America at war! (1941--) -- Part 2

6763

The Combined Chiefs of Staff to the Commander-in-Chief, AFHQ 

Québec, 20 August 1943.

Secret
Urgent

The promising situation existing throughout the Italian area would appear to offer an excellent opportunity by means of 5th Column activities to establish conditions in Sardinia for an unopposed occupation of that island or an unopposed landing on it with Italian help. For Eisenhower FREEDOM Algiers, FAN 198, from the Combined Chiefs of Staff. The OSS and SOE organizations might collaborate in accomplishing this. Furthermore this presents an excellent opportunity to test the effectiveness of these organizations and to provide them with experience and training for future operations of a similar character. Corsica also may be worth your attention. Your comments requested and recommendations.

6764 
740.0011 European War 1939/30810: Telegram

The Chargé at Vatican City to the Acting Secretary of State 

Vatican City, August 20, 1943.

U.S. urgent

Following is from a reliable source. (This is Tittmann’s 159, August 20 with reference to his 156, August 17.)

An interministerial committee met some days ago to discuss measures to be taken in connection with declaration by Italian Government that Rome is an open city and another meeting held yesterday of same committee with Badoglio presiding. In addition to orders already given to anti-aircraft batteries Rome not to react in case of raid pending their suppression Badoglio ordered immediate removal from Rome of all possible military objectives both personnel and material. Question of military traffic through Rome still presents difficulties but every effort is being made to solve problem and it is hoped satisfactory solution will soon be found. Meanwhile, orders have been given military trains all kinds now obliged pass through Rome should do so without stopping.

6765

Memorandum by the British Chiefs of Staff 

Québec, 20 August 1943.

Most secret
CCS 321

Policy Towards Spain

We have examined the suggestion put forward by the United States Chiefs of Staff (CCS 303 paragraph 10) that the time is now ripe to take full advantage of our present position and adopt a stern and frankly demanding policy towards Spain.

We can say at once that we agree entirely with the sense of this suggestion. The only point at issue is exactly how far we should go.

We feel that it will be agreed that:
a. The Spaniards, with Germany on their doorstep, will not be persuaded to take any military action which appears to threaten Germany and which might bring on them German retaliation. Any action or threat on our part to coerce them in this direction would merely tend to unite them against us.

b. From our point of view, it is most undesirable that we should press the Spaniards to a point which might impose upon us any military commitment in support of diplomatic or military threats.

We suggest therefore that it would be unwise to go so far as to press the Spaniards to transfer the bulk of their defensive forces to the North, which they would be most unlikely to do.

We suggest that our general policy should be to deny the enemy his present privileged position in Spain, and to (supplant him there to as great an extent as possible, thus transferring to the Germans the anxiety that has hitherto been ours. In pursuance of this policy, we suggest that we should now intensify pressure by economic and political means in order to obtain the following objectives:
a. Discontinuance of supplies of raw materials to Germany. The most important material which Germany obtains from Spain is wolfram, of which commodity Spain and Portugal supply the largest proportion of German requirements. A note on the wolfram position by the Ministry of Economic Warfare is attached.

b. Withdrawal of the Blue Division from the ranks of the enemy.

c. A modification of the present distribution of Spanish forces in Morocco so as to remove any suggestion of distrust of the United Nations.

d. Cessation of the use of Spanish shipping for the benefit of our enemies.

e. Denial to the enemy of secret intelligence facilities.

f. Facilities for civil aircraft of United Nations.

g. A more benevolent attitude towards escaped Allied prisoners of war.

h. The strictest interpretation of international law towards enemy personnel and naval and air units.

i. Elimination of objectionable anti-Allied propaganda and increase in pro-Allied propaganda.

Owing to the resentment which we are likely to cause if we interfere directly in Spanish internal affairs, it would not be in our military interests openly to promote the restoration of the monarchy since such interference would be likely to cause serious disorder in Spain, of which the Germans might take advantage by infiltration.

We should, however, welcome and encourage the formation of a less anti-Allied Government.

Enclosure

Memorandum Prepared in the British Ministry of Economic Warfare

Wolfram From the Iberian Peninsula

Germany’s Present Position
The virtual absence of stock, Allied preemptive purchasing in the Peninsula and the success achieved against blockade runners has made Germany’s wolfram position critical.

Stocks and Supplies
Germany started the war with a stock of 12,000 tons of concentrates. After the outbreak of war, Germany was dependent upon what was then a small output in the Peninsula, of which Portugal provided some 2,000 to 3,000 tons and Spain only 300 tons. Until 1942 Germany used her stocks to maintain an annual consumption of about 9,000 tons. From 1942 onwards, her consumption has been at the rate of about 5,800 per year, of which about 4,300 are basic industrial consumption and the balance for A.P. projectiles. Mines in Germany and France produce about 250 tons a year. Should our preemptive purchases in Spain and Portugal continue to be successful Germany will receive only about 2,000 tons from each country in 1943 and may receive substantially less from Spain. As Germany started the year with only 500 tons of stock, a further cut in consumption will be necessary unless she succeeds in obtaining further supplies by blockade running.

Effects of Shortage
Germany’s main uses for tungsten (the metal derived from wolfram) are to make tungsten carbide, which is used for providing a hard tip for machine tools, and for cores for armor piercing projectiles. Small quantities of tungsten are also used for providing filaments for electric lamps, radio valves, etc., and as a hydrogenation catalyst. A substantial reduction of supplies would therefore face Germany with the following alternatives:
a. A cut in the production of weapons of all types, resulting from the absence of tungsten carbide tips from cutting tools and consequent less efficient production, or

b. The sacrifice of armor piercing ammunition with tungsten carbide cores.

Should supplies from the Peninsula be entirely cut off, Germany would probably suffer both as it is improbable that she would obtain sufficient supplies by blockade running. Blockade running by surface ships should prove impracticable in the future and submarines could only bring the desired quantity at the expense of all other much needed commodities.

Speed of Effect
The loss of supplies from the Iberian Peninsula would probably not affect military operations for six months but after that the effect would be increasingly felt.

Conclusions
Failure to obtain wolfram from the Iberian Peninsula would seriously affect the rate of production throughout German industry and would render impossible the manufacture of armor piercing projectiles with tungsten carbide cores on any substantial scale. These effects would become apparent in actual operations after about six months, depending on the rate of military wastage.

6766 
863.01/8–2043

Archduke Otto of Austria to the Secretary of State 

Québec, August 20th, 1943.

Dear Mr. Hull, Enclosed I am sending to you two short aide-mémoires on questions which I believe are of a great importance for the cause of the United Nations in Central Europe.

I most sincerely hope that it will be possible for you to consider these questions at the present conference and to bring to them an adequate solution.

I am [etc.]
OTTO of Austria

[Enclosure 1]

Aide-Mémoire

The Austrian Question

The military and political events of the near past have put Austria into the forefront of the interest of the United Nations. As approximatively 84,8% of the German implements of war for Italy are shipped over the Austrian railroads, much will depend on the attitude and action of the Austrian people.

The trend of the United Nations has been to recognize the heroic fight of Austria against the Germans by considering that country as an occupied country, which shall be liberated. But as this point has not yet been made sufficiently clear, certain agencies have used this to spread false impressions.

News from Russia indicate that the Soviet Government is about to launch an Austrian Government or National Council under the presidency of Wilhelm Koplenig (36 Gorkova ulica, Moscow), former leader of the Austrian Communist Party. Such a move would very much strengthen the Austrian Communist Party – which hitherto was negligible – and would disturb the Catholic, agrarian and patriotic opposition. The fear of Communist dictatorship would gravely weaken the Austrian resistance against the Axis.

Under these circumstances and with due regard to the ever-increasing strategic importance of Austria, the following program with regard to Austria is submitted:

  1. A clear declaration at the Quebec Conference, that Austria is an occupied country and will therefore be liberated, like the other occupied countries.

  2. A settlement of the question of Southern Tyrol, along the lines suggested in the annexed memorandum on that question.

  3. The recognition by the United Nations of a provisional Austrian authority. This authority should be non-partisan and represent Austria only as long as its people is silenced. It should not have authority to commit Austria on constitutional questions. In order to achieve this aim, a Committee of all former Austrian diplomats and consuls, who have kept their nationality and resisted the Nazis, could be formed, linking thus the legality of the past with the condition of non-partisan character.

Such a program would avoid the harm which might be clone by a Russian unilateral step, without too much antagonizing Russia. It would strengthen Austria’s resistance against the Axis and thus help the progress of the war. It is finally in line with the lofty principles announced by the leaders of the United Nations.

[Enclosure 2]

Aide-Mémoire

The Question of Southern Tyrol (Alto Adige)

In the coming discussions of the United Nations, the question of establishing just and reasonable borders for Italy and her neighbours will be of great importance for the foundation of a lasting peace.

In this connection the question of Southern Tyrol, called by the Italians Alto Adige, will be of paramount importance. This land was conceded to Italy in the last peace treaty over the protest of its Austrian population and of several Allied leaders. Under Italian occupation the Southern Tyrolese population was severely persecuted, dispossessed and partly replaced by Italians. Under an agreement between Mussolini and Hitler1 a notable part of the population was forcibly moved to Germany between 1939 and 1942, where they still live under very hard and inhuman conditions. Southern Tyrol has therefore suffered more than many other parts of Europe from Axis cruelty.

Southern Tyrol can be divided roughly into two parts:
a) South of the present Austrian border and North of a line Adamello Mountains-Salurn-Cortina d’Ampezzo, is a country with 85% Austrian population, deeply attached to Austria.

b) South of the above-mentioned line and North of the Italian border of 1914 is a country which, contrary to Italian propaganda, has still 54% Austrian population.

It is therefore a matter of justice, well in line with the principles of the United Nations, that this territory should be returned to Austria. It would be also a matter of political wisdom. Neither the Southern Tyrolese, nor the Austrians have ever accepted the present border. If good relations ought to be established between Austria and Italy, this can only be done by solving the Southern Tyrolese question in an Austrian sense. This would furthermore strengthen Austria materially and morally against Germany.

If the necessity of a plebiscite in the Southern zone of Southern Tyrol would be felt, care should be taken that only real Southern Tyrolese could vote. The right to vote restricted to residents as of 1918 and to their descendants would be the guarantee that the voters really represent the Southern Tyrolese people.

6767

Roosevelt-Churchill dinner meeting, 9:30 p.m.

Present
United States United Kingdom
President Roosevelt Prime Minister Churchill
Secretary Hull Mrs. Churchill
Mr. Hopkins Foreign Secretary Eden

Roosevelt spoke at this dinner meeting of “the four-power arrangement in the form of a draft declaration.” The discussion also touched on the proposed tripartite meeting with the Soviet Union. Hull left about midnight. Roosevelt and Churchill “held their usual lengthy discussions after dinner and both retired very late.”

6768

Völkischer Beobachter (August 21, 1943)

Das große Dilemma Roosevelts –
Japans wachsende Kraft beunruhigt die USA.

Amerika braucht englische Hilfe im Pazifik
Von unserer Stockholmer Schriftleitung

…

6769

Erfolgreicher Angriff auf den Hafen von Biserta –
Wieder fast 500 Sowjetpanzer vernichtet

dnb. Aus dem Führer-Hauptquartier, 20. August –
Das Oberkommando der Wehrmacht gibt bekannt:

An der Mius front entbrannten erneut heftige Kämpfe. Bei Isjum schlugen unsere Truppen in erbittertem Ringen schwere Angriffe der Bolschewisten ab, schlossen im kühnen Gegenangriff zwei sowjetische Bataillone ein und vernichteten sie. Im Kampfraum südwestlich Bjelgorod dauert die Schlacht mit unverminderter Heftigkeit an. An den übrigen Frontabschnitten vereitelten unsere Truppen, von der Luftwaffe wirksam unterstützt, alle sowjetischen Durchbruchsversuche und fügten dem Feinde hohe Verluste zu.

Am gestrigen Tage verloren die Sowjets 486 Panzer und 81 Flugzeuge.

In den Gewässern der Fischerhalbinsel wurde ein feindliches Bewachungsfahrzeug von schnellen deutschen Kampfflugzeugen versenkt.

Ein starker Verband deutscher Kampfflugzeuge griff in der Nacht zum 19. August erneut den Hafen von Biserta an und traf mit Bomben aller Kaliber elf große Schiffseinheiten. Dabei wurden acht Transporter mit zusammen 33.000 BRT. schwer beschädigt, ein Handelsschiff von 5000 BRT. sank sofort.

Deutsche Jäger schossen am gestrigen Tage im Verlaufe heftiger Luftkämpfe im süditalienischen Raum 28 britisch-nordamerikanische Flugzeuge, darunter 15 viermotorige Bomber, ab.

über den besetzten Westgebieten wurden im Laufe des 19. August zwölf feindliche Flugzeuge durch Jagd- und Flakabwehr vernichtet. In der vergangenen Nacht verlor der Feind bei Störflügen im westlichen und nördlichen Reichsgebiet nach wirkungslosen Bombenabwürfen ein weiteres Flugzeug.

Bei der Versorgung Siziliens und der späteren Rückführung der dort kämpfenden Verbände haben sich zum Transport eingesetzte Einheiten der Kriegsmarine unter Führung des Fregattenkapitäns Freiherrn von Liebenstein in unermüdlichem Einsatz besonders bewährt.

6770

Jäger- und Flakerfolge –
Der Aderlaß von Foggia

…

6771

U.S. Navy Department (August 21, 1943)

Joint Statement in Québec and Washington

For Immediate Release
August 21, 1943

A strong force of U.S. and Canadian troops supported by surface vessels have occupied the island of Kiska in the Aleutians. The landing began on August 15; no Japanese were found, and it is our belief that the enemy evacuation was made under cover of heavy fog.

It is evident that the position of the Jap troops became untenable because of the occupation of Attu, the harassment of enemy supply lines and the recent bombings and bombardments of Kiska by air and surface craft.

For security reasons, this announcement has been withheld pending the unloading of transports.

The present occupation of Kiska frees the last vestige of North American territory of Jap forces.

FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT
W. L. MACKENZIE KING

Communiqué No. 459

North Pacific.
A Task Force of the Pacific Fleet has landed a force of U.S. and Canadian troops on Kiska, beginning on August 15.

No Japanese have been found. There were indications of recent hasty evacuation of the Japanese garrison. Presumably, the heavy bombardments by our ships and planes that have been carried on for some time and the danger to their supply lines by our capture of Attu made the enemy positions on Kiska untenable. It is not known how the Japanese got away, but it is possible that enemy surface ships were able to reach Kiska under cover of the heavy fogs that have been prevalent.

Since the air and surface bombardments in the latter part of July had apparently destroyed Japanese radio equipment on Kiska, the assumption was that they were not in communication with the homeland. Consequently, no release of Allied operations against Kiska has been made since July 31, as it would have conveyed information to the enemy which he otherwise would not have had. This particularly applied to the period during which the trans­ports were in areas exposed to enemy submarine attacks and while they were unloading.

6772

Chronology of Aleutian Islands Campaign

1942

On June 3: Dutch Harbor is attacked by four Japanese bombers and about 15 fighters at 6 a.m. Dutch Harbor Time. The attack lasts 15 minutes. (Communiqué No. 83).

There are few casualties as a result of the Japanese raid. Several ware­houses are set on fire, but no serious damage is suffered. (Communiqué No. 84).

At noon, Dutch Harbor Time, a second wave of enemy planes flies over Dutch Harbor on a reconnaissance mission. No bombs are dropped. (Communiqués Nos. 85‑86).

On June 4: At about 5 p.m., 18 carrier‑based bombers and 16 fighters attack U.S. installations at Dutch Harbor, Fort Mears and Fort Glenn. No damage is inflicted at Fort Glenn, minor damage is inflicted at Fort Mears, and at Dutch Harbor a warehouse and a few fuel oil tanks are set afire, and the station ship NORTHWESTERN, is sunk. (Communiqué No. 98).

On June 12: Small-scale landings by the Japanese on Attu Island are reported. Enemy ships are sighted in Kiska Harbor (Navy Department Press Release, June 12, 1942). Later reports reveal Japanese also occupy Agattu Island (Communiqué No. 98).

June 15‑July 3: U.S. Army bombers and Navy patrol planes carry out reconnaissance and attack missions against enemy installations on Kiska and enemy shipping in adjacent waters. One transport is reported sunk and 4 cruisers, 1 destroyer, 1 gunboat and 1 transport are damaged. (Communiqués Nos. 89‑90‑94).

July 4: U.S. submarines sink two destroyers and damage another off Kiska, and sink a third destroyer off Agattu. (Communiqué No. 95).

July 5: A U.S. submarine torpedoes and heavily damages an enemy destroyer in the vicinity of Kiska. (Communiqué No. 96).

July 6‑August 4: U.S. Army and Navy aircraft continue long-range bombing of Japanese installations on Kiska. U.S. submarines sink three more destroyers in the vicinity of Kiska. (Communiqués Nos. 99-103).

August 8: A U.S. cruiser and destroyer task force heavily bombards Kiska and enemy ships in the harbor. Severe damage is inflicted on the camp area. (Communiqué No. 103).

August 19: Sinking of a cruiser, or destroyer by a U.S. submarine is reported. (Communiqué No. 108).

August 22: Sinking of a large enemy merchant ship by a U.S. submarine is reported. (Communiqué No. 110).

August 30: Adak Island occupied.

September 14: U.S. Army bombers and fighters bomb and strafe enemy ships, aircraft and shore installations at Kiska. Two minesweepers are sunk, three cargo ships are damaged, three submarines are damaged, six planes are destroyed, and 500 enemy troops are killed or wounded. (Communiqué No. 127).

September 24‑25‑27‑28: U.S. Army bombers and fighters attack enemy shore positions on Kiska and ships off Kiska and Attu. Attacks of September 25‑28 are carried out by strong forces. (Communiqués Nos. 133‑137).

October 3: Announcement is made that U.S. forces have occupied positions in the Andreanof group of the Aleutian Islands, without opposition. (Communiqué No. 138). Adak is the island occupied (Communiqué No. 370), and the establishment of adequate airfields enables U.S. heavy bombers and fighters to operate from there in almost daily missions against the Japanese positions in the Western Aleutians. Throughout October, U.S. planes bomb and strafe the enemy ashore, and attack his shipping supply lines. (Communiqués Nos. 140‑143‑145‑150‑155‑157‑160‑161‑162‑170) Date of Adak occupation was August 30.

November 9: First Japanese activity on Attu Island in more than a month is noted as U.S. Army planes discover and destroy seven float‑type “Zeros” in Holtz Bay, Attu. (Communiqué No. 188) Earlier reconnaissance had detected no signs of continued enemy activity on Attu and Agattu (Communiqués Nos. 143‑145).

November‑December: Routine missions are carried out by U.S. planes against shore positions on Kiska and Attu and enemy shipping off both islands. (Communiqués Nos. 205‑218‑225‑227‑232‑235).

1943

January 12: U.S. forces occupy Amchitka Island, only 63 nautical miles from Kiska, without opposition from the enemy. (Occupation of Amchitka announced in Communiqué No. 370, on May 7, 1943.) Following the occupation, an airfield is established on Amchitka with enemy opposition consisting of a few in­effectual raids by small numbers of planes (Communiqués Nos. 268‑273‑281­-287). Date of Amchitka occupation was January 12.

February: With completion of a closeup base on Amchitka, U.S. planes execute nine attacks on Kiska during the month, dropping more than 1,000 bombs, No U.S. planes are lost in these operations. (Communiqué No. 298).

March: Intensification of the campaign against the Japanese in the Western Aleutians increases. On March 15, U.S. Army heavy and medium bombers, escorted by fighters, carry out six missions against Kiska in the largest-scale attack thus far. (Communiqué No. 314). Raids on the enemy average better than one a day during the month.

On March 26, U.S. light forces patrolling to the westward of Attu Island engage a Japanese force composed of two heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, four destroyers and two cargo ships. Shell hits are scored on both of the Japanese heavy cruisers and one of the light cruisers. At least one torpedo hit is scored on an enemy heavy cruiser. U.S. vessels receive minor hits. (Communiqués Nos. 327‑365).

April: The month sees Kiska subjected to air attacks on a mass basis with occasional raids on Attu. The peak day is April 19, when 15 attacks are carried out against Kiska (Communiqué No. 351). Kiska twice is bombed 13 times in a day, on April 15 and April 25. (Communiqués Nos. 346 and 357). The month’s average is slightly under five missions a day.

May: Air attacks on Kiska and Attu continue during the early days of the month, and then, on May 11, U.S. forces land on Attu. (Communiqué No. 376). Supported by bombardment of enemy positions by U.S. naval surface forces, U.S. Army troops advance inland on Attu from the main landing points on the northeast and southeast ends of the island. In three weeks of fighting made difficult by Attu’s rugged terrain and unfavorable weather, U.S. troops complete conquest of Attu. By June 1, all organized enemy resistance has ceased. (Communiqué No. 401).

June: U.S. forces, now in possession of key positions in the Western Aleutians, concentrate attention on Kiska, and carry out bombing and strafing missions whenever the weather will permit. (Communiqués Nos. 400‑402‑403‑407‑409­414‑420‑423‑424‑425‑427).

July: U.S. naval surface forces Join in the assault on Kiska, bombarding enemy shore positions on July 6‑9‑11‑14‑15‑20‑22‑30. (Communiqués Nos. 436‑438­-439‑441‑442-446‑448‑455). Meanwhile, U.S. Army bombers and fighters continue heavy attacks on all enemy positions on the island.

August 1‑14: Kiska undergoes concentrated assaults by U.S. forces both from the air and sea. (Communiqué No. 460).

On August 15, U.S. and Canadian forces landed on Kiska. (Communiqué No. 459).

Communiqué No. 460

North Pacific.
In the period from August 1 to August 14, inclusive, U.S. Army and Navy aircraft and heavy and light U.S. naval surface units carried out the following previously-unannounced attacks on Kiska Island and Little Kiska

On August 1: Liberator heavy bombers (Consolidated B‑24) dropped bombs through solid overcast on the Kiska main camp area.

On August 2:

  1. In the afternoon Liberators attacked North Head on Kiska, and scored hits in the area.

  2. Immediately following the above air attack, heavy and light U.S. naval surface units heavily bombarded the main camp, submarine base, North Head, South Head and Gertrude Cove on Kiska Island, as well as enemy posi­tions on Little Kiska. More than 2,300 rounds of large and medium caliber shells were fired at the targets, with no return fire from the enemy.

  3. Early the same evening Mitchell medium bombers (North American B‑25) and Lightning fighters (Lockheed P‑38) bombed and strafed Little Kiska.

On August 3:

  1. In the early morning, light Naval surface units shelled Gertrude Cove and the main camp area on Kiska. Return fire by the enemy was light and brief.

  2. Four bombing and strafing attacks were carried out by Mitchell medium bombers and Warhawk (Curtiss P‑40) and Lightning fighters on North Head, South Head, the runway, seaplane hangar area and the main camp on Kiska. Little Kiska was strafed. Hits were observed in all target areas.

On August 4:

  1. Shortly after midnight, a Navy Catalina patrol bomber (Consolidated PBY) dropped explosive and incendiary bombs on the Kiska main camp and submarine base. Large fires resulted from the attack.

  2. During a 12‑hour period from morning to evening, 18 attack missions were carried out against North Head, South Head, the runway, main camp and submarine base on Kiska and Little Kiska. Large forces of Liberator heavy bombers, Mitchell medium bombers, Army Dauntless dive bombers (Douglas A‑24), and Lightning and Warhawk fighters participated in these attacks. In addition to the bombings, cannon‑firing‑ Mitchells successfully at­tacked shore installations, while the fighter planes strafed at low altitudes. Many explosions resulted and numerous fires were started. The enemy’s opposition consisted of sporadic antiaircraft fire.

On August 5: In the early morning light Naval surface units shelled Gertrude Cove and the main camp on Kiska. No return fire was encountered.

On August 6: Light naval surface units again bombarded Kiska, scoring hits in the target area. There was no return fire.

On August 8: The Kiska main camp and the Gertrude Cove area were the targets in a further bombardment by light Naval surface units, with no return fire.

On August 9: Light Naval surface units shelled Gertrude Cove, the main camp and enemy positions on a hill North of Reynard Cove.

On August 10:

  1. Before dawn, Gertrude Cove and the main camp again were bom­barded by light Naval surface units.

  2. Large forces of Liberator heavy bombers, Mitchell medium bombers, Army Dauntless dive bombers (Douglas A‑24), and Lightning and Warhawk fighters carried out 24 bombing and strafing missions on Kiska. Only light antiaircraft fire was encountered. Many fires were started.

  3. During the night, a Catalina patrol bomber dropped bombs on Kiska.

On August 11:

  1. In the early morning, light Naval surface units shelled South Head and Gertrude Cove, starting fires.

  2. Gertrude Cove, Reynard Cove, North Head and Little Kiska were the targets of 21 bombing and strafing missions carried out during the day by Liberator heavy bombers, Mitchell medium bombers, Army Dauntless dive bombers (Douglas A‑24) and Lightning and Warhawk fighters. Fires were started in all areas and considerable debris was observed in enemy emplace­ments on Little Kiska.

  3. A Catalina patrol bomber dropped bombs on the main camp and Gertrude Cove during the night.

On August 12:

  1. Shortly after midnight, a light Naval surface unit shelled Kiska.

  2. In the morning, heavy and light Naval surface units bombarded the south coast of Kiska. Gertrude Cove and Bukhti Point were the main targets. There was no return fire.

  3. The Kiska area was heavily bombed and thoroughly strafed during the day in 20 attacks by forces of Liberator heavy bombers, Mitchell medium bombers, Army Dauntless dive bombers, and Warhawk and Lightning fighters. Many fires were started.

On August 13:

  1. Light U. S. Naval surface units bombarded Kiska early in the morn­ing, drawing no return fire.

  2. During the afternoon nine bombing and strafing missions were car­ried out against Kiska by U.S. Army Liberator, Mitchell and Dauntless bombers and Lightning fighters. Buildings at Gertrude Cove and North Head were destroyed by direct hits, and fires resulted at Gertrude Cove, North Head, the main camp and north of Reynard Cove. Light antiaircraft fire was encountered.

On August 14:

  1. In the early morning hours, a Navy Catalina three times bombed in­stallations on Kiska, with unreported results.

  2. At hourly intervals, light U.S. Naval surface units bombarded Kiska four times. No return fire was encountered.

  3. In the late afternoon U.S. Army Liberators, Mitchells and Lightnings bombed and strafed enemy positions on Kiska. Results were not reported.

6773

The Pittsburgh Press (August 21, 1943)

Kiska is captured by Yanks, Canadians

Japs give up last base in Aleutians without firing a shot
By Merriman Smith, United Press staff writer

Screenshot 2022-08-21 025341

Québec, Canada –
U.S. and Canadian troops have occupied Kiska in the Aleutian Islands without firing a shot, freeing “the last vestige of North American territory of Japanese forces,” President Roosevelt and Prime Minister W. L. Mackenzie King announced today.

The Japanese, estimated at 10,000 by the U.S. Navy, apparently escaped under the cover of fog sometime in the night of Aug. 13-14. They fired on U.S. aircraft on the 13th, but on the 14th, there was no reply to either air or surface raids. The Allied forces began landing on Aug. 15, the Navy said in Washington.

The dramatic announcement by the President and the Canadian Prime Minister was made as the war-plan conference between Mr. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill neared its close. Reportedly, the President and the Prime Minister had reached agreements to push the Pacific offensive with the Jap fleet as the main objective.

Cleaning out the Aleutians meant that the eastern end of the road to Tokyo was open and that probably Paramushiru, the big Jap naval base in the Kuril Islands, was next on the list for heavy attacks.

Conscript Canadian troops were used in the occupation, their first combat duty. Under Canadian law, they cannot be used outside the Western Hemisphere.

White House Secretary Stephen T. Early, who made the announcement for Mr. Roosevelt and Mr. King, said that the President was “particularly happy” that he was in Canada when such good news could be given to the world.

Text of the joint statement:

A strong force of U.S. and Canadian troops supported by surface vessels have occupied the island of Kiska in the Aleutians. The landing began on Aug. 15; no Japanese were found, and it is our belief that the enemy evacuation was made under cover of heavy fog.

It is evident that the position of the Jap troops became untenable because of the occupation of Attu, the harassment of enemy supply lines and the recent bombings and bombardments of Kiska by air and surface craft.

For security reasons, this announcement has been withheld pending the unloading of transports.

The present occupation of Kiska frees the last vestige of North American territory of Jap forces.

FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT
W. L. MACKENZIE KING

A naval communiqué issued simultaneously in Québec City and Washington said:

A task force of the Pacific Fleet has landed a force of U.S. and Canadian troops on Kiska beginning on Aug. 15. No Japanese have been found. There were indications of recent hasty evacuation of the Japanese garrison.

Presumably the heavy bombardments by our ships and planes that have been carried on for some time and the danger to their supply lines by our capture of Attu made the enemy positions on Kiska untenable. It is not known how the Japanese got away, but it is possible that enemy surface ships were able to reach Kiska under cover of the heavy fog that has been prevalent.

Since the air and surface bombardments in the latter part of July had apparently destroyed Japanese radio equipment on Kiska, the assumption was that they were not in communication with the mainland. Consequently, no release of Allied operations against Kiska has been made since July 31 as it would have conveyed information to the enemy which he otherwise would not have had.

This particularly applied to the period during which transports were in areas exposed to enemy submarine attacks and while they were unloading.

Earlier reports from the conference between Mr. Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill had indicated that some action on the Jap front could be expected. Heavy naval and air action in the Pacific against the Jap fleet was believed to be one of the major military decisions reached at the conference.

This did not mean there would be any relaxation of the Anglo-American effort in Europe, but it was becoming increasingly evident that the Pacific was near, if not at the top, of the agenda at the Citadel where the President and Mr. Churchill are meeting.

Russian demands to the contrary, the conferees were believed to have decided that the situation in the Pacific is such that it will not permit an all-out concentration against the Germans in Europe to the entire exclusion of Japan.

The Allies were expected to hit twice – in Western Europe and, at about the same time, in the Pacific. The fall campaign in Burma was decided at the Roosevelt-Churchill conference in Washington last May. Coincident with the Québec Conference was information that a section of the British Navy is moving into the Pacific and there were some sources which foresaw a major naval battle with the Japs in the very near future.

Sir Alexander Cadogan, British Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, was one of the key figures in the Pacific planning here. He came over with British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden and is one of the high-ranking Far Eastern experts of the British Empire. Naturally, he is not a master of military logistics, but his counsel is being received by the two top figures in the conferences along with that of Mr. Eden and Secretary of State Cordell Hull.

There was a widely circulated but unconfirmed report that Lt. Gen. Joseph W. Stilwell, commander of U.S. forces in China, India and Burma, had joined the discussions. Gen. Stilwell, along with Maj. Gen. Claire L. Chennault, commanding the U.S. Air Force in China, and Field Marshal Sir Archibald Wavell, new Viceroy of India, were key figures in the May conferences with the President and the Prime Minister.

If the reports about Gen. Stilwell are true, they mean one thing: The plans for Burma have been given a final touch and a new pattern of Allied combat against the Jap is being born.

Attack by fall

Meanwhile, from the Citadel, there came no information but many indications. Among highly unofficial reports were:

  1. The Allies move against Germany by autumn, this operation timed with a body blow against the Japs in Burma.

  2. The race for Berlin is on, with Anglo-American forces poised to beat the Russians who have made far more tangible progress in this direction.

  3. Great Britain and the United States would much prefer to accomplish the “ruthless” destruction of Japan without the benefit of Russian bases in order to give them a better advantage at the peace table. Such bases, however, would be accepted in exchange for a costly push against Germany.

To talk in Ottawa

Mr. Roosevelt speaks in Ottawa from the steps of the Parliament Building Wednesday at noon. This means he leaves Québec Tuesday, and this, in turn, means that the Roosevelt-Churchill conferences will end then.

Mr. Roosevelt goes to Ottawa really as the guest of Prime Minister W. L. Mackenzie King, but formally as the guest of the Earl of Athlone, Governor General of Canada. The President speaks to members of Parliament, not reconvened but invited to reassemble to hear him.

In the area stretching in front of the Parliament steps from where the President will speak, there is space to accommodate 20,000 persons.

Go fishing

According to White House Press Secretary Early, the conferences are going along well to the point that Messrs. Roosevelt and Churchill were so “caught up” in their work they spent yesterday picnicking and fishing with members of their staffs at a lake north of Québec.

The “caught up” phrase used by Mr. Early did not mean the truly important and final decisions had been reached. According to Mr. Early, the import of this statement was that Messrs. Roosevelt and Churchill had cleaned up a batch of paperwork laid down by their generals and admirals and gone out to fish while the staff chiefs got together more material for them to pass on.

6774

Toe of Italy is bombarded by Yank fleet

Allied warships shower destruction on railyards at Naples
By Reynolds Packard, United Press staff writer

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6775

U.S. casualties 7,400 in Sicily

British losses placed at 11,835 in campaign
By Ned Russell, United Press staff writer

15th Army Group HQ, Sicily, Italy – (Aug. 20, delayed)
Gen. Sir Harold R. L. G. Alexander, Allied ground commander in the Mediterranean theater, revealed today that 7,400 U.S. soldiers were killed, wounded or captured in the conquest of Sicily, which he said clinched the ultimate defeat of Germany.

The 38-day campaign put the Germans in the worst predicament they have yet faced, Gen. Alexander told Anglo-American war correspondents.

He said:

The Germans are in a jam. We are closing in on them now. We are bound to win now and the Germans must be thinking they are bound to lose. We’ve got them all right, but it will take time.

British lose heaviest

The British suffered the heaviest casualties in the Sicilian campaign, losing 11,835 dead, wounded and missing, he reported, while Canadian casualties totaled 2,388 for a grand total for all Allied forces of 21,623. The figures covered the period up to last Tuesday, when the campaign ended with the capture of Messina.

An official statement issued at Allied headquarters in North Africa last Wednesday estimated Allied casualties at 25,000, but this figure presumably included air force and naval casualties, while Gen. Alexander’s report covered only ground forces. The headquarters statement also estimated Axis dead and wounded at no fewer than 82,000 and Axis prisoners at more than 135,000.

30,000 killed, wounded

Gen. Alexander said the enemy lost 30,000 of their original 300,000 troops in killed and wounded, and 134,000 in prisoners. The original Axis forces comprised 94 Italian battalions assigned to coastal defenses, four Italian divisions of mobile reserves and two German divisions in “poor, widely-scattered positions” as battle groups, he said.

Many Sicilian soldiers deserted, donned civilian clothes and returned to their villages and farms. Gen. Alexander said he was not concerned with them unless they engaged in sabotage or espionage, which, he warned, would be punished with death.

Italians collapse

Gen. Alexander said the Italians “just collapsed” when the Allies landed, but the Germans fought bravely and hard to the end.

Gen. Alexander revealed he originally expected the Sicilian campaign to take up to three months, and was agreeably surprised when it took only one month and one week. He said the fighting taught the Allies many lessons, especially in the use of airborne troops, which he acknowledged had not been perfected completely.

He singled out U.S. Army Engineers for special praise, paying tribute to their “remarkable road-building feats in the wild Sicilian mountains.”

Fix bridges quickly

He said:

I visited the American front for several days and never saw such remarkable military engineering accomplishments. It was magnificent. The American engineers built miles of road at night over mountains you wouldn’t think you could get a mule over.

The Germans blew up 15 bridges in 20 miles along one sector of the coast, but they delayed the Americans only a matter of hours. It was a wonderful feat.

The Americans went from Palermo to Messina in a fortnight. You wouldn’t hike it in a fortnight in peacetime.

Enemy’s casualties put at 1,222,000

London, England (UP) –
Official British figures disclosed today that Axis casualties in the Mediterranean and African theaters since Italy’s entry into the war in June 1940, total 1,222,000 killed, wounded and captured – more than two-thirds of them Italian.

The Axis casualties included 227,000 killed or wounded and 995,000 prisoners.

British Empire losses in the same theaters up to last May 18 were placed at 220,000 killed, wounded or prisoners, including 35,000 casualties in the battle of Tunisia. In addition, British, American and Canadian casualties in Sicily have been estimated at 25,000 men.

6776

Nazis fail to trick Yanks with captured Fortresses

U.S. air crews quick to spot Trojan Horse planes posing as stragglers
By Nat A. Barrows

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6777

Bond buying linked to new tax program

‘Induced savings’ plan tied up with slight rate revision

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6778

Billy Phelps, 78, dies at New Haven home

Yale professor famed as author, editor and critic

…

6779

Mail order house ordered to grant union checkoff

WLB overrides Montgomery Ward’s contention that anti-strike act is unconstitutional

…

6780

parry2

I DARE SAY —
Parryscope

By Florence Fisher Parry

Impressive as is the photograph of the dignitaries assembled before the grandiose background of the Château Frontenac, there is one figure lacking to make it perfect: Gen. MacArthur, the great war hero of them all!

I shall be glad when events point their arrow his way, and that’s our pent-up idolatry which is waiting in the hearts of us all, to heap upon this herp, may at last find full relief.

It is an odd thing about heroes. The spell which they cast has little to do with their actual accomplishments; it springs from something more – an indefinable fire which ignites the hearts of their idolaters into a blind unalterable devotion.

Napoleon had it – nor cruelty nor greed nor utter defeat were able to extinguish it. His tomb is still a shrine. Lenin had it. Lincoln had it. Washington had it, and Robert E. Lee, Gen. de Gaulle certainly possesses it.

And Gen. Douglas MacArthur thus has it.

We may cheer Gen. Patton; we may delight in Gen. Montgomery, we may burst with pride and satisfaction in Gen. Eisenhower. But they will never be heroes in that deathless way that makes a hero a martial saint. They will never be able to cast the spell that makes men willing to perform deathless deeds in their name.

What is that quality that makes a warrior a her such as this? Of all our generals, only Gen. MacArthur possesses this strange attribute. We know that come the day war interest is at last focused in the Pacific, this man will emerge the greatest figure of them all.

And I for one do not like the way his exploits have been played down. From the time he was so thrillingly rescued from Bataan, and overnight became the world’s No. 1 idol, he has been PLAYED DOWN.

Let the testimony to disprove it be placed before us to read.

‘Heaven Can Wait’

One of the most delightful motion pictures of the season is now showing at the J.P. Harris Theater: Heaven Can Wait; and I hope its audiences will be made up of a goodly number of those of my own generation, for I suspect that of all the enthusiasts it will attract we are in positions to appreciate its fine flavor most.

It is just charming. Its very pace and tempo, which to the younger generation may seem slow and deliberate, seem to me to add to its leisurely distinction. It provided me, I know, the very most satisfying evening at the movies I can remember having enjoyed this summer.

The dialog is as flavorful as a smooth old wine; its humor is as mellow as it is malicious; its settings and costumes are a sheer delight; and its story as charming and reminiscent as a lovely old plush album. Please, I adjure you, make a point of taking mother with you, yes and father too. And even grandmother. It is for every age, and for all gentlefolks!

Have you read Western Star? It did not affect me as did John Brown’s Body, although its publication so soon after the death of its fine author reminds us with extraordinary sharpness what we have lost in the death of Stephen Vincent Benét.

The moon

The moon, this month, never shone more furiously, nor shed a sterner invitation to our imaginations to ponder the terrifying meanings of this world conflict.

One of the most incredible feats of the human mind is the success with which we have managed to rationalize and accept the wholesale demolition of property and lives. It is as though, arming our countries and our armies, we have succeeded also in encasing our imaginations in thick armor, immobilizing their functions so that the physical horror of this war cannot penetrate our comprehension nor our minds play upon the meaning of such universal pain, except in terms of personal family loss.

“Bomb – burn – destroy.” These are OUR words now. They are, perhaps, the most implacable declaration of all-out war that ever has been uttered by civilized man. We say the words; we mean them, nothing can swerve us from our intention to CARRY THEM OUT. Yet their meaning in terms of human life and death, has lost its power to affect us.

6781

Wright plant is threatened with seizure

Produce airplane engines or Army will, Truman warns company

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6782

Wordy war

Allied HQ, North Africa –
Allied war correspondents sent out 2,305,429 words – equivalent to about 23 average-sized novels – on the Sicilian campaign, it was revealed today.