The Devil’s Brigade

Something for the weekend.  Scotland the Brave, from a video clip of the movie The Devil’s Brigade (1968).  Officially the First Special Service Force, the Devil’s Brigade earned its name from their German adversaries in Italy.  An 1,800 man elite brigade of Canadian and American troops, the troops were originally trained for a hare-brained mission behind enemy lines in Norway. General Staff officer Lieutenant Colonel Robert Frederick warned that the mission as planned would inevitably lead to the death or capture of all the troops involved.  Frederick ultimately succeeded in convincing his superiors that the mission in Norway was a mistake and he was assigned to command the brigade.  In fighting in Italy and Southern France the brigade performed superbly, carrying out missions thought to be impossible, and inflicting 12,000 casualties on the Germans and capturing an additional 7,000 Germans.  The brigade suffered high casualties, by the end of the war having an attrition rate of 660%.  Frederick had intense loyalty from his men, always leading from the front and exposing himself constantly to enemy fire.  Both the US and Canadian special forces units trace their lineage from this unit.