Author Description

In the Battle of Britain and the Battle of the Atlantic, Germany sought to bring about a British defeat by pitting its servicemen against those of their enemy. The Night Blitz campaign was different; it saw the might of the Luftwaffe waging war on Britain's civilian population with the aim of causing material destruction and destroying public and political morale. Aerial attacks were launched against Britain for the remainder of the war, but it was between June 1940 and the early summer of 1941 that the most intense action took place. If the loss of life and property in this period failed to bring the nation down, then surely it could survive and win the war. In this finely structured study of the build-up to, and execution of, the campaign John Ray assesses the weapons and aircraft used, the strategies involved and the leaders of the combatant forces. While keeping the reader informed of the constant changes of tactics and policies employed, he notes the effects of the Blitz actions on British cities, their people, their industry and their 'will to fight'. He ensures that the reader remains fully acquainted with both the civilian and military elements of the period. This volume of fresh and diligent research ensures that this subject will remain a topic of examination for the post-war generations. With the city and seaport damage caused by the Blitz now all but eradicated by modern construction, we might all too easily forget that while Britain fought off the threat of a seaborne invasion in World War Two its cities and people were not saved from the physical and mental damage of aerial bombardment.