<P> The Dunkirk evacuation , code - named Operation Dynamo , and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk , was the evacuation of Allied soldiers during World War II from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk , in the north of France , between 26 May and 4 June 1940 . The operation commenced after large numbers of Belgian , British , and French troops were cut off and surrounded by German troops around the midpoint of the six - week long Battle of France . In a speech to the House of Commons , British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called this `` a colossal military disaster '' , saying `` the whole root and core and brain of the British Army '' had been stranded at Dunkirk and seemed about to perish or be captured . In his `` we shall fight on the beaches '' speech on 4 June , he hailed their rescue as a `` miracle of deliverance '' . </P>
<P> The Dunkirk evacuation , code - named Operation Dynamo , and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk , was the evacuation of Allied soldiers during World War II from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk , in the north of France , between 26 May and 4 June 1940 . The operation commenced after large numbers of Belgian , British , and French troops were cut off and surrounded by German troops around the midpoint of the six - week long Battle of France . In a speech to the House of Commons , British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called this `` a colossal military disaster '' , saying `` the whole root and core and brain of the British Army '' had been stranded at Dunkirk and seemed about to perish or be captured . In his `` we shall fight on the beaches '' speech on 4 June , he hailed their rescue as a `` miracle of deliverance '' . </P>
when did the evacuations from dunkirk beach happen
when did the evacuations from dunkirk beach happen
between 26 May and 4 June 1940
between 26 May and 4 June 1940