July 10, 1940: On this day in history, in the midst of World War II, the Battle of Britain began as the Luftwaffe started attacking southern England. The Battle of Britain was a military campaign  in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defended the United Kingdom against large-scale attacks by Nazi Germany’s air force, the Luftwaffe. It has been described as the first major military campaign fought entirely by air forces. The Battle of British lasted until 31 October 1940, which overlaps the period of large-scale night attacks known as the Blitz, that lasted from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941.