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In pairs you are going to evaluate four sources. You will consider:
a) What each source tells us about the Blitz in London – its impact on the city and its people.
b) Whether or not the British government would have encouraged this source to be circulated amongst the British public.
Look closely at each source and discuss in detail before you write anything.
Germany’s aerial bombardment of Great Britain using the Luftwaffe (German air force).
September 1940 – May 1941.
Major UK cities hit included – Liverpool, Bristol, Glasgow. Particular emphasis on London.
Aim was to bomb Britain into submission and force the country to surrender; to destroy industry, docklands, communication networks, government
buildings – remove British power!
Important aim: destroy the morale of the public – weaken their desire to fight the war.
Len Jones recalls emerging from an air raid shelter in east London after the first night of the Blitz (Sept 7 1940):
“Everything was blown to pieces, you could see it all by the red glow reflecting from the fires that were still raging. Then I looked out the back and saw that where my father's shed had been was just a pile of rubble. Then I saw two bodies, two heads sticking up. I recognised one in particular: it was a Chinese man, Mr Say, he had one eye closed and then I began to realise that he was dead... I just convulsed and couldn’t get my breath. I was shaking completely. Then I thought, well, I must be dead because they were, so I struck a match and tried to burn my finger, I kept doing this… to see if I was still alive. I could see, but I thought, I cannot be alive, this is the end of the world."
Mr Churchill in a Broadcast Speech, September 11th 1940:
“These cruel, wanton indiscriminate bombings of London are of course a part of Hitler’s invasion plan.
He hopes, by killing large numbers of civilians, and women and children, that he will terrorize and cow the people of this mighty Imperial city, and make them a burden and anxiety for the Government and thus distract our attention unduly from the ferocious onslaught he is preparing. Little does he know the spirit of the British nation, or the tough fibre of the Londoners, whose forebears played a leading part in the establishment of Parliamentary institutions and who have been bred to value freedom far above their lives.”
You are in charge of Britain’s Royal Air Force today. The country is at war with Germany. You’ve been asked by the Prime Minister to come up with a plan of attack in order to limit the country’s ability to recover and retaliate. What would you target?
Discuss with the person next to you. 3 minutes.
Thank you for your attention
Begun to understand what the Blitz was and the impact it had on London?
Evaluated a selection of sources about the Blitz in London?
Explained how some of these sources could be used for a political agenda?
To begin to understand what the Blitz was and its impact on London.
To evaluate a selection of sources about the Blitz in London.
To explain how some of these sources could be used for a political agenda.
Mr Adam Tomlinson
International School of Weimar, Germany
Candidate for post of Teacher of History
Introduction to the Blitz
"Digital PhotoPix." Digital PhotoPix. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2014. <http://digitalphotopix.com/unbelievable/amazing-jet-fighter-aircrafts/>.
"First George Cross Awarded." World War II Today RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2014.
Hastings, Max. "Horror on the Home Front: The Squalor of World War II from London to Leningrad Told First-hand." Mail Online. Associated Newspapers, 12 Sept. 2011. Web. 13 Mar. 2014.
"On This Day: Images from the Blitz." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2014. <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/world-war-two/6149287/On-this-day-Images-from-the-Blitz.html>.
"Second Great Fire of London: Christmas 1940, the Blitz of St Paul's Cathedral." Mirror. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2014. <http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/second-great-fire-of-london-christmas-270344>.
Stansky, Peter. The First Day of the Blitz. New Haven, CT: Yale UP, 2007. Print.