In 2017, as this book was being researched, I was put in touch with James Edgar, one of three living SOE F Section agents. Like my father, James was a wireless operator. He parachuted into France on the night of July 8, 1944, as a member of the Tilleul team, a circuit adjacent to the Salesman II territory. Jean Claude led the reception committee that met him at the drop zone. James wrote me a letter describing the experience.
Before joining the Tilleul circuit, James had taken part in Operation Basalt in October 1942, one of the first SOE missions of the war. It was a raid on the Nazi-occupied island of Sark in the English Channel. The mission gained valuable intelligence, sent a message to the enemy that England was probing the Continent, and prompted Hitler to issue the so-called Commando Order, which directed that any Allied commandos found in Europe or Africa should be executed on the spot, without a trial, even if they were in uniform or tried to surrender.
James’s SOE records remain classified through January 2021.
6 March 2017
Dear Dan,
A few lines to say how delighted I am that we are now in touch. Although I am now 97 years old and that it was 73 years ago that I met your father Jean Claude, in Sussac, I remember it well. Those were momentous days.
I know that SOE radio operators had a very short life expectancy—in the summer of 1944 we considered anything over 3 weeks’ survival in occupied France as a life well done. So your father very much put his life on the line. I know Liewer was a very good agent and experienced leader and was very sensible to ignore some of London’s stupid orders. Actually a wonder that SOE achieved what it did, in spite of horrible losses. I have always thought the Circuit Tilleul went in too late and should have been at least 3 weeks earlier since much of the intense action was over by the time we arrived. However we did our bit.
The Tilleul mission left for France on the night of 8th July 1944. I’d been driven up from London to the American air base at Harrington in Northamptonshire with six other members of the group. I now know that the crew of our B-24 Liberator were the renowned “Carpetbaggers.” Our group was to fly out in two planes a few minutes apart. I was in the first plane with Jacques de Guelis, Edward (Teddy) Bisset, an arms expert, and Andre Simon, a landing field expert—I was the radio! I had done my wireless training at Henley-on-Thames and had done 3 parachute jumps, one from a silent hot-air balloon, quite frightening. The second plane carried the second commander Thomas, a desperately needed surgeon, Ian Mackenzie, Jean Lannon a second wireless operator. Of all the group I had only met Bisset before and knew him well. I had no idea of our destination in France where we were to be dropped—sitting next to him on the flight he told me we’d be jumping in “near Limoges.” I knew if I needed an escape route it would be by the eastern Pyrenees. I had silk maps folded into my epaulettes and chose not to accept a cyanide tablet.
It was chilly on the flight but it passed pretty quickly though I don’t remember being frightened at the prospect of dropping into occupied Europe. Perhaps the very generous supper provided at Harrington prevented any sinking feeling. I did run thru in my mind my parachute drills. I really felt relieved and excited that I was now about to join in the fight for freeing France. This was a month after D-day and heavy fighting in Normandy. My turn came and obeying the dispatcher I was through the hole drifting down to moonlight. I did see trees but landed safely in a field. Later I knew this field was the “Clos de Sussac” about 3 miles from the village of Sussac. My landing was perfect—in no time I was free of my parachute and being helped by a reception committee member. We went by truck into the village and were taken to a building in the little village square, ushered into a back room and it was here I met Jean Claude Guiet, the radio for Salesman II. He had been in France for a long deadly month already. I remember having a drink with him followed by a hearty supper including a suckling pig! I was surprised I was so hungry. After the meal Jean Claude took me to a house around the corner and I fell into a very comfortable bed exhausted after a momentous and unforgettable day. In the morning I walked into the village square enjoying the heat of summer sun on my back. The others had gathered in the square and photos were taken, everyone was relaxed and casual. We had 2 or 3 days in Sussac during which I got in touch with London informing them that we had gotten in safely. We moved off to the south escorted by Jean Claude, Liewer and local Resistance escorting us through heavily enemy-patrolled countryside. We ended up at Chadebec where I began my Tilleul transmissions.
I met with Jean Claude, again at the Prix d’Armes Ceremony in Limoges in September where Col. Rivier decorated the Missions.
Since escorting our Tilleul mission to Chadebec, Jean Claude had participated in four weeks of heavy running battles thru mid and late July, including the battle of Châteauroux and Mt Gargan.
Beating the long odds, Jean Claude had been in occupied France for more than fifteen weeks as we wound up and closed down the missions.
After a brief leave I ended my war in Burma and Sumatra in 1946.