- Joined
- Jul 14, 2012
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- Montreal, QC
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79 years ago today the Battle of Britain began, the only thing standing between Hitler and victory was the RAF. Democracy's last line of defense. My grandfather who lived through it said that as long as you could see or hear the Spitfires you knew the Germans had not won. Many brave pilots from many different countries fought including Americans who decided that they would rather fight for freedom and democracy instead of sitting idly by.
It is part of WWII history that I have seen many documentaries and series gloss over because it happened before Pearl Harbour so it is relegated to a few minutes of bullet points as Americans produce most of the documentaries on WWII. It is a shame, outside the UK many people do not understand the significance or the sacrifice involved in the Battle of Britain both from the RAF and those on the ground.
If you have not seen it I recommenced the 1969 film Battle of Britain, it has an amazing cast including Micheal Caine and Christopher Plummer. It also does not fail to include the efforts of pilots from Canada, Poland, Free France, etc. Documentary wise I always recommend World at War (think it is on Netflix now), it is British produced so it doesn't fall into the trap of glossing over everything before Pearl Harbour and it is was made in the 1970s so it has interviews with many people who died many years ago including Richard Tregaskis recounting the events of Guadalcanal and French generals explaining the Battle for France. It goes in depth on pretty much aspect fo the war including the Battle of Britain.
It is part of WWII history that I have seen many documentaries and series gloss over because it happened before Pearl Harbour so it is relegated to a few minutes of bullet points as Americans produce most of the documentaries on WWII. It is a shame, outside the UK many people do not understand the significance or the sacrifice involved in the Battle of Britain both from the RAF and those on the ground.
If you have not seen it I recommenced the 1969 film Battle of Britain, it has an amazing cast including Micheal Caine and Christopher Plummer. It also does not fail to include the efforts of pilots from Canada, Poland, Free France, etc. Documentary wise I always recommend World at War (think it is on Netflix now), it is British produced so it doesn't fall into the trap of glossing over everything before Pearl Harbour and it is was made in the 1970s so it has interviews with many people who died many years ago including Richard Tregaskis recounting the events of Guadalcanal and French generals explaining the Battle for France. It goes in depth on pretty much aspect fo the war including the Battle of Britain.