[13] In April 1941, when the targets were British ports, rifle production fell by 25 percent, filled-shell production by 4.6 percent and in small-arms production 4.5 percent. [115] In the initial operations against London, it did appear as if rail targets and the bridges over the Thames had been singled out: Victoria Station was hit by four bombs and suffered extensive damage. The London docks and railways communications had taken a heavy pounding, and much damage had been done to the railway system outside. When the third cross-beam was reached the bomb aimer activated a third trigger, which stopped the first hand of the clock, with the second hand continuing. 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. Another innovation was the boiler fire. "Bombing of London" and "London Blitz" redirect here. [161] Another raid was carried out on 11/12 May 1941. Plymouth was attacked five times before the end of the month while Belfast, Hull, and Cardiff were hit. [71], According to Anna Freud and Edward Glover, London civilians surprisingly did not suffer from widespread shell shock, unlike the soldiers in the Dunkirk evacuation. These include Peter Hennessy, Andrew Thorpe, and Philip Ziegler, who while admitting serious exceptions, argue that the population largely behaved well during the Blitz.[193]. A third poll found 89% support for his leadership in October. [164], In the north, substantial efforts were made against Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Sunderland, which were large ports on the English east coast. By the end of November, 1,100 bombers were available for night raids. [19] General Walther Wever (Chief of the Luftwaffe General Staff Rumours that Jews were inflating prices, were responsible for the Black Market, were the first to panic under attack (even the cause of the panic) and secured the best shelters via underhanded methods, were also widespread. [136] The raid against Coventry was particularly devastating, and led to widespread use of the phrase "to coventrate". [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. [195] Many sites of bombed buildings, when cleared of rubble, were cultivated to grow vegetables to ease wartime food shortages and were known as victory gardens.[196]. [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. It was supposed Bomber Command, Coastal Command, and the Royal Navy could not operate under conditions of German air superiority. Democracies, where public opinion was allowed, were thought particularly vulnerable. [40], However, the Luftwaffe faced limitations. [b] The British had anticipated the change in strategy and dispersed its production facilities, making them less vulnerable to a concentrated attack. This day marks the beginning of the Blitz when an attack on London is launched by the Germans, starting a nine-month long campaign against the city. On 8 May 1941, 57 ships were destroyed, sunk or damaged, amounting to 80,000 long tons (81,300t). [92] The counter-operations were carried out by British Electronic Counter Measures (ECM) units under Wing Commander Edward Addison, No. [149], A further line in the directive stressed the need to inflict the heaviest losses possible, but also to intensify the air war in order to create the impression an amphibious assault on Britain was planned for 1941. [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. 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. This is a Timeline of the United Kingdom home front during World War II covering Britain 1939-45.Timeline of the United Kingdom home front during World War II covering Britain 1939-45. If a vigilant bomber crew could spot the fighter first, they had a decent chance of evading it. [157] Air attacks sank 39,126 long tons (39,754t) of shipping, with another 111,601 long tons (113,392t) damaged. The Luftwaffe attacked the main Atlantic seaport of Liverpool in the Liverpool Blitz. Explore Docklands at War. The moon was full and the Thames had a very low ebb tide. Too early and the chances of success receded; too late and the real conflagration at the target would exceed the diversionary fires. [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. While wartime bombings affected London in both world wars, it was the Blitz that truly altered the cityscape forever. [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. [23], Ultimately, Hitler was trapped within his own vision of bombing as a terror weapon, formed in the 1930s when he threatened smaller nations into accepting German rule rather than submit to air bombardment. [2], The military effectiveness of bombing varied. 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 . [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. But even in May, 67 percent of the sorties were visual cat's-eye missions. Support for peace negotiations declined from 29% in February. London Blitz took place during the World War 2. A building collapsing in Whitechapel during the Blitz. 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 AFS had 138,000 personnel by July 1939. 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. Using historical paintings, a timeline, and a simple map, children can discover why the re started, how it spread, and the damage it caused. It showed the extent to which Hitler mistook Allied strategy for one of morale breaking instead of one of economic warfare, with the collapse of morale as a bonus. Home Secretary Sir John Anderson was replaced by Morrison soon afterwards, in the wake of a Cabinet reshuffle as the dying Neville Chamberlain resigned. Much damage was done. 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. In 1938, a committee of psychiatrists predicted three times as many mental as physical casualties from aerial bombing, implying three to four million psychiatric patients. The Communists attempted to blame the damage and casualties of the Coventry raid on the rich factory owners, big business and landowning interests and called for a negotiated peace. [186] At the time it was seen as a useful propaganda tool for domestic and foreign consumption. Many of the latter were abandoned in 1940 as unsafe. News reports of the Spanish Civil War, such as the bombing of Barcelona, supported the 50-casualties-per-tonne estimate. [36] Other historians argue that the outcome of the air battle was irrelevant; the massive numerical superiority of British naval forces and the inherent weakness of the Kriegsmarine would have made the projected German invasion, Unternehmen Seelwe (Operation Sea Lion), a disaster with or without German air superiority. Industry, seats of government and communications could be destroyed, depriving an opponent of the means to make war. [78], During the Blitz, The Scout Association guided fire engines to where they were most needed and became known as the "Blitz Scouts". By 19/20 April 1941, it had dropped 3,984 mines, .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}13 of the total dropped. Over 2,000 AAA shells were fired, destroying two Ju 88s. The first German attack on London actually occurred by accident. The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz (Kindle Edition) by. Throughout 193339 none of the 16 Western Air Plans drafted mentioned morale as a target. To start off, the idea of the London Underground as a bomb shelter wasn't a new one by 1940. Morrison warned that he could not counter the Communist unrest unless provision of shelters were made. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term Blitzkrieg, the German word meaning 'lightning war'.[4]. [77] Before the war, civilians were issued with 50million respirators (gas masks) in case bombardment with gas began before evacuation. Warehouses, rail lines and houses were destroyed and damaged, but the docks were largely untouched. What he saw as the mythserene national unitybecame "historical truth". Throughout 1940, dummy airfields were prepared, good enough to stand up to skilled observation. 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. Gring's lack of co-operation was detrimental to the one air strategy with potentially decisive strategic effect on Britain. Little tonnage was dropped on Fighter Command airfields; Bomber Command airfields were hit instead. It also took part in the bombing over Britain. On occasion, only one-third of German bombs hit their targets. Dozens of men, women and children celebrate a Christmas party at a London Underground station during the Blitz in 1940. To support the operations of the army formations, independent of railways, i.e., armoured forces and motorised forces, by impeding the enemy's advance and participating directly in ground operations. de Zeng, Henry L., Doug G. Stankey and Eddie J. Creek. [28], The Luftwaffe's poor intelligence meant that their aircraft were not always able to locate their targets, and thus attacks on factories and airfields failed to achieve the desired results. The blitz 1940-1941: an interactive timeline This interactive timeline tracks the German air force's bombing campaign as it devastated towns and cities across Britain during the second world. [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. Though they failed to make a large gain in influence, the membership of the Party had doubled by June 1941. [32], The decision to change strategy is sometimes claimed as a major mistake by OKL. He recognised the right of the public to seize tube stations and authorised plans to improve their condition and expand them by tunnelling. [93] The use of diversionary techniques such as fires had to be made carefully. [38][a], It was decided to focus on bombing Britain's industrial cities, in daylight to begin with. [149] Some 50 Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive-bombers and Jabos (fighter-bombers) were used, officially classed as Leichte Kampfflugzeuge ("light bombers") and sometimes called Leichte Kesselringe ("Light Kesselrings"). [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. [89][90], Knickebein was in general use but the X-Gert (X apparatus) was reserved for specially trained pathfinder crews. IWM C 5424 1. [76], Civilians of London played an enormous role in protecting their city. The exhausted population took three weeks to overcome the effects of an attack. [31], The circumstances affected the Germans more than the British. The effectiveness of British countermeasures against Knickebein caused the Luftwaffe to prefer fire light instead for target marking and navigation. Still, many British citizens, who had been members of the Labour Party, itself inert over the issue, turned to the Communist Party. Summerfield and Peniston-Bird 2007, p. 84. 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. [95][96], Initially, the change in strategy caught the RAF off-guard and caused extensive damage and civilian casualties. 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 In January, Swansea was bombed four times, very heavily. [141][failed verification] Altogether, 130 German bombers destroyed the historical centre of London. 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. [127] In November 1940, 6,000 sorties and 23 major attacks (more than 100 tons [102t] of bombs dropped) were flown. [156], The Luftwaffe could still inflict much damage and after the German conquest of Western Europe, the air and submarine offensive against British sea communications became much more dangerous than the German offensive during the First World War. Liverpool and its port became an important destination for convoys heading through the Western Approaches from North America, bringing supplies and materials. [140] The first group to use these incendiaries was Kampfgruppe 100 which despatched 10 "pathfinder" He 111s. They have usually been treated as distinct campaigns, but they are linked by the fact that the German Air Force conducted a continuous eleven-month offensive against Britain from July 1940 to June 1941. At around 4:00 PM on that September day, 348 German bombers escorted by 617 fighters Sept. 7, 1940 - the beginning of the London Blitz blasted London until 6:00 PM. A further attack on the Clyde, this time at Greenock, took place on 6 and 7 May. [120], British night air defences were in a poor state. Around 200 people were killed and another 2,000 injured. Ingersol wrote that Battersea Power Station, one of the largest landmarks in London, received only a minor hit. The loss of sleep was a particular factor, with many not bothering to attend inconvenient shelters. [40] The Port of London, in particular, was an important target, bringing in one-third of overseas trade. To destroy the enemy air force by bombing its bases and aircraft factories and defeat enemy air forces attacking German targets. 4 June 1940 18 June 1940 22 June 1940 1 July 1940 . Bungay, Stephen (2000). Anti-Semitic attitudes became widespread, particularly in London. Operating over home territory, British aircrew could fly again if they survived being shot down. [24][182] However, meteorological conditions over Britain were not favourable for flying and prevented an escalation in air operations. Ironically, the Blitz was the result of an . Jones began a search for German beams; Avro Ansons of the Beam Approach Training Development Unit (BATDU) were flown up and down Britain fitted with a 30MHz receiver. This incident was called the 'Blitz'. [167] The Bristol Blenheim F.1 carried four .303in (7.7mm) machine guns which lacked the firepower to easily shoot down a Do 17, Ju 88 or Heinkel He 111. Although there had been many bombing raids on London since mid 1940, the first raid where the survival of St. Paul's Cathedral was at risk and where the Watch were tested in the extreme was on Sunday 29th December 1940. Over the next few days weather was poor and the next main effort would not be made until 15 September 1940. Aviation strategists dispute that morale was ever a major consideration for Bomber Command. German crews, even if they survived, faced capture. [163] By the end of the air campaign over Britain, only eight percent of the German effort against British ports was made using mines. [169] The Beaufighter had a maximum speed of 320mph (510km/h), an operational ceiling of 26,000ft (7,900m), a climb rate of 2,500ft (760m) per minute, and its battery of four 20mm (0.79in) Hispano cannon and six .303in Browning machine guns was much more lethal. Other reasons, including industry dispersal may have been a factor. To reduce losses further, strategy changed to prefer night raids, giving the bombers greater protection under cover of darkness. 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. Predictions had underestimated civilian adaptability and resourcefulness. [170] On 19 November, John Cunningham of No. In late 1940, Churchill credited the shelters. [50] The unexpected delay to civilian bombing during the Phoney War meant that the shelter programme finished in June 1940, before the Blitz. The first attack merely damaged the rail network for three days,[102] and the second attack failed altogether. But their operations were to no avail; the worsening weather and unsustainable attrition in daylight gave the OKL an excuse to switch to night attacks on 7 October. Sperrle, commanding Luftflotte 3, was ordered to dispatch 250 sorties per night including 100 against the West Midlands. Want to Read. The bombing effort was diluted by attacks against several sets of industries instead of constant pressure on the most vital. This timeline highlights key moments in the run up to and during the Battle of Britain. The receipt of the German signal by the receiver was duly passed to the transmitter, the signal to be repeated. 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 primary goal of Bomber Command was to destroy the German industrial base (economic warfare) and in doing so reduce morale. Authorities provided stoves and bathrooms and canteen trains provided food. Sewer, rail, docklands, and electric installations were damaged. It hoped to destroy morale by destroying the enemy's factories and public utilities as well as its food stocks (by attacking shipping). [156] Westminster Abbey and the Law Courts were damaged, while the Chamber of the House of Commons was destroyed. [17], The vital industries and transport centres that would be targeted for shutdown were valid military targets. [15] It was thought that "the bomber will always get through" and could not be resisted, particularly at night. Beginning in September 1940, the Blitz was an aerial bombing campaign conducted by the Luftwaffe against British 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). Just three and twelve were claimed by the RAF and AA defences respectively. 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). Its aircraftDornier Do 17, Junkers Ju 88, and Heinkel He 111swere capable of carrying out strategic missions[41] but were incapable of doing greater damage because of their small bomb-loads. Timeline London portal v t e The United Kingdom took part in World War II from 3 September 1939 until 15 August 1945. Of greater potential was the GL (Gunlaying) radar and searchlights with fighter direction from RAF fighter control rooms to begin a GCI system (Ground Control-led Interception) under Group-level control (No. 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. The tactic was expanded into Feuerleitung (Blaze Control) with the creation of Brandbombenfelder (Incendiary Fields) to mark targets. [37], Regardless of the ability of the Luftwaffe to win air superiority, Hitler was frustrated it was not happening quickly enough. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) and his wife inspect bomb-damage in the City of London during the Blitz, 31st December 1940. Many popular works of fiction during the 1920s and 1930s portrayed aerial bombing, such as H. G. Wells' novel The Shape of Things to Come and its 1936 film adaptation, and others such as The Air War of 1936 and The Poison War. Contact Us 0207 608 5516 Call today: 9am - 5.30pm Added to the tension of the mission which exhausted and drained crews, tiredness caught up with and killed many. When the second hand re-aligned with the first, the bombs were released. In Sunderland on 25 April, Luftflotte 2 sent 60 bombers which dropped 80 tons (81.3t) of high explosive and 9,000 incendiaries. [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. [137] Around 21 factories were seriously damaged in Coventry, and loss of public utilities stopped work at nine others, disrupting industrial output for several months. [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. [10] Bombing failed to demoralise the British into surrender or do much damage to the war economy; eight months of bombing never seriously hampered British war production, which continued to increase. [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 Luftwaffe flew 4,000 sorties that month, including 12 major and three heavy attacks. British fighter aircraft production continued at a rate surpassing Germany's by 2 to 1. 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. These units were fed from two adjacent tanks containing oil and water. The policy of RAF Bomber Command became an attempt to achieve victory through the destruction of civilian will, communications and industry. This had important implications. [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. Damage was inflicted on the port installations, but many bombs fell on the city itself. [67] By the end of 1940 improvements had been made in the Underground and in many other large shelters. [128] London's defences were rapidly reorganised by General Pile, the Commander-in-Chief of Anti-Aircraft Command. 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. The Blitz began on 7 September, 'Black Saturday', when German bombers attacked London, leaving 430 dead and 1,600 injured. [49], In 1937 the Committee on Imperial Defence estimated that an attack of 60 days would result in 600,000 dead and 1.2million wounded. In subsequent months a steady number of German bombers would fall to night fighters. Nearly 350 German bombers (escorted by over 600 fighters) dropped explosives on East London, targeting the docks in particular. [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. The Luftwaffe lost 18 percent of the bombers sent on the operations that day and failed to gain air superiority. If the German bomber flew closer to its own beam than the meacon then the former signal would come through the stronger on the direction finder. Before the war, the Chamberlain government stated that night defence from air attack should not take up much of the national effort. [92], German beacons operated on the medium-frequency band and the signals involved a two-letter Morse identifier followed by a lengthy time-lapse which enabled the Luftwaffe crews to determine the signal's bearing. [12], Five nights later, Birmingham was hit by 369 bombers from KG 54, KG26, and KG55. [93], For industrial areas, fires and lighting were simulated. [188] In the wake of the Coventry Blitz, there was widespread agitation from the Communist Party over the need for bomb-proof shelters. In the last days of the battle, the bombers became lures in an attempt to draw the RAF into combat with German fighters. Some 107,400 gross tons (109,100t) of shipping was damaged in the Thames Estuary and 1,600 civilians were casualties. The first jamming operations were carried out using requisitioned hospital electrocautery machines. One-third of London's streets were impassable. [86], Hugh Dowding, Air Officer Commanding Fighter Command, defeated the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain, but preparing day fighter defences left little for night air defence. At a London railway station, arriving troops pass by children who are being evacuated to the countryside. [151], Directive 23 was the only concession made by Gring to the Kriegsmarine over the strategic bombing strategy of the Luftwaffe against Britain. As the mere threat of it had produced diplomatic results in the 1930s, he expected that the threat of German retaliation would persuade the Allies to adopt a policy of moderation and not to begin a policy of unrestricted bombing. Many houses and commercial centres were heavily damaged, the electrical supply was knocked out, and five oil tanks and two magazines exploded. The German bombers would fly along either beam until they picked up the signal from the other beam. Bombers were noisy, cold, and vibrated badly. In January 1941, Fighter Command flew 486 sorties against 1,965 made by the Germans. Ports were easier to find and made better targets. Many civilians who were unwilling or unable to join the military joined the Home Guard, the Air Raid Precautions service (ARP), the Auxiliary Fire Service and many other civilian organisations. Bombers were flown with airborne search lights out of desperation but to little avail. [29] The British produced 10,000 aircraft in 1940, in comparison to Germany's 8,000. X-Gert receivers were mounted in He 111s, with a radio mast on the fuselage. [149], By now, the imminent threat of invasion had all but passed as the Luftwaffe had failed to gain the prerequisite air superiority. All but seven of its 12,000 houses were damaged. Who . The lightning attack was infamously called "Black Saturday". 'Blitz' is an abbreviation of the German word 'blitzkrieg', meaning 'lightning war'. [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. Between 1940 and 1945, over 52,000 civilians were killed in Britain during bombing raids by German aircraft. 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. This involved the bombing of English Channel convoys, ports, and RAF airfields and supporting industries. Timeline How Allies Broke The Deadlock | First World War EP6 | Timeline Biographer Reveals Audrey Hepburn's . This was when warfare deliberately included civilian populations. Bombsite rubble from Birmingham was used to make runways on US Air Force bases in Kent and Essex in southeast England. This became official policy on 7 October. Around 250 tons (9,000 bombs) had been dropped, killing 1,413 people and injuring 3,500 more. 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.
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