November 11th, 1942 (WEDNESDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: Escort carrier HMS Begum launched.
Submarine HMS Stubborn launched.
ASW trawler HMS Sapper launched.
1942 - HMC ML 087 commissioned.
FRANCE: German troops marched into unoccupied France today, allegedly to save Vichy from invasion. Codenamed Operation ANTON (the name was changed from ATTILA), the move was ordered by Hitler after Laval resisted pressure from Berlin to let German forces occupy Tunisia.
A letter from Hitler to Marshal Petain justified the occupation by saying that he wanted to protect the south of France from an Allied invasion: "When information had been received that the next objectives of Anglo-American invasion were to be Corsica and the south of France, Germany and Italy were forced to take all measures to "arrest the continuation of the Anglo-American aggression." Petain protested against the German invasion of occupied France as a "decision incompatible with the armistice agreement."
The occupation was carried out by German and Italian units. Within 24 hours they controlled the whole of the territory formerly ruled by Vichy except for a small enclave round the naval base at Toulon. Field Marshal von Rundstedt, the German commander, said that the "attitude of the population is indifferent", except in Marseilles.
Although the invasion was a defensive response to the Anglo-US "Torch" landings in North Africa, Hitler admitted in his letter to Petain that it was the escape of General Henri Giraud "which chiefly made me behave in this manner." Giraud, who escaped with a home-made rope from the castle of Konigstein, made his way last week to North Africa with the help of British intelligence and a British submarine.
Italian troops land on Corsica and move into mainland France.
During the night of 11/12 November, RAF Bomber Command Wellingtons lay mines off Bay of Biscay ports: ten lay mines off St. Nazaire; nine off Lorient; six off La Pallice; and four off Brest.
GERMANY: Hitler orders German troops into Vichy.
German armored ship Admiral Scheer returns to Kiel from Norway.
U-532 commissioned.
U.S.S.R.: At Stalingrad, German 6.Armee (von Paulus) launches its last major attack to capture the city and succeeds in reaching the Volga River near the Red October factory on a frontage of 600 yards (549 meters). The Soviets fragment the German effort and within two days the offensive degenerates into a series of unconnected actions. Both sides suffer heavy casualties. While some German units penetrate to the Volga River, others are cut off. Floating blocks of ice in the Volga cause problems with Soviet resupply efforts.
In the Caucasus, 13.Panzer-Division (von der Chevallerie) of III.Panzerkorps (von Mackensen) begins to disengage its units halted before Ordshonikidse to avoid being cut off by heavy Soviet attacks against its rear communications.
MEDITERRANEAN SEA: German submarine U-407 torpedoes and sinks the 19,627 ton British merchant freighter SS Viceroy of India about 47 nautical miles (86 kilometers) north-northeast of Oran, Algeria, in position 36.26N, 00.24W.
The British minelayer HMS Manxman (M 70) maxes a dash from Alexandria, Egypt, to Malta delivering vitally needed supplies.
FRENCH MOROCCO: All resistance of French forces ceases by 0700 hours local. The U.S. Western Task Force cancels an attack on Casablanca because of an armistice and the 3d Infantry Division enters the city at 0730 hours. Combat Command B of the 2d Armored Division receives the surrender of Mazagan and establishes a bridgehead at Azemmour without opposition.
ALGERIA: The Vichy French representative for North Africa, Admiral Jean-Francois Darlan, arranges an armistice with the Allies which ends the fighting in French Morocco and Algeria effective at 0700 hours local. Admiral Darlan also helps the Allied governments to gain control over French West Africa, which eliminates the threat to Allied convoys operating along the African coast.
The British First Army lands elements of the 36th Brigade, 78th Division, at Bougie, 110 miles (177 kilometers) east of Algiers, without opposition. The Hart Force, a mobile task force based on the 11th Brigade of the 78th Division, moves out of Algiers toward Bone, traveling overland.
At 2.30 this morning, the guns stopped firing over Algeria as both sides paused to lick their wounds. Three days of combat brought heavy losses: at Oran, 17 French warships were sunk, while the entire fleet at Casablanca, in Morocco, has been blasted out of existence.
The human casualties have been great. Over 4,000 men died in the fierce struggle between the Allied invasion force and local French troops under the command of Admiral Jean-François Darlan. In the end, it was Darlan who agreed an armistice with the General Mark Clark, the US commander-in-chief, in defiance of Marshal Petain's orders to resist.
The war is not yet won, however. Hitler started to airlift German troops into Tunis today.
The British 11th Brigade moves east from Algiers in strength. The 36th Brigade lands and captures Bougie.
USAAF Twelfth Air Force fighters fly reconnaissance over the Oran-Tafaraoui area and escort C-47 Skytrains carrying paratroops from Gibraltar to Algiers.
LIBYA: X Corps, British Eighth Army, drives the last of the Axis forces from Egypt and enters Libya via Halfaya Pass, taking Bardia without opposition. The 1st and 7th Armoured Divisions continue the pursuit of Axis while the New Zealand 2d Division pauses at the frontier to reorganize.
Fifteen US Army, Middle East Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb shipping north of Bengasi, claiming four direct hits and several near misses on a vessel. P-40s fly a sweep over the Gambut area, claiming three Luftwaffe Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers destroyed.
INDIAN OCEAN: Two Japanese armed merchant
cruisers, Hokoku Maru and Aikoku Maru, attack the Indian minesweeper HMIS Bengal
(J 243) escorting the empty armed Dutch tanker SS Ondina about 1,444 nautical
miles (2 674 kilometers) west-northwest of Perth, Western Australia, Australia,
in position 19.45S, 092.40E. HMIS Bengal mounts one 3-inch (75 millimeter) gun
and some machine guns, SS Ondina mounts a 4-inch (10,2 centimeter) and several
machine guns while the two Japanese armed merchant cruisers mount eight 5.5-inch
(14.0 centimeter), two 3.1-inch (80 millimeter) and four 1-inch (25 millimeter)
guns plus four torpedo tubes. They also carry two "Rufe" seaplanes (Nakajima
A6M2-N, Navy Type 2 Fighter Seaplanes). One shell fired hits the torpedo tubes
on Hokoku Maru causing the torpedoes to explode and turning the ship into a
flaming wreck and she sank.
Both BENGAL and, ONDINA claimed the decisive hit on HOKOKU MARU and no account I
have seen has come down definitely in favour of one ship or the other. According
to Roskill, and quoted in Gill:
The Japanese account says that, ONDINA hit the first raider, but the BENGAL's
report is emphatic that it was her own gunfire which did the damage.'
Meanwhile, HMIS Bengal was firing at Aikoku Maru until she ran out of ammunition and steamed away leaving SS Ondina. The crew of the Ondina kept firing at the Japanese ship and in turn, was hit several times. However, a tanker has many individual tanks and she was empty so a shell in one or more tanks would not sink her. The crew of Ondina fired their last shell and the captain ordered "Abandon Ship." Aikoku Maru approached the tanker and fired two torpedoes which struck the ship and exploded but did not sink her despite a 30-35 degree list. The Japanese then opened fire on the three lifeboats and two rafts, fired another torpedo at the tanker which missed, picked up survivors from the Hokoku Maru and then departed the area. The tanker was still afloat and the crew reboarded her and set sail for Fremantle, Western Australia. HMIS Bengal arrived at Diego Garcia Island on 17 November while SS Ondina arrived at Fremantle on 18 November. After the failure of this engagement, the Japanese discontinue their armed merchant cruiser program. (Ric Pelvin)
BURMA: Nine USAAF Tenth Air Force P-40s hit Shinghbwiyang causing heavy damage.
NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the Japanese Oivi-Gorari defenses are defeated and the Australian 16th Brigade moves forward and finds Oivi deserted. Six hundred Japanese have died in the battle. Meanwhile, the headquarters of the 126th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division, is flown to Pongani. In the air, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20 Havocs bomb and strafe targets in the Wairopi area.
PORTUGUESE TIMOR: Colonel Spence of Sparrow Force, signals Darwin that his men of the 2/2nd Company are in urgent need of relief after fighting a guerrilla war for the last 10 months. Darwin agrees and a flotilla of two Bathurst corvettes, HMAS Castlemaine and HMAS Armidale along with Kuru are earmarked to take them out. The 2/2 with 363 all ranks plus 150 Portugese troops and 190 Dutch troops from a Dutch "Stay behind" unit are to be lifted over the nights of the 30th November to the 5th of December: 61 Dutch native troops with two Dutch officers and 3 AIF men are to be landed during the same operation and embarked aboard the HMAS Armidale. (William L. Howard)(188, 189, 190, 191)
SOLOMON ISLANDS: The US advance towards Kokumbona on Guadalcanal continues, in spite of General Sano's order to his 2nd Btn 228th Infantry to destroy the US forces west of the Matanikau River. The offensive halts shortly after noon and the units ordered to withdraw. The troops could not be told the real reason for the withdrawal. Another Japanese offensive to retake Guadalcanal was in the offing.
Admiral Halsey orders Admiral Kincaid to get carrier USS Enterprise underway and to "be prepared to strike enemy targets in Cactus [Guadalcanal] area."
The American westward offensive toward Kobumbona is halted because of strong indications of an all-out Japanese attempt to recover the Lunga area. After reaching positions a little beyond those gained on 4 November, the assault force begins withdrawal across the Matanikau River east of Lunga perimeter, the 2d Battalion of the Army's 164th Infantry Regiment closes a gap on the south flank of the U.S. line. along Gavaga Creek and drives north to the beach while 7th Marine Regiment closes in from east and west. A Naval force bringing reinforcements and supplies from the New Hebrides Islands arrives and begins unloading; when the three transports of the force are damaged by Japanese aircraft, the group retires to join naval forces approaching from New Caledonia.
Admiral William F. Halsey, Commander South Pacific Forces and South Pacific Area, orders Rear Admiral Thomas C. Kinkaid, Commander, Cruisers Pacific Fleet and Commander, Task Force 61, to get aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CV-6) underway and to "be prepared to strike enemy targets in Cactus [Guadalcanal] area."
At 0930 hours local, nine "Val" dive bombers (Aichi D3A, Navy Type 99 Carrier Bomber) escorted by 18 "Zeke" fighters (Mitsubishi A6M, Navy Type 0 Carrier Fighter) from the aircraft carrier HIJMS Hiyo, attack USN ships offloading supplies and personnel at Guadalcanal. USMC F4F Wildcat pilots shoot down five "Vals" and five "Zekes" but lose six F4Fs and four pilots. A USAAF pilot in a P-39 Airacobra shoots down a sixth "Zeke." At 1100 hours local, 25 "Betty" bombers (Mitsubishi G4M, Navy Type 1 Attack Bombers) escorted by 26 "Zeke" fighters, bomb Henderson Field on Guadalcanal. Seventeen USMC F4F Wildcats intercept and shoot down seven "Bettys" and one "Zeke;" a USAAF P-39 Airacobra pilot shoots down an eighth "Betty." One F4F Wildcat is lost.
USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses attack shipping off the south coast of Bougainville Island.
PACIFIC OCEAN: Search aircraft from Guadalcanal Island report at least 61 Japanese ships in the Buin-Tonolai in the southern area of Bougainville Island and other ships are massed at Rabaul, New Britain Island, Bismarck Archipelago.
Four Japanese submarines launch "Glen" seaplanes (Kugisho E14Y, Navy Type 0 Small Reconnaissance Seaplanes) to fly reconnaissance over Allied bases:
- HIJMS I-7's "Glen" flies over Vanikoro, Santa Cruz Island, Solomon Islands.
- HIJMS I-9s "Glen" overflies Espirito Santo, New Hebrides Islands.
- HIJMS I-21's "Glen" reconnoiters Noumea, New Caledonia Island.
- HIJMS I-31's "Glen" overflies Suva, Viti Levu Island, Fiji Islands.
TERRITORY OF ALASKA: ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: Three USAAF Eleventh Air Force B-26 Marauders, three B-17 Flying Fortresses, and three B-24 Liberators are over Japanese-held Kiska Island; the B-26s make unsuccessful runs on a ship in Gertrude Cove and the B-17s and B-24s find the submarine base closed by weather. A weather aircraft flies over Attu and Amchitka Islands.
CANADA:
Frigate HMCS Wentworth laid down Esquimalt, British Columbia.
Corvette HMCS Owen Sound laid down Collingwood, Ontario.
U.S.A.: The motion picture "Road to Morocco" is rushed to the Paramount Theater in New York City to take advantage of the publicity from yesterday's landing of Allied troops in North Africa. Directed by David Butler, this comedy stars Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour, Bob Hope, Anthony Quinn, Monte Blue and Yvonne De Carlo. This is the second Crosby/Hope/Lamour "Road" film.
Henry J. Kaiser readies the launch of a Liberty ship in San Francisco Bay. The ship's keel was laid in Richmond at midnight 7 November and completed in 4 days, 15 hours, 26 minutes.
Destroyers USS Stockton, Stevenson, Schroeder and Ringgold launched.
Submarine USS Tullibee launched.
Destroyer escorts USS Osterhaud and Parks laid down.
Minesweeper USS Salute laid down.
Minesweeper USS Staff commissioned.
GREENLAND: Construction of a LORAN (long range aids to navigation) station begins at Fredericksdaal on the southwest coast.
ATLANTIC OCEAN:
U class submarine HMS Unbeaten operating a patrol in the Bay of Biscay is not
heard form again after 6 November. An investigation into her probable cause of
loss suggests that she was the victim of an attack made on 10 November at 1745
by RAF Wellington Mk. VIII aircraft F of 172 Squadron RAF on a submarine at 46 50N 06 51W
which was within ten miles of Unbeaten’s estimated position. There are no
survivors. (See Evans A.S. Beneath the Waves, London, William Kimber 1986
pp327.) Officially the file remains open.
British destroyer
depot
ship HMS Hecla (F 20) which was proceeding to Gibraltar to augment dockyard repair
facilities is torpedoed and sunk 180 miles west of Gibraltar at 35 43N 09 57W by
U-515 (Kapitanleutenant Werner
Henke).
A total of 279 crewmen went down with the ship and 568 men are rescued by
escorting destroyers. Henke thought his target was a Southampton class cruiser, and just two
hours later blew the stern off destroyer HMS Marne which was escorting Hecla.
Marne, however made port at Gibraltar. (Alex Gordon & Jack McKillop)(108)
Submarine FS Sidi Ferruch sunk off Fedhala Roads, Morocco by aircraft from escort carrier USS Suwannee.
U-160 sank SS City of Ripon.
U-407 sank SS Viceroy of India in Operation Torch.
U-380 sank SS Nieuw Zeeland in Operation Torch.
U-173 damaged USS Hambleton (DD-455) and oiler USS Winooksi (AO-38) and sank USS Joseph Hewes (AP-50) in Convoy UGF-1, off Fedala Roads, French Morocco.
U-354 lost one man overboard [Fähnrich zur See Horst Mayen].