Operation Carthage facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Operation Carthage
Part of the Second World War
The air raid on the Shellhus
Date 21 March 1945 Location Copenhagen, Denmark 55°40′40″N 12°33′42″E / 55.6778°N 12.5617°E / 55.6778; 12.5617 Result British victory
Belligerents
RAAF Royal Air Force RNZAF	Gestapo Kriegsmarine
Strength
20 bombers, 30 fighters	Various antiaircraft defences
Casualties and losses
6 aircraft destroyed 9 aircrew killed 1 aircrew captured	The Danish headquarters of the Gestapo destroyed 55 German soldiers and 47 Danish employees of the Gestapo killed
125 Danish civilians killed, including 86 schoolchildren 8 Danish prisoners of the Gestapo killed

Operation Carthage was a British air attack on Copenhagen, Denmark, during World War II. It happened on March 21, 1945. The main goal was to destroy the Shellhus, which was the headquarters for the Gestapo in the city. The Gestapo was the secret police of Nazi Germany. They used the Shell House to keep important files and question Danish citizens.

The Danish Resistance had asked the British for a long time to attack this building. The raid destroyed the Shell House, freed 18 prisoners, and made it harder for the Nazis to fight the resistance. Sadly, part of the attack accidentally hit a nearby school. This mistake led to the deaths of 125 civilians, including 86 schoolchildren. A similar successful attack happened in Aarhus in October 1944.

Why the Raid Happened

The Shell House before the bombing. It was painted in camouflage colors during the war.

The Danish resistance movement asked for this raid. They wanted to free their captured members and destroy the Gestapo's records. This would make it harder for the Gestapo to operate.

At first, the RAF (Royal Air Force) said no. They thought the mission was too risky because the building was in a busy city center. Also, the attack needed to be done at a very low height. But after many requests, the RAF approved the raid in early 1945.

Planning for the raid took several weeks. Pilots and navigators used detailed models of the Shell House and the city. This helped them prepare for the very low-level attack.

The Attack on Copenhagen

The Institut Jeanne d'Arc, a Catholic girls' school in Copenhagen. It was accidentally bombed during the raid.

The attacking force was made up of Royal Air Force de Havilland Mosquito fighter-bombers. These planes came from three different squadrons. There were 20 bombers in total, flying in three groups of six planes each. Two special reconnaissance Mosquito planes also flew along to record the results.

Thirty RAF Mustang fighter planes provided air cover. They protected the bombers from German aircraft. These fighters also attacked German anti-aircraft guns during the raid.

The planes left their base in the morning and reached Copenhagen after 11:00 AM. The raid was carried out at rooftop level. During the first attack, one Mosquito plane hit a lamppost. This damaged its wing, and the plane crashed into the Jeanne d'Arc School. The school was about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) from the main target and caught fire. Sadly, several bombers in the second and third groups mistook the burning school for their target.

What Happened After the Raid

The Shell House burning after the bombing raid.

The day after the attack, a reconnaissance plane flew over to check the damage. The Shell House was severely damaged. The west side of the six-story building was almost completely destroyed. The Danish underground resistance even sent a photo showing the building burning from one end to the other.

The raid successfully destroyed the Gestapo headquarters and their records. This greatly disrupted their operations in Denmark. Also, 18 prisoners were able to escape. Fifty-five German soldiers and 47 Danish employees of the Gestapo died in the building. Eight prisoners also died there. The Allied forces lost four Mosquito bombers and two Mustang fighters. Nine airmen were killed.

The School Tragedy

Aftermath: the ruins of the Shell House.

The operation had very sad results because of the mistake. One of the Mosquito planes in the first group hit a tall lamppost. This caused it to crash into a garage near the school, about 1.6 km (1 mile) from the Shell House.

Two Mosquito planes in the second group saw the burning garage and school. They thought it was the Shell House that had been bombed by the first group. So, they dropped their bombs on the Jeanne d'Arc School. This terrible mistake killed 86 children and 18 adults. The adults included 10 nuns, 2 firemen, 4 teachers, and 2 fathers who were trying to save their children. Another 67 children and 35 adults were wounded.

The school never reopened after this incident. Most of the children who survived were moved to another school, Institut Sankt Joseph. A monument was put up where the school once stood on March 23, 1953. It remembers the children and adults who died that day.

The pilots involved in the raid did not learn about the school tragedy until after the war ended. A movie called The Shadow in My Eye (also known as The Bombardment) was released in 2021. It tells the stories of the children involved in this event.

See also

• Aarhus Air Raid, a similar attack on Gestapo headquarters in Aarhus, Denmark
• Operation Jericho, a similar attack on Amiens Prison in France
• Oslo Mosquito raid, a similar attack on Gestapo headquarters in Oslo, Norway