22:
400:
418:, who co-ordinated British raiding operations, asked Peniakoff to give the new unit a cover name, but vacillated. The unit's name ultimately came from Hackett's exasperation at Popski's delay: "You had better find a name quick or we shall call you Popski's Private Army"—"I'll take it". PPA was unusual in that all officer recruits reverted to lieutenant on joining, and
536:
90:
500:
Three fighting patrols, each of 18 men in six jeeps, and one
Tactical HQ patrol of four jeeps were formed and given great autonomy. Each jeep was armed with .50in and .30in machine guns, giving the patrols immense firepower for their size. The men trained hard for amphibious, mountain and parachute
465:
The summer of 1943 was spent in
Algeria and Tunisia recruiting and training new volunteers from the LRDG, SAS, Commandos and Royal Armoured Corps for the fight in Italy, bringing the unit's size up to about 35 all ranks, with two fighting patrols and a small HQ. For a short while PPA experimented
387:(the LRDG's Intelligence Officer) because his signallers had problems with the name "Peniakoff". In fact Popski was born of Russian Jewish parents who had emigrated to Belgium, although he was educated in Britain; Willet's book on Popski includes many interviews with his Jewish family.
395:
Shortly after this No. 1 Demolition
Squadron was formed, the smallest independent unit of the British Army at 23 men all-ranks. The original officers of the unit were three friends who had served together in the Libyan Arab Force: Popski, Robert Park Yunnie and Jean Caneri.
422:
reverted to private. The unit was run quite informally: there was no saluting and no drill, officers and men messed together, every man was expected to know what to do and get on with it, and there was only one punishment for failure of any kind: to be immediately
798:
This list includes the first edition of each of 'the big five' books on PPA, starting with Popski's own bestseller. Since the early editions are hard to find, a recent edition is also listed for each book: where these have been retitled, the changed title is
368:(MC) for his previous intelligence reporting and petrol dump raiding while leading the LAFC for three months behind enemy lines, and for the operation with the LRDG. While he was away, the LAFC was disbanded. He was given the
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front line, badly depleted after the withdrawal of forces for the D-Day landings in
Normandy, nipping around in their jeeps to fool the Germans into believing that they were opposed by much larger units.
497:
opposing 1st
Airborne. As a result of this success Popski was allowed to increase the size of PPA to 80 all ranks; throughout the Italian Campaign about 100 men were actually deployed at any one time.
1423:
566:
units. They located targets for the Allied Air Force, chased
Germans out of rear-areas, saved bridges, captured many prisoners and guns, and accepted the surrender of the entire German garrison at
1413:
1051:
1418:
434:
Events proceeded rapidly; the
Germans and Italians were expelled from Egypt and Libya shortly after PPA became active. A joint LRDG-PPA patrol discovered the gap in the mountains that let
364:(LRDG) raid in the area he had just left. In doing so, he learned much about German and Italian procedures, but also lost his left little finger to an Italian bullet. He was awarded the
1044:
1197:
1428:
311:(SAS), PPA was the last and smallest of the three main irregular raiding, reconnaissance, and intelligence units formed during the North African Campaign.
341:, and the Royal Navy, but was rejected. He was accepted by the British Army, and assigned to garrison duties as an Arabic-speaking junior officer in the
589:. Along the way they adopted many strays, including Russian, Italian and German POWs, Italian regulars and partisans, both royalist and communist.
1009:
online part of the PPA Memorial, Official
Register of PPA Personnel, PPA Roll of Honour, PPA Awards, PPA War Establishments and other information.
543:
Throughout the bitter winter weather and fighting of 1944 and 1945 PPA undertook their operations ahead of regular forces, in support of
British,
504:
They were deployed in many roles, often clandestine, and for several months even operated as regular front line troops, holding a sector of the
1027:
about the 2007 discovery in the desert of a bag lost by an LRDG despatch rider (incorrectly thought to be a PPA despatch rider) during the war.
467:
976:
582:
43:
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415:
296:
730:
619:, the only wheeled vehicles ever to have been there. The unit was disbanded four months later on 14 September 1945, after hunting for
946:
880:
838:
757:
592:
Popski was awarded the
Distinguished Service Order (DSO) in November 1944, during joint operations (such as “Porterforce”) with the
65:
458:(advancing east) in Tunisia in early 1943. Many PPA raiding and reconnaissance operations were carried out around the time of the
494:
845:
Translated into Swedish (1951), German (1951), Italian (1951), French (1953), Hebrew (1954), Spanish (1955), Serbo-Croat (1957).
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who was a Belgian Jewish officer of Russian extraction. Popski's Private Army was one of several raiding units formed in the
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749:
History of United States Naval Operations in World War II.: Sicily, Salerno, Anzio, January 1943-June 1944
505:
183:
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At various times PPA worked alongside other secret units such as the LRDG, SAS, No. 1 Special Force (
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behind the Axis lines in Sicily, but their part in that operation was cancelled at the last minute.
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826:. Jonathan Cape. 2nd Edition, foreword by General Sir John Hackett, minor revisions, 1951.
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operations, demolition and counter-demolition, reconnaissance and intelligence gathering.
349:(LAFC), a small group of British and Libyan soldiers who operated behind the lines in the
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908:--- Astrolabe Publishing, 2006. Available from the Friends of Popski's Private Army.
915:
Lieutenant-Colonel John Willett, friend of Popski, intelligence officer in 8th Army
655:
593:
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263:
121:
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listing the 5 major books in all their editions, and details of unpublished books.
611:
At the end of the war Popski’s Private Army sailed some of their jeeps on RCLs to
1356:
1346:
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1192:
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552:
548:
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853:
Captain Robert Park Yunnie MC, Popski's second in command, leader of "B" patrol
1351:
686:
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and headed inland, where they discovered the hitherto unknown weakness of the
360:
On his return to Cairo in the middle of 1942, Peniakoff was invited to join a
354:
221:
399:
535:
325:
during the Second World War was attached as liaison officer to this unit.
1341:
567:
563:
559:
525:
369:
601:
483:
687:"Christopher Lee talks Special Forces and receives an incredible gift"
612:
722:
Ian Fleming's Commandos: The Story of the Legendary 30 Assault Unit
528:
and get behind the German front line, escorted by the Royal Navy’s
534:
398:
259:
232:
89:
627:’s partisans from encroaching on Austrian and Italian territory.
299:. The unit became operational on 10 December 1942 as an 8th Army
777:
This text is adapted from the "PPA Story" on two plaques at the
513:
471:
407:
1040:
1012:
319:
15:
337:
broke out, the 42-year-old Peniakoff applied to serve in the
1021:
a comprehensive synopsis of the PPA story, by Allen Parfitt.
786:
646:
had personally requested an account of the unit’s exploits.
630:
By this time PPA personnel had gained between them a DSO, a
524:
who became known as "Popski’s Private Navy") to sail up the
284:
No. 1 Demolition Squadron was formed specifically to attack
345:(LAF). Not satisfied, Popski left his post and formed the
604:. Shortly afterwards he lost his left hand to a German
482:
In September 1943 an advance patrol of PPA sailed to
291:'s fuel supplies, in support of General Montgomery’s
1424:
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945
1414:
Commando units and formations of the United Kingdom
1365:
1329:
1284:
1268:
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1231:
1175:
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427:. It was also efficient, having an unusually small
227:
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149:
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127:
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107:
99:
80:
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462:, including taking the surrender of 600 Italians.
1419:Military units and formations established in 1942
996:- Rivista Storica n. 9 - Novembre 1994 (Italian)
623:, disarming Italian partisans and discouraging
446:. The PPA was also among the first elements of
1068:British Commando units of the Second World War
1052:
931:Signalman Les White, signaller in "S" Patrol.
8:
957:Captain John Campbell, leader of "S" Patrol.
804:Lieutenant-Colonel Vladimir Peniakoff DSO MC
1162:No. 62 Commando (Small Scale Raiding Force)
1015:personnel database, photos and information.
673:
671:
1059:
1045:
1037:
450:(moving west) to link up with the British
295:, at the suggestion of Lieutenant-Colonel
66:Learn how and when to remove this message
725:. Oxford University Press. p. 162.
29:This article includes a list of general
667:
281:, and was disbanded in September 1945.
77:
833:. Cassell Military Paperbacks, 2004.
470:'s gliders to deliver them and their
7:
1429:Special forces of the United Kingdom
923:Popski, a life of Vladimir Peniakoff
873:Fighting with Popski's Private Army
752:. Little, Brown. pp. 235–236.
228:No. 1 Demolition Squadron cap badge
967:Tales from the Special Forces Club
890:Corporal Ben Owen, Yunnie's gunner
438:launch an outflanking move around
103:10 December 1942–14 September 1945
35:it lacks sufficient corresponding
14:
406:with his jeep during the raid on
231:
88:
20:
941:. Cassell Military Paperbacks.
1223:No. 48 (Royal Marine) Commando
1218:No. 47 (Royal Marine) Commando
1213:No. 46 (Royal Marine) Commando
1208:No. 45 (Royal Marine) Commando
1203:No. 44 (Royal Marine) Commando
1198:No. 43 (Royal Marine) Commando
1193:No. 42 (Royal Marine) Commando
1188:No. 41 (Royal Marine) Commando
1183:No. 40 (Royal Marine) Commando
1127:No. 10 (Inter-Allied) Commando
994:Popski's Private Army (P.P.A.)
746:Morison, Samuel Eliot (1944).
539:British troops in Italy, 1945.
516:or small landing craft called
391:Formation, and initial actions
383:cartoon character, by Captain
277:. The squadron also served in
249:No. 1 Demolition Squadron, PPA
1:
596:and Italian partisans of the
495:German 1st Parachute Division
939:From the Workhouse to Vienna
810:Peniakoff, Vladimir (1950).
587:Office of Strategic Services
1316:4th Special Service Brigade
1311:3rd Special Service Brigade
1306:2nd Special Service Brigade
1301:1st Special Service Brigade
787:National Memorial Arboretum
783:Allied Special Forces Grove
632:Distinguished Conduct Medal
94:Vladimir "Popski" Peniakoff
83:Popski's Private Army (PPA)
1445:
1321:Special Air Service Troops
1132:No. 11 (Scottish) Commando
898:With Popski's Private Army
615:, where they drove around
347:Libyan Arab Force Commando
1388:No. 1 Demolition Squadron
1260:Royal Air Force Commandos
875:. Greenhill Books, 2002.
87:
81:No. 1 Demolition Squadron
1383:Special Raiding Squadron
1244:British commando frogmen
1142:No. 14 (Arctic) Commando
1013:PPA Preservation Society
677:Peniakoff, 1950. p. 204.
512:Several operations used
460:Battle of Kasserine Pass
1393:Long Range Desert Group
1296:Special Service Brigade
1117:No. 8 (Guards) Commando
706:Peniakoff, 1950. p. 94.
697:Peniakoff, 1950. p. 46.
362:Long Range Desert Group
305:Long Range Desert Group
293:offensive at El Alamein
171:"Popski's Private Army"
50:more precise citations.
1366:Other Commando forces:
963:Rayment, Sean (2013).
921:Willett, John (1954).
640:Mentions in Despatches
598:28th Garibaldi Brigade
540:
411:
184:North African Campaign
1378:Special Boat Squadron
1239:Royal Naval Commandos
1019:Popski's Private Army
859:Yunnie, Park (1959).
831:Popski's Private Army
538:
468:1st Airborne Division
402:
245:Popski's Private Army
1167:Middle East Commando
925:. MacGibbon and Kee.
323:intelligence officer
1373:Special Air Service
937:White, Les (2004).
900:. Janus Publishing.
793:Select bibliography
414:Lieutenant Colonel
318:, who served as an
309:Special Air Service
262:in October 1942 by
896:Owen, Ben (1993).
861:Warriors on Wheels
719:(7 October 2011).
541:
442:'s defense at the
436:Bernard Montgomery
412:
404:Vladimir Peniakoff
267:Vladimir Peniakoff
205:Vladimir Peniakoff
145:Counter-demolition
1401:
1400:
992:Silvio Tasselli,
978:978-0-00745-253-8
617:St. Mark's Square
385:Bill Kennedy Shaw
343:Libyan Arab Force
239:
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1253:Royal Air Force:
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814:. Jonathan Cape.
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717:Rankin, Nicholas
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425:returned to unit
335:Second World War
303:unit. After the
275:Second World War
251:, was a unit of
235:
188:Italian Campaign
180:Second World War
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46:this article by
37:inline citations
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1157:No. 52 Commando
1152:No. 51 Commando
1147:No. 50 Commando
1137:No. 12 Commando
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316:Christopher Lee
307:(LRDG) and the
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763:. Retrieved
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634:, 6 MCs, 10
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380:Daily Mirror
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158:Part of
122:British Army
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1357:Timberforce
1347:Layforce II
1337:Forfarforce
1232:Royal Navy:
971:. Collins.
765:24 February
466:with using
448:Eighth Army
444:Mareth Line
420:other ranks
273:during the
176:Engagements
168:Nickname(s)
162:Eighth Army
48:introducing
1408:Categories
1352:Northforce
1285:Brigades (
452:First Army
329:Background
258:set up in
201:commanders
194:Commanders
31:references
638:, and 14
583:‘A’ Force
488:USS
377:, from a
355:Cyrenaica
333:When the
222:Astrolabe
1342:Layforce
987:Articles
650:See also
568:Chioggia
564:commando
560:infantry
556:armoured
545:Canadian
526:Adriatic
456:II Corps
370:nickname
353:area of
211:Insignia
799:listed.
785:at the
781:in the
621:Himmler
602:Ravenna
579:Phantom
484:Taranto
253:British
199:Notable
143:Raiding
108:Country
44:improve
975:
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879:
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729:
613:Venice
553:Polish
549:Indian
506:Allied
374:Popski
314:Actor
289:Rommel
218:symbol
153:80 men
118:Branch
100:Active
33:, but
662:Notes
514:DUKWs
490:Boise
478:Italy
472:jeeps
408:Barce
279:Italy
264:Major
260:Cairo
1287:List
973:ISBN
943:ISBN
877:ISBN
871:---
835:ISBN
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767:2015
754:ISBN
727:ISBN
585:and
562:and
551:and
518:RCLs
150:Size
138:Role
128:Type
636:MMs
577:),
575:SOE
320:RAF
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670:^
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