City marks 80th anniversary of three devastating nights during the Blitz
Digital events organised to commemorate Swansea's Three Nights' Blitz
A series of events are being run this week playing out the bombing raids that changed the community of Swansea forever during three nights of the Second World War.
The Luftwaffe bombing raids claimed 230 lives and injured almost 400 others, leaving the town centre the picture of destruction.
About 35,000 incendiaries and 800 high explosive bombs were dropped during the raids. The fires could be seen from the other side of the Bristol Channel in Devon.
West Glamorgan Archive Service is unveiling for the first time a digitised version of the Civilian War Dead, indexing the names of all the Swansea civilians who lost their lives due to enemy action in World War II.
It’s also broadcasting a short film narrating the story of James R John, a member of the Home Guard who saw the blitz with his own eyes and committed his story to his diary.
Robert Francis-Davies, Cabinet Member for Investment, Regeneration and Tourism, said the Covid-safe commemorations are an opportunity for residents to remember one of the most significant events in the city’s history:
“We should never forget that the Three Nights’ Blitz is a story of lost lives, families left destitute and heroism in the face of terror. The blitz left much of the city centre in ruins, men, women and children dead and injured.
“Swansea was targeted because of its importance as a sea port in the British war effort and to try to demoralise civilians and emergency services. Somehow St Mary’s Church, Swansea Museum and Glynn Vivian survived but much else, including Swansea Market, was left in ruins.
“Our teams have put together a selection of online activities aimed at taking us back to those times to see what happened through the eyes of those who were there.”
Apart from online materials, photos and videos, Three Nights’ Blitz expert, Dr John Alban, will be presenting an online talk via teams at 7pm on Friday, the evening of the first night of the 80th anniversary.
Swansea Libraries digital display will explore the incredible story of the aftermath of the Blitz, as seen in newspaper articles and shop adverts of the time and as Dylan Thomas wrote about the Three Nights Blitz of Swansea in his radio play, ‘Return Journey’ this will be the focus of many online activities at the Dylan Thomas Centre.
Glynn Vivian Art Gallery has put together an online display of the work of local artist Will Evans who captured the blitz in a series of paintings. Swansea Museum will be sharing rarely-seen images of the destruction of the town centre from a recently-discovered photo album among other artefacts related to the blitz.
The museum and Swansea Fusion have also produced a video which looks at life in Swansea before, during and after the blitz.
To find out more about the Three Nights’ Blitz and to register your interest for the online talk by Dr John Alban go to: enjoyswanseabay.com