Colonel Hardy was incensed when the Royal Navy informed him by telephone that they had requisitioned his motor yacht Dab II from the canal basin at Heybridge, on the River Blackwater in Essex, to participate in Operation Dynamo. His frustration did not arise from a lack of patriotic fervour, but from the understandable feeling that he should have been given the opportunity to accompany the vessel. In fact, few owners joined the crews of the Little Ships, as most were commanded and manned by Royal Navy personnel.

Dab II was taken to Dunkirk by Lieutenant R. W. Thompson, RNVR, who crossed the English Channel three times within six days. On his final return journey, he brought back a group of Dutch soldiers from Breda, Holland, who had conducted a gallant rearguard action westward to Dunkirk, driven by the advancing German forces.

Painted battleship grey, Dab II served as a patrol boat until she was returned to Colonel Hardy. Subsequently, Hardy decided that the name Dab II was unsuitable for a vessel of her size and distinguished war record. However, believing it might be unlucky to change a ship's name entirely, he renamed her Breda, retaining all the letters of the original name while commemorating the Dutch soldiers she had rescued.

Since then, Breda has had several owners in Wales, Norfolk, and Surrey, and has cruised extensively through the French canals to the Mediterranean. Peter and Lesley Farrant used her as their home from 1974, taking her to France, Belgium, Holland, and the Channel Islands. In 1988, Breda underwent a major refit including new beams and decks. The saloon and galley were entirely renovated by Mr. Bowley, a boatbuilder based in Twickenham.

In 2017, Breda entered new ownership when Alain Lamens purchased her after spending three years restoring a 26ft William Osborne named Little Ann II. Upon learning from his father that the original boat had disappeared during the war effort and was rebuilt in 1946, Alain sought a larger project of historical significance. He decided to acquire a Dunkirk Little Ship and soon identified Breda, a 52ft Brooke of Lowestoft and a bona fide Dunkirk Little Ship, as the perfect candidate.

Unfortunately, time had been unkind to Breda. Approximately thirty years after her renovation at Twickenham, she was in a very poor state. Alain entrusted her to Dennett Boat Builders, where restoration work commenced in December 2017. The vessel was found to be rotting extensively; her planks, ribs, stringers, and beam shelves were all in desperate condition, and she had lost her entire structural integrity.

Over the course of two years, Breda underwent a comprehensive exterior and structural rebuild, restoring her original appearance. This was followed by an interior refit inspired by the Art Deco period in which she was built.

Breda made her debut with the Dunkirk Little Ships in 2021, attending most of the events and winning several awards throughout the year. She proudly carried the National Historic Flagship of the Year 2021 title awarded by the National Historic Ships Register. At the Henley Traditional Boat Festival, she won several trophies, including the prestigious Best in Show 2021 award.