What Happened in 1941

Battle of Vevi (1941)

The Klidi Pass is between 100 metres (0.062 mi) and 500 metres (0.31 mi) wide, a winding defile, with steep, rocky and treeless sides up to 1,000... Read more

Boston Bruins win Stanley Cup

The 1941 Stanley Cup Final was a best-of-seven series between the Boston Bruins and the Detroit Red Wings. Boston would win the series 4–0 to win... Read more

Belgrade is Captured by German Forces

Since three separate attack forces were converging on Belgrade simultaneously, the Army High Command was not immediately able to determine which... Read more

Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact Is Signed

The Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact was signed between Russia and Japan two years after the war between Russia and Japan at the Manchurian and... Read more

Belfast Blitz

William Joyce (known as "Lord Haw-Haw") announced in radio broadcasts from Hamburg that there will be “Easter eggs for Belfast”. On Easter... Read more

Yugoslav Air Forces Evacuate King Petar II and Members of Government to Greece

On 6 April, Luftwaffe dive-bombers and ground-attack fighters destroyed 26 of the Yugoslav Dorniers in the initial assault on their airfields, but... Read more

The English City of Plymouth Sustains Heavy Bombing from German Luftwaffe in the 'April Raids'

Unknown to the people of Plymouth at the beginning of April 1941, the Plymouth Blitz had three more nights to run. After the air raids of the... Read more

Official Surrender of Greek Forces in Albania to Axis Powers

On April 20, the commander of the Greek forces in Albania, General Georgios Tsolakoglou, realized the hopelessness of the situation and offered to... Read more

Battle of Thermopylae (1941)

The Battle of Thermopylae during World War II occurred in 1941 following the retreat from the Olympus and Servia passes. British Commonwealth... Read more

Athens Falls to Axis Powers

Few Greeks cooperated with the Nazis and most chose either the path of passive acceptance or active resistance. Active Greek resistance started... Read more

Gerald Ford Opens Law Firm With Philip Buchen

Ford graduated from law school in 1941, and was admitted to the Michigan bar shortly there after. In May 1941, he opened a Grand Rapids law... Read more

"Citizen Kane" Is Released

Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, and the first feature film directed by Orson Welles. It was nominated for Academy Awards in nine... Read more

First Bomb of the May Blitz of Liverpool Lands on Wallasey

The May Blitz on Merseyside was one of the last series of big raids on Britain before the German invasion of Russia. It involved 681 bombers in... Read more

Gross-Rosen Becomes Independent Concentration Camp

KL Gross-Rosen (Groß-Rosen) was a German concentration camp, located in Gross-Rosen, Lower Silesia (now Rogoźnica, Poland). It was located directly... Read more

Battle of South Shanxi

The Battle of South Shanxi (simplified Chinese: 晋南会战; traditional Chinese: 晉南會戰; pinyin: Jìn Nán Huìzhàn), also known as the Battle of Jinnan and... Read more

Germany Launches Airborne Attack on the Island of Crete

The Battle of Crete (German: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta; Greek: Μάχη της Κρήτης) was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. The... Read more

British Forces Launch Naval Attack through the Kaso Strait

Admiral Andrew Cunningham, determined that no German troop transports should reach Crete, sent Admiral King's Force C (three cruisers and four... Read more

Allies Begin Retreat Southward Across Crete

Fighting against a constant supply of fresh enemy troops, the Allies began a series of retreats working southward across Crete. The 5th... Read more

Evacuations of Allied Forces from Crete Begins

Over four nights, 16,000 troops were evacuated to Egypt by ships including the light cruiser HMS Ajax. The majority of these troops embarked from... Read more

Agatha Christie publishes Evil Under the Sun

Evil Under the Sun is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in June 1941 and in... Read more

Island of Crete Surrenders to Germany

Of course, General you know that after Crete we shall never do another Airborne operation. The parachute arm is one that relies entirely on... Read more

German Forces Completely Destroy Cretan Village of Kandanos as Reprisal for Popular Resistance

The Razing of Kandanos (Greek: Καταστροφή της Καντάνου) or the Holocaust of Kandanos (Greek: Ολοκαύτωμα της Καντάνου) refers to the complete... Read more

Smederevo Fortress Explosion

Smederevo, a fortress on the Danube downstream from Belgrade, was built between 1428 and 1430 during the reign of Despot Djuradj Brankovic, the... Read more

"Man Hunt" Is Released

Man Hunt is a 1941 American thriller film directed by Fritz Lang and starring Walter Pidgeon and Joan Bennett. It is based on the 1939 novel Rogue... Read more

Operation Barbarossa Begins

Operation Barbarossa (German: Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the code name for Nazi Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that... Read more