A University of Sussex DPhil thesis Available online via Sussex Research Online: http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/ This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Please visit Sussex Research Online for more information and further details BRITISH ATTITUDES TO THE AERIAL BOMBARDMENT OF GERMAN CITIES DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR PAUL WEIR PHD UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX SEPTEMBER 2014 2 Statement I hereby declare that this thesis has not been and will not be, submitted in whole or in part to another University for the award of any other degree. However, the thesis incorporates to the extent indicated below, material already submitted as part of required coursework and/or for the degree of Master of Arts in Modern European History which was awarded by the University of Sussex. Signature: Chapter Four, entitled: “‘A city of the dead’: Dresden and the end of the war”, is a reworked version of my Master of Arts dissertation, completed in 2008. The version included here incorporates original research carried out during my current period of registration at the University of Sussex. The argument has been substantially developed to situate this part of my research within the broader scope of my thesis. 3 UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX PAUL WEIR PHD BRITISH ATTITUDES TO THE AERIAL BOMBARDMENT OF GERMAN CITIES DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR SUMMARY This thesis examines the attitudes of British people to the aerial bombardment of German cities during the Second World War, with particular attention given to those who challenged the nature of the campaign. I use contemporary sources with a strong emphasis on qualitative data to develop a picture of attitudes at the time and situate the roots of the significant post- war controversy within these contemporary attitudes. The thesis offers a more sustained and textured account of anti-bombing sentiment than other historiographical works. An introductory chapter charts the development of aerial bombing in the early years of the twentieth century. The extent to which Britain engaged with aerial bombardment, and how it was understood by people in Britain, are addressed here. Three case studies – each focusing on a different raid on a German city – are then used to address how attitudes to the bomber offensive were shaped at different stages of the war. The first is the December 1940 attack on Mannheim. This took place during the Blitz on British cities, a factor which has implications for the nature of responses at this time. The question of reprisals is important here. I show how the desire for reprisals was far from universal, yet it was overstated in the press and by Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The second case study addresses the series of heavy attacks on Hamburg in July and August 1943. This followed the decision, taken the previous year, to officially adopt a policy of area bombing. This chapter shows how the Archbishop of Canterbury’s support for the campaign stifled voices of protest at this time. The final case study considers the raids on Dresden in February 1945. Churchill’s response is addressed in this chapter and contrasted with the immediate concerns raised in the press and in private diaries. 4 Contents Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................... 6 Abbreviations ................................................................................................................................ 7 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 8 Chapter 1 – Aerial bombing before the Second World War ....................................................... 31 Innovation ............................................................................................................................... 34 Futurism .................................................................................................................................. 35 Early experiments ................................................................................................................... 37 First World War ....................................................................................................................... 41 Theorists .................................................................................................................................. 45 Imperial policing ...................................................................................................................... 49 Unrest in South Africa ............................................................................................................. 55 China and Abyssinia ................................................................................................................ 56 Spain ........................................................................................................................................ 59 Uncertain future ..................................................................................................................... 73 Chapter 2 – Coventry, Mannheim, and the Question of Reprisals ............................................. 76 Guernica to Mannheim ........................................................................................................... 77 Historiography ........................................................................................................................ 81 Operations .............................................................................................................................. 85 Press responses ....................................................................................................................... 95 Public responses ................................................................................................................... 110 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 115 Chapter 3 – A turning point? 1943 and the bombing of Hamburg ........................................... 117 Mannheim to Hamburg ........................................................................................................ 119 Historiography ...................................................................................................................... 123 Operations ............................................................................................................................ 126 Bombing Restriction Committee ........................................................................................... 134 5 The Church ............................................................................................................................ 139 Press responses ..................................................................................................................... 147 Public responses ................................................................................................................... 160 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 173 Chapter 4 – ‘A city of the dead’: Dresden and the end of the war ........................................... 175 From Hamburg to Dresden ................................................................................................... 176 Historiography ...................................................................................................................... 179 Operations ............................................................................................................................ 184 Press responses ..................................................................................................................... 205 Public responses ................................................................................................................... 214 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 222 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................. 225 Bibliography .............................................................................................................................. 236 6 Acknowledgements This thesis would not have been possible without the support and kindness afforded to me by a number of people and organisations. My supervisors – first Paul Betts and Saul Dubow, then Ian Gazeley and Hester Barron – have offered generous advice and encouragement. My academic growth has been shaped by their guidance. I would like to thank them all for their support, and for helping me to craft and develop my research. Ian deserves particular thanks for taking over part way through and patiently seeing me through to the end. Thanks are also due to the Arts and Humanities Research Council. My work has been made possible through their financial assistance. I met Andy