My Admiration for our Armed Services ~ Part Two

September 21

Dear Readers, 

            In an earlier post, I wrote about my admiration for the men and women who serve our country in the armed services.  In particular, I am fascinated by those who come under the umbrella of Special Operations, more commonly referred to as Special Ops, from where I draw the heroes of my books.

  

            With that in mind, I did some research on the history of these elite warriors and thought I’d share some of what I learned with you.

            The word “Ranger” was first coined in World War II.

            Major General Lucian K. Truscott, then the liaison to the British Consulate, recognized that the Allied Forces needed to employ different techniques if they were to defeat the Axis powers.  On May 26, 1942, General Truscott submitted a proposal to General George Marshall to form a group of American soldiers similar to the British commandos.

            With the War Department’s agreement, the 1^st Army Ranger Battalion was formed.  Truscutt chose the name “Ranger” because it sounded typically American. 

    
            General Russell P. Hartle, who commanded all Army Forces in Ireland, selected William O. Darby to lead this band of soldiers.  A strenuous weeding-out process followed, and on June 19, 1942 the Battalion of Rangers was activated.

            The Rangers lead invasions in Algeria and Tunisia, achieving much-needed victories for the Allies.  The most famous mission of the Rangers occurred during D-Day in the European Theatre when the battalion assaulted the cliffs of Pointe Du Hoc, France, taking out a large gun battery stationed there.

            Without this victory, German guns would have devastated the Allied Forces as they stormed Omaha Beach.

            Rangers continued their storied exploits in each of the conflicts in the ensuing years.

Click HERE for Part One

May you know the Lord loves you,
~Jane