A British warrior
buried at Arlington

He is identified as "Zionist Commando" in the guidebook "Arlington National Cemetery, Shrine to America's Heroes."

He would have liked that. For just before his death in a plane crash at age 41, he told Chaim Weizmann, who was to become Israel's first president:

TRENDING: Is this what you voted for, America?

"I served Ethiopia. I fight for Britain. But I belong to Israel. Will you remember that if I need an epitaph?"

In the mid-1930s, when Orde Wingate was a captain in the British army that was ruling Palestine under a mandate, he was one of the few British officers to go to the aid of the embattled Jews.

To respond to the continued Arab attacks, he organized and trained what were called "Special Night Squads."

His absolute genius for guerrilla warfare – and his deeply religion-inspired courage in always leading these Jewish undergrounders into successful battle – not only provided protection. It made him a godfather of what came later: first, World War II's Jewish Brigade and then the extraordinary Haganah and Palmach, which, with the Irgun had to face and defeat five invading Arab armies in 1948.

From Wingate's leadership of the "Special Night Forces" came so many of the leaders of the historically devastating IDF, or Israel Defense Forces.

The British, who began to block Jewish refugees from coming to their ancestral home in the Holy Land, soon transferred this devoutly Christian Zionist military genius out of Palestine.

This was in time to let him use his talents in re-training and deploying Ethiopians and their allies to avenge the invasion and occupation of Ethiopia by the legions and heavy weaponry of Benito Mussolini.

His behind-the-lines tactics were so effective that eventually he and his troops caused a massive retreat by Mussolini's men. And they managed to take Ethiopia's capital city of Addis Ababa.

Because of this astounding accomplishment, and because Wingate had a cousin who was T.E. Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia"), the media began referring to him as "Lawrence of Ethiopia."

As with many of world history's military geniuses, he had almost constant conflict with the ordinaries who always had higher rank.

When they managed to have him ordered out of his just-conquered Addis Ababa, this removal from command, on top of the months of short rations, constant marching, continued death and woundings, led him to an almost successful attempted suicide.

But with the devoted help of the medics – and particularly one military psychiatrist who got him cleared for return to active duty – the British military decided to send Wingate to India, to use his guerrilla skills against a huge and previously undefeated Japanese army in the jungles of Burma.

Here he was put in command of a force of 3,000, including a battalion of the superb Gurkha fighters from Nepal, the 13th battalion of the King's Liverpool Regiment and the 77th Indian Brigade.

He informed all of them that after their initial training, they would be engaged in L.R.P. (long range penetration) in order to get behind the lines of Gen. Kawabe's Imperial Japanese.

He told them they would be supplied by airplane drops – and that wherever possible, planes would land to pick up and evacuate wounded.

But he also informed them that Kawabe's troops made a habit of burning all Indian troops to death. All British prisoners were stripped to reveal their white skin, then tied to trees and used for bayonet practice – with death rarely coming soon.

He told them he would be carrying poison in case he was captured, and he insisted on this availability for all his men.

His command became known as the "Chindits." In their first intrusion deep into the jungles of Burma, they did so much damage to the Japanese that they may have been a major reason why India was not invaded.

The Chindits were also a model for a similar American unit, which came to be known as "Merrill's Marauders."

Finally, the Chindits made their first withdrawal from Burma – many of them under an order code-named "Buckshot," which meant "every man for himself."

When a majority of them made it out, their leader, whose small force did so much damage to a much larger enemy army, found that he and they were world-famous.

Wingate was ordered flown to London by Prime Minister Winston Churchill – who had him promoted to major general.

Churchill also ordered him to be put in charge of a much larger force, to be trained by Chindits, in preparation for another advance into Burma.

But before returning for this action, Mr. Churchill ordered Wingate to come with his wife, Lorna, aboard the Queen Mary to travel to Canada. Here, Churchill introduced him to the great allied meeting at Quebec as "a man of genius, a man of destiny."

While Gen. Wingate and his wife were aboard the Queen Mary, they conceived their only child. And their great love was seen in his correspondence with her – one of which letters also included the following:

"I return to my personal evidence of God's presence on earth – your love for me."

He is buried along Grant Avenue in Arlington National Cemetery – Section 12, Grave 288 – under the same plain tombstone with the names of eight others who died with him in the crash of a B-25 on March 24, 1944.

They included two British civilians (probably war correspondents) and a British army captain; plus five Americans: first and second lieutenants, two tech sergeants and a staff sergeant.

It was allied policy that when common disaster obliterated victims beyond recognition, the remains were buried in the nation of the majority.

That was the policy referred to in a U.S. diplomatic decline, which replied to personal letters to President Harry Truman, pleading that part of what remained be allowed to be reburied with honor and monuments, in Ethiopia, United Kingdom and Israel.

These personal letters to Truman were written by Haile Selassie, Winston Churchill – and David Ben Gurion.