<Tr> <Th> City / Town </Th> <Th> Country </Th> <Th> Date </Th> <Th> Estimated death toll </Th> <Th> Attacking force </Th> <Th> Notes </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Nanking </Td> <Td> China </Td> <Td> 25 September 1937 </Td> <Td> 600 </Td> <Td> Imperial Japanese Army Air Service </Td> <Td> See: Bombing of Nanking . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Guangzhou </Td> <Td> China </Td> <Td> 28 May and 4 June 1938 </Td> <Td> 1,400--1,450 </Td> <Td> Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service </Td> <Td> Japanese naval bombers attacked Guangzhou, killing 700--750 civilians and wounding 1,350 on 28 May 1938 . Seven days later, the city was attacked again, causing an estimated 2,000 casualties (700 deaths). Combined the dates, an estimated 1,400--1,450 Chinese civilians were killed . </Td> </Tr> <Table> <Tr> <Th> City / Town </Th> <Th> Country </Th> <Th> Date </Th> <Th> Estimated death toll </Th> <Th> Attacking force </Th> <Th> Notes </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Wieluń </Td> <Td> Poland </Td> <Td> 1 September 1939 </Td> <Td> c . 1,300 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> See: Bombing of Wieluń . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Warsaw </Td> <Td> Poland </Td> <Td> 1--27 September 1939 </Td> <Td> 6,000--7,000 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> See: Bombing of Warsaw in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Rotterdam </Td> <Td> Netherlands </Td> <Td> 14 May 1940 </Td> <Td> 884 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Rotterdam Blitz . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Berlin </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> June 1940 - April 1945 </Td> <Td> 20,000 to 50,000 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command, United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force, French Air Force . </Td> <Td> Various . See Bombing of Berlin in World War II </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> London </Td> <Td> United Kingdom </Td> <Td> 7 September 1940--May 1941 </Td> <Td> 43,000 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: London Blitz . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Chushien </Td> <Td> China </Td> <Td> 4 October 1940 </Td> <Td> 21 </Td> <Td> Imperial Japanese Army Air Service </Td> <Td> 21 civilians were killed when a Japanese airplane flew over the town of Chushien and released rice and wheat plus rat fleas carrying Y. pestis . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Ningbo </Td> <Td> China </Td> <Td> 29 October 1940 </Td> <Td> 99 </Td> <Td> Imperial Japanese Army Air Service </Td> <Td> 99 civilians were killed when Imperial Japanese Army Air Service bombers struck the city of Ningbo with ceramic bombs full of fleas carrying the bubonic plague . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Coventry </Td> <Td> United Kingdom </Td> <Td> 14 November 1940 </Td> <Td> 568 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Coventry Blitz . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Birmingham </Td> <Td> United Kingdom </Td> <Td> 19 November 1940 </Td> <Td> 450 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Birmingham Blitz . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Bristol </Td> <Td> United Kingdom </Td> <Td> 24 November 1940 </Td> <Td> 207 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bristol Blitz . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Belgrade </Td> <Td> Kingdom of Yugoslavia </Td> <Td> 6--8 April 1941 </Td> <Td> 1,500--4,000 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> See: Bombing of Belgrade in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Chongqing </Td> <Td> China </Td> <Td> 5 June 1941 </Td> <Td> 4,000 </Td> <Td> Imperial Japanese Army Air Service and the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service </Td> <Td> Conflagration . Within three hours of bombing, 4,000 residents were asphyxiated to death . See: Bombing of Chongqing . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Leningrad </Td> <Td> Russia </Td> <Td> 19 September 1941 </Td> <Td> 1,000 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> See: Siege of Leningrad . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Rangoon </Td> <Td> Burma </Td> <Td> 23 and 25 December 1941 </Td> <Td> 1,250--2,000 </Td> <Td> Imperial Japanese Army Air Service </Td> <Td> Lack of adequate protection of the city caused extensive damage to houses and mass civilian casualties . See: Bombing of Rangoon (1941--1942). </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Paris </Td> <Td> France </Td> <Td> 2--3 March 1942 </Td> <Td> 600 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> See: Bombing of France during World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Cologne </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 30--31 May 1942 </Td> <Td> 411 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Cologne in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Stalingrad </Td> <Td> Russia </Td> <Td> 23 August 1942 </Td> <Td> 955 </Td> <Td> Oberkommando der Luftwaffe </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Stalingrad in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Mortsel </Td> <Td> Belgium </Td> <Td> 5 April 1943 </Td> <Td> 936 </Td> <Td> United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Hamburg </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 24--30 July 1943 </Td> <Td> 42,600 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command and the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Battle of Hamburg . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Kassel </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 22--23 October 1943 </Td> <Td> 10,000 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Kassel in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Augsburg </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 25--26 February 1944 </Td> <Td> 730 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command and the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Augsburg in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Caen </Td> <Td> France </Td> <Td> 7 July 1944 </Td> <Td> 400 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> Carried out in support of Operation Charnwood, the attempt by ground forces to capture Caen . The bombing failed, as the main German armor and infantry positions to the north of Caen remained intact . In order to avoid dropping bombs on their own ground forces, the markers were dropped too far forward, pushing the bombed zone well into Caen itself and further away from the German defenses, and thus inflicting heavy French civilian casualties . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Darmstadt </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 11--12 September 1944 </Td> <Td> 11,500 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Darmstadt in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Duisburg </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 14--15 October 1944 </Td> <Td> 2,500 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Duisburg in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Ulm </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 17 December 1944 </Td> <Td> 707 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Ulm in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Dresden </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 13--15 February 1945 </Td> <Td> 22,700--25,000 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command and the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Dresden in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Pforzheim </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 23 February 1945 </Td> <Td> 17,600 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Pforzheim in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> The Hague </Td> <Td> Netherlands </Td> <Td> 3 March 1945 </Td> <Td> 551 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> The high rate of civilian casualties resulted due to the wrong coordinates given to RAF pilots, which dropped the bombs on the densely populated neighborhood of Bezuidenhout instead of Haagse Bos, where the Germans had installed V - 2 launching facilities that had been used to attack English cities . See: Bombing of the Bezuidenhout . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Tokyo </Td> <Td> Japan </Td> <Td> 9--10 March 1945 </Td> <Td> 88,000--100,000 </Td> <Td> United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Twentieth Air Force </Td> <Td> Conflagration. 279 B - 29s dropped about 1,700 short tons (1,500 t) of bombs, destroying 16 square miles (41 km2) of the city . See: Bombing of Tokyo </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Osaka </Td> <Td> Japan </Td> <Td> 13--14 March 1945 </Td> <Td> 3,987 </Td> <Td> United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Twentieth Air Force </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Osaka . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Würzburg </Td> <Td> Germany </Td> <Td> 16 March 1945 </Td> <Td> 5,000 </Td> <Td> Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Würzburg in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Kobe </Td> <Td> Japan </Td> <Td> 16--17 March 1945 </Td> <Td> 8,841 </Td> <Td> United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Twentieth Air Force </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Kobe in World War II . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Taipei </Td> <Td> Taiwan </Td> <Td> 31 May 1945 </Td> <Td> 3,000 </Td> <Td> United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Fifth Air Force </Td> <Td> See: Raid on Taipei . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Aomori </Td> <Td> Japan </Td> <Td> 29 July 1945 </Td> <Td> 1,767 </Td> <Td> United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Twentieth Air Force </Td> <Td> Firestorm . See: Bombing of Aomori in World War II </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Hiroshima </Td> <Td> Japan </Td> <Td> 6 August 1945 </Td> <Td> 50,000--60,000 </Td> <Td> United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) 393rd Bomb Squadron </Td> <Td> The first of the only two nuclear weapons used in combat . Uranium - based nuclear weapon: codename Little Boy . Between 50,000 and 60,000 were killed, including 20,000 Korean slave laborers . Some 70,000 others suffered burns or died by the end of 1945 and in the years afterwards . See: Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Nagasaki </Td> <Td> Japan </Td> <Td> 9 August 1945 </Td> <Td> 34,850--39,850 </Td> <Td> United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) 393rd Bomb Squadron </Td> <Td> The second of the only two nuclear weapons used in combat . Plutonium - based nuclear weapon: codename Fat Man . Between 34,850 and 39,850 were killed, including 23,200 to 28,200 Japanese industrial workers and 2,000 Korean slave laborers . Some 50,000 others suffered burns or died by the end of 1945 and in the years afterwards . See: Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki . </Td> </Tr> </Table>

A second world war raid with lots of casualties