America’s first true Special Forces units, the Rangers were specially selected and trained with the help of British commandos. A select few joined their British counterparts in the ill-fated Dieppe Raid of 1942, and became the first US ground troops to see action in Europe. After a disastrous time in the Italian campaign, three of the five Ranger battalions were practically wiped out at the Battle of Cisterna. The remaining two battalions would go on to play a major role in the D-Day landings, seizing the coastal defence position at Point du Hoc in a daring raid that would prove key to the eventual success of the Normandy invasion