3 Historical Errors in the Dunkirk Movie, According to a WWII Historian

Christopher Nolan’s film Dunkirk has been praised for its intense portrayal of the Dunkirk evacuation of 1940. While the film has been recognized for its impressive visuals and gripping narrative, it has also faced criticism for historical inaccuracies. James Holland, a World War II historian and author of Duty Calls: Dunkirk, points out several key errors in the film’s depiction of this critical event.

“The film is a spectacle, it’s absolutely terrific, I really really enjoyed it,” says James Holland, a historian specializing in World War Two and the author of ‘Duty Calls: Dunkirk’, states.

“It’s just historically all over the place.”

“Little ships” that assisted in the evacuation

One major issue is the film’s emphasis on the “little ships” that assisted in the evacuation. While private boats played an important role, Holland argues that the film exaggerates their contribution. In reality, the British Navy was far more involved in the evacuation. Holland notes that the film suggests there were only a few destroyers available, whereas there were actually 202 destroyers in the Royal Navy, with 41 operating at Dunkirk. Alongside these were numerous minesweepers, trawlers, and other support vessels. The film’s portrayal might give viewers the impression that private boats were responsible for the majority of the evacuation, but in fact, they were responsible for about 5% of the total.

“Judging by the film you’d think there were only two destroyers in the whole of the Royal Navy. But there were 202, and 41 of them were operating at Dunkirk, along with legions of minesweepers and trawlers and lighters.

“Watching Dunkirk you’re under the impression that 300,000 people had been evacuated by little ships when actually it was about 5%.

“They massively exaggerated the role of little ships.”

Holland suggests this may have been to encourage an inaccurate, against-all-odds plot.

“It perpetuates this backs-to-the-wall, Little Britain, David versus Goliath story. But we had the world’s largest navy, we had over 200 destroyers alone. We had vast numbers of ships.”

Portrayal of the British Spitfires

Another inaccuracy involves the portrayal of the British Spitfires. In the film, the Spitfires are shown with an unrealistic amount of ammunition. Holland explains that the film depicts the planes as having 75 seconds of ammunition, but they actually only had around 14 seconds. Additionally, the film shows a pilot landing a Spitfire on a beach, which Holland says is highly improbable. The landing gear of a Spitfire would likely collapse in the sand, making such a maneuver unfeasible. The film’s depiction of the Spitfires’ capabilities and actions does not accurately reflect their actual performance and limitations during the evacuation.

“A Spitfire is made out to have 75 seconds worth of ammunition, when actually a spitfire only had 14.7 seconds.

“Pilots would rarely shoot down more than a single plane in one go, but one pilot shoots down four because he seems to have an inexhaustible supply of ammunition.”

“There’s a frantic moment when he thinks that his undercarriage won’t work, but you’d never land on a beach with your undercarriage because it would just collapse into the sand.

“Under no circumstances would you land on a beach with your undercarriage down.”

“A lot of ships were sunk at Dunkirk, but not many naval vessels. Seventy per cent of the vessels were sunk because of collision and misadventure and only 30 were sunk because of air attack out of 220 that sank.

“If you watch the Dunkirk movie, you’d think the whole evacuation was halted by air power.”

Conditions at Dunkirk

The film also misrepresents the conditions at Dunkirk, particularly the weather and the effects of the tides. Holland points out that the film portrays the sea as rough and the tides as a significant obstacle. However, during the actual evacuation, the weather was generally calm, with low-lying clouds and still waters. The tides were less of a concern due to the presence of “moles,” which were concrete barriers that provided stable docking areas for ships. The film’s depiction of the rough sea and the impact of tides is not consistent with historical conditions.

Despite these inaccuracies, Holland acknowledges that Dunkirk succeeds in capturing the essence of the soldiers’ experiences and the chaos of the evacuation. The film’s portrayal of the soldiers’ appearance and their desperate situation aligns well with historical accounts. While Holland’s deep knowledge of the event leads him to notice these discrepancies, he still recognizes the film’s value as a dramatic representation of a significant historical event.

“There was low-lying cloud for the majority of the evacuation,” explains Holland.

“In the film, at one point the sea’s really rough and the next minute it’s blue skies, but in reality it was like a mill pond.”

“At one point one character says we’re not getting a destroyer for another six hours and another character responds ‘why? I thought tides were only three.’

“But on the mole, tides didn’t come into it at all.

“There were destroyers and other ships, packed up double berth along there, so the idea that you’re waiting for one destroyer at a time to turn up is way off the mark.”