HISTORY
Men came to Dartmouth not only to launch operations, but to train along the cliffs and in the coves for the tough challenges to come. They practiced their night-time climbing and landing in inaccessible coves to prepare them to getting into enemy territory undetected.
The success and failure of the Commando raids were often dictated by the information they received about their targets – good information combined with good planning meant there was greater chance of success. Operation ‘Ambassador’ in 1940 is an example of how badly things could go wrong – the Commandos landed on the wrong island, had badly damaged equipment when they got there thanks to their method of transportation (dinghy’s pulled behind larger ships) and then they failed to find any Germans to capture, the main objective of the mission! When they tried to retreat they had to swim 100 metres out to their boat as the tide had risen too high. To add insult to injury four men were left behind and became prisoners of war. Another raid, Operation ‘Basalt’ in 1942 to the island of Sark, was going to plan before disaster struck. The Dartmouth-based force had caught five German soldiers, after help from a British inhabitant of the island, and was taking them back to their boats
to return to Dartmouth, when one of the prisoners tried to raise the alarm. In the ensuing panic, the Commandos killed two. Their bodies were found with their hands tied. Hitler reacted by ordering all Commandos should be shot upon capture, whether they tried to surrender or not. However, this raid did get one prisoner back to Britain, who was described at the time as a ‘gold mine’ of information. The most infamous raid was
Operation ‘Hardtack 28’ in December 1943, again on Sark. Commandos from international allied forces were tasked with capturing the German Commandant on the island. The men were first landed needing to climb an impossible cliff to get to their target and had to return after a tricky descent in the dark. They returned two days later and succeeded in finding a way up the cliffs, only to walk straight through a minefield.
Two of the team were killed in the ensuring explosions, and only one member of the seven-man team escaped without serious injuries. However, there were also successes – Operation Fahrenheit was well planned and executed, and was responsible for the Germans’ losing confidence in their security arrangements on the Coast. Men who trained and billeted in
Dartmouth were also involved in what has become known as ‘The Greatest Raid’ on St nazaire in 1942 – when an old destroyer filled with explosives was used to demolish German dry-dock facilities. Its success would cement the reputation of the British Special Services around the world and many of those men lived and trained in and around Dartmouth.•
Motor Gun Boat
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