February 1942

February

• 01

  • Quisling becomes Prime Minister of NorwayOn 1 February 1942 Vidkun Quisling became “Prime Minister” of Norway's collaborationist government. Real power stayed with Reich Commissioner Terboven.
  • The front at GazalaIn early February 1942 Eighth Army stood on the Gazala–Bir Hakeim line, 60 km west of Tobruk. Rommel, out of fuel, halted near Timimi and Mechili.
  • The Marshalls–Gilberts raidsOn 1 February 1942 aircraft from Enterprise and Yorktown struck Japanese bases in the Marshall and Gilbert Islands, the first US offensive of the war.
  • The end of civilian car productionIn February 1942 American factories stopped making passenger cars for civilians. Detroit began building tanks, bombers, jeeps and engines.
• 02

  • Stilwell in ChinaOn 2 February 1942 General Joseph Stilwell was ordered to China as Chiang Kai-shek's chief of staff and commander of US forces in China, Burma and India.
• 03

  • Air raids on Java and Port MoresbyOn 3 February 1942 Japanese aircraft first struck Surabaya, Malang and Madiun on Java, and flying boats from Rabaul bombed Port Moresby.
• 09

  • The Japanese land on SingaporeOn the night of 8–9 February 1942 two divisions of the 25th Army crossed the Johor Strait to the north-west shore of Singapore, held by the Australians.
  • The first meeting of the Joint Chiefs of StaffOn 9 February 1942 Marshall, Stark, King and Arnold held the first formal meeting of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a new US high command body.
• 10

  • The Normandie fireOn 9 February 1942 the liner Normandie, being converted into a troopship, caught fire in New York. Early on 10 February she capsized onto her side.
• 11

  • The Channel Dash (Operation Cerberus)On the night of 11–12 February 1942 Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and Prinz Eugen left Brest and broke through the English Channel by day to German ports.
• 13

  • Fighting on Bataan in February 1942On 13 February 1942 Bataan's defenders destroyed the last Japanese landing on the west coast. Homma halted his attack, but no one could help the starving army.
• 14

  • Key eventThe Union of Armed Struggle becomes the Home ArmyOn 14 February 1942 Gen. Sikorski renamed the ZWZ the Home Army. All underground soldiers in Poland came under the AK, commanded by Gen. Rowecki.
• 15

  • Key eventThe fall of SingaporeOn 15 February 1942 Percival surrendered Singapore to Yamashita at the Ford factory at Bukit Timah, the largest capitulation in British military history.
• 16

  • The Bangka Island massacreOn 16 February 1942 on Radji Beach, Bangka Island, the Japanese murdered survivors of the Vyner Brooke, including 21 Australian nurses. One survived.
• 19

  • The bombing of DarwinOn 19 February 1942 aircraft from Nagumo's carriers and from bases on Celebes and Ambon bombed Darwin, the largest attack ever made on Australia.
  • Executive Order 9066On 19 February 1942 Roosevelt authorised the army to create exclusion zones, the basis for the incarceration of Japanese Americans from the West Coast.
  • Conscription in CanadaIn February 1942 Ottawa argued over a plebiscite to release King's government from its pledge not to send conscripts overseas. No conscription act was passed.
• 20

  • The Sittang Bridge disasterOn 23 February 1942 the British blew the Sittang bridge with most of the 17th Indian Division still on the far bank. The road to Rangoon lay open.
  • The Japanese on Bali and TimorOn 19–20 February 1942 Japan took Bali and landed on Timor. Doorman lost a night battle in the Badung Strait, and on 23 February Sparrow Force surrendered.
• 21

  • The American air force in BritainOn 20 February 1942 General Ira Eaker flew to England with six officers; on 22 February his bomber command, nucleus of the Eighth Air Force, was formed.
• 22

  • Roosevelt orders MacArthur out of the PhilippinesOn 22 February 1942 Roosevelt told MacArthur to leave Corregidor and take command in Australia. The general delayed and left the defenders to Wainwright.
• 25

  • Princess Elizabeth and war serviceThe heir to the throne, Princess Elizabeth, registered for war service in April 1942, after her 16th birthday. In February 1945 she joined the ATS.
• 27

  • The Battle of the Java SeaOn 27 February 1942 a Japanese convoy escort smashed Karel Doorman's force in the Java Sea. Two cruisers and three destroyers sank, and the admiral was killed.
• 28

  • The Japanese invasion of JavaOn the night of 28 February–1 March 1942 Imamura's Sixteenth Army landed at three points on Java. Houston and Perth were sunk in the Sunda Strait.