- 1939 in the United Kingdom
Events from the year
1939 in theUnited Kingdom .Incumbents
*Monarch -
George VI of the United Kingdom
*Prime Minister -Neville Chamberlain , national coalitionEvents
*
16 January -Irish Republican Army bombs explode in London, Birmingham, Manchester, and Alnwick.cite book |last=Palmer |first=Alan & Veronica |year=1992 |title= The Chronology of British History|publisher= Century Ltd|location=London|pages= 385-386|isbn= 0-7126-5616-2]
*25 February - FirstAnderson shelter built inLondon .cite book|title=Penguin Pocket On This Day|publisher=Penguin Reference Library|isbn=0-141-02715-0|year=2006]
*27 February -Borley Rectory , a reputed haunted house, destroyed by fire.
*31 March - Britain pledges support toPoland in the event of an invasion.
*27 April - Military Training Act introducesconscription ; men aged 20 and 21 must undertake six months military training. [cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/timeline/factfiles/nonflash/a1138664.shtml?sectionId=1&articleId=1138664|title=WW2 People's War Timeline, BBC|accessdate=2008-03-02]
*17 May - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth arrive inQuebec City to begin the first-ever visit toCanada by British sovereigns.
*7 June - George VI and Queen Elizabeth visitNew York City on the first visit to theUnited States by a reigning monarch.
*30 June - TheMersey Ferry stops running toRock Ferry .
*5 August - Weekly transatlantic flights scheduled byImperial Airways ; suspended in September.
*24 August -Emergency Powers (Defence) Act 1939 gives full authority to 'defence regulations'.
*25 August -Irish Republican Army bomb explodes inCoventry , killing 25.
*30 August - Evacuation of children from major UK cities begins.
*1 September
** Blackout imposed across Britain.
** TheBBC Home Service begins broadcasting.
*3 September -World War II
** The UK declares war onGermany following the German invasion of Poland onSeptember 1 .
** General mobilisation begins of the Armed Forces.
** National Service (Armed Forces) Act passed by Parliament introducesNational Service for all men aged 18 to 41.cite web|url=http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/2WWconscription.htm|title=Conscription, Spatacus Educational|accessdate=2008-03-02]
*4 September - First raid byRoyal Air Force on German shipping takes place.
*9 September -British Expeditionary Force crosses to France.
*18 September - Fascist politicianWilliam Joyce begins broadcasting Nazi propaganda under the nameLord Haw-Haw .
*19 September - Popular BBC radio show "It's That Man Again " first broadcast.
*24 September -Petrol rationing introduced.
*30 September -Identity cards introduced.
*14 October - HMS "Royal Oak" sunk by a GermanU-boat inScapa Flow ,Orkney Islands .
*21 October - registration of men aged 20 to 23 for National Service begins.
*8 November -Venlo Incident : Two British agents of SIS are captured by the Germans.
*13 December - TheBattle of the River Plate takes place between theRoyal Navy and the German battleship, "Admiral Graf Spee".* The
Sutton Hoo treasure — an Anglo-Saxon ship burial — excavated.Publications
*
Agatha Christie 's novels "Murder is Easy " and "And Then There Were None ".
*Henry Green 's novel "Party Going".
*Aldous Huxley 's novel "After Many a Summer ".
*Richard Llewellyn 's novel "How Green Was My Valley ".Births
*
20 January -Chandra Wickramasinghe , British astronomer and poet
*10 February -Peter Purves , British actor and television presenter
*12 April -Alan Ayckbourn , playwright
*31 May -Terry Waite , humanitarian, author and hostage
*5 June -Margaret Drabble , novelist and biographer
*11 June -Jackie Stewart , Scottish race car driver
*4 August -Jack Cunningham , politician
*19 August -Alan Baker , mathematician
*30 August -John Peel , disc jockey and radio presenter (died 2004)
*19 October -David George Clark, Baron Clark , politician
*27 October -John Cleese , British actor
*18 November -Margaret Jay, Baroness Jay of Paddington , politicianDeaths
*
2 March - Howard Carter, archaeologist (born 1874)
*26 June -Ford Madox Ford , novelist, poet, critic and editor (born 1873)
*6 September -Arthur Rackham , illustrator (born 1867)
*3 December -Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll , daughter ofQueen Victoria (born 1848)References
ee also
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