Dermot O’Neill was born in 1905 in County Cork, Ireland. As a teenager he traveled to China and settled in Shanghai. In 1925, at the age of twenty, he joined the Shanghai Municipal Police. This police force made up of 9,000 active and reserve officers was tasked with bringing law and order to the International Settlement.
While in Shanghai, O’Neill immersed himself in the study of Asian martial arts. He was a devoted practitioner of Japanese judo, as well as various forms of “Chinese boxing,” including Tai Chi Chuan, Hsing Yi, and Pa Kua.
O’Neill rose through the ranks of the SMP and was promoted to Detective Sergeant and served as a member and instructor of the SMP’s famous “Shock and Riot Police” task force. He was also considered by many to be the protégé of William Ewart Fairbairn.
In 1938, O’Neill left Shanghai for Tokyo, Japan, as chief of security for the British embassy legation there. During this period, O’Neill received the Godan, fifth degree black belt from the Kodokan, in addition to increasing his martial arts skills by practicing the Japanese style “Kempo”. He left Japan shortly before the bombing of Pearl Harbor and headed for Australia.
O’Neill came to the United States at the urging and recommendation of WE Fairbairn, who was involved with the OSS at the time. O’Neill was scheduled to work for the OSS, but was sent to serve as an instructor with the First Special Service Force, a joint Canadian-American commando unit known as the “Devil’s Brigade”. When the 1st SSF went into action, O’Neill refused to be left behind, stating that since he was training these guys, he would fight very well alongside them. He held the rank of Captain and one of his duties included being assigned to be General Fredericks’ bodyguard. After he finished his time in Europe, O’Neill was assigned the post of Provost Marshal of Monte Carlo.
When the war with Japan ended, O’Neill was sent to Okinawa as a liaison officer. After the war, O’Neill served as a consultant on police and security for various federal agencies, including the State Department and the Central Intelligence Agency. In the mid-1960s, O’Neill settled in the Washington, DC area and began working with the International Police Academy there. This organization was funded by the Agency for International Development and was a front for CIA-led paramilitary operations and training. Church Committee hearings on intelligence activities caused the closure of this academy in the early 1970s.
O’Neill was considered a very tough man in his day and had a reputation for not backing down from anyone. His skill in judo was highly praised even at the Kodokan. O’Neill had studied with Uchijima, the renowned Kodokan judo instructor. O’Neill was especially known for his ability to catch. The close combat methods he devised and taught were highly effective and proved so in actual battles on numerous occasions. O’Neill greatly influenced military hand-to-hand combat for both the US Army and Marine Corps.
Dermot O’Neill had been married briefly and had a daughter. He died on August 11, 1985.
Origins of the O’Neill Method
The “O’Neill” method is a constant source of debate and speculation.
Due to the fact that most people have only been exposed to limited information about this method, many “false” opinions have been expressed about its value and/or effectiveness.
Army 21-150 manuals offer little in the way of a “complete” method, and the “proposed” USMC manual adds some information, but certainly doesn’t come close to the complete “picture.”
In addition to the non-fictional works on the First Special Service Force that add pieces to the puzzle, other “technical” sources exist.
Aside from DM O’Neill’s fairly well-documented Judo background and his service with the SMP and as a “protégé” of the WEF, little else is really known about the elements that comprise his method.
Quotes like this: “……….the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) improved version of kick and punch judo. This method of unarmed close combat was developed and taught by a former police inspector from Shanghai, a British embassy security expert and contract OSS employee named Dermot Michael “Pat” O’Neill. Offer some more insights into the man and the method.
The system that O’Neill “developed” was born during his time in Shanghai. Charlie Nelson relates that his introduction to the O’Neill method was through a sergeant. Kelly, who learned this method from O’Neill during Kelly’s tour of duty in China. Since we know that O’Neill left for Japan in 1938, the “training” between Kelly and O’Neill must have occurred before that. So we can assume that the O’Neill method came to fruition sometime in the mid-1930s.
Many reference sources containing information on the O’Neill method recalled by the Forcemen of the 1st SSF refer to phrases similar to the one cited above. Terms like “jab and kick”, “gouge and kick”, “poke and kick” are constantly used to describe this method. We now KNOW what the elements of the “Fairbairn” system are (although even here too there are many misconceptions) and when it would be difficult to describe the WEF approach as “kick and shove”.
Although O’Neill’s method may have included elements of the Fairbairn system (although there is documentation to the contrary), it is clear that O’Neill’s method is materially different. The difference in “needs” when it comes to close combat between front-line rapid assault “shock” troops like the “Devil’s Brigade” and the nature of clandestine special operations conducted by the OSS and the SOE largely explains the dissimilarity in the choice of method.
Chinese foot wrestling or Chinese boxing is mentioned in various manuals attributed to O’Neill. CHI-CHI SHU another reference to Chinese fighters is also mentioned in the AID/IPA manual. Existing material from the WWII era mentions this specifically. Charlie Nelson always said that this method was based on Chinese guerrilla warfare.
So where does the O’Neill method originate from? What can be the original source of this system?
To fully understand the possible connections to Chinese boxing, we must FULLY understand the entire original curriculum of this method.
We will begin to discuss that aspect in Part II. Hopefully, we will also dispel “misinformed” opinions about the validity and combat effectiveness of O’Neill’s “method.”
P.S. Watch video S2- O’Neill System: www.selfdefenseseminar.com
Copyright 2003 www.thetruthaboutself-defense.com©
By Ralph Grasso and Carl Cestari
