Calais 1940

The British Army was falling back on Dunkirk when it was decided to send a mobile force from home to Calais to operate on the enemy's left flank. The 30th Infantry Brigade, commanded by Brigadier C. Nicholson, was selected and received orders to embark at Southampton. The Brigade included the 1st Bn. The King's Royal Rifle Corps (Lieutenant-Colonel F. A. B. Miller), 2nd Bn. The Rifle Brigade, 1st Bn. Queen Victoria's Rifles (Lieutenant-Colonel J. A. M. Ellison-Macartney), then a motor-cyclist battalion, and 3rd Bn. The Royal Tank Regiment.

Marching all night, the Brigade reached Southampton on 21st and 22nd May, and by the 23rd had disembarked at Calais. The Rifle Brigade battalion was without three-fourths of its transport, owing to the stevedores striking work. The Queen Victoria's Rifles left England with no transport. About 1,000 French troops placed themselves under Brigadier Nicholson's orders.

The Germans began shelling the town the same afternoon, and the next day, the 24th, surrounded the town and opened a heavy bombardment. The advanced troops were driven back. Tanks entered the town and street fighting continued until late on the 26th, when this gallant Brigade, short of ammunition, food and water, after four days of continuous fighting without sleep and with heavy casualties, was overwhelmed. The German attackers included two armoured divisions. All the survivors except a party or so brought off by the Navy were taken prisoner. Four officers and one N.C.O. subsequently escaped across the Channel in small boats.

The losses of the 2nd Battalion included 9 officers killed and 7 wounded. The 1st Queen Victoria's Rifles had 2 officers killed and 4 wounded.

The Prime Minister, in the House of Commons, stated that the defence of Calais had kept the port of Dunkirk open by drawing the German armour from the main battle, and he added that the defenders of Calais had "added another page to the glories of the Light Division."

Calais Battalions Reconstituted

The battalions lost at Calais were reconstituted at Tidworth in the autumn, the 2nd Battalion under Lieutenant-Colonel G. W. E. J. Erskine and the 7th Battalion under Lieutenant-Colonel The Hon. D. O. Trench. They both very soon reached a high state of training and before the end of the year were again ready to take their places in the field.

His Majesty The Colonel-in-Chief inspected the 2nd Battalion at Tidworth in August, 1940.

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