The Special Boat Squadron was Britain's most exclusive Special Forces
unit during World War II. Highly trained, totally secretive, and utterly
ruthless, the SBS was established as an entity in its own right in early
1943, having previously operated under the auspices of the SAS during
the war in North Africa. Unlike its sister unit, which numbered more
than one thousand men, the SBS never comprised more than one hundred.
Led by men such as the famed Victoria Cross recipient Anders Lassen, the
SBS went from island to island in the Mediterranean, landing in the dead
of night in small fishing boats and launching savage hit-and-run raids
on the Germans.
By the end of the war they had served in Italy, the Balkans, and
mainland Greece, and following the cessation of hostilities, their deeds
were airbrushed out of history by an establishment that had never warmed
to their piratical exploits. Through unrivaled access to the SBS
archives and interviews with the surviving members of the unit, Gavin
Mortimer has pieced together the dramatic exploits of this elite
fighting force, illustrated with images of their daring actions, finally
granting the unit the recognition they so richly deserve.