Ungentlemanly warriors.

wasbit, the Auxiliary Units were started by the organisation in this book and the source of GCHQ is also mentioned.

Steve, Anders Lassen was trained and sent in by the same people in the book, he was an outstanding soldier who stood out even among so many others. I will look for the book you mention.

Ed yes, it was the OSS.

BL, you’re welcome mate!

Reading “Ungentlemanly Warfare” will show that the organisation was the source of so many other parties who fought the Nazis, then eventually the Japanese. Including the Commandos. (not Marines Steve: Commandos were drawn from the best of all Arms.) They ran the Resistance in so many countries, they invented and produced all the weapons and explosives used to stop the Germans operating in Europe. There is one scenario which has a few British and French agents preventing ‘Das Reich’ German Armoured Division reaching Normandy to oppose and probably stop D-Day. It took 17 days for Das Reich to get there, by which time the Allies had enough armour in the field to win through.

Most of these guys were civilians a few years before the war, their worst opposition was actually British generals and politicians, who thought that war was a game of cricket and ‘Dirty war’ was not British. The RAF Air Marshall had to be ordered by Winston to give them aircraft and the generals ordered by him to supply them with whatever they needed. Winston was their greatest supporter and believed that war had to be won, by any means necessary.

This book was a WWII eye-opener for me, I cannot recommend it enough.

The Duke wrote:

I know Bob, but they could only trusts the marines to carry it forward.

You’re right of course, but I made that comment just for your reaction, Steve!??

BL, the St. Nazaire raid was planned, manned, supplied and organised by the guys in the book.

Ed, see answer to BL above.

Nolan, Churchill set up his Secret Warriors and SOE by relying upon the 6 men in the book who got together to plan Ungentlemanly Warfare, as you will find after reading it.

I just feel that the generation which fought in WWII, was extraordinary. I take “Flypast” every month and notice the shrinking number of aircrew and groundcrew whose deaths since last issue are recorded. Most in their 90’s now of course, a few 100+. Flypast have begun recording the passing of servicemen from later conflicts such as Korea and they are not much younger. A few years ago, I met 2 locals who served in WWII: one was a Lancaster rear gunner, the other a Fleet Air arm pilot who served on 3 carriers including Victorious. He eventually saw his last action in the Far East, attacking Japan. Both men are gone now, neither would talk about their actual service, apart from the aircraft and the ships. Which is what you find when speaking to most of those who saw out WWII in active service.