13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion
13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion | |
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Insignia | |
The emblem of the Second World War British Airborne Forces, Bellerophon riding the flying horse Pegasus |
The 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion was an airborne infantry battalion of the Parachute Regiment, raised by the British Army during the Second World War. The battalion was formed in May 1943 by the conversion of the 2/4th Battalion, South Lancashire Regiment to parachute duties and was assigned to the 5th Parachute Brigade in the 6th Airborne Division.
In June 1944, the battalion took part in
A new 13th Parachute Battalion (TA) was raised when the Territorial Army was reformed in 1947. Over the years, as a result of a number of amalgamations, this battalion eventually became part of the present day 4th Battalion.
Formation history
Background
Impressed by the success of German airborne operations during the Battle of France, the then Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Winston Churchill, directed the War Office to investigate the possibility of creating a corps of 5,000 parachute troops.[2] The standards set for British airborne troops were extremely high, and from the first group of 3,500 volunteers only 500 men were accepted to go forward to parachute training.[3]
Additionally on 22 June 1940, a
Battalion
The 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion was formed in May 1943, by the conversion of the 2/4th Battalion,
All members of the battalion had to undergo a 12-day parachute training course which was carried out at
Airborne soldiers were expected to fight against superior numbers of the enemy, armed with heavy weapons, including artillery and tanks. As a result, training was designed to encourage a spirit of self-discipline, self-reliance and aggressiveness. Emphasis was given to physical fitness,
Operational history
Normandy
At 00:50 on 6 June 1944, as part of
On 3 July 100 infantry replacements arrived, and on 5 July the battalion returned to the front line taking over their original positions from the Canadians. By now German activity had lessened, while in the front line the battalion kept up a programme of patrols. Around half of July was spent in the rear areas training as the divisional assault battalion or resting.[23] The battalion returned to the front on 7 August taking over the positions of the No. 46 (Royal Marine) Commando near Sallenelles. German activity was light and the Battalion was employed in carrying out patrols until 13 August when it was once again relieved and went into reserve. While in reserve it practised manoeuvre warfare in anticipation of the expected advance.[23]
The 6th Airborne Division's advance started 17 August 1944. The 13th Battalion followed up the leading elements on 18 August when it crossed the
Ardennes
In December 1944, the battalion was still reforming after the Normandy battles when they were moved to Belgium to help counter the
The following day the battalion left Resteigne on foot and at 13:00 started the attack on Bure. 'A' Company was to secure the village, while 'B' Company secured the high ground and 'C' Company was in reserve. The village was defended in force and the assault was met with sustained and heavy mortar and machine gun fire, supported by armoured vehicles. Despite the heavy fire both 'A' and 'B' Companies managed to capture half the village. At 17:00 'C' Company was sent in to reinforce them, supported by tank and artillery fire.[24]
The battalion formed a number of strong points in their half of the village, carried out fighting patrols and fought off four German counterattacks. One attack on 'A' Company, was only defeated when they called down artillery fire on their own positions. In the closeness of the fighting, the paratroopers used their fighting knives to avoid giving away their locations and casualties could not be evacuated or supplies brought forward.[24]
On 4 January the battalion was subjected to a continuous artillery barrage, and fought off another five German counterattacks. Later that day they were reinforced by a company from the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. In the early hours of 5 January the battalion started another attack and had successfully captured the rest of the village by 21:00. During the same time the 7th Parachute Battalion had captured Grupont and at 22:00 the battalion became the brigade reserve. The battle for Bure had cost the 13th Battalion 68 killed and 121 wounded.[24]
Germany
The battalion was next in action during
The 13th Battalion's advance out of the bridgehead began the next day on 27 March, reaching Brunen without any opposition. Until then the 7th Parachute Battalion had been leading the brigade but the 13th Battalion then took over and secured the high ground overlooking the village of Erle, which was captured that night by the 12th Parachute Battalion. By the beginning of April, the brigade was supported by tanks from the
Far East
When the war in Europe ended, it was intended to send the 6th Airborne Division to the
The 13th Battalion, still with 5th Parachute Brigade, were initially deployed to
On 13 May 1946, while stationed at Muar Camp Malaya, 255 men refused to obey the commanding officer's orders and were later charged with
The 5th Parachute Brigade then left the Far East to rejoin the 6th Airborne Division now serving in Palestine. The 13th Parachute Battalion, however, was disbanded just before leaving Malaya.[26]
Territorial Army
In 1947 when the Territorial Army was reformed, a new 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion (TA) was raised.[11] The battalion served in the
Notes
- Footnotes
- ^ In most conversions, the majority of the original battalion either did not wish to become paratroopers, or failed medical or other tests. The spaces in the battalion were then filled with volunteers from other units.[8]
- ^ Barrage balloons were used to speed up training jumps and meet the target of 5,000 trained parachutists.[15]
- 5th Parachute Brigade marched 50 miles (80 km) in seventy-two hours, during which they also carried out two night time assaults.[18]
- Citations
- ^ Otway, p.88
- ^ Otway, p.21
- ^ Reynolds, p.4
- ^ Shortt & McBride, p.4
- ^ Moreman, p.91
- ^ Guard, p.218
- ^ Harclerode, p. 218
- ^ "8th Parachute Battalion". Pegasus Archive. Retrieved 11 May 2011.
- ^ Gregory, p.53
- ^ Ferguson, p.16
- ^ a b "13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion". Para Data. Archived from the original on 2 June 2011. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
- ^ a b Guard, p.37
- ^ Peters, p.55
- ^ a b Guard, p.224
- ^ Reynolds, p.16
- ^ Guard, p.226
- ^ a b c Guard, p.225
- ^ a b Reynolds, p.87
- ^ Otway, p. 179
- ^ Buckingham, p. 127
- ^ Harclerode, p.315
- ^ Harclerode, p.327
- ^ a b c d e f g "13th (2/4th South Lancashire Regiment) Parachute Regiment". Pegasus Archive. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
- ^ a b c d "Battle of Bure". Para Data. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
- ^ a b c Otway, p. 308
- ^ a b "5th Parachute Brigade". Pegasus Archive. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
- ^ a b "Java". Britains Small Wars. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
- ^ a b "Mutiny Charges, Malaya (sentences)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 8 October 1946. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
- ^ "Mutiny Charges, Malaya (convictions quashed)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 10 October 1946. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
- ^ Norton, p.218
- ^ "13th Parachute Battalion (TA)". Para Data. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
- ^ "12th/13th (Yorks and Lancs) Parachute Battalion (TA)". Para Data. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
References
- Buckingham, William F. (2005). D-Day The First 72 Hours. Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2842-X.
- Gregory, Barry; Batchelor, John (1979). Airborne warfare, 1918-1945. Exeter, Devon: Exeter Books. ISBN 0-89673-025-5.
- Guard, Julie (2007). Airborne: World War II Paratroopers in Combat. Oxford, England: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84603-196-6.
- Harclerode, Peter (2005). Wings Of War – Airborne Warfare 1918-1945. London, England: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN 0-304-36730-3.
- Moreman, Timothy Robert (2006). British Commandos 1940–46. Oxford, England: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-986-X.
- Norton, G G (1973). The Red Devils, the story of the British Airborne Forces. London, England: Pan Books. ISBN 0-09-957400-4.
- Otway, Lieutenant-Colonel T.B.H. (1990). The Second World War 1939–1945 Army – Airborne Forces. Imperial War Museum. ISBN 0-901627-57-7.
- Peters, Mike; Luuk, Buist (2009). Glider Pilots at Arnhem. Barnsley, England: Pen & Sword Books. ISBN 1-84415-763-6.
- Reynolds, David (1998). Paras: An Illustrated History of Britain's Airborne Forces. Stroud, United Kingdom: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-2059-9.
- ISBN 0-85045-396-8.
13 - Lucky For Some: The History of the 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion by Andrew Woolhouse, Amazon.