This date in history

[Catfish]

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

1941 - USS Reuben James torpedoed by Germans, even though US is not in war..

"Even though the US is not in war.."
What was the Reuben James doing there, at that time?

The US Navy had already received the "shoot-on-sight order" against the axis powers in 1940.
Evidentially, US ships had already depth-charged german U-boats. "US-american neutrality patrol" oh well.
Apart from expanding the US territorial waters to the mid-atlantic (30° west) just so, in early 1941.

The Reuben James tried to shield a british freighter, and ran into the torpedo. While the Reuben James was sinking, other destroyers threw depth charges among the swimming survivors, all in plain sight of Kaleun Erich Topp.

The "USS Reuben James torpedoed by Germans, even though US is not in war." without further comment is "a bit" one-sided .

[Jimbuna]

1850 - 1st Hawaiian fire engine.

1917 - [OS Oct 24] Bolshevik revolution begins with bombardmentt of the Winter Palace in Petrograd during the Russian October Revolution.

1918 - Republic of Poland proclaimed.

1925 - British secret agent Sidney Reilly ('Ace of Spies') is executed by the OGPU, the secret police of the Soviet Union.

1941 - Einsatz Gruppe kills 15,000 Jews of Rovno Ukraine.

1941 - Japanese fleet readies assault on Pearl Harbour.

1942 - Nazis kill 12,000 Jews in the Minsk ghetto.

1978 - Shah of Iran places Iran under military rule; general Gholan Reza Azhari forms government (I was in Iran a short while before).

[Aktungbby]

1632: Gustav II Adolf widely known as Gustavus Adolphus is killed in battle: <(enlarges) He is often regarded as one of the greatest military commanders of all time, with innovative use of combined arms. His innovative tactical integration of infantry, cavalry, logistics and particularly his use of artillery, earned him the title of the "Father of Modern Warfare". Future commanders who studied and admired Gustav II Adolf include Napoleon, Von Clausewitz and Patton. His advancements in military science made Sweden the dominant Baltic power for the next century. He is also the only Swedish monarch to be styled "the Great". He is officially, to this day, called Gustaf Adolf the Great. With a superb military machine with good weapons, excellent training, and effective field artillery, backed by a government which could provide necessary funds, Gustavus Adolphus was poised to make himself a major European leader, but he was killed at Lützen. Gustavus Adolphus was killed at the when, at a crucial point in the battle, he became separated from his troops while leading a reconnaissance party into of mist and gunpowder smoke... and a squadron of murderous Imperial Croatian cavalry!! the body of Gustav II Adolf was plundered of its clothes and gold jewellery and left on the battlefiled dressed only in his shirt and long stockings...Some days it's not good to be king. His statue at Gustavus Adophus College, St. Peter MN. I played sports there. They keep it simple in St Peter; there's no 'Great' on the plaque. His famous horse, Streiff , also wounded and found riderless, is on display to this day> <(enlarges)[wiki]FOOTNOTE: At this time, the Catholic Holy Roman Empire used the Gregorian calendar, but Protestant Sweden still used the Julian calendar. Hence the Battle of Lützen occurred on 16 November for the Catholics but on 6 November for the Swedes. In Sweden, the death of Gustavus Adolphus has a long tradition of being commemorated on 6 November, Gustavus Adolphus Day, despite the country's adoption of the Gregorian calendar in the 18th century. Since the Protestant Swedes won the battle, I elect to go with today's date

[Jimbuna]

1872 - Cargo ship Mary Celeste sails from Staten Island for Genoa; mysteriously found abandoned 4 weeks later.

1916 - Grand duke Nikolai Nikolayevich warns Tsar of uprising.

1917 - October Revolution (Oct 25 OS) in Russia, Lenin and the Bolsheviks seize power, capture the Winter Palace, overthrowing Provisional Government.

[Jimbuna]

1519 - 1st meeting of Moctezuma II & Hernán Cortés in Tenochtitlan, Mexico.

1917 - People's Commissars gives authority to Lenin, Trotsky & Stalin during October Revolution.

1923 - Hitler stages unsuccessful "Beer Hall Putsch" in Muenchen (Munich).

1942 - Hitler proclaims fall of Stalingrad from Munich beer hall.

1944 - 25,000 Hungarian Jews are loaned to Nazis for forced labour.

1974 - British Lord ('Lucky') Lucan disappears.

[Aktungbby]

1793: Executed: Madame Roland, born Marie-Jeanne Phlippon, together with her husband, the Interior Minister, a supporter of the French Revolution and influential member of the Girondist faction. She fell out of favor during the infamous Reign of terror and died on the ... Her last words enroute to the 'national razor': "Oh Liberty, what crimes are committed in thy name!" proof U can lose your head...but not your mind! [wiki] The moment is captured in Dickens Tale of Two Cities: " Arriving at the foot of the scaffold, she asked for pen and paper, “to write the strange thoughts that were rising in her”: a remarkable request; which was refused. Looking at the Statue of Liberty which stands there [the large terra-cotta statue set up in the Place de la Révolution where the statue of Louis XV had been torn down], she says bitterly: “O Liberty, what things are done in thy name!” For Lamarche’s sake [a man sent to the guillotine at the same time], she will die first; show him how easy it is to die: “Contrary to the order,” said Samson [the executioner]. – “Pshaw, you cannot refuse the last request of a Lady”; and Samson yielded...1793: The world's most visited museum is open to the public. During the French Revolution the Louvre was transformed into a public museum and the royal collections declared national property The public was given free access on three days per week, which was "perceived as a major accomplishment and was generally appreciated"

[Jimbuna]

1914 - Off Cocos Island, near Sumatra, the Australian cruiser 'Sydney' sinks German cruiser 'Emden', which has been attacking ships in the Pacific.

1923 - Beer Hall Putsc; Nazis fail to overthrow government, 16 die, Hitler flees.

1925 - German NSDAP (Nazi party) forms Schutzstaffel (SS).

1989 - East Berlin opens its borders.

[Jimbuna]

1911 - Chinese Imperial army recaptures Nanking (blood bath).

1918 - German Emperor Wilhelm II flees to Netherlands.

1918 - Western Union Cable Office in North Sydney, Nova Scotia receives a top-secret coded message from Europe stating on November 11, 1918 all fighting would cease on land, sea and in the air.

1944 - Ammunition ship USS Mount Hood (AE-11) exploded at Seeadler Harbour, Manus, Admiralty Islands.

1989 - Germans begin demolishing the Berlin Wall.

[Aktungbby]

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

1944 - Ammunition ship USS Mount Hood (AE-11) exploded at Seeadler Harbour, Manus, Admiralty Islands.

08:55am , 1944: the USS Mount Hood, the lead ship of her class of Ammunition Ships, exploded at this location while discharging ammunition. The Mount Hood was an ammunition ship assigned to the US Pacific Fleet. On 11 November 1944, the vessel was loading depth charges in Seeadler Harbor, Admiralty Islands, when something went terribly wrong. Witnesses reported seeing an explosion similar to that of a single bomb, followed moments later by the explosion of the entire ammunition load of the ship, some 3800 tons of ordnance. This release of explosive energy, equivalent a tactical nuclear weapon, produced one of the most spectacular conventional explosions ever witnessed.

The Mount Hood was little over 4 months old at the time of the accident, and had just completed her maiden voyage from North Carolina with a hold full of shells and explosives bound for the upcoming Phillipine Invasion. The detonation involved the ship's full load of 3,800 tons of explosives, carved a trench 1000 feet long, 200 feet wide, and 30 to 40 feet deep in the ocean floor and left no trace of the Mount Hood larger than a 16x10ft piece of hull plating. The entire 267-man crew of the Mount Hood (save 18 who had gone ashore moments before the explosion) were never seen again.

Following the explosion, Seeadler Harbor was bedlam. Nine medium landing craft and a pontoon barge which were moored alongside Mount Hood were also obliterated by the explosion, along with their crews. The repair ship USS Mindanao (ARG-3), moored broadside to the Mount Hood 300 yards away, was decimated by shrapnel from the explosion with 180 of her crew killed or wounded by the blast. 17 other ships of the US Navy were damaged by either the shock wave or the shrapnel from the blast, or both, and 22 small craft were put out of action or sunk from the damage they received.

Lacking survivor testimony and any major pieces of evidence that would point to a cause for the explosion, a US Naval Review Board was unable to ascertain why the Mount Hood and her crew suffered such a catastrophic end.[wiki] Not quite:

"Statement of Carl Hughes of Akron Ohio, dated 10-23-97...
[I was on the fantail of the liberty ship William McGuffey] "where we had a full view of the starboard side of the USS Mount Hood, from bow to stern. ...we saw a puff of smoke originating from the Hood's midship. the smoke was immediately followed by an explosion which sent smoke and flames out of the stack one hundred plus feet in the air. In a matter of seconds another explosion occurred. The latter explosion was very intense and took out in entirety the Mt. Hood. This second explosion caused the Mt. Hood to disappear among smoke and flying debris which had projected nearly seven thousand feet into the air. After the air had cleared somewhat and visibility returned, pieces of the Hood along with its crew were found on the deck of the McGuffey."
"Before the first puff of smoke was seen coming from the Hood's stack, I saw a two man submarine break the water's surface. First I saw the submarine's periscope rise from the water...I saw the conning tower of the...submarine rise from the water four to five feet in the air. From the submarine's view, it could see the whole port and had an especially keen view of the Mt. Hood's midship. It was at this time that the submarine fired a torpedo into the Mt. Hood's midship. Immediately after the Hood took the torpedo hit the first puff of smoke was released from the smoke stack. Next I observed the ...submarine come to a 45 degree angle to the McGuffey. The submarine then fired another torpedo, causing a second wake, this time in the direction of the McGuffey. The torpedo passed the McGuffey at seventy to eighty feet from the port side, coming to rest on a sandbar. The torpedo did not explode."

Footnote; Japanese records have since reflected: no midget subs were in the vicinity...a photo of the torpedo on the sandbar would have been useful.

"For some unknown reason, Mt. Hood had been anchored in the midst of the ships of the Seventh Fleet Service Force. Casualties to other vessels would have been minimized if the ammunition ship had been spotted at an isolated location a few miles down harbor, off the ammunition supply depot at Lugos, the customary anchorage for ships of this type. Somebody was at fault for designating an anchorage for Mount Hood so near to the other ships."

On November 10, 1944 I was checking 500 lb. bombs for leakage from the nose fuze area, since these were stored at the seashore and likely to leak or become unstable in the high tropical temperatures. A large ship was anchored in the harbor in front of where I was working on the beach. As I was on the beach doing my tasks I distinctly recall hearing a loud engine noise coming from the direction of the bay area. This caught my attention and I looked up and saw the silhouette of a twin engine Japanese "Betty" aircraft flying very low, just over the water, and heading directly for the freighter anchored in the bay. The sky was clear and nothing obstructed my view. I recall the day being bright with sunshine, as were most days on the island. As the plane got closer to the freighter, I clearly observed the Japanese symbol - the Rising Sun , painted on the plane. The Japanese Betty flew directly over the freighter and dropped two bombs - each a direct hit on the deck of the freighter. The Japanese airplane quickly departed and no return airfire or pursuit was followed by the navy. The ship instantly exploded into fireworks like the fourth of July. The Japanese plane disappeared and was totally obscured by the smoke and debris from the freighter.
I later learned that the freighter was the Mount Hood. Edward L. Ponichtera

There are persistent claims that either a lone aircraft or submarine was responsible for the disaster. This is more than just a point of honor: The families of Navy men killed in action are entitled to certain benefits denied the families of men who are merely killed in the line of duty. http://ussrainier.com/mthood.html The harbormaster was court martialed and sailors were forbidden to write letters home about the matter to prevent a 'propaganda victory' for the Japanese... Good 'sweep under the carpet' IMHO.

[Jimbuna]

1918 - Armistice signed by the Allies and Germany comes into effect, WW I hostilities end at 11.00 am.

1940 - Thousands of Paris students lay a wreath at the Grave of the Unknown Soldier.

1940 - British Fleet Air Arm attack destroys half of Italian fleet at Taranto.

1940 - Willys unveiled its General Purpose vehicle ("Jeep").

[Aktungbby]

1990: Stormie Dawn Jones (May 30, 1977 – November 11, 1990) was the world's first recipient of a successful simultaneous heart and liver organ; passed away at Pittsburg PA. age 13. Stormie had a condition which raised her blood cholesterol to 10 times normal levels. The condition, which had caused two heart attacks by age six. At the time of the unprecedented operation, she had already undergone double-bypass surgery, making her heart too weak to withstand a liver transplant. The significance of this was the much needed proof for the research hypothesis that the liver controls the cholesterol found in the human body and that the diseases that are a result of high cholesterol could be controlled. Her Dr.'s, Brown and Goldstein, won the Nobel Peace prize for medicine for their research with Stormie. Stormie was the "trial" subject for many of the current drugs taken by patients with high cholesterol and by transplant patients for the prevention of rejections. Her life and death were tracked around the world for the great medical significance and her enduring winning attitude. She lived a 'normal life for six years: "she was working on an autobiography tentatively titled "In the Darkness."
She said it was "about my life, my family, all the pet animals I've had" and about her lifelong fascination with frightening books, movies and television programs... I know and have met several folks with one or the other transplants and take my Cholesterol med...thankfully and realize: Don't sweat 'no shoes' when ya still got both feet!"

[Jimbuna]

1944 - RAF sinks German battleship "Tirpitz" at Tromso Fjord, Norway.

[Jimbuna]

1841 - James Braid first sees a demonstration of animal magnetism, which leads to his study of the subject he eventually calls hypnosis.

1851 - Telegraph connection between London-Paris linked.

1907 - French cyclist Paul Cornu flies 1st helicopter (twin rotor).

1918 - Russia cancels Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

[Oberon]

50 years ago today marked the first major battle between American and North Vietnamese land forces at Ia Drang.

[STEED]

14th Nov 1940

Coventry Blitz

14th Nov 2015

75th anniversary of Coventry blitz


The Germans used one of there secret weapons that made this raid a success for them, the beams guided their bombers right to the target.