First Humber Raid 6–7 June 1915

The Zeppelin L9 was meant to raid London on 6 June 1915. The weather over London was too poor for a raid to be viable, so under the command of German Captain Lieutenant Heinrich Mathy, the Zeppelin was redirected to Hull. At 24.00 the first bombs fell in east Hull, causing the biggest fire created by Zeppelins during the entire war. It had also blown a crater 20 ft (6 m) wide and 7 ft (2 m) deep in Hull centre by the time it left 30 minutes later to disgorge bombs on Grimsby. By 1.00 on 7 June 1915, there were at least 24 dead and 40 wounded. As a consequence of the attacks, there were reprisals against German butchers’ shops in Hull. The Zeppelins inspired fear because they carried a huge number of explosives, were 623 ft (190 m) long and were silent before an attack.