This page was compiled to accompany the BBC series "The Nazis: a warning from history" and shows extracts from the massive amounts of information prepared to assist in the invasion of Britain. It also demonstrates the impressive range of strategic information that can be gleaned from readily available published sources. The images are taken from two folders issued for official use only by the German General Staff:

Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Mappe A. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941), containing maps and booklets covering England as a whole. Mappe B covered London and Mappe C the coastal regions.

Militärgeographische Einzelangaben über England: Militärgeographische Objektkarten mit Objektbildern. 10: Südwest England. (Berlin, 1941), one of twelve regional folders, each with maps of the region and larger towns.

From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Textheft. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941). The translation of these two extracts for the south west region is given below.

South West England is an isolated, not easily accessible part of England with distictive landscape peculiarities.
Its coast is predominantly made up of inaccessible steep cliffs against which the breakers crash. However a number of fjord-like valley mouths especially on the southern coast, offer excellent natural harbours, which only lack a favourable link to the hinterland. Examples: Falmouth, Plymouth, Dartmouth-Kingswear, Exmouth, Teignmouth-Devonport [sic]. The two latter suffer from difficult landings because of the rivers, as do the less numerous estuary harbours of the north coast (Barnstaple-Bideford).
The population is of Celtic origin, only in the east of Devonshire of Saxon origin and in the ports mingles with a Scandinavian strain. Even though the Celtic language has been lost, the population retains a strong feeling for its homeland and a consciousness of its traditional peculiarities, which expresses itself in a reserved attitude to all strangers; the River Tamar forms the eastern boundary of an almost purely Celtic population. The density of population is moderate, from about 50 to nearly 100 in the catchment areas of the above-named towns.

Military assessment:
Landing possibilities are limited to a few mainly protected harbours. The gathering of large numbers of troops, their deployment and transport meet with difficulties in respect of accommodation, feeding through the broken nature of the terrain. Coasts, valleys and high ground offer good defensive positions. Visibility is limited by the high relief , but the higher summits offer good distant views in good weather, even though these seldom allow complete observation. The most important centres are exposed to sea attack.

From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Textheft. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941). The geographical survey concluded with a vocabulary and a few useful phrases. Significantly, although such everyday terms as "submarine contours" and "airway beacons" were included, "please" and "thank you" were omitted.

Exeter (BB 31) (St. D. 58) County of Devon 66,000 inhabitants. - Railway station. Old town on the lower reaches of the River Exe, 15 km above the mouth. Seat of Anglican bishop with famous cathedral and bishop's palace. University, communications centre (7 railway lines). Old town surrounded by walls with ruins of the castle (historical museum), Guildhall (one of the oldest secular buildings in England), many churches and numerous rich old houses, library (Royal Albert Memorial), theatre. 2 hospitals, gas works, electricity station, reservoir, sewage works, garages, 2 barracks. Airfield about 8 km east of Exeter, commercial port, third grade. Wool trade and fishing, manufacture of agricultural machinery, omnibus works, glove manufacture, lace manufacture, artificial silk industry, brick works, corn mills, oil and fat industry, iron and metal works, leather processing, chemical industry, armaments industry, transport services. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Ortschaftsverzeichnis. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941)

From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Stadtdurchfahrtpläne. 2 verbesserte Aufl. (Berlin, 1941) From a volume of town plans which even indicated one-way streets, although whether the invading tanks would have respected such traffic regulations is open to doubt.

From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Stadtplan von Exeter: Mil.-Geo.-Bearbeiting nach den bis zum 1.8.1941 vorhandenen Unterlagen. 1:10 000. (Berlin, 1941) Map of Exeter produced by the German military command from British Ordnance Survey mapping. Cultural sites are marked with a red star, communications and military target areas are outlined in red, industrial areas in purple and bridges highlighted in black. Comparison with the locations where bombs actually fell shows little relation to the areas marked as being of strategic significance on this map.

From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Das Kraftnetz des C.E.B. (Central Electricity Board = Elektizitätsamt). (Stand 1939). Sonderausgabe. (Berlin, 1940) The large red symbols show major power stations and the triangles transmission stations of more than 132 Kilovolts.

From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Großbritannien: Übersicht der Gewässer. 1:1 000 000. - Sonderausgabe. (Berlin, 1940) This plan of the main watercourses in Britain differentiates between those deeper than 1.80 metres and shallower canals and rivers.

A good indication of the thoroughness of the work of German military intelligence.

From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Großbritannien und Irland: Fernsprech- und Telegraphennetz. (Berlin, 1940) This map of the telephone network differentiates between underground cables (the only ones in the south west), overground lines and (shown by wavy lines) submarine cables.

From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. England: Militärgeographische Operationskarte: Südblatt 1:500 000. - Sonderausgabe (Berlin, 1940) This map differentiates the various types of military terrain. For example the area around Woodbury, just north of Exmouth, shown in pink is categorised as: Hilly landscape with differences in height mostly more than 100 metres but less than 300 from valley to hilltop. Landforms offer considerable difficulties off the road for motor vehicles, hauled artillery and motorised troops. Areas difficult to observe. The differences in height for the area are exaggerated and any troops landing would have encountered a large military encampment on Woodbury Common.

This page concludes with a series of photographs of Devon, mainly taken from the air and extracted from the volume of plates which forms part of the general folder.

12. Flugstützpunkt Mount Batten bei Plymouth. Auf einer Halbinsel am Eingang zum Cattewater-Hafen gegenüber der Stadt. Blick von Norden. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941) A view of Mount Batten, Plymouth, from the north.

13. Flugstützpunkt Cattewater bei Plymouth. Blick von den Stadden-Höhen auf die Stadt im Hintergrund. Cattewater ist die Mündung des Plym-Flusses, im Südosten der Stadt. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941) View of Cattewater, Plymouth.

14. Eisenbahnhochbrücke über die Tamar-Mündung. Vorn rechts Saltash, hinten links Devonport (Docks der Kriegsmarine), eine westliche Vorstadt von Plymouth. Blick von Norden in den Hamoaze (Mündung des Tamar). From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941) View of Brunel's railway bridge over the Tamar at Saltash. A strategic communications target as well as an historic monument.

15. Industriegebiet bei Plymouth. Tanklager des Kriegschafens. Dahinter typische, meist niedrige Reihenhäuser. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941) View of the industrial area of Plymouth.

16. Burrator Reservoir, Stauwerk der Stadt Plymouth. Im Nordosten der Stadt zwischen Yelverton und Princetown gelegen. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941) Burrator Reservoir, Dartmoor, the source of Plymouth's water supply.

17. Salcombe. Weit vorgeschoben an der Südspitze Devonshires. Blick nach Süden über die verzweigte Talbucht mit ihren Steilhängen. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941). The Salcombe Estuary.

18. Steilküste in Devonshire. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941). Coastal scene in east Devon, probably Beer.

19. Hafen von Brixham. Der Hafen ist aus der kleinen Talmündung (Mitte rechts) herausgewachsen an den offenen Strand und muß daher durch eine Mole geschützt werden. Blick nach Süden. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941). Brixham harbour.

20. Unterlauf des Dart. Das breite, tiefe fjordähnliche Tal wurde als Schutzhafen für stillgelegte Schiffe benutzt. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941). Dart estuary. The caption comments on its use as a harbour of refuge.

22. Teignmouth. Typische Abschnürung und Verlandung der von links kommenden Flußmündung des Teign durch eine von Norden nach Süden wachsende Sandbank. Blick von Süden. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941). Teignmouth from the south. The caption comments on the sandbank at the mouth of the estuary.

23. Hafen von Exmouth. Künstliches Becken im Sandbank am linken (Ost-) Ufer der Müundung der Exe. Blick von Süden in den Dockhafen bei Flut. From: Deutschland. Heer. Generalstab. Militärgeographische Angaben über England: Bildheft: England insgesamt. 3 Aufl. (Berlin, 1941). Exmouth harbour.