-
the RAF and luftwaffe
Great Britain's air force was called the RAF or the Royal Air Force. Germany's air force was called the Luftwaffe. The code name for Hitler's invasion plans was Operation Sea Lion. It is estimated that around 1,000 British planes were shot down during the battle, while over 1,800 German planes were destroyed. -
Period: to
Battle of britain
-
There were several phases to the Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain took place between July and October 1940. The Germans began by attacking coastal targets and British shipping operating in the English Channel. They launched their main offensive on 13 August. Attacks moved inland, concentrating on airfields and communications centres. -
Not all of the pilots were British
Nearly 3,000 men of the RAF took part in the Battle of Britain – those who Winston Churchill called ‘The Few’. While most of the pilots were British, Fighter Command was an international force. Men came from all over the Commonwealth and occupied Europe – from New Zealand, Australia, Canada, South Africa, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Belgium, France, Poland and Czechoslovakia. There were even some pilots from the neutral United States and Ireland. -
The Battle of Britain was a defensive victory for Britain
British victory in the Battle of Britain was decisive, but ultimately defensive in nature in avoiding defeat, Britain secured one of its most significant victories of the Second World War. It was able to stay in the war and lived to fight another day. Victory in the Battle of Britain did not win the war, but it made winning a possibility in the longer term.