Sadf Commando Units And Group Hq

[unit8]

Hi there,

I am looking for information about the obsolete SADF Commando Units and their related Group Head Quarters. All information is very welcome as trivial as it may seem it helps to fill in the gaps.

The Commandos are not as glamorous as the Special Forces or old Regiments but they did sterling work during their very long exsistance. Winston Churchill named his Special Forces Commandos after the Boer Republic Kommandos the fore runners of the SADF Commandos

Commando Units are not always where the name may suggest ie Umkomaas Commando is based in Pietermaritzburg at Oribi Village ( an old WWII hospital and POW camp and now mainly used for low economic housing) and not in the costal town of Umkomaas which is over 150 km away from Pietermaritzburg. Oribi Commando was based in Marburg (Port Shepstone)

Edited August 9, 2009 by unit8

[Absit Invidia]

Hi, I was OC Oribi Commando from 1979 to 1991. What would you like to know ? I have a draft history, or more a diary type record of events over the first 10 years. I am interested in drafting the remaining years up to the closing down in 2007. mybe we can help each other.

We are also intending to establish a museum jointly with the UMR and Highway Commando at the UMR HQ in Pinetown. But the Oribi memoribilia seems to have just disapeared at closing. It would be very sad if that is all lost and not preserved for history.

Can anybody perhaps help. Greeting in arms. Laurence Palmer

[Mervyn Mitton]

I wonder if Col. Dudley Wall would be able to help you ? He was 2i/c of Maritburg (was it no. 9 Group ?) in the 1990's

He was later in Mil Intel at Pretoria. I think he is a member - if not I have his email. Also ask the Society for the Preservation

of Militaria. Not sure who their President is now - they meet at Natal Mtd. Rifles. Some research sounds worthwhile. Mervyn

[ice]

Hallo

I am currently busy to compile a list of all the Commando Units. Also it seems that all the various units were under the command of a Group HQ. Can some-one maybe help me with a complete list as well as the structures of the various Groups.

[Mervyn Mitton]

Ice - welcome to GMIC. I'm afraid I can't help you with the lists you need , however, there has to be record of all Commandos'

and their locations. I will ask some retired SADF friends - and meanwhile , perhaps one of our members in SA will be able to

help. I suggest a personal IM to member - Arthur R , he maybe will have ideas. Mervyn

[ice]

Thank you so much Mervyn. This project is really slow and what I thought was an easy start - to obtain a full or complete list of all the RSA Commando's - seems almost impossible to get. But I will search for the e-mail address of Mr R Arthur and ask him if he can help me.

Have a nice day and keep this site going please.

Ice

[normie]

Hi, I have just finished authoring a book on the commandos which not only lists all the commando units of the SADF, but also lists all the Groups they reported to.

[ice]

Hallo Normie - where can we buy this book in South Africa ? What is the price ? I have your two RSA Airborne books

Thank you

Joe

[archie777]

Here is a display of some flashes of the former SA Commandos

[archie777]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_South_African_Commando_Units