The Battle of Britain

The Battle of Britain was one of the major World War II battles. The battle was waged

in the skies over the English Channel and England's eastern and southern coast in

1940 and 1941. World War II had broken out in Europe, and Adolf Hitler was

determined to defeat England. The main combatants were the United Kingdom and

Germany.

Background

On February 26, 1935, Hitler ordered to rebuild the German air force, the Luftwaffe

(literally, air weapon, pronounced looft-vaaf-fa) against the rules of the Treaty of

Versailles.

The Battle and the Blitz

The Battle of Britain was the longest and largest nonstop bombing campaign yet

attempted by any government. The Germans began by attacking army defenses, RAF

bases, and runways. Hitler, having grown impatient with the failure of the German air

force to destroy the British air force, ordered a switch to bombing major British cities,

including London. Known by the British as The Blitz, the change of strategy was

intended to demoralize the people and destroy industries. The Blitz continued with

constant night attacks for 57 consecutive days after September 7, but the bombing of

British towns and industrial centers continued until 1944.

The Germans had more pilots and planes but the British were able to fight them off.

Hitler eventually stopped the attacks so he could use the planes to invade the USSR.

The Battle of Britain marked a turning point. Its outcome ensured the survival of an

independent Britain and represented the first failure of the German war machine.

Radar, a new invention, is credited with helping Britain win the battle. Radar uses radio waves

that bounce off objects and gave the Royal Air Force (RAF) early warning of enemy attacks,

giving them time to get airborne and attack them.

Questions to think about:

1. Where are the R.A.F (Royal Air Force) headquarters located? Why do you think they are

located there

2. Where were most of the German fighters coming from? (what country?)

“Never in the field of human conflict, was so much owed by so many to so few”

- Winston Churchill, prime minister of Great Britain

Question to think about:

1. What do you think Churchill means?

Tower Bridge in London

during bombing

London street after bombing

Londoners sleeping in

subway during bombing

Questions to think about:

These are pictures of London after being bombed by the German

air-force (Luftwaffe).

1. Describe the pictures, what is going on?

2. What does London look like?

3. How would you have felt if you were living in London?

Invasion of Poland

Poland was attacked by Germany on September 1, 1939. The Germans used a blitzkrieg (lightning warfare) strategy. They tore through the Polish military and by the end of the month Poland had surrendered to the Germans and the country was occupied. How did Germany achieve such an overwhelming victory? While the German Army had been developing new tactics and building new fighting vehicles to implement these tactics, the Polish Army, like many others in Europe, had stayed the same. A comparison of armed forces clearly indicates the problems faced by Poland. Germany had 11 tank divisions compared to Poland’s 1 (Polish Cavalrymen on horses were attacking tanks!!) Such a massive superiority of modern weaponry could only lead to one result – a swift and decisive victory for the Germans. The Germans put all their faith in a lightning attack that would a) militarily hammer the Poles and b) create such chaos in Poland that any form of a unified Polish attack simply would not occur. For the Germans, speed and success went together. England and France wearily knew they could not sacrifice Poland. On September 3, 1939, the Allies declared war against National Socialist Germany. Then the Russians invaded eastern Poland on September 17th, the defeat of Poland was sealed. On September 24th, Warsaw (Poland’s capital) was bombed by 1,150 German aircraft. On September 27th, Warsaw surrendered. No-one doubts that the Polish military put up a brave fight, but they were the first army to feel the full might of Germany. Tanks versus a primarily non-mechanized army could only lead to one result.

Question to think about:

1. What was the goal of the blitzkrieg tactic?

2. How did they hope to achieve it?

Question to think about:

These are pictures of the Polish army before the attack.

1. Do these soldiers looks equipped to fight the German army? Why or why not?

Questions to think about:

1. Why did Britain and France declare war?

2. What other nations also declared war?

The Capture of Paris, France

It took only six weeks for France to surrender to the German invaders. A stunning defeat - particularly since before the war the French army was considered the most powerful in Europe. France's Maginot Line (line of defense along the German border) failed to hold back the Nazi onslaught and the German Blitzkrieg (fast moving attack) poured into France. Thousands of civilians fled before it. Traveling south in cars, wagons, bicycles or simply on foot, the desperate refuges took with them what few possessions they could salvage. It wasn’t long before the roads were blocked to the French troops who were headed north in an attempt to reach the battlefield. Paris was abandoned and declared an Open City. The French government joined the fleeing throng and after moving to, and then quickly abandoning one location after another, finally ended up in the city of Vichy. The ultimate humiliation came at the signing of the armistice on June 22. The French had maintained as a memorial the railroad car in which the armistice ending World War I had been signed twenty-two years earlier. It occupied a hallowed space within a small forest north of Paris. Hitler insisted that France's surrender to his Nazis be formally acknowledged in the same railroad car at the same spot. Under the terms of the armistice, France was divided into two sections: Occupied France under direct German control and Vichy France - a quasi-independent territory with Marshall Petain, an eighty-four-year-old hero of the First World War, as its head.

Questions to think about:

1. The Maginot Line was said to be invincible. How did the Germans get past it?

2. The dark areas in the 2nd map show the areas controlled by Germany by 1940. What

conclusion can you make about the war in 1940 based on the map?

Questions to think about:

1. Where are these pictures and what clues give it away?

2. What happened to the city?

3. The gate is the entrance to the Palace of Versailles. Why do you think this picture would

have made Hitler and the German people happy?

French Resistance

The surrender of France in June 1940, was a major blow to many French people in terms of

their pride. Many believed that the government had let the people down. The creation of a

Nazi-approved Vichy government, primarily in the center and south of the country, was, in the

minds of many, further proof that politicians had let down France. The resistance movement

developed to provide the Allies with intelligence, attack the Germans when possible and to

assist the escape of Allied airmen.

The leader of the French resistance was Charles de Gaulle. De Gaulle made his headquarters in

Great Britain and the French resistance was aided and financed by the British.

The French Resistance movement is an umbrella term which covered numerous anti-German

resistance movements that were based within France. In the north, the target was simply the

Germans while in the south, the Vichy government was a target as well as the Germans. The

first resistance movements were in the north and by the end of 1940, six underground

newspapers were being regularly printed in the north.

The French resistance fighters blew up bridges, derailed trains, directed the British in the

bombing of German troop trains, kidnapped and killed German army officers, and ambushed

German troops. They took no prisoners, but rather killed any German soldiers who surrendered

to them. The Nazis referred to them as "terrorists."