Band of Brothers is the 2001 HBO World War II miniseries produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg. Based on the best-selling book by the late historian Stephen Ambrose, the 10-part miniseries followed the men of "Easy" Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th PIR (Parachute Infantry Regiment) of the 101st Airborne Division from their basic training, through their jump into Normandy on D-Day and up until the capture of Hitler's Eagle's Nest. HBO, Spielberg, and Hanks would also chronicle America's involvement in the War in the Pacific in 2010's The Pacific.
The following weapons were used in the miniseries Band of Brothers:
The M1911A1 was the standard sidearm of US Forces during World War II. Issued to officers, NCOs and those in positions where a rifle or carbine was not desirable, the pistol quickly became a favored item among Allied troops because of its stopping power. The M1911A1 is seen in various episodes of Band of Brothers. In "Currahee" (Ep.1), it is the main weapon of choice for Capt. Herbert M. Sobel (David Schwimmer). David Webster (Eion Bailey) threatens a German baker with one in "Why We Fight" (Ep.9). In "Points" (Ep.10), Capt. Ronald Spiers (Matthew Settle) uses his M1911A1 to threaten both a German doctor and the drunk American soldier who shot Chuck Grant. Joe Leibgott (Ross McCall) uses an M1911A1 to shoot an ex-Concentration Camp Commandant in "Points" (Ep.10).
Floyd "Tab" Talbert (Matthew Leitch) is given a Colt New Service revolver as a gift on June 4th 1944 in "Currahee" (Ep. 1), he is seen armed with it in "Carentan" (Ep.3).
Also known as the "Tommy gun" or "Fast gun", the M1A1 Thompson was the standard issue submachine gun for US Forces in WWII. As such, many of Easy Company's officers and NCOs are shown carrying the Thompson as their standard weapon. Notable paratroopers who carry the weapon include Lt. (Later Capt.) Ronald Speirs (Matthew Settle), Lt. Harry Welsh (Rick Warden), Lt. Lynn "Buck" Compton (Neal McDonough), Sgt. William "Wild Bill" Guarnere (Frank John Hughes), and Sgt. Johnny Martin (Dexter Fletcher).
The M3A1 "Grease Gun" was the cheap, inexpensive replacement for the Thompson Sub Machine Gun; It is only shown in the hands of Roy Cobb (Craig Heaney). The use of the later M3A1 variant as opposed to the original M3 is anachronistic for the earlier episodes where they are fighting in France and Holland, as it was not introduced until December 1944.
Alton More uses an M1903A3 Springfield Rifle as his primary weapon, although he is never seen firing it. Another paratrooper uses an M1903A3 during the Carentan counter attack.
Interestingly, Smokey Gordon (Ben Caplan) carries an M1903A4 Springfield without a scope. Mainly for the lack of a front sight, along with a scope mount when Smokey turns his back. He might have retrieved the weapon while fighting with the 502nd. The scope might have been damaged for it to be removed, most likely due to the drop. This would make the rifle almost impossible to fire accurately.
Standard issue rifle of the US military during WWII, many of Easy Company's paratroopers are shown carrying the M1 Garand as their standard weapon. Most notable are Lieutenant (Later Captain/Major) Richard "Dick" Winters (Damian Lewis), Shifty Powers (Peter Youngblood Hills) and Joseph Liebgott (Ross McCall) and Patrick O'Keefe (Matt Hickey). The Garand can be seen with and without a bayonet.
The M1 Carbine is carried by 2nd Lt. Henry Jones (Colin Hanks) in the episode "The Last Patrol" (Ep.8). It is also seen carried by several US marines fighting in Okinawa in newsreel footage.
Originally issued to non-combat personnel or those who needed a compact weapon, the M1 Carbine was never meant to be a front-line weapon, nevertheless it was ideal for Airborne troops for its small frame and its compactness. The paratrooper version of the M1, identified as the M1A1 Paratrooper Carbine has the distinct collapsible buttstock and handgrips, is shown extensively throughout the series most notably in the hands of Donald Malarkey (Scott Grimes), Carwood Lipton (Donnie Wahlberg), Warren "Skip" Muck (Richard Speight, Jr.), Lt. Norman Dike (Peter O'Meara), George Luz (Rick Gomez), and Lt. (Later Capt.) Lewis Nixon (Ron Livingston).
The Lee-Enfield No.4 Mk.I rifle is shown briefly being carried over the shoulder of a British sentry in "Carentan" (Ep.3). French soldiers are seen with the rifles when German prisoners are rounded up in "Why We Fight" (Ep.9).
Error creating thumbnail: File missingLee-Enfield No.4 Mk.I - .303 British. This was the main battle rifle of British and Commonwealth forces during World War II, however, it was supplemented heavily with the older Lee-Enfield No.1 MK.III.Error creating thumbnail: File missingThe Lee-Enfield carried by a British sentry in "Carentan" (Ep.3).Error creating thumbnail: File missingA French soldier holds the Lee-Enfield rifle as German prisoners are rounded up and shot in "Why We Fight" (Ep.9).
Machine Guns
M1918A2 Browning Automatic Rifle
The Browning Automatic Rifle, or 'B.A.R' was the standard Squad Automatic Weapon for U.S. rifle squads in WWII. It is shown being primarily used by Cpl. Heron and in the hands of other Airborne troops. It's seen with and without a bipod.
The Browning M1919A4 .30 caliber machine gun is shown extensively in the hands of Easy company being used in both the defensive and offensive roles. The primary M1919A4 machine gun team of Easy Company in the series consisted of Smokey Gordon and Alton More. The 1919A4 is also shown being mounted on jeeps.
The Browning M1919A6 variant with stock and bipod is seen carried and used primarily by Burton 'Pat' Christensen (Michael Fassbender). It is incorrectly a post WWII model fitted with the conical flash hider/muzzle booster.
The Browning M2HB heavy machine gun can be seen throughout the series. The weapon is usually mounted on vehicles such as M4 Sherman tanks as seen in "Carentan" (Ep.3) or the M8 Greyhound Armored Car in "Why We Fight" (Ep.9). Also making a prominent appearance, especially in "The Last Patrol" (Ep.8) is the M51 Quad Mount which, though designed primarily for anti-aircraft use, had a devastating effect on ground targets and was available in either the towed or vehicle mounted versions (designated the M16 Quad Mount). In real life, Easy Company actually 'liberated' a M16 Quad some time after Bastogne which they took with them into Germany.
The M1 Rocket Launcher, affectionately known as the "Bazooka", was the standard anti-tank weapon for the US military during WWII. The Bazooka was excellent against bunkers and buildings, though its effectiveness against the more heavily armored German tanks is debatable. The weapon primarily seen in the series is the M1A1 variant, noted by the single grip. General Eisenhower remarked that "the Atom Bomb, Jeep, C-47 Sky Train and the Bazooka were the four weapons that won the war". The bazooka was copied by the Germans as the 'Panzerschreck' launcher from a M1 Bazooka captured in North Africa. Generally operated by a two man crew (one gunner, one loader) crews quickly figured out that they needed to hit the side, rear or belly armor of armored vehicles, as shown in the episode "Carentan" (the episode also shows how the bazooka rounds would simply deflect off the heavy frontal armor). The bazooka makes notable appearances in the series, being used by Sgt. Charles E. "Chuck" Grant (Nolan Hemmings) in the episode "Replacements" taking out a German machine gun and by John McGrath (Stephen Walters) and Harry Welsh (Rick Warden) in the episode "Carentan" disabling a German StuG III assault gun.
The Mk II Hand Grenade is used by several paratroopers in the series. Lt. Harry Welsh (Rick Warden) is seen using one to take out an MG42 team during the battle of Carentan. Paratroopers are seen piling Mk II Hand Grenades onto a enemy-made rock slide in an attempt to blow a hole in the roadblock.
In "Crossroads" (Ep.5), Cpt. Winters is seen throwing a smoke grenade (most likely an M18 smoke grenade repainted to look like the period-correct M16) for red smoke to signal the charge.
In "Points" (Ep.10), the Airborne paratroopers watch newsreel footage of the war in Pacific. In the footage, a US Marine is seen using an M2 Flamethrower.
The M2 Mortar is one of the close support weapons used by Easy Company. The members of the M2 Mortar team primarily seen were Sgt. Donald Malarkey (Scott Grimes) and Sergeant Warren "Skip" Muck (Richard Speight Jr.) and Private First Class Alex Penkala (Tim Matthews).
Bofors 40mm anti aircraft guns are seen in Episode 1. They are deployed at the Upottery Airfield in England where the C-47 airplanes take off for the airborne Normandy invasion.
A standard sidearm of German Forces during WWI and still in use in WWII, the Luger P08 was a prized and coveted souvenir for Allied forces because of its elegant design. Malarkey is seen hunting around for one notably in "Day of Days" (Ep.2). In "The Breaking Point" (Ep.7), Corporal Hoobler (Peter McCabe) kills a Waffen SS officer who has one, and later in the episode, it discharges in his pocket, which makes a fatal wound by hitting his femoral artery. It is later given to Sergeant Malarkey (Scott Grimes), who wanted one to bring home to his little brother. The real gun Hoobler found was a Belgian .32 and was not given to Malarkey.
In the Band of Brothers companion documentary "We Stand Alone Together", the real Maj. Winters displays the Walther PP pistol he received from a surrendering German Major. Winters discovered the gun had never been fired, and said that it would remain that way. Richard Winters passed away on January 2, 2011.
The MP40 was the most common submachine gun used by German forces during WWII. Popular culture has portrayed the MP40 as the most common weapon in the hands of WW2 German soldiers; this is actually incorrect, as the bolt-action Kar 98 was more common. This is correctly depicted in the show, not being put in the hands over every German soldier. In "Day of Days" (Ep.2), Sgt. Carwood Lipton captures one and carries it briefly in the episode.
The main battle rifle for German armed forces was the Karabiner 98k. Lt. Winters uses a captured K98k when he loses his M1 Garand on D-Day, in "Day of Days" (Ep.2). A German sniper is also seen using a scoped K98k against advancing Easy Company men during the battle of Foy in the episode "The Breaking Point" (Ep.7).
During the siege of Bastogne in "The Breaking Point" (Ep.7), German soldiers are seen using the new Sturmgewehr 44. A Sturmgewehr 44 is also seen on a German-weapon familiarization wall in "Curahee" (Ep.1), which is anachronistic being that the Sturmgewehr 44 would not have been encountered until two years later.
In the mini-series, the MG42 is seen multiple times, being fired from window openings in towns, and in stand-offs with the German armoured vehicles in the advance into France. Most notably, the mini-series did not fail to demonstrate or imply the demoralizing effect of the gun on U.S. troops, and this is a notable achievement for the film-makers, who added this realistic view, which before, had never been seen in such vivid detail in any previous war-film, barring of course, documentaries with actual war-time footage.
In "Day of Days" (Ep.2), Lt. Winters improvises the disabling of the four 105mm Gebirgshaubitze 40 howitzers at Brecourt Manor by shoving Model 24 Stielhandgranate "Potato Mashers" into the bore. One lands next to Joe Toye and Popeye Wynn nearly blowing them up, during the same battle.
A later-model Panzerschreck is seen discarded in a pile of of debris in "Bastogne" (Ep.6); Bernard J. 'Doc' Ryan and Pvt. Edward 'Babe' Heffron walk past it while headed to Third Battalion's position in search of medical supplies.
German Fallschirmjägers use a 3.7 cm Pak 35/36 in "Carentan" (Ep.3) firing the late war 3.7 cm Stielgranate 41, a shaped charge anti tank round developed to make the outdated 37mm guns useful again. The 3.7 cm Stielgranate 41 was slid over the muzzle of gun and fired with a special blank round, much the same as smaller rifle grenades. While the oversize warhead's massive power allowed to to kill any Allied tank, it reduced the weapon's range and accuracy.
