DIEPPE - the 75th anniversary of the raid on Dieppe, France which included The Toronto Scottish Regiment is 13 days away and in the lead up, here are some photos and forgotton stories from the 50th anniversary trip in 1992.

Flight Sergeant Jack Nissenthal was an RAF radar expert whose task on 19 Aug. 1942 was to land at Pourville, just west of Dieppe and observe the workings of the German radar station atop the eastern headland. He had a 10 man bodyguard of soldiers from the South Saskatchewan Regiment with orders that he not fall into enemy hands, given the knowledge he had of British radar. He successfully landed at Pourville (Green beach) scaled the headlands and got the intelligence he needed. Of his bodyguard, 3 or 4 were killed but the Flight Sgt. made it home. Following the war he moved to Markham ON, wrote a book on the radar war, and shortened his name to Nissen. Many years later a student of mine interviewed him for his history assignment along with 4 other Dieppe vets.

photo 1 - Jack Nissen at the Dieppe cemetery - 19 August 1992
photo 2 - the village of Pourville where the South Saskatchewan Regiment and the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders landed. The radar station (far left, background) as it appeared in 1992. Following the war it fell off the cliff where it remains to this day.
photos 3-4 - his book and photo 5 - the must read book - Green Beach - by James Leasor if one is interested in the raid.

 

Contact Us

Toronto Scottish Regiment Pipes and Drums
Captain Bellenden Hutcheson VC Armoury,
66 Birmingham Street,
Toronto M8V 2B8, Canada
Map

tsrpdDOTcom grey

 

 email facebook twitter