Posted on 11/24/2014 4:15:24 AM PST by Homer_J_Simpson
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1944/nov44/24nov44.htm#
French capture Strasbourg
Friday, November 24, 1944 www.onwar.com
French 2nd Division in Strasbourg [photo at link]
On the Western Front... The US 3rd Army captures crossings over the Saar River, about 25 miles north of Saarbrucken. To the south, the French 2nd Division (an element of US 7th Army) takes Strasbourg.
On the Eastern Front... In the Baltic, Soviet forces complete the occupation of Saaremo Island in the Gulf of Riga. About 5000 German troops have been evacuated. Most of the remaining German surface fleet Lutzow, Admiral Scheer and Prinz Eugen provide support for the evacuation, in addition to shelling mainland targets in support of German Army Group North.
Over Japan... The first B-29 Superfortress raid on Tokyo is conducted by 111 planes (2 lost), led by the “Dauntless Dotty” with the nominal target of the Musashi aircraft engine plant. The bombers fly from northeast India via forward bases at Chengtu in China.
In the North Atlantic... The Royal Canadian Navy corvette HMCS Shawinigan is sunk by U-1228 in the Cabot Strait between Cape Breton Island and Newfoundland. The entire crew of 91 dies.
http://www.etherit.co.uk/month/10/24.htm
November 24th, 1944 (FRIDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: London: Stanislaw Mikolajczyk, the Polish prime minister in exile, resigns in protest at Poland’s proposed new eastern frontier and the Allies’ lack of support for the Warsaw uprising.
Corvette HMS Amberly Castle commissioned.
NORTH SEA: 13 RAF Bomber Command Halifaxes lay mines in the Kattegat, the arm of the North Sea between Sweden and Denmark.
FRANCE: The French 2nd Division completes the capture of Strasboug.
In the U.S. Third Army’s XII Corps area, the 1st Battalion of the 134th Infantry Regiment, 35th Infantry Division, helped by tanks and intense preparatory shelling, takes Hilsprich. The 328th Infantry Regiment, 26th Infantry Division, continues an attack against the German rear-guard line Vittersbourg-Altwiller; the 101st Infantry Regiment makes a vain and costly attempt to take the chateau strongpoint in the center of the Bois de Bonnefontaine.
The 6th Army Group penetrates the German line along the Vosges River. General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Force, beginning a tour of inspection of the 6th Army Group front, attends a conference of commanders, where it is decided to clear the region west of the Rhine River before attempting an assault across it. The U.S. Seventh Army is to drive north to help the U.S. Third Army. The French First Army is to reduce the Colmar Pocket, the German’s bridgehead west of the Rhine.
In the U.S. Seventh Army’s XV Corps area, French armor in Strasbourg will be seriously threatened unless it can be bolstered by infantrymen. The Germans continue pressure from the north in the region north of Sarrebourg. In the VI Corps area, forward elements of the 3d Infantry Division reach Rothau. The 103d Infantry Division continues an outflanking movement against Steige, clearing Lubine, to the southwest. The 142d Infantry Regiment spearheads an eastward drive of 36th Infantry Division, reaching Ban-de-Laveline and La Croix-aux-Mines.
In the French First Army area, the II and I Corps are ordered to converge on Burnhaupt as quickly as possible to pocket enemy forces in Alsace. The II Corps clears Grosmagny and Petit-Magny, on the road to Rougemont-le-Chateau. The It Corps withstands heavy pressure in the Muihouse area and is largely concerned with keeping routes to the Rhine River open.
GERMANY: Units from Patton’s US 3rd Army cross the Saar 25 miles north of Saarbrucken.
US First Army. German resistance stiffened along the VII Corps front and progress was slow. House to house fighting continued in Eschweiler and Weisweiler in the 104th Division’s zone. A task force of infantry and tanks from the 47th Infantry and 32d Armored Regiment captured Höcheln. Slight advances were made by other 1st Division units and the struggle for the hill southwest of Langerwehe continued. In the 4th Division sector the 8th Infantry continued its drive through the woods to the east. (Robert Rush)
In the U.S. Third Army’s XX Corps area, the 358th Infantry Regiment of the 90th Infantry Division continues an assault on the Orscholz line: the 3d Battalion, attacking toward Tettingen and Butzdorf after halting a German counterattack, gets elements into Butzdorf, where they are isolated; the 2d Battalion, reinforced during the day by the 1st Battalion, breaks into Oberleuken, but cannot oust the Germans. Combat Command B, 4th Armored Division, crosses the Saar River in the XV Corps zone at Romelfing and Gosselming and turns northeast: the northern column takes up blocking positions on the high ground west of Postroff; the southern column brushes aside resistance at Kirrberg and clears Baerendorf in house-to-house fighting.
Reichsfuehrer-SS Heinrich Himmler issues orders to close the remaining crematorium at Auschwitz concentration camp in the suburbs of Oswiecim, Poland, and gives instruction to destroy any remaining evidence.
Weather cancels allUSAAF”> USAAF Ninth Air Force operations except for three XIX Tactical Air Command fighters which fly a night intruder mission in Saarbrucken, Zweibrucken, and Homburg/Saar areas.
During the night of 24/25 November,USAAF”> USAAF Fifteenth Air Force bombers hit the West marshalling yard at Munich.
During the night of 24/25 November,RAF”> RAF Bomber Command Mosquitos bomb two targets: 57 hit Berlin and six bomb Gottingen.
AUSTRIA: During the night of 24/25 November, over 40USAAF”> USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-17s and B-24 Liberators bomb the Linz benzol plant, Klagenfurt, and Innsbruck and two unidentified targets of opportunity; during the day P-38 Lightnings fly photo and weather reconnaissance missions.
EASTERN FRONT: In the Gulf of Riga the last 5,000 German troops are pulled of the island of Saaremo. They were covered by Lutzow, Admiral Scheer and Prinz Eugen.
BALTIC SEA: The 7,000 ton Swedish passenger ship SS Hansa is torpedoed and sunk by the Soviet submarine L-21 about 77 nautical miles (143 kilometers) south of Stockholm, Sweden. The torpedo struck at 0557 hours destroying the bridge and blowing off the forepart of the vessel. Hansa is sailing from the Swedish island of Gotland to the Swedish mainland and the flag of neutral Sweden is painted and lit up on both sides of the ship. Only two of the 86 person on board survive. After this disaster, all Swedish passenger vessels to Gotland are escorted by a minesweeper and a destroyer.
ITALY: In the U.S. Fifth Army’s IV Corps area, Task Force 45 captures Mt. Belvedere but Germans later regain it.
In the British Eighth Army area, the Polish II Corps presses toward the Marzeno River on a broad front against disorganized resistance. In the V Corps area, the 4th Division drives toward the Lamone River in the region just north of Highway 9. The 46th Division crosses the Marzeno River on the southern flank of corps.
USAAF Twelfth Air Force B-25 Mitchells, in support of the British Eighth Army, bomb defences in the Faenza area. Bad weather restricts fighter-bombers to two missions which damage a road bridge and cut rail line south of Modena.
YUGOSLAVIA: During the day, 73RAF”> RAF No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group aircraft fly supples to partisans.
BURMA: Thirty twoUSAAF”> USAAF Tenth Air Force P-47 Thunderbolts fly close support strikes in the Pinwe and Bhamo sectors; 50 P-47s attack troops and supply areas at Panma, Hpa-Hpen, Nawng-Sang, Kawlin, Wahkyet, Kawngai, and in the Pintha area, eight damage bridges at Meza, Namhkai, and Hsenwi while ten others hit Lashio Airfield. Six B-25 Mitchells attack the storage and ferry area at Meza and four damage approaches to the Namhkai and Hsenwi road bridges.
USAAF Fourteenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bomb a storage area near Lashio the towns of Wanling and Wan.
CHINA: Japanese forces in southern China, attempting to gain contact with their forces garrisoning French Indochina, take Nanning.
Twenty oneUSAAF”> USAAF Fourteenth Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb the warehouse area and docks at Hankow while B-25 Mitchells hit targets of opportunity in the Hankow, area and Siangtan, and Wuchang, China. Over 120 P-40 s, P-38 Lightnings and P-51 Mustangs on armed reconnaissance attack many targets of opportunity in eastern Burma and southwest and southeast China, concentrating on river and rail traffic and supplies at Chefang, Hengshan, and the Sinshih-Changsha area.
FRENCH INDOCHINA: ThreeUSAAF”> USAAF Fourteenth Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb the Haiphong area.
COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: In the U.S. Sixth Army’s X Corps area on Leyte, the 1st Battalion of the 34th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, repels a minor counterattack against Kilay Ridge. In the XXIV Corps area, the 32d Infantry Regiment recovers some ground previously lost on Shoestring Ridge and holds the perimeter—about 2,000 yards (1 829 meters) long and less than 1,500 yards (1 372 meters) deep—against a vigorous counterattack during the night of 24/25 November.
USAAF Far East Air Forces B-24 Liberators bomb antiaircraft positions and targets of opportunity at Camp Downes and Panalisan Point and fighters attack and destroy several aircraft over Carigara Bay and the Leyte Island area. B-24s hit antiaircraft positions and other targets at Matina Aerodrome on Mindanao Island. P-40 s and P-47 Thunderbolts attack one of the groups of ships involved in the 5th phase of the TA Operation, sinking a submarine chaser and three landing ships in Cataingan Bay, Masbate Island.
MARIANAS ISLANDS, SAIPAN: The USAAF raided Tokyo in daylight today for the first time with Twentieth Air Force’s XXI Bomber Command, but Mission 7 was a dismal failure. Of the 111 B-29s which took off on the 3,000-mile round trip from the Mariana Islands, 17 aborted due to engine failure and only 24 managed to drop their bombs in approximately the right area.
The main target, the Nakashima Aircraft Company’s Musashi engine factory, was hardly touched. One B-29 was deliberately rammed by a Japanese fighter, shearing off the elevator and right horizontal stabiliser, becoming the first XXI Bomber Command B-29 lost to Japanese action. Another had to ditch when it ran out of fuel. The lead aircraft of the raid was B-29 “Dauntless Dotty” of the 869th Squadron, 497 Bomb Group, piloted by Colonel Robert K. Morgan who was the famed pilot of the “Memphis Belle” in Europe, the mission commander, General Emmett “Rosie” O’Donnell was also on board this aircraft.
B-29 gunners claim 7-18-9 Japanese aircraft.
Admiral Nimitz informs Vice Admiral John H. Hoover, ComForwardArea (Saipan) that the installations on Iwo Jima are to be the priority target for all of Task Force 94s aircraft, thus putting an end to the anti-shipping strikes.
VOLCANO ISLANDS: USN heavy cruisers USS Chester (CA-27), Pensacola (CA-24) and Salt Lake City (CA-25) bombard Iwo Jima.
BONIN ISLANDS: TwoUSAAF”> USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators from Saipan on a shipping reconnaissance attack vessels at Haha Jima and Chichi Jima.
MARCUS ISLAND: ThreeUSAAF”> USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators from Guam on armed reconnaissance bomb Marcus Island. The island is located in the North Pacific about 768 nautical miles (1 422 kilometers) west-northwest of Wake Island and is used as a refuelling point for Japanese aircraft en route to the Central Pacific.
CANADA: There are anti-conscription riots in Montreal and Quebec City, Quebec, after Prime Minister Mackenzie King’s announcement that 16,000 conscripts (draftees) would be sent to England.
Corvette HMCS Bowmanville departed Londonderry to escort Convoy ON-268.
Tugs HMCS Plainsville, Hartville and Innisville assigned to Sydney , Nova Scotia, Cornwallis , Nova Scotia and St John’s, Newfoundland respectively.
Contract awarded to United Shipyards Ltd Montreal, Province of Quebec to convert minelayer HMS Southern Prince to an accommodation ship.
Corvette HMCS Shawinigan lost in Cabot Strait.
U.S.A.: Destroyer USS Massey commissioned.
ATLANTIC OCEAN: Corvette HMCS Shawinigan takes a hit from a Zaunkönig fired by U-1228 (Oberleutnant zur See Friedrich-Wilhelm Marienfeld) blows up and sinks with all hands.
All 91 crewmen are lost. Location: East Coast of Canada at 47 34N 59 11W in Cabot Strait about 2 nautical miles (3,7 kilometers) west of Channel-Port aux Basques, Newfoundland.
. (Alex Gordon)(108)
Canada Ping!
Here is the Aachen sector where the Germans and Americans have pitted most of their combat strength against each other. Notice though that 116th Panzer has been pulled into reserve and south, toward the Ardennes. 9th Panzer is also being pulled out of the line. The Germans have noted a definite slacking off in the American offensive:
The Ardennes sector:
In Alsace-Lorraine, Strasburg appears lost for good. You will note that at the northern base of the salient, an HQ for "Grp. Baierlien," who is the CO of Panzer Lehr Division. Panzer Lehr also appears on the map directly south of the HQ. For the past month, Panzer Lehr has been refitting in Hitler's strategic reserve in anticipation of the Ardennes Offensive. But Hitler has had to dip into his reserve to use Panzer Lehr in a counter attack role to try to restore the situation in Alsace-Lorraine.
A couple of interesting items:
On page 14, “Dutch Hunger Strikes Loom”
“A peaceful demonstration two days ago protesting a lack of food in the Eindhoven area has resulted in a slight increase in fats and meats supplied by Allied armies.”
(a) This isn’t going to work for long, once everyone starts paying attention to the Battle of the Bulge.
(b) “If we don’t get enough to eat, we won’t eat,” isn’t exactly your most logical protest strategy. However, it probably makes sense to them. I know from experience that you get stupid when you’re not getting enough to eat.
*****
On page 6: “Marines ‘Don’t Give Hang’ For Lives, Tokyo Complains”
“The Tokyo radio complained to the Japanese people last night that the United States Marine Corps was composed of a ‘bunch of roughnecks’ and ‘ruffian soldiers’ and ‘don’t give a hang about their lives and so land recklessly in landing operations.’ “
(a) As if Japanese soldiers are really into preserving their lives at all cost.
(b) Iwo Jima
There have been a number of articles recently about civilian hardships behind Allied lines. The Paris showgirls are freezing in their unheated theaters.
Not to make light, but despite America’s logistic prowess, we cannot support our armed forces all around the globe, the armies of our allies, and at the same time feed the French, Italian and British civilian populations. Things also cannot be good for the population behind German lines, or in the devasted areas occupied Stalin’s Red Army.
This is going to be a bad winter for everyone in Europe. War is hell.
That about covers it.
Minutiae, regarding the page 4 article on the impossible Saipan B-29 airfield: the article refused to give the runway’s length, but Google Earth satisfied my curiosity and shows it today at 9,000 feet, as is neighboring Tinian’s.
http://www.history.army.mil/html/books/007/7-10-1/CMH_Pub_7-10-1.pdf
I apologize in advance for the poor Photobucket editing.
“miscellaneous supply problems.”
Interesting. Since we see newspaper headlines of the battles in “real time,” notice how almost all the ink is on the Northern part of the Western Front. Maybe that’s where all the correspondents were assigned.
Thanks for that.
I had read the whole book a while back, after seeing your links to it.
I tracked down the whole series of books, actually, and read most of them.
In your opinion, was Eisenhower the best man for SHAEF?
I was going to post this when we got to it; to me it illustrates in a few pages how Devers’ command was looked at by Ike and SHAEF. And the fact that his history wasn’t published for almost 50 years says a lot too.
I have all of the combat histories for the ETO; they are very well written by top notch historians. Many of them I received hard bound from a friend in California who found them at a bookstore close out sale.
I believe Ike was under-appreciated as SHAEF commander and as President of the United States. But this incident shows an unseemly side to him. Devers had been a rival, also under consideration for the SHAEF command. Altough Ike told Marshall he had no objection to Devers getting command of 6th AG, this incident shows that there was some lingering resentment.
I guess that the best that can be said is that Ike was human, and not perfect.
I’m jealous. :-)
5.56mm
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