Barttle of Narvik
Argues that control of Narvik is vital to disrupting German iron ore supplies.
Permanent historical records · Updated 2026-11-03
1940 in Great Britain
Explore 642 historical events and records for Great Britain in 1940.
Historical records for Great Britain in 1940
Sorted by month and day. Records with no month are shown last. Showing 40 of 642 unique records.
642Unique records
1 of 17Page
15Named events on this page
14Named people on this page
6Places on this page
January
Iron Ore Debate
The War Cabinet debates action against German iron ore supplies moving through Narvik.
Iron Ore Debate
Chatfield considers whether naval mining and a Narvik operation can be justified by Allied strategic needs.
Iron Ore Debate
Argues that German iron ore shipments through Narvik should be disrupted.
Iron Ore Debate
Churchill argues that mining Norwegian waters would disrupt German iron ore shipments through Narvik.
Iron Ore Debate
Ironside reviews the military implications of a possible Allied landing at Narvik to cut Germany's ore supply
Iron Ore Debate
Pound advises on the naval risks of mining Norwegian waters and operating near Narvik.
Iron Ore Debate
Halifax weighs diplomatic risks of violating Norwegian neutrality against the need to restrict German ore imports.
Narvik Landing Plan
Examines military requirements for an Allied expedition toward Narvik.
Narvik Operation Plan
War Cabinet reviews possible action against German iron ore moving through Narvik.
Norwegian Waters Plan
Presses naval plans to mine Norwegian waters and interrupt ore traffic.
Invasion of Finland
Praises the Finns for "what fee men can do" in the defense of their country
Enigma Machine
The first operational break into Enigma when the team working under Dilly Knox, with the mathematicians John Jeffreys, Peter Twinn and Alan Turing, unravelled the German Army administrative key that became known at Bletchley Park as The Green, encouraged by this success, the codebreakers later crack the Red key used by the Luftwaffe
Enigma Machine
The first operational break into Enigma when the team working under Dilly Knox, with the mathematicians John Jeffreys, Peter Twinn and Alan Turing, unravelled the German Army administrative key that became known at Bletchley Park as The Green, encouraged by this success, the codebreakers later crack the Red key used by the Luftwaffe
Enigma Machine
The first operational break into Enigma when the team working under Dilly Knox, with the mathematicians John Jeffreys, Peter Twinn and Alan Turing, unravelled the German Army administrative key that became known at Bletchley Park as The Green, encouraged by this success, the codebreakers later crack the Red key used by the Luftwaffe
Enigma Machine
The first operational break into Enigma when the team working under Dilly Knox, with the mathematicians John Jeffreys, Peter Twinn and Alan Turing, unravelled the German Army administrative key that became known at Bletchley Park as The Green, encouraged by this success, the codebreakers later crack the Red key used by the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
The first operational break into Enigma when the team working under Dilly Knox, with the mathematicians John Jeffreys, Peter Twinn and Alan Turing, unravelled the German Army administrative key that became known at Bletchley Park as The Green, encouraged by this success, the codebreakers later crack the Red key used by the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
The first operational break into Enigma when the team working under Dilly Knox, with the mathematicians John Jeffreys, Peter Twinn and Alan Turing, unravelled the German Army administrative key that became known at Bletchley Park as The Green, encouraged by this success, the codebreakers later crack the Red key used by the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
The first operational break into Enigma when the team working under Dilly Knox, with the mathematicians John Jeffreys, Peter Twinn and Alan Turing, unravelled the German Army administrative key that became known at Bletchley Park as The Green, encouraged by this success, the codebreakers later crack the Red key used by the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
The first operational break into Enigma when the team working under Dilly Knox, with the mathematicians John Jeffreys, Peter Twinn and Alan Turing, unravelled the German Army administrative key that became known at Bletchley Park as The Green, encouraged by this success, the codebreakers later crack the Red key used by the Luftwaffe
Enigma Machine
Meets Polish cryptanalysts in Paris and absorbs techniques that influence the British Bombe design.
Enigma Machine
Takes charge of Hut 6 as it develops industrial-scale attacks on Army and Luftwaffe Enigma.
February
Birth of David Jason
Birth of David Jason, born David John White
Barttle of Narvik
Supports Allied plans to intervene in Norway and threaten the Narvik ore route.
Supreme War Council
Considers intervention in Scandinavia during the Winter War crisis.
Supreme War Council
The council considers intervention in Norway including a landing at Narvik
Supreme War Council
Attends the council as Allied leaders discuss control of Swedish iron ore routes.
Supreme War Council
Attends the council meeting considering aid to Finland against Soviet Russia.
Supreme War Council
Supports measures affecting Norway and Swedish iron ore traffic.
Supreme War Council
Supports Allied consideration of Norway and Swedish iron ore routes.
Altmark Incident
Supports naval action after German prisoners are found aboard Altmark.
Barttle of Narvik
Presses for mining Norwegian waters to force ore traffic away from Narvik.
Operation Wilfred
Advocates mining Norwegian waters to force a German response.
Operation Wilfred
Presses for mining Norwegian waters to disrupt the ore route from Narvik.
Siege of Altmark
Orders the Cossack Captain to liberate Britsh prisoners from the Altmark off Norway. British prisoners are freed without loss of British life, the crew of the Altmark flee
Speech
Speaks at the Guildhall praising the warships opposing the Graf Spee
Cavity Magnetron
Works with Randall on the Birmingham cavity magnetron for centimetric radar.
Cavity Magnetron
Works with Randall on the resonant cavity magnetron at Birmingham.
Cavity Magnetron
Builds a high-power cavity magnetron at Birmingham for centimetric radar.
Cavity Magnetron
Works on the high-power cavity magnetron for centimetric radar.
How these records were prepared
Generated from the World History Database historical_events table. Identical display records are collapsed; descriptions otherwise retain the stored text. Coverage and source quality vary. Check primary and specialist sources before citing individual historical claims.