ABSTRACT
Flying high in the British night shies, the German Zeppelin was a silent enemy. Stashed in the Zeppelin were bombs ready to be dropped on London. The material that covered Zeppelins was made from cow intestines. The Germans had developed successful lighter-than-air flying machines in the 1890s. The huge, balloon-like ships were inflated with hydrogen gas and could fly hundreds of miles. Before the beginning of the war, Germany had been using Zeppelins as passenger air ships. The first Zeppelin bombings were carried out as early as 1914, but the Germans learned that the ships could easily be shot down by land guns if they flew too low. The Germans developed Zeppelins that could fly higher and avoid being hit by land guns. The Zeppelin bomb raids continued to torture the British and French throughout the war, but the Allies were increasing in their ability to shoot down the massive balloons.
