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The Battle of Britain The turning point of the war in Europe is clearly the Battle of Britain since if Germany had defeated the Royal Air Force and conquered Britain, Germany could have taken over control of Europe. In 1940, most of Europe was under the control of Germany. After France had fallen, victorious German soldiers paraded down the Champs Elysees, the famous Paris Boulevard. France’s surrender in June 1940 left Britain alone in the fight against Germany. Hitler had believed that Great Britain would seek peace with Germany after the fall of France but Britain fought on with the war alone. The British expected Hitler to order an invasion of their nation. Hitler made preparations to cross the English Channel and invade southern England. Before the Germans could invade, however, they had to defeat Britain’s Royal Airforce. The Battle of Britain, which began in July of 1940, was the first battle ever fought to control the air. In August 1940, the German air force, the Luftwaffe, led by a German man named Goering, second in command next to Hitler, began to attack Britain’s Royal Airforce bases.
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