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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NFS Relief Crews Arriving at Millbank, London, May 1941
(art) Made by: Uden, Ernest Boye 1941-05-01
image: a view along Millbank in Westminster looking north, with firemen at work. Three men in the left foreground work at the rear of a fire truck preparing hose equipment. Another four men in the centre right are moving wheeled equipment. Victoria Tower...
Southampton Row, London, April 1941
(art) Made by: Uden, Ernest Boye 1941
image: an aerial view of the bomb-damaged Southampton Row in Bloomsbury, central London. Fire trucks and firemen are visible on the streets in the right foreground and there is a smoky hue over the buildings in the background.
Handling a Balloon by Searchlight
(art) Made by: Noke, L
image: a few RAF personnel busy with the ropes attached to a large balloon, working under the light of a searchlight on the back of a truck on the right. A few trees, roofs and chimneys are visible in the background against the night sky.
Land Drainage: Overtime
(art) Made by: Casson, Bernard
image: a rural scene with women of the Women's Land Army working on land drainage. Four cranes are being used to create and maintain a series of drainage ditches filled with water. One of these cranes to the left has sunk into a water-logged patch of...
Forces Canteen
(art) Made by: Hudson, Eleanor Erlund 1942
image: two men in greatcoats, possibly airmen, relax in a canteen at a table, sideways on to the artist. One man is reading a book, while a black cat sits on the other's lap. In the background there are two other men, similarly dressed, deep in...
Coventry Cathedral: November 1940
(art) Made by: Schwabe, Randolph 1940-11-01
image: a view of the heavily bomb damaged Coventry cathedral. The foreground is littered with bricks, metal girders and rubble, the walls and spires largely intact in the background.
Soldier Guarding an Aerodrome
(art) Made by: Knight, Alick 1940
image: a single British soldier stands on a wide aerodrome runway, devoid of features except a camouflaged pattern. The featureless landscape has a strangely surreal and futuristic feel to it.
The Café 'Internment' series
(art) Made by: Uhlman, Fred 1940
image: the interior of the café of Hutchinson internment camp, near Douglas on the Isle of Man. Nine male German internees sit around a long table, four of the men wearing glasses. Washing hangs along two clothes lines above them.
Designers' Room, The Old Vic Theatre, September 1941
(art) Made by: May, Gwendoline Marie 1941-09-01
image: the interior of the designers' room in the Old Vic Theatre, Waterloo, London, after suffering the effects of an air raid. The windows have been blown out and internal walls damaged, with the room littered with disturbed papers, designs and a...
The Old Vic Theatre, September 1941
(art) Made by: May, Gwendoline Marie 1941-09-25
image: a view of the bomb damaged side of the Old Vic Theatre in Waterloo, London. The scene is viewed from the site of the Duke of Sussex pub on Baylis Road, with Waterloo Road running across the composition, adjacent to the theatre. Part of the upper...