The Blitz
Hope for the People
Home
Preperations for the Blitz
The beginning of the blitz
Life During the Blitz
Hope for the People
The Blitz Photo Gallery
Links

There are three main ways that the people received hope during the Blitz.

The Government's Winter Plan

The British Government knew that their people were in much distress during the winter of 1940. The people were just getting used to the constant blackouts and they were wondering how much longer the Blitz could possibly last. The government decided that they would create a system of lights. The Government placed holiday lights on every public tree in London. At night they would turn these lights on, and the whole city would have its holiday lights on. These cheered the people up, because they could see the lights. The government would have many men positioned at the shoreline of the great island to watch for German planes. When an attack was coming these men would radio back to the city, and London would have an emergency switch that would be able to immediately shut off all of the lights. This act of commitment the government showed to its people helped to give the people strength in a time of despair.

St. Paul's Cathedral

St. Paul's cathedral was the largest church in London during the time of the blitz. It had the largest dome in the world, which rested on top of it. During the blitz, the bombs destroyed all of the buildings around it. During the nights the citizens were able to see the dome illuminated by the fires that raged throughout the city. As the blitz continued throughout the year, many scars developed on the sides of the building, but it never fell. When the people would get up from the bomb shelters every morning and see that St. Paul's would still be standing it gave them hope, that God was still watching over them, and that the would be able to continue fighting against the Germans.

Winston Churchill

"Winston Churchill, the protector of England." As the Prime Minister Churchill had his residence in London, and he worked downtown during the day. During the blitz, he had his offices moved to underground bomb shelters where he lived and worked. During the blitz Churchill had plenty of opportunity to leave to the United States, and run England from there. Churchill denied himself a safe retreat so that he could stay with his people. Churchill got on the radio every night bringing good news to all of the people in England. He focused on the people of London, because that is where he lived, and he wanted to prove to them that he was going to be with him. Every day after a large bombing the previous night, Churchill would leave his bomb shelters and go to where the bombing was the worst. He would make his appearance felt by the people to show that he was still with them, and this gave the people courage to believe in their city, because their leader believed in their city.

If you would like to email me:
geoffrey.mueller.2@bc.edu