Winston Churchill, impressed by the actions of the German airborne forces in Crete in 1941, led to the formation of the first British airborne units. The first such unit was a parachute regiment, and the first operation was carried out by British paratroopers in 1942. The 1st Parachute Division was formed a year earlier, and two years later (in 1943) the 6th Parachute Division. It should be added that along with these two divisions there was also the 2nd separate parachute brigade formed in 1942. Both British Parachute Divisions had between four and five Parachute-Glider Infantry Brigades and support units such as anti-tank troops, a light tank unit or engineer and sapper units. British paratroopers fought both during the battles in North Africa (1942-1943), and during the landings in Sicily and in Southern Italy (1943), and during the battles in Normandy (1944) or during the unsuccessful operation "Market Garden » (1944). They were also used in the crossing of the Rhine (1945) and in the last battles in Germany.
