The Battle of Britain

The battle begins, summer 1940
The battle begins, summer 1940

After defeating France in June 1940, Hitler assumed Britain would sue for peace but ordered his armed forces to prepare for invasion. Hermann Goering assured him that a sustained air assault would destroy the RAF, winning the air superiority needed.
A Heinkel He 111 bomber flying over London, September 1940
A Heinkel He 111 bomber flying over London, September 1940

July 1940 saw German planes target shipping in the Channel, drawing the RAF into combat, before radar stations, communications centres and airfields faced round-the-clock bombing in August. The battle reached a climax with attacks on London in September.
The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF)
The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF)

Joan 'Elizabeth' Mortimer, Elspeth Henderson and Helen Turner of the WAAF. All three received the Military Medal for courageous conduct during attacks on Biggin Hill airfield. Biggin Hill suffered a total of ten major attacks between 30 Aug and 5 Sept.
Non-British personnel in the RAF
Non-British personnel in the RAF

A group of pilots of No. 303 (Polish) Squadron RAF return from a sortie. The first Polish squadrons were formed in the summer of 1940. Pilots came from several other countries, including Australia, Canada, Czechoslovakia, New Zealand and the USA.
Sector 'G' Operations Room at RAF Duxford
Sector 'G' Operations Room at RAF Duxford

RAF Duxford was a Sector Station in 12 Group, responsible for defending the Midlands and East Anglia. As the fighting intensified, Duxford's squadrons were called on to support 11 Group's defence of London and the south-east.
Hawker Hurricane Mk Is of No. 85 Squadron RAF
Hawker Hurricane Mk Is of No. 85 Squadron RAF

Despite incessant attacks, the RAF's defences held. The Luftwaffe could not continue, and in the autumn switched to 'nuisance' raids and night operations. The failure to defeat the RAF convinced Hitler to postpone his invasion plans indefinitely.

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Mont St Eloi
(art) Made by: Nash, Paul 1917
image: a scene showing the ruins of the church at Mont St Eloi. The figures of lifeless trees dominate the foreground, and there is a soldier standing on the hill to the left. He appears to be looking out at the brilliant sun that beams down over the...
The Field of Passchendaele
(art) Made by: Nash, Paul 1917
image: a battle scarred Western Front landscape near Passchendaele in Flanders. A large water-filled shell hole dominates the foreground, with two dead soldiers lying nearby on the left. Beyond them is the entrance to a dugout, a small bomb damaged brick...
The Gymnasium : Dermatological Ward, Colchester Military Hospital
(art) Made by: Bawden, Edward 1943
image: A view of a low red brick building on the top of an embankment, drawn from below. Men wearing blue trousers and khaki shirts lie about in the sunshine on the grass below the building.
The Embarkation : Southampton
(art) Made by: McBey, James 1917-08-01
image: two British soldiers stand on the deck of a troopship leaning on a barrier, looking out at a column of British soldiers awaiting embarkation. The men huddle together in their caps and coats, with rain falling heavily.
The Guard in a Block House (two soldiers)
(art) Made by: Ardizzone, Edward Jeffrey Irving 1940
image: One soldier stands to attention, the other lies on a palette against the embrasure, through which can be seen the countryside. In front of the embrasure there is a theodolite on a tripod. There are rifles stacked against the wall.
Galeries de Paris, Boulogne
(art) Made by: Hennell, Thomas Barclay 1944
image: a group of British soldiers to the left, and a single British NCO to the right, sit amidst the rubble of the bomb damaged Galeries de Paris in Boulogne-sur-Mer in northern France. The building is a mass of twisted, rusty girders, the roof having...
German Prisoners : the Deputy Controller's Camp, Rouen
(art) Made by: Lithiby, Beatrice (OBE)
image: beyond a pathway and low wattle fence and gate, prisoners in uniform are working among the wooden huts of a camp, carrying and inserting large wooden stakes. A soldier stands guard, while in the distance a small female figure carries buckets.
German Prisoners : being assembled and searched at Thiberville
(art) Made by: Hennell, Thomas Barclay
image: German Prisoners of War sit in groups on the ground, some are wearing armbands marked with a red cross. In the background one is standing with his hands in the air, being searched by a British soldier. To the right another British soldier is...
Interior of l'Eglise de Notre Dame, Calais
(art) Made by: Hennell, Thomas Barclay
image: a view of the interior of the heavily bomb damaged L'Eglise de Notre Dame in Calais, France. Much of the roof of the church has been destroyed, the remains of it lying on the ground in the interior, where two British soldiers survey the damage....
On the Troop Train: The First Day, 20th May 1917
(art) Made by: McBey, James 1917-05-20
image: a view from the window of a train moving rapidly through the French countryside, transporting British troops. On the left is a view down the length of the train, with three men leaning out of the windows to look at the scenery. To the right is...