Download or read book The Spearheaders written by James Altieri and published by Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 2014-10-15 with total page 275 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The outlook for a victory by the Allied Powers was in doubt in 1942. When only two untested American divisions arrived in the European theatre, Gen. Lucien K. Truscott conceived the plan of organizing an American commando unit to be known as the “Rangers.” Maj. William O. Darby was placed in command of the first Ranger Battalion and proved himself an officer of such extraordinary leadership that his unit became known as “Darby’s Rangers.” The Spearheaders is an account from an enlisted man’s point of view of the intensely dramatic career of the Rangers.