1941 in Germany
Encyclopedia
National level
Head of State- Adolf HitlerAdolf HitlerAdolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
(the FührerFührerFührer , alternatively spelled Fuehrer in both English and German when the umlaut is not available, is a German title meaning leader or guide now most associated with Adolf Hitler, who modelled it on Benito Mussolini's title il Duce, as well as with Georg von Schönerer, whose followers also...
) (Nazi Party)
Chancellor
Chancellor of Germany
The Chancellor of Germany is, under the German 1949 constitution, the head of government of Germany...
- Adolf HitlerAdolf HitlerAdolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
(Nazi Party)
Events
- 3 January — A decree in Germany outlaws the use of BlackletterBlackletterBlackletter, also known as Gothic script, Gothic minuscule, or Textura, was a script used throughout Western Europe from approximately 1150 to well into the 17th century. It continued to be used for the German language until the 20th century. Fraktur is a notable script of this type, and sometimes...
Gothic typefaceTypefaceIn typography, a typeface is the artistic representation or interpretation of characters; it is the way the type looks. Each type is designed and there are thousands of different typefaces in existence, with new ones being developed constantly....
s in favour of Antiqua. - 3 February — WWII: The Nazis forcibly restore Pierre LavalPierre LavalPierre Laval was a French politician. He was four times President of the council of ministers of the Third Republic, twice consecutively. Following France's Armistice with Germany in 1940, he served twice in the Vichy Regime as head of government, signing orders permitting the deportation of...
to office in occupied Vichy FranceVichy FranceVichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
. - 12 February — WWII: Erwin RommelErwin RommelErwin Johannes Eugen Rommel , popularly known as the Desert Fox , was a German Field Marshal of World War II. He won the respect of both his own troops and the enemies he fought....
arrives in TripoliTripoliTripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...
. - 19 February - 22 February — WWII: Three Nights' BlitzSwansea BlitzThe Swansea Blitz was the heavy and sustained bombing of Swansea by the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany on 19–21 February 1941.Swansea was selected as a legitimate target due to its importance as a port and docks and the oil refinery just beyond and its destruction was key to Nazi German war efforts as...
over SwanseaSwanseaSwansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
, South WalesWalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
: Over these 3 nights of intensive bombing, which last a total of 13 hours and 48 minutes, Swansea's town centre is almost completely obliterated by the 896 high explosive bombs employed by the LuftwaffeLuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
. A total of 397 casualties and 230 deaths are reported. - 24 March — WWII: Rommel launches his first offensive in CyrenaicaCyrenaicaCyrenaica is the eastern coastal region of Libya.Also known as Pentapolis in antiquity, it was part of the Creta et Cyrenaica province during the Roman period, later divided in Libia Pentapolis and Libia Sicca...
. - 6 April — WWII: Germany invades YugoslaviaInvasion of YugoslaviaThe Invasion of Yugoslavia , also known as the April War , was the Axis Powers' attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II...
and GreeceBattle of GreeceThe Battle of Greece is the common name for the invasion and conquest of Greece by Nazi Germany in April 1941. Greece was supported by British Commonwealth forces, while the Germans' Axis allies Italy and Bulgaria played secondary roles...
. - 12 April — WWII: German troops enter BelgradeBelgradeBelgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
. - 27 April — WWII: German troops enter AthensAthensAthens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
. - 9 May — WWII: The German submarine U-110 is captured by the British Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
. On board is the latest Enigma cryptography machine, which Allied cryptographers later use to break coded German messages. - 10 May — WWII: The British House of CommonsBritish House of CommonsThe House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
is damaged by the LuftwaffeLuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
in an air raidAirstrikeAn air strike is an attack on a specific objective by military aircraft during an offensive mission. Air strikes are commonly delivered from aircraft such as fighters, bombers, ground attack aircraft, attack helicopters, and others...
. - 12 May — Konrad ZuseKonrad ZuseKonrad Zuse was a German civil engineer and computer pioneer. His greatest achievement was the world's first functional program-controlled Turing-complete computer, the Z3, which became operational in May 1941....
presents the Z3, the world's first working programmable, fully automatic computerComputerA computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
, in Berlin. - 20 May — WWII: The Battle of CreteBattle of CreteThe Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
begins as Germany launches an airborne invasion of CreteCreteCrete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
. - 24 May — WWII: In the North Atlantic, the German battleship BismarckGerman battleship BismarckBismarck was the first of two s built for the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. Named after Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, the primary force behind the German unification in 1871, the ship was laid down at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg in July 1936 and launched nearly three years later...
sinks battlecruiserCruiserA cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
HMS HoodHMS Hood (51)HMS Hood was the last battlecruiser built for the Royal Navy. One of four s ordered in mid-1916, her design—although drastically revised after the Battle of Jutland and improved while she was under construction—still had serious limitations. For this reason she was the only ship of her class to be...
, killing all but 3 crewmen aboard the pride of the Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
. - 26 May — WWII: In the North Atlantic, Fairey SwordfishFairey SwordfishThe Fairey Swordfish was a torpedo bomber built by the Fairey Aviation Company and used by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy during the Second World War...
aircraft from the carrier HMS Ark RoyalHMS Ark Royal (91)HMS Ark Royal was an aircraft carrier of the Royal Navy that served during the Second World War.Designed in 1934 to fit the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, Ark Royal was built by Cammell Laird and Company, Ltd. at Birkenhead, England, and completed in November 1938. Her design...
cripple the steering of BismarckGerman battleship BismarckBismarck was the first of two s built for the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. Named after Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, the primary force behind the German unification in 1871, the ship was laid down at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg in July 1936 and launched nearly three years later...
in an aerial torpedoAerial torpedoThe aerial torpedo, airborne torpedo or air-dropped torpedo is a naval weapon, the torpedo, designed to be dropped into water from an aircraft after which it propels itself to the target. First used in World War I, air-dropped torpedoes were used extensively in World War II, and remain in limited...
attack. - 27 May — WWII:BismarckGerman battleship BismarckBismarck was the first of two s built for the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. Named after Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, the primary force behind the German unification in 1871, the ship was laid down at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg in July 1936 and launched nearly three years later...
is sunk in the North Atlantic, killing 2,300. - 14 June — All German and Italian assets in the United States are frozen.
- 16 June — All German and Italian consulates in the United States are ordered closed and their staffs to leave the country by July 10.
- 22 June — WWII: Germany invades the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
under Operation BarbarossaOperation BarbarossaOperation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
. - 4 July — The Mass murder of Polish scientists and writersMassacre of Lwów professorsIn July 1941, 25 Polish academics from the city of Lwów, Poland ; now in Ukraine) were killed by Nazi German occupation forces along with their families and guests...
is committed by German troops in the captured Polish city of Lwów. - 5 July — WWII: German troops reach the Dnieper River.
- 7 July — WWII: German troops take over EstoniaEstoniaEstonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
from the SovietsSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. - 25 July — The Postal CodePostal codeA postal code is a series of letters and/or digits appended to a postal address for the purpose of sorting mail. Once postal codes were introduced, other applications became possible.In February 2005, 117 of the 190 member countries of the Universal Postal Union had postal code systems...
system was introduced for the first time in Germany. - 31 July — WWII – Holocaust: Under instructions from Adolf HitlerAdolf HitlerAdolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
, NaziNazismNazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
official Hermann GöringHermann GöringHermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
orders S.S.SchutzstaffelThe Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
General Reinhard HeydrichReinhard HeydrichReinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich , also known as The Hangman, was a high-ranking German Nazi official.He was SS-Obergruppenführer and General der Polizei, chief of the Reich Main Security Office and Stellvertretender Reichsprotektor of Bohemia and Moravia...
to "submit to me as soon as possible a general plan of the administrative material and financial measures necessary for carrying out the desired Final SolutionFinal SolutionThe Final Solution was Nazi Germany's plan and execution of the systematic genocide of European Jews during World War II, resulting in the most deadly phase of the Holocaust...
of the Jewish question." - 18 August — Adolf HitlerAdolf HitlerAdolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
orders a temporary halt to Nazi GermanyNazi GermanyNazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
's systematic euthanasiaEuthanasiaEuthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
of the mentally illMental illnessA mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
and handicappedDisabilityA disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...
due to protests. However, graduates of the T-4 Euthanasia Program are then transferred to concentration camps, where they continue in their trade. - 22 August — WWII: The German Occupation Authority in France announces that anyone found either working for or aiding the Free French will be sentenced to death.
- 24 August — WWII: A LuftwaffeLuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
bomb hits an EstoniaEstoniaEstonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n steamer with 3,500 SovietSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
-mobilized Estonian men on board, killing 598 of them. - 6 September — Holocaust: The requirement to wear the Star of DavidStar of DavidThe Star of David, known in Hebrew as the Shield of David or Magen David is a generally recognized symbol of Jewish identity and Judaism.Its shape is that of a hexagram, the compound of two equilateral triangles...
with the word "Jew" inscribed, is extended to all Jews over the age of 6 in German-occupied areas. - 8 September — WWII – The Siege of LeningradSiege of LeningradThe Siege of Leningrad, also known as the Leningrad Blockade was a prolonged military operation resulting from the failure of the German Army Group North to capture Leningrad, now known as Saint Petersburg, in the Eastern Front theatre of World War II. It started on 8 September 1941, when the last...
begins: German forces begin a siege against the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
's second-largest city, LeningradSaint PetersburgSaint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
. - 15 September — The Estonian Self-AdministrationEstonian Self-AdministrationEstonian Self-Administration , also known as the Directorate, was the puppet government set up in Estonia during occupation of Estonia by Nazi Germany...
, headed by Hjalmar MäeHjalmar MäeHjalmar-Johannes Mäe was an Estonian politician....
, is appointed by the German military administration. - 22 September — The town of ReshetylivkaReshetylivkaThe population of Reshetylivka as of 2006 was 9,336. The 2007 population is estimated at 9,297.The annual growth rate is -0.28.- Government :The Resehtylivka city council consists of 30 members elected by citizens of Reshetylivka...
in the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
is occupied by German forces. - 29 September - 30 September — Holocaust: Babi Yar massacre – German troops, assisted by Ukrainian police and local collaborators, killed 33,771 JewsHistory of the Jews in Russia and the Soviet UnionThe vast territories of the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest populations of Jews in the diaspora. Within these territories the Jewish community flourished and developed many of modern Judaism's most distinctive theological and cultural traditions, while also facing periods of...
of KievKievKiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, UkraineUkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. - 1 October — Holocaust: the Nazi GermanNazi GermanyNazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
extermination camp Konzentrationslager Lublin (commonly known as "Majdanek") opens in occupied Poland on the outskirts of the town LublinLublinLublin is the ninth largest city in Poland. It is the capital of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 350,392 . Lublin is also the largest Polish city east of the Vistula river...
. Between October 1941 and July 1944 at least 200,000 people were killed in the camp. - 2 October — WWII: Operation Typhoon begins as Germany launches an all-out offensive against Moscow.
- 8 October — WWII: In their invasion of the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Germany reaches the Sea of AzovSea of AzovThe Sea of Azov , known in Classical Antiquity as Lake Maeotis, is a sea on the south of Eastern Europe. It is linked by the narrow Strait of Kerch to the Black Sea to the south and is bounded on the north by Ukraine mainland, on the east by Russia, and on the west by the Ukraine's Crimean...
with the capture of MariupolMariupolMariupol , formerly known as Zhdanov , is a port city in southeastern Ukraine. It is located on the coast of the Azov Sea, at the mouth of the Kalmius River. Mariupol is the largest city in Priazovye - a geographical region around Azov Sea, divided by Russia and Ukraine - and is also a popular sea...
. - 21October — WWII: The Germans rampage in YugoslaviaYugoslaviaYugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, killing thousands of civilians. - 31 October — : The destroyer USS Reuben JamesUSS Reuben James (DD-245)USS Reuben James —a post-World War I four-funnel Clemson-class destroyer—was the first United States Navy ship sunk by hostile action in World War II and the first named for Boatswain's Mate Reuben James , who distinguished himself fighting in the Barbary Wars.Reuben James was laid down on 2 April...
is torpedoed by a German U-boatU-boatU-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
near IcelandIcelandIceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, killing more than 100 United States NavyUnited States NavyThe United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
sailors. - 7 November — WWII: The Soviet hospital Ship Armenia is sunk by German planes while evacuating refugees, wounded military and the staff of several Crimean hospitals. It is estimated that over 5,000 people die in the sinking.
- 12 November — WWII: As Battle of MoscowBattle of MoscowThe Battle of Moscow is the name given by Soviet historians to two periods of strategically significant fighting on a sector of the Eastern Front during World War II. It took place between October 1941 and January 1942. The Soviet defensive effort frustrated Hitler's attack on Moscow, capital of...
begins, temperatures around Moscow drop to -12 °C, and the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
launches ski troopsSki warfareSki warfare, the use of ski-equipped troops in war, is first recorded by the Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus in the 13th century. The speed and distance that ski troops are able to cover is comparable to that of light cavalry.-History:...
for the first time against the freezing German forces near the city. - 13 November — WWII: The aircraft carrierAircraft carrierAn aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
HMS Ark RoyalHMS Ark Royal (91)HMS Ark Royal was an aircraft carrier of the Royal Navy that served during the Second World War.Designed in 1934 to fit the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, Ark Royal was built by Cammell Laird and Company, Ltd. at Birkenhead, England, and completed in November 1938. Her design...
is hit by German U-boatU-boatU-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
U-81. the carrier capsized and sunk a day later. - 18 November — WWII: Operation CrusaderOperation CrusaderOperation Crusader was a military operation by the British Eighth Army between 18 November–30 December 1941. The operation successfully relieved the 1941 Siege of Tobruk....
in North Africa begins - 19 November — WWII: Both commerce raidingCommerce raidingCommerce raiding or guerre de course is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt the logistics of an enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than engaging the combatants themselves or enforcing a blockade against them.Commerce raiding was heavily criticised by...
hilfskreuzer KormoranGerman auxiliary cruiser KormoranThe German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran was a Kriegsmarine merchant raider of World War II. Originally the merchant vessel Steiermark, the ship was acquired by the Kriegsmarine following the outbreak of war for conversion into a raider...
and Australian cruiser HMAS SydneyHMAS Sydney (1934)HMAS Sydney , named for the Australian city of Sydney, was one of three Modified Leander class light cruisers operated by the Royal Australian Navy...
sink following a battle off the coast of Western Australia. There are no survivors from the 645 Australian sailors aboard Sydney. - 22 November — WWII: HMS DevonshireHMS Devonshire (39)HMS Devonshire was a County-class heavy cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was part of the London subgroup of the County class, and saw service in the Second World War.-Early career:...
sinks commerce raidingCommerce raidingCommerce raiding or guerre de course is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt the logistics of an enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than engaging the combatants themselves or enforcing a blockade against them.Commerce raiding was heavily criticised by...
hilfskreuzer AtlantisGerman auxiliary cruiser AtlantisThe German auxiliary cruiser Atlantis , known to the Kriegsmarine as Schiff 16 and to the Royal Navy as Raider-C, was a converted German Hilfskreuzer of the Kriegsmarine, which, during World War II, travelled more than in 602 days, and sank or captured 22 ships totaling...
, ending the longest warship cruise of the war. (622 days without in-port replenishment or repair) - 27 November — WWII: Germans reach their closest approach to Moscow. They are subsequently frozen by cold weather and attacks by the Soviets.
- 6 December — WWII: Soviet counterattacks begin against German troops encircling Moscow. WehrmachtWehrmachtThe Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
is subsequently pushed back over. - 8 December — Holocaust: the Nazi GermanNazi GermanyNazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
extermination camp ChelmnoChelmno extermination campChełmno extermination camp, also known as the Kulmhof concentration camp, was a Nazi German extermination camp that was situated 50 kilometres from Łódź, near a small village called Chełmno nad Nerem . After annexation by Germany Kulmhof was included into Reichsgau Wartheland in 1939...
opens in occupied Poland near a small village called Chełmno nad Nerem. Between December 1941-April 1943 and June 1944-January 1945 at least 153,000 people were killed in the camp. - 11 December — WWII: Germany and Italy declare war on the United States.
- 19 December — WWII: Hitler becomes Supreme Commander-in-ChiefCommander-in-ChiefA commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
of the German ArmyGerman ArmyThe German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
.
Births
- 7 January — Manfred SchellscheidtManfred SchellscheidtManfred "Manny" Schellscheidt is a German-American soccer coach and former player. Born in Solingen in the Prussian Rhine Province, he emigrated to the United States in the 1970s. He spent three seasons in the North American Soccer League and one in the American Soccer League. He won two U.S...
, German-born American soccer coach - 25 January — Theo BergerTheo BergerTheo Maximilian Berger was a notorious Bavarian criminal, best known for his numerous escapes from prison. Despite escaping four times, Berger spent 36 years in jail and eventually committed suicide there...
, German criminal (d. 2003) - 13 February — Sigmar PolkeSigmar PolkeSigmar Polke was a German painter and photographer.Polke experimented with a wide range of styles, subject matter and materials. In the 1970s, he concentrated on photography, returning to paint in the 1980s, when he produced abstract works created by chance through chemical reactions between paint...
, German painter (d. 20102010 in Germany-Federal level:* President – Horst Köhler until 31 May, Christian Wulff* Chancellor – Angela Merkel-Events:* January 16 – The German government asks its citizens to stop using Microsoft's web browser Internet Explorer to protect their own security....
) - 14 March — Wolfgang PetersenWolfgang PetersenWolfgang Petersen is a German film director and screenwriter. His films include The NeverEnding Story, Enemy Mine, Outbreak, In the Line of Fire, Air Force One, The Perfect Storm, Troy, and Poseidon...
, German film director
Deaths
- 11 February — Rudolf HilferdingRudolf HilferdingRudolf Hilferding was an Austrian-born Marxist economist, leading socialist theorist, politician and chief theoretician for the Social Democratic Party of Germany during the Weimar Republic, almost universally recognized as the SPD's foremost theoretician of his century, and a...
, German economist and Minister of Finance (b. 18771877 in Germany-National level:* Kaiser — William I* Chancellor — Otto von Bismarck-Kingdoms:* King of Bavaria — Ludwig II of Bavaria* King of Prussia — Kaiser William I* King of Saxony — Albert of Saxony* King of Württemberg — Charles I of Württemberg-Grand Duchies:...
) - 24 February — Lothar von Arnauld de la Perière, German submariner (b. 18861886 in Germany-National level:* Kaiser — William I* Chancellor — Otto von Bismarck-Kingdoms:* King of Bavaria — Ludwig II of Bavaria to 13 June, then Otto of Bavaria* King of Prussia — Kaiser William I* King of Saxony — Albert of Saxony...
) - 1 June — Hans BergerHans BergerHans Berger was born in Neuses near Coburg, Bavaria, Germany. He is best known as the first to record human electroencephalograms in 1924, for which he invented the electroencephalogram , and the discoverer of the alpha wave rhythm known as "Berger's wave".- Biography :After attending...
, neurologist (b. 18731873 in Germany-National level:* Kaiser — William I* Chancellor — Otto von Bismarck-Kingdoms:* King of Bavaria — Ludwig II of Bavaria* King of Prussia — Kaiser William I* King of Saxony — John of Saxony to 29 October, then Albert of Saxony...
) - 4 June — Wilhelm IIWilliam II, German EmperorWilhelm II was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia, ruling the German Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia from 15 June 1888 to 9 November 1918. He was a grandson of the British Queen Victoria and related to many monarchs and princes of Europe...
, last Emperor of Germany (b. 1859) - 26 June — Hans LudendorffHans LudendorffFriedrich Wilhelm Hans Ludendorff was a German astronomer and astrophysicist. He was the younger brother of General Erich Ludendorff....
, astronomer (b. 18731873 in Germany-National level:* Kaiser — William I* Chancellor — Otto von Bismarck-Kingdoms:* King of Bavaria — Ludwig II of Bavaria* King of Prussia — Kaiser William I* King of Saxony — John of Saxony to 29 October, then Albert of Saxony...
) - 15 July — Walter RuttmannWalter RuttmannWalter Ruttmann was a German film director and along with Hans Richter and Viking Eggeling was an early German practitioner of experimental film....
, German director (b. 18871887 in Germany-National level:* Kaiser — William I* Chancellor — Otto von Bismarck-Kingdoms:* King of Bavaria — Otto of Bavaria* King of Prussia — Kaiser William I* King of Saxony — Albert of Saxony* King of Württemberg — Charles I of Württemberg-Grand Duchies:...
) - 12 September — Hans SpemannHans SpemannHans Spemann was a German embryologist who was awarded a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1935 for his discovery of the effect now known as embryonic induction, an influence, exercised by various parts of the embryo, that directs the development of groups of cells into particular tissues...
, German embryologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineNobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineThe Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
(b. 1869) - 8 October — Gus KahnGus KahnGustav Gerson Kahn was a musician, songwriter and lyricist.-Biography:Kahn was born in Koblenz, Germany in 1886. The family emigrated from there to the United States and moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1890...
, German songwriter (b. 18861886 in Germany-National level:* Kaiser — William I* Chancellor — Otto von Bismarck-Kingdoms:* King of Bavaria — Ludwig II of Bavaria to 13 June, then Otto of Bavaria* King of Prussia — Kaiser William I* King of Saxony — Albert of Saxony...
) - 18 November — Walther NernstWalther NernstWalther Hermann Nernst FRS was a German physical chemist and physicist who is known for his theories behind the calculation of chemical affinity as embodied in the third law of thermodynamics, for which he won the 1920 Nobel Prize in chemistry...
, German chemist, Nobel PrizeNobel Prize in ChemistryThe Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
laureate (b. 1864)