Military Bookshelf Mid-Winter Picks

Tom Miller

Jan 08, 2008

The Fighting 69th: One Remarkable National Guard Unit's Journey from Ground Zero to Baghdad, by Sean Michael Flynn. Viking, $25.95 (320p) ISBN 978-0-670-01843-7

Founded by New York City's Irish immigrants in 1851, the 69th Infantry Regiment went on to distinguish itself during the Civil War and both world wars, earning the sobriquet "The Fighting 69th." By 2001, however, the unit had fallen into oblivion. Composed mostly of Hispanics and Africa Americans, New York City's only Guard unit, was "under-trained, under-resourced, and under-led."

Considered perhaps "the worst unit in the National Guard," the soldiers believed that they were so bad that they would never be deployed, making service in the 69th "the safest and easiest duty in the Army."

All that would change after 9/11. The 69th was activated on 9/11 and was the first unit at Ground Zero. For the next year, members of the 69th secured bridges and tunnels in the City and stood guard at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point -- just north of the City.

With the terrorist attacks providing motivation and a new mission and led by a hard-charging commander, Lieutenant Colonel Geoff Slack, the 69th began to improve.

In 2004, the 69th was activated again for deployment to Iraq. Following weeks of training in Texas and California and after receiving new equipment to replace their outdated and derelict stuff, the unit reflagged as "Task Force Wolfhound" and headed for Iraq.

The 69th pulled security in Al Taji, a "savagely anti-American" Sunni area north of Baghdad for a couple of months before being assigned to secure the main highway that connected Baghdad International Airport to downtown -- a six-mile stretch known as "The Most Dangerous Road in the World."

Learning as they went and patrolling aggressively, the 69th eventually "effectively neutralized" the threat along the highway. It didn't come easy though as the unit suffered scores of casualties, including nineteen dead.

Flynn served as a company commander with the 69th during its remarkable journey after 9/11 and draws on his personal experience, interviews with dozens of survivors, operations orders, combat journals, and unit newspapers to piece together a compelling and important account of an improbable transformation.

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Rangers at Dieppe: The First Combat Action of U.S. Rangers in World War II, by Jim DeFelice. Berkley Caliber, $24.95 (304p) ISBN 978-0-425-21921-8

The Allied raid at Dieppe on the coast of France on August 19, 1942, is one of the most controversial operations of World War II. Poorly planned and inadequately supported, the raid was a bloody failure. The Canadian 2nd Division which spearheaded the assault on the coastal town suffered a 67 percent casualty rate. The British Commandos and the small contingent of U.S. Rangers also suffered heavy casualties.

The raid was controversial from the start and remains so today. Some commentators have justified it as "a brutal but necessary rehearsal for D-Day." Others, noting the lack of support from naval guns and RAF bombers, the hubris of commanders, and the fact that Dieppe "had no military importance," disagree. The author sides with the latter, judging the operation "an unnecessary and foreseeable fiasco, an avoidable bloodbath."

Of the several published accounts of the battle, this is the only one that focuses on the contribution of the U.S. Army's 1st Ranger Battalion. Only fifty Rangers were selected for the operation, but they were scattered among the British and Canadian units and participated in every phase.

Besides recounting the battle in vivid detail, DeFelice sketches the early history of the Rangers. Established in June, 1942, and modeled on the British Commandos, the Rangers were an elite light infantry unit especially adapted for raids and amphibious missions.

Commanded by Major William O. Darby, the first contingent of 500 volunteers was trained by the Commandos. Darby selected 50 of them for the Dieppe raid to provide experience in amphibious operations.

Although the overall mission was a disaster and the Rangers suffered 22 percent casualties, DeFelice argues that for the Rangers at least "the raid was a success." The Rangers were blooded and learned some valuable lessons for the future. There also was favorable press coverage in the U.S. and shortly thereafter the Rangers were able to shed their provisional label and begin to expand. The Rangers would go on to secure their reputation in bitter fighting at Anzio and Pointe du Hoc, but it all began at Dieppe.

A solid account all around and recommended for fans of military history.

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