Timeline to War (Beginning 1939)

1)      1939

a.      January

                                                    i.     French Ambassador in Berlin, André François-Poncet: “Hitler suggests that they install an extraterritorial throughway with an auto highway and railway line through the Corridor, so that East Prussia has a direct connection with the Reich.  Beck had stated that such a solution appeared acceptable to him.” (1:513)

b.      4 January

                                                    i.     Roosevelt has the US fleet from the Pacific pass through the Panama Canal to the Atlantic side for maneuvers in the Caribbean.  On the same day, he requests $1.3 billion for arms production and asks Congress to repeal or relax the US neutrality laws (this latter being refused). (1:524)

c.      5 January

                                                    i.     Poland’s Foreign Minister Beck visits Hitler in the Alpine residence near Salzburg.  Hitler, still hoping that his agreement regarding Teschen would result in some gratitude, offers again to concede all lost territories to Poland in exchange for Danzig and extra-territorial transit rights, with some further clarification: “Danzig comes politically to the German community and remains economically with Poland.”  Beck doesn’t budge, but offers to consider further solutions.  The peace is not lost. (1:490)

d.      7 January

                                                    i.     Joseph Grew, lifelong friend of Roosevelt and ambassador to Japan, writes that economic sanctions would not work “unless the United States is prepared to resort to the ultimate measure of force.” (10:191)

e.      11 January

                                                    i.     The People’s Commissariat of Defense Industry is disbanded; it is replaced with four new commissions: shipbuilding, weapons, aviation, and ammunition. (2:127)

f.       12 January

                                                    i.     Report to the Polish Foreign Office by the Polish Ambassador at Washington, Count Jerzy Potocki

1.      “Public opinion in America nowadays expresses itself in an increasing hatred of everything . . . connected with National Socialism. Above all, propaganda here is entirely in Jewish hands . . . It is interesting to observe that this carefully thought-out campaign -- which is primarily conducted against National Socialism -- no reference at all is made to Soviet Russia.”

g.      19 January

                                                    i.     Henry Stimson, having recently joined the American Committee for Non-Participation in Japanese Aggression, is reported in the New York Times, headlined “Group to Ask Curb on Aid to Japan; Stimson Heads Committee That Will Fight American Sales of Iron, Steel, and Oil.” (10:188)

h.      25 January

                                                    i.     German Foreign Minister visits Warsaw – a third attempt on the German side to resolve Danzig.  Once again, there is no progress, but also the door is not closed: “…agreement that both the present and the future issues that concern jointly both states should be examined and resolved, with protection of the legitimate interests of both nations.” (1:490)

i.       26 January

                                                    i.     French Foreign Minister Bonnet gives a speech on the broad outlines of his foreign policy before the National Assembly in Paris: “In the event of war, …if England and France should be drawn into it, all the forces of Great Britain are available to France as all the forces of France are to Great Britain….  Regarding the relations with Poland, it suffices to recall that the Polish Foreign Minister Beck has declared that the Polish-French friendship invariably represents one of the foundations of Polish politics.” At the same session, Prime Minister Daladier says “That it is fitting to oppose a categorical no to the demands of some neighbors.”  This is before Hitler occupies the remainder of Czechia. (1:491)

j.       February

                                                    i.     The Polish General Staff work out guidelines for the operations of their armed forces in a war against Germany. (1:492)

                                                   ii.     Roosevelt undermines the ongoing German-British negotiations on a trade agreement through his own offer of a trade treaty [with Britain] which excludes a German-British Treaty. (1:525)

k.      March

                                                    i.     Polish newspapers in West Prussia-Pomeralia call for a boycott of Germans: shops, market stalls, restaurants, hiring, etc. (1:555)

l.       4 March

                                                    i.     Polish military begins work on “Plan Operacyny Zachud” (Operation Plan West), one month before Hitler orders the Wehrmacht to work on “Case White.” (1:492)

m.    10 March

                                                    i.     At the Eighteenth Congress of the Communist Party, it is declared that Great Britain wants to trigger a war between the Germans and the Soviet Union – while Britain remained on the sideline. (2:233)

n.      16 March

                                                    i.     Hitler marches troops into the rest of disintegrating Czechoslovakia. (1:492)

                                                   ii.     This action perhaps spoiled his chances of bringing Danzing through diplomatic means, as Hitler went beyond his previous agreement with Britain. (1:523)

                                                  iii.     France’s Foreign Minister Bonnet proposes French-Soviet deliberations to the Soviet Ambassador in Paris regarding possible joint action against Germany in case the Germans take new action toward another East European country. (1:539)

                                                  iv.     After German advance into Czechoslovakia, Polish Foreign Minister Beck makes use of British anger at the Germans and asks the British for a protection agreement.  Britain agrees. (1:493-494)

o.     18 March

                                                    i.     Soviet Foreign Minister Litinov offers a proposal similar to that offered by Bonnet on March 16 – this to include the governments of Paris, London, Warsaw, Bucharest and Ankara.  Poland pushes back on any agreement with the Soviets. (1:540)

p.      19 March

                                                    i.     The English Foreign Office asks the American one to a) continue the cooperation between the two navies and b) to transfer the US Navy to Hawaii in the Pacific – freeing up the British fleet for the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.  On the 23^rd, Roosevelt agrees to both. (1:525)

q.      20 March

                                                    i.     Roosevelt introduces a bill in Congress to revise the neutrality laws. (1:525)

                                                   ii.     Britain makes its initial offer to Poland to take on a guarantee for its security. (1:526)

                                                  iii.     Britain wants to include the Soviets in a guarantee arrangement for Poland, but Poland refuses. (1:532)

r.       21 March

                                                    i.     Von Ribbentrop petitions to Ambassador Lipski for passage to Warsaw, to request new negotiations.  This is the fourth attempt. (1:494)

s.      22 March

                                                    i.      Hitler reincorporates Memel (Lithuania) into the Reich. The poor treatment of German minorities in Poland intensifies. (1:466)

t.       24 March

                                                    i.     Poland makes a partial mobilization of troops in Danzig, contrary to the German-Polish Treaty. (1:494)

u.      25 March

                                                    i.     A “Directive of the Führer,” filed in the German Foreign Office: “Führer wants however to solve the Danzig question non-violently.  Would not like to push Poland thereby into the arms of England.  A possible military occupation of Danzig would only come into consideration if Lipski intimates that the Polish Government cannot publicly support a voluntary surrender of Danzig….” (1:515)

v.      26 March

                                                    i.     Lipski returns to Berlin with a memorandum in response to German proposals; fundamentally a clear “no.”  Von Ribbentrop replies that the only clear solution is reintegration of Danzig to the Reich.  Lipski answer is that “he has the unpleasant duty to point out that any further pursuit of these German plans, particularly so far as they concern the return of Danzig to the Reich, means war with Poland.”  This is the first overt threat of war between the two countries. (1:495)

                                                   ii.     Von Ribbentrop replies: “That, for example, a violation of the Danzig sovereign territory by Polish troops would be considered by Germany in the same manner as a violation of the Reich’s borders.” (1:496)

                                                  iii.     Hitler, when informed by von Ribbentrop of the conversation, replies: “Of war, of course, there may be no talk here.” (1:497)

                                                  iv.     With negotiations between Britain and Poland regarding a guarantee at an “impasse,” [perhaps due to Britain’s desire to include the Soviets in the guarantee and Poland’s refusal of same?] Roosevelt exerts influence over Chamberlain.  He sends Ambassador Kennedy to Chamberlain, indicating the danger of an insufficient guarantee for the Poles and for peace. (1:526)

w.    27 March

                                                    i.     German Chargé d’Affaires in Washington, Hans Thomsen to Minister von Ribbentrop in Berlin: “The announcements and measures of the American government in the last few weeks show ever more clearly that President Roosevelt’s claim to leadership in world political affairs is directed at the objective of destroying National Socialist Germany with all available resources….” (1:526)

x.      28 March

                                                    i.     Back in Warsaw, Beck summons German Ambassador von Moltke to give him his views.  Beck: “That any intervention by the German government for a change of the existing status quo in Danzig will be regarded as an attack against Poland.” (1:497)

                                                   ii.     Von Moltke replies: “You want to negotiate on the points of bayonets.” (1:497)

                                                  iii.     All that is left for Germany is abandonment or war regarding Danzig. (1:497)

                                                  iv.     Von Moltke reports to Berlin regarding the Polish illusion of its armed-forces to those of the Wehrmacht, and a statement from Vice-Minister of War Gluchowski: “…therein he states that the German Wehrmacht is a big bluff, for Germany lacks the trained reserves to fill out its units.  When asked whether he believes that Poland is seriously superior to Germany, Gluchowski answered: ‘But that is self-evident.’” (1:567)

                                                   v.     Madrid falls to Franco and the nationalists, ending the Spanish Civil War. (2:100)

y.      31 March

                                                    i.     After arguments in favor by Lord Halifax before the Lower House, the British government announces the guarantee of Poland against Germany. (1:498, 533)

                                                   ii.     Paris also declares a guarantee for Poland. (1:529)

z.      3 April

                                                    i.     Hitler gives the order for “Case White,” for the Wehrmacht to prepare for an attack on Poland anytime from 1 September and on. (1:498) It is a conditional directive.  From the directive: “German relations with Poland remain determined by the principle: avoid disturbances.  If Poland changes its policy towards Germany, which up to now has been based on the same principle, and adopts a threatening attitude toward the Reich, a final reckoning may be required.” (1:516)

1.      “The political leaders consider it their task in this case to isolate Poland if possible, that is to say , to limit the war to Poland only.”

                                                   ii.     The Polish Foreign Minister travels to London to obtain in writing the British guarantee.  Both parties now assure each other that they will assist each other in case of an indirect or direct threat by other states. (1:534)

aa.   7 April

                                                    i.     Italy attacks Albania. (1:534)

bb.   13 April

                                                    i.     France and England offer a joint guarantee for Greece and Romania (1:534)

cc.   14 April

                                                    i.     Roosevelt sends a letter to Hitler and Mussolini, demanding guarantees not to attack 31 named states. (1:526)

                                                   ii.     French, British, and Soviet mediators begin discussing a possible alliance against Germany. (1:540)

dd.   15 April

                                                    i.     The American naval attaché informs the French Navy High Command in Paris that Roosevelt, without asking Congress, could order the American navy into the Irish Sea or to the Philippines, if there should be any indications about the military plans of the Axis powers. (1:526)

ee.   17 April

                                                    i.     Soviets propose a triple alliance to include France and Britain, against Germany. (1:540)

                                                   ii.     Soviet Ambassador Merekalov in Berlin calls State Secretary Weizsacker, declaring: “that ideological differences of opinion need not upset the German-Russian relationship, as they do in fact the Russian-Italian relations…. The Soviet Union has not used against Germany the current frictions between Germany and the Western democracies, and also does not wish to do that.” (1:540)

ff.     19 April

                                                    i.     Roosevelt lets the British know it is indispensable that Britain adopt universal conscription.  Such a law is passed in the Lower House on 28 April. (1:526)

gg.   24 April

                                                    i.     General staffs of Britain and France meet in London (through May 4) to discuss Poland; mostly discuss the British-French cooperation in case of war. (1:534)

                                                   ii.     Britain promises 32 divisions to support France, Gamelin reports the number as 40 to the French cabinet. (1:535)

hh.   27 April

                                                    i.     Hitler announces the cancellation of the German-Polish Friendship and Non-Aggression Treaty of 1934, via memorandum to the Polish government and the next day in a Reichstag speech. In the speech, he offers once again to negotiate on the status of Danzig, while renouncing all claims to territories lost to Poland.  This is Germany’s fifth offer. (1:498)

ii.      28 April

                                                    i.     Hitler one more time makes an offer to the Polish Government: Danzig returns as a Free State to the German Reich; Germany receives a road and railway corridor to Danzig.  In exchange, Germany recognizes Poland’s complete economic rights in Danzig, with a free port and totally free access; remaining boarders between Poland and Germany remain as present; a twenty-five year non-aggression pact between Germany and Poland. (1:517)

jj.      3 May

                                                    i.     Litinov is replaced as Soviet foreign minister by Molotov. (7:115)

kk.   4 May

                                                    i.     British Ambassador writes from Berlin to Minister Lord Halifax in London: “Once again the German case on the immediate issue is very far from being either unjustifiable or immoral…. My thesis has always been that Germany cannot revert to normalcy…until her legitimate (in German eyes) aspirations have been satisfied…. According to my Belgian colleague, practically all the diplomatic representatives here regard the German offer in itself a surprisingly favourable one.  The Dutch Minister, the United States Chargé d’Affaires and my South African colleague have themselves spoken to me in that sense.” (1:500)

ll.      5 May

                                                    i.     Foreign Minister Beck, regarding the demands of Germany, in the Sejm (the parliament in Warsaw) says that the status of the Free City of Danzig is not based on Versailles, but on traditionally belonging for centuries to Poland. (1:499)

                                                   ii.     The Polish government, by note, replies to the German cancellation of the Non-Aggression Pact: Poland wants to negotiate, Germany has always pledged to respect Polish rights in Danzig, and Poland has already met the Germans halfway via the 26 March response brought by Lipski. (1:499) The rights Poland claims for Danzig are those same rights offered by Germany in the previous German proposals. (1:500) Poland demands Germany continues to respect the Non-Aggression Treaty (ignoring the Polish army deployments to the outskirts of Danzig on 24 March). (1:500)

mm.                   11 May

                                                    i.     On the border between Mongolia and China near the river Khalkhin-Gol, armed conflict occurred between the Soviets and Japanese; the Soviets in Mongolia and the Japanese in China. (2:105)  

1.      Incident between Mongolian cavalry and Manchukuoan cavalry.

2.      Shortly thereafter, Soviet and Japanese forces entered the war.

nn.   15 May

                                                    i.     General Gamelin of France promises to Poland’s Minister of War Kasprzycki to attack Germany with the mass of the French Army in the event of war over Danzig. (1:478, 529)

                                                   ii.     When asked by members of the French military delegation regarding Poland’s border defenses, and if these will withstand a German attack, Polish Minister of War General Kasprzycki replies: “We have no fortifications, for we intend to wage a mobile war and right at the beginning of operations to penetrate into Germany.” (1:567)

oo.  19 May

                                                    i.     An outcome of the meeting between the war ministers of France and Poland is a written agreement obliging the French army to start an offensive against Germany by the 15^th day of conflict.  The document does not differentiate if Poland is attacked or first attacks. (1:529)

                                                   ii.     Churchill, in a speech before the Lower House, justifying the desire to form alliance with the Soviets: “without an Eastern front there can be no satisfactory defense in the West.  And without Russia, there can be no effective Eastern front.” (1:543)

                                                  iii.     In the same speech, Churchill offers justification for the necessary sacrifice of the Baltic states in any alliance with the Soviets: :What about the Baltic States of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia for whose sake Peter the Great went to war?  Russia has the greatest interest that these countries not fall into the hands of Nazi Germany.” (1:545)

pp.   23 May

                                                    i.     Poland until May has been in Hitler’s “wishful thinking” a potential partner.  Now Poland becomes a victim.  For the first time, Poland enters more concretely into Hitler’s vague notions of “Lebensraum.” In a speech on this date to his top generals, Hitler says as much.

qq.   31 May

                                                    i.     Gamelin writes the guidelines in support of the agreement to come to the aid of Poland.  It is not clear that any offensive will begin within the 15 days, as stipulated in the agreement. (1:530)

1.      Was Poland merely baited, with Gamelin having no intention to follow through?

rr.     May

                                                    i.     In a fact-finding mission for the London foreign office, two officials report on the confidence of the Polish military in any battle with Germany: “…one is thinking to attack East Prussia at the start of the war because it would be difficult for the Germans to reinforce the province promptly and adequately…” “Anyway the general view seemed to be that East Prussia must be annexed by Poland.” (1:472)

ss.    June

                                                    i.     Harassment of minorities in Poland increases in such a way that tension-free negotiation is no longer possible. The situation also deteriorates “psychologically.”  Hitler wants success, price is beside the point. (1:501)

                                                   ii.     Roosevelt fails in Congress; Congress refuses to lift the arms embargo against warring nations and to soften the neutrality laws. (1:527)

tt.     1 June

                                                    i.     Soviets declare “We will defend the borders of the Mongolian People’s Republic [against Japan] as we defend our own.” (2:105)

uu.   7 June

                                                    i.     State Department warns that an oil embargo would “impel Japan toward moving into the Dutch East Indies…therefore…no restrictions should be placed at this time on the exportation of petroleum products to Japan.” (10:191)

1.      FDR agreed with this assessment. (10:191)

vv.   June

                                                    i.     Roosevelt tells Britain’s King George that if London were bombed, the US would enter the coming war. (8:147)

ww.                    8 July

                                                    i.     Paris and London present a draft treaty to Moscow. (1:541)

xx.   17 July

                                                    i.     Paris and London present a second draft treaty to Moscow. (1:541)

yy.   20 July

                                                    i.     From the weekly newspaper “Narod W Walce” (People in the War): “Danzig must remain Polish, and Germany must be forced to relinquish the East Prussian area without population to Poland.” (1:473)

zz.    24 July

                                                    i.     A treaty is initialed (but not signed) between France-Britain-Soviets. (1:541)

aaa.                    26 July

                                                    i.     US notifies Japan of its intent to terminate the 1911 Treaty of Commerce and Navigation with Japan; termination takes effect six months later, on 25 January, 1940.

bbb.                    3 August

                                                    i.     Berlin offers to Moscow talks regarding an agreement. (1:545)

ccc. 4 August

                                                    i.     Stalin approves a document entitled “Agenda for the Negotiations with England and France,” with five different plans of attack with up to 120 army divisions against Germany. (1:541)

ddd.                    5 August

                                                    i.     Chargé d’Affaires of the Soviet Embassy in Berlin, Astakhov, pays a visit to the Senior Counselor in the Foreign Affairs Office, Schnurre.  From Foreign Minister Molotov, he conveys that the Soviet Union is interested in normalization and improvement of its relations with Germany. (1:541)

                                                   ii.     Customs dispute erupts in Danzig.  The tensions escalate significantly.  From the Polish Commissioner-General, if directives issued by the Danzig Senate are not reversed: “The Polish government without delay will take retaliatory measures against the Free City.”  Hitler advises the head of the Danzig Senate to find a way to ease tensions. (1:557)

eee.                    8 August

                                                    i.     British Ambassador Henderson comments on the Danzig customs incident, in a note to Foreign Secretary Halifax in London.  He suggests that these actions tend to humiliate Hitler; if the actions are not of His Majesty’s government, then all efforts should be taken to not drive Hitler to react promptly, because of pride.(1:558)

                                                   ii.     Swedish mediator Dahlerus suggests a secret German-British-French-Italian talk about peaceful settlement of the disputes.  The German Reich agrees immediately; England lets it be known that it cannot answer at this time. (1:570)

fff.   11 August

                                                    i.     British and French delegations arrive in Moscow to discuss joint actions against Germany. (2:106)

ggg.                    12 August

                                                    i.     Hitler notifies Italian Foreign Minister Count Ciano that he will attack Poland after the next provocation.  To Ciano’s further query, Hitler replies “End of August.”  In the meantime, Hitler is hindered by British and French attempts to bring the Soviet Union to their side – an event which by Hitler’s own account would have stopped him from any invasion plans. (1:520)

                                                   ii.     Astakhov contacts Schnurre a second time, informing him on behalf of Molotov that “on the Soviet side one is interested in a discussion of the individual groups of questions which have so far come up,” including the “Polish problem.” (1:546)

hhh.                    13 August

                                                    i.     Talks begin in Moscow, including the military missions from Paris and London.  From Marshal Voroshilov: “Soviet troops operating against East Prussia and in Galicia, and England and France operating in the West, it would be the end of Germany.” (1:542)

                                                   ii.     Poland continues its refusal to consent to such an alliance, (rightly) fearing that the Soviets, in order to attack Germany, would have to march through Poland…and might then never leave. (1:542)

iii.     15 August

                                                    i.     Soviet-German talks begin in Moscow.  Moscow wants from Germany: a moderating influence on Japan, as the two are still at war; a non-aggression pact with Germany; a trade treaty with Germany; a joint guarantee of the Baltic States (meaning a Soviet domination). (1: 546)

jjj.     16 August

                                                    i.     From British Ambassador Henderson in Berlin, to Lord Halifax, by telegram: “I would recommend myself that the Polish Government should be persuaded – and persuaded at once – to instruct the Polish Ambassador here to make some form of démarche which he should easily be able to do through Göring …. Lipski after all is a ‘persona grata’ here…. The Poles could deplore deterioration of the situation and suggest the maintenance of the status quo ante March…to allow diplomatic negotiations to start again.” (1:561)

kkk. 17 August

                                                    i.     Two telegrams from Halifax to Kennard, the British Ambassador in Warsaw, show no reaction to Henderson’s telegram of yesterday. (1:562)

                                                   ii.     In a written response delivered to the German Ambassador, Molotov reiterates points made on 15 August.  Additionally, he writes that, because of Germany’s anti-Soviet stance, the Soviet Union has been forced “to take the first measures to prepare a defensive front against a possible aggression against the Soviet Union from Germany’s side.”  He continues: “that the Soviet government has never had any aggressive intentions against Germany.” (1:547)

                                                  iii.     Molotov proposes a “special protocol,” but does not at this time reveal the contents.  It will later be shown that the protocol includes: the German government will recognize that east Poland, Bessarabia, Finland, and the Baltic sphere belong to the Soviet sphere of interest. (1:547)

lll.     19 August

                                                    i.     Attempt by Britain-France to bring Soviets into alliance against Germany fails. (1:536) They explain this is due to objections by the Polish government. (1:548) Russians believe that a) France only wants to protect its borders, and b) as the British delegation does not have full authority to negotiate, that the objective for the Western democracies is for Russia to bleed alone against Germany. (1:542)

                                                   ii.     Stalin explains to the Politburo his decision for alliance with Germany, and not England-France: a trio of England-France-Soviet Union against the Germans would end the war too quickly.  Germany fighting only against France and England would drag out longer, wearing out the forces of the participants further. (1:543)

                                                  iii.     Stalin decides to stop talks with Britain and France.  (2:108)

                                                  iv.     Stalin begins mobilization of Red Army in Mongolia.  Zhukov defeats the Japanese with lightning speed. (2:108) at 0545, 153 Soviet bombers, covered by fighter aircraft, carried out a surprise raid on Japanese air bases and command posts. (2:114)

                                                   v.     Stalin holds a secret meeting of the Politburo.  He gives a speech, suggesting that Germany will certainly invade Poland once the treaty between Soviets and Germans is signed; England and France will then enter the war.  The capitalists will then wear each other out, and the Soviets must do all they can to prolong this – in order to exhaust the two sides.  For this reason, the Soviets side with Germany. (2:109) Stalin: “If we make a pact of mutual aid with Great Britain and France, Germany will give up Poland and…the War will be averted.” (2:122)

                                                  vi.     By 1600 hours, the German Ambassador is summoned to Molotov at the Foreign Office, handing him a treaty with a provision that it is valid only with the signing of the previously mentioned “special protocol,” not yet available. (1:548)

mmm.               19 August

                                                    i.     Politburo decision authorizes the formation of troops in inner districts to later move these to the western front. (2:224)

nnn.                    20 August

                                                    i.     Hitler sends a telegram to Stalin, informing him that he accepts the draft of the Non-Aggression Pact, and he wants to send von Ribbentrop with “comprehensive Proxy Power” for the signing of the treaty and the drawing up and signing of the protocol. (1:548)

ooo.                   21 August

                                                    i.     Stalin invites von Ribbentrop to Moscow, arrival date of 23 August. (1:548)

ppp.                    22 August

                                                    i.     In a speech to his generals, Hitler says: “It was clear to me that sooner or later it had to come to a conflict with Poland.”  This statement would not have been surprising to the generals, given Poland’s actions against Germany over the previous two decades. (1:477)

                                                   ii.     From the same speech: “The relationship with Poland has become intolerable.  My suggestions to Poland about Danzig and the Corridor were foiled through the intervention of England.  Poland changed its tone towards us.  This stressful situation is intolerable in the long run…. Now the time is more favorable than in two or three years.” (1:521)

                                                  iii.     Hitler also mentions that he took the decision of the attack as early as the Spring of 1939.  If true, this was the time of Poland’s movement toward the British and French. (1:521)

                                                  iv.     Hitler at this time does not yet know that the “special protocols” will include, not a joint guarantee for the Baltic States, but the inclusion of the Baltic States and other parts of East Europe, including Eastern Poland, in the Soviet “sphere of influence.” (1:548)

qqq.                    22 August

                                                    i.     Roosevelt, at Daladier’s suggestion, calls for a World Peace Conference in Washington. (1:570)

rrr.   23 August

                                                    i.     Morning newspapers are filled with reports of the flight of von Ribbentrop from Berlin to Moscow. (1:572)

                                                   ii.     Chamberlain sends Henderson with a letter to see Hitler.  Hitler assures Henderson of his personal appreciation, then complains of England’s attitude regarding Danzig: “Germany has made Poland a decent and fair offer,” to which Henderson replies “that the German offer was indeed made, but it had the character of a diktat.” “He (Hitler) sees no possibility by way of negotiations because he is convinced that the British government is not interested in such a settlement.”  Hitler regrets that England “makes him her enemy, he who himself wanted to be England’s greatest friend.”  Hitler stresses “that Germany has never undertaken anything to the detriment of England, nevertheless England places itself against Germany. “…at the slightest Polish attempt to take actions against Germans, or against Danzig, he will intervene immediately….” (1:572)

                                                  iii.     Chamberlain’s letter contains two new offers: the first is a play for time – that negotiations between Poland and Germany be put on hold until the situation has cooled down; the second is more substantial – Chamberlain holds out the prospect for later negotiations parallel to those on the Danzig question “in which it might be possible to discuss wider problems affecting the future of international relations, including matters of interest to us and you.” (1:573)

                                                  iv.     Hitler replies to Chamberlain’s letter on the same day.  Germany has tried in vain to win England’s friendship; Germany has never sought conflict with England; Germany was prepared to settle the Danzig question on terms of “unparalleled magnanimity”; England has sabotaged this effort through cheap propaganda and the guarantee to the Poles; Germany will no longer tolerate pressure and ultimatums to the minority Germans in Poland and against Danzig.  The letter ends: “The question of the treatment of European problems on a peaceful basis cannot be decided by Germany but primarily by those who, since the crime committed by the Versailles dictate, have stubbornly and consistently opposed any peaceful revision…. I have all my life fought for German-English friendship; the attitude adopted by British diplomacy – at any rate up to the present – has, however, convinced me of the futility of such an attempt.  Should there be any change in this respect in the future no one could be happier than I.” (1:575)

                                                   v.     Hitler has the High Command of the Wehrmacht prepare for attack on Poland on 26 August at 430 hours. (1:575)

                                                  vi.     Hitler sends a telegram to Daladier: “I harbor no enmity against France.  I have personally renounced Alsace-Lorraine, and I have recognized the German-French border…. Now, the Polish challenges have produced a situation for the Reich which cannot last…. I will not attack France.  But if it participates in the conflict, I will go to the end.” (1:575)  Daladier’s reply is four days later. (1:576)

                                                vii.     Hitler and von Ribbentrop conclude a Non-Aggression Pact with Stalin and Molotov. (1:520) The pact is to be valid for ten years. (1:549)

1.      Immediately after the signing of this pact, Stalin forms the 9^th Army on the borders of Romania. (2:197)

                                               viii.     Neither side is to come to the aid of Poland to protect it from the other. (1:550)

                                                  ix.     As to the “special protocol,” von Ribbentrop is now surprised to learn of the Soviet sphere of influence requirement.  Additionally, Stalin wants two ports in Lithuania and Latvia – without this concession, there will be no treaty.  Von Ribbentrop, despite having full authority, is not sure how far he may proceed. (1:549)

                                                   x.     At 2000 hours, von Ribbentrop phones Hitler.  Hitler agrees, without much hesitation.  Everything is thereafter signed. (1:549)

                                                  xi.     The suddenness by which the German-Soviet treaty is signed, so shortly after the efforts of England and France have failed, is a shock throughout Europe.  Yet, Poland still makes no concessions on Danzig. (1:550)

                                                xii.     The French cabinet takes stock to determine if – even without Russia’s help – it can meet its treaty obligations to Poland.  Through this, the following thoughts of Gamelin are revealed: a) he sees at the earliest an aid to the Polish army only in the Spring of 1940, and not 15 days after the conflict, b) he viewed the point of the May agreement as one where Poland would help France against Germany – as there was no German threat against Poland when the agreement was made in May, he did not believe the promise would be called, and c) there are not any plans to come to the rescue of Poland in case of attack by Germany. (1:531)

1.      Bonet, the French Foreign Minister, does nothing to warn his Polish counterpart of these facts. (1:531)

                                               xiii.     In Mongolia, Zhukov completes his encircling operation against the Japanese. (2:114) Zhukov is given the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. (2:115) Stalin does not publicize this victory; implication is in order to hide capability of Soviet military in order to surprise Germany in the near future. (2:116)

sss.  24 August

                                                    i.     Moscow immediately notifies Roosevelt of the treaty with Germany.  Including the “secret protocol” which divides Poland in two.  Roosevelt does not immediately notify either Warsaw, London, or Paris. Instead, that evening he sends a message to Warsaw and Berlin that one might find solutions via peaceful negotiations. (1:551, 579)

                                                   ii.     Hitler confides to State Secretary Ernst von Weizsäcker that he believes England will drop Poland (with the Soviet switch to the German side), and Warsaw will concede to Hitler’s demands. (1:521)

                                                  iii.     Roosevelt sends a peace message to Hitler and Polish President Moscicki.  His message: “refrain for a certain time from any aggression,” and agree to direct negotiations.  Hitler, who has been asking for direct negotiations for some time, ignores the message from Roosevelt. (1:570)

                                                  iv.     Prime Minister Chamberlain, addressing the Lower House, reaffirms the allegiance of Britain to Poland, and notes the uncompromising attitude of Germany regarding Danzig: “[The Poles] have always been ready, as I am sure they would be ready now, to discuss differences with the German Government.” (1:577)

                                                   v.     Ambassador Henderson reports to London: “With the Russian pact in his hands the initiative is now Hitler’s….I anticipate an ultimatum to Poland.” “It was heartbreaking since, as you know, I have held from the beginning that the Poles were utterly foolish and unwise.” (1:577)

                                                  vi.     Hitler receives a message that today could see the signing of an English-Polish Assistance Treaty.  Hitler decides he must gain time for further negotiations.  Hitler alters the attack on Poland, previously scheduled for 26 August, to an unknown date. (1:578)

                                                vii.     Poland closes the borders of Danzig.  Supply shortages soon follow. (1:580)

                                               viii.     A commercial Lufthansa aircraft is shot by Polish guns. (1:593)

ttt.   25 August

                                                    i.     Hitler offers London an alliance if the British government will be helpful in the recovery and resolution of Danzig.  Germany will then guarantee Poland’s new frontiers, and will provide German assistance in the defense of the British Empire wherever in the world it is needed.  After Czechia, London puts little faith in German guarantees. (1:536)

                                                   ii.     Swedish mediator Dahlerus departs Berlin for London. (1:580) After his visit, he conveys to Göring that there is hope for resolution. (1:587)

                                                  iii.     London and Warsaw conclude the assistance agreement previously pledged.  The agreement includes support for military resistance deemed necessary to counter a threat (whether direct or indirect) against the independence of a treaty partner.  With this, it is left to Poland to decide when the indirect threat becomes an act of war.  (536)

1.      There is a secret additional protocol to the agreement: it is only valid against Germany, and not, for example, against the Soviet Union. (1:538)

                                                  iv.     Hitler receives several reports of clashes and strikes overnight on both sides of the Polish-German border. (1:580)

                                                   v.     Hitler sends a message to Mussolini, attempting indirectly to gain Italy’s support for the dispute with Poland. (1:581)

                                                  vi.     Hitler receives confirmation of the London-Warsaw agreement. (1:581)

                                                vii.     Hitler meets with Henderson, reporting on the border clashes, and again holding hope for a German-British agreement. “If the British Government would consider these ideas, it could produce a blessing for Germany and also for the British Empire.  If they reject these ideas, there will be war.”  Henderson re-affirms the Polish-British alliance, and that the German offer of alliance cannot be considered until Danzig is solved via negotiation.  Hitler retorts that he has tried negotiation for six months. (1:582)

                                               viii.     Hitler follows this conversation with a note to Henderson. (1:583)

                                                  ix.     Hitler confirms the new date for attack on Poland at 31 August, if there is no other solution by then.  His generals have previously told him that they cannot begin after 2 September due to the risks of weather. (1:583)

                                                   x.     Hitler meets with French Ambassador Coulondre, and asks him to send a message to Daladier: “I bear no enmity whatever towards France….I find indeed the idea that I might have to fight France on account of Poland a very painful one…. I will not attack France, but if she joins in the conflict, I will go to the end.” Coulondre replied that France would most certainly come to the aid of Poland.  He conveys that the reason for giving blanket support to Poland goes back to Germany’s occupation of Czechoslovakia, beyond the Sudeten region. (1:584)

                                                  xi.     Mussolini replies to Hitler that Italy is not prepared to join a war with Germany at this time. (1:585)

                                                xii.     Halifax tells Kennard in Warsaw to tell the Poles that they should do nothing to be seen as the aggressor. France has delivered a similar message the day before. (1:586)

                                               xiii.     A second Lufthansa aircraft is shot at by Polish guns; also a seaplane was shot. (1:593)

uuu.                    26 August

                                                    i.     Henderson returns to London with Hitler’s latest proposal. (1:588)

                                                   ii.     Dahlerus returns to Berlin, with a seemingly positive report. (1:588)

                                                  iii.     Hitler, after midnight, summons Dahlerus and suggests that Henderson has perhaps not understood Hitler.  (1:588)

1.      Hitler asks Dahlerus to travel again to London to convey his views: Hitler wants an immediate alliance with England, not contingent on a solution for Danzig; England to provide assistance to Germany to obtain Danzig and the Corridor; Germany will guarantee Poland’s borders; etc. (1:589)

                                                  iv.     Halifax receives Count Raczynski, the Polish Ambassador; he sees the German solution as no solution.

                                                   v.     Ambassador Coulondre reports to Paris from Berlin with a new proposal – an exchange of population in the areas of the Polish-German border, relieving the minority problem through deportations.  Warsaw is notified and agrees to this proposal. (1:590)

                                                  vi.     Daladier responds to Hitler’s message; no reference to the possibility of a population exchange is mentioned. Beyond this, the letter confirms France’s support of Poland. (1:590)

                                                vii.     A Polish cavalry unit in the East Prussian district of Neidenburg is confronted by soldiers of a Königsberg artillery battery.  Forty-seven Poles fall in machine gun fire.  (1:591)

vvv. 27 August

                                                    i.     Dahlerus returns to Berlin after receiving London’s reply.  He arrives late in the evening. (1:591) Göring views the response negatively. (1:592)

www.                28 August

                                                    i.     Beck, responding now to open threats by Hitler and via third-party mediation, declares he is agreeable to new German-Polish negotiations on the future of Danzig. At the same time, he is evasive regarding specific talks. (1:501)

                                                   ii.     Hitler views the London reply (brought by Dahlerus) favorably. Most valuable is London’s apparently agreeable reply to an alliance not conditioned on settlement of the Danzig issue.  He looks forward to England’s assistance in bringing about a fair settlement.  Finally, he agrees to the borders of Poland being guaranteed not just by Germany, but also England, France, Italy and the Soviet Union.  Presumably this request by London was in reaction to Hitler’s actions in Czechoslovakia. (1:594)

                                                  iii.     Meanwhile, London is preparing an official reply, which contains not a single word about Danzig and the Corridor.  This leaves open the question- just what is Poland to negotiate? (1:596)

                                                  iv.     Hitler receives the official reply from Henderson, with the promise to study it carefully. (1:597)

xxx. 29 August

                                                    i.     It appears in Berlin that morning that peace is coming. (1:597)

                                                   ii.     The Soviet High Command announces reinforcements on its western border. Mobilization preparation begins in the several countries. The border between Italy and France is closed. Switzerland convenes 100,000 border troops. (1:598)

                                                  iii.     From German Chargé d’Affaires in Washington: “Roosevelt holds neutrality to be reprehensible….” Roosevelt wants to intervene militarily if England and France fall into danger of defeat, or if it looks like there is certain prospect of the English-French victory. (1:598)

                                                  iv.     Upon careful study of the response brought by Henderson the night before, certain passages seem confusing – to indicate England will not commit to aid in the negotiations with Poland. (1:599)

                                                   v.     Hitler replies that negotiations must commence in 29 hours: a Polish dignitary with full authority to arrive in Berlin for this purpose. (1:601) Hitler justifies this urgency with a statement that a serious disturbance can, at any time, start the war. “Remember that my people are bleeding day after day.” (1:602)

                                                  vi.     Henderson attempts to secure such a Polish negotiator, even through the French and Italian Ambassadors in Berlin.  He then notifies London of Hitler’s reply. “Hitler is not bluffing and at any moment a clash may occur…” (1:602)

                                                vii.     In Poland, they decide they must not concede on Danzig, and the only solution is military, despite being advised by Britain to negotiate.  Poland will announce the general mobilization the next day. (1:603)

                                               viii.     Göring, quite upset that peace is once again slipping away, sends for Dahlerus: “Hitler intends to send to Poland in the course of the next day a note which will contain such light conditions that they certainly could be accepted by Poland and supported by the English Government.” (1:604)

yyy. 30 August

                                                    i.     At 1000, Kennard from Warsaw reports the situation in Poland to London.  He believes Beck will not go to Berlin and does not accept the short deadline.  As Poland did not accept similar proposals from Germany in March (prior to England’s backing), Kennard see no reason why today – with England’s backing – things would change. (1:610)

                                                   ii.     Dahlerus arrives in London. He believes Chamberlain has lost his patience and lost faith in the usefulness of further negotiations. (1:605)

1.      Chamberlain considers Hitler’s offer of a new proposal a “ruse to gain time.” Or perhaps a concern that it will be Poland that then starts the war. (1:606)

                                                  iii.     Against England’s advice, Poland has mobilized. (1:606) At 1730 hours a report arrives from the German Embassy in Warsaw that since this morning all over Poland the general mobilization has been effectively proclaimed. (1:609)

                                                  iv.     Hitler forwards a new offer (the sixth) – or a new demand, as the Poles see it: a referendum for the people in the Corridor. (1:501)

1.      The people of West Prussia-Pomeralia would determine the belonging to Germany or Poland; the vote is to be under an international commission made up of Italy, the Soviet Union, France, and England; the region of Gdingen is excluded from this referendum, this region is strictly Polish sovereign territory; for the benefit of the loser of the referendum, an extra-territorial traffic zone will be established, consisting of a highway and four-track rail line.  (1:502, 522)  Hitler is quite confident that this very moderate proposal will bring Chamberlain to the German side. (1:612)

                                                   v.     Poland has until midnight to send a fully authorized negotiator to Berlin. Beck accepts neither the time pressure nor Berlin as the negotiating venue. (1:502)

                                                  vi.     Regarding this proposal, French historian Rassiner writes (after the war): “It seems correct that, if the French and British peoples had known of these propositions on 30 August, Paris and London could not have declared war on Germany, without unleashing a wave of protestations that would have imposed peace.” (1:504)

                                                vii.     From the wife of the just resigned First Lord of the British Admiralty Cooper: when hearing of the proposal, she finds it quite “reasonable.”  Her husband, fearing the British public would view it the same, calls the editors of the Daily Mail and the Daily Telegraph, asking them to present the proposal in the most unfavorable light. (1:504)

                                               viii.     At 1900 hours, Halifax sends a telegram to Kennard in Warsaw: the Germans have accepted the English proposal to direct German-Polish negotiations and the five-powers guarantee.  He mentions nothing of the new information from Dahlerus, instead stating that a new German proposal is forthcoming. (1:610)

                                                  ix.     Hitler postpones again the start of the attack, from 31 August to 1 September. (1:609)

                                                   x.     Washington, Paris, and Warsaw implore each other to remain steadfast – no effort to reduce the risk of the outbreak of war is discussed. (1:609)

                                                  xi.     France’s Chief of the Foreign Office Leger commits Daladier to the policy of not compelling Poland to negotiate with the Germans; he does this in the presence of the American Ambassador Bullitt. (1:609)

                                                xii.     In Warsaw, American Ambassador Biddle is notified of what the Poles think about Hitler’s proposal.  Biddle notifies Secretary Hull in Washington: Beck has said “no 40 times” to Hitler’s offer to negotiate. (1:610)

                                               xiii.     By 2300 hours, von Ribbentrop no longer expects an emissary from Poland. (1:611)

                                               xiv.     French Ambassador Coulondre in Berlin, writing to Prime Minister Daladier: “The trial of strength is turning out in our favor. …reports speak of a growing dissatisfaction among the population…. Now, as before, we must stand firm, stand firm and again stand firm.” (1:622)

zzz.  31 August

                                                    i.     Henderson and von Ribbentrop meet just after midnight.  Henderson indicates the complaints of the Poles regarding German atrocities at the border.  To this, von Ribbentrop loses control – just last night there are reports of more than 200 murders of ethnic Germans in Poland.  The conversation becomes icy.  Henderson indicates that the British government is not in a position to demand a fully-empowered Polish negotiator to Berlin on such short notice.  Von Ribbentrop comes to believe the British have no desire to compel the Poles to yield. (1:613)

                                                   ii.     Von Ribbentrop pulls out of his pocket a paper with a new, 16-point proposal from Hitler.  He reads this to Henderson, but refuses to give a copy, saying “It is outdated anyway, since the Polish negotiator has not appeared.”  Henderson later presses Lipski to call von Ribbentrop directly and demand the proposal.  After Lipski stonewalls, Henderson gets personal: Lipski has done nothing for four months; this will be held against him if war comes. (1:614)

                                                  iii.     Meanwhile, Dahlerus returns from London, optimistic.  Göring informs him of the new, 16-point proposal: “Hitler in his wish to reach an agreement with England has worked out an offer to Poland, which is a great concession from the German side and which, soince it is obviously democratic, just and implementable, must cause a great sensation and can be accepted by Poland as well as England.”  Both men believe they are near success in their struggle for peace. (1:615)

                                                  iv.     By 900 hours, Henderson has the written proposal; also Dahlerus sees Henderson.  Dahlerus and Ogilvie-Forbes go to see Lipski at 100 hours.  They find Lipski, and moving boxes, but otherwise an almost empty Embassy. (1:615)

                                                   v.     Dahlerus reads the proposal.  Lipski, despite being fluent in German, claims he does not understand it.  Lipski states privately to Ogilvie-Forbes that he has no interest in the proposal.  Once war begins, there will be riots in Germany and Polish forces will soon be in Berlin. Thereafter, Dahlerus returns to the room and hands Lipski the proposal. (1:616)

                                                  vi.     Dahlerus is complaining to London that the Poles are deliberately destroying any possibility of negotiation.  He holds the German 16-point proposal to be “extremely liberal.”  This phone call is extremely disturbing in London, with Halifax finally slamming the phone; Halifax notifies Henderson that he will accept no further such calls. (1:616)

                                                vii.     Henderson receives the order by phone at 1300 hours to inform the Reich Government that the Polish Government will now send its Ambassador to the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (1:617)

                                               viii.     Kennard receives a telegraph at 1345 to advise the Polish Government to send its Ambassador in Berlin to receive the proposal and forward this to Warsaw.  There is no mention of sending an authorized negotiator. (1:617)

                                                  ix.     In the meantime, Poland via radio has sent a message to Lipski to visit von Ribbentrop, telling him that Poland has been notified by London of a desire to enter direct negotiations, and that Warsaw will formally reply to London in a few hours.  Additionally, Lipski is not to take the proposal, and has no authority to discuss any proposal. (1:618)  Hitler, via intercepting the radio message, is aware of these instructions, and views the last hope for peace as lost (It is now 1300 hours, just 16 hours from the planned time of the invasion). (1:619)

                                                   x.     Hitler, despite by now being skeptical, approves a direct talk between Göring and the British, only with Dahlerus present. (1:619)

                                                  xi.     At 1630, Henderson, Ogilvie-Forbes, Göring, and Dahlerus meet.  Göring suggests negotiations with Britain negotiating on behalf of the Poles.  Henderson does not believe this will lead to any solution.  Henderson asks Göring not to announce the details of the 16-points over the radio.  The conversation ends at 1900, with nothing accomplished. (1:620)

                                                xii.     At 1830, Lipski meets von Ribbentrop.  He notifies him that Poland will shortly inform England regarding the request to negotiate.  Von Ribbentrop, despite already knowing the answer, asks Lipski if he is empowered now to receive the proposal or negotiate.  Lipski replies he is not. (1:621)

                                               xiii.     As an exclamation point on the significant deterioration of the situation on both sides of the Polish-German border, Poles in Krakow murder the still acting German Consul. (1:562)

                                               xiv.     German radio intelligence hears the instruction from Foreign Minister Beck to Lipski in Berlin that he should not accept delivery of any new German proposal for negotiations. (1:571)

                                                xv.     Swedish mediator Dahlerus along with a British diplomat attempts to bring to the Polish Ambassador Lipski in Berlin another offer from Hitler for negotiations.  Lipski is not interested in receiving the offer.  According to Dahlerus: “…he in no wise has any cause to be interested in notes or offers from the German side.  He well knows the situation in Germany after five and a half years of activity as Ambassador…. He is convinced that, in the event of war, riots will break out in this land, and the Polish troops will march successfully against Berlin.” (1:568)

                                               xvi.     Mussolini invites the government heads from Germany, Poland, France and England to a Peace conference 5 September.  The chief theme of the conference is to examine certain provisions of the Treaty of Versailles – the root of the specific issue at hand. As Hitler is aware of the order from Beck to Lipski, the offer from Mussolini is of no meaning. (1:570) French Foreign Minister Bonnet is of the opinion that the proposal should first be approved by Paris and London before Hitler is invited.  A process is established by which no outcome is possible until late in the evening. The English government sees the proposal as a trap, and advises not to brusquely reject it, but to first demand a demobilization of all armies. (1:622)

                                              xvii.     French Ambassador in Berlin, Coulondre, to Foreign Minister Bonnet: “The German government, according to sure information, is very angry that it has received no reply from Poland….  It would be entirely in the interest of the Polish government to communicate without delay to Berlin that it endorses the plan and will send Lipski with all the necessary instructions as a fully empowered agent to negotiate.”  The message and tone is opposite from Coulondre’s communication with Daladier just one day before. (1:622)

                                            xviii.     Roosevelt, who has known of the secret protocol between the Soviets and Germans (with the agreement that East Poland will be lost), on this day wraps himself in silence. (1:623)

                                               xix.     US Ambassador in Paris, Bullitt, assures his Polish colleague, Count Łukasiewicz, that there is a secret protocol, but it only involves the three Baltic States – not Poland. (1:624)

                                                xx.     At 2100 hours, German radio broadcasts the 16 Point Proposal.  Between 2100 and 2200 hours, State Secretary von Weizsacker presents written copies of Hitler’s proposal to the Ambassadors of Great Britain, France, Japan, and the Chargés d’Affaires of the USA and the Soviet Union. (1:624)

                                               xxi.     The Daily Telegraph in London, in the evening edition, reports that after receipt of the negotiation offer from Germany, Poland mobilizes its armed forces instead of acknowledging the offer.  The edition is pulled, replaced with an edition that does not mention the mobilization. (1:624)

aaaa.                 September

                                                    i.     Roosevelt begins secret correspondence with Churchill, before Churchill is Prime Minister. (5:93)

bbbb.                 1 September

                                                    i.     German bombs fell on the Polish city of Wieluń at 4:20 AM. (7:119)

                                                   ii.     Germany invades Poland at 445 hours, without a formal declaration (perhaps because, after Russia, France and England mobilized in 1914, Germany was the first to declare war; Germany later was deemed the party responsible). (1:625)

                                                  iii.     During the fourth emergency session of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, a universal draft was ratified.  This had not occurred previously in Russian history.  It occurs not when tensions with Germany are high, but only after the mutual non-aggression pact is signed. (2:123)

cccc.                   3 September

                                                    i.     Paris and London declare war on Berlin. (1:625) Colonies join as well: Australia, Burma, Ceylon, India, Jordan, Cambodia, Laos, Morocco, New Zealand, Tunisia, and Vietnam. (1:626)

                                                   ii.     The war for Danzig is now a world war. (1:626)

dddd.                 4 September

                                                    i.     English bombers attack German ships which lie at anchor. (1:626)

eeee.                 5 September

                                                    i.     German submarines and the Royal Navy begin their war in the Atlantic. (1:626)

                                                   ii.     Polish High Command orders the Rudnicki Army in northwest Poland to give way before the German army after destroying the food in the yielded area, leaving behind a “desolate, devastated land.” (1:628)

ffff. 6 September

                                                    i.     The Reich issues instructions neither to shoot no control French merchant ships, attempting to keep France out of the battle. (1:627)

                                                   ii.     The Polish newspaper Express Poranny reports that the French army is marching into the Rhineland and that the Polish air force is bombing Berlin.  Neither is true. (1:628)

gggg.                 9 September

                                                    i.     The Wehrmacht has already taken all of West Poland up to the line formed by the Narew River, the city of Warsaw, and the Bug River. (1:628)

hhhh.                 10 September

                                                    i.     In violation of Belgian neutrality, British bomber overfly that country. (1:627)

iiii.   12 September

                                                    i.     British troops land on the continent, reinforcing the French. (1:628)

                                                   ii.     France deploys 80 divisions, against only eleven German division initially deployed. (1:628)

jjjj.   13 September

                                                    i.     The Polish newspaper Express Poranny has the headline “German Offensive Smashed in Poland.” (1:628)

kkkk.                   15 September

                                                    i.     The activity of the German air force substantially drops; the German army was almost out of fuel. (2:118)

                                                   ii.     Soviets achieve victory over Japan in the east, ensuring no future threat toward the Soviet Union’s eastern borders. (7:117)

llll.   16 September

                                                    i.     The London Daily Express reports that the French have surrounded Saarlouis, somewhat meaningless as the city lies on the border. And the announcement is wrong in any case. (1:628)

mmmm.          17 September

                                                    i.     Soviets attack Poland without a war declaration; recapture area east of the Curzon line, just as awarded in 1919. (1:431, 435, 628)

1.      The Soviets justify this: “The Polish government has ceased to exist, and the Soviet Union therefore has had to take under its protection the Ukrainians and White Russians living on Polish territory.” (1:628)

2.      There is no repercussion to this by Britain. (1:538)

                                                   ii.     The Polish government, including President Moscicki and Commander in Chief Rydz-Ŝmigly withdraw to Romania.

nnnn.                 18 September

                                                    i.     The armed forces of all of Poland west of the Curzon line up to Warsaw are captured. (1:629)

oooo.               19 September

                                                    i.     Britain and France urge the Soviet government to withdraw its troops from Poland, else a declaration of war will follow.  (1:629)

pppp.                 25 September

                                                    i.     Hitler declares he wants the surrender of Warsaw. 560 tons of bombs are dropped on the city that day, along with 72 tons of firebombs. (7:119)

qqqq.                 28 September

                                                    i.     Berlin and Moscow agree on a second treaty regarding Poland, a treat on borders and friendship. (7:117) The treaty assigns Warsaw to the Germans, Lithuania to the Soviets. (7:127)

rrrr. 29 September

                                                    i.     Warsaw falls.  England and France have neither taken serious action against Germany, nor declared war on the Soviet Union. (1:629)

ssss.                   September

                                                    i.     Stalin begins dismantling the “Stalin line,” a line of defenses along the western border; this after consolidating regions further to the west, ensuring a common border with the Germans. (2:174)

tttt. October

                                                    i.     England and France begin secret contacts with the Russians inviting them to join forces against Germany. (1:629)

                                                   ii.     Stalin demands concession from Finland of the Karelian Isthmus, in exchange for other lands.  The Isthmus is strategic to the defense of Finland. (2:136)

uuuu.                 4 October

                                                    i.     Germany and Soviet Union sign protocol, agreeing to common border; Poland is no more. (7:127)

vvvv.                  6 October

                                                    i.     Hostilities (of the official military type) come to an end in Poland. (7:122)

wwww.           22 October

                                                    i.     Elections held in what was eastern Poland (what the Soviets called “Western Belarus” and “Western Ukraine”); only item was to authorize annexation to the Soviet Union. (7:128)

xxxx.                  13 November

                                                    i.     From TELEGRAM OF THE PLENIPOTENTIARY OF THE USSR IN GREAT BRITAIN I. M. MAISKY TO THE PEOPLE'S COMMISSAR FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE USSR V. M. MOLOTOV, relaying his conversation with Churchill: (3)

1.      I had today an appropriate occasion to talk during a breakfast with Churchill in spirit of your telegram from November 11. Churchill did not hide his satisfaction because in Moscow there is a desire to improve Anglo-Soviet relations, and for this he noticed: "The main thing is that there was a desire. If the desire exists, there will be ways and means for its realization".

2.      To my question, how in this case it is explained that the policy hostile to the USSR, which the British authorities now conduct in the various ends of the world (I gave a number of examples), and to my indication that without change of this policy, it is difficult to speak about improvement in the Anglo-Soviet relations, Churchill answered:” You should consider that a sudden turn of the Soviet policy at the end of August was big shock for England.” …It is no big work for me on a number of examples to show that it not so. Then Churchill began to recede and eventually declared that he will take a closer interest in the matter and, that if the British diplomacy really conducts now the anti-Soviet line, he will try to change a present state of affairs, because he, Churchill, is a stau[n]ch advocate of the kind relations between both countries.

3.      At the initiative of Churchill and in connection with our general conversation on the Anglo-Soviet relations we spoke about Finland much. Churchill's views are on this matter reduced to the following: The USSR has all bases to be the dominating power in the Baltic Sea, and it corresponds to the British interests. Our requirements (border change on the Karelian Isthmus, islands in the Gulf of Finland, sea base at an entrance to the Gulf of Finland) are in essence quite natural and lawful.

4.      The situation where a center similar to Leningrad, is under fire of long-range guns from the Finnish border is ridiculous. England cannot object to implementation of the Soviet requirements, especially in view of that from the Soviet side Finland is offered a certain compensation….England should not only keep from objecting to the implementation of Soviet requirements, but she even has a moral obligation to facilitate the USSR in their implementation as Russia lost the positions, including Baltic, as a result of participation in last war on Entante's side…

yyyy.                  September

                                                    i.     Soon after the war’s start, British Ambassador in Berlin comments: “[Germany’s] post-war experiences had unfortunately taught Nazi Germany that nothing could be achieved except by force or display of force.” (1:566)

zzzz.                   15 November

                                                    i.     Annexation of eastern Poland into Soviet Union complete. (7:128)

aaaaa.              23 November

                                                    i.     Speaking at a meeting with the High Command of the German Army, Hitler said a war with the Soviet Union can only begin after the war with the west had ended. (2:234)

bbbbb.              25 November

                                                    i.     The People’s Commissar of Defense of the USSR signed a directive to the Leningrad military district; the directive regards conditions of war only against Finland. (2:149)

ccccc.               26 November

                                                    i.     Seven artillery shells allegedly flew into Soviet territory from Finland. (2:137)

                                                   ii.     Soviet Union invades Finland. (1:554)

ddddd.              30 November

                                                    i.     The Red Army crosses the Finnish border, with the objective to take Helsinki by 21 December. (2:138)

                                                   ii.     Units of the Red Army take the small village of Terioki; a Finland communist government is declared, with Kuusinen at the head. (2:138)

eeeee.              November

                                                    i.     British Admiralty pushes forward plans for invasion of Norway (6:249)

fffff.                   1 December

                                                    i.     The Finnish communist government establishes diplomatic ties with the Soviet Union. (2:138)

ggggg.              2 December

                                                    i.     The Finnish Communist government signs an agreement on mutual help and friendship between the Soviet Union and the Finnish Democratic Republic. (2:138)

hhhhh.              16 December

                                                    i.     Churchill, in memorandum to the War Cabinet, writes that small neutral countries ought to be glad to put up with some temporary inconvenience.  “Humanity, not legality, should be the guide.” (6:247)

iiiii.  Unknown

                                                    i.     (Unknown, but likely August) Confidence is so high that Polish newspapers print maps in anticipation of a certain victory over Germany with borders extending to the Elbe. The dreams of the Poles do not remain hidden from the Germans throughout these two decades due to the many official and unofficial statements regarding the acquisition of these territories. (1:472)

2)      1940

a.      January

                                                    i.     Henry Stimson writes letter to the editor of the New York Times: (10:196)

1.      “…there is no international question on which our people are more thoroughly united than as to Japanese aggression against China…More than four-fifths who have expressed their opinion in a recent Gallup poll are in favor of stopping evil with an embargo.”

2.      “The very last thing which the Japanese Government desires is a war with the United States.”

b.      6 February

                                                    i.     Supreme War Council approved detailed plans to land an army in Norway. (6:249)

c.      13 March

                                                    i.     The war between the Soviet Union and Finland was ended, after 105 days of winter fighting; daylight was short, night was long.  The Soviets took the Karelian Isthmus; Finland retained her independence. Having broken through the defensive lines, the Soviets did not continue the advance. (2:140)

1.      The effort by the Soviets was undertaken in the harshest conditions – average temperatures of 21 to 24 Celsius below zero – and against one of the most impregnable defensive lines. (2:140)

2.      Instead of viewing the Soviet effort as weak, considering the situation the lesson to be learned is that nothing is impossible for the Red Army. (2:144) The Red Army was capable of carrying out impossible orders, and it would not be stopped by any number of casualties. (2:144)

d.      8 April

                                                    i.     Britain lays mines in Norwegian territorial waters, as prelude to invasion. (6:247)

e.      9 April

                                                    i.     Germany launches invasion of Norway. (6:247)

f.       11 April

                                                    i.     Churchill tells House of Commons that Britain had infringed Norwegian neutrality before the German invasion was launched; his speech was reported in full in the press. (6:231)

g.      April

                                                    i.     The Stimson Committee distributes thousands of copies of a booklet entitled “Shall America Stop Arming Japan?” (10:197)

1.      An embargo against Japan would “leave China free to achieve her own independence, which she doubtless can and will do against an unaided Japan.  No outcome could contribute more to the peace and well-being of all Pacific nations.”

h.      7 May

                                                    i.     Roosevelt stations Pacific Fleet in Hawaii (8:34) Purported reason due to potential Italian belligerence – joining Germany; if Germany invades low countries and France, Holland and France could not defend their Asian territories against Japan. (8:155/156)

i.       8 May

                                                    i.     German radio announced that the talk of two German armies being transferred to the border with Holland was a “ridiculous rumor,” being circulated by “British inciters of war.” (2:218)

j.       10 May

                                                    i.     Germany invades the West, from the North Sea to Switzerland. (6:194)

                                                   ii.     Britain occupies Iceland.

k.      11 May

                                                    i.     With Germany invading the Low Countries, Britain implements the “Splendid Decision” by bombing German railway targets well outside of the area of military objectives. (6:160)

l.       12 May

                                                    i.     German General von Kleist occupies Sedan, in Northern France. (6:194)

m.    13 May

                                                    i.     Von Kleist crosses the Meuse River in pneumatic boats, establishing a beachhead south of Sedan, about four miles deep and four miles wide. (6:194)

                                                   ii.     During the night, the Germans repaired the Gaulier Bridge over the Meuse. (6:196)

n.      14 May

                                                    i.     Heavy tanks of the 1^st Panzer Division under General Guderian crossed the Meuse River. (6:196)

o.     28 May

                                                    i.     Belgium capitulates. (2:234)

p.      31 May

                                                    i.     The unfinished German cruiser Lutsow, renamed the Petropavlovsk, arrived in Leningrad during the time of war with Britain!  This was preceded (date TBD) by the sale to Stalin of an Italian warship, the Tashkent. (2:128)

q.      May / June

                                                    i.     Germans drive British forces off of the continent. (2:234)

                                                   ii.     Germans allow evacuation

1.      Flotilla of commercial vassals – tugs, fishing sloops, lifeboats, etc. – used to rescue soldiers: 220,000 Tommies and over 100,000 French support troops. (4:3)

2.      Hitler says to Göring “The war is finished.  I’ll come to an understanding with England.” (4:5)

r.       10 June

                                                    i.     Italy invades France (8:163)

s.      20 June

                                                    i.     Roosevelt names two prominent Republicans to lead the US military: Henry Stimson would be secretary of war; Frank Knox would be secretary of the Navy. (10:202)

t.       22 June

                                                    i.     France falls. (2:234)

u.      25 June

                                                    i.     Churchill writes to Stalin, warning of German invasion. (2:234) Stalin receives message 1 July. (2:234)

v.      30 June

                                                    i.     German forces capture Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands. (2:234)

w.    June

                                                    i.     Stalin orders river warships to the Danube delta at a time when allied with Germany. (2:192)

                                                   ii.     TV Soong and his wife are able to enter the United States without being arrested (by law, entry was forbidden to Chinese nationals). Soong came for money. (10:203)

1.      Eventually, China would receive almost three times as much as America would spend on the atomic bomb project. (10:206)

x.      2 July

                                                    i.     Roosevelt signs into law the National Defense Act, giving Roosevelt executive control over the export of valuable resources. (10:201)

1.      In the subsequent year, Japan gets more oil than before. (10:257)

y.      16 July

                                                    i.     Hitler signs directive concerning preparations for landing troops in Great Britain, to be completed by 15 August. Hitler changes plans upon Soviet annexation of Bessarabia, Northern Bukovina, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania; Hitler sees risk to oil from Romania and other resources from the north.  (2:157)

z.      21 July

                                                    i.     Hitler, for the first time and in a tight circle, raises the idea of the “Russian problem.”  General Field Marshall W. Brauchitsch receives an order from Hitler to begin developing a specific plan of war in the east. (2:156)

aa.   29 July

                                                    i.     Major General Erich Marcks began planning a military campaign against Russia. (2:156)

bb.   20 August

                                                    i.     Mao orders 100 regiments against the Japanese in North China – 430,000 Mao supporters against 830,000 Japanese. Mao’s forces scored significant victories – tearing up Japanese-held railways, coal mines, bridges and power stations; killing 20,000 Japanese and capturing great quantities of arms. (10:218)

1.      While Mao was fighting the Japanese, Chiang was scheming about how to save his resources for the coming fight with Mao.

cc.   21 August

                                                    i.     Leon Trotsky murdered in Mexico by Spanish communist and NKVD agent Ramon Mercador. Mercador returned to the Soviet Union and received the title “Hero of the Soviet Union.” (2:178)

dd.   August

                                                    i.     Roosevelt and King George announce a Joint Board on Defense, amounting to an alliance. (8:147)

                                                   ii.     Stimson rejects a proposal to further arms the Philippines. (8:194)

ee.   27 September

                                                    i.     Germany, Italy and Japan sign Tripartite Pact

ff.     October

                                                    i.     In a national address, Roosevelt tells nation of the risk from Germany: “Why should we accept assurances that we are immune?” noting that similar assurances were previously given to Holland and Belgium. (8:165)

                                                   ii.     Chiang instructs Chennault to go to the United States to work out plans to get American planes and pilots. (10:224)

1.      The message was that China wanted to attack Japan – a pipe dream from a military standpoint, but a ploy to secure planes for the future fight against Mao. (10:228)

gg.   November

                                                    i.     Molotov tells Hitler that a new division of Europe is required.  This proposed new division places at risk Germany’s access to oil and other strategic resources. (2:182) 

                                                   ii.     Marshall rejects proposal to further arm the Philippines. (8:194)

                                                  iii.     Nomura sent to Washington; Japan believes he will be viewed as a moderate. (10:257)

hh.   5 November

                                                    i.     Roosevelt elected for third term, by a large margin; he had stated many times that he would keep the country out of the war. (10:214)

ii.      13 November

                                                    i.     Hitler relays to Molotov the need to retain a large number of German troops in Romania, hinting that he felt the Soviet military posed a threat to Romanian oil. (2:192)

jj.      14 November

                                                    i.     Molotov leaves for Moscow. (2:183)

                                                   ii.     After Molotov’s departure, Hitler conveys that Germany must plan to invade Russia. (2:183)

kk.   25 November

                                                    i.     German ambassador to Moscow was told that German troops must withdraw its troops from Finnish territory immediately. Further previous demands were reiterated: the establishment of Soviet bases on the Bosporus and Dardanelles. (2:183)

                                                   ii.     People’s Commissar of Defense wrote a directive to prepare a plan for a new war of aggression against Finland. (2:183)

ll.      28 November

                                                    i.     Tokyo announces establishment of a (puppet) government in Nanking as the legitimate government of China.(10:215)

mm.                   29 November

                                                    i.     German generals played strategic map battles, invading Russian territory, ending 13 December. (2:187)

                                                   ii.     Roosevelt instructs Treasury Secretary Morgenthau and president of the Export-Import Bank Pierson to give Chiang a $100 million loan. (10:215)

nn.   16 December

                                                    i.     British nighttime raid of Mannheim, with 134 planes: “to concentrate the maximum amount of damage at the centre of the town.” (6:174)

oo.  18 December

                                                    i.     Hitler signs Open Directive No. 21 ordering Operation Barbarossa – the attack on the Soviet Union. (2:242)

pp.   23 December

                                                    i.     Secret conference of the High Command of the Red Army held for eight days, ending 31 December.  274 Marshals, generals, admirals attended.  Most lectures focused on the tactics of sudden attack – by mechanized forces, air forces, etc.  There was no meaningful lecture on defensive tactics. (2:184)

                                                   ii.     It was agreed by Morgenthau, Know, Stimson and Marshall to transfer 100 outmoded P-40 fighter planes to the Chinese, but not the bombers that were also desired. Roosevelt approved.  (10:230)

qq.   31 December

                                                    i.     Forty-nine of the highest ranking generals remained after the Red Army conference of 23 December and staying until 11 January, 1941.  Their purpose was to participate in a strategic game on maps, depicting a battle between “Easterners” and “Westerners.”  All strategies were aimed at offensive operations by the Soviets – “Offensive Operations of the Front with Breaks through the Fortified Regions.”  (2:186)

rr.     December

                                                    i.     Stalin and highest members of Politburo and commanders of Red Army discuss “special operations at the initial stage of the war,” coded language for invasion of Germany. (1:77)

                                                   ii.     Roosevelt secretly authorizes military staff talks between the United States and Britain. (8:170)

3)      1941

a.      6 January

                                                    i.     Roosevelt gives “Four Freedoms” speech as part of  State of the Union; each is commemorated via a series of four paintings by Norman Rockwell, in 1943 (12:38)

1.      Freedom of speech

2.      Freedom of religion

3.      Freedom from want

4.      Freedom from fear

b.      23 January

                                                    i.     William Donovan, a special emissary of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt, visited Belgrade and issued an ultimatum, saying that if Yugoslavia permitted German troop passage then the US would not "interfere on her behalf" at peace talks.

c.      January

                                                    i.     Roosevelt sends Harry Hopkins to London, who told Churchill: “The President is determined that we shall win the war together.  Make no mistake about it….Whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.” Churchill wept. (8:169)

                                                   ii.     The Joint Planning Committee of the US Army-Navy (Col. Joseph McNarney and Admiral Turner) advise, it is reasonably certain that neither Germany or Italy will initiate hostilities with the US, the initiation of hostilities by Japan may depend on actions taken by the US that seriously threaten her economic welfare or military adventures.  In this case, there is no assurance that Japan will not suddenly attack US forces. (8:188)

                                                  iii.     US intelligence proves “beyond a shadow of a doubt that the German General Staff had agreed with Hitler that an attack [against the Soviet Union] suddenly be launched in the coming spring. (8:204)

                                                  iv.     Chiang’s forces attack a unit of Mao’s army, massacring many. (10:218)

d.      1 February

                                                    i.     Dean Acheson sworn in as undersecretary of state for economic affairs.  Acheson was fully supportive of an aggressive blockade policy toward Japan, unlike his boss, secretary of state Hull. (10:247)

e.      February

                                                    i.     US, British and Dutch officers meet in Singapore; authorized to agree to tentative methods of command and operations, either jointly or separately. (8:171)

f.       11 March

                                                    i.     Marshall Timoshenko and Generals Zhukov and Vasilevsky, heads of USSR People’s Defense Commissariat, forwarded to Stalin the plans to invade Germany. (2:xxii)

                                                   ii.     US approves Lend-Lease program

1.      The Lend-Lease policy, formally titled "An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States", (Pub.L. 77–11, H.R. 1776, 55 Stat. 31, enacted March 11, 1941)[1] was a program under which the United States supplied Free France, the United Kingdom, the Republic of China, and later the USSR and other Allied nations with food, oil, and materiel between 1941 and August 1945. This included warships and warplanes, along with other weaponry.

g.      25 March

                                                    i.     The Yugoslav accession to the Tripartite Pact, the Axis military alliance, was signed

h.      27 March

                                                    i.     The Yugoslav coup d'état occurred in Belgrade, Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The coup was planned and conducted by a group of pro-Western Serb-nationalist Royal Yugoslav Air Force officers formally led by its commander, General Dušan Simović, who had been associated with a number of coup plots from 1938 onwards.

1.      The Communist Party of Yugoslavia played no part in the coup, although it made a significant contribution to the mass street protests in many cities that signalled popular support for the coup after it occurred.

i.       March

                                                    i.     Japanese minister of foreign affairs, Iosuke Matsuoka, arrives in Berlin for talks with Hitler.  He does not commit to a deadline for action against the Soviets, leading to a clash with Hitler. (2:266)

                                                   ii.     US and British military staffs produce first full recorded agreement – ABC-1 (American-British Conversations #1); agreement draws US naval assets from the Pacific to the Atlantic.  (8:171)

                                                  iii.     United China Relief organization is formed in the US, bringing together several different philanthropic organizations operating in China.

1.      The new board for this organization included Pearl Buck, William Bullitt, Henry Luce, Robert Sproul, Wendell Willkie, John D. Rockefeller III, Theodore Roosevelt Jr., David O. Selznick, and Thomas Lamont. Eleanor Roosevelt served as honorary chairman.

2.      Little money goes to China; most is used for propaganda in the US. (10:234)

j.       3 April

                                                    i.     Churchill writes to Stalin.  It reaches Stalin on 19 April. (2:235)

1.      Churchill writes that the Germans, having secured Yugoslavia, are transferring significant forces to Poland. (2:235)

a.      Significant to Churchill was deemed not very significant to Stalin (2:236)

k.      5 April

                                                    i.     Treaty of Friendship and Non-Aggression signed between Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union

l.       6 April

                                                    i.     Germany invades Yugoslavia.

m.    12 April

                                                    i.     Rommel’s forces reach borders of Egypt. (2:235)

n.      13 April

                                                    i.     Soviets and Japanese sign a pact. (2:202) Iosuke Matsuoka, on his return from Berlin to Tokyo, stops in Moscow to sign a pact of neutrality between the Japanese and Soviets. (2:266)

                                                   ii.     German army seizes Belgrade. (2:235)

o.     14 April

                                                    i.     Nomura and Hull begin secret talks. (10:257)

p.      16 April

                                                    i.     St. Paul’s Cathedral in London damaged in German air raid. (2:235)

q.      17 April

                                                    i.     Yugoslavia surrenders to the Germans (2:235)

r.       18 April

                                                    i.     Greek Prime Minister, Korisis, commits suicide. (2:235)

                                                   ii.     Cable sent from Nomura to Tokyo regarding understanding with the US; cable represents apparent misunderstanding – Japan thinks it can stay in China and US thinks Japan will exit China. (10:260)

s.      23 April

                                                    i.     Greek armed forces surrender to Germans. (2:235)

t.       4 May

                                                    i.     Stalin becomes chairman of the Soviet government, consolidating for the first time the head of both party and government. (2:202)

u.      5 May

                                                    i.     Stalin speaks to graduates of the military academies; he spoke of the situation in Europe and Germany. (2:204) Stalin made clear that there would be war with Germany. (2:205)

                                                   ii.     Flattering article about Chiang in Life magazine, crafted by China Lobbyist Eliot Janeway. (10:251)

v.      6 May

                                                    i.     The tone of Pravda propaganda suddenly changes, toward a stance of war. (2:206)

w.    8 May

                                                    i.     Henry Luce arrives in China with his wife; they are given a flattering (and fabricated) tour of the successes of Chiang. (10:251)

x.      18 May

                                                    i.     German battleship Bismarck and cruiser Prinz Eugen depart port of Gdynia in Poland.  Churchill appeals to Roosevelt for help to find these ships. (8:181)

y.      20 May

                                                    i.     German forces commence airborne operations to capture Crete. 32,000 British and 14,000 Greek troops were defeated. (2:235)

z.      21 May

                                                    i.     German submarine sinks US merchant ship Robin Moor; almost everyone survives.  German submarine allows passengers to take to lifeboats, and to radio their location for help.  Germany apologizes, claiming the crew mistook the ship for British. (8:183)

aa.   24 May

                                                    i.     Britain’s largest ship in the Atlantic, the Hood, clashes with Germany’s largest battle ship, the Bismarck. The battle lasted eight minutes, with one direct hit sinking the Hood.  Of 1421 crew members, three survive. (2:235)

bb.   25 May

                                                    i.     US Coast Guard cutter Modoc sights the Bismarck, radioing location to the British.  Based on this report, a patrol bomber supplied to the British under Lend-Lease – piloted by a US Navy officer and mixed US-British crew – sinks the Bismarck.  As such events failed to rouse Congress and the public into war with Germany, Roosevelt stops using this as a tactic shortly thereafter, not loudly publicizing further such incidents. (8:182)

                                                   ii.     Command of the Russian 31^st Rifle Corps from the Far East arrives in the Kiev district. (2:210)

cc.   28 May

                                                    i.     Roosevelt establishes Office of Petroleum Coordinator for National Defense; appoints Interior Secretary Harold Ickes to head. (10:260)

dd.   May

                                                    i.     Soviets decide to create five air assault corps. (1:75)

ee.   11 June

                                                    i.     A letter found on the captured son of Stalin, dated this day; from a junior lieutenant: “I would like to be home by fall, but the planned walk to Berlin might hinder this.” (2:258)

ff.     12 June

                                                    i.     Kiev military district commander receives secret orders, announcing the arrival between 15 June and 10 July of the 16^th Army (2:209); the relocation from beyond the Baikal to the Ukraine began on 26 May. (2:210)

gg.   13 June

                                                    i.     TASS announces that “Germany was following the conditions of the Soviet-German pact as flawlessly as the Soviet Union, “that the rumors of an impending German attack on the USSR “were clumsily fabricated propaganda…” The words were recognized as Stalin’s. (2:207)

1.      No directives followed, leading generals to conclude the message could be ignored. (2:208)

2.      The TASS announcement was written to allay the fears of Germany. (2:217)

                                                   ii.     Orders given for final preparation for war to tens of thousands of Soviet paratroopers – indicating a planned offensive action. (2:75)

                                                  iii.     Orders for the Kiev military district are given, to move all deep-rear divisions closer to the state borders. (2:208)

                                                  iv.     114 divisions in western military districts are moved toward the border. (2:213) Preparations were not defensive, but offensive. (2:216)

                                                   v.     John Winant, US Ambassador to Britain, was instructed to tell Churchill that when Germany invaded the Soviet Union and if Britain announced an alliance with the Soviets, Roosevelt would immediately support it. (8:204)

hh.   14 June

                                                    i.     Military council of the Baltic district approved a plan for the relocation of a row of divisions to the border zone. (2:211)

                                                   ii.     Roosevelt freezes all German and Italian assets. (10:201)

ii.      14 – 19 June

                                                    i.     Military councils of all western border districts directed to send to the frontline their army field commands by 22/23 June. (2:211)

jj.      15 June

                                                    i.     The commands of several rifle divisions concentrated in the forests just east of the city of Beltsy. (2:212)

kk.   16 June

                                                    i.     Luce publishes in Time: Sun Yat-sen was “China’s George Washington.” (10:115)

ll.      18 / 19 June

                                                    i.     Soviet forces of the Black Sea fleet conduct training exercises, landing on “enemy” shores. (2:194)

mm.                   20 June

                                                    i.     Replying to an inquiry from MacArthur, Marshall told him that the War Department had no intention to arm the Philippines. (8:195)

nn.   21 June

                                                    i.     Soviets practicing airborne assault operations. (1:75)

                                                   ii.     Hitler writes to Mussolini: “Russia is trying to destroy the Romanian oil fields…The task for our armies is eliminating this threat as soon as possible.” (2:159)

                                                  iii.     Hours before the German attack, Churchill tells US Ambassador Winant that Britain would go all out to aid the Soviets. (8:204)

                                                  iv.     Missy LeHand, Roosevelt’s secretary since the early 1920s, is carried out of the White House on a stretcher. (10:261)

oo.  22 June

                                                    i.     Germany invades Soviet Union at 3:15 AM.

                                                   ii.     On the Southwestern front, three of the most powerful Soviet Armies (the 12^th mountain, 6^th, and 26^th) were in the Lvov bulge, surrounded on three sides by the Germans. (2:228)

1.      The 1^st German Tank Group hit Lutsk, Rovno, and Berdichev, cutting off the three Soviet armies in the bulge.  The Germans quickly went through the Soviet rear, capturing weapons, ammunitions, etc. (2:228)

                                                  iii.     On the Western front, in Byelorussia, the Red Army had four armies (3^rd, 10^th, parts of the 4^th and 13^th   - altogether almost 30 divisions), concentrated in the Byelostok bulge. (2:229)

1.      Two German tank groups struck the flanks and linked east of Minsk. (2:229) From here, the path was direct to Smolensk and Moscow. (2:230)

2.      Zhukov’s formations were not here (which would have been appropriate for defensive operations), but further to the south. (2:231)

                                                  iv.     Included in Hitler’s “blitzkrieg” army was a force of 750,000 horses; a convoy of 220 horses with carts followed each tank. (2:241)

                                                   v.     Only 17 out of 253 German divisions were tank divisions. (2:241)

                                                  vi.     Hitler receives French surrender at the same place (Compiègne) and in the same rail car where the Germans surrendered on November 11, 1918 (13:267)

pp.   23 June

                                                    i.     Soviet marines receive their “battle baptism” during the defense of the naval base at Liepja. (2:194)

                                                   ii.     US Interior Secretary (and also named “Petroleum Coordinator”), Harold Ickes, proposes an oil embargo on Japan.  Roosevelt disapproves, and tells Ickes that foreign policy was not his business. (8:189)

qq.   25 June

                                                    i.     Stalin’s “Danube flotilla” landed reconnaissance and sabotage units of the NKVD on the Romanian shores (indicating offensive actions). (2:192)

rr.     26 June

                                                    i.     A red flag goes up in the Romanian city of Kilia. (2:192)

                                                   ii.     Japan’s Foreign Minister Matsuoka presses for war with the Soviets.  Military leaders did not want to do so as long as war with the US remained possible. (8:221)

ss.    June

                                                    i.     German U-boats sink 61 British merchant ships during the month. (2:235)

tt.     1 July

                                                    i.     Churchill, in a letter to Stalin, reiterates an outstretched hand of friendship. (2:203)

uu.   2 July

                                                    i.     Japanese Imperial Conference adopted a policy that included war with the US as a real possibility “In case the diplomatic negotiations break down…” (8:200) Japan would prepare for war with either the United States or the Soviet Union, but would not fight both simultaneously. (8:201) US is aware of the possibility of Japanese invasion of Siberia. (8:202)

                                                   ii.     Japanese leaders decide to go south beyond China toward the rich resources of Southeast Asia. (10:263)

vv.   7 July

                                                    i.     Stalin, still considering offensive operations, telegrams General Tulenev, demanding that the Soviet Union retains Bessarabia at any cost as a springboard for organizing invasion. (2:193)

                                                   ii.     US relieves Britain, taking over occupation/defense of Iceland.

ww.                    8 July

                                                    i.     First contingent of mercenary pilots and support staff – about 160 individuals altogether – depart for China from San Francisco. (10:262)

xx.   9 July

                                                    i.     British War Cabinet approves a directive to Bomber Command that switched its focus from oil and naval targets to “destroying the morale of the civilian population as a whole and of industrial workers in particular.” (12:62)

1.      Leaflets are dropped throughout Germany, warning the population of this new campaign. (12:63)

yy.   10 July

                                                    i.     Stalin’s planned date for the full concentration of Soviet forces on the borders. (2:216)

                                                   ii.     Second contingent of American mercenary pilots and support staff depart San Francisco for China (10:263)

zz.    14 July

                                                    i.     Roosevelt urges Churchill to make a statement, “making it clear that no postwar peace commitments as to territories, populations or economies have been given.” (5:98)

aaa.                    18 July

                                                    i.     Roosevelt informs cabinet that a reliable source (code breakers) thought that Japan would occupy southern Indochina within three or four days. (10:263)

bbb.                    21 July

                                                    i.     Japan’s ambassador to the US, Nomura, warns Welles that an oil embargo would risk war. (8:190)

ccc. 23 July

                                                    i.     Roosevelt assigns a group of Army officers to study China’s Lend-Lease needs.  He also approves 269 additional fighters and 66 bombers for Chiang-Chennault. (10:264)

ddd.                    25 July

                                                    i.     Harry Hopkins asks FDR for permission to travel to the Soviet Union to meet with Stalin regarding his exact war needs.  “Roosevelt assented immediately.” (5:21)

eee.                    26 July

                                                    i.     Reversing recent and longstanding decisions, Roosevelt signs executive order, resulting in embargo of oil to Japan.  This is viewed as the critical embargo. (8:189) This decision is accompanied by a freeze on Japanese assets in the US, breaking off diplomatic talks, and arming the Philippines. (8:192) These actions are known to be provocative regarding a possible Japanese attack. (8:195)

1.      Embargo of octane 87 and higher; Japanese aircraft could run on 86 octane. (10:209)

fff.   30 July

                                                    i.     Hopkins meets with Stalin, conveying: Roosevelt was determined “to extend all possible aid to the Soviet Union at the earliest possible time.” (10:269)

ggg.                    31 July

                                                    i.     Roosevelt meets with Soviet military delegation in the White House. (10:269)

hhh.                    1 August

                                                    i.     Upon receipt of Hopkins’ cable summarizing talks with Stalin, “Roosevelt called a cabinet meeting in which, according to Harold Ickes’s notes, the President ‘started in by giving the State Department and War Department one of the most complete dressing-downs that I have witnessed.’”  Per Morgenthau: “He said he didn’t want to hear what was on order; he said he only wanted to hear what was on the water.” (5:23)

iii.     3 August

                                                    i.     Roosevelt departs for his meeting with Churchill. (10:270)

jjj.     14 August

                                                    i.     Roosevelt and Churchill conclude Atlantic Conference, resulting in Atlantic Charter, defining allied goals for the post-war world.

1.      Among other points, the Charter committed:

a.      no territorial gains were to be sought by the United States or the United Kingdom;

b.      territorial adjustments must be in accord with the wishes of the peoples concerned;

c.      all people had a right to self-determination

kkk. 17 August

                                                    i.     Roosevelt meets with Nomura upon his return to Washington. (10:279)

lll.     August

                                                    i.     In response to FDR’s orders to ship hardware to Russia, General Marshall writes to Secretary of War Stimson: “…our entire Air Corps is suffering from a severe shortage of spare parts of all kinds.  We have planes on the ground because we cannot repair them….” (5:26)

                                                   ii.     Roosevelt meets Churchill at Argentia Bay, Newfoundland, to discuss and conclude the Atlantic Charter. (5:94)

mmm.               4 September

                                                    i.     German submarine fires on US destroyer Greer, missing her.  Greer, having been alerted by a British plane, had been tracking the submarine and reporting her position to the British, attacking the submarine repeatedly.  Roosevelt describes the attack as unprovoked. (8:183)

                                                   ii.     No oil had left the US for Japan in a month. (10:280)

nnn.                    5 September

                                                    i.     German units surrender to the Soviets at the bend of the frontline, near Elnya – the most strategically significant region of the theater of operations. (2:265)

ooo.                   7 September

                                                    i.     Hirohito emphasizes to Imperial Conference that diplomacy must take precedence over preparation for war. (8:228) Thereafter, Konoe approaches Grew, prepared to agree to Hulls’ four preconditions.  After being denied by Hull, Grew directly approaches Roosevelt regarding a direct meeting with Konoe.  Roosevelt would not agree to the meeting. (8:230).

ppp.                    11 September

                                                    i.     Ground-breaking for construction of Pentagon

qqq.                    22 September

                                                    i.     Foreign Minister Toyoda (having replaced the bombastic Matsuoka) proposes terms to end the war with China.  These fell on deaf ears in the US. (8:230)

rrr.   28 September

                                                    i.     Japan provides a document with principles to be agreed to at the outset and matters to be settled based on these principles.  This proposal has no effect in the US. (8:230)

sss.  September

                                                    i.     Nine “Flying Fortress” long range bombers, capable of reaching Japan, arrive in the Philippines; thirty-five more followed in November.  As noted by newly arrived Army Air Corp General Lewis Brereton, the bombers were not afforded adequate fighter protection – inviting pre-emptive Japanese attack.  His protest was noted by Marshall. (8:196)

                                                   ii.     US Ambassador to Japan, Grew, emphasizes point to Roosevelt that Japan was likely to react to the July measures by going to war against the US. (8:215)

                                                  iii.     Japanese Prime Minister Konoe presses for a personal meeting with Roosevelt. (8:215)

ttt.   14 October

                                                    i.     Unable to achieve any progress toward peace, Konoe resigns; Hirohito names Tojo as new Foreign Minister with a charge to “go back to blank paper” and do all he could to avoid war with the United States. (8:232) Tojo formed a cabinet primarily favorable toward peace. (8:234) Tojo pressed for, and achieved, a delay in the final decision toward war; November 25 would be the new deadline for the end of negotiation Later extended to November 29). (8:235)

uuu.                    17 October

                                                    i.     US destroy Kearny was attacked while escorting British merchant ships; when submarines attacked the convoy, the Kearny fired on them – the submarine fired back. (8:184)

vvv. November

                                                    i.     FDR, in a press conference, emphasized the freedom of religion and conscience afforded in the Russian constitution. (5:25)

                                                   ii.     Roosevelt orders a navy task force to join in trying to sink the German battleships Admiral Scheer and Tirpitz. (With no result) (8:182)

                                                  iii.     Japanese tankers depart San Pedro empty, with no oil. (10:282)

www.                 3 November

                                                    i.     Marshall and Stark, along with an Army-Navy Board meeting, proposed making no ultimatums toward Japan. (8:239)

xxx. 11 November

                                                    i.     Japan presents “Proposal A” to the Americans, with offers of free trade for China and a gradual removing of troops from both China and Indochina. (8:235)

yyy. 15 November

                                                    i.     Nomura meets with Roosevelt to discuss “Proposal A.”  Roosevelt replies that before considering it, Japan must start removing troops from China and Indochina. (8:236)

zzz.  18 November

                                                    i.     Nomura would “tactfully feel out Hull” on Proposal B, which provided for a truce and return to conditions as of July 1.  (8:236)

aaaa.                 19 November

                                                    i.     Intercepted message to Nomura indicates that if Proposal B is rejected, no further concession can be made. Translation was marked completed on November 20. (8:242)

bbbb.                 20 November

                                                    i.     Nomura formally presents Proposal B to Hull.  Hull presents the proposal to the various allies. Hull and Roosevelt had already known the text of the proposal for two weeks. (8:236) Marshall and Stark saw Proposal B as advantageous for the US, giving the military time to arm. (8:237)

cccc.                  22 November

                                                    i.     Hull presents a State Department response to Proposal B to the various allies; all were in general agreement except for the ambassador from China, Hu. Hull conveyed this general agreement to Nomura, and to expect a formal reply within two days. (8:243)

dddd.                 24 November

                                                    i.     Roosevelt agreed to the State Department response, seeing it as a way to buy time for the military. (8:243)

eeee.                 25 November

                                                    i.     Hull relays Chiang Kai-shek continuing protests regarding this response to Japan, dissatisfied with the number of troops to be left in Japan for the interim and leeway in access to oil.  Roosevelt felt he could resolve this concern.

                                                   ii.     That evening Hu formally presented Chiang’s objection to Hull. (8:244)

                                                  iii.     Stimson’s infamous words: “…how should we maneuver them into the position of firing the first shot…” (8:257)

ffff. 26 November

                                                    i.     The decision to present the revised proposal to Japan is reversed, just hours before it is to be presented to Nomura. (8:245) No consultation with allies (other than the aforementioned protest by China) is recorded. (8:246)

                                                   ii.     The US administration instead presented a new, ten-point proposal; while not an ultimatum, the effect would be to bring about the end of talks. (8:247)

                                                  iii.     After presenting this ten-point proposal, Roosevelt sent a message to Churchill, expecting “action within two weeks.” (8:263)

                                                  iv.     Six Japanese aircraft carriers depart Hitokappu Bay in the Kurile Islands, headed for Pearl Harbor. (10:284)

gggg.                 27 November

                                                    i.     Japanese leaders realize Proposal B has been rejected; the fleets were already on the way to Pearl Harbor, but with orders to return just in case resolution is reached. (8:238)

hhhh.                 29 November

                                                    i.     Reporter Joseph Leib, a friend of Secretary Hull, reports: [Hull] on…November 29, 1941…revealed to me and gave me a copy of an intercept which showed that he had information that Pearl Harbor would be attacked the following week.”  Hull assures Leib that both Roosevelt and the FBI are aware of this information. (8:50)

                                                   ii.     On this final deadline date, Tokyo cabled Nomura to make one last attempt.  Hull responded to Nomura that Japan had been furthering Hitlerism: “…there is absolutely no way of bringing about a settlement…” (8:248)

                                                  iii.     Intercepted messages confirm that Japan feels that negotiations are broken, with no further hope. (8:248)

iiii.   1 December

                                                    i.     The final decision for war is proposed in Japan; Hirohito nodded in agreement. (8:238)

                                                   ii.     Tokyo cables diplomatic offices in Washington and London to destroy codes and other documents. (8:267)

jjjj.   2 December

                                                    i.     Roosevelt tells a subordinate that he expects to be at war with Japan within a few days. Crucial intelligence was withheld from Short and Kimmel in Hawaii. (8:267)

kkkk.                  5 December

                                                    i.     It is possible that Knox was about to state the location of Japanese carriers in a cabinet conversation.  Roosevelt cut him off. (8:273) Knox’s aid Beatty states, years later, that Wilkerson had told Knox that naval intelligence had located Japan’s aircraft carriers. (8:274)

llll.   6 December

                                                    i.     At the daily press briefing, the White House press secretary told reporters that they had no need for pads and pencils – the president has decided to take the day off.  Meanwhile, Roosevelt had a full appointment schedule. (8:274)

                                                   ii.     US intelligence intercepts message #901, the pilot message for a further message (#902) to be sent in fourteen parts. (8:274) The next message was sent in English, to ensure no time was lost for the translation. It was clear that the message meant war. (8:275)

                                                  iii.     By 9 PM, 13 of the 14 were received, and delivered to most of the people on the lists (military and civilian). Roosevelt received his by 9:30 PM. (8:276)

mmmm.          7 December

                                                    i.     Part fourteen is received by Roosevelt at 10 AM Washington time. (8:285)

                                                   ii.     Marshall is out that morning, riding his horse and not reachable. At 10:30, Marshall is reached, and thereafter takes one-hour to make a seven-minute trip to the office.  (8:285) He deliberately reads the fourteen messages (later claiming he only saw these for the first time on Sunday).  Colonel Bratton attempted to suggest that the summary of the message was that the Japanese would attack this day, and that warning messages be sent to various Pacific commands. (8:286) The official (not intercepted) final message was to be delivered at 1 PM; it was assumed the timing was to coincide with the beginning of the attack. (8:287)  No warnings were sent until after the attack began. (8:289)

                                                  iii.     Japanese attack Pearl Harbor (8:1)

                                                  iv.     Japanese attack the Philippines, destroying unprotected US bombers. (8:197)

                                                   v.     Japan lands 20,000 troops on the east coast of Malaysia toward Singapore and the Dutch East Indies for oil. (10:286)

nnnn.                 8 December

                                                    i.     China declares war on Japan (despite years of fighting, previously war was not officially declared), Germany, and Italy. (8:291)

                                                   ii.     Dutch East Indies – despite not having been attacked yet by Japan – declare war on Japan and Germany. (8:291)

                                                  iii.     US Congress declares war on Japan. (10:7)

oooo.               10 December

                                                    i.     General Magruder in China writes to Marshall that Chiang intends to hoard American aid in order to fight internal enemies and consolidate power. (10:289)

pppp.                 11 December

                                                    i.     Germany declares war on the United States.  Hours after this, the United States declares war on Germany.

qqqq.                 20 December

                                                    i.     Ten Japanese bombers take off from Hanoi to bomb Kunming, China.  Claire Chennault’s fighters brought down four of them, at the cost of one fighter. (10:292) The Flying Tigers were born, (10:293) and Walt Disney designs their logo. (10:294)

4)      1942

a.      1 January

                                                    i.     “Declaration of Shared Commitment,” by 26 nations – forming the initial “United Nations,” formed to defeat the “Tripartite Pact” of Germany, Italy and Japan (12:7)

1.      “Being convinced that complete victory over their enemies is essential to defend life, liberty, independence and religious freedom, and to preserve human rights and justice in their own lands as well as in other lands, and that they are now engaged in a common struggle against savage and brutal forces seeking to subjugate the world…”

b.      5 January

                                                    i.     Magruder describes Roosevelt’s expectation that Chiang would fight the Japanese an “alluring fiction.” (10:289)

c.      9 January

                                                    i.     Roosevelt to Morgenthau: “I am anxious to help Chiang Kai-shek…I hope you can invent some way of doing this.” (10:291)

d.      30 January

                                                    i.     After a private meeting in the White House with TV Soong, Roosevelt orders secretaries of State, Treasury, and Commerce to immediately grant China the $500 million loan with no strings attached. (10:292)

e.      9 February

                                                    i.     General Stillwell goes to White House to meet with Roosevelt; he will be commander of the China theater.  He had served there and spoke Chinese. (10:297)

1.      Once in China and after meeting Chiang, he tells a reporter (off the record): The trouble in China is simple: We are allied to an ignorant, illiterate, superstitious, peasant son of a bitch.”  He finds nothing by yes-men surrounding Chiang.

f.       19 February

                                                    i.     Secret contacts between Stalin and Hitler, during time when Stalin was allied with Roosevelt and Churchill (2:xxi)

g.      10 March

                                                    i.     Roosevelt to Churchill, suggesting that India is today what the American colonies were during the American Revolution. (5:100)

h.      18 March

                                                    i.     Roosevelt writes to Churchill: “I know you will not mind my being brutally frank when I tell you that I think I can personally handle Stalin better than either your Foreign Office or my State Department.  Stalin hates the guts of all your top people.  He thinks he likes me better, and I hope he will continue to. (5:15)

i.       28 March

                                                    i.     British attack of Lilibeck by 234 aircraft. (6:177)

j.       30 March

                                                    i.     Lindemann Plan in Britain, calling for strategic bombing of working-class housing in Germany. (date not certain) (6:105)

k.      1 April

                                                    i.     FDR writes Churchill; Hopkins and Marshall will travel to London to present the plan for an allied invasion across the channel, to be undertaken as early as the fall of 1942. (5:32)

l.       11 April

                                                    i.     FDR writes to Stalin, proposing a meeting next summer near the common border of Alaska: “I have in mind a very important military proposal involving the utilization of our armed forces in a manner to relieve your critical Western Front.  This objective caries great weight with me….”  (5:39)

1.      Stalin offers no satisfactory reply. (5:40)

m.    24 April

                                                    i.     Churchill writes to Hopkins of his desire to reduce shipments to Russia until the shipments can be better protected. (5:28)

n.      26 April

                                                    i.     Roosevelt responds to Churchill (from 24 April above): “I have seen your cable to Harry this morning relative to shipments to Russia.  I am greatly disturbed by this…any word reaching Stalin at this time that our supplies were stopping for any reason would have a most unfortunate effect. (5:28)

o.     1 May

                                                    i.     Churchill replies “With very great respect what you suggest is beyond our powers to fulfill.” (5:29)

p.      Late May

                                                    i.     Molotov travels first to London, then Washington, in quest for a second, western front no later than the coming fall. (5:35)

q.      30 May

                                                    i.     Molotov meets with Roosevelt: all land secured in the agreement with Hitler will remain with the Soviets; a “straight answer” regarding the immediate opening of a second front must be given.  Marshall replied “Yes.” (5:35)

r.       9 June

                                                    i.     On the way back to Moscow, Molotov stops in London with a draft communiqué regarding the urgent task of opening a second front in Europe in 1942.  Churchill dismissed the communiqué “out of hand.” (5:35)

s.      7 July

                                                    i.     First day of issue for five-cent US postage stamp featuring Abraham Lincoln and Sun Yat-sen. (10:294)

t.       14 July

                                                    i.     Churchill writes FDR: “Only four ships have reached Archangel…out of thirty-three…” (5:29)

u.      29 July

                                                    i.     FDR writes Churchill: “We have got always to bear in mind the personality of our ally…” (5: 29)

                                                   ii.     FDR to Churchill, pushing for an immediate grant of independence for India. (5:101)

v.      7 October

                                                    i.     FDR writes Churchill: “I think there is nothing more important than that Stalin feel that we mean to support him without qualification and at great sacrifice.” (5:31)

w.    October

                                                    i.     Chennault writes to Roosevelt; with a very small air force and Chennault holding full military command in China (replacing Stilwell), he could bring about the downfall of Japan. (10:300)

1.      Marshall judged the plan as nonsense. (10:301)

2.      Stilwell warns Roosevelt that without a ground force capable of seizing and holding airbases, the plan was impossible. (10:302)

x.      December

                                                    i.     FDR writes Stalin again, asking for a meeting – this time in Africa.  Stalin remains uninterested. (5:40)

y.      30 December

                                                    i.     Roosevelt asks Stalin about establishing US air bases in the eastern Soviet Union for purposes of attacking Japan.  Stalin refuses. (2:268)

5)      1943

a.      8 January

                                                    i.     Again, Roosevelt asks Stalin about establishing US air bases in the eastern Soviet Union for purposes of attacking Japan.  Again Stalin refuses. (2:268)

b.      13 January

                                                    i.     Stalin writes to FDR: “…what we need is not air force units, but planes without pilots, because we have more than enough pilots of our own…” Stalin goes on to question why FDR proposes a visit by General Bradley to inspect Russian military objectives; also Stalin does not understand why General Marshall should visit the USSR.  Finally, Stalin expresses displeasure that operations in North Africa have come to a standstill. (5:41)

c.      January

                                                    i.     Roosevelt first speaks to the notion of unconditional surrender – “Uncle Joe might have made it up himself.” (5:43)

d.      18 February

                                                    i.     Mayling Soong (Madame Chiang Kai-shek) spoke to the US House of Representatives. (10:302)

e.      13 March

                                                    i.     German generals begin planning in secret for the Battle of Kursk. (2:245)

f.       18 March

                                                    i.     JOHN FOSTER DULLES, Chairman of the Commission to Study the Bases of a Just and Durable Peace, delivers “The Six Pillars of Peace” at a Luncheon Meeting of Financial, Labor, Religious and Educational Leaders, New York City

1.      “In 1940, the Federal Council of Churches voted to set up a Commission to study the bases of a just and durable peace. For over two years we have been at work.”

2.      “…there is a decision which must be made now, both from the standpoint of winning the war and winning the peace. That decision is: Will the American people now commit themselves to a future of organized international collaboration within the areas of demonstrated world interdependence?”

3.      All six pillars emphasized the need for international bodies and international cooperation.

g.      27 March

                                                    i.     Stalin informs Anastas Mikoyan of the German intent for battle in the summer – the Battle of Kursk. (2:245)

h.      7 April

                                                    i.     After previously promising (then backing out of) a cross-channel landing for the prior fall, now the Americans were not able to land in Sicily.  Eisenhower writes to Churchill that the invasion of the island would have to be postponed until the Allies had greater military strength. (5:37)

i.       5 May

                                                    i.     Roosevelt again asks Stalin for a meeting, via Joseph Davies (and not, Admiral Standley, Ambassador in Moscow) (5:41)

j.       25 June

                                                    i.     Churchill writes FDR, expressing concern that FDR wants a private meeting with Stalin – excluding Britain. (5:42)

k.      5 July

                                                    i.     Battle of Kursk begins. (2:245)

l.       9 November

                                                    i.     Roosevelt proposes a single European command – for both Normandy and the Mediterranean; Churchill turns him down immediately. (5:62)

m.    22 November

                                                    i.     Cairo Conference, with Roosevelt, Churchill and Chiang Kai-shek; make decisions about post-war Asia. (10:306)

1.      Churchill names him “Cash-my-check.”

n.      28 November

                                                    i.     At Teheran, Stalin informs FDR that he does not like unconditional surrender.  Churchill agrees. (5:44)

1.      First conference of the big three leaders.

2.      Main commitment was to open a second front against Nazi Germany.

o.     29 November

                                                    i.     Churchill is a target of Stalin’s verbal jabs; FDR and Stalin joke about selecting 50,000 German officers for execution after the war. (5:50)

p.      1 December

                                                    i.     FDR agrees to support the shift of Poland to the east, but conveyed to Stalin that he could not publicly support any such move, as six or seven million Poles lived in the US, and an election was upcoming. (5:45)

q.      17 December

                                                    i.     Passage of the Magnuson Act in the United States, also known as the Chinese Exclusion Repeal Act.

r.       21 December

                                                    i.     Roosevelt writes to Churchill, conveying his desire to offer one-third of the Italian naval fleet to Stalin.  (5:53)

6)      1944

a.      16 January

                                                    i.     Churchill writes to FDR, noting that offering one-third of the Italian fleet to the Soviets was never discussed at Teheran. (5:53)

b.      29 February

                                                    i.     Roosevelt sends to Churchill the Hurley report on Iran, suggesting that Britain’s imperialism must cease; the report further emphasizes the Soviet place in the world, include their positive relations with Iran. (5:99)

c.      2 March

                                                    i.     Roosevelt announces in a news conference that he had “given” one-third of the Italian fleet to Stalin. (5:53)

d.      7 March

                                                    i.     Churchill drafts and sends a strong letter of displeasure to FDR regarding the gift of Italian ships to Stalin.  Britain has borne the brunt of the naval losses since the beginning of the war. (5:54)

e.      21 May

                                                    i.     Churchill replies to Hurley report, defending British Imperialism as a force for spreading democracy. (5:100)

f.       Summer

                                                    i.     Stalin informs Marshal A.M. Vasilevsky that he would be chief commander in a war against Japan. (2:268)

                                                   ii.     For the most part, those entrusted with preparing the plan for invasion of Germany in 1941 were also entrusted to develop this war plan. (2:276)

                                                  iii.     Japan wipes out Chennault’s air bases as men like Marshall and Stilwell predicted. (10:312)

                                                  iv.     Roosevelt sends letter to Chiang through Stilwell; given the terrible defeats for Chiang, Roosevelt threatens to cut off all aid unless Stilwell is put in charge.

1.      Chiang replies that he would like Stilwell replaced, and Chiang would welcome any other general that Roosevelt would place in charge.

g.      July

                                                    i.     FDR forces Chiang to allow US officials to contact Mao; on the way, they saw healthy people and animals – unlike in Chiang’s China. “Morale is very high.” (10:310)

h.      August

                                                    i.     Beginning of the three-month Warsaw Uprising.  Despite the capability to do otherwise, Stalin did not offer assistance to the Poles against the Germans. (5:57)

i.       25 August

                                                    i.     Churchill writes draft letter to Stalin and sends to FDR.  The purpose is to encourage Stalin to support the Poles.  FDR strongly objects to sending the letter. (5:58)

j.       9 September

                                                    i.     Churchill letter to his chiefs of staff: “Once again I draw attention to the extreme importance on grounds of high policy of our having a stake in central and southern Europe and not allowing everything to pass into Soviet hands with the incalculable consequences that may result therefrom.” (5:61)

k.      19 October

                                                    i.     Stilwell recalled from his command in China by Roosevelt.

l.       6 November

                                                    i.     Stalin calls Japan an aggressor for the first time. (2:268)

7)      1945

a.      4 February

                                                    i.     Yalta (Crimea) Conference, with Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin, legitimizes for the Soviets various territories taken by force. (5:69)

b.      13 February

                                                    i.     The bombing of Dresden begins. (6:177)

c.      28 February

                                                    i.     A few US embassy political officers in China sign a letter to Washington, with the view that Chiang was only in it for Chiang, and Mao held the cards when it came to fighting Japan – completely counter to the acceptable thinking in Washington. (10:322)

1.      Per John Service, to his mother: “We may become heroes – or we may be hung.”

d.      6 March

                                                    i.     Churchill is apprised about mass arrests by the Soviets of Polish intellectuals, priest, professors, etc., taking place in Cracow.  Six-thousand former Home Army officers were put in a camp.  The fruits of Yalta were beginning to become plain to the world. (5:78)

e.      8 March

                                                    i.     Churchill writes to Roosevelt, apprizing him of the picture taking place in Eastern Europe – particularly the “cruel joke” perpetrated on the Poles regarding free elections.  He asked Roosevelt to join him in a letter of protest to Stalin.  Roosevelt did not. (5:78)

f.       9-10 March

                                                    i.     Curtis LeMay’s “Operation Meetinghouse” air raid of Tokyo was later estimated to be the single most destructive bombing raid in history.

1.      334 B-29s took off to raid with 279 of them dropping 1,665 tons of bombs on Tokyo. The bombs were mostly the 500-pound (230 kg) E-46 cluster bomb which released 38 napalm-carrying M-69 incendiary bomblets at an altitude of 2,000–2,500 ft (610–760 m).

2.      Approximately 15.8 square miles (4,090 ha) of the city was destroyed and some 100,000 people are estimated to have died.

3.      Bombers departed from captured islands, as China was still not secure enough for air bases. (10:330)

g.      21 March

                                                    i.     Ambassador to Moscow, Averell Harriman to Roosevelt: “I feel the time has come to reorient our whole attitude, and our method of dealing with the Soviet government.  Unless we wish to accept the 20^th century barbarian invasion, with repercussions extending further and further, and in the East as well, we must find ways of arresting the Soviet domineering policy.” (5:81)

h.      24 March

                                                    i.     Harriman to Roosevelt, regarding the brutal and callous treatment by the Soviets of Americans being freed from German prison camps. (5:81)

i.       26 March

                                                    i.     Roosevelt replies to Harriman: “It does not appear appropriate for me to send another message now to Stalin…” (5:81)

j.       28 March

                                                    i.     Eisenhower telegram directly to Stalin, outlining Eisenhower’s strategy for the remainder of the European war.  The telegram did not identify Berlin as an Allied objective. Churchill saw the telegram only after it was sent to Stalin; shocked regarding the gift of Berlin to the Soviets. (5:84)

k.      2 April

                                                    i.     Harriman to Roosevelt: “I feel certain that unless we do take action in cases of this kind, the Soviet government will become convinced that they can force us to accept any of their decisions on all matters and it will be increasingly difficult to stop their aggressive policy.” (5:81)

l.       5 April

                                                    i.     Soviet Union cancels the Soviet-Japanese neutrality pact. (2:268)

m.    11 April

                                                    i.     US Army reaches the Elbe River, 60 miles from Berlin. (5:85)

n.      12 April

                                                    i.     Roosevelt dies. (10:325)

o.     19 April

                                                    i.     John Service, US embassy official in China, and one that recommended working with Mao in the war against Japan, has his hotel room bugged by the FBI.  Service was giving background briefings to journalists, and he tells Amerasia magazine editor Philip Jaffe that he has some documents regarding Chiang and Mao. (10:329)

1.      He is arrested by the FBI shortly thereafter.

2.      Thus begins the search (witch hunt) for “Who lost China.”

p.      April

                                                    i.     US Captain Archimedes Patti of the OSS parachutes in to meet Ho Chi Minh at his base north of Hanoi.  Patti spoke fluent French and spent hours in conversation. (10:333)

1.      His purpose was to help coordinate attacks against the Japanese.

2.      He met several more times with Ho Chi Minh thereafter.

q.      8 May

                                                    i.     V-E Day

r.       17 July

                                                    i.     Potsdam (Germany) Conference, with Truman, initially Churchill, and when he lost the election, Attlee, and Stalin.

1.      Purpose to decide how to administer punishment to the defeated Nazi Germany. The goals of the conference also included the establishment of post-war order, peace treaty issues, and countering the effects of the war.

s.      6 August

                                                    i.     US drops nuclear bomb on Hiroshima

t.       8 August

                                                    i.     At shortly before midnight, Japanese Ambassador in Moscow is notified: “Starting the next day, August 9, the Soviet Union will consider itself in a state of war with Japan.” As the day in Vladivostok starts seven hours before it does in Moscow, in fact the attack referenced in 9 August below had already begun! (2:272)

                                                   ii.     In eleven days, Soviet troops covered more than 800 kilometers. (2:274)

                                                  iii.     Chennault is given an un-ceremonial boot out of China. (10:333)

u.      9 August

                                                    i.     US drops nuclear bomb on Nagasaki

                                                   ii.     Soviets carry out sudden and crushing attack on Japanese in Manchuria and China. (2:272)

v.      10 August

                                                    i.     John McCloy divides Korea at the 38^th parallel for the purpose of accepting the Japanese surrender, with Russia to the north and the US to the south. (10:344)

1.      The US would govern the south with the help of the Japanese.

w.    14/15 August (due to Int’l Date Line)

                                                    i.     V-J Day

x.      2 September

                                                    i.     MacArthur accepts the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay. (10:332)

                                                   ii.     400,000 Vietnamese gather in Hanoi’s central square, celebrating their day of independence.  Ho Chi Minh reads an almost direct copy of Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence opening: “All men are created equal; they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights….”

y.      26 November

                                                    i.     Ambassador Hurley, having left China two months before, learns he is criticizing him regarding “the rotten Hurley policy” that had “now committed us to armed intervention” in China’s internal affairs. (10:334)

1.      Hurley responds with a letter of resignation to Truman.

z.      December

                                                    i.     Truman sends Marshall to China to broker a truce between Chiang and Mao, but Marshall fails to bring peace. (10:334)

aa.   Unknown

                                                    i.     Soviets remove 2 million Poles still living east of the Curzon line, sending them west as part of the forced migrations. (1:431)

8)      1946

a.      1 July

                                                    i.     Founding of National War College

9)      1947

a.      18 September

                                                    i.     Founding of Central Intelligence Agency

                                                   ii.     Founding of US National Security Council

10)   1948

a.      June

                                                    i.     Mao and Chiang have about equal numbers of men and armaments. (10:335)

b.      October

                                                    i.     About 300,000 of Chiang’s soldiers defect to Mao. (10:335)

c.      November

                                                    i.     Chiang sends an urgent appeal to Truman, warning that Mao’s warriors were “within striking distance” of Shanghai and Nanking.  He asked for speedy military assistance. (10:335)

d.      16 December

                                                    i.     Memorandum prepared by Joint Chiefs of Staff tell Truman there was “now obviously grave doubt as to whether the arrival in China of any further military equipment for the Chinese National Government will buy any time at all.” They are further concerned that the weapons will only end up in the hands of the Communists. (10:335)

e.      December

                                                    i.     Mayling comes to Washington demanding $3 billion in aid.  Truman later remembers, regarding Chiang, the Soongs, and all: “I discovered after some time…[they] were all thieves, every last one of them…” (10:336)

11)   1949

a.      January

                                                    i.     Chiang prepares to flee mainland China, first stopping in Shanghai to transfer the government gold reserves to Taiwan. (10:337)

b.      1 October

                                                    i.     Mao Zedong stands over Tiananmen Square and announces his rule. (10:338)

12)   1950

a.      25 June

                                                    i.     North Korea crosses the 38^th parallel. (10:346)

b.      27 June

                                                    i.     Truman dispatches the United States Seventh Fleet to the Taiwan Strait, to prevent hostilities between the Nationalist Republic of China (Taiwan) and the People's Republic of China (PRC)

c.      29 June

                                                    i.     Eight US Air Force cargo planes depart for Asia with war material for the French in Vietnam. (10:348)

d.      29 September

                                                    i.     MacArthur restores the South Korean government of Syngman Rhee.

e.      30 September

                                                    i.     Marshall sends an “eyes only” memo to MacArthur: "We want you to feel unhampered tactically and strategically to proceed north of the 38th parallel."

1.      MacArthur boasts that if Mao confronted the US military, “[I will} deliver such a crushing defeat that it would be one of the decisive battles of the world – a disaster so great it would rock Asia and perhaps turn back Communism.” (10:349)

f.       1 October

                                                    i.     MacArthur demands unconditional surrender.

g.      2 October

                                                    i.     Through Indian Ambassador Panikkar, Chinese premier and foreign minister Zhou Enlai sent a message to the US: If the Americans crossed the 38^th parallel, Mao would intervene. (10:350)

h.      3 October

                                                    i.     Dean Acheson ridiculed Mao’s threat. (10:350)

i.       9 October

                                                    i.     MacArthur crosses the 38^th parallel. (10:350)

j.       25 October

                                                    i.     200,000 Chinese troops enter Korea.

k.      8 November (approx.)

                                                    i.     Soviet Union provides air cover to China in North Korea.

l.       Mid-December

                                                    i.     UN forces retreat back to the 38^th parallel.

13)   1953

a.      27 July

                                                    i.     Active military operations end in Korea.

14)   1954

a.      7 April

                                                    i.     In a press conference, President Eisenhower speaks of the domino theory: “You have a row of dominoes set up, you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly.” (10:352)

b.      7 May

                                                    i.     French lose Battle of Dien Bien Phu, effectively ending French military action in Vietnam.

c.      26 June

                                                    i.     With the backing of the Eisenhower administration, Ngo Dinh Diem is named prime minister of the state of Vietnam; the appointment was widely condemned by French officials, who felt that Diem was incompetent.

d.      20 July

                                                    i.     Agreement on Geneva Accords, ending the First Indochina War.

1.      Free elections were to be held in 1956. (10:352)

a.      Eisenhower scuttled the elections, as he later admitted: “It was generally conceded that had an election been held, Ho Chi Minh would have been elected Premier.”

15)   1957

a.      8 May

                                                    i.     Eisenhower’s personal plane brings President Diem of South Vietnam for a visit to Washington. (10:353)

1.      250,000 people cheered Diem during a parade in New York. (10:354)

16)   1963

a.      2 November

                                                    i.     President of the Republic of Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem, is assassinated in a CIA engineered coup.

b.      22 November

                                                    i.     US President John F. Kennedy is assassinated.

1.      Both Diem and Kennedy were reportedly against inserting American combat troops in Vietnam. (10:356)

c.      24 November

                                                    i.     New US President Lyndon Johnson tells US Ambassador to South Vietnam Henry Cabot Lodge: “I am not going to lose South Vietnam.  I am not going to be the President who saw Southeast Asia go the way China went.” (10:357)

17)   1971

a.      15 July

                                                    i.     Nixon publicly announces his upcoming trip to China.

b.      22 July

                                                    i.     John Service and John Davies – pilloried for having “lost” China to Mao by Senator McCarthy – appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. (10:365)

1.      Service jokes: “This is the first Senate meeting where I have appeared without need of counsel.”

c.      September

                                                    i.     John Service receives a call – he is invited to visit China by Zhou Enlai. (10:365)

18)   1972

a.      21 February

                                                    i.     Nixon goes to China, meets with Mao Zedong.

19)   1975

a.      30 April

                                                    i.     End of the Vietnam War for the United States.

1.      The US dropped more than three times the tonnage of bombs during Vietnam than they did in both the European and Pacific theaters of WWII. (10:361)

1)      1939 – The War That Had Many Fathers, Gerd Schultze-Rhonhof; 2011 Olzog Verlag GmbH, Munchen Germany

2)      The Chief Culprit: Stalin’s Grand Design to Start World War II, Viktor Suvorov; 2008 Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD.

3)      THE TELEGRAM OF THE PLENIPOTENTIARY OF THE USSR IN GREAT BRITAIN I. M. MAISKY TO THE PEOPLE'S COMMISSAR FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE USSR V. M. MOLOTOV

4)      The Last Lion, William Manchester

5)      Roosevelt and Stalin: The Failed Courtship, Robert Nisbet; 1988 Regnery Gateway, Washington, D.C.

6)      Advance to Barbarism, FJP Veale; 2013 Ostara Publications

7)      Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin, Timothy Snyder; 2010 Basic Books

8)      The Pearl Harbor Myth: Rethinking the Unthinkable, George Victor; 2007 Potomac Books

9)      The Imperial Cruise: A Secret History of Empire and War, James Bradley; 2009, Back Bay Books

10)   The China Mirage: The Hidden History of American Disaster in Asia, James Bradley; 2015, Little, Brown and Company

11)   A Peace to End All Peace: The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the Creation of the Modern Middle East, David Fromkin; 1989, Avon Books

12)   The Good War That Wasn’t – And Why It Matters, Ted Grimsrud; 2014, Cascade Books

13)   The Lost History of 1914, Jack Beatty; 2012, Bloomsbury

14)   The Western Front, Hunt Tooley; 2003 Palgrave MacMillan

15)   The Russian Origins of the First World War, Sean McMeekin; 2011, The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press