British Paratrooper 1940–45Inspired by the exploits of the German Fallschirmjäger in the blitzkrieg campaigns, Winston Churchill called for the formation of a 5,000-strong Airborne Force in June 1940. From these beginnings The Parachute Regiment became one of the foremost units of the British Army both in World War II and up to the present day. This new history of the British Paratrooper, from 1940 to 1945, details the unique training, weapons and equipment used by these elite troops. A wealth of first-hand and until now unpublished materials brings the history of the ordinary paratrooper to life, drawing on the author's position as a former curator of the Regimental Museum. Illustrations and photographs illuminate the equipment and combat performance of the elite 'Paras' in the context of some of the most significant campaigns of World War II, including D-Day and Operation Market-Garden. |
Contents
APPEARANCE AND EQUIPMENT | |
CONDITIONS OF SERVICE | |
BELIEF AND BELONGING | |
AFTER THE BATTLE | |
COLLECTING MUSEUMS AND REENACTING | |
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Common terms and phrases
1st Airborne Division 1st Parachute Battalion 1st Parachute Brigade 2nd Independent Parachute 2nd Parachute Brigade 3rd Parachute Battalion 4th Parachute Battalion 6th Airborne Division Airborne Assault Airborne Forces airborne initiative aircraft Airfield Allied attack awarded battle honour became British Airborne British Army Bruneval camp cap badge carried casualties command D-Day Denison smock developed Douglas Dakota drop zone enemy equipment evacuated Fairbairn-Sykes dagger Fallschirmjäger fight the battle German gliders Greece ground training hangars Hardwick Hall helmet Independent Parachute Brigade infantry injuries instructor Italy jump landing later March Merville Battery Military Cross Museum Normandy North Africa officers Operation Torch Parachute Battalions fight Parachute Regiment Parachute Training School parachutists Paras paratrooper patrol Pegasus Bridge period POWs RAF Ringway raid recruits Rhine Crossing RSM Lord September Sicily soldiers Stalag 11B step-in smocks Tatham-Warter Tragino Tragino Aqueduct training at RAF units volunteered whilst X-type parachute