2nd paragraph + First.

 The concept of Dresden as a contextual oddity stems from the belief that by February 1945 World War II was over. Dresden was long considered a target that was destroyed by just a single air raid, chosen at a time when the war was winding down and Irving makes the bold claim that Dresden was “The Virgin Target” in The Destruction of Dresden as a chapter name. This is done to further highlight the contextual contrast between the bombing of Dresden and the rest of the bomber war. Irving doesn't ignore other raids on the city but minimalises their impact and severity, stating, “The local inhabitants unanimously agreed among themselves that the bombing was the result of some unfortunate oversight by an allied navigator.”¹

The above quote fits the other contextual problem that Dresden poses. Irving argues that Dresden was bombed in the last moments if World War II. Irving forgets to mention the Ardennes offensive, one of the main reasons for the renewed bomber offensive. The best he mentions is that, “When Stalin had failed to launch his major winter offensive during Hitler’s attack in the Ardennes, the Allies had sent to Moscow Eisenhower’s deputy.”² Irving downplays the seriousness of the war at this point in time to fit his goal of creating guilt in the British psyche.

1D. Irving, Apocalypse 1945 The Destruction of Dresden, Focal Point, 1999, p. 90 (internet edition)

2Irving, Apocalypse, p. 110