The Battle of BritainThe Nazi War Machine is Stopped

Germany’s Challenge• At the start of the war,

the British Air Force and Navy controlled the English Channel between Great Britain and mainland Europe• Germany needed to

control the skies over Great Britain before they could launch a ground attack

The Luftwaffe Attacks• The German Air Force

(Luftwaffe) set out to clear the British Air Force from the skies on July 10, 1940• Wave after wave of

German Messerschmitts and Heinkels flew across the Channel to Great Britain• They bombed radar stations, airfields, ports and factories

The Royal Air Force is Crippled

• Slowly the RAF planes were wiped out• At one point every fighter plane that Britain owned was in the air• If the German’s had

launched another attack, there would have been no planes left to respond

Great Britain Responds• In August, the RAF made

a surprise bombing raid in Berlin• The Commander of the

German Forces, Herman Goering was furious• He had promised the

German people that no Allied plane would ever be able to bomb a German City

Goering’s Revenge• Herman Goering decided

to respond to the attack on Berlin by “blitzing” British cities relentlessly, dropping bombs on them night after night• He planned to terrorize

the civilian population into surrender

The Resilience of the British People

• Instead of surrendering to the Germans, Londoners moved into air raid shelters and subway stations• Each day they repaired their homes, re-opened their stores and fixed other damaged infrastructure• British resistance grew stronger, not weaker throughout the blitz

Unexpected Consequences• The relentless attacks on

London and other British cities allowed the RAF to regroup their remaining Spitfire and Hurricane airplanes• New recruits joined those

who had been flying non-stop since the blitz began• New planes came off the assembly line at the rate of 500 a month

The Luftwaffe’s Last Stand• On September 15,

1940, German airplanes blackened the skies over the English Channel• The RAF was ready for

them• By the end of the day the

Luftwaffe was decidedly beaten

German Defeat• Two days later, Adolf Hitler called off the attack on Great Britain• He could not destroy the

British people• After this defeat, he was forced to turn his attention on the Soviet Union

Consequences of the Battle of Britain

• The battle was won by a few hundred pilots• The Allied force included

pilots from Canada, Britain, Poland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa• The Luftwaffe lost 1,722

planes• The RAF lost 915 planes

Canadian Accomplishments at the Battle of Britain

• 80 Canadian pilots helped defend Great Britain from a Nazi invasion• They were responsible for 60 kills, and 50 probable kills

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0-fVLCnsBs