Germany wanted to destroy some vital things that would stop Britain fighting such as roads, railways, factories, military installations, airfields and also fuel depots. To destroy civilian self-esteem in the hope that the population would become so upset that they would demand the government admit defeat immediately. To divulge to Britain just how strong Germany was, especially the Luftwaffe and so it was no good continuing to fight. All of Britain would eventually be demolished.
The Germans bombed the major cities of Britain for many reasons because firstly Hitler gave up the idea of invading Britain in September1940, which was called Operation Sealion. Hitler’s generals were against it and that shipping was needed to carry the army across the channel. Hitler believed that the British Government would surrender if he bombed Britain. In the 1930s there was a belief that the bombing would be devastating. He thought that he could use similar tactics with Britain as with the destruction of the Spanish Civil War in 1937.
The purpose of the Blitz was to break the morale of the British people. Hitler believed that if the homes were destroyed and the loved ones killed this would force the Government to make peace with him. The Blitz was only German bombers attacking the military targets. Germans made it seem that they were only attacking the factories that made weapons and installations but this was just propaganda. But most bombing was at night and was targeted at civilians and military bases.
The whole point of the Blitz was to destroy the industry. London docks were victims of this and so were the people. This was in the East End where there were many severe bombings. The German air force the Luftwaffe, attempted to target the main sources. These were railway lines, power stations, junctions and gasholders. The worst areas for people were where the working class people were situated near the big cities. London was their original plan, but soon realized that there where important factories and military bases situated in Birmingham, Cardiff, Coventry and other major places.
From the Second World War book, 20th century history it is noted that during the war there were many problems for the people. They had to take shelter under severe conditions. The house windows were taped to prevent injury from shattered glass and streetlights were switched off. The whole of London was pitch black because of blackouts. The majority of the population was living in underground stations instead of their own homes. The deepest under ground station was the most popular place because you couldn’t hear the noise of the bombs hitting London. The people also had shelters to use. The Morrison shelter was the most comfortable and luxurious one to have. The Anderson shelter was the most popular one of all. The affect of the bombing was severe on the people; the blast from one of these would crush the internal organs of the body.
The newspapers revealed the positive side of the bombing to the people. Propaganda showed people sharing their troubles and supporting each other. There were some astonishing stories like cats rescued and people sharing homes with total strangers. Many people were desperate and frightened of the bombs. Many people were made homeless with no electricity, gas and no basic food supplies. The Government knew very well that the bombing campaign was to break the morale of the people, and to get peace from the Government.
The failure of the Luftwaffe made the Germans bomb London and other major cities. It is mentioned on the website bbc.co.uk/education/revision that London was affected the most. In 1940 13,000 people were killed in Britain and only 10,000 people were killed in the rest of Britain. Coventry was hit hard in November1940, which killed about 500 people and ruined the centre of the city. In 1941 Belfast was bombed and was known as the Belfast Blitz, which killed nearly 1,000 people.
Bombing came in several forms. Incendiaries were the mot common bombs. These were tiny bomb, when they hit the ground it would burst into flames. The Germans would use highly explosive bombs, which would weigh at 500 or 1,000 pounds. Land mines were the most dangerous ones to use. These would be drifted down on parachutes and then explode later. The Germans had dropped at least 200 tonnes of bombs on average every day. This time 538 tonnes bombs were dropped on 15 October, this was the largest amount of bombs dropped at any time during the war.
Conclusion
The Blitz was targeted at the major cities of Britain to destroy vital infrastructure that would hurt not only the people but also the military. Although Hitler wanted to invade Britain this proved to be a difficult task and thus he decided with his generals to bomb key cities instead believing that this would result in a victory.
The number of civilians killed outweighed the number of military personnel. London seemed to be affected the most during the Blitz and had a devastating affect on the people who relied on shelters including the underground.
The main reason for the survival of the Blitz was due to the preparations that were made by the British Government, and the propaganda used by the media to increase the morale of the people.