| Original caption – “Warsaw takes brunt of Luftwaffe bombs – Warsaw citizens run for shelter with dwellings on fire, as bombs rain down during the German invasion. In this photo, taken shortly after Poland was invaded, Warsaw’s working-class dwellings blaze, and citizens run for shelter as the Luftwaffe sends incendiary bombs raining down on the Polish capitol. Picture was taken by Eric Calcraft, Acme staff photographer.” Eric Calcraft (February 27, 1910 – December 1984) was born in London, descended from a line of the Calcraft family from Leire and Broughton Astley in western Leicestershire. He took up photography and by the 1930s was working for the Planet News agency. In 1939, he was in Poland and captured the 1st pictures of German bombs falling on the city of Warsaw. His pictures were syndicated around the world along with some text reports including this 1 from the Sydney Morning Herald on the September 13, 1939: “‘There is almost a complete lack of gas masks in Warsaw,’ said Eric Calcraft, a London photographer, who has made his way from Warsaw, via Riga, according to the Amsterdam correspondent of the British United Press. ‘Mothers sewed huge chunks of cotton or gauze on elastic bands and hung these round the necks of their children,’ he declared. ‘They took up their needles and thread in an ingenious attempt to save their children from poison gas. It is doubtful if the masks are of any use, but it is the best that the mothers could do. In the raids high explosive and incendiary bombs were used. Some women crawled like snakes, others rushed blindly from burning buildings, yet the children seemed calm and interested, and some tried to view the spectacle from the streets and doorways.” “‘I estimate that I saw a hundred and fifty dead. The injured were rushed to hospitals in taxi-cabs, trucks, carts, wheelbarrows, bicycles, and hand-borne stretchers. One of the most ghastly sights was at the Jewish hospital, in which were many children. It was heavily bombed, and the Rabbis carried the patients to air-raid trenches. You could set your watch by the beginning of the afternoon raids. Planes flew in groups of three round and round the city, the defense of which was left entirely to anti-aircraft guns, which, although they seemed to have excellent heights, appeared to fire too late, the shells exploding behind the planes.’” “During Mr. Calcraft’s four-day journey from Warsaw to Riga, planes bombed the train seven times, but there were no direct hits. The engine driver frequently reversed 50 or 60 miles to get an intact track. There were 17 air raids on Warsaw yesterday.” “This morning Warsaw suffered another terrific aerial bombardment. Many prominent buildings were wrecked, including the Belvedere Palace, for centuries the residence of Polish kings. A Polish announcer was heard to say, deep emotion in his voice: ‘Germany will regret having done this!’” The United Press International reported in a syndicated article by Virgil Pinkley (May 28, 1907 – December 25, 1992) in mid-September 1939: “Photographer Sees Women Go Mad Looking For Children After German Air Raids — Amsterdam, September 11 – Warsaw is a city almost without gas masks, but Polish mothers have taken their needles and thread to attempt to save the lungs of their children from being choked and burned by poison gas.” “Eric Calcraft, a British photographer for Acme News Pictures and the Newspaper Enterprise Association, told about it today when he arrived here after a stay in Warsaw.” “Use Large Hunks of Cotton – The women took large hunks of cotton or gauze and sewed elastic bands to them. Then they hung these crude gas masks around the children’s necks and told them to pull the cotton up over their noses and mouth at the first gas alarm. It is doubtful whether the homemade masks would be of any use. but it is the best that mothers can do and they must do something.” “Calcraft left Warsaw on September 4, before the Germans were pressing as hard against the Polish capital as they now are, but he said when he arrived here today that he would never forget the scenes of terror he saw.” “Sees Mothers Go Mad — ‘My one big burning memory of Warsaw.” he said, ‘was of seeing women go mad while looking for their children after an air raid. The Germans used big explosive and incendiary bombs. “Some of the women searching for their children crawled on their stomachs screamed like snakes. Others screamed blindly into burning buildings. Some of them mumbled. but others screamed at the top ot their voices: ‘My God, my babies.’ I can’t get those scenes out of mind.’” “Calcraft said the children were much calmer than their mothers. He said they stood in streets and doorways, calmly watching the airplanes come over and asking their parents how many persons had been killed or injured.” “The Germans bombed the residential sections of Warsaw every hour on the hour from September 1-4 according to Calcraft.” “‘You could set your watch by the beginning of the afternoon raids,’ he added.” “Shortage of Salt and Sugar — He said there was plenty of food when he left Warsaw although there was a shortage of salt and sugar. Asked concerning the extent of casualties, Calcraft said: “I personally saw 150 dead, and I don’t know how many injured but plenty.’” “The wounded, he added, were taken to hospitals in taxicabs, trucks, casts, wheelbarrows and even on bicycles. One of the worst sights he saw, he said, was when bombs fell on the Jewish hospital in Warsaw where many of the patients were children. He watched rabbis carrying the patients to air raid trenches around the hospital — trenches which other patients had helped to dig. Calcraft said the German bombers flew in groups of three around the city.” “Guns Fired Too Late — “The defense was left almost entirely to anti-aircraft guns,’ he said. “The guns seemed to be able to reach an excellent height, but it appeared to me that they fired too late. Shells were always exploding behind the planes. His train took four days to get from Warsaw to Riga and was bombed seven times without a direct hit being scored. The engineer frequently backed the train long distances when the track was torn up ahead, maneuvering to get on another line that was intact.” “Several times while the train waited on sidings passengers went to farmhouses and bought eggs. The engineer and fireman boiled them.” From there he moved to Finland to cover the Finnish-Russian Winter War for several American agencies including Acme Newspictures and News Picture Enterprises Agency. LIFE Magazine printed a photospread article of his work. Eric Calcraft’s career continued after the war, providing European coverage for American press firms through to his retirement. He died in Cambridge in 1984. | |
| Image Filename | wwii1986.jpg |
| Image Size | 1.37 MB |
| Image Dimensions | 4800 x 3714 |
| Photographer | Eric Calcraft |
| Photographer Title | Acme Staff Photographer |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | September 1, 1939 |
| Location | |
| City | Warsaw |
| State or Province | Warsaw |
| Country | Poland |
| Archive | Pritzker Military Museum & Library |
| Record Number | 876924770 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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