The story
At 1200 hours, 20 German bombers escorted by 30 Bf 109 fighters flew for London, England, United Kingdom, but the group was intercepted by British fighters; 3 German bombers and 1 German fighter were shot down at the cost of 4 British fighters. At 1930 hours, 30 German bombers dropped incendiary bombs on London, causing fires for the purpose of marking target zones for bombers that would arrive during the night. The night time raid saw bombs dropped on East End in London once more; 3 of the German night raiders were shot down by anti-aircraft guns. Meanwhile, the British War Cabinet was convinced that the German invasion of Britain would take place very soon. The warnings passed to local Home Forces commanders led to many church bells across England being rung as some commanders thought the invasion had already started; some of them went as far as blowing up bridges. Finally, on this day, the British government declared the National Day of Prayer.
There's more to discover
You have arrived at just one small part of Back to Normandy — a personal project dedicated to preserving stories, images, music and memories of the Second World War.
Every record is a doorway to a larger story. Explore Back to Normandy to discover more, or visit Fred Vogels' personal website to learn about the person and the projects behind it.