Rangers Lead the WayCol William Orlando DarbyCol William Orlando Darby (Feb 8, 1911 – Apr 30, 1945) was an US Army officer who fought during WW-2 and was killed in action in Italy. He was posthumously promoted to brigadier general. Darby’s first assignment was as assistant executive and supply officer with the 82nd Field Artillery at Fort Bliss (Texas). In July 1934, he transferred to Cloudcroft (New Mexico), where he commanded the 1st Cavalry Division detachment. He received intensive artillery training from September 1937 to June 1938 while attending Field Artillery School at Fort Sill (Oklahoma).

On September 9, 1940, he was promoted to captain and subsequently served with the 80th Division at Camp Jackson (South Carolina); Fort Benning (Georgia); Camp Beauregard (Louisiana) and Fort Des Moines (Iowa). While WW-2 progressed, Darby saw rapid promotion to the grade of lieutenant colonel. He was with the first US troops sent to Northern Ireland after the US entry into war and during his stay there, he became interested in the British Commandos.

US 34th Infantry DivisionOn June 19, 1942, the 1st Ranger Battalion was activated and began training in Carrickfergus (Northern Ireland). When the US Army decided to establish its Ranger units, Darby gained the desired assignment to direct their organization and training. Many of the original Rangers were volunteers from the Red Bull Division (34th Infantry Division), a National Guard Division and the first ground combat troops to arrive in Europe. Darby’s Rangers trained with their British counterparts in Scotland. Finally, in 1943, the 1st Ranger Battalion made its first assault at Arzew (North Africa).

William O. DarbyDarby was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions on March 21–25 during Operation Torch. The citation stated: Col Darby struck with his force with complete surprise at dawn in the rear of a strongly fortified enemy position. Always conspicuously at the head of his troops, he personally led assaults against the enemy line in the face of heavy machine-gun and artillery fire, establishing the fury of the Ranger attack by his skillful employment of hand grenades in close-quarter fighting. On Mar 22, Col Darby directed his battalion in advance on Bon Hamedan, capturing prisoners and destroying a battery of self-propelled artillery..

The 1st Ranger Battalion saw further action in the Italian Campaign. Darby received a second award (oak leaf cluster) of the DSC for extraordinary heroism in July 1943, in Sicily: Lt Col Darby, with the use of one 37-MM gun, which he personally manned, managed not only to repulse an enemy attack but succeeded with this weapon in destroying one tank, while two others were accounted for by well-directed hand grenade fire.

US 45th Infantry DivisionDarby was also awarded the Silver Star for his actions in North Africa on February 12, 1943: without regard for his personal safety, the day previous to a raid, he reconnoitered enemy positions and planned the attack which he led the following morning.

The thorough organization and successful attack led by Col Darby revealed his initiative, courage, and devotion to duty which is a credit to the Armed Forces of the United States.

US 45th Infantry DivisionUS Army Ground ForcesDarby took part in the Allied invasion of Italy in September 1943 and was promoted to full colonel on December 11, 1943. He commanded the 179-ID (45-ID) during the Rome-Arno and Anzio campaigns from February 18 to April 2, 1944. He was then ordered to Washington DC for duty with the Army Ground Forces and later with the War Department General Staff at the Pentagon. In March 1945, he returned to Italy for an observation tour with Gen Henry H. Arnold.

US 10th Mountain DivisionUS 5th ArmyOn April 23, 1945, Gen Robinson E. Duff, ADC (Assistant Division Commander) of the US 10th Mountain Division, was wounded; Darby took over for Duff. Task Force Darby spearheaded the breakout of the American 5-A from the Po River Valley bridgehead during the spring of 1945 offensive and reached Torbole at the head of Lake Garda. On April 30, while Darby was issuing orders for the attack on Trento to cut off a German retreat, an artillery shell burst in the middle of the assembled officers and NCOs, killing Darby, a sergeant, and wounding several others.

IllustrationTask Force Darby continued with their mission. Two days later, on May 2, all German forces in Italy surrendered. William O. Darby, aged 34 at the time of his death, was posthumously promoted to brigadier general on May 15. He was buried in Cisterna (Italy), and later re-interred at Fort Smith National Cemetery, Fort Smith (Arkansas) on March 11, 1949.

Djebel el Ank – 1942 – Preparation

1st Ranger BattalionThe 1st Ranger Battalion went into action as a unit for the first time on November 8, 1942, during Operation Torch, the landings into French Morocco (North Africa). The Rangers made a surprise night landing in and north of Arzew (Algeria) neutralized its main coastal defenses and captured its docks. Due largely to rigorous training and thorough planning, they accomplished their mission with the loss of only one Ranger life (Subject letter ‘Commando Organization’ from Gen James W. Chaney to CG-USANIF, June 1, 1942). Before and after Arzew, however, the Rangers began to evolve from a lightly armed unit organized to conduct special operations into a more heavily armed force organized for conventional combat. This was the result of two tendencies that reinforced one another throughout the existence of Darby’s Rangers. The first tendency was the adoption of heavier weapons than were specified in the Rangers’ original Table of Equipment (TOE) because of the occasional need for more firepower. The second tendency was the use of the Rangers in conventional operations when necessary or expedient. Ironically, the more the Rangers were used as conventional infantry, the more firepower they needed; and the more firepower they got, the more likely it became that the headquarters that controlled them would use them conventionally.

Good Old 1911 45 ACPCol Darby accommodated this evolution. He had been commissioned into the field artillery when he graduated from West Point in 1933 and had served only with artillery units until he became Hartle’s aide-de-camp in January 1942. After he took command of the 1st Ranger Battalion, he retained such a strong, appreciation of artillery that the battalion executive officer, Maj Herman Dammer, would later say that Darby had a fetish for firepower. The transition began during the planning for Operation Torch when Darby temporarily replaced the battalion’s 60-MM mortars with 81-MM tubes because he believed the latter would be more effective against the fortified positions that guarded Arzew. It proved to be a wise decision as the French defenders of the Batterie Superieure, one of Arzew major forts, resisted, and it was necessary for the Rangers to use the mortars against it.

US 1st Infantry DivisionAlthough the Rangers accomplished their mission quickly and smoothly, troops advancing inland did not have the advantage of surprise and encountered more determined French resistance, Gen Terry Allen, CG of the 1-ID, to which the 1-RB was attached, called upon the battalion to assist in conventional operations. During November 9 and November 10, Easy Co and elements of the 16-IR (1-ID) captured the town of la Macta (Sidi Bel Abbès), and on November 10, Charlie Co helped the 18-IR (1-ID) to take Saint Cloud.

Thompson M1-A1 45ACPThree Rangers were killed in the fight for the latter town. The use of the Rangers in conventional infantry operations only fourteen and one-half hours after they had set foot in North Africa bothered some of the men. What was the purpose in organizing and training Rangers for Commando-type operations if they are going to be frittered away in mass battles, thought Ranger James Altieri. Dammer, however, sensed no resentment by Darby over the La Macta and Saint Cloud battles. He seemed to believe that there had been a job to do and that the Rangers had done it. The Rangers were not used in combat for almost three months following Arzew but trained near the city and were then assigned to Gen Mark Wayne Clark’s Fifth Army Invasion Training Center (ITC) as a demonstration and experimental troops. Many men transferred out of the battalion during this period, believing that the war was passing them by and Darby found it necessary to recruit new volunteers. On January 31, 1943, 7 officer and 101 enlisted replacements reported for duty and were formed into a seventh company that Darby had established for training purposes. No longer attached to the British, the Rangers now had to train themselves.

North Africa Illustration

Quite naturally, many of the training techniques introduced by the British were kept by Darby, and speed marching, cliff climbing, rappelling, and night amphibious landings continued to be integral parts of the Rangers Regiment. Darby strongly emphasized the buddy system or working in pairs. The men chose their own buddies from within their own platoons and then ate, performed details, and trained as a team. In what was called the Bullet and Bayonet course, the men negotiated obstacles and reacted to surprise targets in buddy teams. Each team going through the course advanced using fire and maneuver and fire and movement. Another course, called Me and My Pal, was similar in concept but served as a street-fighting exercise.

William Darby and Terry Allen – Combat Report

En route to Arzew, the Rangers continuously reviewed their plans. Every platoon and section reviewed their missions. Plaster of Paris models, maps, and intelligence reports were analyzed to find any flaws in their assault plans. The Dieppe Raid was a vivid reminder that proper planning depended on timely intelligence and recon reports. There were two coastal batteries at Arzew, and the Rangers decided that a simultaneous attack was the best way to execute their mission. The Dammer Force, named after Darby’s right-hand man Capt Herman Dammer, consisted of Able and Baker Cos and seized the smaller gun battery at the Fort de la Pointe. The rest of the Rangers, code-named the Darby Force, landed 4 miles northwest, infiltrated and attacked from the rear to secure the larger gun emplacements of the Batterie du Nord. These operations were executed with few casualties on November 8, 1942, a tribute to the Rangers’ meticulous planning and training. After the successful attacks on Arzew, some Ranger companies assisted in mop-up operations of nearby towns. Training continued to keep the men sharp. They were attached to the 5th Infantry Training Center at Arzew to act as a demonstration unit for the newly founded amphibious-assault depot. January 1943 saw the formation of George Co which was to train 106 replacements for the Rangers. Dog Co, which had been reorganized temporarily as an 81-MM mortar unit in Dundee, returned to its original function as an assault company. On February 11, 1943, Able, Easy, and Fox Cos, 1st Rangers set out to raid Italian positions at Station de Sened (Tunisia), which was defended by the Italian Centauro Division and the elite Bersaglieri Mountain troops. With eight miles of rough terrain to cover, the Rangers carried only a canteen of water, one C ration, and a shelter-half each. The raid was carefully planned and exceeded all expectations. After closely fought combat, it resulted in at least 50 Italian dead and 12 prisoners from the famed 10th Bersaglieri Regiment. Five officers and nine enlisted men were awarded the Silver Star for their part in the Sened raid.

For Darby's Rangers, better than a Runner will always be a Motorized MessengerAs in Northern Ireland and Scotland, realism was achieved through the use of live ammunition. Men simulating the enemy used captured German and Italian weapons so the new Rangers would learn to distinguish between the sounds of American and enemy guns. Thus, if a training problem required the taking of a machine-gun nest, a captured enemy machine gun would be set up to fire live ammunition in a fixed direction. After the new men completed their initial hardening, most trainings were done at night. When tactical problems were conducted during darkness, Rangers simulating the enemy added to the realism by using flares. The Rangers also experimented with techniques of controlling tactical formations at night. Darby favored moving the battalion to an objective in a column for ease of control. Once the objective was reached and the companies went abreast in preparation for the assault, dim, shielded, colored lights were used to maintain formation. Each company used a different colored light. When a company reached a predetermined location, it would signal its position to the rear. Company commanders would signal with uninterrupted beams, while platoon leaders would signal with dots and dashes. Darby, who would temporarily be to the rear where he could see the lights, could then be certain that his men were where they were supposed to be when beginning an assault.

1st Ranger BattalionThe 1-RB took part in several major actions during the month of February and March of 1943. On February 11, Darby led Able, Easy, Fox Cos, and HQs element on a night raid against Italian front line positions near the city of Sened located in the triangle Majoura – A Sanad – Gafsa, in central Tunisia. The attacking Rangers, carrying out a mission appropriate to their training and organization, killed or wounded an estimated seventy-five Italians, destroyed one AT gun, five machine-guns, and captured eleven members of the 10th Bersaglieri Regiment at the cost of one of their own men killed and twenty wounded.

The TOE authorized the battalion 441 enlisted men. 488 men included a small over strength in each grade to offset attrition anticipated during training. The 1-RB withdrew with the II Corps prior to the battle of the Kasserine Pass, February 19/22, and remained in defensive positions south of Bou Chebka until March. From February 16 through March 1, the Rangers were involved in several clashes in which they killed six Italians, captured eight Italians and eight Germans, and destroyed three-wheeled vehicles and captured another three.

Destroyed German Armor

British 8th ArmyUS II CorpsOne Ranger was killed or captured while on patrol during this period. With the end of the Axis’ February offensive, the Allies began to prepare for the next phase of the Tunisian Campaign, Montgomery’s Eighth Army would attack northward along Tunisia east coast, while the II Corps and the British First Army would threaten the enemy from the west and draw his reserves away toward the west. By mid-March, the British 8-A had driven the Axis forces westward until the latter took up defensive positions along the Mareth Line. The line was about twenty-five miles long and extended northeast from the vicinity of Cheguimu in the Matmata Hills toward the Wadi Zigzauo, and along the wadi to the Gulf of Gabes. The 8-A was to begin an attack on the line during the night of March 16. The II Corps, over which Patton had recently assumed command, would play a supporting role in the attack.

US 9th Infantry DivisionUS 34th Infantry DivisionOperation Wop, as the II Corps’ role was named, called for the corps to capture and hold Gafsa, which would then serve as a logistical base for the British 8-A. After taking Gafsa, the II Corps would conduct operations toward Maknassy to threaten Axis lines of communication and supply. This plan would require the 9-ID and 34-ID to defend the approaches to Rohia, Sbeitla, Kasserine, and Bou Chebka while the 1-ID took Gafsa. The 1-AD (Reinforced) would then advance on Maknassy.

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