• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
    • First Time Here?
    • Archive
    • London Blogs
  • Blog
  • Travel
    • London Theater Tickets
    • Shopping
    • Tips
    • Tours
    • Transport
    • Maps
    • Parks
    • Resources
    • Restaurants
    • Top 10 London
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Buildings
    • Food
    • London Books
    • Movies
    • Museums
    • Music
    • Pubs
  • Londonism
    • Reviews
    • Fun London
    • Iconic London
    • Life in London
    • London Realities
    • Moving to London
    • Politics
  • The Tube
  • London History
    • Great London Buildings
    • Great Londoners
  • Contact
  • Guidebooks
    • 101 London Travel Tips – Guidebook
    • 101 Free Things to do in London

Londontopia

The Website for People Who Love London

You are here: Home / Site News / Featured / The First Blitz: London During World War I

The First Blitz: London During World War I

Sep 14, 2015 By John Rabon

hith-london-wwi-zeppelin-terror-poster-wikimedia-E

Last year celebrated the centennial of the outbreak of World War I. When the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria led to that country declaring war against Serbia, the network of alliances led Germany to declare war on them as well, then on Belgium when the latter wouldn’t let Germany cross its borders. Great Britain, as Belgium’s ally, then declared war on Germany on 4 August. Strangely enough, celebrations broke out in the streets of London with the announcement.

However, the joyous feelings of the war in Britain and across Europe would be short-lived. At the time, many people across Europe believed that the war would be over by Christmas. As trench warfare took hold on the mainland, it became readily apparent that the war was going to draw on for a long time. While many remember the London Blitz of World War II, it wasn’t the first time the Germans had bombed the city. A few months into the war, German zeppelins appeared over the city’s skies, having followed the reflection of the Thames.

31 May 1915 saw 90 incendiary bombs and 30 grenades tear through the peace that Londoners had enjoyed. By dawn, the bombs had killed seven, wounded thirty-five, and caused £18,000 in property damage. In the months that followed, the city would see another fifty bombing raids that would result in approximately 5,000 bombs dropped on the city that killed almost 700 people and injured roughly 2,000. It was during these raids that Londoners first began to use the London Underground as bomb shelters.

Situated several hundred metres in the air, British aircraft did not yet have the ability to rise high enough to combat them, leaving the Germans practically free to drop bombs at their leisure. Initial bombing raids remained on the outside of the city to avoid hitting Kaiser Wilhelm’s royal relatives. However, the raids decreased as the number of anti-aircraft guns and air patrols increased, as well as an advance in technology that permitted British planes to reach the same height and fire explosive bullets that could tear through the zeppelins.

During the first year, two million men joined the Royal Army and Royal Navy. The initial swell of patriotism was great as Britain asked for 100,000 volunteers and got 750,000. In London, those men who did not join the military were treated as cowards. People would hand them white feathers and they would be refused service in pubs and shops. However, the horrors of the war started to become apparent to Londoners as trains came into the city carrying the wounded. With them came the doom and gloom of war and the news that many sons, brothers, husbands, and lovers would not be returning.

At home, the Defence of the Realm Act introduced new rules that permitted the government to take over any factory or workshop to aid the war effort. Strict curfews and restrictions on movement were introduced. As the reality of war set in and opposition to it increased, the government heavily censored any discussion of the war, and in addition to discouraging talk considering anti-patriotic, any discussion of military matters in public could be deemed a serious offence. Anyone “causing alarm” could be arrested.

Food rationing became a problem in 1918 after a German u-boat blockade made it difficult to get necessaries supplies at home, with sugar and meat being the first two items to be rationed. The blockade also led to inflation of food prices, making it even more difficult for poorer families to survive. Another effect of the blockade (and the war as a whole) was increased xenophobia in London. The sinking of the Lusitania, with twenty Londoners aboard, raised the level of anti-German sentiment, and all but two Metropolitan Police districts in the city saw some kind of rioting.

On the positive side, the war saw an increase in the role of women in Britain, as men going off to war offered many new job opportunities in civil service, factories, docklands, farms, the Post Office, and more. While 3.2 million women were employed in industry before the war broke out, the number increased to 4.8 million by 1918, of which 40% were married. This did little to curb old-fashioned notions, as some felt women were being de-feminized by working and their male cohorts feared the competition for jobs. Women had to endure stricter regulations than men and never achieved anything close to equal pay.

On the other hand, one major advancement in women’s rights was achieved as the appreciation for their efforts at home and continuous lobbying from suffragettes led to the passage of the Representation of the People Act that gave the vote to 9 million women across Britain. However, the closing of the war and returning of men meant that women were expecting to return to homes and the more menial jobs they’d held before the war. However, in the same month as the Armistice, the Eligibility of Women Act was passed, meaning that women could be elected to Parliament for the first time.

Despite the war ending on 11 November 1918 with the Armistice, recovery took a significant time. Soldiers returned to find a London scarred by bombs, businesses destroyed, and unemployment on the rise. Spending was cut to prevent inflation, which meant that reform programmes that would have brought much-needing housing and healthcare were cut. Eventually, life in London normalised, though things were never quite the same. And little more than twenty years later, the city would see war return to it again.

John Rabon
Author: John Rabon

John is a regular writer for Anglotopia and its sister websites. He is currently engaged in finding a way to move books slightly to the left without the embarrassment of being walked in on by Eddie Izzard. For any comments, questions, or complaints, please contact the Lord Mayor of London, Boris Johnson's haircut.

close

Free London News

Get the latest news on London history, culture, travel, exhibitions, and more right in your inbox!

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Share this:

  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit
  • Pocket

Filed Under: Featured, History

Subscribe to Our Free London Updates

Free London News

Get the latest news on London history, culture, travel, exhibitions, and more right in your inbox!

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

About John Rabon

John is a regular writer for Anglotopia and its sister websites. He is currently engaged in finding a way to move books slightly to the left without the embarrassment of being walked in on by Eddie Izzard. For any comments, questions, or complaints, please contact the Lord Mayor of London, Boris Johnson's haircut.

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to Our Free London Updates

Free London News

Get the latest news on London history, culture, travel, exhibitions, and more right in your inbox!

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Get the Anglotopia/Londontopia App

Our Advertisers

If you are a mobile gamer, you may want to take a look at UK’s new mobile casinos and slots reviewed by NewCasinoUK.

Join the London Forum

  • Mudlarking
  • MY FAVOURITE PLACE IN LONDON
  • What's Your Favorite Place in London?
  • Paddington Station

London Guide

  • Ten Cheap Things You Can Do in London on a Budget
  • Ten London Exhibitions to Look Forward to in 2023
  • London’s Non-Free Museums: Your Guide to London’s Museums That Charge Admission
  • Trip Planning: Top 10 Exhibitions To Plan Your 2018 Trips to London Around
  • London Guide: Our Favorite Restaurants in London – London Restaurant Recommendations for Americans – What’s Your Favorite?

Connect With Us

  • Facebook
  • RSS Feed
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Support Londontopia

Search our Extensive Archive

Top 10 London

  • Ten Unusual Exhibits to See in London
  • London Pubs: Ten Thameside Pubs for a Pint and a View
  • Top 10 London: Ten More Things to Do Along the River Thames
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Shopping Centers in London
  • Museums of London: Ten Overlooked London Museums
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to See and Do in Haggerston
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to See and Do in Haringey
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to See and Do in Redbridge
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to See and Do in Hillingdon
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to Do in Canonbury

Recent Posts

  • Only Fools And Horses musical to close in West End after four years
  • Artist Ai Weiwei to launch first design-focused exhibition at London’s Design Museum
  • London Travel Alert: Staff at British Museum to walk out during half-term break
  • Poet Lemn Sissay ‘over the moon’ to receive Freedom of the City of London
  • English Heritage has unveiled six new blue plaques for London
  • National Portrait Gallery to reopen in June with two special exhibitions
  • Exploring The Cosmic House in London
  • Ten Social Media Accounts to Follow for Londonphiles
  • New Royal Academy Exhibition: Treasures from Spain and the Hispanic World
  • Pollock’s Toy Museum in London Has Closed Unexpectedly

Best Posts on Londontopia

  • 101 London Travel Tips
  • Top 100 London Attractions
  • How to Find the Cheapest Airfares to London
  • 10 Things NOT to do in London
  • Best London Guidebooks
  • 101 Free Things to do in London
  • London Lingo – A London Word Dictionary
  • Top 7 Tips for Doing London on the Cheap
  • Top 11 Myths American Believe about London
  • Guide to Eating in London
  • Best Times of Year to Travel to London
  • London Packing Tips
  • Top 11 Movies Set in London
  • Top Attractions off the Tourist Track
  • Top 5 Most Amazing London Hotels
  • Top 10 Hostels in London
  • Best Views in London Restuarants
  • London Taxi Ettiquette
  • Top 12 London Views
  • Great Fire of London
  • A Guide to Five of London’s Bridges
  • 10 Random Facts and Figures about Trafalgar Square
  • Top 100 British Slang Words

London Places to Explore

Bloomsbury Buckingham Palace Canary Wharf City of London Covent Garden Cutty Sark Greenwich Hampstead Hampton Court Palace Heathrow Houses of Parliament Hyde Park Imperial War Museum Islington Kensington Kensington Palace Leicester Square London London Eye London Transport Museum Museum of London National Gallery Notting Hill Piccadilly Circus Putney Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park Regent's Street Royal Academy Selfridges Somerset House Southbank Southwark St Pancras St Paul's Cathedral Tate Britain Tate Modern The City Tower Bridge Tower of London Trafalgar Square V&A Wandsworth West End Westminster Westminster Abbey

SIGN-UP FOR FREE LONDON WEEKLY UPDATES!

Please enter a valid email address
That address is already in use
The security code entered was incorrect
Thanks for signing up

Recent Videos

Walk Around London Virtually Right Now – Watched Walker is the YouTube Channel We All Need Right Now

Jason Hawkes Shares a Beautiful Video of London From Above That We All Need Right now

London Tube: You’ve Got to Watch This Amazing Mesmerizing Animation That Shows the Real Geography of the London Underground

Video: The Basics of Crossrail – London’s New Underground Line

London History: The Place Where Old London Double Decker Buses Went to Die

London Video: A Look at the Great Smog of London

Tube and London bus fares to rise by nearly 6% from March

What is Crossrail 2 and What is Its Current Status?

London Alert: Strike by London Underground workers to go ahead after last-minute talks fail

London Mayor hails Elizabeth line as direct routes and Sunday services begin

Elizabeth line fully opens and offers more direct journeys

Tube poet encourages writers to ‘bring who they are to the field’

Footer

About Londontopia

Londontopia is simply the website for people who love London. It was founded by Jonathan & Jackie Thomas from Anglotopia.net as a place to post articles solely focused on London and its environs. Keep up with all the latest London news at Londontopia! This site is geared towards people who love to visit London and our primary audience is North American but everyone is welcome!

When We’re in London Next

We don’t currently have any travel plans to London but hope to visit at some point in 2021.

  • SEO Backlinks
  • Travel Blog

SIGN-UP FOR FREE LONDON WEEKLY UPDATES!

Please enter a valid email address
That address is already in use
The security code entered was incorrect
Thanks for signing up

Copyright © 2023 Anglotopia, LLC · Website Developed by Anglotopia, LLC · Log in