The Battle of Britain: The Land Perspective RUSI Analysis, 20
Oct 2006 Operation Sealion and the Battle of Britain: A Land
Perspective Professor Gary Sheffield holds the Chair of War
Studies at the University of Birmingham. He was formerly
Professor of Modern History at King’s College London, and Land
Warfare Historian on the Higher Command and Staff Course, Joint
Services Command and Staff College, Defence Academy of the UK.
The significance of Fighter Command’s victory in the Battle of
Britain is difficult to overstate. It gave Hitler a strategic
defeat at a time when his forces appeared to be unstoppable; was
a huge morale booster; and gave tangible evidence to the USA
that Britain was not going to capitulate without a tremendous
fight. Fighter Command also prevented a situation on which
Britain was reliant on the Royal Navy to defeat an invasion
force. I find the idea that, if the RAF had lost the Battle of
Britain, the RN could have destroyed the German invasion barges
persuasive. However, the cost to th