Night the bombs of the Luftwaffe blitzed Plymouth

EIGHTY-FIVE years ago tonight, Plymouth experienced its first major air raid of the Second World War.

- MICHAEL C MCLAUGHLIN

The attack was part of Nazi Germany's aerial bombing campaign against Britain and was carried out by its air force, the Luftwaffe. Coastal cities like Plymouth were targets because of their naval docks and fuel depots.

Plymouth journalist Pat Twyford reported on the city's wartime experiences. The 27-28 November attack was an escalation: "This night was the most fantastic and fearsome that Plymouth had yet experienced."

Britain declared war on Nazi Germany on 3 September 1939. It was not until after the fall of France and evacuation of British troops from Dunkirk in June of 1940 that the Luftwaffe began to attack British cities. Plymouth experienced its first aerial raid on 6 July 1940.

The scale of the November attack was unlike anything Plymouth had experienced. On this night, it wasn't just single planes but squadrons of them. Dornier, Heinkel, and Junker bombers crossed the Channel in successive waves. In all, more than 100 aircraft took part in the eight-hour assault. The assailants dropped more than 100 tonnes of high explosives and over 6,000 incendiaries.