World war II timeline - March 1941

1 March 1941	US Under-Secretary of State Sumner Welles gives full details of a likely attack of Germany on the Soviet Union to the Soviet Ambassador. The information had been first learned in August 1940, then checked carefully. (Josef Stalin ignores the report.) Bulgaria formally agrees to adhere to the Tripartite Pact of the Axis powers.
2 March 1941	German units cross the Danube river, deploying ground and air forces in Bulgaria.
4 March 1941	Great Britain and Greece conclude a revised plan for the defence of Greece. The Yugoslav government decides to adhere to the Tripartite Pact. British commandos make a large-scale raid on Lofoten Islands, Norway. The raid is a complete success, capturing 225 prisoners and evacuating 315 Norwegian volunteers. Yugoslavia's Prince Paul meets with Adolf Hitler. He tells Adolf Hitler that Yugoslavia would sign on to the Tripartite Pact, provided that Yugoslavia was not asked to fight, territory would be guaranteed, and German troops would not expect transit through Yugoslavia. The terms are agreed to.
5 March 1941	Adolf Hitler issues Directive No. 24: "Cooperation with Japan". The purpose is to induce Japan to take action in the Far East as soon as possible, to tie down English forces and divert the USA to the Pacific.
6 March 1941	British Prime Minister Winston Churchill issues a directive giving supreme priority to the Battle of the Atlantic.
7 March 1941	British troops, mostly Australian and New Zealand motorized forces, begin arriving in Greece. British corvettes Arbutus and Camellia and destroyer Wolverine sink German submarine U-47, killing captain Gunther Prien, responsible for sinking 150,000 tons of merchant shipping, and recipient of the Knight's Cross.
8 March 1941	In London, England, Australian Prime Minister Menzies officially releases Britain from deserting naval protection of the Mediterranean to protect Australia, in the event of war in the Pacific, due to the large number of ground forces in the Middle East. The Soviet government orders 900,000 reservists called to duty between May 15 and October 20.
9 March 1941	Italian forces begin a final offensive against Greek forces, which are able to hold their positions.
10 March 1941	The British four-engined Handley Page Halifax aircraft makes its operational debut. The first mission is against targets at Le Havre.
11 March 1941	German 5th Panzer Regiment of 5th Light Division arrives in Tripoli, with 120 tanks. Soviet A.M. Vasilevskii writes the Strategic Deployment Plan, refined from the September 1940 plan, with the main attack on Germany proposed for southern Poland. The document states that the offensive is to begin on "12.6" In the United States, Congress passes "An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States", known as the Lend-Lease Act, authorizing the President to sell, lease, lend, transfer, or exchange war supplies to any nation deemed vital to defence of the US. Total value is US$1.3 billion.
12 March 1941	British Bomber Command sends Halifax and Manchester bombers against Hamburg, Germany.
13 March 1941	Wilhelm Keitel issues a supplement to Directive No. 21, laying down rules for administration of occupied Russia.
14 March 1941	A large British bomber raid on the German Gelsenkirchen oil production area scores hits, temporarily halting oil production.
15 March 1941	German commander in the West Gerd von Rundstedt is replaced by von Witzleben. The United States Navy begins escorting US merchant ships bound for Britain. German battleship Tirpitz makes its maiden voyage from Wilhelmshaven. British corvettes Camelia and Arbutus sink German submarine U70 in the North Atlantic.
17 March 1941	German submarine U-99 torpedoes and sinks Canadian merchant ship J.B. White south-west of the Faeroes Islands. Two die, 38 survive. British Convoy HX 112 on the Atlantic is attacked by German submarines. British destroyers Walker and Vanoc sink German submarine U-100, killing captain Joachim Schepke, responsible for sinking 200,000 tons of merchant shipping. British destroyers Walker and Vanoc sink German submarine U-99, capturing captain Otto Kretschmer, responsible for sinking 200,000 tons of merchant shipping.
19 March 1941	German General Erwin Rommel meets with Walther von Brauchitsch and Franz Halder, requesting two more panzer divisions in North Africa. The request is denied.
20 March 1941	American undersecretary of state Sumner Welles informs the Soviet ambassador of an impending attack from Germany.
24 March 1941	German General Erwin Rommel sends a reconnaissance battalion to seize El Agheila. British forces withdraw after a brief fight.
25 March 1941	In Vienna, Austria, Yugoslav premier Prince Paul and foreign minister sign on to the Tripartite Pact in the presence of Adolf Hitler and Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop. Disguised German merchant raider Kormoran captures Canadian merchant ship Candolite south-east of Freetown, West Africa. The crew of 44 is taken prisoner.
26 March 1941	Royal Canadian Navy armed yacht Otter is destroyed by an explosion and fire off Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. 19 die.
27 March 1941	A military revolt in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, lead by General Dusan Simovic, overthrows the Regency and pro-Axis government. Adolf Hitler issues Directive No. 25, ordering the military annihilation of Yugoslavia in retaliation for its coup. Operation Barbarossa, the planned attack on the Soviet Union, is postponed from May 15 for at least a month. Yugoslavia and Greece are to be attacked on April 6. The Italian navy sets out to attack the British convoy route to Greece. British planes from the carrier Formidable engage the ships, sinking the destroyer Pola and two cruisers.
28 March 1941	In the Mediterranean, the British fleet destroys three Italian cruisers off Cape Matapan, south of Greece. German battle cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau take refuge in Brest.
30 March 1941	British Bomber Command begins concentrated attacks on German warships Gneisenau and Scharnhorst in Brest.
31 March 1941	German 5th Light Division attacks British forces at Mersa el Brega, but are unable to defeat them. German merchant ships Muenchen and Hermouthis are scuttled by their crews to avoid capture by Royal Canadian Navy armed merchant cruiser Prince Henry, which intercepted them off Peru. Bomber Command drops its first 4,000-pound bomb, by a Wellington aircraft over Emden, Germany. German 8th Machine Gun Battalion successfully drives British forces from Mersa el Brega, gaining Bren gun-carriers and 30 lorries.