Portsmouth and Southampton in the Blitz

About Portsmouth and Southampton in the Blitz

By the ULTIMATE Brighton Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Portsmouth and Southampton were both heavily bombed in the Second World War. In Portsmouth the night of 10–11 January 1941 was the city’s worst raid, and the Guildhall was gutted by fire; in Southampton, Holy Rood Church was burnt out in November 1940 and is now a memorial to the Merchant Navy.

As home to the Royal Navy and to the great liners, Portsmouth and Southampton were natural targets in the Second World War, and both cities still carry the marks of the bombing.

Portsmouth, January 1941

Portsmouth City Council describes the night of 10–11 January 1941 as the city’s worst raid. It began at about five in the evening and went on into the early hours, claiming more than 150 lives and leaving hundreds more injured or homeless; the Royal Garrison Church was among the landmarks badly damaged. Over the whole war, 930 people in Portsmouth were killed by bombing.

Stand for a moment in the roofless nave of Holy Rood.

The Guildhall

That night incendiary bombs fell on the Guildhall. The firewatchers put most of them out, but one lodged in a ventilation shaft that water could not reach, and the fire burned through the next day, leaving only the outer walls and the tower. The Guildhall was rebuilt in the 1950s and reopened in 1959; the city’s records, kept in the building, survived.

Southampton and Holy Rood

In November 1940 Holy Rood Church in Southampton was burnt out in an air raid. The spire and most of the Victorian work were lost, but the tower and the medieval parts survived. Today the roofless church is a memorial to the Merchant Navy, with a service each year on Merchant Navy Day. Beneath Tudor House, the city’s oldest museum, the stone vault served as an air-raid shelter.

Where to remember

In Portsmouth, the city marked the 85th anniversary of the January raid in 2026, and a monument lists the names of the people of Portsmouth who died in the attacks. In Southampton, SeaCity Museum runs talks and walking tours on the Blitz.

Our advice: visit Holy Rood on the way to SeaCity Museum, and read the names.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Portsmouth and Southampton in the Blitz before you go.