Hi, everybody, welcome to Dance Knows history hit today in 1948. Years ago today, one of the most infamous aerial attacks of all time, an attack on the British city of Coventry that took place on the night of the 14th of November. Through the morning of the 15th of November 1940, over four thousand homes were destroyed.

A third of the city's factories were completely destroyed or severely damaged. The other two thirds suffered damage ranging from slight to bad. Nearly 600 people were killed and over a thousand badly injured. This was an attack so severe, so dramatic that it represented a ratcheting up of the bombing of civilian areas by combatants in the Second World War. And indeed, it became a verb to Coventry meant to annihilate an enemy town or city. Joining me on the podcast to commemorate the 80th anniversary of this terrible event, I would like to bring Coventry, but lockdown conditions here in the UK means I can't go.

So joining me here on the podcast to do a virtual commemoration of this event is the historian and Coventry resident David McCrorie. You'll hear that his father and mother were caught up in the bombing and he's got a comprehensive knowledge of what went on that night, both on the military side, but also the impact for civilians living in and near Coventry itself. If you want to go and watch our documentary that we filmed a few months ago just before lockdown began, you can go to history hit TV.

We've got the firebombing of Coventry documentary. It's one of many documentaries on our new TV station history hit TV. Use the code pod one podi one and you get a month for free and your second month, just £1 euro or dollar. And it was a great it's a great honour to make films like this that other broadcasters just aren't making anymore, commemorating one of the saddest nights in British history. In the meantime, everyone here is David McCrorie enjoy.

David, thank you so much, kind of the podcast. Explain to me what Coventry was like in 1939, 1940, country was busy. It was an industrial city, loads of factories built in most of the cars. It was becoming one of the richest cities in the country, mainly through its industries in that. So you had this massive sort of industrial base in the city, mainly car factories in lots of engineering works and places like Alfred Herbertson, which which was a world firm.

It was a busy place, a lot of people.

And there was a beautiful medieval city centre as well. Yeah.

Country was said it was one of the best preserved medieval cities in Europe, basically. And when you actually look at some of the older pictures, there were the streets. It was absolutely chock a block full of timbered houses. But they started to make inroads into that from 1930 onward, where in 1936 they knocked down Birchgrove, which was absolutely beautiful, medieval street going down the hillside. And they just knocked that down for easier access for the motorcar to Broadway because they'd already got plans before the war to rebuild.

They took John Gibson back in the designer back in 1935, 36, that he was looking to where the council looking to change everything at plans to knock off the city that basically even before the war.

An important reminder that we can't blame the Luftwaffe for the reshaping and ruination of Britain's medieval architectural heritage, but was an important place for the war effort. David?

Oh, yeah. Yeah, without a doubt, because it was so exciting because the actual amount of industry in the city, it's like when the war broke out there instantly changing everything into war production, they're producing bombers. The first the wetly bomber course was was built in Country Armstrong, which was just outside William Barington. That was the first major sort of workhorse of the RAAF 1936. And it was used in those sort of early periods of the war, but for use by that time and was used later on mainly for dropping propaganda and parachutists and things like that.

Then GIRLISHLY, of course, it was the main bomber. But of course, when that was superseded by Lancasters Manchester's and Allsorts and all those were built in country as well and mosquitoes, it was thousands of Mosquita. A bomb was built by the standard and stuff spitfire's Paskin Foreign Mechanism's Wales by the Dunlop four bombers Spitfires firing mechanisms for Spitfire's military vehicles. Anything, everything you think of me.

And tell me about this week, 80 years ago. Do we know why the Germans singled out Coventry for this gigantic assault?

What happened effectively was Hitler was giving the speech at Baker, the birthplace of the Nazi party, effectively in Munich, and the RAAF actually bombed them and Hitler had to be bundled off into other now into a cellar or something to get out of the way. And of course, he was really annoyed about this. We know this because of the Nuremberg trials from what Goering said, and Hitler wanted retribution effectively. And he suggested that they hit London this war.

He wanted to hit London back. But Gerring said there's no point in it in London. You hit London and you it gets lost is such a big city, it gets lost and incurring suggested they hit Coventry because it's all within a tight centre. And you can in that way, you can actually literally burn it and create a firestorm and burn the city out. So it was actually Goering's idea that came after the the war trials, basically. That's what he actually said, that we do know why they did it.

They didn't do it purely because of industry in that. And it became a double whammy because they could hit industry, but only that they hit 35 factories, basically. But the actual directions for the attack says, contrary to all of the city, is a target. Although they did single out and on factory, all of the city by the German directive was the hit was the time.

Tell me about that raid that began on the 14th of November, 1940.

It started off, of course, in France and it was advanced with the Pathfinder Squadron. That was sent over first thing was that day as well, once and about 24 other German bases were bombed because they knew there was going to be an attack in England, but they didn't know exactly where it was. I thought it was going to be on London and it was go over as far as Gravesend and places. And they sent over. They started Operation Cold Water and hit at least 24 German bases and radar stations, including France, which is the Pathfinder squadrons base.

And despite that, of course, it still when there's a sort of mix of numbers, strangely, the Germans didn't seem to have keep a proper amount of numbers on this, which is usually they're pretty good in numbers. They keep their numbers. But this they don't they never seem to be sure. And it's between 440000 and 500 bombers. But they sort of started the evening by sending off Congress a 100, which was following what I call Xterra System, which is basically a single being, the following a single beam, which was at the time directed over Coventry.

Then you get to intercepting beams that are sent from different places, intercept the single beam, if you will have been. When you saw start to leave, of course, it starts to break up, so you get into it again, so you always follow the pain. So when you reach the first crossbeam, it actually starts off telling you you're nearing the target. Then the second plane is crossed. And that is supposed to they said at the time there is supposed to start these crude onboard computers to start the actual bombing raid on these Pathfinder's in Hans's or crude computer systems.

And that actually started the bomber. So they followed the system basically on the country. The first one's ever come together for the Pathfinder's. There's about 13 of them were actually carrying about 10000 incendiaries and about 200 bombs and also, of course, loads of flares as well. Like great chandeliers basically dropping into the sky. People always remember these flares dropping like chandeliers. So the president is coming out the city just after seven o'clock.

They start coming out of the city and without fully drowning the German planes, might they have this whole broken sound that they make is in and out of that.

And then, of course. The flares are dropped and they also the chandeliers in the sky. People say no, not huge chandeliers in the sky, basically. And amongst the flares are incendiary smartphone bombs. And this group is coming over for the first hour, basically, and start to set the target. They're actually they're laying target. Staff, firefighters, basically, so when all the other ones are going to come over, which is soon after, which is literally within 20 minutes of the last person to come in over, the other groups of bombers came over you, Antonia's and all sorts of stuff.

Younkers They all followed in waves literally about every 15 to 20 minutes, maybe about 20 planes crossing in different directions. They were crisscrossing over the city, so lacing it with bombs and incendiaries. And of course, that was the first time they use the exploding incendiary smell during that ride. Which, of course, call our people are because people have been shown how to deal with normal incendiary bombs, which don't blow up in your face. People were told to put sandbag over the sandbag and drop it on the incendiary.

And afterwards they realized that these things can flare up in your face. So they told you to go with the sandbag in front of your face and drop it on the bomb. But we can't if you have a job doing that anyway because they thought they were sending phosphorus in the air all over the place. So you've had sort of first group comes over and they lay the target within probably.

Three quarters of now you've got over 300 incidents, fire station is being sort of overwhelmed with calls and there's only 300 incidents going on then within the hour. You've literally got this one incident at the end of the city's on fire everywhere. Effectively, the firemen get out, they get into the streets and having to call in firemen from all over the areas, districts where the problem was, the city's been blown to pieces and burning. That is leading more bombers because then the bombers that came over afterwards, they could literally cross the channel.

And you could see this is what they said. You could see the light crossing the channel and all you had to do was follow that light. And they to it they could see the target effectively. But also say the farmer would getting out to the streets, bombs go in everywhere, they're safe houses all over the place. It's Dante's Inferno, effectively. The vicar of Holy Trinity Church described it as Dante's Inferno. Every time they managed to set up something.

Another bomb hits the water supply, dams or the pipes get blown to pieces and of course, they get killed, his mother in law, a fireman, killed as well. But it's like when the cathedral started, the cathedral basically under fire watch, there were seven people, including the vicar. And the stonemason proves what was happening was effectively these incendiaries would drop or swishing down a swish as they fall and they drop and they just punch a hole straight through the led the roof.

So Michael's had like the outer roof, then you had an 18 inch gap between the roof. So what they would do, they would punch through the ladder, the roof, fall inside and roll down inside. So if you were trying to find an incendiary in the roof, you're looking for a holy smoke coming out of it effectively. And that incendiary is rolled down to the end. So it's not exactly where the hole is either. So they're busy ripping up the roof and also trying to control it.

They've only got sand and water they've actually stored up. Some incendiaries have taken hold of the girls chapel and of course, they tried to deal with that as well afterwards, and it just got out of hand and they couldn't deal with it. There was too many coming over and the smoke was starting to pour up the staircase to the roof, which was obviously shown that they exit. It was cut off. So the US all climb off Dennis ladders to get off the roof.

And within a short time, fire crew arrived and they said that the lid off the roof, it was pouring off the roof like a river. Basically, that plane the hoses on it for a very short time. And, of course, all the noise, again, no water, so. It had to be left to fight effectively. They couldn't do anything. They went in to save what he could and that was the end of it. The whole building just went up in flames.

They said there were 60, 70 foot high flames, bronze flames roaring up into the sky. In a certain time, it sounded like there was an earthquake because what happened back in the 80s when they'd restored the roof, they put these massive iron bands across the church to brace it effectively. When the building was burning, the roof was burning, it was twisted these bones, and it literally pulled the whole thing in with the actual main pillars. So it just fell in.

And the people within the air within itself, like an earthquake as the actual church collapsed in on itself. Yeah. What about normal civilians?

Were there bomb shelters in Coventry?

So there was a program in 1938 of building bomb shelters around the city initially, probably about 40, 40, 50 bomb shelters. You know, small capacity is up to about five, 600 capacity shelters and they built around the city. Some of the original shelters were built like trenches, really. And of course, later on they realized that these weren't strong enough and lined them in concrete. People were literally moving from one shelter to another because, you know, the rain was going on and it was 11 hours constant bombing effectively, and and sometimes it was getting dangerous to the bomb shelter on Greyfriars Green Abdelbasset range of capacity.

They had a time when they got an unexploded bomb outside the entrance and they and it was flooded, started to float. And the boiler in there was in danger of exploding as well is unbelievable, really all the time outside. All I can hear and feel in these bombs coming down and the ground shaking and everything has been absolutely terrifying, really, when I got through here on Sunday. Nicole, what about the R.F.?

Was there any way of breaking up these raids?

No fighters were out. Only a couple of them actually said they saw anything. One German said he had a knife fight on his tail over country and he had to almost go vertical to avoid it. But, of course, the problem was by nightfall, it is up to that point they hadn't fixed the radar properly. The radar on I-40 has been shot out in front of the plane effectively, but it couldn't zero in on anything because it didn't have a triangle, which was later added.

And the actual night fighters are effectively up until November the 19th. Were propaganda because it was something to tell people that we were doing something. We got planes up there trying. But then I pointed out himself, said, when you're up there, you couldn't say anything. There could be a couple of hundred planes there, but you can't see them. And the first hit. Overnight, it was on November the 19th of Birmingham, and the police said, my God, there is something up there.

Yeah, what happened effectively with them was they talk about cancer sometimes. And of course, when they actually seem to bring out glamour and some of them were and they literally run out of ammo. But other ones, they said I remember a chap told me that his dad picked up a couple of guys from one of these anti-aircraft sites on the night and he asked him about how can we stop firing? And he says he couldn't effectively pick up the shells.

He says none of us have the strength to ram another shell into the ground effectively because, you know, they started bang, bang, bang, and then we just too tired to lift the shells. But other crews just ran out of shells. But you know, the silly things around the city Memorial Park, there was a rocket launcher, which was absolutely useless things. They looked good. They look quite impressive, you know, because last sparks and stuff, perhaps a useless taking place.

What was left in Coventry would have been destroyed. And what were the casualties?

The last bombs were dropped to about six, 20 in the morning. There was a bunch of about four or five, 200 pounders came down, and that was the sort of end of it alongside just nonstop all night. And the people sort of came out and this city center was just devastated, effectively, all the main center of the city. There is a chap called Smith who was there was a time clerk and also a history of the city. And he was a fire watcher.

And he said that he left the council house amid all this devastation because he was quite it wasn't clear. It was it was all smoke and there was dust in the air floating in the gas, cluster dust, everything. It was like a mist. And it was it was drizzling as well. By that time and he said amongst all this devastation, always remember this one. He says, I heard a starling singing. Which gave me hope for the future, and it's that's quite lovely, they think something something that when the next time you want to run the rules and pulling an incendiary bombs on between two walls and took it out with you.

In fact, when dad was blown up by a landmine that night, he was just going home and he actually popped into Radford Pub to have a half. It was really drinkable. He just opened up a mechanism and he popped in there when the riot started and they all went in the cellar and he never used to really bother going into the shelters. So after a while, he went back out and he and he stood outside of the pub watching all her bombers going over and the bombs going off in it.

And then he suddenly saw over the church opposite. He suddenly saw this parachute coming down. And he saw Jerry Boudella and he was just said, you just seen about going after it and he realized it was a big canister attached to it. And of course, it was a landmine parachute when it came down above the church and just blew. And of course, those things just blow and they blow down and outwards. They flatten things that was blown off his feet blown unconscious.

The church was blown down to its first course of stones, effectively. When dad came to we actually went over to the church and. Pulling the rocks at, you know, there was people underneath, so we spent the actual night during all the bombing helping while dragging people out from underneath the church and was about to do anything. He drank them and they stopped the car. And between him and said the chap, they ferried him backwards and forwards to this relief station during all the bombing, dodging around all the holes in the road and everything.

Basically, yes, he had a busy night. How is the bombing remembered today by the people of Coventry?

It's always remembered because to be quite honest, is part of the city's it's not just parties. History is part of what the city is now. Coventry is what it is now because of what happened that night. The city looks like what it is now because of what happened that night. Do you know what I mean? It changed the city. It was like it was almost as if it was the death of our country in the beginning of a new version of country.

Did your dad ever forget that night that was in 41, Commander?

He saw a lot of action, he was on Salana, he was on Sword Beach and he was in got machine gun boyos stink bomb at one time, he never really thought much about it. To be honest. I just is one of those things you sort of always think about, though. I did talk to him about it. I didn't talk enough about it. We should always talk more to our parents to find out these details because they just disappear with them.

That never even claimed his medals in the end because he says, well, I was only doing what had to be done effectively. So I don't see the point. Any medals.

David, thank you so much for coming on the podcast. What is your book called? That Countries Blitz that I did One Country at war and his country blitz more will contribute anything you want about country people that.

David, thank you very much indeed for joining us this very special week. Right, Chesnut.

I just a quick message at the end of this podcast, I'm currently sheltering in a small, windswept building on a piece of rock in the Bristol Channel called Lundie. I'm here to make a podcast. I'm here enduring weather that frankly is apocalyptic because I want to get some great podcast material. You guys, in return, a little tiny favor to ask if you could go to wherever you get your podcasts, if you could give it a five star rating, if you could share it, if you could give it a review.

I really appreciate that. From the comfort of your own homes, you'll be doing me a massive favor. Then more people listen to the podcast. We can do more and more ambitious things and I can spend more of my time getting pummeled. Thank you.