Birmingham Blitz
The Birmingham Blitz was the heavy bombing by the Nazi German Luftwaffe of the city of Birmingham in the United Kingdom, beginning on 9 August 1940 and ending on 23 April 1943. Overall, around 2,000 tons of bombs were dropped on Birmingham making it the third most heavily bombed city in the United Kingdom in World War II, behind only London and Liverpool [1] .
Damage
Situated in the Midlands, Birmingham is an important industrial and manufacturing location and is also heavily populated, being the UK's second largest city. 2,241 people were killed, and 3,010 seriously injured. A further 3,682 sustained lesser injuries. 12,391 houses, 302 factories and 239 other buildings were destroyed, with many more damaged. Official figures state that 5,129 high explosive bombs and 48 parachute mines landed on the city, although there are no figures for the number of incendiary bombs that were dropped. Of the high explosive bombs, around one fifth failed to detonate and one third of the parachute mines were left suspended after the parachute cords became caught in various obstacles such as trees.[2]
At the out break of war Birmingham, along with industrial centres, were considered to at risk from paratroop assault; consequently citizens were asked to be on guard for parachutes. However, because people of that era were not used to seeing many planes and had certainly never seen a parachute, mistakes were made. In particular, in Small Heath, the German bombers were after the B.S.A. site and dropped incendiaries; these incendiaries were attached to parachutes and came down by the score. This obviously caused mass panic, not for the bombs but because everyone thought they were paratroopers! (memories of Mrs. Mary Randles and Mrs. Minnie Lacy)
The first fatality of the bombing in Birmingham was a soldier in Erdington, home on leave from his unit. That night, eight bombs were dropped by a single German plane. It is believed the intended target was Fort Dunlop or Bromford Tubular Rolling Mills.
On 25th August 1940, the roof and interior of the old Market Hall in the Bull Ring was destroyed by an incendiary attack. Completed in 1835, it remained as an empty shell after the war and was used for small exhibitions and open markets. It was eventually bulldozed in the 1960s with the Bull Ring redevelopment.
On the night of 23rd of November a bomb hit a viaduct which brought water from the Elan Valley Reservoirs in Wales. Birmingham's water supply was cut off, so lakes and canals were drained nearly dry to fill the tenders of the fire engines. The Royal Engineers were on high alert to start blowing up Birmingham to create massive firebreaks if a firestorm started as that would have been the only way to have stopped the city burning out of control. Men worked night and day to repair the viaduct in just 5 days.
The night of 11th December 1940 was the longest raid of the Blitz. 200 German Bombers pounded Birmingham for 13 hours. During this raid all but the fine tower and classical west portico of St Thomas' Church on Bath Row was destroyed. The ruins of which now form part of St. Thomas' Peace Garden, a public park designated as a monument to peace and a memorial to all those killed in armed conflict.
The aerodrome factory, in Castle Bromwich, which produced 50% of all Spitfires which flew in the war, was also damaged by bombing and it was thought production would have to stop for repairs to made, both to the building and also equipment. However, word had spread and off duty worker started to drift in and started repairing machinery and making temporary repairs to the fabric of the building making it safe and water-proof. This allowed those actually at work to carry on, all be it at reduced speed. At the end of their shift they then took over the repair work of the factory; Those they replaced then "clocked" on for their shift. Some went for two days without sleep, purely for the war effort.
The nights of 9th and 10th April 1941 saw over 650 bombs and 1000s of incendiaries fall on the city centre destroying the Prince of Wales Theatre, and much of New Street and High Street.
Important industrial targets
| Name | Location | Production | |
| Aerodrome Factory | Castle Bromwich | 1,200+ Spitfires & Lancasters | |
| Austin "Shadow Factory" | Longbridge | 2,866 Fairey Battles, Hurricanes, Stirlings & Lancasters | |
| Austin Works | Longbridge | 500 Military Vehicles/week | |
| Rover | Solihull | Bristol Hercules Engines | |
| Fisher and Ludlow | Birmingham | Lancaster Wings, Shell Casings, Bombs | |
| Reynold | Birmingham | Spitfire Wing Space, Light Alloy Tubing | |
| GEC | Birmingham | Plastic Components | |
| SU Carburettors | Birmingham | Aero-carburettors | |
| Birmingham Small Arms Factory | Birmingham | Rifles | sten guns (100% of all made) |
Other targets included: Dunlop, Lucas, Metro-Cammell, Morris Commercial, British Timken, Hudson's Whistles and the Monitor Radio Company.
Aftermath
The massive bomb damage on civilian housing in Birmingham led[citation needed] to the development of many large housing estates across the city for some 20 years after the Second World War. These neighbourhoods included Castle Vale and Chelmsley Wood. Some of the bomb-damaged inner city areas such as Ladywood and Highgate were redeveloped with modern housing after the war.
References
- ^ http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/exhibitions/blitz/blitz.asp
- ^ Birmingham City Council Department of Planning and Architecture (1995). "Architecture & Austerity - Birmingham 1940-1950". Birmingham City Council. Retrieved 2008-08-23.
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- The Story of Erdington - From Sleepy Hamlet to Thriving Suburb, Douglas V. Jones, 1989, Westwood Press (ISBN 0-948025-05-0)