2 Pounds - Elizabeth II Battle of Britain, Silver Proof

Issued on the 80th anniversary of the 1940 air campaign, this coin falls within a long-running Royal Mint commemorative program covering major Second World War events. The Battle of Britain itself was fought between July and October 1940, with RAF Fighter Command's ability to sustain losses and replace pilots proving more decisive than aircraft production — Britain was actually outbuilding Germany in fighters by mid-summer. The Spitfire has dominated public memory of the campaign, but it was the more numerous Hurricane that destroyed the majority of Luftwaffe aircraft.