Philippines Disaster 12/8/41 Vol 1: The Missing Ten Hours

References

PART ONE

EVENTS LEADING TO WORLD WAR TWO

Unfurl the banners: Uncase the war drums

Many events around the world bubbled and seethed, impressing the War Lords of Japan, and impacting upon the Philippines, the United States, and the Pacific War. Dates and times presented herein are in the subjects’ time zone without reference to other time zones. The International Date Line, always confusing, is between the Philippines and Hawaii. Hawaii and east are a day earlier than the Philippines and Japan or Formosa.

September 18, 1931

The Foreign Office

Imperial Palace

Tokyo, Japan

International News Service, Tokyo, Japan, 1931/09/18.

The Foreign Office released a statement today, stating that saboteurs severely damaged railway beds, bridges, rails, and the railroad signaling system belonging to the South Manchurian Railway Company. The Japanese Kwangtung Army proclaimed the Chinese has sabotaged the railway. This excuse permitted Japanese troops to invade South Manchuria on China’s northeastern border.

The Japanese Army later occupied the whole of Manchuria and renamed the country Manchukuo, setting up a puppet government with the former Emperor of China. This was not acceptable to the League of Nations.

The Japanese pulled out of the League in 1932, ignoring the League’s pronouncements.

November 1932

Democratic Headquarters

New York City, NY

Associated Press, NYC/NY, 11/08/1932.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), on the second Tuesday of November, is elected President of the United States of American in the depth of the Great Depression. FDR will take office January 20, 1933.

January 30, 1933

The Reichstag

Berlin, Germany

Reuters News Service, Berlin, Germany, 01/30/33.

Winning 37% of the National vote, the National Socialists Workers Party (NAZI) became the largest elected party in the Reichstag (German Parliament.) President Paul von Hindenburg, who utterly loathed Adolf Hitler, by German law, was required to appoint Adolf Hitler Chancellor of Germany.

August 2, 1934

The Foreign Ministry

Berlin, Germany

Reuters News Service, Berlin, Germany, 08/02/34.

President Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg, died today. A period of mourning was declared by Adolf Hitler. It remains to be seen what Chancellor Adolf Hitler and his handpicked cabinet will do.

August 4, 1934

The Chancellery

Berlin, Germany

Reuters News Service, Berlin, Germany, 08/04/34.

Chancellor Hitler and his handpicked cabinet have passed a law declaring the Presidency dormant. The role and powers of the Head of State are transferred to Hitler who has proclaimed himself, ‘Der Fuhrer’, giving him command of the German Armed Forces.

October 1935

League of Nations

Geneva, Switzerland

Suisse Wire Service, Geneva.

Haile Selassie, Emperor of Ethiopia, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and the Time Magazine Man of the Year 1935, appeared before the General Assembly of the League of Nations and begged the Members not to pass the Hoare-Laval plan to turn over most of Abyssinia to the Italian Dictator, ‘Il Duce’, Benito Mussolini, and force him to call off the invasion. The voting members ignored his plea.

General Pietro Badoglio and his Italian Army occupied Ethiopia, used Mustard Gas on the populace and Ethiopian Troops, and easily capture the Capital, Addis Ababa, in May 1936. Abyssinia, or Ethiopia, was annexed by the Kingdom of Italy under Italian Military Occupation, becoming the Colony of Italian East Africa.

Mid-October 1935

SS President Hoover

Manila, The Philippines

Associated Press, Manila 10/35.

Major General Douglas Arthur MacArthur, family and military staff arrived in Manila aboard the steamship, SS President Hoover. He will become the Philippines President-elect, Manuel Queson’s, Military Advisor; he is to establish the Philippines army, navy, and air corps. The MacArthur’s will be quartered in the Manila Hotel Penthouse on Manila Bay; special air-cooling equipment has been ordered for his quarters. His appointment as Field Marshall of the Philippines Army will coincide with the November 15th Inauguration of President Queson. MacArthur’s Chief of Staff is expected to be Major Dwight David Eisenhower.

March 7, 1936

The Rhineland

France

Reuter’s News Service, Paris, France, 03/07/36.

Der Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler, directly against the Treaty of Versailles of July 1919, and the Locarno Pact of 1925, denounced the Locarno Pact, marched his troops into and occupied the demilitarized zone of the Rhineland, forcing French troops back to France. Der Fuhrer gambled that France and Great Britain would do nothing but complain.

They complained but Nazi Germany re-militarized the Rhineland with the German Army.

July 17, 1936

Military GHQ

Madrid, Spain

International News Wire Service, Madrid, Spain. 07/17/36.

A military Junta under General Jose Sanjurjo made a declaration of opposition against the elected Second Spanish Republic. General Francisco Franco began a protracted war against the government for control of Spain. He was assisted by Hitler’s Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe, the Italian Air Service, and the Portuguese Army.

The existing Spanish Royalist government was assisted by the Loyalists consisting of the governments of Soviet Union and Mexico; private citizens of the United States volunteered as Loyalist soldiers in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade.

July 7, 1937

Yonging River Bridge

Lugouqiao, China

Peiping News Service 37/07/07.

A Japanese soldier missed morning roll call. The Japanese Army Commander accused the Chinese Army Commander across the river bridge of capturing their soldier. Desultory fighting began with potshots and sniper fire between Chinese and Japanese troops. In days, a full blown war was on. By August 1st, the Japanese Army controlled Chinese territory from Peiping to Nanking.

March 11, 1938

10 Downing Street

London, England

BBC Overseas News Service, London, 03/11/1938.

A State Luncheon was given in honor of Herr Joachim von Ribbentrop, German Ambassador to Great Britain, newly appointed as Germany’s Foreign Minister. During the farewell luncheon, a messenger handed Prime Minister Chamberlain a note: German troops were marching into Austria for the Anschluss to fold Austria into the Third Reich. The PM abruptly rose in anger and ordered the Ribbentrop’s to leave immediately. Madame von Ribbentrop warned the British to remember who their friends were.

March 13, 1938

Der Fuhrer’s Private Residence

Berchtesgarden, Germany

NAZI News Service, Berlin, 03/13/38.

The Austrian Chancellor, Kurt von Schuschnigg, refused Der Fuhrer’s demands and resigned. Arthur Seyss-Inquart, leader of the Austrian Nazi Party, became Chancellor and invited the German Army to occupy Austria.

Austria, renamed Ostmark, became another German State.

October 10, 1938

Der Fuhrer’s Private Residence

Berchtesgarden, Germany

NAZI News Service, Berlin, 10/10/38.

Between Prime Minister Chamberlain, Der Fuhrer Hitler, and Il Duce Mussolini, an accommodation was achieved whereby the Czechoslovakian government submitted to Nazi German demands. The Czech portion was occupied by German Army troops in March 1939, and renamed Sudetenland as another state of Germany.

April 1, 1939

The Palace

Madrid, Spain

Reuters News Service, Madrid, 04/04/39.

On April 1, 1939, Francisco Franco became the 68th Prime Minister of Spain, Caudillo de España, and Generalissimo.

1200, April 7, 1939

The Foreign Ministry

Rome, Italy

Italian News Service, Rome, Italy.

The Italian Foreign Minister announced today that Comando Supremo, Il Duce Benito Mussolini, has found it is necessary to protect Italian interests abroad.

Italian Armies, led by General Alfredo Guzzoni, are invading Albania. The minister did not answer questions.

The Albanian Kingdom was rapidly overrun. Its ruler, King Zog I, with Queen Geraldine Apponyi, and infant son Leka, fled for Greece, taking with them part of the gold reserves. The country was made part of the Greater Italy and Italian Empire.

PART TWO

World War Two Begins

Drummers! Beat to Quarters

1440, September 1, 1939

Weilun, Poland

The German Luftwaffe Junkers 87 Stuka dive bombers attacked and nearly destroyed this small Polish town.

Five minutes later at 0445, in Westerplatte, Danzig, on the Baltic Sea, the German battleship Schieswig-Holstein opened fire on the Polish military depot.

Also at 0445 near Mokra, Poland, Nazi troops crossed the border. Germany invaded Poland, claiming that Polish troops crossed the border and attacked a German radio station.

German criminals were dressed in Polish Army uniforms and executed on site for NAZI photographs.

In Warsaw, the Premier, on Radio Warsaw, called up the Polish Army and Air Force to resist the German Army incursion into Poland.

1200, September 3, 1939

British Broadcasting Company

London, England

Atop the House of Commons Bell Tower, the mellow tones of the bell tolled twelve. This is BBC London Calling. Great Britain this morning has declared war on Germany for their outrageous and illegitimate invasion of Poland.

1200, October 14, 1939

British Broadcasting Company

London, England

Atop the House of Commons Bell Tower, the mellow tones of the bell tolled twelve. "This is BBC London Calling. In a shocking disaster, a German U-boat sneaked into Scapa Flow Naval Anchorage, torpedoed and sank His Majesty’s battleship HMS Royal Oak with severe loss of life.

It was reported by International News Wire Service that Adolf Hitler danced with joy."

May 9, 1940

The Foreign Ministry

Paris, France

Reuter’s News Service, Paris, 5/9/40. BULLETIN.

The Foreign Ministry issued a terse statement confirming that German troops crossed the French border in the Ruhr Valley and are approaching the invincible Maginot Line.

1200, May 10, 1940

British Broadcasting Company

London, England

Atop the House of Commons Bell Tower, the mellow tones of the bell tolled twelve. This is BBC London Calling. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain has resigned following the German invasion of France. King George VI has asked Winston Churchill to meet with him at 6 this evening. It is believed that King George will ask Mr. Churchill to form a new government.

1600, May 24, 1940

British Broadcasting Company

HM Naval Establishment

Portsmouth, England

BBC Radio Journalist with British Troops.

"This is the BBC calling from the Naval Establishment in Portsmouth. The British Expeditionary