Battle of Britain 1940

“Affectingly written . . . a bittersweet memorial to the unheralded casualties of 1940 and their loved ones.” —Michigan War Studies Review

The summer of 1940 remains a pivotal moment in modern British history that still inspires immense national pride and a global fascination. The Fall of France was catastrophic. Britain stood alone and within range of German air attack. America, with its vast resources, was neutral, Hitler’s forces unbeaten, the outlook for Britain bleak. As Winston Churchill rightly predicted, “The Battle of Britain is about to begin.”

Famously, Churchill mobilized the English language, emboldening the nation with rousing rhetoric. In this darkest of hours, Churchill told the people that this was, in fact, their “Finest Hour,” a time of unprecedented courage and defiance. Connecting the crucial battle with Shakespeare’s heroic Henry V and Agincourt, Churchill also immortalized Fighter Command’s young aircrew as the “Few”—to whom so many owed everything. The Few comprised nearly 3,000 aircrew, 544 of which gave their lives during the Battle of Britain’s sixteen weeks of high drama.

Arguably, however, the fighting went on both before and after the official dates of the battle, and many, including civilians, seamen, and ground staff, gave their lives whose names are not included among the Few, a fact not overlooked in this groundbreaking book. In this unique study, veteran historian Dilip Sarkar explores the individual stories of a wide selection of those lost during the “Finest Hour,” examining their all-too-brief lives and sharing their tragic stories, told here in full for the first time. Also included is the story of a German fighter pilot, indicating the breadth of investigation involved. Researched with the full cooperation of the families concerned, this work is a crucial contribution to the Battle of Britain’s bibliography.