|
1940.
|
|
|
MAY
1st.
|
Roosevelt pleads with Mussolini to stay out of war.
|
|
3rd
|
All Allied troops leave Norway.
|
|
6th
|
33 million pounds in gold arrives in London from Norway.
|
|
8th
|
Germany attacks Belgium and Holland.
|
|
9th
|
Chamberlain asks Labour Party to join him in a coalition
government.
|
|
10th
|
Churchill becomes Prime Minister and introduces the
convoy system.
|
|
13th
|
BLOOD TEARS TOIL AND
SWEAT
Churchill speaks to The
House of Commons
13th May 1940
"I have nothing to offer
but blood toil tears and sweat"
The War Coalition
Cabinet.
TOP ROW.
Mr.Arthur
Greenwood, Minister without
Portfolio;
Mr Ernest
Bevin, Minister of
Labour,
Lord Beaverbrook,
Minister of Aircraft
Production,
Sir Kinglsey
Woods. Chancellor of the
Exchequer,
BOTTOM ROW.
Sir John
Anderson, Lord President of
the Council;
Mr Winston Churchill,
Prime Minister.
Clement Attlee, Lord Privy
Seal,
Mr Anthony
Eden, Foreign
Secretary.
|
|
15th
|
Netherlands surrender to Germans
Churchill
Broadcasts
BE YE MEN OF
VALOUR
Broadcast
19th May 1940
|
|
23rd
|
Allies start to evacuate Boulogne.
|
|
|
Scientist R.V. Jones informs Government that intersecting
radio beams can guide German bombers to their targets.
|
|
24th
|
The Cabinet Basement War
Room
Allied Supreme War Council withdraw all forces from
Norway 25th.
|
|
|
Hitler orders bombing of Britain.
|
|
25th
|
Allies fall back to Dunkirk.
|
|
|
Evacuation from Dunkirk
beaches begins.
|
|
27th
|
Butter rationing cut to 4oz, per person per week.
|
|
28th
|
7,800 men taken off Dunkirk beaches.
|
|
29th
|
47,300 men taken off Dunkirk beaches.
|
|
30th
|
53,820 men taken off Dunkirk beaches.
|
|
31st
|
68,000 men taken off Dunkirk beaches.
|
|
|
All signposts removed from crossroads in England.
|
|
JUNE 1940.
|
Hitler.
|
|
1st
|
64,420 men taken off Dunkirk beaches under heavy air
attacks which sank 4 British ships
|
|
2nd
|
26,250 men taken off Dunkirk beaches.
|
|
3rd
|
254 civilians killed when 200 German bombers bombard
Paris.
|
|
4th
|
Last ship leaves Dunkirk with 26,175 men. Total evacuated
338,226 men. (40,000 left behind).
|
|
|
DUNKIRK
"Wars are not won by
evacuations"
Churchill speaks to the
House of
Commons
4th June 1940
|
|
|
Evacuation from Norway takes place.
|
|
10th.
|
Paris government leaves for Tours.
|
|
|
Air Marshal Dowding of
Battle of Britain fame.
Battle of Britain Commences.
|
|
12th.
|
Germany occupies Rheims and Rouen.
|
|
17th.
|
German forces pouring through Maginot line. Petain sues
for peace.
|
|
|
Stalin invades Estonia and Latvia.
|
|
18th
|
De Gaulle broadcasts calling France to carry on
resistance.
|
|
|
France asks Italy for armistice.
|
|
22nd
|
Hitler jumps for
joy.
France surrenders to a
triumphant Hitler in the same railway
carriage as Germany surrendered 22 years earlier.
|
|
21st.
|
Italian soldiers push into France.
|
|
25th.
|
Germany starts ten days of official celebrations, France
observes day of national mourning.
|
|
28th
|
Hitler sightseeing in
Paris.
|
|
July. 1940
|
|
|
1st
|
French government moves to Vichy.
|
|
5th
|
Swedish Government signs agreement allowing Germany to
use railways to move troops and supplies to and from Norway.
|
|
6th.
|
Submarine HMS Shark sunk by German anti-submarine forces.
|
|
10th.
|
German bombers Swansea, Falmouth and convoys in the
Bristol and English channels.
|
|
14th.
|
Housewife's to hand over all aluminium saucepans.
THE WAR OF THE UNKNOWN
WARRIORS
Churchill
Broadcasts.
July 14, 1940
|
|
16th.
|
Hitler issues directive No.16 (Sea Lion) invasion of
England.
|
|
|
Germany expels 22,000 French from Alsace Lorraine
|
|
19th.
|
Churchill's V for
Victory.
Hitler issues a last appeal to "reason" to Britain.
|
|
20th.
|
The buying and selling of new cars in England is banned.
|
|
23rd.
|
Home Guard formed.
|
|
27th.
|
Two British destroyers sunk by air attack.
|
|
|
The RAF during the Battle of Britain.
|
|
August 1940.
|
|
|
1st.
|
Hitler sets date of invasion of Britain as 15th
September.
|
|
|
Submarine HMS Spearfish is sunk.
|
|
2nd.
|
Vichy France sentence General de
Gaulle to death in his absence.
|
|
12th.
|
Dover shelled.
|
|
13th.
|
All secret societies banned in France including
Freemasons.
|
|
20th.
|
Churchill
speaks
THE BATTLE OF
BRITAIN
THE FEW
20th August
1940
120 RAF bombers attack targets in Germany, France,
Belgium and Netherlands.
|
|
22nd.
|
MP's bitterly condemn British internment of aliens.
|
|
26th.
|
RAF makes its first bombing raid on Berlin.
|
|
26th.
|
Portsmouth heavily
bombed.
|
|
28th.
|
Liverpool raided.
|
|
30th.
|
Airports at Biggin Hill and Luton attacked by German
bombers and incendiaries dropped on London.
|
|
31st
|
Vital RAF airfields in south eastern England, including
Biggin Hill, Lympne, Mansten and Hawkstine are bombed out of
action and 38 RAF planes destroyed.
|
The purpose of these pages is to tell the story of Churchill's
life - not to give a detailed account of the wars he was involved in,
for that is a vast subject.
To obtain an idea of the cause and magnitude of the war, examine the
monthly calendar for each year - they include many photographs.
It is important to remember that heavy censorship of news took
place throughout them, and therefore knowledge of many of these
events was not available until long after they happened - or until
after the wars had ended.
.
.SCHOOL INDEX
. 
