Korean War

Discussing the history of Army Rangers.

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goon175
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Korean War

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The Ranger Companies of the Korean War
The outbreak of the hostilities in Korea in June of 1950 signaled the need for Rangers. Col. John Gibson Van Houten was selected by the Army Chief to Staff to head the Ranger training program at Fort Benning and on September 15th, 1950 he reported to the Chief of Staff with orders that the training of a Ranger unit was to begin at Fort Benning on October 1, 1950. Requests went out for volunteers who were willing to accept “extremely hazardous” duty. The results of the call for volunteers estimated as high as 5,000 men, many of them former paratroopers. Selection of the men was by the officers who would command the companies, similar to when Robert Rogers was recruiting. Those selected shipped to Fort Benning and arrived on September 20th, 1950. Training began on Monday, October, 9th 1950 with three companies of airborne qualified personnel. On October 9, 1950 the 505th Airborne Division began training. Initially designated the 4th Ranger Company, they became the 2nd Ranger Infantry Company, the only all black Ranger unit in the history of the United States to be authorized by the Department of the Army. All the volunteers were professional soldiers with many skills, which they often taught each other. Some of the men had fought with the original Ranger Battalions, the First Special Service Force, or the Office of Strategic Services during World War II. Many of the instructors were drawn from this same group as these men were highly trained and had experience with Ranger Operations during World War II.
The training was extremely difficult consisting of amphibious and airborne operations, demolitions, sabotage, close combat, and the use of foreign maps. All American small arms, as well as those used by the enemy were mastered. Communications, as well as the control of artillery, naval, and aerial fire power, were stressed. Most of the training was performed as night time operation scenarios. The 1st Ranger Infantry Company departed from Fort Benning on November 15, 1950, and arrived in Korea on December 17th, 1950, where it was attached to the 2nd Infantry Division, the 2nd and 4th Ranger Companies, who arrived on December 29th, 1950, soon followed it. The 2nd Ranger Company was in charge of and ran Headquarters, 8th US Army, and the 1st Cavalry Division. Throughout the winter of 1950 and the spring of 1951, the Rangers went into battle as nomadic warriors and they performed “out-front” work: scouting, patrolling, raids, ambushes, spearheading assaults, and as comparable to none other than the best ever seen in military history.
The Rangers went into battle by air, land and sea. The 1st Ranger Infantry Company opened with an extraordinary example of land navigation, and then executed a daring night raid nine miles behind enemy lines destroying an enemy complex. A prisoner of the 12th North Korean Division later identified the enemy installation leading to catching the Koreans by surprise and being unaware of the size of the American force; the two North Korean Regiments withdrew from the area. The 1st Company was in the middle of the major battle of Chipyoung-Ni and the “May Massacre.” The unit was awarded two Distinguished Unit Citations. The 2nd and 4th Ranger Companies made a combat jump at Munsan-Ni where Life Magazine reported patrols operating north of the 38th parallel. The 2nd Ranger Company plugged a critical gap left by a retreating allied forces. The 4th Ranger Company executed a daring over-water raid at the Hwachon Dam. The 3rd Ranger Company had the motto “Die Bastard, die!” to go along with their courage and will to never quit. The 5th Ranger Company, fighting as an attachment to the 25th Infantry Division, performed brilliantly during the Chinese “5th phase Offense.” The Ranger company commander held the line with Ranger sergeants commanding line infantry units. In the eastern sector, The Rangers were the first unit to cross the 38th parallel on the second drive north into enemy boundaries. The 8th Ranger Company was attached to the 24th Infantry Division and was and still is known as the “Devils”. A 33-man platoon from the 8th Ranger Company fought a between-the-lines battle with two Chinese reconnaissance companies. Seventy Chinese enemies were killed and the Rangers suffered two dead and three wounded, they were all brought back to friendly lines. This attests to a section of the Ranger creed: “Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country, I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstance will I ever embarrass my country.”
"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorius triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."
-Theodore Roosevelt

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Jim
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Re: Korean War

Post by Jim »

The organization of the Ranger Companies:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_War ... _Companies
Ranger Class 13-71
Advisor, VN 66-68 69-70
42d Vn Ranger Battalion 1969-1970
Trainer, El Salvador 86-87
Advisor, Saudi Arabian National Guard 91, 93-94
75th RRA Life Member #867
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Jim
Rest In Peace Ranger
Posts: 21935
Joined: March 8th, 2005, 10:48 am
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Re: Korean War

Post by Jim »

Ranger Class 13-71
Advisor, VN 66-68 69-70
42d Vn Ranger Battalion 1969-1970
Trainer, El Salvador 86-87
Advisor, Saudi Arabian National Guard 91, 93-94
75th RRA Life Member #867
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