Describing Dunkirk From what I have learned about Dunkirk, it is possible to say that it could have been seen as a victory and also a defeat for the British. When the Second World War first began in September 1939 Germany had started to invade Poland and as a result of this France and Britain joined in an alliance and declared war on Germany. By the 10th May 1940 Germany had begun their invasion of France using the Blitzkrieg Method. On the 20th May Germany had reached the coast and trapped Britain and France at Dunkirk the only port remaining. Fortunately Operation Dynamo was approved by Churchill allowing ships to cross the channel and rescue troops from Dunkirk this was a critical day for the survival of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). Luckily for Britain on the 24th May Germany had made a disastrous mistake as Hitler ordered that his tanks approaching Dunkirk should be stopped for coming operations. This gave British and French troops the crucial time they needed to be evacuated. On the 28th May Britain and France were able to use the beaches to get a bigger amount of troops off Dunkirk. However ships were frequently damaged or sunk by bombs. Finally on the 4th June the evacuation was brought to an end with an astonishing 338,226 troops rescued despite intense bombing and shelling. This allowed Britain to continue the war and the feeling of Dunkirk victory swept the country however Dunkirk had been a lucky escape for Britain. It is possible to argue that Dunkirk was a defeat for the British. This was mainly due to the evacuation being seen as panicked and disorderly. We know that a huge number of men were killed... ... middle of paper ... ...vacuation at Dunkirk can also be seen as a defeat. I think this was mainly due to the loss of troops and equipment, as most of their equipment had to be abandoned. This was backed up by source number 3 which contains photographs of the beach. Further more I know that 68,000 troops failed to be evacuated. As well as this I accept that demoralisation of troops and the panicked and disorderly evacuation, also contributes to why some people may think Dunkirk was a Defeat for the British. Overall I think that Dunkirk made Britain stronger. I think that this was the first step to defeating Hitler in the Second World War. I believe the deliverance of Dunkirk helped Churchill in boosting his leadership, it made the country have faith in the army, as they now believed Churchill could lead them to victory and continue the War.
World War I, also known as the Great War, lasted from the summer of 1914 until the late fall of 1918. The war was fought between the Allies, which consisted mainly of the United Kingdom, France, and the Russian Empire, and the Central Powers, which consisted mainly of the German Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria (Alliances - Entente and Central Powers). In total, it is estimated that twelve million civilians and nine million combatants died during this horrific and devastating war (DeGroot 1). When the war first began in 1914, many people thought that it would be a war of movement that would quickly be over. However, that changed when the Germans, who were trying to reach and capture the city of Paris in France, were forced to retreat during the Battle of the Marne in September 1914 (Ellis 10). German General von Falkenhayn, who felt that his troops must at all cost hold onto the parts of France and Belgium that they had overtaken, ordered his men to dig in and form defensive trench lines (Ellis 10). The Allies could not break through the enemies lines and were forced to create trenches of their own (Ellis 10). This was only the beginning of trench warfare. A war of movement had quickly come to a standstill on the Western Front. A massive trench line, 475 miles long, quickly spread and extended from the North Sea to the Swiss Frontier (Ellis 10). With neither side budging, soldiers were forced to live in the most miserable of conditions. Simply put, life in the trenches was a living hell. A lieutenant of the 2nd Scottish rifles wrote, “No one who was not there can fully appreciate the excruciating agonies and misery through which the men had to go [through] in those da...
All Quiet On The Western Front and Gallipoli are two stories independent of each other that chronicle the experiences of two separate young men in the same war. Paul Baumer, a nineteen-year old German soldier, narrates the story of All Quiet On The Western Front. This tragic story begins with Baumer in training camp and concludes with his untimely death. Archy, an eighteen-year old Australian athlete, is the main character in Gallipoli. Gallipoli, a peninsula in Turkey, becomes the background for another account of a young life wasted. Although these two young men are from opposing forces of the war and lived on opposite sides of the equator, they are alike in every way else.
...ced to retreat or be cut off from their supplies. The German High Command, at this point, knew that they could no longer continue to fight and needed to surrender or face annihilation.
of something big. This battle marked the being of the end of World War II.
relieve their sorely-pressed armies in the East. The Dieppe raid also served as a risky opportunity for
just around Wirrawee alone’ (Pg. 225). Ultimately, they were forced into the war and all the negative
Evaluating the Success of Dunkirk There are many opinions on how successful Dunkirk was; one point of
notion that the war wasn’t going to be an easy win, and the chances of winning the war
Purpose The principal objective of the operation was to get Allied troops across the Rhine. Three main advantages were expected to be achieved: · Cutting the land exit of the Germans remaining in western Holland. · Outflanking the enemy's frontier defences, the West Wall or the Siegfriedline · Positioning British ground forces for a following drive into Germany along the North German plain. . 2. Major Events The 17th of September was the so called "Day Zero" of the operation.
middle of paper ... ... This forced President Clinton to do something. He made the Army change their policies. He made it clear that the U.S. soldiers shouldn’t go to places and help unless they are absolutely sure that they need to go into the country.
All the soldiers of the Americans and the british were giving up because there soldiers were dying. Benjamin Martin quoted that it is “not over
Peter Weir re-created one of the biggest historical events in New Zealand through the tragic tale of Archy Hamilton, an innocent boy who lost his life in Gallipoli during 1915. The audience is emotionally weaved into the film by use of music, dialogue, tracking shots and close ups to create a climax of a despairing ending to the film Gallipoli. Courage was the main theme communicated by Weir throughout the film. The film exposes an underlying message for teenagers, to be brave in our everyday lives when wanting to achieve your goals
Ultimately the battle was not won by either side, but rather abandoned. The lack of decisive military strategy resulted in the British being unable to quickly overtake the Germans, allowing time for reinforcements to be recruited. Ultimately both sides tallied extensive casualties, for a battle which receives little glory for its gruesome history.
Throughout their lives, people must deal with the horrific and violent side of humanity. The side of humanity is shown through the act of war. This is shown in Erich Remarque’s novel, “All Quiet on the Western Front”. War is by far the most horrible thing that the human race has to go through. The participants in the war suffer irreversible damage by the atrocities they witness and the things they go through.
Normandy is the part of France where the lush green terrain crashes with the English Channel. Normandy is home to the famous D-Day invasions, and the only thing that Normandy might be more known for is, its array of cheeses. It is divided into two regions, upper and lower Normandy, and is home to millions of people. Normandy is the most fascinating and beautiful region of France.