The blitz was part of Hitler’s ‘Operation Sea lion’ which ended in the invasion of Britain. Hitler’s promise to his German people was that no Germans would be hurt from bombings, this was massively untrue.
The main objective of the Blitz for Hitler was to demonstrate the strength of his new improved Luftwaffe by bombing and completely destroying British cities such as London,, Birmingham and Hull. By these means three other objectives that Hitler had set would be achieved, one being the destruction of industrial areas and factory’s that are vital to Britain’s war effort. Two being the destruction of the British morale bringing depression down on the Brits, leaving them vulnerable and susceptible to attack from the Germans. Finally the last being that it was meant to help in the effort to operation Sea Lion.
The most important targets for Hitler was Birmingham,
Sheffield, Liverpool, Manchester, Portsmouth, Plymouth and Southampton due to the munitions and ship ports in these areas. Among all these cities the same was suffered immense air raids and high casualty rates. The above picture is an example of a bomb site in London. The main aim of the blitz was to destroy the morale of the Britains and destroying their spirit which would untimely lead to their vulnerability and their downfall as they were invaded.
It was only in the first phase of the Blitz that London was the only city to be attacked; it was where Hitler ordered the fighters to concentrate on the port of London and the East end. The second phase was the when the Luftwaffe concentrated their efforts on the industrial and ports at the cities of Coventry, Southampton, Birmingham, Liverpool, Clyde bank, Bristol, Swindon, Plymouth, Cardiff, Manchester, Sheffield, Portsmouth and Avon mouth, during the second phase fourteen attacks had been mounted on ports and nine on industrial areas excluding London and finally eight on London its self. The third and final phase of the Blitz was planned attacks on the ports and Harbors at Plymouth, Clydebank, Portsmouth, Bristol, Avon mouth, Swansea, Liverpool, Belfast, Hull, Sunderland, and Newcastle which was to be followed up by attacks by the German naval force.
The picture on the right show the devastation suffered by London from the Germans. The picture shows a building collapsing from the destruction of a German bomb. The picture on the right shows a port being bombed and the smoke cloud that up roared after the explosion. The devastation and destruction caused by the blitz was irreversible, buildings were crushed, vehicles were thrown across the street, not forgetting the casualty list as many people died in the buildings and rubble.
After the blitz finished on the 13th November 1940, the real extent of the damage could be seen, the Germans had destroyed several historic buildings beyond repair, and the moral of the British people was severely diminished. Hitler’s plan of ‘Operation Sea Lion’ was set back and was on the verge of failure, as it was the British RAF that saved the hope of the British people, where the RAF gave them, that little bit of hope in their lives each day and each night.
