Fallschirmjäger Regt. 3 was officially formed in August 1940, consisting of three Battalions. After eight months of intensive training the regiment was considered combat ready. From April 30th to May 7th 1941 the units were transported by rail via Dresden-Prague- Vienna to Rumania, and from there by truck to Topolia, Greece.

On 19th May, company commanders informed their paratroopers of the objective and mission: Chania, the capital of Crete.

CRETE (KRETA)

Crete was the scene of the largest German Airborne operation of the war, and the first time in history that an island had been taken by airborne assault.

Crete was chosen because of the British airfields on the island, which were more than capable of striking the vital Ploesti oil fields in Rumania. Hitler's forces needed all the oil they could get for the impending assault on Russia. One major problem was the lack of transport aircraft, there was not enough to ferry all of the forces across in one go.

The XI Fliegerkorps was responsible for ferrying the paratroops to Crete using 530 JU-52’s and 70 DFS-230 light assault gliders, all together 8100 Fallschirmjäger were dropped on to Crete, 1680 men at Maleme, 2460 men at Chania, 1380 men at Rethymno and 2360 men at Heraklion.

On May 20th, 1st and 2nd Battalions followed the 3rd in the first wave. The drop zone was at Agya, southwest of Galatas. 1st Battalion immediately assaulted the nearby hill. In spite of heavy losses the Regiment held the drop zone, but was unable to take the dominant hills or the capital.

For four days the paratroopers held their positions and even tried to take Galatas and the Castell hills west of Chania with several counterattacks. Late in the evening of May 23rd the paratroopers made contact with Geb.Jg.Regt.100 near Stalos and together they co-ordinated their counterattacks. With the air landing of the 5th Mountain Division, military success looked brighter for the paratroopers on Crete. By outflanking the Commonwealth troop from the south, the mountain troops were able to reinforce the exhausted paratroopers and initiate new assaults against Chania. On May 25th the heavily defended positions at Galatas were taken, and two days later paratroopers captured the city of Chania and raised the German flag over the harbour.

After eight days of intensive fighting FJR.3 was relieved and sent to take the Akrotiri peninsula. The regiment remained on Crete until July 10th when they were flown back to Athens. On July 14th they returned home. Afterwards, Crete was dubbed the graveyard of the Fallschirmjäger, with 1032 officers and men killed, 1632 wounded and 1759 missing.

It was also the first time the Germans had encountered stiff partisan activity, with women and even children becoming involved in the battle.

 RUSSIA (1)

In early October FJR.3 was airlifted to the aerodrome near Ljuban via Königsberg and Pleskau, then transported by rail to Mga and from there by truck to the combat zone.

The battalions took up their battle positions on the Neva river near Kelkowo and Wyborgskaja. They quickly built fortifications and defended their combat zones against counterattacks. The para`s were especially hit hard by many fierce and bloody attacks.

But the Russian assaults were in vain, and the paratroopers did not abandon one foxhole or trench. After weeks of extremely difficult fighting FJR.3 was relieved. It had succeeded in holding its positions but at a very high price. On November 15th 1941,only 120 paratroopers were in formation for an inspection by Oberst Heidrich, and one company had lost 130 men to injury, frostbite and death.

The survivors were happy to enjoy Christmas at home. Early in January 1942, FJR. 3 were again dispatched to the training ground at Gross Born, where it remained for nearly three months. During this period FJR.3 trained the young replacements that had filled the ranks and who were to constitute the new Luftwaffe field divisions. The regiment also received orders to dispatch the 1st Battalion to the XIth Flying corps. This unit which was still commanded by Knight’s Cross holder Hptm. Frhr. v.d Heydte, had the function of a training battalion {"Lehrbataillon"} and was under direct control of the XIth Flying Corps.

AFRICA

The 1st Battalions home base was now Döberitz-Elsgrund near Berlin. The mission of this special parachute unit was to test heavy airborne infantry support weapons, and to test jump with weapons in hand. Later, in early April 1942 the capabilities of modern airborne forces were demonstrated to representatives of the Wehrmacht and to Reichmarshall Göring. In June 1942 the Battalion was transferred to quarters in Hildesheim and the paratroopers received intensive training in glider warfare.

On June 23rd they were put on alert and all leave cancelled. Tropical clothing and equipment was issued, and on July 1st were moved from Hildesheim by rail to Piraus, Greece. It soon became obvious to them, that there was not to be an airborne operation against Malta. The Battalion was assigned to Airborne Brigade Ramcke.

The destination of this Luftwaffe brigade, which consisted of four battalions, was Tobruk, Africa, which they reached by airlift via Crete. Their trucks and kettenkrads were transported by ship. Since the para`s were desperately needed at El Alamein front they were ordered to reach the assembly point at El Dab`a, 40kms west of El Alamein, as soon as possible. Without their vehicles the troops hitched rides with other units and all reached El Dab`s on time. On August 12th the brigade was transported to the combat zone. Their positions were successfully held up to November 2nd, when they were ordered to withdraw, as the danger of being outflanked by allied forces was too great. It was obvious that a British victory at El Alamein was only a matter of time. The retreat was sometimes a delaying action followed by a daring escape using captured British vehicles, marching, or again hitching rides. During the following months more and more paratroopers were relieved and flown to Italy. Only a few members of Brigade Ramcke remained in Africa, and they fought their way back to Tunisia in small kampfgruppes. There, they were forced to surrender, only some escaping imprisonment, reaching Italy by way of small vessels.

FRANCE

The survivors from Africa either went on to build up FJR.6 or rejoined their two brother battalions, returned from Russia, to build IV battalion. The stay in Germany was short lived, as they were soon ordered to Normandy in France, an area near the city of Argentan. Here they continued forming a combat-ready parachute regiment, whilst securing the coastline in that area. On September 28th 1942, FJR.3 was put on alert. They had only hours to make ready for rail transportation back to Germany. A new mission awaited them.

RUSSIA (2)

Between October 6th –25th, FJR.3 was railed into Smolensk, and then trucked up to the new combat zone at Ribschewo. It was here that they were to establish a 90km defence. This they did in conjunction with long range probing and more than 900 combat engagements. The Russian forces in that area was forced to give up any further offensive operations. In the spring of 1943 the regiment was to shorten the front lines when the 3 Battalion was pulled out of the defensive sector. This operation, called "Buffalo," was executed without any serious consequences. The para`s were slowly being relieved by army units.

However 3rd Battalion was to reinforce FJR.4 which was under heavy attack near Lushli. It now appeared possible that the Red Army would break through; so 3rd Battalion was thrown into the fight to retake the bloody hill. Although the paratroopers were successful, their casualties were extremely high. During this battle (March 20th – 27th 1943) the Russians constantly attacked with more than two divisions supported by overwhelming artillery support. But the para`s dug in and fought back. Holding their positions at all cost. On March 30th, the entire FJR.3 was relieved and assembled at Smolensk for a short rest. They were then transported back to Germany.

SICILY

After a few weeks leave FJR.3 was moved to France. Stationed in its former quarters at Argentan. About this time 4th Battalion was renamed to 1st Battalion. Their stay was short and the regiment was moved along with 1st and 2nd Parachute Divisions to Tarascon, southern France.

The allied assault of Sicily consisted of a combined air and sea assault. The sea borne element consisted of 12 divisions of British, American and Canadian troops. Ahead of the sea borne element was the ariel armada with transport aircraft and gliders, which took off from airfields in Tunisia.

The airborne forces were landed late on the 9th July 1943, at Gela and Syracuse. High winds scattered many of the paratroops and some objectives could not be taken.

The allied armada followed the airdrops at 3am on the 10th, which landed on the southeast coast of the island between Gela, and Licata to the west extending to Casibile a few miles south of Syracuse. They landed virtually unopposed with many of the Italian forces on the coast surrendering without a fight.

The battle for the island had begun.

Axis forces on Sicily comprised of 10 Italian Divisions commanded by General Guzzoni and General Hans Hube's 14th Panzer Korps, consisting of the Herman Göring Panzer Division, and the15th Panzer Grenadier Division. The German plan was to send the 14th Panzer Korps to counter the Allied advance and hopefully stall it long enough until reinforcements from the mainland arrived.

On July 11th the 1st Parachute Division was put on alert and made for immediate action in Italy. After a few hours FJR.3 departed Avignon, by aircraft. Its destination being the Practica Di Mare aerodrome at Rome. Here they received orders to proceed to Sicily. On arrival the 4th Regiment and the MG Battalion boarded Gliders and JU-52's and were sent on to Sicily, where they were dropped around Syracuse and Catania. The next day the 3rd regiment was flown via Naples to Sicily and dropped south of Catania airfield.

The Fallschirmjägers immediately went to work preparing defensive positions, to meet the expected Allied advance. The MG Battalion was sent to defend the important Primasole iron road bridge over the River Simeto, which was the only road access through the mountainous areas in the east of the Island.This would definitely be an Allied

objective. On the night of 12th & 13th July, 2 Kompanies of Fallschirm-Pioneers as well as some Fallschirm Anti-Tank and Artillery units joined the Paras already on the ground. These Paras were followed several hours later by men of the British 1st Parachute Brigade, who jumped on Catania to capture the airfield. This action coincided with a British seaborne assault on the coast further south. German forces managed to contain them and within a few hours had beaten down the resistance inflicting heavy casualties on the Red Berets.

Overnight on the 14th /15th July, 200 British Paratroopers jumped on to the southern side of the Primasole bridge with the aim of capturing it by surprise. Confusion now set in amongst the men of the MG Battalion, as they were expecting to be reinforced by the 2 Pioneer kompanies. Once the identity of these men from above was established a race began to get back to the bridge. The British Paras got there first and captured it; they removed most of the demolition charges, and hastily prepared defensive positions under fire from the MG Battalion. The Fallschirmjäger made repeated attacks on the bridge during the 15th and after only holding onto the bridge for several hours the British Paratroops were forced to withdraw after running low on ammunition. The MG Battalion was reinforced by elements of the 4th Regiment. Both units prepared themselves for a British counter attack. During the night of the 15th, the 2nd Kompanie of Engineers jumped on to the airfield at Catania where they then foot marched to the Primasole Bridge. They were a welcome site to the defenders of the bridge. The British were concentrating for another attack. They took up positions recently vacated by the Red Berets on the southern side of the bridge.

The next day the British forces attacked, supported by newly arrived armour, they were beaten back with anti-tank weapons and concentrated MG and mortar fire. It was not long before they came back again, determined to wrestle the bridge from the Fallschirmjäger. This time they were without armoured support, instead they had Infantry reinforcements from the west. This attack was also quashed; men of the Fallschirm-Artillery unit had bought up a 88mm gun. The British forces withdrew after taking heavy casualties. Before long they started to call down artillery on the Paras positions, destroying the 88mm gun and inflicting heavy casualties, especially on the Engineer Kompanies.

The weakened German forces could not hold the bridge, late in the afternoon of the 16th the British forces attacked once again and forced the Paras to withdraw. Then saw a cat and mouse game with the Paras retaking the bridge again 2 days later on the 18th, and losing it again on the 19th. This time it was for good, the British forces were constantly being reinforced. The remnants of the 2 Pioneer Kompanies now amalgamated with the 4th Regiment withdrew further east, fighting a rearguard action on the way. The British 8th Army now had an open route to eastern Sicily.

Meanwhile the 3rd Regiment had become surrounded in the town of Carlenini by British forces landed ashore further south several days before.

On the 20th July, General Hube withdrew all Axis forces from central Sicily and pulled them back eastwards. On the 25th July, Mussolini was forced to resign and was replaced by Marshal Pietro Badoglio, this had serious repercussions in Sicily as many Italian units laid down their arms and surrendered to the Allies. In the first week of August the German forces were desperate, the Allies were advancing from the west (US) and from the south (British), the Italian forces were now only a token presence. No reinforcements would be coming to Sicily to contain the advance; there were too many commitments on the Ostfront.

The German High Command gave the order to evacuate the island, under Operation "Lehrgang". The Fallschirmjägers were used to plug the gaps in the weakly held German line. Whilst the Allies were being stalled by the rearguards the German forces were ferried back across to mainland Italy. Some of the 1st Parachute Division was evacuated on the 11th August. FJR.3 had helped delay the Allied assault on Europe and win valuable time, but the cost for this "victorious" delaying action was extremely high. After reaching southern Italy the companies were in the area near Metaponto. On the gulf of Tarent. But they were given no respite as the Allies landed fresh troops at Palmi, Tarene, Bari, and Salerno, and made Italy a new theatre of war. The situation intensified as more Italian units began deserting to the Allied lines, creating a defensive nightmare.

ITALY

It took weeks before FJR.3 was ready for new defensive actions, as the casualties on Sicily were so heavy. The exhausted battalions were not able to successfully resist the Allies in Apulai, who had landed fresh divisions. In this early and critical phase of the Italian campaign FJR.3 transferred the 1st battalion to the 16th Panzer Division as reinforcements to counter the US beachhead at Salerno (Sept. 10-15). During the evening of September 12th the 1st Battaloin succeeded in taking Battipagila and the vital road to Bellizzi. The enemy grew stronger and stronger daily as new units arrived which was effectively supported by overwhelming air and sea power. The Germans, therefore, decided to halt all counterattacks. The Fallschirmjägers of the 1st Battalion did their very best by taking their objectives and then prepared with armoured forces to split the beachhead and drive the Americans back into the sea. But by now the allies were too strong and well supported by firepower.

In Apulia, FJR.3 was fighting delaying tactics against British tanks and commando units, buy the Germans could not hold their positions as the Allies had gained superiority and were taking the initiative. FJR.3 was forced to withdraw with the 1st Parachute Division behind the Ofanto River, and on September 27th, to give up the strategic Foggia aerodrome. Feldmarschall Kesselring now planned to defend Italy at the "Gustav Line" so he pulled back all German units in southern Italy with the excepting of the 1st Parachute division and the 29th Pz. Gren.Div. They were to fight delaying to gain time for the preparations on the "Gustav Line". But the Allies outflanked the German divisions by landing at Termoli and the Germans were forced to withdraw again and set up new positions behind the Trigno River line. Here in the area of Tufillo, the FJR.3 and the 29th Pz.Gren.Div. succeeded in holding on until November 9th. Then they returned to their positions behind the Sangro River, in the area of St. Angelo d. Pesco, and fought their way toward the "Gustav Line". But on December 4th the British and Canadians attacked and threatened to take the town of Ortona and punch their way through the "Gustav Line". There were no German troops available to stop the Allies as they approached Ortona. At this critical moment Oberst Heilmann was ordered to counterattack as quickly as possible and take possession of Ortona and Villa Grande. The 2nd Battalion rushed toward Ortona and did, indeed, take the town. On December 17th, 1st Battalion, then the entire 1st Division reinforced them. During the next few days the paratroopers were thrown into one of the fiercest battles of their existence. The Allies were becoming unstoppable. To avoid being encircled, a retreat was ordered. FJR.3 took up new positions north of Ortona and was able to halt Montgomery’s offensive on the eastern coast of Italy, preventing them from breaking through the main defence line. As in Sicily, the Fallschirmjägers had proven they were the best troops Kesselring had in Italy. They were the Führer`s firebrigade, and could resist any attacks in southern Europe. Little wonder then, they were pulled from their positions and thrown into the fiery Cassino front.

CASSINO

When the Allies began their massive offensive on January 17th, 1944 with the objective of skirting the Liri Valley and capturing Rome, the situation became critical for the Germans who were to defend the "Gate to Rome". By February 10th the Americans had succeeded in taking the hills north and north-west of Cassino, including hills 601 (San Angelo), 468(Massa Albaneta) and 593. Counterattacks were initiated, successfully retaking the strategic hills. 1st Parachute Division was responsible for the defence of the Cassino hills and assumed the position held by the 90th Infantry Division. The troops of the 3rd Battalion, FJR.3 who had survived the bitter battles were sent to the rear of FJR.1, in reserve south of hill 593. From this point the paratroopers could watch the

bombardment of the Cassino monastery on February 15th, which at that time was not occupied by any German units. After the devastating bombing of the monastery FJR.1 crawled into the ruins and set up defensive positions. Although the first battle for the Cassino gave the Allies limited success they failed to take monastery hill or the city of Cassino. The paratroopers and a number of battalions from seven different infantry divisions continued to hold the key terrain. On February 20th, after having repulsed the attackers, the Germans reorganised their forces to relieve the weak and exhausted units. The 1st Battalion of FJR.3 occupied monastery hill, the 2nd Battalion was responsible for the city of Cassino, and the 3rd Battalion was put in reserve at Fontana Liri as they had so few as 70 paratroopers available. By February 26th, the Germans finished their reorganisation and prepared for the next battle. At this time the 1st Battalion was 150men strong, the 2nd had 180 and the regiment units 13 to 15, including the staff had about 300.

On March 15th 1944, the Allies launched their second offensive (March 15th to 23rd) with a massive air attack of 455 bombers. 992 tons of explosives totally destroyed the city. Through pure luck a few troops of the 2nd Battalion survived and immediately began to defend the ruins. the battalion casualties were staggering…the 2nd Company ceased to exist, and there were no unit’s left to defend hill 193 (Rocca Janula). It was, therefore, possible for the Allies to penetrate the German defences but they were not able to take the entire city, or cut it of from monastery hill. The Germans dug themselves out of the rubble and organised well-defended strongpoint.

During the evening the 2nd Battalion was reinforced with reserves, allowing the troops to more effectively defend the city. Mortars of the 8th Company were particularly good in supporting the para`s with precise fire from hidden and well-camouflaged positions. Against this, the Allies, although overwhelming in strength, could not advance. The battle for the city of Cassino became a battle of close combat from bunkers, houses and in the streets. As the Allies poured in more tanks and infantry.

The 1st Battalion was successful in holding monastery hill which the Allies attempted to take on March 15th –16th, but they could not prevent the Indian Gurka regiment from capturing hill 435 (Hangman’s Hill) and hill202 although they tried to turn the tide with a number of counterattacks. The Germans could only isolate the Gurkas on the hills but the resulting airdrops helped them to hold their precarious position. Many of the containers that were dropped however drifted into the German lines. Finally on March 24th the New Zealand Corp ordered a retreat. With this withdrawal the city of Cassino and monastery hill were safely in German hands, but again with heavy losses.

At the e end of March the 1st Parachute Division again used this period of inactivity to reorganise. 3rd Battalion was assigned to the new 5th Parachute Division. The remaining two battalions of the regiment were relieved from the defence of monastery hill and the city of Cassino. They were reinforced with Gebirgsjäger troops from the 100th Regiment and given the responsibility of defending Mt. Cairo, hill 601 (San Angelo), hill 575 (2nd Battalion), and hill 593 (1st Battalion).

At exactly 23.00 hours on May 11th, 1944 the Allies launched a massive artillery barrage opening the third battle for Cassino. Again the centre of the attack was hill 593. This time soldiers of the 2nd Polish Corp took portions of the bloodstained hills. They successfully took one hill but could not take the strategic monastery hill. The paratroopers launched fanatical counter-attacks in an attempt to throw the Poles off the hill. After several attempts on the evening of May 12th hill 593, was again in German hands.

Although they fought bravely and with incredible toughness their stand was in vain, for to the south the French Corp was breaching the "Gustav Line".

Now the Germans at Cassino were forced to choose between retreat or encirclement.

With hesitation Kesselring finally gave the order to withdraw on May 17th. In some cases there were only a handful of troops remaining to relinquish their strong points. As an example, the 1st Kompanie, 1st Battalion consisted of three soldiers who came down from hill 593. The Polish forces quickly spotted the movements and attacked at daylight. On the morning of May 18th Polish soldiers hoisted their flag on the hill and a few hours later on the ruins of the Cassino monastery.

FJR.3 had held their positions as ordered, and now withdrew as ordered.

CENTRAL AND NORTHERN ITALY

 After pulling out of the Cassino positions FJR.3 and the entire 1st Parachute Division had to once again withdraw now that the Allies were beginning their drive towards Rome. The 1st Parachute division was assigned the task of blocking roads in the Subiaco-Tivoli area in order to gain time for the fleeing German divisions moving north. The German High Command in Italy planned to strengthen a new defence line, the "Albert Line", in order to avert a complete collapse of further German resistance. The "Albert Line" was located on both sides of Lake Trasimento. The defence line was only a short time delaying tactic allowing the Germans time to organise the "Wotan Line". FJR.3 were concentrated in the Chiusi-Piegaro area which they defended from June 18th to July 15th.

After successful defensive battles the Fallschirmjägers were moved to the Adriatic coast, near Pesaro. Here they enjoyed a short period of rest and were allowed to fill their ranks with young or convalesced troops. Soon the 1st Parachute Division and FJR.3 were to fight delaying actions again and then go on the defence of Rimini. Similar to the situation at Cassino, the para`s pulled back from their positions as the Allies had broken through the right flank and threatened to surround the division. During this battle the Allied attacks were supported by heavy naval gunfire. After the withdrawal, the front stabilised on both sides since Italy was no longer the first priority for the Allies after the successful landings at Normandy. In late October to November some battles occurred in the Bolobna area when the Allies attempted to take the Po River. The Paratroopers counterattacked which helped secure the line.

In the early months of 1945 no large-scale battles occurred in the area. The 1st Parachute Division was able to secure the line south east of Bologna until April 16th, when the Allied forces initiated their offensive to destroy the German defenders south of the Po River and reach the Alps. During this late phase of the war, Italian partisans became much more active and presented a constant danger in the rear areas. FJR.3 was forced to cross the Po River in an uncoordinated move and often troops escaped the American forces by swimming the river without their heavy weapons. The river could no longer be defended. On May 22nd ,1945 the paratroopers were ordered to honour the unconditional surrender and were at first surprised at the fair treatment afforded to them by the 88th US Infantry Division. During these first few weeks of captivity the paratroopers of the 1st Parachute Korp were not imprisoned in a POW camp and were protected by armed German and American guards. This situation changed in late May when they were moved to Ghedi and put in a British camp. Although the conditions were bad they endured through the comradeship they had been taught by General Heidrich. Those who survived the war will never forget his motto: "Treue um treue."