Simpson shot down one of the Heinkels over Downpatrick. However they were not in a position to communicate with the Germans, and information recovered from Germany after the war showed that the planning of the blitz was based entirely on German aerial reconnaissance. Video, 00:01:23Watch: Matt Hancock message row in 83 seconds, One-minute World News. ISBN 9781909556324. As well as photographs, the Luftwaffe gathered information on landmarks, potential targets and defences or lack thereof. In every instance, all stepped forward. Video, 00:03:09Mapping the lives lost in the Belfast Blitz, Belfast City Hall in darkness as the Blitz is marked, Street fighting in Bakhmut but Russia not in control, Russian minister laughed at for Ukraine war claims. Video, 00:00:46Hong Kong skyscraper fire seen on city's skyline, Watch: Matt Hancock message row in 83 seconds. continuous trek to railway stations. The next took place on Easter Tuesday, 15 April 1941, when 200 Luftwaffe bombers attacked military and manufacturing targets in the city of Belfast. Revised estimates made decades later indicated that close to 600 men, women, and children had been killed in the bombing. Since most casualties were caused by falling masonry rather than by blast, they provided effective shelter for those who had them. This option had been forbidden by city officials, who feared that once people began sleeping in Underground stations, they would be reluctant to return to the surface and resume daily life. As the UK was preparing for the conflict, the factories and shipyards of Belfast were gearing up. They are sleeping in the same sheugh (ditch), below the same tree or in the same barn. The phrase Business as usual, written in chalk on boarded-up shop windows, exemplified the British determination to keep calm and carry on as best they could. The most significant loss was a 4.5-acre (1.8ha) factory floor for manufacturing the fuselages of Short Stirling bombers. [12], There was little preparation for the conflict with Germany. 6. 50,000 houses, more than half the houses in the city, were damaged. "[22], In his opinion, the greatest want was the lack of hospital facilities. At the start of World War Two, Belfast had considered itself safe from an aerial attack, as the city's leaders believed that Belfast was simply too far away for Luftwaffe bombers to reach - assuming that they would have to fly from Nazi Germany. The raid so infuriated Hitler that he ordered the Luftwaffe to shift its attacks from RAF sites to London and other cities. At the time of the first attack in April 1941, there were no operational searchlights, too few anti-aircraft batteries and scarcely enough public air raid shelters for a quarter of the population. 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 Royal Air Force announced that Squadron Leader J.W.C. He believed that this was being done already but it was inevitable that a certain number of civilian lives should be lost in the course of heavy bombing from the air". Given Belfast's geographic position, it was considered to be at the fringe of the operational range of German bombers and hence there was no provision for night-fighter aerial cover. "These people are often seen as a statistic but they were human beings, people who lived and grew up in - or moved to - Belfast and died in Belfast," Mr Freeburn, the museum's collections officer, says. At nightfall the Northern Counties Station was packed from platform gates to entrance gates and still refugees were coming along in a steady stream from the surrounding streets Open military lorries were finally put into service and even expectant mothers and mothers with young children were put into these in the rather heavy drizzle that lasted throughout the evening. From September 1940 until May 1941, Britain was subjected to sustained enemy bombing campaign, now known as the Blitz. Elsewhere in the skies over Britain, Nazi official Rudolph Hess chose that same evening to parachute into Scotland on a quixotic and wholly unauthorized peace mission. Belfast Blitz: Marking the lost lives 80 years on. Video, 00:00:51, Australia's 'biggest drug bust' nets $700m of cocaine, Thanks, but no big speech, in Ken Bruce's sign off. Omissions? In spite of blackouts, ubiquitous shelters and sandbags, the visible effects of mass evacuation, the presence of A.R.P. Initially it was thought that the Germans had mistaken this reservoir for the harbour and shipyards, where many ships, including HMS Ark Royal were being repaired. 55,000 British civilian casualties were sustained through German bombing before the end of 1940 This included 23,000 deaths. But the RAF had not responded. 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. It is perhaps true that many saved their lives running but I am afraid a much greater number lost them or became casualties."[20]. Belfast confetti," said one archive news report. When war broke out in 1939 the city did not expect to be attacked by German bombers: it was geographically remote and deemed a relatively . 9. Video, 00:01:15The Belfast blitz, Up Next. Targets identified included: the Short and Harland Ltd. Aircraft Factory; the Belfast power station and waterworks; Other maps uncovered following the Second World War also showed the parliament and city hall, Belfast gasworks, a rope factory and the Royal Belfast Academical Institution. The success of Mickeys Shelter was another factor that urged the government to improve existing deep shelters and to create new ones. The Air Raid Precautions (A.R.P.) The refugees looked dazed and horror stricken and many had neglected to bring more than a few belongings Any and every means of exit from the city was availed of and the final destination appeared to be a matter of indifference. Another attacked Bangor, killing five. About 1,000 people were killed during the Belfast Blitz of 1941, with Harland and Wolff among the buildings that were hit by the Luftwaffe. London seemed ablaze from the docks to Westminster, much damage was done, and casualties were high. At 10:40pm the air raid sirens sounded. They all say the same thing, that the government is no good. At 10:40 on the evening of Easter Tuesday 1941 air raid sirens sounded across Belfast, sending people across the city scrambling for safety - in one of the 200 public shelters in the city or the thousands of shelters or other "safe" spaces in private homes. [4], The Government of Northern Ireland lacked the will, energy and capacity to cope with a major crisis when it came. By British mainland blitz standards, casualties were light. [citation needed], There was a second massive air raid on Belfast on Sunday 45 May 1941, three weeks after that of Easter Tuesday. Ulster Historical Foundation. The Blitz began at about 4:00 in the afternoon on September 7, 1940, when German planes appeared over London. When the house was hit William, Harriette, Dorothy, 36-year-old Dot and 41-year-old Isa were all killed. Video, 00:00:36, Tears of relief after man found in Amazon jungle. [27] One widespread criticism was that the Germans located Belfast by heading for Dublin and following the railway lines north. The Blitz was devastating for the people of London and other cities. In late August the Germans dropped some bombs, apparently by accident, on civilian areas in London. Maps and documents uncovered at Gatow Airfield near Berlin in 1945 showed the level of detail involved. The Belfast Blitz consisted of four German air raids on strategic targets in the city of Belfast in Northern Ireland, in April and May 1941 during World War II, causing high casualties. No significant cut was made in necessary social services, and public and private premises, except when irreparably damaged, were repaired as speedily as possible. Some 27 percent of Londoners utilized private shelters, such as Anderson shelters, while the remaining 64 percent spent their evenings on duty with some branch of the civil defense or remained in their own homes. Although it arrested German spies that its police and military intelligence services caught, the state never broke off diplomatic relations with Axis nations: the German Legation in Dublin remained open throughout the war. Video, 00:03:09, Mapping the lives lost in the Belfast Blitz, Russian minister laughed at for Ukraine war claims. The most heavily bombed area was that which lay between York Street and the Antrim Road, north of the city centre. John Wood Dunlop invented the pneumatic tyre in Belfast in 1887. Belfast is located on the island of Ireland. Video, 00:01:38, At least 17 dead in Jakarta fuel storage depot fire, Australia's 'biggest drug bust' nets $700m of cocaine. Islington parish church, the rebuilt Our Lady of Victories (Kensington), the French church by Leicester square, St. Annes, Soho (famous for its music), All Souls, Langham place, and Christ Church in Westminster Bridge road (whose towerfortunately savedcommemorates President Lincolns abolition of slavery), were among a large number of others. Their Chain Home early warning radar, the most advanced system in the world, gave Fighter Command adequate notice of where and when to direct their forces, and the Luftwaffe never made a concerted effort to neutralize it. They remained for three days, until they were sent back by the Northern Ireland government. Two of the crews received refreshments in Banbridge; others were entertained in the Ancient Order of Hibernians hall in Newry. Streetlights, car headlights, and illuminated signs were kept off. It was not the last time Belfast would suffer. The town of Dromara saw its population increase from 500 to 2,500. The crypt under the sanctuary and the cellar under the working sacristy had been fitted out and opened to the public as an air-raid shelter. It would appear that Adolf Hitler, in view of de Valera's negative reaction, was concerned that de Valera and Irish American politicians might encourage the United States to enter the war. The period of the next moon from say the 7th to the 16th of April may well bring our turn.. Prayers were said and hymns sung by the mainly Protestant women and children during the bombing. These figures are based on newspaper reports of the time, personal recollections and other primary sources, such as:- One of every six Londoners was made homeless at some point during the Blitz, and at least 1.1 million houses and flats were damaged or destroyed. It is situated at on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. "Through resources such as the Public Records Office and ancestry and genealogy websites I managed to get about 100 photos - which is about one tenth of the victims," he says. The famous places damaged include the palace of Westminster and Westminster hall, the County hall, the Public Record office, the Law Courts, the Temple and the Inner Temple library; Somerset house, Burlington house, the tower of London, Greenwich observatory, Hogarths house; the Carlton, Reform, American, Savage, Arts and Orleans clubs; the Royal College of Surgeons, University college and its library, Stationers hall, the Y.M.C.A. The ill-fated ship was built in the city in 1912, and to this day, there is a museum dedicated to its building and the lives of all of those on board. On July 16, 1940, Hitler issued a directive ordering the preparation and, if necessary, execution of Operation Sea Lion, the amphibious invasion of Great Britain. The bombs continued to fall until 5am. Read about our approach to external linking. Tommy Henderson, an Independent Unionist MP in the House of Commons of Northern Ireland, summed up the feeling when he invited the Minister of Home Affairs to Hannahstown and the Falls Road, saying "The Catholics and the Protestants are going up there mixed and they are talking to one another. There were Heinkel He 111s, Junkers Ju 88s and Dornier Do 17s. James Craig, Lord Craigavon, had been Prime Minister of Northern Ireland since its inception in 1921 up until his death in 1940. 13 died, including a soldier killed when an anti-aircraft gun, at the Balmoral show-grounds, misfired. The sense of relative calm was abruptly shattered in the first week of September 1940, when the war came to London in earnest. Updates? The fall of France in June, 1940, enabled the Luftwaffe to establish airfields across the north of the country, leaving Ulster within reach of bombers. Emma Duffin, a nurse at the Queen's University Hospital, (who previously served during the Great War), who kept a diary; The Premier Online Military History Magazine, Re-printed with permission fromWartimeNI.com. Churches destroyed or wrecked included Macrory Memorial Presbyterian in Duncairn Gardens; Duncairn Methodist, Castleton Presbyterian on York Road; St Silas's on the Oldpark Road; St James's on the Antrim Road; Newington Presbyterian on Limestone Road; Crumlin Road Presbyterian; Holy Trinity on Clifton Street and Clifton Street Presbyterian; York Street Presbyterian and York Street Non-Subscribing Presbyterian; Newtownards Road Methodist and Rosemary Street Presbyterian (the last of which was not rebuilt). John Clarke MacDermott, the Minister of Public Security, after the first bombing, initiated the "Hiram Plan" to evacuate the city and to return Belfast to 'normality' as quickly as possible. St George's Church in High Street was damaged by fire. While Anderson shelters offered good protection from bomb fragments and debris, they were cold and damp and generally ill-suited for prolonged occupancy. But the Luftwaffe was ready. workers. That night almost 300 people, many from the Protestant Shankill area, took refuge in the Clonard Monastery in the Catholic Falls Road. There [is] ground for thinking that the enemy could not easily reach Belfast in force except during a period of moonlight. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Death had to a certain extent been made decent. The past doesnt change, its just over.. Learn how your comment data is processed. Belfast was not properly prepared for the attacks, with too few shelters and not enough anti-aircraft guns. The creeping TikTok bans. The British, on the other hand, were supremely well prepared for the kind of battle in which they now found themselves. While some of the poorer and more crowded suburban areas suffered severely, the mansions of Mayfair, the luxury flats of Kensington, and Buckingham Palace itselfwhich was bombed four separate timesfared little better. Dissatisfaction with public shelters also led to another notable development in the East EndMickeys Shelter. The Belfast blitz is remembered. A force of 180 bombers dropped 750 bombs - including 203 tonnes of high explosives - and 29,000 incendiaries over a five-hour period. The A.R.P. headquarters, Toynbee hall and St. Dunstans; the American, Spanish, Japanese and Peruvian embassies and the buildings of the Times newspaper, the Associated Press of America, and the National City bank of New York; the centre court at Wimbledon, Wembley stadium, the Ring (Blackfriars); Drury Lane, the Queens and the Saville theatres; Rotten row, Lambeth walk, the Burlington arcade and Madame Tussauds. Weighing 46,328 tonnes, Titanic was to be the largest manmade moveable object the world had ever seen. By the time the raid was over, at least 744 people had lost their lives, including some living in places such as Newtownards, Bangor and Londonderry. Streets heavily bombed in the city centre included High Street, Ann Street, Callender Street, Chichester Street, Castle Street, Tomb Street, Bridge Street (effectively obliterated), Rosemary Street, Waring Street, North Street, Victoria Street, Donegall Street, York Street, Gloucester Street, and East Bridge Street. The night raids on London continued into 1941, and January 1011 saw exceptionally heavy attacks; the Mansion House (residence of the lord mayor of London) and the Bank of England narrowly avoided destruction when a bomb fell directly between them, creating a gigantic crater. In each station volunteers were asked for, as it was beyond their normal duties. 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. Also, on Queens Island, stood the Short and Harland Ltd. Aircraft Factory. Belfast, Irish Bal Feirste, city, district, and capital of Northern Ireland, on the River Lagan, at its entrance to Belfast Lough (inlet of the sea). However Belfast was not mentioned again by the Nazis. You can see the difference in those letters - post-Blitz is very much a grieving tone. On August 25 the British retaliated by launching a bombing raid on Berlin. The couple, who ran a children's home, stayed with Anna's parents, William and Harriette Denby, and her sisters, Dot and Isa, at Evelyn Gardens, off the Cavehill Road, in the north of the city. On occasion, forces consisting of as many as 300 to 400 aircraft would cross the coast by day and split into small groups, and a few planes would succeed in penetrating Londons outer defenses. Author Lawrence H. Dawson detailed the damage to Londons historic buildings for the 1941 Britannica Book of the Year: The following curtailed list identifies some of the better known places in inner London that have been damaged by enemy action. VideoRussian minister laughed at for Ukraine war claims, The children left behind in Cuba's mass exodus, Xi Jinping's power grab - and why it matters, Snow, Fire and Lights: Photos of the Week. Video, 00:01:41, The German bombing of Coventry. British Spies and Irish Rebels by Paul McMahon, Report by the Garda Sochna 23 October 1941 IMA G2/1722, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Irish Minister for the Co-ordination of Defensive Measures, "Eamon de Valera and Hitler: An Analysis of International Reaction to the Visit to the German Minister, May 1945", "Extracts from an article, "The Belfast Blitz, 1941", "Historical Topics Series 2 The Belfast Blitz", "Your Place and Mine The Belfast Blitz", "Northern Ireland Parliamentary Elections Results: Biographies", "Belfast Blitz: The night death and destruction rained down on city", "Multitext - the Blitz - Belfast during the second World War", http://www.niwarmemorial.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/The_Belfast_Blitz.pdf, http://www.proni.gov.uk/historical_topics_series_-_02_-_the_belfast_blitz.pdf, Extracts from an article on The Belfast Blitz, 1941. Although casualties were heavy, at no time did they approach the estimates that had been made before the war, and only a fraction of the available hospital and ambulance capacity was ever utilized. Many people who were dug out of the rubble alive had taken shelter underneath their stairs and were fortunate that their homes had not received a direct hit or caught fire. There was unease with the complacent attitude of the government, which led to resignations: Craigavon died on 24 November 1940. Lecturer of History, Queens University, Belfast, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Belfast_Blitz&oldid=1136721396, During the war years, Belfast shipyards built or converted over 3,000 navy vessels, repaired more than 22,000 others and launched over half a million tons of merchant shipping over 140. He stated that "he would once more tell his government how he felt about the matter and he would ask them to confine the operations to military objectives as far as it was humanly possible. When a bombing raid was imminent, air-raid sirens were set off to sound a warning. 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The nights of November 3 and 28 were the only occasions during this period in which Londons peace was unbroken by siren or bomb. Read about our approach to external linking. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). THE BELFAST BLITZ was a series of four air raids over Northern Ireland during the spring of 1941. Video, 00:02:54, At least 17 dead in Jakarta fuel storage depot fire. Later, guided by the raging fires caused by the first attack, a second group of planes began another assault that lasted until 4:30 the following morning. Clydeside got its blitz during the period of the last moon. 2. Another defensive measure employed by the British was barrage balloonslarge oval-shaped unmanned balloons with stabilizing tail finsinstalled in and around major target areas. Anna and Billy were buried up their necks in sewage but were rescued and survived.
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