Battle of Britain
1940 CE · United Kingdom
The Battle of Britain was fought in 1940 CE in United Kingdom between United Kingdom vs Germany and Italy; decisive British victory; the first major campaign fought entirely by air forces.
Battle of Britain: quick facts
- Date
- 1940 CE
- Location
- United Kingdom
- Belligerents
- United Kingdom vs Germany and Italy
- Commanders
- Hugh Dowding and Keith Park vs Hermann Göring
- Result
- decisive British victory; the first major campaign fought entirely by air forces.
- Era
- 🪖 World Wars
- Quiz difficulty
- easy
What happened at the Battle of Britain?
The first major campaign fought entirely in the air saw the Royal Air Force defend Britain against the German Luftwaffe's attempt to gain air superiority as a precursor to invasion. Despite being heavily outnumbered, RAF Fighter Command's Spitfires and Hurricanes, aided by radar and brilliant tactics, inflicted unsustainable losses on the Luftwaffe. Churchill immortalized the RAF pilots with his famous tribute. Hitler indefinitely postponed Operation Sea Lion, his planned invasion of Britain.
Did you know?
At the height of the Battle of Britain, RAF Fighter Command was so short of pilots that some flew multiple sorties per day and slept in their cockpits between missions. Churchill's 'so few' numbered only about 2,900 aircrew.
Sources and further reading
- Battle of Britain on Wikipedia for the full account, historiography and primary sources.
- How BattleGuess compiles and checks battle facts: see the About page.
Entry last reviewed 26 September 2026.