Description
Physical description
fragment
irregularly-shaped steel shard (L 10cm x W 5cm x 4mm thick).
Label
Sharp-edged steel splinter fragment from a Second World War German V1 flying bomb which killed an Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) girl on the Metropolitan Police Sports Ground at Imber Court, East Molesey, in Surrey in 1944. The first flying bombs (also known as the 'doodlebugs' or 'buzz bombs' on account of the weapon's distinctive sound) landed in London and the Home Counties during the night of 12/13 June. A sustained two-week bombardment starting in the middle of June led to a mini-evacuation of the capital as citizens sought to escape the V1's disconcertingly random and unpredictable destruction. Defensive measures included the siting of anti-aircraft guns along the North Downs and (in July) nearer the coast and the use of fast RAF fighter aircraft to shoot or 'tip' down the incoming flying bombs before they reached their intended targets (see EPH 4609).
History note
Splinter fragment from a German V1 flying bomb ('doodlebug' or 'buzz bomb').
Sharp-edged steel splinter fragment from a Second World War German V1 flying bomb which killed an Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) girl on the Metropolitan Police Sports Ground at Imber Court, East Molesey, in Surrey in 1944. The first flying bombs (also known as the 'doodlebugs' or 'buzz bombs' on account of the weapon's distinctive sound) landed in London and the Home Counties during the night of 12/13 June. A sustained two-week bombardment starting in the middle of June led to a mini-evacuation of the capital as citizens sought to escape the V1's disconcertingly random and unpredictable destruction. Defensive measures included the siting of anti-aircraft guns along the North Downs and (in July) nearer the coast and the use of fast RAF fighter aircraft to shoot or 'tip' down the incoming flying bombs before they reached their intended targets (see EPH 4609)