Operation Dynamo, also known as the Evacuation of Dunkirk, commenced on May 24, 1940 and lasted until June 4, 1940. The evacuation itself was as big a heroic event, as the events surrounding it were controversial. They are pondered by Historians and Military Tacticians to this day. Why? Well, the controversy can only be solved by getting into the mind of a Mad Man, Adolph Hitler.
    The German Army was divided into three Army Groups: “A,” under the command of Col. General Gerd von Rundstedt; “B,” commanded by Feodor von Bock; and “C,” led by Baron Wilhelm von Leeb. On May 10, 1940, Army Group B invaded the Netherlands and advanced Westward through Belgium. Supreme Allied Commander, French General Maurice Gamelin relied heavily on the Maginot Line Fortifications, which Army Group C faced, and committed the French First, Seventh, and British Expeditionary Forces to the defense of the pending German onslaught.
    Army Group A advanced through the “impassable” Ardennes Forest, turning West toward Sedan, then Northward toward the English Channel. The fate of the Allied Forces would soon be sealed. A series of Allied Counter Attacks could not turn the German Spearhead, which reached the coast on May 20, 1940. This separated the British Expeditionary Forces, the French First Army, and Belgian Army. Upon reaching the English Channel, Army Group A headed North threatening the capture of the Ports and trapping the British and French Forces before they could escape to Britain. Enter the Controversy, as Hitler, having the perfect opportunity to trap the British and French, ordered his Generals to halt their advance for three days.
    This allowed the Allied Forces time to organize an evacuation and build a defensive line. Historians are of two trains of thought as to why Hitler issued this controversial order. First, Hitler and General von Rundstedt agreed the terrain was unsuitable for their Advancing Armor, while Reichsmarshal Hermann Göring argued his Luftwaffe could destroy the British and French Armies on the Beaches. However, when the order to halt came, Luftwaffe Lt. Gen. Baron Wolfram von Richthofen told the Luftwaffe brass that, “Unless the Panzers can get moving again at once, the English will give us the slip!  No one can seriously believe that we alone can stop them from the air.”  
    Secondly, some Historians believe Hitler thought if he showed some restraint on the trapped forces, the British would accept a compromise peace. If they did, this would free the Wehrmacht to continue its advance. These forces would then be free, after a refit, to deal with the Soviet Union.
    On May 26 Hitler decided to continue the attack and destroy the Allied forces on the beaches of Dunkirk. In the meantime the Royal Navy planned the evacuation of the trapped forces. Whether or not it was divine intervention, or sheer luck, the weather closed in, and the Luftwaffe was grounded to a great degree. With the German Forces suffering from their long march across France and short on supplies, coupled with the fact that German Panzers couldn’t advance through the marshy and swampy terrain, the Germans could only watch as the entire British Expeditionary Force, along with some of the French, made their escape right under their very noses.
    By May 26th 1940, the British Expeditionary Force was bottled up in a corridor by the sea. The French were in a near panic, as both Armies were flanked by Army Groups A and B. Winston Churchill became Prime Minister of England in this darkest hour in England’s History.
    As the mass retreat to the shores of Dunkirk began, thousands of tons of equipment were left behind. The British Army destroyed what it could, denying the Germans any of the spoils of war. The Luftwaffe began its bombing sorties and dropped leaflets. The leaflets advised the Tommies of their situation and to put down their arms and stop fighting. But these only served as toilet paper. The Germans thought there was no escape, but the British saw the English Channel as their salvation.
    The weather subsided and the German Luftwaffe and Artillery began to pound the Allied Forces in, and around Dunkirk, killing some 1000 civilians in the process. A well-intentioned counterattack did establish a holding action to cover the British retreat. BEF commander, General Lord Gort ordered Lt. Gen. Sir Ronald Adam, 3rd Corps Commander, and French Lt. General Marie-Bertrand-Alfred Fagalde, commander XVI Corps, to prepare a perimeter defense of Dunkirk. On May 28th the Belgian Army unexpectedly, and without notice to its Allies, surrendered, leaving a 20-mile gap on Gort’s Eastern Flank, between the British and the English Channel. Lord Gort sent his 4th, 5th and 50th Divisions into the gap to fill it. They were commanded by, respectively, Dudley Graham Johnson, Harold Franklyn and Sir Giffard Le Quesne Martel, known as “Q-Martel.” Ultimately, the German 256th Division slowly began to punch through the British Defenses. On May 31st General Georg von Kückler - “Side-car George” - assumed command of all the German Forces at Dunkirk and at 11: A.M. on June 1st, launched an all out attack on Dunkirk. General von Kückler  would be awarded the Field Marshal’s baton on June 30, 1942. Lord Gort would receive his a year later.
    The British War Office had ordered the evacuation to begin on the 25th of May. The British Navy could not get in the shallow waters with exception of small patrol boats and shallow draft destroyers. 931 “Little Ships,” as they were known, consisting of Private Yachts, Fishing Boats, Pleasure Craft of all shapes and sizes, began taking troops off the beach, shuttling them to larger ships sitting offshore. Under heavy bombing and strafing the civilian boaters showed, with great heroism and love of country, how willing they were to lay down their lives for God and Country. Of the 931 “Little Ships,” 243 were sunk. Covering the evacuation, the RAF lost 106 British Fighters in Dogfights with the Luftwaffe, who in turn lost 135. In addition, the Royal Navy lost six destroyers and the French, another three.
    In the nine days between May 27th and June 1st 338,226 troops were taken off the beaches of Dunkirk. However, Churchill, knowing there were approximately 65,000 French troops who were left to fight a rear guard action, ordered the ships to return on June 4th and remove the French Troops. Of the 65,000 French Troops 26,000 were evacuated, with the remainder of approx. 30 to 40,000 French Troops either killed or captured.
    On June 14th, 1940, German Troops entered Paris and on June 22nd France surrendered.
    The Battle of Dunkirk controversy will rage on until time eternal. Not being a student of Military History or Tactics I can only offer a common sense opinion. The Axis Powers were overwhelming in Europe. The German Blitzkrieg demoralized the Europeans. As a whole, they could only hope the United States would enter the war to have any chance at all to stem the tide of German domination of Europe.
    At the Battle of Dunkirk, I believe Hitler believed there was absolutely no escape from the beaches of Dunkirk and he could destroy the British, French and Belgian Armies at his choosing, hence giving him a diplomatic tool, namely given the hopeless situation, England would capitulate. With the U-boats in control of the Atlantic, effectively cutting off England from supplies and war materials from the United States, Britain would be a nonissue in the War. Hence the three day wait before advancing on Dunkirk, which ultimately gave the Allied Forces time to prepare for a defensive action and evacuation. Knowing the Royal Navy couldn’t get to the evacuees, Hitler never once considered the tenacity, and bravery of the English people, who in their “Little Ships” saved the British Army from certain capture or annihilation.
    On June 1, 1940, the New York Times said that, “So long as the English tongue survives, the word ‘Dunkirk’ will be spoken with reverence.”