More than 40,000civilians were killed by Luftwaffe bombing during the war, almost half of them in the capital, where more than a million houses were destroyed or damaged. Smaller raids are not included in the tonnages. But the great bulk of the traffic went on, and Londonersthough they glanced apprehensively each morning at the list of closed stretches of line displayed at their local station, or made strange detours round back streets in the busesstill got to work. 28384; Murray 1983, pp. This meant that British coastal centres and shipping at sea west of Ireland were the prime targets. Hello, I Am Charlie from London - Stephane Husar 2014-07-15 The Demon in the Embers - Julia Edwards 2016-09-02 . [188] In the wake of the Coventry Blitz, there was widespread agitation from the Communist Party over the need for bomb-proof shelters. The Blitz was a huge bombing campaign of London and other English cities carried about by the German airforce from September 1940 to May 1941. [151], Directive 23 was the only concession made by Gring to the Kriegsmarine over the strategic bombing strategy of the Luftwaffe against Britain. [83] Until September 1939, the RAF lacked specialist night-fighting aircraft and relied on anti-aircraft units, which were poorly equipped and lacking in numbers. [24][182] BBC - WW2 People's War - Timeline Fact File : The Blitz 25 August 1940 to 16 May 1941 Theatre: United Kingdom Area: London and other major cities Players: Britain: RAF Fighter Command under. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) and his wife inspect bomb-damage in the City of London during the Blitz, 31st December 1940. Over a period of nine months, over 43,500 civilians were killed in the raids, which focused on major cities and industrial centres. Reports suggested the attacks blocked the movement of coal to the Greater London regions and urgent repairs were required. To prevent German formations from hitting targets in Britain, Bomber Command would destroy Luftwaffe aircraft on their bases, aircraft in their factories and fuel reserves by attacking oil plants. [67] By the end of 1940 improvements had been made in the Underground and in many other large shelters. Anti-Jewish sentiment was reported, particularly around the East End of London, with anti-Semitic graffiti and anti-Semitic rumours, such as that Jewish people were "hogging" air raid shelters. Contact Us 0207 608 5516 Call today: 9am - 5.30pm The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term Blitzkrieg, the German word meaning 'lightning war'.[4]. [179], Some writers claim the Air Staff ignored a critical lesson, that British morale did not break and that attacking German morale was not sufficient to induce a collapse. [139], Probably the most devastating attack occurred on the evening of 29 December, when German aircraft attacked the City of London itself with incendiary and high explosive bombs, causing a firestorm that has been called the Second Great Fire of London. The maps help to contextualize the staggering statistics from the Blitz: in London alone, there were 57 consecutive nights of bombing. The clock mechanism was co-ordinated with the distances of the intersecting beams from the target so the target was directly below when the bombs were released. The Battle of Britain [40] Late in the afternoon of 7 September 1940, the Germans began Operation London (Unternehmen Loge, Loge being the codename for London) and Operation Sea Snake (Unternehmen Seeschlange), the air offensives against London and other industrial cities. There were also many new civil defence roles that gave a sense of fighting back rather than despair. The bombings left parts of London in ruins, and when the war ended in 1945 much of the city had to be rebuilt. A Raid From Above People left shelters when told instead of refusing to leave, although many housewives reportedly enjoyed the break from housework. The Germans conducted mass air attacks against industrial targets, towns, and cities, beginning with raids on London towards the end of the Battle of . [127] By the second month of the Blitz the defences were not performing well. Attacks from below offered a larger target, compared to attacking tail-on, as well as a better chance of not being seen by the crew (so less chance of evasion), as well as greater likelihood of detonating its bomb load. Roads and railways were blocked and ships could not leave harbour. Two hours later, guided by the fires set by the first assault, a second group of raiders commenced another attack that lasted until 4:30 the following morning. 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars. This involved the bombing of English Channel convoys, ports, and RAF airfields and supporting industries. When the second hand re-aligned with the first, the bombs were released. [49] In 1939 military theorist Basil Liddell-Hart predicted that 250,000 deaths and injuries in Britain could occur in the first week of war. So worried were the government over the sudden campaign of leaflets and posters distributed by the Communist Party in Coventry and London, that the police were sent to seize their production facilities. [46], In an operational capacity, limitations in weapons technology and quick British reactions were making it more difficult to achieve strategic effect. [150] The OKL had always regarded the interdiction of sea communications of less importance than bombing land-based aircraft industries. The Blitz and what was known as 'Black Saturday' was the start in Britain of what Poland and Western Europe had already experienced - total war. Ground transmitters sent pulses at a rate of 180 per minute. Blitzkrieg - the lightning war - was the name given to the devastating German bombing attacks to which the United Kingdom was subjected from September 1940 until May 1941. [13], The air offensive against the RAF and British industry failed to have the desired effect. [168] The Blenheim had only a small speed advantage to overtake a German bomber in a stern-chase. [87] Dowding accepted that as AOC, he was responsible for the day and night defence of Britain but seemed reluctant to act quickly and his critics in the Air Staff felt that this was due to his stubborn nature. The Royal Chapel, inner quadrangle and Palace gates were hit, and several workmen were injured. The mines' ability to destroy entire streets earned them respect in Britain, but several fell unexploded into British hands allowing counter-measures to be developed which damaged the German anti-shipping campaign. [113] In the case of Battersea power station, an unused extension was hit and destroyed during November but the station was not put out of action during the night attacks. At the beginning of the war in 1939, London was the largest city in the world, with 8.2 million inhabitants. [112] In fact, on 8 September 1940 both Battersea and West Ham Power Station were both shut down after the 7 September daylight attack on London. The exhausted population took three weeks to overcome the effects of an attack. Of the "heavies", some 200 were of the obsolescent 3in (76mm) type; the remainder were the effective 4.5in (110mm) and 3.7in (94mm) guns, with a theoretical "ceiling"' of over 30,000ft (9,100m) but a practical limit of 25,000ft (7,600m) because the predictor in use could not accept greater heights. Below is a table by city of the number of major raids (where at least 100 tons of bombs were dropped) and tonnage of bombs dropped during these major raids. The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War.The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term Blitzkrieg, the German word meaning 'lightning war'.. At around 8.30pm on Sunday 13 October, a high-explosive bomb plunged through the Coronation Avenue flats on Stoke Newington High Street, and exploded directly above a shelter made up of three interconnected basements. Ingersol wrote that Battersea Power Station, one of the largest landmarks in London, received only a minor hit. Many civilians found that the best way to retain mental stability was to be with family, and after the first few weeks of bombing, avoidance of the evacuation programmes grew. [169], Improved aircraft designs were in the offing with the Bristol Beaufighter, then under development. Bombing civilians would cause a collapse of morale and a loss of production in the remaining factories. But even in May, 67 percent of the sorties were visual cat's-eye missions. [72] The psychoanalysts were correct, and the special network of psychiatric clinics opened to receive mental casualties of the attacks closed due to lack of need. [25] In 1940 and 1941, Gring's refusal to co-operate with the Kriegsmarine denied the entire Wehrmacht military forces of the Reich the chance to strangle British sea communications, which might have had a strategic or decisive effect in the war against the British Empire. [147] At Raeder's prompting, Hitler correctly noted that the greatest damage to the British war economy had been done through the destruction of merchant shipping by submarines and air attacks by small numbers of Focke-Wulf Fw 200 naval aircraft and ordered the German air arm to focus its efforts against British convoys. The details of the conversation were passed to an RAF Air Staff technical advisor, Dr. R. V. Jones, who started a search which discovered that Luftwaffe Lorenz receivers were more than blind-landing devices. Summerfield and Peniston-Bird 2007, p. 4. Between 1940 and 1945, over 52,000 civilians were killed in Britain during bombing raids by German aircraft. [52], Based in part on the experience of German bombing in the First World War, politicians feared mass psychological trauma from aerial attacks and the collapse of civil society. The year-long project . [23], While the war was being planned, Hitler never insisted upon the Luftwaffe planning a strategic bombing campaign and did not even give ample warning to the air staff that war with Britain or even Russia was a possibility. [190], The brief success of the Communists also fed into the hands of the British Union of Fascists (BUF). The heavy fighting in the Battle of Britain had eaten up most of Fighter Command's resources, so there was little investment in night fighting. The rate of civilian housing loss was averaging 40,000 people per week dehoused in September 1940. [119] The Ministry of Home Security reported that although the damage caused was "serious" it was not "crippling" and the quays, basins, railways and equipment remained operational. For one thing, Gring's fear of Hitler led him to falsify or misrepresent what information was available in the direction of an uncritical and over-optimistic interpretation of air strength. [35], While Gring was optimistic the Luftwaffe could prevail, Hitler was not. [48] Based on experience with German strategic bombing during World War I against the United Kingdom, the British government estimated that 50 casualtieswith about one-third killedwould result for every tonne of bombs dropped on London. Warehouses, rail lines and houses were destroyed and damaged, but the docks were largely untouched. Summerfield, Penny and Peniston-Bird, Corina. TikTok said in a blog post in June that it will route all data from U.S. users to servers controlled by Oracle, the Silicon Valley company it chose as its U.S. tech partner in 2020 in an effort to . [145], In 1941, the Luftwaffe shifted strategy again. (PROSE: A History of Humankind) In 1903, after receiving a wealth of information from the future, Grigori Rasputin foresaw the Blitz. Hitler believed the Luftwaffe was "the most effective strategic weapon", and in reply to repeated requests from the Kriegsmarine for control over naval aircraft insisted, "We should never have been able to hold our own in this war if we had not had an undivided Luftwaffe. [180] The 10th directive in October 1940 mentioned morale by name but industrial cities were only to be targeted if weather prevented raids on oil targets.[181]. Sperrle, commanding Luftflotte 3, was ordered to dispatch 250 sorties per night including 100 against the West Midlands. Ex-Army personnel and his successors as Chief of the Luftwaffe General Staff, Albert Kesselring (3 June 1936 31 May 1937) and Hans-Jrgen Stumpff (1 June 1937 31 January 1939) are usually blamed for abandoning strategic planning for close air support. This caused more than 2,000 fires; 1,436 people were killed and 1,792 seriously injured, which affected morale badly. [49], In addition to high-explosive and incendiary bombs, the Germans could use poison gas and even bacteriological warfare, all with a high degree of accuracy. Many more ports were attacked. However, the use of delayed-action bombs, while initially very effective, gradually had less impact, partly because they failed to detonate. [173] Losses were minimal. The first German attack on London actually occurred by accident. Important events of 1940, including the beginning of the London Blitz (pictured above) and the Battle of Britain. Daniel Todman reveals how Britons rebuilt their lives, and their cities, in the aftermath of the raids Published: December 1, 2017 at 4:27 pm Subs offer [99] Fighter Command lost 23 fighters, with six pilots killed and another seven wounded. Moreover, the OKL could not settle on an appropriate strategy. [174] By the end of May, Kesselring's Luftflotte 2 had been withdrawn, leaving Hugo Sperrle's Luftflotte 3 as a token force to maintain the illusion of strategic bombing. [170] In November and December 1940, the Luftwaffe flew 9,000 sorties against British targets and RAF night fighters claimed only six shot down. More might have been achieved had OKL exploited the vulnerability of British sea communications. The action did not guarantee automatic success. The Minister of Aircraft Production, Lord Beaverbrook and Churchill distanced themselves. On September 13, 1940, shortly after the start of Germany's bombing campaign on the towns and cities of Britain, five high explosive bombs were dropped on Buckingham Palace. By the end of November, 1,100 bombers were available for night raids. In late 1940, Churchill credited the shelters. OKL did not believe air power alone could be decisive and the Luftwaffe did not adopt an official policy of the deliberate bombing of civilians until 1942. [56] Not only was there evacuation over land, but also by ship. The Communist Party made political capital out of these difficulties. Whitechapel suffered greatly during this period. London experienced regular attacks and on 10-11 May 1941 was hit by its biggest raid. [145] The shift from precision bombing to area attack is indicated in the tactical methods and weapons dropped. [154], Even so, the decision by the OKL to support the strategy in Directive 23 was instigated by two considerations, both of which had little to do with wanting to destroy Britain's sea communications in conjunction with the Kriegsmarine. On the night of 13/14 November, 77 He 111s of Kampfgeschwader 26 (26th Bomber Wing, or KG 26) bombed London while 63 from KG 55 hit Birmingham. The failure to prepare adequate night air defences was undeniable but it was not the responsibility of the AOC Fighter Command to dictate the disposal of resources. Over 2,000 AAA shells were fired, destroying two Ju 88s. 11 Feb 2020. When the Luftwaffe struck at British cities for the first time on 7 September 1940, a number of civic and political leaders were worried by Dowding's apparent lack of reaction to the new crisis. [2], The British began to assess the impact of the Blitz in August 1941 and the RAF Air Staff used the German experience to improve Bomber Command's offensives. He told OKL in 1939 that ruthless employment of the Luftwaffe against the heart of the British will to resist would follow when the moment was right. Both the RAF and Luftwaffe struggled to replace manpower losses, though the Germans had larger reserves of trained aircrew. The loss of sleep was a particular factor, with many not bothering to attend inconvenient shelters. It was faster, able to catch the bombers and its configuration of four machine guns in a turret could (much like German night fighters in 19431945 with Schrge Musik) engage the German bomber from beneath. Using historical paintings, a timeline, and a simple map, children can discover why the re started, how it spread, and the damage it caused. Liverpool and its port became an important destination for convoys heading through the Western Approaches from North America, bringing supplies and materials. Famed SF author Connie Willis' first novel in five years, Blackout, returns to a scenario she's explored before: Time-traveling scholars find themselves changing historical events they're only . [11][12] The greatest effect was to force the British to disperse the production of aircraft and spare parts. [60] In March 1943, 173 men, women and children were crushed to death at Bethnal Green tube station in a crowd surge after a woman fell down the steps as she entered the station. Though they failed to make a large gain in influence, the membership of the Party had doubled by June 1941. Before the war, the Chamberlain government stated that night defence from air attack should not take up much of the national effort. Ultimately, the Russian royal family reached a . Morale was not mentioned until the ninth wartime directive on 21 September 1940. At this time, the Underground lines were mostly owned and run by separate companies, all of which were merged together with . [152] Raeder's successorKarl Dnitzwouldon the intervention of Hitlergain control of one unit (KG 40), but Gring would soon regain it. The Luftwaffe attacked the main Atlantic seaport of Liverpool in the Liverpool Blitz. The first jamming operations were carried out using requisitioned hospital electrocautery machines. [93], For industrial areas, fires and lighting were simulated. 10 Group RAF, No. [90][91], Y-Gert was an automatic beam-tracking system and the most complex of the three devices, which was operated through autopilot. All but seven of its 12,000 houses were damaged. Thereafter, he would refuse to make available any air units to destroy British dockyards, ports, port facilities, or shipping in dock or at sea, lest Kriegsmarine gain control of more Luftwaffe units. [130], Airborne Interception radar (AI) was unreliable. [145] Part of the reason for this was inaccuracy of navigation. More than 13,000 civilians had been killed, and almost 20,000 injured, in September and October alone,[110] but the death toll was much less than expected. Authorities provided stoves and bathrooms and canteen trains provided food. Summerfield and Peniston-Bird 2007, p. 3. The London Blitz The Blitz is the term used to describe the German bombing campaign that took place from September 7, 1940, through May 11, 1941. The fake fires could only begin when the bombing started over an adjacent target and its effects were brought under control. On 17 September he postponed Operation Sea Lion (as it turned out, indefinitely) rather than gamble Germany's newly gained military prestige on a risky cross-Channel operation, particularly in the face of a sceptical Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union. The Children's Overseas Reception Board was organised by the government to help parents send their children overseas to four British Dominions Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Four days later 230 tons (234t) were dropped including 60,000 incendiaries. [b] The British had anticipated the change in strategy and dispersed its production facilities, making them less vulnerable to a concentrated attack. [145] Captured German aircrews also indicated the homes of industrial workers were deliberately targeted. In late 1943, just before the Battle of Berlin, Harris declared the power of Bomber Command would enable it to achieve "a state of devastation in which surrender is inevitable". [5] Large air battles broke out, lasting for most of the day. [93] The use of diversionary techniques such as fires had to be made carefully. By 16 February 1941, this had grown to 12; with 5 equipped, or partially equipped with Beaufighters spread over 5 Groups. Its hope was to destroy its targets and draw the RAF into defending them, allowing the Luftwaffe to destroy their fighters in large numbers, thereby achieving air superiority. These attacks produced some breaks in morale, with civil leaders fleeing the cities before the offensive reached its height. Included are activities that On 15 October, the bombers returned and about 900 fires were started by the mix of 376 tons (382t) of high explosive and 10 tons of incendiaries dropped. The blasts at Hyde Park and Regents Park kill 11 people and injure 50 others. Hayward 2007, www.ltmrecordings.com/blitz1notes.html, Last edited on 24 February 2023, at 12:33, German strategic bombing during World War I, Neville Chamberlain declared war on Germany, Women's Voluntary Services for Civil Defence, Bombing of Wiener Neustadt in World War II, "The Blitz: The Bombing of Britain in WWII", "Families pay tribute to Stoke Newington war dead", Forgotten Voices of the Blitz and the Battle for Britain, The Wages of Destruction: The Making and Breaking of the Nazi Economy, Parliament & The Blitz UK Parliament Living Heritage, "London Blitz 1940: the first day's bomb attacks listed in full", Archive recordings from The Blitz, 194041 (audiobook), The Blitz: Sorting the Myth from the Reality, Exploring 20th century London The Blitz, Oral history interview with Barry Fulford, recalling his childhood during the Blitz, Interactive bombing map of Buckinghamshire, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Blitz&oldid=1141315217. [63] Peak use of the Underground as shelter was 177,000 on 27 September 1940 and a November 1940 census of London, found that about 4% of residents used the Tube and other large shelters, 9% in public surface shelters and 27% in private home shelters, implying that the remaining 60% of the city stayed at home. This incident was called the 'Blitz'. Poor intelligence about British industry and economic efficiency led to OKL concentrating on tactics rather than strategy. [124] Although the use of the guns improved civilian morale, with the knowledge the German bomber crews were facing the barrage, it is now believed that the anti-aircraft guns achieved little and in fact the falling shell fragments caused more British casualties on the ground. German crews, even if they survived, faced capture. Attacking ports, shipping and imports as well as disrupting rail traffic in the surrounding areas, especially the distribution of coal, an important fuel in all industrial economies of the Second World War, would net a positive result. Praise for Blitz: "With a relaxed style and array of fun characters, including an agent who makes people who look at him see their mother and a baby goat that turns into a little boy, O'Malley's latest will appeal to his many followers." Kirkus Reviews Praise for Daniel O'Malley and the Rook Files series: "Laugh-out-loud funny, occasionally bawdy, and paced like a spy thriller . Port cities were also attacked to try to disrupt trade and sea communications. [145] Use of incendiaries, which were inherently inaccurate, indicated much less care was taken to avoid civilian property close to industrial sites. [80] The WVS organised the evacuation of children, established centres for those displaced by bombing and operated canteens, salvage and recycling schemes. When a continuous sound was heard from the second beam the crew knew they were above the target and dropped their bombs. The most intense series of these raids took place from September 1940 to May 1941 in a period that has become known as the Blitz. American observer Ralph Ingersoll reported the bombing was inaccurate and did not hit targets of military value, but destroyed the surrounding areas. Many people over 35 remembered the bombing and were afraid of more. [183], A popular image arose of British people in the Second World War: a collection of people locked in national solidarity. Mackay2002, pp. [31], The circumstances affected the Germans more than the British. Then bombers carrying SC1000 (1,000kg (2,205lb)), SC1400 (1,400kg (3,086lb)), and SC1800 (1,800kg (3,968lb)) "Satan" bombs were used to level streets and residential areas. Tawny Pipit (1944) While the likes of Welcome Mr. Washington (1944), Great Day (1945) and I Live in Grosvenor Square (1945) extended British hospitality to visiting Americans, Anthony Asquith's The Demi-Paradise (1943) was alone in offering the hand of friendship to our Soviet allies. Explore the London Blitz during 7th October 1940 to 6th June 1941 Aggregate Bomb Census Information Powered by Leaflet CartoDB - Map data OpenStreetMap.org contributors The National Archives give no warranty to the accuracy, completeness or fitness for purpose of the information provided. In mid-September 1940, about 150,000 people a night slept in the Underground, although by winter and spring the numbers declined to 100,000 or less. London Blitz took place during the World War 2. [173] On 19/20 April 1941, in honour of Hitler's 52nd birthday, 712 bombers hit Plymouth with a record 1,000tons (1,016t) of bombs. In March 1941, two raids on Plymouth and London dehoused 148,000 people. [13] The strategic impact on industrial cities was varied; most took from 10 to 15 days to recover from heavy raids, although Belfast and Liverpool took longer. The attacks against Birmingham took war industries some three months to recover fully. [80], Pre-war dire predictions of mass air-raid neurosis were not borne out. London, and cities. [135] In particular, the West Midlands were targeted. [34] It has also been argued that it was doubtful the Luftwaffe could have won air superiority before the "weather window" began to deteriorate in October. Predictions had underestimated civilian adaptability and resourcefulness. [178][3], In aircraft production, the British were denied the opportunity to reach the planned target of 2,500 aircraft in a month, arguably the greatest achievement of the bombing, as it forced the dispersal of the industry, at first because of damage to aircraft factories and then by a policy of precautionary dispersal. Although many civilians had used them for shelter during the First World War, the government in 1939 refused to allow the stations to be used as shelters so as not to interfere with commuter and troop travel and the fears that occupants might refuse to leave. [146] Eventually, he convinced Hitler of the need to attack British port facilities.