II.

History

By the end of World War II, British and United States special forces had expanded to a remarkable degree. The vast expanse over which the war was fought, the long coastlines in many theatres, and terrain such as desert, mountain, and jungle offered many opportunities for the use of such units. The advent of reliable, portable radios, and long-range aircraft, enabled special forces teams to be inserted into enemy territory, controlled, and resupplied, then to pass back information and be extracted from hitherto unprecedented distances.

After the fall of France in 1940, the British began raising commandos for raids on the enemy-held coastline. Soon, other organizations were formed to cater for specific needs in the various theatres of war. In North Africa, the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) used the vast space afforded by the Libyan Desert to reconnoitre and attack the German and Italian lines of communication on the one coast road. The LRDG also operated in Italy and the Balkans from 1943 onwards, mainly for reconnaissance (military survey of an area to obtain information about enemy positions). The Special Air Service (SAS) was originally formed to attack Axis airfields in North Africa, but went on to operate in Italy and north-west Europe mainly in support of partisans.