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{{Short description|1983 Provisional IRA attack in London, England}}
{{About|the 1983 bombing|the 1993 bombing|1993 Harrods bombing}}
{{Redirect|1983 London bombing|the barracks attack|1983 Royal Artillery Barracks bombing}}
{{EngvarB|date=May 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox terrorist attack {{Infobox terrorist attack
|partof=]
|title=17 December 1983 Harrods bombing |title=Harrods bombing
|image=
|image=Harrods, London - June 2009.jpg
|caption=
|caption=Harrods pictured in 2009
|location=], ], <br> ], ] |location=London, United Kingdom
|target=Christmas shoppers at Harrods
|date=] ] |target=] ]
|date=17 December 1983
|time-begin=13:30pm
|time-end= |time=13:21
|timezone=]+1 |timezone=]
|type= ] |type=]
|fatalities=3 police officers and 3 civilians |fatalities= 6 (3 ] officers, 3 ]s)
|injuries=90 |injuries=90
|perps=] |perp=]
}} }}
{{Campaignbox The Troubles in Britain and Europe|state=collapsed}}
The '''Harrods bombing''' refers to the ] that ]d outside ] ] in ], England, on Saturday 17 December 1983. Members of the ] planted the ] and sent a warning 37 minutes before it exploded, but the area was not ]. The blast killed three ] officers and three ]s, injured 90 people, and caused much damage. The ] said it had not authorised the attack and expressed regret for the civilian casualties.<ref>O'Day, Alan. ''Political Violence in Northern Ireland''. Greenwood Publishing, 1997. p.20</ref> After the bombing, the IRA shifted its emphasis towards attacks on ] targets in England.


==Other attacks on Harrods==
The '''Harrods Bombing''' occurred on ], ]. A coded warning was received at 1245 GMT but the device exploded just before 1330 GMT. Three police officers approached the device to try and diffuse it unfortunately it exploded killing all three of them.
Harrods is a large department store in the affluent ] district, near ]. Harrods had been the target of other IRA bombings. On 18 August 1973, two ] exploded causing slight damage. On 21 December 1974, a fire bomb was placed in the north-east corner of the first floor. There was a very short warning and the store was in the process of being cleared when it exploded. The 1974 bomb was the work of the ] who also carried out high-profile bombings in ], ], ], ], and many other locations in London and ] in 1974 and 1975.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bombings (Hansard, 11 November 1975)|url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written-answers/1975/nov/11/bombings|access-date=2021-06-04|website=api.parliament.uk}}</ref> It was also the target of a much ] just over nine years later, in January 1993, which injured four people.


==Bombing overview==
Harrods have subsequently installed a radio transmission block in the building to prevent a remote bomb detonation. This means that you cannot use mobile telephones while in the store.
From 1973, the Provisional IRA had carried out waves of bombing attacks on commercial targets in London and elsewhere in England as part of its "economic war". The goal was to damage the ] and cause disruption, which would put pressure on the ] to withdraw from ]. On 10 December 1983, the IRA carried out its first attack in London for some time when a bomb exploded at the ], injuring three British soldiers.<ref>. ''The New York Times'', 11 December 1983.</ref>


One week later, on the afternoon of 17 December, IRA members parked a car bomb near the side entrance of Harrods, on Hans Crescent. The bomb contained {{convert|25|to|30|lb|abbr=on}} of ]s and was set to be detonated by a timer.<ref name="Guardian">. ], 19 December 1983.</ref><ref name=chalk>Chalk, Peter. ''Encyclopedia of Terrorism''. ABC-CLIO, 2013. pp.285–287</ref> It was left in a 1972 blue ] GT four-door saloon car.<ref name="Guardian"/> At 12:44 a man using an IRA codeword phoned the central London branch of the ] charity.<ref name="Guardian"/><ref name=chalk/> The caller said there was a car bomb outside Harrods and another bomb inside Harrods, and gave the car's ].<ref name="Guardian"/><ref name=chalk/> According to police, he did not give any other description of the car.<ref name="Guardian"/>
==Details of the Bomb==


The bomb exploded at about 13:21, as four police officers in a car, an officer on foot and a police dog-handler neared the suspect vehicle.<ref name="Guardian"/><ref name=chalk/> Six people were killed (three officers and three bystanders) and 90 others were injured, including 14 police officers.<ref name=mckittrick>McKittrick, David. ''Lost Lives: The Stories of the Men, Women and Children who Died as a Result of the Northern Ireland Troubles''. Mainstream, 2001. pp.970–971</ref> The blast damaged 24 cars<ref name="Guardian"/> and all five floors on the side of Harrods, sending a shower of glass down on the street.<ref name=chalk/> The police car absorbed much of the blast and this is likely to have prevented further casualties.<ref name="Guardian"/>
The bomb contained between 25 and 30 lbs of explosives. It was detonated by a timing device and not by remote control, as previously suspected. The device was left in a 1972 blue ] 1300 GT four door saloon, with a black vinyl roof - which was subsequently blown onto the roof of a nearby five-story building.


Five people died at the scene of the bombing and a sixth later died in hospital. The bystanders who died were Philip Geddes (24), a journalist who had heard about the alert and went to the scene;<ref name=mckittrick/> Jasmine Cochrane-Patrick (25); and Kenneth Salvesen (28), a US citizen.<ref name=mckittrick/><ref> ] website</ref> The ] officers killed were Sergeant Noel Lane (28) and Constable Jane Arbuthnot (22). A third officer, Inspector Stephen Dodd (34), died in hospital from his injuries on 24 December.<ref name="CAIN">. ] (CAIN).</ref> Constable Jon Gordon survived, but lost both legs and part of a hand in the blast.<ref name=chalk/>
==A Second Bomb Warning==

A second warning call was made to authorities at the time of the first explosion. They claimed a bomb had been placed in the heart of ]. It was said to be at the C&A store on the east side of the shopping street. Police tried to clear the area crowded with shoppers and cordoned it off but it was later found to be a false alarm.
At the time of the explosion, a second warning call was made by the IRA. The caller said that a bomb had been left in the ] department store at the east end of ]. Police cleared the area and cordoned it off but this claim was found to be false.<ref>. BBC News.</ref> In the aftermath of the attack, hundreds of extra police and mobile bomb squads were drafted into London.<ref name=chalk/> Aleck Craddock, chairman of Harrods, reported that £1 million in turnover had been lost as a result of the bombing.<ref>''The Glasgow Herald'', 19 December 1983, p.1</ref> Despite the damage, Harrods re-opened three days later, proclaiming it would not be "defeated by acts of terrorism".<ref name=chalk/> ], the husband of ] ], visited the store and told reporters "no damned Irishman is going to stop me going there".<ref>{{cite news | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1946&dat=19831221&id=-T0lAAAAIBAJ&sjid=jaUFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1079,37495 | title=No damned Irishman will stop me, says Thatcher's husband | work=Montreal Gazette| date=21 December 1983 | access-date=17 December 2013}}</ref>

===IRA response===
The bombing badly damaged the IRA's support due to the civilian deaths and injuries.<ref name=chalk/> In a statement issued the day after, the IRA Army Council said that IRA members had planted the bomb, but that it had not authorised the attack:<blockquote>The Harrods operation was not authorised by the Irish Republican Army. We have taken immediate steps to ensure that there will be no repetition of this type of operation again. The volunteers involved gave a 40 minutes specific warning, which should have been adequate. But due to the inefficiency or failure of the Metropolitan Police, who boasted of foreknowledge of IRA activity, this warning did not result in an evacuation. We regret the civilian casualties, even though our expression of sympathy will be dismissed. Finally, we remind the British Government that as long as they maintain control of any part of Ireland then the Irish Republican Army will continue to operate in Britain.<ref name="Guardian"/></blockquote>

], the ], commented: "The nature of a terrorist organisation is that those in it are not under disciplined control".<ref name="Guardian"/> In his book ''The Provisional IRA in England'', author Gary McGladdery says the bombing illustrated one of the problems with the IRA's ], where ] "could become virtually autonomous from the rest of the organisation and operate at their own discretion".<ref>McGladdery, Gary. ''The Provisional IRA in England: The bombing campaign, 1973–1997''. Irish Academic Press, 2006. p.123</ref> The IRA had adopted the system in the late 1970s.<ref>Dingley, James. ''The IRA: The Irish Republican Army''. ABC-CLIO, 2012. p.157</ref>

===Memorials===
There is a memorial at the site of the blast.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305114235/http://www.citythemes.co.uk/pdffiles/police.pdf |date=5 March 2016 }} City Themes London</ref> Yearly prizes in honour of Philip Geddes are awarded to aspiring journalists attending the ]. As a further commemoration, every year the Philip Geddes Memorial Lecture on the theme of the future of journalism is given by a leading journalist.<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061208065546/http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/training/021126ox.shtml |date=8 December 2006 }} Holdthefrontpage</ref><ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050312072145/http://www.ox.ac.uk/gazette/2004-5/supps/schols/geddes.htm |date=12 March 2005 }} Oxford University Gazette</ref>


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Latest revision as of 21:38, 1 November 2024

1983 Provisional IRA attack in London, England This article is about the 1983 bombing. For the 1993 bombing, see 1993 Harrods bombing. "1983 London bombing" redirects here. For the barracks attack, see 1983 Royal Artillery Barracks bombing.

Harrods bombing
Part of the Troubles
Harrods pictured in 2009
LocationLondon, United Kingdom
Date17 December 1983
13:21 (UTC)
TargetHarrods department store
Attack typeCar bomb
Deaths6 (3 police officers, 3 civilians)
Injured90
PerpetratorProvisional Irish Republican Army
The Troubles
in Britain and continental Europe
1970 – 1981
1982 – 1998
See also: The Troubles in Ireland and Assassinations during the Troubles

The Harrods bombing refers to the car bomb that exploded outside Harrods department store in central London, England, on Saturday 17 December 1983. Members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army planted the time bomb and sent a warning 37 minutes before it exploded, but the area was not evacuated. The blast killed three police officers and three civilians, injured 90 people, and caused much damage. The IRA Army Council said it had not authorised the attack and expressed regret for the civilian casualties. After the bombing, the IRA shifted its emphasis towards attacks on military targets in England.

Other attacks on Harrods

Harrods is a large department store in the affluent Knightsbridge district, near Buckingham Palace. Harrods had been the target of other IRA bombings. On 18 August 1973, two fire bombs exploded causing slight damage. On 21 December 1974, a fire bomb was placed in the north-east corner of the first floor. There was a very short warning and the store was in the process of being cleared when it exploded. The 1974 bomb was the work of the Balcombe Street Gang who also carried out high-profile bombings in Knightsbridge, Piccadilly, Oxford Street, Woolwich, and many other locations in London and Surrey in 1974 and 1975. It was also the target of a much smaller IRA bomb just over nine years later, in January 1993, which injured four people.

Bombing overview

From 1973, the Provisional IRA had carried out waves of bombing attacks on commercial targets in London and elsewhere in England as part of its "economic war". The goal was to damage the economy and cause disruption, which would put pressure on the British government to withdraw from Northern Ireland. On 10 December 1983, the IRA carried out its first attack in London for some time when a bomb exploded at the Royal Artillery Barracks, injuring three British soldiers.

One week later, on the afternoon of 17 December, IRA members parked a car bomb near the side entrance of Harrods, on Hans Crescent. The bomb contained 25 to 30 lb (11 to 14 kg) of explosives and was set to be detonated by a timer. It was left in a 1972 blue Austin 1300 GT four-door saloon car. At 12:44 a man using an IRA codeword phoned the central London branch of the Samaritans charity. The caller said there was a car bomb outside Harrods and another bomb inside Harrods, and gave the car's registration plate. According to police, he did not give any other description of the car.

The bomb exploded at about 13:21, as four police officers in a car, an officer on foot and a police dog-handler neared the suspect vehicle. Six people were killed (three officers and three bystanders) and 90 others were injured, including 14 police officers. The blast damaged 24 cars and all five floors on the side of Harrods, sending a shower of glass down on the street. The police car absorbed much of the blast and this is likely to have prevented further casualties.

Five people died at the scene of the bombing and a sixth later died in hospital. The bystanders who died were Philip Geddes (24), a journalist who had heard about the alert and went to the scene; Jasmine Cochrane-Patrick (25); and Kenneth Salvesen (28), a US citizen. The Metropolitan Police officers killed were Sergeant Noel Lane (28) and Constable Jane Arbuthnot (22). A third officer, Inspector Stephen Dodd (34), died in hospital from his injuries on 24 December. Constable Jon Gordon survived, but lost both legs and part of a hand in the blast.

At the time of the explosion, a second warning call was made by the IRA. The caller said that a bomb had been left in the C&A department store at the east end of Oxford Street. Police cleared the area and cordoned it off but this claim was found to be false. In the aftermath of the attack, hundreds of extra police and mobile bomb squads were drafted into London. Aleck Craddock, chairman of Harrods, reported that £1 million in turnover had been lost as a result of the bombing. Despite the damage, Harrods re-opened three days later, proclaiming it would not be "defeated by acts of terrorism". Denis Thatcher, the husband of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, visited the store and told reporters "no damned Irishman is going to stop me going there".

IRA response

The bombing badly damaged the IRA's support due to the civilian deaths and injuries. In a statement issued the day after, the IRA Army Council said that IRA members had planted the bomb, but that it had not authorised the attack:

The Harrods operation was not authorised by the Irish Republican Army. We have taken immediate steps to ensure that there will be no repetition of this type of operation again. The volunteers involved gave a 40 minutes specific warning, which should have been adequate. But due to the inefficiency or failure of the Metropolitan Police, who boasted of foreknowledge of IRA activity, this warning did not result in an evacuation. We regret the civilian casualties, even though our expression of sympathy will be dismissed. Finally, we remind the British Government that as long as they maintain control of any part of Ireland then the Irish Republican Army will continue to operate in Britain.

Leon Brittan, the Home Secretary, commented: "The nature of a terrorist organisation is that those in it are not under disciplined control". In his book The Provisional IRA in England, author Gary McGladdery says the bombing illustrated one of the problems with the IRA's cell system, where units "could become virtually autonomous from the rest of the organisation and operate at their own discretion". The IRA had adopted the system in the late 1970s.

Memorials

There is a memorial at the site of the blast. Yearly prizes in honour of Philip Geddes are awarded to aspiring journalists attending the University of Oxford. As a further commemoration, every year the Philip Geddes Memorial Lecture on the theme of the future of journalism is given by a leading journalist.

See also

References

  1. O'Day, Alan. Political Violence in Northern Ireland. Greenwood Publishing, 1997. p.20
  2. "Bombings (Hansard, 11 November 1975)". api.parliament.uk. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  3. "4 Soldiers Wounded By Bombing in London". The New York Times, 11 December 1983.
  4. ^ "Bomb unauthorised says IRA". The Guardian, 19 December 1983.
  5. ^ Chalk, Peter. Encyclopedia of Terrorism. ABC-CLIO, 2013. pp.285–287
  6. ^ McKittrick, David. Lost Lives: The Stories of the Men, Women and Children who Died as a Result of the Northern Ireland Troubles. Mainstream, 2001. pp.970–971
  7. Northern Ireland: Thatcher letter to Reagan (outrage at Harrods IRA bomb) Margaret Thatcher Foundation website
  8. Malcolm Sutton's Index of Deaths from the Conflict in Ireland. Conflict Archive on the Internet (CAIN).
  9. On this Day – 1983: Harrods bomb blast kills six. BBC News.
  10. The Glasgow Herald, 19 December 1983, p.1
  11. "No damned Irishman will stop me, says Thatcher's husband". Montreal Gazette. 21 December 1983. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  12. McGladdery, Gary. The Provisional IRA in England: The bombing campaign, 1973–1997. Irish Academic Press, 2006. p.123
  13. Dingley, James. The IRA: The Irish Republican Army. ABC-CLIO, 2012. p.157
  14. Police Archived 5 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine City Themes London
  15. Prize money for students rises to £2,500 Archived 8 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine Holdthefrontpage
  16. PHILIP GEDDES MEMORIAL PRIZES 2005 Archived 12 March 2005 at the Wayback Machine Oxford University Gazette

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