| Original caption: “Commandos of First Special Service Brigade led by Brigadier Lord Lovat (in the water, to the right of his men) land on Queen Red beach, Sword area, circa 0840 hours, June 6, 1944. Sherman DD tanks of Thirteenth/Eighteenth Royal Hussars and other vehicles can be seen on the beach. Lovat’s piper, Bill Millin, is in the foreground about to disembark. British commandos of First Special Service Brigade, led by Lord Lovat, landing on ‘Queen Red’ sector of Sword Beach, at La Breche, on the morning of June 6, 1944.” The 1st Special Service Brigade, under the command of United Kingdom Royal Army Brigadier Simon “Shimi” Fraser, 17th Lord Lovat (July 9, 1911 – March 16, 1995), lands at Sword Beach, La Brèche d’Hermanville, near Ouistreham, in HMS Landing Craft, Infantry, Small LCI(S)-519 at 0845 Hours on June 6, 1944. M4 Sherman DD tanks of 13th/18th Royal Hussars and other vehicles can be seen on the beach. Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser, Lord Lovat and Chief of Clan Fraser, was born at Beaufort Castle, Inverness. Interestingly, he was related to David Stirling (November 5, 1915 – November 4, 1990), the founder of the Special Air Service (SAS). Lovat’s 1st military experience was at Ampleforth College, in the Officer Training Corps, and he was also in the Oxford University Cavalry Squadron. He was commissioned into the Territorial Lovat Scouts in 1930 (a unit founded by his family and justly famous for its scouting and sniping skills in the Great War) but the following year became a regular officer with the Scots Guards. There he stayed until 1937, when he resigned his commission and passed into the Supplementary Reserve. He rejoined the Lovat Scouts, now ranking as captain, on the eve of war in August 1939. Lovat – known to friends as “Shimi” the Anglicized version of his Celtic name – volunteered for the Commandos in 1940, and was on the Loften raid in March 1941. Promoted temporary major, he led the small Hardelot raid the following month, for which action he was later awarded the Military Cross. As acting lieutenant colonel, he was appointed to lead Number 4 Commando in 1942, and was arguably the most successful commander in the entire Dieppe Operation, for his part in which he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order. By 1944, Lovat had reached the rank of brigadier and was commanding the 1st Special Service Brigade. This he led on D-Day, joining up with the Airborne on the far left flank of the invasion force, but he was seriously wounded by an enemy shell on June 12, 1944. Lovat remarked to another veteran Commando officer that he felt “uncomfortably exposed making an approach to a hostile enemy coast in broad daylight.” He said that he “much preferred the cloak of darkness” as in a raid. On the run to the beach, HMS LCI(S)-519 narrowly missed a Nazi German mine. The near-miss explosion took out its port engine. Lieutenant Commander Leonard R. “Rupert” Curtis (June 11, 1910 – August 26, 1992), the ship’s commander as well as the commander of the LCI Flotilla, continued to drive the LCI onto the beach. 1st Special Service Brigade Piper William “Bill” Millin (July 14, 1922 – August 18, 2010) could see black smoke coming from British tanks on the shore. A few feet in front of Millin, Lord Lovat also thought that the beach didn’t look very inviting. He could see British infantry with their heads down in the sand, and halfway up the beach others digging in – a certain death trap, Lovat thinks. Lovat had told his men the day before, “If you wish to live to a ripe old age – keep moving tomorrow.” Bill Millin, a few yards behind Lovat, watches the 1st of their unit of commandos step onto the ramp. 1 is hit in the face by a piece of shrapnel, holds onto the rail and falls into the sea. Lovat strides on down the ramp regardless, carrying a wading stick that he uses to keep balanced when fly-fishing for salmon. He’s wearing highly polished hunting brogues and a white pullover with “Lovat” embroidered on the collar, and on his beret a “Fraser Lovat” badge that’s glinting in the morning sun. Initally, none of his commandos are wearing helmets, preferring to wear their green berets. As they move inland, more and more will don their 1944 Pattern Mark III “turtle” helmets as they increasingly encounter Nazi German fire. Millin thinks that at 6 foot (1.8 meters), Lovat will give a good indication of how deep the water is. It was not too deep. Millin’s kilt spread around him as, holding his pipes above his head, he jumped in waist high. Millin toppled over momentarily from the weight of his rucksack until someone grabbed him and pushed him forward. While still wading in the surf, he put the bagpipes on his shoulder and started to play “Highland Laddie,” the regimental quick march of Lord Lovat’s old regiment the Scots Guards. Lord Lovat turned and smiled. Lieutenant Bryan C. W. Samain (January 14, 1925 – June 24, 2024) later reported that “a desperate collection of men in green berets, white teeth grinning viciously across blackened faces. Holding their precious weapons high above their heads as they waded ashore, before running, ‘boots squelching’ with sea water and uniforms sodden under heavy rucksacks, up the beach.” Not all were so lucky. Millin has also made it to the top of Sword Beach, and joins Lord Lovat in time to hear their Brigade Major Harry H. Blissett (February 9, 1913 – December 18, 1977) telling him that Major R. John Howard’s (December 8 1912 – May 5, 1999) audacious glider raid has succeeded, and the bridges have been taken intact. Lovat tells Blissett that he estimates he’s lost about 60 men coming up Sword Beach. Seeing Millin, Lovat’s tone brightens. “Good show, the piper,” he says. “How about a tune?” Millin can’t believe his ears and says sarcastically, “What should I play then, sir?” Lovat suggests, “The Road to the Isles.” Millin asked, “Would you prefer me to walk up and down the beach, sir?” Lovat said, “Yes, that would be fine.” Millin places the pipes on his shoulder once more. Soldiers by the sea wall cheer him as he heads to the shore at a brisk pace; but Millin feels awkward playing while bodies wash back and forth in the waves. Millin later said, “Everyone liked Lord Lovat, although we all thought that at thirty-two he was a bit too old for the kind of daredevilry he enjoyed. Everyone regarded him as crazy and, in retrospect, I suppose they thought I was pretty crazy too.” At 1300 Hours, June 6, 1944, after marching in from Sword Beach, Lovat’s commandoes linked up with Howard’s glider infantry. Snipers shot several commandoes as Lovat formed up and marched across the captured bridges. Though Lovat’s injury put him out of action for the rest of the war he went into politics in 1945 and eventually sat in the House of Lords. His final years were not the happiest: 2 of his sons predeceased him, and family fortunes declined. Beaufort Castle was sold in 1994. Millin, who had also been present with him on D-Day, played at his funeral. United Kingdom Prime Minister Winston Churchill (November 30, 1874 – January 24, 1965) is said to have described Lord Lovat as “the mildest mannered man that ever scuttled a ship or cut a throat.” | |
| Image Filename | wwii0464.jpg |
| Image Size | 1.75 MB |
| Image Dimensions | 5201 x 5106 |
| Photographer | J. L. Evans |
| Photographer Title | Number Five United Kingdom Royal Army Film and Photo Section, Army Film and Photographic Unit |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | June 6, 1944 |
| Location | Queen Red, La Brèche d’Hermanville |
| City | Sword Beach |
| State or Province | Normandy |
| Country | France |
| Archive | Imperial War Museum |
| Record Number | B 5103 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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