August 29th, 1941 (FRIDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: Destroyer HMS Rockwood is laid down.FRANCE: Paris: The Germans execute a naval officer, Comte Jean d'Estiennes d'Orves and two others who were amongst the first agents sent from London by de Gaulle, in reprisal for the assassination of a German naval cadet on the 21st.
FINLAND: Around noon the advance patrols of 4th and 8th IDs enter the center of Viipuri (today Vyborg in Russian Karelia), the second largest city of pre-1939 Finland. The Soviet units defending the city has been ordered to withdraw the day before, so there has been no fighting. The recapture of Viipuri marks the achievement of one of the main aims of the war. The men entering the city's medieval castle intend to raise a Finnish flag to the castle's main tower, but failing to find one a private's white shirt is raised.
This "flag"-raising has special symbolism attached to it: one of the most famous pictures taken during the Winter War was taken on 13 March 1940, just minutes before the end of the war, of a Finnish flag still defiantly flying from the highest tower of the Castle of Viipuri, soon to be given over to Soviet Union in the harsh peace that ended that war.
Soon after the recapture of the city that same flag that was lowered from the castle 1 years earlier is again raised to celebrate the moment (IIRC the flag is today in the central War Museum in Helsinki).
The news of the recapture causes great celebrations around the country. Flags are flying and special thanksgiving services are held in churches. Hitler awards Mannerheim the Knight's Cross. Two days later a victory parade is staged in the recaptured city although fighting is still going on nearby and time bombs left by the retreating Soviets are being feverishly searched and defused by engineers.
Evacuation of Tallinn to Leningrad. Minefields cause heavy losses, 25 of 29 larger transports are lost. Baltic red fleet loses 5 destroyers, two corvettes, two submarines and two patrol boats. Finnish VMV patrol boats sink one sailing ship and capture two tugs.
EASTERN FRONT: Kamenets-Podolski, Ukraine: After a two-day "special action", SS troops have massacred 11,000 Jewish Hungarian forced labourers.
Mussolini has met Hitler at the Führer's military headquarters at Rastenburg in East Prussia. After talks about military and political strategy, the dictators toured the recently-conquered territory in the Ukraine and visited the Italian units serving alongside the Germans. This, the seventh meeting between the two men since the start of the war, was a full-scale affair with Mussolini resplendent in uniform, striding past knocked-out tanks and blasted buildings.
YUGOSLAVIA: General Milan Nedic is appointed to lead the puppet Serbian government for Germany.
IRAN: Fighting here ends.
FRENCH INDOCHINA: Franco-Laotian Treaty of Protectorate signed
by Vichy French Admiral Jean Decoux, Governor General of Indochina and King
Sisavang Vong of Louangphrabang attaches the provinces of Vientiane, Xiangkhoang
and Louang Namtha to the King's domain recompensing the loss of Lao
territories to Thailand and normalizing Laos status as a protectorate of
Vichy.
AUSTRALIA: Following the
resignation of prime minister Menzies, Artie Fadden (Country Party) becomes
prime minister. Menzies is to be the minister for Defence Co-ordination. (Daniel
Ross)
CANADA: HMCS Mayflower arrives in Liverpool, Nova Scotia for a refit.
U.S.A.: The motion picture "Sun Valley Serenade" is released. This musical, directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, stars Sonja Henie, John Payne, Milton Berle, Lynn Bari, Joan Davis, the Nicholas Brothers, Dorothy Danridge and Glenn Miller and his Orchestra including Ray Anthony, Tex Beneke, Ray Eberle, Paula Kelly, Chummy MacGregor and Billy May. The plot has Payne, the pianist with Miller's Orchestra, sponsoring a Norwegian war refuge who he thinks is a little girl but she is actually Henie. When the band soloist (Bari) quits, Henie puts on an ice skating show as a substitute. Miller's Orchestra performs "Chattanooga Choo Choo," "It Happened in Sun Valley," "At Last," "Moonlight Serenade," and "In The Mood." The film is nominated for three Academy Awards.
Submarine USS Kingfish is laid down.