Eyewitness at Dieppe
Eyewitness at Dieppe by Ross Reyburn, published by Pen & Sword History in 2022, presents a detailed account of the Allied attack on the German-held port of Dieppe in August 1942. This operation, known as Operation Jubilee, involved over 6,000 infantrymen, primarily Canadian, who were tasked with destroying German structures and gathering intelligence. The raid ultimately resulted in significant losses and is recognized as Canada’s worst military disaster. This edition includes a new foreword by Ross Reyburn, reflecting on his father’s experiences and the historical context of the event.
Readers will find a firsthand narrative of the chaotic six-hour assault, as Wallace Reyburn, the original author and a war correspondent, was among the first soldiers to land and the last to leave. The book explores the realities of warfare and the impact of wartime censorship on historical accounts. It also addresses the shortcomings of Reyburn’s earlier work, providing a critical perspective on the planning and execution of the raid, including a condemnation of Lord Mountbatten’s role. With 183 pages of content, this edition offers insights into both the military operation and the author’s life, making it a significant contribution to the study of World War II history.
Official synopsis Publisher
In August 1942, Allied forces mounted an attack on the German-held port of Dieppe; titled Operation Jubilee, it represented a rehearsal for invasion. The amphibious attack saw over 6,000 infantrymen, predominantly Canadian, put ashore, tasked with destroying German structures and gathering intelligence.
The doomed raid was an abject failure, and became Canada’s worst military disaster.
Eyewitness at Dieppe is a long-overdue reissue of New Zealand-born writer Wallace Reyburn’s dramatic account of the raid. He was with the first soldiers clambering ashore, and aboard the last ship returning to England after six hours of carnage.
Awarded an OBE as the only war correspondent to witness the street fighting first-hand, Reyburn was fortunate not be numbered among Dieppe’s dead, suffering just a minor wound inflicted by mortar shell fragments. His book, Rehearsal for Invasion was a wartime bestseller.
Accompanied by freelance journalist Ross Reyburn’s new foreword on his father’s account, this new edition tells us more about Wallace’s intriguing life and details the shortcomings of his father’s book, dictated by wartime censorship corrected in the post-war years through a withering condemnation of raid’s mastermind Lord Mountbatten.
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