Labeled savage Africans for their untamed ferocity, the Moroccan Goums served as irregular mountain troops for the Allies during World War II. Beginning with the Tunisia campaign in 1942, these tribal warriors frightened their opponents with their traditional garb, long knives, and merciless attacks. An impressed Gen. George Patton requested the Goums' service in Sicily, and they went on to fight in the final battle for Monte Cassino in May 1944 and later liberated Marseille in France. After helping to clear the Colmar Pocket, the Goums breached the Siegfried Line and ended the war in Germany, having secured their reputation as unorthodox but effective soldiers.