Chapter 47 Volume 2, Chapter 5, The Rescue of Dunkirk

May 26 to June 4 Wishes and Prayers Heavy Bad News Minister's Manifestation Small Ships Massing Seven Hundred Ships Three Major Factors Mosquito Fleet Retreat The French Give Lord Gort's Last Order A Possible Outcome Gort Takes Command of Dunkirk Handed over to Alexander May 31st My third visit to Paris General Spears and Marshal Pétain's retreat completed my speech to Parliament on June 4th Significance of air victory British determination. Westminster Abbey held a short service of wishes and prayers on May 26.The British don't want to show their inner feelings on the outside, but when I sit in the singing class, I can also feel the excitement that is smoldering in my heart, and I can feel the fear in the congregation, not fear of death or fear of death. Not afraid of injury or material loss, but afraid of Britain being defeated and eventually perishing.

That day was Tuesday, May 28th, and I had not been to the House of Commons for a week.It would be of no use to make any further statements during this period, and the MPs have not asked me for it, but everyone realizes that the fate of our army, and even more important matters than the fate of our army, will soon The final decision may be made before the week is over.The House of Commons, I said, should be prepared for heavy bad news.I will just add that nothing that happens in this war can make us abandon our duty to defend the just cause of the world to the death, nor destroy our confidence in our strength to go forward, as it has at so many critical moments in our history Likewise, we have the strength to overcome all odds until we finally defeat our enemies.Since the government was formed, I have met only a few people outside the cabinet, and no more colleagues, so I feel that it is necessary to call all the cabinet ministers outside the war cabinet for a meeting in my Commons office. Yes, it is very beneficial.There are about twenty-five of us here.I explained the course of events, and explained to them frankly our position, and all that was at stake.Then I didn't take it as an event of special significance, but just said casually:

Of course, no matter what happens in Dunkirk, we will fight on. I was surprised by the performance of the cabinet members at this time, because, as far as the people in this gathering are concerned, these twenty-five people are experienced politicians and parliamentarians, and their views on the war, rightly or wrongly, are very different.Many people jumped up from their seats and ran to my chair, shouting and patting me on the back. There is no doubt that, at this critical juncture, if I have hesitated a moment in the course of running the country, I will be thrown out of office by them.I am sure that every minister has made up his mind that he would rather immediately sacrifice his life, and destroy his family and property, than surrender on his knees.This performance of them represents the House of Commons, and it can be said that they represent the whole people.In the days and months that followed, I expressed their feelings whenever appropriate.I can express their feelings, because their feelings are also my feelings.An irresistible fire blazed through every corner of our island.

The retreat of British and French troops from Dunkirk is well documented.Since the twentieth the build-up of ships and small craft had been under the command of Admiral Ramsay, Commander of the Port of Dover.On the evening of the 26th (6:57 p.m.) the Admiralty issued an order, and the generator operation plan began to be implemented, and the first batch of troops was transported back to the country that night.When Boulogne and Calais fell, only the port of Dunkirk and the open beach to the Belgian frontier remained in our possession.At this time, we thought we had at most two days to save about 45,000 people.The next morning, May 27, urgent measures were taken to search for more small craft to meet special needs.This must not be less than sufficient to evacuate the entire British Expeditionary Force.It was obvious that, in addition to the larger ships loading soldiers from Dunkirk, a large number of smaller ships would be required for beach applications.On the advice of Mr. Riggs of the Maritime Department, a total of forty serviceable motorboats were found by Admiralty officials from the various docks between Teddington and Brightlingsea, and were assembled at Sheerness the next day. .At the same time, lifeboats on regular liners at London's docks, tugboats on the Thames, speedboats, fishing boats, barges, flat-bottomed boats and yachts, as long as they can be used along the beach, they are all collected for spare.On the night of the twenty-seventh all the small ships flooded out to sea, first to our channel ports, and from there to Dunkirk, to our beloved army.

Once there is no need to keep secrets, the Ministry of the Navy will immediately let go and let the boat people in the south and southeast coast of our country fully carry out their actions.All who had boats, steamers or sails, set out for Dunkirk; luckily preparations had been made a week before, and many volunteered to help.The number of small boats that came on the 29th was not many, but they were the precursors of the nearly 400 small boats that came later. These 400 or so boats played a very important role. About 100,000 people were ferried from the seashore to large ships far from the coast.During these few days I did not see Captain Pym, my Admiralty Map Office Chief, and two or three other persons whom I had seen so often.They drove a small Dutch boat and transported eight hundred people within four miles.Under the enemy's continuous air raids, a total of about 860 ships went to rescue the army, of which nearly 700 were British and the rest were from the Allies.

At this time, on the coast around Dunkirk, the deployment of the surrounding areas was methodical and rigorous.The party arrived without confusion, and moved along the fortifications in an orderly manner, greatly increasing the defense's strength within two days.The team with the best lineup moves to build the defense.The troops with the greatest losses, such as the 2nd and 5th Divisions, remained on the beach in reserve, and then, boarded ships as early as possible.Initially, there were three corps on the front, but by the twenty-ninth, as the French took over more lines, two corps would suffice.The enemy pursued our retreating troops desperately, and the fighting continued fiercely; especially on the flanks near Nieuwpoort and Berg.As the retreat progressed, the numbers of both British and French troops dwindled, so the line of defense was shortened accordingly.Thousands of troops were relentlessly bombarded by air for three, four or five days in the middle of the sand dunes of the beach.Hitler thought that the Luftwaffe would make our escape impossible, so he wanted to save his armor for the final blow of the campaign; he was wrong, but not without reason.

Three factors frustrated his hopes.First, the bombardment of large numbers of troops massing along the coast was repeated with minimal casualties.The bomb was thrown into the soft sand, and the shrapnel from the explosion were wrapped in the sand and could not be scattered.In the initial phase, after a rumbling air raid, the army was astonished to find few casualties.Bombs were going off everywhere, but few people were hurt.Rocky shores may have more serious consequences.Before long, soldiers didn't care about air strikes.They squatted calmly among the sand dunes and had hope of living.The sea before them was gray, but not unwelcoming.Over there, the boat with life-saving came home.

A second factor that Hitler did not foresee was the casualties of his airmen.The quality of the British and German air forces was directly tested here.The British fighter team did its best to constantly patrol the battlefield and fight the enemy to the death.Again and again they rushed into the German fighter and bomber formations, inflicting heavy damage on the enemy planes, smashing them into pieces and driving them out of the sky.Every day it was fought like this, until the Royal Air Force won a glorious victory.Wherever we encounter German planes (sometimes there are forty or fifty German planes as soon as they arrive), we will immediately attack them. Often, our planes in a squadron or less than one squadron will shoot down dozens of enemy planes. Losses soon numbered in the hundreds.The Capital Air Force, our last sacred reserve army, is also dispatched and put into battle.

Fighter pilots sometimes make four sorties a day.The results are remarkable.Some of the superior enemies were defeated and some were killed, and in spite of their bravery they were also defeated and even cowed by us.This is a decisive battle. Unfortunately, the troops on the beach rarely saw the great battles in the air, because the battles were often fought miles away or above the clouds.Little did they know the losses the air force inflicted on the enemy.All they felt was the bombs dropped on the beach by enemy planes that flew over, but probably couldn't fly back.There was even a strong outrage against the Air Force in the Army, with some troops disembarking at Dover or the Thames ports insulting men in Air Force uniforms for being ignorant.They should be shaking hands with the Air Force, but how could they know that?In Parliament, I did everything I could to make this fact known.

But all the fine sands of the beaches and the heroic battles in the air are of little value without the sea.The order given ten or twelve days ago had borne fruit in the exigencies of the situation and the exaltation of emotions.On shore and on board orderly.The sea is calm.The small boats passed between the shore and the big ships, carried off the wading soldiers on the beach, and rescued the drowning soldiers, all in spite of the enemy's bombing, although the bombing often caused them to suffer.The sheer number of ships alone was more than enough to make up for the losses caused by the air raids.As far as the entire Mosquito fleet is concerned, it is unsinkable.Just when we were defeated, word of honor reached the ears of our united and invincible island people, and the battle at Dunkirk Beach will stand in all our annals.

Although the small boats did a good job, it must not be forgotten that the heaviest duties were carried out by the warships, which carried two-thirds of the troops between Britain and the port of Dunkirk.As the loss tables on pages 89-90 of this book show, destroyers played a major role.The enormous contribution of private ships and their merchant mariners cannot be ignored either. The progress of the retreat was watched with anxious eyes and growing hope.On the evening of the twenty-seventh, the naval authorities considered Lord Gort's position to be very critical; Captain Tennant of the Royal Navy, who was sent by the Admiralty to Dunkirk as a senior naval officer, sent an urgent telegram demanding that all available ships be dispatched immediately. Go to the beach, because the ability to retreat tomorrow night will be questionable.The situation is serious, and it can even be said that there is no hope.We did our best to meet his request, and sent one cruiser, eight destroyers, and twenty-six other ships.The 28th was a very tense day, but due to the strong support of the Royal Air Force, we held the land position, so the tense situation gradually eased.Despite our heavy losses on the 29th (three destroyers and 21 other ships sunk and many more damaged), the naval plan was carried out. There was never a question of leaving the French soldiers behind.Before any demands or complaints were made from the French side, I issued the following order: Prime Minister to Secretary of State for War, Chief of the Imperial General Staff and General Ismay May 29, 1940 (The original is sent to the Chief of the Imperial General Staff) It is very important that the French troops withdraw from Dunkirk together with us as far as possible.Don't let them rely solely on their own shipping vehicles.The method should be consulted immediately with the French Mission in our country, or, if necessary, with the French Government, so as to avoid reproach, or to avoid it as much as possible.Perhaps it would be better if we evacuated the two French divisions from Dunkirk and temporarily replaced them with our own troops, in order to simplify our command.But please advise me as best you can, and tell me what else to do. Prime Minister to General Speers (Paris) May 29, 1940 Send the following documents to Renault to inform Weygand and George: We have evacuated nearly 50,000 people from the harbor and beaches of Dunkirk and hope to evacuate another 30,000 tonight.The front line could be breached at any time; or, the piers, beaches, and secondary ships could be rendered unusable by air raids and artillery fire from the southwest.No one can predict how long the current smooth evacuation situation will last, or how many people we will be able to rescue in the future.We hope that the French troops will retreat with us as much as possible.The Admiralty has been ordered to assist the French Navy when requested.We do not know how many will be forced to surrender in the future, but we should share as much as possible of this loss, and, what is more important, we should bear it and have nothing to do with the inevitable confusion, heavy and intense work. complain. When our retreating forces are reorganized and ready with the forces necessary to safeguard our lives against threatened or even imminent invasion by the enemy, we shall form a new British Expeditionary Force from Saint-Nazaire .I am bringing in regular troops from India and Palestine; Australian and Canadian troops will be arriving shortly.Now we are transporting equipment south of Amiens, which is more than enough to meet the needs of the Fifth Division.But this is only for proper deployment and emergency assault, we will soon send you a new plan to reinforce our troops in France.It is with heartfelt affection that I send this letter.Please tell me your opinion frankly without hesitation. On the 30th, I convened a meeting of the ministers of the navy, land and air services and the chiefs of staff of the three services in the war room of the Ministry of the Navy.We studied the conditions on the Belgian coast that day.The total number of retreating troops amounted to 120,000, of whom only 6,000 were French; 860 ships of various types took part in the work.Admiral Wick-Walker at Dunkirk called to say that, despite heavy bombing and air raids, four thousand men had been on board in the previous hour.He also believes that Dunkirk may not be able to hold on tomorrow.I stress the urgent need to withdraw more French troops.Failure to do so will irreparably damage our relationships with our allies.I also said that when the British force was reduced to a corps, we should tell Lord Gott to go home and leave a corps commander in charge.The British army should hold their positions as long as they can, so that the French army can continue to retreat. As I was well acquainted with Lord Gort's character, I gave him in my own hand the following order, duly issued by the War Office at two o'clock in the afternoon on the 30th: Every effort should be made to continue to defend the present position so that the evacuation, which is now well under way, will remove the maximum number of men.Reports can be made every three hours via La Penny in western Belgium.If we can still maintain communication, when we think that your command has been reduced enough to be handed over to a corps commander, we will give you orders to return to England with the officers you then feel should retreat.You should appoint this commander now.If the communication is cut off, when the number of troops with combat effectiveness does not exceed the number of the third division, you should hand over the command and return to the country according to the prescribed method.This is deployed in accordance with correct military procedure, and this matter cannot be left to your personal freedom.Politically, when you command only a fraction of the troops left, your capture by the enemy is tantamount to giving the enemy a superfluous victory.The commander of your choice should be ordered to continue the joint defense with the French, and to continue the retreat from Dunkirk or the beaches, but when he thinks that an organized retreat is no longer possible and that no appreciable damage can be done to the enemy, he has the power to do so. The right to negotiate a formal surrender with the senior commander of the French army to avoid unnecessary sacrifice. It is likely that this final telegram had an effect on other events and the fate of another heroic commander.At the White House at the end of December 1941, I learned from the President and Mr. Stimson of the impending fate of General MacArthur and of the American garrison.I think that we should, from a commander-in-chief's position, show them the means of doing so, when the forces under his command have been reduced to a fraction of what he had commanded.Both the President and Mr. Stimson read the telegram with attention, and I was surprised that it seemed to have made a deep impression on them.Later that day, Stimson came asking for a copy of the telegram, which I gave him right away.Perhaps (because I don't know) this telegram prompted them to make the right decision, ordering General MacArthur to transfer his command to one of his generals[2], so that the great commander was later able to Establish many brilliant military exploits, otherwise he will become a prisoner of Japan without dying and cannot participate in the war.I hope I am correct in this view. 【1】Three days after the Pearl Harbor incident, the Japanese army landed on the northern shore of Luzon (December 10, 1941), and MacArthur ordered the entire army to withdraw westward into the Bataan Peninsula and defend Corrigidor, 1942 On March 17th, 1949, Wainwright (Wainwright) succeeded MacArthur to command the US-Philippines Army.On April 9, 1942, the defenders of Bataan were forced to surrender; on May 6, 1942, Corrigidor fell.translator [2] Refers to General Wainwright.translator On the 30th, Lord Gort's staff, in consultation with Admiral Ramsay at Dover, informed Gort that the daytime of 1 June was the last time during which the eastern outlying positions could be expected to be held.With the utmost urgency, therefore, it was necessary to secure, as far as possible, the evacuation of the British rearguard, which at that time remained on the coast, of perhaps less than 4,000 men. It was later found that this number was insufficient to defend the last covering positions, and it was decided to maintain the British defense until midnight between the 1st and 2nd of June, while withdrawing the French and British forces on a completely equal footing. This was the case when Lord Gort returned to England on the evening of 31 May, following orders to transfer command to Major General Alexander. In order to maintain personal contact and avoid misunderstandings, I had to fly to Paris on May 31 to attend a regular meeting of the Supreme Military Council of the Allies.I was on the same flight with Mr. Attlee, General Deal and General Ismay.I also took General Spears who flew back to England from Paris on May 30th with the latest news.This fine officer, who was also a member of Parliament, had been my friend since the First World War.As a liaison officer between the French left wing and the British right wing, he took me on a tour of Victoria Ridge in 1916 and introduced me to General Fayol, commander of the French 33rd Army.He has a very good French accent and has five wounded ribbons of honor on his sleeve, so this is the right man to deal with the angst-worthy relationship between our two countries at this moment.When a Frenchman and an Englishman get into trouble and have an argument, the Frenchman is always talkative and impulsive, while the Englishman appears dull or even rude.But Spears can talk to French key figures with ease and force that I haven't seen anyone better. This time we did not go to the Foreign Office, but to the office of Mr. Renaud of the War Department, Rue Saint-Dominique.Attlee and I discovered that the only French cabinet members present to meet with us were Renault and Marshal Pétain.This was the first time Petain appeared in our meeting, when he was the vice-chairman of the Supreme Military Council.He was wearing civilian clothes.Our Ambassadors to France, Dill, Ismay and Spears were present with us, and on behalf of France were: Weygand, Darlan, Captain de Margery, Director of Renault's Private Office, and Baudouin, Secretary of the French War Cabinet gentlemen. The first question is the situation in Norway.I said that after full consideration, the British government decided that the Narvik area should be withdrawn immediately.The troops, destroyers, and a hundred anti-aircraft guns we have deployed there are desperately needed elsewhere, so we propose to withdraw from June 2nd.The British Navy could transport French troops home and escort the King of Norway and any Norwegian troops willing to come to France.Renault said the French government agreed to the measure.In the event of war with Italy, these destroyers will be urgently needed in the Mediterranean, and it will be useful to put 16,000 men on the Aisne and Somme fronts.This problem is solved like this. Then I changed the subject and talked about Dunkirk.The French do not seem to know any more about the Corps of the North than we do.They were all taken aback when I told them that 165,000 men had retreated, including 15,000 French. They naturally noticed that the number of British troops retreating was obviously larger than that of the French troops. This, I explained, was largely due to the fact that there were many British administrative units in the rear, whose personnel were able to board the ships before the combat troops were withdrawn from the front. In addition, it is also because the French army has not yet received an order to retreat.One of the main reasons I came to Paris was to know for sure whether the orders given to the British were also given to the French.The three divisions of the British Army now defending the central position could cover the retreat of all Allied forces.This disposition, along with the transport by sea, was a British contribution to making up for the heavy losses which the Allies must now suffer.His Majesty's Government has felt the necessity of ordering Lord Gott to withdraw the combatants and leave the wounded behind in a time of crisis.If this hope were realized now, it would be possible to withdraw 200,000 able-bodied soldiers.It's almost a kind of miracle.Four days ago, I couldn't guarantee that it would exceed 50,000 people.I have repeatedly spoken of the terrible loss of our equipment.Raynaud praised the British Navy and Air Force, and I thank him.Afterwards we spoke at some length of how to rebuild the British forces in France. Meanwhile, Admiral Darlan drafted a telegram to Admiral Abrial at Dunkirk: 1. Several divisions under your command and those under the command of the British commander should hold a bridgehead around Dunkirk. 2. When you really think that no troops outside the bridgehead can advance to the place of embarkation, the troops defending the bridgehead should withdraw immediately and board the ships, allowing the British troops to board first. I interrupted at once to say that the British would never embark first; that the British and the French should retreat in equal numbers, arm in arm.The British are to serve as rear guard.Everyone agrees on that. We then move on to Italy.I stated the British opinion that if Italy entered the war we should strike it head on at once in the most effective manner.Many Italians are against war, and all Italians should be made aware of the cruelty of war. I suggested that we should strike the industrial triangle of the north-west formed by the cities of Milan, Turin, and Genoa.Reynaud agreed that the Allies must strike at once; Admiral Darlan said that he had drawn up a plan to bomb the Italian oil supply system by sea and air force. Most of Italy's oil was stored along the coast between the French-Italian border and Naples; Arrangements were made. I then expressed my wish that more members of the government I had recently formed should become acquainted with each other as soon as possible with their French counterparts.For example, I would like Mr Bevan, the Labor Secretary and trade union leader, to visit Paris.Mr. Bevan has shown remarkable ability, and under his leadership the English working class is now giving up more holidays and privileges than it gave up during the last war.Renault enthusiastically agreed. After a few touches on Tangier and the importance of keeping Spain out of the war, I give the general situation.I said: Allies must meet all enemies without flinching.The United States has been exasperated by recent events, and even if they are not at war, they will soon come to our aid heavily.If the enemy invaded Britain, the impact of what happened in the United States at that time was even more far-reaching.Britain is not afraid of invasion, and every village, big and small, will put up fierce resistance.As long as the British army meets the basic needs of the country, the rest can be used by its ally, France. I absolutely believe that we can only carry on the war to victory.Even if one of us is defeated, the other must never give up the struggle.If the homeland of England should be ravaged and reduced to ashes, the British government would be prepared to wage war from the New World.If Germany defeats one of the two allies, or both, she will show us no kindness; we shall be forever vassals and slaves.Better that the civilization of Western Europe, with all its achievements, come to a tragic and heroic end, than that two great democracies should survive, deprived of everything worth living for. Mr. Attlee went on to say that he fully agreed with me.The British people now realize the danger they face, and know that a German victory will destroy everything they have built.The Germans not only killed people, but also killed ideas.The resolve of our people is unprecedented in their history.Renault thanks us for these words.He was sure that the morale of the German people was not as high as it had been when their armies were temporarily victorious.If France, with British aid, can hold the Somme, and if American industry can supplement our munitions, we will be assured of victory.He said he was grateful for my renewed assurance that if one country was defeated, the other would not give up the struggle. This concludes the official meeting. When we left the conference table, a few of the important people were talking together by the bay window with strange expressions.Chief among them was Marshal Petain.Spears was with me, helping me with the conversation in French and giving his own opinion. The young Frenchman, Captain de Margerie, said he would fight to the end in Africa.But Marshal Pétain's attitude was so noncommittal and so gloomy that I felt that he wanted to negotiate a separate peace.Apart from the language he used, his character, his prestige, his ease with adversity, was an irresistible influence on superstitious people.One Frenchman, I don't remember who, put it mildly that the continuing military defeats will at some point force France to revise its foreign policy.Speaking of this, Spears immediately stood up and said to Marshal Petain in very authentic French: Mr. Marshal, I think you understand, doesn't that mean a blockade?Another said: "That was probably inevitable.Then, Spears said to Petain's face: That would not only mean a blockade, but bombing all the ports that the Germans occupied.I'm so glad he brought that up.I sang what I always sang: no matter what happens, no matter who gets left behind, we're going to fight on. Another night of small-scale air raids, and I left Paris the next morning.As soon as I returned home, I sent the following telegram: Prime Minister to General Weygand June 1, 1940 The last moment of retreat was drawing near.The five fighter squadrons were dispatched almost in turn without interruption, as far as we could go, but six ships were sunk this morning, several of which were fully loaded with troops.Cannon fire only threatened the actual passage.The enemy was closing in on the narrowed bridgehead. If we hold out until tomorrow, we may lose everything.If we retreat tonight, although many people will be lost, many people will definitely be rescued.There are not as many French troops on the bridgehead as you say can now fight, and we doubt that there are as many remaining in that area.Admiral Abrial can't quite make sense of the situation in the bunker, and neither can you, nor can we here.Therefore, we ordered General Alexander, Commander of the British Defense Area at the bridgehead, to discuss with Admiral Abrial and make a judgment: whether it can be held until tomorrow.I believe you will agree. On May 31 and June 1, the battle for Dunkirk, though not over, reached its final climax.In the past two days, more than 132,000 soldiers have landed safely in Britain, and nearly one-third of them were evacuated from the beach in small boats under heavy air raids and artillery fire.In the early morning hours of June 1, the enemy bombers bombed hard, and whenever our own fighters had to fly back to refuel, they took the opportunity to come.The attack by enemy planes caused heavy losses to the mass of ships, nearly equaling the losses of the previous week combined.On that day alone, thirty-one ships were sunk and eleven were destroyed by air raids, mines, fast torpedo-boat attacks, or other mishaps.On land, the enemy increased their pressure on the bridgeheads, which they struggled to break through.They met desperate resistance from the Allied rearguard and were all repelled. In the final stage the evacuation was carried out with great skill and precision.This is the first time that we can plan in advance, instead of acting on the basis of circumstances as in the past.At dawn on June 2, about 4,000 British troops equipped with seven anti-aircraft guns and twelve anti-tank guns and a considerable number of French troops stood firm on the reduced outer positions of Dunkirk.The evacuation work can only be carried out at night, and Admiral Ramsey decided to transfer all available ships to the port of Dunkirk that night.In addition to tugs and boats, forty-four ships, including eleven destroyers and fourteen minesweepers, set off from Britain that night.Forty French and Belgian ships also took part. The British rearguard were on board before midnight. However, the battle story of Dunkirk does not end there.We intended to withdraw that night many more French troops than they themselves had asked for.As a result, when our ships (many of which were still empty) were withdrawing at dawn, there were still a large number of French troops ashore, many of them still in contact with the enemy.Another effort must be made.Although the crew was exhausted from working without rest these days, they answered the call. On June 4, 26,175 French soldiers landed in England, more than 21,000 of whom were carried by British ships.Unfortunately, several thousand men remained there, fighting in the ever-shrinking bridgehead until the morning of the 4th, when the enemy had entered the outskirts of the city and their strength was exhausted.For many days they fought valiantly, covering the retreat of their British and French companions.They will spend the rest of their lives in prison camps.Let's remember: Were it not for the persistent fighting of the rearguard at Dunkirk, our efforts to rebuild an army in England for home defense and ultimate victory would have been greatly frustrated. Finally, at 2:23 p.m. on 4 June, the Admiralty announced, with the consent of France, that the plan for Operation Dynamo had been completed. Parliament met on the 4th of June, and it was my duty to report first publicly and then in private to the MPs.The text of my speech still exists, and only a few passages of it are quoted here.It is imperative that we make it clear not only to our own people, but to the world, that our determination to continue fighting is well founded and not a desperate struggle.At the same time, it is also necessary to explain the reason why I have confidence in myself. We must be very careful not to call this rescue a victory.Wars are not won by retreat.It should be noted, however, that there was victory in this rescue.This victory was won by the Air Force.Many, many soldiers who returned did not see our Air Force in action; all they saw were enemy bombers that escaped our Air Force's covering attack.They underestimate what our Air Force has accomplished.I have heard much talk of this matter; and this is the reason why I now digress into it.I must tell you this. This was a major test of the strength of the British and German air forces.The purpose of the Luftwaffe was to make our retreat from the beaches impossible, and to sink all the thousands of ships that were congregated there; can you imagine a greater purpose for them?Besides this, what greater military importance and military significance is there for the purpose of the war as a whole?They had tried with all their might, but they were at last repulsed; they were thwarted in the execution of their task.We have withdrawn the armies; they have cost them four times as much as they have cost us.It has been proved that all our aircraft of all types and all our flying personnel are superior to the enemies they now face. 當我們說在英倫上空抵禦來自海外的襲擊將對我們更有好處時，我應當指出，我從這些事實裡找到了一個可靠的論據，我們實際可行而又萬無一失的辦法就是根據這個論據想出來的。我對於這些青年飛行人員表示敬意。強大的法國陸軍當時在幾千輛裝甲車的衝擊下大部分潰退了。難道不可以說，文明事業本身將由數千個飛行人員的本領和忠誠來保護嗎？ 有人對我們說，希特勒先生有一個入侵英倫三島的計劃。 過去也時常有人這麼盤算過。當拿破侖帶著他的平底船和他的大軍在布洛涅駐紮一年以後，有人對他說：英國那邊有厲害的雜草。自從英國遠征軍歸來後，這種雜草當然就更多了。 我們目前在英國本土擁有的兵力比我們在這次大戰中或上次大戰中任何時候的兵力不知道要強大多少倍，這一事實當然對抵抗入侵的本土防禦問題起很有利的作用，但不能這樣繼續下去。我們不能滿足於能打防禦戰。我們對我們的盟國負有義務。我們必須再重新組織、重新建立在英勇的總司令戈特勳爵指揮下的英國遠征軍。這一切都在進行中；但是在這段期間，我們必須使我們本土的防禦達到這樣一種高度的組織水平，即只需極少數的人便可有效地保障安全，同時又可發揮攻勢活動最大的潛力。我們現在正在進行這方面的部署。 我在結束語中有一段話，正如將來可以看到的，對美國的決策起到了及時的重要影響。 儘管歐洲的大片土地和許多古老的有名的國家已經陷入或可能陷入秘密警察和納粹統治的種種罪惡機關的魔掌，我們也毫不動搖，毫不氣餒。我們將戰鬥到底。我們將在法國作戰，我們將在海上和大洋中作戰，我們將具有愈來愈大的信心和愈來愈強的力量在空中作戰；我們將不惜任何代價防衛本土，我們將在海灘上作戰，我們將在敵人登陸的地點作戰，我們將在田野和街頭作戰，我們將在山區作戰；我們決不投降；即便我們這個島嶼或這個島嶼的大部分被征服並陷於飢餓之中我從來不相信會發生這種情況我們在海外的帝國臣民，在英國艦隊的武裝和保護之下也將繼續戰鬥，直到新世界在上帝認為是適當的時候，拿出它所有的一切力量，來拯救和解放這個舊世界。