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73-537: The first castle was built by Robert I, Count of Flanders , at the end of the 11th century and used as a base for military operations. In the 12th and 13th century, Wijnendale became a regular place of residence for the Counts of Flanders and for Philip, Count of Flanders , in particular. In 1297 Guy of Dampierre signed a treaty here with the English King Edward I . In 1298 Wijnendale was inherited by

146-859: A pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1086 and on the return trip home spent time assisting the Byzantine Emperor ( Alexios I Komnenos ) against the Seljuq Turks . In one battle Robert and three of his companions rode ahead of the main army charging the forces under the command of Kerbogha , whose forces the Christians scattered completely. Robert died 13 October 1093. Battle of Dunkirk Estimated total casualties 20,000 killed or wounded Luxembourg The Netherlands Belgium France Britain 1941–1943 1944–1945 Germany Strategic campaigns The Battle of Dunkirk (French: Bataille de Dunkerque )

219-541: A corridor to the sea, about 60 miles (97 km) deep and 15 miles (24 km) wide. Most of the British forces were still around Lille , over 40 miles (64 km) from Dunkirk, with the French farther south. Two massive German armies flanked them. General Fedor von Bock 's Army Group B was to the east, and General Gerd von Rundstedt 's Army Group A to the west. Both officers were later promoted to field marshal. During

292-577: A counterattack. This was to be spearheaded by two battalions, the 3rd Grenadier Guards and 2nd North Staffordshire Regiment , both of Major-General Harold Alexander 's 1st Division. The North Staffords advanced as far as the Kortekeer River , while the Grenadiers reached the canal itself, but could not hold it. The counterattack disrupted the Germans, holding them back a little longer while

365-496: A renunciation to his claims to Flanders. The first was at Audenarde (between 1063 and 1067), in presence of his father Baldwin V. He received a significant monetary compensation. The second was made at Bruges (1069/70) in presence of his brother Baldwin VI. On his deathbed in 1070, Baldwin VI left Flanders and Hainaut to his elder son, Arnulf III , while Richilde , Arnulf's mother, was to be regent until Arnulf came of age. Despite

438-578: A southward advance against the remaining French forces. Luftwaffe commander Hermann Göring asked for the chance to destroy the forces in Dunkirk. The Allied forces' destruction was thus initially assigned to the air force while the German infantry organised in Army Group B . Von Rundstedt later called this "one of the great turning points of the war". The true reason for the decision to halt

511-472: A vital breathing space to the Royal Navy to arrange the evacuation of the British and Allied troops. About 338,000 men were rescued in about 11 days. Of these some 215,000 were British and 123,000 were French, of whom 102,250 escaped in British ships. On 26 May, Anthony Eden told Gort that he might need to "fight back to the west", and ordered him to prepare plans for the evacuation, but without telling

584-583: Is too valuable to shed. Our two peoples belong together racially and traditionally. That is and always has been my aim, even if our generals can't grasp it." Kilzer, Louis C., Hitler's Traitor: Martin Bormann and the Defeat of the Reich On 24 May, Hitler visited General von Rundstedt's headquarters at Charleville . The terrain around Dunkirk was thought unsuitable for armour. Von Rundstedt advised him

657-644: The Belgian Army further to the north from the majority of French troops south of the German penetration. After reaching the Channel, the German forces swung north along the coast, threatening to capture the ports and trap the British and French forces. In one of the most debated decisions of the war, the Germans halted their advance on Dunkirk. What became known as the "Halt Order" did not originate with Adolf Hitler . Generaloberste (Colonel-Generals) Gerd von Rundstedt and Günther von Kluge suggested that

730-523: The Counts of Namur , and besieged and damaged in 1302 and 1325. It is probable that Blanche of Namur grew up here and that it was here that she met her future husband Magnus IV of Sweden in 1334. After a period of neglect, Count John III of Namur sold the fiefdom and castle in 1407 to John the Fearless , Duke of Burgundy, who gave it 3 years later to his son-in-law Adolph I, Duke of Cleves , as part of

803-690: The English Channel , using Generalfeldmarschall Erich von Manstein 's plan Sichelschnitt (under the German strategy Fall Gelb ), effectively flanking the Allied forces. A series of Allied counter-attacks, including the Battle of Arras , failed to sever the German spearhead, which reached the coast on 20 May, separating the BEF near Armentières , the French First Army , and

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876-460: The Luftwaffe and we must now stand and watch countless thousands of the enemy get away to England right under our noses. Franz Halder , written in his diary on 30 May General Hans Jeschonnek overheard Hitler explaining his halt before Dunkirk: "The Führer wants to spare the British a humiliating defeat." Hitler later explained to a close friend, "The blood of every single Englishman

949-741: The Privy Council of the Habsburg Netherlands and in 1666 by the Treaty of Cleves. During the many attacks by Louis XIV on Flanders, Wijnendale was occupied many times by passing troops and severely damaged in 1690, when French troops blew up part of the castle. In 1699–1700 Duke Johann Wilhelm had the castle rebuilt. On 28 September 1708, during the War of Spanish Succession , a battle took place between French and allied troops at Wijnendale which ended in an allied victory. The castle

1022-554: The 1st, 3rd , 4th and 42nd Divisions escaped along the corridor that day, as did about one-third of the French First Army. As the Allies fell back, they disabled their artillery and vehicles and destroyed their stores. On 27 May, the British fought back to the Dunkirk perimeter line. The Le Paradis massacre took place that day, when the 3rd SS Division Totenkopf machine-gunned 97 British and French prisoners near

1095-422: The 2nd Battalion, Coldstream Guards of the 3rd Division, rushed to reinforce the line near Furnes, where the British troops had been routed. The Guards restored order by shooting some of the fleeing troops and turning others around at bayonet point. The British troops returned to the line and the German assault was beaten back. In the afternoon, the Germans breached the perimeter near the canal at Bulskamp , but

1168-423: The 3rd and 50th Divisions as well. The historian and author Julian Thompson calls it "astonishing" that they did not, but they were distracted, investing the nearby town of Cassel . Gort had ordered Lieutenant General Adam, commanding III Corps, and French General Fagalde to prepare a perimeter defence of Dunkirk. The perimeter was semicircular, with French troops manning the western sector and British troops

1241-465: The BEF retreated. The route back from Brooke's position to Dunkirk passed through the town of Poperinge (known to most British sources as "Poperinghe"), where there was a bottleneck at a bridge over the Yser canal. Most of the main roads in the area converged on that bridge. On 27 May, the Luftwaffe bombed the resulting traffic jam thoroughly for two hours, destroying or immobilising about 80 percent of

1314-483: The British and French sustained heavy casualties and were forced to abandon nearly all their equipment; around 16,000 French and 1,000 British soldiers died during the evacuation. The British Expeditionary Force alone lost some 68,000 soldiers during the French campaign. On 10 May 1940, Winston Churchill became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom . By 26 May, the BEF and the French 1st Army were bottled up in

1387-528: The Conqueror , who was king of England and duke of Normandy. Robert was the younger son of Baldwin V of Flanders and Adela , a daughter of King Robert II of France . His elder brother, Baldwin VI , succeeded their father as count of Flanders in 1067, and his sister Matilda had married William the Conqueror , then duke of Normandy and later king of England in 1051/2. Robert's marriage to Gertrude of Saxony , dowager countess of Holland, in 1063

1460-492: The Fleming, 1st Earl of Chester ) and William FitzOsborn. As a result of the battle Robert claimed the countship of Flanders, and Richilde's son Baldwin became count of Hainaut, where he continued to instigate hostilities against Robert. King Philip gathered some forces at Montreuil-sur-Mer, invaded Flanders and burned the town of Saint-Omer. However, Count Robert eventually negotiated a peace agreement, later consolidated by

1533-479: The French 150th Infantry Regiment ); they were taken prisoner on the morning of 4 June on the beach of Malo-les-Bains. The flag of this regiment was burnt so as not to fall into enemy hands. The War Office made the decision to evacuate British forces on 25 May. In the nine days from 27 May to 4 June 338,226 men escaped, including 139,997 French, Polish, and Belgian troops, together with a small number of Dutch soldiers, aboard 861 vessels (of which 243 were sunk during

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1606-458: The French First Army near Lille . Although completely cut off and heavily outnumbered, the French fought on for four days under General Molinié in the Siege of Lille , thereby keeping seven German divisions from the assault on Dunkirk and saving an estimated 100,000 Allied troops. In recognition of the garrison's stubborn defence, German general Kurt Waeger granted them the honours of war , saluting

1679-544: The French forces, including the French 12th Motorised Infantry Division from the Fort des Dunes , had bought time for the evacuation of the bulk of the troops. The Wehrmacht captured some 35,000 soldiers, almost all of them French. These men had protected the evacuation until the last moment and were unable to embark. The same fate was reserved for the survivors of the French 12th Motorised Infantry Division (composed in particular of

1752-568: The French or the Belgians. Gort had foreseen the order and preliminary plans were already in hand. The first such plan, for a defence along the Lys Canal, could not be carried out because of German advances on 26 May, with the 2nd and 50th Divisions pinned down, and the 1st , 5th and 48th Divisions under heavy attack. The 2nd Division took heavy casualties trying to keep a corridor open, being reduced to brigade strength, but they succeeded;

1825-406: The French troops as they marched past in parade formation with rifles shouldered. The defence of the Dunkirk perimeter held throughout 29–30 May, with the Allies falling back by degrees. On 31 May, the Germans nearly broke through at Nieuwpoort. The situation grew so desperate that two British battalion commanders manned a Bren gun , with one colonel firing and the other loading. A few hours later,

1898-612: The German armour on 24 May is still debated. One theory is that Von Rundstedt and Hitler agreed to conserve the armour for Fall Rot ("Case Red"), an operation to the south. It is possible that the Luftwaffe 's closer ties than the army's to the Nazi Party contributed to Hitler's approval of Göring's request. Another theory—which few historians have given credence—is that Hitler was still trying to establish diplomatic peace with Britain before Operation Barbarossa (the invasion of

1971-551: The German forces around the Dunkirk pocket should cease their advance on the port and consolidate to avoid an Allied breakout. Hitler sanctioned the order on 24 May with the support of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (German high command). The army was to halt for three days, which gave the Allies sufficient time to organise the Dunkirk evacuation and build a defensive line. While more than 330,000 Allied troops were rescued,

2044-630: The Handsome . In 1482 Mary died of a fall from her horse here, an accident which changed the history of the Low Countries: under her authoritarian husband Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor , a period of more than 300 years of Habsburg rule began. In 1528, after the death of Philip of Cleves, Lord of Ravenstein , Wijnendale returned to the main branch of the Dukes of Cleves . Their relatives Charles V and Mary of Habsburg stayed more than once at

2117-590: The La Bassée Canal. The British prisoners were from the 2nd Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment , part of the 4th Brigade of the 2nd Division. The SS men lined them up against the wall of a barn and shot them all; only two survived. Meanwhile, the Luftwaffe dropped bombs and leaflets on the Allied armies. The leaflets showed a map of the situation. They read, in English and French: "British soldiers! Look at

2190-525: The Soviet Union). Although von Rundstedt after the war stated his suspicions that Hitler wanted "to help the British", based on alleged praise of the British Empire during a visit to his headquarters, little evidence that Hitler wanted to let the Allies escape exists apart from a self-exculpatory statement by Hitler himself in 1945. The historian Brian Bond wrote: Few historians now accept

2263-532: The Ypres-Comines canal as far as Yser , while the rest of the BEF fell back. The battle of Wytschaete , over the border in Belgium, was the toughest action Brooke faced in this role. On 26 May, the Germans made a reconnaissance in force against the British position. At mid-day on 27 May, they launched a full-scale attack with three divisions south of Ypres . A confused battle followed, where visibility

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2336-473: The boggy ground on the far side of the canal and sporadic fire from the Durham Light Infantry halted them. As night fell, the Germans massed for another attack at Nieuwpoort. Eighteen RAF bombers found the Germans while they were still assembling and scattered them with an accurate bombing run. Also on 31 May, General von Küchler assumed command of all the German forces at Dunkirk. His plan

2409-499: The castle rebuilt between 1837 and 1852. His son Joseph Louis Matthieu modified it in 1877 and gave it its present romanticized, mediaeval form. In May 1940 Wijnendale made history again. On 25 May, just before the Battle of Dunkirk , there was a last meeting between King Leopold III of Belgium and four cabinet ministers (Prime Minister Hubert Pierlot , Minister of Foreign Affairs Paul-Henri Spaak , Minister of Internal Affairs Arthur Vanderpoorten and Minister of Defence Denis). With

2482-468: The castle today. The present owner is Jean-Jacques Matthieu de Wynendaele. 51°04′44″N 3°03′34″E  /  51.078925°N 3.059483°E  / 51.078925; 3.059483 [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Robert I, Count of Flanders Robert I ( c.  1035 – 13 October 1093), known as Robert the Frisian , was count of Flanders from 1071 until his death in 1093. He

2555-642: The castle. In the second half of the 16th century, the Dukes lost interest in their Flemish possessions and in 1578 part of the castle was burned down by Protestants. In 1609 Duke John William of Cleves died without children and after the War of the Jülich succession in the Treaty of Xanten , the Fiefdom of Wijnendale passed to one of the victors, Wolfgang Wilhelm, Count Palatine of Neuburg , as confirmed in 1634 by

2628-585: The contemporary record. Directive No. 13, issued by the Supreme Headquarters on 24 May called specifically for the annihilation of the French, English and Belgian forces in the pocket, while the Luftwaffe was ordered to prevent the escape of the English forces across the channel. Whatever the reasons for Hitler's decision, the Germans confidently believed the Allied troops were doomed. American journalist William Shirer reported on 25 May, "German military circles here tonight put it flatly. They said

2701-553: The contents of the castle to his residences in Düsseldorf , Mannheim and Munich . The castle became the property of the French state. In 1811 the French troops damaged it so badly that only ruins remained. In 1825, during the Dutch period the estate was sold to a Walloon industrial group, which had all the trees cut down, before going bankrupt. In 1833 the domain was bought by a banker from Brussels, Josse-Pierre Matthieu, who had

2774-429: The country surrounded by German troops, capitulation was inevitable. The King however refused to follow his ministers to Britain to continue the struggle from there. He chose as commander-in-chief to remain with his troops and follow them into captivity. This decision led to strong controversy after the war, and to Leopold's abdication in 1951. The Matthieu family (known since 1953 as "Matthieu de Wynendaele") still owns

2847-450: The counts of Boulogne, Saint-Pol and Ardres. His army was also accompanied by Norman troops, probably sent by Robert's sister, Queen Matilda, and led by William FitzOsborn . Both forces did battle on Cassel on 22 February 1071. King Philip fled together with Godfrey, bishop of Paris ; both Robert and Richilde were captured but Robert was ultimately victorious. Among the dead were Arnulf III (according to some sources killed by Gerbod

2920-577: The dowry on his marriage to John's daughter Mary of Burgundy, the elder . In 1463 the castle passed to the Lords of Ravenstein, a junior branch of the House of Cleves . Adolph of Cleves, Lord of Ravenstein , and his son Philip of Cleves-Ravenstein transformed the castle into a beautiful mansion. Adolf had married, as his second wife, Anne, an illegitimate aunt and governess of Mary of Burgundy , who stayed from time to time at Wijnendale, as did her son Philip

2993-791: The east, the German Army Group B invaded the Netherlands and advanced westward. In response, the Supreme Allied Commander, French General Maurice Gamelin , initiated "Plan D" and British and French troops entered Belgium to engage the Germans in the Netherlands . French planning for war relied on the Maginot Line fortifications along the German–French border protecting the region of Lorraine but

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3066-561: The eastern. It ran along the Belgian coastline from Nieuwpoort in the east via Veurne , Bulskamp and Bergues to Gravelines in the west. The line was made as strong as possible under the circumstances. On 28 May the Belgian army fighting on the Lys river under the command of King Leopold III surrendered. This left a 20 mi (32 km) gap in Gort's eastern flank between the British and

3139-468: The exactions imposed by Robert at a provincial council in Rheims (around 1092). A delegation composed of Arnulf (provost of Saint Omer), Jean (abbot of Saint Bertin ), Gerard (abbot of Ham) and Bernard (provost of Watten) threatened Robert with an interdict in case the exactions did not end. Robert complied and returned the goods he had confiscated. Taking a considerable armed escort Robert the Frisian made

3212-536: The fate of the great Allied army bottled up in Flanders is sealed." BEF commander General Lord Gort VC , commander-in-chief (C-in-C) of the BEF, agreed, writing to Anthony Eden , "I must not conceal from you that a great part of the BEF and its equipment will inevitably be lost in the best of circumstances". Hitler did not rescind the Halt Order until the evening of 26 May. The three days thus gained gave

3285-474: The following days... it became known that Hitler's decision was mainly influenced by Goering. To the dictator the rapid movement of the Army, whose risks and prospects of success he did not understand because of his lack of military schooling, became almost sinister. He was constantly oppressed by a feeling of anxiety that a reversal loomed... Halder, in a letter of July 1957 The day's entry concludes with

3358-596: The harbour entrance) were intact. Captain William Tennant —in charge of the evacuation—decided to use the beaches and the east mole to land the ships. This highly successful idea hugely increased the number of troops that could be embarked each day, and on 31 May, over 68,000 men were embarked. The last of the British Army left on 3 June, and at 10:50, Tennant signalled Ramsay to say "Operation completed. Returning to Dover". Churchill insisted on going back for

3431-464: The infantry should attack the British forces at Arras, where the British had proved capable of significant action, while Kleist's armour held the line west and south of Dunkirk to pounce on the Allied forces retreating before Army Group B. Hitler, who was familiar with Flanders ' marshes from the First World War , agreed. This order allowed the Germans to consolidate their gains and prepare for

3504-406: The left, thereby freeing the 10th and 11th Brigades , both of the 4th Division, to join the 5th Division at Messines Ridge. The 10th Brigade arrived first, to find the enemy had advanced so far they were closing on the British field artillery. Between them, the 10th and 11th Brigades cleared the ridge of Germans, and by 28 May they were securely dug in east of Wytschaete. That day, Brooke ordered

3577-710: The line did not cover the Belgian border. German forces had already crossed most of the Netherlands before the French forces had arrived. Gamelin instead committed the forces under his command – three mechanised forces, the French First and Seventh Armies and the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) – to the River Dyle . On 14 May, German Army Group A burst through the Ardennes and advanced rapidly westward toward Sedan , turning northward to

3650-464: The map: it gives your true situation! Your troops are entirely surrounded—stop fighting! Put down your arms!" To the land- and air-minded Germans, the sea seemed an impassable barrier, so they believed the Allies were surrounded; but the British saw the sea as a route to safety. Besides the Luftwaffe ' s bombs, German heavy artillery (which had just come within range) also fired high-explosive shells into Dunkirk. By this time, over 1,000 civilians in

3723-436: The marriage of his stepdaughter Bertha of Holland to the king. As a part of their negotiations Corbie , an important trade center, which had been ceded by Arnulf III in order to secure the king's help, was returned to royal control. From then on, and until the repudiation of Bertha in 1092 (in order for King Philip I to marry Bertrade of Montfort ), Flanders and France remained in very friendly terms, both of them having

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3796-473: The matter and lift the excommunication if it had been not canonical. The excommunication was probably lifted at some point after September 1079. Trouble continued under Drogo's successors, Hubert and Lambert, as Robert refused to intervene against them. Gregory threatened Robert with a new excommunication, but the threat was not carried out. During the papacy of Urban II the Flemish clergy complained about

3869-423: The new Anglo-Norman realm as a main enemy.   After the battle of Cassel, Richilde and Baldwin continued the war against Robert. To obtain funds, they enfeoffed Hainaut to the bishopric of Liege and counted with the support of Godfrey IV, Duke of Lower Lorraine . Close to forest of Broqueroye, Robert inflicted heavy losses on the forces of Hainaut. Later, Baldwin obtained a victory at Wavrechain. After this,

3942-533: The oath, Robert disputed the succession of his nephew Arnulf III upon Baldwin VI's death. He recruited supporters in the Maritime Flanders and Ghent, and finally entered the latter with the intent of taking Flanders for himself. Richilde appealed to King Philip I of France who summoned Robert to appear before him. Robert refused and continued his war with Richilde at which point Philip I amassed an army which he brought to Flanders. Among his allies were

4015-519: The operation). B. H. Liddell Hart wrote that Fighter Command lost 106 aircraft over Dunkirk and the Luftwaffe lost about 135, some of which were shot down by the French Navy and the Royal Navy. MacDonald wrote in 1986 that the British losses were 177 aircraft and German losses 240. The docks at Dunkirk were too badly damaged to be used, but the east and west moles (sea walls protecting

4088-472: The outnumbered French and British stood their ground. On 2 June (the day the last of the British units embarked onto the ships), the French began to fall back slowly, and by 3 June the Germans were about 2 miles (3.2 km) from Dunkirk. The night of 3 June was the last night of evacuations. At 10:20 on 4 June, the Germans hoisted the swastika over the docks from which so many British and French troops had escaped. The resistance of Allied forces, especially

4161-418: The remark: "The task of Army Group A can be considered to have been completed in the main"—a view which further explains Rundstedt's reluctance to employ his armoured divisions in the final clearing-up stage of this first phase of the campaign. Major L. F. Ellis Brauchitsch is angry ... The pocket would have been closed at the coast if only our armour had not been held back. The bad weather has grounded

4234-453: The sea. The British were surprised by the Belgian capitulation, despite King Leopold warning them in advance. As a constitutional monarch , Leopold's decision to surrender without consulting the Belgian government led to his condemnation by the Belgian and French Prime Ministers, Hubert Pierlot and Paul Reynaud . Gort sent the battle-worn 3rd, 4th and 50th Divisions into the line to fill

4307-598: The space the Belgians had held. While they were still moving into position, they ran headlong into the German 256th Division , who were trying to outflank Gort. Armoured cars of the 12th Royal Lancers stopped the Germans at Nieuwpoort itself. A confused battle raged all along the perimeter throughout 28 May. Command and control on the British side disintegrated, and the perimeter was driven slowly inwards toward Dunkirk. Meanwhile, Erwin Rommel had surrounded five divisions of

4380-524: The territories of the county of Holland they had lost in the past. The relationship between Robert and Pope Gregory VII was marked by the conflict between the latter and the bishops of Therouanne . Since Robert did not take action against bishop Drogo, he was excommunicated (around 1077) by bishop Raynard of Langres and papal legate Hubert. Gregory was not pleased with the excommunication, since he could not afford another enemy in his conflict with Henry IV . He instructed his legate Hugh of Die to investigate

4453-431: The throne. In 1085 Robert and Canute planned a massive naval attack on England. The threat was big enough for William to hire mercenaries and lay waste to some coastal districts in order to difficult the supplying of an invading army. However, the rebellion of Canute's brother Olaf delayed the expedition, and finally Canute's assassination put a definitive end to the plan. Even before becoming count of Flanders, Robert

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4526-491: The town had been killed. This bombardment continued until the evacuation was over. Gort had sent Lieutenant General Ronald Adam , commanding III Corps , ahead to build the defensive perimeter around Dunkirk; his corps command passed to Lieutenant General Sydney Rigby Wason from the GHQ staff. Lieutenant General Alan Brooke , commanding II Corps , was to conduct a holding action with the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 50th Divisions along

4599-453: The vehicles. Another Luftwaffe raid, on the night of 28–29 May, was illuminated by flares as well as the light from burning vehicles. The British 44th Division in particular had to abandon many guns and lorries, losing almost all of them between Poperinge and the Mont. The German 6th Panzer Division could probably have destroyed the 44th Division at Poperinge on 29 May, thereby cutting off

4672-414: The view that Hitler's behaviour was influenced by the desire to let the British off lightly in [the] hope that they would then accept a compromise peace. True, in his political testament dated 26 February 1945 Hitler lamented that Churchill was "quite unable to appreciate the sporting spirit" in which he had refrained from annihilating [the] British Expeditionary Force, at Dunkirk, but this hardly squares with

4745-513: The war with Hainaut ended, with Robert as the unchallenged ruler of Flanders. Flanders became a refuge for William the Conqueror's enemies, including Edgar Ætheling in 1075 and his rebellious son Robert Curthose in 1078/79. In 1075, Robert let the Danish fleet of king Sweyn II of Denmark use Flanders harbors in their intended expedition against England. In 1080, Robert married his daughter Adela to Canute IV of Denmark on his accession to

4818-468: Was a son of Baldwin V, Count of Flanders , and the younger brother of Baldwin VI, Count of Flanders . He usurped the countship after defeating his nephew Arnulf III and his allies, which included King Philip I of France , Count Eustace of Boulogne and the counts of Saint-Pol and Ardres at the Battle of Cassel . He subsequently made peace with Philip, who became his stepson-in-law, but remained hostile to his sister Matilda and her husband William

4891-501: Was clear—good flying weather, in contrast to the bad weather that had hindered air operations on 30 and 31 May (there were only two-and-a-half good flying days in the whole operation) Although Churchill had promised the French that the British would cover their escape, on the ground it was the British and mostly the French who held the line whilst the last remaining British and then French soldiers were evacuated. Enduring concentrated German artillery fire and Luftwaffe strafing and bombs,

4964-499: Was engaged in continued hostilities in Holland, defending the rights of his stepson Dirk V against Godfrey IV and William I , bishop of Utrecht. In 1076, the deaths of Godfrey at Vlaardingen and later of William, allowed Robert and Dirk to go on the offensive. They won an important battle at Yselmond, even capturing the new bishop, Conrad . The victory changed the course of the hostilities, allowing Dirk and future counts to reconquer

5037-758: Was fought around the French port of Dunkirk (Dunkerque) during the Second World War , between the Allies and Nazi Germany . As the Allies were losing the Battle of France on the Western Front , the Battle of Dunkirk was the defence and evacuation of British and other Allied forces to Britain from 26 May to 4 June 1940. After the Phoney War , the Battle of France began in earnest on 10 May 1940. To

5110-457: Was low because of forested or urban terrain and communications were poor because the British at that time used no radios below battalion level and the telephone wires had been cut. The Germans used infiltration tactics to get among the British, who were beaten back. The heaviest fighting was in the 5th Division's sector. Still on 27 May, Brooke ordered the 3rd Division commander, Major-General Bernard Montgomery , to extend his division's line to

5183-450: Was not arranged by his father but nonetheless agreed to. His nickname 'the Frisian' was obtained, apparently, when he acted as regent for his stepson, Count Dirk V of Holland Robert and Gertrude had six children: Robert , who became count of Flanders, Adela († 1115), who became queen of Denmark, Gertrude , who became duchess of Lorraine, Philip , Ogiva, who became abbess of Messines, and Baldwin († bef. 1080). Robert twice swore

5256-664: Was not damaged. In the 17th and 18th century it was inhabited by a governor, as the Dukes of Pfalz-Neuburg resided in Germany. In the middle of the 18th century, Duke Charles Theodore constructed roads in West Flanders to improve trade, with Wijnendale in the center. In 1792 the French Revolutionary armies invaded the Austrian Netherlands and ended the feudal system. Charles Theodore moved

5329-474: Was simple: launch an all-out attack across the whole front at 11:00 on 1 June. Strangely, von Küchler ignored a radio intercept telling him the British were abandoning the eastern end of the line to fall back to Dunkirk itself. During the night of 31 May to 1 June, Marcus Ervine-Andrews won the Victoria Cross in the battle when he defended 1,000 yards (910 m) of territory. The morning of 1 June

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