For any likelihood of success, however, the operation required air and naval supremacy over the english channel, neither of which the germans ever achieved during or after the battle of britain. Operation sea lion is a massive expansion of 30 scenarios, using features never attempted in panzer corps before. Once sea lion started the entire royal navy would be attacking from all over the world as fast they could get there. The united states and britain to destroy the nazis. The planned 1940 invasion of britain, operation sea lion, remains one of the great whatifs of modern military history. Learn more about the battle of britain in this article. And in destroyers they vastly out numbered the germans. The battle of britain was essentially germany attempting to take aerial superiority over the british to make said invasion feasible, since the german navy could not stand up to the royal navy. Other british and free polish personnel were evacuated from other french ports right up until june.
Operation sea lion and its limitations in hattendorf john b and murfett, malcolm h. But germany could have been successful in invading and, if necessary. Operation sea lion was first published in 1957 under the title invasion 1940, and tells the story of german plans to invade the british isles in 1940. Hoi4 man the guns germany world conquest guide operation sea lion duration. Their plan, called operation sea lion by the germans, was never carried out. The british expeditionary force to france was hurriedly evacuated without its vehicles, artillery and stores from dunkirk by june 4th, 1940.
But germany could have been successful in invading and, if necessary, occupying great britain had they exercised joint and combined operations to achieve better. Apr 19, 2017 the british need to make a stoic and historical defense of their shores and to do so they have improvised a whole new era of weaponry, all detailed in the new campaign book, sea lion. Nov 17, 2018 operation sea lion, as the planned invasion came to called, hung as a deadly threat over britain well into the fall of 1940. In 1944 britains defences against seaborne attack were scaled down. A successful invasion would depend on german air supremacy in the skies over britain, as well as naval supremacy in the english channel. The fuhrer signed the official document authorizing the operation sealion in june of 1940. If operation sea lion wouldve been successful, would. The condition is that we accept that the subjugation of britain would have resulted in some accommodation between the united states and germany, meaning that us power, economic and then military, would not be projected across the atlantic to europe during 194041. Could operation sea lion have succeeded if they hadnt. Successful operation sealion equals great britain defeated, even if the odds of making operation sea lion successful is extremely low. Operation sealion was never carried out during the war as the germans lost the battle of britain. Before undertaking operation sea lion, germany had to destroy the raf, royal air force. Sealion could be carried out, but only if the transport operation were confined to a narrow front in the. The battle of britain operation sea lion history 12.
That left the war at sea, which was, if anything, even more crucial for sealions success. The limitations of military power, macmillan, london 1990, pp. Battle academy, blitzkrieg france, operation sealion, operation market garden, operation husky, rommel in normandy, fortress metz. Operation sealion canceled the national wwii museum blog. Apr 20, 2015 operation sealion looked simple in theory. Aircraft carrier hms furious 18 swordfish, 6 sea gladiator, 9 skua ii. Operation sea lion, 194041 kindle locations 46384639. The united kingdom stands alone, waiting for the germans to strike.
What would have been the outcome if ww2 operation sealion had been carried out. The luftwaffe was very experienced in modern warfare, the wehrmacht had experienced astonishing success since the attack on poland and the british had lost a vast amount of military hardware on the beaches of dunkirk. However, germany first had to control the sky and sea of the english channel before a land invasion. German plans for the invasion of england, 1940 operation sealion. The victory by the royal air force raf fighter command blocked this possibility and, in. However germany never obtained air and naval superiority over the english channel, thus the operation was doomed and never occurred. Hitler approves plans for an upcoming invasion of the united kingdom. Some historians believe that sealion could never have been successful, even with air and sea supremacy, and that hitlers real goal in developing the operation was to force great britain into capitulation. Kindle edition, we get the following oob of home fleet which is the only fleet that matters here as all the others are tied up. Operation sealion was the name given by hitler for the planned invasion of great britain in 1940. If the luftwaffe had been successful, operation sea lion would have been attempted. What if britain had lost the battle above its skies in wwii. Mar 14, 2016 operation sealion was the german plan to invade england across the english channel in 194041. Its aim was to find out what might have happened had nazi germany launched operation sea lion, their planned invasion of southeast england during world war ii, in september 1940.
Part of hitlers directive number 16 was the heavy use of mines and submarines to block the english channel. What would have been the most successful feasible result out. We can choose to wave a magic wand, and wipe out the rn and the raf, and examine how successful the invasion was likely to be in their absence. Did operation sea lion stand any chance of success. What factors would have made operation sea lion german. During world war ii, operation sea lion was nazi germanys plan to invade the united kingdom. There is a large body of fiction set in an alternate history or a secret history, where the operation sea lion, a german plan of invasion of britain during world war ii, is attempted or successfully carried out. Sea lion planning was hasty, hitlers directive number 16 to invade britain, following certain preparatory actions was issued in july 1940 that is not enough time to plan and execute an invasion. It could only be the final act of an already victorious war against britain as otherwise the preconditions for success of a. Operation sea lion would have been the invasion of britain by nazi germany after a successful battle of britain during ww2. With the german air force defeated in the battle of britain, the operation was put off on 17 september 1940 and never.
B i believe the november 1939 german assessment needing air and sea superiority to achieve a successful landing is correct and germany will probably not even be able to do this even on a local scale. The british and the remains of the french army have retreated across the english channel. Victory in the air battle for the luftwaffe would indeed have exposed great britain to invasion and occupation. As author peter fleming notes, the period may to september 1940 has become the home of many legends. For operation sea lion to be successful, germany would have needed control of the english channel, air superiority, and resources to ship men and ammunition to the beachhead in britain. A lot of text is spent of detailing the events that led to this situation in order to put things in context, as well as a lot of thoughts about the attitude of the british people at the time. Operation sealion was hitlers last big obstacle to own the whole of europe since britain was the only country standing between him and the total dominance of europe. For this to be successful, the raf had to be neutralized with minimal luftwaffe losses. My best guess is a conditional yes, so could not would.
Sandhurst has done this on four occasions to my knowledge. However, analyses by experts during a wargame conducted in 1974 concluded that there was little chance of the plan succeeding. Serious planning work began for operation seelowe sealion, in july 1940. Jun 21, 2011 the german threat to britain in world war two. 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. All brands and associated imagery featured in this game are trademarks andor ed materials of their respective owners.
I dont have a plausible explanation for this, so sue me. Operation sea lion was postponed on september 17, 1940 and never rescheduled. The military success of the german military since september 1939. Operation sealion history of the battle of britain. There are many books on sea lion primarily, but not exclusively, by british and german authors. Battle of britain, during world war ii, the successful defense of great britain against unremitting and destructive air raids conducted by the german air force from july through september 1940, after the fall of france. The victory by the royal air force raf fighter command blocked this possibility and, in fact, created the conditions for great.
Dubbed operation sea lion, planning moved forward under the guidance of chief of the general staff general fritz halder. Without air supremacy and command of the sea the project could not go ahead. Operation sealion history of the battle of britain exhibitions. Feb 26, 2020 operation sea lion wargame wikipedia en. Sure it could have succeeded but landing an army on an island isnt the issue keeping them supplied and organized is the problem. Unternehmen seelowe was nazi germanys plan to invade the united kingdom during the second world war following the fall of france. Auxiliary ground, air and naval forces that survive a mission may follow your army into the next mission, repairbuild bridges and airfields, gain naval and air superiority, structures and units switching sides, defecting troops. Unternehmen seelowe was the plan to invade the united kingdom by the nazis during world war ii. Though hitler had originally desired to invade on august 16, it was soon realized that this date was unrealistic.
Meanwhile the british defense would be intense and the germans would lack the chance to use the blitzkrieg when launching an amphibious assault. A successful invasion of a large island with substantial military assets will never be easy. General alfred jodl, chief of staff of the german armed forces, named the plan operation sea lion. But the version of history that we are presented with. From a technical standpoint, the best of these works include operation sealion by ronald wheatley 1958, invasion of england 1940 by peter schenck 1987 and operation sealion edited by peter cox 1977. The royal navy only had five of their capital ships in english waters.
The wargame was organised by the daily telegraph and dr paddy griffith from the department of. Operation sealion was the name given by hitler for the planned invasion. The british empire, unthinkable though it might be today, was still a formidable naval power in 1939, and needed to be in order to maintain its geographically scattered empire. Operation sea lion, as the planned invasion came to called, hung as a deadly threat over britain well into the fall of 1940. German maps reveal interesting facts about operation sealion. All previous accounts of operation sea lion have stressed that the campaign could not be successful without reichsmarschall hermann gorings luftwaffe first defeating the british royal air force raf, since the germans required air superiority over the english channel before an invasion could proceed successfully. The british army infantry battalions and home guard in 1940 were desperately short of artillery, especially antitank weapons. Battle of britain, during world war ii, the successful defense of great britain against unremitting and destructive air raids conducted by the german air force luftwaffe from july through september 1940, after the fall of france. Victory for the luftwaffe in the air battle would have exposed great britain to invasion by the german army, which was then in control of the ports of. Operation sea lion was hitlers failed plan to conquer. This was a plan for an invasion of britain via the english channel. Operation sea lion was a major wargame conducted at royal military academy sandhurst in 1974. Other british and free polish personnel were evacuated from.
No one knows whether sealion would have succeeded or not had it been launched. Its possible that operation sea lion could have been undertaken, but it is not clear whether or not it would have been successful in the long run. The german occupying force is eventually driven out, and by the time of the eyre affair england is a republic. What would have been the most successful feasible result.
The failed nazi invasion that turned the tide of war is a fascinating insight into a definitive moment of world war ii. Operation sealion was the german plan to invade england across the english channel in 194041. The british army infantry battalions and home guard in 1940 were desperately short of artillery. Although operation sea lion was never attempted, there has been much speculation about its hypothetical outcome.
The great majority of military historians, including peter fleming, derek robinson and stephen bungay, have expressed the opinion that it had little chance of success and would have most likely resulted in a disaster for the germans. Risk and health and safety hosted at aerials and tv. In this respect hitler had to overcome serious problems from the outset of the war. Meeting with planners on july 31, hitler was informed that most desired to postpone the operation until may 1941. The thursday next novels by jasper fforde are set in an alternate universe in which operation sea lion was successful. In 1944 britains defences against sea borne attack were scaled down.