After the British Expeditionary Force had been evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940 [1], then Prime Minister Winston Churchill ordered the creation of a force capable of carrying out raids against German occupied Europe.  Churchill envisioned a “ … specially trained troops of the hunter class, who can develop a reign of terror down these coasts, first of all on the ‘butcher and bolt’ policy (hit and run).”  What transpired from Churchill’s order was the formation of the British Commando, an idea inspired by Lieutenant Colonel Dudley Clarke, whose suggestion was forwarded to General Sir John Dill, then serving as the Chief of the Imperial General Staff.  General Dill, who was aware of Churchill’s directive, approved Clarke’s proposal.

The Commandos were assigned to the operational control of the Combined Operations Headquarters with overall command assigned to Admiral Sir Roger Keyes, who was a veteran of the Gallipoli Campaign…