Dunkirk and the Little Ships
Posted by Philip Weir on 21 October 2020 10:12:00 BST In Military History, Featured
In May 1940, German troops advanced through Holland, Belgium and France with astonishing speed, forcing the British Expeditionary Force and the French army to retreat to the north-east coast of France. The evacuation plan – Operation Dynamo – was put into effect with the expectation that only about 45,000 men might be rescued. However, by the hasty assembly of a vast armada of disparate vessels (thought to be in the region of 900, of which about 700 were privately owned), 338,226 Allied troops were brought safely back to England. Without the contribution of those Dunkirk Little Ships, as they have come to be known, thousands of British troops would have died on the shores of France. In today's blog post, Philip Weir, author of the upcoming Shire title 'Dunkirk and the Little Ships' explores the lead up to this event and gives a brief overview of some of the vessels involved.Continue Reading
