Today in History

And this completes my Anglosphere trifecta, as I heap some lauds on the Canadians.

As far as the Germans are concerned...

damned if you do (Dieppe), damned if you don't (Stalingrad).

1942 Canadians take heavy casualties raiding Dieppe
1942 German Sixth Army ordered to capture Stalingrad

Dieppe, while an unmitigated disaster for the allied troops participating, was in fact not a wasted operation and useless expenditure of lives.

The attack upon Dieppe took place on August 19, 1942. The troops involved totaled 6,100 of whom roughly 5,000 were Canadians, the remainder being British Commandos and 50 American Rangers. The raid was supported by eight Allied destroyers and 74 Allied air squadrons (eight belonging to the RCAF). Major General J.H. Roberts, the Commander of the 2nd Canadian Division, was appointed Military Force Commander, with Captain J. Hughes-Hallett, R.N. as Naval Force Commander and Air Vice Marshal T.L. Leigh-Mallory as Air Force Commander.

The lessons learned there by the Allies (and the Germans, who learned the wrong ones) caused the postponement of the invasion, and a complete re-think of how to go about it... culminating in Overlord two years later.

By early afternoon, Operation Jubilee was over. Conflicting assessments of the value of the raid continue to be presented. Some claim that it was a useless slaughter; others maintain that it was necessary to the successful invasion of the continent two years later on D-Day. The Dieppe Raid was closely studied by those responsible for planning future operations against the enemy-held coast of France. Out of it came improvements in technique, fire support and tactics which reduced D-Day casualties to an unexpected minimum. The men who perished at Dieppe were instrumental in saving countless lives on the 6th of June, 1944. While there can be no doubt that valuable lessons were learned, a frightful price was paid in those morning hours of August 19, 1942. Of the 4,963 Canadians who embarked for the operation only 2,210 returned to England, and many of these were wounded. There were 3,367 casualties, including 1,946 prisoners of war; 907 Canadians lost their lives.

Stalingrad was an unmitigated disaster for the Germans, and all the troops participating - without any saving grace at all for the Germans, as Hitler learned nothing at all from it. Good thing for us.

Hat tip to Strategy Page for the reminder.

Go visit the websites of the Canadian units present at Dieppe:

The Royal Regiment of Canada
The Royal Highland Regiment of Canada
The South Saskatchewan Regiment.
Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders
The Essex Scottish Regiment
Les Fusiliers Mont Royal
The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry
The Kings Own Calgary Regiment

Two of Canada's 16 WWII Victoria Crosses came from Dieppe:

Rev. John Weir Foote, the Royal Hamiltons
Lt. C ol. Charles Cecil Ingersoll Merritt, the South Saskatchewans.