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HIJMS Taiho

HIJMS Taiho

Taiho was an aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. "Taiho" means "Great Phoenix". Built by Kawasaki, she was laid down on 10 July 1941 and launched almost two years later, on 7 April 1943, and was finally completed eleven months afterwards on 7 March 1944. On 19 June 1944, after approximately three months of service, she blew up due to the ignition of gasoline vapors after being torpedoed by the US submarine Albacore in the Battle of the Philippine Sea. What made Taiho special was the newly introduced heavy armored flight deck, analogous to the Royal Navy's Illustrious class. She was also the first Japanese carrier to incorporate a closed hurricane bow.
Image:HIJMS_Taiho_01.jpg Image:HIJMS_Taiho_02.jpg Taiho Taiho ja:大鳳 (空母)



Imperial Japanese Navy

The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) (Japanese: 大日本帝国海軍 or 日本海軍 Nippon Kaigun) was the navy of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renouncement of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes. The origins of the Imperial Japanese Navy trace back to early interactions with states on the Asian continent at the beginning of the medieval period, and reached a peak of activity during the 16th and 17th century at a time of cultural exchange with European powers during the Age of Discovery. After two centuries of stagnation during the country's ensuing seclusion policy under the shoguns of the Edo period, Japan's Navy was comparatively backward when the country was forced open to trade by American intervention in 1854. This eventually led to the so-called Meiji Restoration, a period of frantic modernization and industrialization accompanied by the re-ascendance of the emperor, making the IJN the third largest navy in the world by 1920, and perhaps the most modern at the brink of World War II. The navy's history of successes, sometimes against much more powerful foes as in the 1895 Sino-Japanese war and the 1905 Russo-Japanese War, ended with almost complete annihilation in 1945 against the United States Navy, and official dissolution at the end of the conflict. United States Navy

Origins

Main article Naval history of Japan Naval history of Japan.]] Japan has a long history of naval interaction with the Asian continent, involving transportation of troops between Korea and Japan, starting at least with the beginning of the Kofun period in the 3rd century. Following the attempts at Mongol invasions of Japan by Kubilai Khan in 1281, Japanese "Wakō" pirates became very active plundering the coast of the Chinese Empire. Japan undertook major naval building efforts in the 16th century, during the Warring States period, when feudal rulers vying for supremacy built vast coastal navies of several hundred ships. Around that time, Japan seems to have developed the first ironclad warships in history, when Oda Nobunaga, a Japanese daimyo, had six iron-covered Oatakebune made in 1576 . 1576 Japan built her first large ocean-going warships in the beginning of the 17th century, following contacts with the Western nations during the Nanban trade period. In 1613, the Daimyo of Sendai, in agreement with the Tokugawa Bakufu, built Date Maru, a 500 ton galleon-type ship that transported a Japanese embassy to the Americas, and then continued to Europe. From 1604, about 350 Red seal ships, usually armed and incorporating some Western technologies, were also commissioned by the Bakufu, mainly for Southeast Asian trade. From 1640, Japan chose the policy of Sakoku (seclusion), which forbade contacts with the West, eradicated Christianity, and prohibited the construction of ocean-going ships on pain of death. The study of Western shipbuilding techniques resumed in the 1840s during the Late Tokugawa shogunate ("Bakumatsu"). In 1853 and 1854, U.S. Navy Commodore Matthew Perry, made a demonstration of force with the newest steam warships of the US Navy. Perry finally obtained the opening of the country to international trade through the 1854 Convention of Kanagawa. This was soon followed by the 1858 "unequal" U.S.-Japan Treaty of Amity and Commerce, which allowed the establishment of foreign concessions, extra-territoriality for foreigners, and minimal import taxes for foreign goods. U.S.-Japan Treaty of Amity and Commerce.]] As soon as Japan agreed to open up to foreign influence, the Tokugawa shogun government initiated an active policy of assimilation of Western naval technologies. In 1855, with Dutch assistance, the Shogunate acquired its first steam warship, the Kankō Maru, which was used for training, and established the Nagasaki Naval Training Center. In 1857, it acquired its first screw-driven steam warship, the Kanrin Maru. Naval students were sent to study in Western naval schools for several years, such as the future Admiral Takeaki Enomoto (who studied in the Netherlands from 1862–1867), starting a tradition of foreign-educated future leaders such Admirals Heihachiro Togo and, later, Isoroku Yamamoto. In 1865, the French naval engineer Léonce Verny was hired to build Japan's first modern naval arsenals, at Yokosuka and Nagasaki. By the end of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1867, the Tokugawa navy already possessed eight Western-style steam warships around the flagship Kaiyō Maru which were used against pro-imperial forces during the Boshin war, under the command of Admiral Enomoto. The conflict culminated with the Naval Battle of Hakodate in 1869, Japan's first large-scale modern naval battle, and ended with the defeat of the last Tokugawa forces and the restoration of Imperial rule.

Creation of the Imperial Japanese Navy (1869)

1869, 1869.]] From 1868, the restored Meiji Emperor continued with reforms to industrialize and militarize Japan to prevent United States and European powers from overwhelming her. The Imperial Japanese Navy was formally established in 1869. The new government drafted an ambitious plan to create a Navy with 200 ships organized into 10 fleets. It was abandoned within a year due to lack of resources. Domestic rebellions, especially the Satsuma Rebellion (1877) forced the government to focus on land warfare. Naval policy, expressed by the slogan Shusei Kokubō (Jp:守勢国防, lit. "Static Defense"), focused on coastal defenses, a standing army, and a coastal Navy, leading to a military organization under the Rikushu Kaijū (Jp:陸主海従, Army first, Navy second) principle.

British support

During the 1870s and 1880s, the Japanese Navy remained an essentially coastal defense force, although the Meiji government continued to modernize it. In 1870, an Imperial decree determined that the British Navy should be the model for development. Ships such as the Fuso, Kongo and the Hiei were built in British shipyards specifically for the Japanese Navy. A British naval mission visited Japan in 1873, headed by Comdr. Archibald Douglas. Later, Comdr. L.P. Willan was hired in 1879 to train naval cadets. Private construction companies such as Ishikawajima and Kawasaki also emerged around this time. Two large warships were ordered from British shipyards. Naniwa and the Takachiho were 3,650 ton ships. They were capable of speeds up to 18 knots (33 km/h) and were armed with 2 to 3-inch deck armor and two 10.2-in (260 mm) Krupp guns. The naval architect Sasō Sachū designed these on the line of the Elswick class of protected cruisers but with superior specifications. An arms race was taking place with China however, who equipped herself with two huge German battleships of 7,335 tons (the Ting Yüan and the Chen-Yüan). Japan resorted to French assistance to build a modern fleet which could prevail in the upcoming conflict.

Influence of the French "Jeune Ecole" (1880s)

Chen-Yüan (1894).]] During the 1880s, France took the lead in influence, due to its "Jeune Ecole" doctrine favoring small, fast warships, especially cruisers and torpedo boats, against bigger units. The Meiji government issued its First Naval Expansion bill in 1882, requiring the construction of 48 warships, of which 22 were to be torpedo boats. The naval successes of the French Navy against China in the Sino-French War of 1883–85 seemed to validate the potential of torpedo boats, an approach which was also attractive to the limited resources of Japan. In 1885, the new Navy slogan became Kaikoku Nippon (Jp:海国日本, lit. "Maritime Japan"). In 1886, the leading French Navy engineer Emile Bertin was hired for four years to reinforce the Japanese Navy and to direct the construction of the arsenals of Kure and Sasebo. He developed the Sanseikan class of cruisers; 3 units featuring a single powerful main gun, the 12.6 in (320 mm) Canet gun. Altogether, Bertin supervised the building of more than twenty units. They helped establish the first true modern naval force of Japan. It allowed Japan to achieve mastery in the building of large units, since some of the ships were imported, and some others were built domestically at the arsenal of Yokosuka:
- 3 cruisers: the 4,700 tons Matsushima and Itsukushima, made in France, and the Hashidate, built by Japan in Yokosuka.
- 3 costal warships of 4,278 tons.
- 2 small cruisers: the Chiyoda, a small cruiser of 2,439 built in Britain, and the Yaeyama, 1800 tons, built in Yokosuka, Japan.
- 1 frigate, the 1600 tons Takao, built in Yokosuka.
- 1 destroyer: the 726 tons Chishima, built in France.
- 16 torpedo boats of 54 tons each, built in France by the Companie du Creusot in 1888, and assembled in Japan. This period also allowed Japan "to embrace the revolutionary new technologies embodied in torpedoes, torpedo-boats and mines, of which the French at the time were probably the world's best exponents" (Howe, p281). Japan acquired its first torpedoes in 1884, and established a "Torpedo Training Center" at Yokosuka in 1886. 1886).]] These ships were the last major orders placed with France. Japan turned again to Britain, with the order of a revolutionary torpedo boat, the 1887 Kotaka, considered as the first ever effective design of a destroyer (Evans Kaigun, p17), and with the purchase of the Yoshino, built in Elswick, the fastest cruiser in the world at the time of her launch in 1892.

Sino-Japanese War

Japan continued the modernization of its navy, especially as China was also building a powerful modern fleet with foreign, especially German, assistance, and the pressure was building between the two countries to take control of Korea. The Sino-Japanese war was officially declared on August 1, 1894, though some naval fighting had already taken place. 1894 The Japanese navy devastated Qing's northern fleet off the mouth of the Yalu River at the Battle of Yalu River on September 17, 1894, in which the Chinese fleet lost 8 out of 12 warships. Although Japan turned out victorious, the two large German-made battleships of the Chinese Navy remained almost impervious to Japanese guns, highlighting the need for bigger capital ships in the Japanese Navy (the Ting Yuan was finally sunk by torpedoes, and the Chen-Yuan was captured with little damage). The next step of the Imperial Japanese Navy's expansion would thus involve a combination of heavily armed large warships, with smaller and innovative offensive units permitting aggressive tactics. As a result of the conflict, under the Treaty of Shimonoseki (April 17th, 1895), Taiwan and the Pescadores Islands were transferred to Japan. The Imperial Japanese Navy took possession of the island and quelled opposition movements between March to October 1895, and the islands continued to be a Japanese colony until 1945. Japan also obtained the Liaodong Peninsula, although she was forced by Russia to return it to China, only to see Russia take possession of it soon after. The Imperial Japanese Navy further intervened in China in 1900, by participating together with Western Powers to the suppression of the Chinese Boxer Rebellion. The Navy supplied the largest number of warships (18, out of a total of 50 warships), and delivered the largest contingent of Army and Navy troops among the intervening nations (20,840 soldiers, out of total of 54,000).

Russo-Japanese War

Boxer Rebellion.]] Following the Sino-Japanese War, and the humiliation of the forced return of the Liaotung peninsula to China under Russian pressure (the "Triple Intervention"), Japan began to build up its military strength in preparation for further confrontations. Japan promulgated a ten-year naval build-up program, under the slogan "Perseverance and determination" (Jp:臥薪嘗胆, Gashinshōtan), in which it commissioned 109 warships, for a total of 200,000 tons, and increased its Navy personnel from 15,100 to 40,800. The new fleet consisted of:
- 6 battleships (all British-made)
- 8 armored cruisers (4 British, 2 Italian, 1 German, and 1 French-made)
- 9 cruisers (5 Japanese, 2 British and 2 US-made)
- 24 destroyers (16 British and 8 Japanese-made)
- 63 torpedo boats (26 German, 10 British, 17 French, and 10 Japanese-made) torpedo boat.]] One of these battleships, Mikasa, the most advanced ship of her time, was ordered from the Vickers shipyard in the United Kingdom at the end of 1898, for delivery to Japan in 1902. These dispositions culminated with the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905). At the Battle of Tsushima, Admiral Togo onboard the Mikasa led the combined Japanese fleet into what has been called "the most decisive naval battle in history". The Russian fleet was almost completely annihilated: out of 38 Russian ships, 21 were sunk, 7 captured, 6 disarmed, 4,545 Russian servicemen died and 6,106 were taken prisoner. On the other hand, the Japanese only lost 116 men and 3 torpedo boats. These victories broke Russian strength in East Asia, and triggered waves of mutinies in the Russian Navy at Sevastopol, Vladivostok and Kronstadt, peaking in June with the Battleship Potemkin uprising, thereby contributing to the Russian Revolution of 1905. Russian Revolution of 1905.]] During the Russo-Japanese war, Japan also made frantic efforts to have a fleet of submarines. Submarines had only recently become operational military engines, and were considered as special weapons of considerable potential. The Imperial Japanese Navy acquired its first submarines in 1905 from the United States Electric Boat Company, barely four years after the U.S. Navy had commissioned its own first submarine, USS Holland. The ships were Holland designs. They were shipped in kit to Japan and then assembled at the Yokosuka Naval Yard, to become hulls No1 through 5, and became operational at the end of 1905.

Towards an autonomous national Navy

Japan continued in its efforts to build up a strong national naval industry. Following a strategy of "Copy, improve, innovate", foreign ships of various designs were usually analysed in depth, their specifications often improved on, and then were purchased in pairs so as to organize comparative testing and improvements. Over the years, the importation of whole classes of ships was progressively substituted by local assembly, and then complete local production, starting with the smallest ships, such as torpedo boats and cruisers in the 1880s, to finish with whole battleships in the early 1900s. The last major purchase was in 1913 when the battlecruiser Kongo was purchased from the Vickers shipyard. By 1918, there was no aspect of shipbuilding technology where Japanese capabilities fell significantly below world standards. By 1920, the Imperial Japanese Navy was the world's third largest navy, and was a leader in many aspects of naval development: 1920" battleship]]
- The Japanese Navy was the first navy in the world to use in naval combat a wireless communication system (following its 1897 invention by Marconi), at the 1905 Battle of Tsushima.
- In 1906, it launched the battleship Satsuma, at the time the largest warship in the world by displacement, and the first ship in the world to be designed and laid down as an "all-big-gun" battleship, one year before the British HMS Dreadnought.
- Between 1905 and 1910, Japan started to build battleships domestically. The 1906 battleship Satsuma was built in Japan with about 80% parts from Britain, but the next battleship class, the 1910 Kawachi was built with only 20% imported parts.

World War I

Japan entered World War I on the side of the Allies, against Germany and Austria, as a natural prolongation of the 1902 Anglo-Japanese Alliance. After an Anglo-Japanese siege, the Japanese Navy seized the German naval base of Tsingtao on the Shantung peninsula in China, in November 1914. Concurrently a battle group was sent to the central Pacific in August and September to pursue the German East Asiatic squadron, which then moved into the Southern Atlantic, where it encountered British naval forces. Japan seized the former possessions of Germany in Micronesia on this occasion (the Mariana Islands, Caroline Islands and Marshall Islands), which remained Japanese colonies until the end of World War II, under the League of Nations' South Pacific Mandate. South Pacific Mandate (Malta, 1919).]] Hard pressed in Europe, where it had only a narrow margin of superiority against Germany, Britain had requested, but was denied, the loan of Japan's four newest Kongo-class battleships (Kongo, Hiei, Haruna, Kirishima), the first ships in the world to be equipped with 14-inch (356 mm) guns, and the most advanced capital ships in the world at the time of their launch. Following further request to contribute to the conflict, and the advent of unrestricted German submarine warfare from 1917, the Imperial Japanese Navy sent a special force of destroyers to the Mediterranean in March 1917. The fleet, consisting of one armoured cruiser, Nisshin, and eight of the Navy's newest destroyers under Admiral Satō Kōzō, was based in Malta and efficiently protected allied shipping between Marseilles, Taranto and ports in Egypt until the end of the War. One destroyer, Sakaki, was torpedoed with the loss of 59 officers and men. After the conflict, the Japanese Navy received seven German submarines as spoils of war, which were brought to Japan and analysed, contributing greatly to the development of the Japanese submarine industry.

Interwar years

In the years before WW II the IJN began to structure itself specifically to fight the United States. A long stretch of militaristic expansion and the start of the Second Sino-Japanese war in 1937 had alienated the United States, and the country was seen as a rival of Japan. Second Sino-Japanese war in the world (1922)]] The Imperial Japanese Navy was faced, before and during World War II, with considerable challenges, probably more so than any other navy in the world. Japan, like Britain, was almost entirely dependent on foreign resources to supply its economy, so that the Imperial Japanese Navy had to secure and protect sources for raw material (especially Southeast Asian oil and raw materials) that were far away, and controlled by foreign countries (Britain, the United States and Holland). To achieve this goal, she had to build large warships capable of a long range. To achieve Japan’s expansionist policies, the Imperial Japanese Navy also had to fight off the largest navies in the world (The 1922 Washington Naval Treaty allotted a 5/5/3 ratio for the navies of Britain, the United States and Japan). She was therefore numerically inferior and her industrial base for expansion was limited (in particular compared to the United States). Her battle tactics therefore tended to rely on technical superiority (fewer, but faster, more powerful ships), and aggressive tactics (daring and speedy attacks overwhelming the enemy, a recipe for success in her previous conflicts). Washington Naval Treaty (1928), introducing enclosed turrets capable of anti-aircraft fire and the 24-inch (610 mm) oxygen fuelled Type 93 torpedo, was a design later emulated by other navies.]] During the interwar, Japan therefore took the lead in many areas of warship development:
- In 1921 it launched the Hosho, the first purpose-designed aircraft carrier in the world to be completed, and subsequently developed a fleet of aircraft carriers second to none.
- In keeping with its belief in big-gun action, the Imperial Japanese Navy was the first navy to mount 14-in (356 mm) guns (with the Kongo), 16-in (406 mm) guns (with the Nagato), and the only Navy ever to mount 18.1-in (460 mm) guns (with the Yamato).
- In 1928, it launched the innovative Fubuki-class destroyer, introducing enclosed turrets capable of anti-aircraft fire and the 24-inch (610 mm) oxygen fuelled Type 93 torpedo, a design soon emulated by other navies.
- Japan developed the oxygen fuelled Type 93 "Long Lance" torpedo, generally recognized as the best torpedo in the world, down to the end of World War II (Westwood, Fighting Ships). Japan sometimes continued to solicit foreign expertise in areas where it needed to catch up with the West: in 1921 it welcomed for a year and a half the Sempill Mission, a group of British aeronaval instructors who trained the Imperial Japanese Navy on several new aircraft, such as the Gloster Sparrowhawk, and various techniques such as torpedo bombing and flight control. During the pre-war years, two schools of thought battled over whether the Navy should be organized around powerful battleships that could ultimately win over American ones in Japanese waters, or around an aggressive fleet of aircraft carriers. Neither really prevailed, and both lines of ships were developed, with the results that neither solution displayed overwhelming strength over the American adversary. A consistent weakness of Japanese warship development was the tendency to incorporate too much armament, and too much engine power, in comparison to ship size (a side-effect of the Washington treaty), leading to shortcomings in stability, protection and structural strength.

World War II

The Imperial Japanese Navy was administered by the Ministry of the Navy of Japan and controlled by the Chief of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff at Imperial General Headquarters. In order to combat the numerically superior American navy, the IJN devoted large amounts of resources to creating a force superior in quality to any navy at the time. Consequently, at the beginning of World War II, Japan probably had the most sophisticated Navy in the world. Betting on the speedy success of aggressive tactics, Japan did not invest significantly on defensive organization: she should also have been able to protect her long shipping lines against enemy submarines, which she never managed to do, particularly under-investing in anti-submarine escort ships and escort aircraft carriers. The Japanese Navy enjoyed spectacular success during the first part of the hostilities, but American forces ultimately managed to gain the upper hand through technological upgrades to its air and naval forces, and a vastly stronger industrial output. Japan's reluctance to use their submarine fleet for commerce raiding and failure to secure their communications also added to their defeat. During the last phase of the war the Imperial Japanese Navy resorted to a series of desperate measures, including Kamikaze (suicide) actions.

Battleships

Kamikaze in history, in 1941.]] Japan continued to attribute considerable prestige to battleships and endeavoured to build the largest and most powerful ships of the period. Yamato, the largest and most heavily-armed battleship in history, was launched in 1941. The second half of World War II saw the last battleship duels. In the Battle of Guadalcanal on November 15 1942, the United States battleships South Dakota and Washington fought and destroyed the Japanese battleship Kirishima. In the Battle of Leyte Gulf on 25 October 1944 six battleships, led by Admiral Jesse Oldendorf of the U.S. 7th Fleet fired upon & claimed credit for sinking Admiral Shoji Nishimura's battleships Yamashiro and Fuso during the Battle of Surigao Strait; in fact, both battleships were fatally crippled by DD attacks before brough under fire by Oldendorf's old battleships. Nevertheless, the Battle of Samar on 25 October 1944 during the Battle of Leyte Gulf showed that battleships still be useful, albeit inefficient weapon. Only the indecision of Admiral Takeo Kurita and the fight by American destroyers and destroyer escorts saved the American aircraft carriers of "Taffy 3" from being pounded to the bottom by the gunfire of Yamato, Kongo and Nagato and their cruiser host. Miraculously for the Americans, only USS Gambier Bay along with four destroyers were lost due to surface action. The Yamato, for all the expense that went info building her, failed to score even a single hit. Ultimately, the advent of air power however spelled doom for the battleship. Battleships in the Pacific ended up primarily performing shore bombardment and anti-aircraft defense for the carriers. The Yamato and Musashi, were sunk by aircraft attacks long before they could come within striking range of the American fleet. As a result of the changing technology, plans for even larger battleships, such as the Japanese Super Yamato class, were cancelled.

Aircraft carriers

Super Yamato class.]] Japan put particular emphasis on aircraft carriers. The Imperial Japanese Navy started the Pacific War with 10 aircraft carriers, the largest and most modern carrier fleet in the world at that time. Its two Shokakus were superior to any carrier in the world until the wartime appearance of the American Essex-class aircraft carrier . However, a large number of the Japanese carriers were of small size in accordance to limitations placed upon the Navy by the London and Washington Naval Conferences. There were 6 American aircraft carriers at the beginning of the hostilities, only 3 of them operating in the Pacific, and 3 British aircraft carriers, of which a single one operated in the Indian Ocean. However, following the Battle of Midway, in which four Japanese carriers were sunk, the Japanese Navy suddenly found itself short of full fleet carriers, resulting in an ambitious set of projects to convert commercial and military vessels into escort carriers such as the Hiyo and Shinano, which became the largest aircraft carrier of World War II. The Navy also attempted to build a number of full fleet carriers, though most of these projects were not completed by the end of the war.

Naval Aviation

Shinano in this case, about to hit the USS Missouri.]] Japan began the war with a competent naval air force designed around some of the best airplanes in the world: the "Zero" was considered as the best carrier aircraft of the beginning of the war, the Mitsubishi G3M bomber was remarkable for its range and speed, and the Kawanishi H8K was considered as the world's best flying boat. The Japanese pilot corps at the beginning of the war were of high caliber as compared to their contemporaries around the world due to intense training practices and frontline experience in the Sino-Japanese War. The Navy also had a competent tactical bombing force based around the Mitsubishi G3M and G4M bombers, which astonished the world by being the first planes to sink enemy battleships under way, in the sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse. As the war dragged on, the Allies were quick to find weaknesses in Japanese Naval Aviation. Though most of the Japanese aircraft were characterized by having great operating ranges, they had very little in the way of defensive armament and armor. As a result, the more numerous, heavily armed and armored American aircraft were able to develop techniques that quickly nullified the advantages of the Japanese aircraft. Furthermore, due to delays in engine development, the Japanese Navy had great difficulty in developing new and more competitive designs during the war, resulting in the mass scale production of aircraft with known weaknesses. Following the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the Japanese Navy increasingly opted towards deploying aircraft in the kamikaze role.

Submarines

kamikaze Japan had by far the most varied fleet of submarines of World War II, including manned torpedoes (Kaiten), midget submarines (Ko-hyoteki, Kairyu), medium-range submarines, purpose-built supply submarines (many for use by the Army), long-range fleet submarines (many of which carried an aircraft), submarines with the highest submerged speeds of the conflict (Sentaka I-200), and submarines that could carry multiple bombers (WWII's largest submarine, the Sentoku I-400). These submarines were also equipped with the most advanced torpedo of the conflict, the oxygen-propelled Long Lance. A plane from one such long-range fleet submarine, I-25, conducted what is still the only bombing attack on the continental United States when Warrant Flying Officer Nobuo Fujita attempted to start massive forest fires in the Pacific Northwest outside the town of Brookings, Oregon on September 9th, 1942. Other submarines undertook trans-oceanic missions to German-occupied Europe, such as I-30, I-8, I-34, I-29 and I-52, in one case flying a Japanese seaplane over France in a propaganda coup. In May 1942, Type A midget submarines were used in the Attack on Sydney Harbour, and the Battle of Madagascar. Overall, despite their technical prowesses, Japanese submarines were relatively unsuccesful. They were often used in offensive roles against warships, which were fast, maneuverable and well-defended compared to merchant ships. In 1942, Japanese submarines managed to sink two fleet carriers, one cruiser, and a few destroyers and other warships, and damage several others. They were not able to sustain these results afterwards, as Allied fleets were reinforced and became better organized. By the end of the war, submarines were instead often used to transport supplies to island garrisons. During the war, Japan managed to sink about 1 million tons of merchant shipping (184 ships), compared to 1.5 million tons for Britain (493 ships), 4.65 million tons for the US (1,079 ships) and 14.3 million tons for Germany (2,840 ships). Early models were not very maneuverable under water, could not dive very deep, and lacked radar. (Later in the war units that were fitted with radar were in some instances sunk due to the ability of US radar sets to detect their emissions. For example, Batfish (SS-310) sunk three such equipped submarines in the span of four days). After the end of the conflict, several of Japan's most original submarines were sent to Hawaii for inspection in "Operation Road's End" (I-400, I-401, I-201 and I-203) before being scuttled by the U.S. Navy in 1946 when the Soviets demanded to have access to the submarines as well.

Self-Defense Forces

I-201.]] Following Japan's surrender to the United States at the conclusion of World War II, and Japan's subsequent occupation, Japan's entire imperial military was dissolved in the new 1947 constitution which states, "The Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as a means of settling international disputes." Japan's current navy falls under the umbrella of the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) as the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).

References


- Boxer, C.R. (1993) "The Christian Century in Japan 1549–1650", ISBN 1-85754-035-2
- Delorme, Pierre, Les Grandes Batailles de l'Histoire, Port-Arhur 1904, Socomer Editions (French)
- Dull, Paul S. (1978) A Battle History of The Imperial Japanese Navy ISBN 0-85059-295-X
- Evans, David C & Peattie, Mark R. (1997) Kaigun: strategy, tactics, and technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887–1941 Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland ISBN 0870211927
- Gardiner, Robert (editor) (2001) Steam, Steel and Shellfire, The Steam Warship 1815–1905, ISBN 0785814132
- Howe, Christopher (1996) The origins of Japanese Trade Supremacy, Development and technology in Asia from 1540 to the Pacific War, The University of Chicago Press ISBN 0-226-35485-7
- Ireland, Bernard (1996) Jane's Battleships of the 20th Century ISBN 0-00-470997-7
- Lyon, D.J. (1976) World War II warships, Excalibur Books ISBN 0-85613-220-9
- Nagazumi, Yōko (永積洋子) Red Seal Ships (朱印船), ISBN 4642066594 (Japanese)
- Tōgō Shrine and Tōgō Association (東郷神社・東郷会), Togo Heihachiro in images, illustrated Meiji Navy (図説東郷平八郎、目で見る明治の海軍), (Japanese)
- Japanese submarines 潜水艦大作戦, Jinbutsu publishing (新人物従来社) (Japanese)

See also


- Imperial Japanese Navy Aviation Bureau
- Giretsu special forces operations
- Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces
- Imperial Japanese Navy Land Forces
- Tokei Tai-Navy Military Police
- Imperial Japanese Navy fuel
- "Strike South" Group
- Fleet Faction — Navy political group
- Treaty Faction — Navy political group
- May 15 Incident — coup d'etat with Navy support
- Imperial Way Faction
- Japanese nationalism
- The Japanese Navy Taiwan and South Pacific Mandate political project

Notes

# Video footage of the Sino-Japanese war: [http://www2.open.ed.jp/real/15655/01.mp2 Video (external link)]. # THE FIRST IRONCLADS In Japanese: [http://s-mizoe.hp.infoseek.co.jp/m160.html], [http://www12.plala.or.jp/k-hakuyo/index_ship/ship_9/3000.htm]. Also in English: [http://www.samurai-archives.com/mth.html]: "Iron clad ships, however, were not new to Japan and Hideyoshi; Oda Nobunaga, in fact, had many iron clad ships in his fleet." (referring to the anteriority of Japanese ironclads (1578) to the Korean Turtle ships (1592)). In Western sources, Japanese ironclads are described in CR Boxer "The Christian Century in Japan 1549–1650", p122, quoting the account of the Italian Jesuit Organtino visiting Japan in 1578. Nobunaga's ironclad fleet is also described in "A History of Japan, 1334–1615", Georges Samson, p309 ISBN 0804705259. Korea's "ironclad Turtle ships" were invented by Admiral Yi Sun-sin (1545–1598), and are first documented in 1592. Incidentally, Korea's iron plates only covered the roof (to prevent intrusion), and not the sides of their ships. The first Western ironclads date to 1859 with the French Gloire ("Steam, Steel and Shellfire"). #"Her armament of twelve quick-firing guns was formidable for her size, and her 23-knot speed made her the fastest cruiser in the world" Evans Kaigun, p17 #Evans Kaigun, p60-61 #Corbett Maritime Operations in the Russo-Japanese War, 2:333 #Howe, p284 #Howe, p268 #Evans, Kaigun, p84 # "Laid down before Dreadnought and intended to carry 12-inch guns, she should have been completed as the world's first all-big-gun battleship. However there were not enough Armstrong 1904 pattern 12-inch guns available, and 10-inch guns|had to be substituted for all but four of the weapons. Thus it was that future all-big gun battleships were to be called "dreadnoughts", and not "satsumas"." Jane's "Battleships of the 20th century", p68 #"when completed, the most formidable and most superbly designed capital ships in the world" Evans, Kaigun, p161 #Evans, Kaigun, p212 #Lyon World War II warships p34 #Lyon World War II warships p35 #Howe, p286 #"In many ways the Japanese were in the forefront of carrier design, and in 1941, the two Shokakus—the culmination of prewar Japanese design—were superior to any carrier in the world then in commission" Evans, Kaigun p323 #"For speed and maneuverability, for example the Zero was matchless; for range and speed few bombers surpassed the Mitsubishi G3M, and in the Kawanishi H8K, the Japanese navy had the world's best flying boat" Evans, Kaigun, p312 #"by 1941, by training and experience, Japan's naval aviators were undoubtedly the best among the world's three carrier forces" Evans, Kaigun, p325 #Japanese submarines, p70

External links


- [http://www2.memenet.or.jp/kinugawa/ship/2300.htm Nobunaga's ironclad navy]
- [http://homepage2.nifty.com/nishidah/e/index.htm Hiroshi Nishida's IJN site]
- [http://www.combinedfleet.com/ Imperial Japanese Navy Page]
- [http://www.jda.go.jp/JMSDF/info/event/cm_p/16cm.html JSDF video commercial] Imperial Japanese Navy Category:Military history of Japan Category:Fleets Imperial Japanese Navy ja:大日本帝国海軍

Phoenix

:This article refers to the mythical creature. For the city in Arizona, see Phoenix, Arizona. For other uses of the name Phoenix, see Phoenix (disambiguation). Phoenix (disambiguation) In ancient Egyptian mythology and in myths derived from it, the phoenix is a mythical sacred firebird. Said to live for 500, 1461 or for 12594 years (depending on the source), the phoenix is a male bird with beautiful gold and red plumage. At the end of its life-cycle the phoenix builds itself a nest of cinnamon twigs that it then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix arises. The new phoenix embalms the ashes of the old phoenix in an egg made of myrrh and deposits it in Heliopolis ("the city of the sun" in Greek), located in Egypt. The bird was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — a symbol of fire and divinity. Although descriptions (and life-span) vary, the phoenix became popular in early Christian art and literature as a symbol of the resurrection, of immortality, and of life-after-death. Originally, the phoenix was identified by the Egyptians as a stork or heron-like bird called a benu, known from the Book of the Dead and other Egyptian texts as one of the sacred symbols of worship at Heliopolis, closely associated with the rising sun and the Egyptian sun-god Ra. As Britannica 1911 continues: :... whence it is represented as "self-generating" and called "the soul of Ra (the sun)," "the heart of the renewed Sun". All the mystic symbolism of the morning sun, especially in connection with the doctrine of the future life, could thus be transferred to the benu, and the language of the hymns in which the Egyptians praised the luminary of the dawn as he drew near from Arabia, delighting the gods with his fragrance and rising from the sinking flames of the morning glow, was enough to suggest most of the traits materialized in the classical pictures of the phoenix. The Greeks adapted the word benu (and also took over its further Egyptian meaning of date palm tree), and identified it with their own word phoinix, meaning the colour purple-red or crimson (cf Phoenicia). They and the Romans subsequently pictured the bird more like a peacock or an eagle. According to the Greeks the phoenix lived in Arabia next to a well. At dawn, it bathed in the water of the well, and the Greek sun-god Apollo stopped his chariot (the sun) in order to listen to its song. This myth is famously referred to in Shakespeare's play The Tempest, :now I will believe :That there are unicorns; that in Arabia :There is one tree, the phoenix' throne; one phoenix :At this hour reigning there. ::-(III.III.27) One inspiration that has been suggested for the Egyptian phoenix is a specific bird species of East Africa. This bird nests on salt flats that are too hot for its eggs or chicks to survive; it builds a mound several inches tall and large enough to support its egg, which it lays in that marginally cooler location. The hot air rising around these mounds resembles the turbulence of a flame. In Russian folklore, the phoenix appears as the Zhar-Ptitsa (Жар-Птица), or firebird, subject of the famous 1910 ballet score by Stravinsky.

In fiction

Sylvia Townsend Warner's 1940 short story "The Phoenix" satirized the exploitation of nature using a phoenix maltreated in a carnival sideshow, revealing the modern preference for violence and sensationalism over beauty and dignity. The majesty of Eudora Welty's classic 1941 short story "A Worn Path" employs the phoenix as the name of the major and virtually sole character of a sparsely written yet rich story of regeneration and the South. The phoenix was also famed for being a symbol of the rise and fall of society in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. The pattern of an over complacent and abusive society's destruction yielding a fresh new start was compared to the Phoenix's mythological pattern of consumption by flame, then resurrection out of ashes. In the canon of comic author Osamu Tezuka the phoenix is often featured as both a literal and symbolic character. Most prominently in the 12 volume series Hi No Tori in which the phoenix is an all knowing cosmic force which connects the string of cultural, physical, and spiritual deaths, rebirths, reincarnations and transmigrations throughout the series. More recently, J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter novels feature a phoenix, named Fawkes (after Guy Fawkes). He is Dumbledore's pet (Dumbledore's Patronus is speculated to be a phoenix). The life span of this bird is unknown, though it is less than 500 years. In Harry Potter's world, phoenixes can carry enormous weights, and their tears have extraordinary healing powers. Harry's wand also has a core of phoenix feathers. The X-Men comics most famous and successful story arc feautured the fabled Phoenix Force merging with the barely living X-Men mutant Jean Grey in order to pilot a shuttle down from space. Now possessing incredible sensations and emotions never before felt, the Phoenix Force became corrupt. This led to Jean Grey sacrificing herself to save the world from destruction. Although not truly a Phoenix, Jean Grey symbolized the essence of a Phoenix when she rose from the ashes, or the dead, later on in the comics. In the classic anime franchise, Science Ninja Team Gatchaman, the most spectacular power the superhero has is the ability to temporarily transform their aircraft, The God Phoenix in a massive phoenix like bird of flame to escape danger. The Phoenix is a mythological bird that was said to use its nest as a funeral pyre at the end of its lifespan. It then was said to rise from its ashes as a new, younger Phoenix. It is no strange wonder that the Phoenix became a symbol of rebirth, revival, and life after death. In the Final Fantasy series, the Phoenix appears as a summon in Final Fantasy V, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII, and Final Fantasy IX. Unlike most summons in the series, obtaining the Phoenix summon usually ties into the game's story in some way. In Final Fantasy V you can do a side-quest in which you find King Tycoon's wyvern at the top of Phoenix Tower, barely alive. The Wyvern proceeds to sacrifice himself to Reina, King Tycoon's daughter, by diving from the tower and as he plummets toward the bottom, a phoenix rises up out of his body and grants the group his aide as a summon. In Final Fantasy VI the character Locke, a noble thief, attempts to revive his long-lost lover Rachel, who he lost when she fell to her death in the chasm of a cave, by using the essence of magicite in Phoenix Cave which is said to possess the essence of the legendary bird.

See also


- Fenghuang, commonly referred to as the Chinese phoenix.

External link


- [http://www.abdn.ac.uk/bestiary/translat/55r.hti Entry for the Phoenix in The Aberdeen Bestiary] Category:Heraldic birds Category:Legendary birds ja:フェニックス th:ฟีนิกซ์

10 July

July 10 is the 191st day (192nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 174 days remaining.

Events


- 48 BC - Battle of Dyrrhachium, Caesar barely avoids a catastrophic defeat to Pompey in Macedonia.
- 1584 - William I of Orange was assassinated in his home in Delft, Holland by Balthasar Gérard.
- 1778 - American Revolution: Louis XVI of France declares war on the Kingdom of Great Britain.
- 1789 - Alexander Mackenzie reaches Mackenzie River Delta.
- 1821 - The United States takes possession of its newly-bought territory of Florida from Spain.
- 1832 - President Andrew Jackson vetoes a bill that would re-charter the Second Bank of the United States.
- 1850 - Millard Fillmore is inaugurated as the 13th President of the United States.
- 1890 - Wyoming is admitted as the 44th U.S. state.
- 1913 - Death Valley, California hits 134 °F (~56.7 °C), which is the highest temperature recorded in the United States (as of 2003).
- 1925 - The Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union (TASS), the official news agency of the Soviet Union , is established.
- 1925 - Scopes Trial: In Dayton, Tennessee, the so-called "Monkey Trial" begins with John T. Scopes, a young high school science teacher, accused of teaching evolution in violation of a Tennessee state law.
- 1938 - Howard Hughes sets a new record by completing a 91 hour airplane flight around the world.
- 1940 - World War II: Vichy France government established.
- 1940 - World War II: Battle of Britain - The German Luftwaffe begin to hit British convoys in the English Channel thus starting the battle (this start date is contested, though).
- 1943 - World War II: The launching of Operation Husky begins the Italian Campaign.
- 1951 - Korean War: At Kaesong, armistice negotiations begin.
- 1951 - Randy Turpin becomes the middleweight boxing champion after defeating Sugar Ray Robinson.
- 1962 - Telstar, the world's first communications satellite, is launched into orbit.
- 1967 - Uruguay becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty.
- 1968 - Maurice Couve de Murville becomes Prime Minister of France
- 1973 - The Bahamas gain full independence within the British Commonwealth.
- 1978 - ABC News World News Tonight premieres.
- 1985 - Greenpeace vessel Rainbow Warrior is bombed and sunk in Auckland, New Zealand Harbor by French DGSE agents.
- 1985 - In response to market demand, Coca-Cola re-introduces it's old formula cola as "Coca-Cola Classic" (see New Coke).
- 1991 - Boris Yeltsin begins his 5-year term as the first elected President of Russia.
- 1992 - In Miami, Florida, former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega is sentenced to 40 years in prison for drug and racketeering violations.
- 1997 - London, scientists report their DNA analysis findings from a Neandertal skeleton which support the out of Africa theory of human evolution placing an "African Eve" at 100,000 to 200,000 years ago.
- 1998 - The remains of United States Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie are returned to his family in St. Louis, Missouri from the Tomb of the Unknowns upon identification through DNA analysis. The remains had been in the first tomb since 1984.
- 1998 - Catholic priests' sex abuse scandal: The Diocese of Dallas agrees to pay $23.4 million to nine former altar boys who claimed they were sexually abused by former priest Rudolph Kos.
- 2000 - A leaking southern Nigerian petroleum pipeline explodes, killing about 250 villagers scavenging gasoline.
- 2000 - EADS, the world's second largest aerospace group is formed by the merger of Aérospatiale-Matra, DASA, and CASA.
- 2002 - At a Sotheby's auction, Peter Paul Rubens' painting "The Massacre of the Innocents" is sold for £49.5million (US$76.2 million) to Lord Kenneth Thomson.
- 2003 - A Neoplan bus, owned by Kowloon Motor Bus, collides with a truck, falls off a bridge on Tuen Mun Road, Hong Kong, and plunges into the underlying valley, killing 21 people. This is the deadliest bus accident to date in Hong Kong.

Births


- 1419 - Emperor Go-Hanazono of Japan (d. 1471)
- 1452 - King James III of Scotland (d. 1488)
- 1509 - John Calvin, French religious reformer (d. 1564)
- 1592 - Pierre d'Hozier, French historian (d. 1660)
- 1614 - Arthur Annesley, 1st Earl of Anglesey, English royalist statesman (d. 1686)
- 1625 - Jean Herauld Gourville, French adventurer (d. 1703)
- 1638 - David Teniers III, Flemish painter (d. 1685)
- 1666 - John Ernest Grabe, German-born Anglican theologian (d. 1711)
- 1682 - Roger Cotes, English mathematician (d. 1716)
- 1723 - William Blackstone, English jurist (d. 1780)
- 1830 - Camille Pissarro, French painter (d. 1903)
- 1832 - Alvan Graham Clark, American telescope maker and astronomer (d. 1897)
- 1834 - James McNeil Whistler, American painter (d. 1903)
- 1835 - Henryk Wieniawski, Polish composer (d. 1880)
- 1842 - Adolphus Busch, German-born brewer (d. 1913)
- 1856 - Nikola Tesla, Croatian physicist (d. 1943)
- 1871 - Marcel Proust, French writer (d. 1922)
- 1888 - Giorgio de Chirico, Italian painter (d. 1978)
- 1895 - Carl Orff, German composer (d. 1982)
- 1899 - John Gilbert, American actor (d. 1936)
- 1902 - Kurt Alder, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)
- 1903 - John Wyndham, British author (d. 1969)
- 1914 - Joe Shuster, Canadian-born cartoonist
- 1920 - David Brinkley, American television reporter (d. 2003)
- 1920 - Owen Chamberlain, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1921 - Harvey Ball, American inventor (d. 2001)
- 1921 - Jake LaMotta, American boxer
- 1921 - Eunice Kennedy Shriver, American activist
- 1923 - Earl Hamner Jr., American author and television producer
- 1923 - Jean Kerr, American author (d. 2003)
- 1925 - Mahathir bin Mohamad, Malaysian fourth Prime Minister
- 1926 - Fred Gwynne, American actor (d. 1993)
- 1928 - Moshe Greenberg, American-Israeli Bible scholar
- 1931 - Nick Adams, American actor (d. 1968)
- 1931 - Alice Munro, Canadian writer
- 1934 - Olga Sebenik, Slovenian economist
- 1938 - Paul Andreu, French architect
- 1939 - Ahmet Taner Kışlalı, Turkish politician, journalist, and educator (d. 1999)
- 1940 - Helen Donath, American soprano
- 1942 - Ronnie James Dio, American musician
- 1942 - Pyotr Klimuk, cosmonaut
- 1943 - Arthur Ashe, American tennis player (d. 1993)
- 1945 - Virginia Wade, British tennis player
- 1946 - Sue Lyon, American actress
- 1947 - Arlo Guthrie, American musician
- 1951 - Cheryl Wheeler, American singer and songwriter
- 1954 - Neil Tennant, British musician
- 1959 - Janet Julian, American actress
- 1968 - Hassiba Boulmerka, Algerian athlete
- 1969 - Gale Harold, American actor
- 1980 - Thomas Ian Nicholas, American actor
- 1980 - Adam Petty, American race car driver (d. 2000)
- 1980 - Jessica Simpson, American singer
- 1982 - Alex Arrowsmith, American musician

Deaths


- 138 - Hadrian, Roman Emperor (b. 76)
- 1099 - El Cid, of Castile (b. 1044)
- 1103 - King Eric I of Denmark
- 1298 - King Ladislaus IV of Hungary (b. 1262)
- 1460 - Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham, English military leader (b. 1402)
- 1480 - King René I of Naples (b. 1410)
- 1559 - King Henry II of France (b. 1519)
- 1584 - William I of Orange (b. 1533)
- 1590 - Archduke Charles II of Austria (b. 1540)
- 1594 - Paolo Bellasio, Italian composer (b. 1554)
- 1621 - Karel Bonaventura Buquoy, French soldier (b. 1571)
- 1653 - Gabriel Naudé, French librarian and scholar (b. 1600)
- 1680 - Louis Moréri, French encyclopedist (b. 1643)
- 1683 - François-Eudes de Mézeray, French historian (b. 1610)
- 1686 - John Fell, English churchman (b. 1625)
- 1776 - Richard Peters, English-born clergyman (b. 1704)
- 1806 - George Stubbs, British painter (b. 1724)
- 1884 - Paul Morphy, American chess player (b. 1837)
- 1908 - Phoebe Knapp, American hymn writer (b. 1839)
- 1920 - Jackie Fisher, British admiral (b. 1841)
- 1941 - Jelly Roll Morton, American musician (b. 1890)
- 1978 - John D Rockefeller III, American businessman (b. 1906)
- 1978 - Joe Davis, English snooker player (b. 1901)
- 1979 - Arthur Fiedler, American conductor (b. 1894)
- 1987 - John Hammond, American record producer (b. 1910)
- 1989 - Mel Blanc, American voice actor (b. 1908)
- 2003 - Winston Graham, English writer (b. 1908)
- 2003 - Hartley Shawcross, British prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trials (b. 1902)
- 2005 - A.J. Quinnell, English writer (b. 1940)
- 2005 - Freda Wright-Sorce, American radio performer (b. 1955)
- 2005 - Freddy Soto, American comedian and actor (b. 1970)

Holidays and observances


- Bahamas - Independence Day
- Silence Day - celebrated by followers of Meher Baba
- Mauritania - Armed Forces Day
- Ancient Latvia - Septinu Bralu Diena observed
- New Zealand - Rainbow Warrior Commemmoration

External links


- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/10 BBC: On This Day] ---- July 9 - July 11 - June 10 - August 10 -- listing of all days ko:7월 10일 ms:10 Julai ja:7月10日 simple:July 10 th:10 กรกฎาคม

1941

:For the movie, see 1941 (film) 1941 (MCMXLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar).

Events

January-February


- January 6 - Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivers his Four Freedoms Speech in the State of the Union Address.
- January 10 - Lend-Lease is introduced into the U.S. Congress.
- January 19 - British troops attack Italian-held Eritrea.
- January 21 - World War II: Australian and British forces attack Tobruk, Libya.
- January 22 - World War II: British troops capture Tobruk from the Italians.
- January 23 - Charles Lindbergh testifies before the U.S. Congress and recommends that the United States negotiate a neutrality pact with Adolf Hitler.
- February 3 - World War II: The Nazis forcibly restore Pierre Laval to office in occupied Vichy, France.
- February 4 - World War II: The United Service Organization (USO) is created to entertain American troops.
- February 11 - World War II: Lieutenant-General Erwin Rommel arrives in Tripoli.
- February 19 - The start of the "three nights' Blitz" over Swansea, South Wales. Over these three nights of intensive bombing, which lasted a total of 13 hours and 48 minutes, Swansea town centre was almost completely obliterated by the 896 High Explosive bombs employed by the Luftwaffe. A total of 397 casualties and 230 deaths were reported. The Three nights Blitz ended in the early hours of February 22.

March


- March 1 - World War II: Bulgaria signs the Tripartite Pact thus joining the Axis powers.
- March 1 - W47NV begins operations in Nashville, Tennessee becoming the first FM radio station.
- March 1 - Arthur L. Bristol becomes Rear Admiral for the U.S. Navy's Support Force, Atlantic Fleet
- March 11 - World War II: President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signs the Lend-Lease Act into law, allowing American-built war supplies to be shipped to the Allies on loan.
- March 17 - In Washington, DC, the National Gallery of Art is officially opened by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
- March 17 - British Minister of Labour, Ernest Bevin, calls for women to fill vital jobs
- March 22 - Washington's Grand Coulee Dam begins to generate electricity.
- March 25 - World War II: Kingdom of Yugoslavia in Vienna joins the Axis powers
- March 27 - World War II: Attack on Pearl Harbor - Japanese spy Takeo Yoshikawa arrives in Honolulu, Hawaii and begins to study the United States fleet at Pearl Harbor.
- March 29 - World War II: Battle of Cape Matapan - Off the Peloponnesus coast in the Mediterranean, British naval forces defeat those of Italy sinking five warships. Battle started on March 27.

April


- April 6 - World War II: Germany invades Yugoslavia and Greece.
- April 17 - World War II: Yugoslav Royal Army capitulates.
- April 21 - World War II: Greece capitulates. British troops withdraw to Crete.
- April 27 - World War II: German troops enter Athens.
- April - Russia and Japan sign a neutrality pact.

May

neutrality pact
- May 1 - Breakfast cereal Cheerios is introduced as CheeriOats by General Mills
- May 1 - Orson Welles' film, Citizen Kane, premieres in New York City
- May 5 - Emperor Haile Selassie enters Addis Ababa, which had been liberated from Italian forces; this date has been since commemorated as Liberation Day in Ethiopia.
- May 6 - At California's March Field, Bob Hope performs his first USO Show.
- May 9 - World War II: The German submarine U-110 is captured by the British Royal Navy. On board is the latest Enigma cryptography machine which Allied cryptographers later use to break coded German messages.
- May 10 - World War II: The United Kingdom's House of Commons is damaged by the Luftwaffe in an air raid.
- May 10 - World War II: Rudolf Hess parachutes into Scotland claiming to be on a peace mission.
- May 20 - World War II: Battle of Crete - Germany launches airborne invasion of Crete.
- May 21 - World War II: 950 miles off the coast of Brazil, the freighter SS Robin Moor becomes the first United States ship sunk by a German U-boat.
- May 24 - World War II: In the North Atlantic, the German battleship Bismarck sinks the HMS Hood killing all but three crewman on what was the pride of the Royal Navy.
- May 26 - World War II: In the North Atlantic, Fairey Swordfish aircraft from the carrier HMS Ark Royal fatally cripple the German battleship Bismarck in torpedo attack.
- May 27 - World War II: President Roosevelt proclaims an "unlimited national emergency."
- May 27 - World War II: German battleship Bismarck is sunk in North Atlantic killing 2,300.

June


- June 1 - World War II: Allies evacuate Crete.
- June 8 - World War II: Allies invade Syria and Lebanon.
- June 9 - World War II: Finland initiate mobilization and put some units under German command.
- June 14 - Mass deportations by Soviet Union authorities take place in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
- June 22 - World War II: Germany attacks the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa
- June 25 - World War II: Finland attacked by the Soviet Union seeks the opportunity of revenge in the Continuation War.

July-August


- July 4 - Mass murder of Polish scientists and writers, committed by German troops in captured Polish city of Lwów.
- July 5 - World War II: German troops reach the Dnipro River.
- July 5-19 - War between Peru and Ecuador
- July 7 - World War II: American forces land in Iceland to forestall an invasion by the Nazis.
- July 13 - World War II - Montenegro starts the first popular uprising in Europe against the Axis Powers.
- July 26 - World War II: In response to the Japanese occupation of French Indo-China, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the seizure of all Japanese assets in the United States.
- July 31 - Holocaust: Under instructions from Adolf Hitler, Nazi official Hermann Göring, orders SS general Reinhard Heydrich to "submit to me as soon as possible a general plan of the administrative material and financial measures necessary for carrying out the desired final solution of the Jewish question."
- August - Formation of the Political Warfare Executive in the United Kingdom
- August 1 - The first jeep is produced
- August 6 - 6-year-old Elaine Esposito goes to an appendix operation in Florida and lapses into a coma. She dies 1978, still in coma.
- August 18 - Adolf Hitler orders a temporary halt to Nazi Germany's systematic euthanasia of mentally ill and handicapped due to protests. However, graduates of the T-4 Euthanasia Program were then transferred to concentration camps, where they continued in their trade.

September-October


- September 6 - Holocaust: The requirement to wear the Star of David with the word "Jew" inscribed, is extended to all Jews over the age of 6 in German-occupied areas.
- September 8 - World War II: Siege of Leningrad begins - German forces begin a siege against the Soviet Union's second-largest city, Leningrad. Stalin orders the Volga Deutsche deported to Siberia.
- September 16 - Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran is forced to resign in favor of his son Mohammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran under pressure from the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union.
- October 2 - World War II: Operation Typhoon - Germany begins an all-out offensive against Moscow.
- October 8 - World War II: In their invasion of the Soviet Union, Germany reaches the Sea of Azov with the capture of Mariupol.
- October 21 - World War II: Germans rampage in Yugoslavia, killing thousands of civilians
- October 24 - Franz von Werra disappears during a flight over North Sea
- October 30 - World War II: Franklin Delano Roosevelt approves US$1 billion in Lend-Lease aid to the Soviet Union.
- October 31 - After 14 years of work, drilling is completed on Mount Rushmore.
- October 31 - World War II: The destroyer USS Reuben James is torpedoed by a German U-boat near Iceland, killing more than 100 United States Navy sailors.

November

United States Navy
- November 6 - World War II: Soviet leader Joseph Stalin addresses the Soviet Union for only the second time during his three-decade rule (the first time was earlier that year on July 2). He states that even though 350,000 troops were killed in German attacks so far, that the Germans have lost 4.5 million soldiers (a gross exaggeration) and that Soviet victory was near.
- November 12 - World War II: Battle of Moscow: Temperatures around Moscow drop to −12 °C and the Soviet Union launches ski troops for the first time against the freezing German forces near the city.
- November 13 - World War II: The aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal is hit by German U-boat U-81
- November 14 - World War II: HMS Ark Royal capsizes and sinks, having been torpedoed by U 81.
- November 17 - World War II: Attack on Pearl Harbor - Joseph Grew, the United States ambassador to Japan, cables the State Department that Japan had plans to launch an attack against Pearl Harbor, Hawaii (his cable was ignored).
- November 19 - World War II: The Australian war cruiser HMAS Sydney sinks off the coast of Western Australia, killing 645 sailors.
- November 21 - The radio program King Biscuit Time is broadcast for the first time (it would later become the longest running daily radio broadcast in history and the most famous live blues radio program).
- November 24 - World War II: The United States grants Lend-Lease to the Free French.
- November 26 - US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signs a bill establishing the fourth Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day in the United States (this partly reversed a 1939 action by Roosevelt that changed the celebration of Thanksgiving to the third Thursday of November).
- November 26 - World War II: The Hull note ultimatum is delivered to Japan by the United States.
- November 26 - World War II: Attack on Pearl Harbor - A f