Max Hastings' Bomber Command

David.
Thank you.
I wouldn’t have thought 76 were much different to any other main force squadron would you..?
They operested Merlin powered Halifax aircraft for a long time and suffered consequent losses.
Many of these three and four group squadrons (and others) suffered terrible losses and were often far away from the glamour of PFF or even Cochrane’s private air-force (sometimes also known as the 5th Airforce).
Even today the Lincolnshire Lanc groups get the lions share of media coverage.
A grim war I often think.

A.

Andy, unfortunately my first edition went AWOL some years ago, however 76 Squadron references in Chapter 8, in the original and later editions, are to do with how men suffered the strains of bombing operations. The courage required, fatalism, fear and, so called, LMF (lack of moral fibre). There are first hand accounts of fear and how some crew decided to refuse to fly after harrowing events. I have a later edition and even if you get hold of a later copy, you’ll still get the still get the gist of it.

Please may I ask what he said about 76 Sqn in the first edition??
I’m quite interested in 76 Sqn and it’s personnel and would like to hear.
Andy

Agree with you there TN, the Martin Middlebrook books are a must. Superb for strategy, tactics and first hand accounts. They are The Battle of Hamburg, The Peenemunde Raid, the Nuremburg Raid, the Battle of Berlin and The Schweinfort-Regensburg Missison (USAAF of course). Also read James Cammpbell’s The Bombing of Nuremburg.
I also agree that the Harris biography by Henry Probert is superb too. regarding Dresden, read alongside Frederick Taylor’s book, Alexander McKee’s Dresden 1945 and, dare I say it, David Irving’s The Destruction of Dresden written in the early 60’s. But be aware, Irving has his own agenda.
Read the suggestions here and you’ll be an expert on the subject. And see how views change over time.

Blue Robin. The first thing I would ask before you read Bomber Command by Max Hastings is have you read any other accounts of the Bomber war? The reason I ask is almost all books written before about 2000 get a lot wrong on the political and strategic reasoning behind some operations. In particular the account of the political situation post December 1944 is not covered accurately at all, and as others state Hastings put nearly everything on Harris when he was following orders and was often at odd with some of the raids he was asked to do. I read the Martin Middlebrook books first which are accurate operational accounts allowing you to gauge the level at which Hastings has researched his work. I also recommend reading Dresden by Frederick Taylor, which sets the record straight on what happened that night. You will be surprised by what you read in this book.

Then when you read the Hastings book you see where he has perhaps glossed over critical details that explain certain decisions and where he is just plain inaccurate. Hastings I think brings his 70’s hindsight to bear on everything Harris did without trying to understand the mood of the Day. For me it has never been properly stressed that the combined Bomber offensive was more than just a few bombers bombing Germany day and night. There was the political war, the technological war, the industrial production war and all manner of support operations every night whether the bombers went out or not. And the Mosquito bomber units that often flew 2 missions per night in grossly overloaded aircraft get scant coverage, not to mention 100 support group. There was a lot more to Harris’ Job than he is given much credit for, and mistakes by subordinates he took on the chin and supported like a good boss. It’s a pity his bosses could not have reciprocated.

Bomber Harris by Henry Probert first published 2001 is the best account of Harris that I have read. Remember it is said of history that it is not until everyone is long dead that we get to the truth. I feel that the definitive work on bomber command is yet to emerge and when it does it will need to be 2 or three volumes with perhaps 2 book sized appendixes.

Max Hastings did get into a spot of bother after the first printing of Bomber Command ( 1979 ). When the paperback edition was printed in 1982, it contained a new foreword explaining that the third section of Chapter 8 had been ‘extensively re-written’ following suggestions that the author had dealt unjustly and incorrectly with 76 Squadron in 1943. It states that the author is ‘pleased to have been able to correct the fine record of 76 Squadron…’

he also goes on to state that ‘some senior officers concerned had taken the strongest exception to (his) judgements and comments’ but without going into details.

I said you should take care.

A REVIEW OF MAX HASTINGS’ DAS REICH
by Richard Landwehr, transcribed by Marc Rikmenspoel
Many visitors to this page are familiar with the book Das Reich: The March of the 2nd SS Panzer Division Through France, written by Max Hastings. I too have read the book, and find it full of fiction and errors. I have had the privilege of reading a letter written in English by Fritz Langanke (or as Hastings calls him, Langangke) to Max Hastings. In it, Langanke lists 15 points where Hastings ignored or distorted the information he provided. Unfortunately, the contents of the letter must remain private for the time being, but meanwhile, this review of the book by Richard Landwehr does a good job of summing up my feelings about Mr. Hastings’ work.

And from David’s post:
Hastings says that Harris should have been sacked at the end of 1944 and Portal was weak not to have done it. I totally agree!

Je reste ma valise.

Resmoroh

That would be Max “Last Helicopter out of Saigon, First to Yomp into Port Stanley” Hastings. It’s on the strength of this book the he tends to be wheeled out every time there is a programme about Bomber Command on TV. The book is certainly worth reading, but, despite what he says in the Foreword, that it is unlikely if any further evidence on the Bomber Offensive should come to light, it has, particularly since the end of the Cold War and more information from the Russian prospective. So the Book is very much of its time when written, 1979. He had to rewrite large parts of Chapter 8 in the second edition after much criticism about accusations he made about 76 Squadron and its personnel. Having said that, The book itself is most critical about the policy of area bombing rather than the crews themselves ; the Air Staff, Churchill and Harris. I seem to recall Harris being most put out that having invited Hastings to his home, the result was a book that was rather disparaging about him. Hastings says that Harris should have been sacked at the end of 1944 and Portal was weak not to have done it.
It’s worth reading for the details of people and their roles in the Bomber Offensive that hardly ever get a mention now, Sir Henry Tizard, Solly Zuckermann and Lord Cherwell (aka Prof. Lindemann). The last named was Churchill’s scientific adviser who’s report on “de-housing”the German population was really a report suggesting mass murder. And those who attacked the policy at the time, Richard Stokes MP, Bishop Bell and Canon John Collins, who later was a founder of CND and was remarkable assigned to Bomber Command HQ.
Now of, course it’s just Harris who gets the criticism. The only honest one amongst them.
Also worth reading is “The Bombers” by Norman Longmate, which was written about the same time and covers similar issues, and slightly different conclusions.
Also, read “The Bomber War” by Robin Neillands, written in 2001, that has more positive spin on the Offensive and the role it had in defeating the enemy.
As for Hastings being “disproved”, I guess he’d say not. You just have to make your own mind up!

Have a care about Max Hastings. Mostly factually correct – but sometimes lets his ego get the better of him when it comes to making balanced deductions. As far as I am aware his Fellow Scribblers during the Falklands War largely regarded him as a bit of a figure of fun. Hastings b 1945. Wallis d 1979. Harris d 1984.
HTH
Resmoroh