Germany under the supervision of the powerful positioned leader Adolf Hitler invaded a number of regions including Poland, Norway, Denmark, the Netherland, France and Belgium from 1936 to 1940. The Channel Island was the closest region where Germany’s invasion lasted. One area where Germany did not succeed was in the invasion and conquest of Great Britain. The campaign of attack on Great Britain was named as Battle of Britain. Germany’s goal behind the will to invade Great Britain was to achieve air superiority over the royal air force (RAF). Germany’s own air force which was named Luftwaffe was less powerful in comparison with Royal Air Force (RAF). In this paper, we shall discuss the reasons why Germany was determined to invade Great Britain and it did not happen?
The Treaty of Versailles was a blow for Germany after the First World War. The treaty of Versailles resulted in the passion of Adolf Hitler to raise power and to exercise the power on other states. Due to this passion, Germany marked his plan to invade regions. One wrong step introduced a turning point in the war and a continuous successful invasion of Germany (Kegley 96).
The invasion of Great Britain was important to Adolf Hitler because in this way the great air force power of Great Britain would have been destroyed. Adolf Hitler was determined to invade as many regions as he could to gain power and conduct power politics in the world. In the beginning, the German troops were poorly equipped but invaded Austria and Poland steadily with ease due to the lack of power of these states (Robbins).
The complications occurred in the way of Adolf Hitler when his plan for an invasion of Great Britain was about to be worked upon. Germany underestimated the air force of Britain and led the plan according to the minimal expected risk. In the beginning, it was tough for most of the Jews to enter Great Britain but an almost good amount of German troops entered Great Britain through the water.
At the time of the attack, there were 2500 aircrafts available in the German air force. The total of the aircraft included 969 bombers, 360 Skuka dive bombers, 869 ME109 and 268 twin-engine fighters’ planes. To Adolf Hitler, such an amount and variety of weapons for air attack would be enough for Great Britain. Adolf Hitler was sure that Great Britain will easily and quickly come to terms (Mackenzie).
The reason behind the satisfaction of Adolf Hitler regarding the machines was the unfavorable condition of Great Britain. This satisfaction of Adolf Hitler failed its goals and objectives to achieve air force superiority. The reason behind such a failure was the sufficient amount of air fighting machines in the record of the Royal Air Force (RAF). Britain used radar to locate the enemies. These radars were able to give numbers, altitudes, and speed course of German fighters. The use of radar was a secret of Great Britain that helped Great Britain in order to win the battle of Britain. If the radars would not have been used then there was a possibility that Britain could have become a weak force to fight against Germany like other states (Omissi).
Furthermore, German troop targets were constantly changing. The change in their strategy gave another plus point to the air and naval forces of Great Britain to continue their radar and intelligence activities. The changes in the target regions constantly added turmoil to the German forces. According to Hitler, the changes in the target strategy were the only way out to successfully invade Great Britain. The same tactics were used to invade other states such as France, Poland, and Austria, etc.
Despite having a complicated situation of instability, Great Britain stayed in opposing action. Germans had to face an unexpectedly hard time. Britain consisted of a great navy and air force. Adolf Hitler had to take control of the skies before taking control of the waterways because in this way he would have been able to attack the navy of England (Mackenzie).
Another reason for the failure of Germany’s plan to invade Great Britain was the ignorance of Herman Goering, commander of Luftwaffe regarding the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). The British Expeditionary Force was sent to France from Great Britain when Germany attacked France for invasion. Commander Herman Goering had to keep a check that the British Expeditionary force won’t escape. Herman Goering’s efforts went all in vain when the British Expeditionary Force escaped due to his ignorance (Kegley).
Through the above analysis of the consequences of World War II and Germany’s invasion plans, it can be concluded that the reasons behind the failure of the German invasion of Great Britain were the lack of technology and intelligence. Great Britain was advanced in war affairs in terms of naval and air force. The basis of the German’s failure can also be regarded as the ignorance and false satisfaction of the German troops regarding Great Britain’s naval and air forces.
Works Cited
Kegley, C. World Politics: Trend and Transformation. California: Cengage Learning EMEA, 2008.
Mackenzie, S. The Colditz Myth: British and Commonwealth Prisoners of War in Nazi Germany. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.
Omissi, D. Air power and colonial control: the Royal Air Force. Manchester University Press, 1990.
Robbins, K. Present and Past: British Images of Germany in the First Half of the Twentieth Century and their Historical Legacy. Wallstein: Wallstein Verlag, 1999.