From the Archives: What Was the Battle of Britain?
From the Archives: What Was the Battle of Britain?
Revisit the Battle of Britain's with 1963 documentary The Second World War: Triumph of the Axis.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Revisit the Battle of Britain's with 1963 documentary The Second World War: Triumph of the Axis.
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© UK Parliament Education Service (A Britannica Publishing Partner)Learn how general elections work in the United Kingdom in the early 21st century.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail © Badboo/Dreamstime.com; © 1957 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc.; Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.; TV Radio Mirror Magazine, March 1957Learn about cultural changes in East and West Germany during the 1950s.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail Lieut. Michael M. Dean/Canada. Dept. of National Defence Library and Archives Canada/PA-140126In the aftermath of World War II, many Europeans lacked adequate food, shelter, and resources.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.The B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay took off from the Mariana Islands on August 6, 1945, bound for Hiroshima, Japan, where, by dropping an atomic bomb, it heralded a new and terrible concept of warfare. From The Second World War: Allied Victory (1963), a documentary by Encyclopædia Britannica Educational Corporation.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Learn about seven of the largest things that ever took flight.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress, Washington D.C.Learn about William II, king of Prussia and the last German emperor.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail © 1962 Twentieth Century-Fox Film CorporationOverview of the Normandy Invasion.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail Photos.com/Getty ImagesProfile of Richard I.
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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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