Air raids on Ludwigshafen am Rhein
The air raids on Ludwigshafen in World War II destroyed around 80% of the city center of Ludwigshafen . Around 1,846 residents were killed and 3,147 injured. Some 600 foreign workers were also among the dead, many of whom were forced laborers . A total of 124 British and US air strikes were carried out on Ludwigshafen, during which an estimated 140,000 incendiary bombs and 1,200 high explosive bombs were dropped. Ludwigshafen is one of the most bombed cities in the German Empire .
Chronology of the attacks
The first attack took place on June 3, 1940. This very weak attack dropped only a few bombs. Another attack occurred on the night of June 4th to 5th. This was mainly aimed at the Oppau district. However, the damage remained minor.
Between the end of October 1941 and the beginning of August 1943 there were eight further air raids, mainly on the BASF factory premises .
On the night of August 9th to 10th, 1943, the area bombing directive carried out the first heavy British night raid. About 300 British bombers attacked the city for an hour, killing 88 people and injuring 238.
On 5th / 6th September 1943 there was another major British attack, which was the most devastating attack of the entire war in Ludwigshafen. Around 500 bombers dropped 357 high-explosive bombs and 77,250 incendiary bombs . 127 people died and 568 were injured in the attack. Around 55,000 people were left homeless.
From the end of 1943 on, there were several other air raids. Now American day attacks aimed at industrial plants alternated with British night bombing .
At the end of 1944, most of the residents were evacuated to the surrounding area. Only people who were involved in war-related factories remained in the city. While the population of the city was 144,000 before the war, this number sank to only 50,000 in March 1945. The last air raid on the city took place on March 15, 1945.
The relatively low number of 1,846 deaths in relation to the population and the frequency and severity of the air raids was due to the fact that a large number of air raid shelters had been built in Ludwigshafen in good time .
Video link
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Ulrike Minor: Ludwigshafen 1945 - end of the war and a new democratic beginning . Ed .: Lothar Meinzer, Peter Ruf. Ludwigshafen am Rhein 1995.
- ↑ http://www.rheinpfalz.de/artikel/ludwigshafen-drohte-die-atombombe/
- ↑ http://oppau.info/2011/11/04/oppau-im-2-weltkrieg/