Transcript Thoughts and Reflection

The Battle of Britain
…Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”
Prime Minister Winston Churchill, August 1940
Defending the Nation -“The Nation at War”
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Did the Luftwaffe
underestimate
Britain’s defences
and resolve ?
Images provided by The Battle of Britain Historical Society
Adolf Hitler called off the invasion of Britain on 17th
September 1940.
The invasion was postponed indefinitely.
Key Question:
Was the Battle of Britain and its outcome a major
turning point in World War Two?
Fighting Germany alone, Britain had managed to defeat a numerically
superior force. The British defensive system had ensured that the
fight against Germany and her allies would continue and the victory
provided the armed forces with ‘a breathing space’ that enabled Britain
to regroup. The British Empire gathered its strength and planned for
future conflict in other theatres of war – Africa and the
Mediterranean, the Atlantic and eventually the European Continent.
Germany meanwhile turned her attention to the east, launching
Operation Barbarossa against Russia in 1941. She had now opened a war
on two fronts.
What would have happened if Great Britain had been invaded and defeated?
The Defeat of France –
June 1940
Operation Sealion
Postponed
Luftwaffe failed to gain air
superiority over Great Britain
Was the Battle of Britain
a Turning Point during
World War Two?
The bombing of German towns and
cities by British and U.S. forces
Invasion of Russia –
1941
D - Day – June 1944
Can the Battle of Britain be seen as a major turning point of
World War Two?
“Three major battles signalled the end of the initial, defensive, phase
of the conflict for the Allies: in the west the Battle of Britain; in
Russia, the halting of the German advance in front of Moscow; and in
the Pacific, the Battle of Midway. In each case, following a succession
of disastrous military setbacks, Allied forces secured a victory that
stopped the Axis advance in its tracks and established a breathing
space in which to build up their strength before going over to the
defensive.
The Battle of Britain was the first…and, arguably, the most important:
had it not been won by the R.A.F., the other battles might never have
taken place; or, if they had taken place, their outcome might have
been different.”
Alfred Price, The Battle of Britain (1990)
Can the Battle of Britain be seen as a major turning point of
World War Two?
“If Goering’s air fleets had succeeded in destroying the British
defences, Hitler would almost certainly have seized his chance to
launch an invasion….Dowding’s 3,000-odd pilots had…done an enormous
amount to convince America that Britain could survive, and was worth
supporting.”
Len Deighton, The Battle of Britain (1980)
Can the Battle of Britain be seen as a major turning point of
World War Two?
“The Battle of Britain did much to change both attitudes and
expectations. It was fought in full daylight in full view of millions of
spectators. It was fought to the encouraging and incomparable
commentary of Winston Churchill, whose words affected attitudes far
beyond Britain…The David and Goliath nature of the conflict, the
reports and photographs of the bombing of London and other British
cities, the undoubted heroism not only of British airmen but of
millions of men and women on the ground, tilted sympathy our way.
All of that added up to a factor of enormous importance in the
development of the war against Germany.”
Richard Townshend Bickers, The Battle of Britain (1990)