Magnesium incendiary Bomb from World War II
This 1 kilogram magnesium incendiary bomb was one of 200 that fell on Tunbridge Wells on the night of September 26th 1940. They started around 40 fires, one of which caused the destruction of the pavilion which stood behind the bandstand in Calverley Grounds.
The ‘Blitz’ on British cities – night time as opposed to day time raids – was Hitler’s attempt to destroy Britain’s morale. The attacks started on September 7th 1940 and continued until May 1941. Incendiary bombs, also known as firebombs, were designed to cause fires that would burn at extreme temperatures, and were dropped to cover a large area. A basic incendiary device consisted of a flammable magnesium cylinder with a central core of fine metal powder, a steel tail and an explosive element in the head.
As well as causing damage on the ground, the fires also acted as beacons, providing enemy air crews with markers with which to target their conventional high explosive bombs – thus defeating the enforced ‘blackouts’. A scheme to counter this saw small fires being deliberately lit in the countryside so that bombs were mistakenly dropped on unpopulated areas.
By the end of the war, approximately 660 incendiary devices had fallen on Tunbridge Wells, mostly during the summer and autumn of 1940.
Donna (Visitor Services Assistant)
