Nicholas C Jellicoe - George Jellicoe: SAS and SBS Commander

George Jellicoe

By the same author

Jutland. The Unfinished Battle

The Last Days of the High Seas Fleet

SAS and SBS Commander

Nicholas Jellicoe

First published in Great Britain in 2021 by

Pen & Sword Military

An imprint of

Pen & Sword Books Ltd

Yorkshire Philadelphia

Copyright Nicholas Jellicoe 2021

ISBN 978 1 39900 944 7

eISBN 978 1 39900 945 4

Mobi ISBN 978 1 39900 946 1

The right of Nicholas Jellicoe to be identified as Author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

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For George, in loving memory, always.

And to the memory of those friendships of his cut short by war:

Peter Pease, Wolfgang and Leberecht von Blcher, Alan Phipps,

Mark Howard, David Jacobsen, Andy Lassen, Andr Zirnheld.

The Kabrit camp

Origins of the SAS and SBS

North African Airfield and port targets

Nofilia, Sirte and Tamet airfields

Derna and Martuba airfields

Berka, Benina and Barce airfields

The Heraklion raid, 1942

The Heraklion raid escape route, June 1942

Fuka, El Dhaba and Bagoush airfields

The SBS camp at Athlit, April 1943

The Sardinia raids, 1943

The Dodecanese Campaign 1943

Leros The Italian Defences

Kos Allied Defences

The Attack on Kos The German Assault

Leros Allied defences

The Attack on Leros German Forces

War in the Islands 19431944

The Peloponnese Campaign SepOct 1944

Athens to Albania

T he heroic deeds of the Special Air Service, Special Boat Service and Long Range Desert Group made their way early into my schoolroom mainly, I admit, in comic form via the War Picture Library. I loved reading about the desert raids in jeeps, of machine guns chattering away and German planes going up in flames. I was extremely fortunate in belonging to a family that was well connected to derring-doers. Shimi Lovat of Commando (and Pegasus Bridge) fame was my mothers brother; David Stirling was an uncle by way of my innumerable Catholic cousins; and Fitzroy Maclean was my stepfather. As I grew older I met many of their wartime colleagues like David Sutherland, Georges Berg, Johnny Cooper, Jason Mavrikis and, of course, George Jellicoe. I was struck by their kindness, their humour, their manner and above all their modesty.

George Jellicoe held a special place in my upbringing because he was the last person to see my father alive.