http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/15.htm
July 15th, 1940
UNITED KINGDOM: RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). No ops due to bad weather. This lasts until the 18th.
Plymouth: Britain’s latest commando raid has ended in farce. A team of untrained men designated as special forces of No. 3 Commando was to raid Guernsey airport. Compass failure sent it in error to tiny Sark. Other men hit undefended points on Guernsey to no purpose. As they withdrew, their commanding officer slipped and fired his revolver, alerting the enemy. Three men said that they could not swim to the pick-up boat.
Spilsby, Lincolnshire: The rector of Old Bolingbroke, Lincolnshire, was sentenced to four weeks’ jail today for ringing his church bell. He claimed that he did not know of the order prohibiting the ringing of church bells except as warning of an airborne invasion. It came into force a month ago, on 14 June. PC Peck said that he found the rector in his belfry pulling the bell rope on 16 June.
The rector, the Rev Robert Grant Colvin Graham, insisted that he was a loyal citizen. He had not then read the letter from his bishop banning bell-ringing.
Corvette HMS Godetia commissioned.
Corvette HMS Mignonette laid down.
Destroyer HMS Panther laid down. (Dave Shirlaw)
ENGLISH CHANNEL: A force of 15 Do17s attempt to bomb a convoy but are driven off by Hurricanes from Nos. 56 and 151 Squadrons.
United States Marine Detachment, London is activated from the 12th Marine Company. (Gordon Rottman)
FRANCE: The Germans demand that they be granted unrestricted access through French North Africa. (Louis Capdeboscq)
Battleship FS Richelieu is commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
GERMANY: U-108 is launched. (Dave Shirlaw)
BALTIC STATES: Plebiscites held yesterday in Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia are said to show unanimous support for union with the USSR.
Some regions register more than 100% support.
The plebiscites were rigged and conducted under heavily intimidating circumstances to ensure that the Soviets got the 99+% approval.
(Mikko Härmeinen)
PORTUGAL: The cruiser USS Trenton (CL-11) sails from Lisbon, Portugal for the Annapolis, Maryland, USA, with members of the royal family of the Duchy of Luxembourg on board. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.A.: Chippewa Falls: Robert Pershing Wadlow, the worlds tallest man at 8 ft 11inches, dies of complications brought on by a foot infection.
ATLANTIC OCEAN: SS Evdoxia was sunk 40 miles SW of Bull Rock, Ireland by U-34. (Dave Shirlaw)
http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/
Day 319 July 15, 1940
Battle of Britain. Low cloud and rain keep most aircraft grounded. German bombers attack industrial and dock areas along the Scottish coast but do little damage and Westland Aircraft aircraft works at Yeovil, Somerset is bombed (1 runway and 1 hangar are damaged. Convoy “Pilot” is spotted by a reconnaissance aircraft in the Thames Estuary but Dornier bombers sent out to attack are headed off by British fighters.
140 British commandos are taken to Guernsey by destroyers HMS Scimitar and Saladin but Operation Ambassador goes badly. 40 men from No.3 Commando are ferried ashore in launches but find German barracks empty and re-embark leaving behind 3 men who cannot swim back to the launches. They become German POWs. Other launches crash on rocks or go to the wrong island, Sark.
At 3.21 AM, U-34 sinks Greek steamer Evdoxia 40 miles southwest of Ireland (1 dead, 22 survivors). http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/424.html
Estonian steamer Merisaar, captured by U-99 on July 12, is sunk by German bombing off Cobh, County Cork, Ireland. The German prize crew is rescued and taken prisoner.