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Schweinfurt Schweinfurt is a city in the Unterfranken region of Bavaria in Germany. A famous native of Schweinfurt is Friedrich Rckert, a notable poet and translator. The Museum Georg Schfer, founded by Georg Schfer, shows among others important pieces of Altdeutschen Malerei. Economy Schweinfurt is known for its metal industry, especially ball-bearing plants and bicycle manufacturing. (See also FAG Kugelfischer, ZF Sachs AG and SKF). The pigment Schweinfurter Green, which is extremely toxic, was manufactured here. In World War II, Schweinfurt's ball-bearing plants were targets of at least two major B-17 daylight bombing raids by the United States Army Air Force. Communal facilities swimming pool, swimming hall, library, school of music, Fachhochschule Wrzburg-Schweinfurt Information History In World War II, Schweinfurt was the target of a series of strategic bombing raids by the United States Army Air Force because it held, at that time, the majority of the ball bearing production facilities in the Third Reich. It was hoped that destroying these would cripple Germany's ability to produce new tanks and aircraft. The Allies bombed Schweinfurt several times, but the first American raid already went down in the annals of the 8th Air Force as its Battle of the Somme. On August 17th 1943, 60 of 376 aircraft were lost in attacks from German fighter aircraft and FLAK batteries while trying to hit the ball bearing factories. Losses of 17% were devasting for the time - losses on raids usually were around the 4% mark. A second attack on October 14th 1943 resulted in even heavier losses of more than 20% and came to be called Black Thursday. On the German side, dozens of fighter aircraft were lost, and civilian casualties among Schweinfurt's inhabitants ran in the hundreds. The attacks did successfully damage or outright destroy many of the traget facilities, which severely threatened Nazi Germany's military capability. Hitler reacted by declaring the restoration of the ball bearing production a high priority task. The remaining production capabilities were rationed, and massive efforts undertaken to repair and rebuild the factories, partially in bomb-proof underground facilities. Furthermore, the strategically important industry was decentralized and parts of the production moved to different sites all over the country. A sufficient production of ball bearings was, at great expense, maintained until the collapse of Nazi Germany. In 1998 German and American veterans and survivors of the raids together erected a memorial in Schweinfurt in remembrance of those who did not survive. Population Historical Population of Schweinfurt: 1939: 49,302 1950: 46,128 1961: 56,923 1970: 58,446 1987: 51,962 2002: 54,670 External links
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