September 23rd, 1941 (TUESDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: London: General Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French, today announced at a press conference here the setting up of a "national committee". He said that it would be up to the United States and other countries to recognize the committee as his country's government in exile, rather than the German-backed Vichy regime.
In fact, de Gaulle retains all authority and merely consults his nine commissioners, who include Admiral Muselier for the navy, Maurice Dejean, a former diplomat, for foreign affairs and Herve Alphand for the economy. Most colourful is Thierry d'Argenlieu, a former naval captain who spent several years a Trappist monk and escaped to England in a small boat disguised as a Norman fisherman.
Minesweeper HMS Nettle launched.
FRANCE: German troops are ordered to send their blankets to their eastern front colleagues.
Paris: The three-day curfew imposed on Paris by the military governor, General Stülpnagel, has now been lifted. He had imposed draconian measures after a spate of attempts by the Resistance to assassinate members of the German occupation forces. Travel has been banned between 9pm and 5am and places of entertainment have been forced to close at 8pm.
Those arrested for breaking the curfew are treated as hostages to prevent any further resistance. Last week, the Germans murdered 22 hostages in reprisal for crimes which included the attempted assassination of a Wehrmacht captain.
GERMANY:
U-118,
U-409 launched.
U-634 laid down.
U.S.S.R.: German soldiers massacre the population of Krasnaya Gora after partisans kill three German sentries.
Soviet submarine M-74 of the Baltic Fleet is sunk by German air attack at Kronstadt. (Mike Yared)(146 and 147)
Stuka-ace Hans-Ulrich Rudel delivers the striking blow to the Soviet battleship Marat on this date. His gunner reported back to Rudel seconds after he released the bomb that the "ship is blowing up, you got her". The 1000kg bomb fell down the "steamtower" and exploded inside the ship. Rudel thus also destroyed a battleship in addition to the hundreds of tanks he hit in the war.
AUSTRALIA: Minesweeper HMAS Warrambool commissioned.
CANADA: Minesweeper HMCS Georgian commissioned.
NEWFOUNDLAND: Depot ship HMCS Avalon II (ex Georgian) (Lakeways Lines Steamer, Great Lakes passenger service) hired St. John's, requisitioned for use in St John's, as the base facilities there were rudimentary. She was used as an administrative and accommodations facility to support minor warships until the end of the war. Purchased May 42, Laid up Mar 46, later sold.
U.S.A.: President Roosevelt announces that the arming of merchant shipping is under consideration. The concern about possible German attacks has pushed this issue to the front.
The USN's South Dakota Class battleship Massachusetts (BB-59) is launched at the Bethlehem Steel Co., Quincy, Massachusetts. (Marc Small)
Destroyer USS Macomb launched.
ARGENTINA: The following message is sent from the Japanese Embassy in Buenos Aires to the Japanese Embassy in Panama: “When (Japanese) Minister (to Chile) YAMAGATA was in Panama he was asked by the Italian Minister there to deliver some maps and charts of the Panama Canal Zone for him, which he did. Since then, we had USUI go to Chile to take charge of those maps and upon their arrival here they are delivered to the Italian Ambassador. At the same time, we requested that we be given copies of them.”
ATLANTIC OCEAN:
U-68 inspected the Spanish
tanker Gobeo.
U-107 made contact with Convoy
SL-87 which was attacked the following day.
Cutter HMS Lulworth picks up 42 survivors from the SS Niceto de Larrinaga, that was sunk yesterday.