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Major Victor Dover
Unit : "C" Company, 2nd Parachute Battalion
Army No. : 113514
Awards : Military Cross
When the 2nd Battalion was fighting in North Africa, Victor Dover was a Lieutenant in "B" Company. A vacancy arose for a Captain during the Battle of Tamera, but Lieutenant-Colonel Frost found it difficult to decide whether to promote Dover or another Lieutenant, Dicky Spender. The two men came to a peculiar agreement between themselves, whereby the promotion would be awarded to whichever of them was wounded first. In the event, Dover was injured first and so won the bet, Spender himself was tragically killed soon after.
Upon recovering from his wounds Victor Dover rejoined the Battalion as Adjutant, shortly before the invasion of Sicily. The 1st Parachute Brigade's drop was widely scattered, and few suffered quite so badly as Dover's stick of parachutists, who were dropped on the slopes of Mount Etna, in excess of twenty miles from the drop zone. Many of his men were captured, however Dover teamed up with a signaller from Brigade HQ and spent the next twenty-three days behind the enemy lines. During this time they could only feed themselves only on apples and what scraps they could find, however they ensured that their presence was as much of a nuisance to the enemy as possible; amongst other disruptive actions, the pair intercepted and killed a number of dispatch riders.
Eventually, the British advance up the eastern side of Sicily caught up with them and the pair were returned to their units. As a result of his poor diet during this time, Captain Dover lost a lot of weight and was allowed a few days leave in Algiers to recover. Rejoining the 2nd Battalion in far superior health, Dover was allowed to resume his duties as Adjutant, a post for which he had displayed considerable flair. Lieutenant-Colonel Frost described him as "a great enthusiast and a very fine member of a team. Perhaps rather noisy and rombustious, one always knew when he was about, and then missed him, more than a little, when he was not there". Before the 2nd Battalion was deployed in Italy towards the end of 1943, Victor Dover was promoted to Major and given command of "C" Company.
Landing in Arnhem on Sunday 17th September with the rest of the 2nd Battalion, "C" Company was charged with the task of capturing the Railway Bridge a few miles to the west of Arnhem. Once it had been taken, they were to proceed over it and continue towards Arnhem Bridge along the southern bank, securing the southern approaches of the pontoon bridge and then the main road bridge itself. Dover's assault on the Railway Bridge was undertaken with smooth efficiency, with No.9 Platoon advancing upon it whilst No.8 Platoon provided covering fire and laid down a smokescreen with mortars. Sadly the Bridge was destroyed by enemy action just as No.9 Platoon were about to cross over it. With a crossing denied to his men, Dover was ordered to remain on the northern side of the Rhine and follow in the 2nd Battalion's wake to Arnhem, where they were to capture a German Headquarters building. By this time enemy resistance was increasing and negotiating the cover-less streets proved difficult. Having successfully battled their way through several skirmishes, "C" Company were eventually caught in an exposed position and Dover was forced to shelter his men in a small hotel overnight, 600 yards short of the Headquarters building.
Early on Monday morning, Dover was preparing to move out and continue towards the German Headquarters when he received a message from Arnhem Bridge, ordering him to come to their aid. Although the Bridge was not so very far away, "C" Company was faced with the difficult task of advancing through the exposed streets of Arnhem in broad daylight. Very soon they found themselves trapped by a large German force, and so, following a brief exchange of fire, Major Dover was left with no sensible alternative but to order the one hundred men of his Company to lay down their arms. For the Germans, this was the first of many large-scale seizures of Airborne troops. Only a small group from "C" Company managed to slip away and they later joined up with the 3rd Battalion.
In 1979, Victor Dover published an account of military career, The Silken Canopy, and in 1981, he wrote The Sky Generals.