6 Jan 1941
  • A Free French force under Lieutenant Colonel Jean Colonna d'Ornano attacked Murzuk airfield in southwestern Libya from Chad, capturing the airfield, but d'Ornano was killed in action. ww2dbase [Battle of Kufra | CPC]
  • British 4th Armoured Division advanced 50 miles from Bardia, Libya to capture Belhamed to the east of Tobruk and the airfield at El Adem 8 miles to the south. Patrols were now conducted 10 miles west of Tobruk at Acroma. ww2dbase [Operation Compass | CPC]
  • Overnight, Greek destroyers shelled the Albanian port of Vlorë. 20 miles south, Italian destroyers Alfieri, Carducci, Fulmine, and Gioberti, and torpedo boats Partenope, Pallade, Romeda, and Altair shelled Greek positions at Porto Palmermo. The Greek offensive against Italian positions in the mountains of Albania reached the strategically important Klisura Pass on the river Vjosë, which, if captured, would allow Greek forces in the center of the front to link up with troops on the coast, but it was met with stiff resistance. ww2dbase [Balkans Campaign | CPC]
  • German submarine U-124 sank British ship Empire Thunder 200 miles northwest of Outer Hebrides, Scotland, United Kingdom at 1137 hours; 9 killed and 30 survived. ww2dbase [CPC]
  • German raider Kormoran stopped Greek ship Antonis in the Atlantic Ocean 200 miles northwest of Cape Verde Islands. Antonis was scuttled when 4,800 tons of British coal was found on board. All 29 crew and 7 sheep were taken on board Kormoran. ww2dbase [Kormoran | CPC]
  • In his State of the Union address, US President Franklin Roosevelt enunciated the Four Freedoms: freedom of speech and expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. ww2dbase [Franklin Roosevelt | CPC]
  • Neutral Ireland sent a note of protest to Germany after Dublin was "accidentally" bombed three nights in succession by "stray" Luftwaffe aircraft. ww2dbase [AC]
  • The keel of battleship Missouri was laid down. ww2dbase [Missouri | CPC]
Egypt
  • British cruisers HMS Gloucester and HMS Southampton, escorted by destroyers HMS Ilex and HMS Janus, departed Alexandria, Egypt, at 1315 hours to carry 510 Army and RAF personnel to Malta and to meet Excess convoy which had departed from Gibraltar on the same day. ww2dbase [Malta Campaign | Alexandria | CPC]
France
  • Italian submarine Alpino Bagnolini, escorted by German minesweepers M-2 and M-10, departed Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Aquitaine, France at 0645 hours. They were later joined by German minesweeper Sperrbrecher III. They arrived at Le Verdon-sur-Mer, Aquitaine, France at 1915 hours. ww2dbase [Alpino Bagnolini | M2 | M10 | Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Aquitaine | CPC]
Gibraltar
  • British convoy Excess (British ships Essex, Clan Cumming, Clan Macdonald, and Empire Song) departed from Gibraltar for Malta and Greece, escorted by anti-aircraft cruiser HMS Bonaventure (carrying 400 troops) and destroyers HMS Hereward, HMS Jaguar, HMS Hasty, and HMS Hero. ww2dbase [Malta Campaign | CPC]
Japan
  • Captain Noboru Owada was made the commanding officer of Katori, relieving Hisashi Mito. ww2dbase [Katori | Yokosuka, Kanagawa | CPC]
Puerto Rico
  • US 22nd, 23rd, and 32nd Fighter Squadrons, both operating P-40 Warhawk fighters, was assigned to Losey Field in Puerto Rico. ww2dbase [Losey Field | Juana Díaz | CPC]
United Kingdom
  • British destroyers HMS Mashona and HMS Sikh collided in the naval base at Scapa Flow, Scotland, United Kingdom. ww2dbase [Scapa Flow | Scapa Flow, Scotland | CPC]
Photo(s) dated 6 Jan 1941
A column of Italian prisoners captured during the assault on Bardia, Libya, 6 Jan 1941Greek Army bugler near Këlcyrë, Albania, 6 Jan 1941Harry Hopkins departing Britain, 6 Jan 1941US President Franklin Roosevelt delivering his annual State of the Union speech to the US Congress, 6 Jan 1941

6 Jan 1941 Interactive Map

Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis




Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you.

Share this article with your friends:

 Facebook
 Reddit
 Twitter

Stay updated with WW2DB:

 RSS Feeds

Search WW2DB
Famous WW2 Quote
"Since peace is now beyond hope, we can but fight to the end."

Chiang Kaishek, 31 Jul 1937


Support Us

Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 a month will go a long way. Thank you!

Or, please support us by purchasing some WW2DB merchandise at TeeSpring, Thank you!