The 43 Commando Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines (43 Cdo FP Gp RM), formerly Comacchio Company Royal Marines (1980–1983), Comacchio Group Royal Marines (1983–2001) and Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines (2001–2012), is a 550-man unit of the

Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...

responsible for guarding the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

nuclear weapon A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear exp ...

s. The unit, based at HM Naval Base Clyde, is part of UK Commando Force. It inherited the traditions and battle honours of the Second World War No. 43 (Royal Marine) Commandos.

History

Second World War

Early Commando units were all from the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. In February 1942, the Royal Marines were asked to organize commando units of their own, and 6,000 men volunteered. In July 1943, 43 Commando was formed, after the conversion of the

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

s of the Royal Marine Division into commando units. The initial intake of personnel was drawn from the 2nd Battalion, Royal Marines. Following commando training at Achnacarry in Scotland, the unit consisted of about 450 men organized into a headquarters, five

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troo ...

s consisting of three officers and 63 other ranks, along with a heavy weapons troop—armed with Vickers machine guns, 3-inch mortars and 6-pounder anti-tank guns—and a signals platoon. Along with No. 2, No. 9 and No. 40 (Royal Marine) Commandos, 43 Commando formed the 2nd Special Service Brigade. In 1943–45, No. 43 (Royal Marine) Commando served in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

and

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

Victoria Cross

Corporal Thomas Peck Hunter was posthumously awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

for his actions during Operation Roast at Lake Comacchio,

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Hunter cleared a farmhouse containing three MG42 machine-guns on his own, firing a Bren Gun from his hip. Hunter then proceeded to draw enemy fire until most of his troop had taken cover. The

Commanding Officer The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

, Lieutenant Colonel Ian Riches RM was awarded the DSO in this action. He went on to be

Commandant General Royal Marines Commandant General Royal Marines is the professional head of the Royal Marines. The title has existed since 1943. The role is held by a General (United Kingdom), General who is assisted by a Deputy Commandant General, with the rank of Brigadier ( ...

between 1959 and 1962.Obituary: General Sir Ian Riches
The Independent, 6 January 1997

Re-formed

In 1961, 43 Commando RM was reformed at Stonehouse Barracks "as a further contribution to the forces available for seaborne operations". The unit was disbanded again in 1968.

Comacchio Company

On 1 May 1980, the Comacchio Company Royal Marines was formed - taking its name from the battle honour " Comacchio, Italy 1945", where Hunter posthumously received the Victoria Cross for his actions. On its formation, Comacchio Company took on the colours and traditions of the then-defunct 43 Commando. The company's purpose was to guard the UK's Naval nuclear weapons and be a maritime

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...

unit for offshore installations, including oil rigs and ships. The company initially numbered around 424 personnel. In November 1983, the Comacchio Company RM became Comacchio Group RM. In 1987, Comacchio Group ceased performing the maritime counter-terrorism role after a study transferred the task to the newly formed M-squadron of the Royal Marines

Special Boat Service The Special Boat Service (SBS) is the special forces unit of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. The SBS can trace its origins back to the Second World War when the Army Special Boat Section was formed in 1940. After the Second World War, the Roy ...

Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines

In March 2001, the Comacchio Group RM was renamed Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines, and restructured into its current organisation. The Group moved from RM Condor in

Arbroath Arbroath () or Aberbrothock ( ) is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the Subdivisions of Scotland, council area of Angus, Scotland, Angus, Scotland, with a population of 23,902. It lies on the North Sea coast, some east-northeast of ...

Angus Angus may refer to: *Angus, Scotland, a council area of Scotland, and formerly a province, sheriffdom, county and district of Scotland * Angus, Canada, a community in Essa, Ontario Animals * Angus cattle, various breeds of beef cattle Media * ...

, where it was co-located with 45 Commando, to HM Naval Base Clyde, which is situated near

Helensburgh Helensburgh ( ; ) is a town on the north side of the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, situated at the mouth of the Gareloch. Historically in Dunbartonshire, it became part of Argyll and Bute following local government reorganisation in 1996. Histo ...

Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute (; , ) is one of 32 unitary authority, unitary council areas of Scotland, council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod ...

, both in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. In 2012, FPGRM formally adopted the name 43 Commando Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines. In 2016, elements of the unit began using the Colt Canada C8 carbine instead of the standard L85A2. Commandos from 43 Commando regularly train with other forces both inside the UK and other nations including the US Marines.

Tasks and organisation

The primary mission is to prevent unauthorised access to the UK's strategic nuclear deterrent through the provision of specialist military capability. Additionally, maritime boarding and sniper teams and the very high readiness Fleet Contingent Troop are deployed world-wide to conduct specialist maritime security tasks in support of the Royal Navy. 43 Commando Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines is a Royal Marine Unit based at HM Naval Base Clyde in Scotland and is part of UK Commando Force, the UK's high readiness expeditionary amphibious force. As of 2016, 43 Commando Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines has over 550 personnel and is organised into several sub-units: *HQ headquarters squadron *O Rifle Squadron *P Rifle Squadron (reformed in 2018) *R Rifle Squadron File:43-commando-hr.jpg, Members of 43 Commando Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines train using L119A1 carbines fitted with a CQB upper receiver. File:43_Commando_Fleet_Protection_Group_MOD_45160375.jpg, Royal Marines from 43 Commando Fleet Protection Group conducting an ‘Underway Boarding Exercise’ in conjunction with a local ferry, 2015.

Royal Navy Reserve augmentation

Naval ratings of the

Royal Naval Reserve The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original ...

have been attached to 43 Commando Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines, to support the force protection tasks outside of the United Kingdom. Force protection duties are currently carried out by the standing tasks commando unit, a duty which rotates annually between Commando units.HMS Eaglet
accessed 14 December 2015

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control 43 Royal Marine formations and units Military units and formations established in 1942 Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in World War II United Kingdom nuclear command and control Trident (UK nuclear programme) 1980 establishments in the United Kingdom