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|strength1=13 men<br />6 [[Folding kayak|canoes ('Cockle' mark 2)]]
|strength2=2 [[Naval trawler]]<br />12 [[E Boats]]<br />12 [[Patrol boat]]s<br />6 M-Class [[Minesweeper (ship)|Mine sweepers]]
| casualties =6 men captured & executed<br>2 died from hypothermia<ref name="Rees:Cockleshell Heroes -The Final Witness 2010, p.179" />
| casualties =6 ships damaged
}}
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'''Operation Frankton''' was a [[British Commandos|commando]] [[Raid (military)|raid]] on shipping in the [[Nazi Germany|German]] [[German occupation of France during World War II|occupied French]] port of [[Bordeaux]] in the [[Bay of Biscay]] during the [[Second World War]]. The raid was carried out by a small unit of [[Royal Marines]] known as the Royal Marines Boom Patrol Detachment (RMBPD), part of [[Combined Operations Headquarters|Combined Operations]].
The plan was for six [[Folding kayak|canoes]] to be taken to the area of the [[Gironde estuary]] by [[submarine]]. They would then paddle by night to Bordeaux. On arrival they would attack the docked cargo ships with [[limpet mines]] and then escape overland to Spain. Twelve men from no.1 section were selected for the raid; including the C.O. Blondie Hasler and the reserve Colley the total of the team numbered thirteen. Two men survived the raid: Hasler, and his no.2 in the canoe, Sparks. Of the other eight, six were executed by the Germans while two died from hypothermia.
The [[Prime Minister of the UK|British Prime Minister]] [[Winston Churchill]] believed the mission shortened World War II by six months. The words of [[Lord Mountbatten]], the commander of [[combined Operations Headquarters|Combined Operations]], are carved into a Purbeck stone at Royal Marines Poole [current headquarters of the SBS): ''Of the many brave and dashing raids carried out by the men of Combined Operations Command none was more courageous or imaginative than Operation Frankton''.<ref name=Southby-Tailyour>Southby-Tailyour,p.123</ref>
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The [[Royal Marines]] Boom Patrol Detachment (RMBPD) was formed on 6 July 1942, and based at [[Southsea]], [[Portsmouth]].<ref name=rees25>Rees,p.25</ref> The RMBPD was under the command of Royal Marines [[Major]] [[Herbert Hasler|Herbert 'Blondie' Hasler]] with [[Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)|Captain]] J. D. Stewart as second in command.<ref name=rees25/> The detachment consisted of 34 men and was based at [[Lumps Fort]], and often exercised in the [[Portsmouth Harbour]] and patrolled the harbour [[Boom barrier|boom]] at nights.<ref name=rees25/><ref name=royal>{{Cite web|accessdate=13 May 2010|publisher=[[Royal Marines]] |title=Operation Frankton|url=http://www.royalmarinesregimental.co.uk/histcockmain.html}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref>
The [[Bay of Biscay]] port of [[Bordeaux]] was a major destination for goods to support the German war effort. In the 12 months from June
Mark II canoes, which were given the codename of ''[[Cockle]]'',<ref>{{cite web|author=BBC Hampshire staff|title=Hayling Island's secret canoes author Quentin Rees' interview about canoes and book|date=9 December 2008|publisher=''[[BBC|BBC Hampshire]]''|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/hampshire/content/articles/2008/12/08/hayling_canoes_feature.shtml}}</ref> were selected for the raid.<ref>Rees, p.81</ref> The Mark II was a semi rigid two-man canoe, with the sides made of canvas, a flat bottom, and {{convert|15|ft}} in length. When collapsed it had to be capable of getting in and out of the {{convert|24|in}} wide submarine hatch.<ref>Rees, pp.
The men selected to go on the raid were divided into two divisions, each having their own targets.
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On 30 November 1942 the [[Royal Navy Submarine Service|Royal Navy submarine]] {{HMS|Tuna|N94}} sailed from [[Holy Loch]] in Scotland with the six canoes and raiders on board.<ref name=rees76/> The submarine was supposed to reach the [[Gironde estuary]] and the mission was scheduled to start on 6 December 1942. This was delayed because of bad weather en route and the need to negotiate a minefield.<ref name=co93>Cohen, p.93</ref> By 7 December 1942 the submarine had reached the Gironde estuary and surfaced some {{convert|10|mi|km|0}} from the mouth of the estuary. Canoe ''Cachalot''{{-'}}s hull was damaged while being passed out of the submarine hatch, leaving just five canoes to start the raid. The reserve member of the team, Marine Colley, was not needed, so he remained aboard the submarine with the ''Cachalot'' crew Marine Ellery and Marine Fisher.<ref name=rees76/>
According to ''Tuna's'' log the five remaining canoes were disembarked at 1930 hours 7 December. However sources differ on the start time between 1936 and 2022.<ref>Southby-Tailyour, p.103</ref> <ref>Ashdown, p.150</ref> The plan was for the crews to paddle and rest for five minutes in every hour.<ref name=re77>Rees 2010, p.65</ref> The first night, 7/8 December, fighting against strong cross tides and cross winds, canoe ''Coalfish'' had disappeared. Further on the surviving crews encountered {{convert|5|ft}} high waves and canoe ''Conger'' capsized and was lost. The crew consisting of Corporal G. J. Sheard and Marine D. Moffatt held on to two of the remaining canoes, which were carried as close to the shore as possible and had to swim ashore.<ref>The Most Courageous Raid of WWII, Lord Ashdown</ref> Carrying on with the raid the canoes approached a major checkpoint in the river and came upon three German [[frigate]]s. Lying flat on the canoes and paddling silently they managed to get by without being discovered but became separated from Lieutenant J. W. Mackinnon and Marine J. Conway in canoe Cuttlefish .<ref>Cohen, p.94</ref> On the first night the three remaining canoes, ''Catfish'', ''Crayfish'' and ''Coalfish'', covered {{convert|20|mi|km|0}} in five hours and landed near [[Saint-Vivien-de-Médoc|St Vivien du Medoc]].<ref name=royal/><ref name=re77/> While they were hiding during the day and unknown to the others, Sergeant Wallace and Marine Ewart in ''Coalfish'' had been captured at daybreak beside the [[Pointe de Grave]] [[lighthouse]] where they had come ashore.<ref name=royal/><ref name=re79>Rees, p.79</ref> By the end of the second night, 8/9 December, the two remaining canoes ''Catfish'' and ''Crayfish'' had paddled a further {{convert|22|mi|km|0}} in six hours.<ref name="re78"/> The third night, 9/10 December, they paddled {{convert|15|mi|km|0}} and on the fourth night, 10/11 December, because of the strong ebb tide they only managed to cover {{convert|9|mi|km|0}}.<ref name=re77/> The original plan had called for the raid to be carried out on 10 December, but Hasler now changed the plan. Because of the strength of the ebb tide they still had a short distance to paddle, so Hasler ordered they hide for another day and set off to and reach Bordeaux on the night of 11/12 December.<ref name=re77/> After a night's rest the men spent the day preparing their equipment and limpet mines which were set to detonate at 21:00 hours. Hasler decided that ''Catfish'' would cover the western side of the docks and ''Crayfish'' the eastern side.<ref name=comb>{{Cite web|accessdate=13 May 2010|title=Operation Frankton|publisher=Combined Operations|url=http://www.combinedops.com/Cockleshell%20Heroes.htm}}</ref>
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For their part in the raid Major Hasler was awarded the [[Distinguished Service Order]] and Marine Sparks the [[Distinguished Service Medal (United Kingdom)|Distinguished Service Medal]] (DSM).<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=36072 |date=29 June 1943 |startpage=2946 |supp=x |accessdate=13 May2010}}</ref> Corporal Laver and Marine Mills were also recommended for the DSM which at the time could not be awarded [[posthumous recognition|posthumously]], so instead they were [[mentioned in dispatches]].<ref name=re80>Rees, p.80</ref>
Of men who never returned Sergeant Wallace and Marine Ewart were captured on 8 December at the Pointe de Grave (near [[Le Verdon-sur-Mer|Le Verdon]]) and revealed only certain information during their interrogation,<ref>Rees 2010, pp.
After having been set ashore, Lieutenant MacKinnon and Marine Conway managed to evade capture for four days, but they were betrayed and arrested by the [[Gendarmerie]] and handed over to the Germans at [[La Reole]] hospital {{convert|30|mi}} south east of Bordeaux, attempting to make their way to the Spanish border. Mackinnon had been admitted to the hospital for treatment for an infected knee.<ref name=royal/> The exact date of their execution is not known. New evidence shows that Lieutenant Mackinnon, Corporal Laver, Marine Mills and Marine Conway were not executed in [[Paris]] in 1942 but in the same location as Wallace and Ewart under the Commando Order.<ref name=royal/>
Corporal Sheard and Marine Moffatt were not drowned on the first night but died of the cold.<ref>Rees 2010, pp.
In 1955 a fictionalised version of the story was told in the film ''[[The Cockleshell Heroes]]'' made by [[Warwick Films]], and starring [[Anthony Newley]], [[Trevor Howard]], [[David Lodge (actor)|David Lodge]] and [[Jose Ferrer]] who was also the director.<ref>{{Cite web|accessdate=13 May 2010|publisher=[[Internet Movie Database]] |title=The Cockleshell Heroes|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049083/}}</ref>
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In June 2002, the ''Frankton Trail'' was opened, a walking path which traces the {{convert|100|mi}} route taken through occupied France, on foot, by Hasler and Sparks. The ''Frankton Souvenir'' is an Anglo-French organisation, set up to keep alive the story of the raid. It plans to develop the trail, and install explanatory plaques at key points.<ref name=royal/>
On 31 March 2011 a memorial to the Cockleshell Heroes and three French individuals was dedicated. Made from [[Portland Stone]] it was transported across care of Brittany Ferries. The memorial cost about £80,000.<ref>Rees; ''Cockleshell Heroes: The Final Witness'' 2010, pp.
On 1 November 2011, a BBC ''[[Timewatch]]'' television documentary called "The Most Courageous Raid of WWII" was narrated by [[Paddy Ashdown]], a former [[Special Boat Service|SBS]] Officer.<ref>{{Cite web|accessdate=1 November 2011|publisher=BBC|title=The Most Courageous Raid of WWII|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b016xjwh}}</ref> Ashdown describes as "a Whitehall cock-up of major proportions" the fact that there was a duplicate and simultaneous mission to sink the ships in Bordeaux, led by [[Claude de Baissac]] of [[Special Operations Executive]], which Hasler's team and Combined Operations knew nothing about because of SOE's policy of secrecy even from other parts of the British Forces; de Baissac was preparing to take explosives onto the ships when he heard the explosions of Hasler's limpet mines. The loss of the opportunity for Hasler and de Baissac to work together to strike an even harder blow against the Germans in a combined operation led to the setting up of a Controlling Officer at Whitehall, responsible for avoiding inter-departmental rivalry, duplication or even conflict.<ref>{{Cite web|accessdate=1 November 2011|publisher=BBC|title=The Most Courageous Raid of WWII |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b016xjwh}} [[M. R. D. Foot]], Professor of Modern History, Manchester University</ref>
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