http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1940/sep40/f07sep40.htm
Germans begin “The Blitz”
Saturday, September 7, 1940 www.onwar.com
Over Britain... The Germans alter the tactics of their air offensive and send a major daytime raid against London. This gives the RAF a welcome respite from the airfield attacks which have been so damaging during the last few days. The German attack on London follows from a suggestion of Hitler which coincides with Goring’s own theories. The German tactic is that the RAF will be forced to commit its carefully hoarded reserves and that they can then be destroyed. Kesselring’s 2nd Air Fleet is to attack London by day with 500 bombers (including some brought from Norway and Denmark) and 600 fighters. Sperrle is to attack by night with about 300 bombers, as all his fighters have been switched to Kesselring. In addition there are about 100 Me110s and over 200 Stukas. The British have about 350 aircraft in their frontline squadrons with more in reserve. Park is modifying his tactics slightly to cope with the bigger German formations and now intends pairing his squadrons where possible. In the afternoon the Germans send 300 bombers and 600 fighters to attack targets in the London dock area. The British interceptions are not well managed because of the change of tactics comes as a surprise. The Luftwaffe loses 41 aircraft and Fighter Command 28 shot down and several more damaged. The bombing is most effective. During the night Sperrle follows up the attack with 250 bombers with the still-blazing fires to guide them to their target. The damage is very serious. There is little the RAF can do at night to achieve interceptions although the first airborne radar sets are coming into operation. Despite the damage done it is clear that the casualties and the disruption of civilian life are not as great as prewar fears suggested. There is no question of the Germans achieving a decisive result in these operations. These attacks become known as “The Blitz” by the British people.
From London... The British authorities decide that they have information that a German invasion is likely in the next few days and accordingly they issue an invasion warning. This warning is in the form of the signal word “Cromwell” which means that an invasion is imminent and its issue causes some wild measures to be taken. In fact this signal has been chosen because its true meaning corresponds most nearly to the needs of bringing about a higher state of readiness. No other code word has this effect.
In the North Atlantic... During the night (September 7-8), U-47 sinks one ship from convoy SC-2 by attacking while surfaced.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/07.htm
September 7th, 1940
UNITED KINGDOM:
Battle of Britain:
RAF Fighter Command:
Losses: Luftwaffe, 41; RAF, 28.
RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). 51 Sqn. One aircraft crashed near Wells, Norfolk on return from Boulogne. Crew unhurt, aircraft wrecked.
Bombing - invasion fleet at Ostend and Boulogne.
51 Sqn. Four aircraft. Three got off but none bombed due to adverse weather.
One crashed on return, crew safe.
78 Sqn. Three aircraft. None bombed due to weather.
London: Today as many as 350 German bombers protected by as many fighters appeared over London’s docks. They were followed by another 247 tonight. A few hours later, with 2,000 Londoners dead or injured and the whole area engulfed by flames, all railway links south were blocked, and the decision was taken at GHQ Home Forces to send out the code word “Cromwell”: invasion imminent. Home Guard and regular troops were called out, church bells rung and some bridges blown.
Churchill had been warning the chiefs of staff that if an invasion is to be tried it cannot be long delayed, because the weather may break at any time. For the past few weeks hundreds of self-propelled barges have been observed moving down from German and Dutch harbours to ports of northern France. They have come under heavy bombardment from the RAF and the Royal Navy. But the massive bombing attack on London docks, which British forces interpreted as a prelude to an attempted German landing, does not appear to have been followed up by any movement of the invasion fleet. One theory is that the Germans hope that their air raids on civilian targets will cause such panic and chaos that invasion will be unnecessary.
RAF Fighter Command has a total of 59.5 fighter squadrons available: 31 Hurricane squadrons, 20 Spitfire squadrons, 6 Blenheim squadrons, 2 Defiant squadrons and 1/2 of a Gladiator squadron. (Jack McKillop)
London: London’s dockland is on fire tonight after a massive daylight raid in which more than 300 tons of high explosive and incendiary bombs rained on the capital, with the RAF seemingly unable to stop the death and destruction which fell from a stately procession of bombers onto the streets of East London.
Göring directed the attack from a clifftop in France, whence he watched 350 bombers escorted by 650 fighters stream across the Channel. Broadcasting from his HQ, he said he could see waves of planes heading for England.
It seems that the RAF have been wrong-footed this time, despite Enigma warnings of an at
tack on London. There have been raids on Hawkinge airfield this morning and thinking that the new wave of raiders were heading for airfields north of London, the 11 Group controller kept his squadrons north of the capital not realising that London was the target until it was too late. Eventually 21 out of 23 squadrons airborne managed to get into action and shot down 41 German planes for the loss of 25, but by then the damage had been done.
The first bombs set fire to bonded warehouses. Blazing rum, paint and sugar floated on the Thames. Many people had to be evacuated by boat. “Send all the pumps you’ve got,” pleaded one fire officer, “the whole bloody world’s on fire.” One of the problems facing the fire-fighters was that the level of the Thames had fallen in the dry summer and they had difficulty in getting their pumps to work. Later the sirens sounded again, and in the night 247 German aircraft attacked the capital, dropping 352 tons of high explosive and 440 canisters of incendiary bombs.
London: Mr Albert Ernest Dolphin (b. 1896), a porter, died when he flung himself under a falling wall, saving the life of a nurse trapped after a bomb hit the South-Eastern Hospital, New Cross. (George Cross)
The U.S. freighter SS Lehigh, detained by British authorities since 5 September, is released. The British then detain another U.S. freighter, SS Warrior. (Jack McKillop)
LUXEMBOURG: Anti-Semitic Nuremburg laws are applied to Jews living in Luxembourg by decree. (Jack McKillop)
GERMANY: Berlin: The German armed forces have drawn up detailed plans not only for invading the British Isles but for consolidating their positions after the initial landings. Operation Sealion entails the landing of a first wave of 13 divisions at a number of points on the south coast, from Ramsgate in the east to Lyme Regis in the west. Airborne troops will also be used. The Germans would then move inland to establish themselves on a line eastward from Gloucester to south of Colchester. By then they believe that Britain will have surrendered and a military government will be set up. But the difficulty of mounting an invasion without air superiority worries the chiefs of staff.
The prototype Blohm and Voss Bv 222 V1 six engined flying boat makes its maiden flight.
ITALY: Rome: The Italian High Command announced:
‘Italian bombers have again bombed oil refineries in the centre of Haifa and caused extensive fires. In North Africa our planes bombed the rail line between Alexandria and Marsa Matruh.’
EAST AFRICA: A Gloucester Gauntlet of No. 430 Flight (RAF) (K 5355) downs an Italian Caproni Ca 133.
CANADA: Corvette HMCS Dawson laid down Victoria, British Columbia. (Dave Shirlaw)
U.S.A.: The USN’s Cruiser Division 7 (Rear Admiral Andrew C. Pickens) sails to establish patrol off the eastern seaboard between Newport, Rhode Island, and Norfolk, Virginia. Heavy cruisers USS Quincy (CA-39) and USS Vincennes (CA-44) depart first, USS San Francisco (CA-38) (flagship) and USS Tuscaloosa (CA-37) follow. The ships, burning running lights, are to observe and report the movements of foreign men-of-war, and, as required, render prompt assistance to ships or planes encountered. (Jack McKillop)
Artie Shaw and his Orchestra recorded “Temptation” on the Victor label. (Jack McKillop)
Destroyer USS Hilary P Hones commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
ATLANTIC OCEAN: Off the coast of Spain, the British steamer SS Olivegrove is stopped, torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-33 200 miles (322 km) northwest of Spain; upon receiving SS Olivegrove’s distress signal, U.S. passenger liner SS Washington, en route to the British Isles to evacuate American citizens from the European war zone, alters course and increases speed to reach the scene. Meanwhile, U-33’s commanding officer, Kapitanleutnant Hans-Wilhelm von Dresky, treats the British survivors courteously, and aids in their rescue by having distress rockets fired to guide SS Washington to the two lifeboats containing the 33-man crew, which she picks up without loss. (Jack McKillop)
The German submarine U-47 torpedoes and sinks three merchant vessels, two British and one Norwegian totalling over 14,500 tons, sailing in convoy SC-2 between Iceland and Ireland in position 58.30N, 16.10W. They are the SS Gro, SS José de Larringa and SS Neptunian. (Jack McKillop)
CARIBBEAN SEA: U.S. passenger liner SS Santa Paula is hailed by an unidentified RN cruiser 30 miles (48 km) off Curaçao, Netherlands West Indies, and ordered to stop; after a delay of 20 minutes, SS Santa Paula is allowed to proceed.
U.S. tanker SS I.C. White is challenged by unidentified cruiser 15 miles (24 km) off Baranquilla, Colombia, but is allowed to proceed without further hindrance. (Jack McKillop)