World War II Database

Airborne infantry was something new to war at the start of WW2. The German paratroopers (Fallschirmjäger) saw major action early in the European War, thus were far more experienced than their British counterparts which only began to become organized in mid 1940, but when the two forces clashed directly with each other in 1942, they were fairly matched. David Greentree's British Paratrooper versus Fallschirmjäger, the first in Osprey Publishing's "Combat" series, compared the training, tactics, leadership, and doctrine of the two forces, followed by narratives of their clashes in Tunisia and Sicily, Italy. While the book's small format (only 80 pages) limited the author from diving deep into his analysis, he nevertheless provided a wonderful study of the two groups, especially the final thoughts on what the airborne leaders of each side had learned by the end of 1943. Similar to other Osprey titles, British Paratrooper versus Fallschirmjäger was filled with wonderful period photographs, maps, and illustrations to provide visuals to accompany the text. I found this book to be a fruitful read, and would look forward to future titles in this new series.