London Endures Blitz: 57 Nights of Nazi Bombing Begin
The Luftwaffe launched its first massive daylight bombing raid on London on September 7, 1940, sending 348 bombers and 617 fighters to attack the docks and industrial areas of the East End. This marked the beginning of the Blitz, 57 consecutive nights of bombing that killed over 30,000 Londoners and destroyed over a million homes. Hitler had switched from attacking RAF airfields to bombing cities, a strategic blunder that gave the battered Fighter Command time to recover. Londoners sheltered in Underground stations, and the government organized mass evacuation of children to the countryside. The Blitz failed to break British morale or industrial production, and by May 1941, Hitler redirected the Luftwaffe east for the invasion of the Soviet Union.
September 7, 1940
86 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on September 7
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