6.5 The Battle of Britain

The national relief felt at the safe evacuation of so many British troops from Dunkirk was immediately tempered by the stark realities of subsequent events in France. On 14 June the German army entered Paris and on 17 June Marshal Pétain surrendered. Despite two dangerous trips by air to France to persuade the French to resist, Churchill failed to prevent the fall of France to German occupation. The German Luftwaffe now commanded vital airfields in Normandy and Brittany, thereby placing the whole of southern England and Wales within easy reach of German bomber planes. During July, August and early September the Battle of Britain raged in the skies overhead, as Hitler launched pre-invasion air strikes. Across the southern counties the Luftwaffe bombed RAF Fighter Command’s aircraft, airfields and installations. This lasted until the Germans made the unexpected decision to start night-time bombings of cities. The RAF was saved; invasion was averted.

The Battle of Britain constitutes one of the iconic victories of the Second World War, in the sense that Britain is seen to have defeated the threat of invasion in the face of great adversity. Churchill once again emerges as the towering defiant leader whose determination inspired the nation. But is this too glowing an assessment of what happened?

Group activity: The Battle of Britain

You can read about the Battle of Britain on the ‘On this day’ section of the BBC website. You can listen to Churchill’s speech of 20^th August on YouTube.

Explore the key events of the Battle of Britain on the Imperial War Museum website.

Read and listen to the final paragraph of Churchill’s speech made on 18 June 1940 on the website of the International Churchill Society. If you wish, continue listening to Lord Digby Jones and Professor David Reynolds as they discuss Churchill’s leadership in 1940 (14m 50s – 24m 05s).

Given the threats that Britain faced during the Battle of Britain, does Churchill deserve to be remembered for his leadership at this point or was he, and the country, just lucky to avoid invasion?

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