David Howarth - We Die Alone: A WWII Epic of Escape and Endurance

I LEARNT about the Norwegian Resistance as part of my military training, but Id been inspired by their daring attempts to sabotage the Nazi occupation since childhood. I used to watch The Heroesof Telemark with Kirk Douglas every time it was shown on TV, and despite the overlay of Hollywood glamour, I was struck by the bleakness of the terrain and moved by the amazing courage with which those men and women fought against the Germans. It was this long-held admiration that took me to the Norwegian Resistance museum in Oslo last year, and, when asked to write a foreword to this book, made me only too happy to do so.

We Die Alone is the story of one mans ability to endure the worst imaginable and survive. Jan Baalsrud, an expatriate Norwegian resistance fighter, is in trouble as soon as his mission begins. He sails from the Shetland Islands to the far north of Norway with three fellow countrymen. Their aim: to train the villagers in the art of sabotage, and to gather intelligence on Germanys naval movements. But as with so many operations (my own in the Gulf War included), despite the most detailed preparation, the Great Plan explodes in their faces as soon as they hit the ground. The team are betrayed to the Nazis. Three are killed only Jan survives.

His mission then turns into one of the most extraordinary escape stories you will ever read. Frost-bitten and snow blind, he makes his break for neutral Sweden with more than fifty German soldiers on his tail. He endures physical hardship and mental torture in sub-zero conditions that no man would be expected to survive.

As part of our training in the 22nd Special Air Service, we were lectured by former Prisoners of War to learn from their experiences. I remember listening to one American Phantom pilot who had been shot down behind enemy lines in Vietnam and imprisoned for six years. He had been kept in solitary confinement in a 6' 4' cell and systematically tortured. Every major bone in his body had been broken. When I was captured during the Gulf War, I drew upon that pilots experience. If he could survive that kind of treatment, so could I.

Had I known Jans story during my imprisonment and torture in Baghdad, I have no doubt it would have provided me with similar inspiration. I would recommend We Die Alone not just to students of modern warfare, but to anyone interested in the resilience of the human spirit. It demonstrates very clearly what it takes to survive, but more importantly, it shows that the fundamental spirit to survive lies within us all.

There are three skills that all soldiers have drummed into them throughout their army career: Training, Experience and Knowledge. It was these three that helped save Jan. When he was so badly frost-bitten he could barely walk, when he had been blinded by the snow and his mind was so exhausted he couldnt think straight, something else took over. He had trained for this kind of operation for so long, he had years of experience behind him, and he had the knowledge that he was capable of surviving in these conditions.

Jan had something else too: he had a stubborn determination not to die. It is this determination not to give up, not to allow himself to sink into the depths of despair, to keep himself mentally together even when his body failed him, for which I hold him in the highest regard.

But this is not just one mans story. It is also the story of the extraordinary bravery of the villagers living in that remote part of Norway, ordinary men and women who were prepared to risk their lives and those of their families for a complete stranger. It is astonishing that such a large number of people were prepared to help in any way they could, regardless of the consequences, even when they knew Jan had almost no chance of survival. Perhaps it gave them a unique opportunity to hit back, to achieve an act of outrageous defiance against the Nazis that would help them, too, to survive. It is certainly thanks to their courage and perseverance that his escape was ultimately made possible.

We Die Alone is an outstanding read. If ever I had to go on an operation again, I would pick a Jan Baalsrud to go with me every time. And if I could depend on the kind of help and support he had when the going got rough, Id count myself a fortunate man.

Andy McNab