From the Back Cover
When Britain's Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain announced the outbreak of the Second World War on September 3, 1939, the whole country shuddered. It was only 21 years after the First World War, the 'War to end all Wars.' A nation still divided by class and wealth had to pull together. This color film shows how every part of society was touched by the war: young men were conscripted to fight; women joined the services or left home to work in factories; children were evacuated to the countryside. By June 1940, Britain stood alone. Hitler had swept across Europe and now threatened the British Isles. Every man, woman, and child prepared for the German invasion—inspired by their new war leader, Winston Churchill. In the months which followed, as Hitler's bombers crushed British cities in the Blitz, Churchill became the voice of Britain, the embodiment of British morale. But by the middle of 1942, morale had fallen.
The news from abroad was bad: Britain's new enemy, Japan, had captured Singapore and Hong Kong; the Atlantic convoys were suffering huge losses; the North African fortress at Tobruk had fallen. On the Home Front, rationing, profiteering, and the black market were crushing the will of the people. Britain had entered its 'Darkest Hour.' But in November 1942, news of an Allied victory was broadcasted across the world—the Battle of El Alamein. Churchill invited the people of Britain to celebrate 'a remarkable and definite victory,' but warned: "This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end, but it is perhaps, the end of the beginning."
