The Sheffield Blitz is the name given to the worst nights of German ''

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechan ...

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

, England, during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It took place during nighttime on 12 and 15 December 1940. In 1940, Sheffield was a city of about 560,000 people and contained industries primarily centred on

steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

and

armaments A weapon, arm, or armament is any implement or device that is used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime (e.g., murder), law ...

. Hadfields steelworks was also the only place in the UK at that time where 18-inch

armour-piercing Armour-piercing ammunition (AP) is a type of projectile designed to penetrate armour protection, most often including naval armour, body armour, and vehicle armour. The first, major application of armour-piercing projectiles was to defeat the t ...

shells were made. Most factories were located in the East End of the city beside the River Don. Documents captured at the end of the war showed the targets for the raids included the Atlas Steelworks, Brown Bayley Steelworks, Meadowhall Iron Works, River Don Works, Darnall Wagon Works, Tinsley Park Collieries, East Hecla Works and Orgreave Coke Ovens.License, Paul (2000) ''Sheffield Blitz – In words, pictures and memories'', Sheffield Newspapers Ltd. The full moon was on 14 December 1940,Phases of the moon 1931–1940
/ref> and both blitz nights were cold and clear. The German code name for the operation was Schmelztiegel ("Crucible").

12 December raid

On the afternoon of Thursday, 12 December, British monitoring stations detected X Verfahren (sometimes called X-Gerät) radio beams being laid across northern England and calculated that the likely target of the coming raid would be Sheffield. The yellow alert was received at 6:15pm, followed by the purple alert at 6:45pm. The red alert was sounded at 7:00pm. The attack was made by three main groups of aircraft flying from airfields in northern France, including

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; ; ), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the Escaut river. A sub-pref ...

. 13 Heinkel 111s from ''Kampfgruppe'' 100, the German Pathfinder unit arrived over the city at 7:41pm and dropped 16 SC50 high-explosive bombs, 1,009 B1 E1 ZA incendiaries and 10,080 B1 E1 incendiaries. The first incendiaries were dropped over the suburbs of Norton Lees and Gleadless. The first main group was made up of three waves of 36 Junkers Ju 88s and 29 Heinkel He 111s. The second group was made up of 23 Junkers 88s, 74 Heinkel 111s and 7 Dornier Do 17s. The last group was made up of 63 Junkers 88s and 35 Heinkel 111s, a total of 280 aircraft.Wakefield, K. (1981) ''The First Pathfinders – The Operational History of Kampfgruppe 100, 1939–1941'' At about 9:30pm, a line of bombs fell on Campo Lane and Vicar Lane, demolishing the West end of the

Cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

. At about 10:50pm a 500 kg bomb fell on and destroyed the C&A and Burtons buildings opposite the Marples Hotel in Fitzalan Square.BBC.co.uk Sheffield Blitz
/ref> At 11:44pm, The Marples Hotel itself received a direct hit. The death toll of this incident was 78, the single biggest loss of life in the attacks. Full details of the identities of the victims and the extensive police efforts made to ensure everyone was identified can be found in the Sheffield City Archives. The deceased were later found in the cellar, a large concrete box with deep encasing floors and walls beneath the carriageway outside the Marples building. The majority of the bombs on this night fell on the city centre or residential districts, with the last bombs falling at 4:00am.

15 December raid

The second night of the Blitz saw the first use of a new German policy for their pathfinders. High-explosive bombs were no longer carried and were replaced by incendiaries. On this night the pathfinder force was made up of 16 Heinkel 111s, which dropped 11,520 B1 E1 incendiaries between 7:00pm and 7:50pm. The 15 large fires and the numerous small fires started were visible from 150km away. The main raid was carried out by 50 Heinkel 111s and 11 Dornier 17s, and finished at 10:15pm. Many steelworks received hits, including Hadfields, Brown Bayleys and Steel, Peech and Tozer Ltd, although the damage was not serious enough to affect production.

Aftermath

In total over 660 people were killed, 1,500 injured and 40,000 made homeless. 3,000 homes were demolished, with a further 3,000 badly damaged. A total of 78,000 homes received damage. Six

George Medal The George Medal (GM), instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI,''British Gallantry Medals'' (Abbott and Tamplin), p. 138 is a decoration of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for gallantry, typically ...

s were awarded to citizens of Sheffield for their bravery during the raids. 134 victims of the raids were buried in a communal grave in City Road Cemetery. Sheffield City Hall WW2 Bombing Shrapnel Damage

Sheffield City Hall WW2 Bombing Shrapnel Damage

King George VI and Queen Elizabeth toured the city soon after the raids to inspect the damage and boost morale amongst survivors.

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

also toured the blitzed city, speaking through loudspeakers to a 20,000-strong crowd in Town Hall Square and giving his signature 'V' for 'Victory' V sign.Abrahams, James S. (1940), ''Sheffield Blitz'', Newsphotos Press Agency, Pawson & Brailsford, Sheffield, England.

Stage play

'' Operation Crucible,'' a play about the Sheffield Blitz by Kieran Knowles, has been performed in London, Sheffield and New York.

References

External links