Episode 59 - The Dieppe Raid: Courage in Chaos

On 19 August 1942, thousands of Canadian soldiers landed at Dieppe expecting a bold raid against occupied France. Instead, they found a killing ground. Poor intelligence, heavily fortified beaches, immobilized tanks and collapsing communications turned Operation Jubilee into one of Canada’s costliest days of the Second World War.In this episode of the Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin are joined by historian Julien Lehoux of Canada Company’s Je me souviens program to examine what went wrong—and, more importantly, what soldiers did when the plan fell apart. From Dollard Ménard leading the Fusiliers Mont-Royal despite being wounded repeatedly, to Charles Merritt’s astonishing courage at Pourville, the story is filled with individual acts of determination.At its heart is Montreal signaller David Hart, whose decision to keep transmitting helped save more than 100 stranded soldiers. Dieppe was a disaster of planning, but amid the chaos were examples of courage, initiative and comradeship.