Robert Edsel's Blog

On the night of August 24, 1940, German bombs fell on London for the first time during World War II.

The Luftwaffe began bombing industrial targets in England in early July, and had recently increased night bombing runs. Perhaps worried that Churchill would be even less likely to negotiate, or out of fear that British bombs would fall on Berlin in retaliation, Hitler had been ignoring his military advisor’s urgings to bomb the capital itself. However on the night of August 24, 170 Heinkel HE 111s set out to bomb oil installations at Thameshaven and an aircraft factory in Rochester, but veered off course and bombed parts of London by mistake.

It might not have been an intentional military maneuver, but the first bombings of London marked a turning point early in the war. Churchill angrily ordered the bombing of Berlin, which had also been avoided until this point. On the night of August 25-26, the RAF Bomber Command sent 95 planes to hit industrial targets in the German capital, most notably the Tempelhof Airport and the Siemensstadt area of factory buildings. 81 of the planes dropped bombs on Berlin that night. Five more raids on Berlin occurred within the next two weeks, but damage was minimal.

Hitler was in turn angered by the retaliation bombing, and decided to proceed with a sustained attack on London. He was convinced that the terror bombing would make the British more likely to negotiate after all, and ordered “for disruptive attacks on the population and air defenses of major British cities, including London, by day and night.”

General Eisenhower Statue at Grosvenor Square in Hyde Park

Because I like to go running, I stay near Hyde Park when in London. Nearby Grosvenor Square is where I stretch, and on temperate days, often sit outdoors to read or enjoy a beautiful day. The Embassy of the United States, constructed in 1960, is located on the west side of Grosvenor Square. In fact, Grosvenor Square has been an outpost for the United States since 1785. John Adams, the first United States Minister to the Court of St. James’s and the second President of the United States, lived in a home located on the northeast side of the Square from 1785 to 1788.

Of greatest interest to me is the connection of Grosvenor Square to my hero, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, who for brief period located his military headquarters at 20 Grosvenor Square. In 1989, on the northwest side of the Square, a life-size statue of General Eisenhower was positioned, paid for by the citizens of Kansas City, Missouri. On its stone foundation it says simply, “Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force: You are about to embark upon a great crusade…the hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you.” (Order of the Day, June 6, 1944).

I walk by Ike’s statue every day I’m in London. I sit on the stone bench in front of it and think about how fortunate we are to be free and bask in the shadow of this great leader, a man who defined for all time integrity, magnanimity, and decency.

General Eisenhower Statue at Grosvenor Square in Hyde Park at Night (Photo Courtesy of Robert M. Edsel Collection)

Anthony van Dyck, Equestrian Portrait of Charles I, c. 1637-38. Oil on canvas, 3.7 x 2.9m (12 ft 2 in x 9 ft 6 in). The National Gallery, London. (Photo Courtesy of National Gallery, London.)

On a visit to the National Gallery this weekend I walked directly into the room with a magnificent painting by Anthony van Dyck, Equestrian Portrait of Charles I, an enormous canvas measuring about 12 by 10 feet. This great work, painted in 1637, was just one of thousands of works of art at the National Gallery and other London museums that were at risk during World War II.

In preparation for war, museum officials packed up tens of thousands of paintings, sculptures, and other priceless treasures and began the complicated process of transporting them to famous but remote country estates and castles for safekeeping. Some would remain there for the duration of the war, but in many cases others had to be relocated again to quarries and mines in the Wales region where they were stored underground.

Movement of the van Dyck was a particularly cumbersome problem due to its enormous size. After being loaded onto this truck and secured to a large wooden panel, the painting was then covered with a tarpaulin for added security. Seems simple enough, right?

This vehicle, carrying a custom crate containing the portrait of King Charles I, was in transit to Manod for underground storage. Officials had to lower the level of the road to create sufficient passage-way. This was but one of many types of problems confronting museum officials as they rushed to protect their national heritage. (Photo Courtesy of National Gallery, London.)

In fact, the well-mapped out road to its intended destination overlooked one crucial detail: road overpass height! As such, the vehicle couldn’t pass beneath the bridge above, even after deflating the tires. These kind of problems bedeviled art officials in allied countries over and over again.

In this instance, officials actually lowered the road a sufficient depth to allow passage. The painting ultimately arrived to Manod Quarry where it safely sat out the war. All this effort was tragically rewarded: the National Gallery, along with most of London’s main museums, were damaged by German bombing and subsequent fires during the blitz of the great city. That we can visit today this incredible museum and enjoy such wonderful works of art is a credit to the museum officials — and Monuments Men — who worked so diligently at protecting these treasures of civilization for us all.