Germany: Hitler combines the offices of president and chancellor and assumes the title of Führer.
1936 — , August 19
Spain: Day 34 of 985 of the Spanish Civil War.
1937 — , August 19
Spain: Day 399 of 985 of the Spanish Civil War.
CBI - China: Day 44 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 7 of 106 of the 2nd Battle of Shanghai. A US rifle company arrives in Shanghai to reinforce the US 4th Marine Regiment.
1938 — , August 19
Spain: Day 764 of 985 of the Spanish Civil War.
CBI - China: Day 409 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 70 of 139 of the Battle of Wuhan. Chinese troops fall back from the defensive line at Huang River. Elsewhere in Jiangxi Province, Japanese troops begin landing at Xinzi.
1939 — , August 19
ETO: Germany and the Soviets sign a trade treaty. 14 German U-boats are sent to patrol the North Atlantic Ocean.
CBI - China: Day 774 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 67 of 68 of the Battle of Tianjin.
CBI - Mongolia: Day 101 of 129 of the Battle of Khalkhin Gol, a border dispute between the Soviet Union and Japan.
1940 — , August 19
USA: The North American B-25 Mitchell medium bomber takes its first flight.
Spotlight...
A B-25C Mitchell, 1942
The B-25 Mitchell was an American twin-engined medium bomber manufactured by North American Aviation. It was used by many Allied air forces, in every theater of World War II, as well as many other air forces after the war ended, and saw service across four decades.
It was originally intended to be an attack bomber for export to the UK and France, both of which had a pressing requirement for such aircraft in the early stages of WWII.
The B-25 was named in honor of US military aviation pioneer General Billy Mitchell.
The majority of B-25s in American service were used in the Pacific, first gaining fame as the bomber used in the 18 Apr 42 Doolittle Raid, in which 16 B-25Bs led by Lt Col Jimmy Doolittle attacked mainland Japan, four months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
US Bomber Production in WWII
B-24
(H)
Liberator
18,256
B-17
(H)
Flying Fortress
12,692
B-25
(M)
Mitchell
9,816
A-20
(L)
Havoc
7,385
B-26
(M)
Marauder
5,157
B-29
(VH)
Superfortress
3,970
A-26
(L)
Invader
2,449
*
*Part of 9,831 Douglas bombers of similar design built
Atlantic: German sub U-48 sinks the Belgian passenger ship VILLE DE GAND off Ireland. Also off Ireland, U-101 sinks the British ship AMPLEFORTH and U-A sinks the British ship HUNGARIAN KELET.
ETO - UK: Day 41 of 114 of the Battle of Britain. The Luftwaffe changes its tactics, making single aircraft attacks on targets along the southern coast of England and Wales. Meanwhile, the British government declares the entire United Kingdom as a defense area.
MTO - Egypt: Mussolini orders Marshal Graziani to invade Egypt.
East Africa: Day 71 of 537 of Italy's East African campaign in the lands south of Egypt. In British Somaliland, Italian troops enter Berbera.
CBI - China: Day 1,140 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 279 of 381 of the Battle of South Guangxi.
1941 — , August 19
ETO - France: A replacement prosthetic leg for captured Group Captain Douglas Bader is dropped by a British bomber over Saint-Omer, Pas-de-Calais, with permission from Luftwaffe leaders. After the delivery, however, the British bomber continues on to bomb a power station in occupied France.
Spotlight...
Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader
Bader joined the RAF in 1928 and was commissioned in 1930. On 14 Dec 31, while visiting Reading Aero Club, he attempted some low-flying aerobatics at Woodley airfield, apparently on a dare. His aircraft crashed when the tip of the left wing touched the ground. Bader was rushed to a hospital where both his legs were amputated - one above and one below the knee.
That didn't stop him from flying, though, and becoming an Ace during WWII, credited with 20 aerial victories, four shared victories, six probables, one shared probable and 11 enemy aircraft damaged.
On 09 Aug 41, Bader was flying a Spitfire on an offensive patrol over the French coast when he was shot up and forced to bail out. However, his right prosthetic leg became trapped in the aircraft, and he escaped only when the leg's retaining straps snapped after he pulled the ripcord on his parachute.
German forces treated Bader with great respect. General Adolf Galland, a German flying ace, notified the British of his damaged leg and offered them safe passage to drop off a replacement. Hermann Goering himself gave the green light for the operation. The British responded on 19 August 1941 with the "Leg Operation" - an RAF bomber, accompanied by six Bristol Blenheims and a sizable fighter escort, was allowed to drop a new prosthetic leg by parachute to St Omer, a Luftwaffe base in occupied France.
The Germans were less impressed, however, when, task done, the bombers proceeded on to a bombing mission to Gosnay power station near Bethune. Never again would they be so accommodating.
Related dates...
14 Dec 31: Bader loses both legs in aerobatic mishap
09 Aug 41: Bails out over France, captured, one prosthetic leg damaged
19 Aug 41: Germans allow RAF to drop a replacement leg
Related WWII Store items...
Reach for the Sky: The Story of Douglas Bader, Legless Ace of the Battle of Britain
Atlantic: German submarines sink one Norwegian and three British ships in an Allied Convoy.
Russian Front - Finland: Day 52 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 50 of 140 of Operation ARCTIC FOX, a joint German-Finnish campaign against Soviet Northern Front defenses at Salla, Finland.
Russian Front - Finland: Day 59 of 164 of the Battle of Hanko.
Russian Front: Day 59 of 167 of Germany's Operation BARBAROSSA, the invasion of the USSR.
Russian Front - North: Army Group North continues their slow advance toward Leningrad. South of Lake Illmen, the Soviets begin outflanking the Germans but the German Panzers counter-attack and roll right through the Soviet positions.
Russian Front - Center: Day 3 of 23 of the Battle of Dukhovshina, Russia.
Russian Front - Center: Day 27 of 38 of the Battle of Gomel, Belarus.
Russian Front - South: German Army Group South continues heading toward Stalingrad.
Russian Front - South: Day 12 of 70 of the Siege of Odessa, Ukraine.
MTO - Libya: Day 132 of 256 of the Siege of Tobruk. The Australians besieged at Tobruk are relieved by Polish reinforcements.
East Africa: Day 436 of 537 of Italy's East African campaign in the lands south of Egypt.
CBI - China: Day 1,505 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
CBI - Japan: Joachim von Ribbentrop makes a request to Japan for them to attack the Soviet Union by invading Vladivostok in eastern Russia. Japan responds by saying that such a venture will require much time for deliberation and planning.
1942 — , August 19
ETO - France: Operation JUBILEE, the Allied invasion of Dieppe. The invasion quickly turns into a disaster as about two-thirds of the troops become casualties (mostly Canadians). Of the 6,100 Allied troops, 1,380 are killed, 1,600 wounded and 2,000 captured. With the US 1st Ranger Battalion, Cpl Franklin Koons becomes America's first infantryman to kill a German soldier in combat while Lt Edwin D Loustalot becomes the first American to be killed by a German.
ETO - France: US 8th Air Force B-17s bomb various airfields in effort to keep them from sending planes to the battle area at Dieppe.
Russian Front - North: Day 346 of 872 of the Siege of Leningrad.
Russian Front - North: Day 107 of 658 of the Siege of the Kholm Pocket.
Russian Front - Center: Day 21 of 64 of the 1st Battle of Rzhev-Sychevka, Russia.
Russian Front - South: Day 53 of 150 of Germany's CASE BLUE. German 6th Army begins attacking Stalingrad.
East Africa: Day 107 of 186 of the Battle of Madagascar.
CBI - China: Day 1,870 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 97 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 74 of 435 of the Battle of Kiska, Aleutian Islands.
PTO - Malaya: Day 182 of 357 of the Battle of Timor Island.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 30 of 119 of the Battle of the Kokoda Track. US 5th and 13th Air Forces provide air support.
PTO - Solomon Islands: Day 13 of 187 of the Battle of Guadalcanal. US 5th Army Air Force provides air support. The Japanese put even more reinforcements ashore while US Marine fighter planes arrive at Henderson Field.
1943 — , August 19
ETO - Netherlands: US 8th Air Force B-17s and B-26s bomb enemy airfields.
Russian Front - North: Day 711 of 872 of the Siege of Leningrad.
Russian Front - North: Day 472 of 658 of the Siege of the Kholm Pocket.
Russian Front - Center: Day 46 of 50 of the Battle of Kursk, Russia.
Russian Front - Center: Day 3 of 48 of the Battle of Bryansk, Russia.
Russian Front - Center: Day 13 of 57 of the 2nd Battle of Smolensk, Russia.
Russian Front - Center: Day 13 of 14 of the Battle of Spas-Demensk, Russia.
Russian Front - South: Day 38 of 48 of the USSR's Lvov-Sandomierz Offensive. The German defenses along the Mius River are breached near Stalino (now Donetsk), Ukraine.
MTO - Italy: The Allied Air Forces bomb targets at Foggia, Sapri and Salerno.
CBI - China: Day 2,235 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
PTO - Dutch East Indies: The USS FINBACK sinks one small patrol vessel east of Borneo.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 120 of 148 of the 2nd Battle of Lae-Salamaua. US 5th and 13th Air Forces provide air support.
PTO - Solomon Islands: Day 61 of 67 of the Battle of New Georgia. US 5th and 13th Air Forces provide air support.
PTO - Solomon Islands: Day 5 of 56 of the Battle of Vella Lavella. US 5th and 13th Air Forces provide air support.
1944 — , August 19
ETO - France: Various independent French Resistance groups rise up in Paris and attack German occupation troops, forcing them to request a truce to be allowed to withdraw peacefully.
[+] show related dates
Related dates...
21 Aug 41: First violent act of resistance against the Germans in Paris
22 Oct 41: Fifty hostages shot in reprisal for Resistance assassination
24 Oct 41: Jean Moulin meets in London with Charles de Gaulle
01 Jan 42: Jean Moulin organizes French Resistance groups
27 May 43: First unified meeting of French Resistance groups takes place
21 Jun 43: French Resistance leader Jean Moulin is arrested
08 Jul 43: French Resistance leader Jean Moulin dies from torture
19 Dec 43: French Resistance battles German troops in eastern France
10 May 44: French Resistance claims they have over 100,000 fighters
20 May 44: Eisenhower broadcasts to groups in preparation for invasion
01 Jun 44: BBC broadcasts 1st line of poem to signal invasion within 2 weeks
05 Jun 44: BBC broadcasts 2nd line of poem to signal invasion within 48 hours
19 Aug 44: French Resistance fighters rise up in Paris against Germans
29 Aug 44: Resistance continues to hunt Germans after Paris' liberation
ETO - UK: Day 68 of 86 of the V-1 "Buzz Bomb" offensive on Britain.
ETO - France: Day 26 of 29 of the Breakout Battle of Normandy. Allied Air Forces provide air support. The Falaise pocket is now reduced to just seven miles by six and the Germans troops have been ordered to break out during the night across the Dives. Elsewhere, Patton's tanks reach the Seine at Nantes and makes the first crossing 30 miles Northwest of Paris.
ETO - France: Day 19 of 284 of the Battle of Brittany.
ETO - France: Day 5 of 32 of Operation DRAGOON, the Allied invasion of southern France. Allied troops continue racing up the Rhone Valley. The US 7th Army crosses the Durance River and moves north toward Sisteron and Digne.
Germany: The Luftwaffe Chief of Staff, Colonel General Jesehonnek, shoots himself.
Russian Front - North: Day 10 of 28 of the Battle of Tartu in southeastern Estonia.
Russian Front - Center: Day 23 of 32 of the Battle of Kaunas, Lithuania.
Russian Front: Day 4 of 12 of the German Operation DOPPELKOPF in Lithuania. This was mounted to restore the connection between German Army Groups North and Centre.
Russian Front - Center: Soviet troops keep pouring into Poland.
Russian Front - South: Soviet troops are in position to invade Romania.
MTO - Romania: US 15th Air Force bombs oil refineries in the area of Ploesti for the fourth consecutive day.
MTO - Italy: Allied troops continue pressing the German line holding the Po Valley. Allied Air Forces provide air support.
MTO - France: US Air Forces bomb targets in southern France.
CBI - Burma: Day 141 of 302 of the Chinese Salween Offensive. US 10th and 14th Air Forces provide air support.
CBI - China: Day 2,601 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 125 of 259 of Japan's Operation ICHI-GO.
US 14th Air Force: B-24s bomb Puchi while B-25s hit Sienning and Hengyang.
PTO - Dutch New Guinea: Day 49 of 61 of the Battle of Noemfoor. Although the island has been declared secured, bitter fighting from Japanese continues.
PTO - Mariana Islands: US planes hits targets on Anatahan Island.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 249 of 597 of the Battle of New Britain. US 13th Air Force provides air support.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 120 of 481 of the Battle of Western New Guinea. 5th Air Force provides air support.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 67 of 80 of the Battle of Lone Tree Hill.
PTO - New Guinea: Day 41 of 47 of the Battle of Driniumor River.
PTO - Solomon Islands: Day 293 of 295 of the Battle of the Bougainville Islands. US 13th Air Force provides air support.
1945 — , August 19
Burma: The Communists split away from the AFO (Anti-Fascist Organization), leaving Aung San's AFPFL (Anti-Fascist Peoples Freedom League) to lead the campaign for independence.
China: The Japanese forces in South China surrender to the Chinese in Canton.
Japan: Japanese troops are told by their government that surrendering under the terms of a ceasefire will not be considered a loss of honor under the Bushido code which demands they fight to the death. As a result thousands begin laying down their arms.
Java: Japanese troops on Java receive the cease-fire order.
Philippines: Japanese surrender envoys arrive in Manila for a discussion with MacArthur and his staff.
CBI - China: Day 2,966 of 2,987 of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.
Day 11 of 25 of the Soviet Invasion of Manchuria. The Russian Far Eastern Army captures Harbin and Mukden in Manchuria.
Day-By-Day listings for August 19 were last modified on Sunday, January 31, 2016
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