References are numbered in [brackets], which are listed here. A number after the dot gives the page in the source.

Last updated: 2008 August 1.

1941 April 1 Hippolyte Delehaye Flemish historian, dies at age 81. [1] Lillian Hellman's "Watch on the Rhine", premieres in New York City. [1] Navy takes over Treasure Island (San Francisco Bay). [1] Nazi's forbid Jews access to cafés. [1] Pro-German Rashid Ali al-Ghailani grabs power in Iraq. [1] April 2 German occupier disallows Dutch scouting association. [1] Paul Teleki premier Hungary, dies. [1] USS Hornet with Jimmy Doolittles B-25 departs from San Francisco. [1] Hungarian Prime Minister Count Teleki kills himself, rather than agree to Adolf Hitler's demand to allow passage of German troops to Yugoslavia. However, the Hungarian Chief of General Staff accedes to the demand. [10] April 3 André Michelin French tire manufacturer, dies at age 88. [1] Churchill warns Stalin of German invasion. [1] Pal Teleki-von Szek Prime Minister Hungary (1920-21, 39-41), suicide at age 61. [1] Rasjid al-Gailani forms pro-German regime in Iraq. [1] Waltons overture "Scapino", premieres in Chicago. [1] April 4 General Olof Thörnell, commander of Swedish forces, issues a report to government, stating that Sweden should prepare to participate in a war against the Soviet Union, for the sake of Finland, Sweden's future position, and prestige in northern Europe. [7] German troops conquer Banghazi. [1] Max Frisch writer, dies at age 29. [1] April 5 In San Francisco, Castro and Fillmore streetcars replaced by buses. [1] April 6 (early) Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union sign a treaty of friendship, providing for "amicable relations" in the event of foreign attack. [10] (0500 hours) The first wave of German Stuka bombers cross into Yugoslavia, beginning a three-day bombardment of Belgrade. [10] German forces invade Greece. [10] British General Gambier-Parry caught in North Africa. [1] German bombardment on Piraeus (munitions ship explodes). [1] Italian-held Addis Ababa capitulates to British and Ethiopian forces. [1] April 7 British Generals O'Connor and Neame captured in North Africa. [1] April 8 Eugène-Marcel Prévost novelist, dies. [1] April 10 German troops conquer Libyan county Cyrenaica. [1] In Washington, USA, a treaty is signed with the Danish government for the US to take over protection of Greenland. [10] April 11 Germany blitzes Conventry, England. [1] Jewish Weekly newspaper taken control by Nazi's. [1] Nazi occupiers in Netherlands confiscate Jewish assets. [1] April 12 Vichy-France's head of government Admiral Dalan consults with Hitler. [1] April 13 Annie Jump Cannon US astronomer (Henry Draper catalogues), dies at age 77. [1] Heavy German assault on Tobruk. [1] The Yugoslav capital of Belgrade is occupied by German forces. [10] Japan and the Soviet Union sign a five-year non-aggression pact. [10] April 14 First massive German raid in Paris France, 3,600 Jews rounded up. [1] Jack Edmonson Australian corporal in Tobruk (Victoria Cross), dies. [1] King Peter leaves Yugoslavia. [1] April 15 First helicopter flight of one hour duration, Stratford Connecticut. [1] April 16 Josiah Charles Stamp first baron/statisician, dies. [1] Little Theater at Adelphi Strand closes. [1] April 17 Yugoslavia signs an armistice with Germany. [10] British troop land in Iraq. [1] Office of Price Administration established (to handle rationing). [1] April 18 Alexander Korysis Prime Minister of Greece, commits suicide. [1] April 19 Bertolt Brecht's "Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder", premieres in Zürich. [1] Bulgarian troops invade Macedonia. [1] Johanna Muller-Hermann composer, dies at age 63. [1] Milk rationed in Holland. [1] April 20 100 German bombers attack Athens. [1] Barend ter Haar Dutch lawyer, dies in Buchenwald at age 49. [1] April 21 Greece surrenders to Nazi-Germany. [1] April 23 Greece surrenders to Italy. [10] April 24 The Greek government surrenders to Germany. [10] British army begins evacuation of Greece. [1] Dutch Prince Bernhard becomes an RAF pilot. [1] April 25 Operation Merkur Hitler orders conquest of Kreta. [1] April 26 Jean Demoor Belgian physician/physiologist/educationalist, dies at age 74. [1] Potatoes rationed in Holland. [1] April 27 German troops occupy Athens Greece. [1] April 28 Last British troops in Greece surrenders. [1] April 30 Spread of Judaism begins in Croatia. [1] May 1 "Citizen Kane", directed by and starring Orson Welles, premieres in New York. [1] General Mills introduces Cheerios. [1] German assault on Tobruk. [1] John R Locksmith de Brown vicar/CHU-politician, dies at age 71. [1] May 2 US Federal Communications Commission approves regular scheduled commercial TV broadcasts to begin July 1. [1] Martin Bormann succeeds Rudolf Hess as Hitler's deputy. [1] Nazi occupied Netherlands layoff Jewish journalists. [1] Ted Williams lowest average (.308) in the year he hit over .400. [1] May 3 German air raid on Liverpool. [1] May 5 Two Fokker's employees flee Nazi occupied Netherlands to England. [1] Haile Selassie returns to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to reclaim his throne. [10] Pulitzer prize awarded to Robert E Sherwood (There shall be no night). [1] May 6 Joseph Stalin became premier of Russia. [1] At California's March Field, Bob Hope performs his first USO show. [5] May 7 British House of Commons votes for Churchill (477-3). [1] Cornerstone of Bank of America building at 300 Montgomery laid. [1] David Wijnkoop revolutionary socialist, dies. [1] French Deputy Premier Jean Darlan concludes a secret treaty with Germany, allowing German arms shipments across Syria to Iraq. [10] Glenn Miller records "Chattanooga Choo Choo" for RCA. [1] May 8 German Q-ship Pinguin sinks in Indian Ocean. [1] Heinrich Zollner composer, dies at age 86. [1] HMS Bulldog captures German submarine U-110 off Iceland. An Enigma encoding machine is captured, and captain Fritz-Julius Lemp (responsible for sinking passenger liner Athenia at start of war) taken prisoner. [10] May 9 A peace treaty is signed between Vichy France and Siam, granting large areas of Cambodia and Laos to Siam. [10] English Army breaks German spy codes. [1] May 10 (1745 hours) Rudolf Hess, Adolf Hitler's deputy, leaves in a plane from Augsburg, landing near Glasgow, Scotland, where he is captured. [10] England's House of Commons and Holborn Theater destroyed in a blitz. [1] Queen Wilhelmina on Radio Orange warns against treason. [1] May 11 First Messerschmidt 109F shot down above England. [1] May 12 Great British convoy marches into Alexandria. [1] May 13 Martin Bormann is named head of Nazi Party Chancellery in Germany. [1] Trial against resistance fighter comte d'Estienne d'Orves begins. [1] Willy Lewis' US jazz band performs in Switzerland. [1] May 14 3,600 Parisian Jews arrested. [1] May 15 First British turbojet flies. [1] British attack Halfaya-pass and Fort Capuzzo in Egypt and Libya. [1] Nazi occupiers in Netherlands forbid Jewish music. [1] May 16 Italian army under Aosta surrenders to Britain at Amba Alagi Ethiopia. [1] Last great German air attack on Great Britain (Birmingham). [1] Nazis forbid Dutch Organization of Actors (NOT). [1] May 17 Pennsylvania declares legal holiday to honor Athletics manager Connie Mack. [1] May 18 An Egyptian steamer sinks. [1] Italian army under General Aosta surrenders to Britain in Ethiopia. [1] Jewish veterans honor their dead. [1] May 19 German occupiers in Holland forbid bicycle taxis. [1] New Nazi battleship Bismarck leaves Gdynia, Poland. [1] Werner Sombart Marxist economist (Händler und Heroes), dies at age 78. [1] Soviet NKGB agent Richard Sorge in Japan warns Josef Stalin that nine German armies with 150 divisions are preparing for war with the Soviet Union. Stalin rejects the credibility of the information. [10] May 20 Archer's "The Christian Calendar and the Gregorian Reform" published. [1] Former Dutch Prime Minister Colijn says Netherlands Indies not ready for independence. [1] (just after dawn) Operation Mercury is launched, as German gliders and 7th Airborne Division paratroopers land near principal airports on Crete, with the mission of securing them for transport of 5th Division troops. Many gliders crash, and many paratroopers are shot in the air. [10] May 21 First US ship sunk by a U-boat (SS Robin Moore). [1] German airforce occupies airport at Maleme Kreta. [1] Singer Johan Heesters visits Dachau concentration camp. [1] May 22 British troops attack Baghdad. [1] May 23 Lord Herbert Austin motor manufacturer, dies. [1] Slavko Osterc composer, dies at age 45. [1] May 24 (0601 hours) The fifth shot from the Bismarck hits the Hood, penetrating the deck to the main ammunition magazine and explodes, destroying the ship. Only three of a crew of 1422 survive. [10] Lancelot Holland British Vice-Admiral ((WWII/Hood), dies in battle. [1] May 25 5,000 drown in a storm at Ganges Delta region in India. [1] Ted Williams raises his batting average over .400 for first time in 1941. [1] May 26 American Flag House (Betsy Ross' Home) given to city of Philadelphia. [1] Ark Royal airplane sights German battleship Bismarck. [1] German occupiers begin youth labor. [1] Swordfish planes launch torpedo attacks on the Bismarck. Two hits are scored, one knocking out the steering gear, jamming the rudder at 15 degrees to port. Another torpedo strikes amidships, doing little damage. [10] May 27 AH Borgesius tutor/experimentator/amateur astronomer, dies at age 76. [1] Allied troops begin evacuating Kreta. [1] Franklin Roosevelt proclaimes an "unlimited national emergency" due to Germany's sinking of Robin Moor. [1] (1040 hours) The German battleship Bismarck sinks, in the North Atlantic near France, either from British shells and torpedoes, or from the German sailors scuttling it. 115 survive from a crew of over 2200. [10] [129] Günther Lütjens German Admiral (Bismarck), dies. [1] May 28 British army begins evacuation of Kreta. [1] May 29 293 Disney animators, members of the Screen Cartoonists Guild, stage a strike of the Disney Studios in the USA. More than 1000 picketers appear in the first hour. [6] May 30 First anti semitic measures in Serbia. [1] English Army enters Baghdad, chasing pro-German coup government. [1] German capture Kreta. [1] May 31 First issue of "Parade" goes on sale. [1] 32.0 cm rain falls on Burlington Kansas (state record). [1] 41 U boats sunk this month (325,000 ton). [1] British troops vacate Kreta. [1] German occupiers forbids Jews access to beach and swimming pools. [1] June 1 31.98 cm (12.59") rainfall, Burlington, Kansas (state 24-hr record). [1] Germany bans all Catholic publications. [1] Evacuation of Crete ends; the remaining 9,000 British and 1,000 Greek soldiers surrender. Total losses of manpower in the fight for the island: British army 12,000; navy 2,000; Greek 5,000; German 6,000. [10] June 3 Author Irving Wallace marries writer Sylvia Kahn. [1] June 6 First navy vessel constructed as mine layer Terror launched. [1] June 10 Marcus Garvey dies at age 52 in London England. [1] June 14 Ground broken for Boeing Plant II (ex-AFLC Plant 13) Wichita KS. [1] June 16 First US federally owned airport opened Washington DC. [1] June 18 Turkey and Germany sign a Treaty of Non-Aggression. [10] June 22 Finland invades Karelia. [1] (0316 hours) Germany launches Operation Barbarossa, invading the Soviet Union along an 1100-mile front, with three million soldiers, the largest invasion in history. Army Group Center, commanded by Fedor von Bock, attacks north of the Pripet Marshes from Brest-Litovsk. Army Group North, commanded by Wilhelm von Leeb, attacks through Baltic states heading to Leningrad. Army Group South, commanded by Gerd von Rundstedt, attacks south of Pripet Marshes toward Kiev. In the south, the 11th Army of Romanians and Germans attack across the Pruth River into Bessarabia. German planes begin bombing and strafing Soviet airfields. By the end of day, 1200 Russian aircraft are destroyed. [10] June 25 Franklin Roosevelt issues Executive Order 8802 forbidding discrimination. [1] June 26 Finland enters WW II against Russia. [1] June 29 Ignace Paderewski Polish statesman pianist, dies in New York at age 80. [1]