The Georgia State Defense Force: "PARATI SERVIRE, Ready to Serve" General Information About the GSDF: What do we do? GSDF Organization Associations Member Resources General Information Georgia Dept. of Defense GSDF Brigades Home Contact Us Join the GSDF Mission-Implied Tasks � Assist National Guard Units � Search and Rescue � Medical Support � Family Readiness Support � Disaster Reconnaissance � EOC Augmentation � Traffic/Evacuation Control � Other Missions as Assigned Our History The GSDF traces its history back to the Battle of Bloody Marsh in 1742 when General James Oglethorpe called up the militia to help repel the Spanish invasion of Georgia. The militia participated in Indian wars, and provided units to the Confederate Army in 1862. Members remaining at home helped man the defenses of Atlanta and Macon. During World War II, the 8,000 members of the force guarded war plants, critical communications facilities, utilities, reservoirs, and transportation facilities. The GSDF was re-authorized under the state constitution in 1973, and throughout the 1970s and '80s was tasked to serve as a backup for state police powers and assume vacated domestic missions of Georgia National Guard members called to Federal duty. More recent GSDF operations include: support to National Guard Units during the Gulf War, participation in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, emergency aid to agencies such as FEMA and GEMA, and support to Georgia National Guard units and their families. Learn more at the Historical Society of the Georgia National Guard