Shadow Commander The Epic Story of Donald D Blackburn—Guerrilla Leader and Special Forces Hero eBook Mike Guardia
Download As PDF : Shadow Commander The Epic Story of Donald D Blackburn—Guerrilla Leader and Special Forces Hero eBook Mike Guardia 
The true story of the US Army legend who organized “Blackburn’s Headhunters” against Japan in WWII and went on to initiate Special Forces operations in Vietnam.
The fires on Bataan burned on the evening of April 9, 1942—illuminating the white flags of surrender against the dark sky. Outnumbered and outgunned, remnants of the American-Philippine army surrendered to the forces of the Rising Sun. Yet US Army Captain Donald D. Blackburn refused to lay down his arms. With future Special Forces legend Russell Volckmann, Blackburn escaped to the jungles of North Luzon, where they raised a private army of 22,000 men against the Japanese. His organization of native tribes into guerrilla fighters would lead to the destruction of the enemy’s naval base at Aparri.
But Blackburn’s amazing accomplishments would not end with the victory in the Pacific. He would go on to play a key role in initiating Army Special Forces operations in Southeast Asia, spearheading Operation White Star in Laos as commander of the 77th Special Forces Group and eventually taking command of the highly classified Studies and Observations Group (SOG), charged with performing secret missions now that main-force Communist incursions were on the rise.
In the wake of the CIA’s disastrous Leaping Lena program, in 1964, Blackburn revitalized the Special Operations campaign in South Vietnam. Sending reconnaissance teams into Cambodia and North Vietnam, he discovered the clandestine networks and supply nodes of the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Taking the information directly to General Westmoreland, Blackburn was authorized to conduct full-scale operations against the NVA and Viet Cong in Laos and Cambodia. In combats large and small, the Communists realized they had met a master of insurgent tactics—and he was on the US side. Following his return to the US, Blackburn was the architect of the infamous Son Tay Prison Raid, officially termed Operation Ivory Coast, the largest prisoner-of-war rescue mission—and, indeed, the largest Army Special Forces operation—of the Vietnam War.
During a period when US troops in Southeast Asia faced guerrilla armies on every side, America had a superb covert commander of its own. This book follows Blackburn through both his youthful days of desperate combat and his time as a commander, imparting his lessons to the new ranks of Army Special Forces.
The fires on Bataan burned on the evening of April 9, 1942—illuminating the white flags of surrender against the dark sky. Outnumbered and outgunned, remnants of the American-Philippine army surrendered to the forces of the Rising Sun. Yet US Army Captain Donald D. Blackburn refused to lay down his arms. With future Special Forces legend Russell Volckmann, Blackburn escaped to the jungles of North Luzon, where they raised a private army of 22,000 men against the Japanese. His organization of native tribes into guerrilla fighters would lead to the destruction of the enemy’s naval base at Aparri.
But Blackburn’s amazing accomplishments would not end with the victory in the Pacific. He would go on to play a key role in initiating Army Special Forces operations in Southeast Asia, spearheading Operation White Star in Laos as commander of the 77th Special Forces Group and eventually taking command of the highly classified Studies and Observations Group (SOG), charged with performing secret missions now that main-force Communist incursions were on the rise.
In the wake of the CIA’s disastrous Leaping Lena program, in 1964, Blackburn revitalized the Special Operations campaign in South Vietnam. Sending reconnaissance teams into Cambodia and North Vietnam, he discovered the clandestine networks and supply nodes of the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Taking the information directly to General Westmoreland, Blackburn was authorized to conduct full-scale operations against the NVA and Viet Cong in Laos and Cambodia. In combats large and small, the Communists realized they had met a master of insurgent tactics—and he was on the US side. Following his return to the US, Blackburn was the architect of the infamous Son Tay Prison Raid, officially termed Operation Ivory Coast, the largest prisoner-of-war rescue mission—and, indeed, the largest Army Special Forces operation—of the Vietnam War.
During a period when US troops in Southeast Asia faced guerrilla armies on every side, America had a superb covert commander of its own. This book follows Blackburn through both his youthful days of desperate combat and his time as a commander, imparting his lessons to the new ranks of Army Special Forces.
Shadow Commander The Epic Story of Donald D Blackburn—Guerrilla Leader and Special Forces Hero eBook Mike Guardia
The author and historian Mike Guardia does a decent job at bringing retired United States Army, Brigadier General Donald D. Blackburn's biography to life. This book mirrors his previous work of the "American Guerrilla". In that narrative he writes about retired Brigadier General Russell W. Volkmann and his guerrilla activities against the Japanese Imperial Army during WWII on the northern island of Luzon, Republic of the Philippines, 1942 -1945. Both men escaped, (in tandem), the hellish realities of the Bataan Death March, and ultimately managed to galvanize the fighting spirit of the Filipino people. Their escape from the death march was quite miraculous, as the Japanese violently took control of the peaceful surrender of the allied troops. They, the Japanese, did this with their guns blazing away as they entered the unarmed allied camps.Several items of interest were detailed in this biography. Don's involvement with the Igorot tribesmen, more specifically the Ifugao Headhunters, and their merciless, barbaric dealings with the Japanese are graphically portrayed, (in print that is), ie. decapitating Japanese soldiers and their sympathizers with their prized and somewhat cherished bolo-bolo knives . Additionally his dealings with the "longhairs", a Filipino rouge guerrilla band that Blackburn and his Ifugao warriors convinced to work with the allies. Talk about conflict resolution... by "convincing" this rouge group of opportunist to work with him, the local Filipino people now had a horse to bet on. This triumph in it's own right helped garner 22,000 men and women to fight against the Japanese invaders.
After the war, Mike details Blackburn's military history to include how efficient his jungle warfare survival troops were by infiltrating and penetrating Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, the Panama Canal, and on two occasions Camp David. His soldiers on all occasions slipped in undetected and left tell-tale signs that they did so. In the case of Camp David their surreptitious activities were done right under the noses of the Secret Service and the USMC guarding that facility. Also the Son Tay raid in Vietnam was discussed. Blackburn was the architect of that rescue attempt, in which POW were targeted for repatriation. Of course history tells us that this was a flop, as no prisoners were present during the rescue mission. Although the mission was considered by the press to be a failure, the attempt actually brought about some positive changes for prisoners and how they were treated from that point on. North Vietnam now realized that they were vulnerable to the powers that may be.
Overall an easy and enjoyable read.
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Shadow Commander The Epic Story of Donald D Blackburn—Guerrilla Leader and Special Forces Hero eBook Mike Guardia Reviews
An accurate portrait of the guerrilla war waged by the American soldiers that evaded capture in 1941. They go from being stragglers to a well trained group of highly motivated Clandestine warriors who wage an unrelenting campaign against Japanese occupation troops in the Philippines. However, the opposition of the Philipinos to the Japanese is fragmented with groups like the "Huks" who are communists, Head hunters and Philipinos who are agents of the Japanese. The intelligence they collect for the American military intelligence analysts helps to prepare the way for the landings of the American forces tasked with clearing the islands
It's an interesting biography but seem to lack an intangible, I can't really point. I read it along with the audio book. The narration was so-so, and the narrator's taking of deep breaths was annoying. There in no a wide scope of the events that was happening besides those involving Col. Blackburn, who is truly a heroic person. I strongly disagreed with many of Mr. Guardia's statements about Viet Nam, even so I would recommend this book
This is a good biography of someone few Americans know about. Blackburn had a remarkable career as a guerrilla leader in the Philippines and then through the early years of the Cold War until he really left his mark on our policy in Vietnam.
About half of this book is dedicated Blackburn's WWII time with the other half to the rest of his career. I sort of hoped the book went into more detail about his WWII time. Getting some information on what the Japanese were doing at the time (more information about their counter-insurgency strategy, for instance). Additionally, more information about Blackburn's time in Vietnam would have been nice. But the book is brief at just over 200 pages.
Despite the shortness of the book, it is worth reading and I think Blackburn's life is worth knowing about.
A good granular account of Philippine guerrilla operations in WWII. The first part of the book essentially publishes Blackburn's diary from 1941 - 1943. An interesting narrative of how he evaded capture in 1942 and worked to establish a guerrilla army in northern Luzon. It is useful if the reader has some prior knowledge of the 1941 - 1942 Philippine campaign to put Blackburn's diary in context. Blackburn was remarkable in that as a relatively junior officer he was able to establish a large guerrilla army organized in a traditional military manner (companies, battalions staff positions).
He later played a major role in establishing the U.S. Army Special Forces and developed a successful strategy for their deployment in Vietnam.The account of his involvement in planning the 1970 Ton Say raid to attempt to rescue American POW's in North Vietnam is very interesting. Although no POW's were actually rescued, POW's subsequently confirmed that their treatment improved after the raid because the Vietnamese realized they were not invulnerable.
While the actions of a small number of Americans who refused to surrender to the Japanese after the fall of the Philippines may not fit in as nicely as OSS OG's in the lineage and origins of US Army Special Forces, some of those who fought in the Philippines as guerillas who learned on the job went on to play significant roles in the formation of US Army Special Forces.
One of those men who went on to become giants in the US Army SF community include Donald Blackburn.
I cannot recommend this book any higher for those wishing to learn about the little known guerilla operations against the Japanese during the dark days of WWII.
I only hope that someday the story of Blackburn's career post WWII reaches open source mass media.
A great resource of ad hoc American guerilla warfare operations in WWII.
The author and historian Mike Guardia does a decent job at bringing retired United States Army, Brigadier General Donald D. Blackburn's biography to life. This book mirrors his previous work of the "American Guerrilla". In that narrative he writes about retired Brigadier General Russell W. Volkmann and his guerrilla activities against the Japanese Imperial Army during WWII on the northern island of Luzon, Republic of the Philippines, 1942 -1945. Both men escaped, (in tandem), the hellish realities of the Bataan Death March, and ultimately managed to galvanize the fighting spirit of the Filipino people. Their escape from the death march was quite miraculous, as the Japanese violently took control of the peaceful surrender of the allied troops. They, the Japanese, did this with their guns blazing away as they entered the unarmed allied camps.
Several items of interest were detailed in this biography. Don's involvement with the Igorot tribesmen, more specifically the Ifugao Headhunters, and their merciless, barbaric dealings with the Japanese are graphically portrayed, (in print that is), ie. decapitating Japanese soldiers and their sympathizers with their prized and somewhat cherished bolo-bolo knives . Additionally his dealings with the "longhairs", a Filipino rouge guerrilla band that Blackburn and his Ifugao warriors convinced to work with the allies. Talk about conflict resolution... by "convincing" this rouge group of opportunist to work with him, the local Filipino people now had a horse to bet on. This triumph in it's own right helped garner 22,000 men and women to fight against the Japanese invaders.
After the war, Mike details Blackburn's military history to include how efficient his jungle warfare survival troops were by infiltrating and penetrating Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, the Panama Canal, and on two occasions Camp David. His soldiers on all occasions slipped in undetected and left tell-tale signs that they did so. In the case of Camp David their surreptitious activities were done right under the noses of the Secret Service and the USMC guarding that facility. Also the Son Tay raid in Vietnam was discussed. Blackburn was the architect of that rescue attempt, in which POW were targeted for repatriation. Of course history tells us that this was a flop, as no prisoners were present during the rescue mission. Although the mission was considered by the press to be a failure, the attempt actually brought about some positive changes for prisoners and how they were treated from that point on. North Vietnam now realized that they were vulnerable to the powers that may be.
Overall an easy and enjoyable read.
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