Inferno: The Devastation of Hamburg, 1943

by Keith Lowe

In July of 1943, British and American bombers launched an attack on the German city of Hamburg that was unlike anything the world had ever seen. For ten days they drenched the city with over 9,000 tons of bombs, with the intention of erasing it entirely from the map. The fires they created were so huge they burned for a month, and were visible for 200 miles. As those who survived emerged from their ruined cellars and air-raid shelters they were confronted with a unique vision of hell: a sea of flame that stretched to the horizon, the burnt-out husks of fire engines that had tried to rescue them, charcoaled corpses and roads that had become flaming rivers of melted tarmac.

Using many new first-hand accounts and other material, Keith Lowe gives the human side of an inhuman story, and the result is an epic story of devastation and survival, and a much-needed reminder of the human face of war.

Genres: History, World War II, Nonfiction, Germany, War, Military History, Military Fiction

615 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Keith Lowe is the author of numerous books, including two novels and the critically acclaimed history Inferno: The Fiery Devastation of Hamburg, 1943. He is widely recognized as an authority on the Second World War, and has often spoken on TV and radio, both in Britain and the United States. Most recently he was an historical consultant and one of the main speakers in the PBS documentary The Bombing of Germany which was also broadcast in Germany. His books have been translated into several languages, and he has also lectured in Britain, Canada and Germany. He lives in North London with his wife and two kids.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/keithlowe

Reviews

['Aussie Rick' · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having just finished reading Keith Lowe’s book on the bombing of Hamburg in 1943 I felt I should say something about this book – it’s horrific - not the book but the story. This is a book that should be read by anyone who has an interest in military history and who needs the occasional reminder about how terrible war really is. I sometimes tend not to see or forget that war means dying in some of the worst possible ways, its not all glory and great stories, its death in its most terrible form for many.

The beauty of this book is that the author tells the story of those subjected to the allied bombing campaign against Hamburg in 1943 along with those doing the bombing. It offers the story of those civilians on the ground that were caught in the terrible firestorm that became Hamburg in 1943. It also offers the accounts of those who caused this terrible event and what they went through to do the job that they were ordered to do. The casualties suffered by RAF Bomber Command were horrendous as was the casualty rate for the USAAF who conducted the daytime raids against the city.

The author presents the stories of all those involved; German and allies, civilian and servicemen and he does not put forth an agenda or try to present one as good and the other as bad, he just tells the story and leaves it to you, the reader, to reach your own conclusions. Some of the accounts in the book are terrible, especially when they involve children and the photographs used by the author to illustrate the effects of the firestorm do make you sit back and think. For example here are two separate accounts of the second RAF Bomber Command mission to Hamburg in 1943 and the affects of the intense fire on the road asphalt:

“ …. I saw two women running, a young one and an older one, whose shoes got stuck in the boiling asphalt. They pulled their feet out of the shoes but that wasn’t a good idea because they had to step into the boiling asphalt. They fell and didn’t get up again. Like flies in the hot was of a candle.”

And this:

“ …. The asphalt of the road had become almost liquid with the immense heat. They reached the middle, where their feet got stuck in the asphalt. Their legs began to burn because of the heat, the flames ate their way up and met again above their heads. At first they screamed, then became quieter, and finally, they gave a last rattling breath and were dead.”

According to the author; “In the years that followed the catastrophe, the Hamburg fire-storm came under intense scientific scrutiny, and it was concluded that no other fire in recorded history has ever equalled its intensity. It was far worse than any of the great forest fires that have engulfed large parts of America and Canada; greater even than the fires that have consumed London, Chicago or any other city bombed by the Allies across Germany.” The book also cites this chilling fact: “the Hamburg police chief’s report the winds were so strong that ‘Children were town away from their parents’ hands by the force of the hurricane and whirled into the fire’.”

After the raids, the clean up began, first with recovering the bodies:

Clean-up crews entering the cellars had a particularly hard job. Here the stench was so bad that some military detachments insisted on blasting the cellars with flame-throwers before entering. Recovery squads were issued with gas masks, in which the filter had been replaced by a pad soaked in rum or Cognac. The mental and physical strain on those men was so great that many took to drinking the rum instead.

The author provides a concluding chapter; ‘Redemption’ to round his account off and I think it was very well done, again not laying blame and being self-righteous but presenting the facts and the thoughts of those involved as known to them at the time, along with observations gathered from his research and after speaking to survivors from this terrible event, both on the ground and in the air.

There are over 130 pages of notes and appendixes with numerous maps and black & white photographs. Overall this is an excellent addition to the many books covering the allied bombing campaign against Germany during the Second World War and should be read by all who have an interest in the subject.

[Erik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am rarely moved when reading history books, as little out there really surprises me when it comes to man and his ability to harm others. Mr. Lowe's book really shook me to my core, not so much about the descriptions and horror of what happened but that the arguments used to enact this destruction appear to have merit. This really contradicted my opinions going into reading the book.

First off, this book does a wonderful job presenting the facts... hard hitting and raw. There are details on everything from the planes used, pilots in them, layouts of the city, response organizations, and even plane losses for each strike. Many references and notes are provided, which really solidifies my opinion of Lowe's efforts here. This well researched and presented book checks off almost everything I would want in a good history book. It was so good I almost read it cover to cover without a pause. "A" for effort!

My only negative is that Lowe really shines a harsh light on the whole operation, presenting horror story after horror story from the victims, pointing out the flaws in the whole night bombing process, and details on the real motivations of senior RAF officers in executing the operation... only to then present some damn harsh realities that actually seem to justify the firebombing. Is there a difference between a U-boat crew and the workers who assemble the U-boats? What about the field kitchen for an army or the farmers who produce the food for it? This is some deep critical thinking material, and rather disturbing.

I will admit I am a bit jaded by this topic; my mother was a survivor of the terrible bombings and still suffers from the effects to this day (though her memories are now thankfully being lost). I've heard these kinds of stories up close and personal. I had always felt anger for our allied side taking such a despicable path in order to defeat the Germans. We were better than that, I thought. This book has opened my eyes to a new viewpoint though... perhaps our path was necessary.

I will struggle now internally debating these philosophies, and have this book to thank for causing such a conundrum. A book that makes you think, and really challenge your worldview, is something which should be treasured and revered. There can be no higher honor I think for an author than hearing his work made a reader really think. I am thankful for the read, and his efforts.

This was a well written and researched book, earning 4 stars. The added reference tables and footnotes give it an added 1/2 star. Making me really think? Priceless. 5 Stars well earned.

[Jonny · Rating 5 out of 5]

By 1.30 a.m., the fires already extended from the Berliner Tor on the edge of the city centre to the Hammer Park in the east, and from the banks of the river as far north as the Wandsbeker Chaussee. In half an hour the RAF had created a single fire that had engulfed several square miles of the city.

By the summer of 1943, Bomber Command was equipped, in the main, with effective aircraft, and possessed of weaponry to allow it to attempt it's aim of attacking and defeating one of the Reich's cities. After a hard campaign against the cities of the Ruhr, the decision was made to overcome the Luftwaffe's defences and target Hamburg in tandem with the nascent Eighth Air Force Bomber Command.

Keith Lowe's book sits comfortably alongside Martin Middlebrook's title on Operation Gomorrah, depicting the RAF's hugely successful strikes on the city, and the unfortunate circumstances that led to the immolation of the city:

For those sceptics who had doubted that Window would work, it was a moment of revelation. ‘They said that Window was going to upset the German radar when we went in, but we more or less said, “Oh, yes?”’ remembers Leonard Bradfield, a bomb-aimer with 49 Squadron. ‘But when we actually got there it was happening! We were absolutely delighted.’23 He continues: It was absolutely fantastic. We came up the Elbe and could see the river quite clearly. The radar-controlled blue master searchlights were standing absolutely upright and the white ones were weaving around, just searching. There were no night fighters because they were all in their boxes waiting to be given the vectors. The flak was just in a block over the target … It was the only time on any bomb run I was able to have 20 seconds completely unimpeded, without being stalked by the flak.

The events which took place both on the ground and in the air, from the deployment of the latest round of the continuing technological battle between RAF and the Luftwaffe, to the start of the USAAF's nadir are handled authoritatively and with compassion, and most importantly the horror inn the ground is not handled ghoulishly, but instead in a way which encourages you to look at events with empathy, regardless of your views.

Where the book wins out is it's empathy for all the parties involved, and in the final chapter in which the author debates the morality and effectiveness of the bomber offensive. For my money, this is pleasantly surprising in it's conclusion, and also as previously mentioned,in the way in which you're encouraged to consider the events described.

Perhaps the most poignant legacy of the firestorm is in the attitudes of those who survived its horrors. Klaus Müller still has an irrational fear of fireworks. His sister, who suffered from blackouts in the overpacked bunkers as a child, still cannot bring herself to board a full underground train. Some of the people quoted in this book admitted to experiencing flashbacks, especially on the catastrophe’s anniversary, when memories roll before their eyes ‘like some appalling horror film’. At least two experienced nervous breakdowns later in life that put them in hospital. For those people, and for countless more like them, the firestorm is not merely something that happened over sixty years ago. It is a continual burden, like a disease without a cure, that they will carry with them for the rest of their lives.

As a reappraisal of the morality and effectiveness of the Bomber war, I'd say it's an important read, and we'll worth your time. As a further quote from the conclusion states:

This idea makes me extremely uncomfortable, but I have to admit that the people who planned the raids had a point. Why should there be any distinction between the German U-boat captain and the German factory worker who helped to build that U-boat? They were both working towards the same end, which was to kill British sailors. And since oil workers produced fuel for that U-boat, surely they were also legitimate targets. Farmers provided sustenance for soldiers at the front, textile workers produced their uniforms, and train drivers got them to and from the battlefield. In a ‘total war’ – and we must remember that it was the Germans who first proclaimed it as such – all of those people are considered fair game, as is anything else that supports the enemy’s war economy.

I became a little less uncomfortable,if only because while reading this I found myself in front of the Merchant Navy memorial in South Shields, thinking on the U-Boats constructed in Hamburg, and reflectin that the 'merchies' were civilians too.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good book and a nice contrast to all the Battle of Britain books I've been reading. It's interesting how many consider THIS to be the final absolute end of the war for Germany, and it is ridiculous that it wasn't declared right then and there. I guess the country much like the refugees in the aftermath were equally dazed and zombielike.

It seems everyone interviewed and quoted, even at the time, knew that Hamburg had played a part in its own destruction. Instead of the rage and sense of purposefulness that Londoners had, the author references many who thought they had it coming for what was done to England and the East, and that it was divine retribution for what happened to the city's Jewish population, and now to just find a place to hide until it was all over.

The last few chapters are about the controversy, and it's something both strangely muted and angry. Since the prevailing attitude even at the time was victim's lack of sympathy for themselves, added on top of how virulently pro-Nazi a city Hamburg had been, even at the start, and its extreme importance to the war industry, it is hard I guess for a person to have any pity at all. The fact that even today in 2007 people are protesting memorials for the dead or getting violent at a 60th RAF reunion is amazing. The author does a good job at covering all the ethical bases in regards to incendiary carpet bombing.

But with all the grisly scenes, it would be hard to not be moved by survivor's testimonies. The random 5 eyeballs on a board; the giant department store shelter that got buried; the poor zoo animals; all the extemely sad stories about babies and the elderly. I also thought the soldier's tale of being the last to be flown out of Stalingrad and finding themselves in recovery on that summer night in Hamburg--and how the bombing in the city was so much worse than all of Stalingrad. It's not directly mentioned, but I thought that was a nice reminder of the effects of war. The tragic tale of Stalingrad and the soldiers on both sides who died there has been immortalized in countless books and movies obviously. Though the mainly civilian population of women and children in Hamburg faced something equally horrifying and this battle is something we all collectively look away from and try not to think about.

Extra props for all the maps and timelines. I like it when books do this.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever wondered why we are so fixated on the evils of Nazi Germany? Perhaps one reason is that we like to deflect from the atrocities that the Allies perpetrated on the Germans? Upon reading this book about the devastation of Hamburg, it is hard not to answer the latter question in the affirmative. The author himself notes that once you justify the bombing of German civilians as a war measure, you are only a few steps away from justifying the Holocaust itself on similar grounds.

It seems that the only substantial difference between the Allied bombing of Hamburg and other cities and the Jewish Holocaust was the number of people killed in the latter as opposed to the former. If our defence of the Allies' conduct is that they killed fewer people than the Nazis, then we are skating on thin moral ice. In short, Keith Lowe's book stands as a powerful indictment of those who wish to disassociate the ends from the means.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an authoritative work, and an invaluable addition to any aviation history shelves as it is a comprehensive assessment of Operation Gomorrah, and its part in the air war conducted by the courageous crews of Bomber Command and the skill and bravery of the pilots in the Luftwaffe defending their homeland.

But it is so much more than this because the author balances the contemporary reasoning of Bomber Command strategists on saturation and area bombing as against precision bombing, with the long lens of the historian who has the advantage of hindsight in drawing conclusions when able to weigh up the profit and loss account.

The book details the reasoning behind the implementation of Operation Gomorrah, the logistics of battle, and the impact of the campaign against Hamburg on the city’s defences and rescue services and residential population.

Then there are two excellent chapters - ‘Reckoning’ and ‘Redemption’ - dealing with the morality of bombing and its place in warfare. Here it is very interesting to think about the author’s choice of photographs and their placing at the back of the book. In illustrating his argument it is in the specific we find the universal, when we are debating the ethics of conflict.

The photographs are disturbing, as they are meant to be, but even then they are distant and grainy, not as brutal as a close-up. Seeing civilians, particularly innocent women and children, lying together, victims of ‘total war’ illustrates the truth of his argument perfectly. There is no distinction between killing the U-Boat Captain or the worker in making the U-Boats. Once any moral considerations are put to one side accountants and strategists will advise upon which is the more accessible and cost-effective target : a U-Boat in mid-Atlantic, a U-Boat on a slipway in the Blohm & Voss shipyards or the U-Boat mechanics, the factory workers living in their leafy residential suburbs?

There is no distinction in this reasoning as modern warfare taken to its logical conclusion, is about eradicating population and the annihilation of an alien civilisation.

‘I am aware that this book might have made uncomfortable reading for some.’

Sent from my iPhone

[Katrina Kauffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genuinely fascinating look into the circumstances surrounding Operation Gomorrah! I had to read this for school and I was expecting it to put me to sleep, but I found myself completely invested in the story. As far as academic history books go, this is the closest thing to a page-turner I've ever encountered. Lowe does a great job of depicting the events in an objective way, leaving space for the reader to empathize with the people of Hamburg as well as the Allied soldiers who are taking part in the attack. I feel like I'm coming away with a strong understanding not only of what actually occurred in this particular battle, but also of the larger political climate at the time on both sides of the war.

[Pedro Plassen Lopes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Impressive account about one of the worst city bombings. Although the effort is made, I think words will never truly capture the Hell created by the ensuing Firestorm. In the end of the book, the author over rationalises about who were the criminals and who were the victims.

[C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The citizens of Hamburg, Germany thought they were safe from Allied bombing as their city had always been among the most important trading partners of the United Kingdom and the United States. They thought they would be spared because of the close-knit pre-war partnership and the post-war trading potentials.

They were wrong.

Between 24 Jul and 2 Aug, British and American bombers destroyed or seriously damaged over 250,000 buildings. Over 1,000,000 people were displaced, and somewhere between 40,000 and 60,000 died.

Read my full review here:
http://ww2db.com/read.php?read_id=89

In short, author Keith Lowe had done an excellent job with Inferno: The Devastation of Hamburg, 1943 in bringing the horrors of war to the readers through careful research and extensive interviews. The book not only presented an event that rarely appear in English language literatures, but it also truthfully told the human suffering resulting from a total war campaign. This book is definitely a must-have.

[Cameron Coombe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent and detailed account of the bombing of Hamburg in 1943. I wanted to learn more about this as Jürgen Moltmann was present during the event and it had a profound impact on his life. Lowe draws on documentary evidence and interviews with eyewitnesses (German, British, American, and others) to form a comprehensive, night-by-night, day-by-day picture. The result is a very informative and disturbing narrative of an event that deserves much more attention in the popular consciousness, for the scale and manner of the destruction, and the legacy that was the British decision to carpet-bomb civilian areas. A helpful final chapter allows the reader to engage with some of the ethical questions that the investigation necessary raises. Detailed appendices will be of interest to some readers, as will the images included (maps are also included throughout, which help to ground the places and figures in something visual).

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well-written book about a controversial subject. The author brings a balanced approach to the book, neither demonising the Germans nor engaging in the ritual of RAF-bashing that has become increasingly popular in the last 20 years. Instead, he presents a very readable account of a tragedy for all who were associated with the aerial bombing of
Germany. If you want to read a book about the bombing war against Germany, this is the one.

[KJ CORRIGAN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful

Describing the horror of those on the receiving end and the fear of those delivering the death and destruction.Superb book highly recommend....though not for the faint hearted..

[Jeff Rosendahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this to be a really excellent book. Lowe has a style that is easily understandable and relatable...lots of use of first person which is unusual in a history book but I didn't mind it. I found the last chapter to be tedious. Lowe is trying to explain to a younger generation why we should or should not memorialize the people of Hamburg or the Allied aircrews who carried out the bombing and ends up talking in circles. He makes some good points but they are lost amid the constant "on the other hand." The result was a real letdown after some very good informative chapters about the actual event. But great maps, and amazing appendices. I'll read more from Lowe.

[James Dransfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a truly gripping book. Entering the region of military history as a complete novice I found this book to deliver a complete picture of the events that happened in Hamburg and also a relatively encompassing overview of the before and after. The book was truly unbiased and gave accounts from German, British and American viewpoints accounting the horrors that engulfed Hamburg in 1943. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in finding out more about the war. Bloody and unnerving, nauseating at points, only missed out on the 5th star as I have nothing to compare it to.

[Malcolm Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the description of the raids on Hamburg very well written. However I disagree with many f the points made in the last chapters I presume that he wasn't alive I the lateforties,so maybe is unaware of the rationing and hardship in the UK every much as bad as the citizens of Hamburg were suffering, partly as a result of this country bankrupting itself to help win the war.

[Glenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding read, amazingly researched and extremely well balanced while discussing the issue of how and why this happened.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was fascinating to read. And oh so worth my while.

I'm glad that the experiences of the Allied bomber crews and the citizens of Hamburg were both included. Really emphasizes that being anywhere near Hamburg sucked. Allied airmen flew in subzero temperatures and were under constant attack from German fighters and flack guns. Hamburgers were caught up in something that probably resembles Hell. They had to fight against strong winds (always blowing toward the flame because of how firestorms work) and in temperatures hot enough to boil asphalt.

So, a book like this always leaves me feeling somewhat bitter. We were at war with Germany but the area bombing of German cities deliberately targeted civilians in order to destroy morale. Which makes a sickening sense. After all, if it's total war then any one contributing to the war effort is a target. And it's a heck of a lot easier to destroy a U-boat in port, an airplane on the ground or to kill soldiers at home before they get into combat. And the air war demonstrated Allied commitment to the war and tied up German assets when the Soviets were fighting the war on the Eastern front on their own.

But 45,000 dead over a week of bombing, suffocating because the flames suck the oxygen out of every nook and cranny. It's just terrible to even think about.

And I can't condemn anyone involved (I guess, there's still the Nazis . . .) because I've never been in such a situation. I can't judge, sitting here in my living room. Maybe it was necessary, maybe it shortened the war and lightened the load on the Easter front. . . . I just don't know what to think about it.

[Antonio Dittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well researched, and constructed in such a way that the combination of personal journals and perspectives weaves a haunting, gripping tale. At once too horrible to be true, and too horrible to be anything else.

I'm not a usual reader of military history (sorry, Dad). Finding this book as engaging as I did came as quite a surprise, and for me, that takes some doing. I used to put Barbie's clothes on my G.I. Joe. Get the picture? Military history is definitely not the aisle you will find me in at the public library. Ever. Yet even for me, this was compelling reading. I stayed up till 5 a.m. finishing it.

There are so many reasons to recommend this book, and the many reviewers before me have pretty much covered the ground. For me, this book was an opportunity to enhance my knowledge of an historically significant human tragedy of mind-bending proportions. In the end, you feel sorry for everyone. Yes, everyone. Even the Germans. In fact, inasmuch as the victims of the Hamburg Firestorm were all innocent people with little or no connection to the war effort whatsoever, I found myself truly sorry for the 45,000 some-odd souls that perished, innocent of the crimes of their leaders.

[Claire]

A scrupulously researched and well-written account of the Allied bombing raids on Hamburg that, combined with some unusual meteorological conditions, created a firestorm of unimaginable proportions which killed tens of thousands and destroyed much of the city of Hamburg. Even-handed in its dealings with a complex, difficult, controversial, disturbing and often upsetting subject, it includes the personal accounts of British and American airmen as well as those of many of the German civilians who survived this horrific event. This is not an easy read, but it is a worthwhile one, particularly for anyone interested in the moral and philosophical arguments surrounding the bombing campaigns of the Second World War.

[Cinsoares · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an impeccably researched and compelling book that anyone interested in WWII should add to their lists of "must reads". It is told from numerous perspectives and the author seemingly took great pains to exclude personal opinion.

I read this book shorty after returning from a trip to Germany. While traveling I saw a recovered Germany. This book took me back to a broken Germany and all the factors and players that were a part of that. The combination of the two gave me an entirely new appreciation for the complexity, devastation and incredible resilience of mankind.

As I said, a must read.

[Lara Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harrowing account of the Allied firebombing of Hamburg in 1943. Both difficult to read and impossible to put down, it shows the human impact of total war, which was too often waged against civilians.

[Matt Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing book! It took personal perspectives and made them feel as if one was there.

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely riveting accounts of the firebombing of Hamburg. The eyewitness accounts really bring the facts to life.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Powerful, well researched, detailed, and overall a very dark and depressing look at how far "humanity"
can go in it's ability to destroy.

[Ursula · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent account of an utterly horrific event.