16. Strategic bombing: Dresden and Tokyo

Question 1

• Aims + limitations of strategic bombing

Answer 1

Involves employing bombers to strike directly at key industrial, economic or political targets within an enemy’s country which may affect its capacity to wage war, e.g. factories, railway depots, ports, oil + gas fields
many military strategists believed that air forces could win major victories by attacking industrial
and political infrastructure, rather than purely military targets

• At the beginning of the war, bombing was done at night because the heavy bombers were vulnerable to attack
• Combined with the fact that bombing was largely inaccurate till 1944, most bombing raids could be considered
  Area bombing as it targeted whole towns or areas rather than a specific factory or building which increased the
  likelihood of civilian casualties.

Question 2

• Impacts of the Bombing of Dresden Feb 1945

Answer 2

Bombing + resulting firestorm thanks to strong winds destroyed 90% of the city
* Up to 25,000 people were killed with 70% of victims died of suffocation from carbon monoxide
* The raids became a symbol of the “terror bombing” campaign against Germany

It was one of the most controversial Allied actions of the war as critics argue it’s military importance wasn’t
significant

Question 3

• Why was the bombing of Dresden so devastating? Feb 1945

Answer 3

It was strategic target as it had a major rail transport and communication centre, 110 factories + 50,000 workers in support of the continued Nazi German war effort
* It also had thousands of refugees who had fled from the advancing Russians
* Dresden had experienced unusually dry weather in January

Question 4

• Why did the USA fire bomb Tokyo? (Operation Meetinghouse) March 1945

Answer 4

(Strategic bombing – firebombing = achieve goal quicker but will suffer a lot of civilian casualties) = was the only choice they could come down to defeating the Japanese w/o severe impact on themselves and the war dragging.

After the losses at Okinawa, the Allies decided on Strategic bombing

Question 5

• Why were the impacts of firebombing so devastating in Tokyo? (March 1945)

Answer 5

Japanese military had built factories in residential areas in the hope of disguising them→ the bombers could not avoid
inflicting civilian casualties.

Due to high winds + Japanese houses made from wood & paper → Fires spread easily within densely populated cities