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Allied Strategic Bombing

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Allied strategic bombing of Germany during the Second World War was, in the main, significant. The key themes to be looked at in this essay are the effects that Allied Strategic Bombing had on the dislocation and demoralisation of German civilians; Germany’s economic ability to produce and transport goods for the war effort; other key aspects of the war and the German war effort and, finally, its impact on the USSR. The evidence of the effectiveness of Allied Strategic Bombing of Germany strongly suggests that it became more significant throughout the war, especially after the first one thousand bomber raid on Cologne in May 1942, and although not decisive on its own, was significant in the final outcome of the Second World War.
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Whilst the significance that it had on the German home front may have been more limited than hoped for, it succeeded in dislocating and demoralising German civilians. Whilst its effect on Germany’s economic ability to produce and transport goods for the war effort may have been mostly limited, its effect on the transport infrastructure of German was of critical significance. Perhaps the most significant effect was bombing’s impact on other areas of the war and the German war effort because of how it saved thousands of potential casualties and facilitated the D-Day landings. Its impact on the USSR in terms of both keeping them as an ally and easing their invasion was also of great significance. The overall outcome from Allied Strategic Bombing may have been highly significant, but we must not fail to neglect the cost at which such a result came. 44.4% of Bomber Command crews failed to return from their missions (55,573) and over 18000 were wounded or became prisoners of war. 8,325 aircraft were lost and 1,030,500 tons of bombs were dropped. Despite the cost at which Allied Strategic Bombing came at, the evidence supports the argument that the Allied Strategic Bombing of Germany during the Second World War was significant to a large

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