Remembering Operation Hardtack
Those who lost their lives in Operation Hardtack 7, a Commando raid on Sark during the Second World War, were remembered this week to mark the 75th anniversary of the event. The raid took place on the night of 27th December 1943 when a unit of French and British Commandos landed on the Hog’s Back but the men were forced to retreat after setting off land mines. Two Commandos were killed, Robert Bellamy and Andre Dignac. Two minutes silence were observed at their gravestone at St Peter’s Church and wreathes were laid by Seigneur Christopher Beaumont and Madame Odile Blanchette, Honorary French Consul in Guernsey. The party then walked to the Hog’s Back where another silence was held at the point where Robert Bellamy died and a plaque was unveiled to remember all who took part in the raid.
Pictures by Sue Daly
The Standard is lowered at the graveside
The gravestone with pictures of the two men who died
The ceremony on the Hog’s Back
The plaque is unveiled
The plaque to commemorate the Commandos