[138], 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. In just these few hours, 430 people were killed and 1,600 were badly injured. On November 14, 1940, a German force of more than 500 bombers destroyed much of the old city centre and killed more than 550 people. An unknown number of bombs fell on these diversionary ("Starfish") targets. 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. Sometimes they were trying establish a blockade by destroying shipping and port facilities, sometimes they were directly attacking Fighter Command ground installations, sometimes they were targeting aircraft factories, and sometimes they were attempting to engage Fighter Command in the skies. The armament on the plane was two 7.92 mm MG 17 machine guns, one in each wing and operated by a pneumatic system. 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. All of this hardware was to be manned by a crew of ten. Around 250 tons (9,000 bombs) had been dropped, killing 1,413 people and injuring 3,500 more. All but seven of its 12,000 houses were damaged. In Sunderland on 25 April, Luftflotte 2 sent 60 bombers which dropped 80 tons (81.3t) of high explosive and 9,000 incendiaries. Authorities quickly implemented plans to protect Londoners from bombs and to house those left homeless by the attacks. Before the war, the Chamberlain government stated that night defence from air attack should not take up much of the national effort. For eight months, the Luftwaffe dropped bombs on London and other cities across Britain in an attempt to destroy . X- and Y-Gert beams were placed over false targets and switched only at the last minute. The Ju-388 was introduced late in the war and production problems, and the deteriorating war meant that few were built and used. By Paul Kerley. [126] In November 1940, 6,000 sorties and 23 major attacks (more than 100 tons [102t] of bombs dropped) were flown. The Heinkel He-111 was a sheep in wolfs clothing and was one of the most important German medium bombers of World War II. Over a quarter of London's population had left the city by November 1940. Junkers JU-390: The German Bomber That Almost Brought the Blitz to New York During WW2, the Germans were developing a long-range bomber to reach U.S. soil. It was evoked by both the right and left political factions in Britain in 1982, during the Falklands War when it was portrayed in a nostalgic narrative in which the Second World War represented patriotism actively and successfully acting as a defender of democracy. [39] 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. The GL carpet was supported by six GCI sets controlling radar-equipped night-fighters. Other reasons, including industry dispersal may have been a factor. [159], On 13 March, the upper Clyde port of Clydebank near Glasgow was bombed (Clydebank Blitz). Support for peace negotiations declined from 29% in February. [24] 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. Clearly the He 111 was used in greater numbers than the others during the conflict, and was better known, partly due to its distinctive wing shape.The Heinkel bomber fared well until the Battle of Britain, when its weak defensive armament was exposed. Partly because of this the full potential for the plane was never really appreciated. By the morning of September 8, 430 London residents were killed, and the Luftwaffe issued a press release in which it stated that over a thousand tons of bombs had been dropped on London within 24 hours. The development of this mighty aircraft made the concept of transatlantic bombing a distinct theoretical possibility. Uses in World War II German forces employed some tactics associated with blitzkrieg in the Spanish Civil War in 1936 and the invasion of Poland in 1939, including combined air-ground attacks. The Luftwaffe continued to support German ground forces, caused havoc for the Allies until Nazi Germanys ultimate surrender in May of 1945. When the second hand re-aligned with the first, the bombs were released. 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. Guided by the flames, a second group attacked with more incendiary bombs two hours later, lasting into the . [149] The OKL had always regarded the interdiction of sea communications of less importance than bombing land-based aircraft industries. During the whole period, although the citys operation was disrupted in ways that were sometimes serious, no essential service was more than temporarily impaired. he medium bombers new design was devised to fight the American B-29 bomber, which was expected to attack from 35,000 feet. In the Myth of the Blitz, Calder exposed some of the counter-evidences of anti-social and divisive behaviours. Heinkel He 162. Hitlers intention had been to break the morale of the British people so they would pressure their government to surrender. Instead, they launched a sustained bombing campaign against London and other major British cities between September 1940 and May 1941. The He-115 held two 960 PS (947 hp 720kW) BMW 132 K nine-cylinder air-cooled radial engines. Could you picture swarms of Junkers JU-390's assaulting and flattening American coastal cities like the blitz of London? July 11, 2022 Often overshadowed by more famous jets in World War II, the Ar 234 B-2known as the Blitz, or Lightninghad caught the Allies by surprise when the nine soared through the skies on December 24, 1944. The payload/range capacity of the Heinkel He 177 was almost like the four-engine heavy bombers used by the Allies in the European war front. The pilot flew along an approach beam, monitored by a ground controller. 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. The Luftwaffe in 1940 primarily relied on three twin-engined medium bombers: the Dornier Do 17, the Heinkel He 111 and the Junkers Ju 88. [185] At the time it was seen as a useful propaganda tool for domestic and foreign consumption. After the first week of September, although night bombing on a large scale continued, the large mass attacks by day, which had proved so costly to the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain, were replaced by smaller parties coming over in successive waves. [2], The military effectiveness of bombing varied. 12 Group RAF). [21], 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). The first major bombing raid against London's civilian population was accidental. There are a total of [ 91 ] WW2 German Bombers entries in the Military Factory. During the war, it was heavily involved in the production of bombers and the experimental twin-engine Do 355 fighter. The result was a pencil-like shape. Londoners enjoyed three weeks of uneasy peace until May 1011, the night of a full moon, when the Luftwaffe launched the most intense raid of the Blitz. The Blitz began at about 4:00 in the afternoon on September 7, 1940, when German planes appeared over London. The winter of 193940 was severe, but the summer was pleasant, and in their leisure hours Londoners thronged the parks or worked in their gardens. The Allies found the Do-17 more difficult to hit than other German Bombers. Although the weather was poor, heavy raids took place that afternoon on the London suburbs and the airfield at Farnborough. It was thought that the aircraft was capable of reaching 435 mph. Contributions poured in from every part of the world in such profusion that on October 28 its scope was extended to cover the whole of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. [30] On 7 September, the Germans shifted away from the destruction of the RAF's supporting structures. Because of Hitlers demands, the aircraft was fitted with a passenger compartment in front of the aircraft made for Hitler, protected by a 12mm armor plate and 50mm bulletproof glass. Dowding agreed air defence would require some offensive action and that fighters could not defend Britain alone. If a vigilant bomber crew could spot the fighter first, they had a decent chance of evading it. The most heavily bombed cities outside London were Liverpool and Birmingham. The last bomb on the chart is a 250kg oil bomb (German: Flammenbombe). All data presented is for entertainment purposes and should not be used operationally. The first German raids on British cities had already taken place by the end of August 1940, when Birmingham and Liverpool were attacked, but on 7 September the Blitz intensified when around 950. Heinkel He P.1068.01-78. [114] 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. 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. 1944 saw the total reach 5,100 bombers. Far from displaying the nation's unity in times of war, the scheme backfired, often aggravating class antagonism and bolstering prejudice about the urban poor. Morale was not mentioned until the ninth wartime directive on 21 September 1940. Some planes were used on the Eastern Front, and it was seen in an attack on Veliklyle Luki in 1944. 11 Group RAF and No. The final plane had a single-center wing section and two outer sections using four universal joints. [15], The Luftwaffe took a cautious view of strategic bombing but the OKL did not oppose the strategic bombardment of industries or cities. This amounted to nearly half of Britains total civilian deaths for the whole war. Would Germany have used them to bring the blitz to America? By September 1940, the Luftwaffe had lost the Battle of Britain and the German air fleets (Luftflotten) were ordered to attack London, to draw RAF Fighter Command into a battle of annihilation. [76] Before the war, civilians were issued with 50million respirators (gas masks) in case bombardment with gas began before evacuation. 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'.. 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. Navyi.e., diving on the target at a steep . [164], The last major attack on London was on 10/11 May 1941, on which the Luftwaffe flew 571 sorties and dropped 787 long tons (800t) of bombs. Only one year earlier, there had only been 6,600 full-time and 13,800 part-time firemen in the entire country. Each picture will tell its own story, and will be fully captioned with historical detail. 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. See answer (1) Best . [102] The air battle was later commemorated by Battle of Britain Day. Some 107,400 gross tons (109,100t) of shipping was damaged in the Thames Estuary and 1,600 civilians were casualties. 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. A trial blackout was held on 10 August 1939 and when Germany invaded Poland on 1 September, a blackout began at sunset. This test flight was rather promising for the future of the project. Edgar Jones, et al. Upsurges in population in south Wales and Gloucester intimated where these displaced people went. The German bombers would fly along either beam until they picked up the signal from the other beam. Wever outlined five points of air strategy: Wever argued that OKL should not be solely educated in tactical and operational matters but also in grand strategy, war economics, armament production and the mentality of potential opponents (also known as mirror imaging). [168], Improved aircraft designs were in the offing with the Bristol Beaufighter, then under development. After a brief lull, the Luftwaffe returned in force on February 17. Bombers were noisy, cold, and vibrated badly. [114] The bombing disrupted rail traffic through London without destroying any of the crossings. In many cases the daily life of the city was able to resume with delays of only hours. The German Luftwaffe tactics changed during the 1940 Battle of Britain and they used Heinkel He111 Medium Bombers to attack London during the blitz rather than concentrating on RAF airfields like Biggin Hill, and radar installations. Thankfully for the U.S., it was to ultimately become yet another failed proposal in Germany's "Amerika Bomber" series of projects. Lt Ewart Sconiers was Bombardier on B-17 #41-9089 'Johnny Reb', one of the 12 B-17s participating in the first . Saturday 7th September, 1940, was a warm day with an almost cloudless sky. Of the churches, besides St. Pauls cathedral, where at one time were five unexploded bombs in the immediate vicinity and the roof of which was pierced by another that exploded and shattered the high altar to fragments, those damaged were Westminster abbey, St. Margarets Westminster, Southwark cathedral; fifteen Wren churches (including St. department distributed more than two million Anderson shelters (named after Sir John Anderson, head of the A.R.P.) Summerfield, Penny and Peniston-Bird, Corina. On 17 January around 100 bombers dropped a high concentration of incendiaries, some 32,000 in all. 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. [133], From November 1940 to February 1941, the Luftwaffe shifted its strategy and attacked other industrial cities. Ports were easier to find and made better targets. It also took part in the bombing over Britain. [32] 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. On September 7, 1940, 300 German bombers raid London, in the first of 57 consecutive nights of bombing. [12] 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. Retired - 1968. [49] London hospitals prepared for 300,000 casualties in the first week of war. However, they often bombed residential areas, resulting in many civilian casualties. The Luftwaffe had dropped 16,331 long tons (16,593t) of bombs. At the beginning of the Blitz, British ack ack gunners struggled to inflict meaningful damage on German bombers, but later developments in radar guidance greatly improved the effectiveness of both antiaircraft artillery and searchlights. Little tonnage was dropped on Fighter Command airfields; Bomber Command airfields were hit instead. [62] 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. [119], British night air defences were in a poor state. The Air Raid Precautions (A.R.P.) [155] Hitler now had his sights set on attacking the USSR with Operation Barbarossa, and the Blitz came to an end. These include Peter Hennessy, Andrew Thorpe, and Philip Ziegler, who while admitting serious exceptions, argue that the population largely behaved well during the Blitz.[192]. The Luftwaffes successes and ultimate failure prove that superior technology and expansion of output under war-time conditions can be highly successful. This shape gave the pilot better ground visibility. T he appearance of German bombers in the skies over London during the afternoon of September 7, 1940 heralded a tactical shift in Hitler's attempt to subdue Great Britain. 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. The devastation was so great that the Germans coined a new verb, to coventrate, to describe it. The need for the long-range offensive bomber was far from a priority. Because basements, a logical destination in the event of an air raid, were a relative rarity in Britain, the A.R.P. The tactic was expanded into Feuerleitung (Blaze Control) with the creation of Brandbombenfelder (Incendiary Fields) to mark targets. [144], In 1941, the Luftwaffe shifted strategy again. The bombing continued over 1940. The 'Blitz' was a term used to describe the heavy bombing of London and other British cities during WW2 The attack on London by German bombers started on 7th September 1940 and it didn't end until May 1941. Sewer, rail, docklands, and electric installations were damaged. The British government grew anxious about the delays and disruption of supplies during the month. [35] 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. 8200 tons (8,330t) of bombs were dropped that month, about 10 percent in daylight, over 5400 tons (5,490t) on London during the night. Direction-finding checks also enabled the controller to keep the pilot on course. Too early and the chances of success receded; too late and the real conflagration at the target would exceed the diversionary fires. 219 Squadron RAF at RAF Kenley). 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. 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. People left shelters when told instead of refusing to leave, although many housewives reportedly enjoyed the break from housework. [189], The brief success of the Communists also fed into the hands of the British Union of Fascists (BUF). The Minister of Aircraft Production, Lord Beaverbrook and Churchill distanced themselves. They concluded bombers should strike a single target each night and use more incendiaries because they had a greater impact on production than high explosives.
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