The Battle of Britain offers an in-depth assessment of the situation leading up to the summer of 1940, the strategies employed by the adversaries and the brutal aerial battle itself. In 1940 Britain was an island under siege. The march of the Nazi war machine had been unrelenting: France and Belgium had quickly fallen and now the British Empire and the Commonwealth stood alone to counter the grave threat. However, their fate would not be decided by armies of millions but by a small band of fighter pilots. It was on their shoulders that Britain's best chance of survival rested. Above the villages and cities, playing fields and market towns, the skies of southern England were the scene of countless dogfights as the fledgling Fighter Command duelled daily against the might of the Luftwaffe.

Lavishly illustrated with photographs, contemporary art and posters, and accompanied by numerous first-hand accounts, this is a volume that captures the reality of a defining chapter in British history.

Kate Moore studied Modern History at the University of Cape Town and completed a Masters in the same subject at Oxford University, where her final thesis was on the Battle of Britain. She has an interest in all periods of history but her first love will always be the key events of 1940. Based in the Osprey Head Office, Kate is the Publisher for the General Military list.

Imperial War Museums (IWM) tells the stories of people who have lived, fought and died in conflicts involving Britain and the Commonwealth since the First World War. Our unique collections, made up of the everyday and the exceptional, help to tell the stories of people's spirit, resilience, creativity and innovation in the face of adversity. The author lives in Oxford, UK.