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May 26, 1940.
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Along roads lined with their
smashed and abandoned equipment,
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00:00:34,535 --> 00:00:38,914
British and French armies retreat to the
only Channel port still open to them:
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00:00:38,998 --> 00:00:41,250
Dunkirk.
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00:00:41,333 --> 00:00:43,961
Ten miles away, along the Channel coast,
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00:00:44,045 --> 00:00:48,049
German armour awaits
Hitler's orders to attack.
7
00:00:49,091 --> 00:00:50,843
On the Dunkirk beaches,
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00:00:50,926 --> 00:00:53,763
nearly half a million men -
British and French -
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face surrender, or the slim chance
of rescue by ships from England.
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There were masses of troops
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and they came down
in a sort of a V-shape
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00:02:02,164 --> 00:02:06,710
to a crocodile, semi-single file,
as they got near the water's edge.
13
00:02:06,794 --> 00:02:11,966
Of course, many of these soldiers were
going out up to their necks in water
14
00:02:12,049 --> 00:02:14,093
and climbing into, say,
minesweepers
15
00:02:14,176 --> 00:02:16,303
that could get in
nearly as close as that.
16
00:02:16,387 --> 00:02:19,598
Others on the beach were
embarking in the small boats.
17
00:02:19,682 --> 00:02:22,893
But there didn't seem to be
any panic or worry at all.
18
00:02:22,977 --> 00:02:25,646
One came across
lots of these small boats,
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many of them with perhaps
a dozen or so soldiers on board,
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00:02:30,067 --> 00:02:32,528
heading back for England resolutely.
21
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One quite often offered to
take their crews of soldiers off them
22
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so they could go back for more,
and they said:
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"No fear. We've got our 12 pongos, and
we're going back to England with them."
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00:02:43,581 --> 00:02:45,166
"You go and get your own."
25
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The beach was...
There were thousands of men,
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like Margate beach on a bank holiday.
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The troops was in a pretty bad state.
They were in a bad way.
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There was one man especially,
I shall always remember.
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He came on board -
he'd had his teeth blown out-
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00:03:04,643 --> 00:03:07,938
and he was holding a rifle
with a fixed bayonet.
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00:03:08,022 --> 00:03:09,940
We had to take the arms
off everyone,
32
00:03:10,024 --> 00:03:13,027
but we couldn't shift
the gun out of his hands.
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00:03:13,110 --> 00:03:17,573
His hands gripped it,
and they was... fixture.
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00:03:18,741 --> 00:03:22,745
A chap was on the beach, and then he
gets aboard a ship and thinks he's safe.
35
00:03:22,828 --> 00:03:25,122
But they really did think this.
They said:
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"England, home and beauty -
let us get there, boyo."
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We were most impressed.
They were tired.
38
00:03:31,754 --> 00:03:34,632
Most of them went to sleep.
39
00:03:37,635 --> 00:03:41,096
Our job was to stop enemy aircraft
getting at those troops
40
00:03:41,180 --> 00:03:46,227
because, believe me, if enemy aircraft
had superiority of the air at Dunkirk,
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00:03:46,352 --> 00:03:49,688
they would have massacred
those fellows on the beach.
42
00:03:49,772 --> 00:03:52,441
They had no guns,
they had no anti-aircraft.
43
00:03:52,524 --> 00:03:57,488
And German bombers
and German dive bombers - the Stukas -
44
00:03:57,613 --> 00:04:02,159
would have just murdered them. And
we couldn't have got those troops off.
45
00:04:02,243 --> 00:04:05,537
Another thing the Germans tried to do
was to sink the ships.
46
00:04:05,621 --> 00:04:09,541
They knew that the fellows
couldn't swim to England,
47
00:04:09,625 --> 00:04:11,710
so they had to try and get on the ships.
48
00:04:11,835 --> 00:04:16,840
And if they could sink these ships, the
British army would have been trapped.
49
00:04:21,428 --> 00:04:25,391
The RAF tried to keep the
German air force away from the beaches,
50
00:04:25,474 --> 00:04:29,687
but six destroyers
and over 200 craft were sunk.
51
00:04:33,023 --> 00:04:37,695
Fighter Command lost nearly half
its strength in the French campaign -
52
00:04:37,778 --> 00:04:40,447
100 planes
in the Dunkirk operations alone.
53
00:04:50,291 --> 00:04:52,835
Dunkirk was a major defeat,
54
00:04:52,918 --> 00:04:56,255
but the inspired efforts
of the Royal Navy and the little ships
55
00:04:56,338 --> 00:05:00,801
saved 330,000 British and French troops.
56
00:05:02,011 --> 00:05:04,305
For a week, the weather was fine,
57
00:05:04,388 --> 00:05:07,391
and the German army was held off.
58
00:05:07,474 --> 00:05:12,229
I don't think they thought they
would get them off. That's my opinion.
59
00:05:12,313 --> 00:05:14,648
But it was an act of God that they did.
60
00:05:14,732 --> 00:05:18,360
The weather was good,
the sea was like a millpond,
61
00:05:18,444 --> 00:05:21,030
and this was a great help to everybody.
62
00:05:21,113 --> 00:05:24,783
If it had been rough water, you'd
have never got them off of Dunkirk,
63
00:05:24,867 --> 00:05:28,954
because when those rollers
go up that beach, they go.
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00:05:29,079 --> 00:05:32,458
Any moment,
a breakthrough by the German army
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00:05:32,541 --> 00:05:34,752
could have stopped the whole operation.
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00:05:34,835 --> 00:05:38,547
I don't think,
despite the valiant endeavours
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00:05:38,630 --> 00:05:42,634
of the British and French troops
who were keeping the Germans back,
68
00:05:42,718 --> 00:05:46,847
that they could have stopped the might
of the German armour getting through
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00:05:46,930 --> 00:05:49,391
if Hitler had so wanted to do it.
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00:05:50,934 --> 00:05:55,272
What was left of Dunkirk
surrendered on June 4.
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00:05:55,356 --> 00:05:58,275
Thousands of troops
could not be rescued.
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00:06:01,236 --> 00:06:03,655
A fortnight later,
France stopped fighting,
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00:06:03,781 --> 00:06:07,493
and the British prime minister,
Churchill, broadcast to the world:
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What General Weygand had
called the Battle of France is over.
75
00:06:13,082 --> 00:06:17,169
The Battle of Britain
is about to begin.
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00:06:17,252 --> 00:06:23,175
Hitler knows that he will have to break
us in this island, or lose the war.
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00:06:23,675 --> 00:06:28,222
If we can stand up to him,
all Europe may be free,
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00:06:28,305 --> 00:06:34,478
and the life of the world may move
forward into broad, sunlit uplands.
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00:06:35,270 --> 00:06:37,147
But if we fail,
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00:06:37,231 --> 00:06:43,237
then the whole world will
sink into the abyss of a new dark age.
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00:06:44,363 --> 00:06:48,242
Let us therefore
brace ourselves to our duty...
82
00:06:49,201 --> 00:06:51,829
and so bear ourselves
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00:06:51,912 --> 00:06:56,500
that if the British Empire
and its Commonwealth
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00:06:56,625 --> 00:06:58,794
last for a thousand years,
85
00:06:58,877 --> 00:07:01,213
men will still say:
86
00:07:02,214 --> 00:07:05,259
"This was their finest hour."
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00:07:21,316 --> 00:07:24,778
Britain prepared
to face immediate invasion.
88
00:07:24,862 --> 00:07:28,449
A new evacuation of children began
from the south and east-coast areas
89
00:07:28,532 --> 00:07:31,410
where a German landing
might be expected.
90
00:07:34,496 --> 00:07:37,875
Some parents sent their children
overseas to safety.
91
00:07:37,958 --> 00:07:41,253
But this was stopped
when a U-boat sank a British liner
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with 90 children on board.
93
00:07:50,971 --> 00:07:54,516
To guard against invasion, over a
million men not required by the forces
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00:07:54,641 --> 00:07:58,020
volunteered to form the Home Guard.
95
00:08:10,073 --> 00:08:13,577
They drilled with broomsticks
as there were no rifles to spare,
96
00:08:13,660 --> 00:08:18,040
and rehearsed bloodthirsty defences
against a German attack.
97
00:08:39,811 --> 00:08:44,024
The regular army's training
seems to have impressed the newsreels.
98
00:08:44,107 --> 00:08:47,319
They have turned
kick-starter pushers.
99
00:08:47,402 --> 00:08:50,447
Shanks's pony has given way
to a spanking motorbike.
100
00:08:50,531 --> 00:08:54,660
The left-right, left-right blokes
have both feet off the ground.
101
00:08:54,743 --> 00:08:57,329
They're part of Britain's
mighty mobile mounties,
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00:08:57,412 --> 00:09:01,959
all keen to welcome Adolf when he drops
in for a cup of tea and a cream bun.
103
00:09:02,042 --> 00:09:04,962
A battalion of infantry on wheels
is on exercise -
104
00:09:05,045 --> 00:09:09,299
a swift-moving striking force that
will do the enemy a bit of no good.
105
00:09:09,383 --> 00:09:14,137
They learn under conditions
they might meet with on active service.
106
00:09:14,221 --> 00:09:20,018
Up and down they go, but unlike the Hun
they're always on the level.
107
00:09:21,228 --> 00:09:24,398
The army had brought back
their rifles from Dunkirk,
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00:09:24,481 --> 00:09:28,235
but almost everything else
had been abandoned in France.
109
00:09:28,318 --> 00:09:33,615
In June, the only fully-equipped
division in Britain was Canadian.
110
00:09:33,699 --> 00:09:38,120
I remember in June going down
to the Southeast corner of Britain,
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00:09:38,203 --> 00:09:40,581
where General Thorne was in command -
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00:09:40,664 --> 00:09:44,209
Kent, Surrey, Sussex,
that sort of area,
113
00:09:44,293 --> 00:09:48,714
a possible landing area for the Germans,
if they were going to attempt it-
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00:09:48,797 --> 00:09:53,260
and I remember sending a memorandum
to Winston which must be in his papers.
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00:09:53,343 --> 00:09:55,762
If I remember right,
I said something like this:
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the troops were in very good heart
and very well trained,
117
00:09:59,433 --> 00:10:06,148
but there was
no antitank weapon of any kind,
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00:10:06,231 --> 00:10:09,735
no antitank guns, and no tanks.
119
00:10:09,818 --> 00:10:14,197
That was in the area where, if the
Germans landed, they might be expected.
120
00:10:14,281 --> 00:10:16,533
The cupboard was bare.
121
00:10:17,159 --> 00:10:20,621
The king rejoiced
that Britain stood alone,
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00:10:20,704 --> 00:10:23,290
with no more allies to pamper.
123
00:10:23,373 --> 00:10:26,418
The head of Fighter Command,
Sir Hugh Dowding, agreed.
124
00:10:26,501 --> 00:10:30,297
He had lost too many planes
helping the French.
125
00:10:31,632 --> 00:10:36,219
Station names and signposts were
removed to baffle invading Germans.
126
00:10:36,345 --> 00:10:39,056
The effect was to baffle
British travellers.
127
00:10:39,723 --> 00:10:45,228
Antitank barriers deprived the Germans
or an easy advance along the railways.
128
00:10:50,734 --> 00:10:55,656
In the invasion areas, the countryside
disappeared under coils of barbed wire.
129
00:10:55,781 --> 00:11:00,118
The beaches, too,
were wired to below low-water mark.
130
00:11:00,202 --> 00:11:03,747
JB Priestley remembers
a visit to the seaside.
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00:11:03,830 --> 00:11:09,628
I went down one hot summer day -
late summer -
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00:11:09,711 --> 00:11:13,840
to one of the seaside resorts
on the Kent coast.
133
00:11:14,883 --> 00:11:17,469
The last time I visited,
it was packed out -
134
00:11:17,552 --> 00:11:22,099
the beaches absolutely crammed,
and all the fun of the fair going on.
135
00:11:22,182 --> 00:11:28,355
Then to see it on this
strange, bright, empty day,
136
00:11:28,438 --> 00:11:33,276
the beaches deserted,
a lot of barbed wire all over the place,
137
00:11:33,402 --> 00:11:39,741
I felt then that, in a way, this was
a kind of symbol of what people felt,
138
00:11:39,825 --> 00:11:45,580
and that they were ready
to abandon this for the time being
139
00:11:45,664 --> 00:11:48,166
in order to get on with the war.
140
00:11:50,752 --> 00:11:54,506
Churchill was everywhere,
no longer a suspect politician,
141
00:11:54,589 --> 00:11:58,135
but the living embodiment
of the British will to resist.
142
00:11:58,218 --> 00:12:00,470
It was a situation
he seemed to revel in,
143
00:12:00,554 --> 00:12:02,848
describing a vivid picture of himself
144
00:12:02,931 --> 00:12:07,227
leading a last-man defence
of a devastated Whitehall.
145
00:12:07,310 --> 00:12:12,149
Immediately Churchill became prime
minister, the pace in Whitehall changed.
146
00:12:12,232 --> 00:12:16,611
People started not merely to think fast,
but to act fast.
147
00:12:16,695 --> 00:12:20,741
Distinguished civil servants could be
seen running down the passages.
148
00:12:20,824 --> 00:12:23,618
Churchill himself
was physically very energetic.
149
00:12:23,702 --> 00:12:27,414
He would suddenly make the most
extraordinary and energetic sorties.
150
00:12:27,497 --> 00:12:30,959
He would inspect troops,
marching at great speed down the ranks,
151
00:12:31,042 --> 00:12:34,212
and outpacing
all the younger men following him.
152
00:12:34,296 --> 00:12:38,842
I remember one evening he said he was
going to inspect some new works,
153
00:12:38,925 --> 00:12:44,598
and although he was 65 years old,
he vaulted over a brick wall
154
00:12:44,681 --> 00:12:48,310
and landed feet first
in a pool of liquid cement.
155
00:12:48,393 --> 00:12:51,980
And with an impertinence
which in retrospect I'm surprised at,
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00:12:52,063 --> 00:12:56,526
I said, "You've met your Waterloo,"
as he was stuck in the cement.
157
00:12:56,610 --> 00:13:00,781
He turned to me and said,
"How dare you? Anyhow, my Blenheim."
158
00:13:05,076 --> 00:13:08,038
In the arms factories
they worked long hours
159
00:13:08,121 --> 00:13:10,373
to fill the gaps in British defences.
160
00:13:10,457 --> 00:13:13,877
Production reached a peak in June,
then fell as workers tired.
161
00:13:13,960 --> 00:13:16,671
But the spurt lasted
through the critical time.
162
00:13:19,049 --> 00:13:21,176
Production of fighter planes doubled.
163
00:13:21,259 --> 00:13:25,847
A hundred new Spitfires and Hurricanes
a week replenished Dowding's forces.
164
00:13:25,931 --> 00:13:28,934
The minister of aircraft production,
Lord Beaverbrook,
165
00:13:29,017 --> 00:13:33,688
took care to make ordinary people
feel part of the production battle.
166
00:13:33,772 --> 00:13:37,275
My father was a master of propaganda.
167
00:13:37,359 --> 00:13:39,945
There were the pots and pans,
168
00:13:40,028 --> 00:13:43,323
where everyone was asked
to give up pots and pans and railings.
169
00:13:43,406 --> 00:13:45,700
Stanley Baldwin
didn't give up his gates,
170
00:13:45,784 --> 00:13:49,287
but most people gave up all
they could in the way of metal.
171
00:13:49,371 --> 00:13:53,792
The pilots and we all knew you couldn't
make aircraft out of pots and pans,
172
00:13:53,917 --> 00:13:58,713
but it brought the people to realise
that it was a desperate situation.
173
00:13:58,797 --> 00:14:03,343
The response was tremendous. They
had piles and piles of pots and pans -
174
00:14:03,426 --> 00:14:08,765
not knowing what to do with them.
But he was a great propagandist.
175
00:14:08,849 --> 00:14:11,309
But where was
the German invasion?
176
00:14:18,358 --> 00:14:22,362
In June 1940, Hitler had not begun
to think about invading Britain.
177
00:14:22,445 --> 00:14:27,701
He was celebrating his French victory,
and expected Britain to make peace.
178
00:14:27,784 --> 00:14:31,162
Berlin gave him a hero's welcome
when he returned there on July 6
179
00:14:31,246 --> 00:14:34,583
with Admiral Raeder
and his other commanders in chief.
180
00:14:34,666 --> 00:14:38,837
Only the German navy
seemed to have plans for an invasion.
181
00:14:38,920 --> 00:14:41,298
By the time Hitler
began to take an interest,
182
00:14:41,381 --> 00:14:45,260
the army had its own plans
and was critical of the navy's.
183
00:14:48,013 --> 00:14:51,433
Both looked to Göring, the Luftwaffe
chief, to win control of the air -
184
00:14:51,516 --> 00:14:53,560
vital for an invasion.
185
00:14:53,643 --> 00:14:58,273
And Göring believed the Luftwaffe
on its own could knock out Britain.
186
00:14:58,356 --> 00:15:02,819
Arguments between the services
went on for months.
187
00:15:03,403 --> 00:15:05,780
The army at first
wanted to land 40 divisions
188
00:15:05,864 --> 00:15:08,575
on a wide front between
Ramsgate and Lyme Bay,
189
00:15:08,658 --> 00:15:11,995
and press on to a line from Maldon
in Essex to the Severn Estuary,
190
00:15:12,120 --> 00:15:14,164
sealing off London.
191
00:15:14,247 --> 00:15:17,417
This was later scaled down
to a landing by nine divisions
192
00:15:17,500 --> 00:15:21,671
between Folkestone and Brighton,
supported by two airborne divisions -
193
00:15:21,755 --> 00:15:24,299
about 200,000 men in all.
194
00:15:24,424 --> 00:15:27,510
By September, Britain had overcome
her earlier weakness
195
00:15:27,594 --> 00:15:31,973
and had 16 divisions available
in the Southeast.
196
00:15:35,852 --> 00:15:40,815
An invasion fleet from all parts of
Germany assembled in northern ports.
197
00:15:43,652 --> 00:15:46,488
Landing craft were built,
and boats converted
198
00:15:46,571 --> 00:15:49,074
to carry troops and amphibious tanks.
199
00:15:51,284 --> 00:15:53,995
The army thought the fleet too small.
200
00:15:54,079 --> 00:15:57,374
The navy thought even that size fleet
difficult to protect.
201
00:15:57,457 --> 00:16:00,627
Both agreed
that air supremacy was vital.
202
00:16:00,710 --> 00:16:04,923
The invasion, codenamed Operation
Sea Lion, was set for mid-September.
203
00:16:05,006 --> 00:16:10,303
The plans did not impress the Luftwaffe,
on whom everything depended.
204
00:16:10,387 --> 00:16:13,640
In my opinion,
the plan was not serious.
205
00:16:13,723 --> 00:16:21,022
Especially the navy didn't want
to have the responsibility,
206
00:16:21,106 --> 00:16:25,402
and the navy
has asked the air force first of all
207
00:16:25,485 --> 00:16:30,949
to establish the absolute...
the absolute air superiority
208
00:16:31,032 --> 00:16:33,451
over the invasion area.
209
00:16:34,703 --> 00:16:39,040
The preparation the navy did
was not very convincing.
210
00:16:39,124 --> 00:16:44,587
Also, our preparation...
My wing was designated to be
211
00:16:44,713 --> 00:16:48,842
one of the two wings
to be transferred to England,
212
00:16:48,925 --> 00:16:53,096
and our preparations were... ridiculous.
213
00:16:53,638 --> 00:16:57,392
The air force was not
trained and prepared
214
00:16:57,475 --> 00:17:01,896
to conduct an independent air war
over England.
215
00:17:14,159 --> 00:17:16,953
The Luftwaffe's first targets
216
00:17:17,037 --> 00:17:19,456
were merchant convoys
and harbours,
217
00:17:19,539 --> 00:17:24,002
particularly in
the narrow seas of the Channel.
218
00:17:24,085 --> 00:17:26,588
Dover became known as Hellfire Corner.
219
00:17:26,671 --> 00:17:30,633
There was always something for the
newsreel camera or the news reporter -
220
00:17:30,717 --> 00:17:34,304
for instance, Charles Gardner
of the BBC:
221
00:17:35,430 --> 00:17:39,768
Now the Germans are
dive-bombing a convoy out at sea.
222
00:17:39,851 --> 00:17:42,771
There are one, two, three,
four, five, six, seven.
223
00:17:42,854 --> 00:17:46,232
There's one going down
on its target now.
224
00:17:46,316 --> 00:17:48,860
Boom. No, he hasn't hit a single ship.
225
00:17:48,943 --> 00:17:54,115
There are about ten ships in the
convoy, but he hasn't hit a single one.
226
00:17:54,199 --> 00:17:59,496
They come in a steep dive. You can
see the bombs leave the machines.
227
00:17:59,579 --> 00:18:02,373
You can hear our own guns
going like anything now.
228
00:18:03,208 --> 00:18:07,003
There's a fight going on.
You can hear the machine-gun bullets.
229
00:18:07,087 --> 00:18:10,048
That was a bomb, as you may imagine.
230
00:18:10,131 --> 00:18:12,926
There's another bomb dropping.
231
00:18:13,885 --> 00:18:16,179
It's dropped... It missed the convoy.
232
00:18:16,262 --> 00:18:18,681
They haven't hit the convoy
in all this.
233
00:18:20,016 --> 00:18:22,977
We've just hit a Messerschmitt!
That was beautiful.
234
00:18:23,061 --> 00:18:28,441
He's coming right down now. I think
definitely that was that first contest.
235
00:18:28,566 --> 00:18:32,195
Absolute steep dive. I'll just move
round so I can watch him a bit more.
236
00:18:32,278 --> 00:18:35,240
Here he comes.
He's going slap into the sea.
237
00:18:35,323 --> 00:18:37,158
And there he goes - barn!
238
00:18:37,242 --> 00:18:40,370
Oh, boy! I've never seen
anything so good as this.
239
00:18:40,453 --> 00:18:44,874
The RAF fighters
have really got these boys taped.
240
00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:50,922
The convoy system was
disrupted, and harbours like Dover hit.
241
00:18:51,005 --> 00:18:53,424
But while the town suffered casualties,
242
00:18:53,508 --> 00:18:57,720
Dowding had not yet been forced
to commit his full fighter strength.
243
00:18:57,804 --> 00:19:00,181
The unique thing about Fighter Command
244
00:19:00,265 --> 00:19:03,726
was that when war broke out
in September 1939...
245
00:19:04,477 --> 00:19:10,650
we had there a system covering
the entire country for air defence.
246
00:19:10,733 --> 00:19:16,406
And that system was based on radar,
or, as we called it in those days, RDF.
247
00:19:16,865 --> 00:19:20,076
We had this chain of radar stations
around the coast,
248
00:19:20,160 --> 00:19:22,996
and they were looking out
up to 100 miles.
249
00:19:23,079 --> 00:19:25,123
And they were feeding, on land lines,
250
00:19:25,248 --> 00:19:30,170
all the information
to the headquarters of Fighter Command.
251
00:19:30,253 --> 00:19:33,214
Radar really won
the Battle of Britain,
252
00:19:33,298 --> 00:19:37,552
because without it we would have been
doing standing patrols -
253
00:19:37,677 --> 00:19:42,891
and with the limited number of aircraft
and pilots, you couldn't have done it.
254
00:19:42,974 --> 00:19:45,894
As it was, we could wait on the ground,
255
00:19:45,977 --> 00:19:48,354
and then radar would watch.
256
00:19:48,438 --> 00:19:53,318
And through the various controls,
we would be told to take off
257
00:19:53,401 --> 00:19:58,448
at a time when the Germans were
massing over Calais or over Abbeville.
258
00:19:58,531 --> 00:20:04,120
And so, therefore, we wasted no petrol,
no time, no energy -
259
00:20:04,245 --> 00:20:08,291
in fact, we could sleep
in between patrols.
260
00:20:08,374 --> 00:20:13,213
And then we'd take off, and we would be
directed towards the German formation,
261
00:20:13,338 --> 00:20:18,009
given height, distance and their
numbers - which was very important.
262
00:20:19,886 --> 00:20:23,389
On August 13,
Göring changed his tactics.
263
00:20:23,514 --> 00:20:26,893
He ordered an attack on radar stations
and fighter airfields,
264
00:20:26,976 --> 00:20:30,605
which Fighter Command
was bound to defend.
265
00:20:33,066 --> 00:20:37,528
While German bombers blitzed airfields
that defended London and the Southeast,
266
00:20:37,612 --> 00:20:40,281
escorting fighters
dealt with British fighters
267
00:20:40,365 --> 00:20:43,910
that came up to attack the bombers.
268
00:21:04,722 --> 00:21:08,685
Fighting over England
put the Luftwaffe at a disadvantage.
269
00:21:08,768 --> 00:21:13,147
It was expected, but not equipped,
to win a decisive battle alone.
270
00:21:16,234 --> 00:21:20,154
The German bombers were not designed
to carry a heavy enough bomb load.
271
00:21:20,238 --> 00:21:24,867
German fighters had only enough fuel
to stay over England for half an hour,
272
00:21:24,951 --> 00:21:27,912
whereas the British fighters,
close to their bases,
273
00:21:27,996 --> 00:21:33,084
could land and refuel quickly enough
to rejoin the battle.
274
00:21:34,335 --> 00:21:36,421
Our range was very limited,
275
00:21:36,504 --> 00:21:40,550
and we could only cover
a small part of the British islands,
276
00:21:40,633 --> 00:21:43,469
including London.
277
00:21:43,553 --> 00:21:47,640
But over London, as an example,
we could only stay for ten minutes,
278
00:21:47,724 --> 00:21:49,892
to come back to our bases.
279
00:21:52,020 --> 00:21:58,151
So this limited range
of our fighters and the escort
280
00:21:58,234 --> 00:22:03,865
has been perhaps the... main point...
281
00:22:05,992 --> 00:22:11,205
which avoided an effective
air offensive against Britain.
282
00:22:12,665 --> 00:22:15,168
The Luftwaffe misled its pilots
283
00:22:15,251 --> 00:22:18,129
about the damage
done to British airfields.
284
00:22:18,212 --> 00:22:21,049
They claimed eight
had been virtually destroyed.
285
00:22:21,132 --> 00:22:23,384
In fact, none had been knocked out,
286
00:22:23,468 --> 00:22:26,929
and those damaged
were quickly patched up again.
287
00:22:27,013 --> 00:22:30,892
The German pilots, faced
by resistance they hadn't expected,
288
00:22:30,975 --> 00:22:33,061
became pessimistic about winning.
289
00:22:33,144 --> 00:22:38,983
We fighting crews were convinced
that we couldn't win the battle
290
00:22:39,067 --> 00:22:45,365
and we couldn't force England
to surrender by attacking
291
00:22:45,448 --> 00:22:52,038
without any operation
from the part of the army or the navy.
292
00:22:52,121 --> 00:22:56,209
Therefore, we were asking
that the High Command
293
00:22:56,292 --> 00:23:00,129
should order the invasion -
the Sea Lion.
294
00:23:02,006 --> 00:23:05,968
A mere 1,400 British
fighter pilots and their ground crews
295
00:23:06,052 --> 00:23:08,554
stood between Britain and invasion.
296
00:23:08,638 --> 00:23:13,601
Their responsibility was great - too
great, perhaps, to bear thinking about.
297
00:23:13,684 --> 00:23:16,813
The face they showed the world
was dashing and carefree.
298
00:23:16,896 --> 00:23:21,567
I think they took the situation
not the least bit seriously,
299
00:23:21,651 --> 00:23:24,070
from the point of view
of their lives generally.
300
00:23:24,153 --> 00:23:27,573
Some fellows would just
kick a ball around or lie around,
301
00:23:27,698 --> 00:23:33,996
some would sleep, read paperbacks,
listen to the radio -
302
00:23:34,080 --> 00:23:36,165
and that was our life.
303
00:23:42,088 --> 00:23:46,092
I wanted to shoot an plane down, but
I didn't want to shoot a German down.
304
00:23:46,175 --> 00:23:48,052
I really did not.
305
00:23:48,136 --> 00:23:53,599
We did hear stories of Germans
shooting our fellows in parachutes,
306
00:23:53,683 --> 00:23:56,436
and we used to think
that was pretty horrible,
307
00:23:56,519 --> 00:23:59,814
but we weren't sure
whether it was true or not.
308
00:23:59,897 --> 00:24:06,362
I know I had an experience of a German
aircrew getting draped over my own wing.
309
00:24:06,446 --> 00:24:11,784
He'd baled out of a bomber and got
caught on my wing with his parachute.
310
00:24:11,868 --> 00:24:17,123
I was jolly careful to get him off
as easily and as quickly as I could,
311
00:24:17,206 --> 00:24:20,084
by yawing the aeroplane
and shaking him off.
312
00:24:20,168 --> 00:24:23,588
There was no chivalry between
the German air force and the British.
313
00:24:23,713 --> 00:24:27,467
Absolutely none. Not as far as
I was concerned. I hated them.
314
00:24:27,550 --> 00:24:30,928
They were trying to do something to us -
trying to enslave us.
315
00:24:55,119 --> 00:24:57,038
The climax of the battle
316
00:24:57,121 --> 00:24:59,707
came at the end of August,
start of September.
317
00:24:59,790 --> 00:25:04,378
Upon the result depended Hitler's
decision to launch his invasion.
318
00:25:04,462 --> 00:25:11,427
But the battle was between a comparative
handful of individuals on either side.
319
00:25:20,728 --> 00:25:23,689
The fights
were rather extraordinary,
320
00:25:23,773 --> 00:25:26,526
because although
there were a lot of aircraft about,
321
00:25:26,651 --> 00:25:31,656
suddenly, when you were fighting
a particular man, the sky became empty.
322
00:25:38,955 --> 00:25:42,083
No one ever considered
that he would be killed.
323
00:25:42,166 --> 00:25:46,379
Death was something which was
just put at the back of your mind.
324
00:25:46,462 --> 00:25:51,300
If it was not, you'd have just got the
jitters about it and been very worried.
325
00:25:51,842 --> 00:25:56,847
If a fellow did go missing, it was just,
"Poor old so-and-so, he's had it,"
326
00:25:56,931 --> 00:25:58,975
and that was that.
327
00:26:01,894 --> 00:26:06,774
Inwardly, of course, you'd feel it
tremendously if you lost a pal.
328
00:26:06,857 --> 00:26:11,279
But you didn't... you didn't
dwell on the subject of death at all.
329
00:26:11,362 --> 00:26:16,409
Sometimes you could tell if a fellow was
going to get killed. He sort of lost it.
330
00:26:18,744 --> 00:26:22,832
My greatest friend was killed.
He was shooting at a Messerschmitt,
331
00:26:22,915 --> 00:26:25,626
and another Messerschmitt
hit him from behind.
332
00:26:25,751 --> 00:26:30,131
I was shouting at him, and you couldn't
do anything - and you saw him go in.
333
00:26:30,214 --> 00:26:33,384
That affected you,
but you had to get on with it.
334
00:26:33,467 --> 00:26:37,805
Your friends affected you deeply.
Terrible. But you couldn't help it.
335
00:26:41,225 --> 00:26:44,687
In the last week of August
and the first week of September,
336
00:26:44,770 --> 00:26:48,232
103 of Fighter Command's pilots died.
337
00:26:48,316 --> 00:26:51,694
128 were seriously wounded.
338
00:26:53,696 --> 00:26:58,409
Six key airfields in the Southeast were
put out of action for days at a time.
339
00:26:58,492 --> 00:27:00,786
Against German fighters and bombers,
340
00:27:00,870 --> 00:27:04,040
Britain was now losing fighters
even faster than Germany -
341
00:27:04,123 --> 00:27:06,208
nearly 500 in two weeks.
342
00:27:07,835 --> 00:27:11,088
The last week in August,
the first week in September -
343
00:27:11,172 --> 00:27:14,634
those two weeks were the worst for us,
344
00:27:14,717 --> 00:27:18,054
because by that last week in August,
345
00:27:18,137 --> 00:27:22,266
the Germans had been pounding
the airfields mercilessly,
346
00:27:22,350 --> 00:27:27,980
and 31 August
was probably our worst day.
347
00:27:28,064 --> 00:27:31,233
Fighter Command
was very nearly on its knees.
348
00:27:31,317 --> 00:27:33,819
Dowding was very conscious of that.
349
00:27:33,944 --> 00:27:37,365
What was worrying him was
the constant pounding of the airfields,
350
00:27:37,448 --> 00:27:41,744
and he was wondering
how much longer he could hold out-
351
00:27:41,827 --> 00:27:44,288
when I say "he",
I mean Fighter Command.
352
00:27:44,372 --> 00:27:47,124
Because he was still facing
that big problem
353
00:27:47,208 --> 00:27:50,044
of denying the Germans
air superiority,
354
00:27:50,169 --> 00:27:52,672
and yet they were
knocking airfields to pieces,
355
00:27:52,755 --> 00:27:55,341
with the threat of
knocking out Fighter Command.
356
00:27:55,424 --> 00:27:59,887
On 6 September, the king and queen
visited Fighter Command,
357
00:27:59,970 --> 00:28:02,181
and there were quite a few people
358
00:28:02,264 --> 00:28:06,769
who commented on
how tired Dowding appeared to be.
359
00:28:06,852 --> 00:28:10,606
The day after, 7 September,
360
00:28:10,690 --> 00:28:16,487
an invasion alert was issued -
"invasion imminent" -
361
00:28:16,612 --> 00:28:19,949
and all that day
things were remarkably quiet.
362
00:28:20,032 --> 00:28:24,120
All of us were beginning to wonder
what the devil was going to happen next.
363
00:28:24,203 --> 00:28:27,748
And then, late afternoon,
the Germans launched
364
00:28:27,873 --> 00:28:32,878
what many of the pilots in the air
having to face this onslaught
365
00:28:32,962 --> 00:28:36,632
found to be just about the heaviest
attack they'd ever known.
366
00:28:36,716 --> 00:28:41,220
And then came what Dowding
later described as "the miracle" -
367
00:28:41,303 --> 00:28:45,266
the attack didn't go to the airfields,
it went to London,
368
00:28:45,349 --> 00:28:47,560
and the airfields were spared.
369
00:28:47,643 --> 00:28:49,770
Five minutes to five,
370
00:28:49,854 --> 00:28:52,106
the sirens went.
371
00:28:52,189 --> 00:28:57,236
Walking out onto my veranda,
looking down the river,
372
00:28:57,361 --> 00:28:59,780
the sky was full of planes.
373
00:28:59,864 --> 00:29:05,286
Within a couple of minutes, the bombs
started dropping in the Millwall Dock,
374
00:29:05,369 --> 00:29:07,955
and I could watch 'em.
375
00:29:08,038 --> 00:29:10,416
And it went on
for some considerable time.
376
00:29:10,541 --> 00:29:14,170
On that first Saturday,
they practically obliterated
377
00:29:14,253 --> 00:29:18,174
from the Silvertown Way to Silvertown.
378
00:29:18,257 --> 00:29:22,052
As a matter of fact, the whole of
the Tidal Basin, Custom House,
379
00:29:22,136 --> 00:29:26,140
right up to Silvertown was obliterated -
make no mistake about it.
380
00:29:27,266 --> 00:29:30,144
If it had continued,
that type of bombing,
381
00:29:30,227 --> 00:29:31,979
in the daylight...
382
00:29:32,062 --> 00:29:35,524
It was hitting everything
of consequence-
383
00:29:35,608 --> 00:29:39,612
shipyards, gasworks,
384
00:29:39,695 --> 00:29:43,491
oil firms, everything of consequence.
385
00:29:43,574 --> 00:29:47,703
Nearly all the bombs were dropping
in the proper target area.
386
00:29:48,913 --> 00:29:52,166
That night,
250 bombers returned -
387
00:29:52,249 --> 00:29:55,461
the burning docks and warehouses
an unmistakable marker.
388
00:29:55,544 --> 00:29:59,006
But Göring's change of tactics
relieved the pressure.
389
00:30:04,303 --> 00:30:07,932
Fighter Command regrouped.
London burned.
390
00:30:33,457 --> 00:30:36,794
After the raid on September 7,
many rescue workers and firemen
391
00:30:36,877 --> 00:30:39,463
worked 40 hours non-stop.
392
00:30:39,547 --> 00:30:42,925
"Most of us had the wind up
to start with," one of them said,
393
00:30:43,008 --> 00:30:46,470
"but you looked around
and saw the rest doing their job."
394
00:31:06,115 --> 00:31:10,369
On September 15, the Luftwaffe
mounted another major daylight attack,
395
00:31:10,452 --> 00:31:12,538
expecting no opposition.
396
00:31:12,663 --> 00:31:16,333
But this time the Spitfires and
Hurricanes were waiting for them.
397
00:32:10,846 --> 00:32:15,768
On that day, September 15,
56 German planes were shot down.
398
00:32:16,393 --> 00:32:19,647
Britain had retained
command of the air by day.
399
00:32:23,484 --> 00:32:27,071
The Royal Air Force
had won the Battle of Britain.
400
00:32:41,043 --> 00:32:43,671
September 1940.
401
00:32:43,754 --> 00:32:45,839
Now there were no more daylight raids,
402
00:32:45,923 --> 00:32:48,842
and there could be no invasion
before the spring.
403
00:32:48,926 --> 00:32:53,180
But Britain's cities became targets
for the night bombers.
404
00:32:53,263 --> 00:32:57,309
For 76 nights in succession,
London was bombed.
405
00:32:57,393 --> 00:33:00,896
Queuing for shelter at dusk
became an orderly ritual,
406
00:33:00,980 --> 00:33:06,360
the evening alerts, the dawn all-clear,
part of Londoners' lives.
407
00:34:12,176 --> 00:34:14,553
I used to hear the planes come over,
408
00:34:14,636 --> 00:34:19,183
and they was, in my opinion,
trying to break the backs of the houses.
409
00:34:19,266 --> 00:34:21,935
I'd listen and shudder.
"The next one's mine."
410
00:34:22,019 --> 00:34:27,149
They'd have, say, six bombs.
"One, two, three, four... This is mine."
411
00:34:27,232 --> 00:34:30,360
"No." Over the next one, they'd go,
and miss my house.
412
00:34:30,444 --> 00:34:32,196
That went on all night.
413
00:34:32,279 --> 00:34:37,242
About ten to eight, I said to my wife
and my in-laws, "I'll be off now."
414
00:34:37,326 --> 00:34:42,247
I walked out of the door -
lovely big three-floor houses they were.
415
00:34:42,331 --> 00:34:48,128
I walked up Approach Road, 20 yards
from the church, which was our post,
416
00:34:48,212 --> 00:34:50,964
and suddenly there was a...
417
00:34:51,048 --> 00:34:53,175
Nothing, I heard nothing.
418
00:34:53,258 --> 00:34:56,261
I talked about this
to people afterwards -
419
00:34:56,345 --> 00:34:58,764
the bomb that hit them,
they never heard.
420
00:34:58,847 --> 00:35:02,893
Now, I wonder if the people sitting
here now had that same experience.
421
00:35:02,976 --> 00:35:05,479
The bomb that hit you, you never heard.
422
00:35:05,562 --> 00:35:07,439
And I fell flat on my face.
423
00:35:07,523 --> 00:35:09,608
I picked myself up, I turned round.
424
00:35:09,733 --> 00:35:14,446
All I could see was a grey curtain
hanging in the middle of a wide road -
425
00:35:14,530 --> 00:35:17,324
about twice as wide as this pub.
426
00:35:17,407 --> 00:35:20,494
There was just
a brownish-grey curtain hanging there.
427
00:35:21,620 --> 00:35:23,747
♪ Come, come
428
00:35:23,831 --> 00:35:25,707
♪ Come and make eyes at me
429
00:35:25,791 --> 00:35:28,085
♪ Down at the Old Bull and Bush
430
00:35:28,168 --> 00:35:29,837
♪ La-la-la, la-la
431
00:35:29,920 --> 00:35:31,713
♪ Come, come
432
00:35:31,797 --> 00:35:33,715
♪ Drink some port wine with me
433
00:35:33,799 --> 00:35:36,468
♪ Down at the Old Bull and Bush
434
00:35:37,553 --> 00:35:41,390
♪ La-la-la-la-la-la,
la-la-la-la-la-la-la
435
00:35:41,473 --> 00:35:45,018
♪ Just let me hold your hand, dear
436
00:35:45,519 --> 00:35:47,229
♪ Do, do
437
00:35:47,354 --> 00:35:49,148
♪ Come and have a drink or two
438
00:35:49,231 --> 00:35:52,526
♪ Down at the Old Bull and Bush,
Bush, Bush!
439
00:35:53,068 --> 00:35:55,154
No matter what shelter
you went in,
440
00:35:55,237 --> 00:36:00,576
there was always someone there
who would provide the entertainment
441
00:36:00,701 --> 00:36:03,370
to sort of take away the strain.
442
00:36:04,371 --> 00:36:09,293
Underground stations, it was
decided, must not be used as shelters.
443
00:36:09,376 --> 00:36:13,964
But people simply took them over
and the authorities had to accept it.
444
00:36:14,631 --> 00:36:16,216
We was all singing,
445
00:36:16,300 --> 00:36:19,261
we was all happy -
just like there was no war at all.
446
00:36:19,344 --> 00:36:20,596
There was a canteen.
447
00:36:20,679 --> 00:36:24,975
I used to sing as well and cheer
people up when the bombs was going.
448
00:36:25,058 --> 00:36:29,938
Until one night, it was very bad, and I
was praying for the big guns to start.
449
00:36:34,776 --> 00:36:39,865
I was talking to a gunnery sergeant
who had been stationed in Hyde Park,
450
00:36:39,948 --> 00:36:44,536
and he told us without any hesitation -
and he cried when he told us:
451
00:36:44,620 --> 00:36:47,497
"When we was sent into London,
452
00:36:47,581 --> 00:36:51,376
we simply elevated our guns
to its maximum and fired."
453
00:36:51,501 --> 00:36:55,464
"We knew that every shell we pumped up
had no chance of hitting a plane,
454
00:36:55,589 --> 00:36:58,800
but don't tell me
it didn't give you courage."
455
00:36:58,884 --> 00:37:03,347
And there's not a person sitting round
this table, I think, can say it didn't -
456
00:37:03,430 --> 00:37:07,434
once they heard those guns firing,
they thought, "Good, we've got 'em now."
457
00:37:07,517 --> 00:37:11,480
But they only knew that it was the
morale - and that's all it did to 'em.
458
00:37:11,563 --> 00:37:15,734
But the bombs just had to come down.
There was nothing to stop them.
459
00:37:27,246 --> 00:37:28,914
For 76 mornings,
460
00:37:28,997 --> 00:37:32,334
rescue squads dug through rubble,
searching for survivors.
461
00:37:32,417 --> 00:37:37,339
A bomb dropped on
a block of flats, about four storeys,
462
00:37:37,422 --> 00:37:39,883
and it took the whole front out.
463
00:37:39,967 --> 00:37:43,762
And they said, "There's an old chap
up there. He won't go in a shelter."
464
00:37:43,845 --> 00:37:47,891
So we go up, and when we got up there,
the old chap was snoring his head off,
465
00:37:47,975 --> 00:37:53,146
about 20 empty bottles round his bed,
and the bed's nearly out in the street!
466
00:37:53,230 --> 00:37:55,816
And he never woke up then!
467
00:38:00,821 --> 00:38:06,118
We saw an old lady staggering around,
and we said, "You'll have to come out."
468
00:38:06,201 --> 00:38:07,953
She came out and all she had on
469
00:38:08,036 --> 00:38:11,707
was half of what
should've been a nightdress.
470
00:38:12,332 --> 00:38:16,169
I said, "You'll have to put something
on, make yourself a bit decent."
471
00:38:16,253 --> 00:38:19,881
She was about 80-odd,
and she was completely in a daze.
472
00:38:20,007 --> 00:38:25,846
She said, "I'll go and get something,"
and she came out with her hat on!
473
00:38:31,601 --> 00:38:35,564
People somehow got to work
through a nightmare of upended buses,
474
00:38:35,647 --> 00:38:38,734
cratered roads, bombed railways.
475
00:38:38,817 --> 00:38:41,194
London calling...
476
00:38:41,278 --> 00:38:45,991
Radio reporters told America
and the world that London could take it.
477
00:38:46,074 --> 00:38:48,744
The spirit of Londoners
won sympathy and help.
478
00:38:48,827 --> 00:38:51,872
But the United States remained neutral.
479
00:38:52,873 --> 00:38:57,711
While Britain stood alone,
from September 1940 to May 1941,
480
00:38:57,794 --> 00:39:02,257
40,000 people were killed in raids -
half of them Londoners.
481
00:39:03,759 --> 00:39:06,386
Hundreds of thousands of people
were homeless,
482
00:39:06,470 --> 00:39:10,057
eating, living,
sleeping in rest centres.
483
00:39:11,558 --> 00:39:14,978
Clothing and everything else
had vanished with their home.
484
00:39:15,062 --> 00:39:16,855
But not morale.
485
00:39:16,938 --> 00:39:21,526
To be clean, you couldn't very well say,
"I'm going to have a bath today,"
486
00:39:21,610 --> 00:39:25,572
cos you was afraid the warning
would go halfway through it.
487
00:39:25,655 --> 00:39:29,951
So you'd have a bowl of water, have a
wash and perhaps get your neck done,
488
00:39:30,035 --> 00:39:32,537
and run and take all your things
in the shelter -
489
00:39:32,621 --> 00:39:34,706
finish your bath perhaps the next day.
490
00:39:34,790 --> 00:39:38,752
Never actually have a bath properly.
Step in and step out.
491
00:39:38,835 --> 00:39:42,255
You get used to it.
You can get used to anything.
492
00:39:42,339 --> 00:39:49,179
It was not an uncommon sight to see:
"No windows but plenty of spirit."
493
00:39:49,262 --> 00:39:53,850
Or, "Sorry we've got no front door.
Don't trouble to knock, just come in."
494
00:39:53,934 --> 00:39:57,521
And you'd see these funny little notices
put up outside a door.
495
00:39:57,646 --> 00:40:01,942
This was the sort of thing that made
you think there was something in it.
496
00:40:02,025 --> 00:40:06,071
The more you saw it, the more you felt
encouraged to be able to go out.
497
00:40:06,154 --> 00:40:11,368
Once you'd gone out to go on to a job
and your family were left behind,
498
00:40:11,451 --> 00:40:14,162
you always felt that somehow:
499
00:40:14,246 --> 00:40:16,331
"The Joneses or the Smiths up the road,
500
00:40:16,415 --> 00:40:20,710
if anything happens at home,
they'll look after 'em."
501
00:40:24,589 --> 00:40:28,427
Factories went on working,
by night as well as by day.
502
00:40:28,510 --> 00:40:32,055
But night workers were
constantly interrupted by raids.
503
00:40:32,139 --> 00:40:36,685
There was no real defence
against German bombing at night.
504
00:40:36,768 --> 00:40:40,814
Fighter Command's helplessness
worried its chief, Dowding.
505
00:40:40,897 --> 00:40:45,402
I once went to Redhill with him when
the bombers were coming over London.
506
00:40:45,527 --> 00:40:50,282
There was a squadron commanded
by a fellow called Jimmy Little.
507
00:40:50,365 --> 00:40:55,871
He said to me in the car going down,
"Max, I hold my head in my hands
508
00:40:55,954 --> 00:41:01,251
at the thought of people being bombed
and I cannot do anything about it."
509
00:41:01,334 --> 00:41:03,795
To the relief
of the authorities,
510
00:41:03,879 --> 00:41:07,424
Buckingham Palace was bombed
as well as East London.
511
00:41:07,507 --> 00:41:12,053
Now it could be seen that king, queen
and people were all in it together.
512
00:41:14,639 --> 00:41:19,269
King George and Queen Elizabeth won
respect by touring the blitzed areas.
513
00:41:19,352 --> 00:41:23,773
They had come to the throne in the wake
of the Duke of Windsor's abdication.
514
00:41:23,857 --> 00:41:28,528
Now, for the first time, they emerged
as popular figures in their own right.
515
00:41:31,781 --> 00:41:35,785
Churchill too, with exuberance,
persuaded most political opponents
516
00:41:35,869 --> 00:41:38,079
to forget his past.
517
00:41:38,163 --> 00:41:42,000
The average East Londoner
didn't care twopence for Churchill,
518
00:41:42,083 --> 00:41:43,877
as a man or a politician,
519
00:41:43,960 --> 00:41:48,048
but the man who filled up
Chamberlain's place,
520
00:41:48,131 --> 00:41:50,675
he was a leader.
521
00:41:50,759 --> 00:41:55,388
And every time he opened his mouth,
he inspired confidence into the people -
522
00:41:55,472 --> 00:41:58,266
whether they accepted him
as a Conservative...
523
00:41:58,350 --> 00:42:03,271
But he was there, he was for 'em,
and he was against the common enemy.
524
00:42:05,857 --> 00:42:09,569
But sometimes
he got a mixed reception.
525
00:42:09,653 --> 00:42:12,489
I remember,
just off Green Street,
526
00:42:12,572 --> 00:42:15,200
an avenue where Churchill
came down.
527
00:42:15,283 --> 00:42:18,954
There was a devil of a great crater
as big as this pub.
528
00:42:19,037 --> 00:42:23,750
There were crowds of women trying to
get things out of the shattered houses.
529
00:42:24,626 --> 00:42:29,673
Churchill, after having a look round,
he said, "We can take it."
530
00:42:29,756 --> 00:42:34,761
And the women told him what they could
take, in no unmistakable manner.
531
00:42:34,844 --> 00:42:39,266
They said, "We're the ones that are
taking it - you're out of the way."
532
00:42:50,402 --> 00:42:53,488
December 29, 1940.
533
00:42:53,572 --> 00:42:59,452
German planes scattering incendiary
bombs set the City of London ablaze.
534
00:42:59,536 --> 00:43:03,248
There were 1,500 fires
in and around the city.
535
00:43:03,331 --> 00:43:07,460
St Paul's Cathedral
was surrounded by fire.
536
00:43:10,880 --> 00:43:14,092
You could see the fire of London.
537
00:43:14,175 --> 00:43:17,762
60 miles away, you could see the fire.
538
00:43:24,185 --> 00:43:28,440
That night I was in a shelter,
and it was burning above me.
539
00:43:28,523 --> 00:43:32,110
We all had to get out,
and we wasn't panicking a bit.
540
00:43:32,193 --> 00:43:36,656
And we had to run
to the top of Commercial Road,
541
00:43:36,740 --> 00:43:40,201
to a factory that had a shelter
down below in the basement.
542
00:43:40,285 --> 00:43:43,747
And as we were running along,
there was fires all burning around.
543
00:43:43,830 --> 00:43:47,500
I could feel the heat on the floor -
the puddles were hot.
544
00:43:47,626 --> 00:43:52,130
And in the shelter, we stood all night,
sleeping on each other's shoulders.
545
00:43:52,213 --> 00:43:57,135
I stood all night sleeping
on somebody else's shoulder.
546
00:44:01,556 --> 00:44:06,311
Eventually, we used
so much water, we ran out of it.
547
00:44:06,394 --> 00:44:09,689
And there we stood,
letting the fires burn -
548
00:44:09,773 --> 00:44:13,276
and we couldn't do nothing about it.
549
00:44:20,075 --> 00:44:23,286
The heart of
the City of London was destroyed,
550
00:44:23,370 --> 00:44:26,039
but St Paul's survived.
551
00:44:27,957 --> 00:44:31,753
Manchester, Coventry, Birmingham,
Swansea, Liverpool and many more
552
00:44:31,836 --> 00:44:35,674
shared London's ordeal - all were
within reach of the German air force,
553
00:44:35,757 --> 00:44:38,093
with bases in France
and the Low Countries.
554
00:44:38,176 --> 00:44:42,347
It was more difficult for British
bombers to reach German cities.
555
00:44:42,430 --> 00:44:48,269
The government looked for some other way
of carrying the war to the enemy.
556
00:44:48,353 --> 00:44:52,440
We decided the only place
where we could fight the enemy
557
00:44:52,524 --> 00:44:57,904
was the North African desert,
the Middle East theatre generally.
558
00:44:57,987 --> 00:45:02,242
There was nowhere else. We couldn't
hope to make a landing in France
559
00:45:02,325 --> 00:45:07,122
in any foreseeable future, and therefore
couldn't injure the Germans that way.
560
00:45:07,205 --> 00:45:11,251
So the two alternatives...
They weren't alternatives.
561
00:45:11,334 --> 00:45:16,172
The two possibles were bombing,
and fighting in the Middle East.
562
00:45:16,256 --> 00:45:19,134
And that is why
from those very early days
563
00:45:19,259 --> 00:45:25,348
we began to push, agitate,
ask for more armour in the Middle East.
564
00:45:25,432 --> 00:45:30,311
We had to take the armour out of
the line, out of the defence of Britain.
565
00:45:30,437 --> 00:45:33,690
There was no other way of doing it.
566
00:45:34,190 --> 00:45:35,859
On December 10, 1940,
567
00:45:35,942 --> 00:45:39,654
two Commonwealth divisions
under General Wavell
568
00:45:39,738 --> 00:45:43,825
attacked the big Italian army
in North Africa.
569
00:45:45,618 --> 00:45:49,914
Slightly to their own surprise,
they advanced with great speed.
570
00:45:50,957 --> 00:45:53,084
Fortress after fortress was taken.
571
00:45:53,168 --> 00:45:55,420
100,000 prisoners were captured.
572
00:45:55,503 --> 00:45:59,299
Now there seemed to be a chance
to get at the main enemy, Germany -
573
00:45:59,382 --> 00:46:02,719
through Yugoslavia and Greece.
574
00:46:02,802 --> 00:46:06,556
We did think that if it were possible
575
00:46:06,639 --> 00:46:15,273
to bring certain Balkan countries
into conflict with Hitler,
576
00:46:15,356 --> 00:46:20,195
the consequences of that
might be really unforeseeable -
577
00:46:20,320 --> 00:46:22,322
couldn't predict the result.
578
00:46:22,405 --> 00:46:26,868
The view of the War Cabinet
and the Defence Committee
579
00:46:26,951 --> 00:46:32,165
was that, if the Greeks were going to
defend themselves against the Germans,
580
00:46:32,248 --> 00:46:35,543
we should bring them what help we could.
581
00:46:35,668 --> 00:46:37,420
And Dill and I were sent out,
582
00:46:37,545 --> 00:46:41,758
after Wavell's victory,
to Cairo to look into this business.
583
00:46:41,841 --> 00:46:46,763
When we got there, Wavell said, "I hope
you won't mind what I'm going to say."
584
00:46:46,846 --> 00:46:50,016
"I didn't think I ought to waste time -
585
00:46:50,099 --> 00:46:53,102
I've begun the movement of troops
and the concentration
586
00:46:53,186 --> 00:46:55,396
to enable us to go to Greece."
587
00:46:55,480 --> 00:46:59,734
The landing in Greece
was meant to forestall a German attack.
588
00:46:59,818 --> 00:47:03,363
To many Greeks,
it seemed likely to hasten it.
589
00:47:03,446 --> 00:47:05,657
They had held their own against Italy,
590
00:47:05,740 --> 00:47:09,244
but when the Germans attacked
on April 6, 1941,
591
00:47:09,327 --> 00:47:11,996
Greece was overwhelmed in three weeks.
592
00:47:12,080 --> 00:47:15,166
So was Yugoslavia,
which had joined the Allies.
593
00:47:15,250 --> 00:47:19,462
50,000 Commonwealth troops
were evacuated.
594
00:47:19,546 --> 00:47:22,841
One has to admit that...
595
00:47:24,008 --> 00:47:27,762
we didn't obtain
the objectives we'd hoped for.
596
00:47:27,846 --> 00:47:32,100
We weren't able to conduct,
with the help of the Yugoslavs,
597
00:47:32,183 --> 00:47:36,062
any effective campaign in the Balkans.
598
00:47:36,145 --> 00:47:39,816
Turkey, it is true,
remained a defensive pad,
599
00:47:39,899 --> 00:47:44,487
but we lost Greece
and lost many men - brave men -
600
00:47:44,571 --> 00:47:46,739
and more were captured.
601
00:47:47,448 --> 00:47:50,785
So in that sense,
the balance sheet was much against us.
602
00:47:50,869 --> 00:47:55,373
And it was a depressing time,
no question of that.
603
00:47:55,456 --> 00:47:58,209
By May 1941,
Germany and her allies
604
00:47:58,293 --> 00:48:02,046
controlled most of Continental Europe.
605
00:48:02,130 --> 00:48:05,216
And in North Africa,
a small German force under Rommel
606
00:48:05,300 --> 00:48:08,177
had recaptured
nearly all the British gains.
607
00:48:08,261 --> 00:48:11,973
The British tried to hold Crete
as a naval base.
608
00:48:18,021 --> 00:48:19,772
With complete command of the air,
609
00:48:19,856 --> 00:48:23,026
the Germans attacked Crete
with 16,000 parachutists -
610
00:48:23,109 --> 00:48:28,197
the first large-scale airborne assault
in the history of warfare.
611
00:48:29,157 --> 00:48:34,037
In spite of heavy losses, they gained
a foothold on a vital airfield, Maleme,
612
00:48:34,120 --> 00:48:37,040
which meant that
more troops could be flown in.
613
00:48:57,101 --> 00:48:58,728
Helped by intensive bombing,
614
00:48:58,811 --> 00:49:03,441
the Germans were able to advance
against a bigger Commonwealth force.
615
00:49:04,067 --> 00:49:07,570
Once again, air power won the battle.
616
00:49:07,654 --> 00:49:11,282
Commonwealth losses:
13,000 killed, wounded or captured.
617
00:49:11,366 --> 00:49:16,287
And another evacuation to add
to the list of Norway, France, Greece.
618
00:49:16,371 --> 00:49:20,750
The British people wondered
how much more they would have to take.
619
00:49:20,833 --> 00:49:24,754
Churchill thought
Crete should be held at all costs.
620
00:49:24,837 --> 00:49:28,508
If we lost Crete, we lost our base
in the Eastern Mediterranean -
621
00:49:28,591 --> 00:49:30,677
our naval base and our air base.
622
00:49:31,344 --> 00:49:34,764
And he kept on
telegraphing to Wavell, saying:
623
00:49:34,847 --> 00:49:41,771
"Surely you can spare just a dozen tanks
for the defence of Maleme airfield",
624
00:49:41,854 --> 00:49:46,484
the chief airfield in Crete,
"against German paratroops."
625
00:49:46,567 --> 00:49:49,278
And Wavell replied
that he had no tanks -
626
00:49:49,362 --> 00:49:54,617
they were all having their tracks mended
or their engines greased or something -
627
00:49:54,701 --> 00:49:57,704
and that he couldn't spare even a dozen.
628
00:49:57,787 --> 00:50:01,249
Well, Crete was lost.
It was a great disaster -
629
00:50:01,332 --> 00:50:04,877
upset everybody in the House
of Commons, upset the country.
630
00:50:04,961 --> 00:50:10,216
It was a low point for us in the war,
in the spring of 1941.
631
00:50:10,299 --> 00:50:15,722
I used to be up
until 2:30 in the morning,
632
00:50:15,805 --> 00:50:20,476
broadcasting to America
and the Dominions and so on.
633
00:50:20,560 --> 00:50:26,190
And I'd snatch
some pretty dicey sort of sleep
634
00:50:26,274 --> 00:50:29,736
in the basement of Broadcasting House.
635
00:50:29,819 --> 00:50:35,408
I'd come out in the morning,
and then I'd walk around, and I'd think:
636
00:50:35,491 --> 00:50:40,621
"I don't think there can be much more
of this, because everything's going."
637
00:50:40,747 --> 00:50:44,000
On those mornings, you thought,
"Another two weeks of this
638
00:50:44,083 --> 00:50:46,961
and there'll be nothing around here
but rubble."
639
00:50:53,593 --> 00:50:56,054
On May 10, 1941,
640
00:50:56,137 --> 00:50:59,474
London suffered its most destructive
night raid of the war.
641
00:50:59,557 --> 00:51:03,186
Over 3,000 people
were killed or injured.
642
00:51:05,646 --> 00:51:08,858
Hundreds of fires had to be left
to burn themselves out.
643
00:51:08,941 --> 00:51:13,029
There seemed no end in sight
to the slaughter and destruction.
644
00:51:13,112 --> 00:51:18,117
But although Londoners didn't know,
it was the turning point.
645
00:51:18,201 --> 00:51:21,079
In April, '41,
646
00:51:21,162 --> 00:51:26,125
Hitler assembled
all the commanders in France.
647
00:51:27,376 --> 00:51:31,005
And... during two hours,
648
00:51:31,089 --> 00:51:38,596
he talked to us about
the part two of the Battle of Britain.
649
00:51:40,098 --> 00:51:44,185
And... he told us later -
650
00:51:44,268 --> 00:51:49,732
Two of us,
namely my friend Mölders and myself-
651
00:51:51,317 --> 00:51:57,907
that it has only been in order to
camouflage the offensive against Russia.
652
00:51:58,741 --> 00:52:00,993
This has been in April, '41.
653
00:52:02,036 --> 00:52:05,498
And the raid on 10 May
654
00:52:05,581 --> 00:52:09,836
can only be considered
as a camouflage of the...
655
00:52:11,546 --> 00:52:15,925
beginning of the Russian campaign.
656
00:52:20,012 --> 00:52:22,974
Among the victims
of the raid on May 10
657
00:52:23,057 --> 00:52:24,600
was the House of Commons.
658
00:52:24,684 --> 00:52:28,729
For exactly a year,
a year of disappointment and defeat,
659
00:52:28,813 --> 00:52:31,566
the Commons had
sustained Churchill in office.
660
00:52:31,649 --> 00:52:34,443
But the important battle had been won.
661
00:52:34,527 --> 00:52:37,446
Britain had survived.
662
00:52:37,530 --> 00:52:39,490
Now it was Russia's turn.
80056
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