On July 10, 1940, the German Luftwaffe begins bombing Britain, which marks the beginning of the Battle of Britain.
Bombing continues over major ports and cities in the United Kingdom for 3 months.
In Britain, the atmosphere is already causing concern in June 1940. In addition to the defeat in France, the British failed in their attempt to defend Norway from a German invasion. This led to the resignation of Neville Chamberlain as Prime Minister and the election of Winston Churchill.
Prime Minister Winston Churchill made many memorable speeches during World War II, but one of his most famous was his famous speech in which he used the words "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few", referring to the Allied pilots fighting against German pilots in the Battle of Britain.
The main objective of the German forces was to destroy the British air defenses, damage the country's industry and infrastructure, undermine the morale of the population, and thus force Britain to surrender or agree to a negotiated peace agreement. If the air campaign were to be successful, Hitler planned Operation Sea Lion - invasion of Great Britain by sea and air.
However, the Royal Air Force managed to repel the attacks and in the end the Luftwaffe did not break their defense. The losses of aircraft and aviators on the German side were significantly higher and “Sea Lion“ was postponed. Thus, the first major military campaign led entirely by air forces ended in failure for the Third Reich and is considered one of the turning points in the war.