17 Dec 1940
  • British Home Office announced the hanging death of a third German spy. On the same day, a British housewife was sentenced to death for spying. ww2dbase [TH]
  • German seaplane base on Sylt Island was bombed. ww2dbase [TH]
  • The British government announced a ration increase for Christmas week. ww2dbase [CPC]
  • British destroyer HMS Acheron hit a mine and sank while running sea trials 5 miles southwest of the Isle of Wight at 0640 hours, killing 153 crew and 22 shipyard workers; 13 crew and 3 shipyard workers survived. ww2dbase [TH]
  • British monitor HMS Terror and gunboat HMS Ladybird bombarded Bardia, Libya, sinking Italian ships Galata, Vincenzino, and Giuseppina D. in the harbor. On the same day, the British announced that they had captured 20,000 Italian prisoners, including three generals, in Egypt. ww2dbase [Operation Compass | CPC]
United Kingdom
  • Air Vice Marshal Richard Saul became the commanding officer of No. 12 Group RAF. ww2dbase [Richard Saul | CPC]
United States
  • President Roosevelt held a press conference in Washington DC, United States, revealing the Lend-Lease program to journalists. ww2dbase [Franklin Roosevelt | CPC]

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? 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 & Partner Sites
News

Random Photograph

Dignitaries gathering for the funeral of Konrad Adenauer, Germany, 25 Apr 1967




Current Site Statistics

Famous WW2 Quote
"You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word. It is victory. Victory at all costs. Victory in spite of all terrors. Victory, however long and hard the road may be, for without victory there is no survival."

Winston Churchill