Bedford Circus & High Street
3–4 May 1942 · Exeter, Devon
View this record on the map →- Date
- 3–4 May 1942
- Record type
- Historic bombing area
- Bomb type
- mixed
- Casualties
- 156
- Location
- Exeter, Devon
- Position accuracy
- Confirmed event, approximate point (Bedford Circus was demolished after the war)
What happened
Twenty bombers hit Exeter's centre just after midnight in a 70-minute raid, destroying Bedford Circus, the top of High Street, and parts of Sidwell Street and Paris Street. Deller's Cafe, St Lawrence Church, the Lower Market, the Globe Hotel, and the College of the Vicars Choral were among the buildings lost.
Casualty note
Citywide toll for the raid: 156 killed, 583 injured, across roughly 30 acres of the city centre.
Also worth knowing
Fire crews from Torquay and Plymouth were called in — 195 appliances and 1,080 firefighters worked to bring the blaze under control, largely achieved by 5 May, though outbreaks continued to 7 May.