gun cartridge came later. The manufacture of the caps involved several dangerous processes, and Birmingham has had to mourn the loss of many of her children through accidents arising therefrom. The ammunition works of Messrs. Kynoch and Co., at Witton, covered over 20 acres (80,000 m²), and gave employment to several hundred people, the contrariness of human nature being exemplified in the fact that the death-dealing articles were mainly manufactured by females, the future mothers or wives perchance of men to be laid low by the use of such things. The plant was capable of turning out 500,000 cartridges per day, as was done during the Turkish war, and it took 50 tons of rolled brass, 100 tons of lead, and 20 tons of gunpowder weekly to keep the factory fully going, all kinds of ammunition for rifles and machine guns being made on the premises. Other extensive works were those of the Birmingham Small Arms and Metal Co., at Adderley Park Mills, and the National Arms and Ammunition Co., at Small Heath, and Perry Barr. Interwar In 1936 the government purchased a site next to the Castle Bromwich Aerodrome which was developed into Castle Bromwich Aircraft Factory. World War II 1 September 1939 - Approximately 75,000 Birmingham school children were evacuated to make way for the Battle of Britain. On 8 August 1940 the first air-raid on Birmingham took place over Erdington. During Birminghams 27 enemy air raids an official request by the Government to news editors not to publish such reports left the city's bereaved quite indignant and bitter. Over 2,000 women, children and elderly were killed and 3,000 more were seriously injured in the air raids, many of the attacks were aimed at the thousands of factories that manufactured weapons of war, including the Castle Bromwich aeroplane factory that mass-produced the Spitfire fighter aircraft. The longest raid took place on 11 December and lasted 13 hours, King George VI inspected damage the next day. Finally, 60 years after the end of the Second World War, a memorial is now in place by the new Bull Ring to commemorate the civilians who died during air raids, naming all those who were killed or gave up their lives protecting the city. B.S.A. and Longbridge turned their hands to the British war effort once again. Post-war period The Royal Warwickshire Fusiliers were absorbed in 1968 and were combined with the