Close Combat in World War 2.

**jonathan_sicari** · Posted On: 8/09/2009 3:27am

Hi all,

I'm trying to track down a source verifying the frequent claim that Fairbain style combatives were used unarmed and with knives in combat during WWII. Google searches leave me overwhelmed with sites illustrating Fairbain's techniques, but not actual references to their use.

Unfortunately, my own memory only supplies me with two knife encounters during the war; one being the the Gurka (sp?) article I have read in a couple places and I believe is frequently rehashed and the other being an anecdote in this book

http://openlibrary.org/b/OL3190278M/devil%27s-bodyguard

that I read in the early '90s.

Can anyone direct me to a source or sources to help with this?

(this is mainly for my own curiousity).

Thank you in advance,

Jonathan

**Mtripp** · Posted On: 8/09/2009 8:01am

The Close Combat files of Col. Rex Applegate.
Kill or Be Killed by Col. Rex Applegate.

However the famous Fairbairn knife was for British forces, not ours.

For our guys, Randal made the two major knives the "rich guys" used; Ka-bar likely was the most issued.

**dig7six** · Posted On: 8/09/2009 9:10am

Originally Posted by jonathan_sicari

Hi all,

I'm trying to track down a source verifying the frequent claim that Fairbain style combatives were used unarmed and with knives in combat during WWII. Google searches leave me overwhelmed with sites illustrating Fairbain's techniques, but not actual references to their use.

Unfortunately, my own memory only supplies me with two knife encounters during the war; one being the the Gurka (sp?) article I have read in a couple places and I believe is frequently rehashed and the other being an anecdote in this book

http://openlibrary.org/b/OL3190278M/devil%27s-bodyguard

that I read in the early '90s.

Can anyone direct me to a source or sources to help with this?

(this is mainly for my own curiousity).

Thank you in advance,

Jonathan

Dont know if it will help, but here there is a list of books from that time period including those authored by those mentioned above.

http://judoinfo.com/judobooks.htm

**jonathan_sicari** · Posted On: 8/10/2009 3:16am

Thanks guys, I'll check those out.

Jonathan

**mike321** · Posted On: 8/10/2009 10:01am

A little off topic, if you watch the history channel or military channel enough you will catch a lot of first hand accounts of marines confronting swords and other fighting at close quarters. Just heard one yesterday, but it came down to 1) his gun jammed, 2) he avoided sword using his jammed rifle, 3) his buddies saved him. Not quite the hand -to-hand fighting you are talking about but still interesting.

**Cdnronin** · Posted On: 8/10/2009 10:46am

http://www.gutterfighting.org/FairbairnSykesONeill.html

Try any of the books on Camp X by David Stafford or Lynn Phillip Hodgson. Read Knights of the floating silk(also published as Masks of war) by George Langelaan). Wait for Vol 2 of the Fairbairn biography to come out(probably early 2010).

**Cdnronin** · Posted On: 8/10/2009 10:57am

Originally Posted by jonathan_sicari

Hi all,

I'm trying to track down a source verifying the frequent claim that Fairbain style combatives were used unarmed and with knives in combat during WWII. Google searches leave me overwhelmed with sites illustrating Fairbain's techniques, but not actual references to their use.

Can anyone direct me to a source or sources to help with this?

(this is mainly for my own curiousity).

Thank you in advance,

Jonathan

Are you questioning whether FAS techniques were actually used, or are you specifically looking for AAR type reports?

**patfromlogan** · Posted On: 8/10/2009 11:11am

It's too bad that Sgt. Rosenband died several years ago. A survivor of Anzio and Normandy (after which he spent several months in hospitals), he went ashore early on D-Day. He didn't tell me much, but his son said that one of the guys killed was a half Asian ma from NYC who'd kicked a German officer off his horse and killed him as quietly as possible. The only verification of the hand to hand stuff in Normandy that I know is http://www.worldreviewer.com/info/to...tlefields.html, where it's mentioned that Teddy Roosevelt Jr., at age 57 (there's hope for us old farts) swam ashore with his men, armed only with knives, two hours before the main invasion.

When I met him he was a giant hulk of an old man, a 30 year NYC cop vet.

**Mtripp** · Posted On: 8/10/2009 11:13am

The Journal Of Asian Martial Arts did a story on Fairbairn many years ago. The author found many people who had trained in the system, and did use it in combat. What struck the author was how even many many years later, they all remembered the training and could still do the moves.

I just had a student from 15 years ago tell me on facebook he just dealt with an armed assault, and easily handled the problem, and the only training he ever had was the Fairbairn combatives I taught him years ago...