A Fine Feat of Arms – The Zeppelin Base Raids, Autumn 1914

In the summer of 1914, as Europe teetered on the brink of war, the spectre of immediate Zeppelin raids on London and other major British towns and cities loomed large. When First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, accepted responsibility for the aerial defence of London, he recognised that Zeppelins were most vulnerable when on the ground. Despite limited resources, he believed that attack provided the best method of defence against the Zeppelin threat and, in autumn 1914, authorized the Royal Naval Air Service to carry out raids on Zeppelin bases in Germany – at Cologne, Düsseldorf and Friedrichshafen. 

Whereas much of what we study in the First World War focuses on the actions of great bodies of men - of divisions, corps and armies – this talk by Ian Castle highlights the work of individuals, the handful of men who carried out history’s earliest examples of strategic bombing, at a time when aviation itself was in its infancy. It is a tale of great courage, intrepidity and much derring-do

Biography
Ian Castle began researching and writing military history over 30 years ago, but for the last 20 years has focused on Germany’s First World War air raids on Britain. He has written several books on the subject, including the highly-acclaimed ‘Forgotten Blitz’ trilogy. In addition, he regularly contributes articles to magazine and journals, has built an extensive website detailing the German air raids and has advised on and appeared in a number of TV documentaries. Ian is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and an Ambassador for Stow Maries Great War Aerodrome in Essex. This will be his third visit to the Chesterfield Branch

Members and non-members of The Western Front Association are equally welcome. Any new members are guaranteed a friendly atmosphere and a warm welcome from a group of like-minded enthusiasts