The Blitz - 14th November 1940

I've just discovered a letter written by my dad which was published in the Coventry Evening Telegraph on 5 November 1940: Sir, In your leader of today's date re "The Single Raider", you state: "There is a danger that a totally disproportionate number of fighters might be engaged in searching for a solitary raider". Surely this is incorrect as we have been repeatedly told that the detector instruments of our A-A defences are capable of giving the height, speed, and direction of approaching aircraft. If this is so, one fails to understand why it is not possible for the A-A ground defences to co-operate with the fighters, giving them directions of the raider's whereabouts by radio. Yours, C.C. Brayne 56, Fir Tree Avenue I was amazed that such a letter was not considered a breach of security as it appears to be in effect informing the enemy that we did not have the ability to track aircraft which the authorities were claiming. It was, of course, printed just 9 days before the 'Moonlight Sonata' raid. Radar had been invented but was it being deployed in the manner in which my father suggests?

Old Caludonian, Yes and the only real first bit of of writing on this topic worth reading for it was written in 1940 by an on-the-scenes guy - there were hundreds like him, they felt the top brass had their wires crossed, the true mood of a large part of the city. The bombing for me started about July/Aug 1939. Before the gas masks, before the shelters, two officials came to the house and demanded to see around, then declared the army were to take over one of our bedrooms, and mum had to find two soldiers a wash and shave area. So we weren't at war but we had lost a third of the house - no mean joke when we were already overcrowded. But they turned out to be two very pleasant northern twenty year olds, we loved their stay. The council provided Anderson shelters to those that asked, we helped dad put ours in place. But there were two or three, I said I'd do it tomorrow - with the 'phoney war' it was still tomorrow. When things got serious the bags of nuts and bolts were missing and lost. When they left, we had a huge gun emplacement in the field in front of us and a Lewis gun in the field behind us - this was replaced by a Bofors gun a few weeks later. Now Coventry was a lively shopping place, but only in the morning, for we knew the blackout and no one could win in the blackout, so by half an hour before darkness fell, it was a ghost town. On 14 Nov, 5pm, the city was in total darkness, and the only people in the town were on duty, or lived locally, so the city had two to three hours to get ready for the raid. We had had raids in Sept so knew we had to expect another. Rumours were the bombers followed the silver ribbon of the canal to the city. Well, they scotched that by hitting the canal, and a mile of the silver ribbon was gone. Then, after the war, we had it that Churchill had sacrificed the city. But Churchill was building an army of two thousand men, ready to be sacrificed in the struggle for freedom - I doubt that Coventry came into the equation. Now the fire brigade took over part of the canal for a water supply, so I doubt that soot would be used for camouflage - can you imagine that water going through the fire engine? In those days the city was run by three men - police chief, fire brigade chief, medical chief. Everything was in their hands, but I have yet to find a book where they were interviewed after the raid. During the raid an ambulance man was called to the Gaumont cinema where a bomb had dropped on the backstage. It killed three people, blew their arms and legs off. A little different to what I read in a book.

O Cal, At last Coventry gets the truth. It wasn't your dad telling the Germans secrets, it was the Germans telling your dad. The RAF did not know where they were, the gunners did, but did not share so they could roam free, and your dad knew they could send as many bombers as they wanted and for as long as they wanted. This made your dad and others mad and the only people he could tell was the local paper. They sent a few planes over in September. Nothing had changed, so in November what your dad and many people had thought, we got the full might, and they had no need to leave until light. Now some of you may get offended but it didn't take a lot of research to pick this story up. But no one, as I know of, did. Over sixty years later we were still getting the same old photos and altered stories that had been banded about for years, and blitz pilots' reports, who only came in at the end game. It was the daredevil pilots of the early period that made it all possible, to Coventry's sorrow, and your dad was fuming - 'no question'.

These two photographs were taken from old Broadgate. The clock reads 11:00 am. It is Monday 11 November 1940, Remembrance Day, 79 years ago to the day, and citizens have paused for a moment to remember the dead from WWI. Just three days later most of what you can see in these images was destroyed by the Coventry Blitz along with over 500 people tragically killed in and around the city centre - possibly some pictured here. Notice even the traffic has stopped moving - even the motorbike. The policeman in the second photo appears to be checking as 11:00 approaches. Never forget.

Many thanks, Kaga, for the clarification. I've never understood why Coventry, with its vital strategic industries, should have been thought a suitable case for sacrifice, even if protection would have suggested to the enemy that their codes had been broken. Incidentally, did you know that one of the suggested names for Peacehaven was New Anzac-on-Sea? Not sure why New Anzac. What brilliant - and immensely moving - pictures NeilsYard!

I'm clearly amazed how naive you people are about WWII. There is nothing in that letter that hints of a sacrifice, in fact if my memory serves me well the word sacrifice by Churchill wasn't mentioned till well over twenty years after the war, and then it was thought up by someone in the RAF who was trying to shift some of the blame. But that was wrong - the RAF simply didn't have the tools. Six months later the RAF clearly showed who was boss of the skies. Now Neil's photos are good, but some of you feel the people are acting very patriotic. Why wouldn't they The Coventry people of the 20s/30s knew full well what the soldiers had suffered. Your kin were good, solid, honest, warm people, and a great city.

Telegraph article - "On this day 79 years ago: Coventry remembers the Blitz"

This very poignant photograph has been shared by Ian Tew - This is a picture of PC 25 Kenneth Rollins who was killed whilst on duty and helping others by a landmine in Coventry city centre on the night of the Coventry Blitz 79 years ago tonight, together with many other people of Coventry. Remembered tonight by his son John Rollins (my father in law) who still lives in Coventry. Marked by this small grave PC 25 Kenneth Rollins is buried near Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. It shows PC Rollins at the junction of Hales St and Burges - The family have a collection of items, including this police torch that were recovered from Kenneth. His sad death was recorded in this extract from 'The Blitzed City' book - I supposed these could have gone in the Police thread or Hales St etc. but felt it a way to remember the fallen from that sad time. Thanks to Ian and his family for allowing me to share this here.

Oh gosh, I remember him facially, not of him, but everyone remembered those 'old bobbies' on point duty, pointed out to us when little to behave. We saw them so often, they were part and parcel of the city, little old ladies would pass them sweets, occasionally they would dash from their point to sort out whatever trouble arose. It didn't take us kids long to know they kept the city running smooth and safe so we could wander safely about the city. Yes, the sort of guy you wanted to live up to when in a tough spot.

Lest We Forget

To add a splash of colour to this topic, Steve and I popped along to the ruins this evening to see the stunning light show "Where Light Falls". It's still on tomorrow, 5 till 9pm, for one last opportunity to see it.

Here's a useful and informative link about the blitz victims.

Rob. Jeanette and I went to see that on Saturday night. Daft me if I had thought about it properly I should have arranged to meet up. We had a few in The Golden Cross afterwards. I have to say town was really busy and it was probably the most enjoyable night I have had out in Coventry city centre for years. Probably helped by us securing a table in The Cross with two leather chairs right by the radiator and right in the corner so we could look out on to Bayley Lane/Cuckoo Lane. It was actually very evocative - sitting there looking out through the leaded windows and after the performance I almost felt like I could be back in old Coventry for a short while. That section of town still retains a special feeling with its narrow lanes and 'proper-Cov' buildings.

Oh WOW! What a lovely sight.

For anyone wanting to see a 3hr video of "Where Light Falls" on YouTube, a link.