‘So many lives were lost, but thousands were rescued’
THIS week marks the 80th anniversary of one of the most famous operations of the Second World War - the Dunkirk evacuation.
Also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, Operation Dynamo saw more than 338,000 Allied troops evacuated in nine days from the beaches and harbour of the city on France’s north coast, carried out by hundreds of naval vessels and civilian boats.
Among those to escape the clutches of the Nazis was 22-year-old Alan Rishton Holden, of Church, who caught his parents completely by surprise by turning up at his Blackburn Road home on May 31, 1940.
A remarkable article in the Accrington Observer the following day recounted his bittersweet account of the battle, including how he ran the gauntlet of “merciless” bombs and machine gun fire from German planes and troops as he made his “perilous” escape.
Alan’s son Malcolm, 69, said: “I know Dunkirk wasn’t a victory and many brave service personnel lost their lives but I think we should still commemorate it in honour those lost lives, and for the survivors who had to carry on for another five years serving to protect their country.”
Alan, who was re-posted to North Africa for four-and-a-half years and served in the REME with the 8th Army after his time in France, passed away in 2012.
Despite being aware of his war service, Malcolm, who lives off Sandy Lane in Accrington, said he only found out about his father’s time at Dunkirk at his aunt’s funeral four years ago when he was given the precious newspaper cutting.
He said: “At the time I didn’t think much of it, but a little while later I started delving. Once I got it authenticated I sent off for my dad’s war record, which took about three months to arrive.
“I don’t even know how the story got to the Observer.”
Malcolm, who felt that Dunkirk should be recognised after the celebrations for the 75th anniversary of VE Day earlier in the month, says he is one of five siblings – four brothers and one sister.
He reflected: “History could have been so different. There were so many lives lost but, having said that, there were hundreds of thousands rescued.”