Case Study: Belfast During the Blitz
Belfast in Wartime; an introduction
Belfast had an important role to play in the war as a center of manufacturing in the war effort: ships, aircraft, shells and uniforms were all produced in Belfast to name a few of its outputs. It's location, at the fringes of the United Kingdom, lulled many of its inhabitants into a false sense of security that they would never be bombed. ?This was one of the reasons Belfast was hideously unprepared for a German Blitz attack by air; it possessed just 24 anti-aircraft guns, NO spotlights for night attacks and just a few barrage balloons. It's people and services were not as fine-tuned for war as other British cities such as London and Glasgow.
With the fall of France and the Nazi conquest of much of continental Europe, Northern Ireland was within bomber range. In 1940, German reconnaissance planes flew high over the city and pinpointed areas to attack. Three attacks were launched on the relatively soft target of Belfast: The first bombing of Belfast in 1941 was small in scale and although it dropped bombs on the industrial harbour area the death toll of 13 was easily downplayed by local media. The next attack, despite their reconnaissance, fell mainly on residential areas in east and north Belfast, which resulted in possibly the highest death toll from a bombing in any British city outside of London. Some 1000 people were killed. The third attack fell mainly on industrial targets. Two-thirds of Harland and Wolff was destroyed and it would be six months until it could resume production.
The Bombers never returned to Belfast after Hitler turned his attentions East, to Communist Russia, but the physical and psychological scars remained long after the war ended. To learn more about the impact of the War on Belfast, and Belfast and other areas’ contribution to the war effort check out the resources below.
With the fall of France and the Nazi conquest of much of continental Europe, Northern Ireland was within bomber range. In 1940, German reconnaissance planes flew high over the city and pinpointed areas to attack. Three attacks were launched on the relatively soft target of Belfast: The first bombing of Belfast in 1941 was small in scale and although it dropped bombs on the industrial harbour area the death toll of 13 was easily downplayed by local media. The next attack, despite their reconnaissance, fell mainly on residential areas in east and north Belfast, which resulted in possibly the highest death toll from a bombing in any British city outside of London. Some 1000 people were killed. The third attack fell mainly on industrial targets. Two-thirds of Harland and Wolff was destroyed and it would be six months until it could resume production.
The Bombers never returned to Belfast after Hitler turned his attentions East, to Communist Russia, but the physical and psychological scars remained long after the war ended. To learn more about the impact of the War on Belfast, and Belfast and other areas’ contribution to the war effort check out the resources below.
Memories and recollections of the Blitz
The NI War Memorial/musuem serves as a memorial to those who sacrificed their lives in the First and Second World Wars, those who died in the blitz., the friendship established with the US Forces who trained in NI. It is well worth a look.
The noise of the anti-aircraft gun fire from the batteries at th end of Sunningdale Park was horrendous. The sky across the city was lit up in a red glow by the furious fires started by the incediary bombs - Cecil Kennedy |
The first night of the onslaught we all sat under the dining room table and played buses! My mother invented the game to amuse me and my baby brother and we had to pretend to buy tickets for some exciting places and then tell each other what we could see out of the 'bus' as we went along. That night we were up and down several times as the siren went off as each new wave of bombers came along. -BBC WWII People's War The BBC has collected 347 stories from Northern Ireland about people's experiences during the war. Search for accounts of the Blitz and more here>> http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/categories/c1103/
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Resources for the Blitz
The link below is for a 20min UTV that gives an account of the Belfats Blitz. The comments below the video are people's recollections of the Blitz.
UCC Multitext rundown on the blitz:
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Documentary about the Blitz from the BBC.
An RTÉ report on the anniversary of the South's help during the blitz. |
Second World War Northern Ireland Learning Resource: http://www.secondworldwarni.org/default.aspx?id=1