Operation Collar (commando raid)

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Operation Collar
Part of
Stella Plage
Berck
Le Touquet
Result Inconclusive
Belligerents  United Kingdom  GermanyCommanders and leaders Major Ronnie Tod UnknownStrength 115 officers and other ranks UnknownCasualties and losses One wounded Two dead

Operation Collar was the

Second World War. The location selected for the raid was the Pas-de-Calais department on the French coast. The British Commandos had not long been formed and were not yet trained and the operation was given to No. 11 Independent Company under the command of Major Ronnie Tod
.

The raid's objective was the reconnaissance of four locations and the capture of prisoners. Over the night of 24/25 June 1940, 115 men of No. 11 Independent Company carried out the operation but they failed to gather any intelligence or damage German equipment; their only success was in killing two German sentries.[1]

Background

After the

Dunkirk in 1940, Prime Minister Winston Churchill called for a force to be assembled and equipped to inflict casualties on the Germans and bolster British morale. Churchill told the joint Chiefs of Staff to propose measures for an offensive against German-occupied Europe, and stated: "They must be prepared with specially trained troops of the hunter class who can develop a reign of terror down the enemy coast."[1]

One staff officer,

First World War.[2]

In 1940, the call went out for volunteers from among the serving Army soldiers within certain formations still in Britain, and men of the disbanding divisional

Norwegian Campaign.[nb 1] By the autumn of 1940 more than 2,000 men had volunteered for commando training.[4]

Under pressure from Winston Churchill to start raiding operations, Combined Operation Headquarters devised Operation Collar. The objective of Collar was to be a reconnaissance of the French coast and to capture prisoners. The raid was to take place just three weeks after

British Commandos were not yet adequately trained and most units were still short of troops. An independent company of those which were being absorbed into the commandos was selected. The unit chosen was No. 11 Independent Company, under the command of Major Ronnie Tod of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.[3] No. 11 Company had been raised after the other Independent Companies on 14 June 1940. They were formed by asking for volunteers from the men already serving in the other companies and had an establishment of 25 officers and 350 other ranks.[3]

Mission

Having been selected to carry out the first commando raid on

Newhaven.[3][7]

The raid would be carried out by 115 officers and other ranks, who were divided into four groups.

Stella Plage, Berck and Le Touquet.[5] They were to spend no more than 80 minutes ashore before returning to their boats.[5] The RAF boats were not equipped for a mission like this and lacked exact navigation equipment and the compasses were known to be unreliable. Crossing the channel they also came to the notice of patrolling RAF aircraft who, not being aware of the mission, came in close to investigate. At around 02:00 hours on 24 June 1940, the boats reached France and put their men ashore.[7]

The group that landed at Le Touquet had the Merlimont Plage Hotel as an objective. Intelligence had suggested that the Germans were using the hotel as a barracks. When the group reached the hotel they discovered it was empty and the doors and windows boarded up. Unable to find another target, they returned to the beach, only to discover their boat had put back out to sea. During the wait, two German sentries stumbled on the group and were quietly bayonetted. Another German patrol approached across the sand dunes and the group was forced to swim out to the boat, leaving its weapons behind.[5]

The group that landed at Hardelot penetrated several hundred yards inland and returned to its boat without meeting any Germans. The men that landed at Berck discovered a seaplane anchorage but it was too heavily defended for them to risk an attack. The final group landed at Stella Plage under the command of Tod. It encountered a German patrol and in the short exchange of fire that followed, one man was slightly wounded.[8]

Aftermath

After the raiders returned to England, the Ministry of Information issued a communique:

"Naval and military raiders, in cooperation with the RAF, carried out successful reconnaissances of the enemy coastline: landings were effected at a number of points and contacts made with German troops. Casualties were inflicted on the enemy, but no British casualties occurred, and much useful information was obtained".[9]

Collar met with mixed success two German sentries were killed and their only casualty was Lieutenant-Colonel

Geneva convention". The German propaganda machine called them "murderous thugs and cut throats" who killed soldiers and civilians indiscriminately, preferring to murder their enemies rather than take prisoners.[10]

Notes

Footnotes
  1. guerrilla style operations in Norway following the German invasion. Each of the 10 companies initially consisted of 21 officers and 268 other ranks.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c Haskew (2007), pp. 47–48
  2. ^ Chappell (1996), p. 6
  3. ^ a b c d e f Moreman (2006), p. 13
  4. ^ Haskew (2007), p. 48
  5. ^ a b c d e Haining (2004), p. 116
  6. ^ Rankin (2009), p. 248
  7. ^ a b Rankin (2009), p. 249
  8. ^ Haining (2004), pp. 118–119
  9. ^ Rankin (2009), p. 250
  10. ^ Haining (2004), p. 123

Bibliography

  • Chappell, Mike (1996). Army Commandos 1940–1945. Osprey Publishing.
    ISBN 1-85532-579-9
    .
  • Haining, Peter (2004). Where the eagle landed: the mystery of the German invasion of Britain, 1940. Robson.
    ISBN 1-86105-750-4
    .
  • Haskew, Michael E (2007). Encyclopaedia of Elite Forces in the Second World War. Pen and Sword.
    ISBN 978-1-84415-577-4
    .
  • Moreman, Timothy Robert (2006). British Commandos 1940–46. Osprey Publishing.
    ISBN 1-84176-986-X
    .
  • Rankin, Nicholas (2009). A Genius for Deception: How Cunning Helped the British Win Two World Wars. Oxford University Press.
    ISBN 978-0-19-538704-9
    .

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