"Sea Lion" - an operation to capture fascist Germany in England

The battle for England and Operation Sea Lion refer to Hitler's failed attempt to capture Foggy Albion in 1940. Failed not without the help of Russia, since the order to abolish all preparations for landing on the British coast was given by the Führer on January 9, 1941, when the Germans were stopped near Moscow, and all the forces of Germany began to go to war with our country. But if the Sea Lion is an operation to seize England, then the battle for Britain (the term is introduced from Churchill's request) implies only the battles of the Air Force and Germany's attempt to seize the dominion in the sky over this country.

The final chord in enslaving Europe

After the war, some high-ranking German military officials claimed that Hitler never seriously thought about attacking the UK. Most likely, after the defeat of the French army, he was sure that the country behind the Channel was already in his pocket. And England would not escape the fate of France, with which the Führer conducted a "jocular war" for eight months, until May 9, 1940, if not for the war with Russia. The Sea Lion, an operation conceived as the landing of a German landing, was approved on July 16, 1940. The plan for Seeliwe was as follows: originally 25 divisions were to force the English Channel and land on the English coast between Dover and Portsmouth.

The English Channel is the natural defense of England

But many understood that landing a landing was a risky business, and the Sea Lion was an adventurous operation, because England had a very good navy and centuries-old experience of sea battles. Britain's air force was also quite strong. That is, it was very difficult to transfer the landing. Therefore, one of the components of the German army, namely the land forces, was excluded from Operation Sea Lion. It was decided first to destroy or suppress the British Air Force and to clear the English Channel. The date of the beginning of the operation was postponed all the time. Naturally, England was extremely interested in Hitler's attack on the Soviet Union and in every way contributed to this.

Serious preparation

The Sea Lion, the operation of Germany's attack on Foggy Albion, was revised all the time, corrections were made, the date of the beginning was postponed. It was decided that not 25, but 40 divisions would take part in the crossing of the Channel, on the mainland coast of which, in the occupied seaside towns of Cherbourg and Rotterdam, Calais and Ostend, 1722 barges and 471 tugboats were accumulated in large quantities. In addition, the Germans intended to use 1,161 boats and 155 units of sea transport with a displacement of 3,000-5,000 tons. The emphasis was on the German Air Force (Luftwaffe), which should have been supported by 13 coastal guns.

The Battle of England

August 7-8 began the bombing of England, code-named "Eagle Plaque" (Adlerangriffe). The first day, code-named "The Day of the Eagle" (Adlertag), is considered the official date of the start of the battle for England (although in other sources September 13 is listed as the official date of the operation "Eagle", which was part of the landing landing "Sea Lion"). Operation, the date of the beginning of which was not approved (landing of the landing, as is known, also did not happen), is often called the "unsuccessful leap of the Sea Lion". On February 13, 1942, Admiral Raeder had a last conversation with the Fuhrer about this operation, after which it was finally removed from the agenda.

The true turning point in the war

As noted above, in the autumn of 1940 the operation to invade England was postponed to the spring of 1941. Whatever they wrote about the turning points in the Second World War, only the halt of Hitler's troops near Moscow and the rout of them at Stalingrad saved the UK from enslavement. They were rescued by the sea and the Russian army, to the historic victories of which the British were defeated after defeat both in the desert and on their shores. Only Hitler's order stopped the German offensive at Dunkirk and allowed 330,000 Allied soldiers across the English Channel to be transported.

Air parity

Operation "Sea Lion" was carried out in the summer of 1940. Actually, not the landing itself and the seizure of the island state, but the bombing of England, which was supposed to clear the way for the land forces. But the operation was documented on July 16, 1940, and completely abolished on January 9, 1941. Operation Eagle, part of the Sea Lion, ceased in September, and the Germans had to admit that they had not achieved air superiority, and in order to retain the Luftwaffe, it was necessary to stop bombing London and invade it indefinitely. And then, for obvious reasons, this idea was no longer returned.

The beginning of the complete destruction of European cities from the air is laid

So the operation "Sea Lion" ended. The torn invasion of England can in no way be considered a merit of this country alone. Although Great Britain also dealt air strikes against Germany, do not harbor Hitler's plans for an attack on Russia, in England "music would not last long". Destructive bombing of London was preceded by a navigational error of German pilots, as a result of which bombs were dropped not at military factories located in the suburbs of the English capital, but at its center. The British carried out four retaliatory raids on Berlin. And although the destruction and the victims were insignificant, and the Berliners were not frightened, but rather surprised, Hitler was outraged and ordered the massive bombing of the capital of England, which began on 7 September. On the same day, in England, the signal "Cromwell" sounded, warning of the beginning of the invasion of German troops. September 7 bombings were the strongest and caused the greatest destruction, September 9 - less significant, the 15th - even less. On September 17, dismantling of equipment intended for an offensive began in the seaports of Germany. The Germans failed to achieve superiority in the sky and clear the way for the Sea Lion. But this can not be regarded as a victory over the German troops and a turning point in the war. Moreover, in the future, the Germans did not stop bombing, and the city of Coventry in 1940-1942 was wiped off the face of the earth.