Frogman - History

History

In ancient Roman and Greek times, etc., there were many instances of men swimming or diving for combat, but they always had to hold their breath and had no diving equipment, except sometimes a hollow plant stem used as a snorkel.

The first known frogmen-type operations using breathing apparatus were by the Italian Decima Flottiglia MAS, which formed in 1938 and was in action first in 1940. See Timeline of underwater technology and each of the nations' frogman unit links below.

Italy started World War II with a commando frogman force already trained. Britain, Germany, the United States, and the Soviet Union started commando frogman forces during World War II.

In 1942, a young physician named Christian J. Lambertsen invented the first Self-contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) and demonstrated it to OSS (after already being rejected by the U.S. Navy) in a pool at a hotel in Washington D.C. OSS not only bought into the concept, they hired Dr. Labertsen to lead the program and build-up the dive element of their maritime unit. The OSS was the predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency and the maritime element still exists inside their Special Activities Division.

See also: Lionel Crabb, a frogman who spied on a Soviet warship in Portsmouth, UK.