17 Dec 1940
- British Home Office announced the hanging death of a third German spy. On the same day, a British housewife was sentenced to death for spying. ww2dbase [TH]
- German seaplane base on Sylt Island was bombed. ww2dbase [TH]
- The British government announced a ration increase for Christmas week. ww2dbase [CPC]
- British destroyer HMS Acheron hit a mine and sank while running sea trials 5 miles southwest of the Isle of Wight at 0640 hours, killing 153 crew and 22 shipyard workers; 13 crew and 3 shipyard workers survived. ww2dbase [TH]
- British monitor HMS Terror and gunboat HMS Ladybird bombarded Bardia, Libya, sinking Italian ships Galata, Vincenzino, and Giuseppina D. in the harbor. On the same day, the British announced that they had captured 20,000 Italian prisoners, including three generals, in Egypt. ww2dbase [Operation Compass | CPC]
- Air Vice Marshal Richard Saul became the commanding officer of No. 12 Group RAF. ww2dbase [Richard Saul | CPC]
- President Roosevelt held a press conference in Washington DC, United States, revealing the Lend-Lease program to journalists. ww2dbase [Franklin Roosevelt | Washington | CPC]
Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis
Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Please help us spread the word: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
Change View
Desktop ViewSearch WW2DB
News
- » WW2DB's 20th Anniversary (29 Dec 2024)
- » Wreck of USS Edsall Found (14 Nov 2024)
- » Autumn 2024 Fundraiser (7 Nov 2024)
- » Nobel Peace Prize for the Atomic Bomb Survivors Organization (11 Oct 2024)
- » See all news
Current Site Statistics
- » 1,150 biographies
- » 337 events
- » 44,163 timeline entries
- » 1,243 ships
- » 350 aircraft models
- » 207 vehicle models
- » 375 weapon models
- » 123 historical documents
- » 260 facilities
- » 470 book reviews
- » 28,651 photos
- » 431 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
