The German bombing of Coventry inspired a new term - to coventrate - meaning the complete destruction of a city.This concrete sign is from a runway in France. The runway was used by German aircraft, which bombed Coventry in 1940 and was given the name Coventry Strasse after the raid. The sign was removed by British soldiers when the runway was captured and was presented to the city of Coventry in 1944. The sign now forms the centre-piece in the award winning Peace and Reconciliation gallery at the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum. This gallery explores themes around peace and reconciliation through the history of Coventry, starting with the Blitz of 1940.
Coventry Strasse airfield sign
Contributed by Herbert Art Gallery and Museum
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- Location
- Culture
- Period
-
1940
- Theme
- Size
-
- H:
- 49.5cm
- W:
- 100cm
- D:
- 7.5cm
- Colour
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Comments
It is actually a sad testimony of how German propaganda abused even such concrete signs and created inappropiate term in order to support German propaganda that culminated in Hitler´s and Goebbels speeches made in this context; this propaganda just put across a fatalistic and even insane nationalistic attitude that humiliates others.
A sad chapter of German history!
On the 16th of March 2001, the cross of nails has been handed to the City of Würzburg, Germany because on the 16th of March 1945, the high profile historic city of Würzburg, with no war industries or being no important traffic point has been brutally destructed by the Royal Air Force, Bomber Group Nr. 5.
Help- and defenceless women, children, old people, about 5.000 people, were somelike condemned to death by turning Würzburg in a relentless firestorm, leaving the entire old historic city, six weeks ahead of the end of WWII, behind as an awful field off rubbish and dust.
35 churches, including the Cathedral, countless historic buildings of incredible artistic value have been turned into the ashes.
The world famous UNESCO world heritage, the baroque residence, has been partially destructed.
Each year on the 16th March of 1945, all bells of the 35 rebuilt Würzburg churches ring at the full time of the brutal RAF air raid attack between 9.25 and 9.42 p.m. in the evening, starting with the biggest bell of the Würzburg cathedral and ending with it.
At the memorial of Würzburg cemetry there is a memorial stone which says:
"3.000 victims are buried here. Peace to their souls. Peace to our poor city."
This shows, what moral standards the UK has at the very end of WWII, in March 1945, when the enemy Germany has already been military defeated: Dropping bombs without any sense on high profile art and architecture, on women, children, old people and refugees.
"Never the good is brought by wars, you, peace, is what we long for."
Coventry´s cross of the nails has been handed over to the City of Würzburg.
MEMORIAL REQUIEM City of Würzburg totally destructed by the RAF
+ 16th of March 1945
256 high explosive bombs
300.000 incendiary bombs
MEMORIAL REQUIEM
[Unsuitable/Broken URL removed by Moderator]
"Peace to their poor souls, peace to our poor city."