"George Washington's Commandos: Special Ops During ..." Topic

…the American Revolution.

"When most of us think of U.S. special-operations forces, Delta Force and the Green Berets come to mind.

But George Washington and his Continental Army? What did an eighteenth-century military force that marched to fife and drum and lined up in rows to blast away with muskets at fifty paces know about special ops?

But Special Operations in the American Revolution, by retired U.S. Army colonel Robert Tonsetic, explains that unconventional warfare was a major part of the War of Independence.

Tonsetic begins by noting that special forces have a long tradition in America, dating back to King Philip's War of 1675, when the Plymouth Colony formed "an experimental company of men who would train and operate using Native American tactics to attack Indian war parties, and raid their camps in the dense forests and swamps."…"
Full article here
link

Amicalement
Armand

I have the book. Its OK. Provides some fodder for skirmish games. Some interesting stories. but it stretches a bit by calling it "special ops". I suspect that was for sales.

Agreed. Very tenuous link.

In Europe during the War of the Austrian Succession (WAS) and Seven Years War (SYW), it was called the kleinekrieg (little war) and was fought by all sorts of light forces, both foot and mounted.

I agree with Pan Marek that the title was probably a publicity gimmick to generate sales.

Jim

I can just see Jone Paul Jones' Otter team 3, being landed by the Turtle, emerging from the surf of the Bristol Channel and hearing their muskets go click! from the powder being soaked…

I can stogy recommend Nathaniel Philbrick's "Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War"
link

The book really focuses very heavily on King Phillip's War. In this war, Benjamin Church basically lays down the prototype for the modern US Special Forces. His "unit" has a small cadre of "Puritans" that essentially leads a force of "friendly" Indians and adopts Indian tactics against the more "hostile" tribes, while the main Puritan force still operates under more of a contemporary European military model with limited effectiveness. I found the account of Church's exploits fascinating.

Sounds like a good book.The special operations book I found quite enjoyable even if the title is a little too much.
Mark

It's a good book. Its account on Knowlton's Rangers, and supported by additional research information, inspired me to do a scenario based on the unit's skirmish in the opening action that developed into the Battle of Harlem Heights (using Muskets & Tomahawks, and with the game units being battalion/regiments).