Footsteps of WWII · Dunkirk & the Channel coast
East Mole (Jetée de l'Est), Dunkirk
Naval base · 27 May–4 Jun 1940
The story
The East Mole was a long breakwater sheltering the harbour entrance, never designed for ships to berth against. With the port's quays wrecked by bombing, Captain William Tennant began using it as a jetty, and it became the key to Operation Dynamo: almost 200,000 troops boarded ships from its narrow walkway. Destroyers, ferries and paddle steamers came alongside under bombing and shellfire. On 29 May the paddle steamer HMS Crested Eagle sailed from here with about 600 men aboard and was set on fire by bombs less than a mile out.
What to look for
A narrow jetty about 1.5 km long running out to sea from the end of Rue Militaire, with a German blockhouse at its foot. The far end is closed. From the walkway you get a panoramic view along the Dynamo beaches towards Belgium.
Plan your visit
Free, open access; the outer end is closed to the public. About a 10-minute walk from the Dunkirk 1940 Museum. Exposed to wind and spray, so take care in rough weather.
Things change, so check opening times before you travel.
Nearby sites
- Malo-les-Bains evacuation beach, Dunkirk · under 1 km
- Dunkirk 1940 Museum (Bastion 32) · under 1 km
- Dunkirk Memorial and Town Cemetery (CWGC) · 3 km
- Fort des Dunes, Leffrinckoucke · 5 km
- Zuydcoote and Bray-Dunes beach wrecks · 9 km
- La Plaine au Bois massacre memorial, Esquelbecq (Wormhout) · 20 km
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Footsteps of WWII: Europe 1939–1945
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