[Doug64]

This is the standard history and I don't doubt that Dowding was feeling massive pressure. But there was zero chance of Goering breaking fighter command. Yes if he'd continued with his previous tactics, fighter command might have been forced to pull back their fighters from the most forward air bases, but there was no chance of Goering achieving the level of air superiority necessary to launch an invasion. Of course there were two further problems. The Germans lacked the transport fleet for an amphibious assault and they lacked the surface fleet to defend it.

Sealion was a pipe dream. Never in the field of human conflict, have so many been so frightened, by such a none existent threat by so few.

I took a look into this, whether the Luftwaffe could have gained air superiority if they’d stayed focused on the airfields and radar stations, and found opinions divided. OTOH, I also found a suggestion that if the Luftwaffe had gained the air superiority they needed and Operation Sealion went forward, it might had led to catastrophic failure for the Germans—even with that air superiority, the Luftwaffe was unlikely to have been able to protect the sealift from the Royal Navy, not well enough. The result would likely have been 100,000 German soldiers dead or captured and Europe’s river transport (a vital part of the continent’s economy) devastated.

[Potemkin]

I took a look into this, whether the Luftwaffe could have gained air superiority if they’d stayed focused on the airfields and radar stations, and found opinions divided. OTOH, I also found a suggestion that if the Luftwaffe had gained the air superiority they needed and Operation Sealion went forward, it might had led to catastrophic failure for the Germans—even with that air superiority, the Luftwaffe was unlikely to have been able to protect the sealift from the Royal Navy, not well enough. The result would likely have been 100,000 German soldiers dead or captured and Europe’s river transport (a vital part of the continent’s economy) devastated.

Operation Sealion was likely a gigantic bluff on Hitler’s part, to force Britain to the negotiating table. After all, nothing short of a threatened invasion of the British mainland could have forced this. That threat did not necessarily have to be completely credible, but it had to at least exist. After all, it worked on Lord Halifax. But Churchill, of course, was made of sterner stuff.

Hitler always, it seems to me, lacked the killer instinct when it came to Britain. He would put on his devil mask, but when the moment came he would never commit himself to destroying us. Hitler saw the British Empire as a necessary part of his ‘New World Order’ after a successful conclusion to the War, so destroying us was never really on his ‘To Do’ list. Russia, of course, was a different matter….

[Rich]

So I invite you to take a look at this short article: The Nazi Party's lean years, 1924-1929

However, the period up to 1929 is known as the Nazi Party’s ‘lean years’ because two apparently contradictory things were happening to it:

it was growing in size – its membership increased from 27,000 in 1925 to 130,000 in 1929
but it struggled to win seats in the Reichstag

What is the glaring omission from this article? Or perhaps I should say what is the omission from this article that should be glaring?

[Doug64]

September 18, Wednesday

Despite bombs, London stays defiant

The Luftwaffe returns to London in daylight today, but even after two days’ rest following its defeat last Sunday, it can only put seventy heavily escorted bombers into the air in three waves, and they achieve little.

However, the bombs continue to rain down on the capital at night, with the drone of some 230 bombers making every night hideous. Unable to pinpoint their targets, they drop their bombs at random, causing terrible damage and casualties in the streets and among civilians.

Some of London’s most famous landmarks have been damaged or destroyed. Eight City churches have been hit. One bomb, weighing a ton, lies unexploded outside the west door of St. Paul’s Cathedral, where Royal Engineers bomb disposal experts are working on it.

The West End, Downing Street, the Law Courts, and the House of Lords have all been hit by high explosives or incendiaries. But the ordinary people are taking the brunt of the attack. Sheltering in the Underground, they still raise the Union Jack over the rubble of their homes or declare “Business as usual” on handwritten signs nailed to the wreckage of their shops and businesses.

The King and Queen, who have been bombed twice in Buckingham Palace, have made several visits to the East End, where they have been greeted sympathetically as fellow sufferers of German barbarism. When Churchill, cigar clenched in his teeth, visits the bombed-out areas, he gets a clear message from the people: “Give it ‘em back.”

[Potemkin]

[Doug64]

Operation Sealion was likely a gigantic bluff on Hitler’s part, to force Britain to the negotiating table.

I have to disagree. True, all indications are that Hitler was less than enthusiastic about destroying Great Britain and would have been delighted by Churchill offering to negotiate a peace. But I think that, lacking that offer, he would have invaded if the opportunity had presented itself. Mind, if that invasion resulted in such an offer--to include a withdrawal of German troops from the island--he might have accepted that as well.

[Doug64]

September 21, Saturday

Bomb disposal teams: brave new heroes of the Home Front

“Suicide Squad” reads a cheerful handwritten sign on the back of one of the vans driven by men of the Bomb Disposals Section of the Royal Engineers. Typically, they make light of the mortally dangerous tasks that are all part of a day’s work.

On September 17th, it was announced that four members of the section are to be given the Medal of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in recognition of their bravery. One of the awards goes to Lieutenant E.W. Reynolds for his work in defusing time bombs. Twice in a fortnight, he dealt with fuses in delayed-action bombs that were still ticking, despite the imminent likelihood of explosion. Lieutenant Talbot is receiving the award for having carried a live time bomb on his shoulder for 200 yards to a safe place while keeping his men under cover.

Lance-Sergeant W.J. Button is being decorated for a story with a less happy ending. He and his team were ordered to continue excavating an unexploded bomb that was likely to explode at any minute. He persevered with great coolness. Finally, it did explode, killing five members of the team.

Pilots who came to Britain from occupied Europe to help fight Nazis in the air

Miroslav Liskutin is a young Czech pilot who escaped to France when the Germans invaded his country. The French put him and fifty other aviators into their Foreign Legion until April when he transferred to an air squadron near Bordeaux, where aircraft were sabotaged.

Liskutin now flies with the RAF, whose Czech airmen (in three squadrons, 310 to 312) fought their first action in the big battle of August 26th, shooting down a Dornier bomber and a Messerschmitt Bf110 fighter. His story can be repeated many times. Poles, Yugoslavs, Norwegians, Danes—even, it is rumored, some Germans—have joined the RAF Volunteer Reserve in the battle to stop Hitler.

The Polish Air Force, with its own London HQ, will now retain its separate identity under general RAF command. Its 300 pilots, who have two years of training, an average of 500 flying hours, and a burning hatred of Germans, are a huge asset. The first two Polish squadrons, 302 and 303, flying from Northolt, Middlesex, are already claiming many kills.

Some volunteers have a talent for flying but still need training. About 700 Norwegians are at an air school near Toronto. Neutral Ireland is another small European country represented in the air. The RAF is delighted to have Paddy Finucane as an emerging ace.

Regardless of nationality, volunteers are desperately needed. The aircraft industry can produce more than 200 aircraft a week, making good most of the airframe losses, but pilot attrition is a different matter. Such casualties, killed and disabled, are running at 120 a week. Survivors are exhausted, premature veterans of more than one crash who (like Ginger Lacey) often conceal burns and other injuries. The total fighter pilot strength is 840 pilots, and the trainers produce only 260 pilots a month. Some squadrons needing 26 pilots have only 16.

[Doug64]

September 22, Sunday

French Indochina in Japanese air deal

With just two hours to go before its ultimatum expires, Japan has gained a strategic foothold in French Indochina. This allows it to station troops and aircraft in Tongking to prevent supplies from reaching China from the south.

The decision by the Governor-General, Admiral Decoux, to capitulate to the Japanese demands leads to an immediate protest from China. Under the deal, Japan can use three airbases in Indochina and station 62,000 troops there.

King gives George Cross to civilian heroes

King George has instituted a new decoration called the George Cross for “deeds of valor by civilian men and women in all walks of life.” It will rank with the Victoria Cross and be worn in front of all other decorations.

The king himself announces the award in a broadcast from Buckingham Palace during an air raid this night. “It is London that is for the time being bearing the brunt of the enemy’s spite,” he tells the nation. “I am speaking to you now from Buckingham Palace, with its honorable scars, to Londoners first of all. The queen and I have seen many of the places which have been most heavily bombed.”

He thanks the ARP workers of the capital “who work on regardless of danger, though the sirens have sounded, and all who night after night uncomplainingly endure discomfort, hardship, and peril in their homes and shelters. The walls of London may be battered but the spirit of the Londoner stands resolute and undismayed.” The George Medal is also being instituted for civilians to rank with decorations for gallantry. Bomb disposal men are expected to be among those to receive the GC.

U-boat fears grow in North Atlantic

The Royal Navy is anxious about the growing U-boat menace in the Atlantic. Merchant convoys carrying essential supplies from the US are obvious—and vulnerable—targets: convoy HX-72, for instance, has lost twelve ships in the last two days. The U-boat threat isn’t confined to civilian shipping; last month, an evacuee ship, the Volendam, was torpedoed. All lives were saved, but on September 17th, 77 children sailing to Canada were among 325 who died when a U-boat sank the City of Benares.

[Doug64]

September 23, Monday

Vichy France hits back: Gibraltar bombed

The Rock of Gibraltar is hit by bombs for the first time in the war—dropped by a former ally. It was inevitable, after the British operation in Dakar, that the Vichy government would have to make some reprisal. The 100-bomber raid should wreck the port, but a large number of the French pilots appear to deliberately drop their loads into the sea, and a larger number of the fuses of the bombs that do land have apparently been tampered with so that they don’t explode. The authorities will now strenuously apply themselves to retrieving the unexploded bombs, but these are the least of their problems. The diplomatic efforts of Hitler to bring Spain into the Axis and President Roosevelt to browbeat Spain back into neutrality are most concentrating their minds. If Spain does come in, then Gibraltar’s anti-aircraft gun toll of three planes this night isn’t a good sign. Gibraltar remains Britain’s most vital strategic outpost, a key base for convoy escorts. Now, with Mussolini’s fleet menacing the Mediterranean, any threat to the rock must be viewed very seriously.

[Potemkin]

September 23, Monday

Vichy France hits back: Gibraltar bombed

The Rock of Gibraltar is hit by bombs for the first time in the war—dropped by a former ally. It was inevitable, after the British operation in Dakar, that the Vichy government would have to make some reprisal. The 100-bomber raid should wreck the port, but a large number of the French pilots appear to deliberately drop their loads into the sea, and a larger number of the fuses of the bombs that do land have apparently been tampered with so that they don’t explode. The authorities will now strenuously apply themselves to retrieving the unexploded bombs, but these are the least of their problems. The diplomatic efforts of Hitler to bring Spain into the Axis and President Roosevelt to browbeat Spain back into neutrality are most concentrating their minds. If Spain does come in, then Gibraltar’s anti-aircraft gun toll of three planes this night isn’t a good sign. Gibraltar remains Britain’s most vital strategic outpost, a key base for convoy escorts. Now, with Mussolini’s fleet menacing the Mediterranean, any threat to the rock must be viewed very seriously.

Having an Empire turned out to be jolly useful during WWII. Lol.

[Doug64]

September 25, Wednesday

De Gaulle abandons attack on Dakar

The fleet of British and Free French warships that have been shelling Dakar for two days sails away into the Atlantic mist. On the city’s street, the pro-Vichy police are rounding up the usual suspects. The Allied invasion of Dakar has failed, and Senegal’s Black middle class, which has demonstrated in support of General de Gaulle, is paying the price.

The pro-Allied street demonstrations and an unsuccessful naval mutiny persuaded the Allies that Senegal was fertile ground for the Free French. And so it was. Then the pro-Allied Governor was replaced by Governor Boisson, and the colony was purged of Free French sympathizers. Worse, the amphibious force arrived two days after three French cruisers had docked, bringing reliable Vichy reinforcements—although the Royal Navy did prevent several more French warships from sailing further south to overawe the Free French supporters in French Equatorial Africa. For the Royal Navy, failure is bad news since it fears that Dakar may become a German U-boat base.

A landing at Dakar and an air attack by planes from HMS Ark Royal were both resisted and failed. Throughout both days, shore batteries and the immobilized battleship Richelieu engaged in shelling with the battleship HMS Barham. Finally, de Gaulle has been forced to admit defeat—this time.