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75th Ranger Regiment (United States)
Encyclopedia
The 75th Ranger Regiment (Airborne), also known as Rangers, is a Special Operations light infantry
unit of the United States Army
. The Regiment is headquartered in Fort Benning
, Georgia
with battalions in Fort Benning
, Hunter Army Airfield
and Joint Base Lewis-McChord
. It operates as a special operations force
of the United States Army Special Operations Command
(USASOC).
The Regiment is composed of one Special Troops Battalion
and three, organizationally identical, rapidly-deployable light infantry special operations battalions with specialized skills that enable them to perform a variety of special operations missions. These missions include but are not limited to airborne
, air assault
, and direct action
operations, raids, infiltration and exfiltration by air, land or sea in addition to airfield seizure, recovery of personnel and special equipment, and support of general purpose forces (GPF). Each of the Regiment's three line battalions rotates as the "Ranger Ready Force". This battalion is at a constant readiness to deploy and is expected to be able to respond anywhere in the world within 18 hours.
and his guerilla fighting group The Green Mountain Boys
in Vermont
. Captain Benjamin Church formed Church's Rangers, which fought hostile Native American tribes during King Philip's War
. Major Robert Rogers
formed a Ranger unit in 1757 to fight during the French and Indian War
. They would become known as the "Rogers' Rangers
." The Continental Congress
formed eight companies of expert riflemen in 1775 to fight in the Revolutionary War. In 1777, this force of hardy frontiersmen commanded by Dan Morgan was known as The Corps of Rangers. Francis Marion
, "The Swamp Fox", organized another famous Revolutionary War Ranger element known as "Marion's Partisans."
During the War of 1812
, companies of United States Rangers were raised from among the frontier settlers as part of the regular Army. Throughout the war, they patrolled the frontier from Ohio
to Western Illinois
on horseback and by boat. They participated in many skirmishes and battles with the British and their American Indian
allies. The American Civil War
included Rangers such as John Singleton Mosby who was the most famous Confederate
Ranger during the Civil War. His company's
raids on Union camps and bases were so effective, part of North-Central Virginia
soon became known as Mosby's Confederacy.
After the Civil War, more than half a century passed without military Ranger units in the United States.
, the founder of the modern rangers, was assigned to duty in Belfast
, Northern Ireland
. Darby, frustrated with his lack of hands on experience as General Russell Hartle’s aide, was put in charge of a new unit. General George C. Marshall envisioned an elite unit of 50 men selected voluntarily from the 34th Infantry Division. He believed Darby was the man to do the job. It was therefore on 8 June 1942, that Darby was officially put in charge of the 1st Ranger Battalion under General Hartle.
On August 19, 1942, 50 rangers fought along side Canadian and British commandos in the ill-fated Dieppe raid on the coast of occupied France. In November, the entire 1st Ranger battalion entered combat for the first time, when they landed at Arzew, Algeria. The 1st were split into two groups in hopes of assaulting Vichy-French batteries and fortifications before the 1st Infantry Division would land on the beach. The operation was successful. The unit sustained minimal casualties.
On 11 February the Rangers moved 32 miles to raid an Italian encampment at Sened Station. Moving at night, the Rangers slipped to within 50 yards of the Italian outpost and began their attack. It took the battalion only 20 minutes to overtake the garrison and achieve their objective. Fifty Italians were killed and an additional 10 were taken prisoner. Darby, along with other officers, were awarded the Silver Star medal for this action. The battalion itself gained the nickname the “Black Death” by the Italians.
At the time, the Italians still held the pass at Djebel El Ank, located at the far east edge of El Guettar. The rangers linked up with engineers elements of the 26th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division, to attack the area. The 1st Rangers orders were to move overland, on foot 12 miles to outflank the enemy's position. In eight hours of fighting, the Americans captured the objective; the 1st Rangers took 200 prisoners.
1st and 4th Battalions were paired together, and positioned to spearhead General Terry Allen's 1st Division, on the Sicily campaign. Landing outside Gela, the Rangers took the town just after midnight, and were quickly sent out to San Nicola. The Rangers seized the town with the help of an armored division. Despite the fact that they were under a constant attack from enemy artillery, tank, and air forces, they still succeeded in the completion of their mission. This 50 hour barrage would be one of the most unbearable experiences for the Rangers.
Following their success, the two Ranger battalions were then ordered to take the town of Buerta, a fortress suspended on the 4,000 foot high edge of the cliff at Buerta beach. After almost withdrawing from the battle, and requesting artillery to level the city, a platoon of Rangers volunteered to breach the city. Two privates, John See and John Constantine, snuck in behind enemy lines and tricked the Italians and Germans into surrendering the city.
Meanwhile the 3rd Ranger Battalion headed out into the area of Agrigento, where they marched through Campobello, Naro, and Favara successfully occupying each town. The 3rd was ordered to back track to the shores of Porto Empedocle. The beach itself was not occupied, but high in the cliffs heavy machinegun and cannon fire poured onto the Rangers. Scrambling, the Rangers made their way to each machine gun nest and they managed to disable all enemy opposition before the supporting infantry battalion even hit the shore.
Colonel Darby was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his effective commanding of the Rangers, and was given a promotion by Patton; Darby, wanting to be closer to his men, turned down this promotion.
This marked the end of the three Ranger battalions, the remaining 400 rangers would be scattered around the 504th Parachute Regiment
, and the 137 original rangers would be sent home. On 26 October 1944, the three original Ranger battalions were deactivated at Camp Burner, N.C.
. This coastal cliff was supposed to have several 155m artillery cannons aimed down at the beach. Once they arrived at the bottom of the cliff they had an enormous climb to make up rope ladders while receiving a barrage of machinegun fire from the Germans above. The 2nd Rangers were successful in taking the area even with the intense German resistance but the guns were not in sight. A patrol scouting the area found the 155m coastal guns a mile away; the patrol party quickly disabled the guns and any resistance in the area. In the article “Rangers take Pointe” Lenoard Lomell and Jack Kuhn are interviewed on the events that took place that day. Lomell goes on to explain
Meanwhile the rest of the 2nd Ranger and 5th Ranger battalions spearheaded the 1–16th infantry regiment, 1st infantry division, on the beach at Omaha. This is where the famous Ranger slogan comes from, when Major Max F. Schneider, commanding the 5th Ranger Battalion, met with Colonel Norman Cota. When Schneider was asked his unit by Cota, someone yelled out "5th Rangers!", to which Cota replied, “Well then Goddammit, Rangers, lead the way!” This drive cut the German line allowing the conventional army to move in.
The 2nd and 5th battalions would go on into the Normandy campaign, working with the conventional army on special operation tasks. The two battalions fought in many battles such as Battle for Brest and the Battle of Hurtgen Forest. The 2nd Rangers were responsible for capturing Le Conquet peninsula, where they disabled a 280mm gun and took many German prisoners. The 2nd Rangers also went on to take several tactical German position cutting the German line in the Rhineland’s. In Saar west of Zerf, the 5th battalion took an overlooking German position cutting of all supply routes to German forces. The 2nd and 5th Rangers would continue to advance until they were discharged at the end of the war.
At Cabanatuan, on the island of Luzon
in January 1945, a company of the 6th Ranger Battalion executed one of the most daring rescues
in American history. The Rangers penetrated 29 miles (46.7 km) behind enemy lines, including crawling an entire mile (1 miles (1.6 km)) across an open field on their stomachs. During their final assault the rangers destroyed a garrison of Japanese soldiers twice their size and rescued 500 POWs.
The 6th Rangers final mission was to secure a drop zone for paratroopers 250 miles (402.3 km) into enemy territory. They linked up with the 32nd Infantry Division and ended the war in the Philippines.
The beginning of the Korean War
in June 1950 sparked a renewed desire in the Army for Rangers. Seventeen Korean War Ranger Companies
were formed during the war from the Ranger Training Program set up at Fort Benning
under Colonel John Gibson Van Houten. The Companies formed during this period were the first to be entirely Airborne qualified.
The Ranger Companies were active in combat operations throughout late 1950 and early 1951. They were attached to various Regiments over the course of their active term performing "out front" work such as scouting, patrolling, raids, ambushes, spearheading assaults, and as counterattack forces to regain lost positions.
(LRRP), LRP, and Ranger unit employment in Vietnam is first to acknowledge the three chronological periods of their existence: LRRP from late 1965 to December 1967, LRP from late September 1967 to February 1969, and Ranger thereafter to the end of the war. The first period began in December 1965, with the creation of a provisional LRRP platoon by the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division. The 1st Infantry Division and 173rd Airborne Brigade both formed provisional LRRP units in April and the 25th Infantry Division in June 1966. General William C. Westmoreland, commander of Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV), officially authorized the creation of provisional LRRP units on 8 July 1966. Other divisions and brigades stood up provisional LRRP units during the ensuing months: the 4th and 9th Infantry Divisions in November 1966, 196th Light Infantry Brigade in January 1967, and 1st Air Cavalry Division in November 1966. The 9th Infantry Division LRRP Platoon came into being in the fall of 1966 while the division was still at Fort Riley, Kansas, and deployed to Vietnam in January 1967. This unit was expanded to a company in July 1967. The 101st Airborne Division “main body,” while still at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, converted its divisional Recondo School into a provisional LRRP unit in the summer of 1967, before the division deployed to Vietnam. This provisional company arrived in Vietnam in late November 1967.
The second period began in late June 1967, when the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Earle G. Wheeler, authorized the formation of two long-range patrol companies for I and II Field Forces. Company E (Long Range Patrol), 20th Infantry (Airborne) was activated on 25 September 1967 and assigned to I Field Force and stationed at Phan Rang. The nucleus of this unit came from the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division LRRP Platoon, along with soldiers from the replacement stream. Company F (Long Range Patrol), 51st Infantry (Airborne) was activated on 25 September 1967 and assigned to II Field Force with station at Bien Hoa. Its nucleus came from the LRRP platoon of the 173d Airborne Brigade, along with soldiers from the replacement stream. Each of the two field force LRP companies had an authorized strength of 230, and was commanded by a major.
In an apparent response to division commanders' tactical requirements, and bolstered by the proven combat effectiveness of the provisional LRRP units, in the fall of 1967 the Army authorized separate company designations for LRRP units in divisions and detachments in separate brigades. The divisional LRP companies were authorized 118 men and the brigade detachments 61 men. The wholesale renaming of existing divisional LRRP units occurred on 20 December 1967 in the 23d (Americal), 1st Air Cavalry, 1st Infantry, 4th Infantry, 9th Infantry, and 25th Infantry Divisions. LRP detachments were created in the 199th Light Infantry Brigade on 10 January 1968, in the 173d Airborne Brigade on 5 February 1968, and in the 3d Brigade 82d Airborne Division and 1st Brigade 5th Mechanized Division on 15 December 1968.
On 1 February 1969, the final period of the existence of these units began when the Department of the Army re-designated the LRP companies and detachments as lettered Ranger companies of the 75th Infantry Regiment under the Combined Arms Regimental System (CARS). All of the LRP companies and detachments were “re-flagged” as Ranger companies on that date, except Company D (Ranger), which was formed on 20 November 1969 upon the rotation of the Company D (Ranger), Indiana National Guard back to its home state. The third period ended when the Ranger companies were inactivated as their parent units were withdrawn from the war between November 1969 (Company O of 3d Brigade 82d Airborne Division), and 15 August 1972 (Company H of 1st Air Cavalry Division)
capable of rapid deployment. In 1974, General Creighton Abrams
created the 1st Ranger Battalion
, which was assigned the lineage from C Company (Ranger) 75th Infantry (Airborne) First Field Force Vietnam. Eight months later, the 2nd Ranger Battalion
was created, and the lineage of H Company (Ranger) 75th Infantry (Airborne), 1st Cavalry Division, Vietnam and in 1984, the 3rd Ranger Battalion and the regimental headquarters was created. In 1986, the 75th Ranger Regiment was formed and their lineage formally authorized. The 4th, 5th
, and 6th Ranger Battalion
s were also re-activated, becoming the Ranger Training Brigade, the instructors of the modern day Ranger School
. These units are parts of TRADOC
school and are not included in the 75th Ranger Regiment.
In 1980, elements of the 1st Battalion participated in the failed attempt to rescue the American hostages held in Tehran
, Iran in Operation Eagle Claw
. In October 1983, 1st and 2nd Battalions spearheaded Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada by conducting a bold low-level parachute assault to seize Point Salines Airfield
and rescue American citizens at True Blue Medical Campus
.
In 1989, the entire 75th Ranger Regiment participated in Operation Just Cause in Panama. Rangers spearheaded the action by conducting two important operations. Simultaneous parachute assaults were conducted onto Tocumen airfield and the adjacent Omar Torrijos International Airport
, Rio Hato Airfield
and Manuel Noriega
's beach house, to neutralize Panamanian Defense Forces. The Rangers captured 1,014 enemy prisoners of war and over 18,000 arms of various types.
Elements of Company B, and 1st Platoon Company A of the 1st Battalion deployed to Saudi Arabia
from 12 February 1991 to 15 April 1991, in support of Operation Desert Storm. Over two years later, in August 1993, Company B of the 3rd Battalion deployed to Somalia
to assist UN humanitarian forces as part of Operation Restore Hope. On 3 October 1993, the Rangers conducted Operation Gothic Serpent
with Delta Force
operators to capture two of warlord
Mohamed Farrah Aidid
's lieutenants. For nearly 18 hours, the Rangers fought Somali
guerrillas in what became the fiercest ground combat for U.S. military personnel since the Vietnam War.
The 1st and 2nd Battalions and a Company of the 3rd Battalion were deployed to Haiti
in 1994. The operation was canceled within five minutes of its execution when a team of negotiators, dispatched by President Bill Clinton
and led by former President Jimmy Carter
, was able to convince General Raoul Cédras
to relinquish power. Elements of the 1st and 2nd Battalions operated in-country while order was being restored. This is also the first operation where the U.S. Army was the primary operating force on a U.S. aircraft carrier, the . The ship had Special Operations Forces from USSOCOM composed of Rangers, Special Forces, and other special warfare groups.
On 24 November 2000 the 75th Ranger Regiment deployed Regimental Reconnaissance Detachment Team 2 and a command and control element to Kosovo
in support of Task Force Falcon
.
After the 11 September attacks, Rangers were called upon to participate in the War on Terrorism
. On 19 October 2001, the 3rd Battalion spearheaded ground forces by conducting an airborne assault to seize "Objective Rhino"
in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. On 28 March 2003, the 3rd Battalion employed the first airborne assault in Iraq
to seize "Objective Serpent" in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Due to the changing nature of warfare and the need for an agile and sustainable Ranger Force, the Regimental Special Troops Battalion was activated on 17 July 2006. The RSTB conducts sustainment, intelligence
, reconnaissance
and maintenance missions which were previously accomplished by small detachments assigned to the Regimental headquarters and then attached within each of the three Ranger battalions.
, nine Valorous Unit Award
s, and four Meritorious Unit Commendation
, the most recent of which were earned in Vietnam and Haditha, Iraq
, respectively.
Sua Sponte
, Latin for Of their own accord is the 75th Ranger Regiment's regimental motto. Contemporary Rangers are triple-volunteers: for the U.S. Army, for Airborne School, and for service in the 75th Ranger Regiment.
The motto "Rangers lead the way" dates from 6 June 1944, during the Normandy Landings on Dog White sector of Omaha Beach
. Then Brigadier General
Norman Cota
(assistant CO of the 29th ID) calmly walked towards Maj. Max Schneider (CO of the 5th Ranger Battalion
) while under heavy machine gun fire and asked “What outfit is this?” Someone yelled "5th Rangers!" To this, Cota replied “Well then Goddammit, Rangers, lead the way!”
and be Airborne
qualified. New soldiers with Ranger contracts attend nine weeks of Basic Combat Training (BCT), followed by either Advanced Individual Training (AIT), while Infantrymen attend 13 weeks of One Station Unit Training
(OSUT). Upon completion of their advanced training, prospective Rangers attend a three week Pre-RASP preparatory course, before moving on to the eight week RASP I. Those who successfully graduate RASP I attend United States Army Airborne School
. Upon completion of the Basic Airborne Course, recruits then advance to a two week pre-Ranger course, known as, Small Unit Ranger Tactics, or SURT, and finally to the 8.5 week long Ranger School
.
Airborne qualified soldiers then attend one of two Ranger Assessment and Selection Programs. Soldiers below the grade
E-6 attend "RASP1" while all others attend "RASP2". All combat arms NCOs and officers must be Ranger-qualified prior to attending RASP2. Upon graduation of RASP1/RASP2, the new Rangers will be assigned to one of the three Ranger Battalions, the 75th Regimental Headquarters or the Ranger Special Troops Battalion (RSTB), where they are now authorized to wear the Ranger tan beret
, the Ranger Scroll of their parent unit and the distinctive black physical training uniform. Before January 2010, RASP training was called the "Ranger Indoctrination Program" for soldiers below E-6 and "Ranger Orientation Program" for E-6's and above.
, earning the Ranger Tab
. Soldiers in direct combat MOSs are not permitted to occupy leadership billets within the 75th Ranger Regiment without having graduated Ranger School. Graduating Ranger School is encouraged but not required for non-combat MOS leadership billets within the Regiment.
Throughout their time in Ranger Regiment, Rangers may attend many types of special schools and training. Some of these schools include but are not limited to: military free-fall
; combat diver qualification course; survival, evasion, resistance & escape (SERE); jumpmaster
; pathfinder; Combatives Instructor; first responder/combat lifesaver; language training
; Mountain Warfare School
; and many types of shooting, driving, and assault procedures training. Rangers with specialized jobs may also attend various special schools and training related to their job field. MOS 13F (forward observers)
may attend naval gunfire
training and close air support
courses; medics will attend the special operations combat medic course; communications specialists attend joint communications courses.
Rangers are also trained in "do-it-yourself" emergency medicine. Based on the premise that 90% of deaths from wounds are suffered before reaching medical facilities and that there are not enough medics and doctors to go around the Regiment began to train Rangers to give themselves immediate, preliminary treatment. A 2011 study found a 3 percent death rate from potentially survivable causes in the 75th Regiment between October 2001 and April 2010. That compares with a 24 percent rate in a previously reported set of U.S. military deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan, which included troops who didn't have the Ranger-style training.
Organizations define the term "Ranger" in different ways. For example, the annual "Best Ranger Competition", hosted by the Ranger Training Brigade, can be won by pairs of participants from the 75th Ranger Regiment, or by Ranger qualified entrants from other units in the US military. For an individual to be inducted into the U.S. Army Ranger Association's "Ranger Hall of Fame" he "must have served in a Ranger unit in combat or be a successful graduate of the U.S. Army Ranger School." The Ranger Association further clarifies the type of unit: "A Ranger unit is defined as those Army units recognized in Ranger lineage or history." Acceptance into the US Army Ranger Association is limited to "Rangers that have earned the U.S. Army Ranger tab, WWII Rangers, Korean War Rangers, Vietnam War Rangers, all Rangers that participated in Operations Urgent Fury, Just Cause, Desert Storm, Restore Hope, Enduring Freedom, and all Rangers who have served honorably for at least one year in a recognized Ranger unit."
General Eric Shinseki
gave the order to issue black beret
s to regular soldiers. At the time, black berets were being worn exclusively by the Rangers. This created discontent within the 75th Ranger Regiment and even led to retired Rangers going on nationwide roadmarches to Washington, D.C. to protest against the decision. Because there was not a Presidential authorization to the Regiment for exclusive wear of the black beret, they switched to wearing a tan beret
to preserve a unique appearance, tan being reflective of the buckskin worn by the men of Robert Rogers
' Rangers during the French and Indian War
.
13. Christopher, Ronald. Above All. The beginning of the 1st Cav Div LRRPs, Nov 66.
Light infantry
Traditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
unit of the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. The Regiment is headquartered in Fort Benning
Fort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post located southeast of the city of Columbus in Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in Georgia and Russell County, Alabama...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
with battalions in Fort Benning
Fort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post located southeast of the city of Columbus in Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in Georgia and Russell County, Alabama...
, Hunter Army Airfield
Hunter Army Airfield
Hunter Army Airfield , located in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is a military airfield and subordinate installation to Fort Stewart.Hunter features a runway that is 11,375 feet long and an aircraft parking area that is more than 350 acres...
and Joint Base Lewis-McChord
Joint Base Lewis-McChord
Joint Base Lewis-McChord is a United States military facility located south-southwest of Tacoma, Washington. The facility is under the jurisdiction of the United States Army Joint Base Garrison, Joint Base Lewis-McChord....
. It operates as a special operations force
United States Special Operations Forces
United States Special Operations Forces under United States Special Operations Command are active and reserve component forces of U.S. Military...
of the United States Army Special Operations Command
United States Army Special Operations Command
The United States Army Special Operations Command is the command charged with overseeing the various Special Operations Forces...
(USASOC).
The Regiment is composed of one Special Troops Battalion
Special Troops Battalion
A Special Troops Battalion is an organic unit of a modular brigade, Division , corps or higher echelon United States Army organization...
and three, organizationally identical, rapidly-deployable light infantry special operations battalions with specialized skills that enable them to perform a variety of special operations missions. These missions include but are not limited to airborne
Airborne forces
Airborne forces are military units, usually light infantry, set up to be moved by aircraft and 'dropped' into battle. Thus they can be placed behind enemy lines, and have an ability to deploy almost anywhere with little warning...
, air assault
Air assault
Air assault is the movement of ground-based military forces by vertical take-off and landing aircraft—such as the helicopter—to seize and hold key terrain which has not been fully secured, and to directly engage enemy forces...
, and direct action
Direct action (military)
In the context of military special operations, direct action consists of: "Short-duration strikes and other small-scale offensive actions conducted as a special operation in hostile, denied, or politically sensitive environments and which employ specialized military capabilities to seize, destroy,...
operations, raids, infiltration and exfiltration by air, land or sea in addition to airfield seizure, recovery of personnel and special equipment, and support of general purpose forces (GPF). Each of the Regiment's three line battalions rotates as the "Ranger Ready Force". This battalion is at a constant readiness to deploy and is expected to be able to respond anywhere in the world within 18 hours.
Origin
American Ranger history predates the Revolutionary War with Ethan AllenEthan Allen
Ethan Allen was a farmer, businessman, land speculator, philosopher, writer, and American Revolutionary War patriot, hero, and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of the U.S...
and his guerilla fighting group The Green Mountain Boys
Green Mountain Boys
The Green Mountain Boys were a militia organization first established in the 1760s in the territory between the British provinces of New York and New Hampshire, known as the New Hampshire Grants...
in Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
. Captain Benjamin Church formed Church's Rangers, which fought hostile Native American tribes during King Philip's War
King Philip's War
King Philip's War, sometimes called Metacom's War, Metacomet's War, or Metacom's Rebellion, was an armed conflict between Native American inhabitants of present-day southern New England and English colonists and their Native American allies in 1675–76. The war is named after the main leader of the...
. Major Robert Rogers
Robert Rogers (soldier)
Robert Rogers was an American colonial frontiersman. Rogers served in the British army during both the French and Indian War and the American Revolution...
formed a Ranger unit in 1757 to fight during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
. They would become known as the "Rogers' Rangers
Rogers' Rangers
Rogers' Rangers was an independent company of colonial militia, attached to the British Army during the Seven Years War . The unit was informally trained by Major Robert Rogers as a rapidly deployable light infantry force tasked with reconnaissance and conducting special operations against distant...
." The Continental Congress
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....
formed eight companies of expert riflemen in 1775 to fight in the Revolutionary War. In 1777, this force of hardy frontiersmen commanded by Dan Morgan was known as The Corps of Rangers. Francis Marion
Francis Marion
Francis Marion was a military officer who served in the American Revolutionary War. Acting with Continental Army and South Carolina militia commissions, he was a persistent adversary of the British in their occupation of South Carolina in 1780 and 1781, even after the Continental Army was driven...
, "The Swamp Fox", organized another famous Revolutionary War Ranger element known as "Marion's Partisans."
During the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, companies of United States Rangers were raised from among the frontier settlers as part of the regular Army. Throughout the war, they patrolled the frontier from Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
to Western Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
on horseback and by boat. They participated in many skirmishes and battles with the British and their American Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
allies. The American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
included Rangers such as John Singleton Mosby who was the most famous Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
Ranger during the Civil War. His company's
43rd Battalion Virginia Cavalry
The 43rd Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, also known as Mosby's Rangers, Mosby's Raiders or Mosby's Men, was a battalion of partisan cavalry in the Confederate army during the American Civil War...
raids on Union camps and bases were so effective, part of North-Central Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
soon became known as Mosby's Confederacy.
After the Civil War, more than half a century passed without military Ranger units in the United States.
1st Ranger battalion
On 8 December 1941, America entered World War II when it declared war on Japan. At the time, Major William Orlando DarbyWilliam Orlando Darby
William Orlando Darby was an officer in the United States Army during World War II. Darby led the famous Darby's Rangers which evolved into the US Army Rangers and was also made famous as a major motion picture starring the American actor James Garner in the role of Darby.-Early life:Darby was...
, the founder of the modern rangers, was assigned to duty in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. Darby, frustrated with his lack of hands on experience as General Russell Hartle’s aide, was put in charge of a new unit. General George C. Marshall envisioned an elite unit of 50 men selected voluntarily from the 34th Infantry Division. He believed Darby was the man to do the job. It was therefore on 8 June 1942, that Darby was officially put in charge of the 1st Ranger Battalion under General Hartle.
On August 19, 1942, 50 rangers fought along side Canadian and British commandos in the ill-fated Dieppe raid on the coast of occupied France. In November, the entire 1st Ranger battalion entered combat for the first time, when they landed at Arzew, Algeria. The 1st were split into two groups in hopes of assaulting Vichy-French batteries and fortifications before the 1st Infantry Division would land on the beach. The operation was successful. The unit sustained minimal casualties.
On 11 February the Rangers moved 32 miles to raid an Italian encampment at Sened Station. Moving at night, the Rangers slipped to within 50 yards of the Italian outpost and began their attack. It took the battalion only 20 minutes to overtake the garrison and achieve their objective. Fifty Italians were killed and an additional 10 were taken prisoner. Darby, along with other officers, were awarded the Silver Star medal for this action. The battalion itself gained the nickname the “Black Death” by the Italians.
At the time, the Italians still held the pass at Djebel El Ank, located at the far east edge of El Guettar. The rangers linked up with engineers elements of the 26th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division, to attack the area. The 1st Rangers orders were to move overland, on foot 12 miles to outflank the enemy's position. In eight hours of fighting, the Americans captured the objective; the 1st Rangers took 200 prisoners.
Creation of the 3rd and 4th Ranger Battalions
With the success of the 1st Battalion during the Tunisian campaign, Darby requested up the chain of command, that the rangers be expanded to a full regiment. The request was granted. The 3rd and 4th Ranger Battalions, were authorized shortly after and were trained and lead by veteran officers and NCOs from the first battalion. After getting the "green light" to expand his unit, Darby ran into a problem. The Rangers only took volunteers, Darby knowing that the best man for the job was not always a volunteer, sought out men around Oran. Although he was still limited in that he could only accept volunteers, he began to find ways around this. For instance, he began to give speeches, put up posters and encouraged his officers to scout around for eligible candidates. The recruiting campaign worked. By June 1943, the three Ranger battalions were fully operational. 1st Rangers were still under Colonel Darby; the 3rd under Major Herman Dammer, the 4th commanded by Major Roy Murray.1st and 4th Battalions were paired together, and positioned to spearhead General Terry Allen's 1st Division, on the Sicily campaign. Landing outside Gela, the Rangers took the town just after midnight, and were quickly sent out to San Nicola. The Rangers seized the town with the help of an armored division. Despite the fact that they were under a constant attack from enemy artillery, tank, and air forces, they still succeeded in the completion of their mission. This 50 hour barrage would be one of the most unbearable experiences for the Rangers.
Following their success, the two Ranger battalions were then ordered to take the town of Buerta, a fortress suspended on the 4,000 foot high edge of the cliff at Buerta beach. After almost withdrawing from the battle, and requesting artillery to level the city, a platoon of Rangers volunteered to breach the city. Two privates, John See and John Constantine, snuck in behind enemy lines and tricked the Italians and Germans into surrendering the city.
Meanwhile the 3rd Ranger Battalion headed out into the area of Agrigento, where they marched through Campobello, Naro, and Favara successfully occupying each town. The 3rd was ordered to back track to the shores of Porto Empedocle. The beach itself was not occupied, but high in the cliffs heavy machinegun and cannon fire poured onto the Rangers. Scrambling, the Rangers made their way to each machine gun nest and they managed to disable all enemy opposition before the supporting infantry battalion even hit the shore.
Colonel Darby was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his effective commanding of the Rangers, and was given a promotion by Patton; Darby, wanting to be closer to his men, turned down this promotion.
Fall of the 1st, 3rd and 4th Battalions
On 30 January 1944, after Christmas break the Rangers were put together for a joint operation, to occupy the town of Cisterna, before the main infantry division moved in. That night the 1st and 3rd battalions moved into the town, passing many German soldiers that did not appear to notice the Rangers slip by. The 4th battalion met opposition almost immediately taking an opposite route by the road. During the night the 1st and 3rd battalion separated out about 2 miles, and when daylight caught the 1st Ranger battalion out in an open field, the Germans began their assault. Unable to escape and completely surrounded, the two Ranger battalions fought on until ammunition and resources were empty. The 4th battalions tried to make a push to save their comrades but were unsuccessful and had to withdraw. After 5 hours of fighting the Germans had sent in wave after wave of elite parachute troopers and didn’t stop until there was nothing left. Out of the 760 men in the two battalions, only six escaped.This marked the end of the three Ranger battalions, the remaining 400 rangers would be scattered around the 504th Parachute Regiment
504th Infantry Regiment (United States)
The 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment is an airborne infantry regiment in the United States Army, first formed in 1942 as part of the 82nd Airborne Division.-Organization:...
, and the 137 original rangers would be sent home. On 26 October 1944, the three original Ranger battalions were deactivated at Camp Burner, N.C.
2nd and 5th Ranger battalions
The 2nd Ranger Battalion and 5th Ranger Battalion were trained at Camp Forrest, Tennessee in 1 April 1943. The 2nd and 5th Ranger battalions first saw action 6 June 1944, during Operation Overlord. During D-day 2nd Rangers companies D, E, and F, were ordered to take a strategic German outpost at Pointe du HocPointe du Hoc
Pointe du Hoc is a clifftop location on the coast of Normandy in northern France. It lies 4 miles west of Omaha Beach, and stands on 100 ft tall cliffs overlooking the sea...
. This coastal cliff was supposed to have several 155m artillery cannons aimed down at the beach. Once they arrived at the bottom of the cliff they had an enormous climb to make up rope ladders while receiving a barrage of machinegun fire from the Germans above. The 2nd Rangers were successful in taking the area even with the intense German resistance but the guns were not in sight. A patrol scouting the area found the 155m coastal guns a mile away; the patrol party quickly disabled the guns and any resistance in the area. In the article “Rangers take Pointe” Lenoard Lomell and Jack Kuhn are interviewed on the events that took place that day. Lomell goes on to explain
Meanwhile the rest of the 2nd Ranger and 5th Ranger battalions spearheaded the 1–16th infantry regiment, 1st infantry division, on the beach at Omaha. This is where the famous Ranger slogan comes from, when Major Max F. Schneider, commanding the 5th Ranger Battalion, met with Colonel Norman Cota. When Schneider was asked his unit by Cota, someone yelled out "5th Rangers!", to which Cota replied, “Well then Goddammit, Rangers, lead the way!” This drive cut the German line allowing the conventional army to move in.
The 2nd and 5th battalions would go on into the Normandy campaign, working with the conventional army on special operation tasks. The two battalions fought in many battles such as Battle for Brest and the Battle of Hurtgen Forest. The 2nd Rangers were responsible for capturing Le Conquet peninsula, where they disabled a 280mm gun and took many German prisoners. The 2nd Rangers also went on to take several tactical German position cutting the German line in the Rhineland’s. In Saar west of Zerf, the 5th battalion took an overlooking German position cutting of all supply routes to German forces. The 2nd and 5th Rangers would continue to advance until they were discharged at the end of the war.
6th Ranger Battalion
The 6th Ranger Battalion was stationed in the Pacific, and served mostly in the Philippines and New Guinea. All operations completed by the 6th Battalion were done in company or platoon size behind enemy lines. They were the first soldiers to hit the Philippines, three days before the army would launch the first invasion. The 6th Battalion was a long-range reconnaissance or combat unit, operating miles past the front line.At Cabanatuan, on the island of Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
in January 1945, a company of the 6th Ranger Battalion executed one of the most daring rescues
Raid at Cabanatuan
The Raid at Cabanatuan was a rescue of Allied prisoners of war and civilians from a Japanese camp near Cabanatuan City, in the Philippines...
in American history. The Rangers penetrated 29 miles (46.7 km) behind enemy lines, including crawling an entire mile (1 miles (1.6 km)) across an open field on their stomachs. During their final assault the rangers destroyed a garrison of Japanese soldiers twice their size and rescued 500 POWs.
The 6th Rangers final mission was to secure a drop zone for paratroopers 250 miles (402.3 km) into enemy territory. They linked up with the 32nd Infantry Division and ended the war in the Philippines.
Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
in June 1950 sparked a renewed desire in the Army for Rangers. Seventeen Korean War Ranger Companies
Korean War Ranger Companies
The Korean War Ranger Companies were the United States Army Rangers of the Korean War.-History:At the outbreak of war in Korea, a unique Ranger unit was formed. Headed by Second Lieutenant Ralph Puckett, the Eighth Army Ranger Company was created in August 1950. It would serve as the role model for...
were formed during the war from the Ranger Training Program set up at Fort Benning
Fort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post located southeast of the city of Columbus in Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in Georgia and Russell County, Alabama...
under Colonel John Gibson Van Houten. The Companies formed during this period were the first to be entirely Airborne qualified.
The Ranger Companies were active in combat operations throughout late 1950 and early 1951. They were attached to various Regiments over the course of their active term performing "out front" work such as scouting, patrolling, raids, ambushes, spearheading assaults, and as counterattack forces to regain lost positions.
Vietnam War
The conventional approach to the history of Long Range Reconnaissance PatrolLong Range Reconnaissance Patrol
Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols, or LRRPs , were special small four to six-man teams in the Vietnam War on highly dangerous special reconnaissance missions deep into enemy territory....
(LRRP), LRP, and Ranger unit employment in Vietnam is first to acknowledge the three chronological periods of their existence: LRRP from late 1965 to December 1967, LRP from late September 1967 to February 1969, and Ranger thereafter to the end of the war. The first period began in December 1965, with the creation of a provisional LRRP platoon by the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division. The 1st Infantry Division and 173rd Airborne Brigade both formed provisional LRRP units in April and the 25th Infantry Division in June 1966. General William C. Westmoreland, commander of Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV), officially authorized the creation of provisional LRRP units on 8 July 1966. Other divisions and brigades stood up provisional LRRP units during the ensuing months: the 4th and 9th Infantry Divisions in November 1966, 196th Light Infantry Brigade in January 1967, and 1st Air Cavalry Division in November 1966. The 9th Infantry Division LRRP Platoon came into being in the fall of 1966 while the division was still at Fort Riley, Kansas, and deployed to Vietnam in January 1967. This unit was expanded to a company in July 1967. The 101st Airborne Division “main body,” while still at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, converted its divisional Recondo School into a provisional LRRP unit in the summer of 1967, before the division deployed to Vietnam. This provisional company arrived in Vietnam in late November 1967.
The second period began in late June 1967, when the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Earle G. Wheeler, authorized the formation of two long-range patrol companies for I and II Field Forces. Company E (Long Range Patrol), 20th Infantry (Airborne) was activated on 25 September 1967 and assigned to I Field Force and stationed at Phan Rang. The nucleus of this unit came from the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division LRRP Platoon, along with soldiers from the replacement stream. Company F (Long Range Patrol), 51st Infantry (Airborne) was activated on 25 September 1967 and assigned to II Field Force with station at Bien Hoa. Its nucleus came from the LRRP platoon of the 173d Airborne Brigade, along with soldiers from the replacement stream. Each of the two field force LRP companies had an authorized strength of 230, and was commanded by a major.
In an apparent response to division commanders' tactical requirements, and bolstered by the proven combat effectiveness of the provisional LRRP units, in the fall of 1967 the Army authorized separate company designations for LRRP units in divisions and detachments in separate brigades. The divisional LRP companies were authorized 118 men and the brigade detachments 61 men. The wholesale renaming of existing divisional LRRP units occurred on 20 December 1967 in the 23d (Americal), 1st Air Cavalry, 1st Infantry, 4th Infantry, 9th Infantry, and 25th Infantry Divisions. LRP detachments were created in the 199th Light Infantry Brigade on 10 January 1968, in the 173d Airborne Brigade on 5 February 1968, and in the 3d Brigade 82d Airborne Division and 1st Brigade 5th Mechanized Division on 15 December 1968.
On 1 February 1969, the final period of the existence of these units began when the Department of the Army re-designated the LRP companies and detachments as lettered Ranger companies of the 75th Infantry Regiment under the Combined Arms Regimental System (CARS). All of the LRP companies and detachments were “re-flagged” as Ranger companies on that date, except Company D (Ranger), which was formed on 20 November 1969 upon the rotation of the Company D (Ranger), Indiana National Guard back to its home state. The third period ended when the Ranger companies were inactivated as their parent units were withdrawn from the war between November 1969 (Company O of 3d Brigade 82d Airborne Division), and 15 August 1972 (Company H of 1st Air Cavalry Division)
Modern battalions
At the end of the Vietnam War, division and brigade commanders saw that the U.S. Army needed an elite, light infantryLight infantry
Traditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
capable of rapid deployment. In 1974, General Creighton Abrams
Creighton Abrams
Creighton Williams Abrams Jr. was a general in the United States Army who commanded military operations in the Vietnam War from 1968–72 which saw U.S. troop strength in Vietnam fall from a peak of 543,000 to 49,000. He served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1972 until shortly...
created the 1st Ranger Battalion
1st Ranger Battalion
The 1st Ranger Battalion is an elite special operations unit of the US Army that is currently based at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia, United States....
, which was assigned the lineage from C Company (Ranger) 75th Infantry (Airborne) First Field Force Vietnam. Eight months later, the 2nd Ranger Battalion
2nd Ranger Battalion
2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
was created, and the lineage of H Company (Ranger) 75th Infantry (Airborne), 1st Cavalry Division, Vietnam and in 1984, the 3rd Ranger Battalion and the regimental headquarters was created. In 1986, the 75th Ranger Regiment was formed and their lineage formally authorized. The 4th, 5th
5th Ranger Battalion
The Fifth Ranger Infantry Battalion was a World War II Ranger battalion activated on 1 September 1943 at Camp Forrest, Tennessee. By this time, while in maneuvers on the United States, they were commanded by the Major Owen Carter...
, and 6th Ranger Battalion
6th Ranger Battalion
The 6th Ranger Battalion was a United States Army Ranger Battalion which saw action in the Pacific during World War II. The battalion is best known for its role in the Raid at Cabanatuan in January 1945.-98th Field Artillery Battalion:...
s were also re-activated, becoming the Ranger Training Brigade, the instructors of the modern day Ranger School
Ranger School
The United States Army Ranger School is an intense 61-day combat leadership course oriented towards small-unit tactics. It has been called the "toughest combat course in the world" and "is the most physically and mentally demanding leadership school the Army has to offer". The course is conducted...
. These units are parts of TRADOC
United States Army Training and Doctrine Command
Established 1 July 1973, the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command is an army command of the United States Army headquartered at Fort Eustis, Virginia. It is charged with overseeing training of Army forces, the development of operational doctrine, and the development and procurement of...
school and are not included in the 75th Ranger Regiment.
In 1980, elements of the 1st Battalion participated in the failed attempt to rescue the American hostages held in Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
, Iran in Operation Eagle Claw
Operation Eagle Claw
Operation Eagle Claw was an American military operation ordered by President Jimmy Carter to attempt to put an end to the Iran hostage crisis by rescuing 52 Americans held captive at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran on 24 April 1980...
. In October 1983, 1st and 2nd Battalions spearheaded Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada by conducting a bold low-level parachute assault to seize Point Salines Airfield
Point Salines International Airport
Maurice Bishop International Airport , formerly known as Point Salines International Airport, is located in the parish of St. George's. The town of St. George's is about north of the airport and is the capital of the island nation of Grenada...
and rescue American citizens at True Blue Medical Campus
St. George's University
St. George’s University is an independent international university in Grenada, West Indies, offering degrees in medicine, veterinary medicine, public health, the health sciences, nursing, arts and sciences, and business....
.
In 1989, the entire 75th Ranger Regiment participated in Operation Just Cause in Panama. Rangers spearheaded the action by conducting two important operations. Simultaneous parachute assaults were conducted onto Tocumen airfield and the adjacent Omar Torrijos International Airport
Tocumen International Airport
Tocumen International Airport is an international airport located from Panama City, Panama. In 2006, it underwent a major expansion and renovation program in order to modernize and improve its facilities...
, Rio Hato Airfield
Rio Hato Airport
Río Hato Airport is an airport and former Panamanian Defense Base in Panama, Río Hato.-International Airport:In 2011 the Government of Panama gave the order to proceed for the project to rebuild the airport...
and Manuel Noriega
Manuel Noriega
Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno is a Panamanian politician and soldier. He was military dictator of Panama from 1983 to 1989.The 1989 invasion of Panama by the United States removed him from power; he was captured, detained as a prisoner of war, and flown to the United States. Noriega was tried on...
's beach house, to neutralize Panamanian Defense Forces. The Rangers captured 1,014 enemy prisoners of war and over 18,000 arms of various types.
Elements of Company B, and 1st Platoon Company A of the 1st Battalion deployed to Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
from 12 February 1991 to 15 April 1991, in support of Operation Desert Storm. Over two years later, in August 1993, Company B of the 3rd Battalion deployed to Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
to assist UN humanitarian forces as part of Operation Restore Hope. On 3 October 1993, the Rangers conducted Operation Gothic Serpent
Operation Gothic Serpent
Operation Gothic Serpent was a military operation conducted by special operations forces of the United States with the primary mission of capturing warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid...
with Delta Force
Delta Force
1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta is one of the United States' secretive Tier One counter-terrorism and Special Mission Units. Commonly known as Delta Force, Delta, or The Unit, it was formed under the designation 1st SFOD-D, and is officially referred to by the Department of Defense...
operators to capture two of warlord
Warlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
Mohamed Farrah Aidid
Mohamed Farrah Aidid
General Mohamed Ali Farrah Aidid was a controversial Somali military leader, often described as a warlord. A former general and diplomat, he was the chairman of the United Somali Congress and later led the Somali National Alliance...
's lieutenants. For nearly 18 hours, the Rangers fought Somali
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
guerrillas in what became the fiercest ground combat for U.S. military personnel since the Vietnam War.
The 1st and 2nd Battalions and a Company of the 3rd Battalion were deployed to Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
in 1994. The operation was canceled within five minutes of its execution when a team of negotiators, dispatched by President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and led by former President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
, was able to convince General Raoul Cédras
Raoul Cédras
Raoul Cédras is a former military officer, and was de facto ruler of Haiti from 1991 to 1994.-Background:Cédras was educated in the United States and was a member of the US-trained Leopard Corps...
to relinquish power. Elements of the 1st and 2nd Battalions operated in-country while order was being restored. This is also the first operation where the U.S. Army was the primary operating force on a U.S. aircraft carrier, the . The ship had Special Operations Forces from USSOCOM composed of Rangers, Special Forces, and other special warfare groups.
On 24 November 2000 the 75th Ranger Regiment deployed Regimental Reconnaissance Detachment Team 2 and a command and control element to Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
in support of Task Force Falcon
Task Force Falcon (US)
Task Force Falcon is the name of a US Army Task Force serving as part of KFOR in Kosovo. At the moment, the Task Force serves in Afghanistan, Bagram and Kabul....
.
After the 11 September attacks, Rangers were called upon to participate in the War on Terrorism
War on Terrorism
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
. On 19 October 2001, the 3rd Battalion spearheaded ground forces by conducting an airborne assault to seize "Objective Rhino"
Operation Rhino
Operation Rhino was a raid by the United States Army Rangers on several Taliban targets in and around Kandahar, Afghanistan during the early stages of the Afghanistan War...
in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. On 28 March 2003, the 3rd Battalion employed the first airborne assault in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
to seize "Objective Serpent" in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Due to the changing nature of warfare and the need for an agile and sustainable Ranger Force, the Regimental Special Troops Battalion was activated on 17 July 2006. The RSTB conducts sustainment, intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
, reconnaissance
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
and maintenance missions which were previously accomplished by small detachments assigned to the Regimental headquarters and then attached within each of the three Ranger battalions.
Honors, Mottos and Creed
The 75th Ranger Regiment has been credited with numerous campaigns from World War II onwards. In World War II, they participated in 16 major campaigns, spearheading the campaigns in Morocco, Sicily, Naples-Foggia, Anzio and Leyte. During the Vietnam War, they received campaign participation streamers for every campaign in the war. The regiment received streamers with arrowheads (denoting conflicts they spearheaded) for Grenada and Panama. To date, the Rangers have earned six Presidential Unit CitationsPresidential Unit Citation (US)
The Presidential Unit Citation, originally called the Distinguished Unit Citation, is awarded to units of the Armed Forces of the United States and allies for extraordinary heroism in action against an armed enemy on or after 7 December 1941...
, nine Valorous Unit Award
Valorous Unit Award
The Valorous Unit Award is the second highest unit decoration which may be bestowed upon a U.S. Army unit and is considered the unit equivalent of the Silver Star...
s, and four Meritorious Unit Commendation
Meritorious Unit Commendation
The Meritorious Unit Commendation is a mid-level unit award of the United States military which is awarded to any military command which displays exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service, heroic deeds, or valorous actions....
, the most recent of which were earned in Vietnam and Haditha, Iraq
Haditha
Haditha is a city in the western Iraqi Al Anbar Governorate, about 240 km northwest of Baghdad. It is a farming town situated on the Euphrates River at . Its population of around 100,000 people is predominantly Sunni Muslim Arabs...
, respectively.
Sua Sponte
Sua sponte
In law, sua sponte describes an act of authority taken without formal prompting from another party. The term is usually applied to actions by a judge taken without a prior motion or request from the parties...
, Latin for Of their own accord is the 75th Ranger Regiment's regimental motto. Contemporary Rangers are triple-volunteers: for the U.S. Army, for Airborne School, and for service in the 75th Ranger Regiment.
The motto "Rangers lead the way" dates from 6 June 1944, during the Normandy Landings on Dog White sector of Omaha Beach
Omaha Beach
Omaha Beach is the code name for one of the five sectors of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during World War II...
. Then Brigadier General
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
Norman Cota
Norman Cota
Norman Daniel "Dutch" Cota, Sr. was a United States Army general during World War II. Cota was heavily involved in the planning and execution of the invasion of France, codenamed Operation Neptune, and the subsequent Battle of Normandy.-Early life:Cota was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, the son...
(assistant CO of the 29th ID) calmly walked towards Maj. Max Schneider (CO of the 5th Ranger Battalion
5th Ranger Battalion
The Fifth Ranger Infantry Battalion was a World War II Ranger battalion activated on 1 September 1943 at Camp Forrest, Tennessee. By this time, while in maneuvers on the United States, they were commanded by the Major Owen Carter...
) while under heavy machine gun fire and asked “What outfit is this?” Someone yelled "5th Rangers!" To this, Cota replied “Well then Goddammit, Rangers, lead the way!”
Entry requirements
As of 2011, soldiers wishing to to become eligible to join the 75th Ranger Regiment, prospective Rangers must be qualified in their Military Occupational SpecialtyMilitary Occupational Specialty
A United States military occupation code, or a Military Occupational Specialty code , is a nine character code used in the United States Army and United States Marines to identify a specific job. In the U.S. Air Force, a system of Air Force Specialty Codes is used...
and be Airborne
Airborne forces
Airborne forces are military units, usually light infantry, set up to be moved by aircraft and 'dropped' into battle. Thus they can be placed behind enemy lines, and have an ability to deploy almost anywhere with little warning...
qualified. New soldiers with Ranger contracts attend nine weeks of Basic Combat Training (BCT), followed by either Advanced Individual Training (AIT), while Infantrymen attend 13 weeks of One Station Unit Training
One Station Unit Training
One Station Unit Training, sometimes referred to as One Site Unit Training, is a term used by the United States Army to refer to a training program in which recruits remain with the same unit for both Basic Combat Training and Advanced Individual Training . Immediately following Basic Training,...
(OSUT). Upon completion of their advanced training, prospective Rangers attend a three week Pre-RASP preparatory course, before moving on to the eight week RASP I. Those who successfully graduate RASP I attend United States Army Airborne School
United States Army Airborne School
The United States Army Airborne School — widely known as Jump School — conducts the basic paratrooper training for the United States armed forces. It is operated by the 1st Battalion , 507th Infantry, United States Army Infantry School, Fort Benning, Georgia...
. Upon completion of the Basic Airborne Course, recruits then advance to a two week pre-Ranger course, known as, Small Unit Ranger Tactics, or SURT, and finally to the 8.5 week long Ranger School
Ranger School
The United States Army Ranger School is an intense 61-day combat leadership course oriented towards small-unit tactics. It has been called the "toughest combat course in the world" and "is the most physically and mentally demanding leadership school the Army has to offer". The course is conducted...
.
Airborne qualified soldiers then attend one of two Ranger Assessment and Selection Programs. Soldiers below the grade
Pay grade
Pay grades are used by the uniformed services of the United States to determine wages and benefits based on the corresponding military rank of a member of the services...
E-6 attend "RASP1" while all others attend "RASP2". All combat arms NCOs and officers must be Ranger-qualified prior to attending RASP2. Upon graduation of RASP1/RASP2, the new Rangers will be assigned to one of the three Ranger Battalions, the 75th Regimental Headquarters or the Ranger Special Troops Battalion (RSTB), where they are now authorized to wear the Ranger tan beret
Tan beret
The tan beret has been adopted as official headdress by several special operations forces as a symbol of their unique capabilities.-British Army:...
, the Ranger Scroll of their parent unit and the distinctive black physical training uniform. Before January 2010, RASP training was called the "Ranger Indoctrination Program" for soldiers below E-6 and "Ranger Orientation Program" for E-6's and above.
Continued training
Career development encourages that all members of the 75th Ranger Regiment successfully complete Ranger SchoolRanger School
The United States Army Ranger School is an intense 61-day combat leadership course oriented towards small-unit tactics. It has been called the "toughest combat course in the world" and "is the most physically and mentally demanding leadership school the Army has to offer". The course is conducted...
, earning the Ranger Tab
Ranger Tab
The Ranger Tab is a service school military decoration of the United States Army signifying completion of the 61-day long Ranger School course in small-unit infantry combat tactics in woodland, mountain, and swamp operations. In December 2009 a British NCO earned the Ranger tab...
. Soldiers in direct combat MOSs are not permitted to occupy leadership billets within the 75th Ranger Regiment without having graduated Ranger School. Graduating Ranger School is encouraged but not required for non-combat MOS leadership billets within the Regiment.
Throughout their time in Ranger Regiment, Rangers may attend many types of special schools and training. Some of these schools include but are not limited to: military free-fall
HALO/HAHO
Military free-fall form of insertion.PurposeDelivering personnel, equipment, or supplies.HALOHigh-Altitude/Low-OpeningHAHOHigh-Altitude/High-OpeningOrigins...
; combat diver qualification course; survival, evasion, resistance & escape (SERE); jumpmaster
Jumpmaster
Jumpmasters are the expert Paratroopers in an Airborne unit who train and teach the military techniques for jumping from airplanes. They are responsible for transforming Soldiers who enter Army Airborne School into Paratroopers and managing Airborne jump operations in Airborne units across all...
; pathfinder; Combatives Instructor; first responder/combat lifesaver; language training
Defense Language Institute
The Defense Language Institute is a United States Department of Defense educational and research institution, which provides linguistic and cultural instruction to the Department of Defense, other Federal Agencies and numerous and varied other customers...
; Mountain Warfare School
Army Mountain Warfare School (United States)
The Army Mountain Warfare School is an Army school located at the Ethan Allen Firing Range, Jericho, Vermont to train soldiers in the specialized skills required for operating in mountainous terrain.-Purpose:...
; and many types of shooting, driving, and assault procedures training. Rangers with specialized jobs may also attend various special schools and training related to their job field. MOS 13F (forward observers)
Artillery observer
A military artillery observer or spotter is responsible for directing artillery fire and close air support onto enemy positions. Because artillery is an indirect fire weapon system, the guns are rarely in line-of-sight of their target, often located tens of miles away...
may attend naval gunfire
Naval gunfire support
Naval gunfire support is the use of naval artillery to provide fire support for amphibious assault and other troops operating within their range. NGFS is one of a number of disciplines encompassed by the term Naval Fires...
training and close air support
Close air support
In military tactics, close air support is defined as air action by fixed or rotary winged aircraft against hostile targets that are close to friendly forces, and which requires detailed integration of each air mission with fire and movement of these forces.The determining factor for CAS is...
courses; medics will attend the special operations combat medic course; communications specialists attend joint communications courses.
Rangers are also trained in "do-it-yourself" emergency medicine. Based on the premise that 90% of deaths from wounds are suffered before reaching medical facilities and that there are not enough medics and doctors to go around the Regiment began to train Rangers to give themselves immediate, preliminary treatment. A 2011 study found a 3 percent death rate from potentially survivable causes in the 75th Regiment between October 2001 and April 2010. That compares with a 24 percent rate in a previously reported set of U.S. military deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan, which included troops who didn't have the Ranger-style training.
RFS/RFM
Being a USASOC unit, the Rangers maintain more stringent standards for their personnel. If at any point a Ranger is deemed by his superiors to be failing to meet these standards he may be relieved and removed from the Regiment. This is commonly referred to as being RFSed, short for "Released For Standards". A Ranger can be RFSed for virtually any reason, ranging from lack of motivation to disciplinary problems. Similarly, a Ranger physically incapable of performing his mission through prolonged illness or injury can also be removed from the Regiment through a process referred to as RFM or "Relieved For Medical reasons".The term Ranger
There is some dispute over the use of the word "Ranger." According to John Lock,The problems of the Ranger Tab and indeed Ranger history is in large part caused by the lack of a clear-cut definition of who is a Ranger. The Ranger Department, the Infantry School, and Department of the Army have in the past carelessly accepted the definition of a Ranger unit to include the use of terms 'Ranger-type' and 'Units like Rangers,' and 'Special Mission Units.' In his book Raiders or Elite Infantry, David Hogan of the Center for Military History writes that 'By the time of the formation of LRRP units..., Ranger had become a term of legendary connotations but no precise meaning.' For the want of a definition of who and what is a Ranger, integrity was lost. As a result of Grenada, circumstances have changed. Since 1983, men have had the opportunity to earn and wear an authorized Ranger unit scroll or an authorized Ranger Tab or both. But there is a need for a firm definition of who and what constitutes a RANGER. Without that definition, we face the likelihood of future controversy.
Organizations define the term "Ranger" in different ways. For example, the annual "Best Ranger Competition", hosted by the Ranger Training Brigade, can be won by pairs of participants from the 75th Ranger Regiment, or by Ranger qualified entrants from other units in the US military. For an individual to be inducted into the U.S. Army Ranger Association's "Ranger Hall of Fame" he "must have served in a Ranger unit in combat or be a successful graduate of the U.S. Army Ranger School." The Ranger Association further clarifies the type of unit: "A Ranger unit is defined as those Army units recognized in Ranger lineage or history." Acceptance into the US Army Ranger Association is limited to "Rangers that have earned the U.S. Army Ranger tab, WWII Rangers, Korean War Rangers, Vietnam War Rangers, all Rangers that participated in Operations Urgent Fury, Just Cause, Desert Storm, Restore Hope, Enduring Freedom, and all Rangers who have served honorably for at least one year in a recognized Ranger unit."
Beret change
In June 2001, Army Chief of StaffChief of Staff of the United States Army
The Chief of Staff of the Army is a statutory office held by a four-star general in the United States Army, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Army, and as such is the principal military advisor and a deputy to the Secretary of the Army; and is in...
General Eric Shinseki
Eric Shinseki
Eric Ken Shinseki is a retired United States Army four-star general who is currently serving as the 7th United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs. His final U.S. Army post was as the 34th Chief of Staff of the Army...
gave the order to issue black beret
Black beret
The black beret is a type of headgear commonly worn by armoured forces around the world including the British Army's Royal Tank Regiment , The Canadian Forces's Royal Canadian Armoured Corps , and The Australian Army's Royal Australian Armoured Corps among others...
s to regular soldiers. At the time, black berets were being worn exclusively by the Rangers. This created discontent within the 75th Ranger Regiment and even led to retired Rangers going on nationwide roadmarches to Washington, D.C. to protest against the decision. Because there was not a Presidential authorization to the Regiment for exclusive wear of the black beret, they switched to wearing a tan beret
Tan beret
The tan beret has been adopted as official headdress by several special operations forces as a symbol of their unique capabilities.-British Army:...
to preserve a unique appearance, tan being reflective of the buckskin worn by the men of Robert Rogers
Robert Rogers (soldier)
Robert Rogers was an American colonial frontiersman. Rogers served in the British army during both the French and Indian War and the American Revolution...
' Rangers during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
.
Notable members
- General Stanley A. McChrystalStanley A. McChrystalStanley Allen McChrystal is a retired four-star general in the United States Army. His last assignment was as Commander, International Security Assistance Force and Commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan...
; 10th Colonel of the Regiment; former Commander, International Security Assistance ForceInternational Security Assistance ForceThe International Security Assistance Force is a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan established by the United Nations Security Council on 20 December 2001 by Resolution 1386 as envisaged by the Bonn Agreement...
(ISAF) and U.S. Forces Afghanistan (USFOR-A); former Director of the Joint StaffDirector of the Joint StaffThe Director of the Joint Staff is a three-star officer who assists the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with the management of the Joint Staff, an organization composed of approximately equal numbers of officers contributed by the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force, who have been...
; former Commander of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). - General John P. Abizaid, former Platoon Leader and XO, 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
; former Commander, Central CommandCentral CommandCentral Command may refer to:* United States Central Command* AFP Central Command * Central Command...
. - General Wayne A. DowningWayne A. DowningWayne Allan Downing was a retired four-star United States Army general born in Peoria, Illinois. He graduated from the United States Military Academy with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1962 and holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Tulane University.-Military career:*Sep 62 - Feb...
, 3rd Colonel of the Regiment; former Commander of 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
; former Commander of Special Operations Command. Ranger Hall of Fame Member - Lieutenant General David BarnoDavid BarnoDavid W. Barno is a retired Lieutenant General of the United States Army. He was head of Combined Forces Command-Afghanistan from 2003–2005.-Early life:Barno is a native of Endicott, New York...
, former Battalion Commander 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
; former Commander, Combined Forces-Afghanistan. - Lieutenant General Robert W. Wagner, former Company Commander, 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
. Later becoming Commander, U.S. Army Special Operations Command. - Major General James T. Jackson, 8th Colonel of the Regiment; former Platoon Leader and Company Commander, 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
; was the Commanding General of the U.S. Military District of WashingtonMilitary District of WashingtonThe United States Army Military District of Washington is one of nineteen major commands of the United States Army. Its headquarters are located at Fort Lesley J. McNair in Washington, D.C...
during the events of 9/11. - Colonel William O. Darby, established and commanded "Darby's Rangers" that later evolved into the 75th Ranger Regiment. Ranger Hall of Fame Member
- Colonel James Earl RudderJames Earl RudderJames Earl Rudder was a United States Army Major General, Texas Land Commissioner, and President of Texas A&M University.-Early life:...
, former Commander, 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
during World War II, which he led the Ranger assault on Pointe du Hoc on D-Day and was later the President of Texas A&M University. - Colonel Michael D. Steele, former commander of Bravo Company, 3rd Ranger Battalion; was the Company Commander during the Battle of Mogadishu.
- Colonel Robert L. HowardRobert L. HowardRobert Lewis Howard was a highly decorated United States Army soldier and Medal of Honor recipient of the Vietnam War. He was wounded 14 times over 54 months of combat, was awarded 8 Purple Hearts, 4 Bronze Stars, and was nominated for the Medal of Honor three separate times...
, former Company Commander, 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
; was nominated 3 times for the Medal Of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
for his actions in Vietnam. Two were downgraded and the third was earned. Ranger Hall of Fame Member - Lieutenant Colonel AJ "Bo" Baker, was the First Commander during the reactivation of 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
. Ranger Hall of Fame Member - Sergeant Major of the Army Glen E. MorrellGlen E. MorrellGlen E. Morrell was the seventh Sergeant Major of the Army. He was sworn in on July 1, 1983 and served until July, 1987. He was born in Wick, West Virginia, on May 26, 1936.-Military career:...
, former 1st Ranger Battalion CSM and past Sergeant Major of the Army. - Matt LarsenMatt LarsenMatt Larsen is a United States Army Ranger and Combatives instructor known as "The Father of Modern Combatives" for creating the United States Army's modern combatives doctrine and establishing the U.S. Army Combatives School...
, served in 1st Ranger Battalion1st Ranger BattalionThe 1st Ranger Battalion is an elite special operations unit of the US Army that is currently based at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia, United States....
, 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
and 75th Ranger Regiment; known as the father of Modern Army Combatives and founder of the United States Army Combatives School. - Sergeant First Class Randy ShughartRandy ShughartSergeant First Class Randall David Shughart was a soldier in the United States Army special operations unit, the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta , or "Delta Force." Shughart posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Mogadishu in October...
, Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
recipient, who was killed in action during the Battle of MogadishuBattle of MogadishuThe Battle of Mogadishu or for Somalis: the Day of the Rangers was part of Operation Gothic Serpent and was fought on October 3 and 4, 1993, in Mogadishu, Somalia, between forces of the United States supported by UNOSOM II and Somali militia fighters loyal to the self-proclaimed president-to-be...
while serving as a Delta ForceDelta Force1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta is one of the United States' secretive Tier One counter-terrorism and Special Mission Units. Commonly known as Delta Force, Delta, or The Unit, it was formed under the designation 1st SFOD-D, and is officially referred to by the Department of Defense...
sniper defending a downed helicopter, started his career in 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
. Ranger Hall of Fame Member. - Sergeant Paul R. Scurka, is the only soldier to have won the Best Ranger Competition twice.
- Corporal Pat TillmanPat TillmanCorporal Patrick Daniel "Pat" Tillman Jr. was an American football player who left his professional career and enlisted in the United States Army in June 2002 in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks. He joined the Army Rangers and served several tours in combat before he died in the...
, an American football player who left his NFL career and enlisted in the United States Army in May 2002; killed on 22 April 2004 as a member of the 2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion2nd Ranger Battalion is the name of two distinct units of United States Army Rangers. The first was part of the six Ranger battalions of the Second World War...
. - Captain Joseph YorioJoseph YorioJoseph M. Yorio is an American business executive and the former President and CEO of Xe Services, formerly known as Blackwater Worldwide.Joseph M...
, former President and CEO of Xe Services, Blackwater WorldwideBlackwater WorldwideXe Services LLC, better known by its former names, Blackwater USA and Blackwater Worldwide, is a private military company founded in 1997 by Erik Prince and Al Clark.. Xe is currently the largest of the U.S. State Department's three private security contractors...
, served with 1st Ranger Battalion1st Ranger BattalionThe 1st Ranger Battalion is an elite special operations unit of the US Army that is currently based at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia, United States....
during Operations Just Cause and Desert Storm - Sergeant First Class Leroy PetryLeroy PetryLeroy Arthur Petry is a Sergeant First Class in the United States Army and recipient of the Medal of Honor. Petry was nominated for The Medal for his actions during a firefight in Afghanistan as a Staff Sergeant in the 2nd Ranger Battalion...
, Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
recipient for actions during a firefight in AfghanistanAfghanistanAfghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
See also
- Battle of Mogadishu (during Operation Gothic Serpent)
- The book Black Hawk Down and the movie based on it.
- Ranger MemorialRanger MemorialThe Ranger Memorial is a tribute to the United States Army Rangers at Fort Benning, Georgia. The memorial serves as host to Ranger ceremonies such as Ranger retirement ceremonies to the graduation of the latest Rangers from the Ranger Indoctrination Program....
- United States Special Operations ForcesUnited States Special Operations ForcesUnited States Special Operations Forces under United States Special Operations Command are active and reserve component forces of U.S. Military...
- 29th Ranger Battalion29th Ranger BattalionThe 29th Provisional Ranger Battalion was a United States Army unit in World War II. Formed in December 1942 in England as a detachment of volunteers from the 29th Infantry Division, the battalion underwent commando training under British supervision and participated in raids on German...
- Canadian Special Operations RegimentCanadian Special Operations RegimentThe Canadian Special Operations Regiment is a battalion-sized, high-readiness special operations unit part of Canadian Special Operations Forces Command...
- Similar unit within Canadian special forces - Elite Military Units: U.S. Army Rangers
Further reading
- Bahmanyar, Mir. Darby's Rangers 1942–45. Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing, 2003. ISBN 978-1-84176-627-0.
- Bahmanyar, Mir. Shadow Warriors: A History of the U.S. Army Rangers. Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing, 2005. ISBN 978-1-84176-860-1. This book lists the lineage and history of the 75th Ranger Regiment.
- Bahmanyar, Mir. U.S. Army Ranger 1983–2002. Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing, 2003. ISBN 978-1-84176-585-3.
- Bowden, MarkMark BowdenNot to be confused with Mark Bowden, U.N. Resident & Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative for Somalia.Mark Robert Bowden is an American writer and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, he is a 1973 graduate of Loyola University Maryland...
. Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern WarBlack Hawk Down: A Story of Modern WarBlack Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War is a 1999 book by Mark Bowden that chronicles the United States Army Rangers, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, Delta Force, Navy SEALs, and UN forces attempt to capture Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid in Mogadishu and the...
. Berkeley, California: Atlantic Monthly Press, 1999. ISBN 0-87113-738-0. - Bryant, Russ. To Be a U.S. Army Ranger. St. Paul, Minnesota: Motorbooks International, 2002. ISBN 0-7603-1314-8.
- Bryant, Russ, and Susan Bryant. Weapons of the U.S. Army Rangers. St. Paul, Minnesota: Zenith Press, 2005. ISBN 0-7603-2112-4.
- Bryant, Russ. 75th Rangers. St. Paul, Minnesota: Motorbooks International, 2005. ISBN 0-7603-2111-6.
- Grenier, John. The First Way of War: American War Making on the Frontier, 1607–1814. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-521-84566-1. Extensive discussion of American colonial rangers.
- Haney, Eric. Inside Delta Force: The Story of America's Elite Counterterrorist Unit. Delacorte Press, 2002. ISBN 978-0-385-33603-1.
- Shanahan, Bill, and John P. Brackin. Stealth Patrol: The Making of a Vietnam Ranger. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Da Capo Press, 2003. ISBN 0-306-81273-8.
13. Christopher, Ronald. Above All. The beginning of the 1st Cav Div LRRPs, Nov 66.
External links
- Lineage and Honors at the United States Army Center of Military History
- Official 75th Ranger Regiment Website
- Institute of Heraldry
- USSOCOM's 75th Ranger Regiment: Fact Sheet
- U.S. Army Ranger Association.
- GlobalSecurity.org's Ranger history
- 75th Ranger Regiment additional pictures and info
- U.S. Army Ranger History SuaSponte.com.
- The beginning of the 1st Cavalry Division LRRP unit, Nov 1966: Above All Else, by author Ronald Christopher. Publisher: Publish America