The Retreat: Escape from La Panne 1940

This is my grandads story, sapper James Horner and how he escaped from La Panne, he recently wrote it down for me. At this point he was in the 253rd field company royal engineers.

2.00am Saturday 2 June 1940- We reached a place called La Panne, a seaside place further on the beach than Dunkirk. It was dark and all the unit had got split up, there were four of us. There were hundreds on the beach not knowing what to do. About 3.30am it was starting to get light. We saw some sand dunes right at the end of the seaside village. We were very tired and we all settled down and fell asleep. About 11.30am the Germans started shelling the sand dunes so we ran into La Panne.

As we were going down the front, the major of or unit stopped us and said “Now then, I want the four of you to go looking round to find more of our unit, I want you all back her for 12.00pm”. We looked around and found there were 24 of us in all, so we got back to where the Major was and went into the houses on the front. The Major said” Now I have heard the Germans will be here tomorrow June 3rd. I have a proposition to make, we will stay tonight and row the soldiers to the boats or we go down to the beach and pick a rowing boat and row back to England as I have a compass. So we will vote now. Show your hands for staying.” After a minute he said, “ vote now for rowing.” We voted for rowing.

“Right!” he said “lets go down and pick the best boat”, and we will set off.It was 2.00pm in the afternoon, there was eight of us rowing at once four on each side then we kept changing places. We rowed all night. It was just breaking daylight, which was about 3.30am Sunday Morning, when we came across a small launch with a red cross on it. We moved to it and the Major scrambled aboard. He shouted down to us “Is there a mechanic among you”. There was one and he got aboard. After a while the motor started up so the Major called us to get on the launch, then we set off.

Things didn’t work out so well, it went round in circles; the rudder was damaged, so the mechanic and someone else got it right. So we set of again. About 6.00am there was a boat signalling us to stop so we moved towards the ship and stopped. The captain of the ship said “You all better get on board as we are heading to land at Dover.” So we all got on board. We were very thankful; they brought us tea and sandwiches, which we were very grateful for, as we hadn’t eaten in a long time. We landed in Dover around 2.00pm in the afternoon. There was a train waiting for us and the troops that had come on the other boats, we ended up at a place called Ewshot, outside Aldershot.

He was later transferred to the 17th field company royal engineers and took part in the d-day landings. Landing at Sword beach. Going on to help build the first Bailey bridge in occupied France over the river Orne (Pegasus bridge). He then went on to take part in the battles of Kervenheim and Winnekendonk.

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