Flying Bombs over England

by H.E. Bates

This work tells the story of Germany's vengeance weapons, the V1 and V2 (flying bomb and rocket). It was written by the late novelist, H.E. Bates, in 1945 suppressed for 30 years and locked away in the British Public Records Office. The publication of the book coincides with the 50th anniversary of the start of Hitler's terror campaign, for it was on June 13, 1944 that the first ungainly monster made its appearance. Speeding across the skies just above tree-top height and spitting red flames from its tail, the missile crossed the coast at Dymchurch and crashed in Kent. The vengeance weapons were designed to turn the tide of war - and they nearly did. As they roared overhead, causing death and destruction in Southern England, H.E. Bates - the Air Ministry's "writer-in-residence" - was instructed to prepare a book on their concept, development, launching sites and the indiscriminate nature of their use. The novelist, with a wide knowledge of his subject, distilled a vivid portrait - only to see it become a victim of the 30-year rule. Bates recreates the atmosphere of life, explains the brilliant German engineering skills behind this last-ditch orgy of terror, and describes how they were finally repulsed by the front-line boys and girls in this new Battle of Britain. The book was edited by Bob Ogley, who published "Doodlebugs and Rockets" last year. It was Bob who found the Bates manuscript while researching in the Public Records Office.

Genres: History

160 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1994

About the author

Herbert Ernest Bates, CBE is widely recognised as one of the finest short story writers of his generation, with more than 20 story collections published in his lifetime. It should not be overlooked, however, that he also wrote some outstanding novels, starting with The Two Sisters through to A Moment in Time, with such works as Love For Lydia, Fair Stood the Wind for France and The Scarlet Sword earning high praise from the critics. His study of the Modern Short Story is considered one of the best ever written on the subject.

He was born in Rushden, Northamptonshire and was educated at Kettering Grammar School. After leaving school, he was briefly a newspaper reporter and a warehouse clerk, but his heart was always in writing and his dream to be able to make a living by his pen.

Many of his stories depict life in the rural Midlands of England, particularly his native Northamptonshire. Bates was partial to taking long midnight walks around the Northamptonshire countryside - and this often provided the inspiration for his stories. Bates was a great lover of the countryside and its people and this is exemplified in two volumes of essays entitled Through the Woods and Down the River.

In 1931, he married Madge Cox, his sweetheart from the next road in his native Rushden. They moved to the village of Little Chart in Kent and bought an old granary and this together with an acre of garden they converted into a home. It was in this phase of his life that he found the inspiration for the Larkins series of novels -The Darling Buds of May, A Breath of French Air, When the Green Woods Laugh, etc. - and the Uncle Silas tales. Not surprisingly, these highly successful novels inspired television series that were immensely popular.

His collection of stories written while serving in the RAF during World War II, best known by the title The Stories of Flying Officer X, but previously published as Something in the Air (a compilation of his two wartime collections under the pseudonym 'Flying Officer X' and titled The Greatest People in the World and How Sleep the Brave), deserve particular attention. By the end of the war he had achieved the rank of Squadron Leader.

Bates was influenced by Chekhov in particular, and his knowledge of the history of the short story is obvious from the famous study he produced on the subject. He also wrote his autobiography in three volumes (each delightfully illustrated) which were subsequently published in a one-volume Autobiography.

Bates was a keen and knowledgeable gardener and wrote numerous books on flowers. The Granary remained their home for the whole of their married life. After the death of H. E Bates, Madge moved to a bungalow, which had originally been a cow byre, next to the Granary. She died in 2004 at age 95. They raised two sons and two daughters.

primarily from Wikipedia, with additions by Keith Farnsworth

Reviews

[André · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains the official report as written by British novelist H.E. Bates, who in 1944 was a Squadron Leader in the PR department of the Air Ministry (Bates was even ordered to fly to France to seek out the launching sites so as to write the most detailed report possible).
Although submitted for publication in 1945 it never was published with the manuscript being suppressed under the "30 year rule".
The report explains in detail the weapons/the attacks, the counter measures/defense methods used by the British and the terrifying effect the attacks had on the local population.
In addition to the original report this book (edited by Bob Ogley) contains many photographs of the weapons, the launching sites, the destruction and the suffering of the local population.
There is a brief introduction explaining the cover painting with a description of the event as experienced by Warrant Officer Tadeusz Szymanski, the pilot.
The last pages show a few pictures of some of the launching sites in their current state (1994) and a page with portraits of 7 veterans of the 1943 Peenemunde raid.

All in all a great read for those interested in the subject.

[Lisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is an official government history of the German V1 doodlebug, the rocket bombs that devastated Britain from 1944 onwards, (and as it turns out, one of them blew my father off a wall, on which he was standing to watch its progress).
Lots of this book is boring and technical, and the writer didn't have the skill (or the word limit) to adequately convey much beyond the facts, but I know a bit more about the impact of the things and how they worked. In a way, they were nastier than the atom bomb, because the Japanese didn't know the atom bomb was coming. The grim fear of the doodlebug must have been appalling.
NB The alternative title of this book is Doodlebugs Over England.