9th (Essex) Parachute Battalion

9th (Essex) Parachute Battalion

The 9th (Essex) Parachute Battalion was formed from the 10th Battalion The Essex Regiment in December 1942 and became part of the 3rd Parachute Brigade with the 6th Airborne Division in 1943. 

The Battalion was widely scattered during the D-Day drop on 6th June 1944 but, nevertheless, succeeded in storming the German gun battery at Merville, in an epic and costly action with a much diminished force. It fought around Breville and then participated in the break-out to the Seine in August. It fought in the Ardennes during the winter of 1944-5 and parachuted as part of the Rhine Crossings during Operation VARSITY in March 1945, subsequently advancing to the Baltic with the 3rd Parachute Brigade.

After the war it served in Palestine with the 6th Airborne Division and was amalgamated with the 8th Parachute Battalion when the 3rd Brigade was disbanded to form the 8th/9th Parachute Battalion in January 1948.

Commanding Officers:

1943-4        Lt Col M Lindsay
1944            Lt Col TBH Otway, DSO
1944-6        Lt Col N Crookenden, DSO
1946-7        Lt Col MAH Butler, DSO, MC
1947-8        Lt Col PC Hinde, DSO
1948            Lt Col JHM Hackett, DSO. (8th/9th Bn)

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