The Ranger Creed is the official mission statement of the United States Army Rangers. The Ranger Creed was written in 1974 by CSM Neal R. Gentry, the original command sergeant major of the reactivated 1st Ranger Battalion. It was initiated by the Battalion Commander, then-LTC Kenneth C. Leuer, and re-drafted by the battalion XO, MAJ "Rock" Hudson and finalized at Fort Stewart, Georgia in 1974 when the original cadre deployed there on 1 July 1974. Today, members of Ranger community recite the Ranger Creed during formations, ceremonies, physical training activities and upon graduations from the Ranger Indoctrination Program, the Ranger Orientation Program and the U.S. Army Ranger Course.
Variations
The original Ranger Creed is above, but variations of the first stanza have occurred. This is due to the diverging histories of the Rangers as a unit. After the consolidation of the Ranger Companies, the phrase, "of my Ranger Regiment" was substituted for "of the Rangers" by members of 1st Ranger Battalion. When 2nd Ranger Battalion was formed, they did likewise. After the formation of the 75th Ranger Regiment, members of all battalions adopted the wording, "of my Ranger Regiment", and this version remains in use throughout the regiment. However, the version containing the phrase "of the Rangers" continues to be used in the Ranger Handbook.