American C-47 aircraft flying over Gheel in Belgium on their way to Holland for Operation 'Market-Garden', 17 September 1944.

In the summer of 1944, Allied commander Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery suggested a daring new operation. Hoping to bypass the well-prepared enemy defences along the German border, he suggested a lightning strike through the Netherlands to open a path into northern Germany. Ahead of advancing tanks and infantry, two American and one British airborne division would be dropped deep behind enemy lines to secure vital bridges at Grave, Nijmegen and Arnhem.

Success could bring a swift end to the war in Europe, but the risks were high. The toughest task fell to the British 1st (Airborne) Division which would be dropped near Arnhem, some sixty miles beyond Allied start lines. Montgomery expected the tanks to reach them in two days; the commander of British airborne forces felt they could perhaps hold out for four.

The first day

On the morning of 17 September 1944, the residents of the Cambridgeshire village of March, and of Hatfield in Hertfordshire, awoke to see thousands of aircraft in the skies above them.

As the day went on, the landing zones became hives of activity; hundreds of gliders littered the landscape near Oosterbeek, on the western edge of Arnhem. Paratroopers began their advance to the bridge. At first, they were met by cheering crowds of local people but soon they began to encounter the German troops.

As the day wore on it became apparent that the British troops were not just fighting the local garrison but soldiers of the 9th and 10th SS Panzer Divisions. These elite tank formations happened to be refitting in the area and now they were ordered into action.

By evening on the first day only 750 men of 2nd Bn, The Parachute Regiment, had made it to the bridge. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John Frost, they dug in and hoped that reinforcements would arrive soon. Far from Arnhem, the tanks and infantry that should have been charging through the Netherlands to reach them were far behind schedule. The paratroopers at Arnhem were on their own.

Over the next three days the soldiers at the landing zones tried desperately to break through to the men at the bridge but they were blocked by German tanks and soldiers. Outnumbered and outgunned, the paratroopers fought on courageously.

18 to 20 September

With most of the airborne soldiers fighting on the outskirts of Arnhem, those at the bridge fought a desperate battle of survival.

Despite their radio’s failing, the men of the 2nd Battalion soon realised they were cut off from their comrades. An SS Reconissance division, likely in the dark about the presence of British forces on the bridge, attempted a crossing from the south – all 22 of their vehicles were destroyed in the attempt. Other probing attacks were beaten off, but the position was getting desperate for the paratroopers.

German attacks on their positions grew in strength with air and armour support. Surrounded, and with supplies dwindling, the British forces continued to take casualties, slowly but surely wearing down their ability to fight.

In the meantime, the British troops not on the bridge recovered to Oosterbeek, to the west of Arnhem. Like their comrades on the bridge, they were under pressure from German forces on all sides.

21 to 24 September

The position on the bridge was now in dire straits. Despite the courage and sacrifice of the British paratroops there, they could do no more, and the survivors surrendered. Almost all were wounded, including their tenacious leader John Frost, but nevertheless, those who could marched in good order into captivity.

There was now little that the troops on the outskirts of Arnhem could do except hold on and hope help would come. Determined that the sacrifices of their comrades should not be in vain, they fought a brutal and often confused battle to hold an ever-shrinking perimeter around the landing zones on the outskirts of Arnhem at Oosterbeek. Help, however, was on its way. On the morning of 21 September, the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade set off for Arnhem. They had little knowledge of what awaited them.

Since the first day of Operation Market Garden the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade had been waiting to go into action. Delayed by bad weather in England, they were finally able to join the fight at Arnhem on 21 September. The first Poles arrived under intense enemy fire, but they soon established themselves on the south bank of the river at Driel, across the water from the Oosterbeek battle.

Over the next few days, more than 1,500 Polish troops were dropped at Driel. They fought their own desperate battle against the Germans, all the while attempting to get men across the river to Oosterbeek.

More than 200 Polish servicemen were killed or captured during the Battle of Arnhem. Nearly 80 now rest in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery.

25 to 26 September

Throughout the last days of the Battle of Arnhem the relieving force continued to fight at close quarters with German forces in the towns south of Arnhem, desperately pushing to link up with their surrounded airborne comrades.

Exhausted by days of constant fighting, the surviving airborne troops at Arnhem were forced back inch by inch into a smaller and smaller pocket. There was no safe place to take the wounded, and those who could still hold a weapon often remained in the fight. On 24 September it was decided that all who could be moved would attempt to escape across the river.

Codenamed Operation Berlin, the evacuation began at 2200 hours on 25 September. Royal Engineers and Royal Canadian Engineers made dozens of trips back and forth across the river at Driel in small boats to collect the survivors. Bedraggled groups of men appeared on the dark river bank and were gratefully ferried across to safety, under fire from German artillery and machine guns.

As dawn broke on 26 September, the last boats returned to the relative safety of the southern shore. Although 2,500 men had been saved more than 6,000 had been left behind.

Aftermath

Operation Market Garden had been a costly failure. Commonwealth tank crews and infantry had suffered almost 1,500 casualties fighting their way through the Netherlands, while the American airborne divisions had taken a further 4,000 killed, wounded and missing. The British 1st Airborne Division was effectively destroyed. More than 10,000 Commonwealth and Polish troops had been dropped at Arnhem and in nine days of fighting, 1,500 had been killed and more than 6,500 captured.

The cheering crowds of Dutch citizens who greeted the paratroopers on the first day were forced to flee or find shelter while the battle raged about them and more than 450 were killed. Afterwards, the entire population of more than 100,000 people were forcibly evicted from their homes by the Germans and many did not return until after the war.

For the Germans this was a remarkable victory. With their forces retreating on every front, success against an elite British airborne division was reported in every German newspaper and on every radio station across the Third Reich. Instead of shortening the war, Operation Market Garden had lifted German spirits, and the Allies would have to fight their way into Germany.

Arnhem WW2 facts - your questions answered

What happened on September 21st, 1944 in Arnhem? 

21 September was the breaking point for the operation. Despite the introduction of the Polish Brigade, the forces who held the bridge were captured, and the focus of the operation switched to saving as many men as possible and withdrawing from Arnhem.

It would take several more day of intense fighting at Oosterbeek before the eventual withdrawal across the river. 

Why was the Battle of Arnhem such a disaster? 

There is a combination of reasons that lead to the eventual failure of Market Garden and the Battle of Arnhem. Bad weather hampered much of the air support of the operation, preventing effective delivery of supplies and reinforcements after the original landing date.

Historians also suggest that the Allies suffered from poor information about the strength of the German forces in the region. The presence of two armoured divisions nearby stacked the decks against the Allies.

Once the operation was underway, a number of factors contributed to the eventual failure of the operation. The force moving north from Nijmegen found their progress hampered by the terrain and by the fierce German defence, unable to reinforce the airborne troops at Arnhem.

What British regiments fought at Arnhem? 

The airborne section of Operation Market Garden was the First Allied Airborne Army, a combined force of allied divisions.

It was made up of the 1st and 6th British Airborne division, the 101st, 82nd and 1st American Airborne divisions and the 1st Polish Parachute Brigade.

The ground forces consisted of the XXX Corps, VIII Corps and the XII Corps of the British Second Army, under the command of General Sir Miles Dempsey.

Why did the British lose so many men at Arnhem? 

Simply put, the troops at Arnhem were outnumbered, surrounded and were out of supplies. The fact that the battle lasted as long as it did is testament to the determination and bravery exhibited during the battle.

Losses, both in terms of casualties and those taken prisoner, were heavy - especially as many of the losses came from the highly trained airborne forces who could not quickly be replaced by the Allies. 

Who liberated Arnhem in WW2? 

Arnhem was finally liberated just a few weeks before the end of the Second World War in Europe, in April 1945.

The city was eventually liberated through Operation Anger – a combined British and Canadian operation beginning on 12 April.

With the benefit of artillery and air support, the attack was a lot more effective than Market Garden and the city was taken within four days of the initial assault, despite prepared German defensive positions.

What happened to the soldiers captured at Arnhem? 

Around 6000 Allied servicemen would end up being captured by the German forces during Operation Market Garden.

Upon capture, the prisoners would be moved to Prisoner of War (POW) camps in Germany. Prisoners were often separated into different camps due to their service or their rank. Major General John Frost, who’s battalion has taken the bridge at Arnhem was captured and sent to an officers’ camp, Oflag IX-A/H at Spangenberg castle. He survived until the end of the war.

Others were not so lucky and died while in captivity. Often they were buried at or near to their POW camp with many being reburied in cemeteries such as Reichswald Forest War Cemetery following the end of the war.

Is the bridge at Arnhem still there? 

Remarkably, the bridge across the lower Rhine survived Market Garden – but to prevent the German’s from using it, it was attacked and successfully destroyed by the US Army Air Force in October 1944.

After the liberation of Arnhem, a temporary bridge was put in place, but after the war, a permanent replacement was erected in 1948. The bridge is now known as the John Frost bridge – or John Frostbrug – in honour of John Frost and his valiant battalion.

 

All images © IWM unless otherwise indicated.

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