What Happened in September?

Japan drops incendiary bombs near Brookings, Oregon. Nobuo Fujita was the only Japanese pilot to bomb the U.S. mainland during WWII. A total of four bombs were dropped over two occasions with the intent of starting forest fires; however, due to damp conditions, little damage occurred. In 1962, the Brookings Jaycees invited Fujita to Brookings as an occasion of historical significance.  Expand +

The RMS Laconia was sunk by the U-156 German Submarine. The ship was carrying 268 British soldiers and 80 civilians, and 1,800 Italian prisoners of war who were being guarded by 160 Polish soldiers.  Expand +

The first Superfortress XB-29 prototype takes-off  from Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington. The powerful Wright R-3350 engines experienced chronic overheating issues during testing, leading to the crash of the second prototype just north of Boeing Field on February 18, 1943. The first war debut took place in June 5, 1944, as part of the Allied campaign to liberate Burma from Japanese hands. More 

Italy secretly signs an armistice with the Allies, effectively surrendering in World War II and leading to the collapse of Fascist rule in Italy. No public announcement was made until five days later.  Expand +

Montgomery’s 8th Army crosses the Strait of Messina from Sicily and lands at Calabria, beginning the invasion of the Italian mainland.

Gen. Dwight Eisenhower publicly announces the surrender of Italy to the Allies which had been signed in secret on September 3. Germany reacted with Operation Axis, the Allies with Operation Avalanche.

The Allied Fifth Army, commanded by Lieutenant General Mark W. Clark, USA, lands on Salerno, Italy, transported by the Western Naval Task Force, TF 80, commanded by Vice Admiral H. Kent Hewitt, USN.

Operation Stalemate II; The Battle of Peleliu. Three days after the Island underwent a heavy naval and air bombardment by the US Third Fleet forces, the 1st Marine Division lands on “White” and “Orange” beaches on the western side of the Island of Peleliu, a small island and one of the 16 states within the island nation of Palau.  Expand +

Operation Market Garden, a major Allied airborne operation, commences in the Netherlands with the goal of securing key bridges and opening a path into Germany. The operation ultimately falls short of its objectives.

Japan formally surrenders aboard the USS Missouri, marking the end of World War II and bringing about the official cessation of hostilities in the Pacific theater. More

Ho Chi Minh, the Vietnamese Communist leader, declares Vietnam independence from France on the same day Japan surrenders to the Allies.  Expand +

General Patton declares during a Press interview ,that he had “never seen the necessity of the denazification program,” asserting that 98 per cent of the Nazis were just camp followers. In October 1945 he was relieved of his duties by the Allied High Command and recalled to the US.

The International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg delivers its verdicts, with several high-ranking Nazi officials found guilty of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other atrocities committed during World War II. More

The Partition of India takes effect, leading to the creation of the independent nations of India and Pakistan and resulting in widespread violence and mass migrations.

Swedish Diplomat, Folke Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg, is assassinated while serving as the United Nations (UN) mediator between the Arabs and the Israelis, by the militant Zionist group Lehi, while fulfilling his duties. He is also known for negotiating the release of thousands of prisoners from German concentration camps during World War II, including a large number of Jewish prisoners. More

The Nuremberg Trials of Nazi war criminals begin in Nuremberg, Germany.

The Organization of American States (OAS) is founded in Bogota, Colombia, with the goal of promoting democracy, peace, and cooperation among the countries of the Americas.

US President Truman announces that the Soviet Union had tested a nuclear device several weeks earlier. The White House did not explain how the United States had detected the test, which had occurred on 29 August 1949 at Semipalatinsk, in northeastern Kazakhstan. More

On September 15, 1950, the soldiers, sailors, and Marines of X Corps landed at Inchon. North Korea was unprepared for the landing although the Inchon plans had been leaked in the U.S. media and throughout Japan. More

The Old Man and the Sea, written by Ernest Hemingway, is published and later wins the 1953 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. The book would be his last major work of fiction before his suicide on July 2, 1961 at his home in Ketchum, Idaho.