The Need for Organisational Resilience - Chapter 7

Roads to Resilience

The Story: May 26 – June 20 1940

After the first German forces reached the channel coast, the bulk of the British, French and

Belgian Forces were encircled. Some Allied Forces had already embarked at Calais,

Boulogne and Cherbourg when they were overrun by the Germans. Only the deep-sea port

of Dunkirk remained as a gateway to safety.

The Belgian High Command sent the following message to the head of the British

Military Mission:

The Belgian Command begs you to inform the Commander-in-Chief that the plight of the

Belgian Army is serious. The Belgian Commander-in-Chief means to go on fighting until

his resources are entirely spent. At present the enemy is attacking from Eecloo to

Menin. The limits of Belgian resistance are very close to being reached. (Benoist-Méchin

1956, 160)

The message remained unanswered. The BEF made up its mind. The plans relayed by

the War Office focussed on the evacuation of the remaining Allied forces; a defensive perimeter around Dunkirk was established on May 27 th (see Map 7.1). On May 28 th , Belgium

surrendered.

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