 = St Nazaire Raid = 
 
 The St Nazaire Raid or Operation Chariot was a successful British amphibious attack on the heavily defended Normandie dry dock at St Nazaire in German @-@ occupied France during the Second World War . The operation was undertaken by the Royal Navy and British Commandos under the auspices of Combined Operations Headquarters on 28 March 1942 . St Nazaire was targeted because the loss of its dry dock would force any large German warship in need of repairs , such as the Tirpitz , to return to home waters via either the English Channel or the <unk> gap , both of which were heavily defended by British units including the Royal Navy 's Home Fleet , rather than having a haven available on the Atlantic coast . 
 The obsolete destroyer HMS Campbeltown , accompanied by 18 smaller craft , crossed the English Channel to the Atlantic coast of France and was rammed into the Normandie dock gates . The ship had been packed with delayed @-@ action explosives , well hidden within a steel and concrete case , that detonated later that day , putting the dock out of service for the remainder of the war and up to five years after . 
 A force of commandos landed to destroy machinery and other structures . Heavy German gunfire sank , set <unk> or <unk> all the small craft intended to transport the commandos back to England ; the commandos had to fight their way out through the town to try to escape overland . They were forced to surrender when their ammunition was expended and they were surrounded . 
 After the raid 228 men of the force of <unk> returned to Britain ; 169 were killed and 215 became prisoners of war . German casualties were over 360 dead , some killed after the raid when Campbeltown exploded . To recognise their bravery , 89 decorations were awarded to members of the raiding party , including five Victoria Crosses . After the war , St Nazaire was one of 38 battle honours awarded to the Commandos ; the operation has since become known as The Greatest Raid of All within military circles . 
 
 = = Background = = 
 
 St Nazaire is on the north bank of the Loire 400 km ( 250 miles ) from the nearest British port . In 1942 , it had a population of 50 @,@ 000 . The St Nazaire port has an outer harbour known as the Avant Port , formed by two piers <unk> out into the Atlantic Ocean . This leads to two lock gates before the Bassin de St Nazaire . These gates control the water level in the basin so that it is not affected by the tide . 
 Beyond the basin is the larger inner dock called the Bassin de <unk> , which can accommodate ships up to 10 @,@ 000 tons . There is also an old entrance to the Bassin de St Nazaire located southwest of the Normandie dry dock . Built to house the ocean liner SS Normandie , this dock was the largest dry dock in the world when it was completed in 1932 . The " Old Mole " jetty <unk> into the Loire halfway between the southern pier of the Avant Port and the old entrance into the basin . 
 On 24 May 1941 , the Battle of the Denmark Strait was fought between the German ships Bismarck and <unk> <unk> and the British ships HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Hood . Hood was sunk and the damaged Prince of Wales was forced to retire . Bismarck , also damaged , ordered her consort to proceed independently while she headed for the French port of St Nazaire , which was the only port on the Atlantic coast with a dry dock able to accommodate a ship of her size . She was intercepted by the British and sunk en route . 
 Britain 's Naval Intelligence Division first proposed a commando raid on the dock in late 1941 . When the German battleship Tirpitz was declared operational in January 1942 , the Royal Navy ( RN ) and Royal Air Force ( RAF ) were already drawing up plans to attack her . <unk> from Combined Operations Headquarters were looking at potential scenarios if Tirpitz escaped the naval blockade and reached the Atlantic . They decided the only port able to accommodate her was St Nazaire , especially if , like the Bismarck , she was damaged en route and needed repairs . They came to the conclusion that if the dock at St Nazaire were unavailable the Germans were unlikely to risk sending Tirpitz into the Atlantic . 
 Combined Operations examined a number of options while planning the destruction of the dock . At this stage of the war the British government still tried to avoid civilian casualties . This ruled out a bombing attack by the RAF , which at the time did not possess the accuracy needed to destroy the dock without serious loss of civilian life . 
 The Special Operations Executive were approached to see if its agents could destroy the dock gates . They decided that the mission was beyond their capabilities because the weight of explosives required would have needed too many agents to carry them . The Royal Navy was also unable to mount an operation , as St Nazaire is 8 km ( 5 miles ) up the Loire estuary . Any naval ships large enough to cause sufficient damage would be detected well before they were within range . 
 The planners then examined whether a commando force was feasible to accomplish the task . An unusually high spring tide was due in March 1942 which would allow a light ship to pass over the sand banks in the estuary and approach the docks , bypassing the heavily defended dredged channel . The approach was too shallow for an infantry landing ship , but the planners believed if a destroyer could be lightened it might have a draft shallow enough to enable it to get through . 
 
 = = Plan = = 
 
 The purpose of the raid was to destroy three objectives : the Normandie dock , the old gates into the Bassin de St Nazaire together with the water pumping machinery and other installations , and any U @-@ boats or other shipping in the area . The initial Combined Operations plan required two specially lightened destroyers to carry out the raid . The first would be packed with explosives and rammed into the dock gates . 
 Commandos on board would then disembark and use demolition charges to destroy nearby dock installations , searchlights and gun emplacements . The destroyer would then be blown up , and the second ship would come in and evacuate the ship 's crew and the commandos . At the same time the RAF would carry out a number of diversionary air raids in the area . 
 When the plan was presented to the Admiralty they refused to support it . The certain loss of one or both destroyers to eliminate the dry dock was out of the question . They suggested they could provide an old Free French destroyer , the <unk> , and a flotilla of small motor launches to transport the commandos and evacuate them afterwards . 
 <unk> for the mission , codenamed Operation Chariot , was given on 3 March 1942 . Using a French ship would involve using the Free French forces and increase the number of people aware of the raid . Consequently , it was decided the navy would have to provide a ship of their own . The RAF complained that the raid would draw heavily on their resources ; the number of aircraft assigned by RAF <unk> Command was reduced time and again before the day of the raid . British Prime Minister Winston Churchill further complicated matters when he ordered that bombing should only take place if targets were clearly identified . 
 Combined Operations Headquarters worked closely with several intelligence organisations to plan the raid . The Naval Intelligence Division compiled information from a variety of sources . A detailed plan of the town of St Nazaire was provided by the Secret Intelligence Service , and information on the coastal artillery nearby was sourced from the War Office 's Military Intelligence branch . Intelligence about the dock itself came from pre @-@ war technical journals . 
 The RN 's Operational Intelligence Centre selected the route and timing for the raid based on intelligence about the location of minefields and German recognition signals sourced from <unk> <unk> and knowledge of Luftwaffe patrols compiled by the Air Ministry 's Air Intelligence Branch . When all the plans had been pulled together and the timing worked out , the raid was expected to last no longer than two hours . The commandos and crew from Campbeltown would board the motor launches at the Old Mole jetty and then return to base . 
 
 = = Composition of the raiding force = = 
 
 The revised Combined Operations plan required one destroyer to ram the dock gates and a number of smaller craft to transport the Commandos . The Royal Navy would therefore provide the largest contingent for the raid , under the overall command of the senior naval officer , Commander Robert Ryder . The ship selected to ram into the dock gates was HMS Campbeltown , commanded by Lieutenant Commander Stephen <unk> Beattie . Campbeltown was a First World War destroyer and had previously been the USS Buchanan in the United States Navy . She had come into RN service in 1940 as one of 50 destroyers transferred to the United Kingdom under the Destroyers for <unk> Agreement . 
 <unk> Campbeltown for the raid took ten days . She had to be lightened to raise her draught to get over the sand banks in the estuary . This was achieved by completely stripping all her internal compartments . The dockyard removed her three 4 inch ( 100 mm ) guns , torpedoes and depth charges from the deck and replaced the forward gun with a light quick – firing 12 pounder ( 3 " ) . Eight 20 mm <unk> were installed on mountings raised above deck level . The bridge and <unk> were given extra armour @-@ plate protection , and two rows of armour were fixed along the sides of the ship to protect the Commandos on the open deck . 
 Two of her four funnels were removed , and the forward two were cut at an angle to resemble those of a German destroyer . The bow was packed with 4 @.@ 5 tons of high explosives , which were set in concrete . It was decided that the explosive charge would be timed to <unk> after the raiders had left the harbour . To prevent the Germans <unk> her away , the crew would open the ship 's <unk> before abandoning the ship . Should she become disabled or sunk before getting to the dock , four motor launches had been detailed to take off the crew and put the commandos ashore . The charge would be reset to explode after the last boat had left . 
 Other naval units involved were two Hunt class destroyers , HMS Tynedale ( <unk> ) and Atherstone ( <unk> ) , which would accompany the force to and from the French coast and remain out at sea during the raid . A Motor Gun Boat ( MGB 314 ) was the headquarters ship for the raid , with Commander Ryder and the commanding officer of the Commandos on board . A Motor Torpedo Boat ( MTB 74 ) , commanded by Sub @-@ Lieutenant Michael Wynn , had two objectives : If the outer Normandie dock gates were open , she had to torpedo the inner dock gates . If the gates were closed she would instead torpedo the gates at the old entrance into the St Nazaire basin . 
 To assist in transporting the Commandos , 12 motor launches ( ML ) were assigned from the 20th and 28th Motor <unk> flotillas . These boats were re @-@ armed with two Oerlikon 20 mm guns mounted forward and aft to complement their twin Lewis guns . At the last minute another four MLs were assigned from the 7th Motor <unk> flotilla ( see <unk> for flotilla details ) . These four boats were also armed with two torpedoes each . Instead of transporting the Commandos , these boats were to engage any German shipping found in the estuary . All the MLs had a 500 @-@ gallon auxiliary fuel tank fixed to the upper deck to increase their range . The S class submarine HMS Sturgeon would leave before the rest of the convoy and be in position to act as a navigational beacon to guide the convoy into the Loire estuary . 
 The man selected to lead the Commando force was Lieutenant Colonel Charles Newman ; his No. 2 Commando would provide the largest Commandos contingent , 173 men , for the raid . The Special Service Brigade headquarters used the raid to provide experience for their other units and 92 men were drawn from Nos 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 9 , and 12 Commandos . 
 The Commandos were divided into three groups ; One and Two would travel in the MLs , while Three would be in Campbeltown . Under the command of Captain <unk> , Group One had the objectives of securing the Old Mole and eliminating the anti @-@ aircraft gun positions around the southern <unk> . They were then to move into the old town and blow up the power station , bridges and locks for the new entrance into the basin from the Avant port . The capture of the mole was a major objective , as it was to be the embarkation point for the evacuation after the mission . 
 Group Two , under the command of Captain Burn , would land at the old entrance to the St Nazaire basin . Their objectives were to destroy the anti @-@ aircraft positions in the area and the German headquarters , to blow up the locks and bridges at the old entrance into the basin and then to guard against a counter @-@ attack from the submarine base . Group Three was under the command of Major William ' Bill ' Copland , who was also the Commandos ' second in command . They were to secure the immediate area around Campbeltown , destroy the dock 's water @-@ pumping and gate @-@ opening machinery and the nearby underground fuel tanks . All three groups were subdivided into assault , demolition and protection teams . The assault teams would clear the way for the other two . The demolition teams carrying the explosive charges only had <unk> for self @-@ defence ; the protection teams , armed with Thompson <unk> guns , were to defend them while they completed their tasks . 
 The Commandos were aided in their planning for the operation by Captain Bill <unk> of the Royal Engineers , who had pre @-@ war experience as an apprentice in the Great Western Railway dockyards and whose father was the dock master of Cardiff Docks . In 1940 while part of the British Expeditionary Force in France , his duties had included determining how to <unk> the French dockyards if they were captured . One of the dockyards he had studied was St Nazaire , and he had submitted a report detailing how to put the dock out of action . 
 
 = = German forces = = 
 
 The Germans had around 5 @,@ 000 troops in the immediate area of St Nazaire . The port was defended by the 280th Naval Artillery Battalion under the command of Kapitän zur See Edo <unk> . The battalion was composed of 28 guns of various <unk> from 75 mm to 280 mm railway guns , all positioned to guard the coastal approaches . The heavy guns were supplemented by the guns and searchlights of the 22nd Naval Flak Brigade under the command of Kapitän zur See Karl @-@ Konrad Mecke . 
 The brigade was equipped with 43 anti @-@ aircraft guns ranging in calibre from 20 to 40 mm . These guns had a dual role as both anti @-@ aircraft and coastal defence weapons . Many were in concrete emplacements on top of the submarine pens and other <unk> installations of the St Nazaire submarine base . 
 The harbour defence companies were responsible for local defence and for the security of the ships and submarines moored in the harbour . These companies and the harbour defence boats used to patrol the river were under the command of Harbour Commander Korvettenkapitän <unk> . The <unk> Infantry Division was the German Army unit responsible for the defence of the coast between St Nazaire and <unk> . The division had no troops based in the town , but some were located in villages nearby and would be able to respond to any attack on the port . 
 The Kriegsmarine ( German navy ) had at least three surface ships in the Loire estuary : a destroyer , an armed trawler and a <unk> ( minesweeper ) , the latter being the guard ship for the port . On the night of the raid there were also four harbour defence boats and ten ships from the 16th and 42nd <unk> flotillas berthed in the basin , while two tankers were berthed inside the Normandie dock . The 6th and 7th U @-@ boat flotillas , commanded by <unk> Georg @-@ Wilhelm Schulz and Korvettenkapitän Herbert <unk> respectively , were permanently based in the port . It is not known how many submarines were present on the day of the raid . The submarine base had been inspected by the U @-@ boat Commander in Chief , <unk> Karl <unk> , the day before the raid . He asked what would they do if the base was subject to an attack by British Commandos . <unk> replied that " an attack on the base would be hazardous and highly <unk> " . 
 
 = = The raid = = 
 
 
 = = = <unk> journey = = = 
 
 The three destroyers and 16 small boats left Falmouth , Cornwall at 14 : 00 on 26 March 1942 . They formed into a convoy of three lanes , with the destroyers in the middle . On arrival at St Nazaire the <unk> MLs were to head for the Old Mole to disembark their Commandos , while the starboard lane would make for the old entrance to the basin to disembark theirs . Not having the range to reach St Nazaire unaided , the MTB and MGB were taken under tow by Campbeltown and Atherstone . 
 On 27 March at 07 : 20 Tynedale reported a U @-@ boat on the surface and opened fire . The two escort destroyers left the convoy to engage the U @-@ boat , later identified as U @-@ 593 . The U @-@ boat promptly <unk> and was unsuccessfully attacked by depth charges . The two destroyers returned to the convoy at 09 : 00 . 
 The convoy next encountered two French fishing <unk> . Both crews were taken off and the ships sunk for fear they might report the composition and location of the convoy . At 17 : 00 the convoy received a signal from Commander @-@ in @-@ Chief Plymouth that five German torpedo boats were in the area . Two hours later another signal informed them that another two Hunt class destroyers , HMS Cleveland and HMS <unk> , had been dispatched at full speed to join the convoy . 
 The convoy reached a position 65 nautical miles ( 120 km ; 75 mi ) off St Nazaire at 21 : 00 and changed course toward the estuary , leaving Atherstone and Tynedale as a sea patrol . The convoy adopted a new formation with the MGB and two torpedo MLs in the lead , followed by Campbeltown . The rest of the MLs formed two columns on either side and <unk> of the destroyer , with the MTB bringing up the rear . The first casualty of the raid was ML 341 , which had developed engine trouble and was abandoned . At 22 : 00 the submarine Sturgeon directed her navigation beacon out to sea to guide the convoy in . At about the same time Campbeltown raised the German naval <unk> in an attempt to <unk> any German lookouts into thinking she was a German destroyer . 
 At 23 : 30 on 27 March , five RAF squadrons ( comprising 35 <unk> and 27 <unk> ) started their bombing runs . The bombers had to stay above 6 @,@ 000 feet ( 1 @,@ 800 m ) and were supposed to remain over the port for 60 minutes to divert attention toward themselves and away from the sea . They had orders to only bomb clearly identified military targets and to drop only one bomb at a time . As it turned out , poor weather over the port ( 10 / <unk> cloud ) meant that only four aircraft bombed targets in St Nazaire . Six aircraft managed to bomb other nearby targets . 
 The unusual behaviour of the bombers concerned Kapitän zur See Mecke . At 00 : 00 on 28 March , he issued a warning that there might be a parachute landing in progress . At 01 : 00 on 28 March , he followed up by ordering all guns to cease firing and searchlights to be <unk> in case the bombers were using them to locate the port . Everyone was placed on a heightened state of alert . The harbour defence companies and ships ' crews were ordered out of the air raid shelters . During all this a lookout reported seeing some activity out at sea , so Mecke began <unk> some type of landing and ordered extra attention to be paid to the approaches to the harbour . 
 
 = = = <unk> the dry dock = = = 
 
 At 00 : 30 hours on 28 March the convoy crossed over the <unk> at the mouth of the Loire estuary , with Campbeltown scraping the bottom twice . Each time she was able to pull free , and the group proceeded on up toward the harbour in darkness . They had got to within about eight minutes passage from the dock gates when at 01 : 22 the entire convoy was illuminated by the combined searchlights of both banks of the estuary . A naval signal light demanded their identification . 
 The MGB @-@ 314 replied in a coded response obtained from a German trawler boarded during the <unk> raid . A few bursts were fired from a shore battery and both Campbeltown and MGB @-@ 314 replied : " Ship being fired upon by friendly forces " . The deception gave them a little more time before every German gun in the bay opened fire . At 01 : 28 , with the convoy 1 mile ( 1 @.@ 6 km ) from the dock gates , Beattie ordered the German flag lowered and the White Ensign raised . The intensity of the German fire seemed to increase . The guard ship opened fire and was quickly <unk> when the ships in the convoy responded , shooting into her as they passed . 
 By now all the ships in the convoy were within range to engage targets ashore and were firing at the gun emplacements and searchlights . Campbeltown was hit a number of times and increased her speed to 19 kn ( 35 km / h ) . The <unk> on her bridge was killed ; his replacement was wounded and replaced as well . <unk> by the searchlights , Beattie knew they were close to their objective . Still under heavy fire , the MGB turned into the estuary as Campbeltown cleared the end of the Old Mole , cut through anti @-@ torpedo netting strung across the entrance and rammed the dock gates , striking home at 01 : 34 , three minutes later than scheduled . The force of the impact drove the ship 33 feet ( 10 m ) onto the gates . 
 
 = = = <unk> from Campbeltown and the MLs = = = 
 
 The Commandos on Campbeltown now disembarked : two assault teams , five demolition teams with their <unk> and a mortar group . Three demolition teams were tasked with destroying the dock pumping machinery and other installations associated with the dry dock . The <unk> @-@ wearing Captain Donald Roy - ' The Laird ' - and his 14 @-@ man assault troop were tasked with <unk> two pump @-@ house roof @-@ top gun emplacements high above the <unk> and securing a bridge to provide a route for the raiding parties to exit the dock area . Roy and <unk> Don Randall used scaling <unk> and grenades to accomplish the former , and a head @-@ on rush to secure the bridge and form a bridgehead that enabled <unk> Bob Montgomery and Lt Corran <unk> and their demolition teams to exit the area . 
 They lost 4 men in this action . The fifth team also succeeded in completing all their objectives but almost half its men were killed . The other two Commando groups were not as successful . The MLs transporting Groups One and Two had almost all been destroyed on their approach . ML 457 was the only boat to land its Commandos on the Old Mole and only ML 177 had managed to reach the gates at the old entrance to the basin . That team succeeded in planting charges on two <unk> moored in the basin . 
 There were only two other MLs in the vicinity : ML 160 had continued past the dock and was engaging targets upriver , ML 269 appeared to be out of control and was running in circles . By this time the crew of Campbeltown had detonated the scuttling charges and gathered at the rear of the ship to be taken off . ML 177 came alongside the destroyer and took 30 men on board including Beattie and some of the wounded . Major Copland went through Campbeltown and evacuated the wounded towards the Old Mole , not knowing that there were no other boats there to take the Commandos off . 
 Lt <unk> Newman aboard the MGB , need not have landed , but he was one of the first ashore . One of his first actions was to direct mortar fire onto a gun position on top of the submarine pens that was causing heavy casualties among the Commandos . He next directed machine @-@ gun fire onto an armed trawler , which was forced to withdraw upriver . Newman organised a defence that succeeded in keeping the increasing numbers of German reinforcements at bay until the demolition parties had completed their tasks . 
 Some 100 Commandos were still ashore when Newman realised that evacuation by sea was no longer an option . He gathered the survivors and issued three orders : 
 To do our best to get back to England ; 
 Not to surrender until all our ammunition is exhausted ; 
 Not to surrender at all if we can help it . 
 Newman and Copland led the charge from the old town across a bridge raked by machine gun fire and advanced into the new town . The Commandos attempted to get through the narrow streets of the town and into the surrounding countryside , but were eventually surrounded . When their ammunition was expended their only option was to surrender . Not all the Commandos were captured ; five men reached neutral Spain , from where they eventually returned to England . 
 
 = = = Small ships = = = 
 
 Most of the MLs had been destroyed on the run in and were burning . The first ML in the starboard column was the first boat to catch fire ; her captain managed to beach her at the end of the Old Mole . Some starboard boats managed to reach their objective and disembark their Commandos . ML 443 , the leading boat in the port column , got to within 10 feet ( 3 @.@ 0 m ) of the mole in the face of heavy direct fire and hand grenades before being set on fire . The crew were rescued by ML 160 , one of the torpedo MLs which had been looking for targets of opportunity such as the two large tankers reported to be in the harbour . The commanders of MLs 160 and 443 , <unk> T Boyd and T D L Platt , were awarded the Distinguished Service Order for their bravery . The rest of the port column had been destroyed or disabled before reaching the mole . MLs 192 and 262 were set on fire ; there were only six survivors . ML 268 was blown up ; one man survived . 
 ML 177 , the launch that had successfully taken off some of the crew from Campbeltown , was sunk on her way out of the estuary . ML 269 , another torpedo @-@ armed boat , had the unenviable task of moving up and down the river at high speed to draw German fire away from the landings . Soon after passing Campbeltown it was hit and its steering damaged . It took ten minutes to repair the steering . They turned and started in the other direction , opening fire on an armed trawler in passing . Return fire from the trawler set their engine on fire . 
 ML <unk> also came under heavy fire when it arrived near the port . Sergeant Thomas Durrant of No. 1 Commando , manning the aft Lewis gun , engaged gun and <unk> positions on the run in . He was wounded but refused to leave the gun for treatment . The ML reached the open sea but was attacked at short range by the German torpedo boat Jaguar . Durrant returned fire , aiming for the torpedo boat 's bridge . He was wounded again but remained at his gun even after the German commander asked for their surrender . <unk> drum after drum of ammunition , he refused to give up until after the ML had been boarded . Durrant died of his wounds and , after the recommendation of the Jaguar 's commander , was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross . 
 After the Commando headquarters group had landed , Commander Ryder went to check for himself that Campbeltown was firmly stuck in the dock . Some of her surviving crewmen were being taken on board the MGB . Ryder returned to the boat and ordered the MTB to carry out its alternative task and torpedo the lock gates at the old entrance to the basin . After a successful torpedo attack , Ryder ordered the MTB to leave . On their way out of the estuary they stopped to collect survivors from a sinking ML and were hit and set on fire . Back at the docks the MGB had positioned itself in mid @-@ river to engage enemy gun emplacements . The forward 2 pounder was manned by Able Seaman William Alfred Savage . Commander Ryder reported that 
 " The rate of supporting fire had evidently been felt , and the Commandos in the area of the Tirpitz dock had undoubtedly overcome the resistance in that area . There was an <unk> <unk> in the enemy 's fire . " 
 Ryder could see no ships other than seven or eight burning MLs . He then realised that the landing places at the Old Mole and the entrance to the basin had both been recaptured by the Germans . There was nothing more they could do for the Commandos , so they headed out to sea . On their way they were continuously illuminated by German searchlights and were hit at least six times by the German guns . Passing ML 270 , they ordered her to follow and made smoke to hide both boats . 
 When they reached the open sea the smaller calibre guns were out of range and stopped firing but the heavier artillery continued to engage them . The boats were about 4 miles ( 6 @.@ 4 km ) off @-@ shore when the last German salvo <unk> them and killed Savage , who was still at his gun . He was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross for his exploits . His citation recognised both Savage and the bravery of " the many unnamed crews of the Motor Gun Boat , Motor Torpedo Boat and Motor <unk> who continued to carry out their duties in exposed positions , in the face of close range enemy fire . " 
 
 = = = Return journey = = = 
 
 At 06 : 30 the five German torpedo boats that the convoy had <unk> the previous day were sighted by HMS Atherstone and Tynedale . The two destroyers turned toward them and opened fire at a range of 7 miles ( 11 km ) . After ten minutes the German boats turned away , making smoke . The destroyers sighted the MGB and two accompanying MLs soon after and transferred their casualties to the Atherstone . Not expecting any more boats to arrive , they headed for home . Just after 09 : 00 the Hunt @-@ class escort destroyers HMS <unk> and HMS Cleveland arrived , sent by Commander @-@ in @-@ Chief Plymouth . Shortly after this the ships were spotted by a Heinkel 115 <unk> of the Luftwaffe . 
 The next German aircraft on the scene , a Junkers 88 , was engaged by a RAF Bristol Beaufighter which had appeared in the area earlier . Both machines crashed into the sea . Other German planes arrived but were driven off by Beaufighters and <unk> from Coastal Command . The Atlantic weather conditions deteriorated . Amid concerns about the growing German threat and the realisation that the damaged small ships would not be able to keep up , Commander <unk> ordered the crews off the smaller boats and had them sunk . 
 Three of the small vessels managed to return to England : MLs 160 , <unk> and 443 . They had reached the rendezvous and waited until 10 : 00 for the destroyers to appear . Having already been attacked once , they moved further out into the Atlantic to try and avoid the German Air Force , but a Junkers 88 appeared overhead at 07 : 30 and approached them at low level for a closer look . The ships opened fire and hit the Junkers in the cockpit . The plane went into the sea . The next aircraft to appear was a <unk> and <unk> seaplane which attempted to bomb the ships , but left after being damaged by machine @-@ gun fire . The surviving MLs eventually reached England unaided the following day . 
 
 = = = Campbeltown explodes = = = 
 
 The explosive charges in HMS Campbeltown detonated at noon on 28 March 1942 , and the dry dock was destroyed . Reports vary on the fate of the two tankers that were in the dock ; they were either swept away by the wall of water and sunk , or swept to the far end of the dock , but not sunk . A party of 40 senior German officers and civilians who were on a tour of Campbeltown were killed . In total , the explosion killed about 360 men . The wreck of Campbeltown could still be seen inside the dry dock months later when RAF photo reconnaissance planes were sent to photograph the port . 
 According to Captain Robert Montgomery ( Royal Engineers , attached to <unk> Commando ) , Campbeltown was meant to have detonated at 4 : <unk> , the delay caused , he believes , by some of the acid in the pencil fuses being <unk> away . As the morning progressed , more and more captured comrades joined him in the German HQ . 
 The day after the explosion , Organisation Todt workers were assigned to clean up the debris and wreckage . On 30 March at 16 : 30 the torpedoes from MTB 74 , which were on a delayed fuse setting , exploded at the old entrance into the basin . This raised alarms among the Germans . The Organisation Todt workers ran away from the dock area . German guards , <unk> their <unk> uniforms for British uniforms , opened fire , killing some of them . The Germans also thought that some Commandos were still hiding in the town , and made a street by street search , during which some <unk> were also killed . 
 
 = = Aftermath = = 
 
 The explosion put the dry dock out of commission for the remainder of the war . The St Nazaire raid had been a success , but at a cost . Of the <unk> men of the Royal Navy and Commandos who took part in the raid , only 228 men returned to England . Five commandos escaped via neutral Spain and Gibraltar with the help of French citizens , and took a ship to England from Gibraltar . 169 men were killed ( 105 RN and 64 Commandos ) and another 215 became prisoners of war ( 106 RN and 109 Commandos ) . They were first taken to La <unk> and then sent to <unk> 133 at Rennes . The fallen British raiders were buried at the La <unk> @-@ <unk> cemetery with military honours . The cemetery is located 13 kilometres west of St Nazaire . 
 To recognise their achievement , 89 decorations were awarded for the raid . This total includes the five Victoria Crosses awarded to Lieutenant Commander Beattie , Lieutenant Colonel Newman and Commander Ryder , and posthumous awards to Sergeant Durrant and Able Seaman Savage . Four Distinguished Service Orders were awarded to Major William Copland , Captain Donald Roy , Lieutenant T Boyd and Lieutenant T D L Platt . Other decorations awarded were four <unk> <unk> Medals , five Distinguished Conduct Medals , 17 Distinguished Service Crosses , 11 Military Crosses , 24 Distinguished Service Medals and 15 Military Medals . Four men were awarded the Croix de guerre by France , and another 51 were mentioned in despatches . 
 Adolf Hitler was furious that the British had been able to sail a flotilla of ships up the Loire <unk> . His immediate reaction was to dismiss <unk> Carl <unk> , chief @-@ of @-@ staff to the Commander in Chief West . The raid <unk> German attention on the Atlantic Wall , and special attention was given to ports to prevent any repeat of the raid . By June 1942 the Germans began using concrete to <unk> gun emplacements and bunkers in quantities previously only used in U @-@ boat pens . Hitler laid out new plans in a meeting with <unk> Minister Albert <unk> in August 1942 , calling for the construction of 15 @,@ 000 bunkers by May 1943 to defend the Atlantic coast from Norway to Spain . 
 The battleship Tirpitz never entered the Atlantic . She remained in Norwegian <unk> to threaten Allied shipping until she was destroyed by the RAF on 12 November 1944 . 
 
 = = Legacy = = 
 
 St Nazaire was one of the 38 battle honours presented to the Commandos after the war . The raid has since been called The Greatest Raid of All . The survivors formed their own association , the St Nazaire Society , which is a registered charity in the United Kingdom . 
 A memorial to the raid erected in Falmouth bears the following inscription : 
 A new HMS Campbeltown , a Type 22 Frigate , was launched on 7 October 1987 . She carried the ship 's bell from the first Campbeltown which was rescued during the raid and had been presented to the town of <unk> , Pennsylvania at the end of the Second World War . In 1988 the people of <unk> voted to lend the bell to the new ship for as long as she remained in Royal Navy service . The bell was returned to the town on 21 June 2011 when HMS Campbeltown was decommissioned . 
 On 4 September 2002 , a tree and seat at the National Memorial <unk> were dedicated to the men of the raid . The seat bears the inscription : 
 In memory of the Royal Navy Sailors and Army Commandos killed in the raid on St Nazaire on 28 March 1942 
 
 = = Documentaries and <unk> = = 
 
 A <unk> version of the raid was the climax of the 1952 British war film , Gift Horse . The film follows the career of an ex @-@ US Navy destroyer , HMS <unk> ( actually HMS <unk> ) ; the raid is named Operation Boadicea and portrays the main events of the actual battle . 
 The war film Attack on the Iron Coast was released in 1968 and was a highly fictionalized version of the raid . 
 In 2007 , Jeremy Clarkson presented the story of the raid in a BBC documentary entitled The Greatest Raid of All Time . 
 An episode of the television series ; " World War II 's Greatest <unk> " on the Military Channel ( now the American Heroes Channel ) devoted an episode to this raid . <unk> " Commando Do or Die ! " it was released in early 2014 ; and has been <unk> several times . 
 A mission in the video game Enemy Front re @-@ <unk> the mission from the first person perspective of a British Commando . 
 A mission in the video game Medal Of Honour : European Assault also re @-@ <unk> the mission from the perspective of fictional soldier William Holt . 
 
 