Sheffield suffered from repeated enemy aerial attacks in both World Wars.  The “Sheffield Blitz” is the term used to describe two nights of sustained bombing in December 1940;  the Zeppelin raid in September 1916 is less remembered.  Both incidents are a focus for local remembrance, and the memory of those who died and those who endured deserves to be kept alive by successive generations.

Sheffield Libraries & Archives and Sheffield Museums have voluminous collections of material relating to the impact of both World Wars – books, photographs, documents and museum exhibits to provide a tangible link with terrible events that changed the city for ever.

History:

• Sheffield in the First and Second World Wars
• events of September 1916
• events of December 1940
• personal narratives – eg, It’s a Bit Lively Outside, Women of Steel
• newspaper coverage

Geography:

• damage distribution, 1916 and 1940
• effect on post-war planning – ring roads, housing, boundary extension

Field-work opportunities:

• National Emergency Services Museum
• Sheffield Blitz Heritage Trail