The evacuation of Dunkirk - The true story behind the film

Christopher Nolan’s war time epic is the latest retelling of one of the most famous WW2 stories. Discover the true story of the war film Dunkirk and find out how the CWGC commemorates those who lost their lives in the evacuation.

Is Dunkirk based on a true story?

While the desperate Dunkirk evacuation of WW2 sounds like it could have been dreamt up by Hollywood execs looking for a compelling war story, the events of the movie follow the history of WW2 pretty closely. 

The German Army, supported by the Luftwaffe, had smashed through most of Western Europe, employing Blitzkrieg tactics that had left the Allies reeling. 

The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was sent to France to assist in her defence. Now, with the German forces sweeping through the country, orders are given for the evacuation at Dunkirk, with the British army beginning a race to the coast and a desperate attempt to prevent destruction at the hands of the Germans. 

This is where Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk joins the story, following Private Tommy Jensen as he struggles to get to the beach and on to safety. Jensen joins a group of fellow soldiers waiting their turn for evacuation. 

Kenneth Branagh plays Commander Bolton, a fictional character inspired by some of the men responsible for the operation, chief among them, Captain (later Admiral) William Tennant. Tennant was among those at Dunkirk tasked with the organisation of the evacuation and was one of the last to be taken off, staying to the bitter end in the search for any remaining British soldiers. 

At the same time we follow the story of a Spitfire pilot, played by Tom Hardy, tasked with the defence of the beach, and the civilian crew of Moonstone, one of the ‘Little Ships’ that was tasked with helping in the evacuation. 

How much of the WAR FILM Dunkirk is a true story? Fact vs fiction

While the characters of Dunkirk are fictional, or are written as a composite of some of the figures and stories of the real Dunkirk evacuation, much of the film is pretty true to life. 

The history aficionados might recognise some slight inconsistencies in the film - for example, the use of a Spanish variant of a German Messerschmitt Bf-109, in a paint scheme that it wouldn’t see until later in the war - but much of the story stays true to historical accounts of the evacuation.

The rest is perhaps a mixture of Christopher Nolan's dramatic choices, and the lens through which the evacuation has been seen for the last 80 years; with more of a focus on the 'little ships' compared to the efforts of the Royal Navy, but compared to other prominent World War Two films, Dunkirk is far from the most outlandish. 

What happened at Dunkirk - facts ww2

Uncover the real story of Dunkirk with these facts...

ww2 Dunkirk history

Between 26 May and 4 June 1940, more than 338,000 Allied troops were evacuated from Dunkirk and the nearby beaches on the northern coast of France. Naval vessels and hundreds of civilian boats were used in the rescue. It became one of the most celebrated episodes of the Second World War.

The Battle of Dunkirk

As the blitzkrieg swept through Belgium and into France, the situation quickly became untenable for the Allied troops defending the region - and so, on 26 May 1940, the British forces stationed in France were given the order to ‘fight back to the West’. 

This began a series of engagements as the Allied forces began a fighting retreat towards the coast. By 29 May, a perimeter around Dunkirk had been established, with the defenders fighting tooth and nail to allow time for the evacuation fleet to complete the evacuation.

Despite the desperate defence, German forces broke into the town on 1 June, but the stalwart defence meant that the evacuations could continue, despite the harassing artillery fire and Luftwaffe bombing runs. 

Dunkirk 26-29 May 1940 © IWM (NYP 68075)

Operation Dynamo - the miracle of dunkirk

Trapped between advancing German troops and the sea, the BEF was in a perilous position. The Royal Navy began the evacuation of Dunkirk - codenamed Operation Dynamo - late on 26 May. So great was the task that a makeshift fleet of civilian ships was sent to assist: trawlers, passenger ferries, yachts, pleasure steamers and hundreds of other private craft.

The harbour at Dunkirk quickly became unusable thanks to the attention of German artillery and bombs. Without access to the dock, the troops were taken directly off the beach by small boats, or they embarked on larger boats via stone and concrete breakwaters called the east and west moles. 

While soldiers fought tenaciously to hold back advancing German troops, the Royal Air Force (RAF) battled to protect the vulnerable ships and the soldiers waiting at the harbour and on the beaches from attacks by the Luftwaffe. Fighting continued until the last moments with French troops remaining behind to safeguard the last to leave.

Under heavy attack on all sides, many vessels were sunk or badly damaged including nine destroyers. By 4 June, about 200 vessels had been sunk and RAF Fighter Command had lost more than 100 aircraft.

By the time Dunkirk fell, more than 338,000 men had been rescued including 140,000 Allied soldiers. Many British and Allied forces fought on in France and troops continued to be evacuated from the western coast until the day of the French surrender on 25 June.

When did the evacuation of Dunkirk happen?

Planning for the evacuation began on 20 May 1940, and British forces were ordered to make their way to Dunkirk shortly after. The first men were evacuated from the harbour on 26 May with the final evacuations occurring on 4 June 1940. 

The Evacuation from Dunkirk 1940 © IWM (HU 73187)

Was anyone left behind at Dunkirk?

Not everyone could be evacuated at Dunkirk. Around 40,000 men are reported to have been captured or forced to surrender during the retreat to the coast and during the evacuation itself. 

How many DIED at Dunkirk?

Losses were more than 68,000 killed, wounded or taken as prisoners of war. With thousands of men separated from their units in the confusion of the fighting and the withdrawal, it later proved impossible to establish exactly where or when many died. Some were buried where they fell, hastily, by comrades at roadsides or in fields and their graves later lost. Others did not find their final resting place until long after the fighting was over.

Dunkirk 1940 © IWM (HU 41241)

Who won the battle of Dunkirk WW2?

With the evacuation of the BEF, and much of the French Army, Dunkirk was a clear victory for Germany. 

Their capture of France meant that most of Western Europe was under German control, or belonged to her allies. Axis controlled territory on the Atlantic coast stretched from the French border with Spain to the northern regions of Norway. The Battle of France was complete, and the Battle of Britain was set to begin. 

Was Dunkirk a failure?

“We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations. But there was a victory inside this deliverance, which should be noted.” 

These were the words of Winston Churchill, to Parliament, shortly after the evacuation was complete. Much of the BEF’s supplies, equipment and vehicles lay abandoned in the fields of northern France, following what had been an emphatic German victory. 

It was, however, not the total disaster expected by the British High Command. Even the most generous estimates had suggested that only 30,000 men would be rescued from the beaches of northern France. The eventual total was more than ten-times that. Owing to the bravery and tenacity of all those that had been involved in the evacuation, more than 330,000 troops had been evacuated from France.

Visit Commonwealth war graves and memorials in Dunkirk 

Dunkirk Town Cemetery

Dunkirk Town Cemetery stands on the banks of the Nieuwpoort–Dunkirk Canal, which links the French port with their Belgian neighbours. 

It contains the WW2 graves and memorials of more than 790 Commonwealth servicemen of the Second World War, of whom more than 210 remain unidentified. Also commemorated in the cemetery are nearly 460 servicemen of the First World War.

Among those buried at the site lie at least one member of each of the CWGC’s member nations: Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom - an evocative reminder of the sacrifices made by all of the Commonwealth nations during both world wars. 

Dunkirk Memorial 

Within the Dunkirk Town Cemetery stands the Dunkirk Memorial which bears the names of more than 4,500 Commonwealth servicemen who died in France, the surrounding seas or subsequently in captivity and who have no known grave.

Designed by Philip Hepworth, the memorial was unveiled in 1957 by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother. 

The names of the 4,500 missing commemorated here are inscribed on a series of columns that line the approach to a shrine, set back from the main road. Here, the memorial registers are held beneath a beautifully engraved window that depicts scenes from the evacuation. 

Commemorating the casualties of Operation Dynamo 

Our Naval Memorials 

Another chapter was written into the long and august history of the Royal Navy at Dunkirk. 

The evacuation relied entirely on the courage of the sailors who put themselves at risk countless times in their efforts to rescue the troops on the beaches of Dunkirk and in the port. 

The operation was constantly harassed by German U-Boats, torpedo boats and aircraft, and more than 200 vessels were sunk, among them six Royal Navy destroyers and more than 100 of the famous small boats. 

The Chatham, Portsmouth and Plymouth naval memorials in the United Kingdom bear the names of most of those commonwealth sailors who died during the evacuation.

Runnymede Air Forces Memorial

The Royal Air Force was much maligned by those who had waited for evacuation at Dunkirk, but the efforts of those who took to the skies in May and June 1940 should not be underestimated. Again, Winston Churchill in his address to Parliament said: “Many of our soldiers coming back have not seen the Air Force at work; they saw only the bombers which escaped its protective attack. They underrate its achievements.”

Fighter Command is estimated to have flown more than 2,200 sorties during the evacuation, while Bomber Command undertook multiple raids aimed at troop concentration areas and vital transport links, harassing and delaying the approaching German forces. Coastal Command also proved vital, flying patrols over the channel, attempting to mitigate the threat posed by the U-Boats and torpedo boats that hunted the evacuation flotilla. Without their efforts, far more of the vessels would be lost. 

Runnymede Memorial in the United Kingdom bears the names of more than 20,290 Commonwealth airmen who died during the Second World War and have no known grave. They were lost in the skies above Britain, Europe and the surrounding seas and oceans. More than 620 of those commemorated at Runnymede died in May and June 1940.

Le Paradis War Cemetery, Lestrem

In late May 1940, the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Norfolk Regiment was fighting a desperate battle against overwhelmingly large numbers, delaying the German advance towards Dunkirk. 

By 27 May, having run out of ammunition and with any hope of escape lost, they surrendered to No. 4 Company of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd S.S. Totenkopf (Deathshead) Regiment. 97 officers and men of the battalion were marched into a field and killed by machine gun fire and bayonets. 

The men were buried where they fell by local civilians, but were later moved into the Le Paradis churchyard, which would later become CWGC’s Le Paradis War Cemetery. 62 men of the Royal Norfolk Regiment are known to be buried here, including 32 known to have been killed on 27 May. 

In total, more than 150 Commonwealth casualties of World War II are commemorated here, 115 have been identified.

Dunkirk may have been a victory for Germany, but the successful evacuation prevented the destruction of the British ground forces. Bloody and bruised, they were taken home, but still able to fight another day.

You can discover more about the men who died at Dunkirk by using our war casualty search tool.