040 - The First Brexit? - The Dunkirk Evacuation - WW2 - June 1 1940

[@WorldWarTwo]

As many of you already know, people who support us on Patreon get three days early access to our content - which explains why some comments have been made before the video is published. We are very grateful to those who financially support us, because (as Indy mentions a lot) we really wouldn’t be able to do any of this without your support. This project is fully funded by our community and viewers. Right now, we are still very much working at the max of our capacity. That is partly because we take on new tasks whenever some time frees itself - we just can’t help making more and better content, but also because we still need more financial stability to hire more editors and researchers. Only then will we be able to deliver a steady flow of specials, Out of the Foxholes episodes and War Against Humanity videos at the quality that we would like them to be. You can support us on Patreon www.patreon.com/timeghosthistory or on our website www.timeghost.tv. Thanks a lot!! Cheers, Joram

[@WorldWarTwo]

Bon apetit!

[@TheMrVallex]

Hi WWII-Team, you are doing a fantastic job, but i found a question that i think needs addressing in a regular episode. At 10:04, how exactly can 4 japanese divisions hold their own, even beat a full 9 chinese armies? If my math is roughly correct, thats ~45-70.000 men against over 2 million?! A quick word on that is needed i think, because such a colossal missmatch (i can't even think of something remotely as imbalanced of a battle in history) will raise some eyebrows Greetings and thank you for your dedication from Germany

[@Skyfox94]

Just FYI the patreon link in your comment isn't working

[@the_9ent]

World War Two Please remove Brexit from the title card. It is not related in any way to WWII and is an affront to European unity.

[@Asamations]

@@WorldWarTwo Can you do the specific neutral country video's like you did for WW1? This would be fascinating. The most interesting for me anyway would be Sweden Spain or Portugal. Do you plan on doing this?

[@Gapeagle]

"I won't get political..." (3 drinks later) "We don't care a bugger what happens to the Belgians."

[@mikemclaughlin243]

Gapeagle is this a Star Wars reference?

[@hannahskipper2764]

Yes, fantastic sympathetic goodwill there. Obviously, not a politician. 😄🙄

[@johnnyjohnny998]

Lets not do the *read more* gimmick anymore.

[@JuanMatteoReal]

A Rainbow Dash profile pic. Hmmm, I see you're a man of culture as well

[@Gapeagle]

@@johnnyjohnny998 I didn't mean to...

[@SovietDoge]

Ahhh, I missed that phrase: 'This is modern war' Although I get some Hötzendorf flashbacks

[@Ashfielder]

Soviet Doge If this is modern war… then what was all that “modern war” twenty years ago about?

[@erichstreberg7101]

Now theres an out of the fox holes question (I wonder if they'll see it here) were there any commanders in this war whose decisions were as baffling as Hotzendorfs?

[@bensagal-morris8072]

Erich Streberg Yes, I can’t remember his name, but the American commander who decided to take Rome despite the fact that had he followed his orders hundreds of thousands of axis troops in Italy could have been cut off.

[@bensagal-morris8072]

Norman M. Stewart Yes, spoilers. What am I saying, America and Italy aren’t in the war!!!

[@hannahskipper2764]

@@Ashfielder that was modern war. This is more modern war. All the people that managed to survive modern war and flu had lots of kids and now those kids are getting their crack at more modern war. Apparently, humans aren't fast learners.

[@coladola9475]

"Never has there been such a betrayal in history" - well, apparently Reynaud forgot about the Munich Treaty and Anglo-French inactivity during the Polish campaign.

[@USSChicago-pl2fq]

Lol

[@TheLocalLt]

Cola Dola reynaud didn’t sign the Munich treaty but the guy who did (deladier) had no choice as Chamberlain had verbally conceded hitler the territory at an earlier conference, so there wasn’t much left to negotiate for the French on behalf of Czechoslovakia by the time of the Munich conference

[@coladola9475]

@@TheLocalLt I didn't say that Reynaud signed it. I said that it was much bigger treason than belgian surrender.

[@TheLocalLt]

Cola Dola fair enough

[@kaczynskis5721]

Reynaud seems to have been an emotional fellow.

[@mrmemred]

Love these "telephone calls" at the begin

[@RP-jt5ik]

Absolutely, and they also serve an important task for me. If I don't have the time to watch stuff as it airs, I may end up not remembering where I stopped. The phone calls makes it easier to directly remember which ones I've seen, and I don't need to watch a video half way through to realize I've already seen this one. They are gold, and some might think they might be gimmicky at times I don't care because they make the overall experience so much better for me.

[@lobaandrade7172]

mrmemred they are a majorly overlooked part of the episodes

[@mrmemred]

@@lobaandrade7172 True, and I always try to think what the episode is going to be about when listening to these calls.

[@neocomp92]

I'm just waitng for the subversion when he says "Ja, mein Fuhrer"

[@djavanalderromero]

They are awesome and useful

[@Jodonho]

"Brexit at Dunkirk" And not a milkshake was spared.

[@willkp50]

Kek

[@MrFaorry]

Violence at both Brexits, history really does repeat.

[@marquee6]

Maybe the Brits should have thrown milkshakes at the Germans.

[@brucetucker4847]

At least back then the fascists were the ones *outside* the UK.

[@brucetucker4847]

@Rodycaz Nah, just racists are racist.

[@nickparka7981]

It's not modern war unless you show up to a trench with a makeshift club while inhaling chlorine gas

[@Wallyworld30]

That's exactly what I do on Call of a Duty WW2. Hell I enjoy slaughtering my victims with a claymore sword. Doesn't get more modern then that.

[@zlatko8051]

As a bf1 veteran I would rather have a hatchet

[@Wallyworld30]

@@zlatko8051 I have 2000+ kills with my claymore. It's actually a good weapon for kill confirmed on shipment 24/7.

[@zlatko8051]

I’m talking about bf1

[@thatsnodildo1974]

Idk why but i read mineshaft as minecraft

[@mohammadsab4478]

6th of June is coming... Oh it's 4 years later

[@broworm1]

Spoilers!

[@brenokrug7775]

That really puts it into perspective, doesn't it? Imagine living until 2023 under the Nazi regime. Tough years ahead for the frenchmen.

[@blahlbinoa]

It is on a Thursday though...

[@Kriegter]

4th of June is coming

[@Kriegter]

Tiananmen

[@rgm96x49]

Heer: I'm about to end this man's whole ca- Hitler: Yo stop for a bit Heer: ???

[@hannahskipper2764]

Heer officer: Are you sure the head guy back in Berlin knows what he's doing? Another Heer officer: *scratches head*

[@fasdaVT]

I'm sort of surprised that dwindling fuel is not mentioned yet. They need every barrel they can get for the invasion of the Soviet union.

[@ninjasheep7492]

It wasn’t entirely illogical at the time. The Germans were massively outnumbered and though their panzers were among the fastest and best coordinated vs 300k entrenched, desperate soldiers they would take significant losses as they were honestly quite shit in terms of firepower and armour. Not to mention that slaughtering all the men would significantly reduce the likelihood of a peace treaty which at the time was considered to be the only viable way to deal with Britain. Even if the Germans could snap their fingers thanos style and kill every soldier at Dunkirk they wouldn’t be able to invade Great Britain due to a complete and utter lack of naval superiority. Even if the Germans paradropped the exhausted and decimated falschirmjagers into Britain they would lack supplies as Germany wouldn’t be able to supply with ships and air resupply was not only extremely unreliable but not even close to being perfected. Not to mention the British could just raise a desperate conscription army from their large, dense population including hundreds of thousands of Great War veterans and swarm them. Outside of a war of attrition from the air which they failed at utterly or trying to starve the country with subs which also failed for the most part they couldn’t touch Britain in any meaningful way. Overall in my opinion it was the best option for a war that was lost the second they antagonized an island nation with complete naval supremacy and an effective monopoly on several vital resources.

[@hannahskipper2764]

@@ninjasheep7492 True. That's what I don't get about their strategy. That and invading the Soviet Union, which put farther strain on everything they had in short supply.

[@ninjasheep7492]

@@hannahskipper2764 with historical hindsight it seems like a poor idea however at the time it was the logical move. The Germans only supply of oil was from Romania and the only other real oil producers in the world at the time were Malaysia/Indonesia, the US and Russia. So they invaded the soviets to fix their supply problem. As much as this was an insanely massive blunder with the intel at the time it made sense. The soviets were isolationist so estimates of their strength were speculative. Also many of the generals who planned it gained their experience from the Great War. In the Great War Russia was a disunified, weak nation who had abysmal supply lines and equipment with a weak economy which crumbled soon into the war. Not to mention the Germans made like 2-3 good advances before Russia collapsed into 2 revolutions and surrendered before descending into a lengthy and bloody civil war. Since then Russia had seemingly gotten even weaker being barely able to beat Finland while the Germans managed to knock out half a dozen nations including the great power of France. The soviets surviving a year against the Germans let alone beating them back was unthinkable to nearly every country on the planet including the USSR. So to basically summarise the Germans thought invading the soviet union would solve all their problems based on faulty information and bias against communism.

[@suvaraih2266]

Killing it with the episode names! Keep up the good work =)

[@kolerick]

Belgium: I surrender! Allies (minus 1): WTF! this is a betrayal UK: okay, there no hope in this fight. UK, day latter: France, cover my ass while I "redeploy", I don't feel like Helmut visiting me... France: redeployment? where? UK: on the other side of the Chanel France: ah... and when do you start? UK: I started yesterday, why? France and who's manning your positions? UK: well, that's kinda why I call you. My boys left those a few hours ago, so, if you would be so kind to replace them while I save as many soldiers I can? France: WTF, and you tell me NOW??? France, scrambling to plug the gaping holes in the line: okay, UK, save as many as you can, don't forget to take mine too. UK: sure, sure UK high command to Dynamo planners: my boys first and the others if we still have room in the last boat... France: UK, you did remove all your boys, what are you waiting for my "poilus"? UK: it's tea time, wait a moment please France: ... operation Dynamo end, the boys are home. UK: well, France, that's why we say "live to fight another day..." France: right, so, I see you sending my "poilus" back to France, when are your boys coming to continue the fight? UK: skkkrrrrrr sshhhh, sorry, can't hear you, the line is bad... I'll call you back later... France, keep fighting another 3 weeks, bleeding all the way then France: okay, let's stop the massacre, I surrender UK: WTF France, you have to keep fighting. France: I don't see you fighting right now... as you said, "live to fight another day" UK: ... coward! France: dude? double standard much? UK: I don't talk to cowards... btw, while you're in the mood, surrender your navy to me France: wtf, my navy is safe on Morrocan coast and I promise it will not fight yours UK to Royal navy chief: damn, he didn't give me the gift. Go and sink them. UK RN proceed to sneak attack the french navy at Mers El Kebir France: wtf UK, why did you attack me? UK: hey! your sailors opened fire on me! France: of course they did, you already had sunk some boats without warning That's self defense UK: nah, you're a coward and didn't give me your boats. If I can't have them, it's fair nobody get them either France: ... year later, at Bir Hakeim UK: free french, cover my ass while I "redeploy", I don't feel like Hans visiting me... Free France: okay, we'll keep them away from you. How long? UK: as much as you can. Time is key to allow us to keep hope in winning the next battle Free France: Okay, I'm on it for 16 days, free France manage to keep overwhelming motorized and armored German and Italians force at bay then after El Alamein UK: well, we did all the work again and the boys won the battle... Free France: ... 2003 and later, an anonymous member of the WAKW (World Association of Keyboard warriors), England chapter: French are coward! (repeat a gazillon times by other english speaker members and become a meme) France: ... when does WWIII begin?, I'd like to ally with whoever oppose the English & Co

[@WorldWarTwo]

Brilliant!

[@WorldWarTwo]

Are we allowed to use this for something? We have an idea! Please write us at [e-mail]

[@kolerick]

@@WorldWarTwo sure, why not

[@Ginrikuzuma]

took me a while to find this comment :p

[@Skogsmard]

Thanks for this comment, the acting out Indy & Spartacus did of this was brilliant. Thank you for giving us this gem.

[@JustSomeCanuck]

Fun fact - one of the Little Ships of Dunkirk was commanded by Charles Lightoller, who was the second officer on board the Titanic (and the highest ranking member of the Titanic's crew to survive). He brought back one load of evacuated soldiers on June 1st. Not sure if anyone else mentioned this in the comments, but it's interesting.

[@eldorados_lost_searcher]

Didn't he lose a son in the war as well?

[@JustSomeCanuck]

Just looked that up. He had one son with him during the evacuation, and another son was in the army and left Dunkirk on a different ship. The son with him at Dunkirk was killed in action in 1945, and the other one survived the war. He also commanded a destroyer during WWI, and his ship sank a U-boat by ramming at one point. www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/charles-herbert-lightoller.html

[@lovablesnowman]

Lightoller literally did nothing right the night Titanic sank. He's responsible for the needless deaths of hundreds of people

[@JustSomeCanuck]

Yeah, this post wasn't at all about that, but I will point out that the Titanic's crew in general was completely unprepared for the iceberg collision or how to evacuate the ship. Also, many more lives would have been saved if the SS Californian had responded.

[@MrBannystar]

Scrolling through multiple comments, your post is directly below another on the very same topic, and they're the only two that I've seen about this fact. Either way, thanks for sharing.

[@TheTruePopeFrancis]

My grandpa’s uncle was captured by the Germans at dunkirk, (he is Scottish), and his family, for the rest of the war, thought that he had died, until, in 1945, when my great grandmother went to the theatres to watch a film from the front, where the British had liberated a German POW camp, and she saw her brother (my grandpa’s uncle) in that film, alive and well.

[@ABadRash]

Either in 1914 or 1940, Indy staring me directly in the depth of my human conscious and sternly reminding the world that "this is modern war" sends chills down my spine.

[@yellowjackboots2624]

We were lucky. If the sea had been rough, with waves crashing on the shoreline, they would have struggled to embark anyone from the beaches. The calm weather was the real miracle of Dunkirk, an aspect almost always overlooked.

[@Martin-5675]

or that Hitler had gone against his generals wishes of an attack at the evacuees just so he could prove that he has power over them.

[@kaczynskis5721]

The English Channel is not usually so forgiving.

[@mgway4661]

It was weird right? Everything aligns to make it a miracle

[@Chicken_Nugget1]

God was with us that day.

[@AbdirahmanIdris-ku9xm]

​@@Martin-5675Goering also persuaded Hitler to let the Luftwaffe attack Dunkirk instead of sending the army like the generals wanted. The army would have almost certainly overwhelmed the retreating allies so that's another big mistake made by Hitlers inner circle.

[@lancep2002]

One thing these videos show better than any history book I've ever read, is how stunningly fast Hitler conquered France. Excellent work Indy and crew

[@turmunhkganba1705]

Ah the old Dunkirk spirit even though most people tend to forget the French rearguard which made the whole thing possible or that most of the small civilian boats were maned by navy personnel

[@Retrosicotte]

Both French and British fought rearguards. You can even see on his map with the layout that the British took that position for a time. It was a joint effort.

[@auguststorm2037]

Yep, the stubborn resistance of French forces allowed most of British troops being evacuated. Sadly only a small portion of French will be evacuated

[@Masahiko55]

@@Retrosicotte no it is false: Général Alexander(commandant of the 3rd British Division who should participate To the défense of Dunkerke) To the général Falgade(commandant of the défense of Dunkerke):My division are too tired To continue the fights. They Will be evacueted when the others british troops Will be also evacuated"

[@Masahiko55]

@@Retrosicotte just look at the vidéo

[@godlovesyou1995]

@@auguststorm2037 a third of them were french

[@steelhammer103]

I'm glad you guys took so much detail about Hitler's decision to stop the armor advancement on the coast. It's one of the most baffling decisions of the whole war, when you look at it after the war, you guys did an excellent job detailing that as it happened.

[@jbloun911]

War is a racket

[@Arbiter099]

Winston? Did Hötzendorf stop returning Indy's calls?

[@shrillbert]

He was talking to Lord Halifax for a while...

[@christopherconard2831]

Hotzy withdrew from the office. He's planning an offensive to retake it in a week....or two....or next month.

[@nordic5628]

@@christopherconard2831 he will surely get around to it this year at least right?

[@rianquinn7833]

I loved the fast paced nature of this video! Really captures the frantic nature of the actual events.

[@Wallyworld30]

I wish these were all twice as long tbh. I wait all week and the shows over after 12 minutes.

[@dudeofvalor9294]

@@BleedingUranium Honestly thought you were going to say the whole invasion of France was over in 12 minutes lol!

[@WhatIsSanity]

@@Wallyworld30 Title of your sex tape! XD

[@Medafets]

There’s a series on the Wehrmacht where the historian they interview, a German military expert whose spent a lot of time in the archives, hypothesised that Hitler gave the order to stop because his generals has broken the chain of command - like Heinz Guderian last week - he was so furious he gave the order to stop so that his order could be taken back.

[@temuguntur_amgalan1639]

I like this theory better than Air Georing one. There is nothing stopping Hitler for calling air and land assault.

[@VladTevez]

Catchiest episode title ever!

[@cobbler9113]

Blimey, I thought last week's title was a bit bold! I also loved the detail in regards of how many troops were evacuated per day :)

[@sisigburger8330]

Simon Turner on just u ugb

[@stewartbirkmyre9136]

My mother's grandfather (my great grandfather) was there at Dunkirk. My grandad (mother's father) says that he was a Sergeant in the Royal Engineers in the field of railways (Stations, Marshalling Yards that are still be used today, etc.) He was on one of the last ships to leave, he has won several in-service shooting competitions, and after the war created a metal fabrication business. His last name is Stratton, a Welshman. Also, my grandmother's father served as an officer in the Royal Engineers but instead of Europe, he was in the Middle East, I believe in the same field as Stratton. He is an Englishman, btw.

[@williamshortfilm5818]

We shall fight on till the last Frenchman ! ~British officer, Dunkirk, May 1940.

[@davidbrelu-brelu7118]

😂😂

[@dcbanacek2]

We shall bleed France white! ~ Same guy

[@kaczynskis5721]

That was actually a German propaganda leaflet in early 1940 - they dropped a lot of French-language leaflets telling the French not to trust British - of course, one aim of propaganda is to create splits in enemy alliances.

[@williamshortfilm5818]

​@@kaczynskis5721 Thank you ! Yes, I am aware, but it also helps to highlight that the French did most of the fighting at Dunkirk, even though they are often mocked by the British.

[@RomanHistoryFan476AD]

@@williamshortfilm5818 i don't mock the brave french who made the heroic stand for others to escape.

[@gunman47]

*Supermarine intensifies...* Jericho trumpet sirens are wailing in the distance... Maybe Tom Hardy will save the day eh?

[@thomasvernon2531]

Dickson Phua WHERE’S THE BLOODY AIR FORCE???

[@rouymalic4463]

*Tick Tock Clock Intensifies*

[@BasedPeter]

WEE WEE WOO WEE WEE WOO WEE WEE WOO WEE WEE WOO

[@Szalami]

Tom Hardy proved that an RAF pilot with a Spitfire can BTFO a Stuka even if the Spitfire's engine died. Blessed be Tom Hardy.

[@Joshua_23]

@@Szalami for u

[@ForelliBoy]

France: "There has never been a betrayal like this in history." Poland: Yeah um about that extra front you were gonna start...

[@smal750]

😭😭

[@Bouncyboizes]

The plot in this series is amazing I would have never guessed that a breaktrough would happen in Belgium. Also the charachters are really great.

[@WorldWarTwo]

Yeah they seem to have these rich backstories as well

[@hidof9598]

But it's filled with unrealistic feats and plotholes Who could believe such a story in real life

[@bespit6654]

“ We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender “ Not in my HOI4 game Winston!

[@TheCimbrianBull]

@Skodaman2 ROFL! 🤣 😂 😅

[@shenghan9385]

This WWII by week series is quite an undertaking and absolutely necessary. You would have thought people had the idea to come up with something like this before. Good job.

[@lukassimice7100]

Reynaud: Never has theren been such a betrayal in history! Czechoslovakia: 🤨

[@82dorrin]

Salute to those brave French at Lille. They saved a lot of lives.

[@dustman0048]

RIP the French soldier (not mentioned...) died in the heroic resistance at Lille (during Dunkirk evacuation) and Dunkirk for protect the evacuation

[@sergeant_chris6209]

Very immersive episode today! I couldn't get my eyes off the screen while you were narrating the Dunkirk evacuation. Great job Indy and team!

[@frankwitte1022]

Now I was very much looking forward to hearing about the siege of Lille. That seemed such an unmissable story to me for this channel. What happened to it? I know, I know … with so much material choices need to be made :)

[@caiussempronius2342]

General von Küchler said this, mentionned below, about the fierce resistance of french troops at the battle of Lille. Wihout this desperate resistance (and knowing that they had to be killed or made prisonners), the evacuation of allied troops in Dunkirk should have been compromised. Let's hear what the future Generalfeldmarshall von Küchler said : “ I do not understand how these soldiers, fighting at 1 against 20, find the strengh to counterattack. It is stunning. They have the same fighting spirit their fathers had at Verdun in 1916. Dunkirk proves me that the french soldier is one the best in the world. Our losses are terrifying, many battalions have lost more than 60% of their forces”. General von Küchler in his journal

[@smal750]

​@@caiussempronius2342damn

[@johnyoung4441]

*Puts Brexit in the title* Indy: "I just don't see how they're gonna do it..." *uh-oh.*

[@mohammadsab4478]

Original brexit

[@kamilkrupinski1793]

@@TheHuffmanator May is over. June has began.

[@alexa1591]

But they did successfully accomplish it

[@louisswanepoel1614]

Underrated comment, hope you guys can finish this before Christmas.

[@johnyoung4441]

@@louisswanepoel1614 I was told it would be over by Christmas. I don't think it will.

[@diltonweany7003]

brilliant episode as usual! loved the statistics counters for the evacuation, i think a similar thing would be great at the end of each episode, perhaps a diagram showing casualties for the week and the total so far as well as tonnage sunk, tanks destroyed or other such numbers

[@jobanh7ify]

Brexit at Dunkirk... you guys are killing me

[@MegaTang1234]

At that exact moment, Britain remembered what Portugal told it during the Napoleonic wars.... That it was made for the sea.

[@D_D10]

"Brexit at Dunkirk"... Simply in love with the episodes name.

[@kamilkrupinski1793]

Try to read it fast, loud and clear ten times.

[@vacatiolibertas]

"But this? This is modern war." That delivery sent shivers down my spine. Fantastic Episode!

[@MrCarpelan]

Wow, 8 months already! This isn't quite looking to end by Christmas though.

[@TheCimbrianBull]

They never said which year, though.

[@justafaniv1097]

Are you kidding? With France overrun and no more allies on the continent, surely Britain will be forced to sue for peace on Germany's terms before the year is out. Unless Germany or her allies do something monumentally stupid like surprise attack a rising superpower, this World War is in the bag...

[@TheCimbrianBull]

@@justafaniv1097 Nah, don't worry. Nobody is foolish enough to something like that, right? Right?! 👀

[@jjduncan4285]

"This is modern war!" Man, I didn't realize how much I missed that..

[@TheCimbrianBull]

Hötzendorf! 😀

[@agactual2]

I don't think I've ever appreciated the effort of a KZbin channel as much as this one and The Great War. It is a Herculean effort for this team to do as much as they have and as much as they plan to do.

[@TheEvilMrJeb]

Sometime around this week when Lille falls: Desmond Llewelyn is captured. He will remain a prisoner until 1945, despite an escape attempt. He is mostly known to the world as the first actor to play “Q” in the James Bond films.

[@jamiegray6931]

My grandfather fought as a part of the BEF in northern France, probably as a part of the rearguard, however he never made it to Dunkirk being captured along the way. This episode means a lot to me as I never really got to know what he was going through as he died long before I was born. Thanks Indy for showing a small glimpse of what was going on in 1940.

[@WorldWarTwo]

That is a great story, you are welcomed,

[@JeffFaulkner-n5k]

Thank you

[@WorldWarTwo]

You are very welcome and thank you for your support. -TimeGhost Ambassador

[@ethanhatcher5533]

Interesting note, one of the little ships at Dunkirk was commanded by Charles Lightoller, former Second Officer on RMS Titanic

[@bkjeong4302]

ethan hatcher The soldiers he was evacuating threatened to jump ship.

[@equarg]

Yep. If he felt internal turmoil for surviving the Titanic sinking, I hope this helped to ease that turmoil. He survived the Titanic so he could save more lives.

[@grendelgrendelsson5493]

Lightoller gathered survivors from the Titanic onto a capsized lifeboat. As the swells came in he indicated which way they were to lean to prevent the boat from rolling and putting them all back into the water. At Dunkirk he took an exposed position, I believe in the bow of his boat, and as German aircraft came down to strafe, he made hand signals to avoid their fire. Lightoller's son was killed flying a bomber over Germany in 1939 and his other son, an RN officer, was killed in the last days of the war in 1945 when a German raid was mounted against the French mainland from the Channel Islands. I hope that this is of some interest.

[@livethefuture2492]

yes he's that guy we see portrayed in the movie Dunkirk, as the character Mr. Dawson, his boat 'The Sundowner' has actually still been preserved i think.

[@hannahskipper2764]

This is such an awesome channel! Thank you for doing it! Also, I can't help but think about the Dunkirk evacuation was just about four years to the day of D-Day. Pretty stunning to think about the millions who died between Brexit at Dunkirk and counter invasion at Normandy, and the war wasn't even over yet.

[@Zebred2001]

My late father is a Dunkirk veteran of the British artillery. I have a breech pin from a 32 pounder my father's crew had to destroy before they were evacuated late in the operation.

[@Rik79Duc]

Interesting that more troops evacuated from Dunkirk than invaded on D-Day almost exactly on this same anniversary date....! Great series guys!!! Just back from seeing the D-Day commemorations of 35 Daks at IWM Duxford to watch this.

[@1969Risky]

My grandfather who was rescued off the Altmark back in 16-17 February 1940, took part with his shipmates with the evacuation of Dunkerque. His stories told of how much of a mess it was to evacuate such large numbers of troops (British, French & Belgian) whilst under fire. Even though they were ordered to pick up only British troops, they took everyone. It got to the point where my grandfather's small boat he was on in the final hours of the operation was so overloaded, that he & 3 of his mates gave the guys on board directions to sail to Dover & left the ship. They fixed up a truck, stole petrol from other vehicles & drove through the German lines heading west. They picked up stragglers where the headed to a French fishing village & commandeered a fishing trawler where they sailed to Plymouth. They were quietly chastised by their commanding officer but were commended for saving allied lives. It was also the first time my grandfather ever drove a vehicle. I asked him when I was 17 how he got his licence & he told me this event that happened to him.

[@shatter382]

Something i think that is missed in this video in relation to french animosity towards Belgium is the fact that Belgium left the Franco-Belgium alliance in 1936 when it sensed war was likely. This really screwed the French over, as the Maginot line was actually designed to be part of a much larger line of defense that ran through Belgium. The reason there was so few fortifications on the Franco-Belgium border was because prior to 1936 when they were allies to build any such fort would be selling out there Belgium allies. Those strong forward fortification in Belgium were meant to be manned by french and Belgium troops. So the French felt from the very start that the Belgium had betrayed them. When Hitler did attack in 1940 there was very little french sympathy for Belgium's situation.

[@Killabear-en2xq]

Maybe cooperation would have been the better choice..

[@LaurensPP]

I do think the phone gimmick at the beginning is wearing off a bit. Awesome episode as always!

[@LaurensPP]

@Bennett McCoy Well that's just, like, your opinion, man.

[@baseddepartment1324]

The fat controller laughed. "you are wrong."

[@MrWhitmen1981]

I love it. Would you rather they mix it up with a telegram.

[@robert48044]

"Alright Winston" lol

[@u.h.forum.]

Laurens Peek it’s also your opinion that you think it’s wearing off

[@felafnirelek8987]

The titles have gone shitpost. I love it.

[@thamor4746]

This really is such a amazing series done for WW2. You guys deserve all the praise for doing this.

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thank you for that very high praise. We couldn't do it without you and the rest of our amazing audience

[@georgel779]

"that seems a pretty un-hitler thing to do" I am going to start using that in everyday life as a compliment

[@gryphonpol]

Extract from Winston Churchill's statement to the House of Commons, on 3 June 1940. "When a week ago to-day I asked the House to fix this afternoon as the occasion for a statement, I feared it would be my hard lot to announce the greatest military disaster in our long history. I thought-and some good judges agreed with me-that perhaps 20,000 or 30,000 men might be re-embarked. But it certainly seemed that the whole of the French First Army and the whole of the British Expeditionary Force north of the Amiens-Abbeville gap, would be broken up in the open field or else would have to capitulate for lack of food and ammunition. These were the hard and heavy tidings for which I called upon the House and the nation to prepare themselves a week ago. The whole root and core and brain of the British Army, on which and around which we were to build, and are to build, the great British Armies in the later years of the war, seemed about to 789 perish upon the field or to be led into an ignominious and starving captivity." I rather doubt that any of our contemporary politicians, in the UK, could match the eloquence.

[@cornvuscornax4719]

Whoever makes the episode names needs a raise.

[@mjames70]

Dunkirk trivia - one of the small boats that rescued soldiers from the beaches was the private motor yacht captained by Charles Lightoller. The then retired Lightoller is better remembered by history as the Second Officer, and senior surviving officer of the RMS Titanic. He was credited with the rescue of 127 men from the beaches.

[@ArtoriusRex]

"This is modern war." finally, i was waiting for it!

[@manfromnantucket9544]

Just noticed the tie you're sporting today carries the Belgian colors. Was that intentional?

[@Williestyle-RobotechxMacross-x]

Let us hope not.

[@briansmith9439]

Great show. Recently I watched a doc on Dunkirk which stated that an analysis of the fuel situation for the Germans showed that there was virtually none available for the forces to advance and it was covered up with other reasons given to hide this fact from the Allies. Had the Allies known of the dire situation, an immediate counter-attack could have overwhelmed the immobile German forces. BTW: Currently reading "Cursed Legacy: the Tragic Life of Klaus Mann" (author of Mephisto) by Frederic Spotts. Highly recommend it for a seldom-heard discussion by a German exile who interviews Germans after WW II (both as a US military writer and later as a civilian) and writes about his findings - very interesting reading.

[@kaczynskis5721]

Mephisto is a good book. It should have been a reasonably easy deduction to make that the Germans had fuel shortages - they had travelled so far and fast. But the German psychological ascendancy at this point meant that putting in vigorous counter-attacks never seems to have occurred to the French and British.

[@juliancamilleri2257]

Perfect episodes. Such high quality. From the music to the maps. These episodes make my week.

[@tadeusz1]

Excellent summary. Hope you can mention Polish troops evacuated from western France to Scotland just a few weeks later. Literally the last boat to leave France for the UK. These troops were to form much of the 1st Polish Armoured Division. You will hopefully mention them in about 4 years!!!

[@cormacsheedy3522]

never heard about this what a cool bit of info .

[@tadeusz1]

@@cormacsheedy3522 Try this link, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Aerial

[@pyrrhichistory7472]

I must say the title of the video made me audible laugh. Another excellent video as always!

[@張理-d8d]

While watching this episode, I really appreciate you mention the war in China so many times. It's already 1940, and my elder uncle and father had given up their college studying in Beijing for 3 years to joint the army, although there would be another 5 more years to fight, but China, with the strong will to fight against the invader and the great assistance from Allies, finally manage to survive. Thank you again and wish you all the best.

[@xxxx85]

Yet another episode that is giving me goosebumps. Brilliant way to show the evacuation! :)

[@WorldWarTwo]

Thank yoou

[@ТомасАндерсон-в1е]

Ladies and gentlemen, *WE ARE LEAVING*

[@cabalofdemons]

I hope this channel devotes an episode to the British Home Guard. Job well done crew. This channel, The Great War, TimeGhost and every person involved on these projects deserve numerous accolades.

[@WorldWarTwo]

We certainly will cover it later on in the series.

[@cabalofdemons]

@@WorldWarTwo That's what I'm talking about.

[@bificommander7472]

French PM: "The Belgians surrendered? This is the greatest betrayal in history. Now hold my wine!"

[@timwilkinsongs]

My Grandad was at Dunkirk. He was a sergeant in the Royal Army Medical Corps and was Mentioned in Despatches for tending to wounded whilst under heavy enemy fire. He was wounded, but managed to get back home.

[@Avatar2312]

Reynaud: "There has never been such a betrayal in history..." Czechoslovakia: "Excuse me...?"

[@meekonvadaameh]

Poland:

[@rebecaneacsu9442]

Finland:

[@Jroctpl]

So I'm watching this series while at work in between calls. I have to say indy has the BEST faces when paused hahaha some are truly screenshot worthy. Good channel, great content, subbed.

[@adamtrycz]

Junkers ju 87 from Dunkirk movie is the most terrifying villain just after Reactor 4 from Chernobyl series...

[@echoesfrominfinityunveiled]

You will find tomorrow that Reactor 4 was as much a victim as any other.

[@luisescamadonhamue4117]

Its amazing that war is ugly because millions die. But at the same time there is the beauty in the tactics, the intelligence, the scientific inventions for survival, the style of clothing, the war-cry. Its something that we can easily romanticize with. It almost addictive, in war we becoming true animals, its like perfect competition in economics, only the best survives, theres no cheating, no excuses and probably no pardon. Thank you Indy.

[@jackstone112]

i looooove this channel , just like i did the great war. if it weren't for indi and the crew i would never have gone to verdun in 2017

[@robertandrews6915]

Just want to say I’m really loving the videos so far! Only seen a few but really nice and thorough. Seems odd KZbin recommended this after I was doing a google search on week to week ww2 events but nonetheless great work and I’ll do what I can to support you! 👍

[@michaeltwidwell9279]

"This is modern war". You're goddamn right.

[@SigEpBlue]

I know there were many brave men helping shuttle boats of all shapes and sizes back and forth, to evacuate Allied forces from the beaches of Dunkirk. But one who stands out in my mind is Arthur Brough, the actor who played Mr. Grainger in _Are you Being Served?_ I know it's a juxtaposition of time and place, but my mind likes the idea of seeing that older, bald man in a shirt, tie, and jacket, with a tape measure around his neck, at the helm of a hastily-employed riverboat-turned-rescue ferry, yelling "get on the boat, lads!" when he approached the shore. Brave men, all of them!

[@TheCimbrianBull]

Meanwhile in the northern French town of Nouvion local café owner, René Artois, is busy getting ready to open up for the new day.

[@kaczynskis5721]

The pregnancy scare is over, but Lt Gruber has just arrived in his little tank...

[@TheCimbrianBull]

@@kaczynskis5721 And he will be asking for matches!

[@pcaso100]

Just subscribed cant believe I didn't think to sooner, keep up the phenomenal work team!

[@Duke_of_Lorraine]

That Dunkirk evacuation is worth a movie. Or even 2 movies, less than one year apart from another.

[@Macieks300]

What do you mean 2?

[@Duke_of_Lorraine]

@@Macieks300 Dunkirk and Darkest Hour are 2 recent movies about the evacuation. Dunkirk followed soldiers while Darkest Hour followed Churchill.

[@Macieks300]

Yeah, I forgot that Darkest Hour was also set in May 1940.

[@anthavio]

Run from a fight in a scale never seen before in human history. Well done!

[@janmayen3483]

Reynaud: There has never been such a betrayal in history! Quisling: Am a joke to you?

[@TheCimbrianBull]

@Skodaman2 Dunkirk means Dunkirk!

[@nsane87]

I love this series. Thank you WW2 cast and crew!

[@christopherjustice6411]

“There has never been such a betrayal in history” Just wait a few weeks Mister Prime Minister. Betrayal thy name is Petain.

[@perperson199]

Best comment

[@nirfz]

whispers: you are missing an "i".... Pétain

[@christopherjustice6411]

nirfz thanks

[@davidhaaijema4521]

Just wait a few years, Malta Conference.

[@dustywoood]

The video editing is superb in this series, great production guys!

[@nelsonteixeira3804]

What i most learned so far, its about how much backstabbing there is on the allies side

[@bobbyb373]

Another great video, as always! My great-grandfather fought at, was wounded at and was evacuated from Dunkirk. Luckily he survived, otherwise I wouldn’t exist!

[@christianlibertarian5488]

Almost 8 decades later, and I still cannot wrap my mind around the Allies failure. Literally 10's of millions died because of that break-through. The movies and British mythology like to call it the "Miracle" at Dunkirk. It was in fact, a mitigated catastrophe. Very few events change the world forever. This was one.

[@pahunter3]

Another factor is the need to repair and perform maintenance on the tanks, as well as other vehicles before the push south. There were tanks damaged in the fighting and numerous breakdowns in the drive across France. Available tank numbers in each division had fallen each day of the offensive.

[@TheCimbrianBull]

Exactly. Plus running low on fuel and ammunition were critical reasons as well.

[@dams6829]

11:36 ladies and gents HE IS BACK!!!

[@TheCimbrianBull]

Hötzendorf!

[@Cheese0n]

These videos are brilliantly done.

[@indianajones4321]

Churchill got his 30,000 alright, and then some

[@dan87manc]

Your videos are absolutely fantastic!

[@johnfielding001]

Please don’t forget to mention that most the French soldiers who were ‘rescued’ from Dunkirk were sent back into France before the French capitulation. Most of the 123,000 French troops were quickly repatriated and only 3,000 joined the Free French army under De Gaulle. (Love your show, Indy.)

[@WorldWarTwo]

we'll get there

[@tgreythorne45]

"The main action begins this week - Dunkirk" *shudders in recognition of the events coming*

[@colinkelly5420]

I think the argument that Hitler let the Allies get away at Dunkirk is easily refuted. As this video clearly shows, the Germans were attacking the Dunkirk perimeter by ground and air the entire time the evacuation was happening. It doesn't make any sense to launch ground assaults and attempt to sink the ships by air if you want to let the enemy evacuate for diplomatic purposes. Even the 3 day pause doesn't coincide with the actual evacuation, the Germans attacks on the Dunkirk perimeter started a day before the first evacuations began. It is pretty obvious the Germans were attempting to eliminate the pocket. The three day pause is likely the Germans not believing how well they were really doing. When you remember WW1, and the battle of the Marne where Germany was on the cusp of winning and then the French transported an entire army on their flank and threw them back, I bet the German high command and Hitler were convinced something like that was in the works. They just couldn't believe the French didn't have reserves ready to pounce on the exposed pincer between Dunkirk and the rest of France. And the majority of their panzer divisions were in that pincer, if destroyed Germany was ruined since they couldn't realistically rebuild those divisions for a year. I think the Germans had no clue the British could evacuate those men, given Dunkirk had limited docking facilities. Even the British thought they'd get out 50,000 men at best. So the Germans probably thought consolidating their positions was the best course of action, as they'd have time to deal with the Dunkirk pocket.

[@ea.fitz216]

@@TheStephaneAdam Logistics is the cost of lightning warfare.

[@TheCimbrianBull]

The Germans were running very low on fuel and ammunition. The men were exhausted already and many vehicles had also broken down. The Germans were vulnerable to an Allied counterattack.

[@truckerfromreno]

It's easy to retreat across the land but to do it across water, under constant attack with a thrown together evacuation fleet which consisted of a lot of pleasure craft was an amazing achievement.