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No, the Canadians were not at Dunkirk, although they were ordered to go and re-establish the supply line that had been broken by the German advance. General McNaughton did a recce to Calais, and the 1st Canadian Infantry Brigade and some of the divisional headquarters were embarked and ready to sail, when it was decided that no good could come of their small contribution, and they returned to harbour in Britain (24 May). On the 29th, when the evacuation was beginning, Churchill told the French he intended to send a second British Expeditionary Force. The 1st Canadian Division and the British 52nd (Lowland) Division were the only formed divisions available. The French Prime Minister, Reynaud, considered establishing a redoubt in Brittany, where French forces could retreat, and the French government could continue to operate on French soil. Although the French commander, Weygand, had little hope for the scheme, General Brooke, who had charge of the 2nd BEF, seems to have communicated it to his Canadian division. The first Candian units began leaving Britain on June 11th. One section of C.P. Stacey's official history, _Six Years of War_, describing these events is titled 'Forlorn Hope'. In 'The Regiment', Farley Mowat, who was a platoon commander with the Hasty Pees (The Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment) told how the station master at Laval thought the Canadians were insane. The order quickly came for the widely-dispersed force to return to the coast and to Britain. The 48th Highlanders of Toronto had reached their destination of Sable when they were told the reversal order by a British Railway Traffic Officer. The CO suspected him of being a fifth columnist, and challenged him to prove himself. McNaughton knew nothing of the reversal and was at Plymouth waiting to embark when he heard that the Toronto Scottish, on shipboard, had been ordered ashore. He was told that the Canadians were needed for 'another battlefield'. With the fall of France, they were now crucial to the defence of Britain. Much precious equipment was lost, although the RCHA (Royal Canadian Horse Artillery) managed to salvage its guns. I have a particular interest in The Lorne Scots, who would later provide small defence units for the brigades and divisions of the Canadian Army, but never served as a formed unit during the second world war. They had managed to get overseas to form a Canadian Infantry Base Depot (Lorne Scots) in England, and a small detachment went to establish a base depot at Isse near Chateaubriand. Their main role would have been to process casualties and others who were being returned to Britain, but they joined the stream of evacuees themselves. They escaped through the port of St Nazaire, where they watched Stukas sink the Lancastria, full of British troops. Rick Ruggle shepherd@kw.igs.net
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