In the months leading up to WW2, much preparation took place in London in anticipation there would be be devastating air raids. St Paul's Cathedral was considered as a high risk from aerial bombing, since at this time the Cathedral was the tallest building in London, a prominent feature, standing on one of the two hills that formed the original city, as well as being an architectural masterpiece created by Christopher Wren, it was a central landmark, loved by Londoners and the nation.
During the months leading up to WW2, plans started to be formulated for the protection of the Cathedral, it was decided to create a volunteer watch, similar to the one operating during WW1, it would be responsible for defending the Cathedral against any form of aerial attack. One of the first objectives was to find sufficient manpower to enable a full time day and night watch, this would be at a time when most young men would be serving in the armed forces. The Cathedral Watch initially started with 62 volunteers from the Cathedral staff, however this was not sufficient to maintain a full 24 hour watch, many of these volunteers were approaching retirement, and therefore physically limited, so additional help was needed to deal with the heights of the Cathedral , such as its roof spaces under the Dome.
The Dean of St Paul's made further appeals for fire watchers, his first letters went out to the Royal Institute of British Architects, and the High Commissioners for each of the Dominions. It stated that each fire watcher would need to be on duty for one night a week, with adjustments to fit individual requirements, they were required to be at the Cathedral not later than 9.30 pm, a subsistence allowance will be paid, with bunks, blankets, and mess room accommodation to be provided. The appeal was successful, another 40 volunteers came forward, and from the 25 September 1939 a regular night shift, from 9.30 pm to 6.30 am was maintained.
Although the watch was made up of volunteers, they were to undergo an extensive series of lectures, training, and exercises to prepare them to work in the expected intense bombing that was to come. The complexity of the Cathedral, with numerous stairs, small corridors, the need to access roof spaces, external roofs, and the interior of the dome, were a considerable challenge for the volunteers, who were without in-depth knowledge of the building. Many sessions were held , training members of the Watch to find their way around the Cathedral, also where to find equipment, water supplies, telephones etc. They were also prepared to cope with being bombed, on fire, and the constant threat of high explosive bombs.
There were a number of factors to be considered when fighting a fire, large quantities of water could damage the fabric of the building, also the right approach was needed to if possible extinguish a fire without causing damage to an architecturally complex and delicate building.
A very important question that was asked, what could be done to save the Cathedral if it caught fire, the St Paul's watch were the first line of defence, although incendiary bombs dropped over London were small, they burst into flames on impact, and could not be extinguished with water, this would cause them to explode, instead that had to be put out with sand in a space of 10 minutes, any longer and the fire would be out of control. It was absolutely essential therefore for the Watch to be in position throughout an air raid, and this was done, every night during WW2. A nightly routine took place, all actions were logged in rough notebooks, there was constant communication by telephone, with location points throughout the Cathedral, as well as with the local fire brigade.
The Watch was witness to key moments that the Cathedral experienced during the Blitz, St Paul's received two direct hits from high explosive bombs, one at the East End on 10 October 1940, and the second over the North Transept on 1 April 1941
The Cathedral had a number of near misses, the most hair-raising was when a 225k high explosive bomb fell to earth several metres from the West Steps on the 12 September 1940, failing to detonate, it was with difficulty eventually excavated, then safely removed, at high speed on the back of lorry, through the streets of London, to Hackney Marshes in the NE of the Capital, where it was safely detonated, this heroic action was carried out by a team of Royal Engineers [army], its leader was awarded the George Cross for his bravery.
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