Coventry Cathedral Remembers the 85th Anniversary of the Blitz

Friday the 14th of November marks the 85th anniversary of the Coventry Blitz – a night which resulted in the death of 554 people with many more unaccounted for, and saw extensive destruction across the city including the medieval Cathedral Church of St. Michael.

Father Forgive: Coventry Cathedral marks the 85th anniversary of the Coventry Blitz

The attack involved nearly 500 Luftwaffe bombers and was one of the most concentrated attacks on a British city.  More than half of the city’s housing stock, about 43,000 homes, was damaged.

In the aftermath of that night in 1940, there were two choices – revenge or forgiveness.

Provost Howard’s response to the destruction of Coventry Cathedral was one of immediate forgiveness and his ambition to rebuild the Cathedral as a beacon of hope for the future is a message which continues to this day.

• The ruins of the old St. Michael’s Cathedral were preserved as a garden of remembrance.
• A new cathedral was built next to the ruins, with the two buildings forming one church.
• Coventry was twinned with Dresden, a German city also heavily bombed during the war, to foster reconciliation.
• A Blitz Museum is now located in the corner of the cathedral ruins to educate visitors about life during that era.

Coventry Cathedral is marking this year’s Blitz anniversary with a series of events you can find here.

Blitz Remembered will take place in the Cathedral ruins on Friday 14th, Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th November and will include a big screen showing photos from 1940 of the loss and destruction of Coventry Cathedral and across the city in the aftermath of the bombing.

Alongside these images will be four costumed interpreters telling the story of the Blitz and the roles of the citizens of the city at the time and the impact on the city. The costumed characters will also be inside the Cathedral on Friday 14th November.

Karl Jenkins’ The Armed Man on 12 November -dedicated to the victims of the Kosovo conflict, whose tragedy was unfolding as it was being composed – was commissioned by the Royal Armouries for the Millenium and is a powerful message for world peace.

The concert includes the voices of hundreds of children from Coventry’s AC Academy choirs in the region – including the cathedral choir – and features a world premiere by British Composer Andrew Wainwright.

Visitors can find out more about the Coventry Blitz in the Blitz Museum . It is open for one last time this year on Saturday 15 November before closing for the winter.