British 6th Airborne Division

E93747

The British 6th Airborne Division was an elite World War II airborne formation of the British Army, renowned for its parachute and glider-borne assaults during the Normandy landings and subsequent operations in Northwest Europe.


Statements (46)
Predicate Object
instanceOf British Army formation
World War II military unit
airborne division
allegiance United Kingdom
branch British Army
componentUnit 3rd Parachute Brigade
5th Parachute Brigade NERFINISHED
6th Airlanding Brigade NERFINISHED
Divisional artillery units
Divisional engineers
Divisional signals
conflict Second World War
country United Kingdom
decorations multiple unit citations and individual gallantry awards
disbanded post–Second World War
formed 1943
garrisonDuringWWII United Kingdom NERFINISHED
legacy influenced postwar British airborne doctrine
motto We Sustain
nickname Red Devils
notableCommander Major-General Eric Bols NERFINISHED
Major-General Richard Nelson Gale
notableEngagement Advance from the Rhine to the Baltic
Capture of the Orne River and Caen Canal bridges
Defense of the eastern flank of the Normandy beachhead
Destruction of the Merville Battery
notableFor airborne assault on D-Day
elite airborne training and standards
operation Advance to the River Seine
Ardennes campaign NERFINISHED
Battle of Normandy NERFINISHED
Crossing of the River Rhine in 1945
Normandy landings NERFINISHED
Occupation duties in Germany
Operation Mallard
Operation Paddle
Operation Tonga
Operation Varsity
Palestine Emergency
partOf British Army Airborne Forces
role airborne infantry
specialization glider-borne assaults
parachute operations
theaterOfOperations Middle East NERFINISHED
Northwest Europe NERFINISHED
type infantry division

Referenced by (3)

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