After the defenses at the Sloedam had collapsed and German forces had cleared Arnemuiden of French resistance, they immediately advanced southward in the direction of Vlissingen (Flushing), the main harbour.
With the Dutch company having abandoned its positions along the Sloe and the defenses south of Middelburg having failed, the Germans encountered little opposition during their advance, except at Arnemuiden. They largely ignored the provincial capital, Middelburg - which was still under bombardment and artillery fire - and pushed toward Flushing as quickly as possible. They were well aware that capturing the town would cut off the French forces from their last opportunity to evacuate the island or to land troops on the island.
Général Deslaurens had narrowly escaped capture during the fighting at the Sloe. He quickly made his way to Flushing, fully aware that the rapid evacuation of French forces from Walcheren was imperative. Before long, every vessel in the harbour was packed with French troops anxiously awaiting departure from the giant trap in which they had found themselves. Responsibility for the evacuation rested with Admiral Platon.
Meanwhile, Deslaurens organized a defensive screen north and northeast of Flushing. Fearing that his troops might otherwise abandon their positions, he decided to take personal command of the defense.
At the same time, the French Seventh Army received revised orders. The Germans had broken out into the French plains and were heading for the Northsea. To avoid disaster the French were taken back. The 7th Army was desperately needed elsewhere. It was to withdraw behind the Ghent–Terneuzen Canal in Belgium, with preparations already underway for a further retreat southward. By 17 May, the last major French attempt to halt the German breakthrough in northeastern France had failed. Guderian's armoured forces had burst out of the Sedan bridgehead and were met at Montcornet by an improvised French armoured division - the 4th Division Cuirassée - commanded by then Colonel Charles de Gaulle, the future leader of the Free French. Although this counterattack inflicted significant losses on the Germans, it was ultimately repulsed through the combined efforts of the Luftwaffe and the formidable German 8.8 cm anti-aircraft guns employed in a ground role. The French High Command could no longer ignore the danger confronting France. The prospect of their armies being encircled by the advancing German forces had become all too clear. As a result, the French decided to withdraw the majority of their forces from Belgium and concentrate on defending French territory. In hindsight, that decision was entirely justified, but in reality days overdue.
After overcoming the unexpected resistance at Arnemuiden, the SS units quickly reorganized. They requisitioned every car and bicycle they could find. Elements of the 1st Battalion were the first to reach the outskirts of Flushing at around 20:00 on 17 May. The Dutch troops encountered along the route surrendered without resistance. No opposition was encountered until the Germans reached Flushing itself. However, once they entered the city's outskirts, the defensive measures personally arranged by Deslaurens began to pay dividends.
Against this backdrop, a large-scale military evacuation was underway in Flushing under the capable leadership of Contre-Amiral Platon. In many ways, it foreshadowed Operation Dynamo at Dunkirk. French and Dutch soldiers crowded the harbour, boarding every available vessel. Throughout the afternoon, ships maintained a shuttle service between Flushing and Breskens, a crossing of approximately four kilometres. French naval vessels—including the Chasseurs No. 5, 6, 10, 41, and 42, as well as the minesweeper FS Mardyck - made a substantial contribution to the evacuation effort. Most heavy equipment, however, had to be abandoned, often still intact.
Meanwhile, the British demolition party began placing charges at the waterworks and harbour cranes. Their efforts, however, proved largely ineffective. None of the targeted facilities was rendered permanently unusable, and some suffered only minor damage. Given their limited supply of explosives, it would arguably have been wiser to concentrate on a smaller number of critical objectives and ensure their complete destruction rather than attempting to damage as many installations as possible. As events unfolded, the Germans were able to restore the harbour facilities within a short time and later prepared Flushing for its intended role in Operation Seelöwe, the planned invasion of England. Having completed their mission, the two dozen members of the demolition party boarded a British destroyer and promptly departed the Netherlands.
Meanwhile, Captain Bichon, adjutant to General Deslaurens, and the General himself had gathered a small group of men and established defensive positions along the roads leading to the harbour. Deslaurens personally commanded the northernmost position, while Bichon organized a makeshift defense closer to the docks. Although they succeeded in slowing the SS advance, they were ultimately unable to prevent the Germans from steadily gaining ground.
At 22:00 hours, Deslaurens sent an officer to get a message to Admiral Platon with the alarming news that German troops had advanced to within 500 metres of the quays. Upon receiving the message, Platon dispatched Bichon to the General with strict orders: Deslaurens was to board the last available vessel, Chasseur No. 5.
Bichon never managed to deliver the message. Upon reaching the General's former position, he discovered that German troops had already passed through the area. Concluding that Deslaurens had either been captured or killed, he returned to the harbour. Under fire from the first German soldiers entering the port area, Bichon boarded Chasseur No. 5. With her machine guns blazing and her 75 mm gun firing in support, the vessel cast off and departed Flushing, carrying both Bichon and Admiral Platon to safety.
General Deslaurens, however, had not fallen into German hands, at least not whilst being alive. Although soon wounded, he remained at his post, continuing to lead the handful of loyal soldiers who still fought beside him. At approximately 22:00 hours, he was seen by a Dutch medical doctor who was attempting to reach the last departing ship with his wife. Even in those desperate final moments, Deslaurens displayed the nobility of character for which he was renowned. Seeing the doctor's wife, he reportedly exclaimed, "Mais qu'est-ce que vous faites ici, ma petite?" ("What are you doing here, my dear?") and directed her to a place where she could shelter safely.
The doctor later stated that the General was killed at approximately 22:15 hours, apparently by a gunshot wound to the head. Deslaurens had indeed been, in every sense of the phrase, the last man standing. He died as he had lived during the campaign - at the front, leading his men from the front line.
Mort pour la Patrie! - dead for the Fatherland.
General Deslaurens was the only General to lose his life on Dutch soil during the May Campaign of 1940. Throughout the fighting, he displayed remarkable determination and courage, despite the fact that his troops were often unable to meet the standards he expected of them. Time and again, he exposed himself to danger at the front, behaving more like the archetypal battlefield commander than a senior staff officer. He was - and remains - widely regarded as a genuine hero.
In total 12 French Generals were killed in action and one in a fatal accident during the May/June 1940 episode. Two of those 13 had a relation with the events in the Netherlands and Zeeland. General Deslaurens of course, and Général d'Armée Gaston Billotte, who commanded the 1st French Army Group (to which the formations in the Netherlands largely belonged), and who was killed in a car accident in Belgium, coming from a joint Allied meeting.
To this day, during annual remembrance ceremonies in Zeeland, Deslaurens is honoured as a symbol of courage and sacrifice. The people of Zeeland continue to express their respect and gratitude for his sacrifice - and for that of the 228 French soldiers who fell alongside him - in the defense of Zeeland. Remarkably, Deslaurens received no gallantry award, not by his own army, nor by the Dutch.
The French minesweeper FS Mardyck was heavily damaged during the final stages of the fighting in the port of Flushing. A tow line was quickly secured, and she was taken in tow by Chasseur No. 5. Although the crippled vessel managed to reach Breskens, the damage sustained below the waterline proved fatal. Shortly after arriving, she sank.
With the departure of these two vessels, the last transports left Walcheren. A substantial number of French troops on the island had been successfully evacuated, but many others had already been left behind during the preceding days. For those still wandering the island, the prospect was grim: five years of captivity lay ahead.
Throughout the night, German forces eliminated the remaining pockets of resistance. Here and there, isolated groups of Dutch and French soldiers offered brief resistance, but by the following morning the last organized opposition had disappeared. The remaining troops on Walcheren, most of them Dutch, surrendered.
Flushing had already suffered greatly during eight days of war in the skies above and, in the final stages, on the ground as well. Yet its ordeal was far from over. The brief respite that followed the German occupation would last less than a month.
Soon after the Allied withdrawal, the British government recognized that Hitler's next target would be the United Kingdom. As a result, port cities along the occupied western coastline of Europe became targets for the Royal Air Force, and Flushing was no exception. The limited bombing accuracy of the RAF during the early years of the war would exact a heavy toll on the city's civilian population. In the months that followed, hundreds of homes were destroyed and many dozens of residents lost their lives in British air raids.
Even greater suffering awaited. In 1944, this part of the Netherlands - and Walcheren in particular - would pay a terrible price for its liberation. But those events still lay more than four years in the future, beyond the scope of the story told here