LONDON IN 1941

The Blitz of 1940 had resulted in a victory of sorts for Londonand for all the Alliesagainst the Axis powers, but at a high cost. Already, five times as many civilian Londoners had perished as a result of air raids than had died in all of World War I (191418), when zeppelins pioneered cross-Channel bombing sorties. What follows is a reproduction of the article London from the 1942 Britannica Book of the Year (events of 1941). It was written by Lawrence Hawkins Dawson, editor of the guidebook Introductions to London (H.O. Quinn, 1926), the historical atlas The March of Man (Encyclopdia Britannica, Ltd., 1935), and Routledge's Universal Encyclopedia (1934). Dawson also wrote for the 1941 yearbook, describing London in 1940. London in 1941 See also Britannica Book of the Year articles covering the events of 1940, 1942, 1943, 1944, and 1945. For excerpts from early editions of Encyclopdia Britannica, see BTW: London Classics. For general treatment, see the current Britannica articles on London, World War II, and the Battle of Britain.