The battle of britain was germanys attempt to gain air superiority over England so that they could launch a seabourne attack against England. By the end of the long campaign germanys air force was ruined.

It was a huge turning point because it meant that germany could not invade England with any hope of success until it had rebuilt its airforce, which never ended up happening.

Although the Luftwaffe appeared to have the advantage in numbers of planes, pilots and experience, the two air forces were evenly matched. The short range of the German planes and the fact they were fighting over enemy territory were both serious disadvantages for the Luftwaffe

The battle began in mid-July and, initially, the Luftwaffe concentrated on attacking shipping in the English Channel and attacking coastal towns and defences. From August 12th , Goering shifted his focus to the destruction of the RAF, attacking airfields and radar bases. However, Goering got frustrated by the large number of British planes that were still fighting off his attacks. On September 4th , the Luftwaffe switched plans again and, on Hitler's orders, set about destroying London and other major cities. Eleven days later, on what became known as 'Battle of Britain Day', the RAF savaged the huge incoming Luftwaffe planes in the skies above London and the south coast. It was now clear to Hitler that his air force had failed to gain air superiority so on September 17th , he postponed his plans to invade Britain.

His attention was now focused on the invasion of the Soviet Union, although the Luftwaffe continued to bomb Britain until the end of the war. However, it's estimated that between July 10th  and the end of October 1940, the RAF lost around 1,023 aircraft whilst the Luftwaffe lost 1,887.