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After taking Norway and Denmark, Hitler invaded and quickly conquered the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.  The Allies were outmanned and ill-equipped for the German tanks and air force.  The Allies retreated to Dunkirk, a harbor town on the northernmost tip of France, across the English Channel from England.  There they expected to be slaughtered by the advancing German forces.

After taking Norway and Denmark, Hitler invaded and quickly conquered the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.  The Allies were outmanned and ill-equipped for the German tanks and air force.  The Allies retreated to Dunkirk, a harbor town on the northernmost tip of France, across the English Channel from England.  There they expected to be slaughtered by the advancing German forces.

The Germans did bomb the Allies mercilessly at Dunkirk.  But in what Winston Churchill called the “miracle of Dunkirk,” 338,226 soldiers were evacuated to England during constant bombing.  This required over 900 vessels to cross the English Channel, abandoning 40,000 land vehicles at Dunkirk.  The code name for this was Operation Dynamo.  Towards the end of the war, the Allied forces would return to liberate this town amid heavy German resistance.

The Germans did bomb the Allies mercilessly at Dunkirk.  But in what Winston Churchill called the “miracle of Dunkirk,” 338,226 soldiers were evacuated to England during constant bombing.  This required over 900 vessels to cross the English Channel, and the abandonment of 40,000 land vehicles at Dunkirk.  The code name for this was Operation Dynamo.  Towards the end of the war, the Allied forces would return to liberate this town amid heavy German resistance.

France fell to the Axis Powers on June 24, 1940, after Mussolini joined forces with Hitler and invaded France from the south.  The Germans took control of northern France, and installed a Nazi-controlled government (Vichy government) under a “puppet” for the Germans, French Prime Minister Henri Petain.  The real French government, led by French general Charles de Gaulle, was set up as government-in-exile in London.  De Gaulle’s Free French armies continued to battle Germany until the Allied Forces liberated France in 1944.

France fell to the Axis Powers on June 24, 1940, after Mussolini joined forces with Hitler and invaded France from the south.  The Germans took control of northern France, and installed a Nazi-controlled government (the Vichy government) under a “puppet” for the Germans, French Prime Minister Henri Petain.  The real French government, led by French general Charles de Gaulle, was set up as government-in-exile in London.  De Gaulle’s Free French armies continued to battle Germany until the Allied Forces liberated France in 1944.

After France fell, the only remaining prize in Europe for the Germans to capture was Great Britain itself.  (Switzerland, a small country protected by the Alps and a tremendous self-defense system, was never invaded by the Germans.)  But Great Britain’s new leader, Winston Churchill, refused to surrender.  Hitler began Operation Sea Lion to bomb London, using the powerful German air force (the Luftwaffe).  From September 1940 to May 1941, “the Blitz” consisted of constant Germany bombing of British cities, especially London.  There were more than 40,000 civilian casualties, and people would listen for air sirens as the sign to hide in underground shelters.

After France fell, the only remaining prize in Europe for the Germans to capture was Great Britain itself.  (Switzerland, a small country protected by the Alps and a tremendous self-defense system, was never invaded by the Germans.)  But Great Britain’s new leader, Winston Churchill, refused to surrender.  Hitler began Operation Sea Lion to bomb London, using the powerful German air force (the Luftwaffe).  From September 1940 to May 1941, “the Blitz” consisted of constant German bombing of British cities, especially London.  There were more than 40,000 civilian casualties, and people would listen for air sirens as the sign to hide in underground shelters.

A new invention, radar, saved the British.  The British Royal Air Force (RAF) began tracking incoming German airplanes and started shooting them down.  Also, the will of the British to survive deprived the bombing campaign of victory.  Hitler was forced to suspend the bombing in May 1941, and the Battle of Britain was over.

A new invention, radar, saved the British.  The British Royal Air Force (RAF) began tracking incoming German airplanes and started shooting them down.  Also, the will of the British to survive deprived the bombing campaign of victory.  Hitler was forced to suspend the bombing in May 1941, and the Battle of Britain was over.