1942, August 25th

On the 19th August 1942 the Allied attacked the German-occupied port of Dieppe on the northern coast of France. The assault began at 5:00 AM and by 10:50 AM the Allied commanders had been forced to call a retreat. Over 6,000 infantrymen, predominantly Canadian, were supported by large Royal Navy and Royal Air Force contingents. The objective was to seize and hold a major port for a short period, both to prove it was possible and to gather intelligence from prisoners and captured materials while assessing the German responses. The Allies also wanted to destroy coastal defences, port structures and all strategic buildings.

No major objectives of the raid were accomplished. A total of 3,623 of the 6,086 men who made it ashore were either killed, wounded, or captured. The air force failed to lure the Luftwaffe into open battle, losing 96 aircraft compared to 48 lost by the Luftwaffe, while the Royal Navy lost 33 landing craft and one destroyer.