TNA ADM 234 360

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DUSK TO DUSK, 1ST-2ND JUNE
CHAP. x
valuable service in the operation. The Glen Avon, which sailed a quarter
of ing an hour after the Medway Queen, also picked up 24 Spaniards, from the
Dutch S.S. Alphacca; it is not known how they came to be afloat, for the
Alphacca was not sunk until 4 April 1942. The Lydd left at the same time as
the Medway Queen, with 200 troops, but defective degaussing then necessitated
and Royal Eagle all sailed within half an hour of one another. The last ship
putting an end to her service in Operation' Dynamo". The Niger, Snaefell,
to leave Malo beach was, by her own account, the Glen Gower at 0320, as day
wa breaking, by which time it was low water. Her Captain, Acting Commander
M. A. O. Biddulph, R.N., S.O. 8th M.S.F., reported that the embarkation
had been very trying, for the enemy's gunfire during the night had been
mainly directed at the beaches, which had been very heavily shelled¹,
and the Glen Gower was continually under fire from guns and howitzers on shore
from the time she anchored at 2355. "Sight and hearing were almost over-
whelmed by the ruddy glow of flames, the flashes of gunfire, the shrieking of
shells all around, and the noise of their explosion as they burst". When the
Glen Gower sailed, with 435 troops, she had lost two of the boats (one from shrap-
nel hits) which she had brought from England to ferry troops from the beach
to the ships, whilst a third was left aground.
Of all the minesweepers that left the beach this night only the Snaefell was
filled to capacity.
Embarkations at Dunkirk
Although there were more ships than were required off the beaches there
was plenty of room at the East Pier, and during the night Rear-Admiral Wake-
Walker, who had come over from Dover and was afloat in M.A /S.B.10, diverted
some of the redundant ships from Malo. He met the minesweeper Sutton at
2121 and sent her to load at the East Pier, where she embarked in about 11/2
hours 725 troops, about a third of whom were French. The Duchess of Fife
arrived off Malo at 2310, found no troops and was sent on to Dunkirk Pier
where she embarked 550 men. The destroyer Venomous had come over to
Malo with a beach party of 10 officers and 90 men; no boats came off from the
shore, and at 0200 Rear-Admiral Wake-Walker sent her to Dunkirk, where
she took on board 632 troops and sailed for Dover about 0230. The paddle
minesweeper Marmion was ordered into Dunkirk Harbour at 0200 on 2nd,
after waiting in the roads for four hours, and embarked 225 French troops.
Ships were led into harbour and allocated to their berths by Commander Maund
in a motor boat.
French troops, to the number of 285, were also embarked by the trawler
(danlayer) Strathelliot alongside the inner jetty amongst them was General
Nicolle and his staff. The Strathelliot grounded outside the harbour on sailing
at 0130 but got off undamaged, by her own efforts. Another small ship to get
away early with French troops only on board was the skoot Reiger which left
the jetty in the Nouvel Avant Port at 2215 on 1st after lifting 330 men in 45
minutes.
The first pair of destroyers to berth alongside the East Pier were the Codring-
ton at 2300 and the Sabre a quarter of an hour later. The former embarked
878 troops, the latter 756 both ships taking only 45 minutes. The Icarus
which left Dover with the Windsor, also berthed at 2300 and took on board
677 troops. On the way home, she was in collision with a trawler in Dunkirk
Channel, and her further service in Operation "Dynamo" was cancelled.
I Report of R. A. Wake-Walker, M.017978/41, p.31.
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