Flashcards on Early WWII: Dunkirk and Appeasement Policy

Early WWII: Dunkirk and Appeasement Policy

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What was Operation Dynamo?

The desperate and near-miraculous rescue of Allied troops from Dunkirk, controlled from Dover Castle.

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World War II — Dunkirk evacuation

19 cards

Card 1

Question: What was Operation Dynamo?

Answer: The desperate and near-miraculous rescue of Allied troops from Dunkirk, controlled from Dover Castle.

Card 2

Question: When did the Dunkirk evacuation begin?

Answer: It began on 26 May 1940 (with evacuation operations noted on 27 May 1940).

Card 3

Question: Approximately how many troops were rescued by the end of the Dunkirk evacuation?

Answer: Over 338,000 troops plus 139,000 French soldiers were rescued (the whole of the BEF at Dunkirk).

Card 4

Question: Why could larger vessels not sail directly to Dunkirk?

Answer: The waters of Dunkirk were too shallow to allow larger vessels.

Card 5

Question: What kinds of vessels and people aided the evacuation at Dunkirk?

Answer: Supply ships, destroyers, small passenger vessels, ships of the Royal Navy and merchant marine, and an armada of small craft manned mainly by voluntee

Card 6

Question: How many troops were evacuated on 27 May 1940 and why was the number limited?

Answer: Only 7,669 troops were evacuated because the shallow waters and German Luftwaffe attacks limited operations.

Card 7

Question: Which forces were trapped around Dunkirk in late May 1940?

Answer: Allied forces of British, French, and Belgian troops were trapped by the Germans on the coast around Dunkirk.

Card 8

Question: What does BEF stand for?

Answer: BEF stands for British Expeditionary Force, the contingent of the British army sent to France in 1939.

Card 9

Question: Which larger conflict and which battle does the Dunkirk evacuation relate to?

Answer: World War II and the Battle of Britain (the quote referenced relates to the Battle of Britain context).

Card 10

Question: Who made the famous quote, “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few”?

Answer: Winston Churchill.