Clydebank Blitz. A defused, German 1000kg Luftmine (Parachute mine). Glasgow, 18 March 1941 The Clydebank Blitz refers to two devastating Luftwaffe air raids on the shipbuilding town of Clydebank in Scotland which took place in March 1941. The air raids[edit] As a result of the raids on the nights of 13 and 14 March 1941, the town was largely destroyed and it suffered the worst destruction and civilian loss of life in all of Scotland. 528 people died, 617 people were seriously injured, and hundreds more were injured by blast debris.
Clydebank's production of ships and munitions for the Allies made it a target (similar to the Barrow Blitz). The building on the right was one of the few which survived the blitz In his book Luftwaffe over Scotland: a history of German air attacks on Scotland, 1939-45, amateur historian Les Taylor qualified the Clydebank Blitz as "the most cataclysmic event" in war-time Scotland. Effectiveness of the raids[edit] War memorials[edit] References[edit] Coordinates: Bibliography[edit] Clydebank Blitz - World War II (1939-45) On the nights of 13 and 14 March 1941, German bombers attacked the munitions factories and shipyards of Clydeside. There were 260 bombers on the first night - waves of high-explosive bombs, incendiary bombs and land-mines were dropped over a nine-hour period. Streets were devastated, fires raged, and people were trapped in collapsed buildings.
The Polish destroyer ORP Piorun under Commander Eugeniusz Pławski was at John Brown's shipyard undergoing repairs. She joined the defence of Clydebank, firing a tremendous barrage at the Luftwaffe. A memorial to the ship’s crew can be seen in Solidarity Plaza, Clydebank. On 14 March, with rescue work continuing, 200 bombers returned; their bombing raid lasted over seven and a half hours. The cool, unwavering courage of the people is evident, and when the full story of their heroism in the face of the Luftwaffe is told, they will take their place alongside the citizens of London and Coventry. Glasgow Herald, 18 March 1941. Overview of Clydebank Blitz. Blitz Page One. 1941 - Clydebank Blitz. Heavy industry and shipbuilding naturally made Clydebank a target for the German bombers when the war came.
It was the only location in Scotland to be subjected to intensive Luftwaffe bombing. Thousands were killed over a period of only two days in March 1941. This account of the bombing was published in the local press a month after the raids. Wartime censorship is evident, and the approved message is put across - universal heroism, the bestiality of the enemy, but no accounts of actual blood or bodies to dismay readers. In a Clydeside town it was a clear night of radiant moonlight and twinkling stars, just such a night as poets and lovers dream about when romance and happiness and the sheer joy of living go hand in hand. When the raid began my impression was it was another reconnaissance flight by one or two German planes and I decided to stay in the house until the all-clear signal sounded. The merciless mission of destruction continued hour after hour. BBC One - Clydebank Blitz. Scotland's History - The Clydebank Blitz. The Museum Without Walls.
The Clydebank Blitz (short for Blitzkrieg, or lightning war because of its swiftness) began at 9.10pm on Thursday 13th March and lasted till 6.20am on Friday morning. During the day, many people left Clydebank due to the bombing and people with luggage queued for buses. This was called ‘trekking’. On Friday evening, the bombers arrived at 8.35pm and left at 2.27am on Saturday morning, revisiting between 4.10am and 5.30am. Only seven houses in Clydebank were left undamaged, but local industries such as John Brown and Singer were largely unaffected. The Home Office announced that a thousand people had died, although this figure has been disputed ever since, and a thousand people were badly injured. Many of the dead could not be claimed by their friends and families and they were buried at Dalnottar cemetery on 17th March 1941.
Glasgow Herald, 18th March 1941. The total number of British civilians killed in World War II bombing raids was 60,595. Second World War: Clydebank Blitz. Back to Index Page | Return to stories about 'Second World War' By tommy Mac (Thomas Mc Sorley) uploaded 29/06/2005View other stories by this author One night in 1941 we were warned by the siren that there was an air raid going on.
It sounded so near, we knew it had to be a very big one. We could even see a glow in the sky to the west of Glasgow, where we knew the shipbuilding industry was located in Clydebank, a mere four miles away. The only vantage point we could find was the playground of my school, Saint Joseph's. From this height we could see the bombs falling and the buildings going up in flames, lighting up the whole sky like daylight.
Things got so serious, however, that we could actually start feeling bits of shrapnel whizzing about our ears; something we hadn't even given any thought to. The following day, myself and the rest of my pals searched the playground for any souvenirs we might find, and we were amazed at how many pieces had embedded themselves into the walls. The Scottish Military Research Group: The Clydebank Blitz - On this day in Scottish Military History - 1941. To cover the whole horror of the two night blitz on Clydebank by the Luftwaffe over the nights of 13th and 14th March 1941 would be impossible in a blog post. Instead I'll quickly summarise the terrible facts of that night exactly seventy years ago: Out of a population of 47,000 people 35,000 people were made homelessOne third of the buildings in Clydebank were destroyed Only eight houses in the town were left unscathed528 people were killed and 617 were wounded 22 bodies were unclaimed or unidentified1,000 bombers attacked Clydebank Only 2 bombers shot down It's a night which still haunts those living in the town today.
The scale of the attack on the factories and shipyards meant many of the nearby houses were hit instead. The town couldn't cope with the huge number of bodies and those who died on those two nights were buried in a communal grave. At first a simple large headstone marked their grave but after many years research the names were added on bronze panels in March 2009. Wartime Clydebank: The effects of the Clydebank Blitz & its shipbuilding industry - Clyde Waterfront Heritage. Because of the crucial wartime role of its shipbuilders, Clydebank suffered more in the Blitz than any other town in Scotland and was quite as bad as, if not worse than Coventry in the extent of devastation and its lasting effect on the town and community.
It was heavily bombed on 13-14 March 1941. Relatively little harm was done to the intended targets. However, the town and the Singer sewing machine factory with its famous clock tower, were badly damaged with over 500 killed and over 600 injured. So extensive was the damage to buildings that over 35,000 people of its c50,000 population were left homeless..
Singer’s was in its day the largest sewing-machine factory in the world. 13th March 1941: The Clydebank Blitz. In March 1941 Don Macintosh was 18 years old, working as a telephone operator in the police station in Clydebank, the ship building heart of Glasgow. So far the town had been relatively unaffected by the blitz. The bell rang stridently as a small white light lit over the socket on the exchange board. ‘Control centre here,’ a young woman’s voice announced. ‘Air raid warning yellow. Read back, please.’ ‘Air raid warning yellow. . © Don Macintosh ‘Bomber Pilot’, Browsebooks, 2006. Remembering the Clydebank Blitz. By March 13, 1941, Britain knew what it meant to suffer. Since September 7 of the previous year Germany's Luftwaffe had been pummeling London, reducing the City to banks of rubble and searing flames that raged on for days.
The Nazis' aims went beyond the destruction of buildings and people: they were trying to demoralize an entire nation, to eat out their souls with savagery. It was at this time that the small town of Clydebank shared in the tragedy of the whole nation. Harry was 5 years old when the aeroplanes came to Dunbartonshire. "...I remember the noise of the aeroplanes. It wasn't just a steady noise, it was a kind of drone.... " Jimmy was 6, "After the bombs had finished falling, I expected to walk home to the life I had before--but it was gone....We were left with the clothes that we stood in and that was it.
" To the locals, Clydebank meant factories, the river, church, trains, food, friends, family, and home. The citizens of Clydebank were not caught unawares. Brendan Kelly's Blitz Memories. Back to Singers, Sirens And Silent Heroes Project Title: Singers, Sirens And Silent Heroes Exhibition: Brendan Kelly's Blitz Memories Brendan remembers the bombing of Jellicoe Street which killed 13 members of the Rocks family. his house was the only surviving property on the street which was devastated during the two nights of intensive bombing during the Clydebank Blitz. Assets in this exhibition: Brendan's Story Play oral history Description Brendan talks about his experience of the Clydebank Blitz... Transcript My name is Brendan Kelly. We had the grey building. Most prominent memory that I’ve got is my mother.
We’d all been out playing over in Castle Square and we came back and it was time for to go in. Anyway, we went into the house… and I didn’t like school. Anyway, I was writing this letter to St Stephen’s School, to tell them I wasn’t coming back to their school anymore. The Rocks Family – they were a lovely family, the Rocks. “Why’s that?” I says, “That’ll be right.” Source Bomb Damage.
The Clydebank Blitz (Part One) Clydebank Blitz - the human tragedy. The Clydebank Blitz (Part Two) Post-Blitz Clydebank: Clydebank Blitz [3MW for Channel 4]