Nomads of the Battlefield: Ranger Companies in the Korean War, 1950-1951

This study analyzes the creation, use, and subsequent inactivation of the U.S. Army Ranger Companies during the Korean conflict from October of 1950 to August of 1951. Army Chief of Staff, General J. Lawton Collins ordered the creation of the Ranger Companies of the Korean conflict. He wished to create Marauder units to operate behind enemy lines, attacking their tank parks and assembly areas. This mission was developed as a response to the enemys assault infiltration tactics launched against American rear areas during the early part of the Korean conflict. The first Ranger company to serve in Korea was a Provisional Unit formed in October of 1950, to test Collins concept. Throughout the period of their existence the Ranger Companies acquitted themselves well as a fighter force, but were usually employed as just another company or as a sort of fore brigade for the division commander rather than in the raiding force role initially envisioned. Unconventional warfare.