Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
dropping at least 18,000 tons of bombs and killing around 20,000 people. The map opposite
is one of more than 650 prepared by the British Ministry of Home Security to record where
these bombs fell. Such maps are just one aspect of the Bomb Census survey, conducted by the
Ministry as part of its role to co-ordinate civil defence. Collating and analysing information
about the patterns of air raids and their effect upon the urban environment - from individu-
al damaged buildings to the broader impact on everyday life within the wartime economy -
aided the authorities' efforts to administer the country in difficult circumstances.
In keeping with the 'make-do and mend' philosophy of the war years, staff at the Ministry
used an array of official printed mapping when undertaking its survey. For the London Blitz,
a special set of military maps, which employed a secret system of grid references to mislead
the enemy, was pressed into service. Bomb sites were plotted onto these base maps by hand.
Diagonal dashed lines symbolise showers of small incendiary bombs. Individual high-explos-
ive devices are marked with dots; those thought to have been dropped in sequence from the
same aeroplane are linked together. The circles with crosses represent the sites of unexploded
bombs. This example covers part of central and east London during the week of 21-28 Octo-
ber 1940. The colours refer to different days of the week. These were not always used con-
sistently: red, for instance, was normally assigned to Tuesday but signifies Saturday on this
map.
The Bomb Census continued after the Blitz period. Initially confined to a few major cities,
it was gradually extended across the whole of the United Kingdom as its value was recog-
nised. The recordkeeping became more detailed as the war progressed and the government's
thoughts began to turn towards post-war reconstruction. London's re-emergence from the
rubble took many years. Many Londoners left the shattered central districts for the suburbs
or in the new towns developed to house people migrating out of the capital. Although cent-
ralised planning was to alter much of its appearance over the following decades, one thing
remained unchanged: London was still one of the world's greatest cities.
