Dunkirk Triumph Or Disaster Essay

Churchill was surely right to declare that 1940 was the British people's "finest hour", as they resisted the Nazis alone.But key to British success and survival were the four unforced errors committed by the Fuehrer.75 years ago this week, the British army stood on the brink of disaster.

Churchill was surely right to declare that 1940 was the British people's "finest hour", as they resisted the Nazis alone.But key to British success and survival were the four unforced errors committed by the Fuehrer.75 years ago this week, the British army stood on the brink of disaster.

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Hitler's second mistake occurred three months later, in August 1940.

Vast waves of aircraft were launched to achieve German air superiority over England.

Despite warnings from Churchill and others that the Germans intended to invade the USSR, Stalin continued to believe Hitler was a sincere ally.

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, there was little desire to join the European war.

Dunkirk represented the first of four massive strategic errors of judgment by Hitler.

Two were committed in 1940, and involved Germany failing to finish off the British when they were down and effectively alone.

But with the Royal Air Force again outnumbered, and its losses mounting dangerously, Hitler suddenly instructed the Luftwaffe to shift bombing targets away from the airfields of the beleaguered RAF to London and other cities.

So at this pivotal moment, RAF Fighter Command was granted time to recover and regroup, allowing its pilots to continue their heroic defence, and the Battle of Britain was won.

Again, Hitler had psychologically misread his opponents.

In switching his attacks away from the airfields, he assumed that incinerating thousands of civilians in the cities would cause British morale to surrender.