Map of the locations of bombing in Nottingham during the Second World War

The Nottingham Blitz was an attack by the

Nazi German Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

'' on

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

during the night of 8–9 May 1941.

Defence preparations

Nottingham was the first city in Britain to develop an ARP (

Air Raid Precautions Air Raid Precautions (ARP) refers to a number of organisations and guidelines in the United Kingdom dedicated to the protection of civilians from the danger of air raids. Government consideration for air raid precautions increased in the 1920s an ...

) network. It was developed because of the foresight of Nottingham City Police Chief Constable Captain

Athelstan Popkess Captain Athelstan Horn Popkess (23 November 1893 – 29 April 1967) was Chief Constable of Nottingham City Police from 1930 to 1959 and as a result of his transformations in modernising policing could be considered the twentieth century's g ...

. The city was divided into zones, controlled by report and control centres with 45 auxiliary fire service stations. By the time of the raid, Nottingham had built a significant number of public shelters. The

John Player & Sons John Player & Sons, most often known simply as Player's, was a tobacco and cigarette manufacturer based in Nottingham, England. In 1901, the company merged with other companies to form The Imperial Tobacco Company to face competition from US ma ...

tobacco company had built a network of tunnels at its factory and under local streets sufficient to house around 5,000 of its workers. The raid on the night of 8–9 May by the ''Luftwaffe'' was targeted at

and

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

. The

X-Gerät The Battle of the Beams was a period early in the Second World War when bombers of the German Air Force (''Luftwaffe'') used a number of increasingly accurate systems of radio navigation for night bombing in the United Kingdom. British scientific ...

beams set up to cover the

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

works were detected, and radio counter-measures diverted the attack to the moors north east of the town. A

Starfish Starfish or sea stars are star-shaped echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea (). Common usage frequently finds these names being also applied to ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to as brittle stars or basket stars. Starfish ...

decoy fire system located near Cropwell Butler in the

Vale of Belvoir The Vale of Belvoir ( ) covers adjacent areas of Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, England. The name derives from the Norman-French for "beautiful view" and dates back to Norman times. Extent and geology The vale is a tract ...

confused the aircraft, and many of the bombs intended for

were dropped on open farmland in the vale.

The raid

There were over 100 bombers in the Nottingham raid. Emergency services tackled 97 fires on the night of the Nottingham Blitz on 8 and 9 May 1941. Records list 12 fires as serious, 40 as major and 42 as medium. In some cases, fires started by incendiary bombs were put out before they took hold. Firefighters successfully tackled a fire in the south transept at St Mary's Church after an incendiary bomb burned through the roof. A turntable ladder was positioned on

High Pavement High Pavement is a street in Nottingham in Nottinghamshire, England. It is one of the earliest streets in the city, and most of its buildings are listed. History It runs from the east end of St Mary's Churchyard to Weekday Cross. Around 1681 a ...

to enable them to direct a hose on to the roof. The vicar of St. Mary's,

Neville Stuart Talbot Neville Stuart Talbot MC (21 August 1879 – 3 April 1943) was Bishop of Pretoria in the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and later a robust vicar of St. Mary's Church, Nottingham and assistant Bishop of Southwell who turned down the chance ...

noted:

We had a visitation - nothing compared with some places, but still a very real taste. Began about twelve. We had gone to bed, and tried to believe that the explosions were our guns, but soon one and then another were unmistakable - one was not far off down Friar's Lane. Peering out of the top window, I soon realised that big fires had been started, so, there being a lull, I went down. I found a fire going in the South Transept of the Church. It took a long time really to put it out.

There were fierce fires at Trivett's Building near St. Mary's Church, in Short Hill and three of the Boots' factories in Poplar Street, Island Street and Station Street.

Buildings destroyed

St. John the Baptist's Church, Leenside, Nottingham The church of St. John the Baptist, Leenside, Nottingham was opened in 1844 as a parish church in the Church of England. It was destroyed in 1941. History The foundation stone for the church of St. John the Baptist was laid by Charles Pierrepon ...

, remains demolished and site cleared after the war. *

St. Christopher's Church, Sneinton {{Infobox church , name = St. Christopher's Church, Sneinton , fullname = The Church of St. Christopher with St. Philip, Sneinton , image = St. Christopher's Church, Sneinton - geograph.org.uk - 1 ...

, rebuilt by 1952 *Stadium Hotel, Parliament Street

Buildings damaged

St. Mary's Church, Nottingham The Church of St Mary the Virgin is the oldest parish churchDomesday Book: A Complete Translation (Penguin Classics) of Nottingham, in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest church after the Cathedral in the city of Nottingham. The church ...

*Nottingham Masonic Hall *University College Nottingham *

Shakespeare Street Wesleyan Reform Chapel Shakespeare Street Wesleyan Reform Chapel is a former Wesleyan Reform church on Shakespeare Street in Nottingham, England. It is a Grade II listed building. It was converted in 1953 to a synagogue and is now a university hall. History The churc ...

*Moot Hall, Friar Lane

Casualties

Casualties were heavy. There were 159 people recorded as killed with 274 injured. At the Co-op bakery on Meadow Lane, 49 employees and members of the

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting wi ...

were killed, and 20 others injured. At University College, 45 people were killed.

Other raids

The ''Nottingham Evening Post'' of 17 May 1945 records that there were 11 raids on Nottingham in total, 178 people were killed and 350 injured. 479 high explosive bombs were dropped.

References

{{WWII city bombing, state=autocollapse The Blitz History of Nottingham 20th century in Nottinghamshire May 1941 events