Fallschirmjäger (World War II)

Fallschirmjäger

Fallschirmschützenabzeichen
Active 1935-1945
Country  Nazi Germany
Branch Luftwaffe
Type Paratrooper
Infantry
Part of Luftwaffe
Garrison/HQ Berlin
Engagements World War II

The Fallschirmjäger were the paratrooper (German: Fallschirmjäger) branch of the German Luftwaffe before and during World War II. They were the first German paratroopers to be committed in large-scale airborne operations and came to be known as the "green devils" by the Allied forces they fought against.[1] Throughout World War II the Fallschirmjäger commander was Kurt Student.

Etymology

The word Fallschirmjäger is from the German Fallschirm "parachute" and Jäger "hunter", the elite light infantry of the Prussian army.

Pre-war history

During the interwar years the rapid development of aircraft and aviation technology drew the attention of imaginative military planners. The idea of inserting a large body of troops inside enemy territory was first proposed during World War I by commander of the U.S. Air Corps in France—Brigadier General Billy Mitchell.[2] However the Allied High Command was forced to abandon the idea as it was wholly unprepared for such an undertaking, both logistically and in materiel.[2] Among the first to recognize the potential of airborne forces were Italy and the Soviet Union.[3] The first effective means of supporting massed infantry airborne operations came with the development of the static-line parachute in Italy in the 1920s, whereby parachutes are attached to the inside of the aircraft and deployed automatically upon departure.[3] This technique allowed the jumps to occur at lower altitudes, limiting exposure to enemy fire, and providing a tighter drop zone grouping than individually deployed rip-cord type parachutes.[3]

The Soviets were the first to demonstrate the military possibilities of airborne infantry in the 1930s with a series of maneuvers held in 1935 and 1936.[3] Though somewhat crude (the Soviet paratroopers had to exit their slow-moving Tupolev TB-3 transporters through a hatch in the roof and then position themselves along the wings and jump together), the exercise managed to land 1,000 troops through air-drops followed by another 2,500 soldiers with heavy equipment delivered via airlandings. The gathered forces proceeded to carry out conventional infantry attacks with the support of heavy machine guns and light artillery.[4] Among the foreign observers present was Hermann Göring.[4]

Impressed, the ambitious Göring became personally committed to the creation of Germany's airborne arm in the 1930s.[5] As the Bavarian Prime Minister of the Interior, he had ordered the formation of a specialist police unit in 1933, the Polizeiabteilung Wecke, devoted to protecting Nazi party officials. The organization of this unit was entrusted to Polizeimajor Walther Wecke of the Prussian Police Force, who had assembled a special detachment of 14 officers and 400 men within just two days.[5] On 17 July, the detachment was officially renamed Landespolizeigruppe Wecke.[6] On 22 December 1933, the unit was again retitled, becoming the Landespolizeigruppe General Göring. The unit carried out conventional police duties for the next two years under the command of Göring's ministerial adjutant Friedrich Jakoby,[6] but it was Göring's intention to ultimately produce a unit that would match the Reichswehr.

In March–April 1935, Göring transformed the Landespolizei General Göring into Germany's first dedicated airborne regiment, giving it the military designation Regiment General Göring (RGG) on 1 April 1935 (after Hitler introduced conscription on 16 March 1935).[6] The unit was incorporated into the newly formed Luftwaffe on October 1 of the same year and training commenced at Altengrabow. Göring also ordered that a group of volunteers be drawn for parachute training. These volunteers would form a core Fallschirmschützen Bataillon ("parachute soldiers battalion"), a cadre for future Fallschirmtruppe ("parachute troops").[6] In January 1936, 600 men and officers formed the 1st Jäger Battalion/RGG, commanded by Bruno Bräuer, and the 15th Engineer Company/RGG and were transferred to training area Döberitz for jump training while the rest of the regiment was sent to Altengrabow.[7] Germany's parachute arm was officially inaugurated on 29 January 1936[8] with an Order of the Day calling for recruits for parachute training at the Stendal Parachute Training School located 96 km (60 mi) west of Berlin. The school was activated several months after the first parachute units were established in January 1936 and was open to active and reserve Luftwaffe personnel. NCOs, officers and other ranks of the Luftwaffe were required to successfully complete six jumps in order to receive the Luftwaffe Parachutist's Badge (instituted on 5 November 1936).[8]

World War II

A Fallschirmjäger with the MG 42 somewhere in the Soviet Union, 1943.
A Fallschirmjäger mortar crew firing the 8 cm Granatwerfer 42 "Stummelwerfer".

During World War II, the Luftwaffe raised a variety of airborne light infantry (Fallschirmjäger) units. Unlike the United Kingdom, the British Commonwealth, and the United States, the German paratroopers were part of the Luftwaffe rather than the Heer (German Army). Starting from a small collection of Fallschirmjäger battalions at the beginning of the war, the Luftwaffe built up a division-sized unit of three Fallschirmjäger regiments plus supporting arms and air assets, known as the 7th Flieger Division (7th Air Division).

Fallschirmjäger units made the first airborne invasion when invading Denmark on the 9 April 1940. In the early morning hours of Operation Weserübung, they attacked and took control of Aalborg Airport which played a key role as a refueling station for the Luftwaffe in the subsequent invasion of Norway. In the same assault the bridges around Aalborg were taken. Other airborne attacks during the German invasion of Denmark were also carried out, including one on a fort on the island Masnedø, protecting the important Storstrøm Bridge.

The first opposed airborne attacks occurred during the Norwegian Campaign, first during the initial invasion when Fallschirmjäger captured the defended air base of Sola, near Stavanger. The Fallschirmjäger also had their first defeat in Norway, when a company was dropped on the village and railroad junction of Dombås on 14 April 1940 and was destroyed by the Norwegian Army in a five-day battle.[9]

Later in the war, the 7th Air Division's Fallschirmjäger assets were re-organised and used as the core of a new series of elite Luftwaffe Infantry divisions, numbered in a series beginning with the 1st Fallschirmjäger Division. These formations were organized and equipped as motorized infantry divisions, and often played a "fire brigade" role on the western front. Their constituents were often encountered on the battlefield as ad hoc battle groups (Kampfgruppen) detached from a division or organized from miscellaneous available assets. In accord with standard German practice, these were called by their commander's name, such as Group Erdmann in France and the Ramcke Parachute Brigade in North Africa.

Over 54,449 paratroops were killed in action and over 8,000 are still listed as missing in action. Fallschirmjäger were awarded a total of 134 Knight's Crosses between 1940 and 1945. Twenty-four KC were awarded in the west and 27 were awarded after Crete. Out of the 134 KC, 15 were with oak leaves, five with oak leaves and swords, and one with oak leaves, swords and diamonds.

The Fallschirmjäger Divisions

After mid-1944, Fallschirmjäger were no longer trained as paratroops due to the strategic situation, and fought as infantrymen. Near the end of the war, the series of new Fallschirmjäger divisions extended to thirteen on paper, with a reduction in quality in the later units. The last three divisions to be created (11th, 20th and 21st) were never fully formed and saw no combat.

The 1st Fallschirmjäger division was formed pre-war in 1938 and was the original 'elite' Fallschirmjäger unit. It was this unit that was responsible for all of the early German airbourne triumphs and many of the later defensive struggles that solidified the Fallschirmjägers reputation in battle. The division survived until the German surrender in Italy of 2 May 1945, just one week before the End of World War II in Europe.

The 2nd Fallschirmjäger division was formed in early 1943 with a core of veterans from the 1st, fully trained it was also considered to be an 'elite' formation. It fought with distinction in Ukraine in late 1943, helping to contain several major Russian attacks. In 1944 the division fought in western France. In a notable engagement, the 6th Regiment fought outnumbered against paratroopers of the United States 101st Airborne Division in the Battle of Carentan and around Saint Lo. The majority of the division was then cut off and surrounded in Brest during the German retreat from France. Hugely outnumbered but well supplied, they held on for nearly a month and a half against constant attacks during the Battle for Brest, before eventual German surrender of the city in September 1944.

The 3rd and 4th Fallschirmjäger divisions were formed in late 1943, around a core of veterans from the 1st and 2nd. The 4th also contained Italian paratroopers from the 184th Airborne Division Nembo. Still receiving the first rate equipment and training of the earlier units, the 3rd and 4th divisions carved out an impressive battle record on, respectively, the Western Front and in Italy. The 3rd fought with distinction during the Normandy Campaign but was cut off and near destroyed in the Falaise Pocket in August 1944 by massed aerial bombing. It was then reformed and saw action during the Battle of Arnhem, eventually surrendering to US troops in April 1945. The 4th fought exclusively on the Italian front including the Battle of Anzio, Rome and on the Gothic Line. It surrendered to Allied forces in April 1945.

The 5th, 6th and 7th Fallschirmjäger were formed in 1944 in France and fought on the western front as regular infantry. The 5th was the last division to receive near full Fallschirmjäger training and had the notable achievement of being one of the few German units to achieve its objectives during the Battle of the Bulge.[10] Lacking the intensive training of the earlier units, the 6th and 7th had an overall mixed combat performance. The 5th was largely captured in the Ruhr Pocket in April 1945, the 6th and 7th surrendered at the wars end in May.

The 8th, 9th and 10th were Fallschirmjäger by name only, as they were rush formed in 1945 from a disparate collection of Luftwaffe units, including ground crews. Under trained and mostly ill-prepared for the role, they fought against near overwhelming odds on the rapididly collapsing Eastern Front and inside Germany itself. The 8th fought in the Netherlands before being destroyed in the Ruhr Pocket. The 9th fought in the Battle of the Seelow Heights and in the Battle of Berlin before being destroyed in April 1945, the 10th survived until their surrender to Soviet forces in May 1945.

The 11th, 20th and 21st were divisions on paper only, never fully formed they saw no combat.

Luftwaffe parachute units

Army and corps

Divisions

Independent Regiments and brigades

Other parachute units

Waffen-SS

Army

Luftwaffe

Para-trained commandos of II/KG 200 (also known as the 3rd Staffel of Kampfgeschwader 200), were a Luftwaffe special forces unit who were para-trained commandos. II./KG 200 remain a mostly unheard of arm of Germany's World War II parachute forces due to the nature of their role and were listed on II./KG 200's ORBAT as the 3rd Staffel.

Operations

A heavily armed Fallschirmjäger carrying a Panzerfaust and wearing the characteristic Splittermuster 41 "splinter" camouflage.
Fallschirmjäger landing on Crete.
Fallschirmjäger squad in Crete.

Fallschirmjäger participated in many of the famous battles of World War II and in many theatres. As elite troops they were frequently deployed at the vanguard of attacks and as the bulwark of a defence. They would see action in the Norway and Denmark campaign and in Belgium, the Netherlands and France in 1940. Major actions in the Balkans Campaign, Crete, Italy, and on both the Eastern Front and later the Western Front would follow.

The skillful airborne seizure of Fort Eben-Emael permitted the early capture of Belgium and, alongside successful operations in the Netherlands, was crucial for the speed of the German victories in 1940. The major airdrops in Norway and Denmark in May 1940 was also vital to the success of the campaign there.

The Battle of Crete in 1941 saw large scale airdrops in which the entire 7th Air Division was deployed with the 5th Mountain Division as the follow-up. Crete was captured, along with many enemy troops and weapons, but the high casualties suffered by the Fallschirmjäger as they parachuted in convinced Hitler that such mass airdrops were no longer feasible. Unknown to the Germans, the element of surprise had been lost before the drops started due to Polish cracking of the Enigma cipher.

Fallschirmjäger also played a key role defending positions in France against much larger forces during the Battle of Normandy in 1944. The Battle of Carentan saw Fallschirmjäger fight American paratroopers in a short but intense engagement. The defense of Fortress Brest, at which the core of the defending forces were Fallschirmjäger including the commander Generalleutnant Ramcke, delayed the American advance through 99 days of combat.

The Battle of Monte Cassino was one of the finest displays of the courage, tenacity and skill that the Fallschirmjäger became known for. The 1st Fallschirmjäger Division held the ground near the Monastery of Monte Cassino but did not occupy the building itself. The historical significance of the Benedictine monastery caused the German commander-in-chief in Italy, Field Marshal Albert Kesselring, to order German units not to include the monastery in German defensive positions and informed the Allies accordingly.[12][13] The Allied high command refused to believe that the German forces would not use such a valuable position in their defences and orders were duly given for the 1500-year-old building to be bombed to rubble. After the bombing, the Germans moved into positions among the bricks, remnants of walls and still intact cellars which provided excellent protection for the troops. This enabled the Fallschirmjäger to hold out for months against repeated assaults and heavy bombardment. Here they gained the nickname of the "Green Devils" from the Allied forces for their distinctive ¾-length splinter pattern camouflage jackets and their tenacious defence of the ruined town and monastery on the mountain above against far superior numbers. Inflicting huge losses on the allied forces, they ultimately retreated from their positions only to avoid being outflanked. After their withdrawal, Polish, Indian, Senegalese, Moroccan and Brazilian forces finally occupied the ruins of the monastery.

Also in Italy, a smaller but equally fierce battle occurred as the 3rd battalion, 3rd Regt, 1st Fallschirmjäger Division fought against elements of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division and the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade during the Battle of Ortona, Italy, from December 20, 1943 to December 28, 1943. The battle was dubbed "Little Stalingrad"[14] for the deadliness of its close-quarters combat.

Uniforms and equipment

A concealed paratrooper looking down the sights of his FG 42 automatic rifle.
The Fallschirmjäger were the first to operationally employ recoilless weapons. The 7.5 cm Leichtgeschütz 40 could be air-dropped and had a maximum range of 6,800 m.

Fallschirmjäger were awarded the Fallschirmschützenabzeichen, a paratrooper insignia featuring a diving gold eagle gripping a swastika.

A special version of the German armed forces' (Wehrmacht's) modernized steel helmet (Stahlhelm), the M1935, called the Fallschirmhelm, was designed and issued to Fallschirmjäger units. It did away with the projecting visor and deep, flared rim of the standard-issue helmet, and added further improvements. The modified shell incorporated a completely different and more substantial leather liner and chinstrap design that provided far more protection for German airborne troops; this model was known as the "M1938".

The style of parachute harness used by the Fallschirmjäger, however, is generally considered inferior to those used by the war's British and American paratroopers. Unlike the British and American models, which connected the lines of the chute to two risers at each shoulder, the German design connected the parachute lines to the trooper's body via a single strap (riser) in the center of the back, an Irving-type harness. Paratroopers had to throw themselves forward out of the aeroplane, and in the resulting face-down position when the chute opened, control was nearly impossible. To remove their parachute harness, required the paratrooper to stand stationary upright for up to 80 seconds. The necessity of landing on knees and elbows reduced the amount of equipment the trooper could carry and, even with pads, significantly increased the chance of injury. As a result, they jumped armed only with a holstered pistol and a small "gravity knife". Rifles and other weapons were dropped in separate containers and, until these were recovered, the soldiers were relatively poorly armed (by comparison, Allied paratroopers were dropped armed with rifles or submachine guns). The Japanese copied the German system.

After the Crete invasion, these faults were rectified, with the parachute harness modified to allow it to be released while prone in under 10 seconds; and the paratroopers jumped while armed with personal automatic weapons.[15]

Fallschirmjäger units were usually very well equipped; they had access to the best weapons of the German military. They were among the first combat units to use assault rifles and recoilless weapons in combat. Fallschirmjäger also readily employed the best of several foreign-made small arms, including the Italian Beretta Modello 38 9 mm submachine gun,[16] and the FN Browning P-35 9 mm pistol.

A universal weapon was developed specifically for the paratroopers that could replace rifles, submachine guns and light machine guns but was also light enough to be carried during a jump. These efforts resulted in the FG 42 automatic rifle which combined the firepower of a machine gun with the lightweight handling characteristics of a standard infantry rifle. The FG 42 was built and deployed in small numbers from 1943 until the end of the war. Though an extremely advanced weapon,[17][18] the design had some drawbacks. The lightweight frame was subject to considerable muzzle rise when in automatic fire and had to be fired prone to guarantee accuracy. This meant that the FG 42 was not entirely compatible with the more universal role it was supposed to play, as both a light machine gun and assault rifle. The FG 42's advanced design also meant that the weapon could not be mass-produced in a cost efficient manner, and use of certain precious metals in the gun's construction placed it in competition with other wartime projects for increasingly scarce resources.

In popular culture

In the Jack Higgins book and movie adaption The Eagle Has Landed, a group of Fallschirmjäger are featured in a fictional operation where they covertly land in England in an attempt to kidnap Winston Churchill. Within the book and movie, the Fallschirmjäger are portrayed as professional soldiers and heroic as one sacrifices his life to rescue a British girl, and the commanding officer throws his career away in an attempt to save a Jewish girl.

In the video game Turning Point: Fall of Liberty, the main attack force in the initial Nazi invasion of New York city, are Fallschirmjäger troops. They are first seen when they land on the skyscraper the player character is working on.

In the massively multiplayer online game World War II Online, it is possible for Axis players to play as Fallschirmjäger. Parachute drops are possible.

In Call of Duty 3 the Fallschirmjäger appear as the main enemies in the level "The Island".

In World War II real-time strategy game Company of Heroes, Fallschirmjäger are portrayed as stealthy units, able to hide in cover and infiltrate the battlefield unseen, and as extremely lethal to enemy infantry when equipped with their FG 42.

In the strategy game R.U.S.E they can be researched and used when playing as Germany. They are the best paratroopers in game, given the moniker of elite infantry, and can defeat any other infantry unit (except other elite infantry) in battle.

In the World War II first-person shooters Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 and Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood, a number of Fallschirmjäger units meet the 101st Airborne in combat. Only the Waffen-SS are comparable to them as the most skilled enemy soldiers in the game.

In L.J Adlington's novel 'Burning Mountain', main characters Erich Bergen and Peter Shäfer are both members of the Fallschirmjäger.

Notable World War II German paratroopers

See also

References

  1. ↑ Green Devils: German Paratroopers 1939-1945 By Jean-Yves Nasse, W. Muhlberger, G. Schubert, Jean-Pierre Villaume,
  2. 1 2 Ailsby, Christopher: Hitler's Sky Warriors: German Paratroopers in Action, 1939-1945, page 12. Spellmount Limited, 2000.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Ailsby, 16
  4. 1 2 Ailsby, 18
  5. 1 2 Ailsby, 21
  6. 1 2 3 4 Ailsby, 22
  7. ↑ Ailsby, 23
  8. 1 2 Ailsby, 26
  9. ↑ Bjørn Jervaas: The Fallschirmjäger Battle at Dombaas (English)
  10. ↑ http://www.historicalwarmilitariaforum.com/topic/8-gliederung-5-fallschirmj%C3%A4ger-division/
  11. ↑ Battaglione Paracadutisti Nembo
  12. ↑ Time, The Bombing of Monte Cassino
  13. ↑ [Monte Cassinoby David Hapgood (Author), David Richardson]
  14. ↑ Ortona By Mark Zuehlke # Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre (May 2004)Language EnglishISBN 1550545574 ISBN 978-1-55054-557-9
  15. ↑ Comparison of the Invasion of Crete and the Proposed Invasion of Malta, by S Kavanaugh, 1994 http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf&AD=ADA452022
  16. ↑ Quarrie, Bruce, Fallschirmjäger: German Paratrooper, 1935-45, Osprey Publishing (2001), ISBN 1-84176-326-8, ISBN 978-1-84176-326-2, p. 59
  17. ↑ Senich, Peter: The German Assault Rifle: 1935–1945, page 239. Paladin Press, 1987.
  18. ↑ Miller, David: Fighting Men of World War II: Axis Forces : Uniforms, Equipment and Weapons, page 104. Stackpole Books, 2007.

Bibliography

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