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In the 1930s, it was widely believed that interception of enemy bombers before they reached their targets was practically impossible. As Stanley Baldwin said “The bomber will always get through.”

But the British development of what we now call radar (the American term) completely changed the calculus. Enemy bombers could be detected while they were still hundreds of miles away, which might give barely enough time to stop them.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

Goldberg Variations
Composed in 1741 by Johann Sebastian Bach. Public domain.
Performed by Shelley Katz. Public domain recording. Source.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

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The World War I fighter plane was typically a bi-plane with wings made of wood and cloth, fixed landing gear, and an open cockpit.

What a difference twenty years made! By World War II, changes driven by more powerful engines led to all-metal monoplanes, closed cockpits, and retractable landing gear.

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• Transcript.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

Terzetto
Composed in 1925 by Gustav Holst. Public domain.
Performed by Steve’s Bedroom Band, and used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY 3.0 license.Source.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

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The end of the war came as a relief to most French people. In Britain, Charles de Gaulle called for the French to fight on.

French colonial administrations had to decide which French leadership to follow, while the British seized or attacked what they could of the French Navy.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

Fantaisie romantique sur deux mélodies suisses
Composed in 1837 by Franz Liszt. Public domain.
Performed by Christoph Zbinden, and used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY 3.0 license.Source.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

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After the evacuation was completed and Dunkirk surrendered, the German military proceeded with Plan Red, the second and final stage of the offensive.

After Paris fell, some in the French Cabinet were ready to seek surrender terms.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

Reverie.
Composed in 1890 by Claude Debussy. Public domain.
Performed by Simone Renzi, and used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY-NC 3.0 license. Source.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

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The German armored thrust through the Ardennes had surrounded and isolated hundreds of thousands of French, British, and Belgian soldiers, and soldiers from other Allied nations.

The Royal Navy began a last-ditch attempt to evacuate as many as possible from the French port of Dunkirk.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

“Mars, the Bringer of War” from The Planets.
Composed in 1916 by Gustav Holst. Public domain.
Performed by the United States Air Force Heritage of America Band. Public domain recording. Source.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

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After months of delays, Adolf Hitler finally got the Western offensive he’d been pushing for since the fall of 1939.

Key to the plan (Plan Yellow) was a secret German armored spearhead through the Ardennes that would pierce the French line at an unexpected place. It was a gamble, but it paid off.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

“Entrance of the Gods into Valhalla” from Das Rheingold.
Composed in 1869 by Richard Wagner. Public domain.
Performed by the United States Marine Band. Public domain recording. Source.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

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The Allied intervention in Norway failed to prevent the Germans from securing control over that country.

This failure triggered a backlash in the British Parliament against the Chamberlain government. A new government of national unity was formed, with Winston Churchill as prime minister.

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• Transcript.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

“Rule, Britannia!”
Composed in 1740 by Thomas Arne. Public domain.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

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With neither side taking the initiative on the main front, Winston Churchill pushed his plan for intervening in Norway, for the purpose of denying Germany the use of Norwegian waters.

At the same time, Germany was preparing to invade and occupy Norway.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

“Ja, vi elsker dette landet” (National anthem of Norway.)
Composed in 1864 by Rikard Nordraak. Public domain.
Performed by the United States Navy Band. Public domain recording. Source.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

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In the last months before the war broke out, Winston Churchill’s view of Nazi Germany seemed increasingly prescient, while Neville Chamberlain’s became increasingly embarrassing.

Chamberlain stubbornly resisted calls to invite Churchill into the Cabinet until the war began; then he was given his old job of First Lord of the Admiralty, the same post he had held at the outbreak of the previous war.

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• Transcript.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening War Theme

Serenade for String Orchestra
Composed in 1892 by Edward Elgar. Public domain.
Performed by the United States Army Strings. Public domain recording. Source.

Closing War Theme

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.