Zeppelins Over the Midlands: The Air Raids of 31st January 1916
On 31st January 1916 nine Zeppelin airships of the Imperial German Navy bombed the Midlands, opening a strategic bombing campaign designed to cripple British war production. It ended in total failure. The main target was Liverpool but none of the Zeppelins reached it. On foggy Monday night several major Midlands towns were bombed and 70 people killed, 35 in the Black Country between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, 15 in Burton on Trent, 10 in Loughborough, 5 in Derby, 3 in Scunthorpe and 2 in Ilkeston.

A lot is known about the military aspects of the raids but much less is known about what happened on the ground. While the press produced many human interest stories and atrocity propaganda, wartime censorship prohibited publication of any information that could be useful to the Germans, including the towns hit and names of the victims. Through intensive research the author has been able to identify many of the victims and give the full story of these events for the first time.
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Zeppelins Over the Midlands: The Air Raids of 31st January 1916
On 31st January 1916 nine Zeppelin airships of the Imperial German Navy bombed the Midlands, opening a strategic bombing campaign designed to cripple British war production. It ended in total failure. The main target was Liverpool but none of the Zeppelins reached it. On foggy Monday night several major Midlands towns were bombed and 70 people killed, 35 in the Black Country between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, 15 in Burton on Trent, 10 in Loughborough, 5 in Derby, 3 in Scunthorpe and 2 in Ilkeston.

A lot is known about the military aspects of the raids but much less is known about what happened on the ground. While the press produced many human interest stories and atrocity propaganda, wartime censorship prohibited publication of any information that could be useful to the Germans, including the towns hit and names of the victims. Through intensive research the author has been able to identify many of the victims and give the full story of these events for the first time.
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Zeppelins Over the Midlands: The Air Raids of 31st January 1916

Zeppelins Over the Midlands: The Air Raids of 31st January 1916

by Mick Powis
Zeppelins Over the Midlands: The Air Raids of 31st January 1916

Zeppelins Over the Midlands: The Air Raids of 31st January 1916

by Mick Powis

Hardcover

$39.95 
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Overview

On 31st January 1916 nine Zeppelin airships of the Imperial German Navy bombed the Midlands, opening a strategic bombing campaign designed to cripple British war production. It ended in total failure. The main target was Liverpool but none of the Zeppelins reached it. On foggy Monday night several major Midlands towns were bombed and 70 people killed, 35 in the Black Country between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, 15 in Burton on Trent, 10 in Loughborough, 5 in Derby, 3 in Scunthorpe and 2 in Ilkeston.

A lot is known about the military aspects of the raids but much less is known about what happened on the ground. While the press produced many human interest stories and atrocity propaganda, wartime censorship prohibited publication of any information that could be useful to the Germans, including the towns hit and names of the victims. Through intensive research the author has been able to identify many of the victims and give the full story of these events for the first time.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781473834194
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Publication date: 03/17/2017
Pages: 224
Product dimensions: 6.30(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Mick Powis was born in Wolverhampton. He was educated at Coleg Harlech, The University of Wales: Aberystwyth, and Warwick University. He has had a varied career, including a number of years as a part time Open University lecturer and many as a manager in local government. He has written a number of magazine and newspaper articles on aspects of the First and Second World Wars. He has always had a personal interest in the Zeppelin raids as his grandmother and mother were almost killed by one in 1916. Mick lives in the Midlands with his wife and two spaniels.

Table of Contents

Dedication vi

List of Plates vii

List of Maps x

A Note On Time xi

Introduction xii

Chapter 1 A Noise like Thunder and Lightning 1

Chapter 2 Like a Great White Mountain 22

Chapter 3 A Second Coming 35

Chapter 4 The Bright Lights of Loughborough 44

Chapter 5 Rolls-Royce Town 54

Chapter 6 A Much Admired Man 63

Chapter 7 England Shall be Destroyed by Fire 73

Chapter 8 Target Middle England 96

Chapter 9 Anger 117

Chapter 10 How to Shoot Down a Zeppelin 125

Chapter 11 The Burning 142

Appendix A A List of Casualties of the Zeppelin Raid 188

Appendix B Zeppelin Graves at Cannock Chase War Cemetery 192

Bibliography 195

Index 199

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