Remember Dunkirk: Timeline of a Miracle 

It is gratifying to hear a young American giving an amazing tribute and explanation about Dunkirk. I grew up with men who were at Dunkirk in 1940 but who sadly are no longer with us. Cheers mate.

It’s true it was a miracle. That would never have been possible without the French

My grandfather commanded this big battle, he was Brigadier Chef de la DGC1.... HIS NAME WAS HENRI GRUART

A British Video made by a British showing the Miracle of Dunkirk as a purely act of British bravoury without any mention of the French on the sea, on the air and on the dirt of Dunkirk ...

Great historical overview of this amazing evacuation effort. You left out how many were lost during the operation. Those numbers deserve the same respect as the survivors'. Thanks for posting this.

Very happy that you decided to make a video like this, tottaly worth it

It should be more complete if this movie explain who really defend the perimeter (and who did not) during the german push (with details). Make a detailled video could bring some surprises...

If the British Army had been destroyed-- captured or slaughtered-- on the beach at Dunkirk instead of escaping, Hitler might not even have needed to invade. The loss of the army would have brought tremendous pressure on the British government to negotiate with the Nazis, pressure that even Churchill might not have been able to withstand. With both France and Britain out of the war, Hitler would have had a free hand to deal with Russia, and without Britain as a distraction the Germans might have done a better job with Barbarossa. More than that, without Britain in the war, the US would have had little stake in the European war-- certainly there would have been no Lend-Lease to Russia. It is possible that the US would have gone off to fight its own war with Japan and left Europe to its fate, or would have found itself surrounded by fascist and Nazi states by 1950 or so-- a future FDR feared. In any event, the world would have most likely been an even grimmer place than it was by the end of the war. Britain, by preserving its army, preserved hope, and with it, civilization as we know it.

More of this please, and thank you for finally adding a video to WOWP! :D

Le miracle! C'est le sacrifice des soldats français!!

Thank you for putting a film together that avoided violence and carnage so that younger students could grasp key concepts while studying WWII.

I'd like to thank you SOO much, this video explained everything perfectly and I can see how much effort was put in. I seriously cannot thank you enough for creating this video, a free information pack that explains it so easily!

This video bring me tears on how (many) people gamble their life to save them.

The French held the lines Enabling Dynamo to happen.. problem with French was the generals, they had no idea and thought on WW1 ideas. Spare a thought for 51st highland division which fought on and on.

Britain played the biggest role in winning ww2 by far. What a position to be in the whole British army concentrated on one beach and refused to surrender at risk of being entirely annihilated. Infantry men armed with only rifles and grenades against German tanks , artillery and bomber planes from above they refused to to capitulate Where other different people of Europe, Belgian, deutch, french, surrendered under incomparably lesser circumstances, the British spirit to never ever give up was more evident than ever before. Even the ordinary people of Britain with their boats went through bullets and bombs to help and gave their lives along with the trained soldiers. No capitulation, no surrender. My uncle died there on the beach, my grandmothers brother. I am so proud of his sacrifice and think about it often. God bless all the brave British servicemen who refused to give up and may their spirit live on in, and inspire others across the world 🙏

You left out the BEST part! The British people prayed! Churchill credits the prayer as the reason for the saving of so many lives. Hilter recalled his generals for 3 days because he felt there was a trap; the weather also inhibited the planes from flying.

Great video! Deserves a lot more views!

This really helped me. Thank you

Cool video man

What a great thing. Bless all who took part r i p the ones who didnt get back

A very good video on a very important battle. I am sure history gets a little altered over time and we forget to thank all the different nationalities, people and armies that helped, but it is important the story be told. Just thinking of the brave citizens crossing the unforgiving English Channel with enemy planes with machine guns and bombs trying to sink your wee boat give me chills ! These were brave men ! Cheers !

Your film - congratulations, because You have done the great job.

Awesome

Let's hope a war like this never happens again.

Bravo team well done!

very well made , i wish the Americans would use British rather than English army

Thanks for this, I'm watching this as research before I go watch Dunkirk later.

The Dunkirk escape was a lucky retreat for the defeated soldiers, glorified by the propaganda of the British media. There were other retreats of bigger numbers during the same time that have not been covered at the same level in British's media. Also the media selectively understated the importance of French armies defending the retreating BEF against the advancing German force. In military sense, the Dunkirk event was not consequential to the final defeat of the German troops.

This is where hard times lie. May we further the cycle of interdependency and chaos , to strive the peoples of our world to show the goodness in them again. May we face this coming war with only the desire in our hearts to help those who are in most need.

Great video about a distinct and memorable humanity's episode, during the huge fight against nazi, dictatorship and fascism. Greetings from Brazil.

They are the pride of our nation.

The Dunkirk evacuation was irrelevant as the BEF was less than a tenth of our army. The Cabinet had already agreed to reject Hitler's peace offer on 28 May 1940.

Beautiful history so sad had to remind of tragic history that is what no reason for war

Interestingly, there is a serious historical mistake - German forces invading Poland didn't went THAT far and they DID NOT occupy all the Poland as it is suggested by this video - USSR had it's share of attacking, invading and occupying Poland. But I understand... WG is Belarusian :P

Anyone know if the mole is still there in Dunkirk?

Miracles happen everyday!!! God bless!!! 🙏🕯🕊😇

Beautiful propaganda where we realize that the fog is more due to the miracle that thousands of French soldiers fighting heroically, sometimes one against ten, to allow the English to wait patiently on the beach before fleeing as they did so well. Why is it not mentioned in this magnificent documentary that the English decided to flee without warning their Belgian and French allies? Leaving it up to the latter to cover their retreat as much as possible, when France had rather in mind to break through the German lines in order to get out of this pocket. So maybe this evacuation later allowed the war to be won, but the only miracle is the tenacity of the French soldiers.

One of the prides of our nation anyway.. there are a few..Battle of Britain also. Outnumbered but never outgunned.

What hapened in the movie Need a quick summary

*The British won the Battle of Dunkirk.* *The British BEF was only 9% of the total allied forces in France and the Low Countries.* The German advance was halted in France as the British with a vastly inferior force stopped them at Arras. Some German soldiers turned and ran. Directive 13, issued by German Supreme Headquarters on 24 May 1940 stated specifically for the annihilation of the French, English and Belgian forces in the Dunkirk pocket. The Luftwaffe was ordered to prevent the escape of the British forces across the English Channel. The German southern advance was stopped at Arras by the British with a numerically inferior force. The Germans never moved much further after. The Germans could not have taken Dunkirk, they would have been badly beaten in and around the town. *The Luftwaffe was defeated over Dunkirk by the RAF with the first showing of the Spitfire en-mass. More German than allied planes were destroyed in the Dunkirk pocket.* The first defeat of the Nazis in WW2 was by the British in the air battle over Dunkirk. Only six small warships were sunk at Dunkirk by the Germans as the effectiveness of the Luftwaffe blunted. The British were retreating after the French collapsed in front of them - a programme already in motion, a programme already in motion before the Germans showed up, as General Gort saw the disjointed performance of the French forces in front of him, and the exceptionally poor leadership. If the French collapsed the small BEF had no hope against the large German force heading west. *The French were amongst the British when General Gort decided to take the men back to England,* as he did not trust the French in a joint counter-attack. French General Wiegand held a meeting to arrange a counter-attack not inviting General Gort head of the BEF. Gort was under the command of Weigand. Gort heard of the meeting rushing to be there. He got there after the French and Belgians had left. He ordered the evacuation having no faith in the elderly French leaders. All armies retreat and regroup when the need is there. There happened to be a body of water in the line of the retreat. Were the BEF to move down the English coast and enter France further west with more men from England? The Germans did not know what was to be the next British or allied move. *The Germans could not have taken Dunkirk trying for nearly a week failing in the process.* The British retreat operation was carried out as planned and in orderly fashion. All bridges to Dunkirk were destroyed by the allies. The British counter-attack at Arras was with outdated Matilda 1 tanks, which only had machine guns, and a few of the brand new Matilda 2 tanks. The Germans fled in droves. In desperation the Germans turned a 88mm AA gun horizontal successfully against the Matilda 2 - their conventional anti-tank weapons and tanks could not penetrate the tank. The Matilda 2 would roll over German gun emplacements killing the gunners. Rommel thought he had been hit by a force three times the size, which made them stop and rethink. The Germans countered with their superior numbers pushing back the British who fell back consolidating towards Dunkirk. The British resolve and the new Matilda 2 made the Germans sit up and think about a street fight in Dunkirk against a consolidated force still with its weapons and the new Matilda 2 - the large 88mm would be useless in Dunkirk streets while the Matilda 2 would be in its element, with the Matlida 2 easily destroying the Panzer MkIII & MkIVs. The Matilda 2 could knock out any German tank at the time, while no German tank could knock it out. The Germans were expecting the Matilda 2 to be shipped over in numbers and for all they knew many were in Dunkirk. The Germans could not stop the tanks coming as the RAF controlled the skies with a CAP and the RN the waters of the Channel. Not a good prospect for the Germans. A Dunkirk street fight was a fight the German troops were untrained and unequipped for and unwise to get involved in. Von Rundstedt and von Kluge suggested to Hitler that German forces around the Dunkirk pocket cease their advance, consolidating preventing an Allied break out from Dunkirk. Hitler agreed with the support of the Wehrmacht. German preoccupation rightly was with an expected attack from the fluid south of the German lines, by mainly French and some British forces, not from dug-in Dunkirk which was too much of a formidable consolidated opponent, taking substantial resources to seize. The German column had Allied troops to each side with soft marshland to the south west of Dunkirk unsuitable for tanks. If German forces had engaged in a street battle for Dunkirk, they would be vulnerable on their weak flank from the south. In short the fast moving panzers were now static; German forces attacking Dunkirk in a battle of attrition would have been largely wiped out. The German columns were consolidating their remaining armour for an expected attack by the British and French from the south, and the important resupply from Germany, which was slow as it was via horses - or maybe a combined attack from the south and the Dunkirk pocket. The Germans attacked on a remarkably narrow front. *They had over-stretched their supply lines.* The Germans had no option but to stop, being more concerned at defending from the mainly French forces in the south which were viewed as a greater threat than Dunkirk. French general Weigand implemented his creation of _hedgehogs_ to attack German lines from the sides, with success - hedgehogs were adopted post war by NATO being a part of the tactics until the 1970s. What were the Germans thinking? Are the British retreating to England from Dunkirk to move down the English coast and re-enter France further south with fresh forces, including Canadians and the new Matilda 2 tanks, which they feared, and join up with the French forces there? Are they going to reinforce the Dunkirk pocket supplied by the Royal Navy with a 24/7 air CAP? The British could easily do any of these as they controlled the Channel. This would create one large difficult to combat force at Dunkirk. They also saw the resolve of outnumbered British forces at Arras. German generals were trying to figure out what was happening. None thought that British troops would retreat to England and stay there. The British never did that sort of thing. The Germans could divert most of their forces south and risk a Dunkirk breakout being attacked from their rear fighting on two fronts, or stay and consolidate, which they needed to do, awaiting a French/British attack from the south and use some forces and the Luftwaffe to attack Dunkirk, which they did. *German forces resumed their attack on Dunkirk for over 6 days and failed to seize the port.* The plan to break out of the Dunkirk Pocket using British, Belgian and French forces was abandoned as Gort had no confidence in the French. All military school studies since, knowing what the German and allied positions and situations were in 1940, have shown it would have succeeded. *The Germans were defeated at the Battle of Dunkirk.* They tried militarily to seize the port but failed. Only because the British did not trust the French and moved back to England did the Germans eventually occupy the town. *The Germans did not let the British get away that is misguided myth, they tried for a week simply not able to seize Dunkirk.*

OK, gotta say it, because I keep seeing it: at 0:50 we get a map of Europe in 1939. Multiple errors. The country just across that piece of Poland that is on the Baltic Sea...that's East Prussia, it's part of Germany. Everybody at the time agreed it was. It's important because "Danzig Corridor" separating East Prussia from the rest of Germany was used as an excuse by Hitler to attack Poland. And that country to the south of Germany...that's Austria, except that in 1939 it was part of Germany, because Germany annexed it in 1938. Not everybody agreed with that, though most Austrians probably did. And that long skinny country to the south of Poland...that's Czechoslovakia, except that in 1939 it was no longer Czechoslovakia, because Hitler had annexed the Czech part, and everybody let him, though the Czechs definitely didn't agree with it. Jeezus, f*****g just google maps for Europe in 1939. It's not hard. Somebody gets paid to do this. You should be ashamed of yourself and unemployed. And to the person who's going to reply with "it's no big deal"...when you claim to be presenting history you have a moral obligation to get your f*****g facts straight. I pretty much have to assume that the rest of what is presented here is total bullshit.

You forgot to mention that the english evacuated without warning their allies.

The thing that is not acknowledged here is the power of National Prayer. On the 26th May the Commonwealth was called to National Prayer by King George VI. Now continue from 3:24 minutes. Our secular historians do us all a great disservice by not a recognising the power of God. Send for the resources at the end of this video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-a8vyfp0aVHk.html We need to 'beat the buggers' as George VI aptly said in Darkest Hour.

Don't forget: Frenchmen are seved british in the begining of war Vive la France and long live United Kingdom 🇫🇷💪🇬🇧

What if the ussr surrendered but the war is still going which country is still in the war 1:Canada 2:Ireland 3: Scotland 4: Mexico 5: Murcia

He should be a Bit more excited like in world of tanks

I guess this contains spoilers XD ... you are basically telling us how the movie ends XD

Memoirs of history are always delicate subjects. They often give rise to colourful versions of chauvinism. Your video is full of lyricism There are several controversial points in your video. 1/ A desperate escape from a battlefield is not that glorious. Especially when one abandons an ally, after having put him in front of the fait accompli. It was, in fact, a complete rout, not a "miracle". As for the "Dunkirk spirit", as the British say, I prefer not to comentate it out of courtesy. The British could be offended. 2/ The eternal controversy : 'first part. You underestimate and ignore the sacrifice of the French. The "miracle of Dunkirk"was they did it and they were admired by the Germans for that. The French quickly found themselves alone holding the line, contrary to plans agreed between French and English. It's not very glorious for the British. Without their heroism, counter-attacking sometimes 1 to 20 (really) there would have been no re-embarkation. And to think that some people call the French cowardly. It's laughable. 3/ The eternal controversy:'Part Two The French were only taken on board once the British had been evacuated. Churchill had to insist, a lot, that the French should also be evacuated. Before that, they were systematically repressed. There were even executions of Frenchmen or wounded Frenchmen who were forcibly landed and abandoned on the beaches. The British were completely panicked and selfishly thought only of themselves. Soldiers sabotaged even their anti-aircraft guns so they could get back on board faster. 4/ 300 French and Dutch ships also participate in the evacuation. It wasn't just British ships, you ignore the others. A little imprecision, too. Small civilian boats played only an insignificant role. Their roles are largely overstated in the official version. In short, a lot of propaganda, chauvinism too. A lot of hidden facts also It wasn't, still "the finest hours". I hope you don't make a video about the "Miracle of Mers el Kebir" or you'll blow up the web.

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Absolutely the worst rewriting of history Britain shoukd have maintained Dunkirk and harrased the rear of operation red.

I don't quite understand... They go rescue soldiers who are behind enemy territory, couldn't they just as well, spread out, and used guerilla tactics to take the land back from the german's, when the majority of their good planes were off conquering other territories? They had hundreds of thousands of troops, that could have put a big hurting on the German invaders... Those ships could have brought weapons and supplies to aid the soldiers.

Cela s'appelle "Filez à l'Anglaise",mais bon...Peut etre qu'avec les spitfires avec nous, on aurait put rattrapper le front percé.... à Sedan...Pas de Miracle,mes amis Anglais et à tout les hommes qui sont tombés ensuite un peu partout...!Au faite les panzers se sont arrétés, car les Français se sont bien battus,et desfois à 1VS20

At 1:00 . Couldnt even get your maps right. East Prussia completely ignored and shown as white. East Prussia was essential in the invasion of Poland. If wargames cant even get simple maps right.

Good british propaganda. Shouldn't have expected more, sadly.