Rogue Warrior of the SAS: The Blair Mayne Legend

More than half a century after his death, Lt Col. Robert Blair Mayne is still regarded as one of the greatest soldiers in the history of military special operations. He was the most decorated British soldier of the Second World War, receiving four DSOs, the Croix de Guerre and the Légion d'honneur, and he pioneered tactics used today by the SAS and other special operations units worldwide.

Rogue Warrior of the SAS tells the remarkable life story of 'Colonel Paddy', whose exceptional physical strength and uniquely swift reflexes made him a fearsome opponent. But his unorthodox rules of war and his resentment of authority would deny him the ultimate accolade of the Victoria Cross.

Drawing on personal letters and family papers, declassified SAS files and records, together with the Official SAS Diary compiled in wartime and eyewitness accounts from many who served with him, the picture emerges of a soldier who, although a flawed hero, was unquestionably one of the most distinctive combatants of the campaigns in the Western Desert and Europe.

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Rogue Warrior of the SAS: The Blair Mayne Legend

More than half a century after his death, Lt Col. Robert Blair Mayne is still regarded as one of the greatest soldiers in the history of military special operations. He was the most decorated British soldier of the Second World War, receiving four DSOs, the Croix de Guerre and the Légion d'honneur, and he pioneered tactics used today by the SAS and other special operations units worldwide.

Rogue Warrior of the SAS tells the remarkable life story of 'Colonel Paddy', whose exceptional physical strength and uniquely swift reflexes made him a fearsome opponent. But his unorthodox rules of war and his resentment of authority would deny him the ultimate accolade of the Victoria Cross.

Drawing on personal letters and family papers, declassified SAS files and records, together with the Official SAS Diary compiled in wartime and eyewitness accounts from many who served with him, the picture emerges of a soldier who, although a flawed hero, was unquestionably one of the most distinctive combatants of the campaigns in the Western Desert and Europe.

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Rogue Warrior of the SAS: The Blair Mayne Legend

Rogue Warrior of the SAS: The Blair Mayne Legend

Rogue Warrior of the SAS: The Blair Mayne Legend

Rogue Warrior of the SAS: The Blair Mayne Legend

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Overview

More than half a century after his death, Lt Col. Robert Blair Mayne is still regarded as one of the greatest soldiers in the history of military special operations. He was the most decorated British soldier of the Second World War, receiving four DSOs, the Croix de Guerre and the Légion d'honneur, and he pioneered tactics used today by the SAS and other special operations units worldwide.

Rogue Warrior of the SAS tells the remarkable life story of 'Colonel Paddy', whose exceptional physical strength and uniquely swift reflexes made him a fearsome opponent. But his unorthodox rules of war and his resentment of authority would deny him the ultimate accolade of the Victoria Cross.

Drawing on personal letters and family papers, declassified SAS files and records, together with the Official SAS Diary compiled in wartime and eyewitness accounts from many who served with him, the picture emerges of a soldier who, although a flawed hero, was unquestionably one of the most distinctive combatants of the campaigns in the Western Desert and Europe.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781780573779
Publisher: Mainstream Publishing Company, Limited
Publication date: 10/14/2011
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 304
File size: 1 MB

About the Author

Martin Dillon is also the author of several other books, including The Trigger Men, The Shankill Butchers, God and the Gun and The Dirty War. He has been described by the Irish Times as 'one of the most creative writers of our time'.

The late Roy Bradford served with Army Intelligence during the Second World War and subsequently worked as a TV producer and writer. He was the author of two novels, Excelsior and The Last Ditch.

Table of Contents


Foreword Col David Stirling, DSO, OBE XV
'Paddy's done it!' 1
Early Years of a Viking 8
War and 11 Commando 16
Birth of the SAS 26
Joint Operations 37
El Alamein 47
A Proper Establishment 60
Special Raiding Squadron, SAS 70
Italy: Bagnara and Termoli 81
Retraining for France 91
Titanic and its Lessons 98
The Garstin 'Stick' 108
Operation Gain 115
Operation Kipling 126
Brave and Brilliant Exploits 132
A Different Role in Germany 146
The Fourth DSO 163
'Blue-Pencil Idiots' 183
Final Days of the War 198
Norway and Disbandment 210
Home Again 216
Fish out of Water 229
Postscript 236
SAS personnel who took part in raids on Axis airfields in North Africa, 1941-2 246
Operation Howard personnel in Germany, 6-29 April 1945 248
Selected Bibliography 255
Index 256
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