Monday, October 2, 1944. The end of the Warsaw Rebellion.

With Soviet troops across the Vistula not crossing the river, something often regarded as intentional, the Germans prevailed in defeating the Warsaw Uprising.  200,000 Poles were killed in the battle, most of them civilians, and central Warsaw destroyed.  Between 2,000 and 17,000 German troops were killed in the battle.  Around 15,000 Polish underground and Polish Home Army troops were killed. 15,000 went into captivity.

There's good reason to believe that Stalin saw the Poles and the Germans fighting in the city to his overall benefit.  It killed a lot of Germans, and it killed non communist Poles.

The Battle of Aachen commenced with an American offensive.

The Battle of the Scheldt commenced.

Pack train of 2nd Indian Mule Co., Royal Indian Service Corps, which helped supply British 1st Div. 2 October, 1944. Near Crespino, Italy.

Japanese resistance on Peleliu's Mount Amiangal was defeated.

Lucian Truscott appeared on the cover of Life Magazine.

Cpl. Charles A. Klein, 1929 45th Street, Pennsauken, New Jersey, seals his soldiers' ballet. 2 October, 1944. 6th Armored Division.

The first French regiment of Paris, France, recently organized and put in uniform, passes in review. 2 October, 1944.

 Execution of a French traitor who acted as a spy for the Germans and received 2000 Francs ($40.00) for his services. Traitor is tied to post as firing squad gets ready. 2 October, 1944.

Last edition:

Sunday, October 1, 1944. Battle of Tornio starts.

Labels: 1940s, 1944, Adolf Hitler, Army, Battle of Tornio, British Army, China Burma India Theater, Commandos, Greek Army, Italy, July 20 Plot, Lapland War, Red Cross, Southeast Asia, World War Two

Thursday, September 28, 1944. The Belgrade Offensive and a last telegraph.

Soviet, Yugoslav Partisan, and Bulgarian forces, the latter now in league with the USSR, began the Belgrade Offensive.

Polish Home Army General Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski sent a last telegraph requesting help from the Red Army command for the fighters at Warsaw.  He received no reply.

Churchill announced the formation of a Jewish Brigade.

The US lands on Negesbus and Kongaruru near Peleliu.

Last edition:

Wednesday, September 27, 1944. The Battle of Metz commences.

Labels: 1940s, 1944, Australian Navy, Battle of Metz, boats and ships, Christianity, Finnish Army, George S. Patton, Personalities, Protestant, Sweden, U.S. Air Force, World War Two

Monday, September 18, 1944. Eindoven taken.

Distraught German medic at scene of German surrender, Orléans, September 18, 1944.

The 101st Airborne Division liberated Eindoven.

Lieutenant Colonel Robert George Cole, who would receive the Medal of Honor for his actions during Operation Overlord, was killed by a German sniper during Market Garden.  He was 29 years old.

Another American combatant would be killed in an action that resulted in his posthumously receiving the Medal of Honor.

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to Private First Class Charles Howard Roan (MCSN: 504236), United States Marine Corps Reserve, for the conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the Second Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Peleliu, Palau Islands, 18 September 1944. Shortly after his leader ordered a withdrawal upon discovering that the squad was partly cut off from their company as a result of the rapid advance along an exposed ridge during an aggressive attack on the strongly entrenched enemy, Private First Class Roan and his companions were suddenly engaged in a furious exchange of hand grenades by Japanese forces emplaced in a cave on higher ground and to the rear of the squad. Seeking protection with four other Marines in a depression in the rocky, broken terrain, Private First Class Roan was wounded by an enemy grenade which fell close to their position and, immediately realizing the eminent peril to his comrades when another grenade landed in the midst of the group, unhesitatingly flung himself upon it, covering it with his body and absorbing the full impact of the explosion. By his prompt action and selfless conduct in the face of almost certain death, he saved the lives of four men. His great personal valor reflects the highest credit upon himself and the U. S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his comrades.

The Battle of Arracourt commenced in France.

The US dropped supplies from B-17s to resistance fighters in Warsaw, the only such mission permitted by the Soviets.  The aircraft flew on to Soviet held territory.

It's often been speculated, not without reason, that Stalin allowed the uprising to bleed itself out as it was resulting in the deaths of a present combatant, the Germans, and a feared future one, the Poles.

The Jun'yō Maru was sunk off Sumatra by the British submarine Tradewind resulting in the deaths of 5,620 people, most of whom were Allied POWs or Japanese slave labor.  The event is one of the worst naval disasters of all time, taking into account the lives lost were largely innocent.

Last edition:

Sunday, September 17, 1944. Operation Market Garden commences.

Labels: 1940s, 1944, Animals, Battle of Arnhem, Battle of Nijmegen, Cats, Netherlands, Operation Market Garden, Operation Paravane, Palau, Paratroopers, San Marino, Tallinn, World War Two, Wyoming (LaGrange)

Wednesday, September 13, 1944. The Execution of the SOE Agents.

The first meeting of American troops of General Patton's Third U.S. Army forces with French troops of General Patch's Seventh U.S. Army took place recently when their long reconnaissance arms met at Autun, France. Here Adjutant Emile Lancery, Bouhy, France, left, whose native group landed near Toulon, is shown shaking hands with Sgt. Louis Basil, Follansbee, W.Va., in the first scout vehicle of the Combat Command. 13 September, 1944. Combat Command B, 6th Armored Division.

Greek, Canadian and New Zealand forces attacked the Germans at Rimini, Italy.

The Red Army took the Warsaw suburb of Praga.  That evening, the Soviet air force began dropping supplies to the Home Army in Warsaw.  The action was undertaken due to US and UK pressure.

The Greek People's Liberation Army and the collaborationist Security Battalions fought at Melgalas.

The Navy begana pre invasion bombardment of Peleliu and Angaur.

SOE agents Yolande Beekman, 32, Madeleine Damerment, 26, and Noor Inayat Khan, 30, were executed at Dachau.

Yolande Beekman.

Madeleine Damerment

Noor Inayat Khan.

The USS Warrington sunk in the 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane.

Last edition:

Tuesday, September 12, 1944. Le Havre taken.

Labels: 1940s, 1944, Aegean Sea, British Army, Romania, World War Two

Wednesday, September 6, 1944. Closing in and winding down. . .

Fighting in the rain, Pfc. Lowell Holt, West Des Moines, Iowa, a member of the 5th Armored Division, takes cover behind a truck as he gets set to draw a bead on a German sniper across the street.

The French captured Chalon-sur-Saône.  The Poles liberated Ypres.  The British took Ghent, Courtrai and Armentieres. The Canadians reached the English Channel north of Calais, south of Boulogne. The U.S. Army crossed the Meuse River south of Namur.

Results of the 113th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron encountering a German convoy in Court - St. Etienne, Belgium, 

The Soviet Tartu Offensive concluded with a Red Army victory.  The Red Army reached the Yugoslavian border.

The United Kingdom ended compulsory training for the Home Guard and relaxed blackout restrictions.  The US announced that it planned on demobilizing 1,000,000 following the defeat of Germany.

The moves made sense in context, but in the American case it was over optimistic.  The war with Japan was about to reach its bloodiest stages and it would soon be determined that the manpower needed to take the home islands would be massive.  Moreover, the US would soon find that it had a deficit of infantry in Europe.

Prince Jan Franciszek Czartoryski, a Polish noble and a Dominican friar, was shot by the Germans during the Warsaw Uprising.

Ted T. Tanouye died of his wounds.  He'd receive the Medal of Honor.

Technical Sergeant Ted T. Tanouye distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action on 7 July 1944, near Molino A Ventoabbto, Italy. Technical Sergeant Tanouye led his platoon in an attack to capture the crest of a strategically important hill that afforded little cover. Observing an enemy machine gun crew placing its gun in position to his left front, Technical Sergeant Tanouye crept forward a few yards and opened fire on the position, killing or wounding three and causing two others to disperse. Immediately, an enemy machine pistol opened fire on him. He returned the fire and killed or wounded three more enemy soldiers. While advancing forward, Technical Sergeant Tanouye was subjected to grenade bursts, which severely wounded his left arm. Sighting an enemy-held trench, he raked the position with fire from his submachine gun and wounded several of the enemy. Running out of ammunition, he crawled 20 yards to obtain several clips from a comrade on his left flank. Next, sighting an enemy machine pistol that had pinned down his men, Technical Sergeant Tanouye crawled forward a few yards and threw a hand grenade into the position, silencing the pistol. He then located another enemy machine gun firing down the slope of the hill, opened fire on it, and silenced that position. Drawing fire from a machine pistol nest located above him, he opened fire on it and wounded three of its occupants. Finally taking his objective, Technical Sergeant Tanouye organized a defensive position on the reverse slope of the hill before accepting first aid treatment and evacuation. Technical Sergeant Tanouye's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.

Lest it create some confusion, the rank of Technical Sergeant later became Sergeant First Class, with the same insignia.  A Technician Fourth Grade wore an insignia with three chevrons and a T.

The U.S. Navy's Task Force 38 hit all of the Palau Islands.

Last edition:

Tuesday, September 5, 1944. The USSR declares war on Bulgaria.

Labels: 1940s, 1944, Battle of Turda Romania, boats and ships, Bulgaria, Eastern Front, France, German Kriegsmarine, Italy, New York, Ontario, Radio, Slovakia, SOE, Soviet Navy, Sweden, The Holocaust, USSR, World War Two

Friday, August 5, 1944. The Wola Massacre.

German SS, the Azerbaijani Legion and the Russian collaborationist Kaminski Brigade, commenced killing Poles in the Wola district of Warsaw.  The massacre was ordered by Himmler.

Major Ivan Denisovich Frolov with the officers of the Russian National Liberation Army (RONA) during the Warsaw Uprising.

Between 40,000 and 50,000 Poles would be murdered.

The weirdness of this is inescapable. The Russians in RONA were there partially in order to survive German captivity, and partial in an effort to free their homeland from Communist control. The Soviet Union had helped take away Poland's freedom by invading it along with Germany, and the Polish Home Army was attempting to free their homeland and was anti communist.  The Azerbaijanis were fighting for the liberation of their homeland as well.

The 3d Army took Vannes.

The Cowra breakout occured in New South Wales in which 1,100 Japanese POWs broke out.  They'd all be captured within ten days, although four Australians and 231 Japanese POWs would be killed.

The RAF destroyed the German U-boat pens at Brest.

The Soviet submarine Shch-215 sanke the Turkish motor schooner Mefküre resulting in the death of 300 Jewish refugees.

Last edition:

Thursday, August 4, 1944. The Frank's arrested.

Labels: 1940s, 1944, Army, British Army, Continuation War, Finland, German Wehrmacht, Italy, Netherlands, Normandy, Normandy Breakout, South African Army, The Holocaust, The written word, Warsaw Uprising, World War Two

Thursday, August 4, 1944. The Frank's arrested.

The Jewish Frank family was arrested in Amsterdam by German police.  Only Otto Frank would survive the war, going on to publish his daughter Anne's diary.

They were betrayed by somebody, but it remains a mystery as to who it was.

The Germans retreated from Florence leaving only the Ponte Vecchio bridge entact.  The South African elements of the British 13th Corps entered the city.

The Germans counterattacked between Riga and Jelgava, reestablishing communications.

Polish poet Krzysztof Kamil Baczyński was killed in the Warsaw Uprising.

The solider in the foreground carries an M1 Garand and a bazooka.  The armored vehicle is a M10 tank destroyer.

The 3d Army occupied Rennes.  The British 21st Army captured Evrecy and Villers Bocage.

Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim assumed the Finnish presidency, paving the way for Finland to exit the war.

The British 2nd Division took Tamu, Burma.

The U-671 was sunk by the Royal Navy in the English Channel.

The Matsu was sunk by the U.S. Navy off of Chichijima.

Last edition:

Wednesday, August 3, 1944. Advances in Burma and Normandy.

Labels: 1940s, 1944, boats and ships, Burma, Diplomacy, Education, German Kriegsmarine, Lebanon, Nationalist Chinese Army, Normandy, Normandy Breakout, Operation Overlord, Royal Navy, United Kingdom, USSR, World War Two

Tuesday, August 2, 1944. Murder of the Gypsies.

The last of the gypsies were murdered at Auschwitz.  4,200 people were murdered.

In their memory, this is Memorial Day for Sinti and Roma.

Clearly seeing which way the wind was blowing, Turkey broke off diplomatic relations with Germany.

The Germans launched 316 V-1s on London.  100 reached the city.

Pfc. Joseph A. Calvello of New York City, N.Y., examines the sponge rubber interior of a Russian tire found on a 4.5 cm. anti-tank gun left behind by the retreating Germans in France.

The Allies ceased air strikes on French bridges as the pace of Allied advances increased.

The newly activated 3d Army reached Dinan and the outskirts of Rennes.  The 1st Army captured Villedieu.

The USS Fiske was sunk in the Atlantic by the U-804.  

German midget submarines attacked Allied shipping in the Channel and sank two vessels, including the HMS Quorn.  Of the 58 German Marder submarines used in the attack, only 19 survived.

Fighting continued on Guam, and in Warsaw.

The Arado Ar 234 B Blitz made its first combat flight, a reconnaissance mission over the Allied beachhead in Normandy.

Last edition:

Monday, August 1, 1944. The Warsaw Uprising Starts.