Operation Fall Weiss: German Paratroopers in the Poland Campaign, 1939

Stephan Janzyk

Aug 2017 · Casemate Publishers

About this ebook

While the fledgling German paratroop operations in Belgium and the Netherlands in 1940, and on Crete in 1941, attracted worldwide attention, what is not as well known is that the use of paratroopers was planned for the invasion of Poland in 1939, in an act that began the Second World War. This has given rise to the myth that Adolf Hitler wanted to keep this new, and hitherto little-known, branch of the armed services secret for future projects.However, on several occasions the men of Parachute Regiment 1 were sat ready in their Ju52 transport planes, fully equipped and ready to go. 'Operation Fall Weiss' describes the role of the German paratroopers in the Polish campaign, using war diaries, maps, contemporary documents and photographs, including those from various private collections around the world.

About the author

Stephan Janzyk was born in 1985 and comes from Hagenow in Mecklenburg/Western Pomerania. He is an officer in the parachute regiment and holds a Master of Arts in educational sciences. He wrote his thesis on the subject of the socialisation aspects of the Hitler Youth in relation to a later career as an officer in the Wehrmacht. He has been interested in military history for many years, particularly the formation and early years of the German paratrooper units.