What places in and around Dresden might the Allies have considered targets of military significance?
1 Answer
From the allied perspective ANY build up area or industrial complex
Explanation:
The debate controversy surrounding Dresden was essentially a post war issue initiated by Nazi propaganda immediately after the bombing - according to allied intelligence there were 110 factories contributing to the German war effort including poison gas plants, weapons factories and many more, it was cited as a major communications hub - the controversy centers round the failure of the bombing to concentrate on those targets leading to claims of carpet bombing - however virtually every German city of any size was subjected to mass bombing raids, Dresden was just another.
Dresden was a rail hub of three major routes and Colonel Harold E Cook a US POW who gave an eye witness account immediately before the raid describing the area as "an armed camp with thousands of troops and vehicles"
German propaganda 2 days after the raid claims Dresden has "no war industries but was a city of culture" - given the stage of the war the raid was launched on it really made no difference to the outcome of the war
