The First Day of the Blitz: September 7, 1940

Peter Stansky

ISBN 10: 0300143354 / ISBN 13: 9780300143355

Published by Yale University Press, 2008

About this Item

[ No Hassle 30 Day Returns ][ Ships Daily ] [ Underlining/Highlighting: NONE ] [ Writing: NONE ] [ Edition: reprint ] Publisher: Yale University Press Pub Date: 11/18/2008 Binding: Paperback Pages: 212 reprint edition.

Seller Inventory # 6809180

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The First Day of the Blitz: September 7, 1940
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication Date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0300143354
• ISBN 13: 9780300143355
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: Good

About this title

Synopsis

In the first terrifying hours of the London Blitz, when the skies rained bombs from hundreds of German planes, the British people were galvanized and the nation’s future was changed 

On September 7, 1940, the long-feared and anticipated attack by the German Luftwaffe plunged London into a cauldron of fire and devastation. This compelling book recreates that day in all its horror, using rich archival sources and first-hand accounts, many never before published. Eminent historian Peter Stansky weaves together the stories of people who recorded their experiences of the opening hours of the Blitz. Then, exploring more deeply, the author examines what that critical day meant to the nation at the time, and what it came to mean in following years. Much of the future of Britain was determined in the first twelve hours of bombing, Stansky contends. The Blitz set in motion a range of responses that contributed to ultimate victory over Germany and to a transformation of British society. The wave of terror, though designed to quash morale, instead inspired stoicism, courage, and a new camaraderie. The tragic London bombing can reveal much of relevance to our own violent times, Stansky concludes: both the effectiveness of modern terror and its ultimate failure are made powerfully clear by the events of September 7, 1940.

About the Author

Peter Stansky is Frances and Charles Field Professor of History, Emeritus, Stanford University.