On the night of 13 & 14 February 1945 the RAF bombed the city of Dresden, causing devastating fires which obliterated the historic city centre & killed many thousands of people. Sixty years later these raids remain one of the most notorious, & also one of the most controversial, episodes in the history of the Second World War.
Firestorm: The Bombing of Dresden 1945 assembles a cast of distinguished scholars, including Sebastian Cox, Nicola Lambourne, Soenke Neitzel, Richard Overy & Hew Strachan, to review the origins, conduct, & consequences of the raids. Each contributor writes from his or her own perspective, offering the reader a panoramic reassessment of the evidence & the issues, including the question of whether or not the bombing of the city constitutes a war crime. Firestorm cogently demonstrates the reasons why Dresden has come to symbolise the military & ethical questions involved in the waging of total war.