History of U.S. Army Special Forces: Green Berets

Origins in the OSS and World War II

The operational elements of the Army Special Forces can be traced to the units of the U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS), which infiltrated metropolitan France during World War II. The tasks of the OSS units were to organize, train, supply, and direct the Maquis of the Forces Françaises de l'Intérieur (FFI) in order to support the invasion of Normandy in June 1944 (Operation Overlord) and the invasion of Southern France in August 1944 (Operation Dragoon).^[1] Although the Army Special Forces is not a direct descendant of all OSS units employed around the world, the organization and mission of the operational detachments of the original 10th Special Forces Group are very similar to those of the OSS Operational Group (OG), which became Company B, 2671st Special Reconnaissance Battalion, Separate (Provisional), in August 1944.^[2]

The concept of the OGs, inspired by Major General William Donovan, was to use American soldiers who had "language skills and were trained in commando-type tactics." They would "provide training and material support for the resistance, and would form the nucleus for local resistance forces" that would "attack enemy facilities and lines of communication deep behind the lines."^[3] The majority of the training — which emphasized physical conditioning, demolitions, special weapons, and offensive guerrilla operational techniques — was based on the experience of British commandos.

Major Cox commanded the French OGs, who were organized as a field-service headquarters (FSHQ) referred to as Unit B, 1st Contingent Operational Groups, 2677 Headquarters Company OSS, in North Africa. Compared to the later SF B-detachment, the FSHQ — consisting of eight officers and twenty enlisted men — "included the operations, medical, communication, supply, and administrative personnel who were active in the training, preparation, deployment, and support of the OGs in the operational area."^[4]

After World War II, Colonel Aaron Bank, Colonel Wendell Fertig, and Lieutenant Colonel Russell Volckmann drew on their OSS experience to formulate the principles of "unconventional warfare" that became the foundation of the Special Forces.^[5] According to the Army's official Lineage and Honors, the Special Forces Groups are linked to the regiments of the First Special Service Force — that elite group of Canadian-American forces who fought in North Africa, Italy, and Southern France.^[6]

Founding of the Special Forces After WWII

The Special Forces grew out of the Special Operations Division of the Psychological Warfare Center established at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in May 1952, now known as the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School. In September 1953, the 10th Special Forces Group departed for Bad Tölz, Germany, and the remaining cadre at Fort Bragg formed the 77th Special Forces Group, which became the 7th Special Forces Group in May 1960.^[7]

In 1953, Special Forces soldiers deployed from the 10th SFG to Korea saw their first combat when they worked with partisan forces conducting operations behind enemy lines. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, Special Forces soldiers worked with the Royal Laotian Army in Laos.^[8]

Korea, Laos, and Vietnam Operations

Operation WHITE STAR was the precursor to Special Forces operations in Vietnam. In Vietnam, Special Forces teams worked as advisors to the Vietnamese Army and the Civilian Irregular Defense Forces, trained and led quick-reaction units called Mike Forces, and conducted cross-border operations as the Studies and Observation Group (MACV-SOG). The 5th Special Forces Group was formed as the requirement for Special Forces troops grew.^[9] During the fourteen years they were in Vietnam, the Special Forces set a precedent for bravery and proficiency "second to none."^[10]