No. 11 (Scottish) Commando | |
---|---|
Active | 1940–41 |
Country | United Kingdom |
Branch | British Army |
Type | British Commando |
Role | Coastal raiding force |
Size | ~ 500 officers and men |
Part of | Layforce |
Engagements | |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders |
Geoffrey Keyes |
Insignia | |
Combined Operations Shoulder Patch |
No. 11 (Scottish) Commando was a battalion-sized commando unit of the British Army during the Second World War. Formed in Scotland, members of No. 11 (Scottish) Commando adopted the Tam o'shanter as their official headdress.
No. 11 (Scottish) Commando was sent to the Mediterranean as 'C' Battalion Layforce. It took part in operations in Syria and then garrison duties in Cyprus. Its final raid was Operation Flipper the attempt to capture the German commander Erwin Rommel. After the failure of this raid the commando was disbanded.
The commandos were formed in 1940, by the order of Winston Churchill the British Prime Minister. He called for specially trained troops that would "develop a reign of terror down the enemy coast". At first they were a small force of volunteers who carried out small raids against enemy occupied territory, but by 1943 their role had changed into lightly equipped assault Infantry which specialised in spearheading amphibious landings.
The man initially selected as the overall commander of the force was Admiral Sir Roger Keyes himself a veteran of the landings at Gallipoli and the Zeebrugge raid in the First World War. Keyes resigned in October 1941 and was replaced by Admiral Louis Mountbatten.