A British Spitfire during World War II
© Getty
“Where every morn brought forth a noble chance, and every chance brought forth a noble knight.” A matter of weeks following Churchill’s paraphrasing of Tennyson, these ‘knights’ were in the midst of the fight to which the prime minister also alluded. By August 1940, the Luftwaffe’s campaign to destroy the RAF was in full flight, including ‘Adlertag’ (‘Eagle Day’), during which there were 1,485 German sorties alone. To commemorate 80 years since this unparalleled moment in military history, History of War pays tribute not only to the airmen, but also to the thousands on the ground who sealed victory.