The crimes of war
Sir: Mr Geoffrey Wheatcroft, in his review of Max Hastings's book, Bomber Command (29 September), would have us shed tears over the Allied 'crime' in devastating German cities and civilians in mass bombing raids.
All war is a crime. That is a trite cliche Which is nonetheless true. Within the context of war crimes, there have, however, been greater crimes than the Bomber Command offensive. For who were the People who were getting it in the neck? Why, the very same who had enthusiastically cheered on Hitler and the Nazis at every stage of his satanic career. Who was it Who bombed Guernica? Rotterdam? Belgrade? Bath? Coventry? Portsmouth? Exeter? Between 1933 and 1945 the German People and the Nazi war and death machine were, to all intents and purposes, one and the same. The vast majority of them connived not only at the aggression by the military machine, but also at the coldblooded persecution and eventual genocide meted out to Jews, gypsies, Yugoslays, Poles, Frenchmen, Russians. They should be the last to complain when swallowing dollops of the same medicine. The shame Which Mr Wheatcroft feels an Englishman Should experience when wandering in the ruins of the 'baroque gem' of Wiirzburg is as nothing compared to the shame of the Germans when visiting virtually every cia.untry in Europe which they devastated with such ruthless thoroughness. The efficacy of the bombing campaign against the Reich is of course another matter it can be argued that it hardened the German morale and will to resist. What cannot be questioned is its moral justness note, not rightness. Mr Wheatcroft should turn his able and compassionate mind towards questioning the reasons for human aggression as a whole. Not just the reasons Which prompted the Allied leaders engaged in a life-or-death struggle for the survival of the civilisation which made the budding of Wiirzburg and Dresden possible to lash out with any blunt weapon that came to hand at the monster which was throttling them. tVigel Jones ,, Goodge Street, London W1
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