Editing David Stirling (section)

===Founding of the SAS===
In June 1940, he volunteered for the new [[No. 8 (Guards) Commando]] under Lieutenant-Colonel [[Robert Laycock]], which became part of Force Z (later named "[[Layforce]]"). On 1 February 1941, Layforce sailed for the Middle East, in support of the capture of [[Rhodes]], but were soon disbanded after suffering heavy casualties in the [[Battle of Crete]] and the [[Battle of the Litani River]]. Stirling remained convinced that due to the mechanised nature of war, a small team of highly trained soldiers with the advantage of surprise could attack several targets from the desert in a single night.<ref name="Ben" />{{rp|7,12–13,23–24}}

Believing that taking his idea up the chain of command was unlikely to work, Stirling decided to go straight to the top. On crutches following a parachuting accident, he stealthily entered Middle East headquarters in [[Cairo]] (under, through, or over a fence) in an effort to see [[Commander-in-Chief]], [[Middle East Command]] General [[Claude Auchinleck|Sir Claude Auchinleck]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Connor |first=Ken |date=1998 |title=Ghost Force: The Secret History of the SAS |location=London |publisher=[[Orion Publishing Group|Cassell Military Paperbacks]] |page=10 |isbn=0-304-36367-7}}</ref> Spotted by guards, Stirling abandoned his crutches and entered the building, only to come face-to-face with an officer with whom he had previously fallen out. Retreating rapidly, he entered the office of the deputy chief of staff, Major General [[Neil Ritchie]]. Stirling explained his plan to Ritchie, immediately after which Ritchie persuaded Auchinleck to allow Stirling to form a new special operations unit. The unit was given the deliberately misleading name "L Detachment, Special Air Service Brigade" to reinforce [[Dudley Clarke]]'s deception of a parachute brigade existing in [[North Africa]].<ref name="Ben" />{{rp|25–28}}