Similar Liverpool Blitz, Bombing of Bucharest in World, Bombing of Kassel in World Wa, Bombing of Singapore (1944–45), Bombing of Königsberg in World | ||
Manchester blitz film
The Manchester Blitz (also known as the Christmas Blitz) was the heavy bombing of the city of Manchester and its surrounding areas in North West England during the Second World War by the Nazi German Luftwaffe. Manchester was an important inland port and industrial city during the war, and Trafford Park in neighbouring Stretford was a major centre of war production.
Contents
- Manchester blitz film
- Manchester blitz
- Raids on Manchester
- Salford and Stretford
- Further raids
- References
Manchester blitz
Raids on Manchester
Air raids began in August 1940, and in September 1940 the Palace Theatre on Oxford Street was bombed. The heaviest raids occurred on the nights of 22/23 and 23/24 December 1940, killing an estimated 684 people and injuring 2,364. Manchester Cathedral, the Royal Exchange and the Free Trade Hall were among the large buildings damaged. On the night of 22/23 December, 270 aircraft dropped 272 tons of high explosive and 1,032 incendiary bombs; on the second night, 171 aircraft dropped another 195 tons of high explosive and 893 incendiaries. Nazi propaganda claimed that the entire city had been burned to the ground.
Salford and Stretford
Neighbouring Salford, Stretford and other districts were also badly damaged by the bombing. It is estimated that more than 215 people were killed and 910 injured in Salford, and more than 8,000 homes were damaged or destroyed. Seventy-three were killed in Stretford, and many more were injured. The following month Old Trafford was hit during an air raid that lasted 3 hours. In June 1941 German bombs damaged the original Salford Royal Hospital on Chapel Street, killing 14 nurses.
Further raids
On 11 March 1941 Old Trafford football stadium, the home of Manchester United F.C., was hit by a bomb aimed at the industrial complex of Trafford Park, wrecking the pitch and demolishing the stands. The stadium was rebuilt after the war and reopened in 1949, until which time United played at Manchester City's Maine Road stadium.
In June 1941 German bombs damaged the police headquarters. Manchester continued to be bombed by the Luftwaffe throughout the war, and was in some danger of being hit by V-1 flying bombs. On Christmas Eve 1944, Heinkel He111 bombers flying over the Yorkshire coast launched 45 flying bombs at Manchester. No V-1 landed in downtown Manchester, but 27 people in neighbouring Oldham were killed by a stray bomb. Another 17 people were killed elsewhere and 109 wounded overall. One German bomber was shot down over the North Sea and another was badly damaged by a package of RAF De Havilland Mosquito. The city was beyond the range of the V-2 rockets.