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

The Last Message
(art) Made by: Hatherell, William 1918
image: a Red Cross nurse seated at the bedside of a dying soldier. The soldier lies weakly with his head propped up on pillows, a bandage running over one eye and across the side of his face. The nurse holds a pad and pen in her hands and is taking down...
What a Red Rag is to a Bull - The Red Cross is to the Hun
(posters) Made by: British Red Cross Society (publisher/sponsor) 1918
whole: the image occupies the majority of the upper half, held within a black border. The title is separate and positioned across the top edge and across the centre, in black and in red. The text is separate and positioned in the lower half, also in...
Motor Ambulance
(art) Made by: Cotterell, Arthur N 1918
image: a view along a road with a small two berth motor ambulance garage on the right. The garage is supported with wooden beams and covered with sandbags, with two motor ambulance parked inside and a man standing at the front of the foremost vehicle....
Missing!
(posters) Made by: British Red Cross Society (publisher/sponsor) 1918-10
whole: the image occupies the upper two-thirds, with the title separate and positioned across the top edge, in black and held within a black border. The text is separate and positioned in the lower third, in black and held within a black border. All set...
Ferme du Château de Muizon, October, 1918
(art) Made by: Cotterell, Arthur N 1918-10-03
image: a view down a road into the French village of Muizon. Parked on either side of the road are British medical trucks. The village beyond is bomb damaged, with some of the roofs of buildings partially destroyed. The village is surrounded by trees,...
Dug-outs, Promontoire
(art) Made by: Cotterell, Arthur N 1917
image: a series of dug-outs and huts built into terraces on the slope of a hill on the Western Front. They have been built into the slope and extended with sandbags, planks of wood and corrugated iron. Wooden stairs link the terraces and several men are...
St Thomas, Argonne, Poste de Secours
(art) Made by: Cotterell, Arthur N
image: a view of a medical aid post housed in some damaged stone buildings. The post itself has two doors and three windows, with the remains of a stone wall on the floor above. A French soldier stands by the door to the left, which is open. Several...
Promontoire, 1917 : a dug-out
(art) Made by: Cotterell, Arthur N 1917
image: a view of the outside of a large dug-out serving as a medical post. It is next to a road side and has been constructed with earth, sandbags and wood, with a tarpaulin suspended between the main dug-out and an outer wall, underneath which a man is...
La Veille Dompierre, Champagne : Kitchen Car and Billet
(art) Made by: Cotterell, Arthur N 1917
image: a man of the British Red Cross sits on an earth bank washing something in a large bucket of water. To the right is a motor ambulance used as a mobile kitchen, with the rear door ajar and a broom leaning against the back. A wooden ramp leads up the...
Women Wanted
(posters) Made by: WOMEN'S VOLUNTARY SERVICES (publisher/sponsor)
whole: the two images are placed in the left quarter and right quarter, partially held within red and black borders, set against purple panels. The emblem of the Civil Nursing Reserve is positioned in the lower centre. The title is separate and placed in...