William E. Fairbairn[edit]

William E. Fairbairn
William E. Fairbairn
	Fairbairn in 1942
Born	William Ewart Fairbairn; 28 February 1885; Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, England
Died	20 June 1960 (aged 75); Worthing, Sussex, England
Occupation(s)	Royal Marines, Shanghai Municipal Police, Combatives Instructor

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

William Ewart Fairbairn (/ˈfɛərbɛərn/; 28 February 1885 – 20 June 1960) was a British Royal Marine and assistant commissioner of the Shanghai Municipal Police(SMP). He developed hand-to-hand combat methods for the Shanghai Police during the interwar period, as well as for the allied special forces during World War II. He created his own fighting system known as Defendu. Notably, this included innovative pistol shooting techniques and the development of the Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife. Additionally, his work in the SMP created the fundamentals of the modern SWAT team, as well as several other police innovations.

The television series Secrets of War suggested him as a possible inspiration for the Q Branch in the James Bond series.[citation needed]

Military career[edit]

Fairbairn served with the Royal Marine Light Infantry starting in 1901, and joined the Shanghai Municipal Police (SMP) in 1907. He served in one of the red light districts. During his service with the International Police in Shanghai, Fairbairn reportedly engaged in hundreds of street fights in the course of his duties over a twenty-year career, where he organized and headed a special anti-riot squad. Much of his body, arms, legs, torso, even the palms of his hands, were covered with scars from knife wounds from those fights.: p:191 Fairbairn later created, organized, and trained a special anti-riot squad for the Shanghai police force. He also developed numerous firearms training courses and items of police equipment, including a special metal-lined bulletproof vest designed to stop high-velocity bullets from the 7.63x25mm Mauser pistol(Thompson, 2012, pg.191 ).

During World War II, he was recruited by the British Special Operations Executive as an Army officer, where he was given several nicknames include "Dangerous Dan" and the "Shanghai Buster". Together with fellow close-combat instructor Eric Sykes, Fairbairn was commissioned on the General List in 1941. Fairbairn and Sykes were both commissioned as second lieutenants on 15 July 1940. He trained British, American and Canadian Commandos and No. 2 Dutch Troop 10th Inter-Allied Commando forces, along with Ranger candidates in close-combat, pistol-shooting and knife-fighting techniques. Fairbairn emphasized the necessity of forgetting any idea of gentlemanly conduct or fighting fair: "Get tough, get down in the gutter, win at all costs... I teach what is called 'Gutter Fighting.' There's no fair play, no rules except one: kill or be killed," he declared(Thompson, 2012, pg.192 ). One of his pupils was Raymond Westerling, who fought behind enemy lines in Burma and Indonesia.

In 1941, he appeared in a training film titled "Unarmed Combat", demonstrating many of the strikes, holds and throws of Defendu, for use by the Home Guard, Commandos, and military services. This training film was narrated by actor David Niven, who had joined the Commandos early in the war, and was trained by Fairbairn himself. In 1942, Fairbairn appeared, again uncredited, in an OSS training film titled "OSS Training Center", directed by John Ford. Fairbairn again demonstrated unarmed combat, and also his version of "Point Shooting", later adopted and refined by Rex Applegate for use by the U.S. Army.

For his achievements in training OSS personnel, Fairbairn eventually rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel by the end of the war, and received the U.S. Legion of Merit (Officer grade) at the specific request of OSS-founder "Wild Bill" Donovan.

Experience in Shanghai (NEW!)[edit]

Fairbairn joined the SMP in 1907, slowly working his way up the department ranks. By 1920, he was promoted to sergeant major and drill instructor, training recruits in an early version of Defendu and more street-oriented firearms training.

Following The Nanjing Road Incident, and the resignation or firing of several high-ranking officers in the SMP, Fairbairn was ordered to create the reserve unit in December 1925. The newly formed reserve unit’s purpose quickly expanded from riot control to encompass several events a modern day SWAT team would handle, such as counterterrorism, armed robbery, hostage rescue, currency security and escort, and drug raids. (Thompson, 2012, pg.76 )

By 1926, now chief inspector Fairbairn, sought to update the SMP’s equipment and weaponry. Special orders were fulfilled for .45 M1911A1s, ballistic vests, and chemical deterrents such as tear gas.(Thompson, 2012, pg.121,149, 152, )

Despite his higher position in the SMP, Fairbairn never stopped his duties in the field; still routinely putting himself in harms way. For example, on January 7, 1928, the reserve unit received information that a wealthy Chinese merchant was being held by kidnappers in a downtown house. When the reserve unit arrived, the kidnapped man was found in the house abandoned while the kidnappers fled upstairs to the roof. One was shot and wounded by Fairbairn, one was tackled and restrained, and the last jumped between the tight city streets roof tops. He eventually stopped in a barricaded position where he returned fire at the officers. The reserve unit first decided to toss grenades and tear gas through the windows, but this proved ineffective. Fairbairn took the initiative and decided to try and infiltrate his position himself, but when trying to reach the second floor window, the kidnapper shot out at Fairbairn; missing him inches from his head. Gunfire was exchanged for another 16 hours before the kidnapper was found dead.(Thompson, 2012, pg 96-106)

Under Fairbairn’s leadership, the reserve unit grew to be over 200 men strong and was revered for its efficiency in dispersing riot crowds. This reputation proceeded them, to the point that the threat of them arriving at civil disturbances was usually enough for all parties to immediately disperse. Due to this notoriety, the reserve unit never had to open fire at a civil disturbance in its 15 year service. (Thompson, 2012, pg.77, 86 )

His time in Shanghai ended when he retired from the SMP at 55 in 1941; leaving at the rank of assistant commissioner. (Matthews, 2012)

Martial arts[edit]

After joining the SMP, he studied boxing, wrestling, savate, Shin no Shinto ryu jujutsu (Yoshin ryu) from an Okada-sensei, Kodokan judo in which he gained a 2nd dan black belt, and then Chinese martial arts. He developed his own fighting system—Defendu—and taught it to members of that police force in order to reduce officer fatalities. He described this system as primarily based on his personal experience, which according to police records included some 600 non-training fights, by his retirement at age 55 from the position of Assistant Commissioner in 1940.(Matthews, 2012)

His primary ideology was to train the brain to instinctively use his techniques, and to use whatever other means a person had to defend themselves. This often meant fighting dirty, in a style he called gutter fighting.

In 1951, he went to Cyprus to train police and in 1952 (and 1956) Fairbairn provided training to the Singapore Police Force's Riot Squad unit, which is now Police Tactical Unit.

Weapons innovations and Legacy[edit]

Together with Eric A. Sykes, Fairbairn developed innovative pistol shooting techniques and handgun specifications for the SMP which were later disseminated through their book Shooting to Live With the One-Hand Gun (1942). These techniques were passed on through several agencies and armed forces throughout the world including countries such as the Commonwealth countries, Israel, Cyprus and the United States of America. (Thompson, 2012, pg.140 )(Matthews, 2012)

From his time in the SMP, he improved or invented several pieces of now common police equipment as well, including specialized bulletproof shields for room breeching, riot batons, armoured vests, and tear gas usage in riot control(Thompson, 2012, pg.118,148,150 )

He also contributed a training exercise called the "killing room" in which a trainee was purposefully disorientated by use of smoke and mirrors; where he then was tasked to eliminate two targets in quick succession. Like his ideology of using the body's response, the test was designed to simulate actual combat and as such produce a natural response from the trainee. (Thompson, 2012, pg.193)

Under his command, one of the first “Riot Vans” called the “Red Maria” was put into service. The name “Red Maria” being a riff on the British colloquial term for a police van, “Black Maria”. Unlike its black counterpart, the Red Maria was closer to a modern day SWAT vehicle carrying officers, excess equipment, ammunition, crowd dispersal measures, and breaching tools. (Thompson, 2012, pg. 212)(Thompson, 2012, pg.110)

He is perhaps best known for designing the famous Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife, or 'Commando' knife, a stilletto-style fighting dagger used by British Special Forces in the Second World War, and featured in his textbook Scientific Self-Defence(Thompson, 2012, pg.191 ).

Publications[edit]

Defendu, first published in 1926 in Shanghai by the North China Daily News & Herald Ltd. Size 7" X 10", hardcover, cloth bound with 171 pages. Reprinted by Naval and Military Press ISBN 9781783314973
Scientific Self-Defence, first published in 1931 by D. Appleton and Company (New York & London). Size 6 ½" X 9 ½", in hardcover with 165 pages. A slightly modified/updated version of Defendu. Reprinted by Naval and Military Press ISBN 9781783314966
All-In Fighting, first published in 1942 by Faber and Faber Limited (London). Size 5 ½" X 8 ¼" in hardcover with 132 pages. Reprinted by Naval and Military Press ISBN 9781783313419
Get Tough, first published in 1942 by D. Appleton-Century Company (New York & London). Size 5 ½" X 7 ¾" in softcover with 121 pages. This is a modified version of All-In Fighting for the American market. Note the first edition has Fairbairn's rank as 'Captain' all subsequent (1940's) editions as 'Major'. Reprinted by Naval and Military Press ISBN 9781783313334
Self Defence for Women and Girls, first published in 1942 by Faber and Faber (London). Size 5 ½" X 8" softcover with 48 pages.
Hands Off!: Self-Defense for Women, first published in 1942 by D. Appleton-Century Company (New York & London). Size 5 ¼" X 8" in softcover with 41 pages. This is a modified version of Self Defence for Women and Girls for the American market. Reprinted by Naval and Military Press ISBN 9781783313532
Shooting to Live, co-authored by Eric Anthony Sykes, first published in 1942 by Oliver and Boyd (London). Size 4 ¾" X 7" in hardcover with 96 pages. ISBN 0-87364-027-6 (reprint). Reprinted by Naval and Military Press ISBN 9781783313402
WE Fairbairn's Complete Compendium of Lethal, Unarmed, Hand-to-Hand Combat Methods and Fighting. All six of WE Fairbairn's works in one binding to create the ultimate compendium: Get Tough, All-In Fighting, Shooting to Live, Scientific Self-Defence, Hands Off!, Defendu. Naval and Military Press 2020 ISBN 9781783317042

References[edit]

a b c d Chambers, John W. (2008). OSS Training in the National Parks and Service Abroad in World War II. Washington, D.C.: U.S. National Park Service.
^ "No. 35040". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 January 1941. p. 237.
^ Martial Musings: A Portrayal of Martial Arts in the 20th Century. Via Media. 1999. ISBN 9781893765009.
^ Matthews, Phil. "W.E. Fairbairn: The Legendary Instructor". CQB Services. Archived from the original on 3 March 2012.

Sources[edit]

Giles Milton The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, 2016, John Murray. ISBN 978-1-444-79895-1
The Legend of W. E. Fairbairn, Gentleman and Warrior: The Shanghai Years by Peter Robins, edited by Paul Child. 2005. ISBN 0-9549494-0-4. First biography on Fairbairn.
The First Commando Knives by Kelly Yeaton, Samuel S. Yeaton, and Rex Applegate. Phillips Publications, 1996. ISBN 0-93257-225-1
Empire Made Me: An Englishman Adrift in Shanghai by Robert Bickers. 2003. ISBN 0-231-13132-1, ISBN 0-14-101195-5. Life and times of a member of the Shanghai Municipal Police.
Contemporary Knife Targeting - Modern Science vs. W. E. Fairbairn's Timetable of Death by Christopher Grosz and Michael D. Janich - a thorough analysis of Fairbairn's work on human anatomy and knife fighting.
The Shanghai Fighting Knives, and many fakes!!!! (2010) by O. Janson. Summary of the Shanghai Fighting Knife and its evolution into the Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife.
The World’s First SWAT Team : W. E. Fairbairn and the Shanghai Municipal Police Reserve Unit by Leroy Thompson. Frontline Books, 2012. ISBN 9781848326040 <-- NEW!

External links[edit]

Training Film "Unarmed Combat" 1941 with appearance by Fairbairn himself (at YouTube)
Film archives about close-combat with lessons by Major Fairbairn himself (at YouTube)
The Source by Peter Robins (American Combatives)
Shanghai Municipal Police by Robert Bickers
Get Tough!, a book on close-quarters fighting written by Fairbairn
Badass of the Week: William E. Fairbairn

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