British Airborne Forces

Site Issues 2007 Archive Room
#1

In the aftermath of Dunkirk, Prime Minister Churchill (PM) was eager to strike out at German and Axis forces where ever possible. Given the limited resources of Britain, at the time, and inspired by his time in South Africa, fighting the Boer Commandos, and his love of amphibeous operations, he called for the formation of the Army Commandos to carry out raids on mainland Europe and other more remote places.

Being impressed by the German, airborne invasion of the island of Crete in 1941, PM ordered the fromation of a British Airborne force, initially to number around 5000 men. The most immediate source of recruits for this force was the Commandos.

The General placed in command of the force was General ‘Boy’ Browning. A person portrayed and much misrepresented in the film ‘A Bridge Too Far’. Boy Browning was married to the successful novelist Daphne Dumaurier, and it was she (an ex-student of the classics) that came up with the aluring designs for the forces insignia and accoutrements, for example: the Red Beret, the Parachute Wings and the Pegasus Badge worn by all British Airborne Forces of the time. Since then many of the worlds airborne forces have adopted the Red Beret made famous by the British.

That’s as far as I go for now. If anyone would like to add to or correct any of my comments, please feel free to do so.

#2

Don’t ever suggest to a Para it’s a red beret. Paras wear Maroon, RMP wear Red…

#3

Indeed?

#4

Yep. Oh, and don’t ever describe their headgear as a “hat”. They really won’t like that either!

#5

One or two problems with your opening statement. He was not fighting the Boars, he was the Times correspondent. I would not use Crete as a good example for airborne ops as it came very very close to failure. The para drops in 39 were far more successful and probably has a greater effect as to the capabilities of the arm. You also need to look at airborne forces. Although some were volunteers from infantry regiments (para) the glider unit transferred in total and some would argue that hey were better trained and gave a better account of them selves.

#6

Thank you 2.F.

My reference to the German airborne invasion of Crete, was not for any reason other than the impression it had upon CHurchill.

Joe Hardy, then the Signal Platoon Sergeant, 1st Bn The Border Regiment, recallled that ‘all Airborne soldiers were supposedly Volunteers -it was judged to be a risky business. The way in which they had us volunteer was to announce that in future the Battalion was to be dsignated an Airborne Unit (glider), and that those men who did not want to take part in Airborne Operations should report to the Orderly Room and apply to be transferred to other units. We had one man in the Battalion who had sufficient guts to say that he did not want to fly; he was transferred out, and the rest of us were deemed to have volunteered.’

The War Diary of 1 Border records that some 30 Other Ranks (OR’s) left the Battalion on 30 December 1941 as ‘unfit’ for the new role.

The emblem of Bellerphon and Pegasus was designed by a Major Edward Seago and authorised to be worn with the title AIRBORNE on the upper arm of the Battle Dress blouse, the maroon berets were issued soon after.

#7

The trainging became even more intensive at all levels, and on 2 June, A Company carried out a night scheme with gliders, perhaps the first. Exercise ‘Icarus’, held from 1 to 3 July, saw the Battalion involved in an inter-Battalion exercise with 1 Royal Ulster Rifles (1RUR) in the Romsey-Burley-Bournemouth area.

Wilf Pridmor recalls that a group from the Battalion attended the Parachute Training School at Ringway, where they were trained by RAF Sergeant Instructors. Seven jumps qualified them for the parachute badge, often referred to as the ‘light-bulb’, worn on the lower right sleeve of the Battle Dress blouse.

Source: Extracts from When Dragons Flew - An Illustrated History of The 1st Battalion The Border Regiment 1939 - 1945.

With the kind permission of co-author: Stuart Eastwood

#8

In December 1940 1 Border together with 1 RUR, 2nd Battalion Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (2 Ox & Bucks) and 2nd Battalion South Staffordshire Regiment (2 South Staff’s) formed 31 Independent Infantry Brigade. In September 1941 it was announced that the Brigade was to become the 1st Air-Landing Brigade of the newly formed 1st Airborne Division, and was re-designated at the end of the month. Brigadier G F Hopkinson OBE MC was selected to command it.

#9

Joe Hardy recalls the first experience of glider activity, a flight in a hotspur glider from RAF Ringway on 19 December 1941 intended to test for air-sickness ‘…when they asked for volunteers of what was to be the first live glider load, as it was to take place in the Manchester area. where a lot of the Regiment came from, there was no shortage of volunteers at all. They asked for, I think, 18 men - they could have got 80! The glider crashed and the passengers were all killed.’

#10

Nevertheless this particular tragedy did not prevent two officers and 123 OR’s volunteering almost immediately to become glider pilots!
Needless to say, Lt Col Bower denied the requests.

#11

A couple of ‘Maroon Machine’ chums of mine have insisted that I elaborate on one or two of the above points. I would not normally indulge them, as I think they ought to do it themselves but, as this site has such a wide and international membership I think it best to explain it for them. Therefore, I shall endeavour to be as diplomatic as possible and if I anyone does take offence, it is unintentional.

When it was decided to form the Airborne Forces, and in particular the parachute troops, into a conventional divisional force, various people were transferred in, to get them into shape. As it happens, all British Army regiments have a long and proud history which dates back over some 300 years and more. Many, such as the guards, use their historic seniority to claim ascendancy above others (we can see this reflected by the chosen membership name 2n of Foot - the 2nd most senior infantry line regiment raised in 1661). Practically all of the infantry line regiments (with the exception of some Scottish and Irish regiments) and indeed the Rifle Regiments and Guards, wore a peaked forage cap for certain duties.

Into this was born a new regiment, The Parachute Regiment, made up, initially, from volunteers, many of them mavericks, from other regiments and the Army Commandos. As with any new formation, one has to develop a sense of identity and esprit de corps. It was with this intention that the insignia and indeed the Red (Maroon) Beret of the Airborne Forces were designed.

Airborne forces never wore the forage cap and referred to any unit that did so as ‘Crap-Hats’ sometimes abbreviated to ‘Hats’ in polite society. Needless to say this did, and still does, lead to much ‘fisiticuffs’ when opposing forces meet up in various ‘watering holes’.

As we are dealing with WWII and the common name among the British Public was (and remains) ‘The Red Berets’ I shall stick with that. This name was popularised by the movie The Red Berets, starring Alan Ladd and also a number of post-war books dealing with the exploits and operations of airborne forces during the war, including: The Red Beret and Men of the Red Beret. Today, the men of The Parachute Regiment refer to themselves as the ‘Maroon Machine’. They wear their Para Badge over the left temple/ear and pull the beret forward at the front to affect a peak, and “Lead from the front” is very much a philosophy of the regiment as with most infantry regiments.

One final point, The Royal Military Police (RMP) generally wore a red forage cap in WWII and they were commonly known as ‘Redcaps’, among other less ‘happy’ names. In recent times, they have opted to wear a red (scarlet) beret, but they’ll never become Known as the Red Beret, in the hearts of the Great British Public their is only one!

I hope that satisfies all, but if not, well, not every cloud as a silver-lining.

Time for breakfast!

32B

#12

Ah, interesting! Thanks for sharing Bravo:)

#13

It would be a supreme act of negligence to discuss, debate or study the history and evolution of British Airborne Forces without making some mention a man that stood head and shoulders above most (regardless of rank) and was second to none:
Warrant Officer Class 1, Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) J.C. Lord.

At the end of the war he finished his career as the Academy Sergeant Major of the Royal Military cademy, Sandhurst. His reputation has become legend among all ranks of the British Army. When a fresh batch of officer cadets arrived to begin their training, he would parade them on the square and introduce himself:

“…Gentlemen, I wll call you sir, and you will cal me ‘Sir!’…the difference is you will mean it, BUT I WONT!”
He would then point his finger skyward and say “He is Jesus Christ the Lord up there, and I am the Lord down here!”

When it was decided to form a British Airborne Division, which would consist of one air landing brigade and two parachute brigades, the first volunteers, as previously mentioned, came from the Army Commandos. However, as many of them were lacking discipline and thought to be mavericks and hooligans, it was decided that they would have to be sorted out. Enter Regimental Sergeant Major J.C. Lord of the Grenadier Guards to whip them into shape.

One particular corporal of the 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment (1 Para), by the name of Thompson recollects how he seemed to be in constant trouble, so much so that he dreaded to hear the precise footfall of the RSM, and did everything in his power to avoid him. Until, that is, he was taken prisoner at Arnhem. Thompson explains how he had recieved a head wound and that when he regained concsiousness, he was lying on a stretcher bandaged about the head including his eyes, unable to see anything nor communicate with his German guards. As he lay there feeling particularly sorry for himself, he suddenly heard a familiar footfall. He didn’t know whether to be happy, or to try to hide. Suddenly, he hears the RSM’s voice speaking to him in soothing tones:

-“Thompson, is that you, son?” asks the RSM

-“Yes sir!” Thompson replies,

-“Are you alright, son?”

-“Yes sir.”

-"WELL LIE TO ATTENTION WHEN I SPEAK TO YOU!!!"

Thompson later confided that from that moment on he didn’t have a care in the world, he knew he’d be in safe hands."

J.C. Lord passed away in 1969.