Editing Dunkirk (section)

==History==
===Middle Ages===
[[File:Sinteligiuskerkduinkerke 11-03-2009 13-59-42.JPG|thumb|left|[[Church of Saint-Éloi, Dunkirk|Saint Eloi Church]]]]

A [[fishing village]] arose late in the tenth century, in the originally flooded coastal area of the [[English Channel]] south of the [[Western Scheldt]], when the area was held by the [[County of Flanders|Counts of Flanders]], vassals of the [[France in the Middle Ages|French]] Crown. About AD 960, Count [[Baldwin III, Count of Flanders|Baldwin III]] had a town wall erected in order to protect the settlement against [[Viking]] raids. The surrounding wetlands were drained and cultivated by the monks of nearby [[Bergues]] Abbey. The name ''Dunkirka'' was first mentioned in a [[tithe]] privilege of 27 May 1067, issued by Count [[Baldwin V, Count of Flanders|Baldwin V of Flanders]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2011}} Count [[Philip I, Count of Flanders|Philip I]] (1157–1191) brought further large tracts of marshland under cultivation, laid out the first plans to build a [[Canal de Bergues|Canal from Dunkirk to Bergues]] and vested the Dunkirkers with [[market rights]].

In the late 13th century, when the [[House of Dampierre|Dampierre]] count [[Guy, Count of Flanders|Guy of Flanders]] entered into the [[Franco-Flemish War (1297–1305)|Franco-Flemish War]] against his [[suzerainty|suzerain]] King [[Philip IV of France|Philippe IV]] of [[Kingdom of France|France]], the citizens of Dunkirk sided with the French against their count, who at first was defeated at the 1297 [[Battle of Furnes]], but reached ''de facto'' autonomy upon the victorious [[Battle of the Golden Spurs]] five years later and exacted vengeance. Guy's son, Count [[Robert III, Count of Flanders|Robert III]] (1305–1322), nevertheless granted further city rights to Dunkirk; his successor Count [[Louis I, Count of Flanders|Louis I]] (1322–1346) had to face the [[Peasant revolt in Flanders 1323–1328|Peasant revolt of 1323–1328]], which was crushed by King [[Philip VI of France|Philippe VI]] of France at the 1328 [[Battle of Cassel (1328)|Battle of Cassel]], whereafter the Dunkirkers again were affected by the repressive measures of the French king.

Count Louis remained a loyal vassal of the French king upon the outbreak of the [[Hundred Years' War]] with [[Kingdom of England|England]] in 1337, and prohibited the maritime trade, which led to another revolt by the Dunkirk citizens. After the count had been killed in the 1346 [[Battle of Crécy]], his son and successor Count [[Louis I, Count of Flanders|Louis II of Flanders]] (1346–1384) signed a truce with the English; the trade again flourished and the port was significantly enlarged. However, in the course of the [[Western Schism]] from 1378, English supporters of [[Pope Urban VI]] (the Roman claimant) disembarked at Dunkirk, captured the city and flooded the surrounding estates. They were ejected by King [[Charles VI of France]], but left great devastations in and around the town.

Upon the extinction of the Counts of Flanders with the death of Louis II in 1384, Flanders was acquired by the [[Duchy of Burgundy|Burgundian]], Duke [[Philip the Bold]]. The fortifications were again enlarged, including the construction of a belfry [[daymark]] (a navigational aid similar to a non-illuminated lighthouse). As a strategic point, Dunkirk has always been exposed to political greed, by Duke [[Robert I, Duke of Bar|Robert I of Bar]] in 1395, by [[Louis de Luxembourg, Count of Saint-Pol|Louis de Luxembourg]] in 1435 and finally by the [[Archduchy of Austria|Austrian]] archduke [[Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor|Maximilian I of Habsburg]], who in 1477 married [[Mary of Burgundy]], sole heiress of late Duke [[Charles the Bold]]. As Maximilian was the son of Emperor [[Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor|Frederick III]], all Flanders was immediately seized by King [[Louis XI of France]]. However, the archduke defeated the French troops in 1479 at the [[Battle of Guinegate (1479)|Battle of Guinegate]]. When Mary died in 1482, Maximilian retained Flanders according to the terms of the 1482 [[Treaty of Arras (1482)|Treaty of Arras]]. Dunkirk, along with the rest of Flanders, was incorporated into the [[Habsburg Netherlands]] and upon the 1581 secession of the [[Dutch Republic|Seven United Netherlands]], remained part of the [[Southern Netherlands]], which were held by [[Habsburg Spain]] (Spanish Netherlands) as [[Holy Roman Empire|Imperial]] fiefs.

[[File:View of Dunkerque in 1575.jpg|thumb|View of Dunkerque and harbour as of 1575]]

===Corsair base===
{{Main|Dunkirkers}}
[[File:Beschieting van Duinkerken door een gecombineerd Nederlands-Engelse vloot (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|The Bombardment of Dunkirk by a combined Anglo-Dutch fleet, 1695]]
[[File:Map of Dunkerque.tif|thumb|Map of Dunkirk (around 1700)]]
{{Quote box |width=17em |align=top |bgcolor=#B0C4DE
|title=Historical affiliations
|fontsize=80% |quote=
[[File:Flag of the Low Countries.svg|15px]] [[Burgundian Netherlands]] 1384–1482 <br />
[[File:Flag of Cross of Burgundy.svg|15px]] [[Habsburg Netherlands]] 1482–1556 <br />
[[File:Flag of Cross of Burgundy.svg|15px]] [[Spanish Netherlands]] 1556–1577 <br />
[[File:Statenvlag.svg|15px]] [[Dutch Republic|Dunkirk Rebels]] 1577–1583 <br />
[[File:Flag of Cross of Burgundy.svg|15px]] [[Spanish Netherlands]] 1583–1646 <br />
[[File:Royal Standard of the King of France.svg|15px]] [[Kingdom of France|France]] 1646–1652 <br />
[[File:Flag of Cross of Burgundy.svg|15px]] [[Spanish Netherlands]] 1652–1658 <br />
[[File:Flag of England.svg|15px|border]][[File:Royal Standard of the King of France.svg|15px]] [[Commonwealth of England|England]] and [[Kingdom of France|France]] 1658–1659 <br />
[[File:Flag of England.svg|15px|border]] [[Kingdom of England|England]] 1659–1662 <br />
[[File:Royal Standard of the King of France.svg|15px]][[File:Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).svg|15px]] France 1662–1870 <br />
[[File:Flag of the German Empire.svg|15px|border]] [[Franco-Prussian War|Prussian occupation]] 1870–1873 <br />
[[File:Flag of France.svg|15px|border]] [[French Third Republic|France]] 1873–1940 <br />
[[File:Flag of Germany (1935–1945).svg|15px]] [[German military administration in occupied France during World War II|German occupation]] 1940–1945 <br />
[[File:Flag of France.svg|15px|border]] France 1945–present
}}
[[File:Dunkerque Jean Bart2.JPG|thumb|Statue of [[Jean Bart]] in Dunkirk, the most famous [[French corsairs|corsair]] of the city]]

The area remained much disputed between [[Kingdom of Spain|Spain]], the [[Dutch Republic|Netherlands]], [[Kingdom of England|England]] and [[Kingdom of France|France]]. At the beginning of the [[Eighty Years' War]], Dunkirk was briefly in the hands of the Dutch rebels, from 1577. Spanish forces under Duke [[Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma|Alexander Farnese]] of [[Duchy of Parma|Parma]] re-established Spanish rule in 1583 and it became a base for the notorious ''Dunkirkers''. The Dunkirkers briefly lost their home port when the city was conquered by the French in 1646 but Spanish forces recaptured the city in 1652. In 1658, as a result of the [[Franco-Spanish War (1635–1659)|long war]] between France and Spain, it was [[Siege of Dunkirk (1658)|captured]] after a siege by Franco-English forces following the [[Battle of the Dunes (1658)|battle of the Dunes]]. The city along with [[Fort-Mardyck]] was awarded to England in [[Treaty of the Pyrenees|the peace the following year]] as agreed in the Franco-English alliance against Spain. The English governors were [[William Lockhart of Lee|Sir William Lockhart]] (1658–60), [[Edward Harley (Parliamentarian)|Sir Edward Harley]] (1660–61) and [[Andrew Rutherford, 1st Earl of Teviot|Lord Rutherford]] (1661–62).

On 17 October 1662, Dunkirk was [[Sale of Dunkirk|sold to France]] by [[Charles II of England]] for £320,000.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2006 |title=Correspondence and papers of the first Duke of Ormonde, chiefly on Irish and English public affairs: ref. MS. Carte 218, fol(s). 5 – date: 26 December 1662 |url=http://www.a2a.org.uk/search/records.asp?cat=161-msscarte_15&cid=2-3 |access-date=17 October 2007 |publisher=Oxford University, Bodleian Library, Special Collections and Western Manuscripts: Carte Papers |format=Description of contents of carte papers }}{{Dead link|date=February 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> The French government developed the town as a fortified port. The town's existing defences were adapted to create ten bastions. The port was expanded in the 1670s by the construction of a basin that could hold up to thirty warships with a double lock system to maintain water levels at low tide. The basin was linked to the sea by a channel dug through coastal sandbanks secured by two jetties. This work was completed by 1678. The jetties were defended a few years later by the construction of five forts, Château d'Espérance, Château Vert, Grand Risban, Château Gaillard, and Fort de Revers. An additional fort was built in 1701 called Fort Blanc.

During the reign of [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]], a large number of [[commerce raider]]s and [[pirate]]s once again made their base at Dunkirk, the most famous of whom was [[Jean Bart]]. The main character (and possible real prisoner) in the famous novel [[Man in the Iron Mask]] by [[Alexandre Dumas]] was arrested at Dunkirk. The eighteenth-century Swedish privateers and pirates [[Lars Gathenhielm]] and his wife [[Ingela Gathenhielm|Ingela Hammar]] are known to have sold their gains in Dunkirk.

As France and Great Britain became commercial and military rivals, the British grew concerned about Dunkirk being used as an invasion base to cross the English Channel. The jetties, their forts, and the port facilities were demolished in 1713 under the terms of the [[Treaty of Utrecht]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dunkirk |url=http://www.fortified-places.com/dunkirk/ |access-date=2013-03-26 |website=Fortified Places |archive-date=2013-06-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615080118/http://www.fortified-places.com/dunkirk/ }}</ref> The [[Treaty of Paris (1763)|Treaty of Paris]] of 1763, which concluded the [[Seven Years' War]], included a clause restricting French rights to fortify Dunkirk. This clause was overturned in the subsequent [[Treaty of Versailles (1783)|Treaty of Versailles]] of 1783.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ward |first=Sir Adolphus William |year=1922 |title=1783–1815 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TzULAAAAYAAJ&q=1783+dunkirk+fortifications&pg=PA50}}</ref>

===Dunkirk in World War I===
Dunkirk's port was used extensively during the war by British forces who brought in dock workers from, among other places, Egypt and China.<ref name=Guerre/>

From 1915, the city experienced severe bombardment, including from the largest gun in the world in 1917, the German '[[Batterie Pommern|Lange Max]]'. On a regular basis, heavy shells weighing approximately 750&nbsp;kg (1700 lb) were fired from [[Koekelare]], about 45–50&nbsp;km (30 miles) away.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://langemaxmuseum.be/|title=Lange Max Museum|date=27 October 2023|website=Lange Max Museum}}</ref> The bombardment killed nearly 600 people and wounded another 1,100, both civilian and military, while 400 buildings were destroyed and 2,400 damaged. The city's population, which had been 39,000 in 1914, reduced to fewer than 15,000 in July 1916 and 7,000 in the autumn of 1917.<ref name=Guerre/>

In January 1916, a spy scare took place in Dunkirk. The writer [[Robert W. Service]], then a war correspondent for the ''[[Toronto Star]]'', was mistakenly arrested as a spy and narrowly avoided being executed out of hand.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Robert Service biography |url=http://www.robertwservice.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=4&page=2 |access-date=9 November 2018 |website=robertwservice.com |archive-date=12 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210512194839/https://www.robertwservice.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=4&page=2 }}</ref> On 1 January 1918, the [[United States Navy]] established a [[naval air station]] to operate [[seaplane]]s. The base closed shortly after the [[Armistice of 11 November 1918]].<ref name="nan">{{Cite book |last=Van Wyen |first=Adrian O. |url=https://archive.org/details/navalaviationinw00wash |title=Naval Aviation in World War I |date=1969 |publisher=Chief of Naval Operations |location=Washington, D.C. |page=[https://archive.org/details/navalaviationinw00wash/page/60 60]}}</ref>

In October 1917, to mark the gallant behaviour of its inhabitants during the war, the City of Dunkirk was awarded the {{Lang|fr|[[Croix de Guerre]]}} and, in 1919, the [[Legion of Honour]] and the British [[Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)|Distinguished Service Cross]].<ref name="Guerre">{{Cite web |title=La Grande Guerre (fr) |url=https://www.ville-dunkerque.fr/decouvrir-sortir-bouger/histoire-patrimoine/lhistoire-de-dunkerque/la-grande-guerre/ |access-date=9 November 2018 |website=Dunkerque & vous}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Traces of War |url=https://www.tracesofwar.com/awards/3/Distinguished-Service-Cross-DSC.htm?c=aw |access-date=8 November 2018 |website=TracesOfWar}}</ref> These decorations now appear in the city's coat of arms.<ref name="Arms">{{Cite web |title=Les Armoiries de la Ville (fr) |url=https://www.ville-dunkerque.fr/decouvrir-sortir-bouger/histoire-patrimoine/dunkerque-aujourdhui/les-armoiries-de-la-ville/ |access-date=9 November 2018 |website=Dunkerque & vous}}</ref>

===Dunkirk in World War II===

====Evacuation====
{{main|Battle of Dunkirk|Dunkirk evacuation}}
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:DUNKIRK1940.jpg|thumb|175px|British troops embarking from Dunkirk's beaches]] -->
[[File:Dunkirk 26-29 May 1940 NYP68075.jpg|upright=0.9|thumb|right|British troops evacuating Dunkirk beach in 1940]]
During the [[World War II|Second World War]] 1940 [[Battle of France]], the [[British Expeditionary Force (World War II)|British Expeditionary Force]] (BEF), while aiding the French and Belgian armies, were forced to retreat in the face of overpowering German Panzer attacks. Fighting in Belgium and France, the BEF and a portion of the French Army became outflanked by the Germans and retreated to the area around the port of Dunkirk. More than 400,000 soldiers were trapped in the pocket as the German Army closed in for the kill. Unexpectedly, the German Panzer attack halted for several days at a critical juncture. For years, it was assumed that [[Adolf Hitler]] ordered the German Army to suspend the attack, favouring bombardment by the [[Luftwaffe]]. However, according to the Official War Diary of [[Army Group A]], its commander, ''[[Generaloberst]]'' [[Gerd von Rundstedt]], ordered the halt to allow maintenance on his tanks, half of which were out of service, and to protect his flanks which were exposed and, he thought, vulnerable.<ref>Levine, Joshua (2017) Dunkirk, Harper Collins, New York</ref> Hitler merely validated the order several hours later.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lord |first=Walter |title=The Miracle of Dunkirk |date=1982 |publisher=Open Road Integrated Media, Inc. |isbn=978-1-5040-4754-8 |location=New York City |pages=28–35 |language=en |chapter=2: No. 17 Turns Up}}</ref> This lull gave the British and French a few days to fortify their defences. The Allied position was complicated by Belgian King [[Leopold III of Belgium|Leopold III]]'s surrender on 27 May, which was postponed until 28 May. The gap left by the Belgian Army stretched from Ypres to Dixmude. Nevertheless, [[Battle of Dunkirk|a collapse was prevented]], making it possible to launch an [[Dunkirk evacuation|evacuation by sea]], across the [[English Channel]], codenamed Operation Dynamo. [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|British Prime Minister]] [[Winston Churchill]] ordered any ship or boat available, large or small, to collect the stranded soldiers. 338,226 men (including 123,000 French soldiers) were evacuated – the ''miracle of Dunkirk'', as Churchill called it. It took over 900 vessels to evacuate the BEF, with two-thirds of those rescued embarking via the harbour, and over 100,000 taken off the beaches. More than 40,000 vehicles as well as massive amounts of other military equipment and supplies were left behind. Forty thousand Allied soldiers (some who carried on fighting after the official evacuation) were captured or forced to make their own way home through a variety of routes including via neutral Spain. Many wounded who were unable to walk were abandoned.

====Liberation====
{{Main|Siege of Dunkirk (1944–45)}}
[[File:Dunkirk.png|thumb|Map of Dunkirk surroundings during the Allied attempt to retake Dunkirk in 1944]]

The city of Dunkirk was again contested in 1944, with the [[2nd Canadian Infantry Division]] attempting to liberate the city in September, as Allied forces surged northeast after their victory in the [[Operation Overlord|Battle of Normandy]]. However, German forces refused to relinquish their control of the city, which had been converted into a fortress. To seize the now strategically insignificant town would consume too many Allied resources which were needed elsewhere. The town was by-passed masking the German garrison with Allied troops, notably the [[1st Czechoslovak Armoured Brigade]]. During the [[German occupation]], Dunkirk was largely destroyed by Allied bombing. The artillery siege of Dunkirk was directed on the final day of the war by pilots from [[No. 652 Squadron RAF]], and [[No. 665 Squadron RCAF]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2007}} The fortress, under the command of German Admiral [[Friedrich Frisius]], eventually unconditionally surrendered to the commander of the Czechoslovak forces, [[Brigade General]] [[Alois Liška]], on 9 May 1945.<ref>{{Cite periodical |url=http://www.army.cz/avis/areport2005/ar11str.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071202110544/http://www.army.cz/avis/areport2005/ar11str.pdf|title=Vzpomínky na obléhání pevnosti |periodical=Reportáž |archive-date=2 December 2007}}</ref>

===Postwar Dunkirk===
{{expand section|date=August 2013}}

On 14 December 2002, the Norwegian [[Roll-on/roll-off|car carrier]] {{MV|Tricolor}} collided with the [[Bahamas|Bahamian]]-registered ''Kariba'' and sank off Dunkirk Harbour, causing a hazard to navigation in the [[English Channel]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.professionalmariner.com/March-2008/The-Tricolor-Kariba-Clary-Incident/|title=The Tricolor/Kariba/Clary Incident|date=21 March 2008}}</ref>