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39 Chapter 4 Birth of the Rangers Upon his arrival in Washington, Truscott reported for temporary duty with Army Ground Forces, commanded by Lt. Gen. Lesley J. McNair.1 He immediately went to General Clark’s office, where Clark explained to him that the Americans and British had agreed to an invasion of the European continent in the spring of 1943 and that Truscott and a number of other officers had been selected to join the staff of Vice Adm. Lord Louis Mountbatten, commander in chief of the Combined Operations Headquarters (COHQ), which was responsible for the British Commandos and for British amphibious training. Clark told Truscott that Maj. Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, head of the Operations Division of the War Department, would give him his specific instructions and that he was to report to Eisenhower’s office in the Munitions Building for temporary duty with the ODWD.2 There,after inquiring of Truscott’s recent activities and news of mutual friends, Eisenhower explained to Truscott why he had been called so suddenly to Washington . General Marshall had just returned from England, where he had conferred with the British about a planned cross-Channel invasion of the European continent in the spring of 1943, although if contingencies such as the imminent defeat of the Russian forces in the East required it the Allies could establish a limited front in France in the fall of 1942. He told Truscott that even as they spoke American forces were beginning to concentrate in the British Isles to undergo amphibious training and other training exercises to prepare for the invasion. Although confident that American forces would be well trained for the operation , Marshall expressed concern that since none of the soldiers would have actual battle experience before invading Europe, he hoped that he could provide a small number of men in each assault unit with actual battle experience who could serve as instructors for their units and during the actual assault would serve as examples for their comrades.With that in mind he had arranged 40 Dogface Soldier with Lord Mountbatten for a group of American officers, headed by Truscott, to serve in COHQ. The other officers of the team would join Truscott shortly, and while awaiting the arrival of those officers, Eisenhower suggested that Truscott avail himself of the opportunity to review all available information, talk to the officers who had accompanied Marshall to London, and gather the essential data to review with the other members of his team prior to meeting with Marshall in a few days. When Truscott pointed out to Eisenhower that his lack of any battle or amphibious operations experience and his limited contact with the U.S. Navy and the Army Air Corps in his career as a cavalryman might pose a problem as he met with the battle-seasoned British officers, Eisenhower replied, “I consider that your background as a cavalry officer, your experience with the Armored Force, your experience as an instructor at Leavenworth, your experience on a corps staff, and even your experience as a polo player especially fit you for this assignment. You know that Lord Louis wrote a book on polo. You can learn, can’t you?”3 Reassured by Eisenhower’s comments, Truscott set about meeting with the officers who had accompanied Marshall to London, reviewing with them the plans for the invasion, the differences in British organizations and methods, and the potential problems Truscott’s team might face. Truscott and members of his team then embarked on a very busy and hectic schedule, attempting to learn in a very short time as much as possible about various British headquarters and British staff organization and procedures, relying on the British officers then posted to Washington for aid. Eisenhower assisted Truscott by discussing with him the problems he faced and by inviting him to sit in on discussions he had with other officers in the Operations Division , other divisions of the War Department, naval and air officers, congressmen , and the myriad of other visitors to his office. In a few days General Marshall, whom Truscott had never met, sent for him. Marshall’s first comment was that at age forty-seven, Truscott was an older man than he had wanted for the assignment, pointing out that Lord Mountbatten was forty-three and that most of his staff were younger and all had battle experience. He then went on to say, however, that “some of your friends assure me that you are younger than...

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