This week ‘London Shoes’ looked back to the latter stages of WW2 and the devastating impact that one specific aspect of enemy attack had on the lives of so many Londoners.
This week’s publication onto the ‘London Shoes’ Website-FB & Twitter portals is entitled “V2 Rocket attacks on London – the ‘first the worst & the last” !!!.
Whilst battles were being fought throughout occupied Europe and in other countries – Germany knew that it had to come up with a new strategy to attack Britain from the skies in order to decimate production and defence, and to crush the morale of the British people.
The ‘Blitz’ had come and gone, and Britain’s ability to defend itself from aerial attacks had been greatly enhanced with the introduction of high tech radar mechanisms and also anti-aircraft weaponry.
Germany knew that it had to develop a more advanced and more lethal method of attacking Britain from the skies – and so it turned to one of its leading scientists in rocket technology-‘Wernher von Braun’ to design and develop a new form of bomb weaponry, that could be launched from the land, in Europe – directed to specific targets in Britain-then be fired across the English Channel – to hit and obliterate the designated targets on British soil.
Being the capital London was obviously a prime target for the majority of these rocket attacks.
The first rocket design that ‘Wernher von Braun’ came up with was known as the ‘V1’ Rocket – the ‘V’ standing for ‘Vengeance’. It became more commonly known as the ‘buzz-bomb’ because of the buzzing noise that could be heard when approaching, and when its engine cut-out, then you knew that it was going to land somewhere very soon and cause death and destruction.
The very first ‘V1’ rocket to hit London, was launched from European soil on 13th June 1944 and hit a railway bridge in Grove Road-Bow-East London, killing 6 people and badly injuring 42 others – all in all, 9,000 V1 rockets were launched on London.
By September 1944, Germany, and in particular von Braun, had started developing a much more advanced and deadlier version of the V1 rocket – which was known as the ‘V2’.
The ‘V2’ rocket was, at that time, the world’s first long range ballistic missile.
The ‘V2’ rocket weighed 23 tons – travelled at 3,000mph – flew so high that it couldn’t be tracked by radar or shot down by anti-aircraft weapons – their approach couldn’t be heard at ground level – and when they exploded, they could leave a crater of anything up to 10ft deep. They were so powerful that their destructive effect would fan-out for up to a quarter of a mile from where they landed.
Germany started its ‘V2’ rocket bombardment of Britain in Sept 1944, and over 1,500 were subsequently dropped on London alone.
So – what were the ‘first’ the ‘worst’ & the ‘last’ V2 rocket attacks on London?
The very ‘first’ V2 rocket attack on London happened on 8th Sept 1944 – and for some unknown reason, hit the quiet little suburban residential street of Staveley Road in leafy Chiswick, located down by the Thames in the far reaches of south-west London. This very first V2 attack killed 3 people outright and seriously injured 17. The blast from this rocket completely obliterated the area of the quiet little street.
The ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack took place a couple of months later on 25th Nov 1944, when the bomb dropped from the skies on a busy Saturday morning, and hit the Woolworths store in New Cross Road, in the Bermondsey district of south London – killing 168 people including babies and children who had been out shopping with their mothers – and its devastation also left 121 people seriously injured. 
The Co-Op store next door to Woolworths collapsed as a result of the attack, and it took rescue services a whole 3 days to retrieve all of the bodies from the carnage.
The very ‘last’ V2 rocket attack on London took place on 27th March 1945 at around 7am in the morning, when it hit ‘Hughes Mansions’ – part of a residential block of flats situated at the Whitechapel end of Vallance Road-London E1 – killing 134 of its residents.
The devastation of the V2 rockets (and the V1’s) left thousands of Londoners homeless – or left them with home that no longer had a roof or utility services – but throughout all this tragedy and devastation, the resilience, camaraderie and community spirit amongst Londoners (and inhabitants of all Britain’s targeted cities) eventually saw them through what was one of the darkest periods of London’s history.
Shortly after the Hughes Mansions attack in March 1945, allied forces advanced into Europe and captured all the bases where the V1’s & V2’s had been launched from – and these bombardments finally came to an end.
As for the German scientist ‘Wernher von Braun’ who designed these ‘V’ rockets – he was ‘encouraged’ by the allied forces, to surrender to the US Army, as opposed to the Russians – and was very soon made a full US Citizen, and went on to become one of the leading designers of the early incarnations of the US NASSA space project……… the irony of War eh!!!
Today – it is somewhat reassuring & comforting to know that these awful unimaginable events have not been forgotten – as scattered across London are several commemorative plaques and memorials acknowledging what Londoner’s went through as a result of the V2 (& V1) rocket attacks and the tragic loss of life that followed.
So – for this blog, I set out to visit the exact locations of ‘The First – The Worst – The Last’ V2 rocket attacks – and this is what I found.
In quiet leafy ‘Staveley Road’–Chiswick, the site of the very ‘first’ V2 rocket attack on 8th Sept 1944 – there stands a memorial at the spot where the rocket initially hit. Next to this memorial is a sort of ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed.
In ‘New Cross Road’ south-east London, and not far from New Cross Gate mainline station – the ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack is commemorated by 2 plaques on the exterior wall of an Iceland supermarket store, which is built on the site of the old ‘Woolworths’ department store that was so devastatingly bombed by a V2 on 25th November 1944, taking the lives of 168 people – the ‘worst’ tragedy as a result of these rocket attacks.
Finally, in Vallance Road-E1 just round the corner from Whitechapel mainline station – there is a commemorative stone tucked away in the grounds of the ‘Hughes Mansions’ housing estate that the very ‘last’ V2 rocket hit on 27th March 1945 – killing 134 innocent people. A children’s playground now stands on the actual spot that was the centre of the explosion.
So – having spent the day travelling from south west to south east then east London seeking out the ‘first – worst & last’ V2 rocket attack sites, it was time for a little liquid refreshment before heading off back home – and so I continued walking up Vallance Road-E1 from ‘Hughes Mansions’ towards Bethnal Green, and popped into a legendary east-end pub “The Marquis of Cornwallis” situated on the corner of Vallance Rd & Bethnal Green Road.
‘The Marquis of Cornwallis’ is a typical old east-end type boozer that has a bit of history behind it. Records show that there has been a pub on the site since 1793, and the current pub building dates back to 1835.
It has a bit of notoriety about it as in the past it was often the preferred watering-hole for a lot of the local gangsters, and in fact, the Kray Twins dad ‘Charles Kray’ senior, was once a ‘regular’ – even when he was on-the-run’ from the authorities-as it is said, he often was.
Knocking back a couple of ‘cheeky’ beers in the ‘Cornwallis’ gave me the time to contemplate on just how difficult and terrifying life must have been for Londoner’s during WW2 years – and hopefully, through commemorative plaques and memorials, however big/however small – the courage and resilience of those who lived through this kind of stuff is appreciated and never forgotten.
Hope my accompanying photos help to bring a bit of reality to this article.
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See below for the full range of photographs taken to accompany this blog
Before the introduction of the ‘V2’ rocket model – the very first ‘V1’ rocket to hit London, was launched from European soil on 13th June 1944 and hit a railway bridge in Grove Road-Bow, killing 6 people and badly injuring 42 others – all in all, 9,000 V1 rockets were launched on London.
The ‘V2’ rocket weighed 23 tons – travelled at 3,000mph – flew so high that it couldn’t be tracked by radar or shot down by anti-aircraft weapons – its approach couldn’t be heard at ground level – and when they exploded, they could leave a crater of anything up to 10ft deep. They were so powerful that their destructive effect would fan-out for up to a quarter of a mile from where they landed.
Leafy, tranquil ‘Chiswick’ located in the far reaches of SW-London – the very first V2 rocket attack took place here.
The quiet little suburban residential street of Staveley Road in leafy Chiswick, located down by the Thames in the far reaches of south-west London. This very first V2 attack occurred here and killed 3 people outright and seriously injured 17.
The memorial at Staveley Rd-Chiswick – the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London
The memorial at Staveley Rd-Chiswick – the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London
The memorial at Staveley Rd-Chiswick – the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London
A photo of Staveley Rd-Chiswick following the devastation of the very first V2 rocket attack on London
The memorial at Staveley Street-Chiswick – at the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London
Next to the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick is a ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed.
Next to the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick is a ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed
Next to the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick is a ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed
Next to the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick is a ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed
Me – alongside the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick – the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London in 1944
New Cross Gate station – just a few yards away from the ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack on London in WW2
A photo showing the devastation of the V2 rocket attack in New Cross, that hit the Woolworths department store on a busy Saturday morning in November 1944
Another photo showing the devastation of the V2 rocket attack in New Cross, that hit the Woolworths department store on a busy Saturday morning in November 1944
In ‘New Cross Road’ south-east London – the ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack on London is commemorated by 2 plaques on the exterior wall of an Iceland supermarket, which is built on the site of the old ‘Woolworths’ department store that was so devastatingly bombed by a V2 on 25th November 1944, taking the lives of 168 people – the ‘worst’ tragedy as a result of these rocket attacks.
One of the commemorative plaques on the exterior wall of an Iceland supermarket in the New Cross Road-SE London – built on the site of the old ‘Woolworths’ department store that was so devastatingly bombed by a V2 on 25th November 1944,
Another commemorative plaque on the exterior wall of an Iceland supermarket store in the New Cross Road-SE London – built on the site of the old ‘Woolworths’ department store that was so devastatingly bombed by a V2 on 25th November 1944
The site today – of what was the worst V2 rocket attack on London in 1944 – New Cross-SE London
Although it could be argued that this has been shabbily put together – at least someone has had the decency and respect to display their own commemoration to all those who lost their lives as a result of the worst V2 rocket attack on London – in New Cross.
Me – alongside the commemorative plaques on the external walls of the Iceland store in New Cross Rd – that, back in 1944, was the scene of the ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack on London soil.
Me – with the site of the New Cross V2 rocket attack, in the background
The very’ last’ V2 rocket attack on London took place on 27th March 1945 at around 7am in the morning, when it hit ‘Hughes Mansions’ – part of a residential block of flats situated at the Whitechapel end of Vallance Road-London E1 – killing 134 of its residents.
A photo showing the devastation of the V2 rocket attack that hit ‘Hughes Mansions’ in Vallance Rd-Whitechapel on the morning of 25th March 1945, killing 134 people. The very last V2 rocket attack on London
A commemorative stone tucked away in the grounds of the ‘Hughes Mansions’ housing estate-Vallance Rd-E1. The scene of the very ‘last’ V2 rocket hit on 27th March 1945 – killing 134 innocent people.
A close-up of the commemorative plaque tucked away in the grounds of the ‘Hughes Mansions’ housing estate-Vallence Rd-E1.
At the ‘Hughes Mansions’ estate today – a children’s playground now stands on the actual spot that was the centre of the explosion of the very last V2 rocket to hit London in 1945.
Me – outside ‘Hughes Mansions’-Vallance RD-Whitechapel. The site of the very last V2 rocket attack on London, in 1945
“The Marquis of Cornwallis” pub situated on the corner of Vallance Rd & Bethnal Green Road in east London. Records show that there has been a pub on the site since 1793, and the current pub building dates back to 1835.
Me – knocking back an enjoyable ‘cheeky’ one in ‘The Marquis of Cornwallis’ pub-Bethnal Green-east London
My Dad was caught up in the V2 attack on the Hippodrome at Ilford. He was on leave from the navy and waiting for a bus opposite the theatre when it hit. He spent a week in hospital from concussion and bleeding from his ears before returning back for duty. However in later life it became apparent that the pressure wave had permanently damaged his hearing. He had several operations on his ear in the early 60’s but without success and spent the rest of his life with no hearing in his left ear. 🙁
A V2 exploded in Green Street (Upton Park) destroying St Stephens Church and much of the surrounding area. My grandparents and father lived nearby at the time, and the explosion was explained as being caused by a “landmine” – presumably for wartime censorship purposes. I only discovered it had been a V2 by reading an article on the subject fairly recently – my grandmother lived for another 35 years after the event, and died still believing what they’d been told at the time.
A very interesting read that makes you think what a lucky generation we have been to avoid anything like this. My Mum often spoke about the bombing raids and how her family lived for a while in a house with no doors and windows, the result of a bombing raid. They didn’t have much in those days so nothing was stolen and they all helped each other out
Once again an amazing story very well told.
Really enjoyed this one
A very timely reminder in these troubled times.
During the war years I lived in Somerset and knew little of the terrible destruction and loss of life experienced in London and other cities. Our town, being a road and rail hub and housing the aircraft works producing the famous Mosquito fighter bomber did receive some unwelcome attention. I am a gardener and rather fond of the Butterfly Bush, (buddleia davidii), and I always used to see it growing profusely on the bomb sites of Exeter and Plymouth.
My mother lived in German occupied Rotterdam, a city that was obliterated by German bombers AFTER the Dutch had surrendered. Towards the end of the war she could see from her garden V2’s being launched on London. I believe this was the Hoek van Holland launch site
My mum was in Richmond during the war in a Convent School and spoke of the fear felt as a child during these raids. Thanks for this – great piece Geoff
Another great read Geoff- thanks! Important to remember these sacrifices.
My dad often told me of the night when he and his mum worked to put out fires in their back garden caused by incendary bombs targeting Cardiff. His school around the corner was badly fire damaged.
Where I walk my dogs at Cosmeston park penarth there is a concrete road effectively to nowhere. It was actually laid down to transport in lighting placed in the fields which were lit up as a decoy in the hope that German bombers coming up the Bristol channel would think these lights were Cardiff and would drop them there instead of on Cardiff docks. Quite a lot of houses here in penarth were destroyed during bombing as the town was in the firing line. They stand out today as they Are setback from the original terraced house line. I’m not sure why they re built them like that?