7 Dec 1888
- Jinichi Kusaka was born.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1917
- The British War Cabinet met to discuss growing reports of prevailing chaos in Siberia, Russia. Agreement was reached that the most effective way of restoring order would be if the Japanese were to intervene. The Japanese however proved to be reluctant to commit themselves without American backing although they were prepared to protect Japanese interests in Vladivostok.
7 Dec 1920
Austria
Austria
- The Luftwaffe fighter ace Walter Nowotny was born in Gmünd, Austria. The youngest of three sons of an Austrian railway official, during the war he would be credited with no less than 258 aerial victories and commanded the world's first jet fighter wing.
- Nobutake Kondo arrived at Germany.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1932
- Adolf Hitler and Gregor Strasser again argued over whether Nazi Party should work with the new German Chancellor Kurt von Schleicher. Reaching no agreement, Hitler would soon purge Strasser and his supporters from the party to consolidate Hitler's position.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1937
- USS S-31 was decommissioned from service and placed in reserve at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.
» In-depth article
- Chinese President Chiang Kaishek departed Nanjing, China by plane. The civilian administration of the city was left to an International Committee led by John Rabe. Outside the city, several villages were set ablaze by Chinese troops to prevent them from being used by the approaching Japanese troops. Meanwhile, on the Japanese side, General Iwane Matsui ordered the siege of Nanjing, China.
» In-depth article - Iwane Matsui suffered a bout of tuberculosis while in China.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1939
- Italy publicly reaffirmed neutrality in the war.
- England and France pledged support to Finland, but an inability to follow through left the promises rather empty.
- Soviet 9th Army attacked in central Karelia, Finland.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1940
- Admiral Hipper departed Kiel, Germany for an anti-shipping sortie in the Atlantic.
» In-depth article - Battleship Bismarck entered the Kiel Canal.
» In-depth article - Orion and Komet sank the ship Vinni off Nauru; shortly after, Komet sank the ship Komata.
» In-depth article - The Fairey Barracuda dive bomber took its first flight.
» In-depth article - The 100th Beaufighter aircraft rolled off the production line at Filton, South Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1941
See all photos dated 7 Dec 1941
- Two strike waves were launched against Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Akagi's torpedo planes were instrumental in sinking the battleships USS Oklahoma and West Virginia. Vice Admiral Nagumo ordered a withdrawal following recovery of the second attack wave.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - At about midnight at the very beginning of the day, Tatsuta Maru was ordered to reverse course.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - Fusata Iida passed away.
» In-depth article - Naoji Iwasa passed away.
» In-depth article - Erwin Rommel ordered his forces to pull back by about 10 miles toward the Gazala Line, abandoning the Tobruk objective.
» In-depth article - American steam-powered schooner Cynthia Olson, under charter of the US Army, was shelled and sunk by Japanese submarine I-26 with no survivors; two US Army personnel were on board.
- Japanese troops invaded Khota Baru, Malaya, two hours before the attack on Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. A series of landings in nearby Thailand initially met stiff resistance, but the Thai government negotiated for an armistice within hours.
» In-depth article - Japanese aircraft bombarded Singapore, Guam, and Wake, while two Japanese destroyers shelled Midway Atoll, causing 14 casualties and damaging much equipment.
- Hitler published his notorious Nacht und Nebel (Night and Fog) decree which allows the Gestapo to dispose of their prisoners without trace.
- After suffering a heart attack, Feldmarschall von Brauchitsch tendered his resignation.
» In-depth article - The office of the US Navy Chief of Naval Operations ordered unrestricted air and submarine warfare against Japan.
- USS Arizona received two bomb hits during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. The second bomb hit led to the detonation of her forward ammunition magazine, which led to her sinking. 1,177 were killed, including Battleship Division 1 commanding officer Rear Admiral Isaac Kidd and her commanding officer Captain Franklin Van Valkenburgh.
» In-depth article - Isaac Kidd became the first US Navy flag officer to be killed in action during WW2.
» In-depth article - Mitsuo Fuchida led the Pearl Harbor attack, remaining over the target area throughout both waves of attacks to observe the degree of damage done to the American fleet.
» In-depth article - The commanding officer of the US Marine Corps 7th Defense Battalion at American Samoa ordered his troops to man their positions as he was informed of the attacks on American positions across the Pacific Ocean. He also called the Samoan Marine Reserve Battalion to active duty.
- Soviet forces captured Tikhvin, Russia east of Leningrad.
» In-depth article - Soviet 30th Army attacked German 3rd Panzer Army at Klin while Soviet 50th Army attacked German 2nd Panzer Division near Moscow, Russia.
» In-depth article - British destroyers HMS Harvester and HMS Hesperus sank German submarine U-208 115 miles west of Gibraltar, killing the entire crew of 45.
- Canadian corvette HMCS Windflower, escorting Allied convoy SC-58 off Newfoundland, collided with Dutch freighter Zypenberg in poor visibility due to fog and sank; 23 were killed.
- Light carrier Hosho departed the Inland Sea, Japan with a large fleet.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - It was announced that from midnight the British Empire would be at war with Finland, Hungary and Romania.
- One day prior to the opening of the Pacific War (owing to the International Date Line), the first three Australian Hudson medium bombers arrived at Rabaul, Bismarck Islands; they were under the command of Flight Lieutenant John Murphy.
» In-depth article
- River gunboat USS Wake was captured by the Japanese in Shanghai, China.
- Japanese armored cruiser Izumo sank British river gunboat HMS Peterel in Shanghai, China.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement
- Operation Z: 360 Japanese carrier aircraft (104 bombers, 135 dive bombers, 40 torpedo bombers, and 81 fighters) attacked Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, sinking or damaging 8 battleships, 3 cruisers, 3 destroyers, 1 anti-aircraft training ship, 1 minelayer; destroying 188 aircraft; and killing 2,459 (57 of which were civilian) and wounding 1,282 (35 of which were civilian). The Japanese lost only 29 aircraft and 5 midget submarines; 55 were killed and 10 were wounded.
» In-depth article
- Hans-Joachim Marseille shot down a British Hurricane fighter, his 29th kill, at 0930 hours near Sidi Omar, Libya.
» In-depth article
- Shokaku participated in the two strike waves against Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Chuichi Nagumo ordered a withdrawal following recovery of the second attack wave.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement
- Naka departed Mako, Pescadores islands to escort the Philippine Islands invasion force.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement
- Winston Churchill had lunch with Duchess of Marlborough Alexandra Mary Cadogan and her son Marquess of Blandford John Spencer-Churchill. He had dinner with US Ambassador John Gilbert Winant and W. Averell Harriman; after dinner, they learned of the Japanese raid on Pearl Harbor in the US Territory of Hawaii. He would later write that he "slept the sleep of the saved and thankful", relieved that the United States was finally in the war, and Britain was no longer alone.
» In-depth article - British RAF airmen returning from Murmansk and Arkhangelsk areas of northern Russia began to arrive in Britain by ships.
- Franklin Roosevelt met with Chinese ambassador Hu Shih at the White House in Washington DC, United States, had lunch with Harry Hopkins, and at 1347 hours he was interrupted by a telephone call from Frank Knox, informing him of the Pearl Harbor attack. At 2030 hours, Roosevelt gave a briefing to a small group of Congressmen.
» In-depth article - Historical document written: US Navy Report of Japanese Raid on Pearl Harbor, Enclosure E, Commander Minecraft, Battle Force
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Fourteen Part Message from Japan to the United States and Hull's Response
» In-depth article
See all photos dated 7 Dec 1941
7 Dec 1942
- Operation Frankton had Royal Navy submarines drop off commandos to raid German shipping up the River Gironde in Bordeaux Harbor, France.
- American forces at Guadalcanal marked the first anniversary of Pearl Harbor by shelling Japanese positions from dawn to dusk in what they term a "Hate Shoot".
» In-depth article - The British liner-turned-troopship, SS Ceramic, on her way to Australia with 378 mainly military and nursing passengers, a crew of 278, and 12 children, was torpedoed by U-515 off the Azores. Survivors took to the lifeboats but in heavy seas and a gale force wind, these soon capsize. The U-boat captain, Werner Henke, fished one man from the water for interrogation purposes and left the rest, 655 men, women, and children, to die. U-515 was eventually sunk by American warships in Apr 1944 and the crew captured. Two months later Henke, who had been responsible for sinking 26 Allied ships was shot dead in an attempt to scale the fence of his POW camp in Virginia in the United States. Refusing an order to stop demanded by alerted guards, Henke appeared to deliberately commit suicide rather than face being tried as a war criminal over the Ceramic incident. The one passenger rescued, Royal Engineer Eric Monday, survived the war.
- USS Gunnel ended her first war patrol and departed North African waters.
» In-depth article
- US B-24 bombers attacked Rabaul, New Britain, causing no damage due to poor weather.
- In Operation BG 5, Italian auxiliary ship Olterra launched three manned torpedoes against Gibraltar; they failed to cause any damage.
- Workers at Dock No. 4 at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, US Territory of Hawaii began placing sand on top of the rock foundation.
7 Dec 1943
- The planned escort carrier Woodcliff Bay was renamed Makin Island.
» In-depth article
- Destroyer Yukikaze departed Truk, Caroline Islands to escort carrier Chitose and transport Irako to Yokosuka, Japan.
» In-depth article
- USS Whale completed a scheduled overhaul at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii.
» In-depth article
- After sundown, 21st Infantry Brigade of Indian 8th Infantry Division formed a defensive line near Canadian 1st Infantry Division to allow the Canadians to launch a new offensive in the Moro River region in Italy on the following day. New Zealand troops attacked Orsogna in failure.
» In-depth article
- Destroyer Yuzuki was refitted at the Ishikawa Shipyard and the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal, Japan.
» In-depth article
- USS Snook arrived at Midway Atoll, ending her fourth war patrol.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1944
See all photos dated 7 Dec 1944
- US 83rd Infantry Division became part of US VII Corps.
- Dwight Eisenhower, Bernard Montgomery, Omar Bradley, Arthur Tedder, and other Allied military leaders convened to discuss strategy. Eisenhower transferred US 9th Army to Montgomery's army group, but rejected Montgomery's notion that the southern army groups should be halted in order to make Montgomery's army group the sole attacking force.
» In-depth article - Unryu was assigned to emergency reinforcement duty for Luzon, Philippine Islands.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement
- Allied convoy JW-62 arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia.
» In-depth article
- German V-2 rocket hit Canley Road in Hackney, London, England, United Kingdom.
- USS Brill departed New London, Connecticut, United States.
» In-depth article
See all photos dated 7 Dec 1944
7 Dec 1945
- Japanese General Yamashita was found guilty of war crimes.
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Interrogation Nav 106, Captain Kikunori Kijima
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Interrogation Nav 106, Rear Admiral Keizo Komura
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Interrogation Nav 103, Major Masuda Shimada
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Interrogation Nav 104, Captain Momochio Shimanouchi
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Interrogation Nav 102, Commander Kiyoshi Sogawa
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Interrogation Nav 101, Rear Admiral Akira Soji
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1947
Photo(s) dated 7 Dec 1947
Photo(s) dated 7 Dec 1947
7 Dec 1954
- USS Bugara departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii.
» In-depth article
- USS Charr arrived at San Diego, California, United States.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 1988
Japan
Japan
- Mayor Hitoshi Motoshima of Nagasaki, Japan said, in a city council meeting, that Emperor Showa bore some responsibility for what had happened in WW2.
7 Dec 1991
- USS Missouri hosted US President George Bush for a remembrance ceremony on the anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 2000
United States
United States
- Battleship Wisconsin arrived at Portsmouth, Virginia, United States under tow.
» In-depth article
7 Dec 2003
Photo(s) dated 7 Dec 2003
Photo(s) dated 7 Dec 2003
Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis
| | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Search WW2DB & Partner Sites
News
- » Pages of Alfred Rosenberg's Diary Found (2013.06.12)
- » British team to search for buried Spitfires in Myanmar (2013.01.08)
- » Japanese Prime Minister to send envoys to South Korea (2013.01.02)
- » See all news
Random Photograph
Site Sponsors
Advertise on ww2db.com
Current Site Statistics
- » 729 biographies
- » 304 events
- » 27116 timeline entries
- » 668 ships
- » 301 aircraft models
- » 163 vehicle models
- » 254 weapon models
- » 65 historical documents
- » 285 book reviews
- » 209 maps
- » 16244 photos, 1473 in color
Famous WW2 Quote
"All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us... they can't get away this time."Lt. Gen. Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, at Guadalcanal