Explain why Britain was able to continue to hold out against Germany from June 1940 until the end of June 1943 Essay Example

Explain why Britain was able to continue to hold out against Germany from June 1940 until the end of June 1943 Essay Example Explain why Britain was able to continue to hold out against Germany from June 1940 until the end of June 1943 Essay Explain why Britain was able to continue to hold out against Germany from June 1940 until the end of June 1943 Essay The Germans attempted on many occasions through different strategies and offences to invade and gain superiority over Britain. However, various factors such as technology, tactics, weapons, leadership and overseas aid from the U.S, contributed greatly to Britain being able to hold out against Germany from June 1940 until the end of June 1943.Technology played an immense part in both the Battle of Britain and the Battle of the Atlantic. Both battles were crucial in the survival of British independence but for very different reasons. A victory in the battle of the Atlantic allowed Britain to maintain vital contacts and supply routes from America, which was critical at that time of need. The battle of Britain ensured air superiority over Britain, which was essential in stopping a German ground invasion. One of the technological advancements unique to Britain (invented by Robert Watson-Watt) was radar. The development of radar had been going on since 1935 in dead secrecy under the cover of RDF radio-direction finding. The radar worked by transmitting radio waves that bounced back off approaching aircraft. Experienced radar operators could accurately estimate the size and speed of an approaching aircraft. In previous campaigns, the Germans had been able to destroy most of their enemies aircraft on the ground.Britains investment in radar in the 1930s meant the R.A.F planes were not caught on the ground as the Luftwaffe approached and were able to get fighter pilots into the air and direct them to intercept enemy attacks. Radar totally transformed the ability of defence to anticipate and thus defeat a bomber attack. The German intelligence however, was poor as they did not attempt in any real depth to develop the same technology as Britain and they did not realize how important radar was. Consequently they were unable to gain control of the skies and had to delay invasion plans. Short wave radio also contributed greatly to Britains success in the Battle of Atlantic as it could pick up U-boats on the surface, which previously proved to be elusive. In the year of 1942, 1661 Destroyers and Convoys were lost but after the use of short wave radio, British losses dropped drastically. It linked ships and aircraft, which were fighting U-boats and enabled them to get in touch with their onshore commanders who made use of the latest intelligence information. Radar and short wave radio were an important technical break playing an essential part in Britains success.Leadership on both sides played a priceless role in determining the survival of Britain. Goering, head of the Luftwaffe was very shortsighted as a tactician; many of his decisions contained major practical flaws. He was blind to reality and guilty of misplaced over confidence. He did not really understand how modern air warfare worked and regularly shifted the focus of attacks, causing confusion among pilots. Hitlers poor prioritisation was also a significant help to the British. His fear of Russ ian power led to an increasing interest in creating Lebensraum in the East.As Russia became his main concern, Britain was only considered as a secondary target, which enabled them to hold out longer against the Germans because less attacks were focused on them. Britains success in the Battle of the Atlantic was also due to Hitlers bad decision of keeping the U-Boat fleet in Norway in order to protect German supply routes instead of putting the full force in the Atlantic. He feared that the destruction of his armed forces in a war campaign against the British would ruin his chances in a successful war offensive against the Russians, which he regarded as more important. His weak hope of Britain surrendering was shattered when Churchill refused to strike a deal with him. Churchill had learnt well from World War One about the importance of taking control of the Ministry of Defence. Churchill brought the nation together in a time of panic and crisis when Britain was under invasion. His p assionate speeches about the bravery of British soldiers boosted the morale and courage of people during the Blitz.He introduced Lord Breaverbrook onto the scene of aircraft production because he realized the necessity for a high rate of industrial production, especially that of much needed fighter planes. Though anti-communist, he was pragmatic in quickly acknowledging Soviet Russia as a partner once Hitler had invaded. Churchills role in gaining U.S support was vital as although he knew Britain would be able to resist Hitlers armies, complete victory would be impossible without financial aid, supplies and weapons from the U.S. British success in the Mediterranean was largely due to U.S grants and weapons. U.S Shermans were very powerful tanks, which more than matched their German counterparts. Churchills invaluable knowledge as a military leader as well as prime minister made him realize that diplomatic ties with the U.S was necessary in coping with the German invasion.In terms of weapons, Britain had the upper hand in the Battle of Britain. Luftwaffe bombers were too small and they did not cause enough damage to their targets to put them completely out of action. German fighter planes also only had enough fuel on board to guarantee them thirty minutes of flying time over England. Air Chief Marshall Sir Hugh Dowding led the R.A.F. He had been planning Britains air defence system since 1936 and had brought in many important technical developments such as bullet-proof windscreens and command and communication systems which could be quickly and effectively directed to meet enemy attacks. The Luftwaffe had plans to build long-range heavy bombers but Goerrings poor financial planning meant that they were incapable of being followed through. This was fortunate for Britain; as such bombers could have devastated airfields and aircraft factories. The main R.A.F fighter planes were the Spitfires and the Hawker Hurricane, both having eight .303 inch machine guns. They were more than a match for the Luftwaffe aircraft.Only the Messerchschmitt 109 (20mm cannons and two 7.9mm machine guns) could compare with the Spitfire. R.A.F fighters were organised into regions so that they could meet attacks quickly, even if they came from different directions. In the battle of the Atlantic, corvettes were small warships of less than one thousand tons created new capability for the royal navy. The occupation of Iceland also gave the British valuable Atlantic bases from which to launch new air operations against the German destroyers and surfacing U-Boat. Another crucial weapon invented by the British, was the Hedgehog. They gave destroyers the new option of dropping depth charges at the front of the ship (as well as the side), which could combat the preferred attacking option of incoming U-boats. Before the invention of the Hedgehog, the defensive capabilities of the British destroyers had been severely limited solely to a side on depth charge attack on the U-bo ats. It is clear that Britains weapons were a lot more sophisticated than the Germans, which consequently turned out to be a major factor that greatly contributed to their survival during the war.With the aid of these new weapons and technological advancements, Britains tactical war could also change and advance. The main priority for the British in the Battle of the Atlantic was to fight the U-boats. Special support groups of destroyers were created, fitted with radar and listening equipment to pick up radio signals of U-boats. Hitler and the German Navy were very unprepared for the war. Rommel, Germans Military commander was only given four divisions of troops because it was not considered to be a high priority as the Russian invasion was more of a concern to Hitler. The German navy had few battle ships, cruisers and destroyers and the Blitzkrieg tactics that had been working in France and Poland were not possible due to the channel. The Luftwaffe changed tactics from air attacks on the naval and air bases, to attack main British cities. (Including Belfast, Portsmouth, Hull, Plymouth and London).Their aim was to interrupt industrial production and undermine morale and they succeeded in doing so. However, in the long run, it was a necessary sacrifice as it gave time to the R.A.F to recuperate their forces, regain control of the skies and prevent any further invasion. British tactics in the Atlantic were to fight U-Boats and make sure convoys carrying vital supplies were not destroyed. Fortunately, from late 1941 onwards, British code breakers at Bletchley Park got better at decoding German codes. Breaking codes enabled them to know the whereabouts of U-Boats and so convoys could be guided away from the U-Boat wolf packs. Consequently, between May 1942 and May 1943, Britain managed to steer out of 175 convoys across the Atlantic without any interference from U-Boats. The success of Britains tactics and the failure of Germanys proved to be a key factor in Brita in holding out against them.In conclusion, Britains ability to hold out against Germany was partly due to U.S financial aid and material support, along with failure from the German tactics, Hitlers poor leadership and weapons. However, without Britains tactical thinking, weapons and great leadership, it would never have been possible for them to keep their independence.