What Was the Battle of Britain?
Learn about the Battle of Britain, between Britain's Royal Air Force and Germany's Luftwaffe, which began in July 1940. From The Second World War: Triumph of the Axis (1963), a documentary by Encyclopædia Britannica Educational Corporation.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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Transcript
[Music in]
NARRATOR: But first, Britain had to take a blasting of her own. To invade successfully, Germans first had to control the air--and so began the Battle of Britain [music out]. The Luftwaffe, with twice the number of planes, intended to sweep the RAF from the skies. But they underestimated the British and Canadian pilots [music in]. Soon the Germans were losing two planes for every one lost by the RAF.
Then the Luftwaffe tried to smash British ports and industry. These daylight raids were damaging, but again, the RAF took too heavy a toll, and Goering's air force turned to indiscriminate night bombing. Its purpose--to strike terror into the people, and to break their spirit by turning their cities into rubble. Many lived like moles, taking to the subways for shelter. Although thousands were crippled or buried alive in the flaming ruins, all faced the ruthless attack with courage.
[Music out]
NARRATOR: But first, Britain had to take a blasting of her own. To invade successfully, Germans first had to control the air--and so began the Battle of Britain [music out]. The Luftwaffe, with twice the number of planes, intended to sweep the RAF from the skies. But they underestimated the British and Canadian pilots [music in]. Soon the Germans were losing two planes for every one lost by the RAF.
Then the Luftwaffe tried to smash British ports and industry. These daylight raids were damaging, but again, the RAF took too heavy a toll, and Goering's air force turned to indiscriminate night bombing. Its purpose--to strike terror into the people, and to break their spirit by turning their cities into rubble. Many lived like moles, taking to the subways for shelter. Although thousands were crippled or buried alive in the flaming ruins, all faced the ruthless attack with courage.
[Music out]
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