GERMAN PAK 40 CREW GREEN DEVILS, MONTE CASSINO, 4 MAN CREW

Fallschirmjäger is the collective term for German airborne units from the interwar period and World War II. The first parachute unit was organized in Nazi Germany in 1936 - perhaps as a result of observations made during the Soviet maneuvers of the previous year. The first paratroopers squad was created on the initiative of Herman Göring and was assigned to the Luftwaffe. A year later (1937), the first unit of this type was subordinated to the Wehrmacht, and more precisely to the land forces. In 1938, these units were combined and expanded to form the 7th Aviation Division under the command of General Kurt Student. It consisted of parachute infantry, troops trained to transport gliders and infantry transported to the battlefield by airplanes. In the course of World War II, more Fallschirmjäger units were created, incl. in 1943, on the basis of the 7th Aviation Division, the 1st and 2nd Parachute Divisions were established. In the period 1939-1941, the German Fallschirmjäger was used for its intended purpose (e.g. during the fighting in Western Europe in 1940), but after the heavy losses suffered in the course of the fighting in Crete in 1941, the German parachute troops began to be used primarily as elite infantry units, in which role they proved to be very successful, earning the nickname "Green Devils" among the Allies.Batalia, known in Poland as the Battle of Monte Cassino is, in essence, a series of clashes and battles between the Allied and German armies, which took place from January 17 to May 19, 1944 in today's Italy. About 105,000 people were involved in the battle at one time, in May 1944. allied soldiers and approx. 80 thousand. German soldiers. On the Allied side, the commander-in-chief of this operation was exercised by Field Marshal Harold Alexander, and on the German side - Field Marshal Albert Kesserling. Whereas the commander of the 2nd Corps of the Polish Armed Forces, who broke the German defense at Monte Cassino, was General Władysław Anders. The Liri river valley and the Monte Cassino hill located in its vicinity (along with other hills in this area) were a natural barrier, they could stop the army marching from the south of Italy to the north, towards Rome. Albert Kesserling was well aware of this and for this reason, shortly after the landing of the Allies in Sicily and southern Italy, he ordered the creation of a belt of fortifications in this area, the so-called The Gustav Line. This line proved to be an effective barrier to stop the Allied attacks, which began on January 17, 1944. The subsequent attacks, carried out in February-April 1944, although straining the German positions, did not end with a breakthrough. The attack, which ended with a final breakthrough and in which the Polish army played a huge role, was launched on May 12, 1944, and resumed on May 16. Finally, he took over the ruins of the Benedictine monastery at Monte Cassino on May 18. The symbolic seal of victory in battle was the playing of the bugle call from the Monte Cassino hill. On the other hand, the heroism of the soldiers of the 2nd Corps was appreciated by the field marshal Alexander, who said after the battle: "[] If I were given a choice between any soldiers that I would like to have under my command, I would choose you - Poles ”.