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91-525: Motto - OSONS (We Dare) In 1942 a highly specialized joint Canadian-American force was created to undertake special operations in Europe. In order that 500 "all ranks" could be recruited without undue publicity being directed towards their future role, the 2nd Canadian Parachute battalion was raised at the same time as the 1st, coming into order on 10 July 1942. On 25 May 1943 it became the 1st Canadian Special Force Battalion, with its officers and men distributed with

182-409: A captured area. Furthermore, Frederick concluded that there was no definite way to evacuate the troops after a mission. Withdrawal would require significant troop lift and covering fighter support. All vehicles and equipment would have to be abandoned. Finally, PLOUGH had called for troops to be parachuted on their targets, which Frederick said was impossible at the moment, as there were no planes to fly

273-611: A change in government. Former Ontario Chief Justice Sidney B. Linden led the investigation of events, which was completed in the fall of 2006. In 1936, the province of Ontario created Ipperwash Provincial Park. In 1942 during the Second World War , the Government of Canada wanted reserve land from the Stoney Point Band to use as a base for military training and offered to buy it for $ 15 per acre. They also promised to return

364-585: A commanding view of the countryside and highway, giving German artillery on the mountain control of the surrounding area. The German artillery atop La Defensa were also using a new weapon - the Nebelwerfer . Previous large scale Allied attacks on the mountain had met the enemy head on and been repelled with disastrous casualties. The paths leading up La Difensa were heavily scouted by the FSSF before their attack. The scouts reported to Lt. Col. T. C. MacWilliam (who would lead

455-519: A decision to raise an actual Canadian parachute battalion, the Canadian volunteers for PLOUGH were also sometimes known unofficially as the "2nd Canadian Parachute Battalion". (The Canadians did not officially become a unit until April–May 1943, under the designation, 1st Canadian Special Service Battalion.) While its members remained part of the Canadian Army, subject to its code of discipline and paid by

546-467: A group of protesters who had wandered outside the park and into the Sandy Park lot area adjacent to the cottages. The group were allegedly carrying bats and sticks in their hands. The number of protesters has been debated, although police reports indicate a group of up to eight. There was also misinformation about damage that had been done to a band councillor's car by this group of protesters. The damage to

637-582: A member of the FSSF found the journal of a German lieutenant from the Hermann Goering Division . The journal contained the following entry: "The Black Devils are all around us every time we come into the line. We never hear them come." This legend was never verified as fact by any member of the FSSF; however, the FSSF was known as the Black Devils and as the Devil's Brigade. The members of the FSSF preferred

728-649: A parachute unit. Indeed, the unit was so secretive, that many soldiers did not know where they were when they arrived in Helena for training, as the windows of the trains carrying the troops were painted black. The combat force was to be made up of three regiments. Each regiment was led by a lieutenant colonel and 32 officers and had 385 men. The regiments were divided into two battalions with three companies in each battalion and three platoons in each company. Each platoon had two sections. Following initial training period in Montana,

819-525: A police cruiser, the OPP pulled back from the park. In anticipation of the move on the park by the Stoney Point First Nations, the OPP had prepared a contingency plan named Project Maple. The plan stressed "a peaceful resolution" and called for a team of two negotiators to be on call around the clock. Progressive Conservative member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) Marcel Beaubien was in contact with

910-412: A senior officer in charge of a four-man sharpshooter team with the job of escorting the force's crowd management unit. Deane was near the park entrance and fired three shots at Dudley George, who was about fifteen feet from the park entrance, and was hit and badly injured. George's sister Carolyn and brother Pierre attempted to take him to the local hospital for treatment but were arrested and delayed by

1001-683: A small, elite force capable of fighting behind enemy lines in winter conditions . This was to have been a commando unit that could be landed, by sea or air, in occupied Norway , Romania, or the Italian Alps for sabotage missions against hydroelectric plants and oil fields . In Norway, the chief industrial threat was the production of the heavy water used in the German atomic weapon research at Rjukan . Furthermore, attacks on 14 designated Norwegian hydroelectrical power stations, those which would be vulnerable to special force snow vehicles, which supplied

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1092-515: A smaller defence budget and more frequent operational taskings, it became clear that general purpose capabilities provide the best return on investment in defence. Accordingly, 2 CMBG was designed to be a mirror image reflection of its two sister formations, 1 CMBG in Western Canada, and 5 CMBG in Quebec. In completing this transformation, 2 CMBG maintained the spirit and traditions of

1183-848: A two-car Lynx patrol was airdropped in Goose Bay, Labrador , in January 1986 during Exercise Lightning Strike 86. In 1987, the 8th Canadian Hussars deployed to Canadian Forces Base Lahr in the former West Germany, while the Royal Canadian Dragoons replaced them in the Special Service Force at Petawawa after redeploying from Lahr. The 2nd Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery , had a parachute battery (E Battery) with 105 mm L5 Pack Howitzers and from 1991, an airborne air defence troop. 2 Combat Engineer Regiment provided an airborne engineer troop. Command and supporting elements of

1274-553: A unique fourragère (also known as an aiguillette or lanyard) for all members of the unit, thereby replacing the regimental fourragère worn by the Canadian soldiers. The result was a braided fourragère made with red, white and blue parachute cord. For mountain warfare, the men were given baggy ski pants, parkas, and a helmet. Standard boots were originally the same as those issued to parachuting regiments, but these were replaced with infantry combat boots in Italy. Colonel Frederick worried from

1365-519: A violent confrontation, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) killed protester Dudley George. George was holding a stick when OPP officer Ken Deane shot him. George subsequently died from his injuries. Ken Deane later claimed that George had a firearm. Deane was found guilty of criminal negligence. It was later alleged that the violent confrontation and eventual death of Dudley George came a day after newly elected Ontario Premier Mike Harris

1456-754: The Aleutian Islands , fought in Italy and southern France, and was disbanded in December 1944. The modern American and Canadian special operations forces trace their heritage to this unit. In 2013, the United States Congress passed a bill to award the 1st Special Service Force the Congressional Gold Medal . Geoffrey Pyke was an English journalist , educationalist , and later an inventor whose clever, but unorthodox , ideas could be difficult to implement. In lifestyle and appearance, he fit

1547-475: The M29 Weasel . The training schedule started with reveille at 04:30 from Monday to Saturday followed by breakfast at 06:30. The obstacle course was run by 08:00 four times a week, followed by the day's training, which differed depending on the month. Soldiers were expected to march double time between training exercises to adhere to the strict schedule. Training lectures were given by veterans of overseas wars in

1638-441: The 1st Regiment and 36th Infantry Division. All identification on FSSF soldiers was to be removed except their dog tags. After reaching the base of the mountain and having had a single night's rest, 2nd Regiment (600 men total) began their ascent of La Difensa on 2 December at dusk under cover of a heavy artillery barrage. One soldier recalls the severity of the shelling: "It looked as if we were marching into Hell. The whole mountain

1729-478: The 2nd Regiment's assault on La Remetanea) that the best way to approach the entrenched enemy was up an almost vertical escarpment over the right of the hill mass. By this approach, the FSSF hoped to catch the Germans off guard, The assault was planned for 2 December. The men were trained in mountain climbing and fighting tactics at their temporary barracks at Santa Maria. The plan was as follows (all battalions were in

1820-413: The 2nd Regiment): At 16:30 hours on 1 December, 2nd Regiment would be trucked to within 6 miles (9.7 km) of the base of La Difensa and march the rest of the way (6-hour march). 1st Regiment, coupled with US 36th Infantry Division would be the reserve units for the 2nd Regiment. 3rd Regiment would be split in two, half to support the 2nd Regiment following the initial assault, and half to be reserves with

1911-557: The American and Canadian armies were mixed and uniforms were made identical. In the end, Frederick's fears were unfounded as the men bonded through training and dedication to the force. In February 1943, Norwegian SOE agents destroyed the heavy water and deuterium plants. To prevent the FSSF from being disbanded, Frederick proposed using it against the Japanese in Alaska. It was decided that

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2002-445: The American uniforms did not differ widely from one another. The Canadian troops, however, arrived in all different manners of uniform: some wore kilts , others tartan trousers ( trews ), and others Bermuda shorts. Headgear differed just as widely, depending on where the soldier was from – wedge caps for some, black berets for troops taken from armoured regiments and large khaki Tam o' Shanters for soldiers from Scottish regiments. Under

2093-522: The Americans throughout the multi-national unit. The 1st Special Service Force was trained in Helena, Montana before being deployed in the Aleutian Islands in 1943, where it had valuable training experience. By November it had gone into action in Italy, where it distinguished itself in the successful assaults on Monte Le Difensa and Monte La Remetanea. It also fought at Anzio and in the drive to Rome, where it

2184-580: The British high command and were unwilling to give up a chance to open an American front in Europe. It was believed that PLOUGH offered the possibility of defeating the Germans, and the Americans wanted Allied efforts to shift to the Pacific Theater. The sooner the Germans were defeated, it was argued, the sooner this would become a reality. The first officer picked to lead the unit, Lieutenant Colonel Howard R. Johnson , did not get along well with Pyke. Johnson

2275-712: The Canadian Airborne Regiment as the Airborne Battle Group. All but one unit were located in Petawawa , Ontario (1st Battalion The Royal Canadian Regiment was based in London, Ontario ). The 8th Canadian Hussars armoured regiment had three squadrons: A, B and D. A and B were equipped with Cougar armoured vehicles, while D Squadron, an armoured reconnaissance squadron, was equipped with Lynx vehicles (D Squadron eventually developed an airborne capability and

2366-487: The Canadian Airborne Regiment. Its insignia was a winged sword with the word Osons ( French for 'Let us dare'). The Force was a brigade -sized command with a strength of 3,500, created to provide a small, highly mobile, general-purpose force that could be inserted quickly into any national or international theatre of operations. To this end most units in the Force had a parachute sub-unit that would be used to support

2457-455: The Canadian government, they were to be supplied with uniforms, equipment, food, shelter and travel expenses by the US Army. It was agreed that a Canadian would serve as second in command of the force and that half of the officers and initially one-half of the enlisted men would be Canadian. This resulted in a total force of 1,800 men: 900 US soldiers and 900 Canadian soldiers. As casualties depleted

2548-552: The Central Militia Area (later re-designated as Land Forces Central Area and now known as the 4th Canadian Division ). Units tasked included the Queen's Own Rifles , elements of the 2nd Field Engineer Regiment, and a composite battery of Royal Canadian Artillery militia units. The Special Service Force's readiness and deployability were never tested as a formation, but its units and soldiers served in operations both at home and around

2639-399: The FSSF relocated to Camp Bradford, Virginia , on 15 April 1943, and to Fort Ethan Allen , Vermont, on 23 May 1943. Because the unit needed to be trained quickly, the soldiers began parachuting within 48 hours of their arrival in Helena, Montana. The camp had no training towers and preliminary flights were not carried out, so for many this was their first experience at jumping. This training

2730-503: The FSSF should be equally made up of American, Canadian, and Norwegian troops. However, a lack of suitable Norwegians saw this changed to half American and half Canadian. In July 1942, the Canadian Minister of National Defence , James Ralston , approved the assignment of 697 officers and enlisted men for PLOUGH, under the guise that they were forming Canada's first airborne unit, the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion (1CPB). Due to

2821-687: The FSSF to the Italian front . There the FSSF demonstrated the value of its unique skills and training. The FSSR arrived at Naples on 19 November 1943, and immediately went into the line with the US 36th Infantry Division . The FSSF was tasked with taking two heavily fortified German positions on the Camino ridge in the Italian mountains: Monte La Difensa , overlooking the Volturno River, and Monte La Remetanea, 1,200 yards to

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2912-590: The FSSF would be used against Japanese forces occupying islands off Alaska . The FSSF arrived at the San Francisco Port of Embarkation on 4 July 1943. On 10 July the Devil's Brigade sailed for the Aleutian Islands off Alaska. On 15 August 1943, the FSSF was part of the invasion of the island of Kiska . The Japanese had evacuated the island, so the FSSF re-embarked. They returned to Fort Ethan Allen , arriving 9 September 1943. In October 1943, US Fifth Army commander Lieutenant General Mark W. Clark brought

3003-531: The Force, restrictions on the availability of Canadian replacements reduced the proportion of the Canadian contingent to about one-third of the total. After Lieutenant Colonel McQueen, the senior Canadian member, broke his leg during parachute training, the highest ranking Canadian in the force was Lieutenant Colonel Don Williamson, who commanded the 2nd Regiment. The US volunteers for the force consisted initially of officers from Forts Belvoir and Benning . Letters of recruitment were posted to all US Army units in

3094-461: The German entrenchment. Initially, the soldiers were given the order to hold their fire until 6 AM, but the Germans noticed the Allied movent after some FSSF men tripped over loose gravel while moving along the mountaintop. Germans shot flares into the air and the battle began. Through gun and mortar fire, the men of the 2nd Regiment managed to set up machine guns and return fire, surprising and overwhelming

3185-492: The German's throat was being sliced on the beachhead. However, recent historiography surrounding the FSSF debates whether or not Frederick and his general staff made up the nickname in order to instill fear in the enemy. The FSSF was unofficially first known as the "Braves". Their spearhead shoulder insignia was chosen with this name in mind. The formation patch was a red spearhead with the words USA written horizontally and CANADA written vertically. The branch of service insignia

3276-457: The Germans. The 5th Army Staff had guessed that the battle would last between 4–5 days, but within two hours, the Germans on La Difensa had retreated to La Remetanea. When informed by General Eisenhower that the FSSF had taken Monte la Difensa, Prime Minister Winston Churchill exclaimed that Frederick was "the greatest fighting general of all time". Previously, American and British forces had suffered many casualties in futile attempts to take

3367-530: The Italian campaign of World War II, it was commanded by Frederick and attached to the United States Fifth Army . In August 1944, the Force was attached to 1st Airborne Task Force (commanded by then Major General Frederick) for the campaign in southern France. The unit was organized in 1942 and trained at Fort William Henry Harrison near Helena, Montana , in the United States. The Force served in

3458-687: The Norwegian mountains to establish a covert base on the Jostedalsbreen , a large glacier plateau in German-occupied Norway, for guerrilla actions against the German army of occupation. Equipped with Pyke's proposed snow vehicle, they would attack strategic targets, such as 14 important hydroelectric power plants. Pyke persuaded Mountbatten that such a force would be virtually invulnerable in its glacier strongholds and would tie down large numbers of German troops trying to dislodge it. However, given

3549-518: The OPP for over an hour. George was declared dead at 12:20 a.m. on September 7 at nearby Strathroy Middlesex General Hospital, in Strathroy, Ontario . Acting Sergeant Ken Deane (October 1961 – February 25, 2006) was convicted of criminal negligence causing death. Deane's defence was that he had believed that Dudley George was carrying a rifle. The judge rejected Deane's claim, stating that he had invented it "in an ill-fated attempt to disguise

3640-642: The SSF Headquarters and Signals Squadron were airborne, as were a platoon provided from 2 Field Ambulance and a Tactical Air Movements Section from 2 Service Battalion . In keeping with the Total Force concept that evolved in the late 1980s a number of combat arms units of the Army Reserve were assigned operational taskings to provide subordinate units in order to augment the Special Service Force when required. These sub-units were provided by units from

3731-577: The Southwest and on the Pacific coast. The letters called for single men, aged 21–35 with three or more years of grammar school . Occupations preferred: Rangers, lumberjacks, north woodsmen, hunters, prospectors, explorers, and game wardens. Married men were not accepted for the Force. Inspection teams also scoured the western camps for ideal candidates. Those chosen, due to the secrecy of the mission, were often told that they had been selected to undergo training for

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3822-516: The Special Service Force, while mastering the equipment and tactical doctrine that give it wide employability in a range of possible taskings. 1st Special Service Force The 1st Special Service Force was an elite joint American–Canadian commando unit in World War II , formed by Lieutenant Colonel Robert T. Frederick of the Operations Division of the U.S. General Staff. During

3913-502: The T-15 cargo carrier, which later became the M29 Weasel . In May 1942, PLOUGH was reviewed by Major Robert T. Frederick , a young officer in the Operations Division of the U.S. General Staff. Frederick predicted PLOUGH would be a military fiasco. Firstly, he argued that PLOUGH called for unrealistic objectives with the number of troops allocated. Similarly, he argued that the small, elite unit would be outnumbered and overwhelmed trying to hold

4004-559: The Williamson-Wickham agreement, Canadian soldiers were issued and wore American uniforms. Eventually, it was decided that the uniforms would come from an American supplier and olive drab trousers and blouses were issued. Two uniform elements differentiated an American from a Canadian: the collar insignia had either "U.S." or "Canada" above the crossed arrows; and Americans wore American metal ID tags and Canadians wore Canadian ID discs. Frederick instructed Major Orville Baldwin to develop

4095-457: The basics in two weeks. At this point the men were made to ski cross-country in formation from dawn until dusk with all of their equipment until they were up to Norwegian army standards. As a light infantry unit destined for alpine or winter combat, the FSSF was issued various items of non-standard clothing, equipment and rations, including skis, parkas , haversacks and the Mountain ration . From

4186-604: The battlefield. This training would later prove to be of crucial importance at Monte Majo. Frederick's staff even considered arming the men with blow darts but it was decided against on the grounds that it may have been considered a war crime. Frederick himself participated in the design of a fighting knife made exclusively for the FSSF called the V-42 combat knife , a derivative of the Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife . Legend has it that while carrying out beachhead operations at Anzio ,

4277-490: The common stereotype of a scientist-engineer-inventor: in British slang, a " boffin ". This was part of the British approach to encouraging innovative warfare methods and weapons during World War II, which was personally backed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill . Hobart's Funnies are another example. While working for the British Combined Operations Command , Pyke devised a plan for the creation of

4368-402: The councillor's car was from a rock thrown by one of the protesters who took exception to an article the councillor had written disapproving of the occupation. A rumour started that the protesters smashed up the vehicle of a female driver with baseball bats, a report that was later found by Justice Sidney Linden to be false and misleading. Out of public safety concerns, the OPP decided to deploy

4459-820: The country with 49% of its total power, might drive the Axis powers out of the country and give the Allies a direct link to the USSR. In Romania, there were the strategically important Ploiești oil fields that met one quarter of German consumption, and Italian hydroelectric plants powered most of south German industry. Pyke requested that a tracked vehicle be developed especially for the Norwegian operations, capable of carrying men and their equipment at high speed across snow-covered terrain. In March 1942 Pyke proposed Project PLOUGH to Lord Louis Mountbatten , Chief of Combined Operations Headquarters. Pyke suggested that Allied commandos be parachuted into

4550-519: The crowd management unit (CMU) to force the protesters back into the park. The CMU was a riot squad armed with steel batons, shields and helmets. The CMU was backed up by a tactical response unit (TRU). The OPP intended a show of force to move the protesters back inside the park. On Wednesday evening, police riot squads marched down to the Sandy Parking Lot to confront the protesters. As the CMU advanced,

4641-420: The death of Dudley George. The inquiry was also asked to make recommendations that would avoid violence in similar circumstances in the future. The inquiry was neither a civil nor criminal trial. During the inquiry, a 17-minute tape recording surfaced that cast new light on the events at Ipperwash. The tape records a conversation between OPP Inspector Ron Fox and Inspector John Carson, the OPP commander overseeing

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4732-460: The decades-old land claims. After the park closed at 6:00 p.m., protestors cut back a fence and by 7:30 had moved vehicles into the park. About thirty-five protestors occupied the park. The protestors had been threatening occupation since the spring. The original police strategy was to co-occupy the park peacefully with the First Nations. But when a protester from the group smashed the window of

4823-575: The demands upon both Combined Operations and British industry, Britain instead offered PLOUGH to the United States at the Chequers Conference of March 1942. General George Marshall , Chief of Staff of the United States Army , accepted PLOUGH. In April 1942, since no suitable vehicle existed, the US government asked automobile manufacturers to look into such a design. Studebaker subsequently created

4914-527: The effect of "I don't recall" on 134 separate occasions in her in-chief testimony. Former Ontario Attorney General Charles Harnick also testified that Harris shouted, "I want the fucking Indians out of the park." Later witnesses denied Harnick's evidence, but the Ipperwash Inquiry concluded that Harnick's testimony was credible and that Premier Harris did in fact make the remarks (Report of the Ipperwash Inquiry, Vol.1, p. 363). Harris appeared before

5005-557: The evenings from Monday to Friday. Soldiers were given Saturday evenings and Sundays off. Most of the men went into Helena to relax on their days off. Marches were done on a 60-mile (97 km) course. The course record was set by the First Regiment of Colonel A. C. Marshall, which completed it in twenty hours. The FSSF trained with enemy weapons, taking them apart, reassembling and shooting them until they were as proficient with them as with their own. The hand-to-hand combat instructor

5096-589: The fact that an unarmed man had been shot". He sentenced Deane to a conditional sentence of two years less a day to be served in the community, and 180 hours of community service . Deane unsuccessfully appealed the verdict to the Ontario Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada . In September 2001, he pled guilty to discreditable conduct under the Police Services Act and in January 2002

5187-520: The flooding of both the Rapido and Garigliano rivers prevented the Germans from reforming. While waiting for the orders to attack Remetanea, the 2nd Regiment were resupplied by the 1st and 3rd Regiments, who brought them whiskey and condoms (to keep the barrels of their guns dry in the rain). Once the British forces broke through the German lines at Monte Camino, the FSSF was ordered to attack their primary objective (Hill 907). The successful assault on Difensa

5278-405: The gun pits on the lower slopes and then proceeding with the middle slopes, without arousing any defensive alarms from the German positions. Prince then returned with his patrol to the Force forward outposts to give his report to Capt. Radcliffe. The main attack led by Capt. Mark Radcliffe immediately followed Prince's action. Radcliffe's men passed by the now silent machine gun bunkers and reached

5369-408: The highest casualties of the Force in any battle. While the main German positions were located on the summit of Monte Majo, the heights of the mountain were guarded and surrounded by layers of German artillery and machine gun pits located on the approaching slopes. Lt. Col. Tom Gilday of 2nd Regiment planned a preliminary night action to clear an assault route through this defensive shield. Tommy Prince

5460-447: The important Camino ridge. The 1st SSF took their initial objective of La Difensa, but the attack on Monte La Remetanea (Hill 907) was halted after the death of 1st Battalion CO Lt. Col. T. C. MacWilliam. While Frederick wanted the attack to continue, he ordered a halt in the advance on 907 to wait for reinforcements and supplies. The FSSF dug in at Difensa, anticipating a German counterattack. However, massive Allied artillery barrages and

5551-522: The inquiry on February 14, 2006. He testified that he had never said the statement attributed to him by Harnick. Justice Linden "found the statements were made and they were racist, whether intended or not". The evidentiary hearings of the inquiry ended on June 28, 2006. Justice Linden's final report and findings of the inquiry were released on May 31, 2007. Along with 100 recommendations meant to enhance government relations with First Nations and to prevent similar escalation of violence in future situations,

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5642-533: The land after the war ended. The band rejected the offer, however, under the War Measures Act , the federal government expropriated the lands from the Stoney Point Reserve and established Military Camp Ipperwash . The First Nations claim that the grounds contain a burial site. As of 2010, archaeological surveys have established that such a site does indeed exist. As early as 1993, while Camp Ipperwash

5733-403: The latter. General Frederick had cards printed up with the FSSF insignia and the words Das dicke Ende kommt noch! or "The worst is yet to come" printed in red ink down the right side to be left on the bodies of dead Germans as a form of psychological warfare. This was so effective that Sergeant Victor Kaisner reported hearing a German soldier whisper "Schwarzer Teufel" ("Black Devil") as

5824-458: The men into Norway. Additionally, significant aircraft would be necessary to drop the Weasels and resupply the force. Ultimately, he concluded that a small unit of elite men would not do enough damage to justify the risk of putting them into battle. He instead proposed a series of strategic bombings to achieve the plan's objectives. Generals Marshall and Eisenhower had already discussed PLOUGH with

5915-543: The nickname "the Devil's Brigade". In 1977, 2 Combat Group combined with the Canadian Airborne Regiment to form the Special Service Force, a formation of the Canadian Army . This latter-day Special Service Force represented a compromise between the general-purpose combat capabilities of a normal brigade and the strategic and tactical flexibility that derived from the lighter and more mobile capabilities of

6006-509: The outset that the soldiers from both countries would have trouble forming a cohesive unit. On a base level, the techniques and commands used by either army were confusing to the other. Commands for marching, for example, had to be homogenized in order for the unit to operate in the field effectively. In order to satisfy the men from both countries, compromises were made. Canadian bagpipers were put into American unit marching bands to play " Reveille " every morning. The marching styles and commands of

6097-502: The outset, the FSSF was armed with a variety of non-standard or limited-issue weapons, such as the M1941 Johnson machine gun . The Johnson light machine gun in particular helped greatly increase the firepower of the FSSF and was highly regarded by those who used it in combat. The men were also trained meticulously in the assembly and operation of German weapons in the event that it became necessary to utilize captured German machine guns on

6188-476: The park to assist the protesters in their fight against police. According to police officers, there was gunfire from these vehicles, but First Nations protesters have insisted they had no weapons in the park that night. The OPP TRU teams opened fire on the vehicles, resulting in the wounding of two Native protesters and the death of Dudley George, an Ojibwa protestor. Among the TRU members was Acting Sergeant Ken "Tex" Deane,

6279-584: The picture. The First Special Service Force (FSSF) was activated on 9 July 1942 as a joint Canadian-U.S. force of three small regiments and a service battalion, directly answerable to the joint Chiefs of Staff. US Army Fort William Henry Harrison in Helena, Montana , was chosen as the primary training location, due to its flat terrain for airborne training and its close proximity to mountains for ski and winter training. Frederick had very high priority in obtaining equipment and training areas. Originally, due to its winter warfare mission, it had been intended that

6370-468: The police the following day, and Beaubien also contacted the office of Premier Harris, in an attempt to put pressure on the government to intervene. On September 5, 1995, the premier and several government officials met to discuss the Ipperwash protest. The meeting notes concluded that "the province will take steps to remove the occupiers as soon as possible." On Wednesday, the OPP became concerned about

6461-438: The protesters initially retreated and the CMU responded by also retreating. One protester, Cecil Bernard George, approached the police (peacefully according to the protesters, violently according to police reports). George was taken down and surrounded by police and arrested. Protesters attempted to rescue George from the arrest by the police units. This resulted in a riot. A car and a school bus driven by protesters started out of

6552-519: The province and the Chippewas, with consultation from the surrounding community, for the time being. According to Aboriginal Affairs Minister Michael Bryant , the land will be fully returned over an unspecified period of time, until the Chippewas have full control. On Thursday May 28, 2009, Ontario Aboriginal Affairs Minister Brad Duguid formally signed over control of Ipperwash Park to the Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation. The settlement

6643-582: The report found that "the appropriation of the Stony Point reserve by the Government of Canada in 1942 was unprecedented in Canadian history." On December 20, 2007, the Ontario government announced its intention to return the 56-hectare Ipperwash Provincial Park to its original owners, the Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation. The decision did not take immediate effect, as the land will be "co-managed" by

6734-409: The resulting reduction in the parachute capability, the Special Service Force was redesignated as 2 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group (CMBG) by a ministerial order signed on 24 April 1995. This decision and the associated reorganizing and re-equipping of the formation are a reflection of the current emphasis in Canadian defence policy on general purpose capabilities. With a smaller force structure,

6825-533: The retreating Germans to help repel these counter-attacks. Ipperwash The Ipperwash Crisis was a dispute over Indigenous land that took place in Ipperwash Provincial Park , Ontario , on September 4, 1995. Several members of the Stoney Point Ojibway band occupied the park to assert claim to nearby land which had been expropriated from them during the Second World War . During

6916-713: The standoff at Ipperwash, prior to George's death. They discussed Premier Mike Harris's view that the government has "tried to pacify and pander to these people far too long" and to use "swift affirmative action" to remove them from the park. Other testimony has further put the Harris government in a bad light. In particular, former Harris aide Deb Hutton repeatedly testified in November, 2005 that she couldn't remember any specific conversations. This led Julian Falconer, acting as counsel for Aboriginal Legal Services of Toronto, to pointedly remark on cross-examination that Hutton had used phrases to

7007-406: The summit without firing a single bullet, the Germans taken by total surprise. The Monte Majo positions were secured by 05:30. However, following the loss of the summit to the Force, the Germans almost immediately launched large scale counter-attacks to attempt to recapture the summit which persisted throughout several days of fierce fighting. The Force made use of heavy machine guns left behind by

7098-460: The west. These positions were held by the 104th Panzer Grenadier Regiment (an infantry formation) with the 1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division Hermann Göring (an armored division) in reserve. The German positions on La Difensa and La Remetanea were the last entrenched line before the Gustav Line . An Allied push through the mountains would advance closer to Rome. Strategically, the mountains provided

7189-688: The world. They served in Cyprus, Somalia, the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Namibia and internally at the protests in Ipperwash and southeastern Ontario. The following units were serving in the SSF on disbandment in 1995: With the addition of Leopard tanks for the RCD, M109 howitzers for 2 RCHA and the addition of the 2nd Battalion, the Royal Canadian Regiment, and the disbandment of the Canadian Airborne Regiment and

7280-596: Was Dermot (Pat) O'Neill, an ex- Shanghai International Police Officer , who was an expert at unarmed combat. O'Neill, who was well-versed in several forms of martial arts, taught the men to attack the eyes, throat, groin, and knees. He also taught knife fighting tactics and showed the men how to quick-draw their pistols. The men attacked one another with unsheathed bayonets as part of the training exercises and injuries were common. Ski training, taught by Norwegian instructors, began in December. The men received lectures and demonstrations on skiing techniques and most had mastered

7371-466: Was alleged to have said to the OPP "I want the fucking Indians out of the park", according to a former attorney general. Eight other present witnesses denied this allegation, however the Ipperwash Inquiry concluded that Premier Harris did in fact make the remarks. The ensuing controversy was a major event in Canadian politics. In 2003 a provincial inquiry, the Ipperwash Inquiry , was started after

7462-414: Was being shelled and the whole mountain seemed to be on fire." The soldiers of the 2nd Regiment came within range of the German positions at midnight and began to climb the final cliff, which jutted steeply upwards for 1,000 feet (300 m). The men climbed with ropes tied to one another in the freezing rain. Upon reaching the top, MacWilliam signaled his men to move forward into a depression in front of

7553-534: Was completed before any other because it was believed that if all the soldiers earned their jumping badges simultaneously a sense of camaraderie would develop within the camp. The men were on a strict and physically demanding three phase training schedule: 1) From August to October: parachuting, weapons, and demolitions usage, small unit tactics and physical training. 2) From October to November: unit tactics and problem solving. 3) From November to July: skiing , rock climbing , adaptation to cold climates and operation of

7644-564: Was launched on November 12, 2003, after the Ontario Conservatives lost power to Dalton McGuinty's Ontario Liberal Party in the 2003 election . The public inquiry was funded by the Government of Ontario but conducted by a neutral third party, Sidney B. Linden , pursuant to his powers as commissioner established under the Ontario Public Inquiries Act . The inquiry's mandate was to inquire and report on events surrounding

7735-427: Was ordered to lead a scout patrol and accomplish this mission with complete silence during the night. Prince, an expert in stealth combat, proceeded to a point near the lower slopes where he left his men behind as a support group. He then single-handedly approached and entered the gun emplacements. Prince eliminated the enemy gun platoons in the bunkers blocking the projected assault route one after another, beginning with

7826-429: Was ordered to resign. He later worked in security at an Ontario Hydro nuclear station. On February 25, 2006, he died in a car accident when his vehicle collided with a semi-truck near Prescott . He died at the scene. He was to testify at the Ipperwash inquiry in a few weeks. The George family repeatedly called on the Ontario and federal governments to launch an inquiry into the events at Ipperwash. A public inquiry

7917-573: Was still being used as a summer training centre for the Royal Canadian Army Cadets , band members had occupied portions of the camp and the adjacent piece of land. After the summer of 1993, the government moved the cadet camp to CFB Borden . There was growing tension about the base at Camp Ipperwash. On Labour Day Monday, September 4, 1995, a group of people started a protest in Ipperwash Provincial Park to draw attention to

8008-639: Was the basis for the 1968 motion picture titled The Devil's Brigade . During the Monte la Difensa campaign the 1st SSF units engaged suffered 77% casualties: 511 total, 91 dead, 9 missing, 313 wounded with 116 exhaustion cases. They were relieved by the 142nd Infantry. The 1st SSF immediately continued its attack, assaulting Monte La Remetanea from 6 to 9 December. It captured Hill 720, starting from Monte Sammucro on 25 December, and after difficulties assaulted Monte Majo and Monte Vischiataro almost simultaneously on 8 January 1944. The attack on Monte Majo would sustain

8099-690: Was the crossed arrows formerly worn by the United States Army Indian Scouts . The FSSF wore red, white, and blue piping on their garrison caps , and on the breast an oval (or trimming) behind their Parachutist Wings . Members of the FSSF also wore a red, white, and blue fourragère , lanyard , or shoulder cord made out of parachute suspension lines. American members of the FSSF arrived for training in Helena in standard U.S. Army attire: green twill coveralls, some wearing khaki pants and fatigue hats. Others were dressed in trousers and green uniform jackets and wore green caps. Ultimately, however,

8190-542: Was the first Allied formation to enter the city. The 1st Special Service Force then advanced as far as the Tiber before being deployed for the invasion of southern France, where it spearheaded the landing force. After seeing action on the Franco-Italian border, the joint force was disbanded and the Canadian element was separated. It, too, was disbanded in December 1944, having fought well, earning ten battle honours and been given

8281-435: Was transferred after arguing with Mountbatten and Eisenhower about the feasibility of the plan. (Johnson went on to form and command the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment .) He was replaced by Frederick, following a suggestion by Mountbatten, which was approved by Eisenhower. Frederick was given the task of creating a fighting unit for PLOUGH and was promoted to colonel to command it. By July 1942 Frederick had eased Pyke out of

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