Battles are not the only warfare successes

26 May to 4 June is the anniversary of the Dunkirk evacuation, a tremendous achievement. While many men were taken by 42 destroyers and other large ships 700 small boats, some no larger than river cruisers, also played a significant part and some 300,000 people were transported to England. War can evoke the very best in people and one survivor recounted yesterday that it was not so much ‘it’s my turn’, rather ‘we will help one another’. The last surviving ‘little ships of Dunkirk’ captain mentioned that the greatest enemy for him was lack of sleep: with only one hour rest in 24 it was difficult to keep alert.

Contributor: Tom Wells. Sempringham [ehistory.org.uk] eLearning Office.