World at War 1939-1940 Group Build

Modeling Subjects Group Builds
101

tight you are jack. i was sure i read they were in f inland but was mistaken. all of them were assigned to the 67th and 68th tank regiments (34th TD, VIII Mechanized Corps) in the Kiev district. so i was mistaken about them being north. a good book on the opening battles there is THE BLOODY TRIANGLE by a Russian. lots of unit information. almost all the T-35s were lost to mechanical failure or lack of fuel.

and to think i almost swore off tracks (he says having picked up a couple of ROK modern ones)

as for number sequence the T-34 came after the T-35 for whatever illogic is still in use in militaries today, ie US M-26, 46, 47, 48, 60, M-1 sequence of tanks. or M-3 STUART, M-3 LEE, M-3 halftrack.

102

Check, I was always under the impression that the numbers in Soviet/Russian tank designations was in reference to a year, whether it be the year it entered service or its design began or something similar. But after looking into it further, I am not sure this is the case. The case, the T-35 for example began production in 1933, but it did enter service in 1935. But the T-26 seems to have began production and entered service in 1931. So it all seems rather random and the T-34 is certainly out of sequence.

103

Well, thanks for the information, guys. Guess it’s one of those things that defy reason and logic.

104

Hi Checkmate.

I’d like to join in with a build of Tamiya’s ancient 1/35 Sdkfz. 232.

Thanks,

Rob

105

Glad to have you with us, Rob. I’ve updated the participant list to include you and the 232.

106

The News for 28 August, 1939—Monday

General Bernard L. Montgomery is named commander of the British 3rd (“Iron”) Infantry Division

In the Netherlands, the Dutch army is mobilized

Sammy Fain and Jack Yellen’s musical “George White’s Scandals of 1939” opens on Broadway; the “Scandals” were originally a series of revues similar to Ziegfeld Follies and ran from 1919 to 1939; over the years, the “Scandals” featured such notable performers (before they were notable) as W.C. Fields, the Three Stooges, Ray Bolger, Ethel Merman, Ann Miller, Bert Lahr and Rudy Vallee.

Great Britain urges a truce and negotiations to settle the Polish crisis; it also issues a warning to Germany against aggression in Poland; Britain offers to mediate between Poland and German, but only on terms of complete equality between the two parties, and an international guarantee of the outcome

The price of gold reaches 8 GBP sterling per ounce

Prime Minister Chamberlain meets with the King George VI

HM’s government recalls shipping from the Baltic and the Mediterranean

The Nazi government introduces emergency rationing

The Panzerschiffe Deutschland leaves port to prepare for raiding in the event of war

Military censorship of the German press is imposed

Mauthausen concentration camp marks its first year of operation in Austria (it opened on 28 August, 1938)

The Polish army is mobilized; Polish foreign minister Josef Beck agrees to the principle of negotiations with German, but indicates that Polish mobilization will continue

At Shibe Park, the Chicago Cubs defeat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5 to 3

At Briggs Stadium, the NY Yankees drub the Detroit Tigers, 18-2, including two homeruns by Joe DiMaggio

In her newspaper column, “My Day,” Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt reports on an excursion she took on a seaplane; she writes: “There are comparatively few seaplanes in this country. Yet for commuting in and out of the city. and for flying over rivers and lakes, there is no pleasanter method of travel. These are little planes which hold four people comfortably and the cost of operation is only two cents a mile, cheaper than an automobile. The initial cost of buying a plane is high, but with good care and an average amount of use, a plane should last five or six years.”

In his diary, George Orwell writes: ‘Germany & Poland now more or less fully mobilized. France has called up several more classes of reservists & is said to have 4,000,000 men under arms. No more reservists yet called up in Britain. Admiralty has taken over control of all shipping. Sale of foreign shares is being controlled by gov.t. Main buildings in London being sandbagged. Practice evacuation of children in evacuation areas today. Little or no excitement in London. For the last day or two it is possible to overhear people in the street discussing the situation, but only in terms of “is there going to be war?”‘

Edward Patten is born; he will grow up to become one of the “Pips” who sings with Gladys Knight

There are three days of peace remaining.

107

The News for 29 August, 1939—Tuesday

Adolf Hitler responds to a 28 August note from the British government; he insists that Germany has certain non-negotiable demands against Poland; he refuses to take part in any negotiations until German demands are met; he asks for a Polish representative to come to Berlin within 24 hours

German troops enter Slovakia on Poland’s southern border

German Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop rejects the idea of a peace conference

Switzerland orders full mobilization of its border forces

UK Prime Minister Chamberlain speaks in the House of Commons; he says: ‘The catastrophe is not yet upon us, but I cannot say that the danger of it has in any way receded.’

Recruiting begins in Belfast for the 200th General Purpose National Defense Company, a home service unit

Chaim Weizmann informs England that Palestine Jews will fight in WW II

At Briggs Stadium, the NY Yankees lose to the Detroit Tigers, 6-7

The Boston Red Sox defeat the Cleveland Indians, 7-4

Joel T. Schumacher is born in the US; he will direct the films “The Incredible Shrinking Woman,” “St. Elmo’s Fire,” “The Lost Boys,” “Batman Forever,” and “The Phantom of the Opera,” among others

The cover of Look magazine features a photo of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor

Oil is discovered in the state of Mississippi in the US; the first oil well in the state is located near Tinsley, in Yazoo County

In her newspaper column, “My Day,” Eleanor Roosevelt reports: “I have just been sent a book: “Glamour And How To Achieve It” by Sali Löbel, which purports to tell you how to be glamourous and make your home so. I am sure it is a very important book, but I haven’t had time to go through much of it. I did, however, discover that one of the things one must not do is to lie in bed in the morning after waking up. If you like to daydream, you should do so in your bath, and you should take that a half hour before eating or two hours after eating. Of course, you should do many exercises and you should eat with common sense. By the time I have remembered everything in the book, I think I shall acquire all the lines it tells you must be kept from furrowing your brow.”

There are two days of peace remaining

108

The News for 30 August, 1939—Wednesday

In Britain, military guards are posted at all railway stations; regulations forbidding the publication of specific aspects of news are dispatched to British newspapers

The last pre-war first-class cricket games begin in Britain; Lancashire plays Surrey at Old Trafford; the Oval has been designated as a potential prisoner of war camp for expected German paratroops

The British Foreign Office informs Berlin: “Germany must exercise complete restraint if Poland were to do so as well.”

RMS Queen Mary sails for New York City from Southampton, her last commercial voyage before war

France evacuates 16,000 children from Paris

The German government prepares a list of demands in sixteen points; they include annexation of the city of Danzig by Germany; German access across the Danzig corridor; a plebiscite in the Danzig corridor after one year; and an exchange of German and Polish populations; the demands will not be presented to Poland’s ambassador until 1 September

Fuehrer Directive #1 for the Conduct of the War states in part: “ (i) The Führer has concluded that all possibilities of peacefully resolving the crisis on Germany’s eastern frontier have been exhausted and the intolerable situation requires a forceful solution; (ii) The attack on Poland is to be conducted in accordance with the prepared plan ‘Case White’, and is set to begin on 1st September1939.”

Hermann Goering is appointed Reich Council Chairman for National Defense

Switzerland’s Federal Assembly elects Henri Guisan to the rank of “general”; the custom of the Swiss Army is to elect a general only if neutrality is threatened; Guisan is only the fourth general in Swiss history

Poland continues mobilization; all men up to age 40 are summoned to report for enlistment; Poland sends her four destroyers and one submarine to the UK; four other submarines are dispatched to positions in the western Baltic Sea

New Zealand mobilizes the Regular Force and the Special Reserve and mans her coastal defenses

At Cleveland Stadium, the New York Yankees are beat by the home-town Indians, 4-3

The Detroit Tigers beat the Boston Red Sox, 7-6

In her column, “My Day,” Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt writes: “And still we wait from day to day hoping and praying for peace. I feel that every day that bombs do not actually burst and guns go off, we have gained an advantage. It seems to me a little difficult to negotiate any question in an atmosphere of mobilization, and Europe has certainly become, according to the newspapers, an armed camp. One trembles to think of the number of human beings who stand opposite each other armed to the teeth, and of what a stray quarrel or a careless shot from any of them might bring about.

“Everyone’s ear is glued to the radio and it is interesting to hear how they react to its news. There is one gentleman broadcasting from Germany, a representative of one of the broadcasting companies, who seems to find it a little difficult to be objective about the situation. Perhaps one could not be, and speak from Germany.

“I feel sorry for the German people, waiting for hours while their fate is being decided upon by one man. They are no more anxious for war, I am sure, than the people of Poland, who must also wait anxiously to hear whether their leader may negotiate or whether they must fight.

“The young lady in the beauty parlor where I had my hair done this morning remarked that it did seem as though just because nobody ever won a war, everyone always wanted to go back to war in the hope that the next time they might win. Not very logical, but I’m not sure she isn’t right. It seems to be about the way we human beings reason.”

The sixth NFL All-Star Game is played in Chicago; NY Giants win over the All-Stars, 9-0

General Reijnders is appointed supreme commander of the Dutch Army

Isoroku Yamamoto is appointed supreme commander of the Imperial Japanese fleet

Atley Donald of the New York Yankees pitches a baseball at a record-setting 94.7 mph (152 kph)

In the state of South Dakota, farm wife Harriet Elizabeth Whiting Whitcher writes in her diary:

“1939 Aug. 30th Saturday [note by cmk02: Mrs. Whitcher had her days mixed up; 30 August, 1939 was indeed a Wednesday]

Bright and North-East breeze cool. I got meals, laid down in p.m. and played solitaire, also baked bread and a cake in eve. Will and Narvin chored, went horse-back to Winter pasture where they brought in 143 cows and over a hundred calves and 5 bulls, there was one bull here and 8 cows and they branded 10 calves, this makes 135 head calves, 3 being mine H-W brand, also 4 of the cows and 1 yearling Heifer in Big Pasture. After branding they took the cattle to Big Pasture and we had to eat by Lamp light again. Ben Clausen, who the last 2 days has been moving hay on Wagner land, stopped to see if he can use sweep and get a loaf [of] bread but bread not baked yet.

There are 30 head of Steers and Heifers in Big Pasture, so Men left them there, these were late calves last year.”

Elizabeth Ashley (actress) is born in Ocala, Florida; raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, she is the future wife of James Farentino (1962-1965) and George Peppard (1966-1972); among her performing credits are: “The DuPont Show of the Month (1960),” “Ben Casey (1962),” “Route 66 (1963),” “Mission: Impossible (1971-73),” “In the Heat of the Night (1994),” “Treme (2010-2013),” the Broadway presentation of “Barefoot in the Park (1963-67)”

There is one day of peace remaining.

109

The News from 31 August, 1939—Thursday

At 0030 hours, the Reich Chancellery issues the code word to carry out “Fall Weiss,” the assault on Poland

This will be the last day of 1st-class cricket in Britain for the next six years

General George C. Marshall takes the oath as the US Army Chief of Staff

The Wound Badge for the Wehrmach, SS, Kriegsmarine and Luftwaff is established in Germany

[from The Globe and Mail, Toronto, Friday September 1, 1939, reporting events of 31 August]

“Torn from Speeding Plane by Wind Young Flier Makes Impromptu Drop

Winnipeg Aug 31 (CP) - Death comes close to Air-Gunner Tommy Perley-Martin, 18 year-old member
of the Royal Canadian Air Force yesterday when he was torn from the cockpit of his plane by a sudden gust of wind more than 2,000 feet above the ground.

“I had been doing some map reading” said Tommy “Suddenly a gust of wind caught me and tore me right out of the cockpit”. Perley-Martin remembered to pull the ripcord of his parachute while hurtling earthward
during his impromtu flight.

When he landed in a field on the outskirts of Winnipeg, he waved to Flight Lieutenant W. Hanna pilot of the two-seater plane to let him know he was safe.

The Avro biplane from which Perley-Martin was blown is fitted with a special open cockpit without windsheild. It is used for the purpose of taking observations.

“It was smooth flying with few air bumps” said Perley-Martin when describing his 2,000 feet drop. “I landed safely. That’s all.”

Perley-Martin has been flying for three years and has been in the air force for the past two years. he is the son of H. Perley-Martin of Winipeg.”

At 12:30 p.m., Adolf Hitler orders the SS to initiate a provocation against Poland; German troops will stage a faked “Polish” attack on the radio station in Gleiwitz; SS Sturmbannführer Alfred Helmut Naujocks receives the code words ‘Grandmama dead,’ thus ending his 14 day wait at the German radio station at Gleiwitz. He and Gestapo head Heinrich Mueller are to carry out the mock attack. The canned goods are ready; a dozen ‘condemned criminals’ dressed in Polish military uniform are administered with fatal injections and then shot.

In London, children are evacuated from the capital

The Royal Navy is mobilized and put on war readiness; the British Army and RAF reserves are called up

A railway bridge over the River Meuse near Liège in Belgium (which had been prepared for demolition in the event of war) is struck by lightning just as the Köln express and a local train are crossing. The lightning ignites the demolition charges and destroys the bridge. Both engine crews and 6 soldiers travelling as passengers are killed; two other bridges nearby are also brought down.

Large crowds in Danzig turn out to view and admire the visiting German battleship Schleswig-Holstein

Three Polish destroyers leave the Baltic Sea and head toward Great Britain

All Japanese forces are cleared from the Mongolian People’s Republic; Soviet losses in the conflict total 10,000 killed and wounded; Japanese casualties in killed and wounded are estimated to be between 52,000 and 55,000

The Supreme Soviet ratifies the German-Soviet non-aggression pact

Count Ciano informs Lord Halifax that Italy will not fight either Britain or France; he informs Lord Halifax that Italy can intervene with Germany only if Mussolini brings Hitler a “fat prize”—the city of Danzig; the central telephone office in London informs Ciano that London has cut its communications with Italy

Royal Canadian Navy destroyers HMCS Fraser and St. Laurent leave Vancouver, British Columbia; they are headed to the north Atlantic Ocean to take up war stations

At 9:00 p.m., German radio stations interrupt normal programming to broadcast Hitler’s sixteen point list of demands for Poland

The 7th Cavalry Brigade, Mechanized parades in New York City to a camp at the World’s Fair; the only armored unit in the US Army, its 110 tanks and armored cars comprise virtually the total armored strength of the US military

Polish ambassador Josef Lipski informs von Ribbentrop that while the Warsaw government is considering positively entering direct negotiations with Germany, he has no authority himself to negotiate; Ribbentrop sends him packing; back at the Polish embassy, Lipski finds that communications with Warsaw have been disabled

No days of peace remain.

110

Foreboding.

111

The News from 1 September, 1939—Friday

At 4:45 am (Central European Time), the German battleship Schleswig-Holstein slips her moorings from a wharf in Danzig harbor; she drifts to the center of the channel and opens fire on Westerplatte, a Polish-held fortress at the mouth of the port

At the same time, on land, troops of the German Wehrmacht begin crossing the border into Poland; over 1.7 million troops move in, from East Prussia, Silesia and Slovakia; panzer divisions, supported by the Luftwaffe, make deep incursions into Poland

Head of the National Socialists in Danzig, Albert Forster, announces the reunion of Danzig with Germany

Headllines from–

The New York Times: GERMAN ARMY ATTACKS POLAND; CITIES BOMBED, PORTS BLOCKADED; DANZIG IS ACCEPTED INTO REICH

Evening Standard: GERMANS INVADE AND BOMB POLAND; BRITAIN MOBILIZES

Amarillo (Texas) Daily News: WAR

Grou****p Build

Although the Germans waited until 4:45 a.m., you can begin building at your local time, at the stroke of midnight on 1 September, 2014. Personally, I’m going to wait till daylight.

112

And the lamps begin to go out again all over Europe…

113

I agree. There must have been a tension around the world that you could almost feel. And still, people carried on with their normal lives–milked the cows; listened to baseball games; attended movies and Broadway plays.

And thanks, Gary, for posting the original NY Times front page.

114

Here’s the box for my build. It’s probably fitting that RPM is a Polish company.

And the decal sheet. There are several options, so I’m not sure which one I’ll do.

I like the one on the box, though.

115

Man that was chilling… like watching hell’s gates open in slow motion!

I definitely wish to participate, please count me in with a PZL-24F/G in 1/48 (kit from MIRAGE).

Markings will be of the Royal Greek Airforce, fighting after the Italian assault of October 28th 1940.

116

Welcome to the group build, Zvezda! Chilling, is right.

I’ve updated the front page. You’ve chosen an interesting and out of the ordinary subject.

117

I’d like to join with this that I picked up today. I looked through my stash and have nothing from the early war. I do have a few Accurate Miniature allison engine mustangs but I think those are later than 40 but I can’t tell because the it doesn’t say in the markings.

www.tamiyausa.com/…/german-panzer-ii-a-b-c-32570

118

Welcome to the GB, psycho. Good to see you again. I’ve updated the front page.

I don’t know about the Mustang, either, but the Panzer II is right on target.

Looks like a great kit. Have you decided which letter of the alphabet you’ll be going with–A, B or C?

119

I haven’t looked at it too much. Should be a easy build though. Small tank. Might start the hull tonight.

120

Reading the website you referenced, it said there wasn’t much visual difference between them; if I read it right, at least between the B and C.