German Artillery Crew (Winter)
"Since the introduction of gunpowder weapons into Europe, many had looked for ways to provide heavier firepower to assist the infantry. Naturally this was the job of the artillery, but guns were very large and very heavy, and so difficult to move to keep up with the infantry. The answer came in the early part of the 20th century, when the mortar, and later the recoilless gun, were introduced onto the battlefield. Both offered a quick and light means of supporting infantry when artillery could not, and during World War II many an infantryman would be glad of the fire support such weapons could provide, or would curse as the enemy bombarded him in a similar manner…"
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British Paratroopers
"On the 22nd of June 1940, the British prime minister Winston Churchill wrote a note stating that he thought Britain should have "…a corps of at least 5,000 paratroops". At the time Britain had none, but the success of the German airborne forces in the early months of the war had impressed him, and shown the potential of such troops, so organisation and training began shortly afterwards. In August of the following year, with the successful German paratroop attack on Crete still fresh in the mind, the First Parachute Battalion officially came into existence, thereafter seeing action on many occasions, most notably in Operations Overlord and Market Garden…"
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U.S. Marines
"Originally the US Marines had provided guards for naval facilities, ship-board security and landing troops from ships – all the traditional marine roles, but after their actions in France during World War I, many were asking why the nation needed a separate force when it could become just a part of the Army, at a much cheaper cost. To counter this prospect, the Marine leadership developed a new focus during the 1920s on policing colonial possessions, and in particular, on developing the techniques and equipment required to conduct amphibious landings in order to establish forward bases for such actions. With the rise of aggressive Imperial Japan in the 1930s, it was becoming more likely that any future war would be in the Pacific, and involve the taking of many islands, for which the Marines were increasingly well-suited. When war did finally come in December 1941, this scenario came to pass, and the US Marine Corps played a huge part in the Pacific campaign, establishing a reputation which meant that there was never again any question of the Marines being disbanded or absorbed into the Army…"
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Armand
