Jump to content

Civilian casualties of strategic bombing: Difference between revisions

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Stop trying to legitimize the atomic bombings as having been aimed at military targets
(61 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
[[Image:The_Sandman_a_B-24_Liberator,_piloted_by_Robert_Sternfels.jpg|thumb|250px|right|B-24 "Sandman" on a bomb run over the Astra Romana refinery in [[Ploieşti]], [[Romania]], during [[Operation Tidal Wave]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Duga |first=James |author2=Stewart, Carroll |title=Ploesti |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=KV8Ma-VA6fIC&pg=RA1-PA180 |format=html--Google books |page= |accessdate=2009-03-26 | isbn=978-1-57488-510-1 | year=2002 | publisher=Brassey's}}</ref>]]
[[Image:The_Sandman_a_B-24_Liberator,_piloted_by_Robert_Sternfels.jpg|thumb|250px|right|B-24 "Sandman" on a bomb run over the Astra Romana refinery in [[Ploieşti]], [[Romania]], during [[Operation Tidal Wave]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Duga |first=James |author2=Stewart, Carroll |title=Ploesti |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=KV8Ma-VA6fIC&pg=RA1-PA180 |format=html--Google books |page= |accessdate=2009-03-26 | isbn=978-1-57488-510-1 | year=2002 | publisher=Brassey's}}</ref>]]


This article lists the [[Strategic bombing during World War II|strategic bombing campaigns]] and their civilian death tolls during [[World War II]].
This article lists the [[strategic bombing]] of [[cities]] and [[town]]s and their death tolls of [[civilians]] throughout history, starting from [[World War I]] and is still practiced today.


==Spanish Civil War (1936–1939)==
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
! City
! City/Town
! Country
! Date
! Estimated death toll
! Attacking force
! Notes
|-
| [[Jaén, Spain|Jaén]]
| [[Spain]]
| 1 April 1937
| 159
| [[German Luftwaffe]] "[[Condor Legion]]"
| See: [[Bombing of Jaén]].
|-
| [[Guernica]]
| [[Spain]]
| 26 April 1937
| 126–400
| [[German Luftwaffe]] "[[Condor Legion]]" and the [[Italian Fascist]] [[Aviazione Legionaria]]
| Considered to be the first aerial attack that caused widespread destruction of a city in [[military aviation]] history.<br/>See: [[Bombing of Guernica]].
|-
| [[Barcelona]]
| [[Spain]]
| 16–19 March 1938
| 1,000–1,300
| [[Italian Fascist]] [[Aviazione Legionaria]]
| See: [[Bombing of Barcelona]].
|-
| [[Alicante]]
| [[Spain]]
| 25 May 1938
| 275–393
| [[Italian Fascist]] [[Aviazione Legionaria]]
| See: [[Bombing of Alicante]].
|-
| [[Granollers]]
| [[Spain]]
| 31 May 1938
| 100–224
| [[Italian Fascist]] [[Aviazione Legionaria]]
| See: [[Bombing of Granollers]].
|-
| [[La Garriga]]
| [[Spain]]
| 28–29 January 1939
| 13
| [[Italian Fascist]] [[Aviazione Legionaria]]
| See: [[Bombing of La Garriga]].
|}

==Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945)==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! City/Town
! Country
! Date
! Estimated death toll
! Attacking force
! Notes
|-
| [[Nanking]]
| [[China]]
| 25 September 1937
| 600
| [[Imperial Japanese Army Air Service]]
| See: [[Battle of Nanking#Aerial_bombardment of Nanking|Bombing of Nanking]].
|-
| [[Guangzhou]]
| [[China]]
| 28 May 1938 and 4 June 1938<ref name="BOM">[http://ww2db.com/battle_spec.php?battle_id=281 Bombing of Shanghai, Chongqing, and other Cities]</ref><ref name="LIFE">LIFE, June 20, 1938, Page 9</ref>
| 1,400-1,450
| [[Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service]]
| Japanese naval bombers attacked Guangzhou, killing 700–750 civilians and wounding 1,350 on 28 May 1938. Seven days later, the city was attacked again, causing an estimated 2,000 casualties (700 deaths). Combined the dates, an estimated 1,400–1,450 Chinese civilians were killed.<ref name="BOM"></ref><ref name="LIFE"></ref>
|}

==World War II (1939–1945)==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! City/Town
! Country
! Date
! Date
! Estimated death toll
! Estimated death toll
Line 12: Line 92:
|-
|-
| [[Rotterdam]]
| [[Rotterdam]]
| [[Netherlands]]
| 14 May 1940
| 14 May 1940
| 884
| 884
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Rotterdam Blitz]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Rotterdam Blitz]].
|-
|-
| [[London]]
| [[London]]
| [[United Kingdom]]
| 7 September 1940
| 7 September 1940
| 430
| 430
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[London Blitz]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[London Blitz]].
|-
|-
| [[Coventry]]
| [[Coventry]]
| [[United Kingdom]]
| 14 November 1940
| 14 November 1940
| 568
| 568
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Coventry Blitz]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Coventry Blitz]].
|-
|-
| [[Birmingham]]
| [[Birmingham]]
| [[United Kingdom]]
| 19 November 1940
| 19 November 1940
| 450
| 450
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Birmingham Blitz]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Birmingham Blitz]].
|-
| [[Bristol]]
| [[United Kingdom]]
| 24 November 1940
| 207
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Bristol Blitz]].
|-
| [[Belgrade]]
| [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]]
| 6–8 April 1941
| 1,500–17,000
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| See: [[Bombing of Belgrade in World War II]].
|-
|-
| [[Chongqing]]
| [[Chongqing]]
| [[China]]
| 5 June 1941
| 5 June 1941
| 4,000
| 4,000
| [[IJAAF]] and the [[Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service|IJNAF]]
| [[Imperial Japanese Army Air Service]] and the [[Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service]]
| [[Conflagration]]. Within three hours of bombing, 4,000 residents were [[asphyxiated]] to death.<br/>See also: [[Bombing of Chongqing]].
| [[Conflagration]]. Within three hours of bombing, 4,000 residents were [[asphyxiated]] to death.<br/>See: [[Bombing of Chongqing]].
|-
| [[Leningrad]]
| [[Russia]]
| 19 September 1941
| 1,000
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| See: [[Siege of Leningrad]].
|-
| [[Paris]]
| [[France]]
| 2–3 March 1942
| 600
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| See: [[Bombing of France during World War II]].
|-
| [[Rangoon]]
| [[Burma]]
| 23 and 25 December 1941
| 1,250-7,000
| [[Imperial Japanese Army Air Service]]
| Lack of adequate protection of the city caused extensive damage to houses and mass civilian casualties.<br/>See: [[Japanese conquest of Burma]].
|-
|-
| [[Cologne]]
| [[Cologne]]
| [[Germany]]
| 30–31 May 1942
| 30–31 May 1942
| 469-486
| 411
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Bombing of Cologne in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Bombing of Cologne in World War II]].
|-
|-
| [[Stalingrad]]
| [[Stalingrad]]
| [[Russia]]
| 23 August 1942
| 23 August 1942
| 25,000–40,000<ref name="STALIN">[http://www.akademediasrbija.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6957:at-stalingrad-ante-pavelic-and-the-hrvatska-legija-1941-1943&catid=45:english&Itemid=59 AT STALINGRAD: ANTE PAVELIC AND THE HRVATSKA LEGIJA, 1941-1943.]</ref>
|
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Oberkommando der Luftwaffe|Oberkommando der]] [[Luftwaffe]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Bombing of Stalingrad in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]]. Over 1,000 German planes flew 1,660 sorties, dropping 1,000 tons of [[incendiary bombs]] on the first day of the [[Battle of Stalingrad]], effectively gutting the city's residential area.<ref name="STALIN"></ref><br/>See: [[Bombing of Stalingrad in World War II]].
|-
|-
| [[Hamburg]]
| [[Hamburg]]
| [[Germany]]
| 24–30 July 1943
| 24–30 July 1943
| 42,600{{sfn|Frankland|Webster|1961|pp=260-261}}
| 42,600{{sfn|Frankland|Webster|1961|pp=260-261}}
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]] and the [[USAAF]] [[Eighth Air Force]]
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]] and the [[USAAF]] [[Eighth Air Force]]
| [[Firestorm]].{{sfn|Dyson|2006|p=3}}<br/>See also: [[Battle of Hamburg (air)|Battle of Hamburg]].
| [[Firestorm]].{{sfn|Dyson|2006|p=3}}<br/>See: [[Battle of Hamburg (air)|Battle of Hamburg]].
|-
|-
| [[Kassel]]
| [[Kassel]]
| [[Germany]]
| 22-23 October 1943
| 22–23 October 1943
| 10,000
| 10,000
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Bombing of Kassel in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Bombing of Kassel in World War II]].
|-
|-
| [[Augsburg]]
| [[Augsburg]]
| [[Germany]]
| 25-26 February 1944
| 25–26 February 1944
| 730
| 730
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]] and the [[USAAF]] [[Eighth Air Force]]
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]] and the [[USAAF]] [[Eighth Air Force]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Bombing of Augsburg in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Bombing of Augsburg in World War II]].
|-
| [[Caen]]
| [[France]]
| 7 July 1944
| 400
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| The bombing failed, as the main German armor and infantry positions to the north of Caen remained intact. The markers were dropped too far forward, pushing the bombed zone well into Caen itself and further away from the German defenses, and thus inflicting heavy French civilian casualties.<br/>See: [[Operation Charnwood]].
|-
|-
| [[Darmstadt]]
| [[Darmstadt]]
| [[Germany]]
| 11–12 September 1944
| 11–12 September 1944
| 11,500
| 11,500
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Bombing of Darmstadt in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Bombing of Darmstadt in World War II]].
|-
| [[Duisburg]]
| [[Germany]]
| 14–15 October 1944
| 2,500
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Bombing of Duisburg in World War II]].
|-
| [[Ulm]]
| [[Germany]]
| 17 December 1944
| 707<ref name="ULM">[http://www.desertwar.net/bombing-of-ulm-in-world-war-ii.html Bombing of Ulm in World War II]</ref>
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[Firestorm]].<ref name="ULM"></ref><br/>See: [[Bombing of Ulm in World War II]].
|-
|-
| [[Dresden]]
| [[Dresden]]
| [[Germany]]
| 13–15 February 1945
| 13–15 February 1945
| 22,700-25,000{{sfn|Neutzner|2010|p=17}}
| 22,700–25,000{{sfn|Neutzner|2010|p=17}}
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]] and the [[USAAF]] [[Eighth Air Force]]
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]] and the [[USAAF]] [[Eighth Air Force]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/> See also: [[Bombing of Dresden in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/> See: [[Bombing of Dresden in World War II]].
|-
|-
| [[Pforzheim]]
| [[Pforzheim]]
| [[Germany]]
| 23 February 1945
| 23 February 1945
| 17,600
| 17,600
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/> See also: [[Bombing of Pforzheim in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/> See: [[Bombing of Pforzheim in World War II]].
|-
| [[The Hague]]
| [[Netherlands]]
| 3 March 1945
| 551
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| The high rate of civilian casualties resulted due to the wrong coordinates given to RAF pilots which dropped the bombs on the densely-populated neighborhood of [[Bezuidenhout]] instead of [[Haagse Bos]] where the Germans had installed [[V-2]] launching facilities that had been used to attack English cities.<br/>See: [[Bombing of the Bezuidenhout]].
|-
|-
| [[Tokyo]]
| [[Tokyo]]
| [[Japan]]
| 9–10 March 1945
| 9–10 March 1945
| 88,000-100,000
| 88,000–100,000
| [[USAAF]] [[Twentieth Air Force]]
| [[USAAF]] [[Twentieth Air Force]]
| [[Conflagration]]. 279 [[B-29]]s dropped about {{convert|1,700|ST|MT}} of bombs, destroying 16 square miles (41 km²) of the city.<ref name=Mar45Chronology>[http://www.usaaf.net/chron/45/mar45.htm U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II: Combat Chronology. ''March 1945''.] Air Force Historical Studies Office. Retrieved 3 March 2009.</ref> <ref>{{citation |url=http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/17724/page5/ |last=Freeman Dyson. |title=Part I: A Failure of Intelligence |work=Technology Review |date=1 November 2006 |publisher= [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]]}}</ref><ref>[http://japanfocus.org/products/details/1581 David McNeill. "The night hell fell from the sky". ''Japan Focus'', 10 March 2005].</ref> <ref>Rhodes, Richard. ''The Making of the Atomic Bomb''. p 599. Simon & Schuster Paperbacks (1984) ISBN 0-684-81378-5.</ref> <ref>[http://www.japanfocus.org/-Mark-Selden/2414 Mark Selden. "A Forgotten Holocaust: US Bombing Strategy, the Destruction of Japanese Cities and the American Way of War from the Pacific War to Iraq". ''Japan Focus'', 2 May 2007].</ref> <br/>See also: [[Bombing of Tokyo]].
| [[Conflagration]]. 279 [[B-29]]s dropped about {{convert|1,700|ST|MT}} of bombs, destroying 16 square miles (41 km²) of the city.<ref name=Mar45Chronology>[http://www.usaaf.net/chron/45/mar45.htm U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II: Combat Chronology. ''March 1945''.] Air Force Historical Studies Office. Retrieved 3 March 2009.</ref> <ref>{{citation |url=http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/17724/page5/ |last=Freeman Dyson. |title=Part I: A Failure of Intelligence |work=Technology Review |date=1 November 2006 |publisher= [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]]}}</ref><ref>[http://japanfocus.org/products/details/1581 David McNeill. "The night hell fell from the sky". ''Japan Focus'', 10 March 2005].</ref> <ref>Rhodes, Richard. ''The Making of the Atomic Bomb''. p 599. Simon & Schuster Paperbacks (1984) ISBN 0-684-81378-5.</ref> <ref>[http://www.japanfocus.org/-Mark-Selden/2414 Mark Selden. "A Forgotten Holocaust: US Bombing Strategy, the Destruction of Japanese Cities and the American Way of War from the Pacific War to Iraq". ''Japan Focus'', 2 May 2007].</ref> <br/>See: [[Bombing of Tokyo]]
|-
| [[Osaka]]
| [[Japan]]
| 13–14 March 1945
| 3,987
| [[USAAF]] [[Twentieth Air Force]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Bombing of Osaka]].
|-
|-
| [[Würzburg]]
| [[Würzburg]]
| [[Germany]]
| 16 March 1945
| 16 March 1945
| 5,000
| 5,000
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[RAF]] [[RAF Bomber Command|Bomber Command]]
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See also: [[Bombing of Würzburg in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]].<br/>See: [[Bombing of Würzburg in World War II]].
|-
|-
| [[Kobe]]
| [[Kobe]]
| [[Japan]]
| 16-17 March 1945
| 16–17 March 1945
| 8,841<ref name = tact-43>21st Bomber Command Tactical Mission Report 43, April 19th, 1945</ref>
| 8,841<ref name = tact-43>21st Bomber Command Tactical Mission Report 43, April 19th, 1945</ref>
| [[USAAF]] [[Twentieth Air Force]]
| [[USAAF]] [[Twentieth Air Force]]
| [[Firestorm]].<ref name = tact-43>21st Bomber Command Tactical Mission Report 43, April 19th, 1945</ref><br/>See also: [[Bombing of Kobe in World War II]].
| [[Firestorm]].<ref name = tact-43>21st Bomber Command Tactical Mission Report 43, April 19th, 1945</ref><br/>See: [[Bombing of Kobe in World War II]].
|-
| [[Taipei]]
| [[Taiwan]]
| 31 May 1945
| 3,000
| [[USAAF]] [[Fifth Air Force]]
| See: [[Raid on Taipei]].
|-
| [[Aomori, Aomori|Aomori]]
| [[Japan]]
| 29 July 1945
| 1,767<ref name="TED">Wainstock. ''The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb''. Page 9</ref>
| [[USAAF]] [[Twentieth Air Force]]
| [[Firestorm]].<ref name="TED"></ref><br/>See: [[Bombing of Aomori in World War II]]
|-
|-
| [[Hiroshima]]
| [[Hiroshima]]
| [[Japan]]
| 6 August 1945
| 6 August 1945
| 90,000–166,000
| 50,000–60,000
| [[USAAF]] [[393rd Bomb Squadron]]
| [[USAAF]] [[393rd Bomb Squadron]]
| First ever [[nuclear attack]]. [[Uranium]]-based [[nuclear weapon]]: codename [[Little Boy]].<br/> Roughly 90,000–166,000 people were killed; the exact number of deaths is difficult to determine. See also: [[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]].
| First ever [[nuclear attack]]. [[Uranium]]-based [[nuclear weapon]]: codename [[Little Boy]].<br/>See: [[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]].
|-
|-
| [[Nagasaki]]
| [[Nagasaki]]
| [[Japan]]
| 9 August 1945
| 9 August 1945
| 39,000–80,000
| 35,000–40,000
| [[USAAF]] [[393rd Bomb Squadron]]
| [[USAAF]] [[393rd Bomb Squadron]]
| [[Plutonium]]-based [[nuclear weapon]]: codename [[Fat Man]].<ref>''Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation'' (BEIR VII; Report to the National Academies of Science), 2007</ref><br/> Roughly 39,000–80,000 deaths resulted from bomb effects. See also: [[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]].
| [[Plutonium]]-based [[nuclear weapon]]: codename [[Fat Man]].<ref>''Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation'' (BEIR VII; Report to the National Academies of Science), 2007</ref><br/>See: [[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]].
|}
|}


Line 126: Line 308:
* [[Roerich Pact]]
* [[Roerich Pact]]
* [[Strategic bombing]]
* [[Strategic bombing]]
* [[Terror bombing]]


==Notes==
==Notes==

Revision as of 20:05, 11 August 2014

B-24 "Sandman" on a bomb run over the Astra Romana refinery in Ploieşti, Romania, during Operation Tidal Wave.[1]

This article lists the strategic bombing of cities and towns and their death tolls of civilians throughout history, starting from World War I and is still practiced today.

Spanish Civil War (1936–1939)

City/Town Country Date Estimated death toll Attacking force Notes
Jaén Spain 1 April 1937 159 German Luftwaffe "Condor Legion" See: Bombing of Jaén.
Guernica Spain 26 April 1937 126–400 German Luftwaffe "Condor Legion" and the Italian Fascist Aviazione Legionaria Considered to be the first aerial attack that caused widespread destruction of a city in military aviation history.
See: Bombing of Guernica.
Barcelona Spain 16–19 March 1938 1,000–1,300 Italian Fascist Aviazione Legionaria See: Bombing of Barcelona.
Alicante Spain 25 May 1938 275–393 Italian Fascist Aviazione Legionaria See: Bombing of Alicante.
Granollers Spain 31 May 1938 100–224 Italian Fascist Aviazione Legionaria See: Bombing of Granollers.
La Garriga Spain 28–29 January 1939 13 Italian Fascist Aviazione Legionaria See: Bombing of La Garriga.

Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945)

City/Town Country Date Estimated death toll Attacking force Notes
Nanking China 25 September 1937 600 Imperial Japanese Army Air Service See: Bombing of Nanking.
Guangzhou China 28 May 1938 and 4 June 1938[2][3] 1,400-1,450 Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service Japanese naval bombers attacked Guangzhou, killing 700–750 civilians and wounding 1,350 on 28 May 1938. Seven days later, the city was attacked again, causing an estimated 2,000 casualties (700 deaths). Combined the dates, an estimated 1,400–1,450 Chinese civilians were killed.[2][3]

World War II (1939–1945)

City/Town Country Date Estimated death toll Attacking force Notes
Rotterdam Netherlands 14 May 1940 884 Oberkommando der Luftwaffe Firestorm.
See: Rotterdam Blitz.
London United Kingdom 7 September 1940 430 Oberkommando der Luftwaffe Firestorm.
See: London Blitz.
Coventry United Kingdom 14 November 1940 568 Oberkommando der Luftwaffe Firestorm.
See: Coventry Blitz.
Birmingham United Kingdom 19 November 1940 450 Oberkommando der Luftwaffe Firestorm.
See: Birmingham Blitz.
Bristol United Kingdom 24 November 1940 207 Oberkommando der Luftwaffe Firestorm.
See: Bristol Blitz.
Belgrade Kingdom of Yugoslavia 6–8 April 1941 1,500–17,000 Oberkommando der Luftwaffe See: Bombing of Belgrade in World War II.
Chongqing China 5 June 1941 4,000 Imperial Japanese Army Air Service and the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service Conflagration. Within three hours of bombing, 4,000 residents were asphyxiated to death.
See: Bombing of Chongqing.
Leningrad Russia 19 September 1941 1,000 Oberkommando der Luftwaffe See: Siege of Leningrad.
Paris France 2–3 March 1942 600 RAF Bomber Command See: Bombing of France during World War II.
Rangoon Burma 23 and 25 December 1941 1,250-7,000 Imperial Japanese Army Air Service Lack of adequate protection of the city caused extensive damage to houses and mass civilian casualties.
See: Japanese conquest of Burma.
Cologne Germany 30–31 May 1942 411 RAF Bomber Command Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Cologne in World War II.
Stalingrad Russia 23 August 1942 25,000–40,000[4] Oberkommando der Luftwaffe Firestorm. Over 1,000 German planes flew 1,660 sorties, dropping 1,000 tons of incendiary bombs on the first day of the Battle of Stalingrad, effectively gutting the city's residential area.[4]
See: Bombing of Stalingrad in World War II.
Hamburg Germany 24–30 July 1943 42,600[5] RAF Bomber Command and the USAAF Eighth Air Force Firestorm.[6]
See: Battle of Hamburg.
Kassel Germany 22–23 October 1943 10,000 RAF Bomber Command Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Kassel in World War II.
Augsburg Germany 25–26 February 1944 730 RAF Bomber Command and the USAAF Eighth Air Force Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Augsburg in World War II.
Caen France 7 July 1944 400 RAF Bomber Command The bombing failed, as the main German armor and infantry positions to the north of Caen remained intact. The markers were dropped too far forward, pushing the bombed zone well into Caen itself and further away from the German defenses, and thus inflicting heavy French civilian casualties.
See: Operation Charnwood.
Darmstadt Germany 11–12 September 1944 11,500 RAF Bomber Command Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Darmstadt in World War II.
Duisburg Germany 14–15 October 1944 2,500 RAF Bomber Command Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Duisburg in World War II.
Ulm Germany 17 December 1944 707[7] RAF Bomber Command Firestorm.[7]
See: Bombing of Ulm in World War II.
Dresden Germany 13–15 February 1945 22,700–25,000[8] RAF Bomber Command and the USAAF Eighth Air Force Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Dresden in World War II.
Pforzheim Germany 23 February 1945 17,600 RAF Bomber Command Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Pforzheim in World War II.
The Hague Netherlands 3 March 1945 551 RAF Bomber Command The high rate of civilian casualties resulted due to the wrong coordinates given to RAF pilots which dropped the bombs on the densely-populated neighborhood of Bezuidenhout instead of Haagse Bos where the Germans had installed V-2 launching facilities that had been used to attack English cities.
See: Bombing of the Bezuidenhout.
Tokyo Japan 9–10 March 1945 88,000–100,000 USAAF Twentieth Air Force Conflagration. 279 B-29s dropped about 1,700 short tons (1,500 t) of bombs, destroying 16 square miles (41 km²) of the city.[9] [10][11] [12] [13]
See: Bombing of Tokyo
Osaka Japan 13–14 March 1945 3,987 USAAF Twentieth Air Force Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Osaka.
Würzburg Germany 16 March 1945 5,000 RAF Bomber Command Firestorm.
See: Bombing of Würzburg in World War II.
Kobe Japan 16–17 March 1945 8,841[14] USAAF Twentieth Air Force Firestorm.[14]
See: Bombing of Kobe in World War II.
Taipei Taiwan 31 May 1945 3,000 USAAF Fifth Air Force See: Raid on Taipei.
Aomori Japan 29 July 1945 1,767[15] USAAF Twentieth Air Force Firestorm.[15]
See: Bombing of Aomori in World War II
Hiroshima Japan 6 August 1945 50,000–60,000 USAAF 393rd Bomb Squadron First ever nuclear attack. Uranium-based nuclear weapon: codename Little Boy.
See: Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Nagasaki Japan 9 August 1945 35,000–40,000 USAAF 393rd Bomb Squadron Plutonium-based nuclear weapon: codename Fat Man.[16]
See: Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Duga, James; Stewart, Carroll (2002). Ploesti (html--Google books). Brassey's. ISBN 978-1-57488-510-1. Retrieved 2009-03-26.
  2. ^ a b Bombing of Shanghai, Chongqing, and other Cities
  3. ^ a b LIFE, June 20, 1938, Page 9
  4. ^ a b AT STALINGRAD: ANTE PAVELIC AND THE HRVATSKA LEGIJA, 1941-1943.
  5. ^ Frankland & Webster 1961, pp. 260–261.
  6. ^ Dyson 2006, p. 3.
  7. ^ a b Bombing of Ulm in World War II
  8. ^ Neutzner 2010, p. 17.
  9. ^ U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II: Combat Chronology. March 1945. Air Force Historical Studies Office. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  10. ^ Freeman Dyson. (1 November 2006), "Part I: A Failure of Intelligence", Technology Review, MIT
  11. ^ David McNeill. "The night hell fell from the sky". Japan Focus, 10 March 2005.
  12. ^ Rhodes, Richard. The Making of the Atomic Bomb. p 599. Simon & Schuster Paperbacks (1984) ISBN 0-684-81378-5.
  13. ^ Mark Selden. "A Forgotten Holocaust: US Bombing Strategy, the Destruction of Japanese Cities and the American Way of War from the Pacific War to Iraq". Japan Focus, 2 May 2007.
  14. ^ a b 21st Bomber Command Tactical Mission Report 43, April 19th, 1945 Cite error: The named reference "tact-43" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  15. ^ a b Wainstock. The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb. Page 9
  16. ^ Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation (BEIR VII; Report to the National Academies of Science), 2007

References


Stub icon

This article on military history is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Civilian_casualties_of_strategic_bombing&oldid=620815760"