I will be spending several free hours in Dunkirk later this year. I am especially interested in where the storied evacuation of the British Army took place in 1940 but I cant find much info. on line. There is a small museum in the town and the beaches themselves seem to be at a place named Malo-les Baines but I just cant seem to zero in on any memorial or some other reminder.(do any of you history buffs know if the mole/jetty still exists?) Maybe the people living there would just as soon forget it? Anyway, I would appreciate any input that is sent on.
Thanks, John
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
John,
In your searching, trying Malo-les Bains (no 'e' in the last word) might help.
A buddy and I went through this last year (he's a historian, I'm a wannabe). It was a miserable rainy morning but we drove all along the beach and saw no memorial anywhere. He was looking for the mole as well and had the idea that it was a jetty rather than a breakwater. All we could find were several (sections ?) of a breakwater something less than a half mile offshore right at les Bains. Due to the weather, we couldn't estimate the age of the structures. I never thought of it again unitl just now, so have no other information.
I did just take a look at the satellite version of google maps and these things are clearly visible.
Posted by
OP
virginia beach, va., u.s.
26 posts
Ed, Thanks very much for your input and please thank your historian friend for me. I suspect your deductions are correct or nearly correct for the reasons you stated. I did as you suggested and entered Bains instead of Baines and it made a difference. Among others I read an interesting page by the C.W.G.C. about where the British KIA are buried (scattered as you might imagine due to the situation at the time) I also learned that the British G.H.Q.was at De Panne 18 km.E of Dunkirk,just into Belgium,at www.cwgc.org/admin/files/dunkirk.pdf I also found a site concerning the small boat "fleet" of private citizens and their boats, many of which are on the water today.This group has tracked a number of them down. Anyway,I do ramble on. Good Luck on your hunt and as far as your amphib.experience, Semper Fi Mac!or Thanks for the boat ride,whichever applies.
John
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
Update after talking to my expert:
He has numerous seaward views of the evacuation and none show the breakwaters. Regardless of their age, they would have had, at most, only an ancillary but obvious benefit.
We are jointly convinced that the evacuation would have been conducted in this vicinity however. One of his photographs shows a ferris wheel in the background and Les Bains was at that time, and still is, a beach resort.
Since both of us have more than a little experience in amphibious warfare, and an amphibious evacuation is essentialy a spur-of-the moment type of operation, and since his photos show both beached boats as well as those along a jetty, we think the jetty was part of what is now (or has been replaced by) the existing recreational marina at the east end of the present greater Dunkerque port complex; i.e., Les Bains.
In fairness, all of this is guessed at in response to your post; we were, in fact, killing time waiting for a ferry to Dover on a mad search for iron age hill forts in Wales. There was no forethought to the history of Dunkerque. Additionally, we live several hundred miles apart and could not look at the same pictures together when we were trying to figure this out yesterday.
Hope this helps.
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
You're welcome. Think green.