Invasion of Ethiopia
General Cunningham, commander of allied forces in East Africa, enters Addis Ababa
Permanent historical records · Updated 2026-11-03
1941 in Great Britain — Page 2
Explore 301 historical events and records for Great Britain in 1941.
Historical records for Great Britain in 1941
Sorted by month and day. Records with no month are shown last. Showing 40 of 301 unique records.
301Unique records
2 of 8Page
25Named events on this page
13Named people on this page
10Places on this page
April
Siege of Addis Ababa
General Cunningham, commander of allied forces in East Africa, enters Addis Ababa
Birth of Bobby Moore
Birth of Bobby Moore
Free French
Approves Operation Ironclad in Cabinet, invasion of Madagascar with the Free French. Agrees the invasion of Madagascar with the Free French
Invasion of Madagascar
Approves Operation Ironclad in Cabinet, invasion of Madagascar with the Free French. Agrees the invasion of Madagascar with the Free French
Operation Ironclad
Approves Operation Ironclad in Cabinet, invasion of Madagascar with the Free French
Bristol Air Raids
Bristol suffers further heavy bombing during the Blitz.
Commonwealth
Wilson is appointed to lead a Commonwealth expeditionary force of two infantry divisions and an armoured brigade to help Greece resist Italy and the subsequent German invasion in April 1941
Invasion of Greece
Wilson is forced to make a tactical withdrawal to Crete. Wilson is appointed to lead a Commonwealth expeditionary force of two infantry divisions and an armoured brigade to help Greece resist Italy and the subsequent German invasion in April 1941
May
Operation Ironclad
The 1st large amphibious assault made by British forces since the Dardanelles. An amphibious invasion of the Vichy French colony of Madagascar
Vichy Government
An amphibious invasion of the Vichy French colony of Madagascar
Operation Ironclad
Vichy forces surrender to the British in Madagascar
Vichy Government
Vichy forces surrender to the British in Madagascar
Capture of Diego Suarez
The British march into Diego Suarez in Madagascar after just 2 days fighting
Enigma Machine
Orders a boarding party onto disabled U-110, enabling capture of an intact Enigma machine and code material.
Enigma Machine
Boards U-110 and recovers an Enigma machine, rotors, codebooks and current cryptographic material.
Enigma Machine
Participates in the U-110 capture operation that secures valuable German Enigma material.
Invasion of Madagascar
The British march into Diego Suarez in Madagascar after 2 days fighting
Operation Ironclad
The British march into Diego Suarez in Madagascar after just 2 days fighting
Siege of Diego Suarez
The British march into Diego Suarez in Madagascar after 2 days fighting
Afrika Korps
The 1st British operation against the Afrika Korps, attempts to throw the Axis forces back from the Egyptian frontier
Operation Brevity
The 1st British operation against the Afrika Korps, attempts to throw the Axis forces back from the Egyptian frontier
Enigma Machine
Works in Hut 8 as captured U-boat material helps restore access to German Naval Enigma traffic.
Enigma Machine
Uses captured German naval cryptographic material to strengthen Hut 8 attacks on U-boat Enigma.
Free French
Wilson is appointed GOC Palestine and Trans Jordan and oversaw the successful Syria campaign, in which predominantly Australian, British, Indian, and Free French forces overcame Vichy French forces in fierce fighting
GOC
Wilson is appointed GOC Palestine and Trans Jordan and oversaw the successful Syria campaign, in which predominantly Australian, British, Indian, and Free French forces overcame Vichy French forces in fierce fighting
Invasion of Lebanon
Wilson is appointed GOC Palestine and Trans Jordan and oversaw the successful Syria campaign, in which predominantly Australian, British, Indian, and Free French forces overcame Vichy French forces in fierce fighting
Invasion of Syria
Wilson is appointed GOC Palestine and Trans Jordan and oversaw the successful Syria campaign, in which predominantly Australian, British, Indian, and Free French forces overcame Vichy French forces in fierce fighting
Liverpool Blitz
His government faces severe bombing damage during the Liverpool Blitz.
Vichy Government
Wilson is appointed GOC Palestine and Trans Jordan and oversaw the successful Syria campaign, in which predominantly Australian, British, Indian, and Free French forces overcame Vichy French forces in fierce fighting
June
Birth of Charlie Watts
Birth of Charlie Watts, later drummer of the Rolling Stones.
Free French
British and Free French troops invade Syria
Invasion of Syria
British and Free French troops invade Syria
Battleaxe
The operation is a failure & Wavell is replaced by Auchinleck. Launched to relieve Tobruk & break the Axis defenses on the Egypt border
Battleaxe
A German counterattack forces the Allies the retreat
Battle of Halfaya Pass
Wavell is later replaced by General Claude Auchinleck. Wavell attempts a counter-attack but his troops are stopped
Siege of Tobruk
Wavell attempts a counter-attack but his troops are stopped
Enigma Machine
Joins Hut 8 to work on German Naval Enigma immediately after completing his Cambridge examinations.
Air Defence of Egypt
Commands RAF Middle East air operations supporting the defence of Egypt and the Suez Canal.
Dolphin U-boat Key
Hut 8 work, including Turings methods, helps make the German U-boat key Dolphin readable on a near-daily basis during the summer.
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.