Raf War2
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ADVANCED HIGHER HISTORY
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Holy Cross High School
PREPARATIONS FOR WAR
THE ARMY
THE RAF
THE NAVY
CIVILIAN PRECAUTIONS
THE SEARCH FOR ALLIES
ECONOMIC PRECAUTIONS
INTRODUCTION
How well prepared was Britain for war in 1939?
The British Army in 1939 was a small, professional force. It was supported by the Territorial Army. At the outbreak of war the British Expeditionary Force dispatched to France was 12 divisions in size. This was from a total force of 50 full and part-time divisions. In addition to the forces of the British Army, also consider the size of the forces that the British army could draw on from the dominions and British colonies. These included a number of divisions from Australia, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand along with a large armed force of approximately 200,000 stationed on the Indian sub-continent. In terms of immediate preparedness this force was relatively small compared with the forces of other major combatants. The fully trained professional army was limited in size and it would take some time for troops from the dominions to reach Europe.
The size of the army is only one indicator of military readiness for war, however. The machinery used by these forces also needs to be considered. The British forces had the advantage of having a fully motorised system of troop movement. This enabled relatively fast deployment of forces (The Wehrmacht were not entirely motorised at this stage). British artillery pieces were of high quality, a British 25 pound artillery piece was particularly accurate and successful in destroying enemy tanks, for example. However the armed vehicles of the British army at the time do not compare particularly favourably with those of their opponents. Tanks such as the 'Matilda' were difficult to destroy but lacked the manoeuvrability to engage in rapid attacks. Other armed vehicles, such as
ADVANCED HIGHER HISTORY
-------------------------------------------------
Holy Cross High School
PREPARATIONS FOR WAR
THE ARMY
THE RAF
THE NAVY
CIVILIAN PRECAUTIONS
THE SEARCH FOR ALLIES
ECONOMIC PRECAUTIONS
INTRODUCTION
How well prepared was Britain for war in 1939?
The British Army in 1939 was a small, professional force. It was supported by the Territorial Army. At the outbreak of war the British Expeditionary Force dispatched to France was 12 divisions in size. This was from a total force of 50 full and part-time divisions. In addition to the forces of the British Army, also consider the size of the forces that the British army could draw on from the dominions and British colonies. These included a number of divisions from Australia, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand along with a large armed force of approximately 200,000 stationed on the Indian sub-continent. In terms of immediate preparedness this force was relatively small compared with the forces of other major combatants. The fully trained professional army was limited in size and it would take some time for troops from the dominions to reach Europe.
The size of the army is only one indicator of military readiness for war, however. The machinery used by these forces also needs to be considered. The British forces had the advantage of having a fully motorised system of troop movement. This enabled relatively fast deployment of forces (The Wehrmacht were not entirely motorised at this stage). British artillery pieces were of high quality, a British 25 pound artillery piece was particularly accurate and successful in destroying enemy tanks, for example. However the armed vehicles of the British army at the time do not compare particularly favourably with those of their opponents. Tanks such as the 'Matilda' were difficult to destroy but lacked the manoeuvrability to engage in rapid attacks. Other armed vehicles, such as