Because the picture is posed it does not give an accurate impression of the realism of the ‘British grit’. However, it shows us exactly how the government want people to act in the face of disaster and gives us an idea of what the reality may have been like.
It is hard to make an informed decision over the reliability of these sources due to the limitations to the information that these sources can give. In Source B we do not know what time of day the school was hit, so we cannot assess the extent of the damage and the number of lives that were lost. We can only assume that the bodies are those of pupils at the school, and therefore the school was hit during the day, however, this information is not given in the source. This leads to a question over the reliability of the source because we are given no detailed information; all we are told is that there are bodies in sacks in a school playground, and any further details are based on what could have happened and not what we know happened, which could lead to inaccuracies.
Source C does not tell us what the people were actually thinking or doing when their houses were bombed. I would presume that initially at least, they were not as cheerful as the picture suggests. In assessing the effect that the Blitz had on people it is hard to comment because this photograph was posed for government purposes, which means that it tells us a lot about the image of the ‘Blitz spirit’, the ‘British grit’ and what the government wanted, but does not go very far in telling us how the people really reacted.
It is hard to use these sources to tell us of the experiences of “the people of Britain” during the Blitz. This is because of the wide range of different experiences people had, and even the different reactions different people had to the same situation. It would have been nice if the sources had mentioned the realism of the ‘Blitz Spirit’ because although the sources tell us a lot about the physical effects the Blitz had on the people and the government, we learn very little about the civilians thoughts and feelings on the situation, and we therefore know very little about the emotional effect that the Blitz had on the civilians of Britain.
- Does Source D support the evidence of Sources B and C about the damage done during air raids?
Source D supports the evidence given in Source B but appears to give a different picture of the war to that shown in Source C. Source D is a photograph taken in November 1940 after the bombing of Coventry and shows people in a street trying to find their property amongst the devastation. This supports Source B, which shows us a photograph of the devastation caused to a girls school when a bomb hit it.
Source D shows a bombed street. You can tell that the picture is not posed because there are very few people looking at the camera. Also, everyone is just going about their business and is in mid-movement when the photo is taken. It is a spontaneous image. The general feeling in the picture is that of unhappiness. Everyone looks fed up and miserable, and they are all very isolated from one another, although two of the men are talking. The damage caused to the school in Source B caused several deaths as you can see from the bodies in the sacks. The people appear to be working together to try to identify and sack up the dead people, however, you do not get the impression of a jolly community. They too look miserable and fed up, and you get the impression that they just want the war to be over.
Although the photograph in Source D was taken on 15th November 1940, it was not published until February 1941. The reasons for this are unclear, however, it is likely that reasoning behind this decision was based on the political position of Britain. In September, October and November 1940 Britain were facing the possibility of invasion. The Luftwaffe was causing endless casualties and virtually destroyed many British cities. However, by February 1941 the RAF were having a similar effect on German cities and the Luftwaffe was not managing to devastate British cities to such a great extent or as regularly as they had been previously.
Source B is a photograph dated 21st January 1943. The large difference in times between the two pictures tells us that the bombing was effecting British people for a large proportion of the war, as these pictures show similar devastation despite the fact that they are three years apart. Even though the Blitzing of British cities ended in June 1941 there were still bombs being dropped for at least three years after that date. This helps us imagine the extent of the damage to British cities, as the each of the pictures just show the effects of one bomb in one area, and in just one raid on Coventry around 30,000 incendiary bombs were used to devastate the city. This tells us of the scale of the bombing and helps us to realise the vast extent of the damage.
The similarities in these pictures are immense. Both show isolated, miserable looking people trying to sort out the devastation caused by the bombing. These pictures are both spontaneous and show what people did on a normal day in the Blitz. They give a realistic impression of what it was like to face your town after a night of bombing.
Perhaps the most significant similarity between these two sources is the reference to children. In Source D we assume that the bodies in the sacking are those of pupils at the school. This tells us of the tragic effects the bombing had on the children of Britain. In Source B the man in the middle of the picture is holding up a child’s toy or ornament, which presumably belongs to a child of his. This tells the reader of the effects that the war is having on children and this pulls at heartstrings.
These pictures are primary information and are therefore likely to be reliable. However, it is important to realise that these pictures were probably some of the most terrifying of the whole war, as the censors banned both photographs for at least several months after the event. On balance, it seems that these pictures are unlikely to give an accurate account of the reality of the war and are probably taken from certain areas of the country that were hit very badly. This could explain why the censors did not allow these photographs to be published, as they did not fit in with the image of the ‘Blitz Spirit’ that the other pictures showed.
Source D partially supports the evidence given in Source C. Source D shows a bombed street. You can tell that the picture is not posed because there are very few people looking at the camera. Also, everyone is just going about their business and is in mid-movement when the photo is taken. It is a spontaneous image. The general feeling in the picture is that of unhappiness. Everyone looks fed up and miserable, and they are all very isolated from one another, although two of the men are talking. In complete contrast Source C shows a community, which have pulled together to try to salvage as many of their possessions as possible from their devastated houses. The general feeling is very positive; everyone is determined to withstand the bombing and they all look very cheerful. However, although the photograph is posed and therefore cannot be trusted to reliably show how the people were reacting to the bombing, the photo does tell us that all these people have lost their homes and most of their possessions in the bombing.
Both photographs show the devastation in residential areas of British cities. In Source D you can see the remains of some housing and people clearing up their possessions from the destruction. This is supported by Source C, which shows a community who have just finished salvaging as much of their property from the rubble that was once their houses.
The photographs in Sources B and D were both taken at the beginning of the Blitz, between September and November 1940. This tells us that the damage was not a one off and that the devastation caused by the bombing was happening in many different places.
The reliability of these sources could be questioned however. As I have already stated, Source D was not published until February 1941 even though the photograph was taken on 15th November 1940. This is likely to be because of Britain’s changing position from a political point of view. We cannot be sure about the accuracy of the photograph in Source B because it is almost certainly posed. This means that anything it shows is not necessarily reliable or accurate because the photograph was taken in order to publicise the ‘Blitz Spirit’, and therefore shows what the government would like people to do after the bombing, not what they actually did.
In conclusion I would say that with regards to the damage done during air raids Source D does support sources B and C because they all show devastation and how people are reacting to it. However, although Source D supports Source B with regards to the reaction of the civilians, Source C shows a totally different picture. There is much controversy about the existence of the ‘Blitz Spirit’ and Sources B and C show both sides of the argument. This tells us that regardless of the way people reacted to the bombing during the Blitz, the damage done to the cities of Britain was immense.
- Use Sources E, F and G and your own knowledge, to explain why the government was concerned about the morale (spirit and attitude) of the British people in the autumn of 1940?
Source E is a secret report to the government from the Ministry of Information, which was sent during September 1940. It is describing scenes of havoc as “people run madly for shelters”. This tells us that contrary to popular belief, people were so scared about the bombing that there was no order when the siren sounded and people dropped everything to ensure that they would be safe; indeed there were several cases of young children being crushed in the rush to get into a shelter. It could also be telling us that there were not enough shelters for the population, which from my own knowledge I know to be true, as night after night people were cramped on top of one another in order for everyone to fit into the shelters. There was also a thriving market for the best places in the shelters, which were often taken by the first who got there, whilst those who arrived later had to sleep on the stairs or even on the railway tracks. It was also common for people to shelter in churches because they could not get to a shelter, so they felt that this was the next safest place. Unfortunately churches got hit just as much as civilian areas and there were several occasions when bombs were dropped on churches and the hundreds of people inside died in the blast.
The government was aware of the fact that many mothers, particularly those living in the East End, wanted to be “removed from the district” with their children because they were so afraid of being hit by the bombs. However, it was very hard for the government to know what to do because if they let the mothers leave then other people would want to move to a safer place as well, but this would cause problems because people would not turn up for work. However, making these people stay may result in unnecessary hysteria in the district, which would also cause problems.
Source E tells us that the government was also aware of the fact that large groups of people were leaving the East End for safer places. This caused the government great concern because without workers, London would be unable to function. This would have caused many problems throughout the war, however, in September 1940, the beginning of the Blitz, the war was perhaps at its most dangerous stage. At the beginning of the Blitz the German raids came every night and the effects were devastating. This was another great cause for concern because the government did not know how much bombing the British civilians could endure. They didn’t know how much more ammunition the Germans had or for how long they would be bombing British cities. All they could do was order retaliation bombing of German cities, and try to defend Britain as best they could.
The fact that many people were leaving the East End told the government that the feeling in the area was that of terror. If this feeling escalated then everyone would leave and the East End’s docks and factories would be unable to function.
Source F came from a diary belonging to a man with connections to the government. It was written on the 17th September 1940. He was describing the “bitterness” felt in the East End. He supported this comment by saying that “It is said that even the King and Queen were booed … when they visited the destroyed areas”. It is hardly surprising that this bitterness existed because the East End was probably the worst hit area in the country, however, the RAF were not managing to have much effect on the bombing, which could have left the people feeling abandoned and let down by their country. This was because they did not know what tactics the German Luftwaffe would use. They were therefore fairly unsuccessful in stopping the bombing, especially during the earlier stages of the Blitz. At this stage there was not much support for the areas being hit and there was very little propaganda to encourage the Blitz Spirit.
The reliability of this source is questionable though, because it is an extract from one man’s diary and therefore does not reflect the entire country, or even the whole of one community. He also said that “It is said that” which implies that his comments are likely to be based on rumour and therefore cannot be trusted.
Source G is much more positive about the people who left the East End. However, the information is from an extract from a book, which was published in 1988. It is therefore likely that the information in this source can be trusted, however, the information is probably more generalised to the whole of the Blitz. This source says that although many people ‘trekked’ to Epping Forest during the bombing at night, they returned to the East End to work each day. I suspect that the government, especially at the beginning of the Blitz, did not really know this was happening and was perhaps worried unnecessarily, because Source G tells us that “attendance at work remained surprisingly good”.
There are also other reasons not mentioned in the sources, which could have made the government worried. The constant threat of invasion from Germany and the never-ending demand for armaments meant that it was vitally important that people continued to work throughout the devastation. Some cities were totally destroyed by the bombing, yet people still struggled through the wreckage in order to get to work. This is another example of the ‘British grit’ and also tells us of the excellent job the government did in boosting morale.
The sheer volume of deaths must have been a source of worry for the government. In Liverpool in September 1940, 221 people were killed and 357 were injured. If you add this on to the devastation in bigger cities such as London as well as the many other cities that got hit, then the number of deaths is massive. This would obviously cause a problem, as many people would be losing relatives, which may cause people to become depressed.
This displays the many reasons that caused the government to be worried about the morale of the British civilians during the Blitz. I think that they definitely had reason to worry, as the circumstances in which everyone was living were horrific. Despite this, it seems likely that people did remain calm, as attendance at work was still excellent, however, this may not have been the case if the government had not made such an effort to encourage and publicise the ‘Blitz Spirit’. It was necessary for people to continue to attend work as the soldiers were depending on the resources that the civilians were making in the factories. On balance, I think that many politicians underestimated the grit and determination of both the British and the German civilians, as the bombing was intended to dampen the spirits of the population, and the government thought that this may effect people’s attendance at work, yet people still turned up at work even when their homes and the rest of the city had been devastated.
- “The impression that the British faced the Blitz with courage and unity is a myth.”
Use the sources and your own knowledge to explain whether you agree with this statement.
The general belief is that the British faced the Blitz with courage and unity. This is supported by a great deal of information, however, it is conceivable that it was a myth produced by the government to make people react more positively to the devastating bombing. The sources that I have looked at give both sides of the argument.
Source E gives stories of mass hysteria as people raced into the shelters. I can support this source because from my own knowledge I know that children have been crushed in the rush to get to safety. Also the fact that there were not enough shelters for the population tells us that it is very likely that people rushed for the shelters in order to make sure that they got in. Even the sources that suggest the ‘Blitz Spirit’ did exist (such as Source A) admit that the nation was hit with “terror and tragedy”. Indeed the fact that so many people died make it quite clear that the Blitz caused complete devastation to the people. Source D shows people sorting their belongings after their houses were hit. The people in Source D look fed up and miserable, as do the people clearing away the dead bodies in Source B. I have read about people who pieced the dead bodies together after the night’s bombing. As you would expect, they were not very cheerful, as this is not an enjoyable task. It is unrealistic for the government to try to persuade people to be cheerful and determined to survive when every day they are being subjected to such tragic scenes. Source E tells us of the bitterness during September 1940 in the East End. Many people felt as if they had been abandoned and were very scared. Source G supports this because it tells us that people were so scared of the bombing that they ‘trekked’ out to Epping Forest each evening so as to be safe.
All of the sources were written during the Blitz. This means that they are primary sources, and should therefore be reliable. However, there is a possibility that not all of the sources accurately convey the reality of the emotions felt by the people during the Blitz. Source B is a photograph showing bodies (probably of schoolgirls) being put into sacks after a bomb fell on the school. The government banned this photograph because it was too horrific and did not show ‘Blitz Spirit’ or the ‘British grit’. This implies that it has came from an area of the country which was regularly heavily bombed, because if it showed a scene which was part of everyday life for most people, then it would not have been banned, because it would not show anything that people did not already know. This tells us that it is not an accurate picture of the Blitz as it shows scenes that were considered to be unusually tragic.
The reliability of Source E could also be questioned. It is an extract from a secret report from the Ministry of Information to the government describing the hysteria and chaos in the East End. The fact that it was a secret report tells us that the information that it contains was not common knowledge. This tells us that the government was not disclosing any information contrary to the image of the ‘British grit’ and ‘ Blitz Spirit’ because they did not want to dampen morale. It also implies that the problems in the East End were not large-scale and were therefore not an accurate impression of the national situation.
Source F is also questionable. It is an extract from a man who knew several member of the government’s diary. The fact that it is a diary means that the information cannot be fully trusted because it is one man’s personal opinions and experiences, and therefore does not represent the whole country. The fact that he had connections to the government means that he had access to information which most of the population did not know about. The fact that it says “It is said that” tells us that the information is based on rumour and not fact, and can therefore not be trusted to be accurate.
Source D is probably the most reliable of the sources. Although it was not published immediately, it is the only one of the sources that was available to the general public during the Blitz. It shows people sorting their belongings and is probably quite an accurate picture of how people would have felt whilst going through the wreckage that was once their house.
However, the information in some of the other sources suggests that the people of Britain faced the Blitz with courage and unity. Source A tells us how the civilians of Britain were heroes. They faced terror and tragedy with “courage and an unshakeable determination.” The photograph in Source C, which shows a community whose houses have just been devastated looking jolly, brave and determined to carry on in the face of all the disaster, supports Source A. From my own knowledge I know that at times there was a cheerful and jolly atmosphere. For example, during bomb warnings there was singing and laughter in the tube stations whilst the girls and women made tea.
Sources B, D and G tell us that everyone was keen to just continue with life as it was before. Source D shows a street, which has been devastated. People are sorting their belongings and are preparing to move on. Source B is a photograph of people identifying dead bodies and putting them in sacks. These people are not happy about the situation, but are carrying on with life. Source G discusses the fact that even though many people who lived in the East End were too scared to stay there overnight, they carried on with their lives by day and regularly appeared at work. I can support this source because from my own knowledge I know that when Coventry was devastated in November 1940 people still turned up for work even though almost every building had been demolished. This shows that the ‘Blitz Spirit’ did exist, as people continued their lives despite the devastation.
This is certainly how the government wanted the people to approach the situation. This was made clear by the amount of propaganda people were exposed to in the form of posters, newspapers and also on the radio. Source C is a posed picture published by the government. The government published pictures of ‘the perfect community’ so as people knew what they should be doing. Everyone was jolly, and determined to carry on through the devastation of the Blitz. It is perfectly conceivable for the government to have published untrue information to make people believe there was a ‘Blitz Spirit’. They did this by publishing a lot of information about the positive attitude people had towards the Blitz. They also used censorship to control what people knew. For example, the censors would not allow the photograph in Source B to be published because it showed too much devastation and was not in keeping with picture of the ‘Blitz Spirit’. Although originally there may not have been a ‘Blitz Spirit’ the fact that people believed that the ‘Blitz Spirit’ did exist made them even more determined to live up to the government’s expectations and show ‘British grit’. This would have enhanced the feelings of the ‘Blitz Spirit’, which in turn have made people more cheerful because the rest of the country was cheerful.
The reliability and accuracy of Source A is questionable. It was produced to celebrate the British victory in the war and was produced 50 years after the Blitz happened. This means that only the positive information would have been included, so it only gives one side of the story, thus making the ‘Blitz Spirit’ seem to be real because there is no information to the contrary.
We cannot be sure about the accuracy of Source C because it was produced during the Blitz to try to make people think that the ‘Blitz Spirit’ did exist. It shows a community who have jut rescued their belongings from the rubble that was once their homes. They look cheerful, jolly and determined. This was the picture that the government created of the ‘perfect community’ and was how the government wanted people to act, instead of how people were actually reacting.
Source G was written by a historian for a book published in 1988 about the Second World War. Although this is secondary data, it is likely to be quite accurate because the historian would have researched thoroughly into what happened at the time. It has information telling us that armaments, planes and tanks were produced in large numbers despite the Blitz, which I know to be true because they were sent to the USSR and used by the British Army. It also admits to the facts, such as “there was widespread fear during the Blitz” which is obviously true simply because of the devastation and death that it caused. I think that this source is reliable and gives accurate information about what really happened during the Blitz.
It is hard to assess the question because not all the sources are reliable. The propaganda and censorship meant that the government controlled what information the people knew. The fact that we have additional information to the civilians facing the Blitz means that we can make a much more informed decision about whether or not the ‘Blitz Spirit’ actually did exist. At the time, any photographs which showed complete devastation or people not showing the ‘British grit’ were not allowed to be published. This meant that the British public only knew about the cases where the ‘Blitz Spirit’ did exist. They were made to believe that the ‘Blitz Spirit’ did in fact exist (even if it did not) and this made people more cheerful and positive because they did not feel alone. This implies that although the ‘Blitz Spirit’ may not have existed at first, the fact that people believed it did exist made it easier for them to show the ‘British grit’.
There was a huge diversity of experiences for the civilians of Britain. Your age, gender, status, job and where you lived all affected what aspects of the Blitz you saw, and which aspects affected you most. Some smaller cities such as Coventry were almost bombed to the ground, whilst others remained virtually untouched. Those who lost friends or family during the Blitz would have different memories to those who did not lose a loved one. Your financial situation also had a great effect on how you viewed the Blitz. For the very poor it was a time of extreme poverty, whilst for the rich it meant living at a slightly lower standard. Everyone was affected differently, both mentally and physically, by the traumas of the Blitz, and this means that it is very difficult to assess whether or not the ‘Blitz Spirit’ did exist.
Not all the sources are hugely reliable. Those printed for a purpose, such as the extract form a book celebrating the British victory in Source A, and the photograph of people showing ‘British grit’ in Source C cannot be trusted because they do not give both sides of the story. They are biased because they only tell people what they want them to know, and they are trying to make the ‘Blitz Spirit’ seem as real as possible.
There is roughly the same amount of information from the sources to support both sides of the argument; Sources A, C and G do not support the statement which says “The impression that the British people faced the Blitz with courage and unity is a myth” as all these sources give information about the cheerfulness and determination of the people, the feeling of being a community and the fact that life went on despite the devastation. In complete contrast, however, Sources B, D, E and F all agree with the statement, as they give stories of mass hysteria, unhappiness and the feeling that everyone is fed up and miserable.
Bearing in mind the reliability of the sources, I think that at least to some extent, the ‘Blitz Spirit’ did exist. Although the evidence suggests that there was hysteria and that the people were very frightened, I think that it is likely that the sources that which do not show ‘Blitz Spirit’ came from areas that had been very badly hit, which does not represent the national situation. However, I think that the image of ‘Blitz Spirit’ which the government was giving is unrealistic, because it is highly unlikely that people would have been very cheerful when their friends or family had died and their houses had been destroyed, but the general idea of getting on with life is true. We know that people carried on with life because the factories continued operating despite the bombing and even when whole cities had been destroyed people still turned up at work. Without the ‘Blitz Spirit’ this would not have happened, and I feel that without the ‘Blitz Spirit’ and ‘British grit’ shown by civilians, Britain would have been unable to win the war.
History Coursework: Britain it the Age of Total War
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