The US 23rd Headquarters Special Troops was a WWII unit that mastered the tool of illusion to deceive the enemy’s army. Created in 1944, the unit adopted old ideas and tactics of deception, perfecting them and adapting them to the needs of the US Army in its fight against Germany. Despite the US 23rd Hqs Special Troops being formed by only 1100 men, it obtained incredible successes, playing a critical role, even if less recognised, in the Allies’ victory. The unit was granted a Congressional Gold Medal in 2024.
1 History and Emblem
1.1 History of the Ghost Army
During the summer of 1944, in the heat of WWII, a group of 1100 chosen American soldiers arrived in France to conduct a special operation. They were the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, also known as Ghost Army, or Phantom Army. This nickname was due to their ability to move quickly and unnoticed in between locations, to perform their job. Their task was to conduct deceptive operations to confuse the enemy and help the Allied armies. [source, source]
The inspiration to create a deception unit came from the example of the British army in Africa. In fact, during the battle of El Alamein, in 1942, they had utilised similar misleading techniques against the Germans. However, even before the British in Africa, deception in war was not a novelty. From Julius Caesar to Napoleon, generals have invested soldiers with secret deceptive tasks. However, the Ghost Army represented a completely new project. In fact, it had a thousand men whose role was exclusively to confuse and distract the enemy. [source, source]
US Army Major Ralph Ingersoll and Colonel Billy Harris created the Ghost Army. The Colonel was Ingersoll’s superior at the Special Plans branch of the Army in London. Together, with Ingersoll ideating and Harris giving life to the plan, they created the Ghost Army. The official start date of the unit is 20 January 1944 at Camp Forrest, in Tennessee. Colonel Harry Reeder became the commander of the Ghost Army, and would be until their return to the US. [source]
1.2 Emblem
Emblem of the Ghost Army. [image source]
2 Tactical-Operational Information
2.1 Operations of the Ghost Army
The Ghost Army reportedly conducted 25 operations, spread across Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Luxembourg. During its service, the unit allegedly saved the lives of 15,000 to 30,000 US soldiers. [source, source]
Operation Brittany: conducted in July 1944, it convinced the enemy that General George Patton had different plans than in reality. It led to a successful victory over the Germans. [source]
Operation Brest: between 20 and 27 August 1944, the Ghost Army conducted its first major operation, using any type of deception. Brest was an important target for the US Army, as stated by General Patton himself. Therefore, the Ghost Army job was to create the illusion that the forces attacking Brest were much greater in number than was true. The operation itself is considered a success, mainly because of the effective use of deception techniques, but it did not lead to the desired result. [source]
Operation Bettembourg: between 15 and 22 September 1944, the Ghost Army helped General Patton to hide the fact that a part of his army was understaffed and in difficulty. [source]
Operation Kodak: in December 1944, the Ghost Army conducted a radio operation to distract the German Army from their efforts to take the city of Bastogne. [source]
Operation Viersen: their biggest operation ever, in March 1945. The Ghost Army managed to convince the Germans that the 9th US Army would cross the Rhine River on a false date, allowing the safe passage of the unit. [source]
2.2 Core Purpose, Tactics, and Equipment
Their main goal was to deceive the enemy into convincing them that US units were stronger than in reality and in false locations. The members of the Ghost Army were real actors, impersonating members of different US units and playing multiple roles. The Ghost Army was deemed capable of simulating the presence of around 30,000 men, two entire divisions. Furthermore, they would go into towns, cities, and local hangouts and invent stories for enemy ears to catch. Moreover, they would stage fake convoys, troops, and military bases, with the help of inflatable tanks and recorded sound effects.
The men of the unit, during their years of service, learned to improve the techniques and to develop technologies. For example, they learnt how to record, mix, and modify sound records to obtain all the different sound scenarios necessary. For the D-Day operations, they created fake artillery. The Ghost Army would also work with the surrounding nature to make it look like troops were passing by. For instance, they would wet the grounds, or work the soil to portray the passage of tanks and trucks.
At the end of the war, the equipment that the Ghost Army created and used was sent to the Army’s aggressor force training program, for practices. On the other side, illusions through radio and sounds would also come from different sources. For example, they would put boomboxes on trucks and play loudly the sounds of a moving troop. The Ghost Army’s techniques, and especially its technologies, are still an example for the US Army, and often still used on the battlefield.
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2.3 Units of the Ghost Army
The Ghost Army comprised 82 officers and 1,023 men. These men were artists, engineers, professional soldiers, and draftees. Known names were among them, such as Bill Blass, a fashion designer, Ellsworth Kelly, a painter, and Art Kane, a photographer. During the unit’s service, 3 men were killed in operations, and 30 were injured by gunfire. [source, source]
603rd Engineer Camouflage Battalion: composed of 379 men, and therefore the largest of the units in the 23rd Hqs Special Troops, the battalion took care of visual illusions. These included weapons, trucks, and fake tanks, all for the purpose of deceiving the enemy that was observing from afar. Camouflage capabilities were fundamental, the reason why some artists were part of the Ghost Army. [source]
Signal Company Special: composed of 296 men, this company performed radio deception. They would imitate the modus operandi of real radio operators to confuse the enemy. [source]
3132 Signal Service Company: composed of 145 men, the unit would deceive through the use of sound effects from speakers. They were the youngest unit in the Ghost Army. [source]
406th Engineer Combat Company: composed of 168 men under the orders of Captain George Rebh, this company was dedicated to the protection and security of the other units of the Ghost Army. [source]
3133rd Signal Service Company Special: the 3133rd Signal Service Company was composed of members of the 3132 Signal Service Company, specifically 10 officers and 192 men. They were located in Italy. In particular, they arrived in Naples on 15 March 1945. [source]
3 Declassification of the Ghost Army
After the Second World War, the unit’s work was kept hidden, the reports of operations were classified and memories were sealed. The first public account of the unit came out in April 1985, with the testimonies of Arthur Shilstone, a former member of the Ghost Army. The US Government started realising publicly the history of the project around the mid ‘80s, but it soon resealed the reports, with a final declassification in 1996. [source, source]
4 Congressional Gold Medal
In 2022, then US President Joe Biden signed a proposal to award the Congressional Gold Medal to the Ghost Army survivors. In 2024, three veterans from the Ghost Army, Seymour Nussenbaum, John Christman, and Bernard Bluestein, attended the ceremony on Capitol Hill. The Congressional Gold Medal award was the result of years of work of family members of the Ghost Army men, as well as Rick Beyer. Rick Beyer is a filmmaker and author who decided to share the story of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops after the declassification in 1996. He is in fact the president of the Ghost Army Legacy Project, the producer and director of the documentary “The Ghost Army” from 2013, and the co-author of the book “The Ghost Army of World War II” (2015). [source, source]
5 Conclusion
In conclusion, the Ghost Army covered an important role in the Second World War, deceiving the German army and saving thousands of US American lives. Since their birth in 1944, they have developed efficient deception techniques and technologies, still used today in the US Army. They conducted many successful operations, guaranteeing the Allies’ triumph. Furthermore, they distinguished themselves not by killing the most enemies, but by saving the most comrades. The 2024 Congressional Gold Medal was therefore more than deserved, and–thanks to the work of families and the Ghost Army Legacy Project–the work of the 1100 men will be remembered.