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.

Main menu

IWM London
London
Open daily 10am - 6pm
Closed 24, 25 and 26 December

Admission is free
- What's On
- Visiting Information
IWM North
Manchester
Open daily 10am - 5pm
Last admission 4.30pm
Closed 24, 25 and 26 December

Admission is free
- What's On
- Visiting Information
IWM Duxford
Cambridgeshire
Open daily

Summer 10am - 6pm
Last admission 5pm

Winter 10am - 4pm
Last admission 3pm

Closed 24, 25 and 26 December
- What's On
- Visiting Information
Churchill War Rooms
London
Open daily 9.30am - 6pm
Last admission 5pm
Closed 24, 25 and 26 December
- What's On
- Visiting Information
HMS Belfast
London
Open daily 10am - 6pm
Last admission 5pm
Closed 24, 25 and 26 December
- What's On
- Visiting Information

Collections search

Ile de Ré, Charente-Maritime
(art) Made by: Mackertich, Peter 1996
image: A German concrete blockhouse on the edge of a chalk escarpment, Ile de Ré, Charente-Maritime, France.
Bert Fox, Killed in Action, El Alamein 21st July 1942.
(art) Made by: Mount, Cyril 1941
image: A portrait with a photograph of the sitter's grave pasted onto the image.
Henry Moore, Holborn Underground, 1940
(art) Made by: Miller, Lee 1940
image: A photograph of Henry Moore sketching shelterers in Holborn Underground Station.
In the Jungle - Guards Punishing a Prisoner, Thai-Burma Railway, 1943
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1943
image: Three uniformed Japanese guards, one sitting on a bed in a bamboo hut, one standing with his back to the viewer and leaning on a pickaxe handle, the other sitting in an upholstered armchair, holding a bamboo stake. They watch a Prisoner of War who...
Japanese Guards, Singapore, August 1945
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1945
image: Eight sketches of Japanese soldiers; two full length, and six head studies.
Three Sketches of Russell Braddon, FEPOW
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1945
image: A composite photograph of three sketches in a notebook.
Sketchbook; India and Burma 1944 - 1945
(art) Made by: Witney, Alan 1944
No description available
Collection: Joseph Gray Archive
(souvenirs and ephemera) Made by: Gray, Joseph (Artist) 1938
whole: [see artist's file for list full list] an A3 cardboard binder containing 26 documents, 16 cartoons drawn by various artists, 5 photographs [including one of Gray], 2 postcards of Gray's oil painting, 1 catalogue from Gray's exhibition at the...
Embroidered cloth 'Souvenir of Egypt 1941 - to my darling Jean with love Bill' Three personal photographs, one a portrait of Gunner William Arthur Gayton (1605944), Royal Artillery (died 3 April 1944), two of group photographs of the above and fellow Gunners in Egypt One personalised postcard with inset portrait of Gunner William Gayton (1605944), Royal Artillery superimposed over a view of the Pyramids and the Sphinx
(souvenirs and ephemera) 1941
embroidered cloth: dark green satin cloth with pink silk fringe, embroidered with (from left to right) a palm tree, a pyramid, the Sphinx, central device the insignia of the Royal Artillery and 'Souvenir of Egypt 1941 - To My Darling Jean with Love Bill...
Calais
(art) Made by: Mackertich, Peter 1996
image: A German concrete blockhouse on a sandy beach, Calais, France.