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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

Zeppelin raid on The Strand


Guest HUGH_NOBLE

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Guest HUGH_NOBLE

Hi

I stumbled on this forum while searching for information on My Grandfather whom I had never met. I am impressed and moved by the amount and detail of the information held by members. I am new to this or any other forum so please be patient - I will learn and hope not to pick up bad habits. The family story is that my grandfather was a civilian going about his lawful occasion in The Strand when a shell exploded above his head, profoundly affectin his brain. He was unable to work again and was admitted to Friern Hospital (Colney Hatch) in about 1918. He died there in 1952. His name was Davis Nodle/Noble. I am waiting to see if there are details of his admission. I could not understand why the word used was "shell" and not "bomb". until I chanced on an extensive quote from the New York Times of October 25 1915. I quote one paragraph... "The civil engineer went on to say that the government suppressed all details of the shells fired from the anti-aircraft guns at the Zeppelins. The shells generally went wide of the mark," he said, "but had to fall somewhere. The damage to St. Bartholomews Hospital on Sept 8th was chiefly caused by the shells from the anti-aircraft guns and not by the bombs." Any information on the general circumstances or his particular case would be appreciated.

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Hi HughNo.

Referring to 'The Air Defence of Britain 1914-1918', by C. Cole & E.F. Cheesman, the only info I can glean for you is the following:

The incident involving your Grandfather would have happened on the night of 13th/14th October 1915. On this date, the Germans launched their most ambitious and successful raid of the war so far.

Five Zeppelins; L11, L13, L14, L15 & L16 were sent to bomb London. Of those five, only L15, commanded by Kplt Joachim Breihaupt, actually attacked central London.

He arrived over the city at 21:25 hr, dropped thirty bombs between the Strand and Limehouse, then flew out over Aldeburgh, at 23:55 hr.

The results of the raid: 71 killed, 128 injured and £80,020 damage.

Hope this helps

Bucky

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Guest HUGH_NOBLE

Hi Bucky

Many thanks for a prompt reply. That would fit well with the rest of the New York Times article and allowing time for the witness/engineer to cross the Atlantic.

Regards

HughNo

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Hi

Just looked up Thomas Fegan's "The Baby Killers " in respect of the L15's raid on the evening of 13 October 1915 .............

One device struck the rear of the Lyceum Theatre in Exeter Street and another blew a hole in Wellington Street, killing 17 and setting alight a gas main. Other bombs fell outside the entrances to the Strand Theatre and the Waldorf Hotel. The passage in the book mentions the responses of the theatre goers and the performances; it would appear that patriotic songs or ignoring the raid altogether were the order of day.

Of course, your Grandfather's injury could have occured during any other of the Zeppelin or Gotha (aircraft) raids over Central London. The first night-time raid on London by Gothas on 4 September 1917 resulted in four bombs being dropped around Charing Cross station (i.e on or near the Strand). The damage to the obelisk and plinth of Cleopatra's Needle is still visible.

Kind regards

David

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Hallo

Just to aid your research, you may wish to order a copy of

'Campaign No193 - London 1914-17 The Zeppelin Menace'

by Ian Castle (who is a member and does post here).

He covers the 'Theatreland' raid over 6 pages, well illustrated.

Kind regards

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Good book, but of course it does only cover the Zeppelin raids. For a good idea of the whole 'scene', i'd go for the Osprey book mentioned, Thomas Fegan's 'Baby Killers' book mentioned, and 'First Blitz' by Neil Hanson which focuses on the Gotha/Staaken raids

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Just checked "German air raids on Britain 1914-1918" Joseph Morris. Brilliant book.

L15 dropped 19 HE bombs and 11 incendiary bombs on London. In all there were 38 killed and 87 injured in the capital. The book has a photograph of the damage to the Strand Theatre.

.

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