The Dunkirk evacuation of all those soldiers made it all but impossible for the Germans to invade Britain. It was a “victory” in that it allowed the Brits to stay in the war.
Indeed. And some brave men had to stay behind as a forlorn hope to cover the retreat.
well...not quite. The Germans never really had the ability to invade the UK in WWII. Their staff study showed that at best case they could land 38~45,000 men by sea (one mountain corps), along with one parachute division (7th) and one air-landing division (22nd). Under 100,000 men.
Not enough to do much except ensure a German defeat on UK soil.
In Liddell Hart’s book “The German Generals Speak, 1948”, it is pointed out that Hitler deliberately let the Brits escape at Dunkirk, as he was seeking an armistice with the UK, not a long drawn out war. His evil intentions were directed to the East.