The Battle of Britain Five Months That Changed History, May—October 1940 by James Holland (z-lib.org).epub

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steered me in the right direction on lots of different matters. He has alsobeen an incredibly helpful sounding board, and someone with whom I canchat about these matters both at great length and with complete enjoyment.Thank you, Peter. I must also thank two other great buddies, Guy Waltersand Rowland White, with whom it is always similarly good to talk throughideas and from whom encouragement is always given at just the rightmoment. Thanks are also owed to another dear friend and travellingcompanion, David Walsh, who accompanied me through northern Franceand the Low Countries, and to Germany. Thank you, too, to ProfessorJeremy Black, a tutor of mine at Durham and now Professor of History atExeter and a good friend. His advice and counsel have been an enormoushelp. My thanks, too, go to Clive and Linda Denney. Clive is a brilliantlatter-day pilot and has been very helpful with both technical matters and ingiving me an aerial tour of southern England and of a number of the Battleof Britain airfields, not least Biggin, North Weald, Duxford, Manston andthe Pas de Calais. I also want to thank my brother, Tom, who has alwaysbeen an enormous inspiration. My respect for him as a writer, academic andhistorian knows no bounds, and it is as a devoted younger brother that I amable to dedicate this book to him. Thanks, Bro.No-one, however, has given me more help than Professor Rick Hillum.Not only does Rick have an encyclopaedic knowledge of the period, but heis also a technical wizard. His understanding of all scientific matters fromflight to radar is incredible and he has patiently explained what were, to me,very complicated issues and translated things into clear, layman’s terms.Rick has been with me all the way through the writing of this book, and ittruly could not have been written without him. Rick, I shall be eternallygrateful – thank you.I also want to thank Lalla Hitchings, who has, as ever, been brilliant,transcribing numerous interviews, and Ute Harding, who both translatedand transcribed my conversations with German veterans. I am also verygrateful to the following for their help along the way: Giles Bourne, ChrisGoss for the loan of much hard-garnered archive material, and PeterOsborne and Independent Books for so generously letting me cite from hisbook with Ulrich Steinhilper and for the use of photographs.Thank you, too, to Patrick Walsh and to Claire, Alan, Jake, Alex andAlexandra, and all at Conville & Walsh. I am also really grateful to all thosewho have helped at Bantam Press. To Madeline Toy, Steve Mulcahey,
Sheila Lee, Larry Finlay, Katrina Whone, Vivien Garrett, Mark Handsleyand everyone else who helped on the book. My especial thanks, however,go to Bill Scott-Kerr, who has, as ever, been a joy to work with and whoseenthusiasm and support have been just fantastic. Thank you.Finally, I must thank my Rachel, Ned and Daisy. Writing books such asthis are a great privilege, but they mean lots of time away and even moretime spent locked in a study furiously writing. I am conscious that theyhave lived this war and in particular the Battle of Britain for longer thanwas the reality back in 1939–45. But I am very, very grateful to you. Thankyou.
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The author and publisher have provi
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ContentsList of Maps and FiguresNot
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47 Exhaustion48 Last FlightPostscri
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RAF FIGHTER COMMAND ORDER OF BATTLE
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Note on the TextSo as not to cause
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Truly, the Battle of Britain is an
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anticipation of the beginning of ho
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lower so that at last he could see
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2The Eve of BattleDAVID CROOK FLEW
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contempt for the French but he did
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had already written Achtung Panzer!
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Chamberlain, who she wished would b
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An ashen and rather shell-shocked C
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insignificant, was his close friend
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his secretaries since 1933, when Hi
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Ardennes. ‘Our reconnaissance bat
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3The Go-for-Broke GambleAT HALF-PAS
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Arriving at Felsennet at around 6 a
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been poor too. Yet now Hitler wante
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because it ran counter to the more
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Sedan, ensnaring the bulk of the Al
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British forces all the way to the C
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of the way, he quickly got his two
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4Hook, Line and SinkerGUNNER STAN F
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emphases. An armoured - or panzer -
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telegraphy and portable radio commu
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agreed between the British and Fren
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attack. Georges was not enthusiasti
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friends, Stan had been greatly reli
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One last effort was made to persuad
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personal photographer, a hospital w
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Germany’s oil and synthetic-rubbe
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and a little over 1,500 twin- or si
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a French area of operations. In fac
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laughing, reporting that Ops were i
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turned to Kesselring and snarled,
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someone as passionate about shootin
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were horribly under-armed with just
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310 fighters had been built, and 33
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slopes rose sharply. There were als
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time in the world to reach the Dina
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Yet although the bulk of Army Group
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Loerzer readily agreed but in the m
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fire, he dropped his bombs and then
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‘Joy riding in canoes on the Meus
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groups. That is why I did not forwa
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not have been better. Murrow needed
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according to Nazi law. ‘There are
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material, yet Hilda thought little
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Goebbels held a ‘ministerial conf
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In 1933, the Volksempfänger (‘pe
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8A Battle Against TimeWHAT WOULD BE
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election, a National Labour MP. Lik
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‘Confidentially, I wish I weren
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Royal Flying Corps to gain his wing
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committees, too much discussion and
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The difference with this latest com
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production problems had been resolv
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9The Battle is LostON 13 MAY, Gener
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As the unfolding Allied disaster at
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time to wait for reinforcements. Th
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messages from Gamelin and Georges r
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Poor French logistics were symptoma
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perfect mine-laying terrain, while
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10Emergency MeasuresFROM ALMOST THE
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which raised around 20,000 firearms
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Columnists,’ says John, ‘and fr
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been in a mess together before and
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England will never give up so long
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maintain his position as a reluctan
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there, Hajo began his flying missio
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JG 2 decided to give him a chance t
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David Crook had been during his fir
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Günther’s Curtiss go down in a s
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Siegfried Bethke, for example, and
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locomotives and shipping were conve
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restructured the Luftwaffe in early
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178, whose maiden flight was in Jun
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side of the River Rhine, and within
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Larry and his crew were airborne at
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Incredibly, he made it back, but it
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and the rest of the flight arrived
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One person who was certainly taking
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Daladier and Gamelin, Churchill, fo
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should that be the case: to fall ba
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were all more or less now in line w
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hearing news that things were looki
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enjoyed spending considerable time,
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considerations, long-term plans, fo
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other words, less than a division,
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short way, taking over part of the
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had seemed like an impossibly long
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rumour. At the farmhouse where the
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the banks of the Escaut at Tournai
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Rundstedt, a conservative, agreed w
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wondered Pownall. ‘It seems almos
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15Fighter Command Enters the FrayTH
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the new demands on Fighter Command
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at him, but on Tony’s second burs
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Three and a half years later, he wa
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Tommy was that should Britain be le
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also the Italians to consider. On 1
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when this was completed, and having
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as a new order, and it meant von Ru
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the Canal Line, so instead Gort dec
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‘I agree that this point is worth
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minutes later. At about 4 p.m., Rey
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majority of the War Cabinet agreed
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Shipping had met Ramsay at Dover on
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Only once the raiders had passed di
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Oskar tried to follow but failed. C
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spires of northern France. Hans was
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shirked his new responsibilities. T
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to consider any terms offered by Hi
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18Dunkirk: The Beginning‘WE NOW A
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Lord Gort, meanwhile, finally caugh
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a bandage. He and his men were filt
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It was typically stirring stuff, bu
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caught fire. Huge clouds of thick,
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After that episode, they had sunk a
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19Dunkirk: In the BalanceON THE AFT
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was the easternmost point of the Br
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The Germans, he told them, were now
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Squadrons were also moved around fr
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rain - but no wind. The Channel rem
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at Bray. Sid saw queues of people f
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20Dunkirk: The MiddleTHERE WAS STIL
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that had made him determined to joi
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attacking around Bergues, it report
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It was not, however, for Lieutenant
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George Oakley was not so lucky, how
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Stan might have been safe, but thos
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artillery, while holding the line i
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the ship - there was a sharp flash
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Then suddenly he heard a loud crack
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circled, dropping flares that hung
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fall back at round 4.30 p.m. that a
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having first crossed the decks of t
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22What Next?THE RAF HAD continued t
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It was with this in mind that beach
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Yet although the Government was now
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Göring had dismissed such plans. T
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intact but then came up against the
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23The End in FranceAT 8 A.M. EXACTL
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manned the U-boats were tough, hard
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Colville, ‘who referred to our tr
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The British were determined to pres
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would agree to join the fight. If t
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all France’s arms contracts in th
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24Hitler’s DilemmaWHEN HITLER HEA
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generous. He told Mussolini he had
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nation of German peoples rather tha
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Japan and Italy were not prepared t
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purges of 1936-7 in which the Red A
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How the tables had now turned. In t
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25All AloneIN BRITAIN, THE NEWS tha
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remember cheering when France colla
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them badly.’‘The President can
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prevalent gloom. One’s worst fear
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But however hemmed in and threatene
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landed in England on 22 June. About
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allowing nothing to get in the way
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colleagues and displaying single-mi
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was the loss of nearly 300 pilots i
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for approval to spend development m
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when minds were focused. Britain’
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27
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well; indeed, many were friends.
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defensive measures to guard against
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Following Munich and the instigatio
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continually refined his estimates,
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neither hit, although one did explo
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28Bringing It All TogetherIN EARLY
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of Britain’s southern coastline a
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least his Luftflotten would have bu
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would light up from the transmissio
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pilots. On the wall opposite the co
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and Balloon Command. Each had his p
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Trouble at Sea: Part 2ON 3 JULY, TH
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dive-bombed. Flaming ships flounder
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‘Me, sir!’ Ron replied.‘We’
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destroying British merchant trade t
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attention to Hartlepool. Because of
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30Crooked LegBY THE END OF the Fren
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distraught and begged Ulrich to get
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of taking the attack to England, JG
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with their own units in the air, bu
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ordination. ‘Our communications,
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pointing in slightly different dire
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31First CombatIT HAD BEEN A miserab
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The only solution was to send half
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three Me 110s bearing down on him.
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distracted by thinking about their
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been based at Boscombe Down and had
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Tall, good-looking, with a floppy m
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began to heat up, as surely it now
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Britain would not now roll over. An
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either of their doctrines. For most
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standing of the person who had give
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of Fighter Command; indeed, he did
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Before Halifax broadcast his reply,
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war. Somehow, almost overnight, the
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evacuation of the BEF, his position
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Germany. Towards the end of June a
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Hugh Dalton, the Minister for Econo
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worked. ‘They can do nothing,’
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34Hotting UpJUST AFTER 5 A.M., on W
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The third Gruppe of JG 52 had reach
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The next day, Thursday, 25 July, wa
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been fearsome, but the pilots simpl
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upon British shipping. A destroyer
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unnecessary and avoidable, and at t
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35Bombs on Germany, Bomben auf Engl
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of exploding flak could prove letha
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them and from that get a fix. Larry
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altimeter he could see 2,300 metres
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there were still to be no bombings
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plans only, a fall-back and nothing
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ashore in the initial attack, incre
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But there was another considerable
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took pride in the fact that they we
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Britain’s coastal lifeline. Despi
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This was a perfectly sensible plan,
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because the engines were to the sid
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however, all the pilots made it bac
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flown his first missions over Engla
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Two hundred yards away was HMS Vict
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darting tracer, four Dorniers were
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The cloud did begin to clear as the
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David’s section was flying slight
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38The Biggest Air BattleTHE PREVIOU
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much on edge,’ noted Jock Colvill
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There were, for example, forty Free
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signalling to his groundcrew to sta
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suffered at Ventnor, which would ha
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he pressed himself forward to count
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all the British fighters would be i
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could see for ever. All of England
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It was now too late. Suddenly the a
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further afield. The Luftwaffe’s r
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who was flying Tom’s Hurricane. A
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casualties, few people were being k
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Eventually emerging from the mêlé
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Pete, who shot down his second conf
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throughout the whole of August only
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he noted, ‘we had no insight into
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design of four independently functi
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effective attacks had been by a lon
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they actually got to it. Since Knic
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factory where Hilda Müller worked.
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the German fighter airfields of Gui
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at Farnborough of two intact Me 109
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turn. The theoretically minimum tur
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his 109 when he took off and sudden
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the Hurricanes and Spitfires was fu
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the RAF at seventeen, he had later,
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42Breaking PointIN CHURCHILL’S SP
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be mortal” if allowed to get out
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being knocked down, the German rear
Page 584 and 585:
they wanted a warm jacket, then the
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been proved already. The raiders ha
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such as these. Almost exactly a yea
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further operation. It meant sending
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‘Don’t let America,’ added Be
Page 595 and 596:
a very contented life near the Balt
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number of existing airfields, and o
Page 599 and 600:
the way forward and the only tactic
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pillars of smoke rising into the sk
Page 603 and 604:
In London that afternoon was RV Jon
Page 605 and 606:
George Barclay had force-landed som
Page 608 and 609:
44Summer MadnessSATURDAY, 7 SEPTEMB
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sobbed quite openly, the tears stre
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difficulties of flying in a large f
Page 614 and 615:
so he stayed at Pembrey, too excite
Page 616 and 617:
which had already been lit by the d
Page 618 and 619:
allowed to go out on benders if the
Page 620 and 621:
extraordinarily calm in the plane,
Page 623 and 624:
45The Crux‘THERE’S NO WORD I ca
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England is, of course,’ he told t
Page 627 and 628:
have too few pilots,’ said anothe
Page 629 and 630:
counterparts had been given. It was
Page 631 and 632:
At Biggin Hill, most of 92 Squadron
Page 633 and 634:
‘Hello, Gannic. Gannic Leader. Ca
Page 635 and 636:
and saw he was dangerously low on f
Page 637 and 638:
Once again, the Prime Minister watc
Page 640 and 641:
46WolfpackAS IT HAPPENED, the fadin
Page 642 and 643: Across the Channel, the pilots had
Page 644 and 645: convoys. Having had another success
Page 646 and 647: losses are assuming serious proport
Page 648 and 649: as the British are taking it.’ In
Page 650 and 651: finally driven back to Biggin Hill,
Page 652 and 653: ‘There was a terrific explosion a
Page 655 and 656: 47ExhaustionON 19 SEPTEMBER, Church
Page 657 and 658: ‘They were frightful old chaps -
Page 659 and 660: across the Channel to shoot at shad
Page 661 and 662: achieving air superiority. On 4 Oct
Page 663 and 664: two tin legs had still returned to
Page 665: Salmond’s report, he ticked three
Page 668 and 669: little, then suddenly the jolting s
Page 670 and 671: Thames estuary below - he thought h
Page 672: But then the moment passed as he be
Page 675 and 676: telegram announcing that John was m
Page 677 and 678: 1940, the Luftwaffe had lost 3,701
Page 679 and 680: was grossly incompetent. Nor did th
Page 681 and 682: finally joined the fight, and in th
Page 683 and 684: Zumbach survived, but with no Polan
Page 685 and 686: masterpiece, The Rise and Fall of t
Page 688: ABOUT THE AUTHORJames Holland was b
Page 691: thank you for all your huge help. I
Page 696 and 697: Steele, Joe, HMT Dalmatia and Darth
Page 698 and 699: Beamont, Roland, My Part of the Sky
Page 700 and 701: D’Este, Carlo, Warlord: A Life of
Page 702 and 703: —, Göring (Macmillan, 1989)—,
Page 704 and 705: Orange, Vincent, Dowding of Fighter
Page 706 and 707: Vansittart, The Rt. Hon. Lord, Less
Page 708 and 709: Blair, Clay, Hitler’s U-Boat War:
Page 710 and 711: Dallek, Robert, Franklin D. Rooseve
Page 712 and 713: Goss, Chris, Brothers in Arms: The
Page 714 and 715: Lampe, David, The Last Ditch: Brita
Page 716 and 717: Otter, Patrick, Yorkshire Airfields
Page 718 and 719: Shirer, William L., The Rise and Fa
Page 720 and 721: Wheeler-Bennett, Sir John (ed.), Ac
Page 722: Schmider, Klaus, ‘The Last of the
Page 725 and 726: Bethke, Siegfried, I/JG 2 (c/o Chri
Page 727 and 728: ‘And then what…in any case’ G
Page 729 and 730: ‘at this extremely grievous and f
Page 731 and 732: 13. New Appointments‘I am exhaust
Page 733 and 734: ‘It is all a first-class mess-up
Page 735 and 736: ‘On political grounds…’ WSC,
Page 737 and 738: ‘Well, it boils down to this…
Page 739 and 740: ‘Warmwell possessed…’ TNA AIR
Page 741 and 742: ‘Recent reports and information
Page 743 and 744:
‘Atmosphere cheerful…’ Cocket
Page 745 and 746:
‘Nobody was keen…’ IWM 26952
Page 747:
‘I still think this war…’ JPK
Page 751 and 752:
IndexThe index that appeared in the
Page 753 and 754:
and 15 September raid303 Kociuszko
Page 755 and 756:
airfield repairsAlanbrooke, Viscoun
Page 757 and 758:
Hurricane action at Louvainon sleep
Page 759 and 760:
Blumentritt, General GüntherBob, H
Page 761 and 762:
trapped near coastBritsum, hit by S
Page 763 and 764:
Chiefs of Staffanticipate immediate
Page 765 and 766:
on Churchill’s no surrender speec
Page 767 and 768:
Dietrich, Obergruppenführer Sepp,
Page 769 and 770:
1st Panzer sent toBEF withdrawal to
Page 771 and 772:
Fairey Battlesat SedanFall Gelb (Ca
Page 773 and 774:
and invasion defenceson pointless a
Page 775 and 776:
Geschwader commanderon Beppo Schmid
Page 777 and 778:
lost interestmeetings at Carinhallo
Page 779 and 780:
Harding, Plt Off GeoffHargreaves, N
Page 781 and 782:
HMS VictoryHMS Wakeful, lost at Dun
Page 783 and 784:
Jabo pilotsJackson, Andrewand Berli
Page 785 and 786:
and Canal Line consolidationand hal
Page 787 and 788:
London Treaty Submarine ProtocolLon
Page 789 and 790:
KG 4KG 51KG 54LuftflotteLuftflotteL
Page 791 and 792:
29th Minesweeping FlotillaRoyal Nav
Page 793 and 794:
Northolt, 609 SquadronNorway, defea
Page 795 and 796:
Panzer Group Kleistat Canal Lineatt
Page 797 and 798:
invasion, attitudesPoling RDF stati
Page 799 and 800:
Reims ChampagneReinhardt, General G
Page 801 and 802:
KenleyRudorrfer, FeldwebelRuhr Vall
Page 803 and 804:
Soviet UnionGermany andinvasionreac
Page 805 and 806:
technologyBritish army andBritish s
Page 807 and 808:
Vassincourt, 1 SquadronVentnor RDF
Page 809:
Zerstörers (Me 110s)92 Squadron an
Page 812:
1 SD was the Nazi abbreviation of t
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