USA: As part of experiments conducted at Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, to test the effectiveness of various weapons against surface ships, US Army bombers sink the Destroyer G-102.
1933 — , July 13
Germany: The "Heil Hitler" salute becomes compulsory for all public employees in Germany and during the singing of the National Anthem and the party hymn. Disabled Germans unable to raise their right arm are permitted to raise their left. Also, all public correspondence is to use the words "Heil Hitler" instead of "Sincerely" or anything else.
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People of Eger, in the Sudetenland (now Cheb, Czech Republic), greet German soldiers with the Hitler salute in October 1938. Some did so reluctantly, others with enthusiasm.
To perform the salute, it was customary to extend the right arm to at least to eye level, straighten the hand so that it is parallel to the arm and say emphatically "Heil Hitler!" or at least "Heil!" If one saw an acquaintance at a distance, it sufficed to simply raise the right hand. If one encountered a superior, one would also say, "Heil Hitler!" The form "Heil, mein Führer!" was for direct address to Hitler. "Sieg Heil" was repeated as a chant on public occasions.
The salute gesture is widely believed to be based on an ancient Roman custom. However, no surviving Roman work of art depicts it, nor does any extant Roman text describe it.
Today, use of this salute is a criminal offense in Germany, Austria, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic.
Germany: Without presenting any evidence, Hitler claims the Nazi Party SA organization had been planning a coup, thus justifying the July 1st "Night of the Long Knives" massacres.
1937 — , July 13
Spain: Day 362 of 985 of the Spanish Civil War.
CBI - China: Day 7 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 7 of 33 of the 2nd Battle of Hebei. Japanese troops continue moving more units into China.
1938 — , July 13
Spain: Day 727 of 985 of the Spanish Civil War.
CBI - China: Day 372 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 33 of 139 of the Battle of Wuhan.
1939 — , July 13
CBI - China: Day 737 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 30 of 68 of the Battle of Tianjin.
CBI - Mongolia: Day 64 of 129 of the Battle of Khalkhin Gol, a border dispute between the Soviet Union and Japan.
1940 — , July 13
Atlantic: German raider WIDDER sinks the British ship KING JOHN 200 miles northeast of Antigua in the Caribbean Sea.
ETO - UK: Day 4 of 114 of the Battle of Britain. The Luftwaffe bombs shipping in the Channel near Dover and Dorset.
East Africa: Day 34 of 537 of Italy's East African campaign in the lands south of Egypt. Italian troops attack the British garrison at Moyale in Abyssinia.
CBI - China: Day 1,103 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 242 of 381 of the Battle of South Guangxi.
CBI - India: German raider ATLANTIS sinks the British steamer Kemmendine 500 miles southeast of Ceylon.
1941 — , July 13
South America: Day 9 of 27 of the Ecuadorian-Peruvian War, a territorial dispute between Peru and Ecuador.
Spain: The first of the Spanish volunteers begin leaving Spain for military training in Germany.
Russian Front - Finland: Day 15 of 142 of Operation SILVER FOX, a joint German-Finnish campaign to capture the Russian port of Murmansk in the Arctic.
Russian Front - Finland: Day 13 of 140 of Operation ARCTIC FOX, a joint German-Finnish campaign against Soviet Northern Front defenses at Salla, Finland.
Russian Front - Finland: Day 22 of 164 of the Battle of Hanko.
Russian Front - Finland: Day 4 of 18 of Finland's reconquest of Ladoga, Karelia. The Finns continue their offensive toward Lake Ladoga northeast of Leningrad.
Russian Front: Day 22 of 167 of Germany's Operation BARBAROSSA, the invasion of the USSR.
Russian Front - North: German Army Group North advances toward Luga, Russia, on their way to Leningrad.
Russian Front - Center: Day 8 of 31 of the 1st Battle of Smolensk, Russia. German Army Group Centre needs this town so they can continue on to Moscow.
Russian Front - Center: Day 1 of 12 of the Battle of Zhlobin, Belarus.
Russian Front - South: In Ukraine, units of German Army Group South begin preparing for a major assault on Kiev.
Russian Front - South: Day 12 of 21 of the Battle of Bessarabia, Russia. German and Romanian troops continue their attack at Bessarabia to take the land and city that Romania was forced to cede to the USSR a year ago.
Russian Front - South: German and Romanian troops keep advancing toward Vinnitsa and the Black Sea port of Odessa, Ukraine.
MTO - Libya: Day 95 of 256 of the Siege of Tobruk.
Middle East: Day 36 of 37 of the Battle for Syria and Lebanon. Although the Vichy troops have already surrendered, the armistice terms offered by the British are rejected.
East Africa: Day 399 of 537 of Italy's East African campaign in the lands south of Egypt.
CBI - China: Day 1,468 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
1942 — , July 13
USA: President Roosevelt orders the establishment of the OSS (Office of Strategic Services), naming Colonel Donovan as director.
Atlantic: Destroyer USS LANDSDOWNE sinks German sub U-153 in the Caribbean Sea on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal.
Russian Front - North: Day 309 of 872 of the Siege of Leningrad.
Russian Front - North: Day 70 of 658 of the Siege of the Kholm Pocket.
Russian Front - Center: Day 12 of 22 of Germany's Operation SEYDLITZ, a plan to trap and capture numerous Soviet troops.
Russian Front - South: Day 16 of 27 of the Battle of Voronezh, Russia.
Russian Front - South: Day 16 of 150 of Germany's CASE BLUE, the failed offensive to take the Caucasus oil fields. Hitler tells German Army Group South to forget about Stalingrad for now and to concentrate on the Donets Basin.
MTO - Egypt: Day 13 of 27 of the 1st Battle of El Alamein. German tanks make another attack on Allied troops at Tel el Eisa, this time driving the Australians out of Point 24.
MTO - Libya: US B-17s night bomb Tobruk harbor and during the day B-24s hit ships and harbor at Bengasi.
East Africa: Day 70 of 186 of the Battle of Madagascar.
CBI - China: Day 1,833 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 60 of 124 of Japan's Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign, launched to punish anyone suspected of aiding the Doolittle raiders in China. Roughly 250,000 Chinese will be killed.
PTO - Alaska: Day 37 of 435 of the Battle of Kiska, Aleutian Islands.
PTO - Malaya: Day 145 of 357 of the Battle of Timor Island.
1943 — , July 13
Russian Front - North: Day 674 of 872 of the Siege of Leningrad.
Russian Front - North: Day 435 of 658 of the Siege of the Kholm Pocket.
Russian Front - Center: Day 9 of 50 of the Battle of Kursk, Russia. Hitler calls off the Kursk attacks but he's too late, as his troops are taking a severe beating.
Russian Front - Center: Day 2 of 38 of the Battle of Orel, Russia.
Russian Front - South: Day 1 of 48 of the USSR's Lvov-Sandomierz Offensive. The Soviets break through near Horokhiv.
MTO - Italy: Day 5 of 40 of the Battle of Sicily. RAF and US Air Forces provide air support. The British 8th Army captures Ragusa. Operation FUSTIAN: After sundown, a small force of British paratroopers set out to capture the Primosole Bridge over the Simeto River. Unknown to them, German paratroopers have also just been dropped into the same area and the two forces find themselves locked into a heavy battle until British reinforcements can get there.
CBI - China: Day 2,198 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
PTO - Alaska: Day 402 of 435 of the Battle of Kiska, Aleutian Islands.
PTO - Marshall Islands: After 47 days adrift in a small raft, the two survivors of the B-24 GREEN HORNET that went down 850 miles west of Hawaii on 27 May 43, reach Japanese-occupied island of Wotje, 2,000 miles from the crash site, and are immediately captured. One of the men is Olympic star Louis Zamperini.
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Dates related to Louis Zamperini...
07 Aug 36: Zamperini invited to meet Hitler at the Berlin Olympics
PTO - New Guinea: Day 83 of 148 of the 2nd Battle of Lae-Salamaua. US 5th and 13th Air Forces provide air support.
PTO - Solomon Islands: Day 24 of 67 of the Battle of New Georgia. US 5th and 13th Air Forces provide air support.
PTO - Solomon Islands: Day 2 of 2 of the Naval Battle off Kolombangara. During this night battle the USS GWIN and Japanese warship JINSU are sunk.
1944 — , July 13
ETO - UK: Day 31 of 86 of the V-1 "Buzz Bomb" offensive on Britain.
ETO - UK: A German Junkers Ju 88G-1 night fighter, equipped with secret SN-2 radar, lands by mistake on an RAF airfield at Woodbridge in Suffolk. Within a few weeks, British scientist figure out how to jam the radar system.
ETO - France: Day 38 of 49 of Operation OVERLORD, the Allied invasion of Normandy, France, known forever simply as D-Day. D-Day+37: Allied Air Forces provide air support. US troops make slow gains as they advance toward St Lo.
ETO - France: Day 38 of 62 of the Battle of Caen. Although the town has been captured, the surrounding area still needs to be cleared of German troops.
ETO - Germany: US 8th Air Force B-17s bomb the greater Munich area again while B-24 attack at Saarbrucken.
Russian Front - Finland: Day 23 of 50 of the Battle of Karelia. Soviet troops continue their offensive against the Finns in eastern Karelia between Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega in northern Russia.
Russian Front - North: Day 163 of 191 of the Battle of the Narva Isthmus, Estonia. Both German and Soviet troops remain locked in their defensive positions.
Russian Front - Center: Day 9 of 16 of the Battle of Vilnius, Lithuania.
Russian Front - Center: Day 9 of 27 of the Battle of Siauliai, Lithuania. Soviets capture Vilna.
Russian Front - Center: Day 9 of 23 of the Battle of Belostock, Poland.
Russian Front - Center: Day 1 of 15 of the Battle of Lvov, Poland.
Russian Front - Center: Day 1 of 15 of the Battle of Stanislav, Poland.
MTO - Italy: Day 28 of 34 of the Battle of Ancona (north of Rome). Allied Air Forces provide air support.
CBI - Burma: Day 131 of 166 of the UK's Operation THURSDAY. US 10th Air Force provides air support.
CBI - Burma: Day 126 of 147 of the Battle of Myitkyina. US 10th Air Force provides air support.
CBI - Burma: Day 104 of 302 of the Chinese Salween Offensive. US 14th Air Force provides air support.
CBI - China: Day 2,564 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 88 of 259 of Japan's Operation ICHI-GO.
Day 22 of 48 of the Battle of Hengyang. US 14th Air Force provides air support.
PTO - Caroline Islands: US 7th Air Force bombs targets in the Truk Atoll.
PTO - Dutch New Guinea: Day 12 of 61 of the Battle of Noemfoor. Although the island has been declared secured, bitter fighting from Japanese continues. The Japanese troops in the Aitape-New Hollandia area are divided, making the Japanese 18th Army effectively useless until their final defeat.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 48 of 83 of the Battle of Biak. There are still 3,000 Japanese soldiers on the island who won't give up.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 212 of 597 of the Battle of New Britain. US 13th Air Force provides air support.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 83 of 481 of the Battle of Western New Guinea. 5th Air Force provides air support.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 30 of 80 of the Battle of Lone Tree Hill.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 4 of 47 of the Battle of Driniumor River, a failed Japanese attack on US troops near Aitape.
PTO - Solomon Islands: Day 256 of 295 of the Battle of the Bougainville Islands. US 13th Air Force provides air support.
1945 — , July 13
CBI: US 14th Air Force attacks a variety of targets in China and French Indochina.
CBI - China: Day 2,929 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
The large cruisers USS ALASKA and USS GUAM, accompanied by 4 light cruisers and 9 destroyers, attack Japanese shipping in the East China Sea.
PTO - Australia: Ben Chifley is elected leader of Labor Party and becomes the new Prime Minister of Australia.
PTO - Borneo: Day 34 of 67 of the Battle of North Borneo. US 5th and 13th Air Forces provide air support.
PTO - Dutch East Indies: Day 13 of 21 of the 2nd Battle of Balikpapan.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 564 of 597 of the Battle of New Britain. US 10th Air Force provides air support.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 448 of 481 of the Battle of Western New Guinea. US 10th Air Force provides air support.
PTO - Philippines: Day 266 of 299 of the 2nd Battle of the Philippines, aka the Liberation of the Philippines or the Philippines Campaign.
PTO - Philippines: Day 211 of 244 of the Battle of Luzon. The battle is said to over but hold-outs will continue fighting until the end of the war.
PTO - Philippines: Day 126 of 159 of the Battle of Mindanao Island. The battle is said to over but hold-outs will continue fighting until the end of the war.
PTO - Philippines: Day 118 of 135 of the Battle of the Visayas region. The battle is said to over but hold-outs will continue fighting for several weeks.
Day-By-Day listings for July 13 were last modified on Sunday, January 31, 2016
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