitted on three shortwave frequencies and on the medium wave band. The medium wave broadcast is from 2000 to 0500 hours while the shortwave broadcast began at 1830 and ended at 0800 hours. A staff of 50 radio technicians operate the medium wave transmitter as well as two 100 kilowatt shortwave transmitters for U boat crew and other German seafarers. (Charles Gregor)

Frigate HMS Sarawak launched.

Escort carrier HMS Patroller commissioned.

Destroyer HMS Kempenfelt commissioned.

Frigate HMS Bullen commissioned.

Submarines HMS Spirit and Telemachus commissioned.

GERMANY: During the night of 25/26 October, 19 RAF Bomber Command Stirlings lay mines in the Kattegat without loss.

U-678, U-865 commissioned.

U-298 launched.

U.S.S.R.: Forces under Malinovsky attack across the Dniepr at Dneporoetrovsk and Dnierodzerzhinsk. Holding a defensive position on the Dniepr River has been a major problem for the Germans.

ITALY: Allied commanders decide that the initiative must be retained in Italy in order to pin down German forces there and prevent them from massing for a counteroffensive before the spring 1944.

The U.S. Fifth Army, with positions north of the Volturno River firmly established, is ready for a drive against German delaying positions in the mountains from Mt. Massico on the west coast to the Matese mountains on the right boundary. In the VI Corps area, the 135th Infantry Regiment of the 34th Infantry Division moves forward to take up pursuit toward Ailano.

USAAF XII Bomber Command P-39 Airacobras strafe and bomb the landing ground at Podgorica; the XII Air Support Command, Northwest African Tactical Bomber Fore (NATBF) and RAF Desert Air Force (DAF) concentrate on blocking roads and destroying bridges; town areas, vehicles, radio stations, trains, and vessels are also attacked; targets attacked are in or near Frosinone, Formia, Gaeta, Cetraro, along the Sangro River, Kuna, west of Lagosta Island and south of Rome; Tarquinia Airfield is also bombed.

     During the night of 25/26 October, 46 RAF No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bomb the marshalling yard at Pistola; one aircraft is lost.

YUGOSLAVIA: USAAF"> USAAF XII Bomber Command P-39Airacobras strafe and bomb the landing ground at Podgorica; the XII Air Support Command, Northwest African Tactical Bomber Fore (NATBF) and RAF Desert Air Force (DAF) concentrate on blocking roads and destroying bridges; town areas, vehicles, radio stations, trains, and vessels are also attacked; targets attacked are in or near Frosinone, Formia, Gaeta, Cetraro, along the Sangro River, Kuna, west of Lagosta Island and south of Rome; Tarquinia Airfield is also bombed.

During the night of 25/26 October, 46 RAF No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bomb the marshalling yard at Pistola; one aircraft is lost.

ARCTIC OCEAN: U-956 shelled targets on the shore of Spitsbergen with her gun. Land-based artillery returned the fire but did not score a hit on the U-boat.

BLACK SEA: U-23 captured three people from a fishing boat and then sank the boat with hand grenades.

BURMA: Rangoon: Japan has laid a railway line from Bangkok to Burma. The single 300-mile track, half across mountains and jungle, half along the river Kwai Noi valley, was built by 200,000 Asian and 69,000 Allied PoWs. "We will make you work in places no white man has worked before, and harder than any white has worked before," the Japanese said: and 100,000 Asian and 16,000 other PoWs died in the process.

FRENCH INDOCHINA: Six USAAF Fourteenth Air Force P-40s strafe shipping at Haiphong, Vietnam, claiming three small boats sunk and damaging six larger boats.

NEW GUINEA: In Northeast New Guinea, the Japanese begin withdrawing toward Sattelberg in the coastal sector north of Finschhafen, suspending attacks on the Australian 9th Division. Meanwhile, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20 Havocs hit positions near Lae. In Dutch New Guinea, B-24 Liberators carry out a light strike against Manokwari.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: Over 60 USAAF Fifth Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb the Rabaul area on New Britain Island, destroying 20+ airplanes on the ground. Of the 60 to 70 fighters which intercept, the B-24s claim 30+ shot down.

PACIFIC OCEAN: 2300 hours: USS Tullibee (SS-284) sinks a tanker at 26-01 N, 121-93 E. (Skip Guidry)

Nimitz modifies the plan for the Gilberts to specify that control will pass from the amphibious force to the landing force commander when the latter determined that "that status of the landing operations permits." Previously, the ground commander would announce that he was ready to take over, and the amphibious force commander would direct him to do so. (Keith Allen)

In the Gulf of Tonkin off the east coast Vietnam, French Indochina, two USAAF Fourteenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells and four P-40s attack shipping claiming a 150 foot (46 meter) tanker sunk and a 200 foot (61 meter) freighter damaged.

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS: Vice Admiral Raymond A. Spruance, commander of the Central Pacific Force, issues an operation plan, which is subsequently modified somewhat, outlining the organization and tasks of Operation GALVANIC, the invasion of the Gilbert Islands.

CANADA:

Minesweeper HMS Golden Fleece (ex-HMCS Humberstone) laid down Toronto, Ontario.

Frigate HMCS Inch Arran laid down Lauzon, Province of Quebec.

Frigate HMCS Cape Breton commissioned.

HMC ML 112 commissioned.

Corvette HMCS North Bay commissioned.

U.S.A.:

Escort carrier USS Block Island laid down.

Destroyer escort USS Dale W Peterson laid down.

Submarine USS Kete laid down.

Frigate USS Lorain laid down.

Destroyer USS John Hood launched.

Submarine USS Tilefish launched.

Destroyer escorts USS Straub and Rhodes commissioned.

Destroyers USS Paul Hamilton and Halsey Powell commissioned.

Submarine USS Bashaw commissioned.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Submarine USS Tullibee sinks a tanker at 26-01 N, 121-93 E.

HMCS Skeena, a River-class destroyer, A/LCdr. Patrick 'Pat' Francis Xavier Russell, RCN, CO, was wrecked at Videy Island, near Reykjavik, Iceland. Skeena was blown ashore in a 100-knot gale while at anchor. Fifteen of the 21 crewmembers lost (all ratings) were drowned in an attempt to reach the shore using Carley Floats after the ship struck the rocks offshore. The remainder of the crew was evacuated later in a heroic effort by RNVR Patrol Service seamen using a "breeches buoy" under the direction of an Icelander, Einar Sigurdsson. As the storm increased in intensity, the shore authority signalled to the commander of the 11^th Escort Group, Cdr. James D. "Chummy" Prentice in HMCS Qu’appelle, "Enter harbor, if you so desire." The Navigating Officer of Skeena, Lt. Peter G. Chance, was dismayed at a subsequent order by Commander, Cdr. Prentice, for the four ships of the group to go to anchor in the bay behind Videy Island. Lt. Chance went so far as to ask to be relieved of his duties as Navigator and strongly expressed his opinion that it was safer to remain at sea than to go to anchor, under the prevailing conditions. The CO agreed with his navigator but followed his orders and directed Lt. Chance to anchor the ship "in the best location," in the centre of the basin, about 800 yards from the shore in all direction. The ship was anchored in 12 fathoms of water with six shackles of cable paid out to the starboard anchor, the port anchor let go "under foot," and with both boilers maintained at Immediate Notice for steam. The two ‘Canadian’ River-class destroyers, Skeena and Saguenay, were fitted with a single centreline capstan whereas the British versions of the type were fitted with two capstans, making it impossible to work both anchors at once. Only one light was occasionally visible on shore for fixing but the intensity of the storm obscured it for long periods. Ground clutter rendered the radar useless for fixing. Approximately one hour after setting the anchor watch, the ship began to drag her anchors and, although "half ahead" and "full ahead" was ordered on both engines, the ship struck the shore forcefully. The ship broached port side to, and began listing to starboard into the oncoming waves, which broke over the ship up to the height of the bridge. Both of the ship's boats were smashed in attempts to lower them. Soon afterwards, the ship’s back was broken, rupturing fuel tanks and hull plating. This damage released a large amount of fuel oil, which soon mixed with the snow and made decks and the rocks on the shore extremely slippery. The loss of life occurred when the order "Standby to Abandon Ship" was taken to mean "Abandon Ship." Although some managed to get to shore, the majority of the crew remained onboard until the morning, when the storm abated, making it possible to get ashore safely. The Commanding Officer and the Officer of the Watch, Lt. William M. Kidd, the First Lieutenant, were both tried by Courts Martial and were found guilty of "hazarding" and "stranding" the ship. Skeena was broken up for scrap after the war but the barge that contained most of her remains sank en route to the breaker’s yard.

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October 25th, 1944 (WEDNESDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Shortly after take off from a base England, the pilot of the 486th BG, USAAF, B-17 "Deepseat - Baker" was informed that a ground man, a Corporal, had stowed away on board. The pilot radioed the Air Leader for advice and was told to continue the emission as there was flight clothing aboard and an oxygen mask in the bomber. The Corporal was originally in a distressed state but appeared to settle down in the rear fuselage. 

When the bomber had reached 19,000 feet on its way to the target, and while the waist gunner was looking out his window, the stowaway suddenly released the side door and jumped out. He was not wearing a parachute. (Skip Guidry)

NETHERLANDS: US troops attack the German pocket south of Maas. In the Canadian First Army's II Corps area, the Canadian 2d Division, working slowly west along the Beveland Isthmus, reaches Rilland. In the British I Corps area, the U.S. 104th Infantry Division drives north with three regiments abreast toward Zundert.

FRANCE: In the U.S. Seventh Army's XV Corps area, the 44th Infantry Division withstands repeated counterattacks against its positions east of Forét de Parroy. The French 2d Armoured Division is ordered to attack on the right flank of the corps in support of the VI Corps before 1 November. In VI Corps area, the 36th Infantry Division attempts in vain to relieve an isolated battalion of the 141st Infantry Regiment north of La Houssière.

     Headquarters, USAAF First Tactical Air Force (Provisional) is established, but not yet organized, therefore Headquarters Ninth Air Force continues to administer, supply, and control all XII Tactical Air Command and assigned units until mid- November when the First Tactical Air Force assumes full control. The First Tactical Air Force (First TACAF) is assigned to the U.S. Strategic Air Forces in Europe which has some operational control of the Eighth and Fifteenth Air Forces and some administrative control of the Eighth and Ninth Air Forces. Composed of both French Air Force and USAAF units, the new air force will provide tactical air support for the U.S. Seventh Army in southern France.

GERMANY: Berlin: Himmler orders the Reich Anatomical Institute's collection of Jewish death camp victims' skeletons to be destroyed.

The USAAF Eighth Air Force flies Mission 688: 1,250 bombers and 522 fighters are dispatched to hit oil and industrial targets in western Germany; two bombers and a fighter are lost: 718 aircraft hit the Rhenania oil refinery at Hamburg, 216 bomb the Bf 109 repair facility at Neumunster, 92 bomb the Buer and 27 hit the Nordstern synthetic oil refineries at Gelsenkirchen, 100 attack the marshalling yard at Hamm, 37 bomb the marshalling yard at Munster, and six aircraft attack targets of opportunity.

     Shortly after take off from their base at Subury, Suffolk, England, the pilot of the USAAF Eighth Air Force's 486th Bombardment Group (Heavy) B-17 Flying Fortress named "Deepseat - Baker" is informed that a ground man, a Corporal, has stowed away on board. The pilot radios the Air Leader for advice and is told to continue the mission as there is flight clothing aboard and an oxygen mask in the bomber. The Corporal is originally in a distressed state but appears to settle down in the rear fuselage. When the bomber has reached 19,000 feet (5 791 meters) on its way to the target, and while the waist gunners are looking out the windows, the stowaway suddenly releases the side door and jumps out. He is not wearing a parachute. (Skip Guidry)

     USAAF Ninth Air Force's 9th Bombardment Division's missions are cancelled because of bad weather. Fighters fly sweeps, hit rail and military targets in the Saarbrucken area, and support the U.S. XIX Corps in western Germany.

     During the day, RAF Bomber Command sends 771 aircraft, 508 Lancasters, 251 Halifaxes and 12 Mosquitos, to attack Essen; 740 aircraft bomb the city withe the loss of two Halifaxes and two Lancasters. The bombing is aimed at skymarkers, because the target area is covered by cloud. The Bomber Command report states that the attack became scattered, but the local Essen report shows that more buildings are destroyed, 1,163, than in the heavier night attack which had taken place 36 hours previously. A photographic reconnaissance flight which took place after this raid shows severe damage to the remaining industrial concerns in Essen, particularly to the Krupps steelworks. Some of the war industry has already moved to small, dispersed factories but the coal mines and steelworks of the Ruhr are still important. The Krupps steelworks are particularly hard-hit by the two raids and there are references in the firm's archives to the "almost complete breakdown of the electrical supply network" and to "a complete paralysis." The Borbeck pig-iron plant ceases work completely and there is no record of any further production from this important section of Krupps. Much of Essen's surviving industrial capacity is now dispersed and the city lost its role as one of Germany's most important centres of war production. A second target is the Meerbeck synthetic oil plant at Homberg. A total of 243 aircraft, 199 Halifaxes, 32 Lancasters and 12 Mosquitos are dispatched to this target and 228 attack without loss. The target is covered by cloud and bombing is scattered in the early stages but later became more concentrated on the skymarkers. No aircraft are lost.

U-1306, U-2523, U-3014 launched.

U-3527 laid down.

AUSTRIA: Weather again interferes with USAAF Fifteenth Air Force operations and only seven B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb three targets: three each bomb the Main marshalling yard at Innsbruck an aircraft factory at Klagenfurt while one hits the marshalling yard at St. Viet.

NORWAY: Soviet units capture Kirkenes. There is support from Soviet naval units in this far north campaign.

YUGOSLAVIA: During the night of 25/26 October, 25 bombers of RAF's No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group fly supplies to the partisans.

ITALY: The British V Corps reaches the River Ronco.

In U.S. Fifth Army area, elements of the South African 6th Armoured Division wade Setta Creek and take Hill 501, below Mt. Sole. In the II Corps area, further efforts to deepen the Mt. Grande salient, during the night of 25/26 October, are costly failures. In the British XIII Corps area, the 61st Brigade of the 6th Armoured Division gets elements to Mt. Taverna, night of 25/26 October, but withdraws them because of tenuous supply situation.

     In the British Eighth Army area, V Corps reaches the Ronco River from heights across from Meldola to Highway 9. The 4th Division takes Forlimpopoli without a fight. In an attack across the Ronco River during the night of 25/26 October, the Indian 10th Division establishes small bridgeheads south and north of Meldola and the 4th Division crosses two companies northwest of Selbagnone and two others at Highway 9. The Canadian I Corps continues to pursue Germans toward the Ronco River, with coastal elements reaching the Bevano River.

     Weather continues to ground USAAF Twelfth Air Force medium bombers; fighter-bombers attack guns, vehicles, and communications in the battle area south of Bologna while fighters destroy 20+ locomotives in the Piacenza area. .

ROMANIA: Transylvania is completely cleared by Soviet advances.

CHINA: Seven USAAF Fourteenth Air Force P-38 Lightnings and P-51 Mustangs hit the Mongyu bridges and destroy the Kawnghka bridge; four others strafe Nawnghkio Airfield; 20+ P-51s and P-40s on armed reconnaissance attack targets of opportunity at Tengyun, Kweiping, and Ssuanghsu, and about 50 strike targets throughout the Menghsu area.

BURMA: Subadar Ram Sarup Singh (b.1919), 1st Punjab Regt., led his platoon in seizing an objective and then repelling a fierce attack. Already shot, he went on until he was fatally wounded. (Victoria Cross)

The Northern Combat Area Command's (NCAC's) offensive continues against light resistance. The 29th Brigade of the British 36th Division, which has progressed 23 miles (37 kilometers) from Namma against negligible opposition, skirmishes with the Japanese in the Mawpin area.

THAILAND: Six USAAF Fourteenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells and four P-38 Lightnings damage railroad tracks at Dara bridge.

JAPAN: Fifty nine USAAF XX Bomber Command B-29 Superfortresses, flying out of Chengtu, China, bomb an aircraft plant at Omura on Kyushu; several other B-29s hit alternate targets and targets of opportunity.

VOLCANO ISLANDS: Twenty nine USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb Iwo Jima during the morning.

COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: The US 1st Cavalry Division continues its advance in the NE of  Leyte. To the south US advances are held up due to lack of supply.

In the U.S. Sixth Army’s area on Leyte, patrol contact is established between X and XXIV Corps at 1430 hours. In the X Corps area, on northern Leyte, Japanese aircraft attack Babatngon harbor. The 1st Squadron of the 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, during the next few days explores the coast of Carigara Bay and finds few Japanese there. In the Palo area, the 3d Battalion of 34th Infantry Regiment takes Hill C. The 2d Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, gains the crest of Hill B after Japanese defenders have followed their customary practice of retiring from it for the night. The 1st Battalion, 19th, takes Hill 85. Reduction of these heights clears the entrance into the northern Leyte Valley. 3d Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, starts toward Pastrana, reaching Castilla. In the XXIV Corps area, a patrol of the 383d Infantry Regiment, 96th Infantry Division, moves north through Tanauan and makes contact with Company K of the 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. Company K, reinforced, attacks Tabontabon but withdraws when it finds the town too strongly held to take. The 382d Infantry Regiment seizes Aslom and Kanmonhag. After preparatory bombardment, 2d and 3d Battalions of the 32d Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, preceded by tanks, continue their attack toward Buri airstrip. The 3d Battalion reaches the edge of the airfield but the 2d is halted by elaborate defenses at edge of woods to the north. The 17th Infantry Regiment, opposed from a ridge north of Burauen and east of the road to Dagami, makes limited advance while concentrating for another drive toward Dagami, clearing the eastern spur of the ridge and probing the road to barrio of Buri.

     USN submarine USS Nautilus (SS-168) lands men and supplies on the east coast of Luzon.

The Battle of Leyte Gulf continues with the sinking of the USS Midway (CVE-63). (Ken Friedman)

The battleship USS Mississippi shuts down its big guns just after 4.09am, presumably the last main battery battleship to battleship round. (Stanley Sandler)

The Battle for Leyte Gulf continues as Task Group 77.2 (TG 77.2) with six battleships, four heavy cruisers (one Australian), four light cruisers and 28 destroyers (one Australian) under Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf, augmented by TG 77.3 [Australian heavy cruiser, two light cruisers and 13 destroyers (one Australian)] under Rear Admiral Russell S. Berkey) and TG 70.1 (39 motor torpedo boats) execute the classic maneuver of "crossing the tee" of the Japanese "Southern Force" (Vice Admiral NISHIMURA Shoji and Vice Admiral SHIMA Kiyohide) in the Battle of Surigao Strait. The PT boats begin the action against the Japanese ships. PT-137 torpedoes light cruiser HIJMS Abukuma, but PT-493 is sunk by Japanese secondary battery gunfire. The destroyers then attack; USS McDermut (DD-677) sinks destroyer HIJMS Yamagumo about 53 nautical miles (98 kilometers) south-southeast of Tacloban, Leyte, and damages destroyers HIJMS Asagumo and Michisio. Subsequently, light cruiser USS Denver (CL-58) sinks HIJMS Asagumo at entrance of Surigao Strait about 73 nautical miles (136 kilometers) south-southeast of Tacloban. Destroyer Squadron 24 (DESRON 24) enters the fray and USS Hutchins (DD-476) sinks destroyer HIJMS Michisio about 54 nautical miles (101 kilometers) south-southeast of Tacloban; DESRON 56 attacks; USS Albert W. Grant (DD-649) is damaged by both friendly and Japanese gunfire at this phase of the battle. Two Australian warships take part in this fleet action, heavy cruiser HMAS Shropshire (83) in TG 77.3 and destroyer HMAS Arunta I 30) in DESRON 24, that see the destruction of battleships HIJMS Fuso and Yamashiro about 53 nautical miles (98 kilometers) south-southeast of Tacloban. Heavy cruiser HIJMS Mogami and destroyer Shigure are damaged.

     Meanwhile, the "Center Force" (Vice Admiral KURTIA Takeo), which includes four battleships and five heavy cruisers, having passed into the Philippine Sea during the night, surprises the Escort Carrier Group, TG 77.4 (Rear Admiral Thomas L. Sprague), off Samar. Kurita's force wreaks havoc on the six escort aircraft carriers, three destroyers, and four destroyer escorts of TU 77.4.3 (northernmost carrier force) (Rear Admiral Clifton A. F. Sprague). In this battle, which becomes a precipitate flight in the face of an overwhelming Japanese force, Kurita's ships inflict severe damage but emerge bloodied by the Homeric efforts of the "small boys" (destroyers and destroyer escorts) and planes from the escort aircraft carriers (CVEs) that compel Kurita to retire, inexplicably, without destroying the CVEs and their consorts in detail. In the Battle off Samar, Japanese surface gunfire sinks destroyers USS Hoel (DD-533) about 88 nautical miles (163 kilometers) east of Tacloban, Leyte; Johnston about 65 nautical miles (120 kilometers) east of Tacloban; and destroyer escort USS Samuel B. Roberts (DE-413) about 71 nautical miles (131 kilometers) east of Tacloban; and damages destroyer USS Heermann (DD-523) and destroyer escort USS Dennis (DE-405). USS Johnston damages heavy cruiser HIJMS Kumano before being sunk.

     Japanese surface gunfire (either battleship HIJMS Haruna or Kongo) straddles the escort aircraft carrier USS White Plains (CVE-66), St.Lo (CVE-63), and Kitkun Bay (CVE- 71) but scores no direct hits. Heavy cruisers HIJMS Chikuma, Haguro, and Chokai; light cruiser HIJMS Noshiro; and a destroyer sink escort aircraft carrier Gambier Bay (CVE-73) about 69 nautical miles (128 kilometers) east-southeast of Tacloban; the ship capsizes and sinks at 0907 hours; nearly 800 sailors are rescued. Japanese surface gunfire also damages the escort aircraft carriers USS Fanshaw Bay (CVE-70) and Kalinin Bay (CVE-68); the latter claims one hit on a Japanese heavy cruiser with her single 5-inch (12,7 centimeter) gun. Navy carrier-based aircraft damage battleships HIJMS Kongo (from near-misses) and Yamato and heavy cruisers HIJMS Chikuma, Chokai, and Suzuya.

     Subsequently, Japanese planes attack the escort aircraft carriers of TU 77.4.1 (Rear Admiral Thomas L. Sprague). USS Suwannee (CVE-27) is damaged by kamikazes, and Santee (CVE-29) by suicide plane and Japanese submarine HIJMS I-56. Kamikazes near-miss escort aircraft carriers USS Sangamon (CVE-26) and Petrof Bay (CVE-80) while destroyer escort USS Richard M. Rowell is damaged by strafing.

     Following its ordeal off Samar, TU 77.4.3 (Rear Admiral Clifton A.F. Sprague) comes under Japanese air attack. Kamikazes sink the escort aircraft carrier USS St.Lo (CVE-63) about 69 nautical miles (128 kilometers) east-southeast of Tacloban; one plane crashed through her flight deck at 1051 hours, and explodes her torpedo and bomb magazine, setting the ship on fire and she sinks about 30 minutes later. USS Kalinin Bay (CVE-68) and Kitkun Bay (CVE-71) are also damaged by Kamikazes.

     In the Battle off Cape Engano, Luzon, carrier aircraft from the Third Fleet (Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr.) strike the Japanese "Northern Force" (Vice Admiral OZAWA Jisaburo). Planes from aircraft carriers USS Essex (CV-9) and Lexington (CV-16) sink Japanese carriers HIJMS Zuikaku Chitose about 218 nautical miles (404 kilometers) east-northeast of Aparri on northern Luzon, Philippine Islands; aircraft carrier HIJMS Chiyoda, damaged by planes from aircraft carriers USS Lexington (CV-16) and Franklin (CV-13) and small aircraft carrier Langley (CVL-27), is sunk by heavy cruisers USS New Orleans (CA-32) and Wichita (CA-45) and light cruisers USS Santa Fe (CL-60) and Mobile (CL-63) about 292 nautical miles (540 kilometers) east of Aparri. The aircraft carrier HIJMS Zuiho is sunk by planes from Essex (CV-9), Franklin (CV-13), Lexington (CV-16), Enterprise (CV-6), and small aircraft carrier USS San Jacinto (CVL-30) about 247 nautical miles (457 kilometers) east-northeast of Aparri.

     U.S. aircraft, during the Battle for Leyte Gulf, damage Japanese battleships HIJMS Yamato and Nagato and heavy cruiser HIJMS Myoko in San Jose Strait; battleship HIJMS Haruna, east of Samar; light cruiser HIJMS Yahagi off Leyte; destroyer HIJMS Kiyoshimo off Leyte. Heavy cruiser HIJMS Chikuma, damaged by carrier-based aircraft (TU 77.4.2) off Samar, is scuttled by destroyer HIJMS Nowaki about 72 nautical miles (133 kilometers) east of Tacloban, Leyte; heavy cruiser HIJMS Suzuya, damaged by carrier- based aircraft off Samar, is scuttled by destroyer Okinami about 88 nautical miles (162 kilometers) east-northeast of Tacloban; heavy cruiser HIJMS Chokai, damaged by carrier-based aircraft (TU 77.4.2) off Samar, is scuttled by destroyer Fujinami about 71 nautical miles (132 kilometers) east of Tacloban; heavy cruiser HIJMS Mogami, damaged by heavy cruisers USS Minneapolis (CA-36), Portland (CA-33), Louisville (CA-28), light cruisers USS Columbia (CL-56) and Denver (CL-58), and collision with Japanese heavy cruiser HIJMS Nachi, south of Bohol Island, is scuttled by destroyer HIJMS Akebono about 60 nautical miles (112 kilometers) northwest of Butuan, Mindanao; light cruiser HIJMS Tama is sunk by aircraft from USS Essex (CV-9) and Lexington (CV-16) and submarine USS Jallao (SS-368) about 166 nautical miles (308 kilometers) northeast of Aparri, Luzon; destroyer HIJMS Hatsuzuki is sunk by the gunfire of four heavy cruisers and 12 destroyers about 85 nautical miles (158 kilometers) northeast of Aparri; and submarine USS Halibut (SS-232) sinks Japanese destroyer HIJMS Akizuki about 99 nautical miles (184 kilometers) northeast of Aparri. (Skip Guidry and Jack McKillop)

     Japanese air attacks continue against shipping off Leyte: U.S. freighter SS Adoniram Judson is attacked by Japanese planes off Tacloban; Armed Guard gunners claim splashing six aircraft. One bomb explodes close aboard, causing fragmentation damage and wounding two of the embarked stevedores. There are no casualties to the ship's company, 43 merchant seamen and 28 Armed Guards. Freighter SS John W. Foster, anchored in San Pedro Bay, is strafed; seven of the 27-man Armed Guard, three of 170 embarked troops, and an officer, are wounded.

     Allied aircraft and submarines are active:

       - At 0900 hours in the Sea of Okhotsk, USS Seal (SS-183) sinks a Japanese transport about 163 nautical miles (303 kilometers) west-northwest of Onnekotan Island in the Kurile Islands in position 50.18N, 150.50E. (Skip Guidry)

       - At 044 hours, USS Sterlet (SS-392) sinks a Japanese merchant tanker about 91 nautical miles (168 kilometers) south-southwest of Kagoshima, Kyushu, Japan, in position 30.15N, 129.45E. (Skip Guidry)

       - Around 0230 in waters in the northwest corner of the Formosa Straits, USS TANG fires her last torpedo at a transport and the crew watches in horror as the torpedo makes a circular run and striking the ship portside aft near the maneuvering room. The stern sinks immediately and rests on the bottom with the bow sticking out of the water like a buoy.  Motor Machinist Mate Second Class Clayton O. Decker opens the forward ballast tanks and Tang rests upright on the bottom in 180 feet (55 meters) of water. This leads the way for the only instance in WWII where submariners escape from the bottom using the Momsen Lung. A total of 13 make the attempt from the forward torpedo room with only five surviving the ascent and swimming through the night. One man escapes from the flooded conning tower and three others including the captain, Commander Dick O'Kane, survive by being thrown into the water from the bridge. (Sheldon Levy)

       - A Japanese fleet tanker Matsumoto Maru sinks as the result of damage inflicted by submarine USS Tang (SS-306) in Formosa Strait the day before about 62 nautical miles (115 kilometers) south-southeast of Fuzhou, China, in position 25.07N, 119.45E.

       - British submarine HMS/M Tantivy (P 319) sinks a Japanese motor sail ship in the Flores Sea in the East Indies north of Timor. (Jack McKillop_.

       - USN F4U Corsairs sink a Japanese auxiliary submarine chaser north of the Palau Islands in the Caroline Islands.

       - 50+ USAAF Far East Air Forces B-24 Liberators, supported by P-38 Lightnings and P-47 Thunderbolts, attack naval forces in the Mindanao Sea of the Philippine Islands, firing small vessels and claiming a light cruiser damaged. They actually sink a merchant tankers in the South China Sea about 328 nautical miles (608 kilometers) north-northwest of Jesselton, British North Borneo in position 11.18N, 114.50E.

EAST INDIES: USAAF Far East Air Forces B-24 Liberators attack shipping in the Makassar-Kendari area. In the Halmahera Islands, fighter-bombers hit barges and villages in areas of Dodinga and Dodinga. B-25 Mitchells, A-20 Havocs, and fighter-bombers hit Piroe and Saparoea in the Moluccas Islands, Boela Aerodrome and Halong and Amboina on Ceram, Haroekoe on Haroekoe Island, and northern Ceram coastal targets.

NEW GUINEA: In Dutch New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20 Havocs attack supply and fuel dumps in the Sarmi area.

AUSTRALIA: 10 Group (RAAF) is renamed as the First Tactical Air Force, RAAF. Headquarters of this new unit, which controls eight RAAF squadrons, is established on Morotai Island. (Daniel Ross)

CAROLINE ISLANDS: During the day four USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators, on an armed reconnaissance missions, bomb Yap Island. .

PACIFIC OCEAN: Around 0230 in waters in the northwest corner of the Formosa Straits, USS TANG fires her last torpedo and the crew watches in horror as it makes a circular run and striking the ship portside aft near the manoeuvring room. The stern sinks immediately and rests on the bottom with the bow sticking out of the water like a buoy. 

MM2 Clayton O. Decker opens the forward ballast tanks and TANG rests upright on the bottom in 180 feet of water. This leads the way for the only instance in WWII where submariners escape from the bottom using the Momsen Lung. A total of 13 make the attempt from the forward torpedo room with only five surviving the assent and swimming through the night. One man escapes from the flooded conning tower and three others including Cdr Dick O'Kane survive from being thrown into the water from the bridge. (Sheldon)

0400 hours: USS Sterlet (SS-392) sinks and a cargo ship at 30-15 N, 129-45 E.

0900 hours: USS Seal (SS-183) sinks an armed transport at 50-21 N, 150-20 E.

1900 hours: USS Halibut (SS-232) sinks a destroyer (Akitzuki) at 20-29 N, 126-30 E.

2200 hours: USS Jallao (SS-368) sinks a light cruiser (Tama) at 21-33 N, 127-19 E east of Luzon Strait. (Skip Guidry)

U.S.A.: Authorization is given for US forces to fire proximity fuzed shells over land for Anti-Aircraft and antipersonnel uses. (Will O'Neil)(218 pp.277 et seq)

Minesweeper USS Quest commissioned.

Destroyer escort USS Thaddeus Parker commissioned.

Submarine USS Tigrone commissioned.

Destroyer USS Zellars commissioned.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Destroyer HMCS Skeena anchored at Reykjavik dragged her anchor and is driven ashore on Videy Island. Bad weather prevented salvage, and she was written off as a total loss in December. (Alex Gordon)(108)

An escort attacked U-246 with depth charges and damaged her so seriously that she had return to base.

ICELAND: Canadian destroyer HMCS Skeena (D 59) anchored at Reykjavik dragged her anchor and is driven ashore on Videy Island. Bad weather prevents salvage, and she is written off as a total loss in December. Fifteen ratings (enlisted men) are lost. (Alex Gordon)

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October 25th, 1945 (THURSDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: A Class submarine, HMS Aeneas, is launched from Cammell Laird's shipyard at Birkenhead.

Light cruiser HMS Tiger launched.

FRANCE: 22 German PoWs die in a dynamite explosion at Asniéres-en-Bessin near Bayeaux.

GERMANY: Robert Ley, former leader of the German Labour Front, which replaced trades unions and who has been charged before the Allied Military Tribunal at Nuremberg, commits suicide in prison.

CHINA: The Chinese government regains control of Formosa and the Penghu Archipelago from the Japanese.

U.S.A.: Gearing class destroyer, USS Perry, is launched.

Destroyer USS Perry launched.

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