Seventy-five years ago this week, Great Britain faced a critical decision. The outcome would determine the subsequent history of much of Europe and the United States.
After a series of serious setbacks, should the nation continue its fight against Nazi Germany or should it seek a negotiated settlement? A series of meetings and intense negotiations from May 24 to May 28 would determine the answer. The crisis is recounted in John Lukacs' "Five Days in London May 1940."
Dr. Clif CleavelandWinston Churchill had been named prime minister on May 10th, succeeding Neville Chamberlain. Churchill inherited a bleak set of circumstances and a divided Parliament. After a series of defeats and amid chaos in its government, France was unlikely to remain in the coalition confronting Hitler. Belgium was all but defeated. British troops had been withdrawn from Norway after a failed campaign.
On the northern coast of France, 250,000 British troops and 125,000 French and Belgium troops held steadily shrinking territory around Dunkirk. On May 23, Hitler unexpectedly ordered a temporary halt to the advance of the German army against the Dunkirk defenders.
Although President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Churchill had maintained a secret correspondence for months, the United States remained officially neutral. Roosevelt was uncertain about Churchill's abilities to rally his nation. From his station in London, Joseph Kennedy, U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom, thought a British defeat likely.
A newly-formed coalition in the War Cabinet was the focal point of controversy. The five-member group consisted of conservatives Churchill, Foreign Secretary Viscount Halifax, Chamberlain and two opposition Labor members of Parliament -- Clement Atlee and Arthur Greenwood.
Halifax was convinced that Britain's survival depended upon a negotiated settlement of hostilities, using Italy as a go-between. He had support among some members of Parliament. Although Italy had signed a military pact with Germany in 1939, Italy had yet to declare war against France and Britain. Halifax had several contacts with the Italian ambassador to test the waters of negotiation.
Amid steadily deteriorating conditions in France, Churchill remained steadfast in his conviction that German dominance of Western Europe was non-negotiable. He predicted that a neutral Britain would soon become a vassal state, stripped of power and influence.
The British public remained largely uninformed about the true status of events in France. Its mood was described as somber, but there was little sense of possible disaster. A National Day of Prayer on May 26 sought to raise public morale.
In multiple meetings of the War Cabinet over the five-day interval of May 24-28, the debate continued. Multiple private meetings ensued. Halifax persisted in calls for negotiations with Hitler; Churchill never wavered in his opposition.
News from France worsened as the army neared collapse. Hitler ordered resumption of the attack on Dunkirk on May 26, the same day that plans were finalized for Operation Dynamo, a bold plan to evacuate forces from the besieged area.
From May 27 through June 4, more than 330,000 British, French and Belgium soldiers were evacuated from the beaches and harbor of Dunkirk under almost constant shelling and air attack. Trucks, tanks and heavy weaponry had to be left behind. British and French troops who had manned the perimeter surrendered on June 4. A friend was among the captured and spent five years as a prisoner of war.
On May 28, Churchill finally prevailed. At a called meeting of the full, 25-member Cabinet he thundered, "If this long island story of ours is to end at last, let it end only when each one of us lies choking in his own blood upon the ground." The idea of a negotiation with Germany never resurfaced.
Italy declared war against France and Britain on June 10. Organized resistance by the French army ended on June 16 with the occupation of Paris by German troops. France formally surrendered on June 22.
Using a mixture of passionate conviction, tact, oratory, and clever political maneuvering, Churchill assured that Britain would stand firm and uncompromising against the forces of Hitler. Not until Hitler's declaration of war against the U.S. on Dec. 10, 1941, would our nation join forces with Britain in a war that would rage until 1945. Events in a single week in May 1940 were crucial to that victory.
Contact Clif Cleaveland at cleaveland1000@comcast.net.