The Blitz - Myth/Reality

[Kyt]

Has anybody read either of these books?

Amazon.co.uk: The Myth of the Blitz: Books: Angus Calder

Which People's War?: National ... - Google Book Search

There is quite a debate about the reality and "myths" of how people reacted and dealt with the Blitz. The first book seems to debunk the image of the stoic Londoner.

A review:

ResoluteReader: Angus Calder - The Myth of the Blitz

Another book that seems to touch on similar issues:

Amazon.co.uk: The First Day of the Blitz: Books: P Stansky

JewishJournal.com

and a general article:

BBC - History - The Blitz: Sorting the Myth from the Reality

[Ron Goldstein]

Originally Posted by Kyt

Has anybody read either of these books?

Amazon.co.uk: The Myth of the Blitz: Books: Angus Calder

Which People's War?: National ... - Google Book Search

There is quite a debate about the reality and "myths" of how people reacted and dealt with the Blitz. The first book seems to debunk the image of the stoic Londoner.

A review:

ResoluteReader: Angus Calder - The Myth of the Blitz

Another book that seems to touch on similar issues:

Amazon.co.uk: The First Day of the Blitz: Books: P Stansky

JewishJournal.com

and a general article:

BBC - History - The Blitz: Sorting the Myth from the Reality

Given sufficient time I fear the revisionists will have our future generations doubting if in fact WW2 ever took place at all !

During the two odd years that the BBC Peoples War was "open to postings" by members of the public I posted over one hundred stories, none of which concerned the Blitz. I did this as a matter of policy because I decided that my life in the services had enough substance of its own and that I should leave Blitz stories to the thousands of civilians who experienced bombing for over four years.

This did not mean that I did not experience the Blitz at its worst and I still have vivid memories of living in the Stamford Hill area of London while the dock areas were being set on fire on a nightly basis.

The area where I lived was hit again & again by night bombers who dropped their messengers of death completely indiscriminately.

The Blitz took place unremittingly and there is plenty of documentary evidence to support this fact. Every morning Londoners, including myself until 1942, had to get into work in whatever way we could and our morale was high, whether present day writers can understand it or not.

The reality of how people reacted in the Blitz a "myth" ? ........as Dickens would say "Humbug !"

ps

I know my wife would agree with me:
BBC - WW2 People's War - The night our house was sliced in half

[CTNana]

I totally agree with Ron.

My parents walked out of church on their wedding day to a hail of bombs (not an omen, they enjoyed many happy years together). I accept that the evidence on the BBC website is anecdotal but nevertheless it is no less an honest portrayal of how people saw things than these later interpretations of evidence.

Every situation contains contradictory aspects and features. My Mum also talked of some very dark days, and small number of people who blatantly took advantage of others and even made their fortunes during these times, but that should not detract from the overwhelming majority who did "just carry on" and give whatever help and support they could to others.

Perhaps we just find it increasingly hard to believe as we become a more selfish and uncaring society????

[Antipodean Andy]

I really don't understand why revisionists would seek to undermine one of the war's enduring legacies - a stoic civilian population as brave as those directly fighting the enemy. It just doesn't make sense. Fair enough, it was not all "stiff upper lip", "press on regardless" stuff but they certainly didn't buckle en masse and there's plenty of proof of that.

[Kyt]

Personally I don't think there has been any undermining, or attempts to to do so. But I do think there is a place for an examination of the true picture of what was going on at grass roots level.

However, just like any other event or period of history, the interpretations of the individual historians should be taken into account, and no serious student of history would rely on just one book or source.

For example, a counterbalance to the Myths of the Blitz seems to be:

Amazon.co.uk: Half the Battle: Civilian Morale in Britain During the Second World War: Books: Robert Mackay

How well did civilian morale stand up to the pressures of total war and what factors were important to it? This work offers a robust rejection of contentions that civilian morale fell a long way short of the favourable picture presented during World War II and in hundreds of books and films ever since. It acknowledges that some negative attitudes and behaviours existed - panic and defeatism, ration-cheating and black-marketeering, looting, absenteeism and strikes - but argues that these involved a very small minority of the population. Robert Mackay demostrates how government policies for the maintainence of morale were put in place, giving special emphasis to the patriotic feeling that held the nation together despite the official pessimistic prognosis in the initial stages of the war.

or this one which seems to fall somewhere in the middle of the above two studies:

Amazon.co.uk: The Test of War: Inside Britain, 1939-45 (Warfare and History): Books: Robert Mackay

While it lasted, the Second World War dominated the life of the nations that were involved and most of those that were not. Since Britain was in at both the start and the finish her people experienced the impact of total ar in full measure. The experience was a test of the most comprehensive kind: of the institutions, of the resources, and the very cohesion of the nation. The Test of War by Robert Mackay examines how the nation responded to this test. For a generation after the ending of the war this response was represented as largely unproblematical: faced with mortal threat to their survival the people rallied around their leaders, sank their differences and bore the burdens and sacrifices that were necessary to victory. More recently, demurring voices have challeged this cosy picture by emphasizing negative features of the war as official muddle, low industrial productivity and strikes, the black market, looting and the persistence of hostile class relations. Robert Mackay re-examines these debates, arguing that, for all its imperfections, British society under threat remained vital, cohesive and optimistically creative about its future.

I read this article a while back and found it quite interesting:

http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu...and_morale.pdf

ABSTRACT Following September 11 in the US and July 7 in the UK, the threat to civilians from terrorist attack has become real yet considerable disagreement exists about how people might respond. The effect of aerial bombing on the public’s morale during the Second World War and the incidence of psychiatric casualties have been explored to provide reference points for the current terrorist threat. Systematic study of restricted government investigations and intelligence reports into the effect of air-raids on major British towns and contemporary medical publications have shown that panic was a rare phenomenon and arose in defined circumstances. Morale fluctuated according to the intensity of attacks, preparedness and popular perceptions of how successfully the war was being conducted. Resilience was in part a function of the active involvement of the public in its own defence but also reflected the inability of German bombers to deliver a concentrated attack over a wide area. Most civilians, by their very numbers, were likely to survive. Inappropriate or excessive precautionary measures may serve to weaken society’s natural bonds and, in turn, create anxious and avoidant behaviour. Weapons that tap into contemporary health fears have the greatest psychological impact. Efforts by government to engage the public not only build trust but may also make an effective contribution to the campaign against terrorism.

[Kyt]

Writer who disputed Blitz 'myth' dies at 66 - Scotsman.com News

ANGUS Calder, one of Scotland's leading polymaths, died in Edinburgh yesterday aged 66 after a brief illness.
A writer, poet and historian, his books changed interpretations of the 18th-century origins of the British Empire.

Anything but a narrow specialist, however, he was equally at home writing about modern British and African history – particularly Britain in the Second World War.

In 1991, his book The Myth of the Blitz controversially argued, using evidence from the Mass Observation archives, that propagandistic images of heroic resistance masked a hitherto unsuspected amount of looting and rape.

The son of leading Scottish science writer, peace activist and academic (Lord) Peter Ritchie-Calder, he studied English at Cambridge and was a widely respected literary critic and cultural commentator. His post-graduate studies, however, led him towards modern history: his 1969 book, The People's War, was for many years the definitive book on Britain in the Second World War.

In 1971, he moved to live in Scotland, where he gained a reputation as an inspirational Open University lecturer and one of the finest minds in the country.

As well as writing books on poets such as Byron and Eliot and editing the prose of Hugh McDiarmid, he was an award-winning poet himself, with four collections to his name. In 1984, he was the first convener of the Scottish Poetry Library.

He was married twice, first to Jenni Daiches, with whom he had two daughters and a son, and then to Kate Kyle, with whom he had a son.

[Douglas.Birch.]

Believe me the Blitz was real,I was 18 years old,when it started. I lived in Woolwich,near the Thames which was a guide to the Bombers, I was on duty with the Home guard,it was hell, so I joined the navy & ended up in the U.S.A. to pick up my ship H.M.S.Fencer Escort Carrier built in the U.S.A.Douglas.Birch

[Antipodean Andy]

G'day Douglas and welcome. We would be most grateful to hear about your time on the Fencer if you have time to post some anecdotes.

[Pathfinder]

Hi there Douglas and welcome to the forum

It would be interesting to hear about your time in the Navy.

[Kyt]

Angus Calder - Telegraph