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THE MIRACLE of DUNKIRK (The Dunkirk Evacuation) 26 May - 4 June 1940

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THE MIRACLE of DUNKIRK (The Dunkirk Evacuation) 26 May - 4 June 1940 THE MIRACLE OF DUNKIRK (The Dunkirk Evacuation) 26 May - 4 June 1940 On 24th May, Empire Day, in desperation King George VI made a speech calling for a ‘National Day of Prayer’ to be held in Westminster Abbey on the following Sunday 26th May. In a broadcast on the BBC, he instructed the people of the UK and the Empire, men and women, with ‘all the courage of purpose of which capable’, ‘with proud hearts and resolve to turn to God’ and ‘with God’s help, we shall not fail’. Millions flocked to church (see above - the queues of people outside Westminster Abbey), synagogue and mosque. The Archbishop of Canterbury led prayers ‘for our soldiers in dire peril in France’. Nazi Germany had invaded Poland in September 1939. The British Empire declared war on Germany and the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was sent to help defend France. On 10th May 1940, Germany invaded Belgium, the Netherlands and France. In a surprise pincer movement, the German Army performed a lightning ‘Blitzkreig’ through the impenetrable Ardennes Forest and cut off the BEF and the remains of the Belgian Forces and three French Field Armies. 21st May they were trapped and had to make for the coast around Calais, Boulogne and Dunkirk. The BEF Commander General Gort saw that evacuation was the best course of action and began planning for a withdrawal. Britain was thus facing the defeat of our entire army. They struggled to make for the beaches abandoning their lorries, tanks and heavy armament on the way. Also making for the coast were the remaining soldiers from France, Belgium, Poland, and Holland. On 25th May, Boulogne fell and Calais was surrounded, leaving Dunkirk as the only port for an evacuation. The Calais Garrison was ordered by Churchill to defend their position and fight on to the last man. There would be no relief. This they bravely did delaying the German onslaught on the town of Dunkirk. Unbelievably and miraculously, Hitler agreed to the plan of the German High Command to halt the German armies’ advance to the coast. To this day there is dispute over this decision. A reason was that the German Armies which had outstripped their supply lines in their Blitzkrieg action through the Low Countries, needed some rest. It never occurred to the Generals that little ships would be summoned to cross the channel to rescue the BEF. Goering convinced Hitler that the Luftwaffe, more in sympathy with Nazi ideals, would appeal more to the public at home and thus the task of finishing off the armies around Dunkirk was given to the Luftwaffe. Then a violent storm arose in the Dunkirk Region which grounded the Luftwaffe, which had been straffing and bombing thousands on the beaches. This lull gave the allied armies the chance to construct defensive works and continue to pull the troops back. It also gave the chance for the planning of the naval evacuation - Operation Dynamo. Then calm in the weather made an evacuation across the Channel more possible. The destruction of our army would have left Britain open to invasion by Germany. General Alan Brooke said “Nothing but a miracle can save the BEF now….” Winston Churchill had called the brilliant strategist Vice Admiral Ramsey, out of retirement, to command Dover and put him in charge of the navy for the attempted evacuation from the beaches. He had seven days to organise it. Gort was in charge of the BEF on the continent. In all 220 warships were involved. At first they could use the harbour but then it was badly bombed and destroyed so that the larger ships could not get near the coast. Ramsey and Churchill thought initially that they would be lucky to rescue 30,000 to 45,000 men. The men on the beaches numbered 400,000 men. Churchill then had the brilliant idea of assembling a fleet of civilian ‘little ships’, no smaller than 30 feet nor bigger than 100 feet, which could get in close to the beaches and ferry the men to the larger ships. A call went out over the BBC. It was immediately answered. The British Ministry of Shipping visited shipyards, requisitioned boats and even commandeered ones they thought suitable without the owner’s permission. The flotilla rapidly assembled, consisting of pleasure steamers, motor boats, yachts, RNLI lifeboats, Thames Sailing Barges, Dutch Coasters, Belgian ships, Irish Marine and coast watching vessels, fishing boats, tugs, fireboats, even rowing boats to go to Ramsgate and make their own way or be towed by tug to France. Many had never been to sea before. They came from all along the South Coast of England, from harbours, down rivers, to be commanded by naval personnel and crewed by some of the owners, boat boys and the experienced willing and able to cross under their own steam or be towed from there, some by Dutch barges, on three different routes because of mines in the sea, to Dunkirk. Some sailed and motored down the Thames, including from Teddington, Twickenham and Richmond to assemble and proceed to Ramsgate. Dunkirk itself was continuously under attack from heavy bombing and Stuka dive bombers. A great pall of black smoke arose over the town. The RAF engaged the Luftwaffe further into France, in an attempt to delay the bombers getting to the coast. Once the operations started on the coast men were wading out from the beaches and standing, patiently waiting to be rescued, up to their necks in water. 26-27 May 19.00 hours Churchill ordered Ramsay to commence OPERATION DYNAMO - 7,669 men were rescued from the harbour, which was still working. 27-28 May First full day of the Evacuation - 17,804 rescued in all - 5,930 rescued from the beaches by the Little Ships, the others from the harbour. 16 Squadrons of RAF claimed 38 kills - losing 14 themselves. The Luftwaffe flew 300 bombers protected by 550 fighter sorties and attacked Dunkirk in 12 Raids, dropping 15,000 high explosive and 30,000 incendiary bombs, destroying oil tanks and wrecking the harbour. RAF flew 22 patrols with 287 aircraft. Call went out again for Little Ships. Belgian Army Surrendered. Calais finally fell. Churchill told the House it could prepare for ‘hard and heavy tidings’. 28-29 May 47,310 rescued in all, with13,752 from the beaches. British Destroyer sunk, Sister Ships carrying 500 men damaged by near misses. SS Fenella sank but 600 men escaped. Paddle Steamer sank with severe casualties. The harbour was continually bombed and became unusable so the British decided to try to use the East Mole which was not designed for boats to come along. As the days went on they also lined up lorries and stretched them out into the sea and used them with gangplanks across the tops to get to the ships. 29-30 May 53,823 men rescued 29,512 from the beaches. RAF/Fleet Air Arm lost 28 aircraft. Destroyer Wakeful torpedoed and sunk with loss of 600 lives. 30-31 May 68,014 men rescued - 22,942 from the beaches and Lord Gort evacuated. 31 May-1 June 64,429 Allied troops rescued, 17,348 from the beaches. The last of the British troops were rescued on 31st May. From then on mostly French troops. 1-2 June 26,256 French troops rescued - 6,695 from the beaches. 2-3 June 26,746 French troops rescued - 1,870 from the beaches. 3-4 June 26,175 French troops rescued - 622 from the beaches. In all 338,226 soldiers were rescued from the beaches and make-shift harbours of Dunkirk. 4 June 40,000 French troops surrendered. Of the 338,226 soldiers who were lifted from the beaches of Dunkirk, several hundred were unarmed Indian mule handlers from the Royal Indian Army Service Corps, Cypriot muleteers, French Senegalese soldiers and Moroccans. 200,00 were British and a few Canadian and 140,000 were French, Belgian, Polish, Norwegian and Dutch. 145 RAF planes were lost (42 Spitfires) and the Luftwaffe lost 156. Approximately 220 warships and 700 Little Ships assembled for the evacuation (933 in total). 200 lost during Operation Dynamo. Considering that both Churchill and Ramsey thought they would be lucky to rescue 30,000 to 45,000 men this was an amazing achievement - a miracle - brought about by: Ramsey’s brilliant planning, the British navy and French navy, the RAF, the garrison at Calais who fought to the end to hold those German forces away from the main area of Dunkirk, the German decision to halt their armies’ advance, the weather - both a storm grounding the planes and the calm allowing the flotilla to sail, the 4,000 French Army fighting at Lille against tremendous odds to hold off the Germans, and, of course, the valiant Little Ships who, against all the odds, displayed enormous fortitude and determination, courage and solidarity in adversity - ‘The Dunkirk Spirit’, when under continuous heavy fire, repeatedly to go into the beaches and bring off our soldiers. George VI was in no doubt that the National Day of Prayer to God, in our hour of need, had played its part and who would gainsay him. In times of desperate need we find that however great our problems, God is greater, and an inspiration to pray. Churchill made one of his brilliant speeches in the Commons at first pointing out that wars are not won by evacuations but rallying Britain to ‘fight on the beaches’, ‘on the landing grounds’, ‘fight in the fields and in the streets’, ‘we shall fight in the hills, we shall never surrender’.
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