Diary June 17, 1940

chamber meeting for ceasefire offer
A French chamber meeting decides to submit a ceasefire offer.
Diary for Monday, June 17, 1940:

Politics

Petain requests Germany’s and Italy’s armistice terms via Spanish Ambassador and the Vatican; he broadcasts to French Army and people: ‘… it is necessary to stop the fighting.’

Sea War

Evacuation ship Lancastria (16,243 t) bombed and sunk at St Nazaire: only 2,477 rescued out of 5,000 British, French and Belgians aboard (inc. civilians). Italian submarine Provana rammed and sunk by French sloop La Curieuse off Oran.

France

Rommel races towards Cherbourg, covering 150 miles (ca. 241 km) in the day.

Home Fronts

Britain – Churchill broadcasts: ‘We have become the sole champions now in arms to defend the world cause.’

Neutrals

Baltic States: RUSSIAN FORCES OCCUPY ESTONIA AND LATVIA. Left-wing government formed in Lithuania.
USA: British Purchasing Commission takes overall outstanding French arms contracts and offers to purchase as much war material as US can produce.

Oval@3x 2

Don’t miss the newest posts on Sunday!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

for sharing:

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Scroll to Top