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The Battle of Britain: The Myth and the Reality Paperback – April 17, 2002
byRichard Overy Ph.D.(Author)
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"A concise, penetrating account....This stirring book inspires an admiration for British courage."―New York Times Book Review
The battle of Britain pitted the Hurricanes and Spitfires of the Royal Air Force against the Messerschmitts of Hitler's Luftwaffe in the skies over England in 1940. It was immortalized in Churchill's words, "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few," but it has since been debunked by revisionists as an inconclusive and even strategically flawed encounter for the British. In this assessment of the battle, Richard Overy restores the historical balance. He delivers shrewd judgments on the critical elements for both sides, from strategy to leadership, command organization, communications, and training to the technology of fighters, bombers, and radar. Overy shows that even if the popular myth overshoots the mark, the significance of the battle remains undiminished in the light of realistic judgments. A necessary battle, it marked the end of Germany's string of victories, forestalled a German invasion, and kept Britain in the war. Tables and maps- Print length192 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherW. W. Norton & Company
- Publication dateApril 17, 2002
- Dimensions5.5 x 0.6 x 8.3 inches
- ISBN-100393322971
- ISBN-13978-0393322972
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Editorial Reviews
Review
A concise, penetrating account....This stirring book inspires an admiration for British courage. --New York Times Book Review
About the Author
Richard Overy is the author of many outstanding histories of World War II, includingRain of Ruin: Tokyo, Hiroshima, and the Surrender of Japan. His study of Hitler and Stalin,The Dictators, won the Wolfson History Prize. He lives in England and Italy.
Product details
- Publisher : W. W. Norton & Company
- Publication date : April 17, 2002
- Language : English
- Print length : 192 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0393322971
- ISBN-13 : 978-0393322972
- Item Weight : 8 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.6 x 8.3 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,785,306 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,182 inGreat Britain History (Books)
- #2,440 inWorld War II History (Books)
- #2,818 inMilitary Aviation History (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
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- Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2001Format: HardcoverVerified PurchaseOne of the most controversial and yet simply disarming facts about the short-lived but furiously fought air battle over the skies of England in the summer and early fall of 1940 , according to famed British historian Richard Overy in this diverting and captivating study of the now-fabled Battle Of Britain is that it was in reality not so much the marvelous and unequivocal victory as it is now regarded much as it was a stalemate. A wondrous, unlikely and fateful stalemate, to be sure, one on which the future of the so-called free world hung in the balance, but in reality it was also much more a war of perceptions and brinksmanship than has been commonly acknowledged or understood.
In matter of fact, according to Overy, the air battle over Britain was never likely to have been followed by a Nazi invasion force, for the German forces lacked all the necessary marine transportation and logistics support to prosecute such an attempt to invade Britain. As William Shirer pointed out long ago in "The Rise And Fall Of The Third Reich", Hitler never had much stomach for a cross-channel invasion, and the German General Staff never ordered all the necessary shipbuilding needed to mount a serious invasion attempt. In addition, the forces of the British realm were never so badly outnumbered as was previously believed, and the Royal Air Force (RAF) in fact had superior fighters and better logistics support that did their German opponents, not to mention the limited battle time for German pilots who had to ferry themselves back over the channel after doing battle, which provided the RAF with a key tactical advantage.
Yet Overy's purpose here is clearly not intended to denigrate or downplay the outright heroism, courage, and sacrifice of the RAF in its service to the English people over the skies of Britain that fateful year, but rather to celebrate the actual, fact-based history of those fateful events. Here in the Battle of Britain we find the first signs that the famed "unstoppable" Nazi juggernaut was not infallible, that it could be met on its own terms and defeated, plane by plane, raid by raid, and campaign by campaign, and denied its aggressive objectives by a determined and resourceful opponent. Also, by denying the Nazis the complete victory over its western European rivals it desired, the British forced Hitler into making a fatal blunder by opening up a two-front war with the invasion of the Soviet Union the next spring, forcing him to leave millions of troops along the western wall he could have otherwise used against the Russians in Operation Barbarossa.
Also, as Overy illustrates so convincingly, the British actions in the skies over their homeland convinced many in the American Government to take up Britain's cause, and this too had fateful consequences for the eventual outcome of the war. Finally, he argues that the consequences of turning back the attempts by the Nazis to gain air superiority over the skies of Britain galvanized and energized the British people with a new sense of vigor and purpose, and this was tremendously important in helping them to stay the course during a very difficult and trying period of time following the end of the battle of Britain itself. This is a great addition to the volumes of material already available on the Battle Of Britain, and presents the facts in a new and interesting way that makes it an important work which acts to clarify and modify what we already know about the events of 1940. I recommend this book, and hope you enjoy it as much as I did. - Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2013Format: PaperbackVerified Purchasea brief and succinct description of the "battle of britain", where the facts are highlighted and myths debunked. The thing that amazed me was the brevity of the actual battle and the numbers of aircraft and crews involved (especially in the context of the later war years when the US was fully mobilized). An excellent book, that given the degree of aura surrounding what was one of the crucial turning points in the war, provides a factual rendition of the context.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2007Anyone interested in the Battle of Britain in the summer and fall of
1940 should start with this book, probably the best concise analysis of an event that ranks
high in legend but low in real meaning.
It would be nice if all history could be introduced in this short but beautiful
manner. Only a master of a subject knows enough about it to be concise and relevant, and
Overy has studiously earned his credentials. Without slighting events or participants, he
explains how the "Battle" was more of a public relations triumph than a decisive victory. In
1940, the focus was on surviving the "Blitz" which claimed the lives of 40,000 Londoners,
not "the few" who fought in the air and lost 443 pilots in combat.
Unfortunately, he overlooks two significant factors. First was Dunkirk; the
RAF lost heavily but the Luftwaffe was unable to stop the evacuation. The RAF fighters
were operating at the limits of its effective range, the same problem that defeated the
Luftwaffe over England. Also, the evacuation showed the inherent weakness of the
Luftwaffe as a stand-alone weapon. The second factor is the 1941 nvasion of Crete, with
the loss of 147 Ju 52 transports and severe damage to 150 others despite minimal RAF
opposition. It indicates the likely fate of any attempt to invade England.
In brief, if the Battle of Britain is a legend, then the German military in World
War II was a giant bluff backed by terror and uncertainty. As Overy points out in his other
books, the Germany military was driven to exhaustion after which it used a World War I
defense. Victories were less the quality of troops than the panic of enemies; Overy deals
well with the incipient panic in Britain in the summer of 1940, plus the growing confidence
as the "We can take it" theme turned into "We can dish it out, too."
In brief, this is a masterful account of an era still deeply shrouded by the fog of
propaganda and the legends of war. To cite one very relevant example; to this day, Prime
Minister Neville Chamberlain is vilified by the legend of appeasement due to the Munich
conference of 1938. Instead, Overy credits him for launching the fighter production
program that saved Great Britain from defeat in World War II.
In conclusion, this is the best introduction yet to a complex but fascinating
period of history. It's a perfect start to Overy's other books on World War II.
Top reviews from other countries
- inkboyReviewed in the United Kingdom on August 24, 2016
5.0 out of 5 starsHitler was not handed an easy victory over this country
It's always refreshing to look at the facts. Nothing here detracts in any way from the sacrifice of those on both side who fought, and paid with their lives or their health. Ultimately the RAF was not defeated, Hitler was not handed an easy victory over this country, but as this account makes very clear, although it was not such overwhelming odds as was portrayed, RAF 'custom and practice' meant that many trained pilots were not used, when their experience as front line pilots would have evened the odds. More trained ground staff would have been useful too.
A concise statement of the balance of forces, freed from the mythology. A good short read. - HarvwinReviewed in Canada on October 3, 2024
4.0 out of 5 starsMyth Busting Review
Interesting and concise review of the BoB. The book addresses some of the historical myths that persist regarding the battle. I’m still not buying the threat that Germany could have successfully pulled off a seaborn invasion of Britain at any point. If they had tried, the war might have ended much quicker, and not in Germany’s favour! Short review of BoB worth a look. There are more detailed account’s out there. - JPMTReviewed in the United Kingdom on October 24, 2020
4.0 out of 5 starsGood Overview But Misses a Key Factor
The book covers all the key aspects of the BoB, but in my opinion understates the importance of the the British integrated air defense system, the first in the world. That fed all the radar and spotter information to a single control center which launched RAF fighters while the Germans were still en route then co-ordinated the air battles. - jon woodReviewed in Canada on October 19, 2015
3.0 out of 5 starsYay
It was wickedly awesome in many wickedly awesome ways and proved that the raf was wickedly awesome. The Luftwaffe although wickedly awesome in many ways had a wickedly awesome stupid leader which led to their wickedly awesome defeat - malcolmReviewed in the United Kingdom on February 4, 2021
5.0 out of 5 starsA small but useful bo0k about the battle.
An essential read with many facts for the historian. It highlights how well the young and inexperienced RAF pilots
did with inadequately armed aircraft up against the superb German air force Me109s.
