8 Mar 1941
- The Panzer Regiment of German 5th Light Division departed Naples, Italy aboard freighters Alicante, Arcturus, Wachtfels, and Rialto bound for Tripoli, Libya in two convoys. ww2dbase [Operation Sonnenblume | CPC]
- British freighters Clan Macauley and Cingalese, escorted by destroyers HMS Nubian, HMS Mohawk, and HMS Wryneck Prince arrived in Piraeus, Greece with tanks and equipment from North Africa. ww2dbase [CPC]
- German submarine U-A sank British ship Dunaff Head of Allied convoy OB-293 150 miles south of Iceland at 0119 hours; 5 were killed and 38 survived. Destroyer HMS Wolverine counterattacked and damaged U-A. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Erich Raeder warned Adolf Hitler of a possible American landing in northwest Africa should the United States enter the war. ww2dbase [Operation Torch | CPC]
- Off Western Africa, German submarines U-105, U-106, and U-124 received sighting reports of Allied convoy SL-67 from surface ships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. They searched for the escorting battleship HMS Malaya in failure; instead, U-105 sank British ship Harmodius at 0341 hours and U-124 sank four ships between 0547 and 0608 hours. U-105 received damage from depth charges as she was counterattacked. A total of 62 British sailors were killed; 300 survivors were picked up. ww2dbase [Operation Berlin | U-105 | U-106 | U-124 | CPC]
- Battleship Bismarck exited the Kiel Canal and entered Dock C of Deutsche Werke Kiel, Germany. ww2dbase [Deutsche Werke Kiel | Bismarck | Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein | CPC]
- West Indian jazz band leader Ken "Snakehips" Johnson, his musicians and many dancers were killed by a direct hit from a German bomb on the popular Café du Paris night club in London, England, United Kingdom. A total of 34 were killed at the club, while a further 80 were injured. The club had been thought to be relatively safe as it was located underground. ww2dbase [Battle of Britain | London, England | AC]
8 Mar 1941 Interactive Map
Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis
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