In January, of 1941, the Germans lost only three planes to the night fighters, and in February only four. Then in March they lost twenty-two, In April forty-eight and ninety-six in May. The night fighters, navigated by radar, had become a serious enemy to the bombers.” (Agar 131)
T.C.G. James wrote, “It is, in any case, true beyond dispute that the decline in German effort meant the checking of the disastrous rate at which the Command had been wasting away. And this was accomplished by a force so small, facing one so large, was an achievement in air warfare that has never been equaled.” (James 326) Germany never invaded England, the Luftwaffe suffered great losses, and the people of England stared into the face of evil and refused to blink. Germany would eventually taper off its attacks on England and would gather its forces for a new front. Hitler decided to engage in a two-front war against its new enemy, Russia, and the focus was taken off the British Isles. England remained and the Battle of Britain had been won.
The Battle of Britain contained many critical errors that proved to be fatal to Germany?s plans for invasion and greatly deterred their war efforts for the remainder of the war. Critical errors, in the Battle of Britain, were apparent on both sides. Germany failed to concentrate their attacks on a specific target, such as radar and the destruction of the RAF. This led to Britain being able to recover when Germany would pull away from their targets just as their attacks were becoming catastrophic to Britain (Macksey, Kenneth. Military Errors of World War Two. Great Britain: Arms and Armour Press, 1987.):
The attacks on the radar masts were called off just as they were doing deadly harm. The attacks on the ground (or underground) stations which told the British pilots exactly where to attack their enemies were called off just as they were doing deadly harm. Later, during the night-blitz Goering never let his fighter finish a single job. (Agar 119).
German intelligence also misread the how weak Britain had become after Dunkirk, forcing them to postpone invasion and failed to press this advantage, thus allowing Britain to recover and rearm:
Failure to invade England and knock her out of the war was ultimately fatal to Germany. If she had achieved that aim in 1940 Hitler?s hands would have been free to pursue his policy of picking off nations, one by one, in his own time. Very likely the Royal Navy would have been neutralized. Probably, key points of the British Empire would have fallen into German hands as he created a United States of Europe under German hegemony. In which case the President of the USA would have agreed with Ambassador Kennedy and might have withdrawn all help from Britain, preferring to reach a settlement with a major continental power, which, if it chose to tackle Soviet Russia (as Hitler had already decided to do) might be irresistible. (Macksey 46).
The British Intelligence used incorrect information to judge Germany?s strength and it willingness to go to war. Therefore, Britain?s critical error was in misinterpreting Germany?s threat and therefore not being as prepared as possible (Macksey 46). These critical errors were more numerous on the German side, thus having an adverse affect on their planned invasion. The Battle of Britain greatly affected the remainder of the war because had Britain not won the battle, Germany would have invaded and implemented Colonel Professor Dr Six?s programme that called for all able-bodied men to be deported to work (Bishop, Edward. Their Finest Hour. Virginia: Ballentine Books, 1968. 158). Second, the Battle of Britain showed the world that the German army was not invincible and had a great affect on the world?s view of Hitler?s army and adversely affected his fighters? morale. Third, because of the failure to invade Britain, England gradually moved from a defensive stance to an offensive stance in the remainder of the war. Next, because Britain bumped up aircraft production during the battle, it allowed Britain to attack Germany on their soil while giving increased protection to their shipping lanes. Last, because of Germany?s failure to win the Battle of Britain, it was forced to a fight a two-front war against Russia on the east and Britain on the west. This affected Hitler?s efficiency and possibly the outcome of the war because Hitler would now have to separate his ?invincible? force (Bickers 169). The remainder of World War II saw the Battle of Britain affecting not just Germany?s strategy and Britain?s sovereignty, but possibly the outcome of the war.
The Battle of Britain was greatly affected by pre-war circumstances, separated into four phases and carried consequences that would affect the rest of World War II.
Although Britain faced an army much greater than theirs, the fire of resistance burned just as brightly facing insurmountable odds as it ever had before. When World War II is remembered, people will remember the wave of resistance that helped to turn the dark tide of an entire war, and they will feel forever indebted to the courage of so few.
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