Donovan's Devils: OSS Commandos Behind Enemy Lines-Europe, World War II
The stirring, little-known story of the forerunners to today's Special Forces.

The OSS—Office of Strategic Services—created under the command of William Donovan, has been celebrated for its cloak-and-dagger operations during World War II and as the precursor of the CIA. As the "Oh So Social," it has also been portrayed as a club for the well-connected before, during, and after the war. Donovan's Devils tells the story of a different OSS, that of ordinary soldiers, recruited from among first- and second-generation immigrants, who volunteered for dangerous duty behind enemy lines and risked their lives in Italy, France, the Balkans, and elsewhere in Europe. Organized into Operational Groups, they infiltrated into enemy territory by air or sea and operated for days, weeks, or months hundreds of miles from the closest Allied troops. They performed sabotage, organized native resistance, and rescued downed airmen, nurses, and prisoners of war. Their enemy showed them no mercy, and sometimes their closest friends betrayed them. They were the precursors to today's Special Forces operators.

Based on declassified OSS records, personal collections, and oral histories of participants from both sides of the conflict, Donovan's Devils provides the most comprehensive account to date of the Operational Group activities, including a detailed narrative of the ill-fated Ginny mission, which resulted in the one of the OSS's gravest losses of the war.

Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history—books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
1121486901
Donovan's Devils: OSS Commandos Behind Enemy Lines-Europe, World War II
The stirring, little-known story of the forerunners to today's Special Forces.

The OSS—Office of Strategic Services—created under the command of William Donovan, has been celebrated for its cloak-and-dagger operations during World War II and as the precursor of the CIA. As the "Oh So Social," it has also been portrayed as a club for the well-connected before, during, and after the war. Donovan's Devils tells the story of a different OSS, that of ordinary soldiers, recruited from among first- and second-generation immigrants, who volunteered for dangerous duty behind enemy lines and risked their lives in Italy, France, the Balkans, and elsewhere in Europe. Organized into Operational Groups, they infiltrated into enemy territory by air or sea and operated for days, weeks, or months hundreds of miles from the closest Allied troops. They performed sabotage, organized native resistance, and rescued downed airmen, nurses, and prisoners of war. Their enemy showed them no mercy, and sometimes their closest friends betrayed them. They were the precursors to today's Special Forces operators.

Based on declassified OSS records, personal collections, and oral histories of participants from both sides of the conflict, Donovan's Devils provides the most comprehensive account to date of the Operational Group activities, including a detailed narrative of the ill-fated Ginny mission, which resulted in the one of the OSS's gravest losses of the war.

Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history—books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
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Donovan's Devils: OSS Commandos Behind Enemy Lines-Europe, World War II

Donovan's Devils: OSS Commandos Behind Enemy Lines-Europe, World War II

by Albert Lulushi
Donovan's Devils: OSS Commandos Behind Enemy Lines-Europe, World War II

Donovan's Devils: OSS Commandos Behind Enemy Lines-Europe, World War II

by Albert Lulushi

Hardcover

$25.99 
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Overview

The stirring, little-known story of the forerunners to today's Special Forces.

The OSS—Office of Strategic Services—created under the command of William Donovan, has been celebrated for its cloak-and-dagger operations during World War II and as the precursor of the CIA. As the "Oh So Social," it has also been portrayed as a club for the well-connected before, during, and after the war. Donovan's Devils tells the story of a different OSS, that of ordinary soldiers, recruited from among first- and second-generation immigrants, who volunteered for dangerous duty behind enemy lines and risked their lives in Italy, France, the Balkans, and elsewhere in Europe. Organized into Operational Groups, they infiltrated into enemy territory by air or sea and operated for days, weeks, or months hundreds of miles from the closest Allied troops. They performed sabotage, organized native resistance, and rescued downed airmen, nurses, and prisoners of war. Their enemy showed them no mercy, and sometimes their closest friends betrayed them. They were the precursors to today's Special Forces operators.

Based on declassified OSS records, personal collections, and oral histories of participants from both sides of the conflict, Donovan's Devils provides the most comprehensive account to date of the Operational Group activities, including a detailed narrative of the ill-fated Ginny mission, which resulted in the one of the OSS's gravest losses of the war.

Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history—books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781628725674
Publisher: Arcade
Publication date: 02/02/2016
Pages: 408
Product dimensions: 6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 2.40(d)

About the Author

Albert Lulushi fled his native Albania before the fall of the Communist regime and built a successful career as an information technology entrepreneur in the United States, where he worked with government agencies and Fortune 500 companies. He is the author of Operation Valuable Fiend: The CIA’ s First Paramilitary Strike Against the Iron Curtain, a History Book Club and Military History Book Club selection.

Table of Contents

List of Maps and Documents xi

Acknowledgments xii

Introduction xiii

List of Acronyms xvii

Prologue 5

1 Office of Strategic Services 13

2 Irregular Warfare in the Early Years of World War II 39

3 The OSS Operational Groups 61

4 Special Operations in the Western Mediterranean 75

5 Rescuing Escaped Prisoners of War 102

6 Operations from Corsica 115

7 The Ill-Fated Ginny Mission 129

8 Operational Groups in France 151

9 Americans in Vercors 166

10 Mission Walla Walla in Italy 190

11 Mission Mangosteen-Chrysler 203

12 Rescue Missions in the Balkans 217

13 Mission Peedee-Roanoke 238

14 OSS Investigations into War Crimes 267

15 Swift Justice for the Ginny Men 281

16 No Justice for Major Holohan 309

Epilogue 333

Notes 341

Bibliography 359

Index 372

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