Bombing of Hanover in World War II

became a war memorial dedicated to victims of war and of violence. Before the war Hanover was the thirteenth largest city in Germany and Austria, with 471,000 inhabitantson average this fell to 287,000 during the war (mainly due to evacuations) and in May 1945 was down to 217,000. It was the headquarters of 19th Infantry Division, military district XI and a military training facility. Hanover was an important railway junction at the intersection of two major east-west and north-south routes. It was the fifth most active industrial centre in the Third Reich, producing tyres for military vehicles and aircraft and other rubber parts and products in three Continental AG factories. whilst an AFA (Accumulatoren Fabrik Aktiengesellschaftlater VARTA) factory built in 1938 produced batteries for submarines and torpedoes from 1940 onwards. A new Vereinigten Leichtmetallwerke (VLW) factory had been built in 1935 on a site in the Linden-Süd district formerly used by the Hannoversche Waggonfabrik after the latter went bankrupt. The VLW also built a factory in Laatzen outside the city limits in 1936 which was not directly attacked. Two large refineries Deurag and Nerag in Misburg on the northeastern outskirts of the city produced aviation fuel and motor oils for the Luftwaffe, meaning they were targeted early and continued to be attacked, especially later on in the war. ==Raids==

Raids on Hanover involved a relatively short flying-time from bases in the United Kingdom and the nearby Steinhuder Meer provided a useful navigational aid. The Maschsee on the southern edge of the city centre was partly covered with wooden boards and artificial islands to make it less recognizable from the air, but the geometrical patterns in the Great Garden () in the Herrenhausen Gardens () remained undisguised and were used by the RAF's H2S radar from mid-1943 onwards. 1939 and 1940 The first raid was on 4 September 1939, the day after the British declaration of warit involved just one RAF Armstrong Whitworth Whitley dropping leaflets. On 19 May 1940 the RAF bombed the Misburg refineries, killing nineteen people. 1 August the same year saw the first raid on Hannover itself, with a raid on the Seilerstraße in the south of the city. On 30 September 1940 six planes destroyed several buildings in Wülfel and Linden. 1941 On 10 February 1941, the city was raided by 220 British planes, mainly hitting the eastern district and killing 101 people. Another British raid followed on the night between 15–16 April on the Vahrenwald and Hainholz areas and on 15–16 June on the VLW-Werk factory and the Misburg refineries. Although these raids damaged the factories' productivity, they were repeatedly able to resume production. 26 July 1943 in 1943 8 October 1943 In the night beginning 8 October 1943, 504 RAF aircraft (comprising Lancasters, Halifaxes, Wellingtons and eight Mosquitos) attacked Hanover. Many German nightfighters arrived before the attack was over and 27 British aircraft were lost. Conditions over Hanover were clear and the Pathfinders marked the centre of the city accurately with all bombs landing within the built-up area. The Ebstorf Map, the largest medieval map of the world, was destroyed by the raid. 18 October 1943 In the last of the four big raids against Hanover, 360 Lancasters attacked Hannover but the target area was covered by cloud and the raid was inaccurate. 28 March 1945 On the 28th of March 1945, the last major air raid on Hanover took place. The city was hit by multiple bombs from about 400 planes which hit the entire city. The epicentre of the bombing was the city centre. == References==