The Forgotten Siege of Dunkirk (1944 – 1945) – The Last German Offensive Operation in France

The Siege of Dunkirk lasted from September 1944 until May 1945 and became one of the final battles fought on French soil during World War II. After the Allied breakout from Normandy and the liberation of much of France, German forces retreated into heavily fortified Atlantic ports. Dunkirk was one of these isolated “Atlantic pockets.” Rather than launching a costly direct assault, the Allies chose to surround the city and contain the German garrison. The siege was mainly conducted by the Czechoslovak Independent Armoured Brigade, supported by British and Canadian troops. Inside the city, around 10,000 German soldiers under Admiral Friedrich Frisius held strong defensive positions. Although largely forgotten today, the siege saw constant artillery duels, patrols, and local attacks for months. In April 1945, the Germans even launched Operation Blücher, a counterattack against Allied lines. The isolated garrison finally surrendered on 9 May 1945, after Germany’s overall capitulation.

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SOURCES

– The Second World War (Antony Beevor).

– The Cinderella Campaign. First Canadian Army and the Battles for the Channel Ports (Mark Zuehlke).

(23052026).

(23052026).

IMAGES

Images from commons.wikimedia.org.

VIDEO

Video material from:

Stunning restored and colorized footage of the British evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940

[ENG-SUB] Die Deutsche Wochenschau Nr. 726 HD (August 03, 1944) Operation Bagration, Normandy

Útok u Dunkerque 28. října 1944

Praha vítá československé vojáky ze Západu

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Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)