Bristol Blitz
The Bristol Blitz was the heavy bombing of Bristol, England by the Nazi German Luftwaffe during the Second World War. Due to the presence of Bristol Harbour and the Bristol Aeroplane Company, the city was a target for bombing and was easily found as enemy bombers were able to trace a course up the River Avon from Avonmouth using reflected moonlight on the waters, into the heart of the city. Bristol was the fifth-most heavily-bombed British city of the war.
| Bristol Blitz | |||||||
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| Part of the Strategic bombing campaign of World War II | |||||||
Bomb-damaged buildings and the remains of St Mary le Port church (left) viewed from the south east, following bombing of the area now known as Castle Park | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Nazi Germany | United Kingdom | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | 1299 killed, 1303 injured | ||||||
The Luftwaffe conducted six major bombing campaigns on Bristol between November 1940 and April 1941, causing Bristol to experience 548 air raid alerts and 77 air raids with:
- 919 tons of high-explosive bombs plus many thousands of incendiary bombs dropped in clusters
- 1,299 people killed, 1,303 seriously injured and 697 rescued from the debris of bombed buildings
- 89,080 buildings damaged including 81,830 houses destroyed and over 3,000 rendered unusable and later demolished.
To counter the raids, Bristol's defenders developed an air defence system that increased in size and sophistication during the course of the war; local heavy anti-aircraft guns fired c.59,000 rounds at attacking aircraft during the conflict.