Baedeker Blitz

The Baedeker Blitz or Baedeker raids was a series of bombing raids by the Luftwaffe on the United Kingdom during World War II in April and May 1942. Towns and cities in England were targeted for their cultural value as part of a demoralisation campaign.

The Luftwaffe planned the raids in response to the Royal Air Force's (RAF) area bombing offensive against Nazi Germany as a result of the area bombing directive, starting with the bombing of Lübeck in March 1942. Bombers of Luftflotte 3 under the command of Hugo Sperrle attacked sites such cathedrals, health resorts, and town halls. The aim was to begin a "tit-for-tat" exchange with the hope of demoralising the British public and forcing the RAF to reduce their attacks on Germany. The name derives from Baedeker, a series of German tourist guide books used to select targets for bombing.

The Baedeker Blitz was a strategic failure – German damage to British cities was minimal compared to The Blitz or the RAF bombing raids against Germany, and the Luftwaffe suffered from unsustainable losses. Over 1,600 civilians were killed and tens of thousands of homes were damaged in the main raids. Towns and cities in England continued to be targeted by the Luftwaffe for their cultural value and killing thousands more civilians over the following two years.