The Blitz: 75 Years On

Charlotte Cross' report contains flashing images.

Seventy five years ago the Nazi war machine began their Blitzkrieg "Lightning War" on the towns and cities of Britain.

While memories of the bombing campaign may be fading the collective experience shared through those eight long months came to define the very character of the Britain.

The events that began on the 7th of September 1940 are forever immortalised in modern language as the 'Blitz Spirit' - stoicism and determination in a difficult or dangerous situation, especially as displayed by a group of people.

A term often deployed by politicians and press whenever the UK endures a disaster be it natural, flooding, or an atrocity such as the 7/7 bombings.

On this anniversary lets take a look at The Blitz in numbers...

Germany's strategic bombing of the United Kingdom lasted 8 months, 1 week and 2 days.

Over the 267 days the Luftwaffe dropped around 41,000 tons of high explosives on 16 British cities and ports.

On the 'Hardest Night' of May 10/11 in 1941 German bombers flew 571 sorties.

London, Liverpool, Birmingham and Glasgow were the worst hit - enduring 95 major attacks (those where at least 100 tons were dropped) between them..

In all 2,000,000 homes were destroyed, 60% of them in London.

1.4 million children were evacuated to the countryside to escape the aerial campaign, the majority from impoverished inner-city families. 

The German Luftwaffe recorded the loss of 2,265 aircraft over the British Isles.

Estimates for the number of civilians killed range from 32,000 to 43,000. Around 90,000 people were left injured.  

The British and American bombing of Hamburg and Dresden killed over 67,000 people in just 10 days.