August 5th, 1941 (TUESDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: Sgt J. A. Ward (RNZAF) becomes the first and only member of Vickers Wellington bomber crew to be awarded the Victoria Cross. This is for gallantry when flying as a second pilot in an aircraft of No, 75 Squadron during a night raid on the 7th July. (22)
Destroyers HMS Partridge, Lauderdale launched.
Escort carrier HMS Campania laid down.
Destroyers HS Miaoulis (ex-HMS Modbury) laid down.
U.S.S.R.: Moscow: The Germans have wiped out
the "Smolensk Pocket", destroying the Russian sixteenth and Twentieth Armies and
capturing 300,000 Russian soldiers, 3,200 tanks and 3,100 guns. It is a shattering defeat
for the Red Army.
The pocket was created by General Hoth's Panzer Group 3 and General Guderian's Panzer
Group 2 sweeping on from their victory at Minsk and then splitting north and south to
encircle Smolensk.
Smolensk itself, the "gateway to Moscow", fell on 16 July and the Russian forces
east of the city were surrounded. At first they were contained only by the tanks, which
had to wait for the infantry to arrive before attacking the pocket.
Last night the German High Command claimed: "the mass of Soviet forces surrounded
east of Smolensk is now annihilated. The remainder faces disbandment."
Marshal Timoshenko, commanding several newly-raised armies, tried to rescue the trapped
armies, but his attacks were poorly prepared and, although some units broke through, the
rescue attempt failed.
Fighting continues around Roslavl where the Russian Twenty-Eighth Army has also been
hastily assembled to try to break the ring. Guderian launched his tanks against Roslavl on
1 August, captured it three days ago and badly mauled the Twenty-Eighth Army in the
process. So total is this victory that many of the German soldiers think that there is
little left between them and Moscow; they are putting up signposts pointing the way to the
Russian capital. However, Hitler has already decided to switch Hoth to the north to
reinforce the attack on Leningrad and Guderian to Kiev to the south, leaving Moscow to the
infantry.
German communiqués continue to insist that territorial gains are not the main object of
warfare - "what matters is that battles of extermination are proceeding."
In the meantime, reserve Soviet units are being hurried into a new defensive line 20 miles
to the east of Smolensk. It is a thin line, but it could hold the German infantry deprived
of tanks.
NORTH AFRICA: Admiral Darlan is placed in charge of the Vichy police here. General
Weygand is his subordinate.
CANADA: Corvette HMCS Amherst commissioned.
U.S.A.: At 0530 hours in Menemsha Bight, Vineyard Sound, Massachusetts, USA, the presidential yacht USS Potomac (AG-35), with President Franklin D Roosevelt aboard, comes alongside the heavy cruiser USS Augusta (CA-31) and moored; the President and his party board the cruiser and the ship embarks at 0617 hours. For security purposes, the President's flag however, remained in Potomac while she, accompanied by the tender USS Calypso (AG-35), transited the Cape Cod Canal to New England waters. A Secret Serviceman, approximating the President in size and affecting the Chief Executive's mannerisms when visible from a distance, played a starring role in the drama. Press releases issued daily from USS Potomac led all who read them to believe that "FDR" was really embarked in his yacht on a pleasure cruise. Meanwhile, USS Augusta, accompanied by the heavy cruiser USS Tuscaloosa (CA-37) and 5 destroyers, stood out of Vineyard Sound at 0640 hours, at 20 knots passing the Nantucket Shoals lightship at 1125 hours. Increasing speed slightly during the night, the ships steamed on, darkened, to Ship Harbor, Placentia Bay, Argentia, Newfoundland to rendezvous with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
The first Vultee SNV-1 flies and was delivered to Naval Air Station (NAS) Corpus Christi, Texas.
ATLANTIC OCEAN: At 0150,
0154 and 0159, U-372 fired
four torpedoes at Convoy SL-81 west of Ireland. The first torpedo struck the
Belgravian, which burned out and sank the next day. Neumann reported that the
second torpedo missed the target but exploded on a ship beyond and that the
fourth hit an ammunition freighter, which exploded and sank in 50 seconds. The
ship missed was the British steam merchant Volturno, but it is not reported that
the torpedo did hit another ship. The ship sunk was the Swiftpool. Three
crewmembers from the Belgravian were lost. The master, 40 crewmembers and six
gunners were picked up by corvette HMS Bluebell
and landed at Gourock.
At 0540, U-74 fired a spread of
two torpedoes at Convoy SL-81 west of Ireland and three single torpedoes at 0541
and 0542. The U-boat observed a hit amidships with the second torpedo and heard
three detonations after the boat had to dive. Kentrat reported one ship sunk and
three others damaged, however, only the Kumasian was hit and sunk.
One crewmember was lost. The master, 43 crewmembers, six gunners and nine
passengers were picked up by corvette HMS La Malouine and landed at Liverpool.
At 0520, U-75 attacked Convoy
SL-81 west of Ireland and observed a column of fire and water after a first hit
and a column of water after a second hit. Ringelmann then had to dive and was
not able to make further observations. The two ships hit were the Harlingen and
the Cape Rodney. Cape Rodney was taken in tow by tug HMS Zwarte Zee two days
later at 52°11N/14°42W. On 9 Aug the ship foundered west of Ushant in
52°44N/11°41W. The master, 31 crewmembers and four gunners were picked up by
corvette HMS Hydrangea and landed at Gourock. Three crewmembers were picked up
by corvette HMS Zinnia and landed at Londonderry. Three crewmembers from the
Harlingen were lost. The master, 34 crewmembers and four gunners were picked up
by Hydrangea and landed at Gourock.