Germany bombed Britain in an all-round way Why didn't you bomb London?

1August, 940, the air combat in Great Britain entered a climax stage. According to the requirements of the German high command, at this stage, the effective force of the Royal Air Force should be completely eliminated, and the air superiority over the English Channel and the British Isles should be seized to prepare for a large-scale attack on the British mainland.

From the "Eagle Day Operation" on June 5438+03, in the following ten days, Germany dispatched thousands of bombers to bomb British airports, radar stations and other military targets almost every day. The two sides fought fiercely in the air, and the fighters consumed a lot. Especially the loss of fighter planes, Britain can't afford it. Can they make it to the end?

The RAF is under great pressure.

There are few storms and dark clouds in Britain in August, which is the favorite time for the British people. But at 1940, it was the last good weather they wanted, because during this period, the Germans organized thousands of planes to bomb Britain almost every day. But what makes Goering wonder is why Britain's national defense force is still strong.

It turned out that the intelligence department had a problem with him, boasting and exaggerating the results. As an air combat hero during World War I, Goering believed that his opponent's potential strength was still great, and he not only continued to increase the scale of attacks, but also launched bombings at night. The purpose is to lure more British soldiers into battle and annihilate them.

Although British pilots showed fearless courage and superb combat skills, they always had an absolute advantage in number. In front of the Germans, they often "hurt the enemy by one thousand and hurt the enemy by eight hundred". Fighters are not a big problem, but there are fewer and fewer pilots, so it is difficult to supplement them for a while. The phenomenon of "planes waiting for people" often appears. The fatal weakness of the Royal Air Force was exposed.

What is terrible is that the Germans seem to have no signs of stopping, but have increased the scope and frequency of bombing; Radar doesn't seem to have much effect, because German bombers are flying everywhere. In a short period of 10 days, 446 fighter planes were destroyed and 23 1 pilots were killed or injured, accounting for 1/4 of the total number of pilots.

To make matters worse, five forward airports in southern England were severely damaged, and seven key radar stations along the coast were on the verge of paralysis after the bombing. The defense force of the Royal Air Force has obviously begun to weaken, and Britain is facing catastrophic danger. Churchill said anxiously, "If this continues, the country will be in danger of collapse."

In other words, the attack by the German Air Force will last for a period of time, even a week. There will be no organized and large-scale fighter formations over Britain, and the Royal Air Force has no strength to fight back. To put it bluntly, Britain's door is completely open to the Germans, and the "Sea Lion Project" will be successful, and Britain will become the next France.

However, the German bombing of Britain only did not include London.

Since the implementation of the "Sea Lion Project" in Germany, all British military facilities and factories have been bombed, and even some airports and radar stations have been bombed three times and five times. In order to lure more British fighters, the Germans even targeted military facilities in the suburbs of London, but only bombing London was prohibited. Why?

The order to ban the bombing of London came from the German head of state. First of all, in his book Mein Kampf, he has made it clear that he will resolutely destroy France and turn the Soviet Union into its colony. In other words, in its strategic planning, it does not have the idea of dominating the world, but only forces Britain to hold peace talks and share land and sea hegemony.

But his wishful thinking was rejected by the British, or he didn't understand the British ambitions and strategic views at all. The angry German head of state decided to implement the "Sea Lion Plan" to let the British appreciate the strength of the German army and hold peace talks with Germany under pressure. The reason for not bombing London is to leave room for peace talks.

Secondly, the German heads of state who participated in World War I knew very well that fighting on two fronts was the reason for the German defeat. Strive for peace talks with Britain to avoid "repeating the same mistakes" when the Germans attacked the Soviet Union; Full-scale bombing does not include London, which is to make a gesture of "attracting but not sending". Even if there is no peace, Britain will be afraid of the strength of the German army and avoid fighting on two fronts.

More importantly, buy people's hearts. Attacks on civilian targets and London are prohibited mainly to separate the people from the government. Through a powerful military strike, the British people in trouble were angry with the government and put pressure on it to hold peace talks with Germany. Once London is bombed, it will increase people's hatred for the Germans and strengthen their determination to fight the Germans.

However, some German air force generals disagree. They advocate bombing London, believing that only a terrorist explosion can crush the morale of civilians and let the British sit at the negotiating table. Goering asked the generals, "Will Berliners succumb to terrorist bombings?" From this point of view, Goering agreed with the German head of state that London could not be bombed.

After more than a month of bombing, both sides were exhausted and suffered heavy losses. Whoever can persist to the end will win. Especially the British, although they still maintain high morale, the pilots are not only exhausted, but also fewer and fewer. General Dowding, commander of the Air Force, predicted that "even a week's rest will be fine." .

References: World War II, British air combat.

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