23 Mar 1943
- In its heaviest bombing raid to date, the British RAF Bomber Command attacked Dortmund, Germany with 2,000 tons of explosives. ww2dbase [Bombing of Hamburg, Dresden, and Other Cities | TH]
- German 10th Panzer Division counterattacked the advancing American troops in the El Guettar region in Tunisia; heavy American anti-tank fire repulsed the German attack. ww2dbase [Battle of El Guettar | CPC]
- In a free election in occupied Denmark, the Government Party won 143 seats while the Danish Nazi Party only won 5 seats. ww2dbase [CPC]
- German Luftwaffe aircraft sank HMS Windsor Castle off Algeria. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Soviet troops surrounded the German headquarters at Ternopil, Ukraine. ww2dbase [CPC]
- USS S-31 began patrolling in the Kwajalein area in the Marshall Islands. ww2dbase [S-31 | CPC]
- Bernard Montgomery released British 1st Armoured Division from reserve to reinforce the New Zealand troops' offensive near Zarat, Tunisia. Indian 4th Division attacked the western end of the Mareth Line in coordination. ww2dbase [Operations Pugilist and Supercharge II | CPC]
- Heinrich Himmler's statistician reported to him that, thus far, 633,300 Russian Jews had been "resettled", with the latter word a likely euphemism for "exterminated". ww2dbase [Heinrich Himmler | CPC]
- 9 US B-17 bombers attacked the Japanese base at Rabaul, New Britain, causing damage to the airfields. One of the bombers dropped large bombs in the Rabalanakaia volcano in an attempt to artificially cause an eruption, but the attempt was unsuccessful; the Americans did not realize that the volcano was actually dormant. ww2dbase [Rabaul, New Britain | CPC]
- Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Truk, Caroline Islands. ww2dbase [Hikawa Maru | Truk | CPC]
- A German military patrol raided the original Bluie East Five radio and weather station in eastern Greenland, destroying the main building. ww2dbase [Bluie East Five | North Greenland | CPC]
- Nachi departed Paramushiro (Paramushir), Kurile Islands. ww2dbase [Nachi | Paramushiro, Hokkaido | CPC]
- USS Whale attacked a Japanese convoy off Saipan, Mariana Islands, hitting them with 4 of 6 torpedoes fired, sinking Kenyo Maru and damaging another freighter. A 7th torpedo was fired at the general direction of the convoy as she disengaged to discourage escorts from chasing her, but the torpedo circled back and almost struck USS Whale. ww2dbase [Whale | CPC]
- USS Wahoo sank collier Katyosan Maru in the Laotieshan Channel between Liaoning Province and Shandong Province, China, hitting her with 1 of 1 torpedo. ww2dbase [Wahoo | Laotieshan Channel, Yellow Sea | CPC]
- A group of Greek Jews were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in Poland. ww2dbase [Auschwitz Concentration Camp | Discovery of Concentration Camps and the Holocaust | Oswiecim | CPC]
23 Mar 1943 Interactive Map
Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis
Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Share this article with your friends: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
Search WW2DB
News
- » Wreck of USS Edsall Found (14 Nov 2024)
- » Autumn 2024 Fundraiser (7 Nov 2024)
- » Nobel Peace Prize for the Atomic Bomb Survivors Organization (11 Oct 2024)
- » Wreck of USS Stewart/DD-224 Found (2 Oct 2024)
- » See all news
Random Photograph
Current Site Statistics
- » 1,150 biographies
- » 337 events
- » 43,917 timeline entries
- » 1,241 ships
- » 350 aircraft models
- » 207 vehicle models
- » 374 weapon models
- » 123 historical documents
- » 260 facilities
- » 470 book reviews
- » 28,541 photos
- » 432 maps
Famous WW2 Quote
"With Germany arming at breakneck speed, England lost in a pacifist dream, France corrupt and torn by dissension, America remote and indifferent... do you not tremble for your children?"Winston Churchill, 1935
Support Us
Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 a month will go a long way. Thank you!
Or, please support us by purchasing some WW2DB merchandise at TeeSpring, Thank you!