Sir Keith Park?

Question

Why is he famous?

What was his role in the Battle of Britain?

What Happened.. (e.g why it started, duration, what happened, key events?)

Gallipoli Campaign?

Battle on the Somme?

Battle of Britain?

Battle of Malta (World War II)?

Pacific theatre of Operations?

try not to use wikipedia as i already search most of the info on it

Thank You!

Answer 1

The best place to start is the website of the campaign to erect a momument to Sir Keith Parks in Trafalgar Square: (http://www.sirkeithpark.com). It details his role in command of Group 11, the most prominent of the units in Britain's Fighter command. Group 11 was charged with the defense of Southeast England from Luftwaffe attack. In that capacity, Sir Keith commanded the air cover during the evacuation of Dunkirk, and later, defended London and its environs during the Battle of Britain (the attempt by German forces, during the summer and autumn of 1940, to establish air-superiority over the channel and its beaches, and to break the back of both the RAF and British morale).

Sir Keith had also served with distinction in the First World War. He fought on the ground at Gallipoli from April 1915 until January of 1916, earning a battlefield commission. After being invalided out of the service for wounds sustained at the Somme, he joined the RAF, and compiled a singularly distinguished record, shooting down five enemy aircraft and rendering fourteen others (& one shared) "out of control". He ended the war as an RAF major.

For more information on these and other exploits, I'd recommend the Vincent Orange's book, "Park: The Biography of Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Park," (London: Grub Street, 2000). For his specific role in the Battle of Britain, try Peter Jacobs' "11 Group in the Battle of Britain" (London: Leo Cooper, 2005).