WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.059 Welcome to another deep dive. We have an absolutely 00:00:04.059 --> 00:00:06.820 incredible journey lined up for you today. Our 00:00:06.820 --> 00:00:09.619 mission is to trace the evolution of a single 00:00:09.619 --> 00:00:12.800 highly decorated military unit across more than 00:00:12.800 --> 00:00:16.000 140 years of continuous history. It really is 00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:18.199 a massive timeline. Right. And we are looking 00:00:18.199 --> 00:00:20.780 at a stack of sources today, including the Wikipedia 00:00:20.780 --> 00:00:23.160 entry and various historical military records 00:00:23.160 --> 00:00:26.960 for the 26th Infantry Battalion of Romania. Which... 00:00:27.160 --> 00:00:29.379 If you follow modern military history, you probably 00:00:29.379 --> 00:00:31.780 know them better by their global call sign, the 00:00:31.780 --> 00:00:34.520 Red Scorpions. Exactly. And for you listening 00:00:34.520 --> 00:00:36.020 right now, you might be asking yourself, you 00:00:36.020 --> 00:00:37.899 know, why should I dedicate time to the history 00:00:37.899 --> 00:00:40.479 of one specific infantry battalion from Eastern 00:00:40.479 --> 00:00:43.619 Europe? Well. This is far more than just dry 00:00:43.619 --> 00:00:46.359 military history. By following this one unit, 00:00:46.439 --> 00:00:48.539 you're getting a front row seat to the massive 00:00:48.539 --> 00:00:51.579 geopolitical shifts of the 19th, 20th and 21st 00:00:51.579 --> 00:00:53.820 centuries. It's essentially a microcosm of world 00:00:53.820 --> 00:00:55.740 history. Yeah, you get to watch warfare evolve 00:00:55.740 --> 00:00:58.520 from men fighting in literal trenches for local 00:00:58.520 --> 00:01:01.619 empires all the way to engaging in highly technical 00:01:01.619 --> 00:01:03.939 modern coalition warfare in the Middle East. 00:01:04.099 --> 00:01:06.620 That is the real value here. You get to see how... 00:01:06.840 --> 00:01:10.780 These massive abstract global events, the kinds 00:01:10.780 --> 00:01:12.340 of things you read about in history textbooks, 00:01:12.599 --> 00:01:16.200 actually impact the tactical boots on the ground 00:01:16.200 --> 00:01:18.700 reality for a single unit just trying to survive. 00:01:18.939 --> 00:01:20.599 Okay, let's unpack this. Take us back to the 00:01:20.599 --> 00:01:22.920 very beginning of the timeline. Where does the 00:01:22.920 --> 00:01:26.439 story of this unit actually originate? So the 00:01:26.439 --> 00:01:29.120 foundation is laid on April 1st, 1880. They were 00:01:29.120 --> 00:01:32.040 originally formed as the 26th Dorobani Regiment. 00:01:32.519 --> 00:01:34.840 Dorobani. Right. And for those unfamiliar with 00:01:34.840 --> 00:01:37.159 that term, a Dorobani historically referred to 00:01:37.159 --> 00:01:40.650 a type of Romanian infantryman. In earlier centuries, 00:01:40.750 --> 00:01:43.090 they functioned almost like a local militia or 00:01:43.090 --> 00:01:46.269 even hussars. But by the late 19th century, they 00:01:46.269 --> 00:01:49.010 were a core part of the regular territorial infantry. 00:01:49.250 --> 00:01:51.689 Known for their distinct uniforms. Exactly. So 00:01:51.689 --> 00:01:53.469 they start as a localized territorial defense 00:01:53.469 --> 00:01:56.329 force. Their specific lineage traces back to 00:01:56.329 --> 00:01:58.909 the 2nd Torobani Battalion Falsu. In the early 00:01:58.909 --> 00:02:00.870 days, their initial garrison was placed in a 00:02:00.870 --> 00:02:03.310 town called Huay, though they would later be 00:02:03.310 --> 00:02:05.409 moved to Criova, which becomes their historic 00:02:05.409 --> 00:02:08.689 home. long -term home base. So what's the geopolitical 00:02:08.689 --> 00:02:10.530 climate like for them right out of the gate? 00:02:10.650 --> 00:02:13.689 Do they see action early on? What's fascinating 00:02:13.689 --> 00:02:16.689 here is how quickly this local unit becomes a 00:02:16.689 --> 00:02:19.750 mirror for Europe's most volatile eras. Just 00:02:19.750 --> 00:02:22.590 over a decade after they were formed, in 1891, 00:02:22.789 --> 00:02:25.110 the regiment received a special honorific title, 00:02:25.310 --> 00:02:28.400 Rovin. And that's not just handed out randomly. 00:02:28.659 --> 00:02:31.520 No, not at all. It was awarded to honor the extreme 00:02:31.520 --> 00:02:33.979 bravery their precursor soldiers had displayed 00:02:33.979 --> 00:02:36.400 during the Romanian War of Independence a few 00:02:36.400 --> 00:02:39.240 years prior. So from their very inception, there 00:02:39.240 --> 00:02:41.740 is this established culture of resilience. And 00:02:41.740 --> 00:02:44.180 they were going to need every single ounce of 00:02:44.180 --> 00:02:46.340 that resilience because the sources point us 00:02:46.340 --> 00:02:49.400 straight toward 1916. The First World War is 00:02:49.400 --> 00:02:52.000 raging across the continent and Romania officially 00:02:52.000 --> 00:02:55.159 enters the conflict. How is the 26th Regiment 00:02:55.159 --> 00:02:57.340 deployed? They are immediately assigned to the 00:02:57.340 --> 00:02:59.620 Jew group, operating as a crucial component of 00:02:59.620 --> 00:03:01.840 the Romanian First Army's 11th Infantry Division. 00:03:02.180 --> 00:03:04.280 They are sent straight into the meat grinder 00:03:04.280 --> 00:03:06.840 of the Jew Valley. Wow. Yeah. And by August of 00:03:06.840 --> 00:03:09.099 1916, they successfully engage in the battles 00:03:09.099 --> 00:03:11.599 to occupy the Petrani area. You mentioned the 00:03:11.599 --> 00:03:14.319 meat grinder of World War I. Do we have a sense 00:03:14.319 --> 00:03:17.120 of just how bad the casualties were for this 00:03:17.120 --> 00:03:19.639 specific unit during those early campaigns? We 00:03:19.639 --> 00:03:21.800 do. And I mean, the numbers are genuinely staggering. 00:03:22.530 --> 00:03:25.030 When this unit entered the fighting in August 00:03:25.030 --> 00:03:28.689 1916, they had an active strength of 3 ,000 soldiers. 00:03:28.949 --> 00:03:32.069 3 ,000. Right. But fast forward to February 15th, 00:03:32.069 --> 00:03:35.289 1917, following the absolutely grueling winter 00:03:35.289 --> 00:03:39.469 battle of Cota 1001. Which is the peak of Magara 00:03:39.469 --> 00:03:41.830 Odobetul. Correct. By the end of that engagement, 00:03:42.009 --> 00:03:45.169 their numbers were reduced to just 400 men. Wait, 00:03:45.210 --> 00:03:47.189 let me make sure I'm following that math. 3 ,000 00:03:47.189 --> 00:03:51.090 men down to 400. That means roughly 85 % of the 00:03:51.090 --> 00:03:53.710 unit was killed, wounded, or missing in a span 00:03:53.710 --> 00:03:56.189 of just six months. How does a military unit 00:03:56.189 --> 00:03:59.969 even continue to exist after taking an 85 % casualty 00:03:59.969 --> 00:04:02.610 rate? From a purely logistical standpoint, it 00:04:02.610 --> 00:04:05.289 is incredibly difficult. Most units would just 00:04:05.289 --> 00:04:07.550 be permanently disbanded or completely absorbed 00:04:07.550 --> 00:04:09.469 into other formations. Right. They just cease 00:04:09.469 --> 00:04:12.069 to exist. But the so what of this historical 00:04:12.069 --> 00:04:15.439 moment is how they managed to bounce back. This 00:04:15.439 --> 00:04:18.319 level of extreme attrition required a total top 00:04:18.319 --> 00:04:21.259 -to -bottom reorganization. The surviving 400 00:04:21.259 --> 00:04:24.360 men were pulled back from the front lines. To 00:04:24.360 --> 00:04:26.860 rebuild their combat capacity, they were heavily 00:04:26.860 --> 00:04:29.800 reinforced by Transylvanian volunteers from the 00:04:29.800 --> 00:04:32.459 Romanian Volunteer Corps. So they integrate these 00:04:32.459 --> 00:04:35.060 volunteers, rebuild their ranks, and then what? 00:04:35.139 --> 00:04:37.259 Do they sit out the rest of the war? Not at all. 00:04:37.300 --> 00:04:39.579 They return right back to the fight. By the summer 00:04:39.579 --> 00:04:42.319 of 1917, they were redeployed to the Morality 00:04:42.319 --> 00:04:45.480 Front area, participating directly in the massive 00:04:45.480 --> 00:04:48.100 summer defensive campaigns. Which were crucial 00:04:48.100 --> 00:04:50.379 to holding the line against the Central Powers. 00:04:50.600 --> 00:04:52.939 Exactly. That level of sacrifice is just hard 00:04:52.939 --> 00:04:55.139 to wrap your head right around. It makes sense 00:04:55.139 --> 00:04:58.019 that decades later, in 1937, the regiment was 00:04:58.019 --> 00:05:00.220 officially awarded the Order of Michael the Brave 00:05:00.220 --> 00:05:02.459 for their feats in World War I. But that brings 00:05:02.459 --> 00:05:05.079 us to a really dark chapter in European history. 00:05:05.660 --> 00:05:08.560 Because that interwar piece was incredibly fragile. 00:05:08.759 --> 00:05:11.139 It really was. Which brings us to the strategic 00:05:11.139 --> 00:05:13.639 whiplash of World War II. Walk us through their 00:05:13.639 --> 00:05:15.519 positioning at the start of the Second World 00:05:15.519 --> 00:05:18.800 War. We are looking at 1941, the launch of Operation 00:05:18.800 --> 00:05:21.439 Barbarossa. Where does the 26th find itself? 00:05:21.800 --> 00:05:24.759 So by 1941, the unit is integrated into the 2nd 00:05:24.759 --> 00:05:27.339 Infantry Division. And at this stage of the war, 00:05:27.480 --> 00:05:29.480 they are deployed on the Eastern Front, fighting 00:05:29.480 --> 00:05:31.899 alongside German and Axis troops against the 00:05:31.899 --> 00:05:35.110 Soviet Union. And the sheer geographical scale 00:05:35.110 --> 00:05:37.189 of their deployment during this period is immense. 00:05:37.509 --> 00:05:40.089 It is. How deep into Soviet territory do they 00:05:40.089 --> 00:05:42.550 actually go? It's very deep. After the initial 00:05:42.550 --> 00:05:45.269 1941 campaign, they had to be reorganized in 00:05:45.269 --> 00:05:48.810 Rostov. By July 1942, they are intervening in 00:05:48.810 --> 00:05:51.149 the massive chaotic battles on the Don Bend. 00:05:51.370 --> 00:05:53.490 Right. They are tasked with holding a critical 00:05:53.490 --> 00:05:56.790 bridgehead at a location called Simlanskaya through 00:05:56.790 --> 00:05:59.509 the end of July. They even execute a counterattack 00:05:59.509 --> 00:06:01.649 specifically to protect the exposed flank of 00:06:01.649 --> 00:06:03.990 the German 29th Motorized Infantry Division. 00:06:04.209 --> 00:06:06.430 Here's where it gets really interesting. Because 00:06:06.430 --> 00:06:08.730 the entire geopolitical landscape of the war 00:06:08.730 --> 00:06:11.129 is about to flip entirely upside down for these 00:06:11.129 --> 00:06:13.589 soldiers, what exactly happens in the summer 00:06:13.589 --> 00:06:18.589 of 1944? Well, in August 1944, a massive internal 00:06:18.589 --> 00:06:21.410 political shift occurs, known as King Michael's 00:06:21.410 --> 00:06:24.709 Coup. The result of this coup is sudden and absolute. 00:06:25.370 --> 00:06:28.069 Romania abruptly terminates its alliance with 00:06:28.069 --> 00:06:31.370 Nazi Germany and the Axis powers. Wow. Immediately, 00:06:31.589 --> 00:06:33.889 the nation realigns itself and joins the Allies. 00:06:34.170 --> 00:06:36.209 Wait, pause. You're telling me these frontline 00:06:36.209 --> 00:06:38.769 soldiers were literally shooting at Soviet troops 00:06:38.769 --> 00:06:41.089 one week and the very next week they are ordered 00:06:41.089 --> 00:06:43.290 to completely switch sides and march alongside 00:06:43.290 --> 00:06:45.350 them? Yeah, that's exactly what happened. How 00:06:45.350 --> 00:06:48.389 does a military hierarchy even process an order 00:06:48.389 --> 00:06:51.189 like that in the middle of a global war? I mean, 00:06:51.189 --> 00:06:53.610 it is a logistical and psychological nightmare. 00:06:54.160 --> 00:06:56.279 As impartial observers looking at the historical 00:06:56.279 --> 00:06:58.920 record, we have to recognize the sheer operational 00:06:58.920 --> 00:07:02.000 chaos this causes on the ground. Following the 00:07:02.000 --> 00:07:04.220 coup on August 23rd, the regiment physically 00:07:04.220 --> 00:07:06.360 has to disengage from their active front lines 00:07:06.360 --> 00:07:08.160 against the Soviets. They just pack up and leave 00:07:08.160 --> 00:07:10.300 the trenches. Pretty much. By September, they 00:07:10.300 --> 00:07:12.279 pull all the way back to the city of Slatina 00:07:12.279 --> 00:07:15.300 just to reorganize under this totally new political 00:07:15.300 --> 00:07:18.100 and military reality. And once they're reorganized, 00:07:18.100 --> 00:07:19.959 they just turn around and head west. That is 00:07:19.959 --> 00:07:22.439 exactly what happens. They begin pushing west 00:07:22.439 --> 00:07:25.600 alongside. the very Soviet forces they just spent 00:07:25.600 --> 00:07:28.899 years fighting. The adaptability required from 00:07:28.899 --> 00:07:31.079 the individual soldiers to follow those new orders 00:07:31.079 --> 00:07:33.680 is astonishing. It really is. They push into 00:07:33.680 --> 00:07:36.279 Hungary, engaging in the intense Battle of Debrecen 00:07:36.279 --> 00:07:39.779 and the massive urban siege of Budapest. From 00:07:39.779 --> 00:07:43.800 December 1944 all the way into May 1945, they 00:07:43.800 --> 00:07:46.759 push deep into Czechoslovakia, helping to liberate 00:07:46.759 --> 00:07:49.750 towns like Kozhetin and Kromisizh. The survival 00:07:49.750 --> 00:07:52.670 instincts required to navigate that entire theater 00:07:52.670 --> 00:07:56.029 of war are just unbelievable. And the sources 00:07:56.029 --> 00:07:58.689 highlight a wild historical detail here that 00:07:58.689 --> 00:08:00.910 will definitely stick with you. Everyone knows 00:08:00.910 --> 00:08:04.129 about VE Day, victory in Europe. Right, May 8th. 00:08:04.129 --> 00:08:06.009 Yeah, the official German capitulation was May 00:08:06.009 --> 00:08:09.089 8th, 1945. The war in Europe was over. But this 00:08:09.089 --> 00:08:11.550 specific unit was still taking fire. Yes, because 00:08:11.550 --> 00:08:13.689 the official declarations of peace don't always 00:08:13.689 --> 00:08:16.649 reach the people holding the rifles. In the Albuquerque 00:08:16.649 --> 00:08:19.170 area of Czechoslovakia, There were fanatical 00:08:19.170 --> 00:08:22.290 German SS units who flatly refused to recognize 00:08:22.290 --> 00:08:24.410 the surrender. So they just kept shooting. They 00:08:24.410 --> 00:08:27.189 did. So the 26th Regiment had to continue engaging 00:08:27.189 --> 00:08:31.529 them in active lethal combat until May 12th. 00:08:31.529 --> 00:08:33.309 That is four full days after the rest of the 00:08:33.309 --> 00:08:34.789 world started celebrating the end of the war. 00:08:34.929 --> 00:08:37.029 The Romanian troops couldn't even begin their 00:08:37.029 --> 00:08:40.330 march back home until June of 1945. To survive 00:08:40.330 --> 00:08:43.279 the Eastern Front. execute a mid -war realignment, 00:08:43.460 --> 00:08:45.960 push all the way into Czechoslovakia, and then 00:08:45.960 --> 00:08:47.919 have to keep dodging bullets after the peace 00:08:47.919 --> 00:08:50.779 treaties are signed. It is staggering. So what 00:08:50.779 --> 00:08:53.080 happens to them when they finally get home? The 00:08:53.080 --> 00:08:55.320 world transitions into the Cold War. The Cold 00:08:55.320 --> 00:08:57.960 War brings an era of intense modernization and 00:08:57.960 --> 00:09:01.399 restructuring across the Warsaw Pact. In 1959, 00:09:01.659 --> 00:09:04.240 the regiment is upgraded and reorganized into 00:09:04.240 --> 00:09:07.519 the 26th Mechanized Infantry Regiment. This is 00:09:07.519 --> 00:09:10.419 when they are designated as Military Unit 01047. 00:09:10.970 --> 00:09:13.409 a designation they actually retain today. But 00:09:13.409 --> 00:09:15.690 the real pivot for their modern identity seems 00:09:15.690 --> 00:09:17.789 to happen after the fall of communism, right? 00:09:17.889 --> 00:09:19.649 When Romania starts looking toward the West. 00:09:19.889 --> 00:09:23.850 Precisely. In September 1994, as Romania actively 00:09:23.850 --> 00:09:26.269 seeks to integrate with NATO and joins the Partnership 00:09:26.269 --> 00:09:29.009 for Peace, the unit is transformed once again. 00:09:29.169 --> 00:09:31.669 They become the 26th Infantry Battalion. And 00:09:31.669 --> 00:09:35.330 receive a new honorific name, Niago Basarab, 00:09:35.509 --> 00:09:39.049 honoring a famous 16th century Prince of Wallachia. 00:09:39.389 --> 00:09:42.429 This marks their transition from a purely territorial 00:09:42.429 --> 00:09:45.669 defense force into a unit capable of deploying 00:09:45.669 --> 00:09:48.669 on international missions under UN or NATO command. 00:09:48.909 --> 00:09:51.389 Which perfectly sets up the origin of their famous 00:09:51.389 --> 00:09:53.490 nickname, because when you hear a military call 00:09:53.490 --> 00:09:55.850 sign like the Red Scorpions, you immediately 00:09:55.850 --> 00:09:58.669 picture some highly classified, intense special 00:09:58.669 --> 00:10:01.250 forces origin story. Oh, yeah. Sounds like an 00:10:01.250 --> 00:10:02.909 action movie. Yeah, totally sounds like a Hollywood 00:10:02.909 --> 00:10:05.450 movie. But the sources reveal a much more practical, 00:10:05.590 --> 00:10:08.360 almost humorous origin for the name. Tell us 00:10:08.360 --> 00:10:12.500 about the 1996 deployment. So in 1996, the battalion 00:10:12.500 --> 00:10:15.100 is sent on its very first international peacekeeping 00:10:15.100 --> 00:10:18.320 mission. This was the Univim III mission, the 00:10:18.320 --> 00:10:21.299 United Nations Angola Verification Mission. They 00:10:21.299 --> 00:10:23.360 are operating in the Huila province of Angola, 00:10:23.399 --> 00:10:25.559 carrying out vital infrastructure work. Like 00:10:25.559 --> 00:10:27.500 what kind of work? We are talking about building 00:10:27.500 --> 00:10:30.519 refugee camps, guarding airports, and securing 00:10:30.519 --> 00:10:33.580 supply routes in an incredibly complex post -Civil 00:10:33.580 --> 00:10:35.470 War environment. And they are doing all this 00:10:35.470 --> 00:10:37.830 alongside Allied troops, primarily from the United 00:10:37.830 --> 00:10:40.710 States, right? Yes. And the origin of the name 00:10:40.710 --> 00:10:42.970 comes down to a simple environmental hazard. 00:10:43.570 --> 00:10:45.929 While the Romanian soldiers were out doing the 00:10:45.929 --> 00:10:48.350 heavy labor of building these camps and digging 00:10:48.350 --> 00:10:51.090 defensive positions in the African heat, they 00:10:51.090 --> 00:10:53.809 kept unearthing and encountering an absurd number 00:10:53.809 --> 00:10:56.470 of literal scorpions. Just everywhere in the 00:10:56.470 --> 00:10:59.500 dirt. Everywhere. The U .S. troops working alongside 00:10:59.500 --> 00:11:01.899 them noticed this and casually started referring 00:11:01.899 --> 00:11:04.519 to them as the Red Scorpions. I love the mundane 00:11:04.519 --> 00:11:06.919 reality of that. It wasn't born in a Pentagon 00:11:06.919 --> 00:11:08.659 branding meeting. It was just a bunch of American 00:11:08.659 --> 00:11:11.539 soldiers pointing and saying, hey, you guys sure 00:11:11.539 --> 00:11:13.980 do find a lot of scorpions in the dirt. It really 00:11:13.980 --> 00:11:16.240 is a great story. It is, though we should also 00:11:16.240 --> 00:11:18.759 ground this in the reality of the work they were 00:11:18.759 --> 00:11:21.299 doing. The sources note that the Angola deployment 00:11:21.299 --> 00:11:24.279 did cost the unit the life of one soldier. It 00:11:24.279 --> 00:11:28.309 is a critical point to remember. always carry 00:11:28.309 --> 00:11:31.610 an inherent lethal risk. And that risk profile 00:11:31.610 --> 00:11:34.250 would only escalate drastically as the unit moved 00:11:34.250 --> 00:11:37.129 into the 21st century and entered the era of 00:11:37.129 --> 00:11:39.929 the global war on terror. That brings us to 2002 00:11:39.929 --> 00:11:42.710 and the war in Afghanistan. The sources indicate 00:11:42.710 --> 00:11:45.289 this is a major milestone for them. It was their 00:11:45.289 --> 00:11:48.350 first active, sustained combat deployment since 00:11:48.350 --> 00:11:52.230 the end of World War II. They deployed 405 soldiers 00:11:52.230 --> 00:11:55.610 to the Kandahar province in Afghanistan to support 00:11:55.610 --> 00:11:58.529 Operation Enduring Freedom. How did a former 00:11:58.529 --> 00:12:01.669 Warsaw Pact unit integrate with American forces 00:12:01.669 --> 00:12:03.990 in a live combat zone? That must have been a 00:12:03.990 --> 00:12:06.309 massive adjustment. Surprisingly seamlessly, 00:12:06.549 --> 00:12:09.059 actually. They were integrated directly with 00:12:09.059 --> 00:12:11.159 some of the most storied units in the U .S. military, 00:12:11.460 --> 00:12:15.799 specifically the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions. 00:12:15.879 --> 00:12:18.600 Wow. They handled everything from securing massive 00:12:18.600 --> 00:12:21.840 air bases to conducting highly sensitive reconnaissance 00:12:21.840 --> 00:12:24.720 patrols. There was a specific scouting operation 00:12:24.720 --> 00:12:26.960 mentioned in the records, the Palendava mission, 00:12:27.200 --> 00:12:29.820 conducted in a very rugged area near the Pakistan 00:12:29.820 --> 00:12:33.090 border. It was executed so perfectly that it 00:12:33.090 --> 00:12:35.330 earned official recognition for the United States 00:12:35.330 --> 00:12:37.149 Central Command. And didn't that integration 00:12:37.149 --> 00:12:39.309 with the Americans also finally make their nickname 00:12:39.309 --> 00:12:41.769 official? It did. The American commander of the 00:12:41.769 --> 00:12:44.549 3rd Brigade of the 101st Airborne, Colonel Michael 00:12:44.549 --> 00:12:46.889 Linnington, was so impressed with their operational 00:12:46.889 --> 00:12:49.470 tempo that he actually began using the term Red 00:12:49.470 --> 00:12:52.070 Scorpions in his official operational documents. 00:12:52.309 --> 00:12:54.759 That is amazing. Yeah, that took the name from 00:12:54.759 --> 00:12:58.080 an informal camp joke in Angola to official military 00:12:58.080 --> 00:13:01.460 cannon. That is how you cement a legacy. But 00:13:01.460 --> 00:13:03.960 if Afghanistan proved they could integrate, the 00:13:03.960 --> 00:13:06.159 sources show that their deployment to Iraq is 00:13:06.159 --> 00:13:08.220 what truly tested their combat capabilities. 00:13:09.360 --> 00:13:13.139 Bring us to May of 2004 and the Battle of Nasiriyah. 00:13:13.279 --> 00:13:16.039 This is a highly complex multifaction engagement. 00:13:16.559 --> 00:13:18.740 By the spring of 2004, the Red Scorpions are 00:13:18.740 --> 00:13:21.460 deployed to Iraq, operating under Italian command 00:13:21.460 --> 00:13:23.320 as part of the broader multinational coalition. 00:13:23.679 --> 00:13:25.460 Let me set the scene for you listening because 00:13:25.460 --> 00:13:28.860 the tension here is incredible. It is May 14th, 00:13:28.860 --> 00:13:31.860 2004. There had been an armistice in the city 00:13:31.860 --> 00:13:34.100 of Nasiriyah the month prior, but it shatters. 00:13:34.759 --> 00:13:37.379 The insurgent Mahdi army decides to launch a 00:13:37.379 --> 00:13:40.460 massive coordinated attack. A huge escalation. 00:13:40.580 --> 00:13:42.700 They start bombarding the coalition forces headquarters 00:13:42.700 --> 00:13:44.940 at the Camp White horse base using mortars and 00:13:44.940 --> 00:13:48.600 122 millimeter rockets. Simultaneously, these 00:13:48.600 --> 00:13:51.120 insurgents lay siege to the coalition provisional 00:13:51.120 --> 00:13:52.820 authority building right in the center of the 00:13:52.820 --> 00:13:55.480 city. You have a nightmare scenario for a commander 00:13:55.480 --> 00:13:59.000 here. There are civilian personnel, including 00:13:59.000 --> 00:14:01.639 the coalition governor Barbara Contini, trapped 00:14:01.639 --> 00:14:05.019 inside that besieged building downtown. The commander 00:14:05.019 --> 00:14:07.919 of the Italian Arrieta Brigade, General G. Marco 00:14:07.919 --> 00:14:10.879 Curini, realizes he has to break the siege immediately. 00:14:11.320 --> 00:14:14.019 He orders his Italian troops to deploy in their 00:14:14.019 --> 00:14:17.259 VCCs, which are tracked, armored personnel carriers, 00:14:17.500 --> 00:14:20.019 to drive into the city center and extract the 00:14:20.019 --> 00:14:22.659 civilians. But the insurgents control the surrounding 00:14:22.659 --> 00:14:24.799 neighborhoods. If the Italians just drive straight 00:14:24.799 --> 00:14:27.019 in, they're going to get flanked and potentially 00:14:27.019 --> 00:14:29.950 wiped out, right? Exactly the risk. To prevent 00:14:29.950 --> 00:14:32.409 insurgent reinforcements from pouring into Nasuria 00:14:32.409 --> 00:14:34.809 and hitting the Italians from the side, General 00:14:34.809 --> 00:14:37.649 Chirini orders the Romanian 26th Battalion to 00:14:37.649 --> 00:14:40.009 move out and secure a critical geographic choke 00:14:40.009 --> 00:14:42.169 point on the eastern edge of the city. It is 00:14:42.169 --> 00:14:44.710 known as the Delta Bridge. And the sources specifically 00:14:44.710 --> 00:14:47.129 mention the Romanian commander for this operation. 00:14:47.429 --> 00:14:49.950 It was a man named Lieutenant Colonel Nicolae 00:14:49.950 --> 00:14:52.570 Ciucca. Yes, and that is a name with massive 00:14:52.570 --> 00:14:55.259 historical weight in Romania. Long after this 00:14:55.259 --> 00:14:57.559 battle, he would go on to become the chief of 00:14:57.559 --> 00:14:59.860 the Romanian general staff, the minister of national 00:14:59.860 --> 00:15:02.639 defense, and eventually the prime minister of 00:15:02.639 --> 00:15:05.840 the country. No way. Yeah. But on the night of 00:15:05.840 --> 00:15:09.379 May 14th, 2004. He's just a battalion commander 00:15:09.379 --> 00:15:12.039 trying to keep his troops alive in a chaotic 00:15:12.039 --> 00:15:14.840 hot zone. So what forces does he actually take 00:15:14.840 --> 00:15:17.460 to the bridge? He mobilizes a rapid reaction 00:15:17.460 --> 00:15:20.460 force of 70 soldiers and 10 armored vehicles. 00:15:20.960 --> 00:15:24.279 The Romanians utilize what they call tabs. These 00:15:24.279 --> 00:15:26.940 are heavily armored, wheeled, amphibious troop 00:15:26.940 --> 00:15:29.620 transports. They head out into the darkness toward 00:15:29.620 --> 00:15:31.740 the delta bridge, but before they can establish 00:15:31.740 --> 00:15:34.409 their positions, they are ambushed. The insurgents 00:15:34.409 --> 00:15:36.870 hit the column with small arms fire and rocket 00:15:36.870 --> 00:15:39.509 -protected grenades. And there is a very specific, 00:15:39.710 --> 00:15:42.009 harrowing detail from this firefight that the 00:15:42.009 --> 00:15:44.450 sources highlight. During the chaos of the ambush, 00:15:44.769 --> 00:15:47.389 the unit's dedicated medical evacuation vehicle, 00:15:47.590 --> 00:15:50.789 a variant known as a T -KBC -79, takes a direct 00:15:50.789 --> 00:15:53.809 hit from an RPG -7. The explosion completely 00:15:53.809 --> 00:15:56.769 shreds both of its rear tires and one of its 00:15:56.769 --> 00:15:59.549 front tires. The vehicle is totally immobilized 00:15:59.549 --> 00:16:01.980 right in the kill zone. As a commander, what 00:16:01.980 --> 00:16:04.220 do you even do in that situation? Your column 00:16:04.220 --> 00:16:06.600 is stopped, you are taking fire in the dark, 00:16:06.679 --> 00:16:09.139 and your medical vehicle is dead in the water. 00:16:09.299 --> 00:16:12.159 This is where we see a masterclass in split -second 00:16:12.159 --> 00:16:15.019 tactical prioritization and decentralized command. 00:16:15.419 --> 00:16:18.200 In a lot of poorly trained units, an immobilized 00:16:18.200 --> 00:16:20.759 vehicle causes a traffic jam, panic sets in, 00:16:20.899 --> 00:16:23.580 and the whole column might retreat. Right. But 00:16:23.580 --> 00:16:26.320 the Red Scorpions don't break. The leadership 00:16:26.320 --> 00:16:29.019 makes the hard call to split the force. They 00:16:29.019 --> 00:16:30.899 detach two of their armored vehicles to stay 00:16:30.899 --> 00:16:33.720 behind, form a shield, and protect the crippled 00:16:33.720 --> 00:16:36.600 medevac and its crew. The rest of the column 00:16:36.600 --> 00:16:38.840 then pushes through the ambush zone to reach 00:16:38.840 --> 00:16:41.059 their primary objective. They actually make it 00:16:41.059 --> 00:16:43.080 to the Delta Bridge, but the insurgents don't 00:16:43.080 --> 00:16:45.460 let up. No, they launch another assault on the 00:16:45.460 --> 00:16:48.149 bridge itself. The Romanian soldiers are forced 00:16:48.149 --> 00:16:50.230 to dismount from the safety of their vehicles. 00:16:50.370 --> 00:16:52.990 They form a physical defensive perimeter in the 00:16:52.990 --> 00:16:56.149 dirt, wedged between the road and a nearby railway 00:16:56.149 --> 00:16:59.009 embankment. They hold that line through the entire 00:16:59.009 --> 00:17:01.590 night under the constant threat of attack. And 00:17:01.590 --> 00:17:03.789 what about the medevac crew they left behind? 00:17:04.670 --> 00:17:07.049 Astoundingly, the crew left behind with the medevac 00:17:07.049 --> 00:17:10.009 even manages to repair the blown -out tires in 00:17:10.009 --> 00:17:12.289 the middle of the field under cover of darkness. 00:17:12.910 --> 00:17:15.150 Because they held that choke point, which the 00:17:15.150 --> 00:17:17.809 coalition troops later started calling the Scorpion's 00:17:17.809 --> 00:17:21.130 Bridge, the Italian VCCs were able to punch into 00:17:21.130 --> 00:17:23.869 the city center, break the siege, and evacuate 00:17:23.869 --> 00:17:26.109 Governor Contini and all the civilian personnel 00:17:26.109 --> 00:17:29.130 without any casualties. When the Red Scorpions 00:17:29.130 --> 00:17:31.390 returned to Camp Whitehorse the next day, they 00:17:31.390 --> 00:17:33.509 were personally inspected and commended for their 00:17:33.509 --> 00:17:36.029 bravery by the commander of the multinational 00:17:36.029 --> 00:17:38.799 division, British General Andrew Stewart. It 00:17:38.799 --> 00:17:41.900 was the first major sustained combat engagement 00:17:41.900 --> 00:17:45.400 for the Romanian army since 1945, and their execution 00:17:45.400 --> 00:17:48.180 of defensive tactics under extreme pressure was 00:17:48.180 --> 00:17:50.640 virtually flawless. If we connect this to the 00:17:50.640 --> 00:17:52.900 bigger picture, what did that battle actually 00:17:52.900 --> 00:17:55.940 prove to the international community? It proved 00:17:55.940 --> 00:17:58.559 definitively that the modern Romanian military 00:17:58.559 --> 00:18:01.839 was no longer a relic of the Cold War. They could 00:18:01.839 --> 00:18:04.640 operate seamlessly, effectively, and courageously 00:18:04.640 --> 00:18:07.440 within a highly complex NATO coalition structure. 00:18:08.370 --> 00:18:11.170 Their competence in Iraq was so well regarded 00:18:11.170 --> 00:18:13.730 that they were ultimately given the honor of 00:18:13.730 --> 00:18:16.390 closing out the entire Romanian military deployment 00:18:16.390 --> 00:18:19.609 to the country in 2009. That is quite the arc, 00:18:19.690 --> 00:18:22.450 but history didn't stop in 2009. Where do the 00:18:22.450 --> 00:18:24.950 Red Scorpions stand today? They remain at the 00:18:24.950 --> 00:18:27.250 absolute cutting edge of the nation's defense. 00:18:27.900 --> 00:18:30.619 Since 2017, they have been a core pillar of the 00:18:30.619 --> 00:18:33.420 multinational brigade Southeast, still operating 00:18:33.420 --> 00:18:35.539 out of their historic home in Krajova. Nice. 00:18:35.900 --> 00:18:38.099 They are also incredibly integrated with Allied 00:18:38.099 --> 00:18:41.059 forces. They currently host a rotational Polish 00:18:41.059 --> 00:18:43.980 Army motorized company, which brings about 230 00:18:43.980 --> 00:18:47.039 soldiers and their heavy KTO Rosamak armored 00:18:47.039 --> 00:18:50.099 vehicles directly into the 26th Battalion's structure. 00:18:50.319 --> 00:18:51.940 And they've upgraded their own armor as well, 00:18:51.960 --> 00:18:55.630 right? Significantly. In 2020, the Red Scorpions 00:18:55.630 --> 00:18:58.609 became the very first unit in the entire Romanian 00:18:58.609 --> 00:19:01.990 army to be equipped with the brand new Piranha 00:19:01.990 --> 00:19:04.549 V -wheeled infantry fighting vehicles. From the 00:19:04.549 --> 00:19:06.369 records, it is clear they are one of the most 00:19:06.369 --> 00:19:09.549 decorated units in the region. Since their reorganization 00:19:09.549 --> 00:19:11.829 in 1994, they have been awarded the National 00:19:11.829 --> 00:19:14.269 Order of Faithful Service, the National Order 00:19:14.269 --> 00:19:17.539 of Merit, and the Order of Military Virtue. But 00:19:17.539 --> 00:19:19.500 we also have to acknowledge the heavy cost of 00:19:19.500 --> 00:19:22.279 that legacy. We do. Between their deployments 00:19:22.279 --> 00:19:26.640 in 2002 and 2011, six soldiers of the 26th Battalion 00:19:26.640 --> 00:19:29.519 lost their lives in combat theaters. It is a 00:19:29.519 --> 00:19:31.720 sobering reminder that underneath the history 00:19:31.720 --> 00:19:34.279 of moving borders, shifting alliances, and upgrading 00:19:34.279 --> 00:19:37.079 vehicles, military history is fundamentally paid 00:19:37.079 --> 00:19:39.539 for by the individuals who serve. So what does 00:19:39.539 --> 00:19:41.779 this all mean? We started this deep dive looking 00:19:41.779 --> 00:19:44.880 at a local unit of Dorobani infantrymen in 1880. 00:19:45.019 --> 00:19:47.539 We watched them suffer an 85 % casualty rate 00:19:47.539 --> 00:19:49.980 in the freezing trenches of World War I. We followed 00:19:49.980 --> 00:19:51.839 them as they were forced to switch sides overnight 00:19:51.839 --> 00:19:53.599 in the middle of World War II, fighting past 00:19:53.599 --> 00:19:56.920 VE Day. We saw them battling literal scorpions 00:19:56.920 --> 00:20:00.279 in Angola and executing textbook tactical maneuvers 00:20:00.279 --> 00:20:03.519 under RPG fire on a bridge in Iraq. It is an 00:20:03.519 --> 00:20:07.119 unbroken, 140 -year chain of survival. It is 00:20:07.119 --> 00:20:09.220 an incredible timeline, and it leaves you with 00:20:09.220 --> 00:20:10.910 a really fascinating story. philosophical question 00:20:10.910 --> 00:20:13.069 to mull over. You mentioned that unbroken chain. 00:20:13.390 --> 00:20:16.210 In philosophy, there is the famous ship of Theseus 00:20:16.210 --> 00:20:18.930 paradox. If you replace every single piece of 00:20:18.930 --> 00:20:20.869 a woody ship over time, is it still the same 00:20:20.869 --> 00:20:23.089 ship? Apply that to a military unit that has 00:20:23.089 --> 00:20:25.670 changed its name, upgraded its armor from horses 00:20:25.670 --> 00:20:28.190 to Piranha V vehicles, radically shifted its 00:20:28.190 --> 00:20:30.970 geopolitical allies, and lost every single original 00:20:30.970 --> 00:20:33.769 human member to the passage of time. Where does 00:20:33.769 --> 00:20:35.789 the identity of the Red Scorpions actually reside? 00:20:36.049 --> 00:20:38.519 That is a brilliant framework. And if we take 00:20:38.519 --> 00:20:40.460 that thought experiment one step further into 00:20:40.460 --> 00:20:43.240 the future of warfare, what happens to that identity 00:20:43.240 --> 00:20:46.539 next? If a unit's soul survives the transition 00:20:46.539 --> 00:20:49.819 from 19th century rifles to 21st century armored 00:20:49.819 --> 00:20:52.299 personnel carriers, what happens in the next 00:20:52.299 --> 00:20:55.079 50 years? Will the Red Scorpions one day be a 00:20:55.079 --> 00:20:57.579 unit of drone operators or cyber warfare specialists 00:20:57.579 --> 00:21:00.539 sitting safely in a bunker in Craiova, fighting 00:21:00.539 --> 00:21:02.799 battles on a digital screen thousands of miles 00:21:02.799 --> 00:21:06.150 away? And if physical danger is removed from 00:21:06.150 --> 00:21:08.990 the equation, does that 1880s Dorobani spirit 00:21:08.990 --> 00:21:12.190 of resilience still exist in a server room? It 00:21:12.190 --> 00:21:14.410 forces us to question what the essence of a soldier 00:21:14.410 --> 00:21:17.369 actually is. That is a phenomenal question to 00:21:17.369 --> 00:21:20.009 end on. Does the spirit of a unit live in the 00:21:20.009 --> 00:21:22.130 danger it faces, or just in the badge on the 00:21:22.130 --> 00:21:24.150 uniform? Something for you to really think about 00:21:24.150 --> 00:21:25.910 next time you read a headline about the changing 00:21:25.910 --> 00:21:28.660 face of modern combat. Thank you so much for 00:21:28.660 --> 00:21:30.759 joining us on this deep dive. We hope you enjoyed 00:21:30.759 --> 00:21:32.700 exploring the evolution of the Red Scorpions, 00:21:32.700 --> 00:21:34.559 and we highly encourage you to keep looking into 00:21:34.559 --> 00:21:36.799 the hidden histories all around you. You never 00:21:36.799 --> 00:21:38.700 know what incredible story is waiting right beneath 00:21:38.700 --> 00:21:39.160 the surface.