Season 5 History: The ARP and Blackouts in WWII Rural England
Through World War II history and cultural depictions of the Blitz, Americans know plenty about the air raids and blackout precautions to protect civilians in London and other urban industrial centers. But why the blackout enforcements in rural areas like the Yorkshire Dales, as seen in Season 5 of All Creatures Great and Small? The production’s historical advisor, Dr. Mark Roodhouse of the History Department at the University of York, shared the answer with MASTERPIECE.
The key reason for maintaining blackout in the rural areas, particularly in the north, Roodhouse explained, was to make it harder for German pilots to navigate to their targets. “The German bombers would all come across the North Sea, flying east to west, to bomb the big industrial cities like Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield, and Liverpool, and then go back, so you didn’t want to give any light on the way that might allow them to navigate to their target more quickly and more effectively.”
But they also functioned to prevent light as the planes made their return trips, because if a plane still had bombs that it hadn’t been able to drop, it may have needed to lighten the load to conserve fuel or make it more maneuverable if it was being chased by British fighter planes. Plus, Roodhouse said, “If returning to Germany still carrying munitions would get them into trouble, then they were going to find something to drop it on, and there were a couple of occasions when a stick of bombs randomly would fall on a something like a cow shed. And that’s why the ARP [Air Raid Precautions] were there.
When the worst did happen, however occasionally, the ARP didn’t have much experience to draw on. They had to rely on training and manuals, and report back to regional level headquarters, who, explained Roodhouse, “…would be at the other end going, ‘Oh my God, it’s the country bumpkins. Here we are, dealing with blitzed slum areas in Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield, and you’ve got some wally on the end of the line from the Dales!’ And that’s the situation they’re in in Season 5 of All Creatures Great and Small.“
