8 Aug 1940
- Laws restricting education and employment were introduced in Romania. ww2dbase [TH]
- Wages of British military personnel increased by 6 pence per day; with this increase, a British Army private's weekly pay was increased to 17 shillings and 6 pence. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Troops of the 2nd Battalion, UK (Scottish) Black Watch arrived in British Somaliland to reinforce against the Italian invasion. ww2dbase [Invasion of British Somaliland | CPC]
- German submarine U-37 sank British ship Upwey Grange, carrying 5,380 tons of frozen beef from Argentina to Britain, 200 miles west of Ireland at 0114 hours; the entire crew of 86 took to lifeboats, but one of the boats, carrying 36, was never seen again. ww2dbase [First Happy Time | CPC]
- Adolf Hitler ordered Walter Warlimont, Alfred Jodl's deputy, to determine the positions of Soviet troops in preparation for Operation Barbarossa. On the same day, Wilhelm Keitel signed the Aufbau Ost directive, which called for the mobilization of the German military in eastern Germany. ww2dbase [Operation Barbarossa | CPC]
- Edward Brooks was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. ww2dbase [Edward Brooks | CPC]
- After several days of little action, the Germans launched continuous operations against the large convoy CW9, codenamed Peewit, of 25 merchant ships with Royal Navy escorts in the Strait of Dover. Torpedo boats attacked before dawn, sinking British ships Ouse, Holme Force (killing 6), and Fefe Coast (killing 5). As the convoy traveled westward, 300 Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers escorted by 150 fighters struck, sinking Dutch ship Ajax (killing 4), British ship Coquetdale, and British ship Empire Crusader (killing 5); as the British fought back, 17 Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers, 26 Bf 109 fighters, and 9 Bf 110 fighters were shot down, but the RAF also lost 13 Hurricane fighters, 4 Spitfire fighters, and 1 Blenheim bombers. ww2dbase [Battle of Britain | Strait of Dover | CPC]
- German armed merchant cruiser Widder sank Dutch collier Oostplein carrying 5,850 tons of coal from Britain to Buenos Aires, Argentina; the entire crew of 34 were rescued by Widder. ww2dbase [Widder | CPC]
- Battleship No. 1, the future battleship Yamato, was launched at Kure Naval Arsenal, Japan. ww2dbase [Kure Naval Arsenal | Yamato | Kure, Hiroshima | CPC]
- Operation Tube: British submarine HMS Proteus reached Malta from Gibraltar with spares for the newly-arrived Hurricane fighters. ww2dbase [Malta Campaign | CPC]
- After sundown, Italian minelayer Scilla deployed 216 mines west of the Italian island of Pantelleria. ww2dbase [HM]
- Starting after sundown and lasting through the end of the following next, Italian destroyers Maestrale, Grecale, Libeccio and Sirocco each deployed 216 mines off of the Italian island of Pantelleria. ww2dbase [HM]
- Italian torpedo boats Antares and Sagittario provided escort for minelaying vessels operating off of the Italian island of Pantelleria. ww2dbase [HM]
8 Aug 1940 Interactive Map
Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis
Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Share this article with your friends: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
Change View
Desktop ViewSearch WW2DB & Partner Sites
News
- » Passing of Margaret Kelly (25 Jan 2021)
- » WW2DB's 16th Anniversary (29 Dec 2020)
- » Hidekazu Tamura shared his feelings toward his war time internment (2 Sep 2020)
- » See all news
Random Photograph
Current Site Statistics
- » 1,094 biographies
- » 332 events
- » 38,158 timeline entries
- » 1,127 ships
- » 337 aircraft models
- » 191 vehicle models
- » 352 weapon models
- » 117 historical documents
- » 225 facilities
- » 464 book reviews
- » 27,165 photos
- » 351 maps
Famous WW2 Quote
"Goddam it, you'll never get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole! Follow me!"Captain Henry P. Jim Crowe, Guadalcanal, 13 Jan 1943