Lest We Forget

With VJ Day commemorations on 15 August marking the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, Mr Londoner reflects on the conflict’s enduring legacy.

Last year we witnessed the moving spectacle of some of the very last Second World War veterans, paying their own respects to those who fell on the beaches of Normandy. These are likely to be the last ever major commemorations of the D-Day Landings, involving those who were actually there. D-Day succeeded because of the sacrifice and bravery of ordinary men and women like our own parents and grandparents. ‘Operation Overlord’, as it was codenamed, was the largest seaborne invasion the world has ever seen. The Normandy campaign was the beginning of the end. It eventually helped force the defeat of Nazism, the death of Hitler, the surrender of his army, navy and airforce – and freedom for the oppressed millions of a beleaguered and battle-scarred Europe.

We marked the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE) Day on 8 May. But the war didn’t end then. Thousands of British and Commonwealth forces were battling the Japanese in South East Asia. American troops were fighting for supremacy in the South Pacific, at great human costs on both sides. We remember Victory over Japan (VJ) Day, on 15 August. War only ended following the devastation wrought be a terrifying new weapon – the atom bomb.

Reflection
This will be a time for reflection in the UK and across the Commonwealth. As war still rages in Europe, the Middle East and elsewhere, the moment is especially poignant. Nevertheless, 2025 will attract UK-bound visitors, especially from the USA and the
Commonwealth, as they follow in the wartime footsteps of loved-ones.

Britain and its vast empire had stood on the brink in 1940. Europe had fallen to the lightening Nazi attack (Blitzkrieg). All the enemy had to do was deliver ‘Operation Sea Lion’ – the invasion of Britain by sea and air. But first it had to content with the Royal Air Force (RAF). The Nazi Air Force, which had proved itself so powerful in support of invading ground troops, proved less efficient operating over sea and allied-held territory.

Churchill and his Chiefs-of-Staff.  Photo: Imperial War Museum

On 7 December, 1941, the Japanese launched near-simultaneous attacks on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, British Malaya, Singapore and Hong Kong. The UK declared war on Japan on December 8, nine hours before the United States’ declaration. Just to get a sense of scale, the fall of Singapore was described by Churchill as the “worst disaster and largest capitulation in British history.” Apart from shattering British power in the region these co-ordinated attacks led to the capture of thousands of allied troops including British and Commonwealth troops.

In Europe, the RAF, although outgunned and outnumbered, prevailed. The small number of Battle of Britain pilots became know as ‘The Few’. They comprised those from many nations including Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Canada, Australia, Ireland, South Africa and Rhodesia. There were seven Americans too. Chigago-born Olympic champion Billy Fiske, died in the battle. He is commemorated in St Paul’s Cathedral. Hitler, never the master-strategist, switched tactics. With his failure to prevail in the Battle of Britain, he turned his attention onto Britain’s industrial cities and centres of population. London, industrial centres and the UK’s major ports and cities suffered terribly in the Blitz.

Turning tide
This aerial bombing claimed the lives of about 65,000 people across the UK. But the tide gradually began to turn. By September 1940, the RAF had prevailed in the Battle of Britain. Hitler turned on his former ally the Soviet Union, creating a war on two fronts. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor changed everything, bringing the economic and industrial might of the USA into the war. Success in North Africa saw German General Erwin Rommel’s Africa Korps at the 1942 Battle of El-Alamein, by Commonwealth forces. Sir Winston Churchill said:“ Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”

Victory however was far from certain, even after D-Day. The first rocket attacks (the terrifying V or vengeance weapons) rained down on London on 16 June 1944, just ten days after the Normandy Landings. They did so with devastating consequences, claiming the lives of another 10,000 civilians and hurting many more. The rocket sites on the Dutch and German coast were eventually overrun by the allies as they marched toward Berlin, victory and a new – if uncertain – world order.

The remains of Christ Church Greyfriars, City of London, destroyed in the Blitz @meetmrlondoner

What, however of this vivid but desperate story, can still be seen in London today? A Blitz walk in the City of London (the capital’s financial heart) is a good start. There are some poignant reminders of the air war here – but you’ve got to know where to look. The massive bomber raids in 1940 and 1941 tore out its medieval and Victorian heart. They also claimed over 7,000 lives just in the City of London alone. Damage to German cities was much worse.

Baby blitz
The Nazi airforce returned again over the skies of British cities during ‘Operation Steinbock’, known as the ‘baby blitz’, between 1942 and 1944. This time, west London suffered and Bristol was the last target of enemy aircraft of the Second World War. But two thirds of the bombers that took part in the attack were lost. This strategic Nazi blunder also meant that, by D-Day, the allies enjoyed almost total control of the skies. Unexpectedly however, the destruction in London also revealed London’s Roman origins, the Romans having founded Londinium in AD43. The archaeological discoveries caused by the bombing attracted vast post-war crowds and these Roman remains stand to this very day. A bombed-out building, complete with its white bathroom tiles, has been left in the City of London’s Noble Street. It’s a stark reminder of the price to total war and a tribute to the 6,000 people who died in the financial district alone.

The R1155 receiver of a Lancaster bomber, Imperial War Museum @meetmrlondoner

While the Churchill War Rooms were established primarily to combat the German threat, this subterranean space also served as a central command and control centre for the entire British war effort, including South East Asia and the Pacific. The Churchill War Rooms are full of atmosphere, but their popularity, can quickly render them crowded and claustrophobic. A calmer and less touristed alternative is the Imperial War Museum. The building has its own dark history. This is the former Bedlam (or Bethlehem) mental hospital. It now tells a tale of how war has affected ordinary people across the globe. There’s the incredible remains of a 1940s Japanese Mitsubushi Zero fighter re-discovered in the 1970s on a South Sea island. There’s a 1938 Chevrolet truck used by New Zealanders serving with the Long Range Desert Group (the forerunner of the SAS or Special Air Service). This was discovered, perfectly preserved in the sands of the Libyan desert, in the 1980s. It stands testament to the allied desert raiders who struck German and Italian airfields in daring lighting attacks deep behind enemy lines.

Spitfire
The north London suburb of Colindale, isn’t on many tourist itineraries. But it’s here you’ll find The RAF Museum. This vast and imposing site is another hidden gem and one often missed by visitors. That’s a pity. It features aircraft from the Battle of Britain and those used in the Pacific theatre of war including the iconic Supermarine Spitfires, a Hawker Hurricane, the Bristol Beaufighter, and the Consolidated Liberator bomber.

An Avro Lancaster flies over the RAF Museum @meetmrlondoner

They are displayed alongside the Japanese planes they faced in combat, including the a Mitsubishi Ki-46-III reconnaissance plane, a Kawasaki Ki-100 fighter, and a Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka “kamikaze” aircraft as well as the Luftwaffe’s Focke-Wulf Fw 190. Notable wartime allied aircraft include a US B17 ‘Flying Fortress’ and Britain’s most effective bomber, the Avro Lancaster. The RAF Museum occupies the site of an historic airbase. One of its hangars dates to the very dawn of aviation. Almost next door is the Metropolitan Police Training College, where London’s newly-qualified bobbies graduate.

Station X had many names. But the scientists, analysts and code-breakers who worked at Bletchley Park in the rural Buckinghamshire countryside referred to it simply as ‘BP’. Britain’s spy school was conveniently located. It sat on the so-called ‘Varsity’ train line, linking London and the north to the university towns of Oxford and Cambridge. This was handy as Bletchley sought to recruit capable people, of the “professor type”.

Enigma
The mainly civilian staff here – many of them women – monitored German, Italian, Japanese and Russian coded intelligence (known as ultra). They listened in to day-to-day tactical communications but also analysed data more strategically. The boffins of Bletchley cracked the Enigma codes and, with the help of the US, also broke the Japanese Navy’s General Operational Code (JN-25) enabling the allies to process naval intercepts and monitor enemy plans. They were led by the brilliant Alan Turing. His story has been the backdrop to films including the Imitation Game and Enigma. Bletchley is some distance from London. It’s a vast site, comprising a manor house, numerous ‘Nissan huts’ and vast grounds. It requires a full day to visit. Don’t be tempted to make the mistake of rushing at it simply to tick the boxes.

The engine room of HMS Belfast @meetmrlondoner

The Royal Navy deployed several naval vessels to the Pacific during World War II, primarily as part of the British Pacific Fleet (BPF). These included aircraft carriers like HMS Indomitable, Illustrious and Victorious, all decommissioned during the 1950’s. Although HMS Belfast was not used in the Pacific it does tells a vivid story of life on board during the darkest days of the 1940s – followed by the uncertain peace that followed. A massive Towns-class destroyer launched in 1938, Belfast was one of the largest ships in the wartime Royal Navy. This incredible vessel was nearly scrapped after hitting a mine in 1939. Re-armed and re-fitted, it took to the seas once again, escorting Artic convoys, which provided a lifeline to the Soviet Union. It took part in the D-Day landings and later in the Korean War. Today it’s permanently moored on the banks of the Thames.

As we approach the VJ80 commemorations on 15 August, we will remember the bravery of the thousands of British and Commonwealth troops who remained in post until 2 September 1945 when the official signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender took place. Today, a reflective walk though Holland Park’s Kyoto Garden or Battersea Park’s Peace Pagoda is a reminder of the peace and reconciliation achieved between nations once considered enemies.

 

About the Author

Mr Londoner – aka Antony Robbins FRSA – is a former director of the Museum of London. In 1995 he was part of the British government team managing the 50th anniversary of the UK’s VE and VJ Day commemorations. You can find Mr Londoner on Instagram @meetmrlondoner and here