Beachhead Assault: The Story of the Royal Navy Commandos in World War II

The Royal Navy commandos had one of the most dangerous and important missions of World War II: they were the first onto the invasion beaches and the last to leave. Formed in 1941 as the Royal Naval Beach Parties, they participated in the Dieppe raid, where many lost their lives. Organized under officers designated as Beachmasters, they became full-fledged fighting commandos--with their now legendary Fairbairn Sykes commando knives-and led the way on the beaches as part of the Allied landings in Madagascar, Pantelleria, Sicily, Salerno, Anzio, Arakan, D-day, Elba, Walcheren, and more. Although their work on the beaches had been crucial to the Allied success, after the war they were disbanded and forgotten. With this book, their remarkable story is finally told through the personal accounts of the commandos themselves.
Beachhead Assault includes a foreword by Man and Boy author Tony Parsons, whose father was a Royal Naval Commando who fought at Elba.