The Role of the South Saskatchewan Regiment in the Dieppe Raid
Heroes Remember
The Role of the South Saskatchewan Regiment in the Dieppe Raid
Transcript
Description
Colonel Merritt discusses the role that the South Saskatchewan Regiment was instructed to play in the raid on Dieppe in 1942.
Charles Cecil Ingersol Merritt
Colonel Merritt’s father was killed in Ypres during the First World War. 7 or 8 of his uncles from both sides of the family also served during the First World War - three of whom were killed in action. He received his early education in Vancouver and Victoria and then went on to Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario. He articled with a Vancouver lawyer for three years before being called to the bar there in 1929. During this time, he joined the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada militia unit - the unit with whom he enlisted with when the Second World War was declared. Eventually, in late 1941, he was appointed Commanding Officer of the South Saskatchewan Regiment, and served with the Regiment until the war was over. During his service he earned the Victoria Cross for his gallant efforts on Aug. 19, 1942 in the Dieppe Raid. Mr. Merritt was taken prisoner during the Dieppe Raid. Following the war Mr. Merritt returned to his law practice in Vancouver and served in the Canadian Federal Parliament from 1945 - 1949. He continued to live in Vancouver until his death on July 12, 2000.
Meta Data
- Medium:
- Video
- Owner:
- Veterans Affairs Canada
- Duration:
- 03:03
- Person Interviewed:
- Charles Cecil Ingersol Merritt
- War, Conflict or Mission:
- Second World War
- Location/Theatre:
- Europe
- Battle/Campaign:
- Dieppe
- Branch:
- Army
- Units/Ship:
- South Saskatchewan Regiment
- Rank:
- Colonel
- Occupation:
- Company Commander
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Colonel Merritt speaks of the flotilla’s crossing of the English Channel to France and the unexpected encounter with German E Boats.
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Colonel Merritt makes the difficult decision to surrender to the German Army and be taken as prisoners of war.
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Following a time of hospitalization near Dieppe, his men, now Prisoners of War, were taken to Eichstatt in Germany to a POW camp. Colonel Merritt recalls that a short time later, Hitler issued an edict stating that all prisoners who took part in the Dieppe Raid were required to be handcuffed.
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Colonel Merritt was a senior officer on the Escaping Committe at the prison camp. In time, the prisoners constructed a tunnel to freedom.
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Colonel Merritt remembers his escape from the POW camp through the underground tunnel. Sadly though, his freedom was short-lived.
Ears to the Outside World
Within the prison camp, it was possible - with some risk involved - to keep abreast of the war developments.
Freedom At Last! (1 of 2)
Colonel Merritt reflects on the events at the POW camp as the war neared an end.
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Colonel Merritt continues his account of the liberation of the prison camp by American forces.
Receiving the Victoria Cross
Colonel Merritt recalls getting the news that he would be receiving the Victoria Cross. He speaks kindly of King George IV, who presented it to him in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace.
Mother’s Reaction to His Enlistment
A parting comment from Colonel Merritt about his mother’s reaction when he and his siblings enlisted at the beginning of the WWII.
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