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{{Short description|Australian special forces}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
The name '''[[commando]]''' has been applied to a variety of [[Special forces of Australia|Australian special forces]] and [[light infantry]] units that have been formed since 1941–42. The first Australian "commando" units were formed during the [[World War II|Second World War]], where they mainly performed reconnaissance and long-range patrol roles during Australia's campaigns in [[New Guinea]] and [[Borneo]], although other units such as [[M Special Unit|M]] and [[Z Special Unit]]s performed more clandestine roles. These units were disbanded following the end of the war; however, in the 1950s it was realised that there was a need for such units again in the Australian forces. Today, the [[Australian Army]] possesses a number of units that perform more conventional direct-action type commando roles, as well as counter-terrorism response, long-range patrolling, and clandestine deep-penetration operations.
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==History==
[[File:Commando Memorial in Martin Place Sydney after Anzac Day 2013.jpg|thumb|The Commando Memorial in [[Martin Place, Sydney]]]]

===Second World War (1939–1945)===
[[File:2 1st Independent Coy UCP.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/1 IC]]
[[File:2 2nd Independent Coy UCP.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/2 IC]]
[[File:2 3rd Independent Coy UCP.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/3 IC]]
[[File:2 4th Independent Coy UCP.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/4 IC]]
[[File:2 5th Independent Coy UCP.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/5 IC]]
[[File:2 6th Independent Coy UCP.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/6 IC]]
[[File:2 7th Independent Coy UCP 3.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/7 IC]]
[[File:2 8th Independent Coy UCP.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/8 IC]]
[[File:New Guinea Air Warning Wireless Company Unit Colour Patch.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|NGAWW]]
[[File:2 6th Cav Cdo Regt Unit Colour Patch.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/6 CavCdo Regt]]
[[File:2 7 Cav Cdo Regt Unit Colour Patch 3.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/7 CavCdo Regt]]
[[File:2 9th Cav Cdo Regt Unit Colour Patch 2.svg|alt=|thumb|70x70px|2/9 CavCdo Regt]]
During the Second World War, the Australian Army raised a number of units that were designated as carrying out commando-type operations. The first of these units were the independent companies, which were raised over a period of twelve months between 1941 and 1942. These units would go on to carry out various roles during the campaigns in New Guinea and Borneo and their members would serve with considerable distinction. Later, following a reorganisation, they would be designated as fully-fledged "Commando" squadrons. Other units were raised, such as the special units, whose tasks would be somewhat more clandestine. The [[Royal Australian Navy]] (RAN) also raised commando units during the war, employing them mainly in the role of beach parties and underwater clearance teams.<ref>Lord & Tennant 2000, pp. 14–19.</ref>

====Independent companies====
At the beginning of the Second World War, the Australian Army did not possess any "special forces" units. Late in 1940, the British government sent a military mission to Australia, headed by Lieutenant-Colonel J.C Mawhood, to investigate the possibility of establishing a number of such units within the Australian Army.<ref name =Horner21>Horner 1989, p. 21.</ref> The British proposed the establishment of independent companies that would receive special training in order to take part in combined operations and various other tasks, including "...raids, demolitions, sabotage, subversion and organising civil resistance".<ref name =Horner21/> This was a very broad notion of the role that the independent companies would play, and there was considerable confusion over how these units would be used; for a while, this uncertainty threatened the very existence of the independent company concept.<ref name=Horner22>Horner 1989, p. 22.</ref>

Acting on British advice, the Australian Army began raising and training the [[1st Independent Company (Australia)|2/1st Independent Company]] in March 1941. Formed from volunteers from all branches of the Australian military, they were initially modelled upon the [[British Commandos|British Army Commandos]] and began training at the 7th Infantry Training Centre, Guerrilla Warfare School, at [[Wilson's Promontory]], [[Victoria, Australia|Victoria]]. Of those who trained the first Australian commandos were renowned British commandos [[Mike Calvert]] and [[F. Spencer Chapman]].<ref name =Horner22/> By halfway through 1941, a total of three companies had been raised and trained and a fourth one had commenced training.<ref name =Horner22/> At this stage it was decided to discontinue training due to troubles with the concept and a lack of consensus regarding the independent companies' future involvement in operations; however, in December 1941, with Japan's entry into the war, problems with the concept and the training course were ironed out, and more independent companies were raised, until there were eight in total.<ref>McCarthy 1959, p. 85.</ref> In addition, the [[New Guinea Air Warning Wireless|New Guinea Air Warning Wireless Company]] provided surveillance teams behind Japanese lines throughout Papua, New Guinea and the surrounding area.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.awm.gov.au/unit/U55951/ |title=New Guinea Air Warning Wireless Company |publisher=Australian War Memorial |access-date=15 August 2015}}</ref>

These first units were:

* [[1st Independent Company (Australia)|1st Independent Company]] (raised May/June 1941)
* [[2/2nd Commando Squadron (Australia)|2nd Independent Company]] (raised Oct 1941)
* [[2/3rd Commando Squadron (Australia)|3rd Independent Company]] (raised Oct 1941)
* [[2/4th Cavalry Commando Squadron (Australia)|4th Independent Company]] (raised December 1941)
* [[New Guinea Air Warning Wireless|New Guinea Air Warning Wireless (Independent) Company]] (raised January 1942)
* [[2/5th Cavalry Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/5 Independent Company]] (raised March 1942)
* [[2/6th Independent Company (Australia)|2/6 Independent Company]] (raised March 1942)
* [[2/7th Independent Company (Australia)|2/7th Independent Company]] (raised March 1942)
* [[2/8th Independent Company (Australia)|2/8th Independent Company]] (raised May 1942)

Initially the independent companies were raised to serve alongside the [[Second Australian Imperial Force]] (Second AIF) in the Middle East; however, as the threat from Japan developed it was decided to use them in the Pacific theatre, in the islands to the north of Australia where it was necessary to establish outposts to warn of the approach of Japanese forces. Their mission would then be to remain behind and harass the invading Japanese forces.<ref name =Horner23>Horner 1989, p. 23.</ref>

The first Australian commando unit to see action was the 1st Independent Company. Many of its members were killed or captured<ref name = Horner23/> in [[Battle of Rabaul (1942)#New Ireland|defending the island of New Ireland]] (part of the Australian territory of [[New Guinea]]), from [[Special Naval Landing Forces|Japanese marines]] in early 1942. Other detachments of the company served on [[Bougainville Island|Bougainville]], [[Manus Island]], and [[Tulagi]]. A composite platoon was later sent to [[Wau, Papua New Guinea|Wau]] in March 1942, eventually becoming part of [[Kanga Force]].<ref>McCarthy 1959, pp. 86–87</ref>

The 2nd Independent Company performed with considerable success during the [[Battle of Timor (1942-43)|Timor campaign of 1942–43]], conducting a guerrilla style campaign and occupying the attention of an entire [[Imperial Japanese Army]] division for almost twelve months.<ref>Dennis 1995, p. 308.</ref> On return the 2nd Independent Company was  redesignated as the 2/2 Independent Company, and then later the 2/2nd Commando Squadron and was one of only two of the original independent companies to remain operationally independent, outside a regimental structure.<ref group="Note">The other unit to remain independent was 2/8th Commando Squadron.</ref> By the end of the war the 2/2nd Commando Squadron could "...claim to have spent longer in contact with the enemy than any other unit of the Australian Army"<ref>Grant 2005.</ref> and indeed their success was later used as a model of SAS training.<ref name = Horner23/>

Other companies/squadrons served in other parts of New Guinea and the [[Dutch East Indies]], also serving with considerable distinction, mainly performing roles such as long range reconnaissance, intelligence gathering and flank protection, but also occasionally being called upon to perform more traditional infantry roles. Indeed, the 2/6th Independent Company arguably fought one of the most remarkable small-unit actions of the war when it captured and held the village of [[Battle of Kaiapit|Kaiapit]] and after the [[Battle of Buna–Gona]] where it served alongside the Americans, it was singled out for rare praise from General [[Douglas MacArthur]].<ref group="Note">MacArthur praised the unit for its contribution to the campaign in his 9 January 1943, Order of the Day. See Trigellis-Smith 1992, p. 118 and 144.</ref>

=====Re-organisation 1943=====
In mid-1943, the Australian Army re-organised its six front-line divisions as [[light infantry]] [[Jungle Division]]s.<ref>Palazzo 2003.</ref> As the three Second Australian Imperial Force (AIF) divisions' [[Australian armoured units of World War II|armoured reconnaissance regiments]] were considered to be unsuited to jungle terrain, having been raised for service originally in the Middle East and North Africa, their cavalry squadrons were disbanded. The regimental headquarters of the disbanded units were then used to command and administer the independent companies, as they were amalgamated into a regimental structure. Subsequently, the independent companies were redesignated as "Cavalry Commando Squadrons" and later, in 1944, this was simplified to "Commando Squadrons".<ref name = Horner26>Horner 1989, p. 26.</ref>

As a part of this re-organisation, the following regiments were formed:

* [[2/6th Australian Cavalry Commando Regiment|2/6th Cavalry Commando Regiment]] (attached to the [[Australian 6th Division]])
** [[2/7th Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/7th Commando Squadron]]
** [[2/9th Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/9th Commando Squadron]]
** [[2/10th Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/10th Commando Squadron]]
* [[2/7th Cavalry Commando Regiment]] (attached to the [[Australian 7th Division]])
** [[2/3rd Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/3rd Commando Squadron]]
** [[2/5th Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/5th Commando Squadron]]
** [[2/6th Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/6th Commando Squadron]]
* [[2/9th Cavalry Commando Regiment]] (attached to the [[Australian 9th Division]])
** [[2/4th Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/4th Commando Squadron]]
** [[2/11th Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/11th Commando Squadron]]
** [[2/12th Commando Squadron (Australia)|2/12th Commando Squadron]]

In the last year of the war, the eleven<ref group="Note">The nine units listed above (2/3, 2/4, 2/5, 2/6, 2/7. 2/9, 2/10, 2/11 and 2/12), plus the 2/2 and 2/8 which remained independent until the end of the war. The twelfth commando unit, 1st Independent Company, was not re-raised after most of its members were either killed or captured during fighting on New Ireland in 1942.</ref> commando squadrons fought in Borneo, New Guinea and Bougainville.<ref name = Horner26/> During these campaigns they were largely used in more traditional infantry roles, mainly performing tasks that could arguably have been successfully undertaken by normal infantry units. Although they undoubtedly performed these roles with considerable distinction, there were those within the Australian Army high command that felt that this proved the traditional argument against irregular warfare type units,<ref group="Note">Largely that they drain manpower and materiel resources from the Army as a whole for arguably little benefit.</ref> and arguably this led to further ambivalence—even resistance—in the Australian Army high command towards so-called "special forces" which was later to hinder the formation of other such units after the war.<ref>Horner 1989, pp. 26–35.</ref>

====M & Z Special Units====
[[File:Beheading of Leonard George Siffleet.jpg|left|thumb|150px|Sergeant [[Leonard Siffleet|Leonard G. Siffleet]] of M Special Unit being beheaded by a Japanese soldier, Yasuno Chikao, on 24 October 1943. AWM photo.]]
With the outbreak of war in the [[Pacific War|Pacific]], two multi-national combined forces commando units were formed as part of the [[Allied Intelligence Bureau]] (AIB), attached to its [[Special Operations Australia]] (SOA) branch. These units were  [[M Special Unit]] (primarily a [[coastwatchers|coastwatching]] unit) and the more famous [[Z Special Unit]] (also known as Z Force), and they were to be used by the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] to conduct covert operations in the [[South West Pacific Area]] against the [[Imperial Japan|Japanese]]. These units were formed with volunteers from all branches of the military and from personnel from Australia, Britain, New Zealand, and the Netherlands-East Indies.<ref>Horner 1989, pp. 25–26.</ref>

M Special Unit was used primarily to provide intelligence on Japanese naval and troop movements around New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, with personnel being inserted along the coast behind enemy lines where they would observe enemy movements and report back to the AIB via radio.<ref name = Horner26/> This was invisible, unglamorous work, but there were considerable dangers involved for those involved and a number of M Special Unit members were captured by the Japanese and executed. Z Special Unit's role was perhaps a little more glamorous and certainly since the war it has received a considerable amount of publicity. Members of the unit distinguished themselves in a number of daring clandestine raiding operations often using Australian built [[Folding kayak]]s (Folboats) to penetrate enemy areas. Some of these met with limited success or failed completely. During ''[[Operation Jaywick]]'', members of the unit posed as an Asian fishing boat crew in order to infiltrate [[Singapore]] Harbour, where it successfully [[naval mine|mined]] and destroyed seven Japanese ships, amounting to 35,000 tons, in September 1943.<ref name=Dennis324>Dennis 1995, pp. 324–325.</ref> However, in 1944 the similar but larger ''[[Operation Rimau]]'', which also targeted shipping at Singapore Harbour, resulted in the loss of all 23 personnel involved.<ref name=Dennis324/>

====RAN Beach Commandos====
Later in the war, the [[Royal Australian Navy]] also formed a number of commando units. These units were used to go ashore with the first waves of major [[amphibious assault]]s, to mark out and sign post the beaches and to carry out other naval tasks. These units were known as [[Royal Australian Navy Commandos|RAN Beach Commandos]], and they took part in the [[Borneo campaign (1945)|Borneo campaign]], being used in the landings at Tarakan, Balikpapan and Brunei and Labuan.<ref>Mallet 2007, pp. 118–132.</ref>

===Post-Second World War===
[[File:1 Cdo UCP.svg|right|thumb|120px|1st Commando Regiment unit colour patch]]
[[File:4RAR UCP.PNG|right|thumb|150px|4 RAR (Cdo) unit colour patch]]
After the war, the existing commando units were disbanded as the focus of Australian defence planning returned to the old concept of supplying troops under Commonwealth defence arrangements.<ref>Horner 1989, p. 27.</ref>

In 1955, following a liaison visit to Malaya by Lieutenant-General Sir [[Henry Wells (general)|Henry Wells]], the need to preserve the skills possessed by the Second World War units was realised as it became clearer that there was a role for Australian special forces within the Southeast Asian region.<ref name = Horner32>Horner 1989, p. 32.</ref> However, financial constraints and possibly an institutional phobia of "special forces" limited the commitment that the Australian Army could make to the concept, and consequently, it was decided that any such units raised would have to be drawn from the [[Citizens Military Force]] (CMF),<ref group="Note">The name of the CMF was changed to Australian Army Reserve in 1980.</ref> as the army reserve was known at the time.<ref>Horner 1989, p. 19 &  pp. 27–32.</ref> As a result, two CMF Commando companies were raised: 2 Commando Company (2 Cdo Coy) in February 1955, based in Melbourne, and 1 Commando Company (1 Cdo Coy) in July 1955, based in Sydney.<ref name=Horner32/> These units drew their heritage from the commando units raised during the Second World War, and a number of their senior cadre staff had served in these units.<ref name= Horner32/>

[[File:1st Commando Company.jpg|thumb|left|Soldiers from the 1st Commando Company parachute with their inflatable boats from an RAAF C-130H into Shoalwater Bay]]
 
Some members of these companies went on to assist and/or join the new [[Special Air Service Regiment (Australia)|Special Air Service Regiment]] (SASR), when it was raised, from 1957.<ref>Horner 1989, pp. 42–43.</ref> However, the commando units retained a separate identity, with an emphasis on raiding and larger offensive operations, rather than the [[special reconnaissance]] and "surgical strike" role that  was the classic function of SAS units.<ref>Horner 1989, p.45.</ref>

In February 1981, it was decided to unite the two commando companies under a single headquarters unit. As a result, [[1st Commando Regiment|1 Commando Regiment]] (1 Cdo Regt) was formed at [[Randwick|Randwick, New South Wales]] to oversee the two reserve companies, although 2 Coy remained in Melbourne. In addition, 126 Signal Squadron (Special Forces), based in Melbourne, was incorporated to provide long-range communications support.

A regular [[light infantry]] unit, [[4th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment]] (4 RAR) was converted into a commando role in 1996, in order to provide a full-time commando capability within the regular army. 126 Signal Squadron was incorporated to provide signal support (301 Signal Squadron was re-raised to refill the role within the 1st Commando Regiment).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.4rarmuseum.com/Commando.htm|title=History 4 RAR (Commando): Part 8 – Unlinking 2 RAR and 4 RAR|publisher=4 RAR Museum|access-date=30 July 2010}}</ref> Subsequently, 4 RAR was renamed 4 RAR (Cdo) until 19 June 2009, when it was again renamed, becoming [[2nd Commando Regiment (Australia)|2nd Commando Regiment]] (2 Cdo Regt). This unit is largely used in the traditional commando role, and is heavily involved in  [[War in Afghanistan (2001–present)|combat operations in Afghanistan]].
[[File:Australian Army 2nd Commando Regiment commando waits to board a U.S. Air Force MC-130J Commando II assigned to the 353rd Special Operations Wing during Talisman Sabre 23 at Norfolk Island, Australia, Aug. 2, 2023.png|thumb|2nd Commando Regiment operator waits to board a U.S. Air Force MC-130J during Talisman Sabre 23 at Norfolk Island, August 2023]]
2 Cdo Regt<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://2commando.gov.au/|title=2nd Commando Regiment|website=2commando.gov.au|language=en-gb|access-date=2017-05-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170515200141/http://2commando.gov.au/|archive-date=2017-05-15|url-status=dead}}</ref> also has a counter-terrorism function within Australia, providing members to the [[Tactical Assault Group]] – East (TAGEAST), to perform the same role on the eastern seaboard that the SASR provides on the western seaboard.<ref>Unknown author, ''Army News'', Edition 1059, 11 September 2002.</ref> In May 2003, [[Special Operations Command (Australia)]] was established as the administrative and operational headquarters for all of Australia's special forces and commando units.<ref>Burton, ''Army News'', Edition 1073, 8 May 2003.</ref>

==Current organisation==

The commando units currently active in the Australian Army are:<ref>Blaxland 2014, p. 328.</ref>
* [[1st Commando Regiment (Australia)|1st Commando Regiment]]
* [[2nd Commando Regiment (Australia)|2nd Commando Regiment]] (formerly [[4th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment]])<ref>{{cite press release|title=New Name for Sydney Commandos|publisher=Department of Defence |date=19 June 2009|url=http://www.defence.gov.au/media/DepartmentalTpl.cfm?CurrentId=9192|access-date=16 September 2015}}</ref>

Australian commandos have recently been employed on operations in a number of theatres, including [[Bougainville Island|Bougainville]], [[East Timor]], [[Iraq]], [[Afghanistan]] and the [[Solomon Islands]].<ref>Collins pp. 243–262</ref>

==Notes==
;Footnotes
{{reflist|group=Note}}

;Citations
{{Reflist|2}}

==References==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book|last=Blaxland|first=John|author-link=John Blaxland (historian)|title=The Australian Army from Whitlam to Howard|year=2014|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Port Melbourne|isbn=9781107043657}}
* {{cite news|author=Burton, Sean|title=New Command in Action|work=Army News|edition=1073|date=8 May 2003|access-date=22 February 2009|url= http://www.defence.gov.au/news/armynews/editions/1073/topstories/story02.htm}}
* {{cite book|last=Collins|first=Peter|title=Strike Swiftly: The Australian Commando Story|year=2005|publisher=The Watermark Press|location=Sydney|isbn=9780949284709}}
* {{cite book|last1=Dennis|first1=Peter|last2=Grey|first2=Jeffrey|author-link2=Jeffrey Grey|last3=Morris|first3=Ewan|last4=Prior|first4=Robin|year=1995 |title=The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Melbourne |isbn=0-19-553227-9}}
* {{cite book|last=Grant|first=Mac|chapter=Reserve Commandos inherit a remarkable legacy|editor-last=Rawlings|editor-first=Bill|title=Defence Reserves Yearbook 2004–2005|publisher=Executive Media|location=Melbourne|year=2005|pages=24–30}}
* {{cite book|last=Horner|first=David|author-link=David Horner|title=SAS:Phantoms of the Jungle — A History of the Australian Special Air Service|year=1989|publisher=Allen & Unwin|location=Sydney|isbn=0-04-520006-8}}
* {{cite book|first=Ross|last=Mallett|editor-last=Stevens|editor-first=David|editor2-last=Reeve|editor2-first=John|contribution=Together Again for the First Time: The Army, RAN and Amphibious Warfare 1942–45|title=Sea Power Ashore and in the Air|year=2007|pages=118–132|location=[[Ultimo, New South Wales]]|publisher=Halstead Press|isbn=978-1-920831-45-5}}
* {{cite book|last1=Lord|first1=Cliff|last2=Tennant|first2=Julian|title=Anzac Elite: The Airborne and Special Forces Insignia of Australia and New Zealand|year=2000|publisher= IPL Books|location=Wellington, New Zealand|isbn= 978-0-90887-610-5}}
* {{cite book |last=McCarthy |first=Dudley|title=South–West Pacific Area – First Year: Kokoda to Wau |url=https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1070204/|series=Australia in the War of 1939–1945. Series 1 – Army. Volume V |year=1959 |publisher=Australian War Memorial |location=Canberra |oclc=3134247}}
*{{cite book|last=Palazzo|first=Albert|chapter=Organising for Jungle Warfare|title=The Foundations of Victory: The Pacific War 1943–1944|year=2003|editor=Dennis, Peter |editor2=Grey, Jeffrey|publisher=Army History Unit|location=Canberra|url=http://www.defence.gov.au/Army/ahu/docs/The_Foundations_of_Victory_Palazzo.pdf|isbn=978-0-646-43590-9}}
* {{cite book|last=Trigellis-Smith|first=Syd|title=Purple Devils: History of 2/6 Australian Commando Squadron|year=1992|publisher=2/6 Commando Squadron Association|location=Melbourne|isbn=0-646-07125-4}}
* {{cite news|author=Unknown Author|title=Tagged for Action|work=Army News|edition=1059|date=11 September 2002|access-date=22 February 2009|url= http://www.defence.gov.au/news/armynews/editions/1059/topstories/story01.htm}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book|last=James|first=Karl|title=Double Diamonds: Australian Commandos in the Pacific War 1941–45|year=2016|publisher=NewSouth Publishing|location=Sydney|isbn=9781742247823|oclc=953603374|ol=48217263M}}
*{{cite book|last=Hoehn|first=John|title=Commando Kayak: The Role of Australian Folboats in the Pacific War|year=2011|publisher=Hirsch Publishing|location=Zürich|isbn=978-3-033-01717-7}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20131004215628/http://www.austcdoassocvic.com/ Australian Commando Association Victoria Website]}}
* [http://www.26cavcommando.org.au 2/6 Cavalry Commando Regiment Association (Vic.) Website]
* [http://www.defence.gov.au/army/1CDO/ 1st Commando Regt Official Site]
* [http://www.defence.gov.au/army/lwsc/Publications/Wp%20117.pdf Russell Parkin. (2002). "A Capability of First Resort: Amphibious Operations and Australian Defence Policy, 1901–2001" (Australian Army)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090926041109/http://ausspecialforces.com/ AusSpecialForces.com, "SF and Defence Community and news".]

{{Aust SF}}
{{Australian Commando raids of the Second World War}}

[[Category:Special forces of Australia|Australian commandos]]
[[Category:Military units and formations of the Australian Army|Commandos]]
[[Category:Commando units and formations]]