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WW2 Events by Day of the Week
Putting the conflict into a realistic and relatable perspective.
Total Events: 117
for Saturday
1939
Saturday
September 9th |
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Polish Poznan army units launch a counter-offensive against the German army at Kutno on the Bzura. |
1939
Saturday
September 30th |
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The Graf Spee claims her first merchant vessel, the British freighter Clement, in the waters of the South Atlantic. |
1939
Saturday
December 9th |
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The Soviet 44th and 163rd Divisions take the Finnish town of Soumussalmi. |
1939
Saturday
December 9th |
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As the Finnish winter worsens, Soviet attacks on Helsinki stall. |
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British and French army forces begin defensive preparations in Belgium in an effort to stave off the German advance. A long line of strategic defenses is contructed. |
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The German Army takes Boulogne. |
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More and more retreating Allied units arrive at the French port city of Dunkirk. |
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Defense of the outlying region near Dunkirk now passes to French XVI Corps. |
1940
Saturday
June 1st - August 12th |
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German Luftwaffe forces concentrate efforts on maintaining control over the vital shipping lanes of the North Sea. At least 30,000 merchant ships are destroyed during this period. |
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German ships begin operating out of captured bases along the French coast. |
1940
Saturday
August 17th |
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The RAF is forced to poach the ranks of Bomber Command in an effort to fill its dwindling supply of capable fighter pilots. |
1940
Saturday
August 17th |
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German U-boats are given the green light to attack any and all merchant vessels - whether armed or not - in an attempt to stranglehold the British mainland into submission. |
1940
Saturday
August 24th - August 31st |
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Luftwaffe bombing resumes. During this period, RAF airfields are hammered with the loss of 200 fighters. However, losses for the Luftwaffe number some 330 aircraft. |
1940
Saturday
September 7th |
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348 bombers and 617 fighters of the German Luftwaffe descend on the British capital city of London in a massive bombing raid. |
1940
Saturday
September 7th |
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In an effort to break the resolve of the British people, Hitler orders the bombing of London over the bombing of strategic RAF airfields and installations. |
1940
Saturday
November 9th |
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A Swordfish biplane torpedo bomber is lost to engine failure. |
1940
Saturday
November 9th |
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The HMS Illustrious moves on Taranto. |
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German forces launching from Romania, Austria, Hungary and Bulgaria along with an Italian contigent from Albania capture and secure the Yugoslavian capital of Belgrade. |
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Vermion Line Allied troops are now redeployed to defensive positions around Mount Olympus. |
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German airborne elements attempt to capture the bridge over the Corinth Canal in an attempt to encircle the retreating allies. The bridge is lost in the attack while the Allies have already moved on. |
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Allied codebreakers intercept word of the impending German invasion of Crete. |
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The HMS Suffolk loses track of the KMS Bismarck. |
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At 6:00 AM, the Bismarck fires a salvo at the battleship HMS Hood, striker her ammunition magazine, with the resulting explosion destroying the British ship leaving only three sailors alive. |
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At 5:52 AM, the Bismarck and the Prinz Eugen fall under attack from Royal Navy ships. |
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At 6:13 AM, the battleship Prince of Wales is damaged enough to pull out of the battle. |
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By this date, Crete is firmly entrenched under German rule. |
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A German High Command directive calls for the army to complete the destruction of Soviet forces around Smolensk and then head south to tackle forces in Kiev instead of marching on Moscow herself - this decision is viewed as the turning point to Germany's defeat in Russia. |
1941
Saturday
December 6th |
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An attack against American is now deemed imminent though the consensus being that it will occur against interests somehwere in Southeast Asia. |
1941
Saturday
December 6th |
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The Soviet 31st Army cuts 12 miles into the German lines. |
1941
Saturday
December 6th |
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American codebreakers begin tracking down a multi-part message - made up of 14 total components. Only the first 13 are actually deciphered, each being passed on to the President and the Secretary of State. |
1941
Saturday
December 6th |
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American President sends a final peace appeal to the Empire of Japan to which there is no answer. |
1941
Saturday
December 6th |
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No fewer than 17 German motorized divisions retreat from the Soviet advance. |
1941
Saturday
December 27th |
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The Philippine capital city of Manila eventually falls to the invading Japanese Army. |
1942
Saturday
February 14th - February 18th |
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Street fighting begins between the German I SS Panzer Corps and the Russian 3rd Tank Army and 40th Army forces in Kharkov. |
1942
Saturday
February 14th |
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The Russian Army recaptures Rostov. |
1942
Saturday
February 14th |
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Russian General Vatutin and his South-West Front army reach the city of Kharkov. |
1942
Saturday
February 14th |
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RAF Bomber Command issues its "Area Bombing Directive", allowing the legitimate bombing of civilian areas. |
1942
Saturday
February 14th |
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By this time, the Japanese have captured Borneo, Celebes and Sarawak. |
1942
Saturday
February 28th |
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The Germans recapture lost ground and push elements of the Russian Army back. The German army reaches as far in as the River Donets while General Vatutin's forces are surrounded. |
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German General Hoth and his 4th Panzer Army form up and launch an offensive against the Voronezh Front near Kharkov. |
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The 4th Panzer Army surrounds the city of Kharkov. |
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234 RAF bombers drop incendiaries on Lubeck. 12 aircraft are lost. |
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The British utilize the "Gee" electronic navigation system for the first time. |
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Admiral Sir James Somerville detaches a force to intercept the arriving Japanese fleet. |
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A small contingent of British Royal Navy vessels operating in the Indian Ocean are warned of the arriving Japanese Navy force. |
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The Japanese aircraft do not locate the American fleet and any further actions are called off, effectively ending the Battle of Coral Sea. |
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Despite numbers against him, Japanese Vice-Admiral Takagi is ordered to send his warplanes aloft. |
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RAF Bomber Command attack Cologne with 1,046 aircraft in the first of their "1,000 Bomber" raids. |
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The British 150th Brigade is utterly destroyed under the German assault, resulting in 4,000 British prisoners of war. |
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The USS Yorktown, now severely damaged an in tow of US Navy forces, is targeted and sunk by a Japanese submarine. |
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The island of Kiska is taken by Japanese forces. |
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The German Luftwaffe is called in to bomb Sevastopol. |
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At 7:00PM, the German 15th and 21st Panzer Divisions have made it past Tobruk's first line of defense, making headway into the city. |
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Rommel begins his offensive against the defenders in Tobruk. |
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Artillery shells and Luftwaffe bombs rain upon Tobruk. |
1942
Saturday
June 27th - July 28th |
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Convoy PQ17 loses 34 of its 36 ships to Geman U-Boats and surface ships. |
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British convoy PQ17 sets sail from Reykjavik, Iceland. |
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The Romanian and German army forces capture key hilltop positions near Sevastopol. |
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The Soviet Army is encircled and defeated at Kharkov, netting the Germans some 250,000 Soviet prisoners. |
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German forces complete their capture of Izyum. |
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German control and the subsequent round up on the city nets some 90,000 Soviet army prisoners of war. |
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Sevastopol officially falls to German control. |
1942
Saturday
August 1st - August 30th |
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Churchill replaces 8th Army leader Major-General Neil Ritchie with General Bernard Montgomery. |
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De Havilland DH 98 Mosquito twin-engine fighters are assigned as "Pathfinder" units charged with lighting up ground targets via flares and incendiary ordnance for ensuing RAF heavy bombers. |
1942
Saturday
August 1st - August 30th |
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British Prime Minister relieves General Auchinleck with General Harold Alexander as Commander-in-Chief, Middle East. |
1942
Saturday
August 1st - August 31st |
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Any further convoys passing to the Arctic to Russia are suspended for the time being as resources are pressed for service in the Allied landings occurring in North Africa. |
1942
Saturday
August 1st - August 30th |
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German forces are strengthened by the arrival of another Italian division, a German parachute brigade and more tanks. |
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Naval battles ultimately ensure between the Imperial Japanese Navy and the United States Navy for control of Guadalcanal. |
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Japanese bombers attack US forces at Henderson Field. |
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Just outside of Guadalcanal, the islands of Tulagi and Gavutu fall to the Allies. |
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The amphibious landings largely conclude by this date. |
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By the end of the day and facing next to no opposition, the US soldiers capture and secure Henderson Field. |
1942
Saturday
August 22nd |
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The Japanese attackers at Henderson Field and Tenaru are ultimately destroyed, forcing Colonel Ichiki to commit ritual suicide. |
1942
Saturday
August 22nd |
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German land forces advancing into the Caucasus are stopped. |
1942
Saturday
September 12th |
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Some 6,000 Japanese Army personnel are used in a final thrust against the Americans at Henderson field. Among the attackers is the Japanese 35th Brigade. |
1942
Saturday
October 10th |
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Japanese reinforcements are shipped to the west and disembarked at Tenaro, some 20 miles from American forces. |
1942
Saturday
November 7th |
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Three Allied task forces - the US Western, Central and the British Eastern - approach the coast of North Africa. |
1942
Saturday
December 12th |
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While Hitler rejects any plea from the German 6th Army to retreat from their position, the 4th Panzer Army is used through Operation Winter Storm in an attempt to relieve the beleaguered German troops at Stalingrad. |
1943
Saturday
February 20th |
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The Americans fold under the immense German assault and Kasserine Pass falls to the invaders. |
1943
Saturday
February 20th |
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Allied units move from Le Kef for the counter-attack. |
1943
Saturday
February 20th |
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US forces move in to stop the German advance around Tebessa. |
1943
Saturday
February 20th |
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The British 6th Armored Brigade moves towards Thala and Sbiba. |
1943
Saturday
May 1st - May 31st |
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By the end of May, 43 U-boats are sunk to just 34 merchant vessels. |
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Allied aircraft are fitted with U-boat detecting radar systems. |
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US 82nd Airborne Division and British 1st Airborne Division paratroopers land at strategic locations across Sicily prior to the invasion force's arrival. |
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The British 5th Division takes Cassibile. |
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15th Army Group begins their initial assault to the south. |
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Operation Husky begins. Target - German-held Sicily. Some 2,590 naval vessels take part in the invasion which encompasses two army groups of American and British forces invading at two different coasts of the island. |
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Soviet resistance to the German offensives is so intense that German General Hoth is forced to bring up his reserves and commit them to the fight. The advancing Germans are slowed evermore by the stinky Soviet defenders, also made up of deadly anti-tank teams. |
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The Primsole bridge is recaptured from the Germans. |
1944
Saturday
January 1st |
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A message to subordinates by US Army Air Force commanding general General H.H. Hap Arnold calls for the destruction of the German Luftwaffe before Allied landings can begin. |
1944
Saturday
January 22nd |
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British forces hold the line at River Moletta. |
1944
Saturday
January 22nd |
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American forces hold the line at Mussolini Canal. |
1944
Saturday
January 22nd |
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By 12AM midnight, some 45,000 Allied troops and 3,000 vehicles are on the beaches. |
1944
Saturday
January 22nd |
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Operation Shingle, the amphibious landings at Anzio, is enacted by the Allied. In lead is the US VI Corps under Major-General John Lucas. |
1944
Saturday
February 12th |
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Winston Churchill pens a critical letter to supreme commander-in-chief of Allied operations in Italy. In his writings he claims he expected to see "a wild cat roaring" and has seen nothing but a "whale wallowing on the beaches". |
1944
Saturday
February 19th - March 13th |
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The Italian winter makes its arrival and postpones any further Allied offensives for the next month. |
1944
Saturday
February 19th |
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Better weather finally arrives allowing the RAF to send up its first 823-strong heavy bomber force. The target is Leipzig and 78 bombers are lost to the German defense. |
1944
Saturday
April 1st - June 5th |
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Allied bombers increase their sorties across Northern and Western France in preparations of the D-Day landings. Targets include the vital railways, railyards, bridges and roads dotting the French landscape. These facilities will prove crucial to the German response to the invasion. |
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German paratrooper forces defending Cassino being their evacuation. |
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The Soviet offensive is detailed under the codename of "Operation Bagration". |
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The launch date for Operation Bagration is set for June 22nd. |
1944
Saturday
August 19th |
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At Mantes Grassicourt, a division of the American XV Corps manages to cross the Seine River. |
1944
Saturday
August 26th |
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Brigadier-General Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French forces, leads a contingent of Allied troops on a march down the Champs Elysees to a thunderous reception by liberated French citizens. |
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The US 77th Infantry Division lands at the Kerama Islands to secure a staging post for the eventual invasion of Okinawa. |
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In preparation for the amphibious assault landings on the island of Okinawa, US Naval elements begin bombardment of shoreline positions. |
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The US Navy lobs some 30,000 explosive shells on the Okinawa coastline by this time, ending a week of bombardment. |
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In the early morning hours, US Navy reconnaissance aircraft spot the IJN Yamato and relay her position. |
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Task Force 38 launches some 380 aircraft against IJN Yamato. |
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With no air cover, the IJN Yamato is blasted to pieces by the American Navy warplanes. Her magazine stores explode in a fantastic display as she goes up in smoke. Most of her crew is lost with the ship in the afternoon hours. |
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The IJN Yamato, having already been spotted by an American submarine, makes its way to the fighting at Okinawa. The crew understand that this is a suicide mission at this point in the war. |
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The offensive to take Ie Shima is completed. |
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Elements of the 5th Guards Army reach the Elbe River at Torgau and celebrate with the arriving US 1st Army. |
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The 1st Belorussian Front meets up with the st Ukranian Front, formally encircling Berlin. |
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Over 2 million Berlin civilians hunker down for the violent fighting ahead. |
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All access points west of the German capital are cutt off by Soviet forces. |
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Some 30,000 German soldiers ready themselves for the bloody business of the day. |
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| All Events By Day of the Week |
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