Battle of Britain

The Battle of Britain, the first major battle ever fought exclusively in the air, was critical in determining the success of the Allies in the Second World War. Following the invasion of Poland and the fall of France, Britain remained as the last major Allied Power resisting Nazi aggression. For three months, Britain staggered under the full weight of the German Luftwaffe. When the dust settled on October 12, 1940, Britain remained triumphant; however, not without great loss. The economic, social, and political consequences of this Pyrrhic victory achieved by the Britons eventually led to the decline of British influence in world affairs.

September 1, 1939; Hitler invades Poland, thus plunging the rest of Europe into a Second World War that would ravage the world for a devastating 6 years. With the perfection of the Blitzkrieg, or Lightning warfare, Hitler's Wehrmacht devised a plan that would coordinate the Heer, the German Army, with the Luftwaffe, the German Air Force. Following a period of time known as the "phony war", Hitler once again began his relentless conquest of Europe, dismantling municipality after municipality. Beginning with Denmark and Norway in April 1940, Hitler continued his campaign by overrunning the Netherlands and Belgium in May. He then turned his gaze toward Germany's rival, France. In an attempt to save the French government, the British Parliament sent the British Expeditionary Force, or the BEF, in order to aid French troops. However, despite the added munitions and men, France was soon forced to surrender in late June. France's overwhelming confidence in the fortifications of the Maginot Line, which was created after World War One, proved to be folly. The German advance avoided the Line by deploying a decoy force opposite it while a second division cut through Belgium, the Netherlands, and the Ardennes Forest, thus evading this defensive matrix. These circumstances pushed the remaining heyAllied Forces to Dunkirk, a port near the English Channel, where the advancing German Wehrmacht surrounded them. Fortunately, the British Royal Navy's dominance of the English Channel provided the means by which the cornered Allied forces were evacuated in Operation Dynamo. However, the triumphant rescue of 338,000 Allied troops was also met by the tragic loss of thousands of men as well as nearly one thousand Royal Air Force aircraft, over five hundred of them fighters. This proved to be a devastating loss to the already outnumbered Royal Air Force. With the majority of northern Europe conquered, Hitler now turned his eyes toward the last remnants of opposition: the British Isles.

Prior to the German invasion of Britain, it was Hitler's hope that the outgunned Britons would surrender. Numerous influential British government officials, notably Lord Halifax, pushed for mediation and peace with Hitler. However, in 1940, the dynamic Winston Churchill ascended to the position of Prime Minister and quickly aroused public support against Nazi aggression. (Add Churchill Never Surrender Speech) Thus, the stage was set for the Battle of Britain.

The exact dates of the Battle of Britain are debated. British historians maintain the dates of July 10 to October 31, 1940; this is the time when Operation Sea Lion was in effect. However, German historians believe that the Battle of Britain lasted until the German Luftwaffe was withdrawn from the British Isles in May 1941. Despite this, the commonly accepted date for the beginning of the Battle of Britain still remains July 10, 1940.

Due to the isolated location of the British Isles, an invasion by sea was necessary. However, the British Royal Navy was vastly superior to the German Kriegsmarine. This meant that air superiority was necessary for the Wehrmacht to attain dominance of the English Channel. Thus, Operation Sea Lion was conceived.

Operation Sea Lion was undertaken by the Luftwaffe in four phases, led by the air commander Hermann Goring. The first of these phases, Kanalkampf, was implemented for the purpose of drawing out the British Royal Air Force by attacking British convoys and ports in the English Channel. The RAF fighters, outnumbered almost 3 to 1, never engaged any offensive with more fighters than was necessary in response to this tactic.

The next two phases, Adlerangriff, were executed with the purpose of neutralizing British radar stations and airfields, both of which were essential elements to the British defense. However, these attacks were only met with relative success; not realizing that victory was within reach and growing desperate to force the RAF into a decisive battle, the Wehrmacht made a fateful choice to abandon their raids on radar stations and airfields and direct their attention to bombing civilian cities, most notably London. The theory behind this tactic was that it would arouse public fear among the Britons,