The 82nd Airborne Division in WWII

By Leroy Purdie

WO 1 Paul Kerkhofs

Resource Management

27 January 2006

Purdie ii

The 82nd Airborne Division during World War II

1. Introduction.

A. Research references (N/A)

B. The purpose of my briefing is to provide information on the accomplishments of the 82nd Airborne Division during World War II and the actions of lSG Funk leading him to receiving the Medal of Honor. I chose the 82nd because I was a member and during my assignment I felt they truly lived the Army Values.

II. Body.

A. Background Period. The time period when the 82nd Infantry Division deactivated and became the 82nd Airborne Division through World War II.

B. Training. The airborne training that took place when the unit became an airborne unit.

C. Weapons. I will briefly cover some of the weapon systems that the airborne infantry used during this time frame.

D. Formations. I will briefly discuss some of the tactics and formations of the infantry units.

E. Heroes. 1 SG Funk was a natural leader and was heroic in his actions. He demonstrated his capabilities when he earned the Medal of Honor.

III. Closing.

A. In summary I covered the 82nd Airborne Division, 1 SG Funk and the actions that helped him receive the Medal of Honor and some of the weapon systems of the infantry during the war.

B. What are your questions? Question and answer period.

C. In conclusion, our military has yielded some of the finest units and Soldiers, be sure you train to standard and continue the tradition.

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The 82nd Airborne Division is one of the most prestigious units in the history of the United

States Army. The 82nd has yielded several Medal of Honor recipients and possesses a rich

heritage of valorous soldiers. The 82nd was not always an airborne division. Its roots go back to

1917 in Camp Gordon Georgia as the 82nd Infantry Division. Members of the division came

from all the 48 states hence they were given the nickname "All Americans". The patch of the

82nd still displays the double A's to symbolize the original All American name (A Brief history

1-3). The 82nd Infantry Division deployed to France and fought courageously during World War

I. They participated during three campaigns leading to the defeat of the German Imperial Army.

The 82nd Infantry Division was demobilized after the war but the heroics of the unit during the

war will never be forgotten.

The 82nd was the first airborne division in the Army and we cannot forget that they were the

first soldiers to ever exit aircraft while in flight. General Billy Mitchell developed the concept of

soldiers jumping out of aircraft to gain a military advantage during war. He witnessed the first 6

paratroopers jumping from a bomber at San Antonio Texas, safely landing and assembling their

weapons within three minutes. Americans were not immediately impressed with the

demonstration however German and Russian observers were. The Germans put the concept into

practical operation and conducted assaults on Holland and Belgium (A Brief History 1-3). These

operations became the catalyst in making the US start their airborne program. In April 1940 the

War Department gave the nod for a test platoon opening the door for airborne operations.

General Billy Mitchell was not the only person to believe in the concept of airborne

operations. LTC James M. Gavin joined him in thought and led the effort in subsequent airborne

missions. LTC Gavin had spent time in Europe and was familiar with the successes of airborne

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operations and airborne attack. He thought that airborne operations were more effective when

they were concentrated. He thought that with enough airplanes and enough paratroopers, a major

airborne assault could give our forces a strategic advantage. The 82nd later established

standardized jump rules. The rules implemented a 600-foot altitude to decrease the number of

injuries while allowing the paratroopers to remain close together as a cohesive fighting force.

The 82nd was reactivated on March 2S , 1942 at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana. The commander

during this time was Major General Omar Bradley. On 1 August 1942 the 82nd moved to Fort

Bragg North Carolina from South Carolina. On August IS , 1942, the 82nd Infantry Division

became the 82nd Airborne Division and the Army' s first Airborne Division. The 82nd contained

the S04th and SOSth Parachute Infantry Regiment, the 32Sth Glider Infantry Regiment, 319th and

320th Glider Field Artillery Battalions, 376th and 4S6th Parachute Field Artillery Battalions, 80th

Airborne Anti-Aircraft Battalion, 30ih Airborne Engineer Battalion and various support units

(Global Security pg 1). In April 1943 the newly formed 82nd Airborne Division was activated to

deploy to Africa in support of World War II. Their main concentration was to attack the soft

points of the Third Reich. The Division conducted their first two combat operations into Sicily

and Salerno, Italy on July 9 and September 13 , 1943 (Global Security 1-3). After the success of

the first two airborne operations the 82nd began to prepare for their most ambitious operation

during the war. The 82nd participated in Operation Neptune and Operation Overlord. Operation

Neptune was the invasion of Normandy while Operation Neptune was the amphibious assault on

the northern coast of France. The Division was reorganized and received two Parachute Infantry

Regiments, which belonged to the 2nd Airborne Brigade. The two new units were the S08th and

the soih. These two units were depleted because of the heavy fighting in Italy (Global Security

1-3). The 82nd fought steadily for 33 days before being sent back to England. More than SOOO

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soldiers were either killed wounded or missing. The Division's battle report read, " ... 33 days of

action without relief, without replacements. Every mission accomplished. No ground was ever

relinquished." After the Normandy invasion the 82nd became part of the XVIII Airborne Corps.

The 82nd began preparation for Operation Market Garden in September. During this operation

they were responsible for securing and holding key bridges and roads that penetrated enemy

lines. During Operation Market garden, all of the regiments were at full strength and prepared for

the upcoming battle. The 82nd jumped into Holland on 17 September receiving fierce from the

Germans. This was their fourth combat jump during the war. The 82nd captured all their

assigned objectives however supporting units were defeated lessening their advantage but not

breaking their spirit.

One of the most well known warriors during the war was 1 SG Leonard Funk. On 29 January

1 SG Funk was assigned a makeshift platoon of clerks to assault German occupied houses in the

Holzheim, Belgium area. They were assigned the mission of clearing 15 houses to ensure the

safety of surrounding friendly units. The weather during the house clearing was blinding snow

and very frigid temperatures. 1 SG Funk and his platoon captured thirty Germans while

surrounding units captured 50. All of the 80 detainees were brought together in one of the yards

of a nearby house for safeguarding. The platoon was under strength and could only provide four

guards to watch the eighty prisoners while the remainder of their unit searched for other pockets

of German resistance until another company came to relieve them (Arlington National Cemetery

1-3). 1 SG Funk and another soldier returned to retrieve soldiers that were left as guards to assist

with the overwhelming force of the Germans they were pursuing. 1 SG Funk approached the

holding area with his weapon slung on his back under the impression his soldiers were guarding

the prisoners. Unfortunately the prisoners had overtaken the guards and taken their weapons.

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When lSG Funk entered the area one of the Nazi officers held a pistol to him and ordered him to

surrender. 1 SG Funk pretended to surrender and caught the Nazi officer off guard, taking his

weapon off his back and killing the officer. He shouted to the rest of the guards to attack the

Germans and once again 1 SG Funk and his platoon took control, killing more than 21 of the

Germans and wounding 24 more. Unfortunately the soldier he brought back with him was killed

in action. 1 SG Funk was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions (Arlington National

Cemetery 1-3). This would not be the only time 1 SG Funk would be recognized for his heroics

but he received his highest honor for this achievement.

The 504th Parachute Infantry regiment was detached to the Anzio theater of operations to fight

the German enemies. They gained world-renowned prestige for their fighting capabilities. The

Germans on all fronts knew of how courageous they were and feared some units more than

others. A German Officer's diary had the following statement, " American parachutists ... devils

in baggy pants ... are less than 100 meters from my outpost line. I can's sleep at night; they pop

up from nowhere and we never know when or how they will strike next. Seems like the black­

hearted devils are everywhere ... " This is only one of the examples of how the Germans feared

the 82nd Airborne Division. Throughout the war the Division demonstrated their resilience and

confidence to ensure they would win the war.

The 82nd used several different weapons during the war. The weapons included bolt action

rifles, sniper rifles, semi-automatic rifles, sub machine guns, assault rifles, pistols, light machine

guns and several other destructive tools. The M 1 Garand was considered the standard American

rifle of the war. This was the first semi-automatic rifle in the military service invented in the

1930's. The Germans even used captured M1 Garands when they had the opportunity. The

Germans were not the only country that gained from American technology because the Japanese

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had a copy of it before the war ended. The Colt M 1911 was considered the best pistol ever

produced. The unparalleled power of its 45 caliber is considered second to none (US Infantry

Weapons 1).

After Germany surrendered, the 82nd was assigned to Berlin for occupation duty. General

Patton was so impressed by the 82nd ,s honor guard. He was quoted saying, "In all my years, in

the Army and all the honor guards I have ever seen, the 82nd ' s honor guard is undoubtedly the

best." Hence the " All Americans" became known as "America' s Guard of Honor."

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Works Cited

"A Brief History of the 82nd Airborne Division." 18 Sep 2005 http: //www.bragg.army.mill/www.-82DV/History

"82nd Airborne Division History." 1 0 Dec 2005. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency

"Arlington National Cemetery Website Leonard A Funk Jr. 24 Oct 2005 http://www.arlingtoncemetery

"US Airborne History WWII." 8 Dec 2005