12 Apr 1945




See all photos dated 12 Apr 1945
- A Japanese aircraft crashed into the foremast of USS Cassin Young, killing one and wounding one. ww2dbase [Cassin Young | CPC]
- Allied troops captured Westerbork, Brummen, and Deventer in the Netherlands. US Third Army captured Erfurt, Germany. Meanwhile, US Ninth Army captured Braunschweig after crossing the Elbe River. ww2dbase [CPC]
- German forces evacuated Zenica, Yugoslavia. ww2dbase [TH]
- Operation Kikusui No. 2 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 125 Japanese Navy and 60 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft. Destroyer USS Mannert L. Abele was sunk by a Japanese Ohka piloted bomb off Okinawa; she was the first to be struck by an Ohka bomb and was the only to be sunk by one. ww2dbase [Okinawa Campaign | CPC]
- An order was sent by radio to USS Snook to take lifeguard station off the Sakishima Islands, Ryukyu Islands, Japan; she failed to respond. ww2dbase [Snook | CPC]
- En route to Dalian, China, I-401 detonated a magnetic mine at 0850 hours, rupturing the fuel tank and damaging a Kingston valve. She turned around to return to Kure, Japan for repairs. ww2dbase [I-401 | CPC]
- Heinrich Himmler ordered that commanders who failed to hold key positions in the defense of Germany would be executed. ww2dbase [Heinrich Himmler | CPC]
- USS Chub was attacked by a Japanese aircraft, sustaining temporary loss of power and depth control. ww2dbase [Chub | CPC]
- USS Parche sank a Japanese transport off Japan, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. ww2dbase [Parche | CPC]
- American troops began arriving at Buchenwald Concentration Camp near Weimar, Germany. ww2dbase [Discovery of Concentration Camps and the Holocaust | Buchenwald Concentration Camp | Ettersberg, Weimar | CPC]
- In southwestern Germany, French troops captured Baden-Baden and US troops captured Heilbronn. ww2dbase [Southern Germany Campaign | Baden | TH, CPC]
- Oberstleutnant Gerhard Prawitt, the commandant of the Oflag IV-C prisoner of war camp at Colditz Castle in Germany, received an unsigned letter from the office of Heinrich Himmler stating that all important prisoners at Colditz were to be prepared for transfer in the following morning where they would be held as hostages for negotiations with the western Allies. ww2dbase [Colditz Castle | Colditz, Sachsen | CPC]
- Indian 8th Division crossed Santerno River in northern Italy. German 15th Panzergrenadier Regiment arrived in the Reno River area as reinforcement. ww2dbase [Operation Grapeshot and Operation Roast | Emilia-Romagna | CPC]
- The Westerbork Concentration Camp at Hooghalen in the Netherlands was liberated by the Canadian 2nd Infantry Division. ww2dbase [Discovery of Concentration Camps and the Holocaust | Westerbork Concentration Camp | Hooghalen, Drenthe | CPC]
- USS Bergall fired a torpedo at a Japanese patrol vessel in the South China Sea; the torpedo missed. ww2dbase [Bergall | South China Sea | CPC]
- Avenger aircraft from HMS Victorious attacked Matsuyama Airfield in Taihoku (now Taipei) and shipping off Tamsui in northern Taiwan; Sub-Lieutenant Daniel McAleese was shot down, rescued, but would later die of his wounds. ww2dbase [Matsuyama Airfield | Victorious | Taihoku | CPC]
- USAAF 453rd Bomber Group based at Old Buckenham Airfield (US Station 144) in Norfolk, England, United Kingdom flew its final mission before returning to the United States for re-equipping with B-29 bombers. ww2dbase [Bombing of Hamburg, Dresden, and Other Cities | Old Buckenham Airfield | Old Buckenham, England | AC]
- Franklin Roosevelt passed away of cerebral hemorrhage after complaining of acute headache during a portrait painting session with artist Elizabeth Shoumatoff at Warm Springs, Georgia, United States. ww2dbase [Franklin Roosevelt | Warm Springs, Georgia | CPC]




See all photos dated 12 Apr 1945
12 Apr 1945 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: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
|
Search WW2DB & Partner Sites
News
- » Passing of Margaret Kelly (25 Jan 2021)
- » WW2DB's 16th Anniversary (29 Dec 2020)
- » Hidekazu Tamura shared his feelings toward his war time internment (2 Sep 2020)
- » See all news
Random Photograph
Current Site Statistics
- » 1,094 biographies
- » 332 events
- » 38,163 timeline entries
- » 1,127 ships
- » 337 aircraft models
- » 191 vehicle models
- » 352 weapon models
- » 117 historical documents
- » 225 facilities
- » 464 book reviews
- » 27,166 photos
- » 351 maps
Famous WW2 Quote
"Goddam it, you'll never get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole! Follow me!"Captain Henry P. Jim Crowe, Guadalcanal, 13 Jan 1943