CLIFTON Brigadier George Herbert
(1898-1970) Escapee.
Born Green Meadows near Hastings NZ. Son of US plumber. After high school attended commercial college, passing his junior Civil Service exam.

When 16 entered Royal Military College of Australia at Duntroon as staff cadet. Graduated in 1918 and returned to NZ. Posted as instructor in musketry at Trentham. Later became aide-de-camp to general commander. Towards end of 1918 Lieutenant Clifton attached to India Army where he saw active service winning Military Cross. Returned NZ 1921. Went to England for further training then attached to War Office in London. 1935 returned to NZ. Soon after outbreak of war in 1939 promoted from captain to major. Became commander of Royal Engineers Sept 1940 as lieutenant-colonel. Next year became chief engineer with Middle East Forces. Awarded DSO in Dec 1941 for distinguished services in Greece and bar next February. Promoted to brigadier 1942, given command of 6th Infantry Brigade. Following Sept reported missing then captured. But soon began a new career in escaping. Escaped 9 times - 3 times in desert, 4 in Italy, twice in Germany. First time in July 1942, recaptured and taken before Rommel who asked him why NZ was fighting. Second time Rommel told him he'd be shot if tried to get away again and sent to Italy where he escaped 4 times - once got as far as Swiss border. In Germany held in "hell camp" for officers with escape records. When he escaped from there he made his way to the advancing American forces. Arrived back in NZ in April 1945. Second bar to DSO in 1945.

In March 1946 was appointed brigadier on general staff of British Occupation Force in Japan. Then commandant at Army School of Instruction at Trentham. 1952 pub'd escape stories in 'The Happy Hunted'. Retired from Army 1953. Moved to Taupo in 1966 becoming borough councillor.

__________________

The British SAS (Special Air Service) was founded by Captain David Stirling and is one of the world's elite special forces. The regiment's famous motto is "Who Dares Wins" and the regiment's history dates back to WWII.

The idea of creating a desert raiding force to weaken Rommel's supply lines and disrupt aircraft operations was conceived by Captain David Stirling (right) while recovering in hospital from a parachute training accident. Stirling had already gained experience of working behind enemy lines in North Africa with Colonel Robert Laycock's 'Layforce' commando brigade. However, following three disastrous operations during which heavy losses were sustained, the group was disbanded in June 1941.

Remaining convinced of the basic concept, Stirling managed to bluff his way to see Major General Neil Ritchie (Deputy Commander-in-chief N.Africa & Middle East). His idea was to raise a new group from the remains of the Layforce organised into smaller units that would parachute down near enemy airfields, plant delayed-action explosives, then walk to rendezvous points to be picked up by L.R.D.G. (Long-Range Desert Group) patrols. The plan was bold and both Ritchie and his Commander in Chief thought it might just work.

In July 1941 Stirling gained permission to form the L Detachment of the non-existent Special Air Service Brigade, a name intended to confuse German intellegence. His ideas proved difficult to put into practice without sustaining large losses of men either killed or captured On one disatrous occasion only two men made it back! Remembering a successful raid on an airfield carried out by the Layforce when closely supported by the L.R.D.G. in Chevrolet trucks mounted with .303 machine guns, Stirling turned his thoughts towards the potential of the jeep for carrying out his deep penetration raids behind enemy lines.Vehicles obtained by the British Army through the Lend-Lease Scheme were obtained and suitably modified for SAS use.

Their first successful raid soon followed on 17th November 1941, when two groups destroyed 61 aircraft at two airfields. Another raid was launched soon after; this time twenty seven were destroyed. By July 1942 the regiment had 15 specially modified jeeps in action in North Africa.

The jeeps were stripped of all non-essential parts including the windscreen, most of the radiator grille bars and even sometimes the front bumper to increase the effective load carrying capacity of the vehicle. Thus the large amount of fuel and water needed for fast long-range raids could be carried avoiding the need for slower support vehicles. A water condensing unit was fitted to the front to reduce loss from the radiator which would otherwise have had to be topped up from the limited drinking water supplies. The jeeps also carried sand mats, metal wheel channels, radio equipment and large quantities of ammunition.

The jeeps were heavily armed with combinations of both Browning and Vickers K machine guns. The ex-aircraft Vickers weapons were generally mounted in pairs and a total of up to five machine guns were carried on some vehicles. The effectiveness of this armament firing a mix of ball, armour-piercing and tracer shells can be judged from one assault on an airfield where 12 aircraft were destroyed in a five minute raid. With all guns blazing a single SAS jeep could deliver an impressive 5000 rounds per minute! The net result was that over 400 aircraft had been destroyed on the ground by November 1942. Stirling was finally captured in 1943 but escaped four times before being sent to Colditz where he spent the rest of the war.

As the front moved from Africa to Italy and then on into Northwest Europe so did the SAS. The scale of each action varied tremendously. In one operation (codenamed Houndsmith), 144 men were parachuted with jeeps and supplies into an area close to Dijon, France. In another four men in two jeeps killed or wounded 60 SS men destroying two staff cars and a truck in the process at the village of Les Ormes, France.

By late 1944 the SAS were operating behind German lines in Europe. Further modifications to the jeeps included the use of armour plate with bullet-proof glass screen at the front and a wire cutter fitted to the front bumper of some vehicles.

The effectiveness of the SAS in Europe during W.W.II can be judged from the fact that they inflicted 7,733 German casualties, 4,784 prisoners were captured and 700 vehicles were either destroyed or captured. 164 railways were cut, seven trains were destroyed and a further thirty-three derailed. The SAS was briefly disbanded at the end of W.W.II.

http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homep...an/sasjeep.htm

http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...n/stirling.htm

http://www.thehistoryof.co.uk/World_...th_Africa.html

__________________

SAS and the raid on Rommel

On the night of November 14th, 1941 two British submarines - HMS TORBAY AND HMS TALISMAN approached the shores of the northern most part of Cyrenaica. In the rough seas a much smaller than planned raiding party of commandos managed to land ashore. The group was led by Col. Keyes and was largely composed of the members of the LRDG, SAS and SBS. Their first objective - Rommel's HQ in Beda Littoria, second - Italian HQ in Cyrene, third Italian Intelligence Office in Appolonia, and finally general sabotage actions in the Axis rear. Due to an astonishing ammount of bad luck the whole operation ended in fiasco. Already under-strength due to weather conditions during landing, they managed to attack Rommel's villa on the night of November 17th.(Keyes died during the assault, Rommel was meanwhile somwhere else), from that point onwards the group was being pursued by both Italian and DAK patrols as well as by pro-Axis Libyans. In ensuing skirmishes most of the raid members were either shot or captured. Out of 59 men that left for that mission only the overall commander Col.Laycock and sargeant Terry survived after dodging the enemy for 41 days in the hills of Cyrenaica. This was the "only" official "Raid on Rommel" during the North African campaign.

http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Qu...7414/imag.html

__________________

During his campaigns in Africa, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, "The Desert Fox," himself made repeated trips back to Berlin due to illness. As evinced by newsreels showing Rommel often with a handkerchief to his nose, Rommel suffered from nasal diphtheria. Reported Rommel's medical advisor in August 1942:

Field Marshal Rommel suffering from chronic stomach and intestinal catarrh, nasal diphtheria and considerable circulation trouble. He is not in a fit condition to command the forthcoming offensive.

For detailed understanding...

http://www.md.huji.ac.il/md/courses/...Diphtheria.ppt

__________________

GENERAL DER PANZERTRUPPE HANS CRAMER
the last commandant of the Afrika Korps
16.05.1943 captured in Tunisia
23.05.1944 exchanged, returned to Germany, placed in reserve
20.07.1944 honorably discharged from the Army

General Cramer was released for ill reason in May 1944 by british. Cramer was appointed to the staff of the Oberbefelshaber West in Paris for special duties. He was relief of duty after the events of 20th July, 1944 under suspicion of beeing involved in the plot. Cramer was kept under house arrest but later found unguilty. He was transfered in the Führer-Reserve.

MAJOR ROLAND-RICHARD VON HOSSLIN
23 July 1942: Awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for extreme gallantry in action during the First Battle of El Alamein. The award citation reads in part:

Through his bold independent action on July 6 and 7, 1942, Captain von Hosslin, commander of Reconnaissance Battalion 33, forced strong enemy forces in the deep southern flank of the army to withdraw to the east. On July 15, fighting in the front lines with extreme personal bravery, he led a skillful counterattack which recovered a fort (Deir el Shein) which had been taken from the Italians. The loss of this fort would have made the position of the panzer army in this sector untenable. Captain von Hosslin was wounded in this action.
20 July 1944: Participated in the unsuccessful attempt to assassinate Hitler and overthrow the Nazi regime. His planned role in the coup was to surround and isolate Army High Command Headquarters (OKH) with three companies of armored reconnaissance troops. An active member of the German Resistance, von Hosslin was recruited by Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg through a mutual friend from Cavalry Regiment 17 (Peter Sauerbruch).
23 August 1944: Arrested by the Secret State Police (Gestapo).
13 October 1944: Executed by hanging for his involvement in the failed coup attempt.

GENERAL DER PANZERTRUPPEN GEORG STUMME
When the battle of El Alamein begins, on October 23, 1942, Rommel is sick in Germany since the end of September and it is temporary substituted by the General George Stumme. At dawn the English artillery enters in action and unloads on the Italian and German lines an incessant fire; the artillery of the axis doesn't answer,has orders of saving ammunitions as well the allied fire caused big losses. On October 25, in the second day of the battle, at the first hours of the day the General Stumme is given as missing and only many hours later find him dead.
(dropped dead from a heart attack.)

GENERAL DER PANZERTRUPPEN
HASSO-ECKARD VON MANTEUFFEL
Interesting fact is that he wore both cuff titles of "DAK" and "Grossdeutschland" on his uniform.

Horst von Oppenfeld, Oberleutnant
Would you be willing to relate any interesting stories from your service in the DAK?

Rommel was quoted instructing commanders of various Kampfgruppen. When the leader would say "Jawohl Herr Feldmarschall", according to my estimates that proposed behind the lines encirclement would require a drive of 150 km. Our fuel supply is barely enough for 50 km." Rommel would reply in his Schwaebisch dialect, "drive, drive fast, then you will not need any fuel." (Fahren Sie, fahren Sie, dann brauchen Sie keinen Betriebstoff), meaning to get there quickly, fill your tanks from the enemy's vehicles.

Another unforgettable experience were the comments made by My commanding general (von Broich) upon his return from the last "Kommandeurbesprechung" with the top commanding officer (Gen.v. Arnim). He quoted Gen. v. Arnim as having said "I just had my last phone call from the Fuehrer. He ordered under no circumstances was I allowed to surrender the Africa Korps. But he did not forbid you to do so on behalf of the units you command". Then Gen. V. Broich said to me, "Oppenfeld, grab a motor bike while I attach a white shirt to a carbine". We drove towards the enemy line and he surrendered to a commanding officer of the 8th British Army. The "Limies" received us with the utmost dignity and gave us two options. To reach the designated PoW camp we would either have to walk there (some 50 km), or surrender our arms immediately and be allowed to drive there with our vehicles. As we chose the latter option, we drove through the main avenue of Tunis, a grandiose layout comparable to the Champs Elysee in Paris. We had mixed feelings about this. As the losers and captives we felt depressed, but for us the war was over. To our surprise, the Tunisians lined the streets, waved from the windows, shouting "Vivent les Allemands". Their sympathies were on our side!

GENERAL DER FALLSCHIRMTRUPPEN
HERMANN-BERNHARD RAMCKE

On july 19th 1940, Ramcke was transferred to the 7th Flieger-Division and on july 31st joined the Fallschirmtruppen and was awarded the Fallschirmjäger qualification badge at the age of 51
The only Knight´s Cross with oak leaves, swords and diamonds to a member of Fallschirmtruppen was to General Hermann-Bernhard Ramcke. Not for his airbone actions, but whilst in command of Festung Brest on the french coast after the D-Day landings, when it came under siege from allied troops. Finally the Fortress surrendered on 20 th september 1944.

Hans-Joachim Marseille
On 30th of September 1942 Marseille was died, and his body was brought to headquaters of JG27, "Rumba a zul" played in Marseille's tent all the day. Again and again... It was his favourite song...

__________________

September 1942-a month of grief for JG 27:

In the first five days the Geschwader lost six young pilots, five of them to Spitfires and one in an accident.On 6th Sept one ace with 40 claims, Gunther Steinhausen, and another pilot were shot down by Hurricanes. The next day, a second top-scorer, Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt with 59 claims, was killed by a Spitfire of 601 Squadron. In the next fortnight JG 27 lost six more pilots, two of them in a mid-air collision.On the last day of the month they lost Marseille...

Having lost already 15 pilots, the loss of Marseille was the last straw for JG 27. The Gruppe was withdrawn from operations for a month.

That´s war....

__________________

Der Stern von Afrika!

Had he lived--I can only just wonder what his final tally would be? Somehow I dont think that Erich Alfred Hartmann--would have been the highest scoring ace of all-time--but at least to a man that was at least as good as he was.

__________________
Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.

Well we will never know but I think if both Marseille and Hartmann would of served in a Reich defence unit over Germany, both would of been shot down and possibly not have survived. The odds were just too great against the Luftwaffe in mid 44 to wars end over the Reich.

E

I agree, and im glad that Hartmann did live through it all and into the early 1990s. I just wishe that that had been possible for a character like Marseille.

__________________
Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.

A very interesting site with coverage of the El Alamein battle with flash animation of troop movements.Very teaching!

http://www.g-ligue.com/SiteEn/sectio...lalameinEn.php

__________________

El Alamein was a last stand for the Allies in North Africa. To the north of this apparently unremarkable town was the Mediterranean Sea and to the south was the Qattara Depression. El Alamein was a bottleneck that ensures that Rommel could not use his favoured form of attack - sweeping into the enemy from the rear. Rommel was a well respected general in the ranks of the Allies. The Allied commander at the time, Claude Auchinleck - did not command the same respect among his own men. Auchinleck had to send a memo to all his senior officers that ordered them to do all in their power to correct this:

"…(you must) dispel by all possible means the idea that Rommel represents anything other than the ordinary German general……….PS, I’m not jealous of Rommel." (Auchinleck)

-------

In El Alamein at the start of the real attack, Montgomery sent a message to all the men in the Eighth Army:

"Everyone must be imbued with the desire kill Germans, even the padres - one for weekdays and two on Sundays."

-------

Devil´s garden:
Between the two armies at El Alamein was the ‘Devil’s Garden’. This was a mine field laid by the Germans which was 5 miles wide and littered with a huge number of anti-tank and anti-personnel mines.

------



http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk...el_alamein.htm

__________________

This is not slightly inaccurate it's wrong. The new SAS did not take part in the raid on Rommel. They were on a separate mission which failed. The raid on Rommel was led by Keyes junior but comprised extensively No.11 Commando remustered into the Middle East force with some members of the SBS with specific duties of getting the Commandos ashore. The role of the LRDG was in meeting the Commandos after the raid to transport them back to base, which never happened.

No.9

[ 16. January 2003, 10:18 PM: Message edited by: No.9 ]

Keep 'em coming Kai!!!

__________________
"GARRY OWEN"-Traditional war-cry of the US 7th Cavalry.
"CURRAHEE"-War-cry of the US 506th PIR.
"Everybody thinks that they are going to get the chance to punch some Nazi in the face at Normandy-and those days are over, they are long gone"-Lt Chris Burnett

Coming up, Panzerknacker!

At the moment working on the Fallschirmjäger and Italy, and Skorzeny´s businesses in late 1944, but I´ll be back.

I am glad that someone knows more on the subject as No 9 has pointed out. Actually with the key words he gave I was able to find more of the attack on supposed Rommel´s HQ. Unfortunately I haven´t been too interested on the allied side, so I will always be like on thin ice when talking about their secret operations.

__________________

Kai-Petri - I don't mean to disrupt the thread or steal anyone’s thunder, but do you want more on the raid, if it's of interest?

No.9

Yes, please, No 9!

Even though I started this thread I do consider these are "free for all" so all information that might give us a clearer picture on what happened-is quite welcome!

[img]smile.gif[/img]

__________________

Covert operations in the Middle East in respect of who-was-who and who-did-what get quite involed. Following is some 'scene setting' leading up to the Raid on Rommel, and information on the raid itself. As this is lengthy I'll split the posts.

Outline of British Special Forces Middle East
31 January 1941, Bob Laycock left the Isle of Arran with some 1700 men comprising Nos. 7, 8 (including Roger Courtney’s Folboat Section – later to become the SBS) and 11 Commando, and one Troop of No.3 Commando. They were formally designated as Z Force which became renamed Layforce. Their objective was to sail to the Middle East and take the island of Rhodes. In the Middle East since July 1940 were Nos. 50, 51 and 52 Commando. After sailing round the Cape, Layforce arrived at Suez on 7 March they found No.52 Commando there (from the Sudan) and No.50 Commando arriving about the same time from Crete. Nos.50 and 52 were amalgamated and placed under command of Layforce.

Layforce was now formed-up into four battalions, A=No.7 Commando; B=No.8 Commando; C=No.11 Commando and D=No.50/52 Commando. Though they prepared for the invasion of Rhodes with the Folboat Section (SBS) conducting reconnaissance of the island, the operation was called off due to various developments. Rommel launched an offensive at the end of March driving back the Western Desert Force which itself was seriously depleted due to Churchill bullying Wavell into sending troops to Greece, (arguably, if Wavell had been allowed to continue securing the major ports, Rommel would have been denied somewhere suitable to land in February?); 6 April the Germans invaded Greece and Yugoslavia; by 11 April Rommel had taken Cyrenaica, Bardia and Sollum. Layforce now reverted to former Commando role in the Middle East, raiding the North African coast behind enemy lines.

Various actions and missions took place including Crete and Syria (Litani River) which stretched and depleted Layforce. As the original purpose of Layforce was gone and the Navy was unwilling to provide craft for continued amphibious missions, Wavell decided the Commando Brigade was an expensive commodity and the men should be deployed among his depleted regiments rather than on independent offensive missions which he was not really in a position to mount. In mid June he ordered Layforce to be disbanded except for No.11 Commando who was to take up another spell of garrison duties on Cyprus, then under threat of invasion. Wavell was replaced by Auchinleck who concurred with this view. August 1st, 1941 Layforce ceased to exist. Most of No.7 Commando under Cpt. Nicholls went on to form Mission 204 which supported the Chinese forces in Burma. 75 Men of No.8 Commando (which were originally formed from the Guards), volunteered for a mission to raid out of Tobruk, only to find the obnoxious CO there told them on arrival ‘we don’t need any Special Forces’ and were subsequently advised they were disbanded. They then found themselves attached to the 18th Indian Cavalry (Mechanised) which proved to be a good home as the Commandos found the officers and men to be first class soldiers, eager and capable of conducting raids with them. Also from No.8 Commando was David Sterling who had his idea for a Small Scale Raiding Force (66 men) approved and was informed it would be known as L Detachment SAS. This to lend credence to the fictitious SAS devised by Dudley Clarke (ironically the man who first named the ‘Commandos’) to mislead the Axis powers.

Bob Laycock returned to England in July and began petitioning for the reconstitution of a Middle East Special Forces Brigade. His pleas reached Churchill who minuted the Chiefs of Staff to effect this with Admiral Cunningham in charge of Combined Operations out there. Subsequently Churchill switched this charge to Auchinleck. All this did not prevent the disbandment of 11 Commando under command of Geoffrey Keyes, (son of Sir Roger Keyes - W.W.I hero, friend of Churchill and Director of Combine Operations 1940/41). It was not until October 11th that GHQ met to decide what could be Brigaded from the remains of the various units. A number of men had returned to their former regiments or joined the Long Range Desert Group, (formed by Brigadier Bagnold – a W.W.I soldier and between wars academic who studied deserts – whose primary job was reconnaissance and intelligence), or, David Sterling’s new SAS. Sterling got many men from No.11 as many of No.8 (his old Commando), had gone to Tobruk. Sterling recruited Blair ‘Paddy’ Mayne (who was to succeed Sterling after his capture) while Mayne was under detention for decking his CO, Geoffrey Keyes.

Bob Laycock's new Middle East Brigade comprised:
HQ and Depot Troop (at Geneifa)
No.2 Troop (L Detachment SAS – under Sterling)
No.3 Troop (No.11 Commando with some other British of Layforce – under Keyes)
No.4 and No.5 Troops (No.51 Palestinian Commando – under Cator)
No.6 Troop (SBS – under Courtney)
[No.51 Commando was found still intact in Abyssinia as was the SBS who had been ‘borrowed’ by Admiral Maund for covert operations.]

Auchinleck was to mount Operation Crusader, a general offensive, on 18 November. On 17 November he wanted the SAS to raid 5 airfields in the Gazala-Tmimi area and No.11 Commando (Operation Flipper) to mount an attack on Rommel’s HQ at Beda Littoria, the Italian HQ at Cirene, the Italian Intelligence Centre at Appolonia and telecommunications in the area. Sterling was advised there was adverse weather conditions for his raid, but his was the decision whether or not to abort. Sterling was eager to go and believed his men were also. He went ahead with the mission which was unsuccessful. Following is the full story from No.11 Commando – The Raid on Rommel.

No.9

The Raid on Rommel - incluing a first person account

FROM No.11 COMMANDO ARCHIVES

No.11 Commando would be landed by submarine, on the largely unguarded shore, and make their way inland 250 miles behind enemy lines to the village of Beda Littoria where the Germans had a headquarters and where it was reported that Rommel occupied a villa. Of the original 11th Scottish Commando there remained Captains Glennie and Macpherson and Lieutenant Sutherland, 110 other ranks. A number of other officers and men from the Middle East Commando were added as were two Senussi guides from the Libyan Arab Force. Among the officers was Captain Robert Campbell of No 8 Commando, who spoke German, and Lieutenant Roy Cooke of the Royal West Kent Regiment. Bob Laycock also insisted on being part of the team.

On October 19th Captain Macpherson and Cpl. Evans embarked on the submarine Talisman for a reconnaissance mission. They were landed near Apollonia on October 26th but failed to make the pre-arranged rendezvous with the submarine and attempted to walk to Tobruk. They were captured on November 3rd. Despite this set-back reliable intelligence on the target was available, provided by Cpt. Haselden who was attached to G.H.Q. of Midd