Operation Jubilee (8-19-42)

43

U.S. Commandos at Dieppe admit raid looked a ‘suicide mission’

London, England (AP) – (Aug. 21)
The Commando raid on Dieppe “looked like a suicide mission” to four American Rangers, attached to Lord Lovat’s command, but, as Cpl. William R. Brady of Grand Forks, North Dakota, put it today:

Damned if we didn’t make it.

The suicide idea occurred to Brady and his companions when they were ordered to storm a 75-foot cliff, north of Dieppe. The others are:

  • Staff Sgt. Kenneth Stemson of Russell, Minnesota
  • Sgt. Alex J. Szima of Dayton, Ohio
  • Cpl. Franklin M. Koons of Swea City, Iowa.

The four said they believed they were the first United States troops to fight on French soil in this war. They believed they were ahead of other Rangers in the raid before they were assigned to a unit which was ordered to go forward and knock out a six-gun battery (apparently anti-aircraft).

They came back from the death-ridden gunports around Dieppe with undoubted admiration for British fighting qualities, and they praised the Canadians as “one hell of a fine bunch.”

Brady was in the first group to land on the beach. They scaled a cliff to knock out two German pillboxes.

He said:

It looked like a suicide mission but damned if we didn’t make it.

He continued:

I was the last man over and found the first pillbox empty.

Machine-gun bullets were spraying the ground from Nazi .50-calibre guns in another pillbox. The party halted beside the first pillbox and, as Brady said:

What the hell! We thought we’d do get the other one.

They started for it, but then paused while Bill Phinney, a British Commando, thoughtfully climbed a telegraph pole through a hail of bullets and cut the wires.

As they neared the pillbox two Spitfires came to their aid. The British planes swooped low and “neutralized” the pillbox with machine-gun bullets.

All this time, the group was under fire from German snipers.

Brady said:

We let them go ahead – we didn’t lose a man.

They moved forward then to a crossroads where they encountered a German patrol of 10 men. The group opened fire, the Americans with Garand rifles, and got five.

The others, Brady said:

…got the hell out of there.

One of the Americans said:

I believe I was scared when we had to cross a field 200 yards wide under fire.

But the British were so damned calm about it that it seemed like a manoeuvre. You can depend on them.

Stemson was in the same party which was roughly handled by the Germans.

Four of the British were killed and three wounded.

None of the Americans attached to Lord Lovat’s unit were killed and American casualties in the entire raid were light.

Koons praised the “wonderful job” done by the RAF, to cover his party’s landing. Under this cover, they reached a ravine used by bathers in happier times to get down the cliffside. There they found barbed wire with a sign in German and English reading:

Attention – Mines.

Koons said:

We figured this was a bluff, so we said “to hell with it” and went right through after blowing up some wire with a Bangalore torpedo.

The party moved about 600 yards through good cover to an orchard.

Szima said there was an anti-aircraft gun there and “we were about to fire on it.”

He said:

Any minute I thought I’d see a German helmet followed by a handful of grenades.

They found a dead German in the orchard with his chest blown away and then got ready to wipe out a German gun crew.

Szima said:

I saw them getting ready to fire at the Spitfires. I got my rifle ready when a British officer said we’d do it the quick way. So, he calls up some Bren gunners and they chopped down the gun crew.

They started firing back. My hat fell off. I bent over to pick it up and found a bullet hole in it. Then I got a bullet over my shoulder. Another hit the concrete. That guy had me picked as his meat.

Two Germans in a nearby house attacked the party.

Jim Haggerty, a British Commando, whom Szima called “the toughest guy I ever saw,” blew the German out of the window with a grenade.

All the Americans agreed that the Germans were “plenty tough” and had wonderful field craft.

The boys couldn’t say enough in praise of the British troops. They told how Sgt. Maj. Charlie Williams, with a hole blown in his back, had directed the company’s fire and how another non-commissioned officer lay with a bullet in his stomach, firing until he died.

Koons said:

You know what covering fire is. You stand there and hope to God you’ll see a German but you don’t.

At every clearing we got bullets until we reached the cliff. When we got there, we had two breaks. We heard a tremendous explosion as Lovat’s guys blew up some six-inch guns and down in the beach we saw the boats ready to take off.

Brother, they looked awfully sweet.

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44

Our own lads were there

When commando units of Canada’s overseas Army had their baptism of fire at Dieppe two famous Montreal regiments were represented, Les Fusiliers de Mont-Royal and the Black Watch (Royal 42nd Highlanders). The former acted as “floating reserves” for the raiding forces, the Black Watch detachment operating with the Royal Regiment of Toronto in the landing at Puits. It is not necessary to state that the men of both these forces carried themselves well, that they fought with courage and distinction and added new lustre to their nation’s name.

Both regiments are old and seasoned. Each has a long and splendid history, a magnificent battle tradition, and as one generation follows another under the colors of the Black Watch and Les Fusiliers de Mont-Royal they catch the spirit of the men who have gone before and are imbued with it. History has been written by both these military units, and they are writing it still. In Wednesday’s raid, the French Canadians, placed in what has been described as a “hell spot,” acquitted themselves with conspicuous gallantry and skill. Montreal is justly proud of these splendid soldiers and of their achievement. They have set a memorable example, one that must inevitably make its appeal to all brave hearts.

The casualty lists are beginning to come. Canada was warned that they would be heavy. Deep grief, the sense of abiding loss, is being brought into many Canadian homes. It was so in the last war and is so in all wars. Bit with this grief there is a pride which comforts and supports, a pride in the knowledge that these husbands, fathers, sons and brothers have given to their country the “last great measure of devotion,” that there can be no greater sacrifice, no finer passing.

45

Father wants to join son who saw Dieppe

Winnipeg, Alberta (CP) – (Aug. 21)
J. J. Horton, 48, Great War veteran and father of a member of the Queen’s Own Highlanders who took part in the commando raid on Dieppe, applied today for enlistment in the Army “to be right behind” his son. He has received no word from his son, Victor, since the raid.

46

Völkischer Beobachter (August 23, 1942)

Britische Darstellung des Unternehmens bei Dieppe –
Fünf Landungsversuche – fünf Niederlagen

Von unserer Stockholmer Schriftleitung

Stockholm, 22. August –
Nach und nach gehen die englischen Stellen die genauen Einzelheiten über ihr gescheitertes Invasionsunternehmen bei Dieppe bekannt. Im ganzen wurden fünf verschiedene Landungen vorgenommen, von denen eine von vornherein vollständig mlßglückte und-die anderen vier zu keinem anderen Ergebnis führten, als daß sich die an Land gebrachten Truppen nur einige Stunden hindurch halten konnten, ehe sie nach starken Verlusten an Menschen und Material ihr Heil in der Flucht suchen mußten.

Die erste Kommandoabteilung, bestehend aus kanadischen Truppen, hatte den Auftrag, eine Batterie bei Berneval, siehen Kilometer nordöstlich von Dieppe, zu nehmen. 20 Minuten vor der Landung wurde jedoch die herankommende Barkasse von einem deutschen Patrouillenfahrzeug entdeckt und sofort von einer Anzahl von Flakfahrzeugen und Schnellbooten angegriffen. Als die Soldaten trotzdem noch versuchten‚ an Land zu kommen, standen sie einer undurchdringlichen „Feuerkulisse“ gegenüber. „Die VerIuste waren groß“, heißt es in einer schwedischen Wiedergabe der offiziellen englischen Verlautbarung,

…und die Tatsache, daß.die Batterie nicht genommen werden konnte, war ein großer Strich durch die Rechnung. Die Batterie spielte nämlich noch eine bedeutende Rolle bei den späteren Kämpfen und erschwerte das Unternehmen.

Auch das Royal Regiment of Canada, das zwischen Dieppe und Berneval bei Le Puits landen sollte, wurde von dem Feuer der deutschen Küstenwacht überrumpelt. Der erste Landungsversuch wurde mit sehr großen Verlusten für die Angreifer zurückgeschIagen und die nächsten Angriffe wurden von dem gesammelten Feuer aller in diesem Abschnitt vorhandenen Waffen empfangen.

Das South Saskatchewan Regiment unternahm die dritte Landung in Porville zwischen Varangeville und Dieppe. Eine andere Gruppe unter dem persönlichen Befehl von Lord Lovat, eines Kommandounterfiihrers von Lord Mountbatten, hatte den Auftrag, bei Varangeville an Land zu gehen und zu versuchen, eine Batteriestellung in der Nähe zu nehmen. Ungefähr zur gleichen Zeit‚ da die Panzerwagen an Land rollten, unternahmen Verbände, bestehend aus dem Royal Hamilton Light Infantry Regiment aus Ontario und dem gleichfalls aus Ontario kommenden Canadian-Essex-Scotch-Regimenteinen Vorstoß gegen die zentralen Küstenverteidigungsstellungen. Durch die Bernevaler Geschütze aber‚ die ununterbrochen in Tätigkeit waren, wurden sie daran gehindert. Abteilungen der Royal Canadian Engencers wurden gleiehfalls gelandet, um den Panzerwageneinheiten den Weg zu bereiten.

Aus dieser Darstellung geht klar hervor, daß die frühere englische Behauptung kanadische Truppen hätten nur ein Drittel der gesamten Landungsstreitkräfte ausgemacht, kaum stimmen kann. Außer der unter dem Befehl Lord Lovats stehenden englischen Abteilung waren, diesem Bericht zufolge, ausschließlich kanadische Regimenter an den Operationen beteiligt. England hat also auch diesmal wieder seine übliche Taktik angewandt, bei allen schwierigen und Verluste versprechenden Unternehmungen die Truppen der Insel zurückzuhalten und die Dominionsoldaten vorauszuschicken.

47

Dieppe gilt nicht als Ratenzahlung –
Moskau fordert jetzt erst recht die zweite Front

Das Weltinteresse unvermindert bei der Ostfront

vb. Wien, 22. August –
Nach dem schnellen militärischen Ende seiner Invasion auf dem europäischen Kontinent hatte Churchill sich der Hoffnung hlngegeben, das verlustreiche Abenteuer wenigstens in politische Münze umsetzen zu können, das Interesse der Welt von der ungünstigen Lage seiner bolschewistischen Bundesgenossen abzulenken und in Moskau sowohl mit der Kraftanstrengung Großbritanniens wie mit ihrem Echo günstigen Eindruck zu machen. Auch darin ist der englische Ministerpräsident sehr enttäuscht worden. Man ist allgemein über die kurzlebige zweite Front bei Dieppe schon zur Tagesordnung zurückgekehrt, die nach wie vor vom günstigen Ablauf der deutschen Operationen an der Ostfront beherrscht wird, und Moskau zeigt sich infolgedessen so ungnädig, von dem Einsatz der Briten am Kanal kaum Notiz zu nehmen, statt dessen jedoch mlt vermehrter Lautstärke die zweite Front in wirksamerer Form zu fordern.

Die britische Offentlichkeit darf, wenn das allgemeine Interesse an Churchills dilettantischer Strategie so schnell nachläßt, selbstverständlich das Thema Dieppe noch nicht ruhen lassen‚ und die Londoner Zeitungen sind darum eifrig bemüht, die blutige Abfuhr ihrer Invasionstruppen mit erfundenen Erfolgen am Rande der schnellen und harten Auseinandersetzung zu verkleiden. Sie sind dabei mit typisch britischer Unverschämtheit nicht bescheiden und tun so, als hätten sie in dem pausenlosen Feuer der deutschen Küstenbatterien, in dem blitzschnellen Zugriff der deutschen Luftwaffe und in der Standfestigkeit der deutschen Infanterie Veranlassung zu langatmigen militärischen Überlegungen gehabt, die auf künftige Möglichkeiten englischer Angriffe abzielen. Da ihrer ganzen blassen Theorie aber die einfache Tatsache gegenübersteht, daß ihr großer Angriffsapparat in unglaublich kurzer Zeit restlos zusammengeschlagen war, verfangen die zahllosen „Wenn“ und „Aber" selbst bei jenen Ausländern schon nicht, die von der englischen Insel her als wohlwollend neutral angesehen werden.

Auch bei den Bundesgenossen hat Churchill die Resonanz auf seine verlustreiche Anstrengung schnell verloren. Die Amerikaner haben den Kopf voller Sorgen um den pazifischen Raum, vorzugsweise um die Salomoninseln, und die Bolschewisten zeigen wieder einmal mehr Wirklichkeitssinn als ihre britischen Freunde, indem sie den Blick nach wie vor von ihrer bedrohlichen Lage an der Südfront nicht abwenden. Man denkt in Moskau nicht daran‚ die lnvasion bei Dieppe als ausreichenden Beitrag zur gemeinsamen Kriegführung zu betrachten und fordert im Gegenteil mit zunehmender Schärfe eine wirksame Entlastung. Für das wortreiche englische Kommuniqué hat der Moskauer Rundfunk kaum Zeit gehabt, doch verbreitet er in zunehmender Zahl Meldungen des lnhalts, daß unter dem Druck der Massen in England und in den USA. die Sterilität der Regierungen der Aktivität der Straße nachgebe’n müsse. Diese Moskauer Nachrichtenpolitik arbeitet natürlich nach zwei Seiten insoweit, als den Briten damit die mangelnde Anerkennung ihrer Anstrengungen durch Stalin bescheinigt, den Sowjetrussen aber gleichzeitig auch das nachhaltige Fiasko der britischen Bundesgenossen verschwiegen wird, mit deren Hilfsversprechen man die Völker der Sowjetunion bisher über die eigenen Niederlagen hinweggetröstet hat. Diesem Druck auf England und der Täuschung der Sowjetbürger dient etwa eine in den Vereinigten Staaten schon aufgegriffene Meldung aus Moskau, daß die Errichtung einer zweiten Front in Europa zu einem viel früheren Zeitpunkt beginnen würde, als man es in Deutschland ahne – daß inzwischen das erste Aufgebot der britischen anasion bei Dieppe folgenschwer zusammengebrochen ist, übersieht Moskau geflissentlich.

Gegen die schwammigen Diskussionen der feindlichen Agitation steht die nüchterne Sprache des Wehrmachtberichts, in dem nicht Möglichkeiten erörtert und Betrachtungen angestellt, sondern Tatsachen mitgeteilt Werden. Wieder sind beim weiteren Vorriicken an der Südfront zwei Orte von unseren Truppen mit stürmender Hand genommen worden. Auch jenseits der deutschen Grenzen ist man von der entscheidungsschwangeren Wichtigkeit unserer Operationen auf dem Südflügel der Ostfront überzeugt und legt eine gewisse sprachliche Zurückhaltung der deutschen Berichte, wie etwa die Neue Zürcher Zeitung schreibt, nicht in dem Sinne aus, als ob die Intensität der Kampfhandlungen nachgelassen habe, sondern daß sich hinter dem Schleier der deutschen Schweigetaktik neue strategische Entscheidungen anbahnen.

Ein Blick auf die OKW.-Meldungen bestätigt, daß die Kampftätigkeit im Osten in Abwehr und Angriff unvermindert anhält und daß die Sowjetarmeen mit ihrem Druck auf die deutschen Stellungen am Ilmensee, am Wolchow und bei Rschew verlustreich erfolglos bleiben, während der deutsche Vorstoß im Süden unablässig weiter Raum gewinnt. Selbst englische Stimmen müssen den Schwerpunkt der kriegerischen Auseinandersetzung im Osten feststellen. Der militärische Korrespondent der Zeitung Evening Standard zum Beispiel berichtet, daß die Russen nach eigenem Eingeständnis seit dem 15. Mai 2000 Panzer, 3000 Geschütze und 2000 Flugzeuge verloren haben. Die Zahlen bleiben hinter den wirklichen Verlusten der Sowjets zwar zurück, beeinflussen den Engländer aber doch zu der betrübten Bemerkung:

Das sieht nicht so aus, als ob die Russen den Deutschen überlegen wären.

Um die bolschewiotiuhen Mahnungen nach einem effektiven englischen Einsatz zu kontern, werden der Times Sätze gestattet, die sich der deutschen Auffassung ziemlich nähern. Während Stalin Herrn Churchill an seine feierlich übernommenen Verpflichtuugen erinnert, macht das Londoner Blatt umgekehrt den Moskauern klar, was man an der Themse von ihnen erwartet. Es schreibt:

Was sich auch irgendwo anders abspielt oder abspielen wird, es läßt sich nicht leugnen, daß der Hauptkriegsschauplatz Rußland ist und zweifellos noch in Zukunft eine Zeitlang bleiben wird.

Die Lage auf diesem Kriegsschauplatz wird in der Times mit dem Satz charakterisiert:

Engländer und Amerikaner können nicht damit rechnen, daß der Widerstand der Sowjets ohne zunehmende Unterstützung unendlich andauert. Denken wir daran, daß Rußland die wichtigste Front ist.

So will sich Churchill für seine Niederlage bei Dieppe entschuldigen lassen, so will Moskau den kostspieligen Start zur Invasion des Kontinents gerne übersehen. Die Situation zwischen den beiden Bundesgenossen hat sich also in nichts geändert, und man darf als lachender Dritter bei diesem Widerstreit beider Meinungen über den Kriegsverlauf wohl fragen, was für ein Ergebnis Churchills sensationell gemachte Reise nach Moskau eigentlich gezeigt hat?

48

Brooklyn Eagle (August 23, 1942)

Allied fliers blast Germans in Dieppe ruins

U.S. fighters roar across – ‘ruthless’ raids predicted

London, England (UP) – (Aug. 22)
Daylight bombings of Berlin by American Flying Fortresses “in the near future” was predicted in responsible quarters today as Allied fighter planes returned to Dieppe and attacked German crews repairing the wreckage of Wednesday’s Commando raid.

British Air Minister Sir Archibald Sinclair, describing the rapid increase in American air strength based in the British Isles, stated in a speech tonight that American airmen will soon be joining “ruthless” 1,000-plane raids on the heart of Germany.

While the Allied fighter pilots – British, Canadians, Poles and others – struck in a sudden attack at battered Dieppe, American fighters went into action over Northern France, roaring across the English Channel at house-top level.

German troops strafed

Targets in occupied Belgium were also attacked in the daylight sweeps of the Spitfire pilots, as were four factories in Northern France, airdromes, railroad yards and columns of marching German troops.

Four Canadian pilots, sweeping down on Dieppe at less than 1,000 feet, shot up a gun position on the eastern side of the coastal city where their comrades of the Canadian Commandos played such a leading role in Wednesday’s nine-hour attack. Wireless masts were also attacked.

Pilots who flew over the gun positions said they:

…looked to be well burned out.

Gun positions not manned

The Air Ministry said some of the gun positions were not manned ands that a single anti-aircraft gun post, which put up virtually the only opposition, was silenced.

Into the promised 1,000-plane thrusts at the heart of Germany will be thrown fast new, secret fighters, informed observers predicted, including 500-mile-an-hour Tornadoes and Typhoons which have not yet gone into action against the Luftwaffe.

Air circles believed it was possible Germany might be suffering a plane shortage, in view of the delayed appearance of Nazi fighter planes during the Wednesday Dieppe raid ands reports from Moscow that a shortage of enemy planes had resulted in a considerable reduction of raids against the rear of Soviet lines.

Moscow reported that the Germans were unable to bring up aerial reserves when large numbers of planes were required to support ground operations.

49

Völkischer Beobachter (August 24, 1942)

Bumerangspiel zwischen Bolschewisten und Plutokraten –
Moskau über die deutsche Stärke im Westen bestürzt

London fragt: Wann hören die bolschewistischen Rückzüge auf?

Stockholm, 23. August –
Wie es nach den Moskauer Verhandlungen Churchills mit Stalin nicht anders zu erwarten war, nahm die Bevölkerung der Sowjetunion trotz gegenteiliger Bemühungen amtlicher Stellen den britischen Landungsversuch bei Dieppe für die in Moskau von Stalin erzwungene Errichtung der zweiten Front. Das geht aus einem Bericht des Moskauer Berichterstatters der Sunday Times, Alexander Werth, hervor, in dem es heißt, daß die Bolschewisten dem Unternehmen „leider mehr“ Bedeutung beimaßen, als man ihm jetzt in London zugestehen will, und daß sie sich‚ als sie die kurze Mitteilung darüber, die klein und unauffällig auf der letzten Seite der Moskauer Zeitungen untergebracht war, lasen, schließlich damit trösten mußten,

…daß wenigstens irgend etwas im Westen im Gange sei.

Im übrigen sei man in Moskau über die deutsche Stärke im Westen äußerst überrascht gewesen und die Berichte über die schweren Verluste bei diesem Angriff bei Dieppe hätten Erstaunen erweckt, da man angesichts der kraitvollen deutschen Operationen im Osten der Uberzeugung gewesen sei, daß die Deutschen den Westen von Truppen hätten entblößen müssen.

In seinem Bericht geht Alexander Werth auch auf die großen Kampfwagenverluste der Bolschewisten ein. „Die Sowjetrussen haben in den letzten drei Monaten mehr Kampfwagen verloren“, meint er darin, „als die Alliierten der Sowjetunion liefern können.“ Auch der Moskauer Korrespondent von Reuter sieht sich zu besorgten Feststellungen veranlaßt. Anscheinend will er die englische Offentlichkeit darauf vorbereiten, daß die Sowjetunion doch nicht der standhafte Bundem die Alliierten die Hauptlast des Krieges aufbürden können‚ bis sie sich selbst in der Lage sehen, ohne allzu großes Risiko für sich selbst eingreifen zu können. Denn in seinem Bericht führt er an, daß die Regierung der Sowjetunion schon jetzt gezwungen sei, einen sehr schweren Winter anzukündigen. „Die wirtschaftlichen und territorialen Verluste, die das Land erlitten hat“, schreibt er‚

…müssen unausweichliche Prüfungen mit sich führen, die viel härter sein werden als im vergangenen Winter.

Auch die Londoner Presse beschäftigt sich jetzt wieder mit der immer schwieriger werdenden Lage in der Sowjetunion. Der Londoner Berichterstatter der schwedischen Zeitung Dagens Nyheter meint, daß man sich allgemein frage, wann die Sowjets endlich ihre „Rückzugstaktik“ beendigen werden. Stalins Tagesbefehl, sich nunmehr nicht mehr weiter zurückzuziehen, deute zwar auf eine Änderung der bisherigen bolschewistischen „Strategie“ hin, doch sei man in London sehr darüber beunruhigt, daß man so gar nichts Genaues über die sowjetrussischen Reserven an Soldaten, Material und Transportmittel wisse. Es läge nach der Meinung englischer Sachverständiger eine große Gefahr darin, daß die Sowjetrussen mehr und mehr bis an die äußersten Grenzen des europäischen Transportsystems gedrängt wurden und die Wolga ihnen als einziger bisher noch intakter Verkehrsweg übrigbleiben werde.

50

Zum deutschen Sieg bei Dieppe –
Glückwünsche Pétains und Lavals

dnb. Paris, 23. August –
Der Oberbefehlshaber West erhielt vom Militärbefehlshaber in Frankreich folgendes Telegramm:

Marschall Pétain und Regierungschef Laval haben durch Botschafter de Brinon gebeten, dem deutschen Oberkommando in Frankreich Glückwünsche zu dem Abwehrerfolg der deutschen Truppen und zu der schnellen Säuberung des französischen Bodens zu übermitteln.

Der Oberbefehlshaber West hat mit folgendem Telegramm geantwortet:

Der Oberbefehlshaber West dankt dern Marschall Pétain und dem Regierungschef Laval für die Glückwünsche zu dem schnellen und vollständigen Abwehrerfolg gegenüber dem angelsächsischen Landungsversuch bei Dieppe am 19. August. Das Verhalten der Bevölkerung verdient besondere Anerkennung. In Dieppe herrscht völlige Ruhe. Schon am Nachmittag des Angriffstages gingen alle Geschäfte wieder ihren gewohnten Gang.

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51

The Gazette (August 24, 1942)

BRIGADIER W. W. SOUTHAM, LEADER OF DIEPPE LANDING, IS PRISONER, NAZIS REPORT
Was first ashore

Tank-carrying barge hit by shell just after he left it

Roberts’ craft hit

Headquarters destroyer hit by Nazi bomber during raid; casualties now 418

London, England (CP Cable) – (Aug. 23)
Brig. W. W. Southam of Toronto, whose capture by the enemy at Dieppe was reported tonight by DNB, the German news agency, directed the man Canadian attack on the town from start to finish.

A Reuters News Agency dispatch from the continent quoted the German news agency DNB as announcing that Brig. Southam was taken prisoner in last week’s raid on Dieppe.

DNB was quoted as saying that 105 officers were taken prisoner, including two colonels and 14 staff officers.

He landed on the beach at Dieppe under fierce fire and remained in wireless communication with the force headquarters of Maj. Gen. J. H. Roberts of Kingston, Ontario, throughout the battle.

The brigadier went onto the beach in a tank-landing craft with assault troops at dawn. All the tanks were landed from his craft and as he was about to go down the side, he shouted to the men behind him:

All right, boys, here we go. We’ll see this thing through.

Just then, a shell burst inside the craft, causing some casualties but Brig. Southam pushed on. Some of his staff reached him on the beach later and they got behind the seawall on the western end of the beach held by the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry.

Used car wireless

The brigadier’s wireless set was set up but he found a scout car belonging to the Calgary Tank Regiment with a strong wireless set and he opened communications with force headquarters with this set.

Maj. Arthur Fraser of Ottawa, who was aboard the force-headquarters destroyer, said:

His voice was exceedingly cheerful throughout. There wasn’t a quaver in it and occasionally he would make some wisecrack. He was the same old boy through it all.

We kept in contact with the brigadier all the time and between one and two o’clock he sent a message saying he could see some troops surrounded and out of ammunition down the beach and they were surrendering.

It is believed that Brig. Southam firmly established his headquarters in the Casino at the west end of the beach.

Brig. Sherwood Lett of Vancouver was also scheduled to go ashore and establish another headquarters but he couldn’t make it. He was in a tank-landing craft that touched on the beach but it was hit several times by shells and machine-gun fire that prevented anyone from getting out.

The craft was literally blown off the beach and the same thing happened when another attempt was made to land. Brig. Lett was evacuated and brought back to England. He is now in hospital.

Brig. Southam, a member of the noted Canadian publishing family, was appointed last Jan, 15 to command a brigade of the Canadian Army Overseas and was promoted from lieutenant colonel to brigadier. He had previously been office commanding the 48th Highlanders of Canada, a Toronto unit.

The 40-year-old soldier is a son of the late Richard Southam of Toronto. He joined the 48th in 1922 after his graduation from Royal Military College. He reached the rank of major in 1939 and, six months later, became second in command when the battalion was mobilized for active service.

In Sept. 1940, he was appointed commander of the battalion and promoted lieutenant colonel.

Before the war, Brig. Southam was vice president and managing director of Southam Press, Toronto, Ltd. In 1924, he was married to Dorothy Rodgers of Toronto. They have three daughters.

The destroyer used by Maj. Gen. John H. Roberts of Kingston, Ontario, as headquarters from which he directed the raid on Dieppe was hit several times by Nazi bombers, it was disclosed tonight.

Gen. Roberts directed the raid by wireless signals from the cabin of the destroyer’s captain and the bridge. The vessel cruised up and down before Dieppe during the operation and sometimes it was only a few hundred yards off shore.

It was under fire from German shore batteries as well as German planes.

Casualties stand at 418

Ottawa (CP) – (Aug. 23)
National Defence Headquarters tonight released the fifth Army casualty list since the battle of Dieppe and it contained the names of 183 men, 182 of them wounded and one “wounded and missing.”

This brought the total casualties reported since the battle to 418. An official count of the lists shows 79 killed, 313 wounded and 26 missing. These totals are subject to a margin of error because of possible duplication of names in succeeding lists.

The total number of men reported killed and missing by the Army since the start of the war now stands at 872.

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52

Nazis report Pétain lauds them on Dieppe

Berne, Switzerland – (Aug. 23)

Marshal Henri Philippe Pétain and Pierre Laval, Chief of Government, have requested Fernand de Brinon to transmit to the German High Command their congratulations on the successful repulse by German troops, ands the rapid clearing up of French territory.

This is a literal translation of a text from Paris issued here and credited to the DNB. The text is described as being that of a telegram sent by the Commander-in-Chief of German forces in France rto the Commander-in-Chief of the German Army in the West. De Brinon is delegate general of the Vichy government in occupied territory with the rank of ambassador. The general allusion, of course, was to the British raid on Dieppe last week.

The telegram’s implications, if correct, are obviously far-reaching since Vichy claims to be neutral or at least non-belligerent.

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Dieppe raid clearly worthwhile, McNaughton tells Premier King

Ottawa (CP) – (Aug. 23)
The Dieppe raid was a “resounding blow” struck I the just cause and the results were clearly worthwhile, said Lt. Gen. A. G. L. McNaughton, Canadian Corps commander overseas, in a message to Prime Minister Mackenzie King release today.

The commander was replying to a cable sent him by the Prime Minister Aug. 20 expressing sympathy with the wounded and the families of those wounded and lost in the raid, and assuring the continued determination and support of the government and Canadian people.

The operation was a memorable exploit and Canada could well be proud of the courage and skill shown by the men who took part, Gen. McNaughton said. A “heavy price” in casualties had been paid.

His message follows:

Your cable of Aug. 20 has been communicated to command 1st Canadian Corps, command 2nd Canadian Division and all ranks Canadian military forces engaged in Dieppe operation and on their behalf, I express their deep appreciation for the stirring message of confidence which you have given on behalf of the government and people of Canada.

The operation was indeed a memorable exploit and Canada can well be very proud of the courage and skill shown by her men who took part. It marks we hope the opening of a new phase in the struggle against Nazi tyranny in Europe. We have had to pay a heavy price in casualties but a powerful and resounding blow has been struck in the just cause for which we fight and the results are clearly well worthwhile.

We deeply appreciate your understanding sympathy with the wounded and with the families of those whom we have lost. We appreciate too the assurance of continued determination and support of the government and people of Canada. We have faith and every confidence that this is so and that it will endure however long and bitter the struggle may prove to be.

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54

David O’Keefe (@okeefehistorian) Tweeted:
#wehavewayspod Ultra Secret report that changed our understanding of intent behind Dieppe. Declassified in 1995, it directly connects pinch of 4Rotor Enigma material to raid and need to cover it. https://twitter.com/okeefehistorian/status/1430173949091008517/photo/1

Interesting theory by David O’Keefe. He is a Canadian historian who has several books on the subject in general.

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55

Brooklyn Eagle (August 24, 1942)

Got Nazi, says Ranger who fired first shot

Soldier from Iowa corn belt credited with initial U.S. crack at foe on continent

London, England (UP) –
Franklin Koons, a 23-year-old farm boy from the Iowa hog and corn country, moved up to a crack in the old French stable wall, poked his rifle through and pulled the trigger.

Today Cpl. Koons was credited by his commanders with firing the first American shot on European soil in World War II.

Koons is a member of the American Rangers and he participated in the Dieppe attack last week. But not until he got back to Britain and the reports of the Americans in the attack were checked did he know he had fired the first shot.

Koons went ashore on the Dieppe coast with three other American Rangers. They moved up under cover of a gully toward their objective – a Nazi coastal battery – and encountered some sniping from the Germans.

Sure he got one ‘Jerry’

Here, in Koon’s own words, is how the first shot was fired:

I took refuge in a stable and began sniping back, firing through a crack from a standing position. I fired quite a number of rounds at odd, stray Jerries who sometimes appeared, and I am pretty sure I got one of them.

There were three other Americans in his group and while he has been officially credited with firing the first shot, his companions also fired at about the same time.

With Koons, when the invasion barge grated on the Dieppe beach were Staff Sgt. Ken Stempson, 25, a former railroad employee at Russell, Minnesota; Sgt. Alex Szima, 22 a former bartender at Dayton, Ohio, and Cpl. Bill Brady, 23, a magazine salesman from Grand Forks, North Dakota.

Koons was reared on a fark and before he went into the Army, he was a livestock auctioneer and farmer.

Addressed by Mountbatten

Before the raid, the men were addressed by Lord Louis Mountbatten, head of the Commandos. Koons said he didn’t have any fears about the assignment after that and slept soundly until just before the order to the boats was given.

He said:

I went to sleep again during the Channel crossing and was awakened by shore fire by the Germans. We landed on French soil after wading 30 or 40 yards through the surf.

After the party accomplished its missing, it began a rearguard action as it dropped back to the beach behind the shelter of hedges, Koons said.

The party was under heavy gunfire and some were killed. The dead were left in France but the wounded were carried along to the water-edge, where the party seized a small boat. They placed the wounded aboard and then pulled into the Channel, where they waited for a boat to return them to Britain.

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56

The Gazette (August 25, 1942)

Nazi losses estimated at 4,000 by Frenchman back from Dieppe

London, England (CP Cable) – (Aug. 24)
The commander of the Fighting French commandos participating in the Dieppe raid estimated today that the Germans lost 4,000 men, including flying personnel.

The commander, who was identified in a statement from the Fighting French Headquarters as “a big Alsatian who before the war worked five years in a New York bank,” said his estimate of the losses was “purely personal.”

The commander said the Fighting French losses, which were slight, were suffered mostly before landing at Dieppe when a heavy Nazi shell exploded on one of the landing boats.

He told how the Frenchmen were exempted at their own request from the order that the troops wear steel helmets so that they could exhibit to the German defenders the red pompoms on their naval caps, which they wore under the battledress. They also rejected suggestions that they remove the “France” tags from the shoulders.

The commander said:

There were not many of our men on the raid, but at least they were everywhere. We had groups at Varengeville, Dieppe and Berneval.

I think our men enjoyed themselves best at Varengeville on the right flank, where a German battery was silenced and an entire Nazi garrison of 200 men were killed or taken prisoner.

A Breton lieutenant, 27, said:

When we stepped on French soil, it was a thrilling moment – thrilling for everybody but something special for us.

Canadian losses now at 536

Ottawa (CP) – (Aug. 24)
The unofficial count of Canadian Army casualties resulting from last Wednesday’s battle of Dieppe was lifted to 536 early tonight with the issuance of the seventh National Defence Department casualty list since the raid.

Tonight’s list contained the names of 17 men, one of whom had been reported previously. This added to today’s sixth list of 102 names and the previous unofficial total of 418, berings the figure up to 536, of whom 82 were killed, 330 wounded and 124 missing. The count is subject to a margin of error because of possible repetition of names in previous lists.

The total of Canadian soldiers reported dead and missing since the start of the conflict was brought to 973 with the issuance of tonight’s list – the 131st casualty list of the war.

…

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57

Völkischer Beobachter (August 26, 1942)

Von Rundstedt auf den Kampfstätten –
Auszeichnung der Sieger von Dieppe

Im Anschluß an eine Besichtigung der deutschen Kampfstellungen bei Dieppe, bei der sich der Oberbefehlshaber West‚ Generalfeldmarschall von Rundstedt, von der unverminderten Stärke der deutschen Küstenverteidigung und von dem Fortgang der Arbeiten an den im Bau befindlichen Befestigungen überzeugte, verlieh der Generalfeldmarschall den ersten 100 Offizieren, Unteroffizieren und Mannschaften, die sich während des Abwehrkampfes bei Dieppe besonders bewährt hatten, Eiserne Kreuze.

Im Garten einer deutschen Befehlsstelle waren die zum Eisernen Kreuz Vorgeschlagenen Soldaten zur Meldung beim Oberbefehlshaber angetreten. Generalfeldmarschall von Rundstedt betonte in einer knappen soldatischen Ansprache, daß die höchste Auszeichnung für die Kämpfer von Dieppe die Anerkennung des Führers gewesen sei‚ die der Oberste Befehlshaber der Wehrmacht telegraphisch übermittelt habe. Nicht vergessen werden sollen in Dankbarkeit und Treue diejenigen, die ihr Leben am Strand von Dieppe in die Waagschale warfen. Der 19. August habe gezeigt, daß sich der Führer auf seine Westkämpfer verlassen könne.

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The Gazette (August 26, 1942)

Speaking of sacrifice

Screenshot 2021-08-28 111917

EDITOR’S NOTE: In publishing a cartoon on the front page, The Gazette departs from its usual practice in the belief that John Collins, in the above work, drives home to the Canadian people in their hour of greatest need, essential truths in a more striking manner than mere words could do.

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59

Eleventh list brings unofficial total Dieppe casualties to 608

Brig. William W. Southam is definitely a war prisoner

Ottawa (CP) – (Aug. 25)
The unofficial total of Canadian (active) Army casualties in the battle of Dieppe advanced to 608 with the issuance early tonight by National Defence Headquarters of the 10th and 11th casualty lists since the raid.

The two lists released simultaneously – brought to four the number issued today.

The 10th, made up of warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and privates, listed six names while the 11th list, confined to officers, reported 18 names, making a total of 24. Today’s eighth list had 28 names and the ninth, 22 names. Preceding lists had reported 536 men. These figures are subject to a margin of error because of possible repetition of names iun succeeding lists.

Tonight’s 11th list reported Brig. William Wallace Southam of Toronto, one of the three Canadian officers commanding in the battle, as a prisoner of war/. He previously had been reported as prisoner by a German new agency.

Of the 608 casualties reported since Dieppe, 93 are dead, 390 wounded and 125 missing.

The total number of men reported dead and missing by the Army since the start of the war now stands at 983.

The 11th list, in addition to Brig. Southam, reported on two lieutenant colonels, one major, four captains and 10 lieutenants. They Came from the Regiment de Quebec, the Central Ontario Regiment, the Manitoba Regiment, the Saskatchewan Regiment and the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps.

Those in the 10th list were from the Quebec Regiment, the Central Ontario Regiment, the Manitoba Regiment and the Saskatchewan Regiment.

Today’s eighth list reported one man killed in action, two died of wounded, two seriously wounded, one dangerously wounded, 21 wounded and one safe who was previously reported missing, while the ninth list had three men killed in action, two seriously wounded and 17 wounded.

The senior officers in the 11th list include Lt. Col. Alfred Capel Gostling, Winnipeg, of the Manitoba Regiment, and Lt. Col. Dollard Menard, Quebec, of the Regiment de Quebec. Col. Gostling was killed in action and Col. Menard is wounded.

Also listed is Capt. Erskine Robert Eaton of Toronto, internationally-known horseman, who was a member of the Regiment de Quebec. He had lived in Montreal for several years prior to the outbreak of the war and enlisted in October 1939. He was killed in action.

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Lt. S. Ryerson killed

Toronto, Ontario (CP) – (Aug. 25)
Lt. Sterling Ryerson, 29, of Toronto, was officially reported killed in action during the Dieppe raid, it was learned today. He was a grandson of the late Maj. Gen. George Sterling Ryerson, founder of the Canadian Red Cross. Lt. Ryerson was a grandnephew of Sir William Mulock, former Ontario Chief Justice, who today extended his sympathy to the family.

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Dieppe people ‘rewarded’

Berlin, Germany (AP) – (from German broadcasts, Aug. 25)
Hitler, “in appreciation of the attitude of the population of Dieppe” during the Canadian-led raid of Aug. 19, today ordered the release of all French war prisoners whose homes are in or near the old French town.

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Gain rich information

London, England (CP Cable) – (Aug. 25)
The success of the Dieppe raid must be assessed by the value of the information obtained and not by the material damage inflicted on the enemy, Lt. Gen. Sir Douglas Brownrigg, military critic for the London Evening News and former military secretary for the War Office, wrote tonight in an analysis of the results of the expedition.

He wrote:

Military history teems with such adventures [as Dieppe]. They often have been necessary but always have been expensive. They are expensive because they are launched with the main object of fighting for information which cannot be obtained any other way.

He said the raid achieved its purpose of forcing the Germans to disclose their plans for defence against invasion and, in particular, showing what air forces they could muster for such a defence.