The year was nineteen thirty nine
And England was running scared,
Germany had invaded Poland
And nobody really cared.

Soon our shores were threatened
And we saw it in a different light,
“Chamberlain” signed away some land
So we wouldn’t  have to fight.

The Prime Minister told us “don’t worry,
We now have peace for our time”,
So the country relaxed and said thank God!
Now every things going to be fine.

But Germany’s leader had other ideas
He wanted an open door,
He reneged on his solemn word
So England went to war!

Husbands, sons and lovers,
All rallied to the call,
Willing to fight for their country
And ready to stand or fall.

They said goodbye to their loved ones
Not knowing if they’d see them again
Most of the young men enjoyed it
Thinking it was all a big game.

The war had only just started
When the fight took a turn for the worst,
Our boys were pushed back to the beach at Dunkirk
And whatever they did they were cursed.

Thousands of soldiers were trapped by the sea
All huddled and strewn on the beach,
The dive bombers came and blew them to bits
They were so easy to reach.

And then came a modern day miracle
The rescue of our boys from the sand,
Boats of all shapes and sizes
were taking them back to England.

Fishing boats, sail boats and pleasure boats,
All chugged on through the night,
When they reached the Dunkirk waters
they were never to forget the sight.

There were queues of men in the the water
Cold and soaked through to the bone,
Some swimming out to meet the boats
And hoping to get back home.

The bravery of those little boat skippers
Who sailed willingly into hell,
Pulling the army off a graveyard beach
Is a very true story to tell.

It was an amazing achievement
And one thing is very clear,
If it had not been for those little boats
Many of us would not be here!