First Special Service Force
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First Special Service Force |
|
|---|---|
 Shoulder badge |
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| active | July 19, 1942 to December 5, 1944 |
| Country | USA / Canada |
| Branch of service | Special forces |
| Type | Command - Brigade |
| Strength | approx. 2300 |
| Installation site | Fort William Henry Harrison, Helena , Montana |
| Nickname | Devil's Brigade, The Black Devils |
| Second World War |
Battle of the Aleutians Italian campaign Operation Dragoon |
| commander | |
| Commanders |
Robert T. Frederick Edwin A. Walker |
The First Special Service Force ( FSSF ; nickname: "Devil's Brigade" or "The Black Devils" , German "Teufelsbrigade" or "The black devils" ) was a US / Canadian special unit in World War II . It is considered to be the forerunner of the US Special Forces ("Green Berets") and the Canadian Special Operations Forces .
history
Lineup
The formation of the unit goes back to an idea of the British scientist Geoffrey Pyke , an advisor to the British Combined Operations Headquarters , on command warfare in occupied Europe with the help of snowmobiles , which he presented to the head of Combined Operations, Admiral Louis Mountbatten , in March 1942 . This so-called Project Plow , which, among other things, provided for the establishment of an operational base on the Norwegian glacier Jostedalsbreen , was also welcomed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and was subsequently presented to the Allies . The American Chief of Staff of the Army George C. Marshall then authorized the development of a corresponding special vehicle, the later M29 Weasel, in April 1942 . The head of the Operations Division of the American War Department , Dwight D. Eisenhower , commissioned his colleague Lieutenant Colonel Robert T. Frederick with the preparation of feasibility studies of the project. Although these were mostly negative, Frederick was subsequently commissioned to set up a mixed-national special unit. For this, British and Norwegian soldiers were initially considered alongside American and Canadian soldiers, although the latter two nations canceled.
On July 19, 1942, the First Special Service Force was activated at Fort William Henry Harrison, Helena , Montana. According to Frederick's plans, it comprised three regiments of two battalions each as well as a service battalion , with Canadians and Americans in the combat units not being separated by nationality, while the service battalion was provided exclusively by Americans. Candidates should have physical fitness and intelligence and be used to harsh climates. In addition to the usual program for special units, the members were trained in parachuting, climbing and skiing, among other things. After the first months of training, it became apparent that the unit's original purpose, Project Plow , was no longer being pursued by the Combined Chiefs of Staff . However, Marshall was able to convince the Canadians to continue the experiment of a joint special unit. The equipment with M29 Weasel vehicles was dispensed with and instead a highly mobile unit specialized in attack tasks was sought. Amphibious landing operations have now been added to the training program.
Calls
The FSSF experienced its first combat mission in August 1943 when it landed on Kiska Island, which had previously been evacuated by the Japanese, during the Battle of the Aleutians . In October 1943 she was relocated to the Mediterranean Sea to support the 5th US Army in Italy . Here it was used in the battles for the Gustav Line and in the Anzio bridgehead . After the liberation of Rome , the FSSF was pulled out of the front to prepare for deployment in southern France.
It landed on August 15, 1944, the D-Day of Operation Dragoon , on the Îles d'Hyères off the Côte d'Azur . It was then transferred to the mainland and advanced along the coast to the Italian border. She stayed here until the end of November 1944, when she was pulled from the front to be deactivated. This took place on December 5th at Villeneuve-Loubet . Most of the relatives were then distributed to American and Canadian airborne units, some of the Americans came to the 474th Infantry Regiment (Separate) .
Cinematic processing
The American war movie The Devil's Brigade ( " The Devil's Brigade ") from 1968 deals with the history of the unit and its first use in Italy during the battle for Monte la Difensa .
The character of Aldo Raine (played by Brad Pitt ) in the film Inglourious Basterds (2009) by Quentin Tarantino is portrayed as a former lieutenant in the First Special Service Force.
literature
- Robert D. Burhans: The First Special Service Force. Infantry Journal Press, Washington 1947.
- Robert H. Adleman, George Walton: The Devil's Brigade. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis 1966.
Web links
- US-Canadian 1st Special Service Force in World War II on historynet.com
- Special Commandos in World War II: The Black Devils (Video)