the blitz lesson.notebook · 2020-06-21 · the blitz lesson.notebook 3 june 21, 2020 in september...
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L.I. To describe a key event in British history: The Blitz
Monday 22nd June
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What does 'Blitz' mean?Blitz is a shortened form of the German word 'Blitzkrieg' (lightning war).
The heavy and frequent bombing attacks on London and other cities was known as the 'Blitz'. Night after night, from September 1940 until May 1941, German bombers attacked British cities, ports and industrial areas. London was bombed ever day and night, bar one, for 11 weeks. One third of London was destroyed. During the Blitz 32,000 civilians were killed and 87,000 were seriously injured.
What was the Blitz?
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In September 1940, Hitler started the first part of his planned invasion of Britain. He planned to destroy many of Britain’s cities, including factories, shops, houses, and even people. But Britain was an island, surrounded by sea, and this meant that Hitler could not invade with his armies in the same way that he had invaded Holland and Poland and Norway. So, for the first time ever, thousands of German bomber planes were used to drop hundreds of thousands of explosive bombs and incendiary bombs on the factories, shops, houses, and whole cities of Britain.He hoped this would make the British people so miserable they would give up the war and his German soldiers could invade and take control of Britain.
Why did The Blitz start?
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When did the Blitz start?At 4.56pm on the 7th September 1940, the air raid sirens wailed as the German Air force, the Luftwaffe, launched a massive raid on London. Over 350 bombers flew across the Channel from airfields in France and dropped 300 tonnes of bombs on the docks and streets of the East End of London. Nearly 2,000 people were killed or wounded in London's first night of the Blitz. During the first month, German Air Force dropped 5,300 tons of high explosives on London in just 24 nights.
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How were people warned that an air raid was about to take place?
''When you hear the warning take cover at once. Remember that most of the injuries in an air raid are caused not by direct hits by bombs but by flying fragments of debris or by bits of shells. Stay under cover until you hear the sirens sounding continuously for two minutes on the same note which is the signal 'Raiders Passed'.'' Air Raid Warnings 1939
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erMO3m0oLvs
Air Raid SirensPeople were warned of a likely air raid by loud sirens, positioned in different parts of towns and cities. During the blitz, they became an almost daily part of life. The sirens made a very loud and long signal or warning sound. For an alert, the siren sound pitch rose and fell alternately. The All Clear was a continuous sound from the siren. Not every alert brought a raid, and sometimes raids happened when no alert had sounded. When people heard the siren they would stop what they were doing and make for a shelter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHep5WA9qqU
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What other cities were bombed?Other cities and towns were also heavily bombed, including Swansea, Cardiff, Bristol, Southampton, Plymouth, Birmingham, Coventry and Liverpool.
One devastating raid on Coventry in November 1940 was the biggest airraid the world had ever seen. 4,330 homes were destroyed and 554 people killed. At one point during the night 200 separate fires burned in the city.
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What type of bombs were dropped?Different types of bombs were dropped from the enemy planes. There were:
• H.E. (High Explosive) bombs of various weights; • Incendiary Bombs, also termed Fire Bombs as they caused fires. and • Oil Bombs.
One in every ten bombs that fell was a 'dud'. which meant that it did not explode on impact. But some bombs had a delayed action fuse, which meant they could go off at any time. This meant that it was almost impossible to tell which bombs were which. People had to be evacuated until the bombshad been made safe.
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From 1944, two new types of weapons were used, which had a rocket type of propulsion to launch a war head. They were known as flying bombs.
The V1 ( Doodlebug) They had no pilot and made a droning noise. As soon as the droning noise stopped people had 15 secondsto escape from the powerful blast that followed. Many V1's fell short into the sea, others fell in the countryside. Almost 9,250 V1's were fired against London, but less than 2,500 reached their target. About 2,000 were destroyed by antiaircraft gunfire; 2,000 by fighter planes, and almost 300 by barrage balloons. The first doodlebug exploded in Swanscombe in Kent.
The V2 The V2's arrived without any warning sound. They also flew very fast and high up in the air; much too high to be shot down by the antiaircraft guns of fighter aircraft.
Introduction of new bombs
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How did people protect themselves from the bombs during an air raid?Air Raid Shelters were built. To help prevent the Germans from seeing where the towns were, a blackout was rigorously enforced after darkness. This meant that all sources of light had to be blacked out.
How did the government try to protect cities from being bombed?Barrage balloons were put up to force the German planes to fly higher – so their bombing would be less accurate. The Barrage balloons were tethered by steel cables strong enough to destroy any aircraft which flew into them. To prevent low fights and pinpoint bombing by the Luftwaffe, the Air Raid Precautions (ARP) put up huge barrage balloons. Each balloon was moored to a wagon by a cable. These cables were strong enough to destroy any aircraft colliding with them. On the wagon was a winch that enabled the RAF Balloon Command to control the height of the barrage balloon. The balloons achieved the main objective of discouraging dive bombing and lowlevel attacks.
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What was life like during the Blitz?Life was very hard during the Blitz and frightening too. London, in particular was very bad as it was bombed nearly every night. People in London spent most nights sleeping in Air Raid Shelters. No one within any distance of a likely target such as a big city could sleep entirely easy in their beds. Sometimes German bombers made mistakes and dropped their bombs in entirely the wrong areas. At other times, returning from a raid, they would dump the remainder of their explosives at random in order to fly home in greater safety.
Many bombs fell on the areas around the cities and in the Kent countryside, known as 'bomb alley' because it lay on the flight path to London. It was difficult to move around at night time due to the Blackout and the problems it causes. Families were separated with children being in evacuated. Food and clothing were rationed and hard to get hold of because of shops being bombed
https://www.bbc.com/teach/classclipsvideo/historyks2livingthroughtheairraids/zjnyrj6
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How did people feel about The Blitz?
"It has started! If they keep this up for another week, the war will be over. The East End won’t beable to stand much more of this sort of thing. What’s more, the Fire Brigade won’t be able to stand much more of it either. This is the first leave I’ve had since Thursday…" London Air Raid Warden, speaking in January 1941.
"I just went down to the Post an’ when I came back my street was as flat as this ‘ere wharfside – there was just my ‘ouse like – well, part of my ‘ouse. My missus was just making me a cup of tea for when I came ‘ome. She were in the passage between the kitchen and the wash‘ouse, where it blowed ‘er. She were burnt right up to ‘er waist. ‘Er legs were just two cinders… and ‘er face… The only thing I could recognize ‘er by was one of ‘er boots… I’d ‘ave lost fifteen ‘omes if I could ‘ave kept my missus."Hull Air Raid Warden.
"(When the school was hit) it was my painful duty to help by picking up any article I saw unearthed as the men dug. I held aloft a small pink purse. No words were needed. The mother of the child to whom it belonged held out her hand, her face so anguished that it was frightful to behold. She took it and was led wordlessly away."Memories of a London schoolteacher, recorded in 1971
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'You are at home sound asleep in your bedroom with your siblings. Suddenly you are woken by a loud explosion. You sit up, heart beating. It is pitch black. You call out for your siblings and mum. You can hear them calling your name but you can't see them. You make you way out of bed to try and find your family and make your way to safety.'
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Task 1 - freeze frame
Everyone lie on the floor and close your eyes. When you hearthe loud noise, you are going to sit up and freeze......!!
You need to represent a child's experience during 'The Blitz'
- facial expressions- body language
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Task 2: Stick in your photo/leave a space and write a short paragraph explaining how you felt when you heard the explosion. Think about what was going through your mind. How did your body respond? What did you do next?
Task 1: Copy the sub-heading and write a few sentences describing what the Blitz was. Use these key words to help youWhat was the Blitz?
June 2020L.I. to consider an emotional response to a dramatic event
heavy September 1940 until May 1941German bombers attacked
British cities, ports and industrial areas.
11 weeks
destroyed
32,000 civilians killed
87,000 were seriously injured.
bombing attacksfrequent
'Blitzkrieg' (lightning war).
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