The Luftwaffe was complacent under the command of Herman Goering who believed or just boasted that the RAF would be destroyed within four days. He may have had reason to think this as the Luftwaffe had more pilots and planes but what was quantity when Britain had quality? The Spitfire was the best battle plane as it was faster, could stay flying longer and had more fire power. Britain had many other advantages over the Luftwaffe and these were why we stood up to the Luftwaffe so well. We had radar and the Germans did not, we could refuel more easily and we could reinforce up our small number of pilots from parts Empire. For example, pilots were brought in from the West Indies.
Between July and September of 1940 waves of German bombers accompanied by Messerschmitt fighters attacked RAF bases in England, but due to the radar system the attacks were known to be coming. Hurricanes and Spitfires intercepted the German planes but losses were high with pilots being lost faster than they could be replaced. The Germans bombed RAF bases such as Duxford, Marston, Hendon and Biggin Hill. Hugh Dowding, the RAF commander, realised that defeat was close but Hitler made a fatal mistake which insured
Britain's survival and eventual victory. He relieved the pressure on the RAF by deciding instead to bomb the main British cities. This gave the RAF time to re-group. Hitler's decision to change tactics may have been a result of Eagle Day when the RAF shot down 183 German planes. (This number may have been exaggerated). Although Hitler's tactic was good for the RAF it was a disaster for the people as the bombs were often dropped quite indiscriminately on the cities and major centres of population.. But if the Blitz had not begun the RAF would have been defeated and if that had happened then operation Sealion would have been put into action and Britain most likely would have been defeated leaving Germany one last opponent in Europe: Russia. Although our armed forces were not too well organised the people of the cities were and that is why we survived the Blitz.
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Between July and September of 1940 waves of German bombers accompanied by Messerschmitt fighters attacked RAF bases in England, but due to the radar system the attacks were known to be coming. Hurricanes and Spitfires intercepted the German planes but losses were high with pilots being lost faster than they could be replaced. The Germans bombed RAF bases such as Duxford, Marston, Hendon and Biggin Hill. Hugh Dowding, the RAF commander, realised that defeat was close but Hitler made a fatal mistake which assured
Britain's survival and eventual victory. He relieved the pressure on the RAF by deciding instead to bomb the main British cities. This gave the RAF time to re-group. Hitler's decision to change tactics may have been a result of Eagle Day when the RAF shot down 183 German planes. (This number may have been exaggerated). Although Hitler's tactic was good for the RAF it was a disaster for the people as the bombs were often dropped quite indiscriminately on the cities and major centres of population.. But if the Blitz had not begun the RAF would have been defeated and if that had happened then operation Sealion would have been put into action and Britain most likely would have been defeated leaving Germany one last opponent in Europe: Russia. Although our armed forces were not too well organised the people of the cities were and that is why we survived the Blitz.
The major achievement of Dunkirk was without a doubt the sheer number of soldiers it saved. Men could fight again later and play a big part in later allied successes. Without these men to provide the backbone of the new allied force, the war could have turned out very differently. As any general knows, the importance of having battle hardened veterans in an army is vital, as there is no substitute for experience.
If one looks at Dunkirk in purely military and strategical terms, then it can be seen as nothing but a disaster. The Allies failed to get to grips with the German tactics and were simply swept back, left cut off and stranded, forced to limp back to Britain with their tails between their legs. Of course, the mistakes were not all made by the Allies. It could be argued that the decision by Hitler to halt the advance on May 24 ultimately helped contribute to his final defeat. Allowing Operation Dynamo to succeed - which is essentially what the halt order did - engendered in the Allies feelings of hope rather than the feelings of despair and hopelessness that such a crushing defeat should have left. It was this hope that the British clung to, the hope that helped them defy the odds and win the Battle of Britain. They adhered to that same hope and finally won the campaign in Africa, then attacked fortress of Europe itself. The Germans let the Allies off the hook, but then hindsight is a wonderful thing.
Dunkirk was a defeat, but it was also a moral victory. It was pointless for the Allies to push a bad position, so they retreated. After all, common sense dictates that it is better to live to fight another day. The Allies did just this, victorious with the Dunkirk veterans as its spearhead.
Why were the Germans so successful? Numerically, the Allies outnumbered the Germans. They even had more tanks than Hitler's forces. The Germans' only real numerical advantage was in the number of planes, anti-tank, and anti-aircraft weapons they possessed. The key was in the way the Germans used their resources; it was their Blitzkrieg concept that the Allies would not be ready for. The Allies had put the defeat of Poland down to Polish weakness rather than to new German tactics, so when the Germans struck, the Allies simply were not ready to deal with this new method of warfare. The Germans relied on speed and confusion, using their armoured divisions to punch holes through the enemy lines supported by artillery and aircraft, which the infantry could then pour through. Ahead of the main advance, airborne troops would be dropped behind enemy lines to capture bridges and supply routes, to hit enemy targets, break lines of communication, and cause maximum confusion that the advancing army could then exploit. In utilising the Blitzkrieg, it took the Germans only five days to defeat the Dutch army. Three Panzer divisions struck through the Ardennes Forest in southern Belgium and travelled 120km to reach the River Meuse in just three days. Victory for the Germans at the Battle of the Meuse put the French army into virtually full retreat. By May 17, the Germans had entered Brussels. By May 21, they reached the infamous Somme, taking Amiens and Abbeville. They then headed for the Channel coast, advancing 386km in only 11 days, leaving the retreating allied soldiers trapped at Boulogne, Calais, and Dunkirk. Then, inexplicably on the May 24, the advancing German Panzers were ordered to halt at Gravelines, south of Dunkirk. The reasoning behind this halt order has been much debated over by historians. Why would the German forces just stop when on the verge of completely crushing an allied army into disarray and oblivion? Some have argued Hitler did it on purpose, hoping that a show of leniency would encourage the British to make peace. Some believed that with the Allies already beaten, Hitler could afford to turn his attentions on Paris. Others felt that the Panzers had moved too far too quickly, so they had to stop to allow the rest of the army to regroup before the final push. The most likely is that the wetland conditions around Dunkirk were not suitable for tanks. Whatever the reasoning behind the decision, this delay allowed the Allies to establish a defensive perimeter around Dunkirk, giving them time to put Operation Dynamo into action and allowing them to escape.
