It was the sound that the whole nation had been dreading – the drone of enemy aircraft overhead. And Edinburgh was the first city on mainland Britain to experience a Nazi air raid. In the second part of our series marking the anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War, HAZEL MOLLISON recalls the night of October 16, 1939, when the Luftwaffe bombed the Forth
THE roar of the aircraft momentarily drowned out the proceedings of the meetings at the Royal Scots Club on Abercromby Place. "My God," said one of the officials, as he stared out the window. "That's a Jerry!"
Just for a second, those around the t
able fell silent. Then the meeting continued as before.
It was October 16, 1939, and the first air attack on mainland Britain was under way – with much of Edinburgh and Lothian seeing the ensuing dogfights between British Spitfires and German Junkers in the skies.
"That dogfight quickly became one of the city's legends," says Neil Griffiths, press officer with the Royal British Legion Scotland. "It is a story of heroism and skill which deserves to be remembered accurately."
The 12 Junkers Ju-88 had taken off just after midday, aiming to bomb the warship HMS Hood. Just after 2pm, they arrived over the Forth. They dropped to 10,000ft and roared over Rosyth.
The only barrier between their target were two RAF Auxiliary Air Force squadrons, manned by young men who had been part-timers until a fortnight before.
The first German pilots picked their targets and dipped into near vertical dives. Failing to find the Hood, their commander, Hauptmann Helmut Pohle, took aim at the HMS Southampton and released two 500-kilogram bombs at 300 metres. Just afterwards, Lieutenant Hans Storp led the second section to attack the ship from the west.
As the bombs hit the Forth, huge waterspouts rose into the air. The Southampton took a single hit, the bomb cutting through three decks before flying out at the bow.
On board was Arthur Walters, now 92 and living in Corstorphine. Originally from Northamptonshire, he was a Hoover factory worker before being conscripted – and was a corporal, working as the ship's postman during the attack.
He says: "I saw a dark object fall from the sky and fill the ship with smoke. The deck was splintered and there was a gaping hole where three floors should have been.
"That time we were lucky. A lot of us were saved when the bomb failed to go off. It is still at the bottom of the Forth Bridge today.
"18 soldiers were injured and one died a gristly death. He got his head cut clean off by a flying window frame near his action station."
The stricken South-ampton, along with HMS Repulse and HMS Edinburgh, also in the Forth, began firing back, and the anti-aircraft batteries at, among others, Dalmeny Park, were at last given permission to open fire.
Just as the third wave of German attackers prepared themselves, three Spitfires of 603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadron arrived.
"A burst of cannon stopped Storp's port engine and killed his gunner. Another Junkers fled, badly mauled, to crash into the sea off Port Seton where a fishing boat pulled the survivors aboard.
"Flight Lieutenant Patrick Gifford – in civilian life a solicitor from Castle Douglas – had shot down the first enemy aircraft over Britain in the Second World War," explains Neil.
"Spitfires from the Edinburgh squadron's rivals, 602 (City of Glasgow), were quickly scrambled from Drem, in East Lothian, and joined the attack.
"In a desperate attempt to escape, Pohle tried to outclimb his assailants, but presented a target for both Spitfires. Renfrewshire farmer Flight Lieutenant George Pinkerton's quick burst shattered the canopy, killing the gunner and co-pilot at once," he adds.
The Germans were under strict instructions only to attack ships at sea – in the early stages of war, both sides were anxious to avoid the possibility of civilian casualties.
HMS Mohawk, however, fitted this category. Part of a convoy heading up river, it came under fire between Kincraig Point and Gullane, but narrowly escaped direct hits from two 500-kilogram bombs. Shrapnel, however, scythed down men on the deck, which was also sprayed with machine gun fire. Sixteen men were killed.
John Kerr, 89, who now lives in Dalkeith, was stationed on the ship and wounded in the raid. He says: "We suffered a few casualties. The reason why the Germans got through was neglect on the defences coming in from the Forth."
Neil says: "The Germans were learning the hard way that their experts had been wrong about the Spit; it could easily outfly the Junkers. Pohle was later rescued but the Capital came to a standstill as enemy aircraft hurtled across northern Edinburgh with Spitfires in their wake, guns blazing." The Spitfires of 602 and 603 Squadrons continued chasing the now low-flying Junkers out to sea. One crashed when it reached the Netherlands, killing its crew.
Among those watching the first raids were boys from Fettes College, who were playing in a rugby tournament at the time.
Jack Mackenzie Stuart, then a 14-year-old schoolboy, who later became President of the European Court of Justice, was on the field.
He says: "The opposing full back was standing facing west ready to gather the ball. Suddenly his expression changed to one of complete astonishment and the ball sailed unnoticed over his shoulder. The whole game stopped and with a roar a German bomber swept low across the field with smoke pouring from one of its engines."
By 4.30pm, the attacks were over. Sixteen Royal Navy personnel had been killed and 44 wounded. The Luftwaffe had lost two aircraft, with four aircrew killed and four taken prisoner. Two of the German airmen killed were laid to rest in Portobello after a funeral which saw their coffins draped in Nazi flags and placed on an RAF trailer. Thousands lined the streets for the funeral.
Neil says: "One press report at time said: 'Victory over the first German bombers to raid Great Britain since the war began has largely been shared by men who, a few weeks ago, were Scottish stockbrokers, lawyers and sheep farmers.'
"Though it brought home the terrible dangers that lay ahead, it was an event of enormous excitement and reassurance in those uncertain days. That our airmen could prevail over a formidable enemy gave a moment of hope."
• Additional reporting: Victoria Raimes
