December 1944 Explained
The following events occurred in December 1944:
- The U.S. Ninth Army captured the villages of Leiffarth and Roerdorf.[4]
- The Army–Navy Game was played at Baltimore Municipal Stadium, with Army defeating Navy 23-7 before a crowd of 66,659. About 30,000 members of the general public were allowed to attend on the conditions of living within of Baltimore and purchasing a $25 war bond. General Douglas MacArthur sent Army head coach Earl Blaik a congratulatory telegram after the game.[5]
- Born: Cathy Lee Crosby, actress, in Kansas City, Missouri; Ibrahim Rugova, 1st president of the Republic of Kosova, in Crnce, Kosovo (d. 2006)
- Died: Josef Lhévinne, 69, Russian pianist; Eiji Sawamura, 27, Japanese baseball player (killed in action near Yakushima when his ship was torpedoed and sunk)
- A series of clashes in Athens known as the Dekemvriana ("December events") began when British troops and Greek police opened fire on a massive leftist demonstration, killing 28 and wounding 100.[6]
- The Soviet 2nd Ukrainian Front captured the Hungarian city of Miskolc.[7]
- The American destroyer USS Cooper was torpedoed and sunk in Ormoc Bay by the Japanese destroyer Take.
- The British Home Guard formally stood down.
German occupation authorities in the Netherlands cut the bread ration to two pounds per person per week.[8]
- In Britain the official process of returning evacuees began in regions unaffected by the V-weapon attacks.[10]
- 409 Japanese paratroopers were landed at Leyte in a coordinated offensive with Japanese infantry attacking from the west.[11]
- The Germans began removing all the electric trains in the Netherlands along with their wiring and sending them to Germany to replace the train system in places where it had been destroyed by Allied bombing.
- German submarine U-297 was depth charged and sunk west of Yesnaby by a Short Sunderland patrol bomber of No. 201 Squadron RAF.
- The British frigate Bullen was torpedoed and sunk off Cape Wrath, Scotland by German submarine U-775.
- British planes began strafing communists in Athens.
- The Heinkel He 162 had its first flight.
- Born: Ron Kenoly, Christian musician and worship leader, in Coffeyville, Kansas; Jonathan King, musician, record producer and entrepreneur, in London, England
- The Tōnankai earthquake in Japan caused 1,223 casualties.
- Nicolae Rădescu became Prime Minister of Romania, the last to hold the post prior to communist rule.
- U.S. forces in Leyte counterattacked and halted the Japanese offensive.
- The American destroyer Mahan was damaged in the Camotes Sea by a Japanese kamikaze aircraft and consequently scuttled.
- The American destroyer Ward was hit by a Japanese kamikaze aircraft in Ormoc Bay and abandoned.
- The Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation established the International Civil Aviation Organization, a specialized agency to coordinate and regulate international air travel.
- The Arab Women's Congress of 1944 took place in Cairo, Egypt, leading to the establishment of the Arab Feminist Union.
- Born: Daniel Chorzempa, organist and architect, in Minneapolis, Minnesota (d. 2023)
- The US 100th Infantry Division, took heavy losses after two days of fighting (7th and 8th) in Lemberg, France.[12]
- German submarine U-862 shelled the Greek tanker SS Illios off the southern South Australian coast.
- The American submarines Plaice, Redfish and Sea Devil torpedoed and damaged the Japanese aircraft carrier Jun'yō in the Strait of Formosa. Jun'yō was withdrawn from service and scrapped after the war.
- The Royal Navy corvette Bamborough Castle depth-charged and sank the German submarine U-387 in the Barents Sea.
- The month-long Battle of Knin ended in victory for the Yugoslav Partisans.
- A meeting was held at the Langley Aeronautical Laboratory, Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, to discuss the formation of an organization that would devote its efforts to the study of stability and maneuverability of high-speed weapons (guided missiles). This would become the Auxiliary Flight Research Station (AFRS - later known as the Pilotless Aircraft Research Division) on Wallops Island, Virginia. From the outset, work was pointed toward supersonic flight testing.[15]
- Born: Neil Innes, writer, musician and comedian, in Danbury, Essex, England (d. 2019); Tadashi Irie, yakuza, in Uwajima, Ehime, Japan; Ki Longfellow, novelist, playwright and theatrical producer, on Staten Island, New York (d. 2022)
- Died: Laird Cregar, 31, American stage and film actor (heart attack following complications from a crash diet)
- The British escort destroyer Aldenham was sunk by a naval mine in the Adriatic Sea off Pag. Aldenham was the last Royal Navy destroyer lost in World War II.
- The Palawan massacre occurred in the Philippines when 150 Allied prisoners of war were murdered by the Japanese during an air raid.
- At least 186 Japanese aircraft were deployed for an all-out attack on the American invasion force sailing toward Mindoro. Most of them failed to locate the American convoys and at least 46 were shot down.[23]
- The United States Congress authorized the creation of the five-star rank in the U.S. military.[24]
- A total prohibition on citizen use of electricity was introduced to North and South Holland.
- The sports film National Velvet starring Mickey Rooney, Donald Crisp and Elizabeth Taylor was released.
- The U.S. Seventh Army captured Riedseltz, Salmbach and Lauterbourg in eastern France.[25]
- During the Battle of Mindoro, the Sixth United States Army landed on Mindoro itself. The Japanese offered weak opposition on the ground but continued to respond strongly in the air, sending a wave of kamikazes to the battle zone that managed to destroy a pair of LSTs.
- William D. Leahy was made a five-star admiral in the U.S. Navy.
- The all-star musical romantic comedy film Hollywood Canteen was released. The Andrews Sisters, Jack Benny, Eddie Cantor, Joan Crawford, Jimmy Dorsey and Roy Rogers were among the many celebrities to make cameos in the film.
- The Universal horror film House of Frankenstein starring Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney Jr. was released.
- Died: Glenn Miller, 40, American bandleader (presumed, after the plane carrying Miller to Paris to play for the soldiers there went missing in bad weather over the English Channel and was never found)
84 American prisoners of war were murdered by their German captors in Malmedy, Belgium.
11 African-American prisoners of war were murdered by German troops of the 1st SS Panzer Division near the Belgian hamlet of Wereth.
- German forces captured 9,000 surrounded U.S. troops in the Schnee Eifel region on the Belgian-German border and pushed the Americans back off German soil.
- Japanese aircraft carrier Unryū was torpedoed and sunk in the East China Sea by the American submarine Redfish.
- German submarine U-737 sank in a collision with depot ship MRS 25 in Vestfjorden, Norway.
- Chester Nimitz was made a five-star admiral in the U.S. Navy.
- Born: Tim Reid, actor, comedian and film director, in Norfolk, Virginia
- The Siege of Bastogne began in Belgium as part of the Battle of the Bulge.
- Dwight D. Eisenhower was made a five-star general in the U.S. Army.
- British General Ronald Scobie warned Greek civilians to stay out of areas occupied by ELAS forces because they may be subjected to bombing raids.
- The U.S. Women Airforce Service Pilots was disbanded.
- The Battle of St. Vith ended in German victory with the fall of St. Vith itself.
- The Battle of Ormoc Bay ended in American victory.
- Henry H. Arnold was made a five-star general in the U.S. Army.
- The Walt Disney animated musical film The Three Caballeros premiered in Mexico City.
- Kyungsung Precision Industry, as predecessor of Kia Motors, South Korea based vehicles manufacturing plant was founded.
- Born: Bill Atkinson, footballer, in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England (d. 2013); Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor, pianist and composer, in Los Angeles, California; Zheng Xiaoyu, director of the Chinese State Food and Drug Administration, in Fuzhou, China (d. 2007)
- The Belgian troopship Léopoldville was sunk by German submarine U-486 in the English Channel off Cherbourg. Approximately 763 American soldiers and 56 crew were killed.[33]
- German tanks reached the furthest point of the Bulge at Celles.
- Fifty German V-1 flying bombs, air-launched from Heinkel He 111 bombers flying over the North Sea, targeted Manchester in England, killing 42 and injuring more than 100 in the Oldham area.[34] [35] [36]
- Union Pacific 844. The last steam locomotive built by ALCO in Schenectady New York on Christmas Eve.
- Bande massacre. A total of 34 men between the ages of 17 and 32 were executed by the Sicherheitsdienst near Bande, Belgium in retaliation for the killing of three German soldiers.
- The Agana race riot began on Guam over the nights of December 24 and 25 between white and black members of the United States Marines. Some 43 Marines would be tried in courts-martial and receive prison terms over the rioting.
- Mosquito Bowl took place on Guadalcanal; "The Mosquito Bowl, A Game of Life and Death in World War II" by Buzz Bissinger
- Born: Erhard Keller, speed skater, in Günzburg, Germany; Woody Shaw, jazz trumpeter, in Laurinburg, North Carolina (d. 1989)
- Died: Endre Bajcsy-Zsilinszky, 58, Hungarian politician (executed); General Frederick W. Castle, while leading 2000 bombers over Belgium.[37]
- The U.S. Sixth Army captured Palompon, Leyte.[38]
- Winston Churchill arrived in Athens to try to stop the fighting.
- The British frigate HMS Dakins was severely damaged by a mine off Ostend and rendered a constructive total loss.
- Born: Jairzinho, footballer, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Henry Vestine, guitarist (Canned Heat), in Takoma Park, Maryland (d. 1997)
- Died: George Preddy, 25, American flying ace (shot down near Liège, Belgium by friendly fire)
- American troops began gaining ground in their counteroffensive during the Battle of the Bulge. Adolf Hitler disregarded the advice of his generals and ordered renewed offensives in the Alsace and Ardennes regions.
- The Battle of Garfagnana ends in an Axis victory with Northern Tuscany falling back into axis hands.[41]
- At least 20 Allied soldiers perished when the Infantry Landing Ship Empire Javelin sank in the English Channel with 1,483 troops aboard. It is unknown whether she struck a naval mine or was torpedoed by the German submarine U-322 which was active in the area that day.
- German submarine U-735 was bombed and sunk by British aircraft off Horten, Norway.
- Hockey star Maurice Richard of the Montreal Canadiens showed up exhausted to the Montreal Forum after spending the day helping his family move from one apartment to another. That night he recorded eight points (five goals and three assists) during a 9–2 win over the Detroit Red Wings, a new NHL record for points by one player in a single game that stood until 1976.[42]
- The stage musical On the Town with music by Leonard Bernstein and book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green premiered on Broadway at the Adelphi Theatre.
- Born: Jane Lapotaire, actress, in Ipswich, Suffolk, England; Kary Mullis, biochemist and Nobel laureate, in Lenoir, North Carolina (d. 2019)
Notes and References
- Web site: War Diary for Friday, 1 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016 .
- December 2, 1944 . Horvath Awarded Heisman Trophy . Logan Daily News . Logan, Ohio . 5 .
- Fargettas. Julien. 2006. La révolte des tirailleurs sénégalais de Tiaroye. Vingtième Siècle:Revue d'histoire. fr-FR. 92. 117–130.
- Web site: War Diary for Saturday, 2 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016.
- Web site: The Army-Navy Game During World War II . Tallent . Aaron . December 10, 2015 . Athlon Sports & Life . March 1, 2016.
- Web site: 1944 . MusicAndHistory . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: War Diary for Sunday, 3 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016 .
- Book: Dando-Collins, Stephen . 2015 . Operation Chowhound: The Most Risky, Most Glorious US Bomber Mission of WWII . New York . St. Martin's Press . 47–48 . 978-1-137-27963-7 .
- Web site: War Diary for Tuesday, 5 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016 .
- Book: Brown, Mike. Evacuees: evacuation in wartime Britain, 1939-1945. 2005. Sutton Publishers. 0-7509-4045-X. Stroud. 113. 276515879.
- Web site: Japanese Paratrooper Attack on Leyte December 7, 1944 . Taylan . Justin . August 7, 2015 . PacificWrecks.com . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: Lemberg WW II Quarterly . tomharperkelly.com.
- Web site: 1944 . World War II Database . March 1, 2016 .
- Book: 1989 . Mercer . Derrik . Chronicle of the 20th Century . London . Chronicle Communications Ltd. . 614 . 978-0-582-03919-3 .
- Book: Grimwood, James M. . Project Mercury - A Chronology . Part 1 (A) Major Events Leading to Project Mercury March 1944 through December 1957 . NASA Special Publication-4001 . https://history.nasa.gov/SP-4001/p1a.htm . . 29 January 2023.
- Web site: Chronology 1944 . 2002 . indiana.edu . March 1, 2016 . June 15, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130615123043/http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1944.htm . dead .
- Web site: The Nobel Prize in Literature 1944 . Nobelprize.org . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: The Nobel Prize in Physics 1943 . NobelPrize.org . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: 1944 Baseball Winter Meetings: A new era without Judge Landis . Marren . Joe . . March 1, 2016 . March 5, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160305185040/http://sabr.org/latest/1944-baseball-winter-meetings-new-era-without-judge-landis . dead .
- Web site: War Diary for Monday, 11 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: 1944: Key Dates . . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: World War II: Field Marshal Sir Harold Alexander . . March 1, 2016 . March 29, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140329093907/http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/WorldWarIILeaders/p/World-War-Ii-Field-Marshal-Harold-Alexander.htm . dead .
- Web site: Mindoro . The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: Five-Star Officers - Generals and Admirals . . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: War Diary for Friday, 15 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016 .
- Book: Quartermaine, Luisa . 2000 . Mussolini's Last Republic: Propaganda and Politics in the Italian Social Republic 1943–45 . Exeter . Elm Bank Publications . 128 . 978-1-902454-08-5 .
- Web site: Gothic Line Offensive . Chen . C. Peter . World War II Database . March 1, 2016 .
- Book: Davidson . Edward . Manning . Dale . 1999 . Chronology of World War Two . London . Cassell & Co. . 226 . 0-304-35309-4 .
- Web site: Conflict Timeline, December 14-23 1944 . OnWar.com . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: The story of the NUTS! Reply . McAuliffe . Kenneth J. Jr. . December 12, 2012 . Army.mil . March 1, 2016 .
- Book: Roman, Eric . 2003 . Austria-Hungary & the Successor States: A Reference Guide from the Renaissance to the Present . registration . Facts On File, Inc. . 613 . 978-0-8160-7469-3 .
- Web site: War Diary for Saturday, 23 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016 .
- News: His life best gift of any . Ladd . Joan . . December 25, 1988 . 1A, 4A . 29 October 2021 . Google News.
- Book: Palmer . Alan . Palmer . Veronica . 1992 . The Chronology of British History . Century Ltd . London . 392–394 . 0-7126-5616-2.
- Web site: Battle of Britain . ww2db.com . 2018-06-09.
- Web site: Conflict Timeline, December 21 1944-Jan 2 1945 . OnWar.com . March 1, 2016.
- Web site: General Frederick Castle.
- Web site: War Diary for Monday, 25 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016 .
- https://web.archive.org/web/20151222071939/http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/nap/72-34.htm
- Book: Bloom, Harold . 2007 . The Glass Menagerie . Infobase Publishing . 14 . 978-1-4381-1451-4 .
- Web site: 2012-03-24 . 55 - L'offensiva di Natale Operazione "Wintergewitter" . 2024-08-20 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120324081751/http://www.repubblicasocialeitaliana.eu/pagine/storia/rsi%20la%20guerra%20in%20italia/volume2%201944/pagine%201944/055.htm . 2012-03-24 .
- Web site: Greatest Moments . Our History: The Historical Website of the Montreal Canadiens . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: War Diary for Saturday, 30 December 1944 . Stone & Stone Second World War Books . March 1, 2016 .
- Gowran . Clay . December 31, 1944 . King Appoints Archbishop as Greek Regent . . Chicago . 1 .
- Book: Sowa, Peter . 2012 . Finding Life . Abbott Press . 478 . 978-1-4582-0197-3 .
- Web site: December 31, 1944: Hungary Declared War on Germany . . . March 1, 2016 .
- Web site: Oslo Tragedy as RAF Mosquitos Attack Gestapo HQ . World War II Today . March 1, 2016 . February 8, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170208051804/http://ww2today.com/31-december-1944-oslo-tragedy-as-raf-mosquitos-attack-gestapo-hq . dead .
- Web site: 1944 Chronology of Aviation History . Skytamer.com . March 1, 2016 .