- United States Army Special Operations Command
- United States Army Special Forces Command
- United States Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center
- 75th Ranger Regiment
- 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment
- Special Operations Support Command
- 4th Psychological Operations Group
- 95th Civil Affairs Brigade
- 75th Ranger Regiment Home
- Overview
- Campaigns
- Ranger Creed
- Roger's Rangers Standing Orders
- Ranger Battallions of WWII
- History of the 75th Ranger Regiment
Ranger Battalions of World War II
With America’s entry into World War II, Major (later Brigadier General) William 0. Darby organized and activated the 1st Ranger Battalion on June 19, 1942 at Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland. The members of this battalion were all hand picked volunteers - 50 of whom participated in the gallant Dieppe Raid after training with British and Canadian commandos. The 1st Ranger Battalion participated in the North African landing at Arzeu, Algeria, and in the Tunisian Battles. The Battalion was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation, which includes operations in the critical Battle of El Guettar.
The 3rd and 4th Ranger Battalions were activated and trained by Colonel Darby in Africa near the end of the Tunisian Campaign. The 1st, 3rd and 4th Battalions formed the Ranger Force. The three Ranger Battalions spearheaded the Seventh Army landing at Gela and Loicata during the Sicilian invasion. The Rangers played a key role in the a subsequent campaign that culminated in the capture of Messina. At Anzio, they overcame beach defenses, cleared the town, and established a defensive perimeter.
The 2nd and 5th Ranger Battalions participated in the June 6, 1944, D-Day landings at Omaha Beach, Normandy. It was during the bitter fighting along the beaches that the Rangers gained their official motto. As the situation became critical on Omaha Beach, Brigadier General Norman D. Cota, Assistant Division Commander of the 29th Infantry Division, stated that the entire assault force must clear the beaches and advance inland. He then turned to Lieutenant Colonel Max F. Schneider, commanding the 5th Ranger Battalion, and said, "Rangers, lead the way!" The 5th Battalion spearheaded the a breakthrough that enabled the Allies to drive inland from the invasion beaches.
Attached to the 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division, Companies D, E, and F of the 2nd Ranger Battalion accomplished the mission of capturing the gun emplacements of Pointe du Hoc, after encountering fierce opposition from the defending German garrison. The operation demanded the utmost in Ranger courage and skill as the assault troops climbed rope ladders up the sheer rock face while under intense machine gun, mortar, grenade, and small arms fire.
The 6th Ranger Battalion was the only Ranger Battalion to operate in the Pacific. All of its missions, usually of task force, company or platoon size, were behind enemy lines, and involved long-range reconnaissance or long-range combat patrols. Most notable, was the 24-mile infiltration through enemy held territory to free U.S. prisoners from a Japanese prison camp at Cabanatuan. Rangers conducted a 24-mile forced road march, crawled a mile across open terrain to destroy a Japanese garrison almost twice their size. They liberated and evacuated overmore than 500 prisoners, and killed over 200-plus enemy troops. The Rangers lost only 2two soldiers and had 10 wounded. The feat touched an emotional nerve among Americans concerned about the fate of the defenders of Bataan and Corregidor.