The Origins of the SAS - WW2 Special Episode
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 ส.ค. 2024
- "Who dares, wins”. Nowadays the British SAS - Special Air Service is considered one of the best special forces in the world. Yet its wartime origins are shrouded in mysteries and legends. From the first ideas of top-secret “special raiding squadrons”, to the first raids in North Africa accompanying the Long Range Desert Group, the SAS’s beginnings resemble one big experiment. An experiment from which a truly legendary special service would emerge.
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Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Director: Astrid Deinhard
Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Marek Kamiński
Community Management: Ian Sowden
Written by: Markus Linke & Indy Neidell
Research by: Markus Linke
Map animations by: Daniel Weiss
Map research by: Sietse Kenter
Edited by: Karolina Dołęga
Artwork and color grading by: Mikołaj Uchman
Sound design by: Marek Kamiński
Colorizations by:
Mikołaj Uchman
Jaris Almazani (Artistic Man), ...
Source literature list: bit.ly/WW2sources
Archive footage: Screenocean/Reuters - www.screenocea...
Image sources:
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- Map of Africa courtesy of David Rumsey Historical Map Collection
- Arab insurgents during the 1936-39 Arab Revolt in Mandatory Palestine courtesy of hanini.org
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- Please Hear Me Out - Philip Ayers
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A few years ago, an old couple on a train to London asked me to help put the old chap's tie on, as he had arthritis in his hands. It was an SAS regimental tie, and when I asked, his wife proudly said he was one of the originals from the desert! I had to put the tie around my neck to start it - the only time I'll ever get to wear that tie!
Very cool.
Even better you know how to tie a tie.
Cool
One of the most simple, yet most moving anecdotes I've ever read. Thank you, it tales great skill to say so much in so few words. Pat
God bless you for you kindness to the old warrior.
He was proberby on his way to the reunion, sadly in 3 days time he wouldn't be able to speak or stand up. I know i've been to a few myself :)
Interesting thing about the SAS is that current and former members rarely even mention being part of it. If you meet someone who brags about being in the SAS there's a 99% chance he's full of it - and at best was washed out of the recruitment training. Actual members are picked for being able to keep their mouths shut as much as they are their abilities as soldiers.
Spot on.
True story. If some of the people I've met over my time are to be believed, there were about 50 blokes on the Iranian embassy balcony in 1980...
Excellent statement.
Ah but what about the 1% ?
They dont get hollywood movies and books like Navy Seals either
I did my university dissertation on the Long Range Desert Group! The SAS owe a lot to them for making it possible to operate successfully in the desert using motor vehicles. Their founder (Ralph Bagnold) was a pioneer in desert warfare and designed tons of little innovations to make desert travel in cars feasible; he designed his own sun compass that could be mounted on the dash, borrowed almanacs from the RAF to teach his navigators how to use the stars, designed an early form of metal tracks to get stuck vehicles out of sand, a vapour condenser so they could conserve water from their jeep's radiators and so much more!
Bagnold was also a trained geologist and wrote a full book on the physics of sand, "The Physics of Blown Sand and Desert Dunes". They had to go directly to the Chevrolet dealership in Cairo to buy their first round of trucks when the unit was commissioned, and after the war the Ordnance Survey used their maps of Libya and the Sahara, as they were by far the most accurate maps ever taken of the region. I'd highly recommend W.B. Kennedy Shaw's memoirs of the subject, "Long Range Desert Group" for a first hand account!
@DesWombat32 Very interesting, thanks for sharing all that about the LRDG.
IIRC the SAS nicked the LRDG's best navigator so they could do insertions themselves.
Thanks
Fun fact: during the early days of SAS in Africa they were joined by a number of Greek officers (what was left of the Greek army/government was evacuated to Egypt) who dismissed their rank to train/fight alongside these elite warriors, eventually they grew to a force of Battalion and became known as Ιερός Λόχος - or Sacred Band in English (tribute to Sacred Band of Thebes from Ancient Greece) and fought in a number of battles in African theater and eventually in Greece - mostly island invasion by parachuting or naval invasion on small boats. After WW2 they were used as the foundation of what became Greek Special forces , it's probably because of their initial training with SAS the motto that was adapted for the Greek Green Berets is *Ο Τολμών Νικά* yep it means "Who dares wins".
@kr0k0deilos Thank you, that's quite interesting!
Thanks for sharing never heard of that!
The SAS was made up from people of all nationalities, french, Australian, polish, German and so on and so on.
Thats a pretty awesome fact!
The Long Range Desert Group, is another strong influence on the SAS, well worth an episode of their own.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - book - the men who made the SAS - the history of the Long Range Desert Group by Gavin Mortimer
@@dovidell Thanks for the tip, I'll go have a look :)
So is that TV show, "The Rat Patrol" like, accurate?
@@penultimateh766 oh yes, the LRDG was a real unit, th-cam.com/video/1yxnyvcfiho/w-d-xo.html for example
The LRDG, the guys who wrote the book about the desert.
No, quite literally. The founder of the LRDG was Ralph Bagnold, who wrote “The Physics of Blown Sand and Desert Dunes”. The book is apparently still the main reference in the field. It’s use by NASA has led to the organisation naming “the bagnold dunes” on Mars.
I love the motto of the Special Air Service (SAS): "Who Dares Wins". Words to live by!
" No Guts No Glory" !
He who snoozes, loses.
Thats the motto i always use when i go to the casino
Nowadays it would be just another cheap facebook motto.
One of the contemporary Canadian special forces units has a motto, "We Dare".
When I was in the military, I heard a story about a training mission. During that training, there was a bet made with some SAS squad and some Marine and Army rangers. The SAS guys said they could infiltrate the training building undetected. During the night, the Marines guarded the building. They reported nothing out of ordinary through the night. Upon daybreak, the found spray painted note read SAS was here.
I know what that feels like! We were a Signals unit based in Darwin during Exercise Kangaroo 89, at that time the largest peacetime exercise Australia had run since WWII. Friday night I had been picked for Picquet Duty, on duty and driving around our Antenna Farm every two hours. We weren't armed or anything. Anyway, Saturday night comes and as it happened I joined my Army Reserve mates (male and female) in going to the Darwin Casino. Had some fun and then came back to sleep in our tents. We woke up the next morning to discover that someone had chalked our vehicles with "Destroyed by KAF", KAF being Kamarian Armed Forces our 'enemy' for the exercise, with the technology of the Soviet Army and the man power of the Chinese PLA, we always pick on the biggest dude in the room! Anyway, the Officers were pissed off because we were supposed to be impartial providing services to all. I had read up about the SAS and the like while at school and realised that our position on a point was very vulnerable, with nice thick scrub on a steep sided embankment just to one side, perfect cover for any operators from the SAS to make their way around from the abandoned Quarantine Station on the far side of Darwin. Saturday night/Sunday morning was the perfect time to attack as everyone was thinking about kicking back and having a few beers etc.
Thinking back years later, I recall that an RAAF Caribou transport had flown directly overhead one day, a recon mission perhaps?
The SAS surely gained much of their international recognition during the rescue of the hostages at the Iranian Embassy in London on 5th May 1980 in large part due to the fact it was broadcast live on television all across the world. There can't be many examples of special forces being live broadcast.
worst thing that ever happened to the Regiment!
Theres a movie on it, called "6 Days"
A year later the S.B.S or special boat service was formed still under army control. Their main theatre of operations was the Mediterranean .They later came under the control of the Royal Navy recruitment came mainly from the Royal Marines. The S.B.S are often overlooked for their specialist maratime role. Both are crack units
@@tomh2572 is it good?
@@llamaman9449 Former SAS members said the movie was pretty inaccurate so take that for what its worth.
The thumbnail photo is one of my all time fav photos of anything not just military. was a perfect SAS moment
@mikepette Thanks for watching. I love this thumbnail for its 'get in, we're taking Tunisia' quality
@@WorldWarTwo One of my favorite photos of WWII...have any of these men been identified? Note the officer in the foreground in the driver's seat...he is wearing a F-S fighting knife...he looks like a pirate & is underweight...who was he? Thanks!
One of the most amazing SAS men during WW2 was Major Anders Lassen, MC and 2 bars (so, three Military Crosses!), VC (and 1 Victoria Cross). He is the only man with statues at both SAS and SBS headquarters. His story - and especially the raids he was on - would make a superb episode. Please. Pretty please. With sprinkles on.
Operation Postmaster, which Lassen was a part of, was pretty daring.
Lassen is an interesting person.
@@Themaxwithnoname
A typical example of a battle report from Anders Lassen would be something down the lines of "Landed. Eliminated Germans. F#$%^d off".
He grew up learning to hunt and was always a bit of a wild man. He was sailing as a merchant sailor when Denmark was occupied by Germany. After that, he joined the commandos in The UK and eventually ended up in SAS and SBS. He was definitely special.
Operation Postmaster.
We've added your idea to the episode longlist we have. We might cover him if we want to give special attention to special forces operations!
@@WorldWarTwo His is quite a story. There's some great examples of his heroism and character in books like Giles Milton's 'Churchill's Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare' and Damien Lewis' 'Churchill's Secret Warriors'.
If there was one extremely positive contribution Auchinleck (who otherwise assigned terrible officers to army units) it was giving green light and free hand to parachute inflitration experiments of Stirling and Lewes
I used to work with an ex SAS man -borneo and Malayan emergency era -the stories he didn't tell!
I think it's worth mentioning the struggle the unit had for survival. After the desert war wrapped up, with Sterling captured, 1SAS was under Paddy Mayne, an officer far less suited for dealing with top brass. Sterling's older brother, CO of 2SAS, managed to keep his unit intact, serving in a similar role in Italy, though this time, if I recall, returning to their parachutist roots. 1SAS, however, was split. Half the men were sent to the SBS, whilst the other half were renamed the Special Rading Squadron, and treated as a regular commando unit, no longer operating under their own command. Their immediate CO, incidentally, was a chap named Thomas Churchill, younger brother of the more infamous Jack, who was also serving under Thomas at the time. It was only before they started operating in France that they were able to return to the name 1SAS, and were no longer part of a Commando Brigade, though they were forced to switch their beige berets for the red of the airborne forces. [Edit - as a clarification, this also signalled a return to something close to their desert role, setting up camp behind enemy lines to launch raids from] They were also, it's worth mentioning, at this point joined by the Free French 3 and 4SAS (between whom there was a strong rivalry), and the Belgian 5SAS.
After the war, however, it was decided that the unit was to be disbanded (as were the army commandos, though certainly in that case this was always the plan, and I believe widely known). It was not until several years later that the unit was reformed for conflict in Malaya, and it took more time still for it to gain it's well known modern role in counter-terror operations.
@ProjectSeventy, outstanding! I love reading comments like this from knowledgeable people such as yourself. absolutely outstanding.
Belgium and France being full of armed Germans at the time, how did those occupied allies go about starting proprietary SAS units?
@@michaelmichael4132 Naturally, they did it in Britain. In terms of the French, over 120,000 soldiers were evacuated from Dunkirk. A large amount of these chose to be repatriated into the Vichy regime [Correction, thanks to GWTPict, France had not yet surrendered, and those repatriated went by and large to continue the fight], but it was from these men that the initial Free French forces were formed. Many more people would make their way to the UK from France and especially from her colonies during the war, leading to a larger pool of recruits. 3SAS and 4SAS were made up of recruits from the Free French forces.
There were certainly fewer Belgians able to make their way to Britain, though there were some. Free Belgian forces were recruited from refugees, expats, and the few hundred Belgians evacuated at Dunkirk. Again, there was a stream of further volunteers able to make their way to Britain during the war, and their numbers were greatly boosted by colonial forces. 5SAS recruited from the Free Belgian forces.
I should also note that I can't say to what extent the SAS recruited from the colonial armies of these powers, but they certainly contributed a lot to their respective nations' free forces, so deserve a mention.
Also of note is that the SAS were not the only special force fielding foreign fighters. No. 10 (I-A) Commando is styled as such so as to declare it's Inter-Allied nature. It had several troops, representing different areas of occupied Europe. Among the nationalities represented were French, Dutch, Polish, Belgian, Yugoslav, Norwegian, Czech, and even Austrian and German.
@@michaelmichael4132 from refugees and exiles ofc besides many soldiers from countries as far as Poland and Czechoslovakia had serve under allied command
@@ProjectSeventy A correction, when the majority of French troops evacuated from Dunkirk were returned to France they returned to fight, the French government had not surrendered at that point so Vichy France did not yet exist.
I couldn’t have made it in the SAS. When they raided their own base, slapping’ bomb’ stickers on airplanes, I would have been giggling like a school girl. Great way to train the unit.
You might have done all right. Part of the training is learning how to giggle like a school girl silently.
We had a warrant officer in our medical battalion who thought he was SAS and loved to mess with us down at the motor pool. We used to have EDREs (emergency deployment and readiness exercises) and part of it was posting guards all over the base to secure things against infiltration and sabotage. He'd hop the fence and post paper tags on vehicles that said things like "BOMB" and "FUEL TANK PUNCTURED" and see if we'd catch him. I'm sure he was giggling the whole time.....
@@Raskolnikov70 now that’s funny! :)
If anyone wants a longer video about this topic, I would whole heartedly recommend the LindyBeige video about the origins of the SAS. Facinating how this unit got started.
🎺🎺🎺LindyBeige🎺🎺🎺
That first photo by the jump training tower has a really tall guy amongst the group.
This reminded me of a video I saw about the actor Christopher Lee who was said to have been a founder member of the SAS and had a very active military career in the war period. His cousin was actor Patrick McNee, who played John Steed in the 1960s UK TV series The Avengers and the 1970s The New Avengers and many film parts. He was a 20 year old Royal Navy Lieutenant in command of a British MTB patrolling the English Channel having nightly battles with German S Boats or E Boats as the British designated them (Enemy Boats).
Fun fact Stirling's brother married actress Diana Rigg also star of the Avengers and a Bond leading lady from "On Her Majesty's Secret Service".
Wonder if your research picked up if Lee was actually involved in the SAS?
Be really cool if Dracula had been in the SAS.
I'm fairly certain he was never with the SAS, certainly none of the primary or secondary sources I've read have so much as mentioned him. If I recall, he was involved with SOE, an espionage and sabotage unit that was not, to my knowledge, part of the military.
@@ProjectSeventy it's a murky period in his past and I wondered if anyone has any information on this. I imagine that it's hard to prove anything about these types of activities especially after so long. Mind you there's still a lot of paperwork under lock and key for another few decades if ever unlocked to come if we live that long.
Hopefully more people will chip in on this if they have any information at all that might throw some light on this.
@@davidmarsden9800 Lee was once asked about his wartime service. "Can you keep a secret?", he asked. The interviewer said, "Yes". "Good" he replied, "So can I"
Lee received medals from four different countries and even knew Yugoslavia's Marshall Tito personally. I'm sure there would have been some awesome stories to tell.
A mate of mine was in the Merchant Navy during the Falklands war. He went in to send supplies shortly after the liberation of the islands. At one night they were told the SAS would do a boarding drill. The crew doubled the guards and were on high alert but nothing happened. Untill one guy called everyone in on the radio... A whole team of SAS frogmen were drinking beer in the ship's mess :P.
Imagine being a guard at that RAF base that got stickered by the SAS. I'm guessing "stern" doesn't even begin to describe the talking-to they got. Probably won themselves a few laps around the base.
No doubt :).
Far far better a wakeup call by friendly special forces than the way the Germans and Italians were introduced to the SAS though.
There is a fantastic statue of David Stirling and associated plaques near me at Doune, Scotland - well worth a visit
My grandfather George Murray Allan started with the Gordon highlanders then volunteered for the LRDG after a time with them he was selected for the original sas, after the war his whole troop survived considering what they took part in some of the most famous raids of WW2, I still have his sas beret and used Fairbairn sykes knife and letters from David Stirling my grandfather kept in touch with him for years after the war. "Non Vi Sed Arte"
Fascinating! Thanks for sharing your grandfather's story.
Glad to see Indy doing an an episode about the SAS! My good friend Nigel will love it when I show him.
I’ve been listening and reading a lot of James Holland lately, he says that one of the biggest issues with the early SAS is that you have your best trained troops being flown by some of your worst trained people because of the high turn over rate for pilots.
Stirling was called "The Phantom Major" by the Germans for his ability to go unnoticed by them. And after getting caught he was eventually sent to Colditz all because the man tried to escape a number of times. Oh yes he was a thorn in the Germans side for the longest time. My compliments to the man. Great video.
@Broken Bridge Thanks for watching and for the background info
@@WorldWarTwo---Your welcome. And I would love if if you did a special episode on Colditz. And on those who tried to escape successfully or not.
The french played a crucial role in the creation of the SAS, in fact the largest SAS operation, operation Arhmest ( 1945, liberation of holland with the help of Canadian/Polish forces) was 100% made by the french 3rd and 4th SAS regiment ( roughly 900 men), they played a vital part into the liberation of northern Holland loosing 200 men in the process, it would have been nice to talk about the French and the Belgians who played a crucial role into building the myth of the special air service, in fact the british SAS, adopted the french " prière du Para" ( prayer of the parachutiste) a poem created by André Zinheld, a french SAS who died in 1942 during a Stuka attack.
@El Présidente Thanks for sharing, great background information. The poem is remarkable:
I'm asking You God, to give me what You have left.
Give me those things which others never ask of You.
I don't ask You for rest, or tranquility.
Not that of the spirit, the body, or the mind.
I don't ask You for wealth, or success, or even health.
All those things are asked of You so much Lord,
that you can't have any left to give.
Give me instead Lord what You have left.
Give me what others don't want.
I want uncertainty and doubt.
I want torment and battle.
And I ask that You give them to me now and forever Lord,
so I can be sure to always have them,
because I won't always have the strength to ask again.
But give me also the courage, the energy,
and the spirit to face them.
I ask You these things Lord,
because I can't ask them of myself(*).
Yes, but the French didn't create the SAS. It eventually became a multi-national force, which is great. All the free European soldiers fighting in the best regiment!
This is about the origins of the SAS in North Africa - their first operation was a parachute mission that went very badly. Thereafter they abandoned airborne and used the penetration techniques of the Long Range Desert Group which were to prove successful.
This was really interesting! Will you be doing a special on the LRDG?
My uncle, now aged 101, was in the LRDG and then transferred to the SAS. Although he mentioned the war, I only recently learnt about his part in, I think, Operation Houndstooth, when SAS were in Lyon at the time of the D-Day Landings. To be honest, I think my uncle has not long left. A shame, the passing of a brave and daring generation.
your comments sir, inspires me to do more research into the LRDG. thank you for that.
I hope you don't mind me asking, but you said he left the lrdg to go to the sas, I only know of one that did that, was your uncle's surname Sadler? Just because I only know of one, there might of been others, but the simple fact both units were very small.
@Alec Benson Thanks for sharing about your uncle, I imagine he had quite a life. May his days be easy and peaceful
@@stanbrekston There was also the Indian Long Range Patrol and 1st Demolition Squadron also known as Popski's Private Army who also raided in Jeeps in Europe after service in North Africa.
Without the LRDG model and success and as transport for them, the SAS might’ve taken longer to emerge from the SOE’s ‘boys’ own’ bands of irregulars so beloved by Churchill
Sharp tie and great episode, Indy!
Those British Long Range Patrol trucks are very interesting as are the modified Jeeps.
The SAS wore their modern combat beards well! 🙂
Worth to note that the French special forces are also tied to the British SAS, especially the 1st RPIMA who kept the SAS traditions (insignia, motto, etc...). After the fall of France in 1940, the 1st Free French Air Company was created in England, under the command of Captain Georges Bergé, with parachute units of the Special Air Service. Later in 1942 it will officialy join the SAS under the name of the French squadron and fight actively throughout Europe until the end of the war.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_Marine_Infantry_Paratroopers_Regiment#World_War_II_2
Good observation! The SAS also influenced the creation of a similar unit called Sacred Band, led by Lt. Col. Tsigantes who cooperated w/ David Sterling of the SAS through the Tunisian and Italian campaigns. That unit is now considered the predecessor of the modern Greek special forces.
@@alcaeus2 wonderful comments from both of you Gentlemen.
Does this unit exist today?
@@penultimateh766 the 1st RPIMA, yes. It's the heir of the 1st special force unit founded in 1940.
Also the Belgian Paracommandos (although I think the unit title has changed now) are descended from the WW2 Belgian SAS who were created here in the UK in exile, and one part of the Belgian Paracommandos still wears the SAS badge, on maroon berets.
Yes I’ve been dreaming of when this outdo happen, thank you Indy I hope to hear about SAS, commandos and the devils brigade in the future.
@Jarod 1999 I have a feeling there's plenty more espionage to come in this war. Stay tuned!
Sas evolved from raiding and sabotage unit till an unit that where able to be deployed anywhere within a moment notice. The most famous mission that got SAS their notoriety as well as the fame in modern times where operation nimrod, where they functioned as an anti terrorist unit capable of saving hostages
Excellent to hear about the chronology of special operations efforts prior to Sterling's posting in Africa. That's been left out of the SAS histories I've read.
A fantastic story. These troups are very similar to the finish Distance patrols, fjärrpatruller, in operation. They are at least as old as LRDG. You do not talk about this part of the war, but a specual episode of these special force would be great.
13:18 That is a serious looking bunch of "Don't mess with me".
Had no idea that Lewes grew up in Australia. Thank you WW2 for the information. On another curious trivial note then, I read that Jock Lewes grew up in Bowral NSW during the 1910s and 1920s (population under 3000), as 5 years older, but still young, Sir Don Bradman (Boy from Bowral) assaulted regional bowlers for big runs, including double and triple centuries, in the Berrima District before he had his cricket test debut. Both men going on to make a historical impact. Not really anything to do with the war but just found it interesting.
@Tiki Blue Thank you for watching & sharing that background info
Indy, (0.37secs) British Guerilla tactical thinking during the 1920's was in fact heavily influenced by the tactics used by Michael Collins in the Irish War for Independence 1919-21to breakdown British control and power in Ireland and ultimately bring the British to the negotiating table and for most of the Island to gain Independence. The last Military barracks of British power was handed over to the Irish Free State 17th December 1922.
Watching this excellent video after enjoying BBC's Rogue Heroes. Thank you for the additional info!
I would be very grateful if you could make an episode about SAS and SOE weapons, FS daggers in particular. Thank you for all you're doing! It's greatest channel about WW2 history.
It's interesting that the Chindits seem to have a similar idea but from a totally different lineage (Being based off of Wingate's experience in Ethiopia)
Australia (and New Zealand) also has an SAS regiment, whose soldiers were among its founders.
I believe the LRDG was predominantly made up New Zealanders, could be wrong though
edit: just googled it the was originally made up of New Zealanders until soldiers of countries join then the name was changed to LRDG
@@kaisahfx1246 correct, it was the cheeky Kiwis that started these raids and the poms seen how effective they were and quickly jumped on board, claiming and naming as usual.
@@skidmarkscar9082 No! The New Zealanders were lounging around doing nothing and were asked if they would like something to occupy their minds. The main attraction of initially using New Zealanders was that a number of them were farm boys who could drive and were well used to repairing stuff in the field. The LRDG included men from different outfits grouped into patrols. As usual the antipodean shoulder chip makes itself known. The Tamiya LRDG Chevrolet models a broken NZ truck and is probably the reason idiots think it was a NZ formation.
I remember being given the junior (abridged) version of Virginia Cowles' "The Phanthom Major" back in the early 1960s - it gave basic background into the formation and missions of the SAS. Hardly shrouded in mystery until more recent times.
If anyone is interested in learning more about the SAS I highly recommend reading Ben MacIntyre's book 'Rogue Heroes', or even watching the 3 part mini series he made called 'SAS Rogue Warriors' - absolutely brilliant book and series to accompany!
Please don't watch the drama series on bbc, it crap and full of errors.
I just read that and was shocked to learn that the events depicted in the TV series are mostly true (except for the subplot of Stirling and the French spy). I was particularly amazed to learn that Winston Churchill’s son actually did accompany SAS on a little romp into Benghazi, brazening their way past Italian sentries and wreaking some havoc in the port.
World War Two demonstrates that there are human beings who are ready to embrace insane dangers so the homefront can survive.
Thanks, Indy!
Love,
David
@David vonKettering Thanks for watching! Truly amazing what people went through to fight this war.
Yeah this tie is leaving me a little speechless. 5/5
@Gianni Verschueren Thanks for watching. Plenty more war to come, to be sure
All the references to a statue of Mayne in Newtownards are touching... esp. after another poster revealed that not one Newtownards local lifted a finger to help him when he met his end. (No one can blame them for being afraid, though.)
I'd love to see a Spies & Ties episode about the SOE's Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, and yes that was a real thing. It was basically the Avengers because Ian Fleming, Roald Dahl and Christopher Lee all served together there.
You should cover the abduction of general Kreipe in the island of Crete and the blowing of the Gorgopotamos bridge, also it would be nice to have an episode about the Greek resistance movement.
didn't they already cover that?
Hi Indy
Awesome episode to learn about SAS
Thanks..
Strange about Sterling he was captured sent to Colditz and never tried to escape which was considered impossible by the Germans . See Airey Middleton Sheffield Neave, DSO, OBE, MC, TD .Also Sterling was too much a gentleman .The SAS really got going when Sterling met Blair Mayne a true warrior and a great Ulster man.
Blair mayne was the real SAS warrior highly intelligent fearless and no mercy .
I was an American kid growing up in the 80s in England.My dad was in the US Air Force and he was stationed there.After the RAID(That's what they called it) happened,the SAS were and are considered to be GODS!They would sell GI Joe like action figure toys in the British malls/toy stores.Every kid wanted to be SAS...British or American.
The LRP Long Range Patrol which grew into the Long Range Desert Group LRDG was the first British Special Force unit in the Western Desert and manned almost exclusively by New Zealanders and officered by the British at the Start
They weren’t Special Forces but rather the best desert navigators on the planet, the SAS guys affectionately referred to them as their ‘taxi service’ in the desert. I believe they were eventually absorbed into the SAS so that might explain the confusion about if the LRDG were ever ‘Special Forces’
@@charliereader3462 sorry but you're dead wrong lol they were Special Forces and they were not "Absorbed" into the sas they were disbanded lol 😂 may pay to do a modicum of research before shooting off at the mouth and removing all doubt lol 🤣
@@charliereader3462 without the LRDG there would be no SAS lol
@@zaynevanbommel5983 at what point did I downplay the contribution of the LRDG. As for the absorbed bit I may have got mixed up with Mike Sadler and others in the LRDG transferring to the Regiment, my mistake. As for Special Forces I’ve never seen them referred to specifically as such, but I guess you can consider them as special forces in the same way JSFAW or 160th SOAR is today, just that’s news to me. In fairness though mate you didn’t need to be a cock about it. Could’ve just politely corrected me and we’d be all smiles but hey ho
@@charliereader3462 you are just digging yourself a deeper hole
Another excellent episode, thank you
I've Missed the name Paddy Maine in this story
There are a couple of brilliant books about him that are a must read for anyone interested in this subject! I don't think it's too much of a stretch to say that he was instrumental keeping the concept going after Sterling's capture. The feats that these guys completed would have Hollywood directors saying we can't put that in, no one will believe it!
I know the history of the SAS in detail and the fact that Indie didn’t mention Paddy Mayne makes me worry that his knowledge of all other arenas of the conflict are no more than abbreviations of Wikipedia.
Well you can judge for yourself. They give the sources that they use.
Agree totally. Blair Mayne was Sterling's right hand man and was responsible for the setting up and running of the SAS..
Disgraceful he didn't get a mention.
I love these specials and the titbits that don't show up in the jingoistic accounts you normally get.
There's an awful lot of jingo in the comments
And now you can also do something about Popski's Private Army.
Both the Australian and the New Zealand SAS worked behind the lines in Vietnam to and the vc did not like having them around much .As there troops did not last long as the SAS did not take prioners to .
I must say Indy's tie is awesome. I want one.
SAS: Wait, I thought we supposed to be parachuter.
Fallschirmjäger: First time?
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - book - the men who made the SAS - the history of the Long Range Desert Group by Gavin Mortimer
Hope the Decima Mas, who influenced underwater covert ops get featured. Perhaps. HI Sutton (Covert Shores web page owner) can be tapped as a resource person👍
many different units from the sudanese defence forces were used to provide assistance to the SAS and long range desert group as well as many others. it would be amazing if we can get a vidoe about them as they were treated very differently compared to other colonial armies, one of the first black allied generals was from the sudanese defence force.
Granddad was with No.2 Commando / II SAS first British combat jump into Italy February 1941 Operation Colossus , they jumped into complete enemy territory and blew up the Tragino aqueduct - they were the first to use SAS Special Air Service name
The new tv series "SAS rogue heroes" is so freaking good! Everyone should watch it!
Agreed.
Will we hear about Popski's Private Army? It was led by Vladimir Peniakoff. They operated much like the LRDG.
The Soviet invasion of Finland. A young Christopher Lee (went onto be become an actor) was part of the defending force. Christopher Lee also accompanied the LRDG in north Africa.
My grandmother used to do embroidery for Lady Stirling at Keir House between the wars and she told the story of an explosion while she was visiting. Lady Stirling reassured her "dinny worry it only Davie blowing up the salmon"
When you start knowing Indys opening sentences by heart, you know you watch him to much 😂 keep up the superb work guys ❤
Thanks a lot for watching it that much! Would you recommend one opening line for a T-shirt or a mug? -TimeGhost Ambassador
@@WorldWarTwo pic of an allied chief, pic of an axis chief, pic of Indy. The good, the bad and the Indy. Or is that to cheesy 😬 would be cool on a mug tho ;) or the titel of ep 129 would be a 'funny' thing to work a t shirt around
we weren't expecting special forces
United States special forces paid a visit to an ISIS leader last night.
Commandos didn’t always go on raids in huge numbers they also operated in smaller numbers , my late Grandfather was in First Special Service Brigade Later they became 1 Commando . RIPJerryWoods / Grandfather
The greatest SAS man was Colonel Robert Blair ‘Paddy’ Mayne. A British Ulster Loyalist and Orangeman, who played rugby for Ireland and the British Lions, in addition to studying law at Queen’s University Belfast. The only reason he didn’t receive the VC (and should have multiple times) was because he hit a so called ‘upper class’ (strange and comical to describe someone as that nowadays) British Officer and that man’s friends blocked all his VC proposals by his commanding officer. However, he gained numerous other awards from his own country and others. Read any book about him if you don’t believe me and his Rambo type operations.
Stirling was unimpressed when Mayne gunned down up to 30 unarmed men in Libya in 1941.
"It was necessary to be ruthless... but Paddy had overstepped the mark... I was obliged to rebuke him for over-callous execution in cold blood of the enemy."
Big ommission that you didnt mention the Special Boat Service SBS, the SAS maritime sister force which was founded a year earlier and part of it lent to the SAS. The SAS more public exploits over the years have kind of overshadowed the SBS.
I didn't mention it because that's another whole special.
i would like a special episode of german gebirgsjägers, and many more interesting units! keep up the good work, as always!
@leo arko Thanks for watching!
I have the book by Fitzroy Maclean "Eastern approaches". One chapter is about his involvement with SAS.
Great stuff.
MacLean and Sterling good friends of the Commandos founder Lord Lovat as in Lovat Scouts, interesting fact MacLean, Sterling, Lovat all born in Scotland and lived quite close to each other in Scotland 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Todays tie was on-point Indy! I would kill (not literally) to have a tie like that. Though I wouldn't want to buy your own tie from Indy's Tie Barn.. too sacred of an item.
I hope we get a "Wild Bill" Donovan episode.
I would visit regularly Spean Bridge commando memorial where Blair Paddy Mayne trained..
The story below. It takes great skill to tell a wonderful story in so few words. Thank you.
@Patricia Palmer Thanks for watching! The team works incredibly hard at every stage making these episodes - research, writing, production… they're very dedicated. We appreciate the kind words from you & the rest of our audience out there in the TimeGhost Army. Subscribe so you can stay tuned for more
@@WorldWarTwo It's always apparent when serious interest in and respect for material is present. Good luck and my best wishes for your success ! Pat
I used to be a postman and delivered a special delivery package to an old guy ; he told me it was a medal for a battle in the 70s that the public weren't told about
Don't forget Christopher Lee was involved
Interviewer " what did you do in WW2?"
PC "can you keep a secret?"
Interviewer "yes"
PC " so can I....."
(Edited to correct error)
That was Christopher Lee who said that.
@@Themaxwithnoname thanks, edited the error!
Please do an entire episode on the life of Peter Fleming and Yak Mission.
Great video guys! Keep up the great work!
@Eamonn Thanks for watching!
Definitely not a war question but how much success did Sterling have on Everest? You mostly hear about Mallory and Irving (since they didn't return) for early Everest attempts. Great episode as always.
Indie, it's not just a flaming sword, it's a flaming Excalibur.
:)
It's a winged dagger not a sword and no flames in sight
@@andybawn1 The Imperial War Museum & the British Badge Forum disagree with you.
It also refers to the Sword of Damocles, because he dared & won.
@@DickHolman When I spoke to David Stirling, back in 1978. He told me it was a winged dagger. I'm going to go with his description as a primary source.
@@andybawn1 Fair play, my sources are are secondary.
Very interesting.
We may never know the true exploits of all these units.
They will always be shrouded in secrecy and myth.
They are the Tip of the Spear.
The biggest thing to remember is that you do not want to be the person or persons that the Spear is pointed at.
Tom Clancy once joked that the SAS had little to do with airplanes, unless they were jumping out of them, or blowing them up.
If anyone wants to know more details about LRDG and SAS raids in Africa I recommend reading "Killing Rommel " by Steven Pressfield, yes it is a *historical fiction novel* not history per se, but it's a good read, and it gives you a good idea what the dessert warfare was.
Douglas Berneville-Claye, a second lieutenant, seems to have ended up in the SAS because he was a misfit and his original unit wanted to get rid of him. Newly-established units like the SAS were sometimes used as dumping grounds for military undesirables. Berneville-Claye went over to the Germans after being captured and joined the Waffen-SS.
Wow! I was unaware of his story. Thanks for mentioning it. 👍
"The Phantom Major: The Story of David Stirling and His Desert Command" (1958) by Virginia Cowles might be worth a read, if you can find it.
Great book
Stirling's statue frightens the hell out of me everything I drive south from Double, I think a giant is striding towards me
Didn't know the SAS was founded by a rugged Aussie and a Scotsman. Pretty sweet
He failed recognise that an Ulster man Colonel Blair Paddy Mayne was Sterling's right hand man and was responsible for the setting up and running of the SAS..
And made famous by an Ulsterman.
I was just watching a program on the 2nd Battle of El Alamein and noticed you didn't cover that the American codes had been compromised and the Germans and Italians were reading everything and how this really effected Rommel when the British told the Americans to change their codes and he lost a major part of his intelligence. I'm wondering if you'll go into this in a special or something?
You're totally off base. The Americans were compromised, sure, but they were not in the know about 8th Army.
Torch is still in the future. The American Army has not landed.
The very idea that the leaks are via Americans is to hide the truth.
The Kraut B'dienst squad had just been put out of action by the Aussies at the Battle of tel el Isa.
THIS was the turning point of WWII in Europe.
Only via captured documents did the British realize that the Krauts were reading their naval signals in the Atlantic.
It turns out that deserts are perfect for capturing radio signals.
(There are no nearby radio emitters, so the gain can be cranked way high.)
[ BTW, North African panzer crew comms were being picked up in Rhode Island by the Americans -- crazy, no? ]
Monty invoked totally new signals security -- and Rommel never recovered.
The false notion that the Americans were the source of battlefield intel has been spewed all over... by Britain.
The Americans had no access to the intel that was deciding tactical and grand tactical deployments -- at all.
It was the Kraut B'dienst crew that was reading the British signals... and giving Rommel the heads-up right on the spot.
That's why the DAK kept turning on a dime. No-one outside the battle zone ever had that level of knowledge.
@@davidhimmelsbach557 just to preface this I can find no evidence of this interception of British naval codes however the American one there is a lot of evidence for and was used by Rommel.
The interception of Churchill and Roosevelts calls did occur however that was nothing to do with this particular event.
Also the Americans have landed in North Africa and what was happening was the British were telling the Americans what they were going to do and when that was relayed back to the US the Germans could intercept it.
@@davidhimmelsbach557 tried to find what you were talking about in reference to the 2nd Battle of El Alamein but it came back too was that it was the US codes that were compromised and the British told the US about this.
I'm guessing youa are talking about the transatlantic radiotelphone line, however that wasn't British it was joint and was the calls from Roosevelt and Churchill
@@wellwell7950 No, no, no, no....
The 8th Army was being undone by battlefield intel. The US had no access to it.
Understand: Rommel was changing his scheme in mere minutes based on his B'dienst intercepts. THIS is why he was labeled the "Fox."
You -- and the general public -- is being conned by the British establishment.
Remember that the UK and USA never wanted ULTRA to become public. Look at all of the fraudulent histories that both cranked out for decades after the war.
Well, they're still at it. The US is still lying about Pearl Harbor and JN25/JN26 etc.
Pray tell where did JN01 to JN24 go? Yeah, the US had been tracking the Imperial codes all along... and so did the UK !!!!
Read Nave's account. He's the Assie who broke the Imperial code -- JN01 -- all by himself.
Yes, the UK has never come clean WRT what GCHQ knew about Pearl Harbor, either. But Winston knew all about the carrier strike -- every step of the way. BTW, the IJN did NOT maintain radio silence, they couldn't. A storm screwed everything up.
I launched on PH because it, the lying, is just as chronic WRT North Africa. The American angle is a DODGE. The Americans never had battlefield intel. BTW, Rommel was swinging back and forth ALL DAY LONG. He was getting signals intel that accurately. that timely. The Brits just could NOT figure out how he was reading their minds.
Stop buying the official deceits.
During the Cold War "Signals Analysis" -- what the B'dienst team was using -- became standard practice. The dope on just how this is done is still top secret. But the general idea is that the top commands talk the most.
BTW, the Krauts caught O'Conner exactly this way -- LONG before Pearl Harbor. Even today I see corn fused historians who can't put things together. They were English majors in college - and are totally lost WRT things technical.
@@Alex-cw3rz The Brits were blown away to see their convoy code transmissions being picked up by Rommel's B'dienst team.
That story is STILL, obviously, tightly held. I only read of in in the NY Times -- on article -- years ago -- WRT Rhode Island's massive radio intercept station. This military site was actually in contention -- at one point -- to be the site of the new UN HQ. But with no call girls to be had for miles around... the diplomats nixed it.
To pick up such signals, the array required was large. It also needed to be away from other transmitters. This was the exact logic that had the USN building a huge array up in Rhode Island. Huge did not mean expensive, merely that the antenna wire went on and on.
After changes were made, U-boat sinkings really fell off. ( Late Spring 1943 ) Even today, the UK, US and Canada love to misdirect the general public as to what did in the U-boat threat.
The Krauts lost their decryption advantage -- and the Echelon partners were able to triangulate U-boat packs like never before. BTW, that was the real purpose of the Rhode Island station. Its mere existence was deeply classified for decades. The NY Times is the only publication that brought it up. During the war, one imagines MIT experts driving down to tweak the gear every other day.
BTW, it took Canada, America and Britain to REALLY dial in U-boat locations. It was a team effort. The bigger your base line, the more accurate your fix. The electronic intel triggered the aircraft search patterns. Planes really didn't fly all over the Atlantic. That idea was put out to hide the fact that the Allies had a decent idea of where the U-boats were in the first place. Centimeter radar was merely the final locator. Without the triangulation fix, the Atlantic becomes just too large to sweep.
Being a son of special sea warfare I can say when you can raid your bases is the most fun you have due to the games you get to play
5:08 John "Jock" Lewes looks like the biggest chad
Thank you for another informative and interesting and excellent video.
@George Williams Thanks for watching
Will we see an episode about the SOE too? And also for its famous members like Patrick Leigh Fermor or John Pendlebury and their unbelievable achievements?
Read "The Phantom Major" by Virginia Cowles, the biography of the SAS during WWII.
@Andrew Turnham Thanks for the suggestion. The title reminds me of Operation Mincemeat by Ben Macintyre, but we won't know how that story unfolds quite yet in February '43
That might just be my favourite tie in the series so far
Just looking the two first episods of Rogue Heroes, pretty good. Thx for the details !
Interesting, I wonder if or when there will be a special episode about the conditions during the siege of Leningrad.