8 Sep 1939
- Werner Mölders crash landed his fighter aircraft after developing engine trouble; his back was injured, which kept him out of action for 11 days. ww2dbase [Werner Mölders | CPC]
- U-56 ended her first patrol. ww2dbase [U-56 | CPC]
- Polish defenders at Westerplatte, Danzig surrendered. ww2dbase [Invasion of Poland | TH]
- German troops burned 200 Jews alive in a synagogue and executed 30 Jews in the public square in Bedzin, Poland. ww2dbase [Discovery of Concentration Camps and the Holocaust | Bedzin | CPC]
- Arthur Greiser was named the head of the military government in Poland. ww2dbase [Arthur Greiser | CPC]
- German troops neared the suburbs of Warsaw, and the Polish government evacuated to Lublin. ww2dbase [Invasion of Poland | Warsaw | TH]
- Lavrentiy Beria organized two NKVD operational groups, to be based in Kiev in Ukraine and Minsk in Byelorussia, for near-future deployment to eastern Poland to arrest resistance elements. The two groups in Ukraine and Byelorussia were led by Ivan Serov and Lavrentiy Tsanava, respectively. ww2dbase [Katyn Massacre and Related Atrocities | CPC]
- King George VI of Britain suggested to Lord Hankey, Minister without Portfolio, that the Government might not reject any German peace proposals out of hand, but should instead say that "We are prepared to discuss terms with the German people, but not with Hitler or his regime". ww2dbase [George VI | London, England | AC]
- US President Franklin Roosevelt declared a limited state of emergency. One of his orders of the day was to increase the US Marine Corps enlisted strength to be increased from 18,325 to 25,000, partially to be achieved by authorizing the recall of officers and men from the Marine Corps retired lists. ww2dbase [United States Neutrality Patrol | Franklin Roosevelt | CPC]
8 Sep 1939 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
News
- » WW2DB's 19th Anniversary (29 Dec 2023)
- » Looted Painting "Madonna with Child" Returned to Poland (2 Jun 2023)
- » Wreck of USS Mannert L. Abele Found (29 May 2023)
- » Wreck of Montevideo Maru Found (25 Apr 2023)
- » Accidental Detonation of a WW2-Era Bomb in Great Yarmouth (10 Feb 2023)
- » See all news
Random Photograph
Current Site Statistics
- » 1,145 biographies
- » 336 events
- » 43,415 timeline entries
- » 1,237 ships
- » 349 aircraft models
- » 207 vehicle models
- » 372 weapon models
- » 123 historical documents
- » 259 facilities
- » 468 book reviews
- » 28,364 photos
- » 432 maps
Famous WW2 Quote
"All that silly talk about the advance of science and such leaves me cold. Give me peace and a retarded science."Thomas Dodd, late 1945