War Warnings (2)

SBD Douglas Dauntless, 1940

 

27 November, 1941 – Cordell Hull tells Stanley Hornbeck (Far Eastern adviser) that he has washed his hands of the affair and it is now “in the hands of the Army and Navy.”  An intelligence message is sent out to all commands: “IF HOSTILITIES CANNOT – repeat – CANNOT BE AVOIDED THE UNITED STATES DESIRES JAPAN COMMIT THE FIRST ACT.”  Although, Hawaii received the message that indicated Japan’s strike was expected to hit..”PHILIPPINES, THAILAND OR KRA PENINSULA OR BORNEO.”

28 November – FDR tried to stall negotiations while the Far East prepared for attacks.  A message was sent to all military commanders to prepare for war – every man to be told to remain alert and vigilant at their battle stations.

30 November – Churchill cabled Roosevelt that he should warn Japan that the United States would declare war in the event of any further aggression, including British colonies.

1 December – FDR agreed to Churchill’s cable and told Lord Halifax that any attack on British or Dutch possessions, “we shall be all be in this together.”  The Japanese Emperor did not dissent to Operation Z, so the military sent out the code signal Hinode Yamagata (Malaya and Philippine attack on scheduled date) for the Southern Army and the Pearl Harbor Strike Force received the code – Nitaka Yama Nobore (Climb Mount Nitaka).

2 December – Admiral Kimmel in Hawaii expressed concern over over the lack of intelligence on the location of the Japanese Combined Fleet.  (In Holland, the Naval center had the Pacific Strike Force on their maps and the information was given to D.C.)

Indian Commonwealth troops arrive at Singapore, Nov.’41

3 December – the HMS “Prince of Wales” docked at Changi Naval Base and reported a ‘powerful naval force’ was at Malaya.  Adm. Kimmel received “highly reliable information” from Naval Intelligence that failed to include the 2 decoded Japanese messages that clearly showed their interest in the Hawaiian Islands.

4 December – the US Naval Governor on Guam was ordered to destroy all classified material.  The Cheltenham Naval listening post in Maryland heard the Japanese message, EAST WIND RAIN, and passed it on to Commander Safford.  No action was taken and all copied of the message somehow disappeared.  The Japanese Strike Force, due north of Midway, refueled.

5 December – the carrier “Lexington” left Hawaii to ferry aircraft to Midway.

 

 

 

6 December – south of Cape Cambodia, 19 Japanese transports escorted by cruisers and destroyers was reported by a Royal Australian Air Force Hudson pilot before he was shot down.  London put the entire Far East Command on alert.   On Formosa, 27 transports filled with the 48th Division of the Imperial Army set sail for the Philippines as 400 pilots of the Imperial Navy’s 11th Air Fleet received final briefings for their bombing runs on the American B-17s at Luzon.  Messages between Consul Kita and Tokyo were being ignored as insignificant and would not be translated by the US until Monday (8 Dec.).  2130 hours –  FDR was handed the message that stated Japan rejected the US 10-point proposal and says outright, “This means war,” but he did NOT wish to alert or wake Adm. Stark or Gen. Marshall.

 

Member of the Japanese military were told that they were embarking on a great crusade to be free, “a hundred million Asians tyrannized by 3 hundred thousand whites.”  Japanese civilians slept, unaware of the plans of their 169 ships and over 2,000 aircraft ready to set the Pacific sky ablaze.

 

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Political cartoon of the times_____

the political side of Dr. Seuss

Click on images to enlarge.

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Farewell Salutes – 

Ivan Billcliff – Hamilton, NZ ; RNZ Air Force # 411147, Cpl, WWII

Gene Cross – Belle Glade, FL; Civilian employee of Fort Benning, GA, WWII

William Finlayson – British Columbia, Can; RC Air Force, WWII, tail gunner

Cal Hale – Glendale, AZ; US Army,Sgt. Major, 3 tours Vietnam, Bronze Star

David Johnson – Tolland, CA; USMC, Cpl, Vietnam, 3 Purple Hearts

Jim McDonald – Kennesaw, GA; US Army, WWII

Charles Pernice, Orange, CA; US Army Air Corps, WWII & Korea, Flt. engineer & gunner on B-29s

Thomas Richards – Virginia Bch, VA; USMC, Lt.Col., Vietnam

Donald Wolf – Wood River, IL; US Navy, WWII

Andrew Zamora – Seal Beach, CA; US Army, Korea, 187th RCT

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