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Christopher Nolan is back with a brand new film this weekend and it’s already earning rave reviews from critics. Dunkirk is a tightly constructed ode to the soldiers and civilians impacted by the epic “Miracle at Dunkirk.” The film follows three intersecting narratives — one young British soldier’s week struggling to evacuate France, one day on a small yacht headed into the fray to rescue the soldiers, and one hour in the cockpit of an RAF pilot played by an especially laconic Tom Hardy — that help illustrate the scope and the severity of the situation. Some are already hailing it as Nolan’s masterpiece. Only there’s one thing that might be giving you pause before you buy a ticket…you don’t really know that much about Dunkirk.
Take a deep breath. You’re not alone. The Battle of Dunkirk and its ensuing evacuation happened a full year and a half before the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, so it often only merits a passing mention in most American history textbooks. Heck, I took a course on 20th Century British History at Oxford University and we didn’t really go too deep into it. Nevertheless, it marks an important moment in both British history and in World War II.
So what exactly happened? Why was it such a big deal? And why do people call it a “miracle?” Here’s everything you need to know about Dunkirk before you see Dunkirk.
So what is Dunkirk?
Dunkirk is a city on the coast of Northwest France that’s conveniently close to both Belgium (only 10 kilometers away) and Great Britain (it’s less than 39 miles across the English Channel). In late May 1940, the Nazis had pushed back huge numbers of British, French, Belgian, and Canadian troops to this small town. Among the pinned troops? Pretty much the entire British Expeditionary Force (or the BEF), aka the 394,165 men sent to act as Britain’s army in the Western European theater. Here is a visual aid to help you see why this was a big, scary deal:
What am I looking at here?
What you’re looking at is a certain type of hell. You know the expression “Trapped between a rock and a hard place?” This is that, but the “rock” is the Nazi army and the Luftwaffe (Germany’s scary air force), and the “hard place” is the actual sea. These Allied soldiers were on the brink of annihilation before the Second World War had even really begun. Nazi victory seemed all but secure.
Why couldn’t the British Army cross the English channel?
Because the waters around Dunkirk were too shallow for the British Navy’s large ships. The only boats that could come close to the shore were smaller, lighter vessels. And the only way to get the soldiers out to many of these ships was by marching them out onto a long, narrow dock. Or by sending out lifeboats and rescue ships from the bigger ones…which would have to practically anchored and unable to move during the time it took those smaller vessels to make multiple trips back and forth.
Ugh, that sounds like the Allied soldiers were sitting ducks.
Yes, it would be very easy for a German pilot to drop bombs or shoot volleys of bullets on these men while they were all crowded tightly together on a large still target.
But don’t people swim across the English Channel? Why couldn’t they just swim?
It’s true that elite swimmers do attempt the journey from Dover to Calais (which is a French town close to Dunkirk), but it’s a perilous crossing for even the most seasoned open water swimmers. The water’s cold and the waves are brutal.
Some men did attempt to swim across. After all, on a crystal clear day, you can see the famous cliffs of Dover from the beach at Dunkirk. So, it seemed possible. Of course, these guys were not seasoned swimmers, were carrying tons of gear, and being shot at by Nazi planes. So many of those “swimmers” died rather quickly.
That sounds bad. Like, really bad.
It was. By May 26, 1940, the situation was really grim. It was so grim that even though the press wasn’t allowed to report on it (because it would zap morale), the public figured out stuff was bad. Why? Well, because there was a special service held in Westminster Abbey to pray “for our soldiers in dire peril in France.” The king was there.
So what happened next?
Prime Minister Winston Churchill ordered “Operation Dynamo.” Over the next few days, soldiers and ships scrambled to get across the channel. During this time, the Luftwaffe bombed Allied forces in surrounding areas before turning their attentions on Dunkirk itself. This is where the Royal Air Force (RAF) stepped up — and this is Tom Hardy’s part of the story. Over the next few days, the RAF pulled the Luftwaffe away from the beach and engaged them in thousands of dogfights.
Still, the Luftwaffe did considerable damage. Soldiers aside, it’s thought that around 1,000 civilians were killed during the raids on Dunkirk alone. Though, in many ways, the real heroes of Dunkirk were the civilian volunteers.
What do you mean? The civilian volunteers?
Remember how I said that the big British naval ships couldn’t sail close enough to Dunkirk to dock and pick the soldiers up? The solution the Brits came up with was to call any and all civilians with small boats to rally to the cause, cross the channel, and transport the stranded soldiers home. By May 31, almost 400 small crafts were involved in the effort. Because of the bravery of these ordinary fishermen and amateur sailors, 338,226 soldiers were successfully transported to Britain.
Is that good? Weren’t there more British soldiers than that? Weren’t there a bunch of French soldiers there, too? IS THAT GOOD? IT DOESN’T SOUND ENTIRELY GOOD.
You’re right. Many, many men were lost. The BEF alone lost about 68,000 soldiers (most of whom were captured as prisoners of war). Hitler declared Dunkirk as a resounding German victory, but Churchill found a clever way to spin it for Great Britain. In one of his epic speeches, Churchill dubbed it a “miracle.” Though he warned Brits not to look at it as an actually victory, it felt like a reprieve. They literally could have lost the entire army in one fell swoop — and by that measure, the war. The United States was still continuing an isolationist stance in the international conflict, so there’s an argument to be made that if that had been the end of the British Army, it would have been the end of a free Europe. History would look altogether different.
And that’s why it’s called “The Miracle at Dunkirk?”
It is indeed.
Where can I learn more about Dunkirk?
Here’s a list of some documentaries — all on Netflix — that can give you more context:
- Battle of Britain: The Real Story is a BBC doc that offers a different perspective on the battle — namely that Hitler didn’t quite get what he was up against.
- Smithsonian Channel’s docuseries Apocalypse: The Second World War takes old footage from the entire war, colorizes it, and slaps a Martin Sheen voice over on top for good measure. Episode 2 gives you a first hand look at Dunkirk.
- Winston Churchill: Walking With Destiny gives you a look at the whole war from his point of view and includes a section on Dunkirk.
- Finally, Episode 1 of Secrets of Great British Castles looks at the history of Dover Castle and features an interview with a Dunkirk survivor.
What are your sources?
Honestly, everything I remember from AP History, copious History Channel docs, and, uh, wikipedia? As my favorite non-historian Dan Carlin would say on his podcast Hardcore History, “I’m not a historian.” (But I did fact check this post.)
Dunkirk will be in movie theaters on July 20.
Stream Winston Churchill: Walking With Destiny on Netflix
Stream Battle of Britain: The Real Story on Netflix
