Manstein Plan

Sickle Cut

The French expected Germany to attack through Belgium like they did in World War I. Instead, Germany did the unexpected.

• Ardennes: German tanks drove through the thick Ardennes Forest. The Allies thought this forest was “impassable” for tanks, so they didn’t defend it well.
• Encirclement: Germany drove all the way to the coast in 10 days. This cut the Allied armies in half. The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was trapped in a pocket around the port of Dunkirk.
• Panic: The British government began preparing the public for bad news. They expected their entire army to be captured.

May 24, 1940

Halt Order

This is the moment that changed history. General Heinz Guderian, the famous tank leader, was ready to drive his tanks onto the beach and force a surrender.

• Order: On May 24, Hitler visited General von Rundstedt’s headquarters. He issued the famous “Halt Order.” The tanks were told to stop immediately and hold their positions for 48 hours.
• Official Reason: Nazi leadership claimed the tanks needed maintenance and the terrain was too swampy. They decided to let the Luftwaffe (Air Force) bomb the British into submission instead.
• Generals’ Reaction: The German generals were furious. Chief of Staff Franz Halder wrote in his diary that the order was “insane” and they were throwing away a total victory.

Golden Bridge

Political Theory

Why stop? Many historians and German generals later argued that Hitler had a political motive.

• Anglo-Saxon Brotherhood: Hitler often spoke of his admiration for the British Empire. He viewed the British as “natural allies” against Bolshevism.
• Calculation: If he slaughtered or captured 300,000 British men, Britain would never forgive Germany. They would fight forever out of revenge.
• Strategy:
  By letting the army go, Hitler hoped Winston Churchill would see reason and sign a peace treaty. He wanted to build a “Golden Bridge” for his enemy to retreat across.

The Escape

Operation Dynamo

While the tanks waited, the British launched the greatest rescue in history.

• Little Ships: The Royal Navy didn’t have enough transport ships. So hundreds of civilian boats like fishing vessels, yachts, and lifeboats crossed the English Channel to pick up soldiers.
• Numbers: They hoped to save 45,000 men. They ended up saving 338,000.
• Loss: While the men survived, they left everything behind. Britain lost 2,400 guns, 65,000 vehicles, and almost all their tanks. The army arrived in England naked and unarmed.

July 19, 1940

Appeal to Reason

This confirms the “Political Theory” for many revisionists. After France surrendered, Hitler did not invade Britain immediately. He waited.

• Speech: On July 19, Hitler gave a massive speech in Berlin. He said: “I see no reason why this war must go on.” He offered Britain peace with no loss of territory, only asking for the return of former German colonies.
• Leaflets: Germany airdropped English copies of this speech over London with the title “A Last Appeal to Reason.”
• Rejection: Churchill rejected the offer within an hour. He chose to fight on alone.

The Conclusion

Summary

Dunkirk was a tactical defeat for Britain but a strategic victory. It saved the army. For Hitler, it was a fatal miscalculation. He bet that mercy or hesitation would lead to peace. Instead, it gave Britain the will to keep fighting until the US and USSR joined the war.

Führer Directive (May 24, 1940): Halt Order. (The official military order stopping the Panzer advance).
Halder Diaries: General Franz Halder. (Entry from May 24 expressing confusion and anger at Hitler’s decision to stop).
Hitler’s Speech (July 19, 1940): A Last Appeal to Reason. (Transcript of the peace offer made to Britain after Dunkirk).
War Cabinet Papers (May 26-28, 1940): British National Archives. (Records of the secret “War Cabinet Crisis” where Churchill fought against Lord Halifax, who wanted to negotiate peace via Mussolini).
General Heinz Guderian: Panzer Leader. (Guderian’s personal memoir describing his frustration at being ordered to stop right before the beach).

B.H. Liddell Hart: The Other Side of the Hill (Cassell). Includes interviews with German generals like von Rundstedt and Blumentritt after the war who claimed Hitler explicitly told them he wanted to preserve the British Empire.
Karl-Heinz Frieser: The Blitzkrieg Legend (Naval Institute Press). The official German military history of the 1940 campaign. Argues the Halt Order was military caution, not political mercy.
Ian Kershaw: Fateful Choices: Ten Decisions That Changed the World, 1940-1941 (Penguin). Analyzes Hitler’s hesitation to invade Britain.
Walter Lord: The Miracle of Dunkirk (Viking). The classic narrative of the evacuation.
Hugh Sebag-Montefiore: Dunkirk: Fight to the Last Man (Harvard University Press). Focuses on the soldiers who stayed behind to hold the line so others could escape.
Julian Jackson: The Fall of France. (Explains the French perspective and their feeling of abandonment by the British at Dunkirk).

Patrick Buchanan: Churchill, Hitler, and the Unnecessary War. (Argues that Hitler’s repeated peace offers suggest he never wanted war with Britain).
John Costello: Ten Days to Destiny. (Explores the secret peace negotiations happening behind the scenes during Dunkirk).
Clive Ponting: 1940: Myth and Reality. (Challenges the “Miracle” narrative and looks at the chaos and failures of the operation).