Dunkirk is seen as a victory by both sides, Allied and German. The Allies parlayed it into a moral victory and used the "Spirit of Dunkirk" as a rallying cry while the "German War Machine" captured tens of thousands of prisoners, destroyed hundreds of planes and dozens of ships. This is definitely not the rallying cry we are so led to think of by the Allies but rather the tactical and strategic defeat of the Allies by the Germans.

Interesting, well researched and informative about the German take on Dunkirk. It is not a version (as a British citizen) that is heard often and so was full of facts that were not taught at our schools.

I have read several of Robert Kershaw’s books in the past and I had no hesitation in picking
up ‘Dünkirchen 1940: The German View of Dunkirk’ when I first encountered it as his works
are always well written and excellently researched.

This is the first English language publication that I have seen that is dedicated to the
German view of the fighting for Dunkirk and the actions that led up to it and all credit goes to
Kershaw for both highlighting an under-researched area of World War II history and for
tackling it in such a balanced and measured way.

He has made extensive use of personal letters, journals and official war diaries to produce a
detailed narrative of both the everyday experiences of the individual participants and of the
campaign as a whole. These primary sources aptly convey the confidence felt on the
German side which was in direct contrast to the chaos and confusion that beset the Allied
Armies. I can appreciate the wealth of details presented here but I sometimes feel that the
book gets bogged down in the minutiae at the expense of giving a clearer description of the
broader sweep of the battle as a whole. On a more positive note, the maps are excellent and
the photographs are well chosen.

Overall, I would recommend it to any military enthusiast or student of history who would like
gain a fresh insight into an already well known and documented period of history. However, I
do not think that it is in quite the same league as his book ‘It Never snows in September’
which portrays the German view of Operation Market Garden and Robert Jackson’s
excellent book ‘Dunkirk’ still remains my go to source for this battle.

Robert Kershaw provides his readers with a truly outstanding account of an event that is so mythologised in British history that it is timely for a more nuanced story to be told. Seeing the strategic and tactical decisions that led up to the evacuation at Dunkirk through the eyes of the German forces who had driven the British Expeditionary Force from their advanced positions in Belgium offers a remarkable insight into the events of those few days in May and early June 1940.
Kershaw writes with the knowledge that comes from serving in the military and ensures that this knowledge informs the fluency of the narrative so that readers can understand the events being described without constant going over previous sections to extract their meaning.
Much has been written about Dunkirk and Hitler’s famous ‘pause’ decision, with tanks advancing on the surrounded Allied forces. Kershaw offers an alternative and more thoughtful analysis of the events around the decisions taken, and the reasons behind them, that takes account of the complex campaign being fought as Hitler’s forces attempted to secure the defeat of France and its huge army.
This is a masterly account of an important part of our nation’s history; it is highly recommended.

There are two distinguishing features to this book that make it valuable for understanding the battle for France in 1940. First, it makes extensive uses of primary sources such as letters, journals, diaries, and unit diaries. Second, and perhaps more importantly, it is from the German perspective. Much has been written about the evacuation at Dunkirk from the British and Allied perspective. Indeed, there are multiple movies that feature the bravery of the British public as they rallied to save the the British Expeditionary Force as they were forced to retreat.

Having a perspective from the other side helps round out what really happened. One of the more interesting things that was raised in the book was how many German soldiers were now treading the same ground their fathers trod in 1914.

Describing the ebb and flow of the offensive, this meticulously researched and excellently written book contains both personal stories, reminiscences and detailed narrative describing the progress of the campaign. It's particularly interesting and important in that it offers a non-partisan perspective. Thoroughly recommended.

It has taken me several weeks to read this book and that is a good thing because there is so much information in there. It would be impossible to rush through it and still grasp how close the Allies came to the precipice.

So much luck was involved, aided and abetted in the end by some totally dumb decisions by Hitler and his high command.

I have been tempted to quote all sorts of examples in support of this but, instead, I am exhorting you to read this book for yourself, I genuinely believe you will amazed at what history has ignored.

After all, history is generally written by the winners!

Well, it turns out that just about everything we believed about "the miracle of Dunkirk" is wrong! Robert Kershaw was a British Army officer who also served a tour in the Bundeswehr. He's fluent in German, and he has delved the records of all the participants in that crucial battle -- German, British, French, and Belgian -- to produce the finest campaign history I have ever read. The title is unfortunate -- Dünkirchen 1940 -- and the publisher somewhat obscure. (Osprey specializes in military books, including such titles as Armies of the Baltic Independence Wars, 1918-1920.) Mr Kershaw begins with a masterful account of the armored blitz through the Ardennes, splitting the Allied armies in France from the troops defending Belgium and Holland. The first German tanks reached the sea in 11 days, faster than they had sliced through Poland a year before. Though greatly unnumbered, with tanks no better than the French and British, they had the advantage of surprise, a radio in every tank, Aufstragstatik (the soldier knows the goal and can use has the authority to decide on the means), faith in Adolf Hitler and the Nazi ideology, and a generous supply of Pervitin (methamphetamine) pills. But what then? The myth holds that Hitler, terrified by his own success, halted the panzers and let the "seed corn" of a future British Army escape from Dunkirk. In fact, the halt order lasted just one day, May 24, after which the panzers were directed toward the more important goal, the city of Paris. Tanks didn't fare well in urban fighting, and seacoast towns were surrounded by canals and flooded fields. Taking them was the job of der Landser, the foot soldier, his artillery drawn by horses, and therefore miles behind the tanks. The seacoast was broad, 17.5 miles of white-sand beaches at Dunkirk. The German air force was hobbled by bad weather and a four-hour lag between headquarters giving an order and the planes carrying it out. The Allied defenders, in the end entirely French, fought with the desperation of men with nowhere to retreat. Most important, Dunkirk was a sideshow to the Germans compared to the 69 divisions awaiting them south of the Somme and in front of Paris. All of which, Mr Kershaw concludes, enabled the British to rescue two-thirds of their men and thousands of French, "an army three times the size of the present British Army." (to be posted on www.warbirdforum.com/club.htm after September 1)

This is a fascinating account of Dunkirk from the view of the Germans. Dunkirk, of course, saw the Allies staring defeat in the face, with Operation Dynamo and the evacuation of the beaches. Although, in effect almost a military disaster, it was an escape which meant that the British could retrench and continue the fight.

Kershaw uses a lot of memoirs, letters and first-hand accounts to tell the story, which means it is personally, as well as historically, interesting. We have everyone from locals, who lived in Dunkirk, to secretaries who worked for Hitler and his inner circle, to those involved in the battle, included, so a good cross-section of those involved. Hitler had been resolved to deal with France and Britain quickly. However, we learn of the reasons behind the ‘halt order,’ which effectively allowed the British to escape, the incomprehension and frustration of the Germans and of a town which was virtually destroyed. Indeed, Dunkirk, and its inhabitants, suffered so much and it was tragic to learn of the suffering of the people there.

Overall, a really fascinating view of that historical event. It was interesting to hear how and why things turned out as they did and how this was viewed from both the Allied and German sides. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

Having read Robert Kershaw's previous books, especially the ground breaking It Never Snows in September, I knew that this latest book would be full 0f information, first hand accounts and detailed explanations as to why what when and where all in a easy to read style.
This time Robert has written about the German campaign in the West, Case Yellow, it details all the events leading up to the attack, and the execution of the plan itself, interspersed with first hand accounts. The origins of the stop order are explained and how Dunkirk was to be left to the Luftwaffe.
The book is well researched and informative with useful maps and fills a big gap in the overall picture of the events leading up to and Dunkirk itself.
An excellent read that helps to round out our knowledge about the events at this time.
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in WW2 and especially Dunkirk, it makes a refreshing change to see the viewpoint from the German side and become more knowledgeable.

Thank You to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC for this book.

This well-researched book tells the story of the German invasion of France and Belgium and the subsequent drive to the sea to cut off the evacuation of allied troops to England. It shows the disorganization within the Wehrmacht, the arguments between the army commanders and the unfounded promises from Goring on the capabilities of the Luftwaffe, and finally the conflicting advice given to Hitler and his hesitancy in decision making.
The depth the author goes into the personal actions of troops and commanders up the command chain shows that the men on the ground did their tasks very ably, but the coordination between the army formations was disjointed and caused excessive waste in time, men and equipment compounded with a lack of appreciation of the stubborn resistance put up by the British and at the end, by the French defenders of the Dunkirk salient.
A fascinating book and a must-read by anyone who takes an interest in the ‘other side’ of the famous battles of WWII as normally seen from the Allied perspective.

A really fascinating book covering the Dunkirk battle, from the German perspective. The book answers many of the questions about why the German high command delayed attacking the beleaguered Allied forces at Dunkirk by land.

The author gives the book some balance by including some shocking accounts of British soldiers who took part in the various battles along the French coastline, prior to Dunkirk.

I was unaware that the Panzers lost over 50% of their armoured vehicles in the battles for Boulogne and Calais, before encircling Dunkirk.. The incredibly strong resistance by the French and British troops in these towns was quite heroic, especially as they had very little means of escaping the ever-tightening noose of the Wehrmacht forces.

The author has undertaken a tremendous amount of research, an especially difficult task given that most of the German participants at Dunkirk died in the latter parts of WW2 - for example on the Eastern Front.

My Father-in-law fought a rearguard action at Dunkirk, in charge of a 25 pounder field gun. He would have loved to have read this book. Sadly he is no longer with us.

In summary,a well written book that would appeal to any military buff.

Another brilliantly researched book by Robert Kershaw giving us the German perspective of the fight to and the surrounding of Dunkirk in 1940. We learn of the offensive greater plan and why the errors and problems with their co-ordination and control led to them not achieving the final result they expected. An excellent book for readers of WWII history.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers Osprey Publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

A well-researched, memoir-driven exploration of Case Yellow.

'Dünkirchen 1940: The German View of Dunkirk' recreates the atmosphere of justice restored among the German soldiers and reveals the shortsightedness of the German high command.

While there is a lot of memoir material on the campaign in Russia, it's much harder to find personal information about the participants in Case Yellow. The same regiments and armies that took part in the invasion of the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, and France later perished on the Eastern front. Robert Kershaw combined letters, after-action logs, and single memoirs into the day-to-day depiction of the operation that resulted in the evacuation of the British army at Dunkirk.

The human face of the dehumanized army hits hard. Soldiers wrote to their wives about mundane things like homesickness or love. They felt no guilt: the war was a way to restore national pride after the failures of World War I. In the meantime, the high command, dazzled after the campaign's success, failed to recognize the significance of the Dunkirk evacuation.

The lack of the main idea that would have cemented the narrative is the book's only flaw. In the epilogue, the author summarizes why Dunkirk couldn't be overcome until the evacuation's end. To me, however, the explanations felt incomplete and labored. For those who have previously read extensively about the Dunkirk operation, the book, therefore, fails to provide a refreshing view.

'Dünkirchen 1940' is suitable as the first reading on the Blitzkrieg. The book will be your highly informative companion if you are not afraid to take in the names/numbers of numerous regiments and armies.

I obtained an advance review copy through Netgalley, and I am leaving the review voluntarily.

This book fills an important gap for many history buffs. It brings a perspective not often brought to bear in relation to this iconic event of WWII. The author does an incredible job sourcing new material and presenting it in a balanced and respectful way.

A interesting look at Dunkirk from the German viewpoint. The story provides the intrigue and political in-fighting that led to Britain being able to rescue a great number of their troops due to poor decisions by Germany. A great story from the opponents view.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"Dunkirchen 1940: The German View of Dunkirk," by Robert Kershaw, is a fascinating look at the events surrounding and leading up to the famous British evacuation from Dunkirk after their savaging at the hands of the German Wehrmacht in World War II. I am grateful to my friends at Osprey Publishing for providing me with an ARC of Kershaw's latest book. The text is a meticulously laid out description of the German Blitzkrieg which was unleashed on France and the Low Countries and which led to the evacuation. Of course, there are a formidable number of books on this subject, but this is the first I have encountered that prioritizes the German viewpoint of the battle. This salient feature is the key to understanding the value of the text. We are all familiar with the British viewpoint enshrined in Churchill's famous speech with the memorable line about wars not being won by evacuations, and it is not easy to shake that off and look at things from the other side of the fence, but the fact is that the German viewpoint is most illuminating when contrasted with our own rather biased view of events shaped by Churchill's brilliant oratory and the eventual outcome of the war. In point of fact, the successful German offensive that led up to Dunkirk surprised no one more than the Germans, and despite their much vaunted military expertise, they made many errors which are often overlooked or dismissed as inexplicable glitches in many histories. The most famous controversies surround the famous "stop order" which supposedly alone saved the British. The reality is revealed in Kershaw's book as far more complicated and is illustrative of flaws in the German system of command and control which would later become far more pronounced in the savage fighting in Russia. The OKW, the OKH, and tactical commanders like Rommel and Guderian were often in the dark about each others intent, sometimes deliberately, but even in this early stage of the war, German tactical
brilliance and willingness to seize the initiative often concealed major flaws in planning and execution. Simply looking at things as they turned out from the eventual victors later point of view makes it difficult to see what was really going on and what it revealed about German capabilities. This text goes a long way towards redressing this historical imbalance. I particularly recommend this text to those of you have read up on this battle before and thought you had a good grip on events. It may surprise you.