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

A Coconut Grove by the Prison Camp, Changi, Singapore, April 1943
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1943-04-01
image: A grove of coconut palms and distant hills. A figure sits among the palms in the lower centre.
Near the Prison Camp, Singapore, 3 December 1942
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1942-12-03
image: A view of two Prisoner of War huts with palm thatched roofs, set in a grove of palm trees and thick vegetation. The window of another hut frames the view. image verso: Ink sketches of two men, one wrapped in a blanket.
Tropical Rainstorm, Changi Prison Camp, Singapore 1942
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1942
image: Torrential rain pouring down on Prisoner of War huts in Changi Prison Camp. The sky is black and the camp is in darkness; a branch from a palm tree is being blown away by the wind to the right of the composition. image verso: A faint pencil sketch...
Palm Trees Near the Prison, Singapore 1942
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1942
image: A view of a thatched construction with poles at the four corners, sited among a grove of palm trees.
Beach near the Prison, Singapore, 21 July 1944
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1944
image: The view along a palm-fringed beach with a low heap of rocks in the middle foreground. A small group of fishing vessels are moored off the beach to the left of the composition.
Chinese Fisherman Wading, Singapore, July 1944
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1944
image: A fisherman standing thigh-deep in water in the foreground, a fishing pole and net held over his shoulders. He wears a broad-brimmed straw hat, a shirt and rolled up trousers. To his left, floating in the water, are two large bowls, ready for the...
The Shore with Rocks, Boats and Palms. Changi Beach, Singapore, 20 July 1944
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1944
image: A beach with tall palm trees to the right. There is an island out on the left horizon and a small flotilla of fishing boats. The foreground shows a group of low rocks on the beach half submerged in the sea.
Near the Shore, Singapore 1944
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1944
image: A view from a beach with part of a stone balustrade in the foreground. To the left there is a stand of tall palm trees; further right the fan of leaves of a traveller's palm. The right background shows a small island in the distance; the...
Beach Near the Prison, with Palm Trees and a Junk at Sea, Singapore 1944
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1944
image: A view down a beach lined with tall palm trees to the left, small islands out on the horizon and a junk sailing to the right of the composition. Stamped verso with artist's stamp.
Beach near the Prison, Singapore, July 1944
(art) Made by: Searle, Ronald William Fordham 1944
image: The reproduction of a drawing showing a view along a palm-fringed beach. There are fishing boats moored offshore and a figure in headscarf and loose robes carrying a fishing pole and a basket in middle foreground.