Today in World War II History—June 25, 1942 POSTED: Sunday, June 25, 2017 by Sarah Sundin Gen. Sir Claude Auchinleck, WWII (Imperial War Museum) 75 Years Ago—June 25, 1942: Gen. Sir Claude Auchinleck replaces Lt. Gen. Neil Ritchie over British Eighth Army in Egypt. Australian and US troops land at Milne Bay, New Guinea to build an airfield.