Mémorial du Souvenir, World War II memorial museum in Dunkirk, France.
The Mémorial du Souvenir is a museum and memorial in Dunkirk that documents the 1940 evacuation known as Operation Dynamo. It is housed inside Bastion 32, a 19th-century fort, and displays military equipment, uniforms, photographs, and objects recovered from the sea.
Bastion 32 served as Allied headquarters during Operation Dynamo in May and June 1940, when over 330,000 soldiers were evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk. The fort was later turned into a memorial museum to keep the memory of those events alive.
The museum's name, Mémorial du Souvenir, means "Memorial of Remembrance". Its 700 square metres hold staff maps, panels of texts and photographs, and display cases of weapons and equipment, alongside original finds from the battlefield. A 15-minute documentary with archive footage is shown alternately in French and English.
The museum is not open all year, so check opening before travelling. Inside Bastion 32, a 700-square-metre hall holds the displays, and a 15-minute documentary with original footage is shown alternately in French and English. Allow time for the film as well as the panels and showcases.
Among the exhibits are aircraft engines and military objects pulled from the bottom of the English Channel, still marked by years underwater. These recovered pieces offer a direct physical link to what happened off the coast during those weeks in 1940.
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