In the spring of 1942, the situation with the Allied Forces in Europe was desperate. The British Eighth Army had been forced out of North Africa into Egypt. The Allies faced the Germans in Western Europe across the English Channel.
The full-scale invasion of Western Europe, Operation Overload, could not be launched at that time. The Allies decided something must be done if they were to push back Hitler’s army. A major raid was planned on the port of Dieppe, France.
Originally, the full-scale raid, Operation Rutter, was to take place in July 1942. Canadian troops would provide the main assault force. By May 20, the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division was stationed at the Isle of Wright. Here, they would undergo intense amphibious operational training.
July arrived. Unfavorable weather conditions prohibited Operation Rutter to be launched as planned. There was talk of abandoning the raid. Then, the Canadians received orders that the raid was to take place. At this time, the name was changed to Operation Jubilee.
On August 19, 1942, sixty-one hundred troops stormed the beaches of Dieppe. Seventy-four Allied air squadrons (8 belonged to the Royal Canadian Forces) and 8 Allied destroyers supported the assault. The Front consisted of 16 kilometers of beach. There were five different attack points. Four flank attacks were to hit simultaneously at dawn. The main attack on the town of Dieppe was to take place a half-hour later.
Canadians were to engage in the main frontal attack, as well as go in at gaps in the cliffs at Pourville, which was four kilometers to the west. They also hit at Puys to the east. At Berneval on the eastern flank and Varengeville to the west, British Commandos were to destroy the German’s coastal batteries.
In the early pre-dawn hours of August 19, the men in a landing craft on the eastern sector happened upon a small German convoy. A sea fight followed. The noise of the skirmish alerted the German coastal defenses at Puys and Berneval. There was little chance of success in the eastern sector.
The crafts carrying men from No. 3 Commando became scattered. Most of this unit never reached shore. Those who did were quickly beaten back. However, one unit of 20 men got within firing range of the battery. Snipers were able to stage an assault, which prevented the Germans from firing on the ships offshore. After two and a half-hours, the men were safely evacuated.
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