In World War 2 why were civilian bombed?

Answer 1

This is an interesting question and difficult to answer. I'm adding a link to the Wikipedia article on total war, though there's much in the article that I don't agree with. Obviously, part of the reason was the concept of 'total' war, which really goes back to WW1. It was no longer simply a matter of armies and navies fighting one another, but the entire industrial capacities of nations were pitted against one another. Workers in the armaments industries, transport industries and so on were also in the front line. Clearly, the devlopment of bomber aircraft was highly significant. However, the very highest casualties were on the Eastern Front in Europe, in the death camps and in the Far East and weren't directly related to the war of industrial capacities. So the issue isn't at all simple. Total War is a concept that the best way to defeat the enemy is to destroy his capacity and will to fight. Therefore, his factories, supplies and resources have to be destroyed and these were usually located near cities or were operated by civilian labors. General Tecumseh Sherman realized this when he began his "march to the sea" in the Civil War in 1864. General Sherman's army cut a path of destruction from Atlanta(the main manufacturing center of the Confederacy) thru Georgia to Savannah. This had the effect of discouraging the Confederate soldiers and made they fear for their families.

Answer 2

Both sides bombed civilian targets in an attempt to break each others will to fight by causing great loss of life and destruction.

Answer 3

Because due to all of the bombs and machine gun fire from the skies, civilians in the enemy lines were killed.