On this Day: St. Paul's in bombed

On this day in 1940, the German Luftwaffe launches a heavy nighttime air raid on London and the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral was pierced by a Nazi bomb. It was one of the few occasions that the 17th-century cathedral suffered significant damage during the Germany's consistent bombing of London in 1940.

St. Paul's Cathedral became an inspiration to the British people during World War II. In the Battle of Britain, the Luftwaffe attempted to bomb Britain into submission by pounding London and other major cities, but St. Paul's miraculously escaped major bomb damage, even as historic buildings nearby were reduced to rubble.