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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The Control-room at South West Regional Headquarters, Bristol
(art) Made by: Piper, John (CH) 1940
image: a room lit by electric light. On the right hand wall is an abstract map, with areas marked with numbers and letters. On the adjacent wall are more symbols, another smaller map and a clock. In the foreground are tables with a glass and carafe.
Patients waiting Outside a First Aid Post in a Factory
(art) Made by: Spear, Ruskin (CBE RA) 1942
image: Two figures sitting on chairs in a makeshift waiting room. A curtain dividing this space off from the rest of the interior runs along the left of the composition to the centre ground. There is a white table standing in the foreground, an open...
A Searchlight Battery
(art) Made by: Richards, Albert 1942
image: a searchlight on a small paved area of a promenade, next to a lighthouse. The area is surrounded by barbed wire and also contains a small, manned anti-aircraft gun emplacement. There are several men in uniform in the battery, including one asleep...
The Shadow of a Balloon
(art) Made by: Bone, Stephen 1943
image: two men look out of the skylights in the roof of a shop as the shadow of a kite balloon passes over them.
Building Submarines
(art) Made by: Cundall, Charles Ernest 1940
image: parts of a hull of a submarine stand under construction in a large scaffold, dwarfing nearby workers.
The Camouflage Workshop, Leamington Spa, 1940
(art) Made by: La Dell, Edwin (ARA) 1940
image: Workers sewing and designing camouflage in a workshop lit by electric lighting. Some samples are suspended from the ceiling; two others are stretched on the back wall and are being worked on from a step ladder.
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...
A Parachute Factory
(art) Made by: Charlton, Evan 1943
image: a view looking down on a the factory floor of a parachute factory, showing a row of women at sewing machines surrounded by swathes of white parachute silk. One parachute is being laid out on a long table by two women on the right, while several...
Snack Time in a Factory
(art) Made by: Pitchforth, Roland Vivian (RA) 1941
image: a portrait of three workers gathering in a factory for a tea break. One stands facing the artist with a welding mask on his head, drinking from a mug. He has a newspaper under his arm. A second worker stands with his back to the artist and a third...
A St John's Ambulance Examination in Progress
(art) Made by: Medley, Robert (RA) 1940
image: on the right four men hold a strecher with a patient between them. On the left another patient is being attended to on he floor, watched by the examiners.