Five main rail lines were cut in London and rolling stock damaged. [85] Although night air defence was causing greater concern before the war, it was not at the forefront of RAF planning after 1935, when funds were directed into the new ground-based radar day fighter interception system. The shortage of bombers caused OKL to improvise. [188] In the wake of the Coventry Blitz, there was widespread agitation from the Communist Party over the need for bomb-proof shelters. Beginning. [80], Pre-war dire predictions of mass air-raid neurosis were not borne out. On 9 April 1941, Luftflotte 2 dropped 150 tons (152t) of high explosives and 50,000 incendiaries from 120 bombers in a five-hour attack. Many houses and commercial centres were heavily damaged, the electrical supply was knocked out, and five oil tanks and two magazines exploded. [7][8] Notable attacks included a large daylight attack against London on 15 September, a large raid on December 29 1940 against London resulting in a firestorm known as the Second Great Fire of London. [127] In November 1940, 6,000 sorties and 23 major attacks (more than 100 tons [102t] of bombs dropped) were flown. [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. [1] It was the capital not just for the United Kingdom, but for the entire British Empire. [120], British night air defences were in a poor state. Areas of Learning Mathematics Literacy Communication and Language Understanding The World Physical Development Personal, Social & Emotional Development Expressive Arts and Design Theme and Topics Everyday Life Fantasy and Adventure Festivals and Cultural Celebrations Places Weather and Seasons Science & Investigation Only a few weeks after the British victory in the Battle of. [130], Airborne Interception radar (AI) was unreliable. 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. It was supposed Bomber Command, Coastal Command, and the Royal Navy could not operate under conditions of German air superiority. In some cases, the concentration of the bombing and resulting conflagration created firestorms of 1,000C. The crew would be ordered to drop their bombs either by a code word from the ground controller or at the conclusion of the signal transmissions which would stop. Although the weather was poor, heavy raids took place that afternoon on the London suburbs and the airfield at Farnborough. Get 20% off purchases above 10.Apply discount code SAVE20 at checkout.. Company Search. [149] This strategy had been recognised before the war, but Operation Eagle Attack and the following Battle of Britain had got in the way of striking at Britain's sea communications and diverted German air strength to the campaign against the RAF and its supporting structures. The British were still one-third below the establishment of heavy anti-aircraft artillery AAA (or ack-ack) in May 1941, with only 2,631 weapons available. At this time, the Underground lines were mostly owned and run by separate companies, all of which were merged together with . When a continuous sound was heard from the second beam the crew knew they were above the target and dropped their bombs. The Blitz as it became known in the British press was a sustained aerial attack, sending waves of bombs raining down onto British towns and cities. The Germans conducted mass air attacks against industrial targets, towns, and cities, beginning with raids on London towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940 (a battle for daylight air superiority between the Luftwaffe and the Royal Air Force over the United Kingdom). [136] The Germans were surprised by the success of the attack. It reveals the devastation caused by the Blitz over eight months. [146] Eventually, he convinced Hitler of the need to attack British port facilities. (PROSE: A History of Humankind) In 1903, after receiving a wealth of information from the future, Grigori Rasputin foresaw the Blitz. Fighter Command lost 17 fighters and six pilots. From 7 September 1940, London was systematically bombed by the Luftwaffe for 56 of the following 57 days and nights. Bombers were noisy, cold, and vibrated badly. This involved the bombing of English Channel convoys, ports, and RAF airfields and supporting industries. 11 Feb 2020. 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. [135] In particular, the West Midlands were targeted. 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. [153] For Gring, his prestige had been damaged by the defeat in the Battle of Britain, and he wanted to regain it by subduing Britain by air power alone. Nine days later, two waves of 125 and 170 bombers dropped heavy bombs, including 160 tons (163t) of high explosive and 32,000 incendiaries. The receipt of the German signal by the receiver was duly passed to the transmitter, the signal to be repeated. A third poll found 89% support for his leadership in October. [121] Few anti-aircraft guns had fire-control systems, and the underpowered searchlights were usually ineffective against aircraft at altitudes above 12,000ft (3,700m). British fighter aircraft production continued at a rate surpassing Germany's by 2 to 1. [190], The brief success of the Communists also fed into the hands of the British Union of Fascists (BUF). [189] The "Communist threat" was deemed important enough for Herbert Morrison to order, with the support of the Cabinet, the cessation of activities of the Daily Worker, the Communist newspaper. Warehouses, rail lines and houses were destroyed and damaged, but the docks were largely untouched. Outside the capital, there had been widespread harassing activity by single aircraft, as well as fairly strong diversionary attacks on Birmingham, Coventry and Liverpool, but no major raids. (PROSE: Ash, TV: The Empty Child) It lasted from 7 September 1940 to 21 May 1941. Its round-the-clock bombing of London was an immediate attempt to force the British government to capitulate, but it was also striking at Britain's vital sea communications to achieve a victory through siege. Nevertheless, its official opposition to attacks on civilians became an increasingly moot point when large-scale raids were conducted in November and December 1940. Home Secretary Sir John Anderson was replaced by Morrison soon afterwards, in the wake of a Cabinet reshuffle as the dying Neville Chamberlain resigned. The Luftwaffe lost 18 percent of the bombers sent on the operations that day and failed to gain air superiority. The Blitz refers to the strategic bombing campaign conducted by the Germans against London and other cities in England from September of 1940 through May of 1941, targeting populated areas, factories and dock yards. [32], The decision to change strategy is sometimes claimed as a major mistake by OKL. [1], In early July 1940, the German High Command began planning Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. The AFS had 138,000 personnel by July 1939. The bombings left parts of London in ruins, and when the war ended in 1945 much of the city had to be rebuilt. The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz (Kindle Edition) by. In March 1941, two raids on Plymouth and London dehoused 148,000 people. The debris of St Thomas's Hospital, London, the morning after receiving a direct hit during the Blitz, in front of the Houses of . On 17 January around 100 bombers dropped a high concentration of incendiaries, some 32,000 in all. 5 Jan. Leslie Hore-Belisha, Britain's Minister of War, is dismissed. Although bombing attacks unexpectedly did not begin immediately during the Phoney War,[51] civilians were aware of the deadly power of aerial attacks through newsreels of Barcelona, the Bombing of Guernica and the Bombing of Shanghai. [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. The light guns, about half of which were of the excellent Bofors 40 mm, dealt with aircraft only up to 6,000ft (1,800m). However, the use of delayed-action bombs, while initially very effective, gradually had less impact, partly because they failed to detonate. London: Aurum Press. Curiously, while 43 percent of the contacts in May 1941 were by visual sightings, they accounted for 61 percent of the combats. In the last days of the battle, the bombers became lures in an attempt to draw the RAF into combat with German fighters. [116] On 7 November, St Pancras, Kensal and Bricklayers Arms stations were hit and several lines of Southern Rail were cut on 10 November. [46], In an operational capacity, limitations in weapons technology and quick British reactions were making it more difficult to achieve strategic effect. Between 7 September 1940 and 21 May 1941 there were major aerial raids (attacks in which m Subjects: British History, Social Studies - History, World History Grades: [114] It is not clear whether the power station or any specific structure was targeted during the German offensive as the Luftwaffe could not accurately bomb select targets during night operations. When Gring decided against continuing Wever's original heavy bomber programme in 1937, the Reichsmarschall's own explanation was that Hitler wanted to know only how many bombers there were, not how many engines each had. Aviation strategists dispute that morale was ever a major consideration for Bomber Command. The German bombers would fly along either beam until they picked up the signal from the other beam. Browse 1,952 london blitz stock photos and images available, or search for the blitz or world war ii to find more great stock photos and pictures. By September 1940, the large-scale German air raids which had been expected twelve months earlier finally arrived. [70] Pub visits increased in number (beer was never rationed), and 13,000 attended cricket at Lord's. [22], Two prominent enthusiasts for ground-support operations (direct or indirect) were Hugo Sperrle the commander of Luftflotte 3 (1 February 1939 23 August 1944) and Hans Jeschonnek (Chief of the Luftwaffe General Staff from 1 February 1939 19 August 1943). Bombing civilians would cause a collapse of morale and a loss of production in the remaining factories. [145] Use of incendiaries, which were inherently inaccurate, indicated much less care was taken to avoid civilian property close to industrial sites. [24], Hitler was much more attracted to the political aspects of bombing. Many Londoners, in particular, took to using the Underground railway system, without authority, for shelter and sleeping through the night. [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. The North Sea port of Hull, a convenient and easily found target or secondary target for bombers unable to locate their primary targets, suffered the Hull Blitz. Other units ceased using parachute flares and opted for explosive target markers. By the end of 1941, the WVS had one million members. [160], On 13 March, the upper Clyde port of Clydebank near Glasgow was bombed (Clydebank Blitz). He fell asleep at the controls of his Ju 88 and woke up to discover the entire crew asleep. The word "blitz" comes from the German term. Although the stress of the war resulted in many anxiety attacks, eating disorders, fatigue, weeping, miscarriages, and other physical and mental ailments, society did not collapse. The maximum range of Y-Gert was similar to the other systems and it was accurate enough on occasion for specific buildings to be hit. The air campaign soon got underway against London and other British cities. The amount of firm operational and tactical preparation for a bombing campaign was minimal, largely because of the failure by Hitler as supreme commander to insist upon such a commitment. It expected about 90% of evacuees to stay in private homes, conducted an extensive survey to determine the amount of space available and made detailed preparations for transporting evacuees. Some 107,400 gross tons (109,100t) of shipping was damaged in the Thames Estuary and 1,600 civilians were casualties. [155], The diversion of heavier bombers to the Balkans meant that the crews and units left behind were asked to fly two or three sorties per night. The number of contacts and combats rose in 1941, from 44 and two in 48 sorties in January 1941, to 204 and 74 in May (643 sorties). [60], Each day orderly lines of people queued until 4:00pm, when they were allowed to enter the stations. [76], Despite the attacks, defeat in Norway and France, and the threat of invasion, overall morale remained high. Ironically, the Blitz was the result of an . Cardiff was bombed on three nights; Portsmouth centre was devastated by five raids. Workers worked longer shifts and over weekends. Regional commissioners were given plenipotentiary powers to restore communications and organise the distribution of supplies to keep the war economy moving. He frequently complained of the Luftwaffe's inability to damage industries sufficiently, saying, "The munitions industry cannot be impeded effectively by air raids usually, the prescribed targets are not hit". [170] On 19 November, John Cunningham of No. [149] The indifference displayed by the OKL to Directive 23 was perhaps best demonstrated in operational directives which diluted its effect. [117] Attacks against East End docks were effective and many Thames barges were destroyed. One-third of London's streets were impassable. People referred to raids as if they were weather, stating that a day was "very blitzy". 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 London Blitz Timeline Nathaniel Zarate Sep 7 1940 September 7, 1940 On Saturday September 7th 1940, Hitler ordered the Luftwaffe, the German Air Force to bomb London. They also noted regional production was severely disrupted when city centres were devastated through the loss of administrative offices, utilities and transport. Notable interviews include Thomas Alderson, the first recipient of the George Cross, John Cormack, who survived eight days trapped beneath rubble on Clydeside, and Herbert Morrison's famous "Britain shall not burn" appeal for more fireguards in December 1940. [53] Winston Churchill told Parliament in 1934, "We must expect that, under the pressure of continuous attack upon London, at least three or four million people would be driven out into the open country around the metropolis". German legal scholars of the 1930s carefully worked out guidelines for what type of bombing was permissible under international law. The considerable rail network distributed to the rest of the country. The Luftwaffe was not pressed into ground support operations because of pressure from the army or because it was led by ex-soldiers, the Luftwaffe favoured a model of joint inter-service operations, rather than independent strategic air campaigns. [132] On 19 November 1940 the famous RAF night fighter ace John Cunningham shot down a Ju 88 bomber using airborne radar, just as Dowding had predicted. Let us find out other historical facts about London Blitz below: Facts about London Blitz 1: the German intelligence Dowding agreed air defence would require some offensive action and that fighters could not defend Britain alone. This meant that British coastal centres and shipping at sea west of Ireland were the prime targets. [40], However, the Luftwaffe faced limitations. In comparison to the Allied bombing campaign against Germany, casualties due to the Blitz were relatively low; the bombing of Hamburg alone inflicted about 40,000 civilian casualties. Beginning in September 1940, the Blitz was an aerial bombing campaign conducted by the Luftwaffe against British cities. 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. [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. Many people over 35 remembered the bombing and were afraid of more. From July until September 1940 the Luftwaffe attacked Fighter Command to gain air superiority as a prelude to invasion. Children pull crackers under paper decorations while jubilant adults smile . [55] The relocation of the government and the civil service was also planned but would only have occurred if necessary so as not to damage civilian morale. This was when warfare deliberately included civilian populations. Over a quarter of London's population had left the city by November 1940. Many of the latter were abandoned in 1940 as unsafe. Timeline How Allies Broke The Deadlock | First World War EP6 | Timeline Biographer Reveals Audrey Hepburn's . [26], The deliberate separation of the Luftwaffe from the rest of the military structure encouraged the emergence of a major "communications gap" between Hitler and the Luftwaffe, which other factors helped to exacerbate. Over 2,000 AAA shells were fired, destroying two Ju 88s. The policy of RAF Bomber Command became an attempt to achieve victory through the destruction of civilian will, communications and industry. [37], Regardless of the ability of the Luftwaffe to win air superiority, Hitler was frustrated it was not happening quickly enough. 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. World War 2 Timeline - 1940. by Ben Johnson. It also took part in the bombing over Britain. He roused them, ensured they took oxygen and Dextro-Energen amphetamine tablets, then completed the mission. 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. From the beginning of the National Socialist regime until 1939, there was a debate in German military journals over the role of strategic bombardment, with some contributors arguing along the lines of the British and Americans. [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. The Germans conducted mass air attacks against industrial targets, towns, and cities, beginning with raids on London towards the end of the Battle of . The first jamming operations were carried out using requisitioned hospital electrocautery machines. More might have been achieved had OKL exploited the vulnerability of British sea communications. No follow-up raids were made, as OKL underestimated the British power of recovery (as Bomber Command would do over Germany from 1943 to 1945). Birmingham and Coventry were subject to 450 long tons (457t) of bombs between them in the last 10 days of October. The German bombing of Britain from 1940-45 exacted a terrible price, in lives lost, infrastructure wrecked and nerves shattered. [90][91], In June 1940, a German prisoner of war was overheard boasting that the British would never find the Knickebein, even though it was under their noses. [109], These decisions, apparently taken at the Luftflotte or Fliegerkorps level, meant attacks on individual targets were gradually replaced by what was, for all intents and purposes, an unrestricted area attack or Terrorangriff (Terror Attack). [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. 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'.. On 15 September, on a date known as Battle of Britain Day, a large-scale raid was launched in daylight, but suffered significant loss for no lasting gain. 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. [107], Luftwaffe policy at this point was primarily to continue progressive attacks on London, chiefly by night attack; second, to interfere with production in the vast industrial arms factories of the West Midlands, again chiefly by night attack; and third to disrupt plants and factories during the day by means of fighter-bombers. [17], The vital industries and transport centres that would be targeted for shutdown were valid military targets. To prevent the movement of large enemy ground forces to the decisive areas, by destroying railways and roads, particularly bridges and tunnels, which are indispensable for the movement and supply of forces. [13], The German air offensive failed because the Luftwaffe High Command (Oberkommando der Luftwaffe, OKL) did not develop a methodical strategy for destroying British war industry. 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. Later in . [b] The British had anticipated the change in strategy and dispersed its production facilities, making them less vulnerable to a concentrated attack. On September 7, 1940, 350 German bombers escorted by fighters bombarded London on consecutive successions. In Portsmouth Southsea and Gosport waves of 150 bombers destroyed vast swaths of the city with 40,000 incendiaries. Explore Docklands at War. Industry, seats of government and communications could be destroyed, depriving an opponent of the means to make war. To support naval operations by attacking naval bases, protecting German naval bases and participating directly in naval battles. [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. Democracies, where public opinion was allowed, were thought particularly vulnerable. Bombers were flown with airborne search lights out of desperation but to little avail. An estimated 43,000 people lost their lives. The number of suicides and drunkenness declined, and London recorded only about two cases of "bomb neurosis" per week in the first three months of bombing. [159] Operations against London up until May 1941 could also have a severe impact on morale. [56] Not only was there evacuation over land, but also by ship. Airfields became water-logged and the 18 Kampfgruppen (bomber groups) of the Luftwaffe's Kampfgeschwadern (bomber wings) were relocated to Germany for rest and re-equipment. Air raids caused about 2,300 casualties in London in World War I, and during the Battle of Britain in World War II, the city was bombed relentlessly by the German Luftwaffethe London Blitz . What he saw as the mythserene national unitybecame "historical truth". This led to their agreeing to Hitler's Directive 23, Directions for operations against the British War Economy, which was published on 6 February 1941 and gave aerial interdiction of British imports by sea top priority. Edgar Jones, et al. To paralyse the enemy armed forces by stopping production in armaments factories. [95][96], Initially, the change in strategy caught the RAF off-guard and caused extensive damage and civilian casualties. Summerfield and Peniston-Bird 2007, p. 4. [171] In the bad weather of February 1941, Fighter Command flew 568 sorties to counter the Luftwaffe which flew 1,644 sorties. A. Hampton/Topical Press Agency . The government planned the evacuation of four million peoplemostly women and childrenfrom urban areas, including 1.4million from London. 1940 30 June: The order is given by Reichsmarschall Hermann Gering, head of the Luftwaffe, to draw the RAF into battle. Around 250 tons (9,000 bombs) had been dropped, killing 1,413 people and injuring 3,500 more. The maps help to contextualize the staggering statistics from the Blitz: in London alone, there were 57 consecutive nights of bombing. Important events of 1940, including the beginning of the London Blitz (pictured above) and the Battle of Britain. "Bombing of London" and "London Blitz" redirect here. 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". Signals from the station were retransmitted by the bomber's equipment, which allowed the distance the bomber had travelled along the beam to be measured precisely. Their incendiary bombs [126] RAF day fighters were converting to night operations and the interim Bristol Blenheim night fighter conversion of the light bomber was being replaced by the powerful Beaufighter, but this was only available in very small numbers. The moon was full and the Thames had a very low ebb tide. These collections include period interviews with civilians, servicemen, aircrew, politicians and Civil Defence personnel, as well as Blitz actuality recordings, news bulletins and public information broadcasts. In late 1940, Churchill credited the shelters. But the Blitz started in earnest on the afternoon of 7 September when the German Luftwaffe filled the skies in the first major daytime raid on London. 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. [45] This method condemned the offensive over Britain to failure before it began. These were marked out by parachute flares. [73][74][75], The cheerful crowds visiting bomb sites were so large they interfered with rescue work. Over a period of nine months, over 43,500 civilians were killed in the raids, which focused on major cities and industrial centres. [25], When Hitler tried to intervene more in the running of the air force later in the war, he was faced with a political conflict of his own making between himself and Gring, which was not fully resolved until the war was almost over. German intelligence suggested Fighter Command was weakening, and an attack on London would force it into a final battle of annihilation while compelling the British Government to surrender. 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. Two aerials at ground stations were rotated so that their beams converged over the target. The London Underground rail system was also affected; high explosive bombs damaged the tunnels rendering some unsafe. A tall white house known locally as the 'leaning tower of Rotherhithe' has sold for 1.5million. [13][14], In the 1920s and 1930s, airpower theorists such as Giulio Douhet and Billy Mitchell claimed that air forces could win wars, obviating the need for land and sea combat. 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. 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. [33] Others argue that the Luftwaffe made little impression on Fighter Command in the last week of August and first week of September and that the shift in strategy was not decisive. The London docks and railways communications had taken a heavy pounding, and much damage had been done to the railway system outside. Seven major and eight heavy attacks were flown, but the weather made it difficult to keep up the pressure. [187] Historians' critical response to this construction focused on what were seen as over-emphasised claims of patriotic nationalism and national unity. Here are the flats today, courtesy of Street View . 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 . A present day image of the Freedom Press, Whitechapel, London. This became official policy on 7 October. Ports were easier to find and made better targets. News reports of the Spanish Civil War, such as the bombing of Barcelona, supported the 50-casualties-per-tonne estimate. [186] At the time it was seen as a useful propaganda tool for domestic and foreign consumption.
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