Dresden, raid on. This historic German city was the scene of what was perhaps the most controversial episode in the strategic air offensive against Germany. Capital of Saxony and situated on the River Elbe, Dresden was particularly noted for its splendid architecture and its manufacture of fine china. It had little heavy industry and up until early 1945 had only been attacked once from the air, a small raid by the Eighth US Army Air Force in October 1944.
In January 1945 the British air ministry drew up a plan THUNDERCLAP for attacks on Berlin and population centres in eastern Germany. This was to take advantage of the recently launched Soviet offensive westwards from the Vistula and add to the growing chaos in Germany by disrupting the flow of refugees fleeing in the face of the Soviet attack. At the same time, the western Allies wished to demonstrate to the Soviets at the forthcoming Yalta conference that they were giving them the support of their heavy bombers, and, indeed, at Yalta the Soviets specifically requested help in this form.
So the million dollar question is why did allies bombed dresden when it lacked any military significance?
Was bombing of Dresden not a war-crime?