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"... a thousand aircraft on Cologne
-- George Cocker, 218 Squadeon, RAF Bomber Command
God help the bods below;
With a full moon and a clear sky
God help the sods that go.
The banter crackles back and forth,
Weak jokes that mask strong fears,
And so we sauter to the flights, Each with his thoughts alone. Warsaw, Rotterdam, London burned
For them--to-night--Cologne!"
The newly appointed Air Chief Marshal Arthur Harris and Bomber Command were assembling a gigantic force--a 1,000 bomber strike. At the time it was not an easy effort. There was considerable difference of opinion over this raid. Most military experts at the time did not think a 1,000 bomber raid possible. Some Bomber Command planners thought the project too risky. Harris was single mindly commited to the undertaking. It was difficult to assemble the force. Bombers had to be recalled from North Atlantic comvoy duties. In the end it was a make-up force of many largely obsolete types were used, but Bomber Command mounted the first 1,000 bomber raid of the War. Until that time a Luftwaffe force of 487 bombers hitting London had been the largest raid of the War (October 1940). Both the Luftwaffe and Bomber Command normally had much smaller forces. Bomber Command struck Cologne, the third largest city in Germany (May 30). The bomber force was assembled from 52 different airfields. The result was a stream of 1,046 planes 70 miles long. The number of aircraft is not by itself the best measure of the fiorce hurled at the Reich. Bomber Command was not only amassing large numbers of bombers, but they were bombers with incresingly large payloads and range. The Cologne raid included the new Avro Lancaster with its large bomb load. The Lancaster had a payload more than seven times that of Luftwaffe bombers in the Battle of Britain. They attacked in three waves. The bombers easily found the city because of its location on the Rhine River. The result was absolute devestation. The Luftwaffe had in raids on London, Coventry, and other British cities used incendiaries, essentially schooling the British on how to bomb. Bomber Command now knew what incendiaries could do to a great city. The British used these lessons, but in raids on a scale far beyond the Luftwaffe attacks on Britain. They could produce firestorms which devestated the city centers. The deaths in the Cologne raid was realtively limited compared to upcoming raids, but 600 acres of the city was destoyed along with 250 factories making machine tools, chemicals, and sunmarine parts. The damage exceeded that of Lübeck and Rostock combined. An estimated 45,000 people lost their homes and great masses of people clogged the roads out of the city. For the first time in the War, a new group of refugees appeared on European rioads -- German refugess. These losses need to be put in context. At the time of the Cologne raid, the NAZIs had the gas chambers in Auschwitz in operation. There were 460 people killed in Cologne. The NAZI gas chambers in Auschwitz each had a capacity to kill 2,000 people at a time and could be used several times daily. Bomber Command lost 40 planes, much less than anticipated. (at the time, 4 percent was deemed and acceptable level.) Harris telephoned Churchill who was in Washington to brief him on the results. Harris was subsequently knighted. At the time, Bomber Command was the only Allied force effectively striking at the Germans. The Germans were astonished that the British could assemble such a massive force. They assumed that the Americans must have participated, but it was an all British force. [Rumpf, pp. 54-56.] The Germans were not yet fully aware of the uindustrial might being assembed against them. Many od these planes flew over the Netherlands to reach Cologne and other targets in the Reich. The Dutch heard them, but had little information on the damage done, although they were well aware at what the Luftwaffe bombers had done in their country. A Dutch reader, a boy at the time, writes, "Cologne was bombed many times until there was nothing left to destroy anymore. The worst attack as you describe was on May 30, 1942 when the British dropped 2,000 tons of high explosives on the city. The devastation was total, except for the famous cathedral that was severely damaged, but still standing. When I visited after the War in 1947 Cologne was still in ruins, but the streets were cleared and cleaned. There were piles of rubble everywhere. I remember eating ice cream in front of the Dom (cathedral) with my German cousins. We all knew what starvation was and we enjoyed the ice cream in spite of the fact that the quality was lousy." [Stueck] Tragically for the Germn people, this was just the beginning. Not only was Bomber Commnd growing, but they would soon be joined by the Americans. One Cologne resident remarked duting the Battle of Britain, "The British deserve what they are getting, they won't surrender." One wonders what was going through her head during the raid on her city.
We are not sure when the newly appointed Air Chief Marshal Arthur Harris began thinking about a massive 1,000 bomber raid. We suspect that it was before he was even appointed to head Bomber Command (February 1942). We know that he was talking with his staff about a massive spectacular blow (May 1942). 【Richards, p. 126.】 And he was already thinjking about a thousand bombers. The Bomber Command over which Harris had been given command was coming under growing criticism. Britain had devoted huge resources into building bombers and even by 1942 had little to show for it. Other services and even other RAF uinits were requesting more of the finite resources Britain could generate. And based on accomplishments to date, Bomber Command had little to show for itself. Harris saw a spectacular strike coukld answer Vomber Commasnd's growing number of critics. But striking with a force of 1,000 bombers seemed an insurmoutable undertaking. Bomber Comman's entire front line was ony 600 craft, many of whuch were basically obselete. And the number of aircraft availabe for a strike averaged only about 350 aircraft. 【Richards, p. 126.】 The plan of such large numbers of bombers was not only to maximize rge bomb tinnage, but also to saturate the defenses. The panners calculated tghat this had to be dome wuth in 990 minutes for maximus impact. Thus meant an incredable 11 bomb loads falling every minute.
Harris' chief staff assisrant was Aor Marshall Robert Saundby devised a olannto amssa thousand bombers. The major componebt was the 650 frontline srrength of 600 bombers. By standing diwn fir a day or so, leaves cancelled, and a range of thermeasuire, the full frint-line strength of 600 bombers coukld be made available. 【Richards, p. 126.】 Another 250 airccraft were available frin within Bomber Command if Harruis dipped into training units, Heavy Convesion Units HCU) and Operatiional Trining units (OTUs). This meant that if iother commands could join in othe ooeration (especially Coastal Ciommnd), the 1,000 fugure was achieable. Buyoed with this assessment, Harris went to Chief of the Air Staff, Charles Portal, a former chief of Bomber Command and the Prime Minister. Both respomded entusiastically (May 18-19). Churchill's primary reservation was potential aircrasft losses. Portal put his weight behind getting aircrft from
from Coastal Commmand, Army-Coooeration Commnd, and Flying Trainuing Command. Philipo Jioubeet in Cioatal command commited to the project offering some 250 aircraft. This briought Harris veyt ckear tio his 1,m000 bomber force. Harris anf his staff began readying the firce. A majir step was ger=tting the new GEE directional sets indstlled and crews trained in its use. Ground crews began working 18-hour shifts. 【Richards, p. 127.】 Bomber Command began assembling a gigantic force--a 1,000 bomber strike. At the time it was not an easy effort. It was difficult to assemble the force. Bombers had to be recalled from North Atlantic comvoy duties. In the end it was a make-up force of many largely obsolete types were used, but Bomber Command mounted the first 1,000 bomber raid of the War.
Until this time a Luftwaffe force of 487 bombers hitting London had been the largest raid of the War (October 1940). Both the Luftwaffe and Bomber Command normally staged rids with much smaller forces.
Cologne in the Rhineland at the time was the third largest city in Germany, behind only Berlin and Hamburg. The city was founded by the Romans, Its locatiion on the Rhine River was a primary factor in its growth, During the Middle Ages the city flourished as becoming a part of one of the most important trade routes between east and western Europe, part of e Brabant Road, Via Regia, and Publica. It became a free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire and one of the major members of the Hanseatic League. It developed as one of the largest European cities during medieval and renaissance times. The city's medieval Catholic Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom) is the third-tallest church and tallest cathedral in the world. It was built to house the Shrine of the Three Kings and became one of the most visited sights and pilgrimage destinations in Europe. It became par of part of the expanding Prussia Kingdom after the Napoleonic Wars (1815). When the NAZIs came to power (1933), the population was approching 1 million people. Unlike many other cities in western Germany, it was not a center of heavy industry, although as such a large city, there were many factories and other activies supporting the war effort. Instead it was a major trade and financial center and transportation hub. The city has five Rhine ports, the second largest inland port in the county, one of the largest in Europe. It also was a rail hub used for the transportation of troops and weapons. The jewish population was about 20,000, but by the time of the War nearly half had fled Germany. Cologne's synagogues were desecrated or burned during Kristalnascht (1938). Most of the remining Jews were murdered in the Holocaust. Most had already been deported by the time of the bombing. The trade fair grounds next to the Deutz train station were used to concentrate Jewish families for deportation to the death camps. There their household goods were put on public sale. 【Matzerath】 Harris wanted to hit a large city fior maximum imoact. And at that time, Bomber Command could only effectively target western and northerstrn cities. This narrowed down his choics to Hamburg or Cologne. It was Hanburg that was Harris' first choice, in part to get Admiraralty supoport. 【Richards, p. 127.】 Both were within GEE range meaning that the British bombers would have no trouble finding them. In the early part of the air war, Bomber Command was hampered by the problem of navigating at night. In the end, cloudy weather over Hamburg decided the matter, but only delayed Hamburg's destrruction.
Harrisc assembled the bomber force from 52 different airfields. The result was a stream of 1,046 planes 70 miles long. The number of aircraft is not by itself the best measure of the force hurled at the Reich. Bomber Command was not only amassing large numbers of bombers, but they were bombers with incresingly large payloads and range. The Cologne raid included the new Avro Lancaster with its large bomb load and long range. The Lancaster had a payload more than seven times that of Luftwaffe bombers in the Battle of Britain. This was a turning point in the War. Germany was now being hit harder than they were hitting other countries. Göring has assured the German people that this would never happen. And more importantly Hitler had believed him.
The Germans in World War I were the first country in history to launch a strateguc bombing campaign. They used both Zephlins and the long-range Gotha bombers. It was further cionformastion to he Bruitish that the Germans were inhuman basrbasrins. The Allies were primarily involved in fighter and ground support operations on the Western Front. In response to the German bombing, tyhe British were building a bombing force, but the Germabns requested an armistice before the Allied bombing commenced (November 1918). It was planned for (1919). In the Intra-War era, Britasin built a bomber force as a deterrent to prevent another war. But they had no practical experience in straegic bombing which is why Bomber Command was so woefully prepared for war when it came. + The Luftwaffe had in raids on London, Coventry, and other British cities adding incendiaries to high explosive, essentially schooling the British on how to bomb cities. They knew what worked and what did not and the various potential alternatives. Being ion the receiving end, they proacbly knew more than the Germans. Before the War, Bomber Command like the Americans focused on high explosives. Bomber Command now knew what incendiaries could do to a great city. The British used these lessons, but in raids on a scale far beyond the Luftwaffe attacks on Britain. Bomber Command was not yet growing substantilly in number of aircraft, largely becasuse of diversions of new aircraft to other forces. But Bomberr Command was greatly expanding in bomb load capacity and range. Bomber Command now had the ability to produce firestorms which could devestate city centers.
Bomber Command struck Cologney (May 30). The bomber force was assembled from 52 different airfields. The result was a stream of 1,046 planes 70 miles long. The number of aircraft is not by itself the best measure of the force hurled at the Reich. Bomber Command was not only amassing large numbers of bombers, but they were bombers with incresingly large payloads and range. The Cologne raid included the new Avro Lancaster with its large bomb load. The Lancaster had a payload more than seven times that of Luftwaffe bombers in the Battle of Britain. They attacked in three waves. The bombers easily found the city because of its location on the Rhine River.
The result was absolute devestation. The deaths in the Cologne raid was realtively limited compared to upcoming raids. The Germans wwe organising very effective civil defense operations. The impacy on the city itself is another matter. Some 600 acres of the city was destoyed along with 250 factories making machine tools, chemicals, and submarine parts. The damage exceeded that of Lübeck and Rostock combined. An estimated 45,000 people lost their homes and great masses of people clogged the roads out of the city. For the first time in the War, a new group of refugees appeared on European rioads -- German refugees. These losses need to be put in context. At the time of the Cologne raid, the NAZIs had the gas chambers in Auschwitz in operation. There were 460 people killed in Cologne. The NAZI gas chambers in Auschwitz each had a capacity to kill 2,000 people at a time and could be used several times daily.
Bomber Command lost 40 planes or 4 percent of the attcking force, much less than anticipated. (At the time, 4 percent was deemed and acceptable level.)
Harris telephoned Churchill who was in Washington to brief him on the results. Harris was subsequently knighted. At the time, Bomber Command was the only Allied force effectively striking at the Germans.
The Germans were astonished that the British could assemble such a massive force. They assumed that the Americans must have participated, but it was an all British force. 【Rumpf, pp. 54-56.】 This is not what the NAZIs whio backed Huitler had sigbned on for. The NAZIss were not yet fully aware of the industrial might being assembed against them in Britain, let alone America. Tragically for the German people, this was just the beginning. Not only was Bomber Commnd growing, but they would soon be joined by the Americans. One Cologne resident remarked during the Battle of Britain, "The British deserve what they are getting, they won't surrender." Generally comments like this meant that people resisting the NAZIs should surrender becuse Germasny was so powerful. The Bruitish did not surrender like they should have. One wonders what was going through her head during this raid on her city--and it would not be the last.
Many of these planes flew over the Netherlands to reach Cologne and other targets in the Reich. The Dutch heard them, but had little information on the damage done, although they were well aware at what the Luftwaffe bombers had done in their country. A Dutch reader, a boy at the time, writes, "Cologne was bombed many times until there was nothing left to destroy anymore. The worst attack as you describe was on May 30, 1942 when the British dropped 2,000 tons of high explosives on the city. The devastation was total, except for the famous cathedral that was severely damaged, but still standing. When I visited after the War in 1947 Cologne was still in ruins, but the streets were cleared and cleaned. There were piles of rubble everywhere. I remember eating ice cream in front of the Dom (cathedral) with my German cousins. We all knew what starvation was and we enjoyed the ice cream in spite of the fact that the quality was lousy." [Stueck]
Richards, Denis. Hardest Victory: RAF Bomber Command in the Second World War (London: W W Norton & Co Inc, 1994), 393p.
Rumpf, Hans. Edward Fitzgerald, trans. The Bombing of Germany (Holt, Rinehart and Winston: New York, 1962), 256p.
Stueck, Rudi. E-mail (August 18, 2009).
Matzerath, Horst. "Köln in der Zeit des Nationalsozialismus, " in: Peter Fuchs (Hrsg.) Chronik zur Geschichte der Stadt Köln.
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