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WEEK 3
THE SECOND WORLD WAR, 1939-45
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In History lessons, you will find out about the reasons that the Second World War broke out just 21 years after the FWW had ended. For now, you will get a glimpse into the impact that the SWW had on Britain by finding out about a period that became known as the Blitz. The Germans had huge successes at the start of the war. In Augst 1940, Hitler turned his attention to Britain. He sent a directive on 1st August, 1940: ‘In order to establish the conditions necessary for the final conquest of England, I intend to continue the air and naval war against the English more intensively.’ This marked the start of the Battle of Britain and the Blitz, a campaign of bombing British cities.
The Blitz
On 7th September 1940, German bombers appeared over the skies of London. For the next 8 months, there were intense and regular bombing raids on major British cities. At the beginning of the Blitz, Londoners faced bombings on 56 of 57 days. The Nazis’ aim was to demoralise the population and force the British government to make peace with Germany. By the time the Blitz ended in May 1941, 40,000 civilians had died and more than 1,000,000 homes had been destroyed. Though some bombing continued after May 1941, the intense bombing of the Blitz ended
The Spirit of the Blitz
Despite heavy bombing by the German Luftwaffe, intended to break the British public’s morale and allow Nazi soldiers to invade, British life continued, though not quite as normal. The RAF prevented the Luftwaffe from gaining control over the skies meaning the Nazis were unable to launch an invasion of Britain. Throughout this period, British people were encouraged to continue with their lives and this attitude to perseverance is often referred to as the ‘Spirit of the Blitz’. The British government encouraged this attitude by censoring photographs and stories of destruction and instead publishing images where people are overcoming the conditions they are in. This photograph shows a woman and her children being escorted by policemen past a road that’s been closed due to an unexploded bomb, this is a typical example of the Blitz spirit as the woman and her children don’t seem affected.
