The bombing of Bath - 70 years ago today

417 people were killed and 1,200 buildings were destroyed in the Bath blitz Credit: Bath CAB

Seventy years ago today the Georgian city of Bath was shocked to find it had become a target for the Luftwaffe. Until 25th April 1942 it had come through the war virtually unscathed. German warplanes had concentrated on bombarding nearby Bristol. But that Saturday night they turned their attention to Bath and its historic buildings.

It's firmly believed the reason why they'd suddenly become a target was in retaliation for RAF raids on the German cities of Lubeck and Rostock. Here civilians were killed by the Allied bombings and heritage buildings were left as smouldering shells. The Nazis wanted to hit back... they turned to a tourist guide book published by the firm Baedeker. From it they selected their targets - beautiful cities like Bath rich in history. The Baedeker raids, as they became known, were short and sharp. For just two nights the German planes ravaged the city with high explosive and incendiary bombs.

Fire crews ran out of water while trying to save Bath's historic buildings Credit: Bristol Record Office

In all, 417 people were killed, a similar number injured. A total of 19,000 buildings were damaged, some 1,200 destroyed. Today there is very little visible evidence of the destruction.

This is Bath, 70 years after the bombing raids changed its skyline forever Credit: ITV West

One chilling sight though is a low building in the city centre... its Bath stone walls pock-marked by shrapnel from a bomb that exploded nearby.

Bob Crampton examines pock-marked walls in Bath - the legacy of the World War II bombing Credit: ITV West