Facts and Rumors

Many guides told us amazing things. What to believe is the ticket. An interesting tidbit I learned from a Welsh man giving us a bus tour - we take credible stories on how good they sound - told us about Hitler's desire to walk into this country and use certain buildings; he told his generals not to bomb certain places that he had decided to use for his own purposes. Ah, really? Bombing was not a precise tool it is today. I learned the pilots had to exactly lined up, see their target for a moment and fire away. The bombs could land 1000 meters around their target.  But it is very good story. This is me, so I had to google for answers.

This is what Francis Xavier (no idea his credentials) said when asked a question about the bombing in England:

"Hitlers (crazy?) idea was, that the British were the other pure Aryan nation, and that Britain would soon or later join him in his fantasy of the Aryan race to rule the world. That’s why the order was only to bomb and attack military instalations in England; preferably airports, dockyards, hangars - just pure military targets. Any cultural buildings and housing sectors were to be spared - especially, London was not to be touched. The bad luck (for both sides) was that a German bomber got into technical trouble and had to release his bombs. He was disorientated, and just dropped it and hit a housing section in the outskirts of London, killing a good number of civilians. This outraged the British and they started to bomb German cities. That way it escalated. Still, the order to spare the central sections of London was maintained until late into the war. Only when “Total war” was declared, all limits were given up on both sides."

St Paul's cathedral is one of the tallest buildings with a dome on top. I was told by another guide that the German pilots used it as a guide and so it only got incidentally bombed once. Looking up on google I found an answer from Alison Hill (Tour Guide, lives in London) and Bill Burton (lives in London): 

“Why didn’t the Nazis during the London Blitz ever bomb the House of Parliament, Windsor Palace, St. Paul’s Church, etc.?”

"To take those in order:

Houses of Parliament - bombed 14 times

Windsor Palace - doesn’t exist

St Paul’s Church - is in Covent Garden, isn’t that famous, not in a strategically important location; the West End didn’t get bombed all that much compared to the City and the East End.

Windsor Castle, if that’s what you’re thinking of, isn’t in London so couldn’t have been damaged in the London Blitz. Windsor Castle is, oddly enough, in Windsor. If you’re thinking of Buckingham Palace, which is in London, that was bombed 16 times.

St Paul’s Cathedral was bombed several times, but it wasn’t generally used as a target of choice because its distinctive dome, visible from the air in all but pitch darkness and standing on the highest ground in the City of London, was a useful navigation point for bombers."

Another church had shrapnel splattered over the walls. The guide said they didn't repair it and left it as a memorial. We noted many building that were very old next to very new buildings. Probably due to those bombings besides old age renewals.

Our guide also told us that this portal used to have a gate as it was another city. But now it has been taken down because the cities have sprawled together and are now one conglomeration instead of individual cities. 

Fascinating city with lots of stories. Some are more believable than others.