Historical Firearms

Battle for Arnhem, 89th FSS & the STEN
“ British paratroopers & Group Captain John Killick (far right) from the 89th Field Security Section with German prisoners outside the Dutch town of Arnhem (Arnhem). By Dutch photographer Sem Presser
”
Three of...

Battle for Arnhem, 89th FSS & the STEN

British paratroopers & Group Captain John Killick (far right) from the 89th Field Security Section with German prisoners outside the Dutch town of Arnhem (Arnhem). By Dutch photographer Sem Presser

Three of the men of the 89th FSS are seen here carrying the new STEN MkV, two men have the new bayonet fitted, during the battle for Arnhem Bridge.
Operation Market Garden was one of the first operations the new STEN saw action. Paratroopers were issued with a new bandolier which could carry up to 7 of the STEN’s 32-round stick magazines. While the MkV was little more than a cosmetic upgrade of the earlier MkII it was a weapon well suited to the airborne role. However at Arnhem the British Paratroops were left unsupported for too long and were forced to take on the brunt of the German counter attack on the bridge and town. Lightly armed paratroopers with only small arms and PIAT anti-tank weapons stood little chance against heavy German Infantry supported by armour, even so they held out for 9 days.

The role of the Field Security Section was to gather intelligence in the field, to interrogate and search prisoner, to search captured enemy positions and to search out and arrest suspected collaborators on the ground. The FSS sections were deployed with every British force, from North Africa to Asia to France, Holland and Belgium in 1944. The 89th FSS jumped with the British 1st Airborne Division when they attacked the bridge at Arnhem during Operation Market Garden, Once landed Captain Killick and his team were to capture Dutch collaborators but were unable to due to unexpected enemy resistance as such they joined the fighting with the rest of the division defending the perimeter around the bridge. Many of the FSS team were killed or captured when the perimeter collapsed and British forces in Arnhem surrendered on the 26th September.

Image Source One

10 years ago Reblogged from Historical Firearms 54 notes

Weekly Recap

This week saw a special focus on the legendary British STEN Gun, with a series of 12 posts explaining its origins, evolution, how it worked and how it was made. There were also a quite a few posts this week looking at more general military history with posts on the early evolution of light infantry tactics and also the action which won the Second World War’s first Victoria Cross. There was also new installment of the ‘The Gun That Killed…’ series in honour of the 148th anniversary of President Lincoln’s assassination.
Once again thanks for all the likes, reblogs and for following the page! As always if you have any suggestions or messages feel free to get in touch here.

Pistols:

Type 64 Silenced Pistol

Submachine Guns:

BSA Thompson 1926

STEN Gun Series:

STEN MkI
Chalk & Cheese: Britain’s Submachine Guns - The STEN & Lanchester
STENs By The Lorry Load
George VI’s STEN
STEN MkII Bayonet
Winston Churchill & The STEN Gun
STEN MkIV (Prototype)
The Silenced STENs
How The STEN Works
STEN Production
The STEN Influence & Clones
Battle for Arnhem, 89th FSS & the STEN
The Last STEN
Evolution of the STEN Gun

Miscellaneous History:

British Infantry at the Battle of Mons

First Victoria Cross of World War Two

Light Infantry in 18th Century North America

Steam & Sail (HMS Victory & Duke of Wellington c.1890)

Historical Trivia

Scope Shortage

The Gun That Killed:

President Abraham Lincoln: Philadelphia Deringer

Ordnance of the Week:

RPG-29

_______________________________________________________

If you have any requests for firearms you like to see on the page then please feel free to let me know!

11 years ago 14 notes

The Last STEN

In late 1943 it was decided that an improved quality STEN was needed. The urgency and desperateness of Britain’s position had improved as the tide of the war had turned. The US had entered the war, the Axis wave had been turned back in both North Africa and in Russia and pressure on British Industry from the Blitz had eased.

The STEN had always been a stopgap measure, it had been designed as such. It had been a rough and ready mass produced weapon which had seen action in every corner of the globe. It had fought the Japanese in the jungles of the Far East, it had helped repulsed Rommel's Afrika Corps, it had armed thousands of partisans, resistance fighters, marquis and clandestine agents in occupied Europe.
Of the 4.5 million STENs built during the war over 2 million of them were of the simplest patterns, the MkII & MkIII. The rough stamped finish had drawn jokes and criticism and earned it the nickname ‘the plumber’s abortion’. It was this reputation of poor quality that the Royal Small Arms Factory now sought to address with the refurbished MkV.

It benefited from a new stock, improved sights, a new enameled finish, front and rear pistol grips and a new bayonet fitting. It first saw action in significant numbers during Operation Market Garden during the British 1st Airborne Division's attack on Arnhem. It was issued to the majority of the parachute and glider borne British infantry, the photographs above show paratroops armed with the MkV moving through bombed out buildings in Arnhem and in defensive positions in front of Oosterbeek.

The MkV remained in service with the British Army after the end of the war, and saw action during the Malayan Emergency, the Suez Crisis and the increasing troubles in Northern Ireland well into the 1960s until its slow replacement by the Sterling L2 was completed.

Image 1-4 Source
Image Five Source
Image Six Source

11 years ago 96 notes

Tagged: #STEN #STEN GUN #SMG #Firearms #WWII #World War Two #Second World War #Submachine Gun #Operation Market Garden #Battle of Arnhem #Paratroops #Sten MkV #History #Military History #Royal Small Arms Factory

Battle for Arnhem, 89th FSS & the STEN
“ A party of British paratroopers led Group Captain John Killick (just out of frame) of the 89th Field Security Section with German prisoners outside the Dutch town of Arnhem (Arnhem). By Dutch photographer Sem...

Battle for Arnhem, 89th FSS & the STEN

A party of British paratroopers led Group Captain John Killick (just out of frame) of the 89th Field Security Section with German prisoners outside the Dutch town of Arnhem (Arnhem). By Dutch photographer Sem Presser

Three of the men of the patrol are seen here carrying the new STEN MkV and two men have the new bayonet fitted, during the battle for Arnhem Bridge.
Operation Market Garden was one of the first operations the new STEN saw action. Paratroopers were issued with a new bandolier which could carry up to 7 of the STEN’s 32-round stick magazines. While the MkV was little more than a cosmetic upgrade of the earlier MkII it was a weapon well suited to the airborne role. However at Arnhem the British Paratroops were left unsupported for too long and were forced to take on the brunt of the German counter attack on the bridge and town. Lightly armed paratroopers with only small arms and PIAT anti-tank weapons stood little chance against heavy German Infantry supported by armour, even so they held out for 9 days.

Captain Killick leading his patrol through Arnhem (source)

The role of the Field Security Section was to gather intelligence in the field, to interrogate and search prisoner, to search captured enemy positions and to search out and arrest suspected collaborators on the ground. The FSS sections were deployed with every British force, from North Africa to Asia to France, Holland and Belgium in 1944. The 89th FSS jumped with the British 1st Airborne Division when they attacked the bridge at Arnhem during Operation Market Garden. Once landed Captain Killick and his team were to capture Dutch collaborators but were unable to due to unexpected enemy resistance and the scattering of their party.

The patrol led by Killick was in an effort to find two of his section who were missing. The patrol was unsuccessful and as such they joined the fighting with the rest of the division defending the perimeter around the bridge. Many of the FSS team were killed or captured when the perimeter holding the bridgehead collapsed on the 21st September. This is when Captain Killick was taken prisoner, handing over his MkV Sten and a Luger P08 pistol he had recovered from Generalfeldmarschall Walter Model’s head quarters at Arnhem’s Tafelberg Hotel. By the 26th September the remaining British airborne forces had withdrawn marking the end of Operation Market Garden.

Sources:

Image Source One
Source
Thanks to Mark Pitt for further information

11 years ago 54 notes

Tagged: #Battle of Arnhem #Operation Market Garden #Paratroops #British Airborne #STEN #SMG #Inteligence Section #Field Security Section #PIAT #FSS #Second World War #World War Two #History #Military History #Airborne Troops #Sten MkV #Field Marshal Walter Model #editied #updated