It’s been argued that “special” military forces – paratroopers, commandos, Rangers, SEALS, SAS, SBS, etc. – are not cost effective; they soak up too many resources and they attract soldiers who would be better used in more conventional units – somebody who would be a good NCO in regular infantry ends up as a private in a specialist unit, and so on. Storming St Nazaire might illustrate this principle; while the Commando raid on St. Nazaire in 1942 is usually held up as a British victory, it could also be used for examples of violating a lot of military principles – selecting an unrealistic objective, failure to get cooperation from other services, “mission creep”, and overoptimistic planning.

The ostensible reason for the raid was destruction of the Normandie drydock, the only facility in Western Europe that could handle the German battleship Tirpitz, by ramming the lock gate with an explosive-laden obsolete destroyer (the former USS Buchanan, now HMS Campbeltown). However, as planning progressed, various other objectives were assigned – “mission creep”. The planners failed to get full and enthusiastic cooperation from the RAF and the Royal Navy, and underestimated the defensive capabilities of German troops in the port. The original plan, destruction of the drydock, went successfully – it wasn’t used for the duration of the war. However the plan to take the Commando raiders off in small motor launches failed disastrously; the Commandos were supposed to seize a jetty, hold it until the demolition crews could return, then board everybody on the motor launches and sail back to England. Unfortunately almost all the motor launches were shot to pieces before they could land their troops, the withdrawal jetty remained in German hands, and all the Commandos that actually landed were killed or captured. It’s unclear whether denying the drydock to the Tirpitz was worth the cost in highly trained and motivated soldiers and sailors; 105 RN men and 64 Commandos were killed, and 106 RN and 109 Commandos were taken prisoner.

An easy read, although it gets depressing at the end as more and more men lose their lives. There’s a good map of the harbor at St. Nazaire and a good diagram of the Campbeltown. I would have liked to see some diagrams of the motor launches, and more maps of the harbor showing who was where at what time during the raid. ( )