Battle of Britain

The Battle of Britain (German: Luftschlacht um England, literally "Air battle for England") is the name given to the Second World War defence of the United Kingdom by the Royal Air Force (RAF) against an onslaught by the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) which began at the end of June 1940. In Britain, the officially recognised dates are 10 July – 31 October 1940, overlapping with the period of large-scale night attacks known as The Blitz. German historians do not accept this subdivision, and regard the Luftschlacht um England as a campaign lasting from July 1940 to June 1941. The Battle of Britain has been described as the first major campaign to be fought entirely by air forces.