October 24, 2023
-
Lessons from Dresden
I was a child when I first read of the firebombing of Dresden. It was in a history book, and it was presented without context or color. After pages and pages of Allied struggle with the Axis, the Allies were finally winning. They ruled the skies over Germany: barely opposed over Dresden. And they were able to set the city on fire, killing hundreds of thousands*. And I read it and I thought it was good, actually. Isn't that what we wanted? The evil Axis driven into cities, and burned to hell? This was a good thing, wasn't it?
And then I got a little older, and I read about Dresden again. And I realized it was a war crime. The manufacturing and military targets in Dresden were less extensive than reported, and the bombing didn't even fully target those facilities. And at first British war hawks tried to rejoice over the destruction, claiming that the destruction was the point. That the many war refugees fleeing from the East into Dresden were Nazi sons and daughters, were they not?
But the Associated Press wrote a story referring to Dresden as a terror bombing. Americans expressed concern. British intellectuals made annoyed noises of concern. So Churchill rewrote his memo, and the British Army walked back their rhetoric a little bit.
And yes, there were other cities that were bombed with large civilian casualties: Hamburg and Tokyo. But I'd like to argue that after Dresden, there wasn't the same savage glee at firebombing civilians. And that enough concerned people made enough noise that Dresden was a sort of turning point, in Europe at least. (No comment on Hiroshima and Nagasaki...).
And yes, the Nazis used Dresden as a rallying point, claiming that the Allies massacred hundreds of thousands. Massive lies were told. But the Allies "gave" the Nazis this talking point. Nazis were always going to lie (as were Allies): what is important is that one does not fan the, err, flames of falsehood.
I'd like to think that the America of today will still squirm when Dresden happens again. Even when it is our allies who do it. Even when they fight an enemy that has some evil elements. I'm finding out the answers this month. We all are.
*Note: the actual figure is probably closer to 25k and is somewhat a matter of debate.