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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Collections search

Anglo Dutch
(art) Made by: Tunnard, John 1942
image: An abstract image of technological and maritime forms. There is an area of deep red colour on the left of the composition, and a dark hook shape as seen from the side in the centre. Around this there are other small, abstract details.
Leslie Croft, GM : of Sheffield
(art) Made by: Wheatley, John (ARA)
image: A head and shoulders portrait of Leslie Croft, who wears a beret and has the ribbon of a George Medal on his chest.
An Impression of a Gas Cleansing Exercise at a First Aid Post : eye irritation
(art) Made by: Mathews, Denis
image: A nurse administers treatment to the eye of a young woman, who sits naked in front of her. The nurse wears uniform and holds the nozzle of the equipment to the patient's right eye. The nozzle is connected, via a red tube, to a canister that...
Building Mosquitoes
(art) Made by: Armstrong, John 1943
image: Four munitions workers, three of whom appear to be female, are at work inside the shell of a Mosquito aircraft, which stands in pieces supported by a wooden scaffold. The factory scene is lit from above by suspended lamps and there are other...
The Haberdashers' Hall, 8th May 1945
(art) Made by: Hodgkin, C Eliot 1945
image: The bomb-damaged remains of the Haberdashers' Hall in the City of London. In the foreground are pieces of rubble but also flowers and plants growing through the debris, showing that the damage has not been caused recently. The spire of a church...
Edward Roche : a head melter at a Sheffield munition factory
(art) Made by: Wheatley, John (ARA)
image: A head and shoulders portrait of Edward Roche wearing protective glasses pushed up onto his forehead.
Anti-invasion Obstacles on a Road, 1940
(art) Made by: Armfield, Stuart 1940
image: a view along a country lane with large cylindrical anti-invasion obstacles topped with barbed wire placed on the verges of the road so as to prevent large vehicles having clear passage. There is a stone wall on the left and a few trees by the...