The Phony War, Evacuation of Dunkirk

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The Phony War, Evacuation of Dunkirk The Battle
of Britain
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The Phoney War

• The Phoney War was a phase in early World War
  IIin the months following the German invasion of
  Poland in September 1939 and preceding the Battle
  of France in May 1940that was marked by a lack
  of major military operations in Continental
  Europe.

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The various European powers had declared war on
one another but neither side had committed to
launching a significant attack, and there was
relatively little fighting on the ground.
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Dunkirk
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Battle of Dunkirk

• The Battle of Dunkirk was a battle in the Second
  World War between the Allies and Germany.
• The Battle of Dunkirk was the defence and
  evacuation of British and allied forces in Europe
  from 24 May to 4 June 1940.
• After the Phoney War, the Battle of France began
  in earnest on 10 May 1940.

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In one of the most widely-debated decisions of
the war, Adolf Hitler ordered his generals to
halt for three days, giving the Allies time to
organise an evacuation and build a defensive
line. Despite the Allies' gloomy estimates of the
situation, in the end, over 330,000 Allied troops
were rescued.
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Battle of Britain
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Battle of Britain

• The Battle of Britain is the name given to the
  air campaign waged by the German Air Force
  (Luftwaffe) against the United Kingdom during the
  summer and autumn of 1940.
• The objective of the campaign was to gain air
  superiority over the Royal Air Force (RAF),
  especially Fighter Command.
• The Battle of Britain was the first major
  campaign to be fought entirely by air forces, and
  was also the largest and most sustained aerial
  bombing campaign to that date.

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• The failure of Germany to achieve its objectives
  of destroying Britain's air defenses, or forcing
  Britain to negotiate an armistice or an outright
  surrender is considered its first major defeat
  and one of the crucial turning points in the war.
• If Germany had gained air superiority, Adolf
  Hitler might have launched Operation Sea Lion, an
  amphibious and airborne invasion of Britain.