Bath Blitz

The city was bombed in April 1942 as part of the so-called "Baedeker raids", in which targets were chosen for their cultural and historical, rather than their strategic or military, value.

Over the weekend of 25–27 April 1942, Bath suffered three raids from 80 Luftwaffe aircraft which took off from Nazi occupied northern France.

The bombers flew low to drop their high explosives and incendiaries, and then returned to rake the streets with machine-gun fire.

Today the square plays host to a variety of community activities, including the Jane Austen Festival and the annual Bath Boules Tournament.

Among the firefighters assigned to the scene in Bath was Harry Patch, who in the 2000s became the last surviving frontline British Army veteran from the First World War.

In 2016, a live 500 pounds (230 kg) bomb was discovered by workmen under the playground of the former Royal High School, Bath site.