''The Battle of Britain'' was the fourth of Frank Capra's ''

Why We Fight ''Why We Fight'' is a series of seven propaganda films produced by the US Department of War from 1942 to 1945, during World War II. It was originally written for American soldiers to help them understand why the United States was involved in the ...

'' series of seven

propaganda film A propaganda film is a film that involves some form of propaganda. Propaganda films spread and promote certain ideas that are usually religious, political, or cultural in nature. A propaganda film is made with the intent that the viewer will ad ...

s, which made the case for fighting and winning the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. It was released in 1943 and concentrated on the German bombardment of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in anticipation of

Operation Sea Lion Operation Sea Lion, also written as Operation Sealion (german: Unternehmen Seelöwe), was Nazi Germany's code name for the plan for an invasion of the United Kingdom during the Battle of Britain in the Second World War. Following the Battle o ...

, the planned German invasion.

Plot

The narrator describes the fall of France, which leaves Britain almost defenceless. British forces are vastly outnumbered, but the British people are calm. The narrator explains that is because in a democracy, the people as a whole are involved in the decision to fight. Hitler's masterplan to subjugate Britain is described. Hitler begins by attacking convoys and ports but fails to destroy them. The

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

is outnumbered "6 - 8 - 10 to one" but knocks out far more planes than the Germans do. Also, bailed-out British pilots can return to the air, but German pilots are lost. Unlike the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

and Polish Air Forces, Britain does not "make the mistake of bunching its planes on the runways." Losses force Hitler to "take time out." He tells Goering to change tactics and so the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

attacks factories. Britain deploys " improved listening posts" to identify the coming attacks. In August and September, German losses are far more severe. However, the "German mind" cannot understand why "free people fight on against overwhelming odds." The Germans' now aim to "crush the British spirit" by attacking London and destroying homes, hospitals and churches, but the people adapt and survive. Enraged, Goering takes personal command and sends massive attack on September 15, to which the British respond with "everything they had." In the battle, the Germans suffer severe losses. Despite many losses and the destruction of historic buildings, the Germans cannot break Britain. They switch to night attacks in the hope of terrorizing the people to make them "cry for mercy" and die of begging, but the people show great resilience. The British also counterattack and bomb key German factories. Hitler takes revenge by destroying Coventry. After a brief respite at Christmas Hitler sends firebombs to London to create "the greatest fire in recorded history." More bombings and firestorms are created, but Britain's defences hold up and give a year of precious time to other countries threatened by Germany. The film ends with

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

's statement: " never in the field of human conflict has so much been owed by so many to so few."

Criticism

The film has been criticized by the

Polish-American Polish Americans ( pl, Polonia amerykańska) are Americans who either have total or partial Polish ancestry, or are citizens of the Republic of Poland. There are an estimated 9.15 million self-identified Polish Americans, representing about 2.83% ...

historian Mieczysław B. Biskupski for its portrayal of Poland and its contribution to the Second World War. Biskupski specifically focuses on specific instances in the film such a map of Europe being displayed with the eastern half of Poland being shown to be "free" from German domination but ignoring that it was occupied by the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

during the

partition of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place toward the end of the 18th century and ended the existence of the state, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland and Lithuania for 12 ...

with

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

in 1939. Biskupski also criticizes the film for falsely claiming the Polish Air Force to be destroyed on the ground during the German

invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...

and contrasts it with the accurate claim of the RAF not being destroyed, which he states to be an invention of German propaganda. He notes the widespread publicization of the exploits of Polish pilots such as those of the No. 303 Squadron in Britain. Biskupski connects that portrayal with his larger theory of Hollywood's intentional poor portrayal of Poland to justify the alliance with the

, which annexed and encroached upon Polish territory during and after the war.

References

Bibliography

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of Britain, The 1944 short films 1944 documentary films American black-and-white films Battle of Britain films Documentary films about military aviation Films directed by Frank Capra Why We Fight Articles containing video clips American short documentary films Warner Bros. short films 1940s American films

Plot

Criticism

See also

References

Bibliography

External links