Author Robin Reilly
Publisher Cassell Military Paperbacks
ISBN 0-304-36159-3 1st Published 1969. 225 pages.

Chapters 1 Occupation, 2 The "Model Protectorate", 3 Oppression and Exodus, 4 The people's Strike, 5 Mosquitoes, 6 Shell House : Gestapo Headquarters, 7 Shell house : Hostages in the Attic, 8 Shell House: Happy New Year, 9 Shell House : The Darkest Night, 10 Shell House : The Cry For Help, 11 "Carthage" : The Plan of Attack 12 "Carthage" and Jeanne D'Arc, 13 "Carthage" : Escape, 14 "Carthage" : The Great Leap, 15 Liberation. Appendix and footnotes.

I'm sure many of you have seen 633 Squadron, and the De Havilland Mosquito's swooping down to destroy 'ze evil Germanz' in their Gestapo building, without the Germans so much as having time to utter "Achtung Spitfeur". They do this in order to stop George Chakiris (as convincing a Norwegian as Jack Lemmon was a convincing woman in Some Like it Hot) from having a red hot poker thrust where the sun doesn't shine. Naturally our Gallant RAF Chapies give Harry Hun a British style thrashing, and the Brits fly home to tea, medals, a bonk with Chakiris's sister and a gallant death another day. Sounds like the Boys own stuff you get from reading Commando comics, utterly unbelievable, and actually based on the utter truth (well, with the exception of shagging Chakiris's sister).

Several parts of the film are based on actual RAF operations. There were several RAF squadrons that specialised in ultra low level pinpoint bombing in the days where normal bombing meant that a successful operation was getting 10% of your bombs within 4 miles of the actual target. The Mosquito squadrons carried out numerous daring raids including flying to Berlin and bombing a military procession as Goring was going on air to proclaim the future of the 1000 year Reich. They also successfully bombed the Amiens prison, releasing hundreds of French resistance fighters that were about to be executed by blowing holes through the prison walls; and later hitting the Gestapo headquarters at Aarhus in Denmark in the middle of a major conference at their headquarters, killing hundreds of Gestapo and destroying their records on resistance in this part of Denmark. At the party to celebrate their success several Danish resistance figures were present, and they all asked... Could it be done again?

The target in question was trickier than anything they had attempted before. After the Germans had annexed Denmark, they had used the Royal Dutch Shell building as the center for their nefarious Nazi activities. Unfortunately the building was slap bang in the middle of Copenhagen, surrounded by civilians; and much more heavily defended by anti-aircraft batteries. If the book just covered the raid itself, it would be a fascinating story; but Mr. Reilly's book covers much more; the history of the Danish occupation movement as well. Because everything related to the target related to the resistance movement in general (some of the resistances key members were languishing in cells in the attic of the Shell building); and the Danes resistance to their occupiers.

It is quite clear the author has both a love of the Danish people, and a deep respect for the resistance members. He points out the difference between Denmark and the other nations, and the evolving role of the resistance when looking at the psyche of the Danish people. As the author points out the Danes are a very law abiding people, have a sense of community and order that is an athema to the rugged individualism found in the UK and US, and they were slower to anger because of a variety of reasons. The Danes are far less cynical, and their trust of government was used by the Germans to great effect when they occupied Denmark, they kept the King prisoner but left government and the police to their jobs. Churchill said that he could do nothing at the present time (1940-1942) to protect the Danes so that left them at the mercy of their Southern neighbours. It is worth pointing out though, that Danish feelings were demonstrated when Germany took Denmark and insisted on Denmark's large merchant fleet returning home to serve the Reich. Of all the ships at sea at the time, 96% sailed straight into the nearest British port, and the Danish seamen served bravely throughout the war assisting the Allies, compare this with the actions of the French who's fleet had to be sunk by the Royal Navy to stop the French handing over their navy en-masse to the Germans.

Once angered sufficiently though, SOE and the OSS had more trouble restraining the Danes from killing Germans than encouraging them. There were numerous resistance groups, ranging from Communists to members of the Conservatives, and the Danish military - and later the Police - had fled underground practically in its entirety (the Danes couldn't put up much of a resistance when the Germans marched over the border, as Denmark is rather flat, as defensible a position as the bottom of a lift shaft and they were woefully short of allies). The author is very good at separating and explaining the different forces and motivations of the various groups.

Unfortunately Denmark is not a good place to carry out resistance activities, and the German Counter intelligence were no fools either, having penetrated the Dutch resistance completely they were well versed in the tactics of the resistance groups. The Gestapo and Abwher (military intelligence) had built up a superb picture of the key members of the Danish resistance, and Shell house had a huge amount of intelligence stored behind its walls. As a result, towards the end of the war, a large number of key resistance figures were being held in the building on the 6th floor. These included several members of the "Freedom council" which was an underground government who co-ordinated strikes, decided the underground newspaper comment and enacted policy regarding resistance to the Germans. The author covers the various characters who were imprisoned at the time, and also their interrogators and their motives (especially when it was apparent the war was going to be lost by Germany).

"Of the prisoners captured by the Gestapo in Denmark, there were many who revealed all they knew : they deserve compassion for their failure, and admiration for their attempt to bear a burden too great for their resources. We may judge only those who gave their collaboration freely, or sold it with a smile for personal gain".

The book is a testament to the bravery of the Danish resistance, the skill of the RAF crews and the capabilities of a plane that was probably the best bomber of the whole war on any side. That the raid was not without hideous cost (the RAF also hit a children's school by mistake) makes the book even more moving. This is a gripping book about an area of World War II, whilst many books are written about the French Maquis; the Dutch, Danes and the Norwegians whose resistance was supported by the majority of their nation are woefully under-represented in the history books. The tragedy of the Dutch resistance and the brave Norwegians (outside Ray Mears "Real Heroes of Tellemark") is rarely told; thankfully the Danes are so well represented by this book.

"In any consideration of the behavior of prisoners subject to torture, we cannot measure and condemn the weakness of those who were broken: we can only recognise and admire the strength of those who were not".

Recommended: Yes