Robert Laycock - Commandos: Early Days

Commandos: Early Days

Laycock was appointed by Keyes to the Commandos and was put in charge of raising one unit. He raised and trained a body of men, often drawing on his wide circle of friends. From the first, the outfit attracted men with initiative and enterprise, often those who could think along unorthodox lines. Mostly, the choices were good, but regular units sometimes used the opportunity to get rid of those who did not fit in. Much of the training was in Western Scotland.

Troops from Nos. 3, 4, 7, 8 and 11 Commandos, organised as three 'Special Service' Battalions and collectively named Layforce) were sent to the Middle East in February 1941 under the command of Laycock in the rank of full Colonel. A fourth 'Special Service' Battalion formed from locally raised Commando (No. 50 and No. 52 Commando) was added to the force on arrival and came under command of the newly raised 6 Division. An attack on the Italian island of Pantelleria was planned. This would have given Britain airfields to protect convoys passing through the central Mediterranean Sea. However the plan was overtaken by events. Looking for a role, the Commandos were assigned to raid the Axis held port of Bardia in the Italian Colony of Libya. The raid produced few material results, but taught valuable lessons, especially about the need to move quickly. One indirect result was that the Germans temporarily pulled back a brigade sized battle group from the forward area to guard against future attacks.

The Greek island of Crete was under attack by German airborne troops and the British garrison was in danger of capture. Layforce was the only general reserve available to General Sir Archibald Wavell, the British Commander-in-Chief in the Middle East. It was sent to Crete at a time when the issue was in doubt, but when it arrived its mission was to cover the evacuation of British and Imperial forces. Layforce arrived at Suda Bay on Crete on the night of 26/27 April 1941. They held a defensive position blocking the main road inland to Sphakia. They attracted heavy air attack. Laycock's personal assistant was the novelist, Evelyn Waugh, a personal friend who showed conspicuous bravery throughout. His leadership throughout the Crete campaign was exemplary, on one occasion personally routing a night-time German attack on his headquarters, by jumping in a tank that happened to be nearby and driving over the invaders. Both Waugh and Laycock were on the last British ship out of Crete, before it fell. The force lost 600 men in the campaign, a casualty rate of 75%.

Laycock led the 1941 Operation Flipper raid to capture General Erwin Rommel which failed with significant casualties, including Roger Keyes' son, Geoffrey Keyes, VC. Laycock escaped and made his way overland with Sergeant Jack Terry (Later awarded the MM and served with further distinction in the SAS and post-war in the British Nottingham City Police) to British forces, after two months behind enemy lines. In 1942, Laycock returned to England as commander of the Special Service Brigade. He led his brigade in the assault on Sicily in 1943 and in the brutal Salerno campaign where his forces held the bridgehead for 11 days and suffered 50% casualties. He received the Distinguished Service Order for this service.