Why I Became an X Troop Commando: A Life of Colin Anson, the German who Fought for Churchill

by Helen Fry

A fascinating and moving biography of Colin Anson, the German refugee who became an elite British commando

Born in Germany in 1922, Colin Anson's (Claus Ascher) childhood was marked by the trials of Nazism. His father was arrested by the Gestapo in 1937 and transported to Dachau, where he died shortly after. Colin, aged just seventeen, escaped to Britain in the Kindertransport. As soon as he was old enough, Colin volunteered in the Pioneer Corps. Then, in 1942, he was recruited for the elite commando unit X-Troop.

Colin took part in the invasions of Sicily and Italy in 1943, where he sustained a near-fatal injury. But just months later, he returned to duty. He fought in the Yugoslav islands, became the first Allied soldier to liberate Corfu, and was stationed in postwar Frankfurt.

In this unique biography, Helen Fry traces the remarkable story of Colin's life. Drawing on extensive interviews, Fry recounts his actions in X-Troop and beyond in his own words—and sheds new light on the experience of refugees in the British forces.

Genres: Biography, History

240 pages, Paperback

Published January 14, 2025

About the author

Helen Fry has written numerous books on the Second World War with particular reference to the 10,000 Germans and Austrians who fought for Britain in the war.

Other books by Helen include histories of various Anglo-Jewish communities, including The Lost Jews of Cornwall (with Keith Pearce); and The Jews of Exeter. Her titles also include books on Christian-Jewish Dialogue. Her textbook Christian-Jewish Dialogue: A Reader has been translated into Russian, Czech and Polish.

Helen has branched out into fiction with James Hamilton under the pseudonym JH Schryer. Together they have written two novels of historical fiction and been in development on scripts with Green Gaia Films for a TV drama based on their novels.

Helen is an Honorary Research Fellow in the Dept of Hebrew & Jewish Studies at University College London and Lecturer at the London Jewish Cultural Centre. She is a member of The Biographers’ Club, The Society of Authors and an Honorary member of The Association of Jewish Refugees.

Reviews

[Aloysius Teng · Rating 5 out of 5]

Colin Anson’s biography provided an interesting eyewitness account of what life was like for a German living under the Nazi regime as it rose to power. It is disturbing to see how the actions taken by the Nazi regime to dehumanise those they are against and remove the German people’s capability for independent thought is being mirrored in the United States under the Trump Administration and the GOP right now. Hopefully global events will not devolve to the point that history repeats itself.

[Stephen Wood · Rating 1 out of 5]

The story of a German national who fled the Nazis and ended up with the British Commandos ought to be at least fascinating, and potentially stirring. Sadly, the story of Colin Anson (his Anglicised name) is rather mundane, at least as told in this book. Although we undoubtedly owe a great deal to him and the thousands like him, there are no tales of blackened faces undertaking daring night-time raids, or anything like it. The cover describes the book as “gripping”, but I didn’t find it so and struggled to finish.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lucky charity shop find. This book tells the story of Claus Asher the son of a protestant mother & a Jewish father who died in Dachau. Colin came to England as part of the Kindertransport & joined the Pioneer Corps, from there he joined the Commando X troop. All of whom were German or Austrian. It was here Claus Asher became Colin Anson.