The 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion was formed from the 2nd/4th Battalion The South Lancashire Regiment in May 1943 and belonged to the 5th Parachute Brigade of the 6th Airborne Division.
It jumped into Normandy on D-Day 6th June 1944 remaining in the line until the final break-out to the Seine in August.
During the heavy winter fighting in 1944-5 in the Ardennes 'Battle of the Bulge' the 13th Battalion was tasked to capture the village of Bure, which it accomplished after a costly three-day battle. It participated in the Rhine Crossing Operation VARSITY air assault and advanced across Germany with the 5th Parachute Brigade to the Baltic.
After the war in Europe the Battalion moved with the 5th Brigade to the Far East. It was during this period in Singapore that 258 men of the 13th Battalion refused to obey orders at Muar Camp due to conditions and were charged with mutiny. In the subsequent trial 3 men were acquitted, 8 sentenced to 5 years, and the remainder given 2 years. However, after much publicity in the UK with 10s of thousands of people signing petitions, 2 days later the sentences were quashed.
Later the Battalion returnied to rejoin the 6th Airborne Division in Palestine in 1946, where it was disbanded and absorbed into the 3rd Parachute Battalion.
In 1947 the Battalion reformed as the 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion (TA).
Commanding Officers:
1943 Lt Col Russell
1943-6 Lt Col PJ Luard, DSO, OBE
1946 Lt Col R Leyland
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