The on July 9, 1945 was part of the

strategic bombing Strategic bombing is a military strategy used in total war with the goal of defeating the enemy by destroying its morale, its economic ability to produce and transport materiel to the theatres of military operations, or both. It is a systematica ...

campaign waged by the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

against military and civilian targets and population centers during the Japan home islands campaign in the closing stages of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Background

The city of Gifu was a prefectural capital and regional transportation hub and home to a factory of

Kawanishi Aircraft Company was a Japanese aircraft manufacturer during World War II. History The company was founded as Kawanishi Engineering Works in 1920 in Hyōgo Prefecture as an outgrowth of the Kawanishi conglomerate, which had been funding the Nakajima Aircraft Co ...

. With the neighboring city of

Kakamigahara is a city located in southern Gifu Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 148,225, and a population density of 1700 persons per km2, in 59,736 households. The total area of the city was . Situated in the northern part o ...

serving as an aeronautics center for Japan, Gifu was also a large industrial center during

, including a downtown manufacturing sector.Crew 3's Account of Gifu Mission
39th Bomb Group Association. Accessed July 13, 2007. Gifu also served as the base for the creation of Japan's

fire balloon An incendiary balloon (or balloon bomb) is a balloon inflated with a lighter-than-air gas such as hot air, hydrogen, or helium, that has a bomb, incendiary device, or Molotov cocktail attached. The balloon is carried by the prevailing winds t ...

s. These paper-based, bomb-carrying hot air balloons were used in a failed attempt to cause havoc on American soil.

Air raids

On the night of July 9, 1945, 135

USAAF The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers of the

21st Air Division The 21st Air Division (21st AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Tactical Air Command, being stationed at Griffiss Air Force Base, New York. It was inactivated on 23 September 1983. History World W ...

and

314th Air Division The 314th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Pacific Air Forces at Osan Air Base, South Korea. It became inactive in September 1986. The unit's origins lie with the World War II 314th Bombardm ...

attacked the city of Gifu from the south, via

Lake Biwa is the largest freshwater lake in Japan, located entirely within Shiga Prefecture (west-central Honshu), northeast of the former capital city of Kyoto. Lake Biwa is an ancient lake, over 4 million years old. It is estimated to be the 13th ol ...

and

Sekigahara The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: ; Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization: ''Sekigahara no Tatakai'') was a decisive battle on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) in what is now Gifu prefecture, Japan, at the end of ...

. The bombing commenced at 23:34, with primary aiming point being the intersection of Japan National Route 248 with Gifu Prefectural Road 54. Due to the flat topography of the city and ideal weather conditions, the incendiary bombing created a

firestorm A firestorm is a conflagration which attains such intensity that it creates and sustains its own wind system. It is most commonly a natural phenomenon, created during some of the largest bushfires and wildfires. Although the term has been used ...

which destroyed most of the center of the city, including the Gifu Prefectural Office,

Gifu Station is a railway station in the heart of the city of Gifu, Gifu Prefecture, Japan, operated by Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). Lines Gifu Station is served by the JR Central Tōkaidō Main Line, and is located 396.3 kilometers from ...

, and numerous other train stations and factories.Bradley. ''No Strategic Targets Left''. The attack concluded at 0:20 AM the following morning. In total, 421.4 tons of E-46 and 477.4 tons E-47

incendiary bombs Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using fire (and sometimes used as anti-personnel weaponry), that use materials such as napalm, th ...

were dropped on the city. Efforts by citizens and civil defense authorities to extinguish the

napalm Napalm is an incendiary mixture of a gelling agent and a volatile petrochemical (usually gasoline (petrol) or diesel fuel). The name is a portmanteau of two of the constituents of the original thickening and gelling agents: coprecipitated alu ...

-filled bomblets using traditional water bucket brigades contributed to the casualties and extent of damage. Due to the topography of Gifu city center and the weather conditions at that time, the damage per bomb dropped was huge. The affected area was around six square kilometers. The air raid killed 818 civilians, and injured 1059, with 20,363 homes destroyed, rendering 100,000 people effectively homeless. A year after the war, the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

Strategic Bombing Survey (Pacific War) The United States Strategic Bombing Survey (USSBS) was a written report created by a board of experts assembled to produce an impartial assessment of the effects of the Anglo-American strategic bombing of Nazi Germany during the European theatre o ...

reported that 74 percent of the city had been destroyed.

References

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Notes

External links

67 Japanese Cities Firebombed in World War II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gifu Bombing of Gifu Gifu Japan in World War II Gifu Gifu World War II strategic bombing of Japan 1945 in Japan Firebombings in Japan Gifu

Background

Air raids

See also

References

Notes

External links