The City of Hull’s Second World War Records
Hull was rarely referred to by name in newspaper reports during the Second World War. Instead, reports of raids were said to have taken place in a "north-east coast town" in an attempt to protect the identity of the city and play down the devastation wreaked on the population by the Luftwaffe. Hull was subject to 86 raids, the first on 19/20 June 1940, and the last on 17 March 1945.
Photographs and original archives held at the Hull History Centre bear testament to the extent of this devastation and provide an insight into how the city coped under wartime conditions.
Download our brochure Wardens, Welfare and Victory: The Unbroken Spirit of the Hull Blitz(PDF, 6MB) to find out more.
Air Raids
Civil Defence Control and report services
War Damage
After the War
Further reading
For more information about the books and collections at the History Centre relating to the Second World, download our guide: Discovering The Second World War at the Hull History Centre (PDF, 0.2MB).
Download a document about the Hull Blitz from Hull City Council's City Engineer's Department, Report on City Engineer’s Rescue, Demolition and Repair services following severe enemy attack 7/8 May 1941 and 9 May 1941 (PDF, 6MB). Please note that some of the information within the report is sensitive and may cause some upset, so although the entire report can be read in full at the Hull History Centre, we have chosen to redact small elements of the online version to reflect the sensitivities of a wider audience. The report can be read at the Centre by requesting file C TYW/2/3/4.