20 Jan 1841
Hong Kong
Hong Kong
- British forces occupied Hong Kong, China.
20 Jan 1883
- Bertram Ramsay was born.
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20 Jan 1918
- General Tabouis, commander of the French military mission at Kiev, Ukraine, ordered the Czech Corps (under General Lafont to take up battle stations at Vinnitsa, Ukraine with the Polish Corps on its right and the Romanian army on its left) to counter a possible German thrust across the Vinnitsa-Mogilev line. The Czechs however refused to carry out the order which effectively destroyed any hope of Allied unity in the Ukraine.
- Off Trukey, after firing on the Cape Kephalo lookout at Imbros Island and sinking the Royal Navy monitors Lord Raglan and M28 in Kusi Bay, German Admiral von Rebeur Paschwitz positioned his ships to bombard Mudros Bay. At 0830 hours however, the Breslau struck a mine, and almost at the same time a British aircraft, from Imbris, hit her with a bomb. The battlecruiser Goeben turned to try and take the stricken cruiser in tow, but also exploded a mine and began to list to port. The helpless Breslau drifted over four more mines which also detonated and blew off her stern. Within minutes the Cruiser sank with the loss of two thirds of her 370-man crew. Admiral Paschwitz abandoned his mission and, under constant air attack, made haste back towards the Dardanelles which he reached (after running over another mine) but then ran aground at Nagara Point. It would take a week before the battlecruiser could be pulled free during which time she would suffer more heavy damage from air attack.
20 Jan 1921
Panama Canal Zone
Panama Canal Zone
- USS Arizona passed through the Panama Canal and reached the Pacific Ocean.
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20 Jan 1930
- Hamilton was commissioned into service.
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20 Jan 1932
China
China
- Japan demanded China to dissolve anti-Japanese organizations and pay compensation for losses incurred due to Chinese boycotts of Japanese goods.
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20 Jan 1934
- In Germany, the "Law for the ordering of National Labour" (drafted by the mayor of Leipzig, and future resistance leader, Carl Goerdeler) was established. This gave German managers absolute power to impose wage levels, monitor and discipline the workforce and in some industries restrict the right of employees to change their employment.
20 Jan 1936
- British King George V passed away.
20 Jan 1937
- Franklin Roosevelt was inaugurated for second term as US President; in the inauguration speech, he spoke about taking care of the third of the American population who were "ill-housed, ill-clad, and ill-nourished".
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20 Jan 1938
Germany
Germany
- Werner von Blomberg took a break from his honeymoon in Capri, Italy and returned to his office in Berlin, Germany.
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20 Jan 1940
- German submarine U-44 torpedoed and sank Greek steamer Ekatontarchos Dracoulis off Portugal at 0415 hours, killing 6. U-44 had been hunting for Ekatontarchos Dracoulis for the past 6 hours.
- German submarine U-57 torpedoed and sank Norwegian steamer Miranda 30 miles off of Scotland at 0826 hours, killing 14. 3 survivors were rescued on the next day by exploration ship Discovery II and taken to Kirkwall.
- British tanker MV Caroni River hit a mine laid the day before by German submarine U-34 in Falmouth Bay, England, United Kingdom and sank; she was on her sea trials. during sea trials in Falmouth Bay, England. All 43 aboard survived.
- British First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill, speaking to the Parliament, voiced support for Finland while criticizing brutal Soviet attacks. The Finnish government presumed that this meant British support would soon arrive, but it never did. The German government interpreted the speech as a hint on British involvement in Scandinavia, thus plans for the invasion of Norway were re-prioritized.
- Chinese troops captured Licheng, Shanxi Province, China.
» In-depth article - Yukikaze was commissioned into service with Commander Kenjiro Tobita in command.
» In-depth article - Corvette Trillium was ordered.
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1941
- The Iron Guard rebellion in Romania was put down by Marshal Antonescu.
- Japan expanded annual intelligence budget to $500,000 to gather more intelligence on the United States.
- Compulsory Fire Watch duty was instituted in the United Kingdom.
- In reprisal for partisan attacks, Germans executed 2,324 males in the Yugoslavian town of Kragujevac, including 144 boys who were herded out of school. Furious at the partisan activity, Hitler had decreed that for every German soldier wounded in attacks, 100 civilians would be executed.
- German submarine U-94 sank British ship Florian 200 miles southeast of Iceland at 0042 hours, killing the entire crew of 41.
- German Kriegsmarine ordered the construction of 75 new submarines.
- German cruiser Admiral Scheer sank British ship Stanpark and captured Dutch ship Barneveld 1,000 miles off the coast of Angola.
» In-depth article - In the Atlantic Ocean, Italian submarine Luigi fired a spread of three torpedoes at a group of three Allied destroyers but none hit.
- Italian submarine Marcello, en route to Bordeaux, France for repairs, encountered Belgian ship Portugal and sank her with the deck gun.
- British minesweeping trawler HMT Relonzo hit a mine and sank off Liverpool, England, United Kingdom, killing 19.
- RAF Wellington and Blenheim bombers, monitor HMS Terror, and gunboats HMS Gnat and HMS Ladybird attacked Italian positions at Tobruk, Libya overnight.
» In-depth article - At Adolf Hitler's Berghof residence near Berchtesgaden, Germany, Hitler mentioned to Benito Mussolini and Galeazzo Ciano that Germany viewed the Soviet Union as a threat, but did not reveal the plan to invade.
» In-depth article
- Lieutenant Commander Clement Bridgman was named the equipping officer of HMS Dianthus.
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20 Jan 1942
- Akagi's aircraft carried out strikes against Rabaul.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - Shokaku launched strikes against Rabaul.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - Transports with US Marines arrived at Pago Pago, American Samoa; they were escorted by carriers Enterprise and Yorktown.
- SS-Gruppenführer Heydrich hosted the Wannsee Conference to discuss the Final Solution.
» In-depth article - Erwin Rommel received Swords to his Knight's Cross medal.
» In-depth article - Hawker Hurricane fighters, sent as reinforcements to Singapore, shot down eight Japanese bombers from a force of 27 attacking the city. Ground troops had less success, however, as the Indian and Australian retreat from Bakri, Malaya was cut off by the Japanese. Also on this date, more Japanese troops landed at Endau, Malaya.
» In-depth article - The Japanese advance guard crossed the border into Burma heading for Moulmein. Kawkareik was defended by 16th Indian Brigade under Brigadier J. K. "Jonah" Jones, but was widely dispersed covering the tracks leading to the border 38 miles away. The Japanese first encountered the 1st/7th Gurkha Rifles (who had only arrived on the previous day) near Myawadi. The Gurkhas were quickly outflanked and forced to withdraw. Within forty-eight hours the rest of 16th Infantry Brigade were forced to follow.
» In-depth article - President Roosevelt suggested to a Cabinet meeting that an air freight and alternative land route be considered for the supply of China - this task to be added to Stilwell's already considerable responsibilities.
» In-depth article - Major General Commandant Thomas Holcomb became the first lieutenant general in the United States Marine Corps.
- In Russia, Soviet 11th Cavalry Corps attacked from Rzhev towards Vyazma while Soviet 4th Shock Army captured the German supply dumps at Toropets, taking 6 tanks, 723 trucks, artillery pieces with 450,000 shells, small arms with millions of rounds of ammunition, 1,000 drums of fuel, and food.
» In-depth article - USS S-36 became stuck on Taka Bakang Reef in the Makassar Strait between British Borneo and Celebes, Dutch East Indies at 0400 hours.
» In-depth article - American destroyer USS Edsall and Australian minesweeper HMAS Deloraine sank Japanese submarine I-124 with depth charges 60 miles northwest of Darwin, Australia, killing 80.
- Repair ship Akashi provided repair work for destroyer Inazuma at Davao, Mindanao, Philippine Islands.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement
- Japanese South Seas Force Transport Fleet ships crossed the Equator en route to Rabaul, New Britain at 0500 hours; it was the first Japanese Army force to cross the Equator in history. At 1214 hours, coast watchers at Tabar north of Rabaul spotted 20 Japanese Zero fighters; 109 carrier aircraft reached Rabaul at 1248 hours, destroying 5 of the 8 remaining Wirraway fighters at Rabaul. Shortly after, 27 Type 97 aircraft of carrier Kaga and a number of Type 99 aircraft from carrier Shokaku and Zuikaku attacked, sinking Norwegian freighter Herstein and coal hulk Westralia, losing only one aircraft in combat (a Type 97 piloted by Petty Officer 1st Class Tatsuya Sugihara) and two during recovery. No. 24 Squadron RAAF was effectively wiped out after the attacks on Rabaul on this day.
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1943
- USS S-28 set a course for the Aleutian Islands.
» In-depth article - German Inspector of Concentration Camps advised camp commandants to reduce rate of death for camp prisoners; however, camp doctors were given orders to kill the sick and the debilitated. Also on this date, transports of Jews from Theresienstadt Ghetto departed for Auschwitz Concentration Camp; several more transports departed from Theresienstadt in the following 6 days.
» In-depth article - USS Silversides attacked a Japanese convoy 286 miles from Truk, Caroline Islands en route to the Solomon Islands, sinking transport Meiu Maru and damaging Surabaya Maru. The latter would later be scuttled by destroyer Asagumo.
» In-depth article - Remy Van Lierde scored his first kill, a German Bf 109G fighter, over the southern coast of England, United Kingdom while flying a Typhoon Ib fighter.
» In-depth article - The US Army 25th Division began an offensive toward Kokumbona, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands.
» In-depth article - Chile broke off relationships with Germany, Italy and Japan.
- German fighter-bombers made a surprise daylight attack on London, England, United Kingdom during which bombs were dropped on a school in Lewisham killing 39 children and five teachers.
» In-depth article
- USS Brennan was commissioned into service at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States.
20 Jan 1944
- Soviet forces captured Novgorod, Russia.
- USS Gar sank Japanese cargo ship Koyu Maru off Palau Islands in daylight with two of three torpedoes fired.
» In-depth article - Destroyer Yukikaze arrived at Singapore.
» In-depth article
- Irako departed Truk, Caroline Islands. She was attacked by submarine USS Seadragon and suffered one torpedo hit to her bow on the starboard side.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement
- The heaviest RAF raid on Berlin to date was launched, with 769 aircraft (495 Lancaster, 264 Halifax, 10 Mosquito) dropping over 2,300 tons of explosives on the German capital. 13 Lancaster and 22 Halifax bombers were lost. Damage on Berlin was thought to be extensive, but this could not be confirmed due to bad weather on the next day.
» In-depth article - Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein shot down three British aircraft near Berlin, Germany, increasing his victories to 78. His Ju 88 aircraft was damaged by the propeller of the third aircraft he shot down, a Lancaster bomber, and only barely made it back to the airfield and had to crash land.
» In-depth article
- After sundown, US 141st Regiment and 143rd Regiment attacked across the Rapido River in Italy.
» In-depth article
- Japanese cargo ships Akibasan Maru was sunk at Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands.
- Air Chief Marshal Sir William Sholto Douglas was appointed Commander-in-Chief of RAF Coastal Command.
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1945
- Martin Bormann ordered Arthur Greiser to flee Reichsgau Wartheland.
» In-depth article - The French First Army under General de Lattre attacked the Colmar Pocket in Alsace, France.
- Colonel General Ferdinand Schörner replaced Colonel General Josef Harpe as the head of German Army Group A in eastern Germany.
» In-depth article - Nikolaus von Falkenhorst was awarded the German Cross in Silver.
» In-depth article - Destroyer Yuzuki was struck from the Japanese navy list.
» In-depth article - USS Finback departed for her twelfth and final war patrol in the East China Sea.
» In-depth article - Chinese troops captured Wanting, Yunnan Province, China.
» In-depth article - Captain Chojuro Takahashi was named the commanding officer of light carrier Ryuho.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - Light carrier Hosho conducted a torpedo attack training with Air Group 453 and submarine HA-106.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement
- Allied aircraft attacked Japanese positions at Monywa, Burma while the Indian 20th Division assaulted the port city on the Chindwin River. Meanwhile, Japanese forces in Burma began a coordinated counteroffensive against the latest Anglo-Indian advances.
» In-depth article
- An armistice between the Hungarian Provisional National Government and the Soviet Union insisted that Hungary should declare war on Germany and pay $300,000,000 in reparations.
» In-depth article
- USS Ticonderoga and other ships of Task Group 38 exited South China Sea via Balintang Channel.
» In-depth article - USS Spot sank a Japanese cargo ship in the Yellow Sea with her deck gun after missing her with 5 torpedoes.
» In-depth article
- Three German V-2 rocket hit London, England, United Kingdom. The first hit Potters Bar at 1100 hours, killing 21. The second hit Calton Road in East Barnet at 1315 hours, killing 12. The third hit Tottenham at 2000 hours, killing 23.
- Historical document written: Armistice Agreement with Hungary
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Allied Control Commission in Hungary
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1953
- Dwight Eisenhower became the 34th President of the United States.
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1958
- Indonesia and Japan entered into a bilateral reparations agreement and peace treaty.
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1961
- John Kennedy became the 35th President of the United States.
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1969
- Submarine Pintado was sold to Zidell Explorations, Inc. of Portland, Oregon, United States for scrap.
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1989
- USS Iowa set the record for the distance traveled of a 410mm shell (43.3km or 26.9mi) during a gunnery exercise off Vieques, Puerto Rico.
» In-depth article
20 Jan 1990
- Naruhiko passed away.
» In-depth article
Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis
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