80 years on what happened at Dunkirk?

Hundreds of boats took part in the rescue operation

May 2020 marks 80 years since the evacuation of Dunkirk which took place during World War II.

World War II was a huge war between 1939 and 1945 involving many countries around the world, who were fighting each other for power.

There were many important battles and military missions during the war including Dunkirk which happened in May 1940.

What happened?

During World War II, British, French and Belgian soldiers joined together and fought on the same side against Nazi Germany.

They were known as the Allied troops.

The Germans fought the allied soldiers back to the port of Dunkirk, which is on the north coast of France.

Churchill is one of the most famous Britons of the 20th Century

The Allied troops found themselves trapped at the beaches there, surrounded by the Germans.

The British prime minister at the time, Winston Churchill, ordered a fleet of more than 900 boats to travel from Britain to Dunkirk to rescue the soldiers and bring them back to England to safety.

The mission was called Operation Dynamo and more than a quarter of a million people were rescued from the beaches of Dunkirk.

Why is it important?

World War II carried on for another five years after the mission on the Dunkirk beaches took place.

The story of the Dunkirk rescue is still told today as many people risked their lives to save so many others.

It was important because even though the British Army and Allies had to flee France, it meant that they lived to fight another day and they eventually went on to win the war.