Introduction: A Century of Aerial Warfare

The origins and impact of aerial warfare are relatively recent developments in the wider history of humanity. This introductory chapter provides the wider context for the key themes, questions and bombing events outlined in The Blitz Companion, and signposts the book, setting the scene for a deeper understanding of major developments in aerial warfare and its impact upon civilians since the early twentieth century. This is timely, because air raids have been a feature of wars in the present century, mostly in the Middle East, and share a defining and tragic characteristic with previous conflicts: with the exception of limited surgical strikes, air raids kill and maim innocent people, destroy the urban fabric, and are usually intended to do so.