london blitz timeline

[136] The Germans were surprised by the success of the attack. [145], In 1941, the Luftwaffe shifted strategy again. The fake fires could only begin when the bombing started over an adjacent target and its effects were brought under control. Many people over 35 remembered the bombing and were afraid of more. However, as with the attacks in the south, the Germans failed to prevent maritime movements or cripple industry in the regions. From July until September 1940 the Luftwaffe attacked Fighter Command to gain air superiority as a prelude to invasion. To destroy the enemy air force by bombing its bases and aircraft factories and defeat enemy air forces attacking German targets. 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. It had no time to gather reliable intelligence on Britain's industries. [111], Wartime observers perceived the bombing as indiscriminate. A third poll found 89% support for his leadership in October. 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. On the night of 22/23 July 1940, Flying Officer Cyril Ashfield (pilot), Pilot Officer Geoffrey Morris (air observer) and Flight Sergeant Reginald Leyland (Air Intercept radar operator) of the Fighter Interception Unit became the first pilot and crew to intercept and destroy an enemy aircraft using onboard radar to guide them to a visual interception, when their AI night fighter brought down a Do 17 off Sussex. [163] By the end of the air campaign over Britain, only eight percent of the German effort against British ports was made using mines. Around 250 tons (9,000 bombs) had been dropped, killing 1,413 people and injuring 3,500 more. 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. [129] AA defences improved by better use of radar and searchlights. At the beginning of the war in 1939, London was the largest city in the world, with 8.2 million inhabitants. [138] The strategic effect of the raid was a brief 20 percent dip in aircraft production. Civilians left for more remote areas of the country. 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. At least 3,363 Luftwaffe aircrew were killed, 2,641 missing and 2,117 wounded. Intricately Color-Coded Maps Marking Bomb Damage from the London Blitz It believed it could greatly affect the balance of power on the battlefield by disrupting production and damaging civilian morale. With the doors to our museums physically closed, we are offering some exclusive World War II content from our galleries and collections. London experienced regular attacks and on 10-11 May 1941 was hit by its biggest raid. 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. [21], In 1936, Wever was killed in an air crash and the failure to implement his vision for the new Luftwaffe was largely attributable to his successors. In December, only 11 major and five heavy attacks were made. Upsurges in population in south Wales and Gloucester intimated where these displaced people went. The government planned the evacuation of four million peoplemostly women and childrenfrom urban areas, including 1.4million from London. 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. [61] A single direct hit on a shelter in Stoke Newington on October 1940 killed 160 civilians. [156] Hitler now had his sights set on attacking the USSR with Operation Barbarossa, and the Blitz came to an end. Two aerials at ground stations were rotated so that their beams converged over the target. The policy of RAF Bomber Command became an attempt to achieve victory through the destruction of civilian will, communications and industry. [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. Time Travel Back To The London Blitz In Connie Willis' New - Gizmodo Moreover, the OKL could not settle on an appropriate strategy. Official histories concluded that the mental health of a nation may have improved, while panic was rare. "Bombing of London" and "London Blitz" redirect here. Red lamps were used to simulate blast furnaces and locomotive fireboxes. 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]. [76], Despite the attacks, defeat in Norway and France, and the threat of invasion, overall morale remained high. [13], The air offensive against the RAF and British industry failed to have the desired effect. [173] On 3/4 May, nine were shot down in one night. This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 12:33. [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. London Blitz bomb web map a hit-and-miss affair The - The Register [50], On the other hand, some historians have recently contended that this revisionism of the "Blitz spirit" narrative may have been an over-correction. From 1943 to the end of the war, he [Harris] and other proponents of the area offensive represented it [the bomber offensive] less as an attack on morale than as an assault on the housing, utilities, communications, and other services that supported the war production effort. Morrison warned that he could not counter the Communist unrest unless provision of shelters were made. [62], Communal shelters never housed more than one seventh of Greater London residents. 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 . The offensive came to be called the Blitz after the German word blitzkrieg ("lightning war"). By December, this had increased to 92 percent. Reflections made by factory skylights were created by placing lights under angled wooden panels. 11 Group RAF and No. Only one bomber was lost, to anti-aircraft fire, despite the RAF flying 125-night sorties. [157] Air attacks sank 39,126 long tons (39,754t) of shipping, with another 111,601 long tons (113,392t) damaged. [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. [170] In November and December 1940, the Luftwaffe flew 9,000 sorties against British targets and RAF night fighters claimed only six shot down. [149], By now, the imminent threat of invasion had all but passed as the Luftwaffe had failed to gain the prerequisite air superiority. Poor intelligence about British industry and economic efficiency led to OKL concentrating on tactics rather than strategy. The attacks were authorized by Germany's chancellor, Adolf Hitler, after the British carried out a nighttime air raid on Berlin. (PROSE: A History of Humankind) In 1903, after receiving a wealth of information from the future, Grigori Rasputin foresaw the Blitz. The Royal Chapel, inner quadrangle and Palace gates were hit, and several workmen were injured. One third of London was destroyed. Bungay, Stephen (2000). Authorities expected that the raids would be brief and in daylight, rather than attacks by night, which forced Londoners to sleep in shelters. London's Royal Docks History - Official Timeline The Luftwaffe gradually decreased daylight operations in favour of night attacks to evade attacks by the RAF, and the Blitz became a night bombing campaign after October 1940. The government saw the leading role taken by the Communist Party in advocating the building of deep shelters as an attempt to damage civilian morale, especially after the MolotovRibbentrop Pact of August 1939. 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. Contributions rose to the 5,000 "Spitfire Funds" to build fighters and the number of work days lost to strikes in 1940 was the lowest in history. London Blitz Worksheets & Teaching Resources | Teachers Pay Teachers [80] The WVS organised the evacuation of children, established centres for those displaced by bombing and operated canteens, salvage and recycling schemes. 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. Regional commissioners were given plenipotentiary powers to restore communications and organise the distribution of supplies to keep the war economy moving. de Zeng, Henry L., Doug G. Stankey and Eddie J. Creek. [b] The British had anticipated the change in strategy and dispersed its production facilities, making them less vulnerable to a concentrated attack. The Blitz - Wikipedia This heavy bombing by German forces began in September 1940 and lasted for 57 days. [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. [128] London's defences were rapidly reorganised by General Pile, the Commander-in-Chief of Anti-Aircraft Command. The rate of civilian housing loss was averaging 40,000 people per week dehoused in September 1940. Industry, seats of government and communications could be destroyed, depriving an opponent of the means to make war. The aerial bombing was now principally aimed at the destruction of industrial targets, but also continued with the objective of breaking the morale of the civilian population. 604 Squadron RAF shot down a bomber flying an AI-equipped Beaufighter, the first air victory for the airborne radar. [93] The use of diversionary techniques such as fires had to be made carefully. 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. Dowding agreed air defence would require some offensive action and that fighters could not defend Britain alone. [43] The Luftwaffe's strategy became increasingly aimless over the winter of 19401941. His hope wasfor reasons of political prestige within Germany itselfthat the German population would be protected from the Allied bombings. Timeline of the United Kingdom home front during World War II [2], The military effectiveness of bombing varied. [188] In the wake of the Coventry Blitz, there was widespread agitation from the Communist Party over the need for bomb-proof shelters. A summary of Harris' strategic intentions was clear. [116] On 7 November, St Pancras, Kensal and Bricklayers Arms stations were hit and several lines of Southern Rail were cut on 10 November. Before the war, the Chamberlain government stated that night defence from air attack should not take up much of the national effort. Seeschlange would be carried out by Fliegerkorps X (10th Air Corps) which concentrated on mining operations against shipping. [176] Total losses could have been as high as 600 bombers, just 1.5 percent of the sorties flown. [1] It was the capital not just for the United Kingdom, but for the entire British Empire. 80 Wing RAF. Democracies, where public opinion was allowed, were thought particularly vulnerable. London: The Blitz, September 1940-June 1941 Records are incomplete, but between 7 October 1940 and 6 June 1941 almost 28,000 high explosive bombs and over 400 parachute mines were recorded landing on Greater London. The bombing also helped to support the U-boat blockade by sinking some 58,000 long tons (58,900t) of shipping and damaging 450,000 long tons (457,000t) more. [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. X-Gert receivers were mounted in He 111s, with a radio mast on the fuselage. Hull and Glasgow were attacked but 715 long tons (726t) of bombs were spread out all over Britain. [89][90], Knickebein was in general use but the X-Gert (X apparatus) was reserved for specially trained pathfinder crews. London History: A Look at The London Underground During - Londontopia Why TikTok is being banned on gov't phones in US and beyond In recent years a large number of wartime recordings relating to the Blitz have been made available on audiobooks such as The Blitz, The Home Front and British War Broadcasting. To paralyse the enemy armed forces by stopping production in armaments factories. [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. 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. [94], On 15 September the Luftwaffe made two large daylight attacks on London along the Thames Estuary, targeting the docks and rail communications in the city. [133] By mid-November, nine squadrons were available, but only one was equipped with Beaufighters (No. The programme evacuated 2,664 boys and girls (ages 5 - 15) until its ending in October after the sinking of the SS City of Benares with the loss of 81 children out of 100 on board. [146] Eventually, he convinced Hitler of the need to attack British port facilities. Still, many British citizens, who had been members of the Labour Party, itself inert over the issue, turned to the Communist Party. Important events of 1940, including the beginning of the London Blitz (pictured above) and the Battle of Britain. [171] In the bad weather of February 1941, Fighter Command flew 568 sorties to counter the Luftwaffe which flew 1,644 sorties. In March 1941, two raids on Plymouth and London dehoused 148,000 people. 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. [145] The shift from precision bombing to area attack is indicated in the tactical methods and weapons dropped. Three cross-beams intersected the beam along which the He 111 was flying. The meacon system involved separate locations for a receiver with a directional aerial and a transmitter. 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. The port cities of Bristol, Cardiff, Portsmouth, Plymouth, Southampton, Swansea, Belfast, and Glasgow were also bombed, as were the industrial centres of Birmingham, Coventry, Manchester, and Sheffield. Moreover, bombers had four to five crewmen on board, representing a greater loss of manpower. The History Place - World War II in Europe Timeline: The Blitz [50] Panic during the Munich crisis, such as the migration by 150,000 people to Wales, contributed to fear of social chaos.[54]. To reduce losses further, strategy changed to prefer night raids, giving the bombers greater protection under cover of darkness. [109], By mid-November 1940, when the Germans adopted a changed plan, more than 11,600 long tons (11,800t) of high explosive and nearly 1,000,000 incendiaries had fallen on London.

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