Market Garden in a nutshell

Market Garden in a nutshell

D-Day, June 6, 1944. Allied troops land on the beaches of Normandy.

Early September 1944. They have now advanced to the Franco-German border, liberated large parts of Belgium and are on the Dutch border. The question is how to penetrate the Ruhr area, the economic heart of Germany. And thereby: how to circumvent the Siegrfiedlinie, the German border defense between Kleve and the Swiss border.

The response is codenamed Market Garden. In a lightning action, airborne troops must capture all bridges over rivers and canals between the Belgian border and Arnhem, Operation Market. Thus the way must be cleared for the advance of a ground army with heavy equipment from the Belgian border toward the Zuiderzee (now IJsselmeer), Operation Garden. The aim is to cut off the German troops in the west of our country from their motherland and to clear the way for an Allied advance through Arnhem and the eastern Netherlands towards Germany.

Sunday, Sept. 17 marks the start of Market Garden, the largest military operation ever on Dutch soil. That day and the days after, some 35,000 American, British and Polish paratroopers are flown over by transport planes from England to their landing sites north of Eindhoven and Veghel, near Grave and Groesbeek and on the moors around Ede and Renkum. The transport planes dragged gliders along with jeeps, motor vehicles and other equipment.

The lightly armed paratroopers are expected to hold the bridges for up to three days. Then they must be liberated by the British 30th Army Corps with its tanks and other heavy artillery. That same Sunday afternoon begins its advance from the Belgian border.

The first day goes relatively well for the Allies. The bridge over the Meuse River near Grave falls into American hands fairly quickly, a British battalion manages to take control of the northern ramp of the Rhine Bridge at Arnhem. But there are setbacks, too. In Brabant, the Germans blow the bridge over the Wilhelmina Canal; it takes a day to recover it. German troops reach the Waal bridges near Nijmegen just before the Americans.
The following days the setbacks increase. In and Arnhem, the Germans are stronger than expected. They blow up the railroad bridge at Oosterbeek and manage to prevent more British from reaching the Rhine Bridge at Arnhem. Moreover, they manage to surround the British in Oosterbeek.

In the south, the advance of the ground army on the narrow roads is severely delayed because the broken down vehicles block the road. Heavy fighting ensues around the road bridge at Nijmegen, but the Germans hold out for the time being. Thus, three days pass.

Wednesday, Sept. 20, the Americans decide to row canvas boats across the Waal west of Nijmegen to take the Waal bridges via the north side. The crossing costs the lives of 48 Americans, but the plan succeeds: the railroad bridge and the road bridge are captured. In the early evening, the first British tanks drive from Nijmegen onto the bridge and then stop at Lent.

That same evening, the British must abandon their battle for the Arnhem bridge. It is now firmly in German hands again. Near Elst, they set up a line of defense, making any further advance by the Allies toward Arnhem impossible. On the night of Sept. 25-26, about 2,000 British are evacuated across the Rhine near Oosterbeek and transferred to Nijmegen. With that, Market Garden comes to an end.

The consequences were dire. Although part of the southern Netherlands is liberated, the actual goal is not achieved. The population of Arnhem and the surrounding area must evacuate, the Betuwe is flooded by the Germans as a natural buffer against the Allies. In the winter that follows, some 20,000 people die of hunger and cold in the western part of the country.

In February 1945, the Allies launch a new offensive against Germany, while the Russians have meanwhile captured large parts of the Third Reich. On May 8, Hitler Germany capitulates.