No. 48 (Royal Marine) Commando

No. 48 (Royal Marine) Commando
Cap Badge of the Royal Marines
Active	1944–1946
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Marines
Type	Commando
Role	Coastal raiding force Assault Infantry
Size	Battalion
Part of	4th Special Service Brigade
Nickname(s)	Four Eight
Motto(s)	Per Mare Per Terram (By Sea By Land) (Latin)
March	Quick – A Life on the Ocean Wave Slow – Preobrajensky
Commanders
Notable commanders	Lieutenant Colonel James Moulton
Insignia
Combined Operations Shoulder Patch

No. 48 (Royal Marine) Commando was a battalion-sized formation of the British Commandos, formed in 1944 during the Second World War. No. 48 Commando was assigned to the 4th Special Service Brigade and served in North West Europe, taking part in the Normandy landings and operations around Ostend and Antwerp before being disbanded after the war in January 1946.

The British Commandos were formed in 1940 by the order of Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister. He called for specially trained troops that would "develop a reign of terror down the enemy coast". At first they were a small force of volunteers who carried out small raids against enemy occupied territory, but, by 1943, their role had evolved into lightly equipped assault Infantry that specialised in spearheading amphibious landings.

The man selected as the overall commander of the force was Admiral Sir Roger Keyes, a veteran of the landings at Galipoli and the Zeebrugge raid in the First World War. Initially, the Commandos were a British Army formation; the first Royal Marine Commando was formed in 1942. The Royal Marine Commandos, like all British Commandos, went through the six-week intensive commando course at Achnacarry. The course in the Scottish Highlands concentrated on fitness, speed marches, weapons training, map reading, climbing, small boat operations and demolitions both by day and by night. In 1943, the commando formation had been standardised into a small headquarters, five fighting Troops, a Heavy Weapons troop and a signals platoon. The fighting Troops consisted of 65 all ranks divided into two 30 man sections, which in turn were divided into three ten man sub sections. The Heavy Weapons Troop was made up of 3 inch Mortar and Vickers machine gun teams.