This is the first book dedicated to the 139th Engineer Battalion of the 17th Airborne ! It is really a huge source of information for military history enthusiasts, 17th Airborne's friends or relatives. The author (and friend) Ozzie GORBITZ has doing a great job of research with this book with a lot of fantastic photos. A real opportunity to learn more about the history of this battalion.  

For all info : Blood on the Talon Volume 1 : Unit History

This is another great book dedicated to the 17^thAirborne Division during Op. Varsity, for the first time available in English!  With exclusive permission my friend Jos Bex did a great job translating the 17^thAirborne part of the original German book  “Die Luftlandung” , written by  author and historian Johan Nitrowski, into English.
The book really is an interesting source of information for both military and history enthusiasts. This translation gives the perspective during  Op. Varsity as seen from the American paratroopers and glider men as well as from the German defenders and civilians, added with unique “Then and Now” pictures and personal stories recently written by 17^thAirborne veterans.
 

A real opportunity to learn more about the history of the 17^thAirborne Division during the largest single day airborne operation during World War II.

For all info : josbex59@gmail.com or 06-51634487

In February 2015, I have had the great pleasure to publish in the famous French magazine "Militaria Magazine" the first article dedicated to the shoulder sleeve insignias of the 17th Airborne Division. This five pages articles is writed in French with a lot of illustrations. I hope it will be an interesting source of information for military history enthusiasts, 17th Airborne's friends or relatives !

For all additional info : Militaria Magazine

In November 2015, I have had the great pleasure to publish in the famous French magazine "Militaria Magazine" another  article dedicated to the 193rd GIR/17th Airborne Division. This six pages article is writed in French with a lot of illustrations. It is the first article written in this subject !

I hope it will be an interesting source of information for military history enthusiasts, 17th Airborne's friends or relatives ! 

For all additional info : Militaria Magazine

In September 2016, I have had the great pleasure to publish in the famous French magazine "Militaria Magazine" another  article dedicated to an unreleased subject : the tactical markings of the 507th PIR / 17th AB helmets (there is an error in the front page !). This five pages article is writed in French with a lot of unpublished illustrations.

I hope it will be an interesting source of information for military history enthusiasts, 17th Airborne's friends or relatives ! 

For all additional info : Militaria Magazine

This last March, I have had the great pleasure to present in the famous French magazine "Militaria Magazine" another article. This one is dedicated to the 75th Anniversary of operation Varsity. This eleven pages article is write in French with a lot of unpublished illustrations and original and identified memorabilia.

I hope it will be an interesting source of information for military history enthusiasts, 17th Airborne's friends or relatives ! 

For all additional info : Militaria Magazine

I have the great pleasure to present you my last publication : the first book dedicated to the history of the 193rd Glider Infantry Regiment.

This book writed in French tells the story of this regiment all across its 110 pages with a lot of pictures, illustrations and original and identified memorabilia.

I hope it will be an interesting source of information for military history enthusiasts, 17th Airborne's friends or relatives ! 

For all additional info : Militaria Magazine 

Somewhere in England ...

This photo was realized in England in September 1944. It shows soldier "CARUSO" of the 224th AB Medical Company. At least two CARUSO served in the 224th AB Med Co : Joseph A and Vincent A ! Unfortunaltely, there is no other info on the pic.

With the help of Jos BEX (The Netherlands), the place is now identified : it is the staging area of the 17th Airborne Division near Ogbourne St. George. He kindly sends me pictures of the place realized in 2011 (unpublished photo - TFH collection & Jos BEX). Click to enlarge.

Cette photo a été réalisée en Angleterre en septembre 1944. Elle met en scène le soldat CARUSO de la 224ème compagnie médicale. Au moins deux CARUSO ont servit au sein de cette compagnie : Joseph et Vincent mais il n'existe malheureusement aucune autre information au dos de la photo.

Grâce à Jos BEX (Pays-Bas), l'endroit a pu être identifié. Il s'agit de la plaine d'entraînement située non loin d'Ogbourne-Saint-George comme le montre les photos actuelles de l'endroit (2011) qu'il m'a aimablement envoyé (photos non publiées appartenant à la collection TFH & Jos BEX).

 OFFICERS OF COMPANY B / 193rd GIR - CHISELDON FALL 1944 

Photos of the 17th Airborne in England are relatively uncommon. This is one of them. It shows men of Company B from the 193rd GIR. From left to right : Captain Francis B Mc ALLISTER (O-387607), 2nd Lieutnant Jackson T ROACH (O-313799), 2nd Lieutnant John R CASKEY (O-1314592), 2nd Lieutnant Edward E A GILLAM (O-512954) and 2nd Lieutnant Ross L PARKS. McALLISTER will be wounded in action and will received the Purple Heart Medal on January 7, 1945, 2nd Lieutnant John R CASKEY will be killed in action several weeks later, on January 7, 1945. He is burried on American cemetery of Ham, Great Dutchy of Luxembourg (with permission of Bill TOM). Click to enlarge.

I'm fortunate to locate the place with the help of David BAILEY (England), member of the local historical society in Swindon.

The same place in the 70's (with courtesy of David BAILEY).

The same place today ... (with courtesy of David BAILEY)

A bridge on the Meuse river ...

The photos showing men of the 17th Airborne Division during the battle of the Bulge are relatively rare compare with those realized during training, Varsity or German campaign. This one was realized on December 31, 1944 and shows two men of the 139th Airborne Engineer Battalion : Pvt Robert W Bell (left) and PFC Charles W McCall. The scene is located in the little French city of Douzy (south-east of Sedan). The two soldiers are guarding the bridge over the Meuse river (the only one in the city). I am fortunate to locate the place with the help of Google Map and Street View and I share this with you. The little house on the left appears unchanged (click to enlarge) (US Army Signal Corps - TFH collection & Google Map).

Les photos de la 17th Division Aéroportée réalisées en Ardennes sont relativement rares comparativement à celles faites aux Etats-Unis, durant Varsity ou durant la campagne d'Allemagne. Celle-ci a été réalisée le 31 décembre 1944 et met en scène deux hommes du 139° Bataillon de Génie : le soldat Robert W Bell à gauche et le soldat de première classe Charles W McCall. La photo a été réalisée dans le petit village de Douzy situé au sud-est de Sedan. Les deux soldats gardent le seul pont de la cité qui enjambe la Meuse. J'ai pû localiser l'endroit tel qu'il apparaît aujourd'hui grâce à Google Map et le Street View et partage celà avec vous. L'endroit a peu changé, en particulier la petite maison de gauche (cliquez sur la photo pour l'agrandir) (US Army Signal Corps - TFH collection & Google Map).

Souvenir de la bataille des Ardennes ... 

The battle of the Bulge was the last World War two great battle in Belgium and the first military campaign of the 17th Airborne Division. It is indeed during the combats that took place in north west of Bastogne in early Januray 1945 that the men of the 17th Airborne enterred in combat and distinguished themself against a determined and strongly entrenched ennemy. This battle is known today as the battle of "Dead man ridge". It mainly occured between January 02 and January 14 and involved no less than four american divisions : 11th Armored division, 87th Infantry division, 17th Airborne division and 101st Airborne division. Approximately 3000 17th Airborne's men were killed or wounded during this battle.

When the storm went on and spring arrived, human and material civil losts were also heavy. Numerous belgian villages were completely destroyed and many families had lost everything.

For example the little village of Chenogne in the vicinity of the Bois des Valets, in the 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment area, counted only one intact house in spring 1945 !

Confronted with this national catastroph, the belgian government decided to built hastily temporary houses to accomodate the more destitute families. These little wood houses had a temporary use and disappeared progressively with the reconstruction of the country. Only one remains today in the Bastogne area. It is located in Chenogne. I have had the chance to meet this spring the owner of this unique Battle of Bastogne memorabilia. He has give me his kind permission to make several pictures I can now share with you.

La bataille des Ardennes, plus connue aux Etats-unis sous le nom de bataille du saillant, fût la dernière grande bataille livrée sur le sol belge au cours de la deuxième guerre mondiale et la première campagne militaire livrée par la 17ème division parachutiste américaine. C'est en effet lors des combats livrés au nord ouest de Bastogne au début du mois de janvier 1945 que les hommes de la 17ème division parachutiste vont faire leurs premières armes et s'illustrer face à un ennemi bien décidé à prendre la ville de Bastogne. Ces combats connues sous le nom de bataille de "Dead man ridge" se déroulent essentiellement entre le 02 et le 14 janvier et implique pas moins de quatre divisions alliées : la 11ème division blindée, la 87ème division d'infanterie et les 17ème et 101ème divisions aéroportées. Ils feront près de 3000 tuès et blessés rien que dans les rangs de la 17ème division.

Lorsque l'orage s'éloigne et que revient le printemps, les pertes humaines et matérielles sont également considérables au sein de la population civile. De nombreux villages sont totalement détruits et de nombreuses familles se retrouvent sans logement.

Dans le petit village de Chenogne situé au bas du bois des Valets, en plein secteur du 513th PIR, il ne reste par exemple qu'une seule maison intacte au printemps 1945 !

Face à cette catastrophe nationale, l'état belge fait construire à la hâte des habitations provisoires destinées à accueillir ces familles qui ont tout perdu. Ces petites maisons fabriquées en bois étaient destinées à habriter provisoirement des familles sans abris et elles ont disparu petit à petit au gré de la reconstruction. Dans le pays de Bastogne, il n'en existe plus qu'une aujourd'hui. Elle est située dans le village de Chenogne. J'ai eu l'occasion de rencontré cet été le propriétaire de ce singulier souvenir de la bataille de Bastogne et il m'a aimablement autorisé à réaliser quelques photos que je partage aujourd'hui avec vous.

Chenogne was also a rear position during all the battle of "Dead man ridge" and numerous american artillery units (up to 18) were located in the vicinity of the village to support the GI's in first line. A 155mm american gun's wheel ("Long Tom" gun) is still put against the old building as it is forget by the time since 1945 ...

Chenogne fût aussi une base arrière de la bataille de "Dead man ridge" et de nombreuses unités d'artillerie (jusqu'à dix-huit) se sont installés dans les environs immédiat du village pour soutenir l'effort des unités qui luttaient en première ligne. Oublié là depuis près de 68 ans, une roue d'obusier de 155mm "Long tom" est posée le long de la vieille bâtice, comme oubliée par le temps qui passe ...

Shadow of the battle ... 

On all the battles of the 17th Airborne Division, the battle of "Dead man ridge" was without a doubt the most terrible. During twelve days, the paratroopers fought strongly in awful climatic conditions, without air support. 

It is now very difficult to imagine that such a beautiful place was a terrific battle field but sometimes a relic is unearthed and remembers us that american soldiers fell here during the liberation of Belgium. 

A young man has contact me few months ago after he has found (in a private field) an interesting relic of the battle of "Dead man ridge". He has found in the area of the First Battalion of the 193rd Glider Infantry Regiment an american paratrooper helmet abandoned in the bottom of a fox-hole since 68 years. This beautiful relic remain in incredible condition and wears a great amount of its original paint and an NCO insignia. 

It is really moving to look this helmet and  inevitably think to its history but it is anonymous and will remain dumb forever ...

(helmet is part of the TFH collection).

De toutes les batailles livrées par la 17ème division parachutiste, la bataille de "Dead man ridge" fût sans nul doute la plus terrible. Elle dura près de douze jours et se déroula dans des conditions climatiques épouvantables, sans aucun support aérien. Elle se solda par des pertes humaines importantes.

Il est bien difficile actuellement d'imaginer que ce petit coin d'Ardennes fût le théâtre de combats aussi féroces.

De temps à autre, un vestige de ces combats refait surface et nous rappelle alors avec émotion que des soldats américains sont tombés ici pour la libération de la Belgique.

J'ai été contacté il y a quelques mois par un jeune garçon qui a exhumé (sur un terrain privé) au début de cette année une relique de la bataille de "Dead man ridge". Il a trouvé, dans le secteur du premier battalion du 193ème régiment aéro-transporté, les reliques d'un casque de parachutiste américain abandonné au fond d'un trou de fantassion depuis près de 68 ans. Cette magnifique relique anonyme demeure dans un état de conservation exceptionnel et arbore encore une bonne partie de sa peinture et un grade de sous-officier.

En regardant les photos de cet objet, on ne peut s'empêcher de penser à l'histoire qui l'accompagne mais qu'il ne nous livrera jamais ...

(le casque fait partie de la collection TFH).