The Illustrious Churchills

Some were Commandos in World War II

Very little is understood about the Churchill family's exploits with the Commandos in World War II.

It is well noted that Winston Churchill the then Prime Minister gave his full backing for the Commandos from the very start of their perception. At the time he did not realise that, in the not so distant future, his three sons would all be in action with the Commandos at the same scene of action.

The Government of the day were not convinced that Britain should revert to a 'Guerilla' type of warfare and the Chiefs of Staff at the War Office thought The 'Commando Idea' was futile. None of them could envisage how a hand full of guerillas could possibly make any change to the consequences that Britain faced.

Britain had just lost a whole army at Dunkirk who were defeated by a superior force; how could handfulls of men inflict serious damage? The War Office were united and unmoveable; but with Winston Churchill's backing permission for the British Commandos was granted.

It was the effectiveness of the Boer Kommandos in the Boer War that came to mind, how small groups of guerilla's harried the great British army. He remembered exactly what happened and he could see history repeating itself. Small groups of highly trained and lightly armed men carrying out a guerilla warfare.

Dissipating a powerfull enemy whose forces were stretched far and wide appealed to Winston Churchill, he was not a person to miss a good trick; especially with the might of the German War Machine sitting right on his doorstep in France.

The Algiers, French North Africa, Campaign

On 7th November 1942 Captain Randolph Churchill M.P. one of the sons of Winston, landed at Algiers, French North Africa, with the Commando Special Services Brigade; he was the Intelligence officer.

During January 1943 there was a meeting between Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt in Casablanca, and their delegates to discuss the present situation and the progress of the war. They made the decision to invade Sicily there and then. They agreed the plans would be drawn up for the invasion to take place in the summer months.

On Monday 28th June Lieutenant Colonel T.B.L. Churchill was with the Royal Marine Commando Headquarters, which was under the control of Colonel Laycock. It had been deemed that the Invasion Force was ready and would soon be in place for the final assault. In the mean time they continued their training near Suez.

Early on the 10th July the Royal Marine Commandos leading the Spearhead of the invasion of Bastion Europe went into action.

Colonel Churchill's experience was that of many; to get ashore they made a very wet landing. Once ashore they assembled amongst some sand dunes which was dead ground for the batteries ranged in for the main beaches. They then moved off to their various objectives, a series of Machine-gun posts and then the batteries.

Churchill at the orders of Laycock, occupied himself with identifying the number of Italian dead. To do this he had to remove the divisional flash off of their collars, an uncongenial task at that time of the morning. An obliging Italian non-commissioned officer saved him the necessity of completing his task by giving him all the information he required.

The invasion of Sicily was successful

On 22nd July 1943, No.2 Commando, had reformed after its glorious action at St. Nazaire, arrived from Gibraltar under the command of (Mad Jack) J.M.T.F. Churchill, M.C. who had gone ashore at Vaagso in front of his men playing his bagpipes.

At the end of a motor drive in Sicily, records Tom Churchill, "One's hair, face, moustache, and neck are completely coated with a fine white layer of dust, so that one looks like a clown made up for a circus performance."

After Landing Jack Churchill and N0.2 Commando were moving through Sicily towards Messina. They met with no worse opposition than that provided by snipers, who were soon dealt with.

At Messina Jack drove through the town with an American Journalist to make contact with the advancing American 7th Army. At noon General Patton arrived and there were masses of photographers who took pictures of all and sundry.

On 16th August 1943, Sicily passed wholly into the hands of the Allies. Now that the first stage to victory had been completed, every thing was now ready for the next phase.

The invasion of Italy

Silencing the coastal batteries and seizing the defile of La Molina was entrusted to Jack Churchill's No.2 Commando and 41 Commando Royal Marines. With them went Tom and Randolph Churchil's all three sons of the Prime Minister would see action at the the same time and place.

After rehearsing for the forthcoming assault Tom Churchill records, "this exercise had one great merit; it was carried out without the issue of a single piece of paper".

On landing at Vietri, Jack Churchill moved No.2 Commando to high ground, overlooking the beach on which the battery was situated. This was taken and the Commandos moved into the hastely retreated German barracks. The soldiers had left everything behind including their smell...which prevades any house or living room which the Germans have occupied.

Small parties of Commandos passed each other while carrying stores from the beach, when they bumped into a german patrol. Suddenly out on the road in front an enormous Hun rose up. Tom Churchill, said later. "In a flash, Balwin, who was just in front of me, dropped him with two bullets in his stomach; his comrades were soon dealt with by my men."

They battled with a tenacious and determined enemy

Jack Churchill produced a captured German Order dated only five days before, prophesying very accurately the manner in which the Commandos would come ashore at Vietri. There follower detailed orders for dealing with the assault and, had the German Garrison obeyed them, it would have cost No.2 Commando very dearly.

A heavey machine gun team of Germans were seen moving near the summit of the great hill above Vietri. "They looked very sinister," said Tom Churchill, "as they climbed round the cliff, it became obvious that unless we knocked them out they were going to make our position untenable."

Jack Churchill from the roof of his headquarters, was watching and was able to direct mortar fire looking through his field-glasses. The Brigadier said "I had the satisfactory experience of seeing a Hun blown into the air and crash to earth, a sprawling mass of arms and legs." Most of the team, including its officer, were killed or captured.

That day saw the climax of the battle, the Commandos were clinging to the side of a monstrously steep hillside with no prospect of reinforcements; the Germans were throwing everything at them. When suddenly the Royal Artillery opened up and gave them covering fire that checked the enemy.

Jack Churchill with a soldiers eye, saw his opportunity and took it. At the critical moment he launched a counter-attack with one troop of 41 Commando and one troop of N0.2 Commando, the only reserves available. The charge was gallantly led, and drove the enemy out of their positions, with them retiring behind a smoke screen.

The capture of German prisoners

Jack Churchill while leading No.6 Troop found a road leading in the direction in which No.2 Commando were advancing. Taking advantage of the good surface the troop advanced quicker than the rest. Mad Jack, with a corporal ran along the road until they reached the village. Creeping up close they could hear the chink of picks and spades, but in an archway they noticed a glow from a cigarette.

Mad Jack with sword in hand crept silently along a wall until he could see the dark silhouette of two German sentries. When they turned, they were met by a fierce man in British battledress brandishing a sword and saying "Hande hoch!" They obeyed with trembling haste.

Churchill was about to give them further orders when he noticed a large German mortar in the middle of a courtyard, and around it the crew were sleeping. Churchill ordered the corporal to guard the two prisoners.

He then advanced on the crew of the mortar, now beginning to stir, he adopted the tactics previously used and demanded their surrender at the end of his sword, which they did.

Using a prisoner with his sword stuck firmly in his back he was able to capture the whole German post using just his sword. They collected between thirty and forty German prisoners.

For this deed Jack Churchill was admitted to the Distinguished Service Order.

Aerial photographs were highly important

"Churchill had always miantained his reputation of air photographs," said Laycock in his letter to Brigadier Haydon "proved accurate to a degree wich I would not have believed possible."

Tom Churchill who, before the war, had taught the art of aerial photography to the Royal Air Force School of Photography at Farnham. Interpretation of aerial photographs had now become of the first importance to the Commandos. Tom was the best in his trade.

"Having air photographs of a strip of coast we were about to attack explained by Tom Churchill, was the most interesting of all my experiences," explaind Laycock "The air photograph gives a birds-eye view of the ground; it sees beyond hills and in between trees in the forest. It is up to date to the moment when it was taken. It shows minute detail, as for instance, the exact width of the road or river, or a small wall. Unlike a map, it does not have to show these things by conventional means.

In 1943 Tom Churchill was promoted to Brigadier and was given the task of forming another Special Service Brigade for operations in Italy. For this he chose No.2 and 9 Army Commandos and No.40 and 43 Royal Marine Commandos and the Belgian and Polish Troops of No. 10 Allied Commando.

German armies in the Balken peninsula

The 40 Commando attack on Brac started with Colonel Jack at the head playing his pipes. The Commandos shouting loudly and firing from the hip moved in a straight line until they reached the top of the hill. Five Germans were allowed to surrender.

Col Manners, 40's leader from the beginning was talking with Jack when Manners was hit. Colonel Jack put a tourniquet on his shattered arm and dragged him to cover with the other wounded, nearby. The fire on the hill became heavy and inflicted casualties.

The hilltop was manned by just six men, two of whom were grievously wounded, and one slightly wounded. "I was distressed" said Col Jack, "to find everyone was armed with revolvers except myself, who had an American carbine."

Despite his condition Col Manners continued to fire his revolver until he was wounded again by a mortar bomb, which burst close by killing two Marine Commandos and wounded another.

At that moment some twenty of the enemy could be seen approaching, Col Jack's fire drove them off so the fight went on.

Presently all of the revolver ammunition was finished and Col Jack had one magazine of amunition left. He alone was unwounded, the rest were dead or unconcious. "Our position," he records, "was growing precarious." He put his pipes to his lips and played. "Will ye not come back again."

A flurry of grenades landed on the hilltop, a fragment of one of them struck Colonel Jack upon the head and stunned him. He was assited from the field and shut with twelve other Commandos, most of whom were wounded, in a pit ten feet deep.

When the Germans realised who they had Colonel Jack was flown to Germany. His sword and pipes were taken from him; in 1949 they were on exhibtion in a glass case in Vienna.

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