Castle, Ian Gotha Terror. The Forgotten Blitz, 1917-1918

By the autumn of 1916, advances in British air defences had all but ended the threat of Zeppelins that had plagued the nation for almost two years. However, any emerging complacency about the aerial threat was immediately undone by the introduction of the large fighter aircraft, better known as the Gotha bomber, in 1917. While the Zeppelin airships attacked singly and stealthily under the cover of darkness, the German army now had a squadron of bomber aircraft that could brazenly attack London and south-east England in broad daylight, unleashing a new wave of terror on the British population. Britain, which had downgraded its air defences after the apparent defeat of the Zeppelins, was forced to rethink its strategy. The improvements introduced forced the German attackers to change their tactics as well, as both sides tried to gain the upper hand. And all the while, the Zeppelins of the German navy, whose campaign had not been completely abandoned, continued to attack when the opportunity presented itself. The story of these dramatic air raids is told through numerous never-before-published eyewitness accounts that provide a personal insight into the experiences of those who witnessed the conflict on the ground and in the air. The German air campaign against the United Kingdom in the First World War was the first sustained strategic aerial bombing campaign in history. However, it pales in comparison to the enormity of the Blitz in the Second World War, but for those caught up in the tragedy of these attacks, the impact was just as devastating. In "Gotha Terror", Ian Castle tells the full story of the attacks from 1917 to 1918 in unprecedented detail.