St Nazaire 1942 - The Great Commando Raid

The raid on the port of St Nazaire in March 1942 by a sea-borne task force from British Combined Operations remains one of the most daring actions of World War II. The port lies at the mouth of the River Loire and in 1942, as well as a U-Boat base, contained the massive Normandie dock, the only facility on the Atlantic coast large enough to accommodate the German pocket battleship Tirpitz. This book tells the story of the raid on St Nazaire that denied the use of the dock to the Tirpitz, the sister ship of the Bismarck, and constituted a crucial victory in the Battle of the Atlantic.

List of contents

Background to the Raid; Chronology; Commanders; Attackers and Defenders; Planning the Raid; The Sea Journey; The Run up the Loire; Campbeltown's Attack; The Dockyard Battle; Aftermath St Nazaire Today; Bibliography; Index

About the author

Ken Ford has made a long term study of many of the battles of the Second World War and has already published books on the Assault crossing of the River Seine in 1944 and the battle for Geilenkirchen. TBC

Summary

An examination of the raid on the port of St Nazaire in March 1942 by a sea-borne task force from British Combined Operations. It is a story of incredible heroism in the face of extreme odds - bravery which would lead to the awarding of five Victoria Crosses for this raid alone.

Product details

• Authors: Ken Ford
• Assisted by: Howard Gerrard (Illustration), Osprey Publishing (Editor)
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 01.01.2001
• No. of pages: 96
• Dimensions: 184 mm x 247 mm x 7 mm
• Weight: 332 g
• Illustrations: 15 colour & 46 b&w illustrations, bibliography, index
• Series: Campaign; Osprey Campaign S.; Campaign; Osprey Campaign S.
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Regional and national histories; Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous