A HIGHER CALL: CLIVE DYTOR
EDUARDO
GERDING
This article presents the life of British war
veteran Clive Dytor from his commission as a Royal Marine to his conversion to
a Catholic priest.
Royal Marine Clive Dytor
Clive Daytor Idris was born in Cardiff (Wales) in
1956, he studied Arabic for 4 years at Trinity College, Cambridge before
joining the Royal Marines at the age of 23
Bad Ass of the Week: Clive Dytor-
https://www.badassoftheweek.com/clive-dytor
45 Commando is a battalion-sized unit of the
British Royal Marines and a subordinate unit within 3 Commando Brigade Royal
Marines, a major commando formation, under the operational command of the Fleet
Commander.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/45_Commando
On January 20, 1987, Dytor married Sarah Payler. 1
https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18413213.new-catholic-priest-oxfordshire-formerly-royal-marines/
As a Royal Marine he participated in the Troubles,
the Malvinas Conflict and the Persian Gulf.
Note:
The
Northern Irish conflict (known as the Troubles and in Irish na Trioblóidi, 'the
troubles') was an interethnic nationalist armed conflict in Northern Ireland
that caused a large number of deaths during the second half of the 20th
century. He faced, on the one hand, the unionists of Northern Ireland (of
Protestant religion, majority in the region), in favor of preserving ties with
the United Kingdom due to the colonization of Ulster, and on the other hand the
Irish republicans, in mostly Catholic and demographically minority, supporters
of the territory's integration into the Republic of Ireland, a predominantly
Catholic country. Both sides resorted to weapons, and the province sank into a
spiral of violence that lasted from October 8, 1968 until the signing of the
Good Friday Agreement, on April 10, 1998, which laid the foundations for a new
government. , in which Catholics and Protestants share power. However, violence
continued after this date and still continues occasionally and on a small
scale. (Wikipedia)
Dytor at the Battle of Mount Two Sisters 2,3,4
The British force, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel
Andrew Whitehead and consisting of 600 soldiers, consisted of the 45th Commando
Battalion of the Royal Marines, supported by the Milan Troop of the 40th
Commando Battalion in addition to the support of six 105 mm guns from the 29th
Commando Regiment. The 2nd Battalion of the 2 PARA Parachute Regiment was part
of the reserve. Naval fire support was provided by two 114 mm guns from the
light cruiser HMS Glamorgan (D19). The 45 CDO had recent combat
experience, against the Irish Catholic urban guerrilla.
The Mount Infantry Regiment 4 "Cnel. Manuel
Fraga" (RI Mte 4) of Lieutenant Colonel Diego Alejandro Soria composed of
678 men occupied the Kent, Challenger and Wall mountains west of the Murrell
River, the Low and Twelve 'O' mountains Clock north of Puerto Argentino.
Company C of Captain Edgardo Humberto Marpegan, then occupied new positions in
Dos Hermanas where the defenders would come to be under the command of Major
Ricardo Mario Cordón, second chief of RI 4 with the 1st Platoon Second
Lieutenant Miguel Mosquera Gutiérrez and 2nd Platoon Jorge Pérez Grandi
stationed around the summit of Dos Hermanas Norte; and the 3rd Platoon, second
lieutenant Marcelo Llambías Pravaz, occupying Dos Hermanas Sur and the 1st
Platoon of Company A second lieutenant Juan Nazer and the Support Platoon,
lieutenant Luis Carlos Martella located in the chair between the two heights.
The well-trained troops of Company B 'Piribebuy' of Major Óscar Ramón Jaimet,
commando trainer of the Mechanized Infantry Regiment 6 "General
Viamonte" RI Mec 6 would be part of the local reserve, occupying anti-tank
positions in the rocky valley between the mountains Two Sisters and Longdon,
and providing mortar fire support during the battle. 3
https://laperlaaustral.com.ar/guerra-malvinas/el-regimiento-de-infanteria-4/
On the night of 11/12 June 1982, on Soledad Island,
45 Commando Royal Marines launched a silent night attack against heavily
defended Argentine positions on the steep hill of Mount Two Sisters, ten
kilometers west of Puerto Argentino.
War History Online- 7
Night of 11 to 12th June,1982
https://www.warhistoryonline.com/instant-articles/clive-dytors-battle.html
The forces in combat were: British: 600 men and a
light cruiser. Argentines: 300 men. British casualties were 21 killed, 13 on
HMS Glamorgan, 50 wounded, 13 on HMS Glamorgan. The Argentine casualties were:
20 dead, 50 wounded and 50 prisoners. 3
Second Lieutenant Jorge Pérez Grandi of RI 4, a
member of the Nottingham-Malvinas Group, was wounded by British artillery: a
triple exposed fracture in the left leg and right thigh pierced by a large
shrapnel. If he did not die at the front it was due to the work of Corporal
Nicolas Urbieta (also belonging to the Nottingham-Malvinas Group) and soldier
Barroso. Another wonder was the doctors saving his legs.
A firing installation designed and manufactured in
Puerto Belgrano, and which was transported to the Malvinas, fired an Exocet
missile from land against a ship for the first time in the world. This
Argentine invention left HMS Glamorgan out of combat in the last days of the Malvinas
War.
Dytor and his men were
pinned down for some time, and casualties quickly began to mount. His
ammo was getting low, three Marines were dead, and one more had his leg blown
off by a mortar. When another mortar slams nearby, wounding yet another
of Dytor’s guys with flaming chunks of shrapnel. 2
Standing up in full view of his men and the Argentines Lieutenant Clive Dytor,
Royal Marine Commando, ordered his men to fix bayonets and follow him.
Screaming his unit battle cry, “ZULU!!!!!” he locked a fucking bayonet on the
end of his FAL L1A1 service rifle and started running full fucking speed uphill
towards the enemy firing his gun from the hip Schwarzenegger-style. As he
ran ahead, oblivious to a hail of .50-caliber machine gun bullets whizzing
around him in every direction, he managed to make out a very British scream of
confidence from one of his hardened sergeants:
“Get your fucking head
down, you stupid bastard!”
But Clive Dytor did not get his head down. He ran like a bat out of hell, firing indiscriminately into the darkness, bayonet at the ready, straight towards the machine gun nest. When he reached it, he dove in, gun at the ready, bayonetting, swinging, and shooting.
It was only at this point that he realized his men were right there with
him. 7
The Royal Marine Commandos, attacking an almost impossible situation,
ran from trench to trench, fighting with tooth and nail, using everything from
grenades and rifles to claw their way through enemy positions.
The Argentinians fought heroically .
Lieutenant Clive Dytor Royal Marine
https://www.badassoftheweek.com/clive-dytor
The only thought going through my head was
to get the advance moving again and to try to regain the forward momentum: the
idea of being killed didn’t enter my mind. I did what any well-trained infantry
officer would have done. 2
Eight Royal Marines were killed, and 17 more were
wounded (including a naval artillery attaché officer) in the fighting on the
slopes of Mount Two Sisters. ( All three companies then fought brisk battles
on their objectives, suffering eight killed and seventeen wounded in the
process." Jigsaw Puzzles: Tactical Intelligence in the Falklands Campaign,
Giles Orpen-Smellie, Amberley Publishing Limited, 2022)
The Military Cross is awarded for acts of exemplary
courage during active operations against the enemy on land, to captains or
lower-ranking officers up to the rank of non-commissioned officer. 9
Clive Daytor experienced savage combat and saw his
fellow Royal Marines die, but for him the worst were the seemingly endless days
aboard the troopship HMS Intrepid, exposed and vulnerable in San Carlos Bay in
what became known like “bomb alley” 8
A young sailor asked Dytor, "What happens if
they hit us, sir?" There was no point lying to him. He told him: Well, we
will all die. Everyone laughed. He told him: My friend, there is no way out of
here. The Exocet is going to hit you on top of your bed and that's the end. The
last thing you will hear will be a bang. 8
Entry into the Anglican Church of England 6
Dytor was educated at Christ College, Brecon where
he was a prefect. He was a well-regarded person for his work ethic, sense of
humor and slight eccentricities. At Christ College academic and sporting effort
was rewarded. During his time at Trinity College, Cambridge he played rugby in
the College 1st XV and was able to ensure an abundant display of daffodils on
St David's Day (patron saint of Wales).
When he completed his service with the Royal
Marines four years after the Conflict, he trained to enter the Church of
England as a priest at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, and became chaplain of Tonbridge
School. 1
Wycliffe Hall is a permanent private hall at the
University of Oxford affiliated with the Church of England. It is named after
the Bible translator and reformer John Wycliffe, who was master of Balliol
College, Oxford in the 14th century.
Tonbridge School is a public school (boarding and
day school) for children aged 13 to 18 in Tonbridge, Kent, England founded in
1553 by Sir Andrew Judde. He is a member of the Eton group and has close links
with the Worshipful Company of Skinners, one of the oldest livery companies in
London.
The spiritual head of the Church of England is the
Archbishop of Canterbury, who is also Presiding Bishop of all England and
Metropolitan of the Province of Canterbury.
The British monarch (currently Charles III) holds
the constitutional title of “Supreme Governor of the Church of England.”
The Church of England has a legislative body, the
General Synod. Synod resolutions must be approved (but not amended) by the UK
Parliament before receiving royal assent and becoming part of English law.
In this regard, Dytor says:
I joined the Royal Marines but ultimately what I
wanted was to join the Church. It wasn't a post-combat conversion but it acted
as a contributing factor. Any seismic experience has an effect on you. When I
broke my leg I had time to think and evaluate. I had a lot of action in my life
but after the injury I was physically incapacitated and then I realized that I
had spent a lot of time as a man of action. I needed time to reflect and that
changed my interior life and led me to think about the Church. 8
Clive Dytor’s conversion to Catholicism
For Clive Dytor, conversion to Catholicism was
another moment of decision. Looking back, Dytor thinks the process began in
divinity school when he read John Henry Newman's biography describing his
spiritual journey from the Church of England to Rome. 8
But there were several impediments: Clive Claytor was 63 years old, married with children, with a history of having served in the Royal Marines and also belonged to the Anglican Church.
To do this, he requested a Papal dispensation that lasted 9 months and was signed by the Pope himself. A papal dispensation is a decision within the prerogatives of the pope by which he allows individuals to be exempted from a particular law of canon law.
He finally entered the Catholic Church in 1994. He
had to study new subjects such as canon law, bioethics and other specific
Catholic studies but he enjoyed it. He took an oral and written exam.
Clive Daytor joined St. Teresa's Church in Charlbury as a deacon awaiting appointment to the priesthood. Meanwhile, he was in charge of baptisms, marriages and deaths. eleven
Finally, on Friday 12 September 2020 he was
appointed parish priest by the Archbishop of Birmingham Bernard Longley at Holy
Trinity, Chipping Norton and St. Teresa, Charlbury. 5,10,12
Note:
In 1931, there was a former Methodist chapel in Charlbury
built in 1854 which had served the Salvation Army. It was purchased for £100
and became the church of St. Therese of Lisieux.
Today, Dytor instills in his students the virtues of commitment, loyalty and tenacity embodied in the Armed Forces. It teaches them the attitude that things can be done: identify the problem, work on it, and apply the solution.
When asked, he does not talk about his experience
in the Malvinas, not even to his wife, with whom he has been married for more
than 20 years.
Charlbury in
the Cotswold
https://www.charlbury.info/news/4263
Charlbury in the Cotswold
Father Clive Dytor blesses reopening of pub Rose & Crown
-April 13, 2021.
https://www.charlbury.info/news/3478
Bibliography
https://www.warhistoryonline.com/instant-articles/clive-dytors-battle.html
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/awards-and-accreditation/content/100068
