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Cuff Title Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1

Well Friends,

with the cuff title of Fallschirmjäger Regiment 1 there is special connection. In 1995 I was with my ship „Zerstörer Rommel“ (a german destroyer DDG 103 B) on basic operational sea training in England. During a visit in the city of Plymouth I found an antique store which also sold some medals and badges. There was a Fallschirmjäger Regiment 1 cuff title and I bought it for small money (think it was about 150,- DM which are now 75,- Euro)

Happy to bring it back to Germany and I put it in my collection.

Years later I found out it was a fake on…..lesson learned 😉

All the regiment cuff titles you see here are originals !

Fallschirm Jäger Regiment 1 enlisted men HAND EMBROIDERED (1)

 

These cuff titles were manufactured from dark green badge-cloth, were 3.2 cm wide and were executed in “Frakturschrift” as follows:

– For Officers the cuff title was hand embroidered in aluminum thread and featured the addition of an approximately 3 mm wide aluminum braid (Soutache) edging.

– For NCOs, the cuff title had machine embroidery made of matt gray or whitish-gray cotton and featured an approximately 3 mm wide cotton braid (Soutache) edging .

– Although similar in material and color the version for enlisted men lacked the braid edging.

Very important to know is that the cuff titles of FallschirmJäger-Regiment 1 are the only ones were also cuff titles for enlisted men can be found which are HAND embroidered letters !!!!

Fallschirm Jäger Regiment 1 Officer

Method of Wear:

The cuff title was worn on the Tuchrock just above the turned back cuff of the right sleeve. When worn by a soldier holding an appointment to the position of “Spieß”, it was attached just above the sleeve rings indicating this status. Officers also wore the cuff title on the Fliegerbluse and the white Summer Tunic. It`s evidenced by numerous photographs however, that the wearing of this cuff title was probably complied with less and less over the course of the war.

Note: A formal date of introduction was not discovered for the cuff titles with the names Regt. 4 and Regt.5 . One explanation for this would probably be that when examples of this cuff title are encountered they are mostly of makeshift appearance, fabricated by the troops themselves. In the relevant cuff titles, the original numbers have been removed and replaced by a rather coarsely embroidered 4 or 5.

Fallschirm Jäger Regiment 1 normal b

 

History  Fallschirmjäger- Regiment 1

The formation of Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1 began on April 1st, 1938, based around IV. (Fallschirm) Bataillon from „Regiment General Göring“. The battalion, consisting of five companies, was the main battalion of the “Fallschirmtruppe” and initially formed 1st battalion of the regiment in Stendal, which was subordinated to 7th Flieger Division under General Student, in the context of plans for use in the Sudetenland.

On September 1st, 1939 the former “Heeres-Fallschirm-Infanterie-Bataillon (Braunschweig)” joined the Luftwaffe as 2nd / 1 , and the “Luftlande-Bataillon General Göring“ (moved from Berlin to Gardelegen ) joined the Regiment as 3rd / 1.

In March, the three battalions were intended to be used as part of the 7th Flieger Division in occupying the rest of Czechoslovakia, but due to bad weather they did not take part.

After formation of a “Regimentsstab” in June 1939, Bruno Bräuer took over as the first commander of the regiment.

Fallschirm Jäger Regiment 1 normal

During the Polish campaign some missions were planned for 7th Flieger Division , however they were initially not used. Subsequently during the campaign however, parts of the regiment were used in ground combat at Radom and Pulawy .

 

In early April 1940, the 1st / 1 was prepared for use in Norway, where it went into action from April 9th, 1940. The German paratroopers took the airfields at Oslo-Fornebu and Stavanger-Sola and secured the Storstromme Bridge. Also the 1st company fought in the Dombas area.

For use in Belgium in 1940, parts of the regiment were detached to “Sturm-Abteilung Koch”. In addition, 1st and 2nd battalion received the order to capture the important bridges at Moerdijk and Dordrecht . The 3rd / 1 was to occupy the airfield at Waalhaven, land a platoon on the outskirts of suburban Rotterdam-Feyenoord and capture the Rotterdam bridges. 3rd battalion achieved its goals, and the 1st and 2nd / 1 also fulfilled their duties, albeit with heavy losses. The days which followed were taken up in determined fighting to hold the positions which had been captured. The regiment contributed significantly and at the foreground of the successes of the paratroops in the western campaign.

At the end of May 1940, the regiment was moved to Norway and supported the struggles in the Narvik area with General Dietl.

Fallschirm Jäger Regiment 1 enlisted men HAND EMBROIDERED (2)

After the conquest of the Balkans came the task of occupying the island of Crete, as part of operation „Merkur“. The regiment was employed in the 2nd wave, as part of “Gruppe Ost”, to occupy the city and airport of Heraklion. This task, after suffering heavy losses on the first two days of the operation (2nd / 1 lost about 400 men), could not be achieved and so the regiment was given the task of holding the enemy and preventing the use of the airfield. On May 29th, 1941 the airfield and the town of Heraklion were occupied after being evacuated by British troops. With this, the eastern part of the island also capitulated and 200 Fallschirmäger prisoners could be freed. Among the 3,094 fallen paratroopers were numerous members of Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1.

 

After the end of the fighting, the regiment was the first paratrooper unit to be moved back home and in August they arrived at the “Truppenübungsplatz” Bergen-Hohne. The 2nd / 1 was temporarily renamed as the “Fallschirm-Lehr-Bataillon” and the losses in Crete were more or less made up.

 

On September 24th, 1941 came the order to insert a Fallschirmjäger-Regiment into the area south of

Fallschirm Jäger Regiment 1

Lake Ladoga on the northern section of the Eastern Front. The choice fell on Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1, to take the place of the missing 2nd / 1, 2nd / Storm Regiment. With this action, the process began of removing the paratroops from their own specialist role and to use them as regular ground combat troops. Subsequently, the remaining parts of the 7th Flieger Division were also used in this manner and thereby suffered severe losses because of often used being used in a fragmented manner. Having arrived at the limits of their combat effectiveness in late November a return home was warranted but the increasingly deteriorating situation on the eastern front prevented this. Only in May 1942 was the refresh of almost all units carried out in Normandy, where the Regiment was given a new 2nd battalion. In mid-October 7th Flieger Division moved into the area of “Heeresgruppe Mitte”. In January 1943, the 3rd / 1 was moved into the Welikije Luki area, there to relieve an encircled “Kampfgruppe” at temperatures of -43 ° C. After a few quiet days bivouacked there, there was a major enemy attack, which the battalion withstood and was returned to the 7th Flieger Division on January 16th 1943. A short time later came an alarm involving the whole regiment near Orel, where it was replaced in March 1943 after the position was stabilized.

Fallschirm Jäger Regiment and Division Willi`s collection

 

Between February and May 1943, 7th Flieger Division was renamed as 1 Fallschirmjäger-Division, into which Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1 was also absorbed. At the end of April the Division was assembled in Normandy and was then relocated in May / June to southern France. The Division was located in the Rhone Valley. In March 1944, 3rd / 1. had been removed and used in the formation of the 3. Fallschirmjäger-Division. It was subsequently reformed.

In July 1943 came the action in Sicily, where a move of Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1 by rail was carried out. During this movement, the regiment was stopped and moved into the area Eboli to be used in case of a possible Italian withdraw from its alliance with Germany.

 

In September the Regiment came under the control of its division at the Allied bridgehead at Salerno and then at Cassino. The regiment earned a legendary reputation there, but was eventually forced to retreat. In June in the area around Rimini, the regiment was one of the last German units to cross the Po. Withdrawing to the Alps, the Regiment rejoined the rest of the Division on May 2nd, 1945.

Hope that the Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1  information was good for your hobby!

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Sascha

 Copyright 2018 : Alle Rechte bei dem Verfasser Sascha Ulderup   / All rights with the author Sascha Ulderup

 

 

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05 Fallschirmjäger in Combat Uniform

With today’s photo we show a beautiful soldier portrait.
This is the picture of the German paratrooper Heinz Besecke.
He began his service in early November 1937 at the (Flak) Regiment General Goering and was subsequently a member of the 2nd Company, 1st Battalion of the Fallschirmjäger  Regiment 1.

Fallschirmjäger in combat uniform

Its unit was involved among other things in the occupation of the bridges of Dordrecht in Holland in May 1940.
In the meantime, relocated to Trondheim / Norway at the end of May 1940, from May 20th to 29th, 1941, the operation took place in the conquest of the island of Crete.

He wears the typical uniform of a paratrooper at that time.
Striking here is of course the colloquially referred to as „Knochensack“ designated light green parachute blouse.
He wears the steel helmet M38 specially developed for paratroopers with gray-green helmet cover.
The cartridge Bandulier took 100 cartridges (7.92 × 57 mm) for the carabiner 98k which is also recognizable in the picture.
At his paddock he wears a holster for the pistol 08 (Luger).
At least one of the strapped bags is likely to be the bag made of cloth for the gas mask and the other may be a bag for stalk grenades.
He already wears the second variant of the combat boots, which have not like his predecessors the lacing laterally, but in the middle.

Detailed information about the date and location are not available at the moment. It can be assumed that the photo could have been taken at the beginning of 1941.

 

Mit dem heutigen Foto zeigen wir ein schönes Soldatenportrait.

Es handelt sich hier im Bild um den deutschen Fallschirmjäger Heinz Besecke.

Dieser trat seinen Dienst Anfang November 1937 bei dem (Flak) Regiment General Göring an und war anschließend Angehöriger der 2. Kompanie, I. Bataillon des Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 1.

Fallschirmjäger in combat uniform

Dessen Einheit  war unter anderem bei der Besetzung der Brücken von Dordrecht in Holland im Mai 1940 beteiligt.

Zwischenzeitlich Ende Mai 1940 nach Trondheim/Norwegen verlegt,  erfolgte vom  20. – 29. Mai 1941 der Einsatz bei der Eroberung der Insel Kreta.

Er trägt die für diese Zeit übliche Einsatzuniform eines Fallschirmjägers.

Markant hierbei ist natürlich die umgangssprachlich als „Knochensack“ bezeichnete hellgrüne Fallschirmschützen-Bluse.

Er trägt den für Fallschirmjäger speziell entwickelten Stahlhelm M38 mit graugrünem Helmüberzug.

Das umgehängte Patronen-Bandulier fasste 100 Patronen (7,92 × 57 mm) für den ebenfalls im Bild erkennbaren Karabiner 98k. An seinem Koppel trägt er ein Holster für die Pistole 08 (Luger).  Mindestens eine der umgeschnallten Beutel  dürfte die aus Stoff gefertigte Tasche für die Gasmaske  und die andere eventuell eine Tasche für mitgeführte Stielhandgranaten sein.

Er trägt bereits die zweite Variante der Springerstiefel, die nicht wie seine Vorgänger die Schnürung seitlich, sondern vorne mittig haben.

Konkrete Angaben zum Aufnahmedatum und Ort liegen momentan leider nicht vor.  Es ist anzunehmen, dass das Foto Anfang  1941 entstanden sein könnte.

Text made by R.A.

Copyright at bacuffz.com

 

 

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Cuff title L.P.G. General Göring and General Göring

Hello Collector friends

alomst time for another cuff title to speak about. It is connected with the beginning of the Fallschirmtruppe of the Luftwaffe. So lets go into it and I hope you like it.

cuff title L.P.G. General Göring on green fabric

Shortly after 31.01.1933, and the accession of Adolf Hitler to the position of Reichskanzler, Hermann Göring, at that time amongst other things also the Prussian Minister of the Interior, ordered the creation of a special Police unit, a unit which would stand loyal to the Führer and break any resistance to the young National Socialist movement. On 23.02.1933 Major of the Prussian Police Walther Wecke was entrusted with the command of this unit. Two days later Wecke reported the creation of his „Polizei-Abteilung zbV. “ with a strength of 14 Officers and 400 Men. The „Abteilung“ was initially based in the district of Kreuzberg (Berlin), in the former barracks of the Queen Augusta Grenadier Guards Regiment 4 and then in the barracks of the former Prussian Queen Elizabeth Grenadier Guards Regiment 3 in Charlottenburg.

Already on 02.03.1933, the „Abteilung“, more commonly called Polizei-Abteilung Wecke“ , was first used against political opponents in Berlin. It was mainly used to smash the KPD meetings and other workers‘ organizations, with the aim of eliminating the political opposition.

On 07.17.1933 the unit was renamed „Landespolizeigruppe zbV. Wecke, and thus was created the first country-wide „Landespolizeigruppe“ in Germany. On 17.09.1933 the „Gruppe“ was endowed by Hermann Göring with its own Standard, along with the words: „It is my intention to convert the Prussian police into a powerful weapon, similar to the Reichswehr, which I will hand over to the Führer, whenever we will fight our external enemies“.

Member of the L.P.G. General Göring with Police Uniform A

On 22.12.1933 the Gruppe was renamed again, this time as Landespolizeigruppe General Göring“. Lieutenant Colonel Friedrich-Wilhelm Jacoby, formerly adjutant of Göring in his capacity as Prussian Minister of the Interior and Reich Aviation Minister, took over command of the group on 06.06.1934. After the introduction of conscription on 16.03.1935, the „Polizeigruppe“ received the more military sounding title „Regiment General Göring“ .

In September 1935, Jacoby received from Göring the order to transfer the regiment to the Luftwaffe on the date 01.10.1935. Volunteers of the regiment would form the basis of a battalion of the future German paratroop units. At that time the regiment contained the following units:

Regimentsstabs

Musikkorps

I (Jäger) Bataillon /Regiment General Göring (späteres Fallschirmjäger-Bataillon)

II (Jäger) Bataillon /Regiment General Göring

13. Kradschützen-Kompanie/Regiment General Göring

15. Pionier-Kompanie/ Regiment General Göring

Reiterzug/ Regiment General Göring

Nachrichtenzug/ Regiment General Göring

 

 

Added later were:

III. (leichte) Flak-Abteilung/ Regiment General Göring (Autumn 1935)

14. Wach-Kompanie / Regiment General Göring (11.07.1936)

16. Wach-Kompanie / Regiment General Göring (01.04.1937)

In January 1936, one bataillon under Major Bruno Bräuer and the 15th company, moved to the military training grounds at Döberitz, where they received parachute training, while the rest of the regiment moved to Altengrabow to reorganize. On 21.08.1936 Major Walther von Axthelm took command.

Member of the L.P.G. General Göring with Luftwaffen Uniform

Later, during the 2nd World War the Hermann Göring units would be seen as a sort of elite, not only within the Air Force, but also within the entire Wehrmacht. This is partly due to the fact that the personnel, at least in the early years, were all volunteers. There were also high recruitment standards and physical training. However, the Hermann Göring units also offered the best opportunities for advancement. Also playing their part were factors such as accommodation in the new barracks in Reinickendorf, the most modern of all throughout the whole German Reich, to gain national and international recognition by the outwardly visible insignia of the white collar tabs and the cuff title „General Goering“, the possibility of being a bodyguard to Goering, and the comradeship within the regiment all provided enough reasons to wish to serve within this regiment.

By 01.10.1937 the regiment consisted of the following units:

Regimentsstabs
Nachrichtenzug

Musikkorps

I (schwere) Flak-Abteilung/Regiment General Göring (from II. (Jäger) Bataillon with:

Stab, Stabsbatterie, 1.-3. Batterie (8,8-cm) and 4. Batterie (3,7-cm)

II (leichte) Flak-Abteilung/Regiment General Göring (from III. (leichte) Flak-Abteilung with:

Stab, Stabsbatterie, 5.-7. Batterie (2-cm)

III. Wach-Bataillon/Regiment General Göring (from Reiterzug, 13. Kradschützen-Kompanie, 14. and 16. Wach-Kompanie with:

Stab, Nachrichtenzug, Reiterzug, 8. Kradschützen-Kompanie with Panzer-Spähzug (disbanded 01.11.1938), 9. and 10. Wach-Kompanie, from 01.04.1938 11. Wach-Kompanie

IV Fallschirmschützen-Bataillon/Regiment General Göring (from I./ (Jäger) and 15. Kp./Regiment General Göring) with:

Stab, Nachrichtenzug, 11.-13. Fallschirmschützen-Kompanie, 14. Fallschirmschützen-MG-Kompanie, 15. Fallschirm-Pionier-Kompanie

High decorated Fallschirmjäger

At the end of March 1938,  the IV. Bataillon and the 15th company left the regiment and formed the I./Fallschirm-Regiment 1. At about the same time, the regiment took part in the annexation of Austria and on 15.03.1938 paraded in front of Hitler. In October 1938, it participated in the invasion of the Sudetenland and on 15.03.1939 took part in the parade in Prague.

Due to the loss of parachute units, the breakdown of the regiment from 01.11.1938 was as follows :

Regimentsstab/Regiment General Göring with Musikkorps and Stabsbatterie

I (schwere) Flak-Abteilung/Regiment General Göring

II (leichte) Flak-Abteilung/Regiment General Göring

III. Scheinwerfer-Abteilung/Regiment General Göring

IV (leichte) Flak-Abteilung/Regiment General Göring

Wach-Bataillon/Regiment General Göring with Reiterzug and three Wach-Kompanien

Luftlande-Bataillon/Regiment General Göring (since Summer 1938 as Ausbildungseinheit, up to August 1939)

In the course of the Polish crisis, the regiment was mobilized on 15.8.1939 which resulted in the following restructuring of the Regiment:

Reiterzug became Reiterschwadron/Regiment General Göring

Formed from:

Reserve-Scheinwerfer-Abteilung/Regiment General Göring

Ersatz-Abteilung//Regiment General Göring

1 (schwere) Eisenbahn-Flak-Batterie

1 (leichte) Flak-Batterie as support unit for the Oberbefehlshaber der Luftwaffe Göring, the Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop and as air defence for the Führer Hauptquartier

cuff title General Göring

During the Polish campaign the majority of the regiment remained in the Berlin area to provide anti-aircraft protection and to protect the headquarters of Goering. Amongst other things in October 1939, a company participated in the victory parade in Warsaw.

With the end of the Polish campaign, at the end of October 1st., the III. and IV. Abteilung of the regiment moved in secret to the western front, where they were subordinated to anti-aircraft regiments. Only the II. Abteilung remained in the Berlin area where it would continue to provide part of the air raid protection of greater Berlin.

In early April 1940 a battalion, also known as “Einheit Kluge”, was formed from a Wach-Kompanie, a 2-cm-Flak-Battery (sf) and a newly established Kradschützen-Kompanie of the regiment all under the command of Major Kluge. This unit took part in operation „Weserübung, the occupation of Denmark and Norway. In Norway, it participated in the fighting between Oslo and Trondheim. The rest of the regiment secured the Rhineland on the Dutch border.

As from 10.05.1940, large parts of the regiment took part in the battles which followed in the West, capturing Brussels. These units were in this case used as „Kampfgruppen“, and the anti-aircraft units achieved very good results in the anti-tank role. After the armistice, the regiment was initially stationed for several weeks on the channel coast and then used for air defense in the Paris area. Towards the end of 1940, the regiment moved back to Germany and was once again part of the air defense of Berlin.

LW Soldier with cuff title General Göring

Before the beginning of the Balkan campaign the regiment moved to Romania, there to protect the major oil fields from enemy air raids. Then it moved in the early summer of 1941 to the River Bug at Sokal and remained there in readiness for the eastern campaign. After the fighting began, it distinguished itself in the fighting around Dubno and Kiev. By October 1941 the regiment had destroyed:

161 Aircraft

324 Tanks

45 Bunkers

167 Artillerie Guns

530 Machine Gun Positions

In the process more than 11,000 prisoners were taken. Up to this point four members of the regiment received the Knight`s cross and four members the german cross in Gold .

At the end of 1941, the regiment moved back to Germany to refresh, while a newly formed „Schützen-Bataillon“ remained in the east and took part in the defensive fighting there until April 1942.
In March 1942, Göring ordered the extension of the regiment to brigade level, and on 15.07.1942 the regiment was renamed as „Brigade Hermann Göring“.

Heinz Besecke who served in the Regiment General Göring and later in the Fallschirmjäger Regiment 1

Description    Cuff Title L.P.G. General Göring

The cuffband which consisted of dark green, Police uniform like badge-cloth was 3.2 cm wide and was in executed in “Frakturschrift” as follows:

  • For Officers the cuff title was hand embroidered in Aluminium thread and featured additional embroidery in the form of a 3mm wide Aluminium thread (Soutache) braid strip on the upper and lower edges of the cuff title.
  • Although similar in material and colour the version for enlisted ranks was additionally identified by having no edge strip.

Method of Wear:
The cuff title was worn on the “Tuchrock” just above the turned back cuff of the right sleeve. When worn by a soldier holding an appointment to the position of “Hauptfeldwebel” , it was attached  just above the sleeve rings indicating this status. Officers also wore the cuff title on the “Fliegerbluse” and the white summer tunic. It is evidenced by numerous photographs however, that the wearing of this cuff title was probably complied with less and less over the course of the war.

I like to thank Mr. Helmut Weitze, Hamburg and his Staff for helping me out with pictures of LPG cuff titles and also lot of collector friends who are all listed in my cuff title book: Göring units and Para units WW2

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Sascha