This “immaculately researched and compellingly written” WWII history sheds new light on Britain’s critical victory against Nazi invasion (The New Criterion). In the summer of 1940, the Nazi war machine was at its zenith. France, Denmark, Norway, and the Low Countries were all under occupation. Only Britain stood in the way of the complete triumph, and Hitler planned a two-pronged offensive?a blistering aerial bombardment followed by a land invasion?to subdue his final enemy. But for the first time in the war, Hitler did not prevail. As Leo McKinstry details in this fascinating new history, the British were far more ruthless and proficient than is usually recognized. The brilliance of the RAF in the Battle of Britain was not an exception but part of a pattern of magnificent organization that thwarted Hitler’s armies at every turn. Using a wealth of archival and primary source materials, Leo McKinstry provides a groundbreaking new assessment of the six fateful months in mid-1940 when Operation Sea Lion was all that stood between the Nazis and total victory.

In the summer of 1940--after the Nazis crushed France and defeated Belgium--all Britain prepared for a German invasion. English forces stood on the Channel coast, waiting, but though the Luftwaffe bombarded Britain day and night, occupying forces never arrived. Why did they never attack this nearly defenseless island? Look through German eyes and get to bottom of the indecision that in the end may have cost them the war.

An in-depth analysis of Nazi Germany’s unused strategy to invade the UK during the Battle of Britain in World War II. It is hard to believe that in the summer of 1940, neither the Allies nor the Axis powers had any experience of large amphibious operations. German planning for Operation Sealion was concerned with pioneering new techniques and developing specialized landing craft. Remarkably, in only two months they prepared an invasion fleet of 4,000 vessels. In Operation Sealion, Peter Schenk begins by examining the vessels that were developed and deployed for the operation: converted cargo vessels and steamers, more specialized landing craft, barges and pontoons, and auxiliary vessels such as tugs and hospital ships. He then goes on to outline the strategic preparations for the landing and looks at the operational plans of, in turn, the navy, army, and air force. The planned invasion is described in full detail so that the reader can follow the proposed sequence of events from loading, setting sail, and the crossing of the English Channel, to the landing and the early advances into southern England. Schenk uniquely estimates the chances of success. This absorbing account of Hitler’s abortive mission, more detailed than anything written before, is of interest not just to the naval historian but to anyone with an interest in World War II or military strategy.

This terrifying alternative reality is actually based on historical facts. The book follows the real course of events up to1 September, including the planning in Britain and Germany, and the aerial war. The fictional story then supposes that the Germans halted their advance in France along the Seine and the Aisne after the fall of Paris and that Marshal Petain conceded an armistice at that point. The Panzer divisions are thus able to rest and re-equip in northern France... A brilliant blend of meticulous research and imagination, this book is bound to appeal to anyone with an interest in the causes and effects of historical events, and indeed to anyone interested in world war history itself.

This study tells the thrilling tale of Hitler's plan to invade Britain and end its involvement in World War II, and sheds new light on the greatest threat to Britain in over a century.

Three U.S. officers -- one from the Air Force, one from the Army, and one from the Navy -- met at the Joint Forces Staff College to argue that a truly "joint" approach could have produced success for Hitler in Operation Sea Lion, the proposed invasion of England in 1940. Military history contains many lessons from which the warfighting doctrine of the individual services, as well as joint doctrine, is derived. World War II stands as one of the major contributors of valuable lessons learned. From a joint and combined warfighting perspective, Germany's planning and preparatory military actions to the invasion of Great Britain after the fall of France are instructive. Their plan, called Operation SEA LION by the Germans, was never carried out, as certain prerequisite conditions were never achieved, and Hitler elected to move on to other operations. But Germany could have been successful in invading and, if necessary, occupying Great Britain had they exercised joint and combined operations to achieve better unity of effort within the German military, remained focused on key British operational centers of gravity, and exploited the capabilities of friendly nations such as Spain, Italy, and the Vichy government of France.