Date in year · 1942 · The 1940s

February 1, 1942

On February 1, 1942, world War II: Josef Terboven, Reichskommissar of German-occupied Norway, appoints Vidkun Quisling the Minister President of the National Government. Michael Beloff, Robert Christgau, Jochen Rindt would arrive in the same year.

Events

4

Births

0

Deaths

0

Year

1942

1940s

Around 1942

The year in brief

1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1942nd year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 942nd year of the 2nd millennium, the 42nd year of the 20th century, and the 3rd year of the 1940s decade.

Read the full year of 1942 →

What happened

On February 1, 1942

  1. 1942 World War II: Josef Terboven, Reichskommissar of German-occupied Norway, appoints Vidkun Quisling the Minister President of the National Government.

    1939–1945 global conflict

    World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, the latter enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the only nuclear weapons used in war.

  2. 1942 World War II: U.S. Navy conducts Marshalls–Gilberts raids, the first offensive action by the United States against Japanese forces in the Pacific Theater.

    1942 US naval offensive during World War II

    The Marshalls–Gilberts raids were tactical airstrikes and naval artillery attacks by United States Navy aircraft carrier and other warship forces against Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) garrisons in the Marshall and Gilbert Islands on 1 February 1942. It was the first of six American raids against Japanese-held territories conducted in the first half of 1942 as part of a strategy.

  3. 1942 Voice of America, the official external radio and television service of the United States government, begins broadcasting with programs aimed at areas controlled by the Axis powers.

    International US-owned broadcaster

    Voice of America is an international broadcaster, funded by the United States federal government and established in 1942. It is the largest and oldest of the US's existing international broadcasters, producing digital, TV, and radio content in 48 languages for affiliate stations around the world. Its targeted and primary audience is non-Americans outside the American borders, especially those living in countries without press freedom or independent journalism.

  4. 1942 Mao Zedong makes a speech on "Reform in Learning, the Party and Literature", which puts into motion the Yan'an Rectification Movement.

    Leader of China from 1949 to 1976

    Mao Zedong was a Chinese revolutionary, politician, writer, political theorist and the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC). He led China from the PRC's establishment in October 1949 until his death in September 1976, primarily through his role as the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). His theories, which he advocated as a Chinese adaptation of Marxism–Leninism, are known as Maoism.

Elsewhere that year

Other moments from 1942

The class of 1942

Others born in 1942

Michael Beloff 1942– English lawyer and academic
Robert Christgau 1942– American journalist and critic
Jochen Rindt 1942– German-Austrian racing driver (died 1970)
Javier Solana 1942– Spanish physicist and politician, Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs
John Ashcroft 1942– American lawyer and politician, 79th United States Attorney General
David Gergen 1942– American political consultant (died 2025)

Step through

Nearby

Keep going

More to explore