Jewish Battalions in Italy

Jewish Cap Badge The Jewish Battalions
With William Sariego

On the eve of the Second World War the government of Neville Chamberlain issued the infamous “White Paper”, which abandoned the idea of partitioning Britain’s Palestinian Mandate for a Jewish homeland and severely limited Jewish immigration to Palestine.  Even after war was declared and the Empire mobilized, Britain was slow to realize this manpower resource against the Axis Powers, and did not recruit Jewish soldiers.

Despite this, David Ben-Gurion, a leading Zionist and future Prime Minister of Israel would eloquently sum up the position of many Palestinian Jews when he said, "We will fight the White Paper as if there is no war, and fight the war as if there is no White Paper."

Road To Rome
Road To Rome covers covers the Allied forces that fought in Italy. It contains British and Commonwealth forces for the Eighth Army, Polish forces of the II Polish Corps, US forces of the Fifth Army, and the French of the French Expeditionary Corps.

Find out more about Road To Rome here...

Road To Rome
After the fall of France, Winston Churchill was far more pragmatic.  In her darkest hour, he would rally all of England’s sons to the Union Jack. By September of 1940, some 15 Jewish Battalions had been incorporated into the British army. Some were used for garrison duty, freeing up British troops for use elsewhere and many were in the thick of combat in the Middle East and Africa, from Syria to Tunisia. Several battalions were committed to Greece and suffered heavy casualties in the Allied fiasco there. 

Italy would be their next theatre of operations, with an actual Brigade being formed in September of 1944. Dismissed at first as a token unit by some critics, the Jewish Brigade Group, consisting of the 1st through 3rd Palestinian Regiments and supported by the 200th Royal Field Artillery Regiment, would render great service to the Allied cause in the final offensives of 1945. When the curtain closed on this most tragic period of the Jewish people‘s long history, some 30,000 had taken up arms against Nazi tyranny.

On Parade in Africa
Jewish Platoons use all British special rules except Carry On, Sergeant or British Bulldog. Instead they use the following:
Mortarmen

Warriors of Gideon
Living in the harsh conditions of the Middle East breeds men who are quite hardy and hale.

Infantry and Man-packed Gun teams move 16”/40cm instead of the normal 12”/30cm when moving At the Double.

Hear O Israel, the Lord thy God is one
The staff of a company command in a Jewish rifle company includes the company rabbi.  This inspirational figure helps motivate the troops.

Any Combat, Weapons or Brigade Support Platoon of a Jewish Rifle Company joined by 2iC Command team passes all Motivation tests on a 3+. If the 2iC Command team leaves the platoon it immediately reverts back to its original Motivation rating.


Road To Rome Digital Exclusive Briefing

Jewish Brigade Group Rifle Company
A digital-exclusive briefing for a Jewish Brigade Group Rifle Company can be found in Forces Of War, the Flames Of War online company builder, and the Flames Of War Digital app.
Forces Of War
Flames Of War Digital


Last Updated On Thursday, November 26, 2015 by James at Battlefront