Augustus Charles Newman

Lieutenant Colonel Augustus Charles Newman VC OBE TD DL rose from the Territorial Army to command one of the most audacious British special operations of the Second World War. Born at Chigwell, Essex, on 19 August 1904, Newman was educated at Bancroft's School and entered civilian employment with W. & C. French, a civil engineering and public works firm with which he remained associated for much of his working life. He joined the Territorial Army in the 1920s and was commissioned into the 4th Battalion, Essex Regiment in 1925. By the outbreak of the Second World War he had reached the rank of Major.

After mobilization Newman volunteered for special-service duties. In 1940 he commanded No. 3 Independent Company, whose personnel included specialists from the Royal Engineers, Royal Corps of Signals and Royal Army Service Corps. The Independent Companies were among the formations from which the wartime Commandos developed. Newman's unit served during the Norwegian campaign before returning to Britain. He subsequently became second-in-command of the 1st Special Service Battalion. When the Special Service Battalions were reorganized into smaller Commando units in 1941, Newman was promoted Lieutenant Colonel and given command of No. 2 Commando.

Early in 1942 No. 2 Commando was selected to provide the principal Army contingent for Operation Chariot, the raid on St Nazaire. The objective was the destruction of the Normandie Dock, also known as the Joubert dry dock, the only dry dock on the French Atlantic coast capable of accommodating the German battleship Tirpitz. The attacking force included the explosives-laden destroyer HMS Campbeltown, sixteen motor launches, Motor Gun Boat 314 and Motor Torpedo Boat 74, with HMS Atherstone and HMS Tynedale accompanying the force during its approach. Newman commanded the military element while Commander Robert Ryder commanded the naval force.

On the evening of 27 March 1942, Ryder and Newman transferred from Atherstone to MGB 314, which served as the headquarters and leading craft for the final run up the Loire estuary. This corrects the earlier description of Newman standing aboard the leading motor launch. MGB 314 led the assault formation toward St Nazaire while Campbeltown and the landing craft followed behind.

The raiding force came under intense fire as it approached the port. HMS Campbeltown rammed the Normandie Dock gates while the Commandos landed to attack defensive positions and destroy dock machinery and installations. Newman, although not required personally to land, went ashore and established control of the military operation. His subsequent Victoria Cross citation records that he supervised the fighting for approximately five hours, directed mortar fire against a German gun position on the U-boat pens, and brought machine-gun fire against an armed trawler in the harbour. The citation states that he conducted himself “utterly regardless of his own safety.”

Once it became clear that the surviving Commandos could no longer be evacuated by sea, Newman attempted to lead them out of the dock area and into open country. The only route passed across a narrow bridge covered by German machine guns. Despite being severely shaken when a grenade exploded near his feet, Newman personally led the charge across the bridge. His men continued fighting through the streets until their ammunition was exhausted and the surviving group was overwhelmed and captured. The London Gazette credited Newman's leadership and initiative as major factors in the success of the operation.

Newman's Victoria Cross was announced in the London Gazette on 19 June 1945 for his actions on the night of 27 and 28 March 1942. The Gazette identifies him as Lieutenant-Colonel Augustus Charles Newman, service number 33927, Essex Regiment, attached Commandos. The surviving printed Gazette contains a stray typographical mark before the words “the small force” in one sentence of the citation. In a modern transcription this should simply be normalized rather than reproduced as an apostrophe.

Following his capture, Newman spent the remainder of the war as a prisoner of war. His POW number was 18640, and he was held at Oflag IX-A/H at Spangenberg, Germany. Contemporary Commando records later remembered the contribution he made to discipline and morale during captivity. Oflag IX-A/H was evacuated as American forces approached in the closing weeks of the war, and its prisoners were liberated in April 1945. Newman subsequently returned to Britain.

His Victoria Cross was presented by King George VI at Buckingham Palace on 11 December 1945. Newman was also Mentioned in Despatches, and in March 1946 the London Gazette recorded the award of his Territorial Decoration. On 10 June 1952 the Gazette specifically recorded the award to Newman of the first, second and third clasps to the Territorial Efficiency Decoration.

After the war Newman returned to W. & C. French and eventually became its Chairman and Managing Director. He also continued his Territorial Army connection and commanded 21 Special Air Service Regiment (Artists), Territorial Army. He became a Deputy Lieutenant of Essex, although I would not publish the previously stated fixed tenure of “1946 to 1948” until the actual Deputy Lieutenant appointment record is located. The contemporary Commando Association record confirms the appointment itself but does not establish those two limiting dates.

In the 1957 Birthday Honours Newman was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, Civil Division, in connection with his civilian work as a director of W. & C. French Ltd. The London Gazette places his appointment in the Civil Division and identifies the company as civil engineering and public works contractors in Essex. This distinction is important for the corresponding OBE ribbon, which should be the Civil Division version.

Newman was also awarded France's Légion d'honneur and Croix de Guerre. Both foreign honours are recorded by the Commando Veterans Archive. For publication, however, the exact grade of his Légion d'honneur and the precise citation level or device attached to his Croix de Guerre should not be stated unless the relevant French award documentation is obtained.

On 1 October 1959 Newman was appointed a Major in the Engineer and Railway Staff Corps. The Gazette entry identifies him as “Lt.-Col. Augustus Charles Newman, V.C., O.B.E., T.D., D.L. (33927) (late S.A.S.),” providing particularly strong contemporary evidence for his post-war honours and SAS service.

Augustus Charles Newman died at Sandwich, Kent, on 26 April 1972, aged sixty-seven. His Victoria Cross and associated medal group later entered the Lord Ashcroft Collection. His military reputation rests above all on his leadership at St Nazaire, where he commanded the land forces through the assault, destruction of the dock installations, and the final attempt to break out after evacuation by sea had become impossible.