DIEPPE - WORLD WAR II

DIEPPE RAID: Operation Jubilee – August 19, 1942

DIEPPE RAID – WHAT? On August 19th, 1942, 4,963 men and officers from the 2nd Canadian Division, 1,005 British commandos, 50 US rangers and 15 Frenchmen attempted an attack/invasion of German occupied France. A fleet of 237 ships and landing barges, including 6 destroyers, brought them near the seashore. In the air, Air Force bombers and fighters took part in the operation.

DIEPPE RAID – WHY? 1) Soviet leader Josef Stalin urged Britain and the USA to open a “second front” to relieve Soviet troops. 2) To test gaining a foothold on the continent so Allied ground forces could move into German occupied Europe.

DIEPPE RAID – WHY? 3) British Chief of Combined Operations, Rear Admiral Louis Mountbatten, was agitating for a practical trial beach landing, against real opposition, for his troops. 4) Why Canadian soldiers? Pressure to get them some combat experience: they had been stationed in Great Britain for two years without having ever engaged the enemy in a major operation. In Canada, public opinion was starting to question this inactivity:

Result The attack was a colossal failure. Canadian casualties: 3,367: including 1,946 taken prisoner and 907 Canadians killed The Germans remained in position and the mission was eventually criticized for its poor planning and execution.

Problems Very little pre-invasion bombing Germans were at full strength The attack was delayed due to weather conditions, even though the troops had already been briefed. It’s believed that double agents had informed the Germans of Allies’ interest in the Dieppe port The attack was to occur just before dawn: the first convoy was half-an hour late. Incoming ships were no longer covered by the darkness of night.

Problems Landing ships met a small German convoy on the way to the beach. Element of surprised eliminated: Germans were ready to fire upon the incoming ships. Communication issue led to reinforcements being sent in, thinking the original troops were making headway. Added to the slaughter

Problems Tanks were getting stuck in the rocks of the beach. The soldiers were sitting ducks General withdrawal order was given at 11am: 3367 men were left on the beach to die or be taken prisoner

Lessons learned The Dieppe fiasco demonstrated that it was imperative to improve communications at all levels: on the battlefield, between the HQs of each unit, between air, naval and ground forces. The idea of capturing a well-defended seaport to use as a bridgehead was dropped after August 19th, 1942.

Lessons In addition, the raid on Dieppe showed how important it was: to use prior air bombings to destroy enemy defenses as much as possible; to support assault troops with artillery fire from ships and landing crafts; to improve techniques and equipment to remove obstacles to men and tanks;

True sacrifice The true meaning of the sacrifices made at Dieppe was made obvious two years after this ill-fated date, when on D-Day the Allies gained a foothold in Europe to free the continent from Nazi aggression. CBC: Return to Dieppe (June,1992)