{"id":820,"date":"2016-03-30T09:01:55","date_gmt":"2016-03-30T08:01:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/?p=820"},"modified":"2016-04-01T10:42:37","modified_gmt":"2016-04-01T09:42:37","slug":"i-100th-anniversary-of-zeppelin-air-attack-on-edinburgh-a-school-student-walks-among-the-wreckage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/2016\/03\/30\/i-100th-anniversary-of-zeppelin-air-attack-on-edinburgh-a-school-student-walks-among-the-wreckage\/","title":{"rendered":"I: 100th anniversary of ‘Zeppelin’ air attack on Edinburgh – A school student walks among the wreckage"},"content":{"rendered":"

A STORY FROM THE DIARY OF 15-YEAR OLD ARCHIBALD H CAMPBELL (1902-1918) WHO WOULD LATER BECOME REGIUS PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC LAW AND THE LAW OF NATURE AND THE NATIONS, EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY, 1945-1972<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over the next couple of days, and almost 100-years to the day since the first ever air assault on Leith and Edinburgh by Zeppelins of the Imperial German Naval Airship Service, our blog describes the event – on 2-3 April 1916 – as told by the diary of the young teenager Archibald Campbell, and also through interpretation of historical papers of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh curated by the Lothian Health Services Archive (LHSA).<\/p>\n

Firstly… Archibald Campbell’s story…:<\/p>\n

\"Airship

Airship – similar to Zeppelin L14 of the Imperial German Naval Airship Service which brought most of the damage to Edinburgh from the air in April 1916. In addition to Edinburgh, many other places on Great Britain suffered from Zeppelin raids including Kings Lynn, Gt. Yarmouth, Hull, Tyneside, Gravesend, the Midlands, London and the Home Counties. From January 1915 to end-May 1916 at least 550 British civilians had been killed (Creative Commons image).<\/p><\/div>\n

Archibald Hunter Campbell was born 21 May 1902 in Edinburgh. He was educated at George Watson’s College in the city, at Edinburgh University, and then at University College, Oxford.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The cover of the school-boy diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
\n

While still at school, aged 13 years, Campbell witnessed the aftermath of this first ever air attack on the city, and on Scotland as a whole, when the airships – the Zeppelins – dropped ordnance on 2-3\u00a0 April 1916.<\/p>\n

\"Campbell<\/a>

Campbell aged 13 in April 1916 had written extensive notes about the Zeppelin attack on a separate piece of paper inserted into his diary, noting that his description of the aftermath was ‘On paper’ (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The naval base at Rosyth in Fife and the Forth Bridge had been the focus of an attack composed of four Zeppelins but in the event only two craft reached the Scottish coast – L14 commanded by\u00a0Kapit\u00e4<\/b><\/span>nleutnant der Reserve Alois B\u00f6cke<\/b><\/span>r, and L22 commanded by Kapit\u00e4<\/b><\/span>nleutnant Martin Dietrich. At 9.30pm on Sunday 2 April 1916 the military gave the order for the city to take air raid action, and road traffic ground to a halt, street lighting was lowered, and civilians were advised to take refuge.<\/p>\n

\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n

Leith Docks were attacked round about 11:30pm, and then the German airship crew plotted a course along the Water of Leith towards the city of Edinburgh. Just after midnight the young Campbell was awakened by the sound of bombs. He went down to the parlour where he waited until 1.10am on the morning of Monday 3 April and from the window he ‘saw blaze over Leith’. He then went to bed before rising again at 7.30am to get ready for school – George Watson’s. However he heard that a ‘bomb had fallen in front of school & smashed it up’. When he got to school he ‘mucked about’ in the bomb hole in the playground until he was ‘turned out’ of it.<\/p>\n

\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n

At noon when he got out of school he ‘went round to see bomb hole’ again. Every window in front of the school was ‘smashed’. The crater was ‘about 4′ 6” across right up against Ethel Davidson’s room which was absolutely smashed’ (the crater was just over a meter wide). He went on…:<\/p>\n

Desks, window-frames, broken glass, stones, and piles of plaster, all smashed up, filled the room. Other front rooms about as bad.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
After picking up a bit of bomb for himself and a bit for Main, a friend, he walked with Ashcroft – presumably another school friend – across to Grassmarket where more damage had been reported. On the way they witnessed the ‘effects’ of the ‘Lauriston bomb’…:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\u00a0All windows smashed & street carpeted with broken glass. Bomb had landed through roof of a house.<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
They continued towards the Vennel and then down ‘to Grassmarket which was awfully crowded’. There the pavement was barred against public access and there was a ‘deep hole in front of the White Hart Hotel, whose walls were all scarred’.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A walk along King’s Stables Road followed, and ‘smashed windows’ were seen in Castle Terrace. Walking through Princes Street Gardens they\u00a0 were able to see ‘effect of bomb on Castle Rock’…:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
It had missed the Castle by a few feet, hit the rock & brought down a small land slide.<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Along Lothian Road, they passed the County Hotel where every window was ‘smashed’.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n

Later on, when his mother had gone down to Leamington Terrace to see an uncle, Campbell ‘got a car’ (a tram) down to Leith Walk where he met his father and several teachers, and…:<\/p>\n

Showed my bit of bomb & told them that Watson’s was still standing.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Again he walked up Castle Terrace, this time with his mother and father, and…:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
Saw all smashed windows & other effects of Castle bomb. Looked down into King’s Stables Road which was absolutely black with people.<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The family took a tram home and Campbell noted how public transport – ‘cars’ or trams – and the streets were ‘awfully crowded’.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
During that day, meandering across the city, looking at the destruction caused by the bombs, Campbell had his camera with him (it appears). After tea, he developed the film, but… unfortunately…:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
Owing to crumpling up of wire and that beastly developing box only one […] came out decently & even it was spotted.<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
<\/div>\n
…and the one surviving photograph had been simply of him in the garden!<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\"Descriptive<\/a>

Descriptive notes from the diary kept by Archibald H. Campbell and telling the story of the Zeppelin attack (Coll-221).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Although Campbell noted that ten people had been killed, modern reports tell of a total of thirteen deaths with a further twenty-four injured.The cost of the damage by the bombs, each no bigger than a sack of flour, amounted to roughly \u00a312m in today\u2019s money.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\"ccZeppelinNearly all of the damage had been caused by devices dropped from Zeppelin L14. Zeppelin L22 ventured only briefly into the city and just caused minor damage after jettisoning most of its bombs in fields near Berwick-upon-Tweed. Later in the year, Alois B\u00f6cke<\/b><\/span>r was arrested by local policemen in Essex, England, in September 1916, when his Zeppelin (L33 on this occasion) was brought down by night fighters. Zeppelin L14 itself was destroyed by its crew on 23 June 1919 following the example of the naval scuttling in Scapa Flow.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\"ccZeppelin<\/div>\n
\u00a0As for Archibald H. Campbell the teenager during the First World War… After his studies at Edinburgh and at Oxford, Campbell would become a Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, and in 1935 he was appointed Barber Professor of Jurisprudence at Birmingham University. In September 1939, and from the outbreak of the hostilities which became known as the Second World War he was summoned into service at Bletchley Park.<\/div>\n
\n
\n

At Bletchley Park he was a Foreign Office Civilian (Temporary Senior Assistant Officer) and worked at the Mansion, Hut 10, Block A and Block F(A), Air Section<\/span>, including advanced research in the Italian sub-section. There he decrypted non-Enigma signals from German, Italian and Japanese Air Forces and produced intelligence reports. He also worked at Hut 5 and Block F, Military Section<\/span>, probably Japanese, involved in decrypting and reporting on non-Enigma enemy army ciphers. This\u00a0 was also known as No 4 Intelligence School.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

After the war he returned to Edinburgh and to the University’s Regius Chair of Public Law and the Law of Nature and the Nations which he held from 1945 to 1972. He was Dean of the Faculty of Law, 1958-64.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

Professor Archibald Hunter Campbell died in Edinburgh 8 June 1989.<\/p>\n

\"ccZeppelin<\/p>\n

The diary with the separate page describing the damage across Edinburgh was ‘rediscovered’ in the A. H. Campbell material by one of our volunteers, Valentina Flex, Edinburgh University graduate, who had been creating a provisional listing of content.<\/p>\n

A second blog post about the attack on Edinburgh 100-years ago – and from the curatorial staff of the LHSA – will go live in the next couple of days.<\/p>\n

Dr. Graeme D. Eddie, Assistant Librarian Archives & Manuscripts, Centre for Research Collections<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Notes…: In addition to the description of the events written by Archibald H. Campbell himself, freely accessible web-pages describing the events of 2-3 April 1916 (especially Scotland’s War<\/a> ‘Midlothian’s War – Zeppelin raid over Edinburgh’) and a ‘Wikipedia’ list of Zeppelins, and also the website of the Bletchley Park Roll of Honour<\/a>, were enlisted for the creation of this blog-post.<\/p>\n

The image of the Zeppelin (here the P-class LZ45 ‘L13’) was obtained from Creative Commons.<\/p>\n

The second story about the Zeppelin attack can be read here: II: Incendiary bombs and the Infirmary<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A STORY FROM THE DIARY OF 15-YEAR OLD ARCHIBALD H CAMPBELL (1902-1918) WHO WOULD LATER BECOME REGIUS PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC LAW AND THE LAW OF NATURE AND THE NATIONS, EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY, 1945-1972 Over the next couple of days, and almost … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[72,71,70],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/820"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=820"}],"version-history":[{"count":48,"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/820\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1019,"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/820\/revisions\/1019"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libraryblogs.is.ed.ac.uk\/untoldstories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}