The London Blitz
September 1940- May 1941
Saint Paul's Cathedral stands out amongst the rubble
The London Blitz was a time period in which London, England was bombed by Germany. The term "Blitz" comes from the word "Blitzkrieg," which means "lightning war". This time period lasted from 1940-1941. German bombers used tons (literally) of explosives to drop onto the city. In fact, they used a total of 18000 tons of explosives on London during the Blitz. When air-raiders were spotted, a siren would go off. These sirens would alert citizens that bombs were soon to be dropped. The people would then gather in the underground train stations for safety. Other people hid in homemade air raid shelters, created out of corrugated metal. During the 8 months that the Blitz spanned, schoolchildren had "air raid drills", just as some children in school have fire drills. In these drills, the students were given gask masks that they learned how to use and wear. These gas masks were essential because they kept the people alive during explosive attacks.
The first attack on London turned out to be and accident because the Germans were aiming for a target outside of the city. Instead, the air raiders ended up being in an area that they thought was their target, but was actually London. London was bombed every night for 57 nights. During this time, some children were even sent away because there was not much protection in London. The Blitz left much of London destroyed and its people devasted.
The first attack on London turned out to be and accident because the Germans were aiming for a target outside of the city. Instead, the air raiders ended up being in an area that they thought was their target, but was actually London. London was bombed every night for 57 nights. During this time, some children were even sent away because there was not much protection in London. The Blitz left much of London destroyed and its people devasted.