Forum Topic

V2 in Chiswick

I saw a programme yesterday which mentioned that the first V2 fell in Chiswick and the government said it was a gas explosion. The rockets were hushed up. For how long did this deception continue? How long before people knew they were under rocket attack?

Graham Weeks ● 6765d17 Comments

I can't answer that question but I do remember an advert for either the Imperial War Museum or the Science museum from some years back.It asked what does Stavely Road, Chiswick and Neil Armstrong have in common?  It then said that the answer's at whatever museum.The answer being Werner von Braun whose rocket science plonked the first V2 on Chiswick and who was taken by the yanks, after the war, to America where he assisted NASA in plonking Neil Armstrong on the moon.This V2 queston has come up recently (the past year) on ChiswickW4.  Have a search there.  There's some very knowledgable local historians.

Bobby Charlton ● 6765d

Jim has posted a number of times on this subject, as he and i lived just down the road from there in the second world war...Pity Jim is not posting at the moment, but should be back soon.

Hugh Telford ● 6764d

Whilst studying statistics (a very long time ago) the lecturer gave a fascinating account of the effective use of statistical analysis.    Apparently in WW2, V1 and V2 bombs were aimed at a pre-set target point in London.  Where they actually landed, scattered around the target, depended upon wind and other random effects.Statistical analysis by the "boffins" identified the taget being used by the enemy - somewhere in East/Central London.Misleading information on where rockets fell was deliberately made public. After a while the enemy adjusted the target point in the belief that their initial aim was wrong.  The felicitous result was a significant reduction in impacts in sensitive and heavily populated areas.

Robin Hall ● 6762d

I wonder how many V1s and V2s landed(and exploded) on London during WW2. Was it as bad as the blastings we gave Hamburg, Bremen and Cologne I wonder? I remember seeing the pictures during the war of those cities and thinking with relief that we had the Yanks on our side then.

Gerry Tan ● 6762d

Certainly Gerry the East-End, and the Dock area recieved Night Bombing that could be said as bad by the Delivery capability that Airforces had in 1940/41.Coventry of course was the first City to experience a 'Fire Storm'.The Luftwaffe did not have any four engined bombers at the time, but non-the-less the night bombing was effective partly because the RAF posessed no effective night fighter, until 1942. The JU188 and the Fokker-Wulf Karrier had four engines, but were not produced in large enough numbers. The JU188 was designed as a very long range aircraft, and was intended for missions against New York! The Fokker-Wulf was more used against shipping, but was so slow that Sunderland Flying Boats shot one or two down, attacking them 'Fighter Fashion'!!

Colin Vaughan ● 6762d

The "Deception" was kept up for two months,so many were falling on NE London that the Government had to come clean.http://www.leesaunders.co.uk/html/space1/space_centre/space_race_london_v2.phpMy mother was standing on Acton Town Station at the time of the Staveley Road V2,and was blown apex over annex by the blast. There was an upside for her,as she was carrying my elder brother who was in breach position at the time,the unrehearsed excercise caused him to go "right way up" and he was born two days later.

Tony Wood ● 6762d

I well remember going to school in July 1944. I looked at the top of the road, opposite to where I was travelling and saw a couple of nurses coming out of the Clayponds Hospital. As I walked further towards the Great West Road (A4) I heard the distinctive sound of the doodle bug coming towards Simmonds Aeroccessories, now Lucozade building, I then heard the engine cut out, and it descended and landed on the hospital, which was flattened, I often think about that dark day,and what happened to those nurses, and of course the patients, also when I went back to my house we had suffered blast damage and my father was injured. I understand that the Germans were the first to bomb residential areas, allegedly the pilot who was responsible for this error was court-martialed. Bomber Harris then retaliated and bombed many German cities, Dresden, Hamburg, Cologne, and the one place Hitler had boasted would never be bombed, Berlin, he was supposedly frothing at the mouth at this audacious raid carried out I believe by both the R.A.F and our allies the U.S.A.F.

Account suspended ● 6762d

If you go to this Url, its quite good..http://www.leesaunders.co.uk/html/space1/space_centre/space_race_london_v2.php

Hugh Telford ● 6762d

The V1...Count 3 when the engine Stoped and Duck...             

Hugh Telford ● 6762d

V2...           

Hugh Telford ● 6762d

13 Stavely Rd,Chiswick W4...         

Hugh Telford ● 6762d

Intresting! I wonder what else the yanks have developed??               

Hugh Telford ● 6761d

That's awesome Hugh. And frightening!

Gerry Tan ● 6761d

Yes Gerry, that missile terror campaign was worse than the Blitz by a long way. V1 was worse because every one sounded like it had your name on it, where as the sound of the V2 approching very often came after the thing had hit something, ie if you heard it it hadn't got you! The V1 was in fact the first 'Crude Cruise Missile', and London had the doubtful privilage of being the first recipient City!

Colin Vaughan ● 6760d

Re " I understand that the Germans were the first to bomb residential areas,"    xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx      I know this will start a controversey but I read that the germans  only bombed civilian areas after WE started it. Apparently Hitler had given instructions civilian areas were not to be bombed, where I read this I cannot precisely recall but maybe in a book called The Phoney War or maybe The Year we left behind, the first being most educational. Germany did not want the war, and was not prepared for it and for 6 months at least  " sued for peace " behind the scenes, via Swedish diplomats in the main but London would have none of it. We have never learned the real truth  /  reason why Hess came here. He was immediately incarcerated and held in secret.  And to add fuel to the flames !, Hitler gave instructions the British armies were to be allowed to get away at Dunkirk, as he thought  such would ingratiate him with the British and make for peace.

Tony Price ● 6759d

Wasn't the first Guernica?http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/guernica.htmLeading to Picasso's excruciatingly emotive paintinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guernica_(painting)

Susan Lawrence ● 6758d

????

Hugh Telford ● 6757d