Geoffrey Appleyard
Encyclopedia
Major John Geoffrey "Geoff" Appleyard, DSO
, MC
and bar
(20 December 1916—13 July 1943) was a British Army
officer, who served in the Commandos
and Special Air Service
during World War II.
, West Yorkshire
, the son of John Ernest Appleyard, a successful motor engineer, and Mary Elizabeth Northrop. He grew up in Linton, West Yorkshire
, and was educated at Bootham School
in York
, where he combined academic success with natural history and roof-climbing, and at Caius College, Cambridge
, where he obtained a first in Engineering and a skiing blue, while he was also his college's Captain of Boats, and competed as a highly successful international skier.
(Supplementary Reserve) on 1 April 1939 with the rank of Second Lieutenant
. Mobilized for active service on 24 August 1939, he commanded an RASC mobile motor repair workshop as part of the British Expeditionary Force
in northern France. During the Battle of France
he was ordered to destroy all his vehicles, and then was evacuated from Dunkirk.
Appleyard volunteered to join the Commandos in late 1940, and was posted to B Troop, No. 7 Commando
. He was promoted to the war substantive rank of Lieutenant
on 1 January 1941, and in May 1941, now an acting Captain, was awarded the Military Cross for his "gallant and distinguished services in the field". after taking part in an operation by boat and submarine to pick up two agents on the coast of France and bring them back to England.
Appleyard then served aboard the 62 feet (18.9 m) ketch
-rigged Brixham trawler Maid Honour which sailed to the coast of West Africa, spending six months reporting on enemy submarine activity and carrying out clandestine raids. The highlight of the assignment was "Operation Postmaster
", in which the Italian liner Duchessa d'Aosta and the German tug Likomba were boarded and towed from the neutral Spanish island of Fernando Po
and taken to Nigeria. On his return he was awarded a bar to his Military Cross.
After the success of "Postmaster" the "Maid Honour Force" was expanded (though it never numbered more than 55 men at any time) and renamed the "Small Scale Raiding Force", though its official designation was No. 62 Commando, under the operational control of Combined Operations Headquarters. Appleyard took part in many SSRF raids on the coast of occupied France, landing in small boats from motor launches, compelling the Germans to reinforce their defences along hundreds of miles of coastline, and diverting significant numbers of troops from combat duties elsewhere. However, an injury prevented him taking part in the disastrous "Operation Aquatint
", on 12 September 1942, when an attack at Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes
, Normandy, went badly wrong and half the 10-man force were captured, and the other half killed, including the SSRF's commanding officer Major Gustavus March-Phillipps.
Appleyard took command of the SSRF , and led 10 men of the SSRF and No. 12 Commando
, on "Operation Basalt
", landing on the Channel island of Sark
on the night of 3/4 October 1942. Five Germans were taken prisoner, but when one shouted a warning he was shot dead. With the enemy now alerted, the raiders returned to the beach with the remaining four prisoners. En route, three of them attempted to escape and were killed. As a result an enraged Hitler issued the infamous Kommandobefehl ("Commando Order
"), stating that all captured Commandos were to be shot without exception.
Further operations followed, and on 15 December 1942 Appleyard was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
(DSO). On meeting the now Temporary Major Appleyard at his third investiture in eleven months, the King
was both amused and impressed, greeting him with: "What, you again?"
Regiment, of which Appleyard was appointed second-in-command. On the night of 12/13 July 1943, during the Allied invasion of Sicily
, Appleyard supervised the dropping of a group of SAS paratroopers north of Randazzo
in "Operation Chestnut
". The Albemarle
aircraft disappeared on the return flight over the Mediterranean, and Appleyard was declared missing presumed dead. He is commemorated at the Cassino Memorial
.
Describing him, Vladimir "Popski" Peniakoff
said, "He was one of the few officers who had developed the technique of the small scale raid: the care he took of his men made him stand out among brother officers who were too excited by the prospect of adventure to think of anybody but their own selves."
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, MC
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
and bar
Medal bar
A medal bar or medal clasp is a thin metal bar attached to the ribbon of a military decoration, civil decoration, or other medal. It is most commonly used to indicate the campaign or operation the recipient received the award for, and multiple bars on the same medal are used to indicate that the...
(20 December 1916—13 July 1943) was a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer, who served in the Commandos
British Commandos
The British Commandos were formed during the Second World War in June 1940, following a request from the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, for a force that could carry out raids against German-occupied Europe...
and Special Air Service
Special Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
during World War II.
Early life and education
Appleyard was born in Bramley, LeedsBramley, Leeds
Bramley is a district in west Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is an old industrial area and home to a lot of 19th century architecture alongside 20th century council housing in the east and private suburban housing to the west. It has its own railway station which is on the Caldervale and...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, the son of John Ernest Appleyard, a successful motor engineer, and Mary Elizabeth Northrop. He grew up in Linton, West Yorkshire
Linton, West Yorkshire
Linton is an affluent village south west of Wetherby, West Yorkshire, England and in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough.The village is situated between Wetherby and Sicklinghall, on the River Wharfe. Collingham lies immediately to the south on the other side of the river...
, and was educated at Bootham School
Bootham School
Bootham School is an independent Quaker boarding school in the city of York in North Yorkshire, England. It was founded by the Religious Society of Friends in 1823. It is close to York Minster. The current headmaster is Jonathan Taylor. The school's motto Membra Sumus Corporis Magni means "We...
in York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
, where he combined academic success with natural history and roof-climbing, and at Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college is often referred to simply as "Caius" , after its second founder, John Keys, who fashionably latinised the spelling of his name after studying in Italy.- Outline :Gonville and...
, where he obtained a first in Engineering and a skiing blue, while he was also his college's Captain of Boats, and competed as a highly successful international skier.
Military service
Appleyard was commissioned into the Royal Army Service CorpsRoyal Army Service Corps
The Royal Army Service Corps was a corps of the British Army. It was responsible for land, coastal and lake transport; air despatch; supply of food, water, fuel, and general domestic stores such as clothing, furniture and stationery ; administration of...
(Supplementary Reserve) on 1 April 1939 with the rank of Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
. Mobilized for active service on 24 August 1939, he commanded an RASC mobile motor repair workshop as part of the British Expeditionary Force
British Expeditionary Force (World War II)
The British Expeditionary Force was the British force in Europe from 1939–1940 during the Second World War. Commanded by General Lord Gort, the BEF constituted one-tenth of the defending Allied force....
in northern France. During the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
he was ordered to destroy all his vehicles, and then was evacuated from Dunkirk.
Appleyard volunteered to join the Commandos in late 1940, and was posted to B Troop, No. 7 Commando
No. 7 Commando
No. 7 Commando was a unit of the British Commandos and part of the British Army during the Second World War. The Commando was formed in August 1940 in the United Kingdom No. 7 Commando was transferred to the Middle East as part of Layforce...
. He was promoted to the war substantive rank of Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
on 1 January 1941, and in May 1941, now an acting Captain, was awarded the Military Cross for his "gallant and distinguished services in the field". after taking part in an operation by boat and submarine to pick up two agents on the coast of France and bring them back to England.
Appleyard then served aboard the 62 feet (18.9 m) ketch
Ketch
A ketch is a sailing craft with two masts: a main mast, and a shorter mizzen mast abaft of the main mast, but forward of the rudder post. Both masts are rigged mainly fore-and-aft. From one to three jibs may be carried forward of the main mast when going to windward...
-rigged Brixham trawler Maid Honour which sailed to the coast of West Africa, spending six months reporting on enemy submarine activity and carrying out clandestine raids. The highlight of the assignment was "Operation Postmaster
Operation Postmaster
Operation Postmaster was a British operation conducted on the Spanish island of Fernando Po, now known as Bioko, off West Africa in the Gulf of Guinea, during the Second World War. The mission was carried out by the Small Scale Raiding Force and the Special Operations Executive in January 1942...
", in which the Italian liner Duchessa d'Aosta and the German tug Likomba were boarded and towed from the neutral Spanish island of Fernando Po
Bioko
Bioko is an island 32 km off the west coast of Africa, specifically Cameroon, in the Gulf of Guinea. It is the northernmost part of Equatorial Guinea with a population of 124,000 and an area of . It is volcanic with its highest peak the Pico Basile at .-Geography:Bioko has a total area of...
and taken to Nigeria. On his return he was awarded a bar to his Military Cross.
After the success of "Postmaster" the "Maid Honour Force" was expanded (though it never numbered more than 55 men at any time) and renamed the "Small Scale Raiding Force", though its official designation was No. 62 Commando, under the operational control of Combined Operations Headquarters. Appleyard took part in many SSRF raids on the coast of occupied France, landing in small boats from motor launches, compelling the Germans to reinforce their defences along hundreds of miles of coastline, and diverting significant numbers of troops from combat duties elsewhere. However, an injury prevented him taking part in the disastrous "Operation Aquatint
Operation Aquatint
Operation Aquatint was the codename for a failed raid by British Commandos on the coast of occupied France during the Second World War. The raid was undertaken in September 1942 on part of what later became Omaha Beach by No...
", on 12 September 1942, when an attack at Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes
Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes
Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northewestrn France.-World War II:Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes is located at the eastern end of Omaha Beach, one of the landings sites on D-Day, at the beginning of the Battle of Normandy, during World...
, Normandy, went badly wrong and half the 10-man force were captured, and the other half killed, including the SSRF's commanding officer Major Gustavus March-Phillipps.
Appleyard took command of the SSRF , and led 10 men of the SSRF and No. 12 Commando
No. 12 Commando
No. 12 Commando was a battalion-sized commando unit of the British Army during the Second World War. Formed in 1940 in Northern Ireland, they carried out a number of small-scale raids in Norway and France between 1941 and 1943 before being disbanded and its personnel dispersed to other commando...
, on "Operation Basalt
Operation Basalt
Operation Basalt was a small British raid conducted during World War II on the German occupied British Channel Island of Sark.On the night of 3–4 October 1942 ten men of the Special Operations Executive's Small Scale Raiding Force, and No...
", landing on the Channel island of Sark
Sark
Sark is a small island in the Channel Islands in southwestern English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. It is a royal fief, geographically located in the Channel Islands in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, with its own set of laws based on Norman law and its own parliament. It has a population...
on the night of 3/4 October 1942. Five Germans were taken prisoner, but when one shouted a warning he was shot dead. With the enemy now alerted, the raiders returned to the beach with the remaining four prisoners. En route, three of them attempted to escape and were killed. As a result an enraged Hitler issued the infamous Kommandobefehl ("Commando Order
Commando Order
The Commando Order was issued by Adolf Hitler on 18 October 1942 stating that all Allied commandos encountered by German forces in Europe and Africa should be killed immediately, even if in uniform or if they attempted to surrender...
"), stating that all captured Commandos were to be shot without exception.
Further operations followed, and on 15 December 1942 Appleyard was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
(DSO). On meeting the now Temporary Major Appleyard at his third investiture in eleven months, the King
George VI of the United Kingdom
George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
was both amused and impressed, greeting him with: "What, you again?"
Death
The SSRF was disbanded in April 1943, but many of its members were transferred to Algeria, where they formed the nucleus of Bill Stirling's new 2nd Special Air ServiceSpecial Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
Regiment, of which Appleyard was appointed second-in-command. On the night of 12/13 July 1943, during the Allied invasion of Sicily
Allied invasion of Sicily
The Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky, was a major World War II campaign, in which the Allies took Sicily from the Axis . It was a large scale amphibious and airborne operation, followed by six weeks of land combat. It launched the Italian Campaign.Husky began on the night of...
, Appleyard supervised the dropping of a group of SAS paratroopers north of Randazzo
Randazzo
Randazzo is a town and comune of Sicily, Italy, in the province of Catania. It is situated at the northern foot of Mount Etna, 70 km NW of Catania by rail. It is the nearest town to the summit of Etna, and is one of the points from which the ascent may be made.-History:In the 13th century the...
in "Operation Chestnut
Operation Chestnut
During World War II, Operation Chestnut was a failed British raid by 2 Special Air Service, conducted in support of the Allied invasion of Sicily....
". The Albemarle
Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle
The Armstrong Whitworth A.W.41 Albemarle was a British twin-engine transport aircraft that entered service during the Second World War.Originally designed as a medium bomber that could be built by non-aviation companies without using light alloys, the Albemarle never served in that role, instead...
aircraft disappeared on the return flight over the Mediterranean, and Appleyard was declared missing presumed dead. He is commemorated at the Cassino Memorial
Cassino Memorial
The Cassino Memorial is a war memorial situated within Cassino War Cemetery, which lies in the commune of Cassino, Province of Frosinone, south-east of Rome, Italy. Whenever possible, these war memorials were placed within military cemeteries near the theatres of operations...
.
Describing him, Vladimir "Popski" Peniakoff
Vladimir Peniakoff
Lieutenant-Colonel Vladimir Peniakoff DSO MC , nicknamed "Popski", was the founder and commanding officer of "Popski's Private Army".- Early life :Vladimir Peniakoff was born in Belgium to Russian parents...
said, "He was one of the few officers who had developed the technique of the small scale raid: the care he took of his men made him stand out among brother officers who were too excited by the prospect of adventure to think of anybody but their own selves."