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Concept
Bombing of Tallinn in World War II
Summary
During World War II, the Estonian capital Tallinn suffered from many instances of aerial bombing by the Soviet air force and the German Luftwaffe. The first bombings by Luftwaffe occurred during the Summer War of 1941 as part of Operation Barbarossa. A number of Soviet bombing missions to then German-occupied Tallinn followed in 1942–1944.
The largest of the Soviet bombings occurred on 9–10 March 1944 in connection with the Battle of Narva and is known as the March bombing (märtsipommitamine). After Soviet saboteurs had disabled the water supply, over a thousand incendiary bombs were dropped on the town, causing widespread fires and killing 757 people, of whom 586 were civilians and 75 prisoners of war, wounding 659, and leaving over 20,000 people without shelter.
The Soviet bombings left a legacy of prolonged anti-Soviet resistance and resentment amongst the civilian population of Estonia.
When the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia in 1940, it gained control over a number of naval bases in the Baltic Sea, including Tallinn. While the 1941 German invasion progressed eastward through the Baltic countries, Luftwaffe carried out aerial attacks on the Soviet-controlled naval bases. By August 1941, the westernmost Soviet naval base was in Tallinn, making it a key target for the German air force. Luftwaffe commenced bombing of Tallinn from the first days of the war in June 1941, and attacks intensified in August, while the Soviet attempted to evacuate the city's residents, elements of the Baltic Fleet, formations of the 8th Army, and industrial assets important for war production. The Soviet forces lost control of Estonia in the summer of 1941, when the Germans began to gradually occupy the country.
German-occupied Tallinn was bombed by the Soviet air force on several occasions in May and September 1942. During the next year, more Soviet bombing missions on Tallinn followed in February, March, May, August, and September 1943.
In February 1944, Germans began storing provisions, supply depots, and reserve units for the front lines in Estonia.
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