Southampton Blitz  The Southampton Blitz was the heavy bombing of Southampton by the Nazi German "Luftwaffe" during World War II. Southampton was a strategic bombing target for the Luftwaffe as it contained both busy docks with associated business premises and factories and the Supermarine factory building Spitfires in Woolston. Being a large port city on the south coast it was within easy reach of German airfields in France, as was the neighbouring city of Portsmouth. During the war, 57 attacks on the city were made, but over 1,500 air raid warnings were issued. According to the Air Raid Precautions (ARP) Department approximately 2,300 bombs were dropped amounting to over 470 tonnes of high explosives. Over 30,000 incendiary devices were dropped on the city with nearly 45,000 buildings damaged or destroyed, with most of the city's High Street being hit. The Supermarine factory building making Spitfires in Woolston was a key target in the city. On the 24 and 26 September, 1940 the "Luftwaffe" attacked the riverside factory during two day-time raids. Much of the factory was destroyed and 110 people were killed. Northam gasworks was also targeted on 26 September and 11 workers were killed in the raid. A daylight raid on 6 November 1940 targeted the city's Civic Centre. Hermann Goering, head of the "Luftwaffe", had remarked that the Civic Centre appeared like a "piece of cake" from the air, and that he was going to "cut himself a slice". During the raid twelve bombs were dropped, including a direct hit on the Civic Centre with a 500lb high explosive. The bomb penetrated to the lower floors of the art gallery killing 35 people, including 15 children, who were having an art lesson in the basement. Of the 57 air raids, by far the worst were on 23 and 30 November and 1 December 1940 and these attacks are generally referred to as "Southampton's Blitz". Starting at 1815 and running until midnight on the evening of 23 November, 77 people were killed and over 300 injured with the Civic Centre taking much of the brunt of the attack. The scale of the raid ruined the city's water supply and many of the fires had the be left to burn themselves out. There were reports that the glow of the firestorm of Southampton burning could be seen from as far away as Cherbourg on the coast of France. Nazi publicity declared in propaganda that the city had been left a smoking ruin. A week later, 120 German bombers returned for a further six-hour attack on the evening of November 30. 800 bombs dropped on the city left 137 dead, 96 killed in their air raid shelters.