Dieppe in WW2 History | World War II Database

24 May 1940

France

The 2,939-ton passenger steamship Brighton, in service with the British Admiralty as a hospital ship, was bombed and sunk by German aircraft at Dieppe, France. ww2dbase [Invasion of France and the Low Countries | Dieppe, Haute-Normandie | HM]

19 Aug 1942

France

5,000 Canadian troops, 1,000 British Commandos, 50 US Rangers, and 58 British Churchill tanks landed at Dieppe, France at 0500 hours in Operation Jubilee via 9 landing ships, covered by 8 destroyers, many smaller warships, and many aircraft. British and Americans were successful in destroying a German battery near Varengeville, but British and Canadian troops on a nearby beach were pinned down, suffering 1,179 killed before the mission's end. As German aircraft counterattacked, British destroyer HMS Berkeley and several smaller ships were sunk. The operation was called off by 1100 hours in dismal failure. 2,190 Allied troops were captured along with all of the tanks and heavy equipment. The British RAF lost 106 aircraft. The Germans suffered only 311 killed and 48 aircraft shot down in the defense. ww2dbase [Attack on Dieppe | Dieppe, Haute-Normandie | TH, CPC]
James Johnson flew a mission over Dieppe, France, covering the amphibious operation. ww2dbase [James Johnson | Dieppe, Haute-Normandie | CPC]
At Dieppe, France, Corporal Franklin Koons, 1st Ranger Battalion, becomes the first US infantryman to kill a German soldier in combat during WW2; at nearby Berneval, Lieutenant Edwin.D. Loustalot, 1st Ranger Battalion became the first Ranger and US infantry officer to be killed in action in Europe during WW2 as he fell while leading a charge against an enemy gun post. ww2dbase [Dieppe, Haute-Normandie | AC]
Despite being wounded three times, Captain Pat Porteous, liaison officer with British No. 4 Commando, led a text book bayonet charge through a hail of machine-gun fire to eliminate (with deadly hand-to-hand combat) the Varengeville-sur-Mer battery in France which threatened the safety of the ships laying off the coast 0f Dieppe. For this gallant action, Captain Porteous would be awarded the Victoria Cross. ww2dbase [Dieppe, Haute-Normandie | AC]
Pilot Officer Hollis H. Hills, an American volunteer in the Royal Canadian Air Force, was credited with the first air-to-air victory with the North American Mustang (P-51) fighter when he shot down a Fw 190 fighter over Dieppe, France. Californian Hills would later serve in the US Navy flying F6F Hellcat fighters. ww2dbase [Dieppe, Haute-Normandie | AC]

Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis

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