NAVY NEWS, MARCH 2008 45
The art of war
In the line of fi re
ARE you bored by David Attenborough?
Do sweeping vistas of the wilderness
of Antarctica no longer inspire you?
Does the sight of dolphins
IN 2006 Conway brought
with a committee of experienced
frolicking leave you cold?
out A Seaman’s Pocket-
seaman offi cers.
Then throw away that Planet
It told the new COs that
Earth documentary and chuck
Book, a facsimile
assumption of command was
Commando: On The Front Line
reproduction of booklet “the greatest step you will ever
(ITV DVD, £17.99) into the DVD
BR827 issued from the
take… It carries with it an historic
tray. Four hours of rumpin’,
end of 1943 to Hostilities
tradition of dignity and privilege,
pumpin’, boomin’, bangin’
and in return makes demands on
action. And a debate about
Only conscript seamen to
your skill and endurance, which
Star Wars...
In the footsteps
help their rapid transition have never before been asked and
Last month we cast
to Royal Navy life.
which brook no failure.”
our eyes over Chris
Brian Lavery provided an
The booklet was intended to
Terrill’s book of the
of heroes
introduction and now he has
be ‘a mould’ into which new COs
same name.
produced a companion, Royal
should pour their existing character
The same characters
Navy Offi cers Pocket-Book
attributes, one “fashioned in the
fill the documentary which
“EVERY child knows the story
1944 (Conway, £6.99 ISBN 978-
foundry of many distinguished
spawned the book. Print can
of Zeebrugge,” enthused Lloyd
1-84486054-8), writes Prof Eric
Commanding Offi cers.”
capture emotions and feelings, but it
George in the 1930s.
Grove of the University of Salford.
It stressed that anything that
can never compete with moving images if
They did then, they perhaps
This has required rather
happened in the ship was now
you want to understand the visceral nature of
do not now. But the 1918 raid
more editorial work as it is an
their responsibility; personal
21st-Century combat.
on the Belgian port and its near
illustrated compendium of seven
example was even more important.
The story begins 4,000 miles away, however, at Lympstone,
neighbour Ostend raised flagging
New COs were warned not to be
spiritual home of the Corps and the Commando Training Centre,
publications. These comprise:
British spirits – despite a heavy
overwhelmed by paperwork on
where Terrill arrived to film the progress of the latest bunch of
‘the Offi cer’s Aide Memoire’
body count and little appreciable
joining, to resist the temptation to
recruits to file through the gates.
issued in 1943 to help conscripts
military success.
come up with new ideas to seniors
Commando could have been an enjoyable yet fairly standard
selected for offi cer training at
The 90th anniversary of the
The Grove
that had already been tried and to
documentary had it simply ended with the men of 924 Troop
HMS King Alfred; ‘Notes for
attempt to bottle up the Kaiser’s
make sure standing orders were
receiving their green berets and passing out of Lympstone.
Medical Offi cers on Entering the
U-boats in their pens at Bruges
Review
effectively promulgated, especially
What takes it to the next realm is Terrill’s willingness to follow
Royal Navy’ produced the same
by blocking their outlets to the
in the issue of rum.
those raw recruits into battle – no mean feat for the 55-year-old
year; ‘The Treatment of Battle
sea at Zeebrugge and Ostend has,
Captains were not to overstay
one-man band (he filmed, edited and narrated the series) who
Casualties Afl oat’ promulgating
unsurprisingly, provoked fresh
their welcome in the wardroom.
earned the coveted green beret... and considerable respect to
the new casualty handling doctrine
interest.
Rather unhistorically, the supposed
boot from the Booties.
of 1942; Capt Peter Gretton’s
Next month sees Paul
routine to correspondence. memory of the much maligned
What Terrill captures is not merely the marines’ legendary
Standing Orders for the destroyer
Kendall’s eagerly-awaited
‘Notes for Medical Offi cers’ is an Capt Bligh was quoted to advise
fighting ability, but also their warmth – and vulnerability.
Duncan issued in July 1943; the
Zeebrugge Raid 1918. Out now is
attempt to prepare civilian doctors the avoidance of sarcasm and
It’s hard not to feel sorry for Terry John, the recruit from St
booklet ‘Your Ship’ issued to
Stephen McGreal’s Zeebrugge
for their time in the service. contempt in dealing with juniors.
Vincent desperate to be a Royal Marine but destined never to
commanding offi cers of small
and Ostend Raids (Pen & Sword,
It warned them that “a higher There is too much good advice
receive his green beret because of a medical condition.
ships from late 1944: an amended
£12.99 ISBN 978-1844156085),
standard of conduct is expected in subsequent sections to quote
And it’s hard, too, not to feel sorry for the children of
edition of Home Fleet Destroyer
a mix of battle narrative and
of a Medical Offi cer” than of any here but one shone out.
Helmand whose drawings in school are of tanks, bombs and
Orders of April 1943; and ‘Notes
guidebook.
airplanes, yet who also can’t resist a kickabout with the Royals
on Dealing with Mutiny and
other and gave admirable advice Under the heading ‘Training
The former part of the book
– just like our own youngsters.
Massed Disobedience’ issued in
on how to achieve this.
and Inspiration of Ratings’ is: “A
is copiously illustrated with
It is easy to brand the green berets as raw killing machines,
August 1944.
Interestingly, it quoted
fi ghting ship should be composed
contemporary images and
the very elite of Britain’s regular forces.
The fi rst document, the O’Conor’s published guide
of a number of fi ghting teams
sketches, the latter depicts the
They are human beings first, Royal Marines second. Not one
‘Offi cer’s Aide Memoire’ was ‘Running a Big Ship on the Ten
welded together into one big club.
‘battlefield’ as it is today.
of them was unmoved by the death of Mne ‘Vinders’ Curry.
issued by King Alfred’s CO Capt Commandments’ in informing the
You are captain of each team and
Nature devours most
And who else amid the heat of battle could pause to debate
John Pelly, a distinguished and newly recruited in how to conduct
president of the club.”
battlegrounds over time.
the night’s offering in the base cinema? Star Wars, Indiana Jones
highly-experienced offi cer recalled themselves on board ship.
The conclusion quoted, among
At Zeebrugge and Ostend,
or Pirates of the Caribbean? Star Wars won the day... fittingly a
to service in 1939 after fi ve years’ The following guide to treatment
others, Socrates, Sun Tsu and
man has eliminated many of the
simple story of good triumphing over evil.
retirement. The leadership section of battle casualties describes the
John Buchan. In all, the guidance
sites sailors and marines fought
■ WE HAVE 20 copies of the documentary for our readers to win,
was based on a set of instructions new distributed system of First
was very sound, well informed and
over nine decades ago.
courtesy of ITV DVD.
to newly joined offi cers issued over Aid Posts and the reasons for its
generally impressive.
The Mole, the huge pier
To win, name the 2005 documentary series Chris made
the name of Capt F Pridham of adoption. As the editor writes this
Home Fleet Destroyer Orders
about life in today’s Royal Navy.
arching into the North Sea at
the mighty Hood. ‘sombre document’ demonstrates
provide useful insight into the
Send your answer to: Commando Competition, Navy News,
Zeebrugge, remains, but has been
The editor reports that the date the challenge encapsulated in the
actual handling of these vital and
Leviathan Block, HMS Nelson, Portsmouth PO1 3HH, or email it
heavily altered since 1918; where
of the second edition was 1938 but previous ‘Notes’: “You are at the
ubiquitous ships. Finally, the Top
to commando@navynews.co.uk. Remember to include your
HMS Vindictive came alongside
one suspects its origin probably beginning on a new venture and
Secret notes on mutiny go into
name, address and telephone number. The closing date is April
it is now reclaimed land.
had much to do with Hood’s new experiences... This is a great
what is to be done if things go
10 2008.
Memorials, however, abound,
exceptionally able former executive privilege. Try to be worthy of it.”
wrong.
as do cemeteries where the fallen
offi cer Cdr Rory O’Conor whose Peter Gretton’s standing orders
The notes emphasise prevention
Entries must be received by 12 noon on April 10 2008. Twenty winners will be drawn
of the raid are buried.
enthusiasm for written guides to are, as might be expected, a model
and mitigation rather than at 3pm that day. Each winner will receive a single copy of the double-disc DVD in the
And in Ostend, fixed into
naval offi cership is well known. of their type. They are a remarkable
suppression.
post. The decision of the editor is fi nal and there is no alternative prize. No employees
of Navy News nor anyone aged under 15 may enter.
concrete, are the bows of
O’Conor’s and Pridham’s guide to how a destroyer of
Great confi dence was expressed
Vindictive next to the canal she
periods on board overlapped. The this period was handled by an
in the majority of the men in any
tried to block.
fi rst paragraph concludes with the experienced offi cer.
situation: “However serious the
The raids themselves failed;
memorable phrase: “Never forget The term ‘abandon ship’ was
situation may appear to be, it can
at best they caused the Germans
that the ratings have few rights; never to be used; neither was ‘full
be said with certainty that many of
inconvience. The moral effect, but they defi nitely have a right to ahead’ except in emergencies.
the men can be relied upon, if they
however, was tremendous good offi cers.” Gretton recognised the wartime
are given a proper lead by their
– thanks in part to a rather The subsequent sections stress tendency for ships to get “steadily
Offi cers and the opportunity to
disingenuous Admiralty which the importance of bearing and more slack” in personal and ship
break away from the trouble.”
hailed a great victory... and the example, knowledge (“Bluff is the smartness.
Brian Lavery has made the
world believed it. trait of a bad offi cer… You cannot This Commanding Offi cer
social side of the 20th-Century
To the Belgians, the raids were be just without knowledge”), would have none of it: “There
Royal Navy very much his subject
– and remain – beacons, however. fi rmness and fairness, loyalty (to is no need for this and I would
in recent years and this little
You will find streets, parks and superiors and subordinates and like all offi cers to preserve a high
book still further enhances his
squares named for the men of to the ship), smartness, word of standard.”
reputation.
1918. command, parade smartness, ‘Your Ship’ appeared under the
It describes how ships were (or
As David Lloyd George saluting, knowing and serving the signature of the Second Sea Lord,
at least should have been) run
correctly predicted, “these are men, encouraging higher ratings, Sir Algernon Willis, but Lavery
at the time and also expresses
thrilling deeds that give new heart fi ghting qualities and forethought. tells us it was written in the main
some more timeless rules of naval
to a people not merely for the There are then technical sections by Willis’ Naval Assistant Capt
leadership that every modern
hour, but for ages to come.” on subjects from defaulters’ Guy Hodgkinson, in consultation
offi cer should read.
It deserves a wide sale as it is
exceptional value in every respect.
Continuing our Bond with history
Harrier Carriers
HP BOOKFINDERS: Established
professional service locating out
THERE’S a unique chance to see inside the world of Britain’s
Vol 1 of print titles on all
most famous naval offi cer as a new exhibition celebrates the life
of Ian Fleming and his legendary creation James Bond.
HMS INVINCIBLE
subjects. No obligation or SAE
2008 marks the centenary of the birth of Fleming, failed army
By Neil McCart required. Contact: Mosslaird,
cadet, failed Foreign Office official, sometime stockbroker,
The well illustrated story of the first of Brig O’ Turk, Callander, FK17 8HT
the Royal Navy’s new generation of aircraft
successful journalist and best-selling novelist.
Telephone/Fax: (01877) 376377
carriers from the Falklands War to the early
The Bond novels were based in part on Fleming’s wartime years of the 21st Century.
martin@hp-bookfinders.co.uk
career in Royal Navy intelligence. Hardback Price £19.95+ p&p. ISBN 1 901225 08 9 www.hp-bookfinders.co.uk
The author attained the rank of commander – like his Also Still Available in Hardback:
fictional spy – and oversaw a shadowy espionage unit which
carried out covert intelligence operations.
FEARLESS & INTREPID 1965~2002 £24.00 + P&P
The exhibition – For Your Eyes Only at the Imperial War
COLOSSUS-CLASS AIRCRAFT CARRIERS 1944-1972 £24.00 + P&P
Museum in London – charts Fleming’s wartime escapades
HMS HERMES 1923 & 1959 £24.00 + P&P
and explains how the men and women he worked with
THREE ARK ROYALS 1938~1999 £23.00 + P&P
influenced the 007 novels and stories. TIGER, LION & BLAKE 1942~1986 £21.50 + P&P
The display also looks at the impact of the Bond HMS VANGUARD 1944~1960 BRITAIN’S LAST BATTLESHIP £19.95 + P&P
books, and the films which came out of them in Britain
ILLUSTRIOUS & IMPLACABLE AIRCRAFT CARRIERS £23.00 + P&P
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HMS GLORY 1944-1961 £19.95 + P&P
clothes, gadgets and toys which have made the spy an
Please add £2.75 p&p for the UK & EU or £4.50 for worldwide surface mail. Payment
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Among items from the film adaptations on show will From FAN PUBLICATIONS, 17 Wymans Lane, Cheltenham, Glos GL51 9QA.
be Halle Berry’s bikini from Die Another Day (sadly minus Tel/Fax:01242 580290 / Website: www.fanpublications.co.uk or order from good bookshops.
Halle Berry – Assistant Ed), Rosa Klebb’s flick-knife
shoes as seen stabbing at Sean Connery (pictured, left)
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worn by latest screen Bond Daniel Craig in Casino
Royale.
please contact our advertising team on
The exhibition opens on April 17 and runs until
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0045_NN_Mar.indd 145_NN_Mar.indd 1 118/2/08 11:48:158/2/08 11:48:15
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