Great Battles of World War Two - Battle of the Britain

The Battle of Britain was a military campaign of the Second World War in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) defended the United Kingdom (UK) against large-scale attacks by Nazi Germanys air force the Luftwaffe. It has been described as the first major military campaign fought entirely by air forces. The British officially recognise the battles duration as being from 10 July until 31 October 1940 which overlaps the period of large-scale night attacks known as the Blitz that lasted from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941. German historians do not accept this subdivision and regard the battle as a single campaign lasting from July 1940 to June 1941 including the Blitz. The primary objective of the German forces was to compel Britain to agree to a negotiated peace settlement. In July 1940 the air and sea blockade began with the Luftwaffe mainly targeting coastal-shipping convoys ports and shipping centres such as Portsmouth. On 1 August the Luftwaffe was directed to achieve air superiority over the RAF with the aim of incapacitating RAF Fighter Command; 12 days later it shifted the attacks to RAF airfields and infrastructure. As the battle progressed the Luftwaffe also targeted factories involved in aircraft production and strategic infrastructure. Eventually it employed terror bombing on areas of political significance and on civilians. This book is a compilation of high quality articles from the Internet.