Why Did Churchill Sack the Marshal Who Saved Britain

Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding built the world's first integrated air defence system, refused to sacrifice Fighter Command in the doomed Battle of France, and then directed the Battle of Britain with a strategic brilliance that denied Hitler air superiority and prevented the invasion of England.His reward? A curt dismissal within weeks of victory — replaced by the very man who had acted as his prosecutor in an Air Ministry meeting that amounted to a show trial.Bomber Harris called Dowding "the only commander who won one of the decisive battles of history, and got sacked for his pains."This is the story of how the R A F establishment destroyed the man who saved Britain — because he had proven them wrong.—SOURCESStephen Bungay, The Most Dangerous Enemy: A History of the Battle of Britain (2000) Vincent Orange, Dowding of Fighter Command: Victor of the Battle of Britain (2008) Len Deighton, Fighter: The True Story of the Battle of Britain (1977) Dilip Sarkar, The Few: The Battle of Britain in the Words of the Pilots (2009) Robert Wright, Dowding and the Battle of Britain (1969) Michael Korda, With Wings Like Eagles: The Untold Story of the Battle of Britain (2009) Max Hastings, Finest Years: Churchill as Warlord 1940–45 (2009)Official History: T.C.G. James, The Battle of Britain (Air Historical Branch) Primary Documents: Dowding's letter to the Air Ministry, 16 May 1940—