The Luftwaffe and the German leaders wanted to bomb Britain into submission. The bombing of London was a massive turning point in the war. The sky glowed in the aftermath visible up to ten miles away. The terror of the Blitz had begun.īy 4.30am the all-clear finally sounded and there was a silence as the population began to emerge from their hiding places shocked to find their city devastated and knowing that this night wouldn’t be the last.Ĥ30 people had been killed, and nine fires were still burning. Dust filled people’s eyes and nose making sight hard and breathing difficult.
#Blitz bomber crew windows
Windows shattered, exploding as the skyline lit up as bright as the sunrise that was still hours away. Whole families were lost.īuildings collapsed. The Keeton Road School in Bermondsey was struck killing 38 people – half of whom were children. London had seemed safe until this night.ġ000 people were sheltering in Columbia Road, Bethnal Green, east London when a bomb went straight down the air shaft and exploded killing 40 people. To people in the shelters, hiding under the bridges, down the underground or in an Anderson shelter in their back garden the night must have seemed terrifying and never-ending. The Luftwaffe was able to bomb with a sense of freedom. Many of them had flown multiple operations on this day and were exhausted by the size of the attacks. During this time, Fighter Command shot down 60 German aircraft with the loss of 30 fighters and 15 pilots. But it was the lull before the storm, as the sirens sounded again two hours later, and the second wave of bombers approached led on by the fires from the first attackģ00 bombers dropped high explosives and incendiary devices onto the already devastated East End and docks. Just after 6pm, the all-clear was sounded and people emerged from the shelters to a scene of destruction with fires still raging. Sadly 20 firefighters, known as ‘Heroes with grimy faces’ were killed in the firestorm that erupted. 1000 pumps were brought in from as far away as Birmingham, Bristol and Brighton. Soon the docks were alight with 200 acres of timber burning out of control at Surrey Docks. Soon the sky turned orange and began to fill with thick black smoke blotting out the day. People watched as the bombs fell on the docks and the surrounding industries. The docks were London’s economic lifeblood and were surrounded by the heavily populated East End. There had been warnings before, but this time the bombers had appeared.ģ48 German bombers came in the first wave following the River Thames towards the ‘U-shaped’ bend that marked their target. Many watched in disbelief and listened as the first air raid siren sounded. It was to become the first night of the Blitz.Īfter months of watching dogfights over their city, Londoners came out onto the streets at the sound of the engines of the approaching aircraft. It was the middle of the Battle of Britain, but this time the Luftwaffe turned away from the airfields and headed towards to London. Their approach was plotted by Fighter Command at Bentley Priory and the fighters were scrambled to meet the enemy. Lewis: London – The Autobiographyħ September 1940 was a warm late summer’s afternoon that saw the end of the wartime life that people had become accustomed to.Īt 4pm, German bombers flying in a formation that was 20 miles wide, crossed the English Channel. The city’s inhabitants on the contrary took a perverse and particular pleasure from being the frontline of the war: ‘We can take it’ became the catchphrase of the blitz.” “It was Hitler’s belief that the war from the air would terrorise London into defeat.
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