Commandos (Portugal)
The Commandos (Portuguese: Comandos) are a special forces unit in the Portuguese Army. Presently, their parent unit is the Commando Regiment (Regimento de Comandos).
| Commando Regiment | |
|---|---|
| Regimento de Comandos | |
The badge of the Commando Regiment. | |
| Active | 1962–1994; 2002–present |
| Country | Portugal |
| Allegiance | Portugal |
| Branch | Portuguese Army |
| Type | Commando |
| Size | One battalion |
| Part of | Rapid Reaction Brigade |
| Barracks | Carregueira |
| Nickname(s) | Red Berets (Boinas Vermelhas) |
| Motto(s) | Audaces Fortuna Juvat (Fortune Favors the Bold) |
| March | Mama Sumae |
| Anniversaries | 29 June |
| Engagements | Portuguese Colonial War Coup of 25 November 1975 War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Central African Republic Civil War (2012–present) (part of MINUSCA) Insurgency in Cabo Delgado (training support) |
| Decorations | Most decorated troop in the Portuguese Armed Forces |
| Website | https://www.exercito.pt/pt/recrutamento/tropas-especiais/comandos |
| Commanders | |
| Commander | Colonel Pombo |
| Notable commanders | Jaime Neves |
| Insignia | |
| Abbreviation | RCmds |
Their motto is Audaces Fortuna Juvat (Latin for "Fortune Favors the Bold") and their war cry is Mama Sumae (it can be translated as "here we are, ready for the sacrifice" – taken from a Bantu tribe of southern Angola).
They were created in Angola during 1962, in the scope of the Portuguese Overseas War, as counter-guerrilla forces, thus responding to the need of the Portuguese Army to have special units specially adapted to the type of war. Initially operating in the Angolan theatre, later units of Commandos also operated in the Portuguese Guinea and Mozambique theatres
The Portuguese Commandos are analogous to the 75th Ranger Regiment of the US Army.