June 1944

Month of 1944

The following events occurred in June 1944:

D Day: Operation Overlord commenced with the crossing of nearly 160,000 Allied troops over the English Channel to land on the beaches of Normandy, France. The battle for Pointe du Hoc resulted in Allied victory, while the Battle of Merville Gun Battery was fought to inconclusive result. The British executed the capture of the Caen canal and Orne river bridges. This resulted in the first Allied troops to land in Normandy. The same day, British forces also undertook Operation Houndsworth and Operation Mallard. The Norwegian destroyer Svenner was sunk off Sword Beach by a German torpedo boat, the only Allied ship to be sunk by German naval activity on D Day. Stanley Hollis earned the only Victoria Cross to be awarded for D Day. War photographer Robert Capa took The Magnificent Eleven D Day photographs. Adolf Hitler was awoken at the Berghof around noon and informed of the Normandy landings. He displayed no outward signs of distress and appeared to be confident that the invasion would be repulsed. Winston Churchill announced the Normandy landings in an address to the House of Commons. "I cannot, of course, commit myself to any particular details," Churchill said. "Reports are coming in in rapid succession. So far the Commanders who are engaged report that everything is proceeding according to plan. And what a plan! This vast operation is undoubtedly the most complicated and difficult that has ever occurred  Nothing that equipment, science or forethought could do has been neglected, and the whole process of opening this great new front will be pursued with the utmost resolution both by the commanders and by the United States and British Governments whom they serve." President Roosevelt went on national radio at night to address the nation about the Normandy invasion. The president's address took the form a prayer. It began: "Almighty God: Our sons, pride of our Nation, this day have set upon a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our Republic, our religion, and our civilization, and to set free a suffering humanity. Lead them straight and true; give strength to their arms, stoutness to their hearts, steadfastness in their faith." On the Eastern Front, the First Jassy–Kishinev Offensive ended in Soviet failure. Operation Rösselsprung concluded. Although the activities of the Yugoslav Partisans were temporarily disrupted by the operation, it failed in its objective of capturing or killing Marshal Josip Broz Tito. Japanese destroyer Minazuki was sunk in the Sibutu Passage by the American submarine Harder. Born: Edgar Froese, artist and electronic musician, in Tilsit, East Prussia (d. 2015); Phillip Allen Sharp, geneticist and molecular biologist, in Falmouth, Kentucky; Tommie Smith, track & field athlete and AFL wide receiver, in Clarksville, Texas; Bud Harrelson, major league baseball player (mostly for the New York Mets), in Niles, California
Died: Jimmie W. Monteith, 26, U. S. Army officer and posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor (killed in action on D Day); John J. Pinder, Jr., 32, U. S. Army soldier and posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor (killed in action on D Day)

The Battle of Bréville began. The British began Operation Perch, an attempt to encircle and capture the city of Caen. Operation Tonga ended in Allied tactical victory. Operation Hasty ended with less than half the original force returning safely to British lines. The Ardenne Abbey massacre begins. 11 Canadian POWs from The North Nova Scotia Highlanders and The Sherbrooke Fusilers are shot by members of the 12th SS Panzer Division. German submarine U 629 was sunk in the English Channel by a B 24 of No. 53 Squadron RAF. Japanese destroyer Hayanami became the second ship to be torpedoed and sunk in the Sibutu Passage by USS Harder in as many days. American destroyer Meredith struck a mine in the English Channel and was severely damaged. Salvage efforts would be abandoned on June 9 when Luftwaffe bombing broke the ship in two. Actress Judy Garland divorced her husband of three years, songwriter David Rose, on grounds of general cruelty.

The Battle of Port en Bessin ended in Allied victory. Pietro Badoglio and the Italian government moved to Rome. A B 24 of No. 224 Squadron RAF sank German submarine U 373 in the Bay of Biscay and then sank U 441 only some 20 minutes later in the English Channel. Japanese destroyer Harasume was bombed and sunk northwest of Manokwari, New Guinea by a U. S. B 25 Mitchell. Japanese destroyer Kazagumo was torpedoed and sunk in Davao Gulf by the American submarine Hake. American destroyer escort USS Rich struck a mine and sank off Normandy. The war film Days of Glory starring Tamara Toumanova and Gregory Peck (in their feature film debuts) was released. The first Tallboy bomb was dropped. Born: Mark Belanger, baseball player, in Pittsfield, Massachusetts (d. 1998); Don Grady, actor, composer and musician, in San Diego, California (d. 2012); Marc Ouellet, Cardinal of the Catholic Church, in La Motte, Quebec, Canada; Boz Scaggs, musician, in Canton, Ohio

The Battle of Ushant was fought off the coast of Brittany between German and Allied destroyer flotillas. The result was an Allied victory as the Germans lost 2 destroyers. The U. S. Fifth Army in Italy captured Tarquinia and Viterbo. German destroyers Z32 and ZH1 engaged Allied warships off the Île de Batz. Z32 ran aground and was wrecked while ZH1 was torpedoed and sunk. Japanese destroyer Matsukaze was sunk northeast of Chichijima by the American submarine Swordfish. Japanese destroyer Tanikaze was torpedoed and sunk in the Sibutu Passage by the USS Harder.

The Red Army began the Vyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive with the objective of knocking Finland out of the war. A Waffen SS company carried out the Oradour sur Glane massacre in France, killing 642 residents of the village of Oradour sur Glane. Waffen SS forces in Greece carried out the Distomo massacre, killing a total of 214 residents of the village of Distomo in retaliation for a partisan attack upon the unit. German submarine U 821 was depth charged and sunk in the Bay of Biscay by British aircraft. Pitcher Joe Nuxhall became the youngest player to ever appear in a modern major league baseball game when he made his debut for the Cincinnati Reds at the age of 15 years, 10 months and 11 days. Although Nuxhall had a difficult outing, giving up five runs to the St. Louis Cardinals in two thirds of an inning, he went on to have a good big league career as a two time All Star with a lifetime record of 135–117. "I'll Get By (As Long as I Have You)" by Harry James and His Orchestra hit #1 on the Billboard singles charts.

U. S. Task Force 58 attacked Japanese facilities and shipping in preparation for the landings on Saipan, sinking one torpedo boat and twelve merchant ships of Japanese convoy CD 4. U. S. and British forces in Normandy linked up near Carentan, forming a solid 50 mile (80 km) battlefront with 326,000 men and 54,000 vehicles. An RAF Mosquito recorded the first successful shooting down of a V 1 flying bomb over the English Channel. Eleanor Roosevelt, the First Lady of the United States, opened the White House Conference on How Women May Share in Post War Policy Making.

The Battle of Saipan began when U. S. forces landed on Saipan in the Mariana Islands. Over the night of June 15/16 the United States Army Air Force conducted the Bombing of Yawata, the first air raid on the Japanese home islands since the Doolittle Raid in April 1942. The Battle of Porytowe Wzgórze ended in a temporary victory for the Polish and Russian partisan forces. RAF Bomber Command sent 297 aircraft to attack Boulogne, sinking three German minesweeping tenders, nine minesweepers, two patrol boats, three tugs and five harbour defense vessels. The British frigate Blackwood was torpedoed and damaged off Brittany by German submarine U 764 and foundered the next day off Portland Bill. The Co operative Commonwealth Federation led by Tommy Douglas won the general election in the province of Saskatchewan, marking the first time a socialist government had been elected anywhere in Canada.

The Treaty of Vis was signed in Yugoslavia, in an attempt by the Western Powers to merge the Yugoslav government in exile with the Communist Partisans fighting on the ground. The agreement provided for an interim government until the people could decide the postwar form of government in democratic elections. The British Eighth Army in Italy took Foligno and Spoleto. A major storm in the English Channel destroyed large parts of the Mulberry harbours and shipping.

The Battle of the Philippine Sea ended in American victory. Japanese aircraft carrier Hiyō sunk after fuel vapours ignited from previous damage caused by USS Belleau Wood's air wing, bringing total Japanese losses for the two day battle to three carriers, two oilers and around 600 aircraft. The Soviets captured Viipuri on the Karelian Isthmus. A V 2 rocket become the first man made object in space during a test launch (MW 18014).

The British Eighth Army reached the German defensive Trasimene Line in Italy. The British destroyer Fury struck a mine off Sword Beach, Normandy and was declared a total loss. Oliver Lyttelton rose in the House of Commons to give an "explanation" for his remarks of the previous day. "I was trying, in a parenthesis, to make clear the gratitude which this country feels for the help given to us in the war against Germany, before Japan attacked the United States," Lyttelton said. "The words I used, however, when read textually, and apart from the whole tenor of my speech, seemed to mean that the help given us against Germany provoked Japan to attack. This is manifestly untrue. I want to make it quite clear that I do not complain of being misreported, and any misunderstanding is entirely my own fault. I ask the House to believe, however, that the fault was one of expression and not of intention. I hope this apology will undo any harm that the original words may have caused here or in the United States." Born: Ray Davies, rock guitarist, vocalist and songwriter for The Kinks, in Fortis Green, London, England; Tony Scott, film director and producer, in Tynemouth, England (d. 2012)

Hitler ordered all but one division of the German LIII Corps, encircled near Vitebsk, to break out. Japanese submarine I 52 was depth charged and sunk southwest of the Azores by a Grumman TBF Avenger. German submarine U 1225 was depth charged and sunk west of Bergen by a PBY Canso of No. 162 Squadron RCAF. The Adelaide Mail in Australia published an article revealing that Ern Malley, supposedly a poet who had died as a complete unknown in 1943 but whose poems had recently been published in the avant garde magazine Angry Penguins to great acclaim, never existed at all. Ern Malley's entire biography and body of work was a hoax created in a single afternoon by the writers James McAuley and Harold Stewart, calculated to embarrass Angry Penguins editor Max Harris by demonstrating how easy it was to write meaningless poetry in the modernist style and get intellectuals to praise it. Born: Jeff Beck, rock guitarist, in Wallington, London, England (d. 2023)

Allied troops captured Mogaung in Burma. Fortress commander Karl Wilhelm von Schlieben and Admiral Walter Hennecke were among the officers captured. British forces began Operation Epsom, again trying to take the German occupied city of Caen. The Battle of Osuchy ended in German victory. The British frigate Goodson was torpedoed off Portland Bill by German submarine U 984 and rendered a total loss. German submarine U 317 was depth charged and sunk northeast of Shetland by a B 24 of No. 86 Squadron RAF. German submarine U 719 was depth charged and sunk northwest of Ireland by British destroyer Bulldog. All three New York baseball teams (the Yankees, the Giants and the Dodgers) squared off at the Polo Grounds in an experimental round robin exhibition game to raise money for war bonds. Each team would play in the field and bat for two consecutive innings, then sit for an inning until they had played a total of nine innings. The final score was Dodgers 5, Yankees 1, Giants 0. The 1944 Republican National Convention opened in Chicago, Illinois.

Operation Epsom ended. The last German forces on La Hague surrendered. German submarine U 478 was depth charged and sunk east of the Faroe Islands by Allied aircraft. Born: Terry Funk, professional wrestler, in Hammond, Indiana (d. 2023); Raymond Moody, philosopher, physician and author, in Porterdale, Georgia