Geoffrey Charles Tasker Keyes
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| Geoffrey Charles Tasker Keyes | |
|---|---|
| May 18, 1917 - November 18, 1941 | |
| Place of birth | Aberdour, Fife, Scotland |
| Place of death | Beda Littoria, Libya |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | Royal Scots Greys, British Army |
| Years of service | 1937 - death |
| Rank | Lieutenant-Colonel |
| Unit | 11 Commando |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | [1]Victoria Cross (19 June 1942, posthumously) Military Cross Croix de Guerre |
Lieutenant-Colonel Geoffrey Charles Tasker Keyes, VC, MC, CdeG (May 18, 1917 - November 18, 1941) was awarded the Victoria Cross during World War II. At the time he was the youngest lieutenant colonel in the British Army.
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[edit] Family
Keyes was the oldest son of Admiral of the Fleet Roger John Brownlow Keyes, 1st Baron Keyes, a British naval hero in World War I and the first Director of Combined Operations during World War II. He attended Kingsmead School in Seaford, Sussex and the Royal Military College.
Keyes was a member of the MCC.[2]
[edit] Early actions
Geoffrey Keyes was commissioned into the Royal Scots Greys. He saw action at Narvik[3] and was later attached to No.11 Commando, which was sent to the Middle East as part of Layforce.
Following the allied invasion of Syria on June 8, 1941, No.11 Commando were sent to successfully lead the crossing of the Litani River in Lebanon, fighting against troops of the French Vichy régime, during which Keyes played a leading part. In this operation, Keyes earned the Military Cross.[3]
[edit] Operation Flipper
In October / November 1941 a plan was formulated at 8th Army headquarters to attack various targets behind enemy lines, including headquarters, base installations and communications facilities. One of the objectives was the assassination of Erwin Rommel, the commander of the Axis forces in North Africa. The raid was intended to disrupt enemy organisation before the start of Operation Crusader.
The operation, codenamed Operation Flipper, was led by Lt. Col. Robert Laycock. Keyes, who had been present throughout the planning stage, selected the most hazardous task for himself: the assault on the headquarters of Rommel's Afrika Korps. Keyes was killed in the attack on the night of 17/18 November. He was buried with full military honours in a local Catholic cemetery on Rommel's orders. For his actions, Keyes was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. It was later ascertained that Rommel himself had not even been there, having left the house two weeks earlier.
[edit] Further information
His grave is in Benghazi War Cemetery in Libya. He is remembered on the Kingsmead School War memorial in Seaford, Sussex and also in the parish church in the village of Tingewick in Buckinghamshire, home of the Keyes family.
A major factor in Keyes recipientcy of the Victoria Cross was the after action report drafted by Lt-Col Laycock in which he describes many of the mission events that he did not take part in and in most cases was not there. The attitude of the British public at that time was extremely low and this award seems to be given on this basis combined with Keyes' effort and posthumous enthusiasm rather than the actual outcome. German after action reports paint a more realistic portrail of what happened than post-raid British sources.
[edit] References
- ^ British officers, WWII
- ^ "World War Rolls of Honour at Lord's". MCC. 6 November 2007. http://www.lords.org/latest-news/news-archive/world-war-rolls-of-honour-at-lords,959,NS.html. Retrieved on 2007-12-20.
- ^ a b "Keyes v. Rommel". Time Magazine. January 12, 1942. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,773004,00.html. Retrieved on 2007-12-20.
- Combined Operations - Operation Flipper
- British VCs of World War 2 (John Laffin, 1997)
- Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
- The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
- Scotland's Forgotten Valour (Graham Ross, 1995)
[edit] Reading list
- Keyes, Elizabeth. Geoffrey Keyes, V.C., M.C., Croix de Guerre, Royal Scots Greys, lieut.-colonel, 11th Scottish Commando (London : G. Newnes, [1956])
- Asher, Michael. Get Rommel: The secret British mission to kill Hitler's greatest general (Cassell Military Paperbacks, [2005])
[edit] External links
- Lieutenant Colonel G.C.T. Keyes in The Art of War exhibition at the UK National Archives
- Geoffrey Charles Tasker Keyes at Find a Grave
