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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AFS Practice with a Trailer-pump : On the banks of the Serpentine, London
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA)
image: two groups of AFS struggle to control jets of water squirting from the hoses they are attempting to direct into the Serpentine.
Testing Gun Barrels for Alignment
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA) 1941
image: a factory floor where a munitions worker sits with his back to the artist looking down the barrel of an anti- aircraft gun, supported on a wooden stand. A second worker stands on the other end of the barrel. A stack of barrels lies on the floor to...
Fire-hose Practice in St James's Park, London
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA)
image: a view across a lake in the park towards small groups of AFS practicing with fire hoses. They are partially obscured by enormous jets of water filling the air.
WAAFs Packing Parachutes
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA)
image: the parachutes are laid out on long, thin tables while the WAAFs arrange the fabric and the ropes . In the background one parachute has just been packed and lies in a bundle at the end of the table.
WAAFs Repairing Parachutes at a Maintenance Unit, Henlow
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA)
image: a group of WAAFs in uniform sit around a large, square work table covered in swathes of Parachute silk. Each one is sewing at a sewing machine lit with an angle poise lamp.
A Rescue Speed Boat under Construction
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA)
image: a view of three men at work constructing a ships hull. The framework of the hull fills the background. A fourth worker wearing dungarees stands in the foreground checking a piece of wood.
Anti-aircraft Guns under Construction
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA) 1941
image: a factory floor with the workers in overalls constructing and transporting the barrels of anti-aircraft guns.
An AA Battery : River Medway
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA) 1943
image: a view looking down on several anti-aircraft guns, including two Bofors guns, in gun emplacements with a few soldiers moving around in between the maze of walls in the battery. The battery is positioned on the coast with the sea and a small dock...
An AA Battery
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA) 1943
image: Two figures stand in the centre of a road in the foreground. Behind them, just off the roadside, is a gun battery. An anti-aircraft gun points up to the sky, surrounded by a circular stone wall and sandbags. The rooftops of a large town lie...
A Royal Observer Corps Post, Rottingdean
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA) 1944
image: a view looking down on two observers, one wearing headphones, facing upwards towards the sky with binoculars and a aircraft range finder. They stand in a small brick enclosure on a hillside near the coast.