Timeline July 1943

Events in July 1943 13

• 1881 – 1943 Władysław Sikorski (1881-1943) Died 4 July 1943, aged 62 Władysław Sikorski was prime minister of the Polish government-in-exile and commander-in-chief of the Polish armed forces. His aircraft crashed into the sea shortly after taking off from Gibraltar. His death came weeks after the Katyn revelations had strained Polish-Soviet relations.
• 1899 – 1943 Jean Moulin (1899-1943) Died 8 July 1943, aged 44 Jean Moulin was a French prefect whom Charles de Gaulle sent to unify the Resistance. He brought the movements together in the National Council of the Resistance. He was betrayed and arrested near Lyon, and died after torture by the Gestapo under Klaus Barbie.
• 1922 – 1943 Mussolini takes power Fascist era begins Benito Mussolini established a fascist dictatorship while Italy remained formally a monarchy.
• 1943 – 1970 Alan Wilson (1943-1970) Canned Heat singer and guitarist Blind Owl — the singer, harmonica and slide-guitar player of Canned Heat, voice of On the Road Again and Going Up the Country. Died aged 27.
• 1943 Battle of Kursk Largest tank battle in history The Battle of Kursk in July 1943 was the largest tank battle in history, with nearly 6,000 tanks engaged. The Soviet victory ended Germany's ability to launch major offensive operations on the Eastern Front.
• 1943 Battle of Kursk The largest tank battle in history ends Germany's offensive in the East Germany launched Operation Citadel against the Soviet salient at Kursk, and the Soviet defence stopped it. Red Army counteroffensives then recaptured Orel and Belgorod and ended at Kharkov. After Kursk, Germany never again mounted a major strategic offensive on the Eastern Front.
• 1943 Allied invasion of Sicily Operation Husky opens the Italian campaign American, British and Canadian forces landed in southern Sicily in one of the largest amphibious operations of the war. They took the island in 38 days, although many German troops escaped across the Strait of Messina. The invasion hastened the fall of Mussolini.
• 1943 Allies invade Sicily Operation Husky — first Allied landing in Europe Allied forces under Eisenhower landed in Sicily on July 10, 1943, in the largest amphibious operation in history at that time. Sicily fell in 38 days and Mussolini was deposed.
• 1943 – 1993 Arthur Ashe The Trailblazer First Black man to win Wimbledon and the US Open; the US Open stadium is named for him.
• 1943 Operation Gomorrah Allied bombing creates a firestorm in Hamburg RAF and US bombers carried out a series of raids on Hamburg. On the night of 27–28 July the bombing caused a firestorm that destroyed much of the city. About 37,000 people were killed.
• 1943 Mussolini deposed The Fascist Grand Council and the King remove Il Duce The Fascist Grand Council voted against Benito Mussolini, and the next day King Victor Emmanuel III dismissed him and had him arrested. Marshal Pietro Badoglio became prime minister. More than twenty years of Fascist rule in Italy came to an end.
• 1943 Mussolini overthrown Italian dictator arrested Italian King Victor Emmanuel III dismissed and arrested Benito Mussolini on July 25, 1943, following a vote of no confidence by the Fascist Grand Council. Italy surrendered to the Allies six weeks later.
• 1943 IKEA founded — a mail-order business Ingvar Kamprad founds IKEA on 28 July 1943, aged 17, using money his father gives him as a reward for good school grades. The name IKEA is an acronym: Ingvar Kamprad, Elmtaryd (the family farm), Agunnaryd (the nearby village). The first products are not furniture but small household items — pens, picture frames, table runners, watches, jewellery — sold by mail order throughout Sweden. Kamprad is an extraordinarily energetic salesman, cycling around the local area to deliver orders personally.