Historical
For Operation “Catapult”, the British Admiralty gave Vice Admiral Somerville explicit instructions to secure the transfer, surrender, or destruction of the French warships at Mers-el-Kébir, Algeria, with no concessions to be given to the French. They must either accept the British terms or face destruction. Somerville’s Force H consists of the battleships HMS Valiant and Resolution, the battlecruiser HMS Hood, the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal, the cruisers HMS Arethusa and Enterprise and eleven destroyers.
U-99 was again subjected to friendly fire. Leaving Wilhelmshaven, she was attacked by a German aircraft with three bombs. She crash-dived and struck the sea floor, causing minor damage.
U-51 sank Royal Navy decoy ship HMS Edgehill (with concealed armament of nine 4in guns, four torpedo tubes and a buoyant cargo to help keep her afloat if hit). It took three torpedoes to sink her.
U-47 torpedoed the British SS Empire Toucan which broke in two, and U-26 sank the Greek steamer Frangoula B. Goulandris
The Italian submarine Rubino was sunk by RAF Short Sunderland flying boats in the Ionian Sea between Italy and Greece. Off Tobruk, the Italian submarine Sirena was damaged by Sunderlands. West of Crete, the Italian submarines Uebi Scebeli and Salpa were damaged by the British destroyers HMS Dainty, Ilex, Defender and Voyager. Uebi Scebeli later sank.
British authorities arrested Diana Mitford, wife of fascist leader Oswald Mosley. The police had already arrested her husband under Defence Regulation 18B a month earlier, but they waited to arrest her as well since she had just given birth to their son Max.
The “Smith Act” was enacted in the United States, setting criminal penalties for advocating the overthrow of the U.S. government and requiring all non-citizen adult residents to be registered.
In Tokyo the Japanese government announced Japan’s intention of controlling the South Seas, which it considered to be in Japan’s “sphere of influence”.
Game day 303. USSR
Rumania having ceded parts of Bukovina and Bessarabia to the Soviet Union. The borders between the Soviet Union and Rumania were redrawn. Six infantry units moved south-west to occupy the new territory.
Credits: Historical information: http://www.worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com, Wikipedia, Chronicle of the Second World War (JL International Publications, 1994). Background image to game maps: Hasbro Ltd.
General Whiskers' semi-historical wanderings 