What did Goebbels say about Dresden bombing?

The campaign to turn the city into a symbol began within days of the bombing: Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi minister of propaganda, told reporters in neutral countries that Dresden had no war industries, and that the raid was an act of cultural desecration and wanton mass murder.

How many really died in Dresden?

It is thought that some 25,000–35,000 civilians died in Dresden in the air attacks, though some estimates are as high as 250,000, given the influx of undocumented refugees that had fled to Dresden from the Eastern Front. Most of the victims were women, children, and the elderly.

What was the worst bombing in Germany?

Bombing Berlin: The Biggest Wartime Raid on Hitler’s Capital. On March 18, 1945, the biggest wartime bombing raid on Berlin showed that the German air force was still a dangerous and defiant foe.

Why was the bombing of Dresden controversial?

The bombing was controversial because Dresden was neither important to German wartime production nor a major industrial center, and before the massive air raid of February 1945 it had not suffered a major Allied attack.

Did Dresden get rebuilt?

Dresden’s historic city center has been rebuilt, largely after the fall of the Berlin Wall and mainly due to the financial support coming from western German states that were and still are obliged to transfer money to the east of the country. A variety of buildings were constructed in a modern way.

How was Dresden rebuilt?

A variety of buildings were constructed in a modern way. Other buildings were totally rebuilt, based on old photos and the use of original stones found in the rubble. The city center used to be occupied by residential buildings before the destructive war. Today, only few of them can still be found there.

Why was Dresden chosen as a target?

Dresden was a key transport junction. To Churchill and his war cabinet, this made Dresden a strategic target. Bombing the city might halt the flow of German troops and speed the advance of the Soviet army into Germany. Bombing Dresden might help the Russian war effort.

What was the bombing of Dresden in World War II?

Bombing of Dresden in World War II. The bombing of Dresden was a British / American aerial bombing attack on the city of Dresden, the capital of the German state of Saxony, during World War II in the European Theatre. In four raids between 13 and 15 February 1945, 722 heavy bombers of the British Royal Air Force (RAF)…

Did Kurt Vonnegut witness the bombing of Dresden?

When they came back to the surface, “the city was gone,” remembered writer and social critic Kurt Vonnegut —one of the American POWs who witnessed the bombing of Dresden. The punishing, three-day Allied bombing attack on Dresden from February 13 to 15 in the final months of World War II became among the most controversial Allied actions of the war.

What was the most destructive bombing in World War II?

On the evening of February 13, 1945, a series of Allied firebombing raids begins against the German city of Dresden, reducing the “Florence of the Elbe” to rubble and flames, and killing as many as 135,000 people. It was the single most destructive bombing of the war—including …read more.

What did the American prisoners of war hear in Dresden?

They had heard the “whump a whump” of distant aerial bombings many times before. But on February 13, 1945, the American prisoners of war heard Dresden’s fire sirens howl right above their heads. German guards moved them two stories down into a meat locker.