With the carrier battle of the Eastern Solomons over, the Japanese convoy heading south still plods on. The Japanese, incredibly, believe they have sunk two American carriers..They send in three destroyers to sweep Ironbottom Sound for shipping after midnight (find none), and shell the American premises, killing two Marines. After that, floatplanes irritate the defenders.

The Americans hit back at 2:30 a.m., sending SBDs to attack the destroyers from Guadalcanal and Enterprise. They lightly damage the destroyer Mochizuki.

At 2:33, a PBY finds Tanaka's convoy and shadows it. Eight American Navy and Marine SBDs find the Japanese later that morning. The Japanese don't open fire with AA guns as they think the Americans are friendly planes. The Americans put a bomb through the cruiser Jintsu's bow, which demolishes the ship's radio room, killing a number of Sailors, most of them Radiomen. Tanaka himself is knocked unconscious. He staggers to his feet to find Jintsu raging with flame. He orders the forward magazine flooded. The Americans also damage the freighter Kinryu Maru and score a near miss on the Boston Maru.

Tanaka regroups his ships, shifts his flag to the destroyer Kagero and sends Jintsu home. While all hands tend Kinryu Maru, three B-17s show up at 10:27. For once, B-17s harm Japanese shipping, as an American bomb lands in destroyer Mutsuki's engine room, sinking her at 11:40, killing 40. The destroyer's captain stumbles onto a rescue ship, and says that "even the B-17s can make a hit once in a while." The Japanese scuttle the blazing Kinryu Maru and cancel the landing on Guadalcanal.

Later that day, the Japanese send 21 bombers and 12 Zeros to Guadalcanal, and hammer the airfield, killing four men and wounding five.

The Battle of the Eastern Solomons is over, but it is a flawed victory. Japan has lost a carrier, a destroyer, and a freighter, and suffer a damaged cruiser. They have lost 75 planes of various types, and an indeterminate but substantial number of men.

The Americans have suffered 75 dead on Enterprise, which is now a dockyard case. Plane losses are 18.

Fletcher draws criticism for the poor performance of his airgroups, which have not attacked in a coordinated manner, and on Enterprise's ineffective fighter defense. However, the 20mm guns have done well.

The battle has decided little. Both sides' fleets are pretty much intact, albeit bruised, but the convoy has not reached Guadalcanal, making it an American victory. The bloody Guadalcanal campaign will go on.

Aboard Enterprise, the carrier buries her dead at sea, 74 bodies in 74 mattress covers going overboard, each attached to a five-inch projectile. After that, Enterprise sets course for Tongatabu, while Wasp, refuelled, relieves her.

The German Army Feldpolizei warns all German commands in the East that there are many Gypsy bands roaming the countryside, which "render many services to the partisans, providing them with supplies etc." If only a part of the Gypsies were punished, the Feldpolizei add, "the attitude of the remainder would be even more hostile towards the German forces, and would support the partisans even more than before." Thus it is "necessary to exterminate these bands ruthlessly."

Gypsies are high on Hitler's list of people to kill, and the Nazis exterminate them by the score. However, the postwar German government is slow to give them compensation. On May 9, 1950, the Interior Ministry of the West German province of Wurttemberg notes, "It should be borne in mind that Gypsies have been persecuted under the Nazis not for any racial reason but because of an asocial and criminal record."

In Egypt, Rommel plans his offensive. His two Afrika Korps panzer divisions, with Italian Ariete and Littorio divisions on the left flank and the combined German and Italian reconnaissance outfits on the right, will smash through the southern half of the British line, throw back 7th Armoured Division, and drive flat out for the area south of El Hamman, arriving there before dawn. North of that, the 90th Light Division will move forward through two depressions toward the gap at the rear of 2nd NZ Division. Italian troops backed by Ramcke Brigade will pin down the British in the north and on the coast.

By dawn the Afrika Korps must be in position facing north to breakthrough to the coast. Once that is reached, von Bismarck's 21st Panzer Division will drive on Alexandria, while 15th Panzer, under Von Vaerst will drive southeast for Cairo. The Italians and German infantry will tie down the 8th Army. As the panzers advance, they will eliminate the 8th Army's supply depots and fuel, immobilizing Montgomery.

Key to the victory is Rommel's expectation that the British will commit their forces piecemeal as before, and the effectiveness with which his move to the assembly area can be concealed, the speed with which his troops can break through, and most of all, supplies. He needs a timely delivery of four days supply of fuel.

Yeremenko starts a busy day at Stalingrad by declaring martial law. The Regional Party Committee proclaims: "Comrades and citizens of Stalingrad! We shall never surrender the city of our birth to the depredations of the German invader. Each single one of us must apply himself to the task of defending our beloved town, our homes, and our families. Let us barricade every street; transform every district, every block, every house, into an impregnable fortress." Yeremenko orders Khrushchev to start evacuating the city's civilian population.

The German 6th Army tries to take Stalingrad from the west, sending 25 tanks and an infantry division across the Don south of Rubezhnoye. They advance on central Stalingrad and slam into a tank brigade and an infantry division. The Soviets counterattack and drive to relieve the partially encircled 87th Rifle Division.

33 soldiers from that outfit, all from Siberia, hold out for two days against a force of 70 German tanks that have surrounded them, destroying 27, making good use of "a bottle with an inflammable mixture," which will be better known to historians and guerrillas as a "Molotov cocktail."

Yeremenko sends the 63rd Army to counterattack, but his artillery isn't coordinated. The Luftwaffe is. The drive fails to gain ground, but the counterattacks keep the Germans off-balance.

As the Germans move into the city, their plans begin to disintegrate. Mobile forces cannot maneuver in Stalingrad's maze of ruined buildings, factories, and ravines. The Soviets, knowing the terrain, are well dug-in, and fire small arms and mortars at a fantastic rate. They keep their artillery on the opposite bank of the Volga, along with the vital support forces. Vast amounts of ammunition are expended to seize small piles of rubble.

Paulus' tactics are questionable, too, relying on brute force instead of skill and versatility.

Japanese troops land on Goodenough Island at dawn. At noon the RAAF hurls its P-40 Kittyhawks at the Japanese landing, finding the barges lying against the shore. Two flights of P-40s swing in on the deck, strafing the enemy, setting every barge on fire, exploding 10,000 rounds of ammunition. The Japanese are now stranded. The pilots of No. 75 Squadron RAAF vow not to shave one side of their face until the Japanese are utterly defeated. No. 76 Squadron's pilots, vow not to shave the other side of their faces.

But more Japanese troops land at New Guinea's Milne Bay amid squally weather, around midnight.

President Roosevelt announces the US government will soon stabilize wages and farm prices at their present levels, because of the jumps in prices and cost of living. The Senate passes a bill permitting 4 million servicemen to vote by mail in the upcoming elections.

The Swedish exchange liner Gripsholm arrives in Hoboken, NJ, with about 1,450 Americans, Canadians, and Latin American diplomats from Japan, including US Ambassador Joseph Grew. Gripsholm picked up this band at the Portuguese colony of Goa, where the Americans swapped out some of their interned Japanese diplomats.

The RAF suffers the loss of a flying officer that day, His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent, who dies in an aircrash. The Duke is King George VI's younger brother. World War II kills the mighty and the meek.

August 26th, 1942...The Brazilians announce arresting more than 1,000 Germans and Italians in Rio De Janeiro and other states since declaring war on Aug. 22nd.

Japanese troops at Milne Bay contact Australian defense around 1 a.m. amid pouring rain. The Japanese move up a jungle track through the downpour with a tank. When the tank stops to cross a log bridge, an Australian shoots the tank commander when he stands up in the turret. The advance is delayed. The Australians withdraw.

That day, the RAAF sends in the P-40s, which make successful strafing runs, but are less effective with bombs, due to a lack of training. American B-17s lend a hand, but their bombs (as usual at that time of the war) miss the target.

However, the RAAF hammering goes on all day, igniting fuel drums and ammunition trucks. The Japanese send in Zeros from Rabaul, and two are shot down.

28th Maori Battalion launches its attack. The men are heavily loaded with automatic weapons (mostly captured) and grenades. Few carry rifles. The Maori padre reads a prayer, and Kippenberger tells the men, "The fame of your people and the honor of your battalion are in your hands tonight."

The men disappear into the gloom, and Kippenberger can only watch and listen to the opening barrage, "a series of rapid thuds, for the guns are varying distances away from the listener. Then there is a whirr and whine and scream of the shells passing overhead and a series of crunches as they burst. After a few moments it works up to an incessant hammering and drumming."

At the expected time, the Maoris return with PoWs, who are brought to Kippenberger. The total is 41, from the Bologna Division. The Maoris report having annihilated two Italian companies and say they have left no one unhurt or a prisoner. Maori casualties are more than 30, some due to friendly fire.

The raid is the first offensive operation of 8th Army under Montgomery, and both he and Brian Horrocks, the corps commander, send congratulations.

On Guadalcanal, the 11th Air Fleet resumes pounding the Marines, sending in 17 Bettys and nine Zeros. Coastwatchers pick them off, and a dozen Wildcats await the attackers. Japanese bombs ignite 2,000 gallons of gas, which in turn ignites two 1,000-lb. bombs. Both sides make grandiose damage claims.

August 27th, 1942...The Gestapo plans to round up Jews from the unoccupied zone in France. Vichy authorities collaborate in the roundups. But many Frenchmen and Catholic priests shelter Jews and urge their parishioners to do likewise. General de St. Vincent, Military Commander in Lyon, refuses to assist in the deportations. But Vichy police are happy to oblige, and by September 5th, they round up 9,872 Jews, most of them foreign- born, and are sent to Paris, for deportation to Auschwitz.

The US Army announces that men between the ages of 45 and 50 with special skills can enlist in the Army for general service or general duties.

Italian Field Marshal Ugo Cavallero flies to North Africa with Field Marshal Albert Kesselring to talk supplies with Rommel. Rommel insists that he must attack. "The battle depends on the prompt delivery of this petrol." Kesselring promises to fly out a minimum of 500 tons of fuel a day while Cavallero promises 6,000 tons from Italy. Cavallero says, "You may begin the battle now, Herr Feldmarschall. The petrol is already underway."

Rommel decides to attack on the evening of the 30th, as the moon, five days past full, will rise just before midnight, when his tanks are on their start lines.

The Germans' big punch will be 200 tanks, including 26 of the new Mark IV Specials armed with the long 75 mm gun. Backing them up are 243 Italian medium tanks. If Rommel can fight his usual battle of mobility and combined arms, his armor should be able to break through the British minefields quickly, reach the coast, grab the British supply depots, crush the 8th Army, drive on to Alexandria and Cairo, and win the war.

That day, the Italians retaliate for the Maori Battalion's raid by shelling a Maori company area for 20 minutes, expending about 2,000 shells. Only one man is killed. That evening, Horrocks arrives to inspect the Maori positions and he and Kippenberger go through the forward posts by moonlight.

At Milne Bay, the Japanese send in an airstrike to blast the airbase. Eight dive bombers attack, and only one returns to Rabaul.

That evening, the Japanese try a night land attack with their tanks, moving through the jungles. They capture several natives, tie them up, and bayonet them. The Japanese use their tanks' headlights to dazzle the Australians. They also use a flamethrower, but the Australians see the blinding light and eliminate the weapon with hand grenades.

That evening, two Japanese tanks charge the 10th Battalion. "The men were quiet," records the official history, "the silence was broken by a strange sound coming from the east...when a light was seen through the jungle, an angry voice yelled 'Put out that bloody light!' It was thought to be one of the battalion's Bren carriers." Instead the Japanese open fire. The Australians have no anti-tank weapons, and take heavy casualties. The night battle is brilliantly lit by red, green, and blue tracers, as both sides open up with everything they have, amid pouring rain and stinking jungle.

Pvt. Jim Kotz takes charge of a Bren gun whose previous three gunners have been wounded. Singlehanded he advances under heavy fire and silences an enemy post. Then he dashes forward with a grenade, and kills three of the enemy who are threatening company HQ. Although suffering severely from a wound in his chest, he marches back with his company to his own lines, and later receives the Military Medal.

The Japanese attack with "battering ram tactics" for three hours with their tanks. The Australians try No. 74 grenades (better known as Sticky Bombs) but the grenades don't stick to the tanks in the wet weather.

The same day, at Brooklyn Navy Yard, the battleship USS Iowa slides down the ways with the traditional champagne send-off. Iowa is the largest battleship in the US Navy, 35,000 tons displacement, 880 feet long, will pack nine 16-inch guns, and cut the waves at 33 knots. Her purpose in life is to protect the fleet carriers and tangle with Germany and Japan's super battleships, Tirpitz, Yamato, and Musashi.

Today's bombing of Guadalcanal is called off due to rain. But 1st Battalion, 5th Marines rides boats to just west of Kokumbona and finds signs of Japanese presence -- abandoned meals. They move inland and run into Japanese Sailors from the construction force, who hit back with machine guns and rifles. Lt. Col. Maxwell asks permission to withdraw. The colonel commanding 5th Marines fires Maxwell.

War rushes scientific development, and a major benefit to mankind appears this day at Oxford University, when British scientists H.D. Raistrick and Ernest Chain, working from research by Sir Alexander Fleming, announce the discovery of a chemical substance called "Penicillin," from the cultures of the common fungus penicillium. Penicillin is described as being a hundred times more fatal to bacteria than sulfa drugs. Penicillin will initially become the Allies' vital edge in the medical war, and then prove a worldwide benefit, saving millions of lives from diseases and injuries that were previously fatal.

August 28th, 1942...USS Washington reaches Port Cristobal, Canal Zone.

Henry J. Kaiser's shipyard in Richmond, Calif., launches the Liberty ship John Fitch a mere 24 days after her keel is laid. Kaiser, an automotive executive with no knowledge of the sea (he calls ships' bows "fronts') revolutionizes shipbuilding with the creation of the Liberty Ship, a quickly-built and extremely sturdy merchant vessel that will carry cargo all over the world to Allied battlefronts, replacing merchant ships sent to the bottom by U-boats. Unglamourous and unattractive, the Liberty Ship and her civilian crews will be one of the most vital components of Allied victory.

At dawn in Milne Bay, 10th Battalion (from South Australia) has to withdraw, as they are being outflanked. Pvt. A.J. Abraham, though wounded, spends the night fighting off persistent Japanese attempts to get past him. Abraham has taken five bullet wounds, but clings to his Bren, killing six of 10 Japanese attacking him. He receives the Distinguished Conduct Medal.

Though 10th Battalion has been defeated, the South Australian militia has shown they can fight like veterans. The 25th Battalion moves up with an anti-tank gun. However, its truck gets bogged down in the road, and the gun has to be disabled and abandoned as the Japanese close in.

During the day, the Japanese melt away for a rest, but don't get any. RAAF P-40s work them over from dawn to dusk, wearing out their barrels.

The Japanese are slowed down, but continue to advance.

Late that night, 38 Alaska Scouts debark from two submarines, USS Triton and USS Tuna, and paddle ashore in rubber boats to Adak. They sweep around the island and find no sign of enemy presence. They send out the all-clear message. So much for motion-picture commandos.

Japanese Adm. Raizo Tanaka begins ferrying men and supplies from the Shortlands to Guadalcanal, using destroyers as transports. The ships sweep into Ironbottom Sound by night, unload men and materials, hurl a few shells at the Americans, and head home. The Japanese call the evolution, "Ant operations." The Marines call it the "Rat Express." American newspapermen call it the "Tokyo Express." It is the latter name which endures.

The Nazis order the arrest of all French Catholic priests who shelter Jews. That day the Nazis deport 1,000 people from Paris to Auschwitz. 148 of the deportees are children aged under 15, 70 boys and 78 girls.

British codebreaking efforts to crack Italian cipher C38M pay off when Malta-based aircraft sink the Italian tanker Dielpi, bound for Libya with 2,200 tons of aircraft fuel. The British know the exact times of sailing, routes and cargoes of every ship bringing Rommel munitions and fuel. Worse for Rommel, he needs the supplies desperately. He is about to launch his grand offensive to break the British Alamein line.

August 29th, 1942...Three Panama Canal pilots board USS Washington and at 5:50 the huge ship enters Gatun Locks. Washington has a beam of 108 feet, 4 inches, widest in the Navy, and she clears the locks by inches. Until the construction of the Midway-class carriers later in the war, all US ships are built for Panama Canal passage. Handlers hurl lines to four electric traction engines, which run alongside on a narrow gauge track. These guide Washington through the three sets of locks, Gatun, Pedro Miguel, and Miraflores. By afternoon, the ship is tied up in Balboa Harbor, and mail goes ashore. That afternoon, the battleship and her three escorts put to sea at 20 knots.

"The Pacific is the prettiest blue you will ever see," Hunter Cronin writes. Washington Sailors, used to the Atlantic's storms, are impressed by the Pacific's calm seas, whales, porpoises, giant sea turtles, and incredible flying fish.

SN Mel Beckstrand goes up on deck the first night out. "Sailing, sailing, over a moonlit sea. It was a glorious, exhilarating feeling. What I wouldn't have given for my best girl to have been there. The moon laid a broad ray of light, like some giant highway meandering off to some mysterious rendezvous. If there were any subs in the area, the black gang just gave them a better chance at us. They must have started some sort of cooking school in the fire rooms, because out of the stacks came enormous quantities of red, fiery sparks. We could easily be seen for miles around. I'll bet the Captain had a fit; well, who wouldn't?"

Another force at sea is the invasion of Adak, consisting of two transports, American and Canadian warships, and a weird collection of tugs, power barges, fishing schooners and private yachts. The convoy faces two menaces, first being mis-identified by American planes as a Japanese force, which nearly leads to a "friendly" air raid. The second is a heavy storm that batters the fleet, wrecking patrol boats.

At Bougainville's Malabaita Hill, Paul Mason has a perfect view of the Japanese Shortlands anchorage, and fires off regular reports on naval and air moves. Today he signals, "Five warships, either cruisers or large destroyers, suddenly started for the southeast at high speed at 12:45."

The Japanese quickly learn to keep the Tokyo Express just beyond the range of Henderson Field's SBD Dauntlesses until dusk. Then they barrel in at flank speed, land the troops, and race off by sunrise. Henderson Field's muddy runway does not dry fast enough for SBDs to launch at dawn, so Tanaka's destroyers pretty much can get through unscathed.

To add to the American misery on Guadalcanal, the Japanese send over two floatplanes on nightly bombing missions, one named "Washing Machine Charlie," a machine whose twin engines are not synchronized. The other is a floatplane named "Louie the Louse." The latter shows up to spot for surface ship bombardments.

In the early hours of the morning, Maj. Gen. Kyotaki Kawaguchi's 35th Infantry Brigade arrives at Rabaul and is sent south.

That afternoon, American dive bombers find the convoy heading in. American bombs hit the destroyer Asagiri in the engine room and also on her torpedo tube mount, which explodes the ship in spectacular fashion. Killed are the ship's captain and many others, including southbound Marines. The Americans also batter two other destroyers. The four ships stagger home. Adm. Raizo Tanaka says that destroyer reinforcement missions to Guadalcanal have little chance of success.

At Auschwitz, SS surgeon D. Johann Kremer diaries, "Tropical climate with 28 degrees centigrade in the shade, dust and innumerable flies! Excellent food in the (Officers') Home. This evening, we had sour duck livers for 0.40 mark, with stuffed tomatoes, tomato salad, etc."

The cruelty of German deportations from France impacts hard on both the occupied and Vichy French. The roundups are done publicly, and French citizens watch as children are separated from their families.

The Swiss government decides that it will no longer turn back Jewish refugees who sought to cross from Vichy France to Switzerland.

In Madagascar, the British decide to resume the offensive, driving on the rest of the Vichy-held island from Diego Suarez. The main forces will be 7th South African Division by land from Diego, a landing at Majunga followed by an advance on Tananarive, and another landing later at Tamatave to threaten Tananarive from the west.