Vice Admiral Bertram Ramsay directed the mission from naval headquarters beneath Dover Castle .
The Royal Air Force (RAF) flew thousands of sorties to defend the perimeter from the German Luftwaffe , though many soldiers on the beach felt they were being abandoned because most dogfights happened out of sight. Evacuation Timeline & Numbers Date (1940) Key Events Troops Rescued May 26 Operation Dynamo officially ordered to commence. 7,669 May 28 Belgian Army surrenders; first "Little Ships" arrive. 17,804 May 29 Heavy Luftwaffe attacks; French army joins evacuation. 47,310 May 31 Biggest day of the evacuation; Lord Gort departs. 68,014 June 4 Last night of operation; Germans occupy Dunkirk docks. 26,175 Total 338,226 Allied soldiers (including ~140,000 French) . Historical Significance
It was reportedly named after the room at Dover Castle that contained the building’s electric dynamo .
Churchill and his advisors originally hoped to save only 20,000 to 30,000 men . The Rescue Effort
, often referred to as the "Miracle of Dunkirk," was the massive naval evacuation of over 338,000 Allied soldiers from the beaches and harbor of Dunkirk, France, between May 26 and June 4, 1940 . Key Overview
Over two-thirds of the rescued troops actually boarded from the East Mole , a long stone sea wall that allowed larger ships to dock despite the harbor's destruction.
