Dieppe Raid - August 19, 1942

[Story]

Very good article, interesting source
http://www.boxscorenews.com/the-th-anniversary-of-the-battle-of-dieppe-p906-68.htm

George Fosty is the co-author of the books: Splendid Is The Sun: The 5,000 Year History of Hockey, Black Ice: The Lost History of the Colored Hockey League of the Maritimes 1895-1925, and Footie's Black Book: A Guide To International Association Football. (World Cup Soccer 2010 Edition).

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Later Corporal Herman Keys recounted his experiences at the famous bridge that Col. Merritt and the others had crossed. According to Cpl. Keys, he had ended up under the bridge firing on German emplacements on the other side of the river. At one point, a chicken shed caught on fire next to him. He recounted how he continued to fire on the enemy with one hand holding his Bren Gun, all-the-while trying to rescue the squawking chickens from the burning building with the other hand. For a kid raised on a farm in Saskatchewan, he admitted that the whole episode was surreal. There he was, trying to kill Germans, all-the-while liberating a shed full of French chickens.

 

[MisterCairo]

Stories like that really add a human touch to war-time experiences. The ones of farm boys going out under fire to milk braying cows, rescue stranded dogs and help out locals in need.

 

[MisterCairo]

It is August 19th, and once again an important anniversary in Canadian, and indeed, Allied, military history will go virtually unnoticed.

Lest We Forget.

 

[normanpitkin]

My mothers first fiance was a canadian on the dieppe raid and was sadly killed.I still remember her story of a dance on the night of the raid with all the empty places and missing men,a terrible night for her.Not forgotten by some...

 

[MisterCairo]

That, sir, is good to know.

The following links provide graphic evidence of the extent of the casualties, and the nature of the assault:

http://members.home.nl/almeloliberated/Dieppe.htm

Photos:

http://www.google.ca/search?q=diepp...&ei=cZ5OTpHlJYitsALrxtntBg&sqi=2&ved=0CEYQsAQ


Extracts from German officers' reports after the battle:

The result and ensuing debates could not live down the sacrifice
of those who fought and the enemy was the first to admit
that the disaster was not of their doing; (the huge number of prisoners may seem to question
the value of the Canadian and British units involved in the raid.
Far from it. The enemy soldiers, mostly Canadian, proved their skill
and courage everywhere it was possible to fight? It was not their lack of courage,
but the fact that we concentrated our defensive artillery fire
and our heavy infantry weapons so much that stopped
the enemy gaining ground)
"extracts of reports written by the majors of the 81st Corps and the 302nd German Division."

 

[DNO]

A few years ago I was at a small rural auction in Orono, Ontario. I found a small "Birks" silver bar, complete with original letter and packaging that was named to a Corporal Charles Christian, Royal Regiment of Canada with a date of death of 19 August 1942. These bars were issued by the Government of Canada, together with the campaign medals, to the next-of-kin of casualties in W.W. 2. As a long time collector, I was well aware of what the R.R.C. was doing on 19 August 1942. I sat through the whole auction on tenterhooks wondering whether I had a chance to get this bar. Turned out, I must have been the only person in the auction who realized the significance of the date. I managed to obtain the bar and I still have it. The lack of interest in this amazing piece of Canadian history during the auction surprised me...and saddened me at the same time.

 

[MisterCairo]

Incredible. Have you tried to find family, or contact the regimental museum? They'd love to hear about this find.

 

[DNO]

It's been my rather sad experience that 'family' is often the least interested. I have the uniform of a Toronto man who served as a fighter pilot in the First World War (my usual collecting area)...flew Nieuport 17's. He failed to return from a noon patrol in November 1917 and spent the rest of the war as a POW...probably wearing this tunic (predates his POW status). I obtained this gem from a dealer about 30 years ago, just moments after he purchased it from the man's daughter. Same thing for a Canadian Engineers Lieutenant's uniform together with annotated trench maps of his experiences...bought from the same dealer, moments after his daughter sold it. Ditto for a lovely 3rd battalion CEF helmet...this time his daughter told us about how her father (transport officer for the 3rd bn) used to tell her that he wore the helmet at Passchendaele.

I even obtained a Waterloo Medal...for the the 1815 battle...the same way (it was for the 95th Rifles but I no longer have that one unfortunately). Frankly, it mystifies me. I really wish I had a family heirloom like that...it certainly wouldn't leave my family. Such is life, I guess.

Sorry for the rant.