Commander in Chief
Appointed Commander of the Home Forces
Permanent historical records · Updated 2026-11-03
1940 in Great Britain — Page 10
Explore 642 historical events and records for Great Britain in 1940.
Historical records for Great Britain in 1940
Sorted by month and day. Records with no month are shown last. Showing 40 of 642 unique records.
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July
Commander in Chief
Appointed Commander of the Home Forces after the evacuation at Dunkirk
Invasion of Great Britain
Begins preparations for an anticipated German invasion of Britain
SOE
Forms the Special Operations Executive, supports resistance in German occupied Europe
Special Operations Executive
Approves creation of a body to support resistance in occupied Europe.
Home Guard
The Local Defence Volunteers are renamed the Home Guard, risen to 1,250,000
Home Guard
Renames the Local Defence Volunteers as the Home Guard
Mobilisation of Resources
Addresses the Commons on mobilisation of national resources for the war effort.
Battle of Mers-el-Kebir
Winston Churchill ordered that the French Navy (Marine Nationale) should either join forces with the British Royal Navy or be neutralised in some way, to prevent the ships from falling into German or Italian hands
Commander of 5th Corps
Appointed Commander of 5th Corps, a promotion
Commander of 5th Corps
Appointed Commander of 5th Corps, a promotion
Neutrality
Winston Churchill ordered that the French Navy (Marine Nationale) should either join forces with the British Royal Navy or be neutralised in some way, to prevent the ships from falling into German or Italian hands
August
Invasion Defence
Orders continued preparations against a possible German landing.
Economic Policy
Speaks for the coalition on wartime economic policy and organisation.
Battle of Britain
"Never in the field of human conflict, was so much owed by so many to so few"
Battle of Britain
Germany has lost 1,733 planes compared to British loses of 915
Battle of Britain
Directs national resistance as the Luftwaffe launches Eagle Day.
Battle of Britain
An offensive is discovered when the British use the enigma machine
Birth of Anthony Michael Tony Secunda
Birth of Anthony Michael "Tony" Secunda
Battle of Britain
Coordinates Fighter Command during one of the battle's largest air actions.
Battle of Britain
Moves limited squadrons carefully between threatened sectors.
Battle of Britain
The largest air Battle of this period. 5 major actions are fought but the Germans lose 76 to Britains 34 aircraft
Invasion of Egypt
Churchill sends reinforcements to Wavell in Egypt to be used against the Italians
Battle of Britain
Continues attacking a German fighter despite severe burns and a burning Hurricane.
Battle of Britain
His actions later earn Fighter Command's only Victoria Cross of the war.
Blockade of British Isles
Hitler declares a blockade of the British Isles
British Isles Blockade Declared
The German declaration presents waters around the British Isles as subject to wartime maritime restriction.
Battle of Britain
Advocates concentrating fighters into larger formations against German raids.
Battle of Britain
Leads No. 242 Squadron during the Battle of Britain.
The Few Speech
Praises Fighter Command pilots in his speech on the Few.
Bombing of London
1st air raids take place on central London
Night Bombing Response
Responds to German bombing raids on British cities and airfields.
Battle of Britain
Britain retaliates for attacks on London with a raid against Berlin.
Battle of Britain
The Berlin raid influences German decisions about subsequent bombing strategy.
Battle of Britain
Retaliation for the bombing of London. RAF bombers attack Berlin for the 1st time
Bombing of Berlin
The RAF makes its 1st bombing raid on Berlin
Bombing of Berlin
RAF bombers attack Berlin for the 1st time, retaliation for the bombing of London
Birth of Nik Turner
Birth of Nik Turner
Battle of Britain
Dowding manages reserves as pressure on southern sector stations increases.
Battle of Britain
Fighter Command flies more than one thousand sorties during intense fighting.
How these records were prepared
Generated from the World History Database historical_events table. Identical display records are collapsed; descriptions otherwise retain the stored text. Coverage and source quality vary. Check primary and specialist sources before citing individual historical claims.