The Starkey Sacrifice: The Allied Bombing of Le Portel, 1943

In the summer of 1943 Winston Churchill sanctioned a make-believe invasion of France codenamed Operation 'Starkey'. Its aim: to dupe the Germans into believing a real invasion in the Pas de Calais was imminent; and to cause the greatest possible damage to the Luftwaffe by drawing them up for battle.It envisaged British and Canadian troops in their thousands assembling in the south coast ports; 3,000 bomber sorties by day and as many by night; Royal Navy battleships to help soften up the German coastal defences; and a dozen destroyers plus a strong fighter umbrella to safeguard the assault convoys when they sailed towards Boulogne. 'Starkey' was organised in such a way that it could be escalated or stopped at will.To protect the invasion armada from the biggest threat, long-range guns to the north and south of the seaside resort of Le Portel, south of Boulogne, were to be bombed in the final phase of the operation. This was also vital to maintain the invasion deception theme central to 'Starkey'.On the night of 8/9 September 1943, over 200 RAF bomber aircraft attacked the long-range guns at Le Portel. Regrettably, the Pathfinders' marking of the targets was inaccurate and drew the bulk of the Main Force bombing effort towards a residential area. The gun sites were barely harmed, but in this and in daylight bombing by the USAAF, some 500 French civilians in Le Portel were killed and the town virtually razed.The Starkey Sacrifice tells the story of this little-known war operation which had such tragic results for the inhabitants of the French town of Le Portel. Michael Cumming has examined official documents and drawn on eyewitness accounts to reconstruct in detail the operation, establishing the reasons which led to its inception, and its unexpected consequences.