Colonel Sir David Stirling, OBE, DSO (November 15, 1915 - November 4, 1990) was a Scottish laird, keen mountaineer, World War II British Army officer, and the founder of the Special Air Service. Colonel (IPA: or ) is a military rank of a commissioned officer, with the corresponding ranks existing in nearly every country in the world. ... A statue of an armoured knight of the Middle Ages For the chess piece, see knight (chess). ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these are... DSO medal The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other Commonwealth countries, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat. ... November 15 is the 319th day of the year (320th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 46 days remaining. ... 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... November 4 is the 308th day of the year (309th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 57 days remaining. ... This article is about the year. ... A lord is a male who has power and authority. ... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Nazi Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Harry Truman Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... The Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) is the principal special forces organisation of the British Armed Forces. ...

Archibald David Stirling was born at his family's ancestral home, Kier House near Doune in Perthshire (near Stirling). He was the son of Brigadier General Archibald Stirling of Keir and Margaret Fraser, daughter of Simon Fraser, the Lord Lovat. His cousin was Simon Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat. He was educated at Ampleforth College and Trinity College, Cambridge. Doune is a burgh in the district of Stirling, Scotland, on the River Teith. ... Perthshire (Siorrachd Pheairt in Gaelic) was a county in central Scotland, which extended from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south. ... Broad St at the heart of Stirlings Old Town area called Top of the Town by locals on a rare snowy day Stirling Castle (Southwest aspect) The main courtyard inside Stirling Castle. ... A Brigadier General, or one-star general, is the lowest rank of general officer in the United States and some other countries, ranking just above Colonel and just below Major General. ... Simon Fraser, 13th Lord Lovat (1828-1887) was a peer in the Peerage of Scotland. ... Lord Lovat is a title in the Peerage of Scotland dating to 1458. ... Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat, DSO, MC (9 July 1911 - 16 March 1995) was the 25th Chief of the Clan Fraser and a legendary British Commando during the Second World War. ... Ampleforth College in North Yorkshire is the largest private Catholic mixed boarding school in the UK, and it is occasionally referred to as the Catholic Eton, a soubriqet also attached at different times to Beaumont (no longer open) and Stonyhurst College (both Jesuit schools) and which was Cardinal Newmans... Full name The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity Motto Virtus vera nobilitas Virtue is true Nobility Named after The Holy Trinity Previous names King’s Hall and Michaelhouse (until merged in 1546) Established 1546 Sister College(s) Christ Church Master The Lord Rees of Ludlow Location Trinity Street...

A tall and athletic figure (he was 6 ft 6 in [1.98 m] tall), he was training to climb Mount Everest when World War II broke out. He joined the Scots Guards as a subaltern in 1939, and in June 1940 volunteered for the new No.8 Commando under Lt. Col. Robert Laycock which became part of Force Z (later named "Layforce"). After Layforce (and No.8 Commando) were disbanded on 1 August 1941, Stirling remained convinced that due to the mechanised nature of war a small team of highly trained soldiers with the advantage of surprise could exact greater damage to the enemy's ability to fight than an entire platoon. Media:Example. ... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Nazi Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Harry Truman Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead... The Scots Guards is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division, and have a long and proud history stretching back hundreds of years. ... A subaltern is a military term for a junior officer. ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... The British Commandos were first formed by the Army in June 1940 during World War II as a well-armed but unregimented raider force employing unconventional and irregular tactics to assault, disrupt and reconnoitre the enemy in mainland Europe and Scandinavia. ... In the U.S. Army, Air Force and Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a commissioned officer superior to a major and inferior to a colonel. ... Layforce consisted of Nos. ... Layforce consisted of Nos. ... August 1 is the 213th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (214th in leap years), with 152 days remaining. ... This article is about the year. ...

Aware that taking his idea up through the chain of command was unlikely to work, Stirling decided to go straight to the top. On crutches following a parachuting accident he sneaked into Middle East headquarters in Cairo in an effort to see Commander-in-Chief General Claude Auchinleck.^[1] Taking cover in an office, Stirling came face to face with Deputy Commander Middle East General Ritchie. Stirling explained his plan to Ritchie and Ritchie convinced Auchinleck to allow Stirling to form a new Special Forces unit. The unit was given the deliberately misleadingly name "L Detachment, Special Air Service Brigade" to reinforce an existing deception of a parachute brigade existing in North Africa. Commander-in-Chief (in NATO-lingo often C-in-C or CINC pronounced sink) is the commander of all the military forces within a particular region or of all the military forces of a state. ... A General is an officer of high military rank. ... Field Marshal Sir Claude Auchinleck Field Marshal Sir Claude John Eyre Auchinleck, GCB, GCIE, CSI, DSO, OBE (June 21, 1884 - 1981), nicknamed The Auk, was a British army commander during World War II. // Early life and career Born in Aldershot, he grew up in impoverished circumstances, but was able through... General Ritchie as commander of XII Corps in France General Sir Neil Ritchie (July 29, 1897 - December 11, 1983) was a British commanding officer during the Second World War. ...  Northern Africa (UN subregion)  geographic, including above North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent. ...

Statue of David Stirling near Doune, Scotland

His initial attempts of attack from parachute landing were disastrous and resulted in a high percentage of his men being killed or wounded. Escaping only with the help of the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) he devised that approaching by desert under the cover of night would not only be the safest but also the most effective means of approach. As quickly as possible he organised raids on ports using this simple method, often driving through checkpost under cover of night using the language skills of some of his soldiers to bluff the guards. Stirling was captured by the Germans in January 1943. He escaped on four occasions, before being sent to Colditz Castle, where he remained for the rest of the war. After his capture his brother Bill Stirling and Blair 'Paddy' Mayne took command of the SAS. Download high resolution version (599x800, 312 KB)The statue of SAS founder Colonel Sir David Stirling, standing on the Hill of Row near his familys estate at Park of Keir near Dunblane in central Scotland. ... Download high resolution version (599x800, 312 KB)The statue of SAS founder Colonel Sir David Stirling, standing on the Hill of Row near his familys estate at Park of Keir near Dunblane in central Scotland. ... Doune is a burgh in the district of Stirling, Scotland, on the River Teith. ... Motto: (Latin for No one provokes me with impunity)1 Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official language(s) English, Gaelic, Scots 2 Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen of the UK Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Jack McConnell MSP Unification... The Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) was a British Army unit during World War II. The unit was founded in Egypt following the Italian declaration of war (June 1940) by Major Ralph A. Bagnold with the assistance of captains Clayton and Shaw, acting under the direction of General Wavell. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... Colditz Castle in April 1945. ... Famous picture of Mayne, taken in north Africa Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Blair Paddy Mayne DSO & 3 Bars (11 January 1915 - 14 December 1955) was a Northern Irish soldier. ...

In the fifteen months before Stirling's capture, the SAS had destroyed over 250 aircraft on the ground, dozens of supply dumps, roads, and railway communications wrecked, and they had put literally hundreds of enemy vehicles out of action.

Stirling was concerned about the power of the trade unions so in 1975 he set up the organisation GB75, which he described as 'an organisation of apprehensive patriots' which would help the country in the event of strikes. ^[2] A union (labor union in American English; trade union, sometimes trades union, in British English; either labour union or trade union in Canadian English) is a legal entity consisting of employees or workers having a common interest, such as all the assembly workers for one employer, or all the workers... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday. ...

He was knighted in 1990, and died later that year. This article is about the year. ...

In 2002 the SAS memorial, a statue of Stirling standing on a rock, was opened on the Hill of Row near his family's estate at Park of Keir. For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ...

See Also

• Clan Stirling

Clan Stirling crest Clan Stirling is a Lowland Scottish clan. ...

Notes

1. ^ Ken Connor, Ghost Force The Secret History of the SAS, Orion Books, 1998, p.10
2. ^ Phillip Whitehead, The Writing on the Wall: Britain in the Seventies (Michael Joseph, 1985), p. 211.

References

• Significant Scots biography of David Stirling