By How Miller.

“The Jedburghs” by Bill Irwin is an illuminating portrayal of the direct predecessors of the U.S. Army Special Forces. Each of us can picture ourselves in the roles depicted, and hope that we would have been as resourceful and lucky to have overcome the obstacles before us.

The Jedburghs were the core of what an A-Team is today. After rigorous recruitment, selection, and training, a select few were chosen to be parachuted in as part of a Jedburgh team, sometimes referred to as a “Jed.” Typically a Jed would be a three man team including a radio operator and two officers. At least one of the team was to be indigenous to the area of operation, and a minimum of one had to be either a Brit from SOE or an American from OSS. Most were also multi-lingual.

The book, both extensively researched over twenty years, and told from multiple perspectives, shows the process of assisting and guiding the many active and potential resisters of Nazi occupation in France and beyond. The uncountable number of acts of bravery by those Maquis were made more effective by the equally brave, tenacious, and wise British SOE and the American OSS working side by side with them, providing arms, training, and coordination with the Allied Armed Forces. All the high-ranking generals expressed their deep appreciation of how much the resistance accomplished, both in direct actions and in intelligence provided. For example, it is quite possible the Normandy invasion may have failed without their help.

The breadth of the story gives the reader both an overall understanding of the process and the importance to the Allied Victory, as well as a very relatable recounting of the ground actions of several Jedburgh teams. Some very familiar names are shown in their earlier days, such as “Wild” Bill Donovan, Aaron Bank, and William Colby, along with the first official naming of Special Force HQ.

I was struck by the many parallels described by COL(Ret) Mark Rosengard at SFACON 2022 with Task Force DAGGER and beyond, including gaining trust and coalition building to achieve the prime objective. “By, with and through” is alive and well within the regiment.

The book, first released in 2005, is available in Kindle, audiobook, hardcover, paperback, and audio CD. It contains charts of participants and much more.

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This book review of The Jedburghs by How Miller was first published by Sentinel, a periodical of Chapter 78, Special Forces Association on July 2023. Reprinted with permission of the editor of Sentinel. The book author, Will Irwin, is a Resident Senior Fellow at the Joint Special Operations University. He is a retired U.S. Army Special Forces officer with experience as a defense analyst, researcher, historian, instructor, and writer.

Author Wieslaw Rogalski provides a detailed account of the selection, training, and employment of Polish men and women who parachuted into Nazi-occupied Poland to help form up the Polish resistance. He traces the history of this effort in Special Operations Executive: Polish Section. The primary aim of his book is to ascertain the ultimate effectiveness of SOE assistance provided to the Second Polish Republic during World War II. Attention is also given to the politics involved in British support to the Poles; but, at the same time, later in the war, ensuring the Soviet Union continues the fight on the Eastern Front.

1939. Just prior to the start of World War II, the United Kingdom and Poland signed a pact of mutual assistance which led to early contacts between British and Polish military authorities. It is here where Rogalski starts his narrative – with details about the British Military Mission to Poland in 1939. He goes on to describe the state of the Polish Army prior to the German invasion – detailing the shortages of military equipment, array of forces, and more.

1939 – German Onslaught. In September 1939 the Germans invaded Poland and overwhelmed the Polish army; although it fought bravely. The author describes the defeat and, once the Soviets invaded from the east, how some Polish forces and the government fled Poland, many eventually taking refuge in France. Of course, once the Germans attacked France, the Polish government and military forces left for Britain.

Ramping Up the Resistance and SOE. This is the point where the author describes the formation of a a large and effective Polish resistance movement within Poland called the Home Army. He also details the establishment of the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) and the subsequent formation of the “Polish Section”. Covered in the book are the relationships of the British government, Polish government in exile, SOE, Polish Section, the Air Ministry, and other organizations. The personalities of the Polish government, SOE, Polish Section, and others get a lot of attention in this book.

Selection and Training. The selection and training of the Poles was difficult and comprehensive, covering the use of weapons, communications, tradecraft, demolitions, intelligence, parachutes, and more. The training sites were located in Scotland and England; and later, at other locations around the world. The Poles enjoyed more autonomy in the SOE training program than did those from other nations who would link up with their respective resistance movements. Once fully trained the Poles were parachuted into occupied Poland to link up with the Home Army.

Air Bridge. The establishment of an air bridge to accomplish personnel infiltrations and supply drops was a difficult and dangerous task. There were several air routes for infiltrating the Poles, weapons, ammunition, communications gear, and other equipment. Various aircraft were tried, some more suited for the long two-way trip than others. The initial air infiltrations were conducted over Denmark, then the southern tip of Sweden, over the Baltic Sea and then into Poland. Later flights were launched from Italy and over the Caucasus and Hungary into Poland. Some air infiltration (and exfiltration) routes worked better than others. Hundreds of Poles would parachute into Poland from early 1941 to late 1944 from aircraft. Most of the drops sites would be in central Poland. The author provides a wealth of details about the aircraft, air infiltration routes, difficulties of getting support from the Air Ministry, and the use of Polish pilots for the infiltration and supply flights.

1941. It wasn’t long before the Germans broke their agreement with the Soviets and launched Operation Barbarossa – a widescale attack against that country in 1941. The relationship between the British and the Poles would see a drastic adjustment once the Soviet Union became an ally of Britain. Moscow had plans for Poland after the war and that did not include the survival of the Second Polish Republic; rather it wanted to establish a Communist regime. Britain had to balance its support for the Polish government in exile in London and its support to the Polish resistance movement with the need to keep the Soviets fighting on the Eastern Front. The Polish Home Army wanted to be equipped and supplied sufficiently to be able to conduct guerrilla warfare and to subsequently support an uprising of the Polish people against the Germans. However, according to the author, the British were content to supply just enough assistance through the air drops to support sabotage, subversion, and intelligence gathering.

Relevance to Current Events. Although this book covers events decades ago, in World War II, it has relevance to today’s security environment in Europe. In World War II resistance movements formed under Nazi occupation were supported by the Special Operations Executive (SOE) and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Today, a similar construct is occurring – Russian forces occupying eastern Ukraine and resistance by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in a conventional fight; but also special operations and resistance activities taking place behind the lines in the Russian occupied territories.

Supporting a Resistance Movement in Today’s World. In light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine; the Nordic, Baltic, and East European countries are prudent in improving their ability to deter or delay a Russian invasion until NATO can respond. In the future, it is possible that Western nations could be providing assistance to guerrillas and an underground in Russian occupied countries. However, the world has changed since World War II – and assisting a resistance movement the way it was done in the 1940s would not work well today. A read of Rogalski’s book provides a good account of the logistical difficulties of supporting a resistance movement in a Russian-occupied Eastern European country.

ROC. When the Russians first invaded eastern Ukraine and Crimea in 2014, Special Operations Command Europe (SOCEUR) became very active in providing advice, support, and training to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Much of this training was in accordance with the Resistance Operating Concept – a method with which Nordic, Baltic, and East European countries can conduct ‘resistance operations’ in the event of an invasion or occupation by Russian military forces. Just as the SOE Polish Section supported the Home Army in Poland, western SOF forces may find themselves conducting unconventional warfare and supporting resistance movements in the Baltic States, the Nordic countries, or in Eastern Europe.

A British Dilemma. The British were caught in the middle – do they support the Polish Home Army fighting in Poland and risk alienating their valuable ally, the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front? Or do they keep their relationship with the Soviets intact and ensure they continue their march on Berlin? The United Kingdom attempted to straddle the middle ground. The allies would provide just enough assistance to the Home Army to enable it to conduct sabotage, subversion, and intelligence gathering . . . and to demonstrate continued support for the Poles. However, the quantity and types of weapons and equipment that would support a general uprising were not provided. This would ensure the Soviets were not antagonized by the support provided to the Home Army; to the extent that the Soviets might scale down their campaign against Germany.

Warsaw Uprising 1944. As the Soviets were approaching Warsaw the Home Army rose up against the Germans in the summer of 1944. The British and the United States flew supplies, weapons, ammunition, money, equipment, and humanitarian supplies to Warsaw to aid the revolt. It was enough to show support for the Poles; but not enough for the uprising to be successful. The Soviets halted their advance short of Warsaw; only to continue once the Germans had defeated the Warsaw uprising (Wikipedia).

Aftermath. The end of the Second World War would see a Soviet-occupied Poland and the death of the Second Polish Republic. The Home Army was disbanded, the Polish government in exile was dissolved, and the thousands of Poles in conventional Polish military units fighting alongside Allied units around the world were discharged. After the war many were assimilated into the United Kingdom and other allied nations; choosing not to return to a Soviet-occupied Poland. The Soviets tightened their grip on Poland and established a communist regime that would last for decades. Members of the Home Army were hunted down, interrogated, imprisoned, or killed. Wieslaw Rogalski’s book is an excellent read for one who is interested in history, World War II, and resistance movements. It is also a good study on the difficulties of supporting a resistance movement in an occupied East European country.

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About the Book Author: Wieslaw Rogalski was born in England in 1950. His parents came to Britain as members of the Polish Allied Forces under British Command.

Special Operations Executive: Polish Section, The Death of the Second Polish Republic, by Wieslaw Rogalski, Helion & Company Limited, Warick, England, 2022. Available on Amazon.com and the SOF News Book Shop.

A recent book by James Stejskal, No Moon as Witness, describes the training and the missions of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) and Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during World War II. The book is a compact and concise history of the intelligence and special operations conducted by these two secret organizations.

The UK Special Operations Executive was the action arm of British intelligence and was established in the early days of World War II. It’s foundations were laid in earlier organizations established in 1938 and later when forward thinking British leaders began thinking about how to conduct unconventional warfare in light of German militaristic aggression in Europe. In July 1940 the Special Operations Executive was formed with the merger of Secret Intelligence Service’s Section ‘D’ (D was for Destruction), Military Intelligence (Research) or MI(R), and the Department of Propaganda in Enemy Countries (also known as ‘Department EH’ for Electra House).

The U.S. Office of Strategic Services was formed up in 1941. The OSS would serve as an intelligence as well as an ‘action’ organization. As World War II came onto the scene the United States had little capability for gathering intelligence or conducting unconventional warfare. In July 1941 President Roosevelt established the Coordinator of Information (COI). In June 1942 the COI became the Office of Strategic Services. Some of the OSS’s first deployments took place in early 1942 where operatives collected intelligence and prepared the way for Operation Torch – the landings in North Africa in the later part of 1942.

Like many books about special operations during World War II – this book starts out with the origins of the SOE and OSS. The author then describes the assessment, selection, and training of operatives. There is a short chapter on some of the techniques and weapons used by the SOE and OSS. The final part of the book describes some of the key operations conducted by the two organizations. The chapter on operations included those activities of the SOE and OSS from the beginning to the end of the war – in the many theaters that the organizations were present. Some of the operations that are detailed will be familiar to the reader while others are less well known.

There are a lot of books published about the SOE and OSS – many of them very thorough and excellent reads. No Moon as Witness follows the pattern of previous books on this topic – but a shorter version. However, the book is well organized and also an excellent read. It examines the close history of the SOE and OSS – and how they worked together . . . or not. In addition, the “Tools of the Trade” chapter includes images and sketches that often do not appear in other books. The timeline, glossary, and index are added features that enhance the book. Some books that I read end up going to the ‘annual used book fair’; this one is a keeper and has found a home on my reference book shelf.

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The author of No Moon as Witness, James Stejskal, is a former US Army Special Forces Chief Warrant Officer 4. After completing his service with Special Forces he served as a case officer for the Central Intelligence Agency in Africa, Europe, and the Far East. He is now a book author.

No Moon as Witness, published by Casemate Publishers (Philadelphia & Oxford) in 2021 is available at Amazon.com.
https://www.amazon.com/No-Moon-Witness-Missions-World/dp/1612009522

A book published in 2017 makes for some interesting reading about the history of British special operations in World War II. In Churchill’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare: The Mavericks Who Plotted Hitler’s Defeat the author Giles Milton provides an account of a secret commando unit of the United Kingdom. This unit formed up and evolved to provide Britain with the weapons and men needed to conduct sabotage, subversion, and guerrilla operations in Nazi-occupied Europe.

In 1939 a secret organization – Section D – was established in London that would aid in the fight against Hitler and the Germans through special operations and sabotage. The War Office’s MI(R) (a research office on guerrilla warfare), and the Foreign Office’s Department EH (a propaganda organization) had also been established with similar goals and objectives in mind – the defeat of Nazi Germany.

In 1940 Section D and the other organizations would merge together to form the Special Operations Executive (SOE). The Special Operations Executive was given the mission by Winston Churchill to “. . . set Europe ablaze”.

This book profiles the lives and activities of several men and women involved in the formation of these early special operations organizations, the training of the personnel sent to conduct operations in Nazi-held Europe, and the conduct of activities to support the brave men and women who parachuted into enemy territory.

The book begins as the Germans are starting their conquest of Europe. We learn about the recruitment of various individuals who provided the leadership for the newly formed organizations. It then provides a fascinating account of the various weapons developed for the special operations campaign and the training programs for the special commandos. Along the way the book recounts various operations that took place not only in France . . . but also in other countries of Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Not the Gentleman’s Way of War. The title of the book alludes to the debate that occurred during the war about what was appropriate as a strategy and tactic and what was not. Many members of the British defense establishment were not in favor of this new type of warfare – considering it not the way of gentlemen but of thugs and bandits. The chapter entitled “Thinking Dirty” explains the resistance the UK military had to unconventional warfare – the use of guerrillas, partisans, saboteurs, and assassins.

Red Tape and Bureaucracy. Milton also provides an understanding of the bureaucracy and red tape that these special operations warriors faced from the ‘established’ defense structures. The SOE also faced opposition from the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) who saw them as rivals and a threat to their operational security.

Winston Churchill was a staunch supporter of special operations during the war. He actively supported these activities with moral and financial support and beat back the opposition mounted by the military establishment and bureaucrats. The War Office would have liked to abolish the organization in its infancy but Churchill came to its rescue more than a few times.

Recruitment. The book is illustrative of the out-of-the-box thinkers and doers required of special operations organizations. Amateur scientists, eccentrics, and others combined their talents to provide the weapons and training needed for the many types of operations conducted in Europe and around the world by operatives during World War II.

The elite schools of Britain were fertile recruitment bases for the organization as well. Many of the recruits would also come from specialized military units of the UK. Some from as far away as India. The organization needed “. . . rule-breakers, mavericks, and eccentrics with a talent for lateral thinking and a fondness for making mischief.”

Special Weapons. Milton’s book pays attention to the development of special weapons and munitions developed by ad hoc laboratories and workshops for use by resistance groups and saboteurs. There were numerous roadblocks established by the Ministry of Supply and the Royal Ordnance Supply Factory. As as result the organization and associated entities embarked on their own weapons development and production program.

Some of these weapons developed for the commandos found their way into the conventional forces during WWII. One important development was the ‘limpet mine’ – a prototype magnetic mine that a combat swimmer would place on an enemy warship. Another was the ‘hedgehog’ used in anti-submarine warfare. Other special weapons included the ‘Sticky Bomb”, “Beehive”, “W-bomb”, “PIAT”, and “Time Pencil”. The author traces the development of explosives used for the demolition of bridges, railways, turbines, and other important targets.

Early Publications on Special Warfare. Milton’s book also informs us of the early writings that would be used as instructional manuals for special warfare. These include The Art of Guerrilla Warfare, The Partisan Leader’s Handbook, and How to Use High Explosives. Many of these tracts were provided to the U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS) to be used as training manuals at ‘Camp X’ and other training locations. The book on explosives by Millis Jefferis “. . . contained highly accurate advice for anyone who wanted to blow a bridge, building, railway or road.” This was the first manual in the history of the British Army to teach men how to destroy civilian targets with a small explosives kit.

Training Centers Established. Experts from within the UK’s military and from around the world were recruited to train up the new commandos, saboteurs, and ‘Jedburghs’. A training center was established in Scotland as well as other locations. The commandos were taught on the use of silent killing, explosives, communications, parachuting, weapons, and other skills necessary for the saboteur and guerrilla fighter.

Operations Conducted. Several historical vignettes are provided that give the reader an appreciation of the wide variety of operations conducted around the world by the SOE. Descriptions of several operations conducted by these specialists in guerrilla warfare provide for some very interesting reading.

The author’s account of the Jedburgh’s hindering the movement of the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich from countering the Normandy beach landings following D-Day was especially informative. A movement by rail that should have taken 72 hours was stymied due to the use of carborundum inserted into the axles of tank rail car transports. The division then had to move by road – hindered by ambushes, blown bridges, lack of spare parts, and broken down tanks traveling beyond their range. A movement that took 17 days – arriving too late to stop the allied breakout from the beaches on the coast.

Many other examples of guerrilla warfare, espionage, sabotage, and secret operations are provided in the book. This historical account of special warfare by the United Kingdom during World War II is a good read for the special operations practitioner, WWII historian, and intelligence professional.

Available for purchase in hardcover or paperback.
Churchill’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
By Giles Milton, Picador, USA: 2017, 368 pages.

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Image: from book cover.

The Incredible Military Career of Lucien Stervinou

By Jeff Goodson

There’s a forested canyon above the town of Quimper in northwest France called les Gorge du Stangala.  Drained by the Odet river, it’s known locally for its wild beauty and tranquility.  In World War II, while training with the British Special Air Service in Scotland, the name was adopted as the nom de guerre of a French resistance fighter and special operations warrior named Lucien Stervinou. 

Over the course of six years, from 1940-1946, Stervinou fought behind enemy lines in Europe and Indochina.  He earned both the Croix de Guerre and France’s highest military award, the Legion d’Honneur.  His story is the story of western special operations at the dawn of the modern age of irregular warfare.      

Escaping the Nazis

Lucien Corentin Stervinou was born in Langalet, France (Brittany) in 1923.  He was barely 17 when he first set out to escape the Nazis.  As a German Panzer division moved toward the French port of Brest, he and his grandmother heard a radio appeal from Brigadier General Charles De Gaulle in London: “Frenchmen, we have lost a battle; we have not lost the war.  From wherever you are, come join me and continue the fight.”  It was June 18, 1940, just four days before Marshall Petain signed the Armistice with Germany.

Young Stervinou hopped on his bicycle, peddled the two miles to Chateauneuf du Faou, and met up with three of his soccer buddies.  The four of them drove south to the port of Concarneau, and talked the captain of a Norwegian fishing boat into taking them aboard along with a group of French troops that he was surreptitiously evacuating to England.  The seas became extremely rough, and half-way across the English Channel the captain turned about and returned to La Rochelle. 

A few hours before the Nazis arrived, Stervinou jumped a military train for Bordeaux.  He then went to Marseilles, Lyon and Vichy, before working his way to Quimper where he settled in with a resistance group that a young priest introduced him to. 

When the Quimper group was later discovered, Stervinou fled to Paris and hid out in the apartment of famous resistance fighter Yves Allain.  Allain, who was later murdered in Morocco, ran the Bourgogne escape route through which some 250 allied airmen escaped Nazi capture by crossing the Pyrenees into Spain.  In June 1942 Stervinou followed that route with Allain, two British pilots and a small group of civilians, crossing the Pyrenees near Pau at night with a Basque guide. 

After splitting up in Spain, Stervinou was captured by Spanish border guards and jailed in Jaca, Huesca and Saragossa.  A few weeks later, he was ransomed to the British Consul, who organized his travel through Madrid and Gibralter to a British air base near Swindon, England.  He arrived July 28, 1942, just over two years after his first attempt to escape the Nazis. 

Supporting the French Resistance

Stervinou’s first stop was “Patriotic School” near Wimbledon, where all foreigners entering England were held and interrogated at length.  He was then released to the Free French Forces, who he worked with for the rest of the war. 

After five months of basic training at Camp Rake Manor in Surrey, Stervinou was recruited by France’s Central Bureau of Intelligence and Operations (BCRA).  Similar to the OSS, but smaller, BCRA was the precursor of France’s External Documentation and Counter-Espionage Service (SDECE)—today known as the Directorate General for External Security (DGSE). 

Stervinou trained at the British Army Commando Training Center, the BCRA training Center, and the Parachute Center at Ringway.  While training with the British Special Air Service (SAS) near Iveranay, Scotland, he took the nom de guerre Stangala.  From then through the first half of 1944, he worked communications between London and various French resistance groups. 

D-Day and Return to Paris

In late May 1944, three “sticks” of ten men each were flown to an unnamed base in the south of England where they were separated from other units.  Just before D-Day, on June 4, 1944, Stervinou’s stick was parachuted into an area prepared by a local resistance group west of Vire in Normandy.  They brought arms and equipment, and trained the resistance fighters who met them in the use of heavy armaments, communications and fighting tactics.  Other sticks parachuted that night into Brittany to destroy railroads and bridges. 

For two months after D-Day, while operating behind enemy lines, Stervinou’s stick avoided German soldiers and the French milice who fought with them.  Finally, in August they were ordered to Paris to regroup and help maintain security in the center of the city.  On August 26, 1944, while providing protection from a rooftop, he watched General Charles De Gaulle march in triumph down the Champs Elysee.  It was the end of Stervinou’s military service in the European theater.

Indochina and Force 136

With dissolution of the French resistance groups, focus shifted to the Pacific theater where the objective was establishing a French military presence and returning Indochina to the colonial field.  Stervinou left Paris in January 1945 for Cairo.  He then took a “flying boat” to Karachi, Bombay and Calcutta, where he again was trained by the British.  This time it was Force 136, at their commando training center for the South Pacific Theater, where he trained for six months in parachuting, radio communications and jungle warfare.    

Today, few Americans have heard of Force 136.  The British Special Operations Executive (SOE) was established in 1940 at the same time that the British Commandos were formed at the request of Winston Churchill.  The SOE carried out sabotage and subversive operations in Europe, and its success led to a knockoff called “The Oriental Mission” in Burma.  Codenamed Force 136, branches were soon established in Burma, Siam, Malaya and Indochina where they supported resistance movements in enemy-occupied territory and conducted sabotage operations.  Rolled up in 1946, Force 136 was one of the first modern organizations to systematically operationalize what today we call unconventional warfare.    

At the end of training, Stervinou’s group was reviewed by Lord Mountbatten, Viceroy of India, after which he took a DC-3 “over the hump” from Bajshahi Airbase to Kunming, China.  Others were dropped in Laos, where they ultimately met severe losses and had only limited success.

“The Kunming commando groups were deployed on the Sino-Indochinese frontier in preparation for the Chinese invasion of Indochina in 1945.  I parachuted into Pakhoi, a Chinese port in Kuang-tong Province.  I was an intelligence officer with the French Navy, patrolling the Along Bay in northern Vietnam.”

The Weichow Raid

Stervinou’s unit operated closely with elements of the OSS, and he was part of a joint OSS/French commando attack on July 22, 1945 that knocked out an advance Japanese airbase on the island of Ouai-Tchao (Weichow).

“A joint Franco/American commando unit landed on the island at 2 AM, and the air base defense was quickly overpowered.  Using the newly acquired TNT explosive, the tower and the landing lanes were rendered unusable.  Now my earlier explosive training made sense.”

The mission was important, and both Kunming and General Chenault, Commander of the 14^th Air Force, were notified of its success. 

The Japanese Surrender of Vietnam

After the Weichow raid, Stervinou’s PT boat Crayssac returned to operating among the islands of Along Bay.   

“Our nomadic life continued, stopping, controlling and often seizing equipment and foodstuff destined to the Japanese army by commercial junks.  We created additional bases on the islands of Gow-To, Table and Singe. 

A few short weeks later, the U.S. dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima (August 6^th) and Nagasaki (August 9^th).  The bombing had the desired effect, and Hirohito announced the Japanese surrender on August 15^th. 

The next day, the five men of the Crayssac were ordered to Haiphong Bay to receive the surrender of the 60,000 Japanese soldiers then in Vietnam.  They arrived at 4 PM. 

“The Japanese authorities seemed astounded by our arrival.  On the 16^th, Japanese Colonel Kamya arrived during the night to inform us that General Tsushihashi, Japanese commander of north Indochina, had not received the order to surrender from Tokyo and for us to remain on board ship.  He received his order the following morning.” 

For several days after surrendering, the Japanese supplied the Crayssac crew with food and water.  They then provided them an escort to Hanoi, where they arrived August 23^rd and joined a handful of French administrators under Major Jean Sainteny and a small group of OSS personnel. 

Eleven Men

Years later, Stervinou wrote that:

‘The political scene was chaotic…On August 23^rd, we found ourselves, eleven men, in the former Governor General’s palace with responsibility for overseeing the security of 30,000 French civilians.  It could only be done by negotiations with the new government of the Viet-Minh, the Japanese army responsible for maintaining security, and later the Chinese army.  We had responsibilities beyond our ranks and experience.

‘Twice, I accompanied my commanding officer to meet Ho Chi Minh.  I also met, and for a time worked in liaison with another Vietnamese leader on security matters, Vo Nguyen Giap.  At the time, the French did not know whether these two men were nationalist leaders or communist ideologues.  Later, Giap was the mastermind of the final and decisive battle that ended France’s colonial domination of Viet-Nam, Dien Bien Phu.     

‘It wasn’t obvious to us then, but we had in front of us the beginning of the crumbling colonial era.’ 

Kidnapped, the Last Firefight and Demobilization

Months later, while investigating the conditions of French ex-POWs in the area, Stervinou was kidnapped in Vinh and spirited away for purposes unknown.  He was only released when an American Air Ground Air Service major threated local authorities with a U.S. paratrooper attack. 

Back in Hanoi, Stervinou contracted amoebic dysentery and was evacuated to Saigon.  After five weeks recovering in the hospital, he was sent back to Along Bay on a destroyer to again serve as intelligence officer.  His final kinetic engagement was on March 6, 1946, in a sustained firefight with Chinese forces in the port of Haiphong. 

Shortly after, Stervinou fell to a recurring attack of dysentery and was evacuated to Saigon.  After three more weeks in the hospital, he returned to France on a transport ship where he was demobilized and, on September 17, 1946, finally discharged.  For him, the wars were over.

Croix de Guerre

Eight months after Stervinou mustered out of service, he was awarded the Croix de Guerre des Theatres d’Operations Exterieures with Silver Star, citation at the Ordre de la Division, for his engagements at Along Bay, his participation in the Weichow raid, and his role in accepting the Japanese surrender in Vietnam.  He was individually cited for his “energy, courage and sang froid.”

After the War

The next year, Stervinou came to the United States.  He earned a degree from the University of Houston, became a U.S. citizen in 1953, and for years directed Berlitz language institutes in the U.S. and Europe. 

Widowed in 1978, Stervinou was re-married in 1981 to a U.S. Foreign Service Officer with USAID—Theodora (Teddy) Wood—who he met in Annandale, Virginia.  The two spent years stationed in west Africa, working at USAID’s Regional Office in Abidjan where he promoted private sector development in central and west Africa at the height of the cold war. 

After retiring in 1992, Stervinou continued working with French veterans organizations.  In 2006, he was awarded France’ highest order of merit for military and civilian service, the Legion d’Honneur, at the level of Chevalier.  In addition to the Legion d’Honneur and Croix de Guerre, over his military career he received the Croix de Combattant Volontaire, Medaille des Evades, Medaille de la Reconnaissance de la Nation, and Medaille d’Outre-Mere.

In December 2017, in perfect health, Stervinou was walking one of the large Bouvier dogs that he and his wife Teddy were famous for.  He slipped on an icy sidewalk in Washington, D.C., struck his head, and died of complications six months later at the age of 95.  It was June 16, 2018—78 years, almost to the day—since he had heard de Gaulle exhort his countrymen to join the fight as Nazi Panzers rolled into Brest.    

Epilogue

The military history of Lucien Corentin Stervinou is the history of special operations at the dawn of the modern age of irregular warfare.  From 1940-1946, he was operationally engaged with every major American, British and French special operations force, from the U.S. Office of Strategic Services, precursor of today’s CIA; to the British Special Air Service, Special Operations Executive and Force 136; to France’s Central Bureau of Intelligence and Operations.  

Stervinou’s extraordinary military career stands as a historical benchmark by which every special operations warrior who has followed can justly measure their own. 

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The biographical material in this tribute is drawn mostly from Lucien Stervinou’s surviving writings and lecture notes, provided courtesy of Theodora Wood-Stervinou to whom special thanks are due.  Without her assistance, the military history of this extraordinary special forces combatant could not have been written.  

Jeff Goodson is a retired U.S. Foreign Service Officer.  From 1983-2012, he worked on the ground in 49 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.  He served 31 months in Afghanistan, including as USAID Chief of Staff (2006-2006) and Director of Development at ISAF HQ under General David Petraeus and General John Allen (2010-2012).  Goodson worked with Lucien Stervinou at USAID’s Regional Office in Abidjan in the mid-1980s.

In World War II the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) placed intelligence and operating agents in enemy-controlled Albania. The OSS in Albania provided a wealth of intelligence via radio transmissions. The operational and intelligence teams of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) and the Office of Strategic Services infiltrated by sea or parachute and linked up with nationalist and communist Albanian resistance fighters based in the interior mountain regions. The occupying German and Italian military units were clustered along the coast, main roads, and large towns and cities.

As was the case in many East European countries during World War II the better organized and more successful resistance movements tended to be of a communist flavor. Albania was no exception – and the SOE and OSS in Albania were reluctantly placed in a position to work with these communist partisans. This caused some friction between the SOE and OSS. The SOE had the lead in Yugoslavia and were in support of Tito’s Communist groups. The OSS was not in favor of this policy but had to bow to the British policy.

Although the SOE was the principal mentor of the OSS early in World War II – the OSS later became more independent. In the Balkans the competition between the two agencies usually saw the OSS in Albania take the subordinate role; this was reversed later in the war when the two agencies worked together (or maybe apart) in Italy. [1]

One OSS intelligence team was exceptionally successful – and this was largely in part due to the abilities and courage of its radio operator. On December 31, 1943 Marine Gunnery Sergeant Nic Kukich landed on the coast of Albania after a boat insertion with his three-man team. He would leave and depart a few times but spent much of 1944 and 1945 in the areas of Albania occupied by the Germans and Italians. Read more of his exploits in “Nick ‘Cooky’ Kukich: Covert Operative in Albania”, Warfare History Network, November 8, 2016.

Footnotes:

[1] For more on the OSS / SOE relationship during World War II read “Office of Strategic Services versus Special Operations Executive: Competition for the Italian Resistance, 1943-1945”, Journal of Cold War Studies, Vol. 17, No. 4, Fall 2015, pp. 41-58, by Tommaso Piffer, MIT Press Journals.
www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1162/JCWS_a_00596

References:

The OSS in World War II Albania, by Peter Lucas. Published by McFarland & Company, Inc., 2007. Available at Amazon.com.

Special Operations: AAF Aid to European Resistance Movements, 1943-1945, by Warren, Harris Gaylord, 1947.
https://archive.org/details/SpecialOperationsAAF

The Dawn of SOWT: OSS Weathermen in the Balkans, 1944, by Bryan David Carnes, Marshal University, 2015.
http://mds.marshall.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1933&context=etd

A Laconian’s Story of espionage, Fosters.com, June 3, 2007. http://www.fosters.com/article/20070603/GJNEWS02/106030294

“Peter Lucas: Albania enshrines OSS heroes”, The Lowell Sun, May 20, 2014. www.lowellsun.com/peterlucas/ci_25797841/peter-lucas-albania-enshrines-oss-heroes

Bibliography: OSS and SOE Operations in the Balkans – Albania, Intellit, Muskingum University.
http://intellit.muskingum.edu/wwii_folder/wwiioss_folder/oss_bal_alb.html

Albanian Resistance during World War II, Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albanian_resistance_during_World_War_II

Going back in history we can see that World War II UW or unconventional warfare took place in a number of theaters around the world. Most notably in France, the Balkans, and Southeast Asia. In France the Special Operations Executive (SOE) of the United Kingdom and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) of the United States worked in conjunction with the Free French to form up, train, and parachute into France three-man Jedburgh teams. These teams linked up with the French Resistance to assist in the training, direction, equipping, and coordination to assist in the allied invasion of France.

Ben Jones, the author of Eisenhower’s Guerrillas,  recently spoke (October 28, 2016) at the Special Operations Association Symposium in Alexandra, Virginia on the topic of World War II UW. He recounts how the Jedburgh teams were formed and employed but also takes a careful look at the strategic arena and the diplomacy involved in the conduct of unconventional warfare during World War II.

He is especially keen to point out that the French Resistance had its own way of doing business and its own set of goals and objectives. The allied generals recognized this and worked within this environment. One statement by Ben Jones is key and applicable to the United States attempt (thus far somewhat haphazard) to establish resistance movements in Syria (to fight either the government regime or ISIS or both) using unconventional warfare.

“The fact that the United States seems to have no clear aim or post-war vision for the middle east today, is in my view, why we have confused our friends and can’t attract guerrilla allies. A clearly understood aim is vital in order to bring guerrillas to our side. After all, people have to know what they are fighting for, before they will be willing to fight.”

Read more about the lessons of World War II UW in “The Jedburghs and Unconventional Warfare”, The Foreign Policy Initiative, November 2016.

Military History 20160824 – Once a week we look into the past to bring to you recent news reports and stories about past military operations, conflicts, weapons and more. This week: What Soldiers carried in Vietnam, importance of historical unit patches, where did the “Green Tab” come from, book reviews on WWII special operations, and a old Soldier passes on.

“What They Carried”. Soldiers and Marines who fought in the Vietnam War carried many things to include P-38 can openers, heat tabs, ponchos, Zippo lighters for their cigarettes, gum, LRRP rations, and more. Read “What They Carried”, Pulse, August 12, 2016.

Army’s ‘Green Tab’. The green tab worn by unit commanders and senior NCOs are the result of General Eisenhower in World War II. Read “Genesis of the Army Green Tab”, by Major Matt Cavanaugh, Modern War  Institute, West Point, September 15, 2014.

General Vessey Dies. Retired Army Gen. John W. Vessey was a World War II veteran who rose from a Minnesota National Guard private to become the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. Besides taking part in the Normandy Beach landings in WWII he was instrumental in the defeat of the Soviet Union in ‘The Cold War’. Read more in a report by the Association of the United States Army, August 19, 2016.

Battle of Long Tan (Vietnam 50 Yrs Ago). Last week marked the anniversary of a battle that took place in Vietnam that killed 18 Australians and many more Vietnamese Soldiers. Usually a commemorative event is held at the site of the battle but this year the Vietnamese government cancelled it at the last minute. Read more in “Long Tan: The Battle Haunting Australia – Vietnam Ties 50 Years After It Ended”, War on the Rocks, August 22, 2016.

Importance of Historic Army Unit Patches. To those who served in the U.S. Army the unit shoulder patch is an important symbol. Read one Army officer’s feelings on the topic in The Power of the Patch, by James King, Modern War Institute at West Point, August 21, 2016.

Book on SOE, Spies, and WWII. Read a book review on Spies in the Congo: The Race for the Ore that Built the Atomic Bomb and The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare: Churchill’s Mavericks Plotting Hitler’s Defeat in “The business of war – and espionage – is never gentlemanly”, The Spectator (UK), August 20, 2016.

SOF News Update: US SOF raid in Somalia, interesting facts on the WWII British SOE, IPB in the “Gray Zone”, and SOF in the ground war against ISIS in northern Iraq.

U.S. SOF in Raid in Somalia. United States special operations forces, along side Somali troops, conducted a raid against Shabab militants last week. The raid took place on Wednesday, August 10, 2016. Read more in “Somali Forces, Backed by U.S., Kill Shabab Militants in Raid”, The New York Times, August 16, 2016.

Ten Interesting Facts about WWII SOE. “World War II saw the creation of many spy organizations to battle the menace of the Axis powers. In addition to MI5 and MI6, another group created during this time was the Special Operations Executive.” The British SOE wa the model for the United States WWII spy organization – the Office of Strategic Services or OSS. The OSS was the forerunner of the CIA and the U.S. Army Special Forces. Learn more in “Ten Interesting Facts and Figures about the World War II Special Operations Executive”, The Anglotopia Magazine, August 15, 2016.

SOE Operative Who Refused to Give Up. He was a British war hero who escaped the Nazis and evaded the Japanese in WWII. But he couldn’t avoid his final defeat. Read “Dad, the guerrilla who refused to give up.“, The Guardian, August 20, 2016.

IPB and the Gray Zone. The special operations community defines conflict that takes place between the space of peace and war as the “Gray Zone”. In this conflict zone, where it is often problematic to interpret the meaning of a non-lethal act by friend or adversary, military intelligence teams struggle to define these actions. Read more in “The Gray Zone and Intelligence Preparation of the Battle Space”, Small Wars Journal, August 17, 2016.

Fed Charges against Navy SEAL Dropped. Matt Bissonnette wrote a ‘tell all’ book about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden that got him into trouble with the feds. The charges have been dropped but he will pay a very large sum of money. Read more in “Pentagon Drops Claim Against Navy SEAL That He Spilled Bin Laden Secrets”, The Daily Beast, August 19, 2016.

SOF and the Ground War on ISIS. Mike Giglio, a BuzzFeed News Middle East Correspondent, provides us an inside look of how the U.S. special operations forces are working alongside the Kurds in northern Iraq (Aug 16, 2016).

Air Force Pararescuemen. Read about the men that keep the flyers and others safe from injury and capture in this special article by National Geographic,  August 18, 2016 – Injured Behind Enemy Lines, This Guy Is Your Best Friend.

Callsign JAG 28 Retired. Senior Airman Mark Forester, a member of the 21st Special Tactics Squadron out of Pope Field, North Carolina, died on September 29, 2010 in Uruzgan province, Afghanistan. Read about his heroic actions with the Special Forces team that earned him the Silver Star in “The Airman Who Died Leading His Team in an Intense Ambush”, Task & Purpose, August 18, 2016.

A Tribute to Green Berets. A Special Forces Soldier remembers three very hard Green Berets that were “harder than woodpecker’s lips.” Read a story by Michael Gibson entitled “The Green Berets”, Pulse, August 14, 2016.

U.S. SOF at risk of Syrian Air Attack? A recent airstrike of Syrian fighters near U.S. SOF positions in Syria have some worried. Read more in this news report by The Washington Post, August 19, 2016. Read a DoD press release on this topic (Aug 19, 2016).

Want to work for the CIA? You will need to pass a security investigation. Read “How to Pass a C.I.A. Background Check”, The New York Times Magazine, Auguat 19, 2016.

Special Operations Forces in Afghanistan. Learn about the SOF organizations leading the fight against the Taliban and ISIS  – NSOCC-A and SOJTF-A in an article posted on SOFREP, Special Operations Forces – Afghanistan, July 6, 2016.

Korean General Receives USSOCOM Award. A retired South Korean general and former special warfare commander has been recognized by the United States Special Operations Command. Read “Retired general sets example for commanders”, Korea Times, August 17, 2016.

SAS – Are you tough enough? “The SAS selection course is one of the most physically and psychologically demanding special forces test in the world”. “Are you tough enough to join the SAS?”, BBC.

SOCEUR Assists in Diver Recovery. Two Georgian military divers have gone missing during a recent dive training exercise. Special Operations Command Europe is assisting in recovery efforts. Read more in “US involved in deep sea search for two missing Georgian soldiers”, Agenda.ge, August 17, 2016.

Canadian Special Forces in Kurdistan. Canadian SF troops have been advising the Kurds in northern Iraq for some time. The Canadian government recently tripled the number of Canadian SOF in Iraq. Read “Canadian-trained forces clearing the way to retake Mosul from ISIS”, CTV News (CA), August 16, 2016.

D.C.’s Use of Private Contractors in War. Sean McFate, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, writes on the use of private military contractors to fight its wars and how it is a strategic vulnerability. Read “The Hidden Costs of America’s Addition to Mercenaries”, The Atlantic, August 12, 2016.