Winston Churchill inspected British coastal defenses several times during the summer of 1940. France had capitulated on June 25, 1940, and many Britons expected a German invasion by autumn or before. This visit took place 80 years ago, on July 31, 1940, just two weeks after Adolph Hitler issued Directive 16, ordering the German military to prepare an invasion of England. Here Churchill examines a U.S.-made Thompson submachine gun, also known as a "Chicago Typewriter," because of the weapon's popularity with Chicago gangsters. Nazi propagandists tried to exploit the image as evidence that Churchill was himself a gangster and reckless warmonger, dropping leaflets on England featuring the image. (See here) The effort apparently failed, along with Hitler's attempt to convince the British People to pressure their government to make a separate peace.
