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No matter how many of these movies I see, I am still in awe at the sheer bravery of these very young pilots. So very young to be standing between freedom and Hilter. I am completely blown away by each and everyone that stood and saved England! And the support staff who made it possible! Deepest respect!
"Stood alone?" With India, today's Pakistan, Canada, Australia (an entire continent), New Zealand, South Africa, Rhodesia, Egypt, Hong Kong, Singapore ... hardly alone. Fact is, Germany stood alone.
There's a book called Windswept Lies of War, and it talks from censored history and hidden secrets to lost files and classified documents about World War II, it's the real deal.
What a weird voting pattern you have there. P.S every year prvides a plethora of new books whose authors claim to have uncovered previously unseen information.... the vast majority of which is marketing BS.
We can still say thank you and not just to RAF as many think that RAF are british pilots only, and fact is british army was really weak and without much equipment and staff after ww1 and simply britain put own bussiness before being heroic country which britain like to call itself. Simply britain did first similar thing to what france did ..
Don’t forget the tireless WAAFs who processed and analysed all the long-range radar data so that RAF commanders such as Keith Parke could position his spitfire squadrons most effectively, and don’t forget all the ‘aircs’ on the ground who kept the spitties operational and armed.
It was with great pleasure that I met and shook the hand of one of these great men. I met Geoffrey 'Boy' Wellum in his local Cornish pub a couple of years before he passed away. A delightful man with a lovely sense of humour. I had a copy of his book 'First Light' with me to read while on holiday, he was good enough to sign it for me. One of the last of our greatest generation, never forget!
Yea but what made North Africa so vital was the Suez Canal and the oil in Iran, Saudi Arabia and Northern Africa. Australian troops were vital there especially at Tobruk
It's my Birthday today and every year at this time, I sit down and contemplate the extraordinary contribution my Scottish & New Zealand families played in WW1 & WW2. I had 6 Uncles who fought in WW2. Three in the RAF - one was a Squadron Leader and one flew in the Fleet Air arm. My mother's brother was a Desert Rat and another Uncle fought in the South Pacific. Two were killed in the RAF. Of course Sir Keith Park, Flying Ace in WW1 was a New Zealander & No 2 during The Battle of Britain & WW2. So yes, The Commonwealth made a massive contribution...the Bonds were very strong between us at that time. A great film documentary. Thanku.
@@francescahamilton6856 I had 5 uncles and my Dad in WWII. Two died at Dieppe. One was in the merchant marine, another in RCAF bomber Command as a navigator on Halifax bomber, another in the armoured corp driving Churchill and later Sherman tanks and lastly Dad was in the Canadian Parachute Battalion.
And just think, after a few short years the leftist marxist mob in the UK would brand Churchill as a "racist" who should be forgotten. Welcome to clown world.
The saddest part of the whole story is that this "Greatest Generation" is nearly all gone now. So few left that were firsthand witnesses to the horrors and destruction, atrocities, misery and deprivation of such wars. When we fail to learn the lessons of history, we are doomed to repeat them.
The Failure of the masses is to blindly follow the avaricious, ruthless, greedy politicos who slime their way to the top of the political pole. Much as what is happening with the ongoing globalist takeover of the former western democracies.
And just think, after a few short years the leftist marxist mob in the UK would brand Churchill as a "racist" who should be forgotten. Welcome to clown world.
Luckily we have direct eyewitness accounts on video of concentration camp survivors and actual films of the concentration camps upon their liberation. There are plentiful films of the Blitz, the war, the Nazis, and so on. Lots and lots of history to watch and learn about. Watch some with your kids or grandkids. We always ate in the living room on Saturday evening when I was a kid and besides ABC's Wide World of Sports there were half hour shows like Victory at Sea and others from which we learned the basics about WW2 history. History Underground is an EXCELLENT youtube channel with a man named JD, I think, who travels around to various battlefields, both in the US and Europe. One day he visited the factory of Oscar Schindler which is now a museum. He has absolutely excellent content that even elementary school age kids can understand. There are also kids' magazines like Cobblestone (not sure if it is still published) for kids -- all history. National Geographic also have some good historical mags kids would enjoy. My parents in the 1960s took us kids on summer trips to battlefields in PA and VA - it was during the Civil War centennial and was a huge deal. We loved it. I especially liked all the uniforms, weapons, saddles, flags, and other army items in the museums. Those really brought history to life.
I'm so glad this movie was made, A true classic war film! All done with practical effects and real planes, it really brings the battle to life. I'm so glad we get all this great footage of the spitfires and hurricanes in action.
I am so proud of Sir Keith Parkes being a New Zealander. I had two Uncles in the Battle of Britain, both Squadron Leaders who survived, but one was badly burnt. So proud of them all. They did what they had to do without a thought. Look at the Russians, if they can, they run the other way and emigrate to Europe. We don't make young men like those in 1940 anymore.
And just think, after a few short years the leftist marxist mob in the UK would brand Churchill as a "racist" who should be forgotten. Welcome to clown world.
All these great pilots of the "Greatest Generation" are all gone now. True Heros Of Britain P/O John Hemingway at the young age of 103 is the last verified pilot from the Battle of Britain to be alive today 16 NOV 2020
I have to say that my old father came to England and enlisted in the English army. He did because he trusted England and sympathized with the English people. Today my father is dead, but like him I look up to England.
The unsung heroics of Bomber Command attacking the French ports nightly made a huge difference. Bombing the Germans transports was brilliant. These brave men are owed large but most received a 20 mm round. Amazing.
I actually remember this movie in the theaters in Australia. My father was a RAAF spitfire pilot in WW2 & I had plenty of books to read as he built balsa wood & doped tissue papered free flight model aircraft. I was confused by the Bf109's & He111's with their engine coolant cowlings under scoops. My father told me that they were post war Spanish aircraft standing for German aircraft because virtualt no flying examples were left.
Your Dad was right. There were also plenty of Spitfires still flying, but they had to scour the globe for flying Hurricanes. I recall some Hurricanes were shipped over from Canada and US as well.
Great video, thanks. I have just watched it twice again. This must be the best documentary I have seen about this subject; beaten only by the movie, widely included - The Battle of Britain.
This was amazing to watch. These heroes of our country. Sad to see how much it’s changed. Off to Biggins hill tomorrow to see the aircraft. Ty for this video.
My Uncle flew them. He stated that you didn’t fly a spit but strapped it on. Of all the aircraft he flew which included the Hurricane, Spitfire,Mustang and Typhoon, he loved the Spitfire the best
I remember watching the dog fights being filmed over my boarding school the summer of 68, it was extraordinary lying in the grass watching the spectacle play out silently thousands of feet up.
This was a mighty show of strength bravery and tenacity y British Aussie NZ American Canadian Polish Check French etc United as one to beat evil My mother was 15 when that first bomb strike hit London she told us how comi g out of the cinema she and her father were pinned against a wall as shrapnel rained down all around them muscle her big brother was RAF airsea rescue among with my father in the middle east at that time We must never ever forget the brave souls who gave the ultimate sacrifice so that we could live in Freedom LEST WE FORGET
Books would explain the history even better. No one should criticize a documentary if they’ve never cracked a book to learn for themselves, and there’s no excuse when public libraries are still lending books for free. They’ll even get a book from another library if they don’t have what you’re looking for.
Gotta admire War Stories' picture department for bringing a new facet to the Battle of Britain - I'd never even heard of the Lancaster playing a role in patrolling Britain's skies for German fighters and bombers!
No way were Lancasters involved in the B of B - first flight was in Jan 1941 and they entered service in Feb 1942. And I didn't hear them mentioned during this film.
Kind of funny, the RAF pilots must be some of the most incompetent pilots Britain has ever produced, because Germany's AF made many flights from August until September over London and other cities dropping leaflets pleading with Britain to stop the bombing of civilians at night and to end hostilities and accept peace. Only until September did the German Luftwaffe began dropping bombs on British cities.
Actually England never stood alone. They had Canada, Australia, New Zealand and India, not to mention the remains of the Poles, Norwegians and French militaries. By was end nearly 1/4 of the RAF was made up of non English Commonwealth pilots. A New Zealander lead the air defence of the southeastern defence of Britain.
@@55vma In fact after Dunkirk the only fully equipped armies to defend the UK were Australians and Canadians. The remainder of the British army left its vehicles and equipment behind.
Winston Churchill stands alone atop the greatest war time leader bar none ! I went to the Library to read Churchill's biography , it was four volumes ! The man was the greatest statesman , a warrior and a philosopher . He enjoyed good brandy and a good cigar . He was a man of integrity and honor. Rest in Peace Sir Winston Churchill , he simply saved the world .
Churchill was a drunk, a liar, a crook. He forged. Read French painters art and sold them in the South of France as read. He was found out. Most of his writing were stolen from history by other people. Do your homework. He was the worst planner of war in history - ask the AUSTRALIANS. That is why he was kicked out of parliament and his party.
Man of integrity and Churchill don’t get along. He was the one who caused the bengal famine whereby millions died. His own words were that their lives didn’t matter. Please don’t parade such man. Every war lords of the ww2 were in some way selfish and cynical whether it was the axis or the allies.
He was a bigot and a drunk. He could give eloquent speeches and was certainly a great orator. The phrase I like from a wartime leader is Zalenskey. With an offer of evacuation by the US and his famous “ I need ammunition, not a ride!”
Inspirational for the British but during the Bengal famine Churchill turned down grain from Canada and Australia. 3-4 million people died. Also kept pushing for invasions in the E. Med instead of D-Day; Market Garden what a disaster.
Thank you to the person that posted this.Please turn down the sound track during the dialogue.of the pilotots,nothing more is needed.Otherwise the sound is good. I think its during the British pilots.This is gold
I witnessed something rather special over Duxford one day wile at work, quite some time back now! I noticed loads of spitfires and ME 109's flying very close over head, this was not an airshow by the way, they were obviously filming a movie, had it not been for the twin engine chase planes it was like being transported back in time as they were dogfighting and strafing each other then you would get one or two of the 109's with smoke streaming from it. The sound of the engines and this display over my head was fantastic.
One thing to never do when fighting the British, tell them how hopeless the situation is. It emboldens them to achieve the unachieveable. They can be lazy, stupid and outright cocky in the best of times. But in the worst of times, you get strength, determination and an iron-will.
I live in Germany. To this date many thousands of unexploded bombs still lay dormant, strewn about Germany. Bomb squads are still regularly active removing them. A quite heavy one was dug up on a marketplace some 200 meters from my home a couple of years ago. Half the city was evacuated.
@@Ohne_Silikone yeah it would be good if the world forgot what the Germans did in WW2 but that's not going to happen. It's not even a 100 years ago. There are still living reminders of the attempted genocide that Germany committed.
@@BobLouden-r9q Go and argue yourself if you are not willing to address my actual comments. You think I am here watching this stuff because I want to forget? What a stupid assumption to make. It is just that I am not arguing your point in any way or form, because it is totally besides mine and given your toxic tone I have no inclination to either.
And just think, after a few short years the leftist marxist mob in the UK would brand Churchill as a "racist" who should be forgotten. Welcome to clown world.
Along with Canada who produced nearly 20 billion in war materials and gave 11 of it away, mostly to Britain. The US was paid for everything they produced for Britain. It took them until the 1990’s to pay for it. Canada never requested payment.
@@richardcline1337 Nonsense. Canada took over a week to debate in its own parliament before declaring war on Germany. They also declared war on Japan even before the US
@@arniewilliamson1767 He said "Britain and the commonwealth!" Canada was in the British commonwealth, kindly take the chip of your shoulder and deal with your inferiority complex in private!
The British Spitfire could spin , dive , turn better than the German planes! This had an advantage over German pilots ! The newly British RADAR was a big advance !
Actually, the only real advantage the 109 had over the spit was dive speed. It was a well known tactic that 109 pilots would dive to get away from spitfires, that was all they had.
The RCAF also deployed some 40 squadrons for service in Northwest Europe. No. 1 Squadron was the first to arrive in England in June 1940, and participated in the Battle of Britain.
Yes, big thanks to the. 126 New Zealanders 98 Canadians 33 Australians 25 South Africans 145 Polish 88 Czechs 10 Irish 11 Americans (US) 2,345 British We thank them all.
Canada had their own No 6 Bomber Group which was in North Yorkshire where I live and served on one, RAF Leeming and then worked there for almost 40 years. It is still an active RAF airfield . In my home town of Northallerton we have on our war memorial a tribute the RCAF. Approximately 900 RCAF personnel gave their lives from Leeming during the Bomber offensive. We will never forget them.
It still amazes me that today’s military technology is astonishing. I spent 5yrs in the USAF in the early 1970’s and technology was better than the late 1930’s or early 40’s but not that much better. We had jet aircraft but they only went faster then the WW2 aircraft with not much else. Today it’s amazing what the weapons can do. If we could send to 1940’s England just what we’ve sent to the Ukraine recently WW2 would have ended in a few months. This new technology is beyond amazing.
The jet engine was invented in England. The patent was taken out in 1930 but the aircraft not made until WWII although jet aircraft never fought in the war.
The thing to keep in mind though is that everyone these days has close to the same level of tech, at least major powers do. Now a lot of battles are fought beyond visual range and the level at which things are decided is computer screens far more than pilot seats, I'm a reserve air force comms guy among other things and part of what I did was take long range radar data and plug that into targeting systems for missiles, on ground or in air, and set them to fire at targets that were sometimes 30min away from being visible to the platform firing the missile.
In early December 1939 the first contingents of Canadian soldiers arrived in Britain to serve alongside British soldiers in the Expeditionary Force. Not many months afterwards, I have read more than once, the only battle-ready division on British soil was Canadian. For reasons such as these, the phrase "Britain Stood Alone" may well stick in the craw of any Canadian who's aware of them. At the time, it pains me to remind you, Canada was a fully-fledged country in its own right, was a founding member of the League of Nations, etc. The monarchy was meaningful to Canadians generally, but generally only as a symbol of national heritage, of the days before nationhood. Though the constitutional provisions held otherwise, the King was regarded as England's king, not Canada's, and Canada's parliament had decidedly ceased to answer to Westminster. In most ways that had happened a full lifetime earlier. Thus Canadians went to the war in Europe as Canadians, and as friends and allies of the nations there, not as colonial subjects. All this is to say simply: Britain did not stand alone. Credit where credit is due.
Much of what you say is valid. Perhaps the correct phrase might have been 'Britain stood almost entirely alone.' In September, of 34.5 divisions in Britain, 32.5 were British.
@@dovetonsturdee7033 Thanks. Effortlessly charming of you to backhandedly tell me that much of what I said was invalid, and to correct a claim I didn't make. I didn't say September, I said battle-ready and I said some months later. I think it might have been at the time of Dunkirk, a further 8-9 months on ("on British soil," notice).
Did you know that it was Easter 1941 when germany had its first defeat in battle in WW2? It happened at Tobruk in North Africa. The army that did it was the Australian 9th Division. Australia declared war just a few hours after Britain did.
@@dixonpinfold2582 Don't be so touchy. I did not correct anything you wrote. I simply suggested an alternative title for the video. You appear to be seeking to take offence at things I did not write. No. I said September, because that was when, if Sealion was ever to have taken place, it would have been attempted. Oh, and by the way, the British actually recovered very quickly from Dunkirk. In August, they were able to send a troop convoy to North Africa to support Wavell & O'Connor.
Keith Parks in 1942 reorganized the air defense of Malta, greatly increasing the efficiency of the available fighters and possibly even the anti aircraft defenses.
@valeriedavidson2785 you do realise there are 2 ways of spelling hmm? There's British/Canadian English that use s-es, and American English which uses C-es. I know who you are, an American Idiot not aware of the world around you..gl in life.
A wonderful historical coverage of battle of Britain 🇬🇧 ( Airforces clashed between Lwftlwafa & royal airforce at 1940...excellent ( history Hit ) channel
Well made documentary Sir great work I was on the edge of my seat If not for those brave pilots I would be writing in German today and English would have been a foreign language my father Dr G Venkat Rangan went on to become a Orthopaedics Surgeon because he admired one Dr Cutting who was posted in Mysore State Dr Guruduth G V
There's an UA-cam channel called: worldwar two. They are going through wwII real Time week by week we are now on December 1943. 2-years ago they released 6-hour long multiple Episodes of Pearl Harbor minute by minute. And they have covered Guam and midway as The war progress. Next june they have D-day special.
Yes. They really were the underdog in WWII. Just like they were the underdog when the incompetenly led Spanish Armada attacked the strong centralized English nation that had just bullied France for over a hundred years.
@@manuel.camelo Apart from the resources of South America, which the Spanish empire had completely pilfered while totally wiping out multple civilisations on that continent.
WOW. Like many Americans, I had no idea of the actual events of the Battle of Britain. It's almost too unbelievable to be true. My uncle was an air ace who flew a B-51 Mustang, and my other uncle was a navigator on a B-17, heroes all.
And you’ve never read anything about the war?? I would have thought you’d want to know about it since you had family members fighting in it! That’s what got me curious….my father enlisted in the Marines after graduating from high school and fought in the pacific island battles on Kwajalein, Tinian, Saipan, and Iwo Jima, but he refused to talk about the war. So I got books 35 years ago and started reading, and I’ve never stopped! I watch documentaries for the film footage, but you’ll never learn much from documentaries, however good they are.
Enjoyed this watched last night and jus finished watching it today ..Well done Britain and its allies in aiding in getting rid of Germany at a terrible time and we owe all these men who fought for the Country .
Bloody nice visual reference of the Battle of Britain , one of my favourite movies of all time , it was such a good time for them to make a movie , with a great deal of these awesome aircraft , really blew my mind as I thought their wasn’t many bf-109 or me-109 , stutkas and me -110 , ju-88 🤯, later on in life I found out that a lot of the German planes used were actually from other countries that used em ………… wow 🤩
19:10 nice video; just keep in mind that uk had not a few hundred but 2,000 aircraft at that time (of which 754 were single-seat fighters); the germans, on the other hand, had 2,550 aircraft (of which 934 were single-seat fighters). this docu is misleading about this fact but it explains why the germans lost: they had no or no real numerical superiority.
What people fail to realise is that the US deliberately stood back till Japan forced its hand in order that Britain would be defeated. The fact that Churchill galvinised the country to fight in such an unexpected manner was as surprising for the Americans as it was for the Germans. The cost for the UK in monitery value was huge and basically turned the country into what it has now become.
Yup, the special relationship is a myth. The day after the UK signed up to the repayment terms for lend lease the US announced The Marshall plan which meant huge sums of money to renew the industry of our recent enemies while the UK struggled on with its old machinery.
What a incredible generation a great uncle of mine was killed in the battle to defend the u.k . Ie , battle of brittain , one at tobruk and one in the pacific and they were all Australian born cheers .
Well, I suppose the Poles, Canadians, Czechs, South Africans, Australians, New Zealanders, Yanks in the Eagle Squadrons and Irish might have a thing or two to say about Britain "standing alone" ? Was it not for the Atlantic convoys out of North America, Britain would have starved and run out of vital war materiel by late 1940. The first contingent of Canadians arrived in 1939 and fought until Europe was liberated. I do not deny that Britain fought like a lion but, she had lots of friends in her corner.
And how many troops from 'Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Poland, Czechoslovakia, USA, etc' were actually in Britain ready to attempt to repel a German invasion? This video is about 1940. Why do you people find it so difficult to understand? Certainly, the USA was supplying materials and weapons to Britain in 1940. These were bought and paid for, and brought across the Atlantic in vessels escorted by British warships.
Yes, big thanks to the. 126 New Zealanders 98 Canadians 33 Australians 25 South Africans 145 Polish 88 Czechs 10 Irish 11 Americans (US) 2,945 British We thank you all.
As a country they did stand alone. My father , mother, uncles and father in law were in WW2. On uncle was in the Battle of Britian. He was a Flight Sgt, flew Hurricanes. Retired in 1968 as a Wing commander. One uncle was at Dieppe, one with the 8th Army . Father with the 1st Recce Sqn. The ones that were at Arnhem, father in law in Italy. Mother was a nursing sister/ army nurse.
Conveniently forgetting supreme sacrifice by tens of thousands of Indian Soldiers and loads of support for the war efforts from Indian soil. In war of North African desert, it were Indian regiments stood firm against the might of Gen E Romel. Many instances then, the S African and N Landers did not fight against the Germans.
Absolute legends! Without these brave men we wouldn't have won the war in 1945 or at least it would have taken until America joined the war before any progress towards victory would have been possible.
And whilst you are thinking German pilots were just like ours my father in the BEF in France used to watch their fighters machine gunning helpless French refugees. He said they were total barstewards and it went on day in day out.
What does 'winning' actually mean? The best the Luftwaffe could have hoped for was control of the airspace over the South Eastern corner of England, within the range of their fighters, as Fighter Command withdrew north of the Thames to regroup. From June 1940 onwards, the British were outproducing the Germans in aircraft, and especially in fighter aircraft. Thereafter, all the Germans needed to do was to get their troops, in largely unescorted barges towed at little more than walking pace by tugs, into and across a Channel dominated by the RN, which had by September around 70 light cruisers and destroyers within five hours steaming of the Dover Straits, and around 500 smaller supporting warships in the same area.
Not so sure it would be darker but it certainly would be a world in a more defined order than it is now...i somehow doubt that the germans could pull of an amphibious invasion of the uk....
@@dovetonsturdee7033There was no really danger of invasion because of the RN. But, had the Germans managed to cripple RAF fighter command early, they would have had free reign to bomb British infrastructure into oblivion and they likely could have forced a negotiated peace, which means no more launching point for an allied invasion of Europe.
@@LouisKing995 Actually, the British were outbuilding the Germans in aircraft, and particularly in fighters, from June 1940 onwards. Moreover, the Germans lacked any strategic bombers, as their air force was strictly a ractical one. Moreover, the Germans had never even heard of Britain's shadow factories, and thus had no idea where they were.
The courage of this generation is a reminder of how great we can be and, while most of them may have passed on, we should never forget that these were ordinary people that made extraordinary sacrifices to accomplish what seemed impossible. Or as I've put it before: these people were extraordinary because of how ordinary they were compared to the extraordinary feats they performed.
Gee I guess my Dad and Uncle who were there from Canada never really were. All these years I thought Canada , NZ and Aussiland etc. stood with Britain. Live and learn
@@Mishn0 A few Americans but not America. A friend of mine from the US came to Canada and ended up with 54 sqn. but the country as a whole did not come into the war until 1942.
@@sparky16261 Except that 80% of the fuel burned by those famous Spitfires and Hurricanes came from the US. The Brits are GREAT at forgetting stuff like that.
@@Mishn0 The Brits did not forget anything and yes 100 octane was a big difference but the issue here is doing the fighting. My old friend was an American who came to Canada to get into the war as the US was not in it. Hal ferried aircraft from Canada and eventually ended up in the fight. In other cases aircraft were hauled to the Canadian border from the US and hauled across the border in order to comply with the neutrality of the US at that time. Nobody is forgetting anything but that was not the issue addressed here.
Perhaps you should watch the whole thing and you might realize that Britain did stand alone with a few commonwealth soldiers and airmen as is acknowledged in this documentary.
Every single one of those Pilots has more courage than I’ve ever had in my entire lifetime! Unfortunately, many of these brave men & women have passed away. Regardless of your feelings/opinions about empire or colonialism. I for one (along with my 2 children who are 25 & 24 yrs old) will always be grateful for our freedom and those brave young men and women! The Greatest Generation! Go ahead & make all of your snide remarks! I know all of them, so don’t bother telling about India, Egypt, Abyssinia, etc etc etc etc etc etc etc. The people that have their panties in a twist over such things? I always ask them 1 question 🙋♀️ Would you be better off had the Nazis, Japanese and Italians won the war??? Yeah, I didn’t think so!
Don’t forget the tireless WAAFs who processed all the flood of radar data to track every enemy plane and get the info across to Fighter Command. Without them the result might have been very different. They are the ones who made the RAF Fighter Command such a well-oiled fighting machine. Also, remember the ground crews who kept the planes flying and fighting.
First to Arniewilli1767 Britain stood alone as a nation . Some Army companies and pilots from Commonwealth nations were based in the uk. Including volunteers from USA . But as a nation we were alone !! Second. Who ever did the German to English translation was very poor. For example. Geduld means patience not stay calm . Stay calm means bleib ruhig . I noticed more than 30 mistakes! It is relevant . Third . Amazing documentary. Thanks 🙏
It is pretty much recognized now among historians that Britain was never in serious danger of invasion. The Germans did not have the amphibious capability, and even I f they had managed to overwhelm the RAF they had the British navy to get past.
Once you command the skies, that is the first step to victory. Britain still very nearly fell, economically it was close to bankrupt and almost unable to afford repairs.
You are absolutely right. However, that is with hindsight. The issue is the people at the time were not aware of that. The RN was reasonably confident it could defeat a potential landing given their resources, but could not rule a landing out given what they knew, or thought they knew at the time. really that is the crux of the matter, and one people often fail to consider. We looking back on history have the advantage of hindsight, the people there at the time had no such thing. They had no crystal ball into the future upon which to base their decisions. So yes, you are utterly correct in stating that even had the RAF not maintained Air superiority a German landing would have still been impossible because of the ridiculous Naval power disparity. What is more difficult to ascertain however is how many people were aware of that *at the time*.
@@Christopher-ix3ct I don't know what your qualifications are, but I am a retired Professor of History and Political Science. I have done a LOT of work on WW2, and my opinion is not my own but is based on the current consensus of many historians. The Germans lacked the landing vehicles to invade Britain. There are a number of documentaries available on the subject.
i have and will always respect Remembrance Day to show how I remember those who lost their lives to keep my parents safe thankfully who lived until they were in their 60s,s and why I was born in the late 70,s.
Well actually you can't fight a strategic air war using a tactical air force.. when your enemy is on a roughly equal numeric footing with you.. Germany proved that in the battle of britain.. Also on the eve of the battle England was furnished high octane aviation gasoline - approx. 130 to 150 octane, compared to the roughly 100 or so octane that the British had been using, this gave the Spitfires and Hurricanes an immediate 24 miles per hour speed gain. The Hurricane went from 318 mph to to 342 mph- The spitfire from 345 mph to 369mph. This turned out to be the tactical edge that was just what was needed by the Spits and Hurrys.. That and tactical stupidity on the part of the Germans. best Bruce Peek
Twice Germany tried to beat Great Britain and twice they failed....so they created the EU to beat us! Salute to all the brave lads and lasses who gave their lives for Great Britain.
"If, on the morrow, The Hun should beat us at our national game, let us remember that we have been them at theirs. Twice.". 1966 - prior to a European Cup football match between England and Germany
Great Britain didn't defeat. Germany.... USA and Soviet union did gb just dragged the USA into their fight so we could finish it( just like WW1)...... how's jolly old england after WW2?¿?¿?
@@rsmithajd Just to clarify, the USA didn't get dragged into WWII by GB, but instead waited more than two years to get into the fight, and only then after Germany declared war on them in the wake of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In WWI, again the USA waited until the war had been underway for three years. So, before you break your arm patting the USA on the back for 'winning' both World Wars, educate yourself on the larger context as well as the contributions of the other countries who were there (both times) from the beginning, e.g. Canada and others.
Interchangeable like calling a Welshman or Scotsman "British" (which is also perfectly correct). František flew prewar for the Czechoslovak air force, NOT the Czech air force.
@@joe-ob3se And Josef František was the CZECHOSLOVAKIAN pilot who flew with "Polish" 303 sqd, and achieved a full 30% of their total credited kill tally. Some silly Polish people whine on about "national recognition" for their efforts during WW2, and then totally ignore and hide the efforts of other nations who contributed toward "their" success.
I think you have missed the whole point of what I am saying. Many people did what is happening in Ukraine today. They voluntarily left their country and went to England to join the fight against the Nazi's. Yes, It took some time for forces to be assembled in a formal way. However England did not stand alone. As I said, " you need to read your history more widely", and not simply accept the hyperboly that is believed because it is repeated so often.
very true ,people who could fly did come to England to fight. But remember nobody came to join the millions who were bombed in our cities and this history is about them as well. They were alone. Obviously the people who came were people who could fly. I would say that these people were very very rare in 1940. More rare than , say , ex army in 2022? let us have our history and let Ukraine make history today. We have and are overcoming evil despots. That is the connection.
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Totally agree they never stood alone. Great marketing hype though..
G vgg
@@countryman3460😊
@@countryman3460z u in five a Red
@@countryman34601 q
No matter how many of these movies I see, I am still in awe at the sheer bravery of these very young pilots. So very young to be standing between freedom and Hilter.
I am completely blown away by each and everyone that stood and saved England! And the support staff who made it possible! Deepest respect!
The UK was occupying half of the world in 1940.
"Stood alone?" With India, today's Pakistan, Canada, Australia (an entire continent), New Zealand, South Africa, Rhodesia, Egypt, Hong Kong, Singapore ... hardly alone. Fact is, Germany stood alone.
yes now the men are girls none binnry ffs what joke these were our grandads uncles men were men thank you
There's a book called Windswept Lies of War, and it talks from censored history and hidden secrets to lost files and classified documents about World War II, it's the real deal.
What a weird voting pattern you have there.
P.S every year prvides a plethora of new books whose authors claim to have uncovered previously unseen information.... the vast majority of which is marketing BS.
Just wanted to say thank you to all those brave RAF pilots who saved us with their expertise and knowledge, God bless them all 🙏🏻
You can’t really thank them by writing comments here. You will get loads and loads of ‘likes’ though - which a cynic might think was your true intent.
We can still say thank you and not just to RAF as many think that RAF are british pilots only, and fact is british army was really weak and without much equipment and staff after ww1 and simply britain put own bussiness before being heroic country which britain like to call itself. Simply britain did first similar thing to what france did ..
Don’t forget the tireless WAAFs who processed and analysed all the long-range radar data so that RAF commanders such as Keith Parke could position his spitfire squadrons most effectively, and don’t forget all the ‘aircs’ on the ground who kept the spitties operational and armed.
Couldn’t have asked for any better!
Think how many allies were saved by the Radars they invented.
@@stanyeaman4824don’t forget to thank the German pilots who helped make all this happen
It was with great pleasure that I met and shook the hand of one of these great men. I met Geoffrey 'Boy' Wellum in his local Cornish pub a couple of years before he passed away. A delightful man with a lovely sense of humour. I had a copy of his book 'First Light' with me to read while on holiday, he was good enough to sign it for me. One of the last of our greatest generation, never forget!
Yea but what made North Africa so vital was the Suez Canal and the oil in Iran, Saudi Arabia and Northern Africa. Australian troops were vital there especially at Tobruk
It's my Birthday today and every year at this time, I sit down and contemplate the extraordinary contribution my Scottish & New Zealand families played in WW1 & WW2. I had 6 Uncles who fought in WW2. Three in the RAF - one was a Squadron Leader and one flew in the Fleet Air arm. My mother's brother was a Desert Rat and another Uncle fought in the South Pacific. Two were killed in the RAF.
Of course Sir Keith Park, Flying Ace in WW1 was a New Zealander & No 2 during The Battle of Britain & WW2.
So yes, The Commonwealth made a massive contribution...the Bonds were very strong between us at that time. A great film documentary. Thanku.
@@francescahamilton6856 I had 5 uncles and my Dad in WWII. Two died at Dieppe. One was in the merchant marine, another in RCAF bomber Command as a navigator on Halifax bomber, another in the armoured corp driving Churchill and later Sherman tanks and lastly Dad was in the Canadian Parachute Battalion.
And just think, after a few short years the leftist marxist mob in the UK would brand Churchill as a "racist" who should be forgotten. Welcome to clown world.
The saddest part of the whole story is that this "Greatest Generation" is nearly all gone now. So few left that were firsthand witnesses to the horrors and destruction, atrocities, misery and deprivation of such wars.
When we fail to learn the lessons of history, we are doomed to repeat them.
The Failure of the masses is to blindly follow the avaricious, ruthless, greedy politicos who slime their way to the top of the political pole. Much as what is happening with the ongoing globalist takeover of the former western democracies.
This story was a lie the RAF had 20 countries save them summer 1940! Seek and you will find and they hate you and feed you lies!
And just think, after a few short years the leftist marxist mob in the UK would brand Churchill as a "racist" who should be forgotten. Welcome to clown world.
Luckily we have direct eyewitness accounts on video of concentration camp survivors and actual films of the concentration camps upon their liberation. There are plentiful films of the Blitz, the war, the Nazis, and so on. Lots and lots of history to watch and learn about. Watch some with your kids or grandkids. We always ate in the living room on Saturday evening when I was a kid and besides ABC's Wide World of Sports there were half hour shows like Victory at Sea and others from which we learned the basics about WW2 history. History Underground is an EXCELLENT youtube channel with a man named JD, I think, who travels around to various battlefields, both in the US and Europe. One day he visited the factory of Oscar Schindler which is now a museum. He has absolutely excellent content that even elementary school age kids can understand. There are also kids' magazines like Cobblestone (not sure if it is still published) for kids -- all history. National Geographic also have some good historical mags kids would enjoy. My parents in the 1960s took us kids on summer trips to battlefields in PA and VA - it was during the Civil War centennial and was a huge deal. We loved it. I especially liked all the uniforms, weapons, saddles, flags, and other army items in the museums. Those really brought history to life.
@sydmccreath4554 no the spirit is passed on from generation to generation but it skipped us somehow
These 1st person accounts are absolutely priceless.❤
I'm so glad this movie was made, A true classic war film!
All done with practical effects and real planes, it really brings the battle to life. I'm so glad we get all this great footage of the spitfires and hurricanes in action.
It flopped.
I am so proud of Sir Keith Parkes being a New Zealander. I had two Uncles in the Battle of Britain, both Squadron Leaders who survived, but one was badly burnt. So proud of them all. They did what they had to do without a thought. Look at the Russians, if they can, they run the other way and emigrate to Europe. We don't make young men like those in 1940 anymore.
That's for sure
No they don’t make men like the Greatest Generation
And just think, after a few short years the leftist marxist mob in the UK would brand Churchill as a "racist" who should be forgotten. Welcome to clown world.
excuse me, but the Russians who run away from the fascist Putin Regime can be better compared with Czechs running from the Nazis
I tried to make a few but they end up in a sock I keep stuffed under my bed.
All these great pilots of the "Greatest Generation" are all gone now. True Heros Of Britain
P/O John Hemingway at the young age of 103 is the last verified pilot from the Battle of Britain to be alive today 16 NOV 2020
many of those great pilots were Polish.
@@stevelauda5435 Very True and great bunch as well.
@@stevelauda5435 But not allowed to fly at first but when they were.....wow‼
@@stevelauda5435 RAF Sq 303...one of the highest scoring, if not highest of the Battle!
@@stevelauda5435 is your dads name Andreas
I have to say that my old father came to England and enlisted in the English army. He did because he trusted England and sympathized with the English people. Today my father is dead, but like him I look up to England.
Respect 🤛🏻 Clearly a man of honour
British Army*
🎉th7hk😊@@goodshipkaraboudjan
🎉🎉😅😅😢🎉🎉😅🎉😅🎉🎉🎉😅🎉😅🎉😅😢🎉😊😊😊😊😊😊🎉🎉
I am a UK veteran. I look up to all those who fought against tyranny. God bless your Father..and you.
I love the footage from Battle of Britain great film.
Most interesting to hear the accounts of the German pilots as well.
Messerschmitt 108s though not 109s
One of the best war films Battle of Britain, it was alongside the Longest Day mostly accurate.
The unsung heroics of Bomber Command attacking the French ports nightly made a huge difference. Bombing the Germans transports was brilliant. These brave men are owed large but most received a 20 mm round. Amazing.
now I know why my dad watched war films this is why I've watched this 4 times.
PACKARD BUILT THE MERLIN ENGINE FOR THE P-51 MUSTANG SAME ENGINE IN THE SPITFIRE
I actually remember this movie in the theaters in Australia. My father was a RAAF spitfire pilot in WW2 & I had plenty of books to read as he built balsa wood & doped tissue papered free flight model aircraft. I was confused by the Bf109's & He111's with their engine coolant cowlings under scoops. My father told me that they were post war Spanish aircraft standing for German aircraft because virtualt no flying examples were left.
Your Dad was right. There were also plenty of Spitfires still flying, but they had to scour the globe for flying Hurricanes. I recall some Hurricanes were shipped over from Canada and US as well.
My father was a SSTG in Australia with the 100 air squadron service. He loved the Australis. He said were good down to earth folks!
That agravated me a bit But it was not that many original BF109.s left!!! //Lars
Threw me off, too!
8
Great video, thanks. I have just watched it twice again. This must be the best documentary I have seen about this subject; beaten only by the movie, widely included - The Battle of Britain.
This was amazing to watch. These heroes of our country. Sad to see how much it’s changed. Off to Biggins hill tomorrow to see the aircraft. Ty for this video.
The Spitfire’s profile was the loveliest of any plane in WWII.
My Uncle flew them. He stated that you didn’t fly a spit but strapped it on. Of all the aircraft he flew which included the Hurricane, Spitfire,Mustang and Typhoon, he loved the Spitfire the best
The spitfire was definitely a pretty airplane ....
No, that would be the American P-51.
@@DavidP793 Maybe to an American. The most famous pilots of WWII Eric Brown and Adolph Galland disagree with you.
@@arniewilliamson1767 the P-51 is the most beautiful fighter plane of all time (including the F22). Most ppl in aviation agree with this.
As an American, all I can say is I am SO proud to be decended from these great men
What about Germans
Lucky you
@@wamagaleali9548 pppp⁹😊😊
Not only that but we’re the greatest of allies 🫡
I remember watching the dog fights being filmed over my boarding school the summer of 68, it was extraordinary lying in the grass watching the spectacle play out silently thousands of feet up.
Bob Doe's book Fighter Pilot is a very good book. I read it during the Pandemic when America was "closed for business"
This was a mighty show of strength bravery and tenacity y British Aussie NZ American Canadian Polish Check French etc United as one to beat evil My mother was 15 when that first bomb strike hit London she told us how comi g out of the cinema she and her father were pinned against a wall as shrapnel rained down all around them muscle her big brother was RAF airsea rescue among with my father in the middle east at that time We must never ever forget the brave souls who gave the ultimate sacrifice so that we could live in Freedom LEST WE FORGET
The film The Battle of Britain explained in slightly greater detail than the film, mostly.
A good history lesson 👏
Books would explain the history even better. No one should criticize a documentary if they’ve never cracked a book to learn for themselves, and there’s no excuse when public libraries are still lending books for free. They’ll even get a book from another library if they don’t have what you’re looking for.
For a change it was good to hear mention of Sailor Malan a South African and fighter pilot ace during the Battle of Britain.
God Bless the technology that has saved England and the USA for all these years.
"Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few" - Winston Churchill - 20 August 1940
Yes he was speaking about the non English that came from half a world away to save England.
@boblouden6663 No he wasn't lol
@@dalj4362 yes he was, learn your history.
@@BobLouden-r9q He was talking about the people that fought to save Britian, not just non english people... FFS...
@sydmccreath4554 have you learnt to read yet,? 😉
Gotta admire War Stories' picture department for bringing a new facet to the Battle of Britain - I'd never even heard of the Lancaster playing a role in patrolling Britain's skies for German fighters and bombers!
No way were Lancasters involved in the B of B - first flight was in Jan 1941 and they entered service in Feb 1942. And I didn't hear them mentioned during this film.
@@andrewmurray9350 Then why are they in the thumbnail pic?
@@andrewmurray9350 aThe lanc never entered service until 1942
Kind of funny, the RAF pilots must be some of the most incompetent pilots Britain has ever produced, because Germany's AF made many flights from August until September over London and other cities dropping leaflets pleading with Britain to stop the bombing of civilians at night and to end hostilities and accept peace. Only until September did the German Luftwaffe began dropping bombs on British cities.
@@nemo6686 It's called "clickbait"
The fireman were crazy brave fighting the fires of their beautiful city London. Rest in peace you all.🇨🇦
One of the most important episode in the history of WW II.👍👍
God bless Great Britain and her commonwealth. The world owes you forever for your bravery.
I have loved this doc for years. I will always think about the air to air losses as potentially fraught with propaganda. The winners write history.
Actually England never stood alone. They had Canada, Australia, New Zealand and India, not to mention the remains of the Poles, Norwegians and French militaries. By was end nearly 1/4 of the RAF was made up of non English Commonwealth pilots. A New Zealander lead the air defence of the southeastern defence of Britain.
Please stop getting mixed up between England and Britain. Scottish soldiers played an enormous role, as did Welsh and northern Irish
It was Britain v Germany, not England
@@Groindz My bad. Sorry. In Canada we sometimes just refer the UK as England. Sorry about that mate.
And Australia had two brigades of infantry station on Salisbury Plain. The 18th and what later became the 25th, I think.🇦🇺🐨🇦🇺
@@55vma In fact after Dunkirk the only fully equipped armies to defend the UK were Australians and Canadians. The remainder of the British army left its vehicles and equipment behind.
Winston Churchill stands alone atop the greatest war time leader bar none ! I went to the Library to read Churchill's biography , it was four volumes ! The man was the greatest statesman , a warrior and a philosopher . He enjoyed good brandy and a good cigar . He was a man of integrity and honor. Rest in Peace Sir Winston Churchill , he simply saved the world .
Churchill was a drunk, a liar, a crook. He forged. Read French painters art and sold them in the South of France as read. He was found out.
Most of his writing were stolen from history by other people.
Do your homework. He was the worst planner of war in history - ask the AUSTRALIANS. That is why he was kicked out of parliament and his party.
Man of integrity and Churchill don’t get along. He was the one who caused the bengal famine whereby millions died. His own words were that their lives didn’t matter. Please don’t parade such man. Every war lords of the ww2 were in some way selfish and cynical whether it was the axis or the allies.
@@Dennis-JDBtoo bad he was not trans
He was a bigot and a drunk. He could give eloquent speeches and was certainly a great orator. The phrase I like from a wartime leader is Zalenskey. With an offer of evacuation by the US and his famous “ I need ammunition, not a ride!”
Inspirational for the British but during the Bengal famine Churchill turned down grain from Canada and Australia. 3-4 million people died. Also kept pushing for invasions in the E. Med instead of D-Day; Market Garden what a disaster.
Thank you to the person that posted this.Please turn down the sound track during the dialogue.of the pilotots,nothing more is needed.Otherwise the sound is good. I think its during the British pilots.This is gold
we shall never forget what the Soilder's did and went threw. Honor them and look up to them each and every day!
*airmen
RIP, ALL OF YOU. Thank you all from our commonwealth ❤
😢 This is MY country.
My Forebears. So proud.
🏴🏴🏴🇬🇧
I witnessed something rather special over Duxford one day wile at work, quite some time back now! I noticed loads of spitfires and ME 109's flying very close over head, this was not an airshow by the way, they were obviously filming a movie, had it not been for the twin engine chase planes it was like being transported back in time as they were dogfighting and strafing each other then you would get one or two of the 109's with smoke streaming from it. The sound of the engines and this display over my head was fantastic.
Great video. Absolute legends those guys; balls of steel.
One thing to never do when fighting the British, tell them how hopeless the situation is. It emboldens them to achieve the unachieveable. They can be lazy, stupid and outright cocky in the best of times. But in the worst of times, you get strength, determination and an iron-will.
I live in Germany. To this date many thousands of unexploded bombs still lay dormant, strewn about Germany. Bomb squads are still regularly active removing them. A quite heavy one was dug up on a marketplace some 200 meters from my home a couple of years ago. Half the city was evacuated.
Well then Germany can only blame themselves about bombs. Never let the Germans forget what they allowed the Nazis to do.
@@BobLouden-r9q yeah, you go on living in the past. Thing is my infant children live in the future.
@@Ohne_Silikone yeah it would be good if the world forgot what the Germans did in WW2 but that's not going to happen. It's not even a 100 years ago. There are still living reminders of the attempted genocide that Germany committed.
@@BobLouden-r9q Go and argue yourself if you are not willing to address my actual comments. You think I am here watching this stuff because I want to forget? What a stupid assumption to make. It is just that I am not arguing your point in any way or form, because it is totally besides mine and given your toxic tone I have no inclination to either.
And just think, after a few short years the leftist marxist mob in the UK would brand Churchill as a "racist" who should be forgotten. Welcome to clown world.
So good to know what our parents went through.
Many thanks❤
My Dad R.N.WW1
@@briggsak05 Congratulations.... you must be nearly 100 years old !!!
I salute the UK and the Commonwealth for standing firm. The world owes you...FOREVER.
Signed,
Grateful Yank
Along with Canada who produced nearly 20 billion in war materials and gave 11 of it away, mostly to Britain. The US was paid for everything they produced for Britain. It took them until the 1990’s to pay for it. Canada never requested payment.
@@arniewilliamson1767, why? Canada was one of Britain's puppets.
@@richardcline1337 Nonsense. Canada took over a week to debate in its own parliament before declaring war on Germany. They also declared war on Japan even before the US
@@arniewilliamson1767 He said "Britain and the commonwealth!" Canada was in the British commonwealth, kindly take the chip of your shoulder and deal with your inferiority complex in private!
@@thehound9638 Go scr*w yourself
I feel sadden by such human suffering. And feel tremendously grateful to all those that protected our country and others from evil tyranny.
World War II was won by a tyrant who had invaded Poland in 1939.
@@Jeremy-y1t 😴
The British Spitfire could spin , dive , turn better than the German planes! This had an advantage over German pilots ! The newly British RADAR was a big advance !
BF’s just had to be up higher and use boom and zoom tactics , much higher top speed.
Actually, the only real advantage the 109 had over the spit was dive speed. It was a well known tactic that 109 pilots would dive to get away from spitfires, that was all they had.
The RCAF also deployed some 40 squadrons for service in Northwest Europe. No. 1 Squadron was the first to arrive in England in June 1940, and participated in the Battle of Britain.
Yes, big thanks to the.
126 New Zealanders
98 Canadians
33 Australians
25 South Africans
145 Polish
88 Czechs
10 Irish
11 Americans (US)
2,345 British
We thank them all.
Canada had their own No 6 Bomber Group which was in North Yorkshire where I live and served on one, RAF Leeming and then worked there for almost 40 years. It is still an active RAF airfield . In my home town of Northallerton we have on our war memorial a tribute the RCAF. Approximately 900 RCAF personnel gave their lives from Leeming during the Bomber offensive. We will never forget them.
@@anthonyeaton5153 Except _EVERY TIME_ you make a documentary or write a history book.
@@Scepticalasfuknot the books I read.
It still amazes me that today’s military technology is astonishing. I spent 5yrs in the USAF in the early 1970’s and technology was better than the late 1930’s or early 40’s but not that much better. We had jet aircraft but they only went faster then the WW2 aircraft with not much else. Today it’s amazing what the weapons can do. If we could send to 1940’s England just what we’ve sent to the Ukraine recently WW2 would have ended in a few months. This new technology is beyond amazing.
The jet engine was invented in England. The patent was taken out in 1930 but the aircraft not made until WWII although jet aircraft never fought in the war.
The thing to keep in mind though is that everyone these days has close to the same level of tech, at least major powers do. Now a lot of battles are fought beyond visual range and the level at which things are decided is computer screens far more than pilot seats, I'm a reserve air force comms guy among other things and part of what I did was take long range radar data and plug that into targeting systems for missiles, on ground or in air, and set them to fire at targets that were sometimes 30min away from being visible to the platform firing the missile.
@@valeriedavidson2785 Good to point out that no english jet's fought in the war but jets did fight in it
@@xlgapelsin6173 Rubbish.
the patriot anti-missile-drone guns and the stinger missiles combined with satellite targeting will soon drive the Russians out of Ukraine.
In early December 1939 the first contingents of Canadian soldiers arrived in Britain to serve alongside British soldiers in the Expeditionary Force. Not many months afterwards, I have read more than once, the only battle-ready division on British soil was Canadian. For reasons such as these, the phrase "Britain Stood Alone" may well stick in the craw of any Canadian who's aware of them.
At the time, it pains me to remind you, Canada was a fully-fledged country in its own right, was a founding member of the League of Nations, etc. The monarchy was meaningful to Canadians generally, but generally only as a symbol of national heritage, of the days before nationhood. Though the constitutional provisions held otherwise, the King was regarded as England's king, not Canada's, and Canada's parliament had decidedly ceased to answer to Westminster. In most ways that had happened a full lifetime earlier.
Thus Canadians went to the war in Europe as Canadians, and as friends and allies of the nations there, not as colonial subjects. All this is to say simply: Britain did not stand alone. Credit where credit is due.
Much of what you say is valid. Perhaps the correct phrase might have been 'Britain stood almost entirely alone.' In September, of 34.5 divisions in Britain, 32.5 were British.
@@dovetonsturdee7033 Thanks. Effortlessly charming of you to backhandedly tell me that much of what I said was invalid, and to correct a claim I didn't make. I didn't say September, I said battle-ready and I said some months later. I think it might have been at the time of Dunkirk, a further 8-9 months on ("on British soil," notice).
Did you know that it was Easter 1941 when germany had its first defeat in battle in WW2? It happened at Tobruk in North Africa. The army that did it was the Australian 9th Division. Australia declared war just a few hours after Britain did.
@@Neil-yg5gm No I didn't know that. Good lads, those Aussies. Thanks.
@@dixonpinfold2582 Don't be so touchy. I did not correct anything you wrote. I simply suggested an alternative title for the video. You appear to be seeking to take offence at things I did not write.
No. I said September, because that was when, if Sealion was ever to have taken place, it would have been attempted.
Oh, and by the way, the British actually recovered very quickly from Dunkirk. In August, they were able to send a troop convoy to North Africa to support Wavell & O'Connor.
Absolutely incredible documentary.
I’m pu
😢🎉😅😂
Thanks
God Bless them all who Faught in this terrible war.
Keith Parks in 1942 reorganized the air defense of Malta, greatly increasing the efficiency of the available fighters and possibly even the anti aircraft defenses.
Keith Ranker. DEFENCE and DEFENCES. No s in it.
@@valeriedavidson2785 take a break from the internet, ur terrible attitude is insufferable
@@dirtydangler Why should I? I get fed up with Americans taking over our language.
@@valeriedavidson2785 ^ Always one...
@valeriedavidson2785 you do realise there are 2 ways of spelling hmm? There's British/Canadian English that use s-es, and American English which uses C-es. I know who you are, an American Idiot not aware of the world around you..gl in life.
A wonderful historical coverage of battle of Britain 🇬🇧 ( Airforces clashed between Lwftlwafa & royal airforce at 1940...excellent ( history Hit ) channel
Luftwaffe*
Just wanted to say thank you to all those brave RAF pilots who saved us with their expertise and knowledge, God bless them all 🙏🏻
Well made documentary Sir great work I was on the edge of my seat If not for those brave pilots I would be writing in German today and English would have been a foreign language my father Dr G Venkat Rangan went on to become a Orthopaedics Surgeon because he admired one Dr Cutting who was posted in Mysore State
Dr Guruduth G V
god bless those brave men and women
Pacific war documentaries +stories . We want more japanese pacific WW2 stories please.
There's an UA-cam channel called: worldwar two. They are going through wwII real Time week by week we are now on December 1943. 2-years ago they released 6-hour long multiple Episodes of Pearl Harbor minute by minute. And they have covered Guam and midway as The war progress. Next june they have D-day special.
The fact England regained air superiority over the channel is beyond legendary.
Yes. They really were the underdog in WWII. Just like they were the underdog when the incompetenly led Spanish Armada attacked the strong centralized English nation that had just bullied France for over a hundred years.
no shet.. they had the resources of the entire planet.
@@manuel.camelo Apart from the resources of South America, which the Spanish empire had completely pilfered while totally wiping out multple civilisations on that continent.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 that's true. But my point is still valid.
No wonder the Germans went to Argentina.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 History revisionism at its finest.
Churchill's debt is still owed by all of us. Thank you for a wonderful reminder.
My father was in love with the Spitfire . 😍😍😍
WOW. Like many Americans, I had no idea of the actual events of the Battle of Britain. It's almost too unbelievable to be true. My uncle was an air ace who flew a B-51 Mustang, and my other uncle was a navigator on a B-17, heroes all.
And you’ve never read anything about the war?? I would have thought you’d want to know about it since you had family members fighting in it! That’s what got me curious….my father enlisted in the Marines after graduating from high school and fought in the pacific island battles on Kwajalein, Tinian, Saipan, and Iwo Jima, but he refused to talk about the war. So I got books 35 years ago and started reading, and I’ve never stopped! I watch documentaries for the film footage, but you’ll never learn much from documentaries, however good they are.
You mean p51 I get mixed up sometimes aswell
Enjoyed this watched last night and jus finished watching it today ..Well done Britain and its allies in aiding in getting rid of Germany at a terrible time and we owe all these men who fought for the Country .
Very Excellent Presentation - Thankyou -
Bloody nice visual reference of the Battle of Britain , one of my favourite movies of all time , it was such a good time for them to make a movie , with a great deal of these awesome aircraft , really blew my mind as I thought their wasn’t many bf-109 or me-109 , stutkas and me -110 , ju-88 🤯, later on in life I found out that a lot of the German planes used were actually from other countries that used em ………… wow 🤩
God bless all of these men. RIP to one & all. 🙏♥️🙏♥️🙏♥️ 🫡 🇬🇧 🇺🇸
19:10 nice video; just keep in mind that uk had not a few hundred but 2,000 aircraft at that time (of which 754 were single-seat fighters); the germans, on the other hand, had 2,550 aircraft (of which 934 were single-seat fighters). this docu is misleading about this fact but it explains why the germans lost: they had no or no real numerical superiority.
What people fail to realise is that the US deliberately stood back till Japan forced its hand in order that Britain would be defeated. The fact that Churchill galvinised the country to fight in such an unexpected manner was as surprising for the Americans as it was for the Germans. The cost for the UK in monitery value was huge and basically turned the country into what it has now become.
It took until 2002 to pay the Americans off.
@@mikemines2931 it was actually 2006.
Never failed to realise, 😊
Yup, the special relationship is a myth. The day after the UK signed up to the repayment terms for lend lease the US announced The Marshall plan which meant huge sums of money to renew the industry of our recent enemies while the UK struggled on with its old machinery.
@@donaldpaterson5827 That mythical 'special relationship' only works if it favours the US!! A Country completely lacking in any moral fibre!!!
❤❤❤❤ love it. Thanks !
History Hits member..enjoying this video on YT
What a incredible generation a great uncle of mine was killed in the battle to defend the u.k . Ie , battle of brittain , one at tobruk and one in the pacific and they were all Australian born cheers .
Might be more accurate the empire stood alone
A mere 1.5 billion people. Some alone.
Well we wouldn’t have done it without them. 20% of the raf pilots were commonwealth and allies.
@@lesliemaitland3551 pp
Exactly
If Britain had dropped off 400,000,000 Indians via parachute in Berlin, they wouldn't have been alone😂
Well, I suppose the Poles, Canadians, Czechs, South Africans, Australians, New Zealanders, Yanks in the Eagle Squadrons and Irish might have a thing or two to say about Britain "standing alone" ?
Was it not for the Atlantic convoys out of North America, Britain would have starved and run out of vital war materiel by late 1940. The first contingent of Canadians arrived in 1939 and fought until Europe was liberated. I do not deny that Britain fought like a lion but, she had lots of friends in her corner.
And how many troops from 'Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Poland, Czechoslovakia, USA, etc' were actually in Britain ready to attempt to repel a German invasion? This video is about 1940. Why do you people find it so difficult to understand?
Certainly, the USA was supplying materials and weapons to Britain in 1940. These were bought and paid for, and brought across the Atlantic in vessels escorted by British warships.
Yes, big thanks to the.
126 New Zealanders
98 Canadians
33 Australians
25 South Africans
145 Polish
88 Czechs
10 Irish
11 Americans (US)
2,945 British
We thank you all.
As a country they did stand alone. My father , mother, uncles and father in law were in WW2. On uncle was in the Battle of Britian. He was a Flight Sgt, flew Hurricanes. Retired in 1968 as a Wing commander.
One uncle was at Dieppe, one with the 8th Army . Father with the 1st Recce Sqn. The ones that were at Arnhem, father in law in Italy. Mother was a nursing sister/ army nurse.
Conveniently forgetting supreme sacrifice by tens of thousands of Indian Soldiers and loads of support for the war efforts from Indian soil.
In war of North African desert, it were Indian regiments stood firm against the might of Gen E Romel.
Many instances then, the S African and N Landers did not fight against the Germans.
Timmytwodogs.
Britain stood alone as the ONLY unconquered country in Europe in 1940. That is what that means.
Very good documentary.Thank you! 👍
Absolute legends! Without these brave men we wouldn't have won the war in 1945 or at least it would have taken until America joined the war before any progress towards victory would have been possible.
And whilst you are thinking German pilots were just like ours my father in the BEF in France used to watch their fighters machine gunning helpless French refugees. He said they were total barstewards and it went on day in day out.
Winston Churchill - what a great leader and outstanding man.
Those brave RAF pilots regardless of nationalities were true heros. If Germany had won the battle of Britain we would be living in a much darker world
What does 'winning' actually mean? The best the Luftwaffe could have hoped for was control of the airspace over the South Eastern corner of England, within the range of their fighters, as Fighter Command withdrew north of the Thames to regroup. From June 1940 onwards, the British were outproducing the Germans in aircraft, and especially in fighter aircraft.
Thereafter, all the Germans needed to do was to get their troops, in largely unescorted barges towed at little more than walking pace by tugs, into and across a Channel dominated by the RN, which had by September around 70 light cruisers and destroyers within five hours steaming of the Dover Straits, and around 500 smaller supporting warships in the same area.
Captain mainwaring would have something to say about that !!....
Not so sure it would be darker but it certainly would be a world in a more defined order than it is now...i somehow doubt that the germans could pull of an amphibious invasion of the uk....
@@dovetonsturdee7033There was no really danger of invasion because of the RN. But, had the Germans managed to cripple RAF fighter command early, they would have had free reign to bomb British infrastructure into oblivion and they likely could have forced a negotiated peace, which means no more launching point for an allied invasion of Europe.
@@LouisKing995 Actually, the British were outbuilding the Germans in aircraft, and particularly in fighters, from June 1940 onwards.
Moreover, the Germans lacked any strategic bombers, as their air force was strictly a ractical one. Moreover, the Germans had never even heard of Britain's shadow factories, and thus had no idea where they were.
The courage of this generation is a reminder of how great we can be and, while most of them may have passed on, we should never forget that these were ordinary people that made extraordinary sacrifices to accomplish what seemed impossible. Or as I've put it before: these people were extraordinary because of how ordinary they were compared to the extraordinary feats they performed.
I don't know if pilots would agree with author of video. The aerodynamics of the plane look actually quite awesome.
Gee I guess my Dad and Uncle who were there from Canada never really were. All these years I thought Canada , NZ and Aussiland etc. stood with Britain. Live and learn
And Poland, and Czechoslovakia, and the Free French, and the Americans...
@@Mishn0 A few Americans but not America. A friend of mine from the US came to Canada and ended up with 54 sqn. but the country as a whole did not come into the war until 1942.
@@sparky16261 Except that 80% of the fuel burned by those famous Spitfires and Hurricanes came from the US. The Brits are GREAT at forgetting stuff like that.
@@Mishn0 The Brits did not forget anything and yes 100 octane was a big difference but the issue here is doing the fighting. My old friend was an American who came to Canada to get into the war as the US was not in it. Hal ferried aircraft from Canada and eventually ended up in the fight. In other cases aircraft were hauled to the Canadian border from the US and hauled across the border in order to comply with the neutrality of the US at that time. Nobody is forgetting anything but that was not the issue addressed here.
Perhaps you should watch the whole thing and you might realize that Britain did stand alone with a few commonwealth soldiers and airmen as is acknowledged in this documentary.
Every single one of those Pilots has more courage than I’ve ever had in my entire lifetime! Unfortunately, many of these brave men & women have passed away. Regardless of your feelings/opinions about empire or colonialism. I for one (along with my 2 children who are 25 & 24 yrs old) will always be grateful for our freedom and those brave young men and women! The Greatest Generation! Go ahead & make all of your snide remarks! I know all of them, so don’t bother telling about India, Egypt, Abyssinia, etc etc etc etc etc etc etc. The people that have their panties in a twist over such things? I always ask them 1 question 🙋♀️ Would you be better off had the Nazis, Japanese and Italians won the war??? Yeah, I didn’t think so!
Have you compared London to Tokyo or Berlin lately????
@@Scepticalasfuk Nope
Don’t forget the tireless WAAFs who processed all the flood of radar data to track every enemy plane and get the info across to Fighter Command. Without them the result might have been very different. They are the ones who made the RAF Fighter Command such a well-oiled fighting machine. Also, remember the ground crews who kept the planes flying and fighting.
@@stanyeaman4824 Absolutely Stany they’re called the Greatest Generation, because they were!
extremely well made documentary
Wow,that was amazing, ❤
First to Arniewilli1767 Britain stood alone as a nation . Some Army companies and pilots from Commonwealth nations were based in the uk. Including volunteers from USA . But as a nation we were alone !! Second. Who ever did the German to English translation was very poor. For example. Geduld means patience not stay calm . Stay calm means bleib ruhig . I noticed more than 30 mistakes! It is relevant . Third . Amazing documentary. Thanks 🙏
As a nation alone with help of other nations..got it...😂
What a pathetic response. Not aware of the difference between individuals and nations. Or were you trying to be funny? If so? You didn’t succeed
Great.👌😍❤️
This channel is lit af
Cheers yodigang
It is pretty much recognized now among historians that Britain was never in serious danger of invasion. The Germans did not have the amphibious capability, and even I f they had managed to overwhelm the RAF they had the British navy to get past.
Once you command the skies, that is the first step to victory. Britain still very nearly fell, economically it was close to bankrupt and almost unable to afford repairs.
You are absolutely right. However, that is with hindsight. The issue is the people at the time were not aware of that. The RN was reasonably confident it could defeat a potential landing given their resources, but could not rule a landing out given what they knew, or thought they knew at the time.
really that is the crux of the matter, and one people often fail to consider. We looking back on history have the advantage of hindsight, the people there at the time had no such thing. They had no crystal ball into the future upon which to base their decisions.
So yes, you are utterly correct in stating that even had the RAF not maintained Air superiority a German landing would have still been impossible because of the ridiculous Naval power disparity. What is more difficult to ascertain however is how many people were aware of that *at the time*.
No it isn't 😂 what are you on about you muppet
@@Christopher-ix3ct I don't know what your qualifications are, but I am a retired Professor of History and Political Science. I have done a LOT of work on WW2, and my opinion is not my own but is based on the current consensus of many historians.
The Germans lacked the landing vehicles to invade Britain. There are a number of documentaries available on the subject.
@@Christopher-ix3ct I suggest you watch "Hitler's Crazy Plan To Invade UK: Operation Sea Lion ". It is but one among many.
i have and will always respect Remembrance Day to show how I remember those who lost their lives to keep my parents safe thankfully who lived until they were in their 60s,s and why I was born in the late 70,s.
I remember being here for most of this. Unreal times.
How old were you sir?
38
@@joedavidson6556 That makes you about 116 now,well done sir!
Thank you sir. I’m still going strong too. Haven’t slowed a bit.
@@joedavidson6556 Well congratulations Billy Liar!
Don't come and tell, ring the bell!
Great documentary
That was insanely good I loved it.
England stood alone, except they were the biggest empire in the world
Almost none of which was near enough to provide the military support that Britain needed in 1940.
an empire that meant nothing during the battle.
Britan was never alone!
Adding an exclamation mark doesn't make a facile comment true.
@@dovetonsturdee7033ut it’s true😂😂 Britain can’t even stand alone today, hence why millions are actively encouraged to come here and help😅😅😅😅😅
we were alone though just because you can type laughing faces doesn't mean your right, Britain was alone
Lufc you are correct these people don’t know what they are talking about
Well actually you can't fight a strategic air war using a tactical air force.. when your enemy is on a roughly equal numeric footing with you.. Germany proved that in the battle of britain.. Also on the eve of the battle England was furnished high octane aviation gasoline - approx. 130 to 150 octane, compared to the roughly 100 or so octane that the British had been using, this gave the Spitfires and Hurricanes an immediate 24 miles per hour speed gain. The Hurricane went from 318 mph to to 342 mph- The spitfire from 345 mph to 369mph. This turned out to be the tactical edge that was just what was needed by the Spits and Hurrys.. That and tactical stupidity on the part of the Germans.
best
Bruce Peek
Germany had developed a long range fighter to escort the bombers the
Germany had developed a long range escort bomber, the ME 210. The problem was the 210 was so poor it needed a fighter escort to protect it.
Great footage indeed but as another comment said rightly... it is more accurate to say the EMPIRE stood alone.
Twice Germany tried to beat Great Britain and twice they failed....so they created the EU to beat us! Salute to all the brave lads and lasses who gave their lives for Great Britain.
🤣🤣
"If, on the morrow, The Hun should beat us at our national game, let us remember that we have been them at theirs. Twice.".
1966 - prior to a European Cup football match between England and Germany
Great Britain didn't defeat. Germany.... USA and Soviet union did gb just dragged the USA into their fight so we could finish it( just like WW1)...... how's jolly old england after WW2?¿?¿?
@@rsmithajd Just to clarify, the USA didn't get dragged into WWII by GB, but instead waited more than two years to get into the fight, and only then after Germany declared war on them in the wake of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In WWI, again the USA waited until the war had been underway for three years.
So, before you break your arm patting the USA on the back for 'winning' both World Wars, educate yourself on the larger context as well as the contributions of the other countries who were there (both times) from the beginning, e.g. Canada and others.
Forgot to mention 303 the best in battle 4 Britain
You forgot to mention the single pilot who scored a full 30% of 303 squadron's TOTAL confirmed kill tally.... The CZECHOSLOVAKIAN ace Josef František.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 Its not nation Czechoslovak - he was Czech.
Interchangeable like calling a Welshman or Scotsman "British" (which is also perfectly correct). František flew prewar for the Czechoslovak air force, NOT the Czech air force.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 303rd squadron was Polish Air Forces in GB.
@@joe-ob3se And Josef František was the CZECHOSLOVAKIAN pilot who flew with "Polish" 303 sqd, and achieved a full 30% of their total credited kill tally. Some silly Polish people whine on about "national recognition" for their efforts during WW2, and then totally ignore and hide the efforts of other nations who contributed toward "their" success.
I think you have missed the whole point of what I am saying. Many people did what is happening in Ukraine today. They voluntarily left their country and went to
England to join the fight against the Nazi's. Yes, It took some time for forces to be assembled in a formal way.
However England did not stand alone. As I said, " you need to read your history more widely", and not simply accept the hyperboly that is believed because it is repeated so often.
very true ,people who could fly did come to England to fight. But remember nobody came to join the millions who were bombed in our cities and this history is about them as well. They were alone. Obviously the people who came were people who could fly. I would say that these people were very very rare in 1940. More rare than , say , ex army in 2022? let us have our history and let Ukraine make history today. We have and are overcoming evil despots. That is the connection.
The Nazis from Naziland?
Thank you ❤ RIIP HEROS.
it was a very good war stories to watch i will watch a gain