From Omaha to the Scheldt: The Story of 47 Royal Marine Commando - Tapa dura

John Forfar, medical officer, was continuously in the thick of the action as 47 Royal Marine Commando played their distinguished part in World War II in Europe. 47's battle engagements included the D-Day capture of Port-en-Bessin, vital to the British Army's petrol supply; participation in the defence of the Orme bridgehead, and the ultimate break-out, harassing the retreating enemy as it swept northwards in a series of headlong battles along 300 miles of the French and Belgian coasts. A medical officer is ideally placed to describe the reality of frontline battle with its intense fears and physical dangers, the stresses it imposes on body and mind, its killing and wounding, its triumphs and its tribulations, its aftermath. John Forfar saw the deeds of courage and the determination of the commandos at every level. He tells also of the historical significance of the Commando's actions, which the passage of time has revealed, and something of the experiences of the oppressed populations they liberated, as well as the dramas of inhumanity and false witness which are the common currency of war.

Mentioned in Despatches after the capture of 'Port-en-Bessin', John Forfar was later to win the Military Cross at another famous Royal Marines action - the capture of Walcheren. He went on to later eminence as one of Scotland's leading paediatricians.