"Immediately after the war, the 1st (Guards) Parachute Battalion was formed for service in Palestine. The Brigade of Guards was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1856 to 1968. In 1948 it was formed into No1 Guards Ind Parachute Company. The existing 11th Special Air Service Battalion was renamed the 1st Parachute Battalion and, together with the newly raised 2nd and 3rd Parachute Battalions, formed the first of the new airborne formations, the 1st Parachute Brigade, commanded by Brigadier Richard Nelson Gale, who would later command the 6th Airborne Division. In 1941, the battalion was assigned to the 1st Parachute Brigade which also included the 2nd and 3rd battalions. The unit was made up from officers and men from the seven regiments of the Household Division the name of the unit was 16th Guards Ind Pathfinder Company the end of1949 it was re named the 1st Guards Independent Company Parachute Regiment. 2 Commando trained as parachutists. It was commanded by the Major-General commanding the Brigade of Guards and was responsible for administering the guards regiments.. After the Second World War the British Army had fourteen infantry depots, each bearing a letter. Walter (Arthur or Bill) Askew enlisted at Kendal on 6th September 1944 into the Grenadier Guards and later 1st (Guards) Parachute Battalion. In 1948, this was reduced in size and eventually became the Guards Independent Parachute Company which was finally disbanded in 1975." (For further information on the 1st Parachute Battalion which was formed in 1941, please click here) From mid 1951 to 1954 it saw active service in Cyprus, the Canal Zone in Egypt and during counter-terrorist operations against EOKA in Cyprus in 1956. The Palestinian crisis involved the 1st Guards battalion in numerous skirmishes with terrorists and the whole gamut of IS duties, including the distasteful harbour duties at Haifa harbour. Being a Military Simulation unit representing a fictional 14th Guards Parachute Battalion. On return to UK 6 Division was reduced to Brigade strength, renamed 16 Parachute Brigade, and the Guards Battalion reduced to an independent company. He was discharged (at own request) 3rd April 1950 having reached the rank of Sergeant. They qualified to jump and became attached to the 1st Airborne Division in 1941. Service included BAOR and as part of 6 Airborne Division deployment to Palestine. ↑ Peter Dickens. Jun 48: reduced to company strength and was redesignated 16th (Guards) Independent Company The Parachute Regiment Jul 48: Renamed 1 Guards Independent Para Company 2nd Parachute Battalion A List of battalions of the Parachute Regiment from formation in 1940 to the present day. The Parachute Regiment is a parachute infantry regiment of the British Army that was formed in the early stages of World War II.. 1st Battalion [1940–present]; 1st (Guards) Parachute Battalion [1946–1948] 2nd Battalion [1941–present]; 2nd/3rd Battalion [1946–1948] 3rd Battalion [1941–present] This was to be carried out on the night of 24 September by the 4th Battalion the Dorsetshire Regiment and the 1st Polish Independent Parachute Brigade (which had been brought up by truck from Nijmegen). The attack by the Dorsets failed with very heavy casualties. In 1946, the battalion was redisgnated the 1st (Guards) Parachute Battalion, and in the following year they and the rest of the Brigade were deployed in Palestine to act as a police force amidst the growing unrest between the Jewish settlers and the indigenous Arab population. Here, we enact their jump into Arnhem during those fateful days of 1944. He had served 5 years and 210 days with the Colours. 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