1910 | 1911 | 1912 | 1913 | 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919
1920 | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | 1927 | 1928 | 1929
1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939
1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949
- The American and British occupation zones in Germany merged to form the Bizone, which later became the Federal Republic of Germany. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Hjalmar Siilasvuo passed away. ww2dbase [Hjalmar Siilasvuo | CPC]
- Miles Browning retired from the US Navy. ww2dbase [Miles Browning | CPC]
- The Atomic Energy Act of 1946, signed into American law by US President Harry Truman on 1 Aug 1946, came into effect. Manhattan Project was thus turned over to the newly established civilian United States Atomic Energy Commission. ww2dbase [Operation Trinity and Manhattan Project | CPC]
- Escort carrier Makin Island was sold for scrap. ww2dbase [Makin Island | DS]
- Kashima was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Kashima | CPC]
- Smalley was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Smalley | CPC]
- Philip was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Philip | CPC]
- Shad was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Shad | CPC]
- USS Mingo was decommissioned at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States and entered the Pacific Reserve Fleet. ww2dbase [Mare Island Navy Yard | Mingo | Vallejo, California | CPC]
- Joseph Rochefort retired from the US Navy. ww2dbase [Joseph Rochefort | Washington | CPC]
- John Kennedy began his tenure in the United States House of Representatives for the 11th District in the state of Massachusetts. ww2dbase [John Kennedy | CPC]
- US General George Marshall departed China after failing to secure peace in China. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Colorado was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Colorado | CPC]
- Roderick Carr became the Division Controller of the London and South East Division of the United Kingdom Ministry of Civil Aviation. ww2dbase [Roderick Carr | CPC]
- Soviet Union turned over Slovak diplomat Jan Spisak, who had been arrested in Budapest, Hungary in Dec 1944, to Czechoslovakia for trial. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Bunker Hill was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Bunker Hill | CPC]
- Essex was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Essex | CPC]
- USS Ticonderoga was placed in the Reserve Fleet at Bremerton, Washington, United States. ww2dbase [Puget Sound Navy Yard | Ticonderoga | Bremerton, Washington | DS]
- USS Alabama was decommissioned from service at Naval Station Puget Sound, Seattle, Washington, United States. ww2dbase [Puget Sound Navy Yard | Alabama | Seattle, Washington | CPC]
- USS Yorktown (Essex-class) taken out of commission and placed in the Bremerton Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet, Bremerton, Washington, United States. ww2dbase [Puget Sound Navy Yard | Yorktown (Essex-class) | Puget Sound, Washington | DS]
Japan
- USS Sterlet arrived at Sasebo, Japan. ww2dbase [Sterlet | Sasebo, Nagasaki | CPC]
- Belleau Wood was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Belleau Wood | CPC]
- Cowpens was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Cowpens | CPC]
- Daniel Sultan passed away. ww2dbase [Daniel Sultan | CPC]
- Hornet (Essex-class) was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Hornet (Essex-class) | CPC]
- Aubrey Fitch stepped down as the Superintendent of the Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, United States. ww2dbase [Aubrey Fitch | Annapolis, Maryland | DS]
- Bernard Montgomery was awarded the Order of Suvorov 1st Class of the Soviet Union and the Grand Cross of the Order of the Dutch Lion of the Netherlands. ww2dbase [Bernard Montgomery | CPC]
China
- Chinese Nationalist forces captured Xiaoyi, Shanxi, China, defeating the Communists forces garrisoned there. ww2dbase [Xiaoyi, Shanxi | CPC]
United States
- James Byrnes resigned as the US Secretary of State. ww2dbase [James Byrnes | Washington | CPC]
- George Marshall was named the US Secretary of State. ww2dbase [George Marshall | Washington | CPC]
Germany
- The Flossenbürg Trials at Dachau Concentration Camp ended. Of the 52 charged, charges were dropped for 7, 5 were found not guilty, and 40 were found guilty. 15 received death sentences, 11 received life sentences, and 14 received prison terms. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Flossenbürg Concentration Camp | Dachau, München-Oberbayern | CPC]
- Roy Geiger passed away. ww2dbase [Roy Geiger | CPC]
- Montpelier was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Montpelier | CPC]
- S-29 was sold to the firm H. G. Pound of Portsmouth, England, United Kingdom for scrapping. ww2dbase [S-29/P556 | Portsmouth, England | CPC]
- Clifton Cates became the President of the Advisory Board of Marine Barracks, Quantico, Virginia, United States. ww2dbase [Clifton Cates | Quantico, Virginia | CPC]
United States
- USS Charr arrived at San Diego, California, United States, ending the simulated war patrol. During the patrol she visited Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii; Subic Bay, Philippine Islands; Shanghai and Qingdao, China; and Yokosuka, Japan. ww2dbase [Charr | San Diego, California | CPC]
- USS Sterlet departed Japan. ww2dbase [Sterlet | CPC]
- Destroyer Cummings was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register. ww2dbase [Cummings | CPC]
Japan
- Shigeru Yoshida was made the Minister of Agriculture. ww2dbase [Shigeru Yoshida | CPC]
- South Dakota was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [South Dakota | CPC]
- The Bavarian de-Nazification tribunal in Nürnberg, Germany sentenced Hans Fritzsche to nine years of hard labor. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Nürnberg, Franken | CPC]
- Renshaw was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Renshaw | CPC]
- Roderick Carr retired from military service. ww2dbase [Roderick Carr | CPC]
- USS Saint Paul conducted training operations off San Diego, California, United States. ww2dbase [Saint Paul | San Diego, California | CPC]
- Submarine Pollack was sold to Ship-Shape, Inc. of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States for scrap. ww2dbase [Pollack | CPC]
- Marc Mitscher passed away. ww2dbase [Marc Mitscher | CPC]
- USS Honolulu was decommissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard and joined the Reserve Fleet. ww2dbase [Honolulu | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | DS]
- Grayson was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Grayson | CPC]
China
- A court in Najing, China, Lieutenant General Hisao Tani, commanding officer of the Japanese 6th Division in Nanjing from late 1937, was found guilty of encouraging his men to commit crimes such as rape, murder, plunder, and destruction. ww2dbase [Tokyo Trial and Other Trials Against Japan | Hisao Tani | Nanjing | CPC]
- Denver was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Denver | CPC]
- Italy ceded most of Venezia Giulia to Yugoslavia. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Minneapolis was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Minneapolis | CPC]
- As Jan Smuts affixed his signature to the Paris Peace Treaty in France, he became the only person to have signed the documents officially ending WW1 and WW2. ww2dbase [Jan Smuts | Paris | CPC]
- Cruiser USS New Orleans (New Orleans-class) was decommissioned at Philadelphia Navy Yard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The ship spent 12 years in the reserve fleet before being scrapped. ww2dbase [Philadelphia Navy Yard | New Orleans | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | DS]
- Bataan (Independence-class) was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Bataan (Independence-class) | CPC]
- Cabot was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Cabot | CPC]
- USS Langley was decommissioned from service at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. ww2dbase [Langley (Independence-class) | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | CPC]
United States
- USS Ray was decommissioned from service at New London, Connecticut, United States. ww2dbase [Ray | New London, Connecticut | CPC]
- USS Bluefish was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Bluefish | CPC]
- USS Haddock was decommissioned from service at New London, Connecticut, United States. ww2dbase [Haddock | New London, Connecticut | CPC]
- USS Tennessee was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Tennessee | CPC]
- The scheduled overhaul work for USS Chub completed. ww2dbase [Chub | CPC]
- Roderick Carr was appointed King of Arms of the Order of the British Empire. ww2dbase [Roderick Carr | CPC]
Japan
- Shigeru Yoshida stepped down as the Minister of Agriculture. ww2dbase [Shigeru Yoshida | CPC]
- USS Saint Paul completed training operations off San Diego, California, United States. ww2dbase [Saint Paul | San Diego, California | CPC]
- Alaska was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Alaska | CPC]
- Enterprise was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Enterprise | CPC]
- Franklin was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Franklin | CPC]
- Guam was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Guam | CPC]
- USS Wasp was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Wasp (Essex-class) | CPC]
India
- Louis Mountbatten was made the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, succeeding the Viscount Wavell, Archibald Wavell. ww2dbase [Louis Mountbatten | CPC]
United States
- Battleship New Mexico was struck from the US Naval Vessel Register. ww2dbase [New Mexico | CPC]
- Helm was removed from the US Naval Vessel Register. ww2dbase [Helm | CPC]
Yugoslavia
- Alexander Löhr was executed by firing squad in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. ww2dbase [Alexander Löhr | Belgrade, Serbia | CPC]
Taiwan
- In Taiwan, Republic of China, a major uprising of Taiwanese led to brutal suppressions by the mainlander-dominated provincial government forces. 18,000 to 30,000 Taiwanese, deemed rebels, were killed by the end of the disorder. ww2dbase [CPC]
- San Jacinto was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [San Jacinto | CPC]
- Intrepid was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Intrepid | CPC]
- Song Ziwen stepped down as the chief of Executive Yuan. ww2dbase [Song Ziwen | CPC]
- Chiang Kaishek was made the head of the Executive Yuan. ww2dbase [Chiang Kaishek | CPC]
- A petition sent by the "Association of Families of Victims of the Massacre of September 24-25, 1945 in Saigon" to French Minister for Overseas France named Colonel H. J. Cédile as the person responsible, suggesting that he had utterly failed to protect Europeans during the Vietnamese attack. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Robert Saundby was made a Commander of the Legion of Merit by the United States. ww2dbase [Robert Saundby | CPC]
- Canberra (Baltimore-class) was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Canberra (Baltimore-class) | CPC]
Russia
Greece
- Evripidis Bakirtzis passed away on the island of Fournoi Korseon, Greece. ww2dbase [Evripidis Bakirtzis | Fournoi Korseon, North Aegean | CPC]
- Harukichi Hyakutake passed away. ww2dbase [Harukichi Hyakutake | CPC]
- Lieutenant General Hisao Tani was sentenced to death by a court in Nanjing, China for encouraging his men to commit crimes such as rape, murder, plunder, and destruction at Nanjing in 1937 and 1938. ww2dbase [Tokyo Trial and Other Trials Against Japan | Nanjing | CPC]
- Hisao Tani was found guilty of war crimes by a court in Nanjing, China. ww2dbase [Hisao Tani | Nanjing | CPC]
Poland
- The trial against Rudolf Höss at the Supreme National Tribunal of Poland began. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Rudolf Höss | CPC]
- The Warsaw trials against German war criminals began at the auditorium of the Polish Teachers' Union in Warsaw, Poland. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Warsaw | CPC]
- USS Sennet completed her participated in the Operation Highjump Antarctic expedition. ww2dbase [Sennet | CPC]
- Dong Zhao was awarded the Order of Resplendent Banner 3rd Class. ww2dbase [Dong Zhao | CPC]
- Togo was transferred to the Norwegian Navy. ww2dbase [Togo / Coronel | CPC]
- Joseph McNarney stepped down as the commanding general of US Forces in the European Theater. ww2dbase [Joseph McNarney | CPC]
Luxembourg
- George Patton's remains were moved to a different grave site within the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial in Hamm, Luxembourg. ww2dbase [George Patton | Hamm | CPC]
- Holland was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Holland | CPC]
- George Washington Carver entered the National Defense Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay, California, United States. ww2dbase [George Washington Carver | Suisun Bay, California | CPC]
Russia
- Gunsyn Tsydenova stepped down as the chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Buryat-Mongol Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, Russia. ww2dbase [Gunsyn Tsydenova | Ulan-Ude, Buryat-Mongol | CPC]
- Massachusetts was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Massachusetts | CPC]
- The trial against Rudolf Höss at the Supreme National Tribunal of Poland ended with a guilty verdict. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Rudolf Höss | CPC]
- War crimes trials against Hartwig von Ludwiger began in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. ww2dbase [Hartwig von Ludwiger | Belgrade, Serbia | CPC]
- George II passed away. ww2dbase [George II | CPC]
- In Belgrade, Yugoslavia, Hartwig von Ludwiger was found guilty for the harassment, torture, and murder of prisoners of war; for the looting and destruction of towns and villages; for the murder of civilians; and for the transfer of civilians to concentration camps. He was given the death sentence. ww2dbase [Hartwig von Ludwiger | Belgrade, Serbia | CPC]
Poland
- Rudolf Höss was sentenced to death by Polish authorities. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Rudolf Höss | CPC]
United States
- USS Maryland was decommissioned at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. ww2dbase [Puget Sound Navy Yard | Maryland | Bremerton, Washington | DS]
- Chinese communist forces attacked a US Marines ammunition depot. ww2dbase [CPC]
Burma
- In Burma elections for constituent assmblies were won, with an overwhelming majority, by the Anti-Fascist Peoples Freedom League (AFPFL) led by Aung San and will now govern when independence is granted on 4 Jan 1948. ww2dbase [Aung San | AC]
- Chen Lifu was named the chief secretary of the Central Political Committee of the Nationalist Party. ww2dbase [Chen Lifu | CPC]
- Graf Zeppelin departed Stettin, Germany (now Szczecin, Poland) with loot aboard. ww2dbase [Graf Zeppelin | Szczecin | CPC]
- Chrysler Corporation, after having studied the Japanese Ne-20 turbojet engine which was originally designed for the Kikka jet aircraft, submitted an official report to the US military. ww2dbase [J9N-1/J9Y Kikka | CPC]
- Rudolf Höss wrote a letter to the state prosecutor who had worked against him during his trial, noting that he realized he had sinned and was ready to receive the punishment of death. ww2dbase [Rudolf Höss | CPC]
Poland
- Rudolf Höss wrote the last letters to his wife and children from his prison cell in Poland. ww2dbase [Rudolf Höss | CPC]
- Nikolai Kamanin's son Arkady Kamanin passed away from meningitis. ww2dbase [Nikolai Kamanin | CPC]
- Jozef Tiso was found guilty of German collaboration and was sentenced to death. ww2dbase [Jozef Tiso | CPC]
Poland
- Rudolf Höss was executed by hanging next to the crematorium of Auschwitz I concentration camp. He was pronounced dead at 1021 hours by a medical doctor. He was then buried in a unmarked grave nearby. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Auschwitz Concentration Camp | Rudolf Höss | Oswiecim | CPC]
- The Royal Canadian Air Force retired its fleet of Ventura aircraft. ww2dbase [Ventura | CPC]
- Jozef Tiso was executed by hanging. ww2dbase [Jozef Tiso | CPC]
- Chiang Kaishek stepped down as the head of the Executive Yuan. ww2dbase [Chiang Kaishek | CPC]
- Chan Chak was made a senior adviser to the Chinese central government. ww2dbase [Chan Chak | CPC]
- Christian X passed away. ww2dbase [Christian X | CPC]
- The battleship HMS Warspite was wrecked on the rocks of Mounts Bay, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, while being towed to the breakers. ww2dbase [Warspite | AC]
- USS Lexington was decommissioned at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Washington, United States. ww2dbase [Puget Sound Navy Yard | Lexington (Essex-class) | Bremerton, Washington | DS]
China
- Hisao Tani's appeal against his death sentence was rejected by Chiang Kaishek. ww2dbase [Hisao Tani | CPC]
China
- Lieutenant General Hisao Tani was executed by firing squad at Nanjing, China. ww2dbase [Nanjing | CPC]
- Hisao Tani was executed by firing squad on Mount Yuhuatai in Nanjing, China. ww2dbase [Hisao Tani | Nanjing | CPC]
- Pan Yukun was made the commanding officer of New 1st Army. ww2dbase [Pan Yukun | CPC]
- Captain Richard C. Lake was made the commanding officer of USS Proteus, replacing Captain James Jordan. ww2dbase [Proteus | CPC]
United States
- USS Sterlet arrived at San Francisco, California, United States. ww2dbase [Sterlet | San Francisco, California | CPC]
- Light carrier Hosho's scrapping was completed by Hitachi Zosen, Sakurajima, Japan. ww2dbase [Hosho | CPC]
- USS Sterlet reported to the Pacific Reserve Fleet at San Francisco, California, United States for inactivation. ww2dbase [Sterlet | San Francisco, California | CPC]
- SB No. 125 (formerly landing ship No. 108) was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [No. 101/103-class | CPC]
- Suffren was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Suffren | CPC]
- Crown Prince Yi Un lost his Japanese royal status. ww2dbase [Yi Un | CPC]
- Hartwig von Ludwiger was executed in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. ww2dbase [Hartwig von Ludwiger | Belgrade, Serbia | CPC]
United States
- USS Becuna entered Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States for a scheduled overhaul. ww2dbase [Mare Island Navy Yard | Becuna | Vallejo, California | CPC]
United Kingdom
- Harry Gordon Selfridge died at the age of 83 from bronchial pneumonia in the district of Putney in London, England, United Kingdom. The American founder of the London luxury department store was pennyless, but he created an idea that revolutionised shopping forever. Selfridge believed the customer was always right and provided restaurants and attentive salespeople to keep customers in his shop for longer. But the Depression and his lavish spending and gambling habits meant he owed a quarter of a million pounds by 1940. ww2dbase [London, England | AC]
- Hancock was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Hancock | CPC]
China
- He Yingqin was named the chairman of the military committee of the Office of the President of the Republic of China. ww2dbase [He Yingqin | CPC]
French Morocco
- Alphonse Pierre Juin was made the Resident-General of French Morocco, replacing Eirik Labonne. ww2dbase [CPC]
- USS Sea Robin commenced a simulated war patrol which called for her to circumnavigate South America; she would become the first American submarine to round Cape Horn. ww2dbase [Sea Robin | CPC]
- Chinese communist forces launched an offensive in northeastern China. ww2dbase [CPC]
China
- Zhang Linfu committed suicide in his command cave in Menglianggu, Mengyin County, Shandong Province, China. ww2dbase [Zhang Lingfu | Mengyin, Shandong | CPC]
China
- Chinese communist forces captured Huaide County, Jilin Province, China. ww2dbase [Jilin | CPC]
Greece
- Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller was executed by firing squad in Athens, Greece. ww2dbase [Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller | Athens | CPC]
- The British divided India into India and Pakistan. ww2dbase [CPC]
Japan
- Shigeru Yoshida stepped down as the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister of Japan. ww2dbase [Shigeru Yoshida | CPC]
China
- Chinese communist forces captured Faku County, Liaoning Province, China. ww2dbase [Liaoning | CPC]
See all photos dated 26 May 1947
China
- Chinese communist forces captured Changtu County, Liaoning Province, China. ww2dbase [Liaoning | CPC]
- Daniel Inouye was honorably discharged from the US Army at the rank of captain. ww2dbase [Daniel Inouye | CPC]
- Dong Zhao was awarded the Order of Precious Tripod 4th Class. ww2dbase [Dong Zhao | CPC]
- The United States ended the rationing of sugar. ww2dbase [CPC]
Russia
- Stepan Petrichenko, a former spy for the Soviet Union in Finland but had fell out of favor with the leadership, died while in captivity at the Solikamsk Labor Camp in Solikamsk, Perm Oblast, Russia. ww2dbase [Solikamsk, Perm | CPC]
Brazil
- In exile, King Carol II of Romania married his mistress Magda Lupescu in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ww2dbase [Carol II | Rio de Janeiro | AC]
- To combat the increasing amount of pilfering, the Soviet Union, at Stalin's insistence, passed a new draconian law increasing the penalty for economic crime. Between 1947 and 1952 some one and a half million (often desperate or hungry) Russians would be sent to the gulag camps on charges of state theft often for quite trivial misdemeanours. ww2dbase [AC]
Russia
- Kirill Meretskov was awarded his fifth Order of Lenin. ww2dbase [Kirill Meretskov | CPC]
United Kingdom
- RAF Sergeant John Hannah, who as an 18-year-old had won the Victoria Cross during a raid on Antwerp in Belgium (having never fully recovered from burns and smoke inhalation), died of tuberculosis in Markfield, Leicestershire, England, United Kingdom. ww2dbase [Markfield, England | AC]
France
- Jean de Laborde's death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. ww2dbase [Jean de Laborde | CPC]
- Richard O'Connor was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. ww2dbase [Richard O'Connor | CPC]
China
- Pan Yukun was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general. ww2dbase [Pan Yukun | CPC]
China
- Chinese communist forces began an attack on Siping, Liaobei Province, China. ww2dbase [Siping, Liaobei | CPC]
Belgium
- The government of Belgium submitted an extradition request for Pierre Daye to the government of Argentina. ww2dbase [Pierre Daye | CPC]
- War criminals Sergeant Jiro Shimoda and Captain Harochi Yonemura were executed in Shanghai, China. Shimoda had plundered and raped Chinese civilians during the occupation, including several murders committed at Jianying 85 miles northwest of Shanghai on the date of the surrender. Yonemura had ordered enlisted men under his command to bury, while alive, more than 100 Chinese civilians in Changshu near the city of Suzhou. ww2dbase [Tokyo Trial and Other Trials Against Japan | Shanghai | CPC]
- Commander Oliver Bagby became the commanding officer of USS Charr. ww2dbase [Charr | CPC]
- A P-80R jet aircraft, piloted by Colonel Albert Boyd, set a world air speed record of 1,004.2 kilometers per hour (623.73 miles per hour). ww2dbase [P-80 Shooting Star | CPC]
- Hereditary Grand Duke Jean relinquished his commission in the British Army. ww2dbase [Jean | ]
- Robert Saundby was made a Grand Officer of the Order of Leopold II with Palms by Belgium. ww2dbase [Robert Saundby | CPC]
- USS Washington was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Washington | CPC]
- North Carolina was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [North Carolina | CPC]
- Laffey (Allen M. Sumner-class) was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Laffey (Allen M. Sumner-class) | CPC]
- Chinese Nationalist forces lifted the siege of Siping, Liaobei Province, China. ww2dbase [Siping, Liaobei | CPC]
- USS Miami was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Miami | CPC]
- Tribune was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Tribune | CPC]
- Hanyang Arsenal in Hanyang County, Hubei Province, China officially ceased to exist. ww2dbase [Hanyang Arsenal | Hanyang, Hubei | CPC]
- Alexandros Sakellariou was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Cross of Valour. ww2dbase [Alexandros Sakellariou | CPC]
- Aubrey Fitch retired from military service. ww2dbase [Aubrey Fitch | DS]
- The AK-47 assault rifle entered production in the Soviet Union. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Destroyer Yukikaze was transferred to the Republic of China as war reparation. ww2dbase [Yukikaze | CPC]
Belgium
- Ward Hermans' sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. ww2dbase [Ward Hermans | CPC]
- 21-year-old Princess Elizabeth of the United Kingdom announced her engagement to Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten, the former Prince of Greece and Denmark. ww2dbase [AC]
Russia
- Raoul Wallenberg passed away in Soviet captivity to unknown cause. ww2dbase [Raoul Wallenberg | CPC]
- Destroyer Cummings was sold for scrap. ww2dbase [Cummings | CPC]
- Aung San was assassinated in Rangoon, Burma. ww2dbase [Aung San | CPC]
- Yan Xishan was named a National Assembly Representative and a member of the Legislative Yuan. ww2dbase [Yan Xishan | CPC]
- The Dutch authorised a "Police Action" involving three divisions on Java and three Brigades on the larger, but less populated, Sumatra in the Dutch East Indies. The Dutch forces managed to capture most towns and interned the Nationalist insurgents, but most insurgents fled to the hills where they continued to mount guerrilla raids. ww2dbase [AC]
Russia
- The Soviet MGB moved Finnish prisoners from labor camps to the Vladimir Prison in Vladimir, Russia to keep their whereabouts secret. ww2dbase [Vladimir | CPC]
Germany
- British engineers demolished the smaller building of the Berlin Zoo Flak Tower complex in Berlin, Germany. ww2dbase [Berlin Zoo Flak Tower | Berlin | CPC]
- Chen Cheng was named the commander-in-chief of Nationalist forces in northeastern China. ww2dbase [Chen Cheng | CPC]
- USS Boarfish became the flagship of Rear Admiral Allan Rockwell McCann of Task Group 17.3, which was to embark on the first expedition under the Polar Ice Cap in the Bering Strait. ww2dbase [Boarfish | CPC]
- Arthur Coningham retired from the Royal Air Force. ww2dbase [Arthur Coningham | CPC]
- FR Fireball piston-jet mix-powered fighters were withdrawn from service by the US Navy. ww2dbase [FR Fireball | CPC]
- Formidable was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Formidable | CPC]
- Pakistan was granted independence by the United Kingdom, forming the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Josias was sentenced to life imprisonment for his involvement with Buchenwald Concentration Camp in Germany. ww2dbase [Josias | CPC]
- India was granted independence by the United Kingdom, forming the Republic of India. "Jai Hind", the battle cry of the Indian National Army, became India's first commemorative postal marking. ww2dbase [CPC]
- Graf Zeppelin sank in the Baltic Sea, possibly as a target ship for the Soviet Navy. ww2dbase [Graf Zeppelin | CPC]
- Captain Stanley Leith was named the commanding officer of USS Saint Paul. ww2dbase [Saint Paul | CPC]
- Tang Enbo was relieved of duty as the commanding officer of the Capital Garrison. ww2dbase [Tang Enbo | CPC]
Germany
- Ilse Koch was found guilty of violating laws and customs of war, and sentenced to life imprisonment. ww2dbase [Ilse Koch | CPC]
- The Doctors' Trial ended in Nuremberg, in which an United States military court found 16 of the 20 doctors and 3 Nazi officials guilty of human experimentation. 7 were given death sentences and 9 were given prison sentences. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | CPC]
- Salt Lake City was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Salt Lake City | CPC]
- Alexandros Sakellariou was made the Minister of Supply and the acting Minister of Merchant Marine. ww2dbase [Alexandros Sakellariou | CPC]
- US Marines departed China. ww2dbase [CPC]
- USS Missouri arrived at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ww2dbase [Missouri | CPC]
- British engineers set off 25 tons of explosives in a failed attempt to demolish the main building of the Berlin Zoo Flak Tower in Berlin, Germany. ww2dbase [Berlin Zoo Flak Tower | Berlin | CPC]
- Ira Eaker retired from the US Army. ww2dbase [Ira Eaker | CPC]
- About half of university students in the United States on this date were WW2 veterans. ww2dbase [CPC]
- US President Harry Truman embarked USS Missouri at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ww2dbase [Missouri | CPC]
China
- Song Tingcai led 400 militia troops in a failed action against a much larger Communist force at Tianhu, Henan Province, China. ww2dbase [Song Tiancai | Tiannhu, Henan | CPC]
Hawaii
- USS Brill departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. ww2dbase [Pearl Harbor Navy Base and Ford Island Naval Air Station | Brill | Pearl Harbor, Oahu | CPC]
United States
- USS Missouri arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, United States, disembarking US President Harry Truman. ww2dbase [Missouri | Norfolk, Virginia | CPC]
Australian New Guinea
- Hatazo Adachi committed ritual suicide with a rusty paring knife at Rabaul, New Britain. ww2dbase [Hatazo Adachi | Rabaul, New Britain | CPC]
- The Soviet Politburo approved 9 more open trials of 137 accused German war criminals. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Moscow | CPC]
- Indiana was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Indiana | CPC]
- The United States Air Force (USAF) became an officially independent member of the newly unified US armed services, and was no longer under the control of the US Army. ww2dbase [AC]
- James Doolittle transferred from the US Army Reserve to the US Air Force Reserve; he retained the rank of lieutenant general. ww2dbase [James Doolittle | CPC]
Russia
- Kirill Meretskov was awarded the In Commemoration of the 800th Anniversary of Moscow medal. ww2dbase [Kirill Meretskov | CPC]
Russia
- Kliment Voroshilov was given the medal "In Commemoration of the 800th Anniversary of Moscow". ww2dbase [Kliment Voroshilov | CPC]
United States
- USS Becuna completed her scheduled overhaul at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States. ww2dbase [Mare Island Navy Yard | Becuna | Vallejo, California | CPC]
- USS Missouri entered New York Naval Shipyard in New York, United States for a scheduled overhaul. ww2dbase [Missouri | CPC]
United States
- USS Proteus was decommissioned from US Navy service but remained operational at New London, Connecticut, United States. ww2dbase [Proteus | New London, Connecticut | CPC]
United States
- USS Brill began a scheduled overhaul at San Francisco Naval Shipyard, San Francisco, California, United States. ww2dbase [Brill | San Francisco, California | CPC]
China
- Chiang Kaishek stepped down as the commandant of the Chinese Central Aviation Academy at Jianqio Airfield, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, handing the resonsibility over to Lieutenant General Hu Weike. ww2dbase [Jianqiao Airfield | Chiang Kaishek | Hangzhou, Zhejiang | CPC]
- XP-86 prototype jet fighter flew for the first time at Muroc Field, California, United States with George Welch in the cockpit. ww2dbase [George Welch | Lancaster, California | CPC]
France
- Capitaine de vaisseau Beaussant was named the commanding officer of Jeanne d'Arc. ww2dbase [Jeanne d'Arc | CPC]
- Helm was sold for scrap. ww2dbase [Helm | CPC]
China
- Japanese landing ship No. 172 was turned over to the Republic of China Navy at Qingdao, Shandong Province, China; she was renamed Lui Shan and would remain in Chinese service until 1955. ww2dbase [No. 101/103-class | Qingdao, Shandong | CPC]
- Capitaine de vaisseau Cabanier was named the commanding officer of Jeanne d'Arc. ww2dbase [Jeanne d'Arc | CPC]
- Landing ship No. 137 was transferred to the Soviet Union at Nakhodka, Primorski Krai, Russia as part of war reparations. ww2dbase [No. 101/103-class | Nakhodka, Primorski Krai | CPC]
United States
- The US firm Curtiss-Wright closed its aircraft manufacturing division. ww2dbase [CPC]
Japan
- Prince Yasuhiko lost his imperial status and privileges and was made a common citizen. ww2dbase [Yasuhiko | CPC]
- Morimasa's princely title was abolished. ww2dbase [Morimasa | Tokyo | CPC]
- Queen Wilhelmina passed her monarchial duties to Princess Juliana due to health issues. ww2dbase [Wilhelmina | CPC]
- Over the Mojave Desert in California, United States, Captain Chuck Yeager flew the X-1 prototype rocket-powered aircraft out of the bomb bay of a B-29 bomber at the altitude of 23,000 feet, ascended to 43,000 feet, and broke the sound barrier at the speed of 700 miles per hour. ww2dbase [Charles Yeager | California | CPC]
United States
- Gato-class submarine USS Silversides was recommissioned and designated as a stationary reserve training ship in Chicago, Illinois. ww2dbase [Silversides | Chicago, Illinois | DS]
Japan
- Prince Naruhiko was stripped of his royal title, and along with it, most of his wealth. ww2dbase [Naruhiko | CPC]
- SB No. 125 (formerly landing ship No. 108) and another SB ship (formerly landing ship No. 110) were surrendered to the United Kingdom at Singapore. ww2dbase [No. 101/103-class | Singapore | CPC]
Japan
- Crown Prince Yi Un lost his Japanese citizenship and became a stateless person. ww2dbase [Yi Un | CPC]
- Destroyer HMCS Cayuga was commissioned into service with Commander O. C. S. Robertson in command. ww2dbase [AC]
Finland
- Fanni Luukkonen passed away from a heart attack in Helsinki, Finland. ww2dbase [Fanni Luukkonen | Helsinki | CPC]
- Louis Mountbatten was made Earl Mountbatten of Burma. ww2dbase [Louis Mountbatten | CPC]
Panama
- Tu Yuntan (Tu Yuen-ten) stepped down as the Chinese ambassador to Panama. ww2dbase [Panama City | CPC]
United States
- Millionaire Howard Hughes piloted his 180-ton Hercules flying-boat as it took to the air for its only flight over Los Angeles harbour, California, United States, covering a distance of just one mile. Seven times the size of the DC-6 aircraft, the then largest operational commercial airliner, it was also the largest flying-boat ever built. Powered by eight Pratt & Whitney piston engines it was intended that it would carry up to 700 passengers. ww2dbase [Los Angeles, California | AC]
- Pohl Trial in Nuremberg ended; out of 17 defendants, 2 were acquitted while the other 15 former SS men were found guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity, largely for their role in the atrocities committed against concentration camp victims. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | CPC]
- John Winant committed suicide in his home in Concord, New Hampshire, United States. ww2dbase [John Winant | CPC]
Japan
- Paul Wenneker was released from American internment in Japan. ww2dbase [Paul Wenneker | CPC]
Russia
- Semyon Timoshenko was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for the fifth time. ww2dbase [Semyon Timoshenko | CPC]
- Kirill Meretskov was awarded his fourth Order of Red Banner. ww2dbase [Kirill Meretskov | CPC]
United States
- USS Shangri-La was decommissioned from service and was placed in the Reserve Fleet at San Francisco, California, United States. ww2dbase [Shangri-La | San Francisco, California | CPC]
- Constantin Sănătescu passed away. ww2dbase [Constantin Sănătescu | CPC]
United States
- Battleship New Mexico was sold for scrapping to the Lipsett Division of the firm Luria Brothers and Company for US $381,600. She departed Boston, Massachusetts, United States toward Newark, New Jersey, United States where Lipsett was to scrap the ship. ww2dbase [New Mexico | Boston, Massachusetts | CPC]
Atlantic Ocean
- Battleship New Mexico, while being towed by tugboats off New York, United States, encountered heavy weather. The tugboats were forced to cut the tow lines. She drifted and became lost. ww2dbase [New Mexico | CPC]
Atlantic Ocean
- Battleship New Mexico was spotted by a US Coast Guard aircraft 35 miles off the coast of New York, United States. Two tugboats were dispatched to the battleship. ww2dbase [New Mexico | CPC]
- Landing ship No. 147 was transferred to the United States while at Yokosuka, Japan. ww2dbase [No. 101/103-class | Yokosuka, Kanagawa | CPC]
United States
- The city of Newark, New Jersey, United States dispatched two aging fireboats, Michael P. Duffy and William T. Brennan, to block the entrance of Newark Bay. The city administration, which had already embarked on a costly beautification program, did not wish to play host to the scrapping of a battleship. The US Coast Guard and four tug boats of the Lipsett Division of the firm Luria Brothers and Company stood on the other side of the line with battleship New Mexico behind them. ww2dbase [New Mexico | Newark, New Jersey | CPC]
- Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States supported Alamogordo Guided Missile Test Base in the launching of the first Boeing Ground-to-Air Pilotless Aircraft. ww2dbase [Alamogordo Army Air Field | Alamogordo, New Mexico | CPC]
Hawaii
- USS Sterlet departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii. ww2dbase [Sterlet | Honolulu, Oahu | CPC]
- USS Boarfish arrived at Mare Island Navy Yard in Vallejo, California, United States for a scheduled overhaul. ww2dbase [Mare Island Navy Yard | Boarfish | Vallejo, California | CPC]
- Arthur Coningham was awarded Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange Nassau of the Netherlands. ww2dbase [Arthur Coningham | CPC]
- The city of Newark, New Jersey, United States reached a settlement with Lipsett Division of the firm Luria Brothers and Company, allowing the company to nine months to scrap battleship New Mexico in the city. Delays would cost the company US$1,000 per day. Battleship New Mexico was towed into Newark Bay within hours. ww2dbase [New Mexico | Newark, New Jersey | CPC]
Poland
- The First Auschwitz Trial against 40 former camp staff members, including Arthur Liebehenschel, began in Kraków, Poland. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Kraków | CPC]
- The scrapping of battleship New Mexico began at the facilities of Lipsett Division of the firm Luria Brothers and Company in Newark, New Jersey, United States. The work would complete in Jul 1948. ww2dbase [New Mexico | Newark, New Jersey | CPC]
Hungary
- Gusztáv Jány passed away in Budapest, Hungary. ww2dbase [Gusztáv Jány | Budapest | CPC]
Algeria
- Philippe Leclerc was killed when the B-25 aircraft he traveled aboard crashed near Colomb-Béchar, South Territory, French Algeria. ww2dbase [Philippe Leclerc | Colomb-Béchar | CPC]
- The United Nations General Assembly votes to partition Palestine (The Partition Plan). ww2dbase [CPC]
Australia
- USS Sterlet arrived at Brisbane, Australia. ww2dbase [Sterlet | Brisbane, Queensland | CPC]
- Princess Juliana returned monarchial duties to Queen Wilhelmina as the queen's health improved. ww2dbase [Wilhelmina | CPC]
- Ivan Bagramyan was awarded the Order of Lenin for the third time. ww2dbase [Ivan Bagramyan | CPC]
- Tadashige Daigo passed away. ww2dbase [Tadashige Daigo | CPC]
- USS Sterlet departed Brisbane, Australia. ww2dbase [Sterlet | Brisbane, Queensland | CPC]
- Victoria Cross winner Nand Singh of the Indian Army was killed whilst leading a successful attack to extricate his battalion from an ambush by Kashmir raiders from Pakistan. ww2dbase [AC]
Poland
- The First Auschwitz Trial against 40 former camp staff members, including Arthur Liebehenschel, ended in Kraków, Poland. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Kraków | CPC]
- LST-412 was sold to Northern Metals Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States for scrapping. ww2dbase [LST-412 | CPC]
- HMAS Hobart was decommissioned from service. ww2dbase [Hobart | CPC]
Poland
- The Polish Supreme National Tribunal issued judgement on the 40 former Auschwitz Concentration Camp staff members tried during the First Auschwitz Trial which concluded 6 days prior. 23 were found guilty and were given death sentences, 16 were found guilty and were given prison terms, and 1 was acquitted. ww2dbase [Nuremberg Trials and Other Trials Against Germany | Kraków | CPC]
- The Constitution of the Republic of China came into effect. ww2dbase [CPC]
Egypt
- Vittorio Emanuele III passed away in Alexandria, Egypt. ww2dbase [Vittorio Emanuele III | Alexandria | CPC]
Romania
- King Mihai I of Romania was forced to abdicate the throne by the Soviet-backed communist government. ww2dbase [Mihai I | CPC]
United States
- Clifton Cates was promoted to the temporary rank of general and was made the commandant of the US Marine Corps. ww2dbase [Clifton Cates | CPC]
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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George Patton, 31 May 1944
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