Unusual military formations

Navy SEALs, green berets - these names of elite military associations are on everyone's lips. At the same time, similar formations existed in different countries for centuries.

Most of them were ordinary organizations for ordinary purposes, but some were quite extraordinary - both in physical characteristics and in the requirements that were placed on their members.

So, we recall the seven most unusual military formations in history.

Potsdam Giants

The armies of all times and peoples sought to recruit the strongest and most enduring soldiers into their ranks, but the Prussian king Friedrich Wilhelm I was simply obsessed with this idea. At the beginning of the 18th century, this military-obsessed monarch decided to assemble the highest military officers in Europe and create an elite squad called the Potsdam Giants.

Despite the fact that they did not manage to take part in a real battle, these soldiers became the most impressive detachment, consisting of tall and stately handsome men, who would not be abandoned by the leading basketball teams today: the growth of some of them exceeded 2 meters, and one soldier, a native of Sweden, was at all 2.5 meters tall.

King Frederick did not stop looking for new giants and tried to get them in every possible way. At times, he spent incredible sums to buy tall soldiers from other armies and recruit ordinary citizens into his squad. Moreover, in an effort to raise a younger generation of Giants, Frederick forced the tallest members of his squad to marry tall women.

The king loved his Giants so much that he even made them march around the room when he was unwell - the very sight of his beloved guard gave him great joy. However, after the death of the king in 1740, his son disbanded the detachment, which did not really justify the money spent on it, and with the money saved, he assembled four detachments with soldiers of ordinary height.

viking berserkers

According to historians, the berserkers were the most intimidating variety of the Vikings: few could compare with them in a furious, wild, furious, almost hysterical manner of fighting. Not recognizing chain mail and other uniforms, they went out to meet the enemy, dressed only in bear or wolf skins, or even with a naked torso. Their insatiable penchant for murder, violence and looting gave rise to legends about the ability of berserkers to turn into violent monsters, sometimes unable to resist their own bloodlust, which is why they sometimes even attacked their allies.

It is not surprising that berserkers were feared and hated by everyone, even the Vikings themselves. Historians are still wondering what caused the berserkers to experience such a powerful rage. Some believe that the violent Vikings belonged to special cults and entered into a trance state before battles. According to another version, the berserkers simply got drunk or pumped the body with powerful drugs, which caused them wild uncontrollable aggression.

ten thousand immortals

One of the most famous and most feared military formations, the Immortals were a detachment of 10 thousand soldiers and belonged to the Persian Empire. It is about this army that the Greek historian Herodotus narrates, talking about the Persian invasion of Greece.

The Immortals are described by him as "stunningly armed" soldiers, who got their name due to the fact that the size of their squad has always remained unchanged. If at least one Immortal fell ill or died in battle, he was immediately replaced by someone else, so that the detachment always had at least 10 thousand soldiers.

Despite the fact that the Persian army consisted of representatives of different nations, only Persians and Medes could serve in the squad of the Immortals. As a rule, the Immortals were trained from childhood, it was from among the Immortals (mostly from noble Persian families) that the bodyguards of the head of state were chosen.

It was the image of the Immortals (albeit with a number of deviations from historical realities) that was taken as a basis by the creators of the film "300 Spartans", as well as the developers of computer strategy games, where the universal Persian troops are depicted as similar to the Immortals.

army of ghosts

In the summer of 1944, the US Army brought together a group of carefully selected artists, designers, and sound effects experts to give them an unusual task: to create a phantom army. The inspiration for this idea was the operation that the British had once pulled off in North Africa.

Organizing the 23rd Special Detachment, known as the "ghost army", the Americans used inflatable tanks and jeeps, as well as various sound effects, to mislead the Germans about the true size and location of the Allied forces.

"Army of Ghosts" took part in more than 20 missions, many of which in terms of visual effects could be compared with the best films in Hollywood. Artists and illustrators did their best, creating fake uniforms and military vehicles; sound engineers imitated radio signals and created with the help of sound effects the illusion of the presence of a moving army; actors spread information in the hope that it would be immediately picked up by Nazi spies.

Thanks to all these efforts in the complex, the "army of ghosts" successfully created the impression that the American troops were much stronger and more numerous than they actually were. It is noteworthy that the existence of the “army of ghosts” remained a secret for a long time, which was publicly revealed only in 1996.

Gurkhas

The history of the Gurkhas goes back to 1814, when British troops clashed with the inhabitants of the Gorkha region during the Anglo-Nepalese War. The British suffered one defeat after another, despite being twice outnumbered by the Gurkhas; the latter even managed to persuade them to conclude a truce.

The British were so impressed with the perseverance and tenacity of the Gurkhas that, as one of the agreements, they allowed Nepalese fighters to serve as volunteers in army units in East India. Subsequently, the Gurkhas became part of the regular British Army and were involved in almost all serious military battles of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Until now, the British army selects about 200 Gurkhas annually from 30,000 Nepalese young people: recruits who want to serve in the British army go through a tough selection, including long-distance running in the Himalayas with a 35-kilogram load on their shoulders.

Mormon Battalion

The Mormon Battalion is unique in that it was the only formation in the US military that was made up entirely of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Mormon Volunteer Corps was formed in July 1846 by Brigham Young to fight in the Mexican War.

Despite the fact that the battalion never managed to take part in the hostilities, this formation, consisting of 500 people, became one of the most actively traveling units in the history of America. In addition, it was the forces of this battalion that founded the city of Salt Lake City.

monument people

The Department of Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives - known as the "Monument People" - was a special unit whose task was to preserve the cultural heritage of Europe. The composition of this unit was small - it included a few carefully selected art historians, museum curators and scientists, designed to protect historical and cultural monuments from damage during the war.

One of the main tasks of the monument people was to ensure that cultural monuments were not accidentally destroyed by the Allies during the invasion of Europe. Members of the formation developed special maps and instructed the pilots in which areas to avoid bombing, and also engaged in the restoration of already damaged landmarks. Toward the end of the war, the formation's efforts were focused on finding and recovering priceless paintings and sculptures stolen by the Nazis.

A year ago, a film was even made about the feat of these people in Hollywood.

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