Editing Commando (section)

=== United Kingdom ===
{{Main|Commandos (United Kingdom)}}
[[File:Landing on Queen Red Beach, Sword Area.jpg|upright=.9|thumb|left|alt=Men wading ashore from a [[landing craft]]|British Commandos wearing the green beret and carrying the Bergen rucksack during the [[Normandy landings]], June 1944. ]]

In 1940, the [[British Army]] formed "independent [[Company (military unit)|companies]]", later reformed as [[battalion]] sized "commandos", thereby reviving the word. The British intended that their [[British Commandos|commandos]] be small, highly mobile surprise raiding and [[military reconnaissance]] forces. They intended them to carry all they needed and not remain in field operations for more than 36 hours. Army Commandos were all volunteers selected from existing soldiers still in Britain.

During the war the British Army Commandos spawned several other famous British units such as the [[Special Air Service]], the [[Special Boat Service]] and the [[Parachute Regiment (United Kingdom)|Parachute Regiment]]. The British Army Commandos themselves were never regimented and were disbanded at the end of the war.

The [[Special Operations Executive]] (SOE) also formed commando units from British and displaced European personnel (e.g., [[Cichociemni]]) to conduct raiding operations in occupied Europe. They also worked in small teams, such as the SAS, which was composed of ten or fewer commandos because that was better for special operations. One example is [[Norwegian Independent Company 1]], which destroyed [[Norwegian heavy water sabotage|heavy water facilities]] in Norway in 1941.

The [[Royal Navy]] also controlled [[Royal Naval Commandos|Royal Navy Beach Parties]], based on teams formed to control the [[Battle of Dunkirk|evacuation of Dunkirk]] in 1940.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.historynet.com/royal-navy-commandos-in-world-war-ii.htm |title=World War II &#124; Royal Naval Commandos in World War II |publisher=TheHistoryNet |date= 2006-06-12|access-date=2012-04-19}}</ref> These were later known simply as RN Commandos, and they did not see action until they successfully fought for control of the landing beaches (as in the disastrous [[Dieppe Raid]] of 19 August 1942). The RN Commandos, including Commando "W" from the [[Royal Canadian Navy]], saw action on [[Normandy landings|D-Day]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rafbeachunits.info/html/beach_organisation.html |title=Beach Organisation for the Invasion of Normandy, 1944 |quote=The Royal Navy Beach Commandos controlled the arrival and departure of vessels that were landing their cargoes on the beaches. In each RN Beach Commando was a Principal Beachmaster (PBM), an Assistant Principal Beachmaster and two or three beach parties each consisting of a Beachmaster, two Assistant Beachmasters and about 20 seamen. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090113212651/http://www.rafbeachunits.info/html/beach_organisation.html |archive-date=January 13, 2009 }}</ref>

[[File:The Commando Memorial by night.jpg|thumb|upright|The [[Commando Memorial]] unveiled in 1952 in Scotland is dedicated to the British Commandos of the Second World War.]]

In 1942, the Royal Navy's nine [[Royal Marines]] infantry battalions were reorganized as Commandos, numbered from 40 to 48, joining the British Army Commandos in combined Commando Brigades. After the war the Army Commandos were disbanded. The Royal Marines form an enduring Brigade-strength capability as [[3 Commando Brigade]] with supporting Army units.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Raiders&nbsp;— the Army Commandos 1940-46|author=Neillands, Robin|year=1989|isbn=978-0-297-79426-4|publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson}}</ref>

The [[Royal Air Force]] also formed 15 commando units in 1942, each of which was 150 strong. These units consisted of trained technicians, [[armourer]]s and maintainers who had volunteered to undertake the commando course. These [[Royal Air Force Commandos]] accompanied the Allied invasion forces in all theatres; their main role was to allow the forward operation of friendly fighters by servicing and arming them from captured air fields. However, due to the forward position of these airfields, the RAF Commandos were also trained to secure and make safe these airfields and to help defend them from enemy counterattack.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.raf.mod.uk/dday/scus.html |title= |website=www.raf.mod.uk |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130915162624/http://www.raf.mod.uk/dday/scus.html |archive-date=September 15, 2013}}</ref>