The first Battle of Britain

The first bomb to fall on Britain from an aeroplane tore through a Folkestone greengrocer’s shop one sunny spring evening 100 years ago. Killing 63 people and injuring more than 100, it marked a turning point in the First World War. Until then, German bombing raids had been by Zeppelin airships that frequently crashed because of mechanical failures or bad weather. Then on 25 May 1917, Germany sent a squadron of 22 Gotha bombers to attack London. Bad weather forced the pilots of the fixed-wing aircrafts to abort, but not before shedding their loads on the Kent coast.