We are fast approaching the 85th anniversary of the end of the Battle of Britain, so named by Sir Winston Churchill in a House of Commons speech where he indicated that the Battle of France was ended, and the Battle of Britain was about to begin.
He also coined the phrase ‘The Few’ who were the brave pilots that went head to head with the aggressors to our shores. This was to engage the public to support the RAF aircrew and come together as a united nation, indeed the ‘Spitfire fund’, which was collecting donations towards the cost of a new spitfire announced by Lord Beaverbrook to support the war effort collectively. The cost of a new fighter was 5,000 pounds, a large sum then, but deemed achievable in towns and small communities across the nation. In reality was they cost nearly 13,000 pounds which was a great deal of money in 1940.
Over the years there has been a friendly rivalry between the RAF and the Army as to which service contributed the most towards the enemy losses, according to the war diaries now available from the National Archives 300 enemy planes were shot down, 75 of these were from the 75th Heavy Anti Aircraft regiment around Dover with the control centre in the bowels of Dover castle. In reality the two worked together, the AA guns dispersed bomber formations, forcing them higher and leaving them vulnerable to RAF fighter attack. The RAF accounted for around 2,300 aircraft shot down during this period, from dawn til dusk they waited for the call, something fighting 4 or 5 times a day, very debilitating during a very long hot summer.
Whatever the arguments for and against between the 2 services, most of the participants have now drifted away and those remaining face old age with pride, they did a good job and should be incredibly proud, as should we a grateful nation for the suffering, fear and uncertainty of those bleak times.
Looking around now it would be hard to see any evidence of this activity, the former RAF Hawkinge once a front line fighter station is now a housing estate, only a museum stands testament to what happened there in 1940, the headstones in the graveyard tell an individual story. None of the original gun sites still exist from that era, only those created in 1941 for targeting enemy shipping are still evident such as the Capel Battery and Wanstone farm. If you visit Capel the Battle of Britain memorial is situated on the cliff top with its iconic stature of a fighter pilot sitting looking skywards out to sea. I commend this as a must visit site if you are in the area.
Time has moved on, the grass and undergrowth has engulfed history please remember those dark days of 1940, 3 generations ago and be thankful for their service.
One man’s story can be found here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Letters-John-F-Bennett/dp/1399976907
John F Bennett, Author, Blogger and Military Historian 
” They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old…”
Now that I have done so, life is less precious to me than it was for the young women, and many more men, who did not survive. (“Survival” is now trivialised, for all past unpleasant experiences.)
I have thought about it, and I hope that if really necessary, I would give up what is left of my life (hopefully another twenty years?), rather than stand by and let youngsters lose theirs.
It is easy for us, who have merely been scared by a Cuban Missile Crisis, or a covid pandemic killing some of our friends and relations, to forget that the middle-aged in 1939 had already known the horrors of the First World War. They knew first-hand what they were volunteering for, or conscripting young people into. They deemed it necessary because accepting Nazism, or for that matter Communism, would betray their parents and children alike.
Unfortunately our comfortable Wstern European islands have bred the luxury of complacency, with idealistic talk of “human rights” obscuring the harsh necessities and costs of food, clean air and water, security, freefom of speech, and defence against the international versions of school bullies.
A compulsory trip to the grim reminders of current, contemporary, deprivation and degradation should be an essential part of everyone’s education.
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