Operation Suicide: The Remarkable Story of the Cockleshell Raid

by Robert Lyman

During the Second World War, it is hard to imagine a situation where the British High Command could think that one of the only ways they could attack Hitler was to send twelve canoeists with limpet mines to paddle one hundred miles up the Gironde estuary, in the middle of winter, in an attempt to sink German blockade ships in Bordeaux harbour. Yet this is precisely what happened in 1942. The man who gave the go-ahead for the audacious commando raid - Lord Louis Mountbatten, head of Combined Operations - fully anticipated that all ten men would die in the attempt.

Mountbatten wasn't far wrong - two ripped their collapsible canoes as they were manhandling them out of the submarine; two drowned when their canoes capsized entering the Gironde estuary; and a further six were captured by the Germans and later executed. By complete chance, the two canoeists who managed to escape - Major 'Blondie' Hasler and Marine Bill Sparks - stumbled into the arms of the French resistance. Once in their care, Hasler and Sparks made their way across France and into Spain, crossing the Pyrenees in the company (though they did not know it) of a Gestapo agent intent on bringing down the resistance network.

Operation Suicide is the first account of this enthralling raid for over fifty years. In utilizing primary source material, including detailed German records captured by the British in 1944 (which remained censored until 1976), Robert Lyman brings to life one of the most courageous and dramatic events to take place in the darkest days of the Second World War.

Genres: History, World War II, Nonfiction, Military History, Military Fiction

346 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2012

About the author

By birth a New Zealander, I was educated in Australia and at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. After a 20-year career in the British Army I turned my hand to writing, my PhD being published in 2004 as 'Slim, Master of War, a military biography of arguably Britain's greatest field commander of WW2.

I am a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

I am a trustee of the Kohima Educational Trust, which seeks to provide educational opportunities for young learners in Nagaland.

Reviews

[Pete daPixie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some readers may find this book to be a long drawn out tome, especially those who are quite conversant with WWII history. All the same, there is no doubt that Robert Lyman has produced a remarkably well researched account of the famous raid on Bordeaux shipping in December of 1942. Even before accounts of 'Operation Suicide' appear in the text, the first pages are given to a brief resume of the early years of the war, both military and intelligence developments, particularly in France.
As the sub-title states, the story of the 'cockleshell raid' is truly remarkable and this author has certainly done it justice.

[Samuel Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Operation Suicide took me a couple chapters to get into it but then I couldn’t stop. The book became a page turner following the men in the canoes. It’s offers a sense of heroism but still keeps you grounded about the horrors of War. For a short story in a little pocket of France during a time where not much was going on in Western Europe, I would definitely recommend.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent historic record - lots of backup documentation. I met Hasler in 1964 through his in laws who kept a boat in Malta hence my interest.

[George Yabsley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book when read in your mid to late 20’s really stokes the inferiority complex.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent factual information of the real-life story of the Cockleshell heroes.

[Phillip Lloyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Technically this book took me almost eight years to finish. (Purchased in May 2017), there are likely several reasons for this. - This is a detailed account of the Operation Frankton mission of WW2.

Its a classic story about the bravery and determination of a small band of Royal Marines raiding the South West Coastline of France, a story that originally captivated me and still interests me. Some Years ago I go to around 30% of this book and paused (I found it very detailed and technical) - this was in the preparational stage of the mission.

All the information is here if needed and I do enjoy the logistical and training elements to things like this, but it may be the writing style that made it a little difficult, too many tangents swinging off the original story line. I did end up skipping and skim reading some of this which I don't particularly feel good about, certainly the 'SOE' stuff I don't find interesting. I want to know about the men in this story, what motivated them, how they did things and what happened to them.

That said it is still a good read, if the subject is your thing I would count this as essential reading and you should get through it. - It often quotes an original 1956 C.E Lucas-Phillips book, who interviewed the inspiration for this whole operation Blondie Hasler. I have read extracts of Lucas-Phillips book and this book does seem to leave out some of the details and certainly the language (You will need to translate the French for yourself here - which might not be a bad thing).

Still I learnt a lot more about what happened to the other unfortunate cockle crews, As sad as it was to learn of their fate. This book also relies on an Interview with the German Crossen. - It sometimes feels old school and points the finger at the Germans (perhaps rightly) but then times were very different, Though the Geneva Convention was broken. I find somethings in this book very difficult to forgive and certain will never forget. The German's commando order is something that does upset me a lot (I'm not even ex forces either).

There were good Germans here who felt bad about what happened to the Cockle Crews, just like there were French on 'both sides' of the War. A slight spoiler maybe - but I wasn't aware that the men didn't know how they would be 'treated' once captured.

I'm glad I finally got there with this book and its part of my (Goodreads) Bookshelf, I have no personal affiliation to the men of Operation Frankton (by the way Hasler probably wouldn't like the title of either of the film nor this book) but the story will always fascinate me.

Please don't forget the bravery and memory of these men, they were very young but very motivated and knew no fear. Blondie and Sparks are no long here but they will always be remembered. Quite amazing what people went through not that long ago and the book certainly helps to demonstrate this.

[Catherine Mateo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite in depth, would be excellent for anyone looking for really detailed information on this raid.

Nice job Robert.

[Quinton Reid · Rating 3 out of 5]

Incredibly thorough and detailed. A little too heavy for a casual read but otherwise an excellent analysis. Interesting comparison to Operation Jaywick.

[Andrew Parnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite good, if a little too in depth for my taste.