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//Historical Background// __**HITLER PLANS THE OPERATION: **__  After the //Battle of Norway// and its occupation which is called //Operation WESER//, **Adolf Hitler** was considering yet another invasion. After //defeating and taking over of France//, Hitler thought that Britain would give up the war and try and make a peace treaty. Soon after, he realized that Britain wasn’t going to give up and started planning an invasion. On July 2, 1940 Hitler “Issued a directive...to initiate immediate preparations for an invasion.” Then to make it final, 14 days later Hitler issued the actual directive that had to do with the landing against the British and their homeland. The directive placed the navy in the role of transport. Air superiority was also a must. The landing was called “a key precondition for Operation Sea Lion, as the invasion of Britain was to be known,” and would take place on September 15, 1940. (World at war Operation Sea Lion). __**MILITARY ORDERS: **__ For the Operation, Hitler wrote separate orders for each of the commanders.  Hitler brought the commanders together: they were Hermann Göring, Wilhelm Keital, and Erich Raeder so that he could give them there orders. He decided that  “t he OKH ( Oberkommando Des Heeres) would determine the transportation for the first wave of soldiers, take over anti-aircraft artillery, and establish the embarkation and debarkation points with the navy.” The OKM ( Oberkommando Des Kriegsmarine)  would provide transportation for the army across the Channel which would escort the flanks to the ships of soldiers. Lastly, they would have to control the marine artillery against targets. The OKL ( Oberkommando Des Luftwaffe)  would “hinder interference from the enemy air force” and confront any British Resistance including their ground troops and troop reserves. Finally, they were to destroy routes bringing in British reinforcements and have paratroopers at the ready. (Trueman)  Composed of the **General Alfred Jodl** of the Heers branch in the army, **Grand Admiral Erich Raeder** (Commander-in-Chief of the OKM) Kriegsmarine navy, and the Luftwaffe Air Force, Operation Sea Lion was supposed to pack a powerful punch. The original prerequisites for the invasion, stated by Jodl, were to defeat the RAF and the navy off south coast Britain, create mine free areas for German navy, protect against other possible mines, and hold off northern British fleet. Hitler, agreed with most of these, but instead added that the Kriegsmarine would have to close off the Dover strait as well as the western entrance to the English channel. He also stated that the German soldiers must control the coast. This risky plan basically called for the defeat of all British military branches. It was certainly a tall order, but victory against their strongest foe meant that the Germans could win World War II. Although it was a gamble, there was a possible chance of triumph if the British fleet was either destroyed or kept 100 kilometers away, the air force and land defense were defeated, and the enemy submarines were distracted. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">__**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">BOMBING ON BRITAIN: **__ <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> On August 24th and 25th, Nazi bombers veered from their original path and struck London, despite direct orders from Hitler to leave the city untouched. Angered by the damage to their capital, the British retaliated by bombing Berlin in late August. Eighty-nine British planes were sent to Berlin, but only 29 made it due to interference on their radars by a storm. Hitler learned of this severe mistake, but did not call off of the misled attacks. Germany and Britain continued to bomb each other as a way to injure morale and eliminate any further resistances. Through the battles, the Royal Air Force remained strong while inflicting loss upon enemy planes. The fights escalated, and //Britain destroyed or damaged a total of eighty-four German barges during a night raid on Dunkirk, Cherbourg, Boulogne, Calais, Den Helder.// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Luftwaffe failed to gain control over the skies of Britain and the bad weather caused them to postpone the invasion further. On October 12th, the operation was delayed until the spring of 1941, but it was still an option for the German military. Raeder continually reported the navy’s planning efforts. If the navy’s plan, including the defeat of the Soviet Union, had been successful, then direct attack on Britain would have been unnecessary.

__**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">DECISION POINT **__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">As predicted, the Operation was quite a strain on the Nazis. Not only did British forces fight fiercely to protect their homeland, but even the weather was against them. The Kriegsmarine suffered quite a bit due to tides and currents stirred up by recent storms. This, paired with the constant conflict and hostility between inner branches, caused a massive amount of trouble. Not to mention that the odds against the Germans were very high and the commanders were arguing amongst themselves. They had to get their soldiers across the ocean and onto land, which would be hard without the British navy launching missiles at them. They had to if there was any chance at on bringing the soldiers across the sea or having complete air superiority. In all, the odds against the Germans were high; so, would they continue and risk many lives or stop and continue with the war in another front? When faced with this decision, should Hitler call off the attack or persevere? Pushing onward may lead to a grand victory or even more brutal losses counting to the fact that the British are especially strong on their landing site. Knowing of their chances against Britain retreating will cause Hitler’s first major defeat, but perhaps the conservation of military equipment will help out a later battle. What should be done?

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Decision Page