Several accounts point out that Belfast, standing at the end of the long inlet of Belfast Lough, would be easily located. Also, on Queens Island, stood the Short and Harland Ltd. Aircraft Factory. Three vessels nearing completion at Harland and Wolff's were hit as was its power station. Blitz, The - Kids | Britannica Kids | Homework Help 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. The Blitz of Belfast 1941 - History Learning Site Thank you. KS3 History (Environment and society) The Belfast Blitz learning resources for adults, children, parents and teachers. Read about our approach to external linking. Some 900 people died as a result of the bombing and 1,500 were injured. Under the leadership of amon de Valera it had declared its neutrality during the Second World War. Read about our approach to external linking. This view was probably influenced by the decision of the IRA Army Council to support Germany. Tragically 35 were crushed to death when the mill wall collapsed. The Blitz Around Britain - World War 2 | Imperial War Museums 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. "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. It lies where the Lagan River flows into a part of the Irish Sea. . Interesting facts about Belfast | Just Fun Facts When the bombing began, 76-year-old William and 72-year-old Harriette took refuge under the stairs along with Dorothy, Dot and Isa. That contrasts with the figure that is often given of more than 900 killed on Easter Tuesday alone. Added to this was the repair and refitting of 22,000 more vessels. Video, 00:01:38, At least 17 dead in Jakarta fuel storage depot fire, Australia's 'biggest drug bust' nets $700m of cocaine. On September 10, 1940, the school was flattened by a German bomb, and people huddled in the basement were killed or trapped in the rubble. Your donations help keep MHN afloat. Learn how your comment data is processed. It has been reported that on Easter Tuesday, Belfast suffered the highest loss of life of any city in the UK in a single raid. But the Luftwaffe was ready. 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. [18], Over 900 people died, 1,500 people were injured, 400 of them seriously. Wherever Churchill is hiding his war material we will go. 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. About 1,000 people were killed and bombs hit half of the houses in the city, leaving 100,000 people homeless. This hub of industry and trade represented a legitimate military target for the Germans, and some 25,000 bombs were dropped on the Port of London alone. They all say the same thing, that the government is no good. Those who sought refuge at the school were told that they would quickly be relocated to a safer area, but the evacuation was delayed. Harland and Wolff: The troubled history of Belfast's shipyard In the first days of the Blitz, a tragic incident in the East End stoked public anger over the governments shelter policy. 55,000 houses were damaged leaving 100,000 temporarily homeless. 4. The Blitz: When Was It, Why Did It Begin And How Did It End The creeping TikTok bans, Hong Kong skyscraper fire seen on city's skyline. . Video, 00:00:51Australia's 'biggest drug bust' nets $700m of cocaine, Thanks, but no big speech, in Ken Bruce's sign off. [13] However at the time Lord Craigavon, Prime Minister of Northern Ireland since its inception in 1921, said: "Ulster is ready when we get the word and always will be." Just eight days earlier, eight planes destroyed the aircraft fuselage factory and damaged the docks, with 15 people ultimately killed as a result of that raid. One, Tom Coleman, attended to receive recognition for his colleagues' solidarity at such a critical time. ", Mapping the lives lost in the Belfast Blitz. Video, 00:01:23, Watch: Matt Hancock message row in 83 seconds, Isabel Oakeshott: Why I leaked Hancock's messages. [citation needed], There was a second massive air raid on Belfast on Sunday 45 May 1941, three weeks after that of Easter Tuesday. For more than six months, German planes had flown reconnaissance flights over Belfast. That evening over 150 bombers left their bases in northern France and the Netherlands and headed for Belfast. His death (along with preceding ill-health) came at a bad time and arguably inadvertently caused a leadership vacuum. Has it taken bursting bombs to remind the people of this little country that they have common tradition, a common genius and a common home? At conservative gathering, Trump is still the favourite. Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry, The shocking legacy of the Dutch 'Hunger Winter'. The A.R.P. No searchlights were set up in the city at the time, and these only arrived on 10 April. People are leaving from all parts of town and not only from the bombed areas. "Through cross-referencing a number of different sources I have been able to get the most accurate number of people who died in the Blitz," he says. We were in exceptional good humour knowing that we were going for a new target, one of Englands last hiding places, said one pilot of the raid. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Belfast was the birthplace of the RMS Titanic, the world' most famous ship which, when it was constructed in the early 1900s, was longer than the height of the world's tallest building at 882 feet and six inches in length. 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. The "Hiram Plan" initiated by Dawson Bates, the Home Affairs Minister, had failed to materialise. In clear weather, targets were easily identifiable. The first deliberate raid took place on the night of 7 April. Guided by Davies, the people of the shelter created an ad hoc government and established a set of rules. The Belfast blitz is remembered. [citation needed]. These balloons, the largest of which were some 60 feet (18 metres) long, were essentially an airspace denial tool. Nevertheless, through sheer weight of numbers, the Germans were on the brink of victory in late August 1940. There [is] ground for thinking that the enemy could not easily reach Belfast in force except during a period of moonlight. The past doesnt change, its just over.. Mr Freeburn set out to find out more about those who died, their personal stories and the tales of those left behind. Authorities had noted Queens Island in the cityas a vulnerable point as early as 1929. Blitz Fibre UK Blitz Fibre UK Published Mar 1, 2023 + Follow Fact 1- Small but Mighty . Around 20,000 people were employed on the site with 35,000 further along in the shipyard. [17] A stray bomber attacked Derry, killing 15. By 1940, Short and Harland could shelter its entire workforce and Harland and Wolff had provision to shelter 16,000 workers. Singer-songwriter Van Morrison was born here. 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. The Blitz began at around 4 pm on September 7, 1940, when German bomber planes first appeared over London. Brian Barton of Queen's University, Belfast, has written most on this topic.[19]. As many as 5,000 people had packed into this network of underground tunnels, which was dangerously overcrowded, dirty, and dark. Ulster Historical Foundation. It remains a high death toll - a shocking number of people killed in just a few weeks. Liverpool, for example, protected by 100 guns. As well as photographs, the Luftwaffe gathered information on landmarks, potential targets and defences or lack thereof. On the ground, there were only 22 anti-aircraft guns positioned around the city, six light and 16 heavy, and on the first night only seven of these were manned and operational. London seemed ablaze from the docks to Westminster, much damage was done, and casualties were high. On the 17th I heard that hundreds who either could not get away or could not leave for other reasons simply went out into the fields and remained in the open all night with whatever they could take in the way of covering. On August 2, Luftwaffe commander Hermann Gring issued his Eagle Day directive, laying down a plan of attack in which a few massive blows from the air were to destroy British air power and so open the way for the invasion. In Bristol, the bombed-out ruins of St Peter's Church were left standing with added memorial plaques to the civilians who were killed. Many bodies and body parts could not be identified. Many of those who died as a result of enemy action lived in tightly packed, poorly constructed, terraced housing. Another large-scale attack followed on March 19, when hundreds of houses and shops, many churches, six hospitals, and other public buildings were destroyed or seriously damaged. Another defensive measure employed by the British was barrage balloonslarge oval-shaped unmanned balloons with stabilizing tail finsinstalled in and around major target areas. Humanity knows no borders, no politics, no differences of religious belief. [12], There was little preparation for the conflict with Germany. The first was on the night of 78 April 1941, a small attack which probably took place only to test Belfast's defences. 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. More than 1,000 people were killed, and the damage was more widespread than on any previous occasion. Death should be dignified, peaceful; Hitler had made even death grotesque. ISBN 9781909556324. The British, on the other hand, were supremely well prepared for the kind of battle in which they now found themselves. Accounts differ as to when flares were dropped to light up the city. In spite of blackouts, ubiquitous shelters and sandbags, the visible effects of mass evacuation, the presence of A.R.P. Some are a total loss; others are already under repair with little outward sign of the damage sustained: Besides Buckingham palace, the chapel of which was wrecked, and Guildhall (the six-centuries old centre of London civic ceremonies and of great architectural beauty), which was destroyed by fire, Kensington palace (the London home of the earl of Athlone, governor general of Canada, and the birthplace of Queen Mary and Queen Victoria), the banqueting hall of Eltham palace (dating from King Johns time and long a royal residence), Lambeth palace (the archbishop of Canterbury), and Holland house (famous for its 17th century domestic architecture, its political associations, and its art treasures), suffered, the latter severely. He was succeeded by J. M. Andrews, then 69 years old, who was no more capable of dealing with the situation than his predecessor. Where they are going, what they will find to eat when they get there, nobody knows. But Mr Freeburn's research casts doubt on this. The Belfast Blitz - Inside the Deadly 1941 Luftwaffe Raids on Northern Belfast is as worthy a target as Coventry, Birmingham, Bristol or Glasgow.. He was asked, in the N.I. The mass relocation, called Operation Pied Piper, was the largest internal migration in British history. The raids hurt Britains war production, but they also killed many civilians and left many others homeless. The city covers a total area of 132.5 square kilometers (51 square miles). A force of 180 bombers dropped 750 bombs - including 203 tonnes of high explosives - and 29,000 incendiaries over a five-hour period.
