Air Operations, Europe

Hamburg, Stuttgart, the Ruhr towns and several of the north German ports are the main targets for Bomber Command this month. Over 2,600 sorties are flown, 3,000 tons of bombs dropped and 126 planes lost.

Battle of the Atlantic

German U-boat strength is now 198 vessels of which 80 are operational. This month they sink 156,500 tons of Allied shipping out of a total loss of 218,300 tons.(Allied Ships Lost to U-boats) The diversion of U-boats to the Mediterranean continues and this partly accounts for the lower Allied loss than in September.

Allied Planning

The Moscow conference ends with a joint declaration made that the Soviet Union will continue to receive an increasing amount of help from both Britain and America, basically, US and British arms for Russian raw materials.

Battle of the Atlantic

U-94 badly damages the British tanker San Florentino (12,842t), a straggler from Convoy ON-19, southeast of Cape Farewell with the loss of 23 of her crew. 35 survivors are picked up by the Canadian corvette Mayflower. What is left of the wreck is sunk by gunfire from the Canadian corvette Alberni on the 2nd.

Soviet Union, Home Front

The deportation of Germans from the northern Caucasus to Kazakstan begins.

Eastern Front

After a month of heavy fighting, Petrozavodsk falls to the Finns.

Finns Enter Petrozavodsk

Anti-Aircraft Guns of Leningrad

Guderian forces units deeper into Gen Andrey Eremenko's left flank. Group Ermakov launches a brief counterattack in an effort to close the hole between itself and the 13th Army but is quickly forced back onto the defensive. The XXIV pushes toward Orel while the XLVII Panzer Corps attacks toward Bryansk, aiming to link up with the 2nd Army, which has entered the battle against the 50th and 43rd Armies.

Australia, Politics

The Robert Menzies Country Party government falls. The new prime minister is John Curtin of the Labor Party. Menzies, so loved and respected in Great Britain for his whole-hearted support in the war to date, has come to be seen by the voters as too acquiescent toward London and unconcerned with matters closer to home.

Battle of the Atlantic

• U-562 sinks the British CAM ship Empire Wave (7463t) from Convoy ON-19 500 miles east of Cape Farewell with the loss of 29 crewmen. 31 survivors are picked up by the Icelandic trawler Surprise.
• U-575 sinks the Dutch steamer Tuva (4652t) from Convoy ON-19A west of Ireland with the loss of 1 crewman. 34 survivors are picked up by the Canadian destroyer St Croix.
• U-431 sinks the British steamer Hatasu (3198t), a straggler from Convoy ON-19, 600 miles east of Cape Race with the loss of 40 of her crew. 7 survivors in a lifeboat are picked up after 7 days by the US destroyer Charles F. Hughes (DD-428).

Diplomatic Relations

• A border agreement is reached between Ecuador and Peru. A 15-km 'neutral' zone is established and will be patrolled by Ecuadorian police.
• The US seeks clarification from Japan about whether it plans to withdraw troops from China and Indochina. On the advice of Hull, Roosevelt turns down the idea of a direct meeting with Konoye. The failure to arrange this conference is one of the factors that lead to Konoye's downfall.

Eastern Front

The German attack on Moscow, Operation 'TAIFUN' (TYPHOON), officially begins. Hitler issues the Order of the Day: 'Today is the beginning of the last decisive battle of the year.' Hoth's 3rd and Hoeppner's 4th Panzergruppen, 2nd, 4th and 9th Armies all join the advance, which was started 2 days previously by Guderian's forces on the right wing.

Battle of the Atlantic

The German supply ship Klar (7277t) is intercepted and sunk by the British light cruiser Kenya north of the Azores. 119 survivors in 4 lifeboats are picked up by U-129.

Germany, Home Front

In a speech at the Sportspalast Hitler announces that Russia 'has already been broken and will never rise again'. He tells the German people of the start, the previous day, of a great offensive on the Eastern Front. Goebbels announces that 1,500,000 children and 150,000 mothers have been evacuated from cities to safer areas.

Eastern Front

In the northern sector the Germans take the defenses of Tsarskoe Selo (now Pushkin), near Leningrad.

Destruction in Riga

In he central sector, the Soviet front at Bryansk, defended by the 43rd, 3rd, 50th and 13th Armies under the command of Timoshenko, begins to crumble. Two big pockets are formed north and south of Bryansk, while further north a third pocket is forming near Vyazma.

In the southern sector the German bridgehead at Dnepropetrovsk is strengthened.

It is becoming apparent that the Red Army is having difficulty containing the impetus of TYPHOON as the 3rd Panzer Group and 9th Army reach the Dnieper River and the XXIV Panzer Corps rumbles into Orel. A counterattack by the Soviet 30th Army fails, as does an attack against the XLVII Panzer Corps at Seredina Buda. Gen Andrey Eremenko requests permission to withdraw but is refused.[MORE]

Trainload of Men

Air Operations, North Africa

The R.A.F. stage a night raid on Benghazi.

Allied Planning

Britain and the US agree to send the following to the Russians each month: 400 aircraft, 500 tanks, 200 gun carriers, 22,000 tons of rubber, 41,000 tons of aluminum, 3,860 tons of machine tools and substantial quantities of food, medical supplies and other raw materials.

Battle of the Atlantic

U-111 is sunk by the British anti-submarine trawler Lady Shirley southwest of Teneriffe with the loss of 9 of her crew. 44 survivors are picked up by the trawler.

U-111

Eastern Front

Units of Hoeppner's Panzer Group, the XL Panzer Corps under Gen Georg Stumme, attack near Vyazma from the south while Hoth's forces are attacking the still-intact Soviet line between Vyazma and Rzhev. On the right wing of the attack Guderian's forces are increasing their threat to Orel and Bryansk. Large Soviet forces west of Bryansk and Vyazma are in danger of being cut off.

The Finns launch a heavy attack across the Svir but are repulsed by the 7th Army after bitter fighting. Fierce battles continue along the river line for the remainder of the month.

Panzer III Tanks

Gen Ivan Boldin continues to counterattack with his group but is unable to halt the 3rd Panzer Group. Heavy fighting rages as the Russian force launches repeated attacks. The 3rd Panzer continues to hit the 19th and 32nd Armies. Belyi falls to the 3rd Panzer Group, while the 10th and 2nd Panzer Divisions of the XL Panzer Corps fights close to Vyazma and Yukhnow. The 4th Panzer Group all but destroys the 43th Army and breaks apart the 33rd Army. The wings of the 20th and 24th Armies have been turned and a 70-mile gap torn between the Reserve and Bryansk Fronts. Spas Demensk and Kirov also fall to the Germans during the bitter fighting.

To the south, the XXIV Panzer Corps heads for Tula, having tanke Mglin, while the XLVII Panzer thrusts into the rear of the Bryansk Front, vanguards nearing Karachev. The 2nd Army launches ferocious attack across the Bolva River, pinning the 3rd and 50th Armies between it and the XLVII Panzer Corps. Following the unexpected fall of Orel, the I Gurards Rifle Corps detrains at Mtsensk, aiming to hald the German drive upon Tula. Gen Mikhail Katukov's 4th Tank Brigade has only recently been formed and is fully equipped with T-34 tanks.

Air Operations, North Africa

The R.A.F. stage a night raid on Tripoli.

Battle of the Atlantic

U-204 sinks the Panamanian steamer C. Jon (744t) southwest of Ireland. The entire crew are made prisoners of war.

Eastern Front

After continued heavy fighting, the 1,500 surviving Soviet soldiers on Saaremaa fall back to Hiiumaa Island.

Fierce fighting rages across the Moscow axis as the Germans deepen their pincer attacks around the West and Bryansk Fronts. The 4th Panzer Group captures Yukhnow and Mosalsk and the 4th Army takes Sukhinichi as the 43rd Army retreats. Konev orders Gen Ivan Boldin to block the German advance upon Vyazma from the north, while the 16th Army is to do so from the south. The 16th Army is to hand over its existing sector to the 20th Army and redeploy into the Vyazma sector by October 6.

The XXIV Panzer Corps moves upon Tula. However, the advance is hindered by an alarming lack of fuel, movement being stalled as the lead tanks run out of gasoline. The XLVIII Panzer Corps is in action on the southern wing, taking Rylsk while the XLVII captures Karachev.

With the front collapsing, Stavka orders the West, Reserve and Bryansk Fronts to begin withdrawing during the night. At 2300 hours the 31st and 32nd Armies are transferred to the West Front command. Stalin hastily summons an emergency session of the Stavka when news is received of strong German armored columns pushing from Yukhnow and decides upon the Mozhaisk line as the rallying point for the broken West Front. Konev is ordered to fall back upon the Rzhev-Vyazma line and Budenny to a line Vedreniki-Mosalsk.

With his armies falling apart before the German attacks, Gen Ivan Tyulenev is dismissed from command of the South Front, Gen Yakov Cherevichenko being appointed in his place. Under his command are the 12th, 18th, 19th and 9th Armies. Cherevichenko orders his armies to block the German advance along the Azov coast by standing on a line Bolshoi Tokmak-Melitopol-Lake Molochnoe but this condemns them to encirclement as von Kleist continues to advance largely unopposed toward the Azov coast.

Air Operations, Europe

There is an R.A.F. night raid on the port of Piraeus in Greece.

Capt Erich Topp of U-552

Diplomatic Relations

There is a breakdown of Anglo-German negotiations on the exchange of seriously ill and wounded prisoners of war.

Eastern Front

In the south the right wing of von Kleist's I Panzergruppe crosses the Dniepr and the Samara and reaches Berdyansk, on the Sea of Azov, surrounding the Soviet 9th and 18th Armies. The entire staff of the Soviet 9th Army, except for the commanding officer who is evacuated by air, is captured by the SS Adolf Hitler Div. More than 100,000 Soviet troops are cut off and eventually taken prisoner. The German 11th Army is attacking along the coast to link with von Kleist's force. The German advances in the Moscow sector continue.

This is the beginning of the battle of Bryansk. It will last until October 19. The Soviet position around Vyazma and Bryansk grows more desperate. Large pockets have been isolated and are being reduced south of Bryansk and west of Vyazma. Other German forces are attacking well to the east of both these towns.

German Tanks Capture Russian Soldiers

China

The Chinese recapture Ichang, east of Chungking.

Eastern Front

There is fierce fighting along the entire front. The Russians announce the evacuation of Orel. The Battle Vyazma begins. It will continue until October 14. Panzers break throught the 'Vyazma Defense Line'. Six Russian armies are encircled.

As LVI Panzer Corps advancing from the north links up with XL and XLVI Panzer Corps moving from the south near Vyazma, the Germans create another pocket, inside which are trapped the Soviet 16th, 19th, 20th, 24th and part of the 32nd Armies. And the 2nd Army links up with the 18th Panzer Div (XLVII Panzer Corps) east of Bryansk, isolating the Soviet 3rd, 13th and 50th Armies. The Luftwaffe flies 800 bomber sorties against the pocket.

German Tank Spearheads Are Closing the Vyazma Pocket

Axis Diplomacy

Italy, which feels Japan is not carrying it weight in the Tripartite Pact, calls on the Japanese to go to war with Britain. Rome feels that it is unnecessary for Japan to attack Russia and that the US would not come to Britain's aid. They say, '... if Japan fails to fight now, no matter which side wins the loss to be sustained by Japan will be great.'

Eastern Front

The Germans occupy Mariupol on the Sea of Azov. 7 Soviet divisions are surrounded. In the Moscow sector the Vyazma and Bryansk battles continue. The Germans capture Orel, southwest of Moscow. In these engagements about 600,000 Soviet troops will be taken, along with massive quantities of equipment. The main German efforts are now in northeasterly attacks toward Tula and Kaluga in the south and Rzhev and Kalinin in the north. Heavy rain begins to fall along the front. The big German mobile formations begin to be slowed down by the rain and mud.

The Germans begin new attacks in the Valdai Hills, pushing east from Demyansk.

Around Bryansk, infantry and armor of the 2nd Panzer and 2nd Armies pound the 50th and 3rd Armies, which are ordered to break out to the east. Gen Andrey Eremenko orders all his units to pull back by night to escape from the pockets. The 3rd and 50th Armies push 30 miles to the east. Fighting will continue for another two weeks, at the end of which the Bryansk Front will have been almost annihilated.

Advance Unit of a Panzer Division

Zhukov goes out to the West Front to establish just what is happening to the Soviet armies. He finds Konev easily enough and is given details of the encirclement of the Russian armies at Vyazma and the envelopment of Gen Andrey Eremenko to the south. Of Budenny's front, nothing is known. He tries to find the Reserve Front headquarters but when he does, Budenny is nowhere to be found.

The South Front is crushed on the Azov coast as the 1st Panzer Army launches concentric attacks upon the 18th ane 9th Armies. Mariupol falls after bitter fighting, but despite the overwhelming German fire, small units of Soviet soldiers managed to slip through the pocket and escape to the east to fight another day. The weather, which has broken in the Ukraine on October 6, becomes worse and begins to affect the rate of von Rundstedt's advance.

Diplomatic Relations

Germany and Turkey sign a 200-million-mark trade pact, with Germany to supply manufactured goods for Turkish raw materials.

Eastern Front

The German drive towards Moscow continues. There is heavy fighting at Vyazma (140 miles west of Moscow) and Bryansk (220 miles southwest of Moscow). Guderian's Panzers link up with 2nd Army near Bryansk. 2 Russian armies are encircled.

Soviet KV-1E and KV-1

Heavy fighting rages in and around both the Vyazma and Bryansk pockets as the Soviet forces launch repeated attacks in an effort to break out. The Stavka orders the 19th and 32nd Armies to make their way to the east toward Sychevka or Gzhatsk. The 20th Army is ordered to push southeast. However, during heavy fighting, Gzhatsk falls to the 10th Panzer Division and the 2nd SS Motorized Division Das Reich.

Inside the Bryansk pocket the 3rd and 50th Armies, fighting close to Dyatkovo, attempt to fight eastward but run into strong German forces. The 13th Army, in action at Trubchevsk and Suzemka, fights its way southeast and manages to break throught the German ring.

Gen Werner Kempf's XLVIII Panzer Corps begins to push toward Kursk and Livny on the extreme southern flank of Army Group Center, while the XXIV Panzer Corps is involved in further costly fighting with Gen Dmitry Lelyushenko's I Guards Rifle Corps as it pushes nearer to Mtsensk.

With the front line in tatters, the Mozhaisk Line is upgraded to the Moscow Reserve Front, commanded by Gen Pavel Artemev. Moscow begins the placement of its limited reseves, placing a rifle division each at Volokolamsk (316th), Maloyaroslavets (312th) and Mozhaisk. The Stavka also begins the formation of a new 5th Army under Lelyushenko and a 26th Army under Gen Sergey Sokolov at Tula. The latter force is based upon the I Guards Rifle Corps.

Battle of the Atlantic

• U-126 sinks the British steamer Nailsea Manor (4926t), a straggler from Convoy OS-7, northeast of the Cape Verde Islands. All 42 of the crew are picked up by the British corvette Violet.
• The British steamer Kyma sinks on a mine east of Hornsea. The entire crew are rescued.

Black Sea

The Rumanian minelayer Regele Carol I sinks after it hits a mine near Cape Kaliakra.

Eastern Front

Gen Zhukov returns to Moscow from his duties at Leningrad to take control of a new Soviet western front formed for the defense of the capital. Nikolai Bulganin is attached to him as political adviser.

Moscow factories begin to be disassembled for evacuation to the east. Priority goes to facilities used in war production. Equipment of all kinds is crated to be shipped out of the war zone as fast as possible.

The heavy fighting in Karelian since August 23 has cost the Karelia Front nearly 30,000 killed and missing and 32,000 wounded.

The 250th 'Blue' Div, made up of Spanish volunteers and formed within days of the German attack on the USSR, goes into action against the Russians for the first time in the sector between Lake Ilmen and the west bank of the Volkhov.

Inside the Vyazma pocket, the Stavka gives control of the mixed forces to Gen Mikhail Lukin and orders him to break east toward Sychevka and Gzhatsk. On the road to Moscow, heavy fighting erupts at Maloyaroslavets.

Soviet KV-1 Tank

To the south, the XXIV Panzer Corps finally reaches Mtsensk. Many tanks have been lost in the fighting with the I Guards Rifle Corps blunting Guderian's army. Meanwhile, the XIII Corps of the 2nd Army forges a crossing of the Ugra River west of Kaluga despite stubborn Soviet resistance. Around Bryansk, the 50th Army falls back to the northeast under heavy attack while the 3rd Army fights its way south near Dmitrov Lgovsky.

Following the collapse of their defenses around Vyazma, the Soviets disband the Reserve Front, its units being incorporated into the battered West Front. Zhukov takes personal control of the front with Konev as deputy. With the Bryansk Front also in tatters, Zhukov deploys the reformed 26th Army along the line of the Zusha River to provide cover to the southern wing of his line. The 16th Army is deploying around Volokolamsk, the 5th at Mozhaisk, the 43rd at Maloyaroslavets, the 49th at Kaluga and the 33rd at Naro-Fominik, the latter being in front reserve.

Eastern Front

Russian T-34 tanks go into action against the XXIV Panzer Corps, inflicting severe losses on the Germans. With the introduction of this new weapon, the Russians will gradually begin to achieve armored superiority over the Germans.

The attacks by the 3rd Panzer Group toward Kalinin meet fierce resistance from the 22nd and 29th Armies and progress is slow. The 4th and 9th Armies both attempt to push forces east while simultaneously tring to destroy Gen Mikhail Lukin's isolated armies. Lukin attempts his first break out from the Vyasma pocket but is held back by the Germans. Heavy fighting rages through the day as repeated attacks fail to punch out to the east.

Soviet forces encircled to the south of Bryansk, launch a desperate attack in an effort to break out but are halted with heavy casualties. As the isolated armies surrender, the Germans start to move the 2nd Army onto the southern flank of the 2nd Panzer Army.

Gen Leo von Schweppenburg's XXIV Panzer Corps is involved in furious fighting at Mtsensk as the I Guards Rifle Corps continues to slow the advance, despite their own heavy losses. Fierce battles rage at Kaluga ans the XIII Corps pushes the 49th Army back.

In Moscow, orders are given to prepare 1,119 factories, schools and public buildings for demolition before the Germans can capture them.

Moscow Inhabitants Digging Anti-Tank Ditches

The 18th and 9th Armies surrender to the 1st Panzer Army. In all, 106,000 Soviet soldiers are captured and 210 tanks and 670 artillery pieces either captured or destroyed. von Kleist begins to redeploy his units for the advance toward Rostov, while Hoth moves north to attack Voroshilovgrad. Unfortunately, the deterioration of the weather has brought movement to a standstill, only the tired and sodden infantry being able to slog forward through the clinging mud. On the Azov coast the weather is not quite so bad and von Kleist manages to cross the Mius north of Taganrog, the SS Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler Division reaching the city during the day. Russian resistance though is fierce.

Air Operations, Europe

The R.A.F. carry out a heavy bombing raid on Nuremberg.

Battle of the Atlantic

• A German motor torpedo boat floatilla attacks Convoy FN-531 north of Cromer. The British steamer Chevington (1537t) and the Norwegian steamer Roy (1768t) are sunk. 9 crewmen are lost from the British ship and 3 from the Norwegian ship.
• U-83 sinks the Portuguese steamer Corte Real (2044t) after it was determined the ship was carrying contraband. All 42 of the crew and passengers are rescued.

Eastern Front

Despite the poor weather and the increasing determination of the Soviet defenders, the German advance on Moscow continues with the capture of Kaluga, an important rail center on the Moscow-Kiev line about 100 miles southwest of Moscow. Women and children start being moved from Moscow. The Soviets evacuate the town of Bryansk but the fighting around the isolated pockets nearby continues. The Germans begin the liquidation of the troops cut off in the Vyazma and Bryansk pockets. The bulk of Timoshenko's forces are wiped out; 660,000 men are taken prisoner.

The Germans begin the bombardment of Hiiumaa Island.

Staritza, on the road to Kalinin, falls as the 1st Panzer Division forces the 30th Army back. With Moscow threatened from the northwest, the Stavka forms the Kalinin Group to the right of the West Front. Konev is placed in command but his force consists of 3 weakened rifle divisions and 1 tank brigade.

On the approaches to the Mozhaisk line, the 2nd SS Motorized Division Das Reich captures Gzhatsk. Pogoreloye falls to the 36th Motorized Division and Zubtsov to the Lehr Motorized Brigade.

Inside the Bryansk pocket, the 50th Army begins to fight its way northeast toward Belev. The XIII Corps captures Kaluga, forcing back the 49th Army.

Closer to Moscow, the GKO orders the construction of extensive defenses before the city. With Moscow under direct threat, 440,000 of its citizens, mostly women, children and old men, are mobilized to build defenses in and around the city. In 4 days they will dig 60 miles of anti-tank ditches, 5000 miles of troop trenches and lay 177 miles of barbed wire.

Air Operations, Europe

The R.A.F. conduct its first massive bombing raid on Nuremberg.

Baltic Sea

The Russian submarine Shch-323 attacks the German cruiser Köln and 7 merchant ships over a period of 3 weeks but sinks only 1 of the merchant ships.

Eastern Front

The Soviet forces are driven out of Vyazma and the resistance of the nearby pocket is almost over. The Luftwaffe make violent raids on railway communications round Moscow. Pressure by Army Group Center on Moscow continues, but the Russians defend the Mozhaysk line very vigorously.

The Luftwaffe bomb railways in the area around Moscow.

The Soviet High Command orders the evacuation of Hiiumaa. Forces are to be evacuated to Hanko.

The 3rd Panzer Group fights its way into Kalinin, caving in the Kalinin Group's front. The 29th Army attempts to block the Kalinin sector with its 8 rifle divisions. On the left wing, Rzhev falls to the 1st Panzer Division.

Inside the Vyasma pocket, Rokossovsky fights his way east with a command column of the 16th Army. Gen Mikhail Lukin is captured. On the Bryansk Front sector, Gen Andrey Eremenko is wounded during a German air strike and has to be evacuated. Gen Georgy Zakharov takes command of the front.

Farther south, the West Front has dug in along the Mozhaisk position. Using limited forces from the High Command reserve, the Soviets place 4 rifle divisions and 4 tank brigades on the line. Fighting immediately erupts at Mozhaisk as the Germans strike the 32nd Rifle Division. Intense fighting also rages west of Borovsk as the 43rd Army fights to hold off the Germans.

Battle of the Atlantic

• The German auxiliary patrol vessel UJ-1709 is sunk by British bombing west of Lister, Norway.
• U-206 sinks the British corvette Fleur de Lys escorting Convoy OG-75 55 miles west of Gibraltar with the loss of 72 of her crew. 3 survivors are picked up by a Spanish steamer.

Eastern Front

All resistance ends in the Vyazma pocket, between Smolensk and Moscow. Panzer units reach Kalinin, 93 miles northwest of Moscow. The Moscow-Leningrad rail line is cut and a bridge over the Volga is captured intact. The Soviet defense between here and Tula, southwest of the capital, is very stubborn, but Moscow admits this portion of the front is deteriorating. West of Moscow, the Germans capture Mozhaysk. In the south, the Russians evacuate Mariupol.

The first snows fall on Leningrad, presaging the onset of winter.

With the temperature plummeting below freezing, the 3rd Panzer Group continues the costly battle for Kalinin. The German penetration threatens the rear of the 22nd, 29th and 31st Armies.

Battle of the Atlantic

• U-553 sinks the British steamer Silvercedar (4354t) and the Norwegian steamer Ila (1583t) from Convoy SC-48 west of Ireland. 21 crewmen are lost from the British ship, 26 survivor are picked up by the British corvette Mimosa. 14 are lost from the Norwegian ship, 7 survivors are picked up by the Mimosa and the Canadian corvette Baddeck. The attacks on this convoy by u-boats will continue for several days.
• U-558 sinks the Canadian steamer Vancouver Island (9472t) west of Ireland with the loss of the entire crew of 105.

Eastern Front

The Germans take Kalinin, 160 km northwest of Moscow.

Heavy fighting rages around Kalinin as the 29th Army launches repeated counterattacks. The fighting rages until October 29. Borovsk falls as the 43rd Army is pushed out of the town.

Resistance in the Vyazma pocket ends, 650,000 prisoners, 1,200 tanks and 5,400 artillery pieces falling to the Germans. The West Front has been virtually annihilated during the battle, 55 divisions being badly mauled or destroyed.

The Soviets begin to evacuate their rearguard from Odessa. Since the beginning of the siege, the Red Army has evacuated 86,000 men to the Crimea and during the night of October 15-16 take out another 35,000.

On the main battlefront, the German 6th Army captures Krasnoploye. While the Germans continue to make limited progress, the Southwest Front attempts to straighten its line and create a front reserve. Gen Anton Lopatin's 37th Army is raised around Voroshilovgrad from these units. The Stavka orders the 56th Army to protect the approaches to Rostov. The Southwest Front orders its forces to fall back to a line Kastornoye-Stary Oskol-Novy Oskol-Vayluki-Kupyansk-Liman by the end of October.

Air Operations, Europe

There is a heavy British air raid on Naples. Italian sources report that 'some civil buildings were hit, resulting in 12 dead and 37 wounded; incendiary bombs started fires in parts of the city, but these were soon brought under control.'

Battle of the Atlantic

• In more attacks on Convoy SC-48 U-568 sinks the British steamer Empire Heron (6023t) southeast of Cape Farewell with the loss of 42 of her crew. 1 survivor is picked up by the British corvette Gladiolus.
• During the night U-568 hits the US destroyer Kearny (DD-432) with a torpedo in a convoy battle involving British, Canadian and United States' ships. There are 11 dead on the Kearny. The convoy involved is SC-48.

Diplomatic Relations

Under the supervision of Russian and Japanese advisers, negotiations are concluded at Harbin to set the border between Manchukuo and Outer Mongolia.

Eastern Front

Outside of Lubny

The Soviets evacuate Odessa, which has been holding out although for several weeks it has been well behind the Germans lines. About 35,000 men from 3 divisions are taken off. One transport is sunk by air attack but the rest reach Sevastopol safely. 2 cruisers and 4 destroyers and many smaller craft are involved. Most units of the Black Sea Fleet are now based in Sevastopol.

October 16 is remembered in Moscow as bolshoi drap, a day of panic. The people finally realize that the Germans are at their gates and, not least on account of the reports of atrocities committed by the enemy (though exaggerated for propaganda purposes), all who can, flee to the east. Adding fuel to the fire, it is learned that Lenin's coffin is also being removed from Red Square. Foreign diplomats and much of the government staff are moved to Kuibyshev, beyond the Volga, 525 miles to the east. Many senior party members lead a less official exodus in official cars and on the trains. Disorder and looting are in the city.

A new offensive on the Volkhov involvingg XXXIX Panzer and XXXVIII Corps, hitting the junctionof the Soviet 4th and 52nd Armies. Heavy snow is now falling in this sector.

The Soviets have completed their evacuation of Odessa, the Romanians taking possession of the port. The latter have suffered 98,000 casualties in the siege.[MORE]

Citizens Cheering the Russian Rearguard As They Move Up

German Panzer Vehicles

Battle of the Atlantic

• In more attacks on Convoy SC-48 U-432 sinks the Panamanian steamer Bold Venture (6595t) south of Iceland with the loss of 17 of her crew. 17 survivors are picked up by the Canadian corvette Wetaskiwin.
• U-558 sinks the British tanker W. C. Teagle (9552t), the Norwegian tanker Erviken (6595t) and the Norwegian steamer Rym (1369t). 35 crewmen are lost on the W. C. Teagle, 9 survivors are picked up by the British destroyer Broadwater and 1 by the British corvette Veronica. The Erviken loses 22 of her crew, 16 survivors are picked up by the British corvette Abella, the Broadwater and the Veronica. All 21 of the crew of the Rym are picked up by the Veronica.
• U-432 sinks the Greek steamer Evros (5283t) and the Norwegian tanker Barfonn (9739t) south-southwest of Iceland. All 32 of the crew of the Evros are lost. 14 crewmen are lost on the Barfonn, 26 survivors are picked up by the Canadian corvette Baddeck and the Wetaskiwin.
• The British corvette Gladiolus, off the port wing of Convoy SC-48, is sunk by U-553 in the early morning. All 65 on board are lost.

Eastern Front

The mopping up of the Vyazma and Bryansk pockets is completed.

The Germans capture Kalinin. To the south the remnants of the 50th Army fighting north of Bryansk surrendered, while the 3rd Army continues to fight on in isolation at Dmitrev-Lgovsky.

Armored Vehicle Collision

The Stavka creates the Kalinin Front. This new formation, based upon Konev's Kalinin Group, with 2 rifle and 2 cavalry divisions and 1 tank brigade is also attached. The new front's objective is to prevent the 3rd Panzer Group from penetrating into the rear of the West and Northwest Fronts.

The fighting around Volokolamsk intensifies as Gen Lev Dovator's Cavalry Corps is struck by the German divisions north of the town.

Barents Sea

U-132 sinks the Soviet steamer Argun (3487t) north of Murmansk.

Battle of the Atlantic

• U-101 sinks the British destroyer Broadwater, astern of Convoy SC-48, with the loss of 56 on board. 85 survivors are picked up by the British anti-submarine trawlers Angle and Cape Warwick.
• 2 British steamers are lost on mines in Barrow Deep, the Empire Ghyll (2011t) and the Mahseer (7911t). 7 crewmen are lost on the Empire Ghyll. The entire crew of the Mahseer are rescued.

Eastern Front

In the continuing German advance on Moscow, Mozhaysk, one of the key points in the Soviet defense east of the capitol, is taken by troops from 4th Panzer Group.

The XL Panzer Corps breaks into Mozhaisk but has to fight for every yard of ground. By the end of the day, the 2nd SS Motorized Division Das Reich and the 10th Panzer Division has cleared the town. These units then move forward toward Dorohov, which is defended by the 50th Rifle Division. The LVII Panzer Corps penetrates the Soviet line at Maloyaroslavets and Borovsk, while fierce fighting continues at Kaluga. Tarusa also falls as the 49th Army is pounded. With steady progress being made by the German forces southwest of Moscow, communications between the capital and Tula becomes tenuous, particularly in the hardpressed Naro-Fominsk and Podolsk sectors. To bolster the line, the 33rd Army is committed and the 43rd Army reinforced.

Afghanistan

All Axis nationals, about 200 Germans and Italians, are to be expelled.

Battle of the Atlantic

• The American merchant ship Lehigh is torpedoed and sunk by U-126 off the west coast of Africa. All 44 of the crew are rescued.
• The Norwegian steamer Rask (632t) is sunk by German bombing in St George's Channel with the loss of 8 crewmen.
• U-206 sinks the British steamer Baron Kelvin (3081t) in the Strait of Gibraltar 14 miles from Tarifa Point, Spain with the loss of 26 of her crew. 15 survivors are picked up by the Spanish steamer Urola and 1 by the British destroyer Duncan.
• U-204 sinks the British tanker Inverlee (9158t) about 30 miles west-southwest of Cape Spartel, Morocco with the loss of 21 crewmen. 22 survivors are picked up by various British ships in the area. The u-boat is later sunk in the Strait of Gibraltar by the British sloop Rochester and the corvette Mallow. The entire crew of 46 are lost.

U-204

Eastern Front

A 'state of siege' is declared in Moscow. Stalin announces that he is remaining in Moscow, although most of the government has left, and that the city will be defended with every effort. Harsh punishments are to be imposed on looters and defeatists. Work is proceding at a hectic pace on 3 fixed defense lines around the city.

Siberian and Far Eastern forces begin arriving on the front against Germany. Moscow apparently feels able to rush troops form the east in part because of information from Soviet spy Richard Sorge in Tokyo that Japan will remain neutral in the German-Russian war. In the south the German advance along the coast of the Sea of Azov reaches Taganrog, near Rostov.

Finnish Troop Train

Eastern Front

In the Moscow sector there is heavy fighting near Mozhaysk and at Malayaroslavets. The Germans advance to within 65 miles of the city. The Germans also win a victory at Borodino 60 miles from Moscow. The Russians throw all available forces into the fight. Up to this date the Russians have lost 600,000 square miles of territory, with a population of 65 million. According to German sources, only partly denied, the Russians have lost 3,200,000 prisoners of war besides an unknown number of dead, 19,000 tanks, 28,000 guns and 14,600 aircraft. Some of this material has been destroyed, some captured by the enemy. And still, thanks to the fresh forces brought in from beyond the Urals and the tanks they are feverishly turning out from factories in Moscow and from those transported to the other side of the Urals (plus the 'scorched earth' policy in front of the invader), the Soviet commanders are able to organize counterattacks everywhere. The T-34 and other heavy Soviet tanks inflict heavy losses on the enemy. Their wide tracks prevent them from sinking in the mud, unlike their German counterparts who often get stuck.

Stalin announces a state of siege in Moscow and that he will remain there to lead the defense. In Moscow 500,000 people, men and women, are mobilized and in record time construct a formidable ring of fortifications, digging 5,000 miles of trenches and anti-tank ditches, putting up 185 miles of barbed wire and making barriers out of felled trees.

In the south the German attacks also make progress capturing Donetsk (also known as Stalino).

NORTHERN SECTOR

The Soviets prepare to launch the second Sinyavino Operation to break the German stranglehold on Leningrad. The Leningrad Front has concentrated 8 rifle divisions among the 55th Army and the Neva Group, a force of 63,000 soldiers, 475 artillery pieces and 97 tanks. These men are to push east to link up with Kulik's 54th Army near Sinyavino. The Germans have 54,000 men facing the attack in strongly established positions.

Elements of the V Corps, holding the southern flank of the 9th Army, cross the Ruza River. Continuing their attacks on the Mozhaisk axis, German forces capture Borovsk, the Russians falling back upon Naro-Fominsk where ther 43rd Army is in defensive positions. Dorohov becomes a focal point of the Russian resistance on the road to the capital. Units of the 50th Rifle Division and the 20th and 22nd Tank Brigades defend the settlement.

Some 13,000 men of the battered 3rd Amry break out of their encirclement at Dmitrov Lgovsky and rejoin the combat line near Ponyri.

Heavy fighting rages in Stalino as the 1st SS Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler Division fights its way through the city.

France, Resistance

The German commander in Nantes, Lt-Col Karl Hotz, is shot by resistance workers. The next day 50 hostages are shot in reprisal. There is a similar incident similarly punished in Bordeaux on October 22.

Japan, Home Front

Gen Tojo reports to the War Office, 'Japan stands at the crossroads of its rise or fall.'

Air Operations, Europe

There is a British air raid on Naples. Five waves of bombers drop hundreds of incendiaries and high explosive bombs. There is tremendous damage and many casualties.

Battle of the Atlantic

• The Swedish steamer Hilda (1237t) is sunk by British bombing 5 miles west of Ymuiden.
• In attacks on Convoy SL-89 U-82 sinks the British steamers Serbino (4099t) and Treverbyn (5218t) west of Fastnet. 14 crewmen are lost on the Serbino, 51 survivors are picked up by the British corvette Asphodel. All 46 of the crew of the Treverbyn are lost.

Occupied Yugoslavia

About 6,000 Serbians from the town of Kragujevac are murdered by the Germans in reprisal for partisan attacks on the occupying army. Several hundred children are among the victims

Eastern Front

Zhukov takes command of the Moscow garrison.

Russians Attempt to Rescue Their Belongings

The 6th Army fights its way into the western outskirts of Kharkov but becomes involved in bitter fighting with the 21st and 38th Armies.

Battle of the Atlantic

The British naval tanker Darkdale (8145t) is sunk by U-68 off St Helena with the loss of 41 of her crew. 8 survivors are rescued by harbor craft.

ATS Women at an AA Site

Diplomatic Relations

Rumania denounces the 'Vienna Award' of August 1940 and re-opens the old rift with Hungary over Transylvania.

Eastern Front

The Rumanian CO at Odessa, Gen Glugoscianu, and 50 of his staff are killed by a delayed action bomb left by retreating Russians.

The XXIV Panzer Corps launches a furious attack against the elements of the 3rd Army that bar its way to Moscow but fails to push much farther from Mtensk. Farther south, the XLVIII Panzer Corps captures Fatezh after a long struggle with the 13th Army.

With the battle for the Crimea underway, Stavka appoints Vice-Adm Gordey Levchenko to command all forces in the peninsula. His forces consist of the Coastal and 51st Armies. Gen Pavel Batov takes over the 51st Army from Kuznetsov.

Air Operations, North Africa

British bombers raid Benghazi and Tripoli.

Baltic Sea

The Soviet submarine SC-323 sinks the German steamer Baltenland (3724t) off the coast of Sweden.

Battle of the Atlantic

The British destroyer HMS Cossack is torpedoed by U-563 in the north Atlantic. She founders under tow on 26 October.

Eastern Front

The Soviet command system is reorganized. Zhukov takes over responsibility for the northern half of the front and Timoshenko for the south . In the south von Rundstedt's forces are making spectacular progress. The German 6th and 17th Armies carry out a brilliant turning maneuver to attack Kharkov.

In reprisals for the assassination of a Rumanian general at Odessa, 19,000 Jews are rounded up and shot in the city and a further 40,000 are taken to a collective farm and massacred.

Malaya Vyshera falls to the XXXVIII Corps.

German forces break into Naro-Fominsk and fight for control of the southern half of the town.

The 6th and 17th Armies, having failed to penetrate into Kharkov, begin to develop attacks around the city in and effort to envelop the 21st and 38th Armies. The battle for the Perekop continues as the LIV Corps launches repeated frontal attacks against the 51st Army.

Street Fighting in Kharkov

Following the disasters of the previous few weeks, the Stavka establishes 2 new operational commands. The 2 areas, Northern under Zhukov's command, cover the line from Leningrad to the Moscow axis and the Southern under Marshal Timoshenko, cover the Ukraine.

Battle of the Atlantic

In attacks on Convoy HG-75 U-564 sinks the British steamers Carsbreck (3670t), Ariosto (2176t) and Alhama (1532t) about 300 miles west of Gibraltar. The Carsbreck loses 24 crewmen, 18 survivors are picked up by the French minesweeper Commandant Duboc. 6 of the crew are lost from the Ariosto, 45 survivors are picked up by the Swedish steamer Pacific and the British destroyer escort Lamerton. All 33 of the crew of the Alham are also picked up by the French minesweeper.

Eastern Front

A joint attack by the German 6th and 17th Armies succeeds in taking Kharkov. The 1st Panzergruppe under von Kleist advances into the Donetz basin.

NORTHERN SECTOR

Heavy fighting erupts around Leningrad as the Leningrad Front launches its Sinyavino Operation. Despite repeated attacks, Soviet units are repelled by the well dug-in German divisions. Gen Ivan Fedyuninsky is placed in command of the 54th Army as the incompetent Marshal Grigory Kulik is sacked.

The city of Torzok becomes the focus of intense fighting between the 3rd Panzer Group and the Soviet Kalinin Front in the battle for Moscow. As the XXIV Panzer Corps captures Chern, and the LIII Corps takes Belev, the battered Bryansk Front is ordered to withdraw to cover the southern approaches to Moscow. The German 9th Army, having taken part in the reduction of the Vyazma Pocket, redeploys to join the 3rd Panzer Group's efforts around Kalinin.

As the 2nd Panzer Army penetrates Soviet positions south of Moscow, the XXIV Panzer Corps taking Chern and the LIII Corps Belev, the Stavka order Gen Andrey Eremenko to pull back to a line between Tula and Yelets to cover the southern approaches. However, the Bryansk Front has suffered crippling casualties in the fighting around Bryansk and Orel and is close to disintegration. The XXIV Panzer has also suffered heavy losses and is so short of fuel that its remaining supplies are given up to Brigade Eberbach (Gen Heinrich), which henceforth forms the spearhead of the 2nd Panzer Army;s assault upon Moscow. Heavy fighting continues in Naro-Fominsk.

Having completed the destruction of the Vyazma pocket, the 9th Army has redeployed and moves to join the 3rd Panzer Group fighting around Kalinin.

von Reichenau's 6th and Hoth's 17th Armies enter Kharkov while Belgorod, a little to the north, is taken by the 6th Army, forcing the Soviets to either abandon Kharkov or lose the 21st and 38th Armies entirely.

German Troops of the 57th Infantry Division

Atlantic

The British battleship Prince of Wales leaves the Clyde for the Far East. Adm Tom Phillips is aboard on the way to take command of the new Far East Fleet which is to be created around Prince of Wales.

Diplomatic Relations

Roosevelt and Churchill condemn recent German reprisals in France - 100 hostages shot at Bordeaux and Nantes following the assassination of 2 German officers.

Eastern Front

Near Moscow, bitter fighting continues amid deep snowfalls. The first German offensive against Moscow, however, is exhausted. There are two main reasons, the tenacious Soviet resistance and the adverse weather conditions.

Resistance in the pocket south of Bryansk, is quelled, the greater part of the 3rd, 13th and elements of the 50th Armies having been destroyed in the fighting. 50,000 prisoners have fallen into German hands and an equal number have been killed.

Operation TYPHOON continues to grind forward as the Germans continue to make minor gains throughout the Moscow axis as assault units push forward through the mud. Rusa falls to the 10th Panzer Division. Volokolamsk railway station falls to German units.

Kharkov falls to the 6th Army after costly street fighting with the 21st and 38th Army rearguards.

Mediterranean

• During the night, the British fast cruiser-minelayer Latona is sunk by Stukas off Bardia. 27 of the crew are lost. Survivors are picked up by the British destroyers Encounter and Hero.
• The British submarine Triumph sinks the Italian steamer Monrosa (6703t) in the Aegean.

Air Operations, Europe

The R.A.F. make a heavy night attack on Hamburg.

Eastern Front

Russia confirms the evacuation of Stalino in the Donetz basin. The Germans break through the Perekop Isthmus into the Crimea.

Partisan Paraded through the Streets

The German 4th Army is under fierce Soviet attack and is forces onto the defensive, while the LIII Corps reaches the Oka River and the XLIII Corps moves up to Belev.

Near Stalino, the Soviets are falling back, abandoning the Donbas to the Germans. Fierce fighting continues at Ishun as the 11th Army begins to force open the Soviet defenses.

Battle of the Atlantic

• The British steamer Antiope (4545t) is sunk by German bombing northwest of Cromer with the loss of 1 crewman. A German air attack also sinks the Dutch steamer Friesland northeast of Cromer with the loss of 13 of her crew.
• The Swedish steamer Gunlag (1424t) is sunk by British bombing off Den Helder.

Britain, Command

The father of British Commando development, Adm of the Fleet Sir Roger Keyes, is replaced by the younger Capt Lord Louis Mountbatten. The new man converts Churchill to the policy of mounting smaller, less costly raids as opposed to Keyes' preference for large-scale operations with their attendant cost and logistical problems.

Eastern Front

In the south after ten days of fighting the German 11th Army occupies the whole of the Crimea except for the fortress of Sevastopol. Kramatorsk is among the area captured. The whole industrial area of the southern Soviet Union is now is German hands. In the area near Moscow the Russians launch a counter-attack.

Elements of the V Corps capture Volokolamsk after a long battle with 3 rifle divisions of the 16th Army. In the center, the 4th Army repulses renewed Soviet attacks. Heavy fighting erupts at Serpukhov. Lead elements of Brigade Eberbach (Gen Heinrich) reach Plavskoye, while the LIII and XLIII Corps consolidate their positins on the Oka River.

Battle of the Atlantic

• U-432 sinks the British steamer Ulea from Convoy HG-75 east-northeast of the Azores with the loss of 19 of her crew. 9 survivors are picked up by the British corvettes La Malouine and Bluebell.
• U-68 sinks the British steamer Hazelside (5297t) 600 miles southeast of St Helena with the loss of 2 crewmen. 44 survivors are picked up by the British steamer Malayan Prince.

Eastern Front

Most of the German attacks toward Moscow are now being halted, partly by their own weakness but even more by the weather. By day the soft and muddy ground hinders movement, and by night the severe frosts weaken the inadequately clad German troops and damage and halt their vehicles.

German Tank Advance Party Near Volokolamsk

Within 40 miles of Moscow

The final major effort of this phase of attack is a push by Guderian's forces in the area between Tula and Serpukhov, south of the capital, but this makes little progress. Farther north another brief German attack manages to take Volokolamsk, about 75 miles northwest of the Russian capital.

Kramatorsk falls to the Germans. The 1st Panzer Army pushes across the Mius River as it advances toward Rostov, and the 17th Army fights to secure a crossing over the Donets River. von Reichenau's 6th Army is established along the northern Donets. The Ishun defenses begin to collapse under the weight of 11th Army attacks.

Air Operations, Europe

During the afternoon British bombers carry out raids on the provinces of Reggio Calabria and Catanzaro.

Eastern Front

The first of the Soviet reserve divisions from Siberia go into the area of Borodino west of Moscow.

The Sinyavino Operation has failed to achieve a breakthrough to Leningrad, despite days of bitter fighting.

Brigade Eberbach (Gen Heinrich) is just 2 miles ftom Tula and launches a direct assault upon the town. The defenses of the 50th Army, however, proves too strong, Eberbach losing many tanks to Soviet anti-tank batteries. To the south, the LIII Corps advances toward Yepifan to protect the open southern flank of the 2nd Panzer Army.

Battle of the Atlantic

The US Navy oiler Salinas is torpedoed by U-106 700 miles east of Newfoundland but makes it to port with no casualties.

Diplomatic Relations

Roosevelt offers the Soviet Union a one billion dollar interest-free loan for the purchase of lend-lease equipment. Repayment will begin five years after the end of the war and be complete in ten years.

Eastern Front

The German offensive in the Moscow sector comes to a halt until the winter weather sets in fully, giving permanently hard ground and restoring some mobility to the German tank forces.

Women Digging Trenches

In the south the siege of the fortress of Sevastopol begins with the onslaught by the German 11th Army and Rumanian forces on the outer defense line. These attacks will go on for about 3 weeks. The Russian Black Sea Fleet and 21,000 Marines repel many of the attacks, but the Germans capture Balaclava Hills. (see December 17.) The siege itself will last eight months. Moscow radio admits that the town of Tula is in danger.

Following his failure to rush Tula, Guderian skirts east of the town, moving upon Dedilovo. He plans to let the supporting infantry clear Tula.

52-K Gun of 6th Battery of 732nd Anti-Aircraft Regiment

Russian Marines Under Shell Fire

Battle of the Atlantic

While forming part of the escort of the convoy HX-156 the US destroyer Reuben James (DD-245) is sunk by U-Boat U-552 west of Iceland while escorting convoy HX-156. This is the first sinking of a US warship by enemy action in the Second World War. 115 sailors of a crew of 160 are lost.

US Destroyer Reuben James Is Sunk

Eastern Front

The Luftwaffe carries out 45 air raids on Moscow. In the extreme north of Finland, German mountain troops under Gen Eduard Dietl (who comes under the command of the commander-in-chief of the occupation forces in Norway, Nicolaus von Falkenhorst) makes a thrust towards Murmansk, but are soon firmly checked by the Russians. In central Finland there are two German divisions of the XXXVI Army Corps in action, while Finnish troops are operating from the area of Salla to the Karelian isthmus, though their offensive push is becoming exhausted.

In the siege of Leningrad, electricity supplies have been greatly reduced. Many factories have closed down. There is to be no electric lights for domestic consumers.

In the south the Germans capture Simferopol in the Crimea.

Army Group Center is exhausted as it struggles to push closer to Moscow. TYPHOON begins to falter as the German 9th Army is bogged down around Kalinin, while the 3rd Panzer Group is involved in heavy fighting with the 19th and the 30th Armies. In the center, the 49th, 43rd and 33rd Armies hold up the 4th Army and the 4th Panzer Group on the Nara at Serpukhov, while on the southern wing Guderian has bypassed Tula.

The 51st Army retreats in confusion, Alma falling. Even at this early stage of the battle, the fighting in the Crimea has netted the Germans 65,000 prisoners.

To give an indication of the catastrophic supply situation the Germans face, of 724 trains that are due to deliver supplies to Army Group South during October, only 195 have arrived. Furthermore, of these, 112 are held over from September.