Legacy of Liberation: Arnhem 1944

80 years on, we mark the anniversary of one of the Allies' most daring offensives of the Second World War: Operation Market Garden and the Battle for Arnhem.

The Battle of Arnhem

Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery

Image: War graves of the Battle of Arnhem at Arnhem Oosterbeek Cemetery

At the time, Operation Market Garden was the largest airborne assault in history and one of the Allies’ most ambitious operations of the Second World War. 

Now, eight decades later, the serried white CWGC headstones at Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery show the cost of liberation for the men who fought and fell for “A Bridge Too Far”.

In September 1944, British and Polish forces were defeated in Arnhem, one of the key crossing points of the Rhine.

During the desperate fighting, more than 1,000 men from the British 1st Airborne Division and Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade were killed.

After the battle, hastily made war graves could be found in and around Arnhem: in the town and its rubble; in the woods and fields that ring the city. The dead remained there until Arnhem was finally liberated in April 1945.

Image: The original graves markets in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, circa 1945

With the town free of its Nazi occupiers, British Grave Registration Units arrived and shortly began creating a permanent resting place.
Thousands of Arnhem veterans returned in the summer of 1945 to take part in the filming of Theirs Is the Glory.

By this time, the nascent Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery had begun to take shape.

On the anniversary of Operation Market Garden, the veterans visited their comrades at the new burial ground. A short service was held where townsfolk joined the airborne soldiers in remembering those who had fallen the previous year.

Today, eight decades on, Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery is the focal point for remembering the Battle of Arnhem. Each year, thousands of people travel from across the globe to visit and pay their respects each September.

Image: Flower girls lay flowers on the graves in Oosterbeek War Cemetery, c. 1945 (© IWM)

Local children to this day lay flowers on Oosterbeek’s war graves in tribute to their sacrifice in the attempted liberation of Arnhem.

Operation Market Garden

What was Operation Market Garden?

Image: Map of Operations for Operation Market Garden

In the summer of 1944, the Allies were high off their crushing victory in the Battle of Normandy. After D-Day, the Allies, spearheaded by British, Canadian, and US armies, had decisively defeated the Wehrmacht forces in France and liberated Paris.

Confidence was high among senior Allied commanders, but they were divided on how to advance.

British General Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery suggested a daring new operation.

Aiming to bypass the heavy defences along the French-German border, Montgomery suggested a rapid strike through the southern Netherlands to turn and open a route into Germany through the north.

This was Operation Market Garden.

The strategy called for a major advance undertaken by tanks and infantry up the southern Netherlands through Eindhoven to Arnhem.

Ahead of this force, two American and one British airborne division would be dropped behind enemy lines to capture important bridges at Grave, Nijmegen and, crucially, Arnhem.

If successful, Operation Market Garden had the potential to bring a swift end to the war in Europe, but the risks were high.

British 1st Airborne had the toughest task: capturing the road bridge at Arnhem and holding it until relieved. Arnhem was some sixty miles away from the Allied start line.

Montgomery expected Allied tanks to reach Arnhem in two days. The commander of British Airborne forces felt they could hold on, at most, for four.

17 September 1944: The First Day

Image: Men of the 1st Parachute Division on their way to Arnhem for Operation Market Garden (© IWM)

On the morning of 17 September 1944, citizens across south and eastern England awoke to the low rumble of thousands of Allied aircraft en route to Arnhem. 

1st Parachute Brigade began landing at Drop Zone X between Heelsum and Wolfheze around 2 pm. Glider-borne troops had already arrived.

Image: Gliders litter the landing zones around Arnhem (© IWM)

The first wave of British troops landed some eight miles to the west of Arnhem. A shortage of transport aircraft meant 4th Parachute Brigade and the remaining glider troops would land the following day. Polish paratroopers would land later still.

On the ground, the tanks of British XXX Corps, the armoured spear tip, ignited their engines and began their advance.

Stiff opposition saw nine tanks taken out almost immediately but XXX Corps was able to punch a hole through the initial German line and began their advance.

Elsewhere, US paratroopers of 101st Airborne had secured most of its objectives but had failed to prevent the Wehrmacht from destroying the canal bridge at Son.

Driver Robert Claude Bondy 

Image: Driver Robert Claude Bondy (copyright unknown)

The son of Charles and Florence Bondy, and husband of Ivy, Robert Bondy was a jeep driver tasked with keeping supplies flowing to the front line. He was one of the thousands of servicemen aboard the planes in the first wave of the Arnhem landings.

Robert had first enlisted in the Army Service Corps during the Second World War and then volunteered to join the airborne forces.

Instead of parachuting into action, Charles was one of many aboard a glider, a wooden aircraft that was towed behind an aeroplane and then released to glide gently to the ground.

Robert was killed when his glider crashed: one of only a handful which did not land safely. He was buried by his comrades near the crash site and in July 1946 he was laid to rest in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery.

Lieutenant Peter Cane

Image: Lieutenant Peter Cane (copyright unknown)

As the 17th went on, landing zones around Arnhem became hotbeds of military activity. 

Hundreds of gliders littered the moors and heaths around Oosterbeek while paratroopers formed up into squads and sections for the advance on Arnhem.

At first, the Airborne was met by cheering groups of jubilant Dutch citizens. Very soon, they began to encounter less welcoming German soldiers.

Lieutenant Peter Cane of 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment, was 25 when he touched down at Arnhem.

A native of Reading, Berkshire, Peter was already a combat veteran by September 1944, with experience in Italy and Sicily.

Peter was leading his men towards Arnhem when his unit came across a group of Wehrmacht soldiers. Peter was struck by a bullet almost immediately. Mortally wounded, Peter continued to encourage his men with cries of “Charge the bastards!”. 

After the brief fire fight, his men found they could do nothing to save Peter. He died shortly after and was buried nearby. After the war, Peter was moved to Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery.

Reaching Arnhem Bridge

Image: British paratroopers cautiously advance in Arhnem (© IWM)

As the first day of Operation Market Garden wore on, it became clear that the British were not just up against Arnhem’s garrison. 

The elite 9th and 10th SS panzer divisions were in Arnhem to refit and were soon ordered into action.

Just 750 or so men of 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment, had made it to Arnhem Bridge.

Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John Frost, the paras secured the town-end of the bridge and dug in.

Far from Arnhem, the tanks and infantry of XXX Corps were behind schedule. Undermanned and with no hope of rapid relief, the paras were on their own.

18-20 September 1944: Courage

Image: The tanks of XXX Corps making their way up "Hell's Highway" (© IWM)

Over the next few days, the ground forces made determined attempts to break through and reach the beleaguered paratroopers holding Arnhem Bridge.

More airborne were landing outside Arnhem, but German armour and infantry blocked their route to their comrades. 

Lieutenant John Grayburn VC

Image: Lieutenant John Grayburn VC (copyright unknown)

For the soldiers holding Arnhem Bridge, events had descended into a bitter struggle for survival. Ammunition, food, and water were beginning to dwindle.

Lieutenant John Grabyurn’s platoon had reached Arnhem Bridge at nightfall on the 17th and in the darkness proceeded to launch an attack across it.

The soldiers under Lieutenant Grayburn were met with a hail of machine gun fire with brightly coloured tracer bullets ricocheting off the bridge’s ironwork. With no cover, the platoon suffered terrible casualties.

John was hit in the shoulder but fought on, ordering the survivors to retreat. John was the last man off the bridge.

For the next two days, John and his soldiers fought for survival in a forward position near the bridge’s north end. John was wounded again but continued to lead, encourage, and inspire his men.

Finally, on 20 September, a German tank came up on the bridge. The lightly armed paratroopers had no means to fight off the armoured beast, forcing Lieutenant Grayburn to order a retreat.

Filthy, exhausted, with his head bandaged and his arm in a sling, John rose from the rubble to direct the evacuation. He was hit and killed almost instantly, aged 26.

For his supreme courage, leadership, and devotion to duty, John Grayburn was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for gallantry in action. 

Captain Lionel Queripel VC

Image: Captain Lionel Queripel VC (copyright unknown)

While the men of 2nd Battalion were engaged in their life-or-death struggle at Arnhem, their comrades were fighting a desperate battle on the town’s outskirts to reach them.

One group was led by Captain Lionel Queripel of 10th Battalion, Parachute Regiment.

Lionel had graduated from Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in January 1939 and had seen intense action before Market Garden. 

Lionel had been evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940, before going on to fight in North Africa and Italy before returning to England.

At Arnhem, Lionel and his men were advancing up a road when they came under heavy fire, pinning them down.

Braving enemy fire, Lionel ran from each side of the road to organise and coordinate the soldiers under him.

Despite being hit in the face, he managed to rescue an injured British paratrooper, bringing them back to an improvised aid post, before personally leading the assault on the German position.

With ammunition now scarce and German numbers increasing, Captain Queripel ordered his men to fall back. Wounded in both arms and the face, Lionel said he would hold the position alone. He was never seen alive again.

Lionel Queripel was another of Arnhem’s posthumous Victoria Crosses. His body was recovered, and, in August 1945, he was interred in Arnhem Oosterbeek Military Cemetery.

21-24 September: Determination 

Image: A British Officer defends 1st Airborne's HQ at the Hartenstein Hotel, Oosterbeek (© IWM)

By the end of 20 September, the situation on the bridge had become untenable. 

10,000 British paratroopers were meant to hold the bridge for two days. Just 750 had arrived, lightly armed and supplied, and held on for three days and four nights. 

The last radio message from the bridge simply stated: “Out of ammunition. God save the King”.

On the night of 20 September, Lt. Col Frost gave the order to pull back over the Rhine.

81 British soldiers had died on Arnhem Bridge. Many more would be killed, wounded or captured at the Battle of Arnhem.

Elsewhere, the Airborne troops that had landed outside Arnhem and attempted to reach Frost and his men at the bridge had been held by unexpectedly stiff German resistance.

Image: British paratroopers prepare for yet another attack on the Oosterbeek Perimeter (© IWM)

They were being pushed back into a small perimeter around the Hartenstein Hotel in Oosterbeek, a village to the west of Arnhem.

On 21 September, the Polish Independent Parachute Brigade finally dropped into action. 

Image: Men of the Polish Independent Parachute Brigade preparing to board their transport aircraft to Arnhem (© IWM)

Delayed by the poor English weather, the Poles arrived to find German forces overrunning some of the drop zones.

Despite landing amidst a torrent of fire, the Poles soon established a perimeter on the south bank of the river at Driel, only a short distance from Arnhem.

Porucznick (Lieutenant) Stanislaw Antoni Slesicki

Image: Porucznick Stanislaw Slesicki (copyright unknown)

Born in Ciechenow, Poland, Stanislaw Slesicki was one of the first Polish paratroopers to arrive at Arnhem.

Like many of his countrymen, he had already had a remarkable war. He joined the Polish military in 1930 and fought to defend Poland from German invasion in 1939. 

He escaped via Hungary, Italy and France to continue the fight, volunteering for the new Polish paratrooper force being assembled in Scotland.

As dawn broke on 22 September the Germans began to bombard the newly arrived Polish soldiers. 

While discussing their options for getting across the river to reinforce the perimeter at Oosterbeek, a shell landed amongst the group. Stanislaw was killed instantly, and many others were wounded. 

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, including Stanislaw Slesicki.

The Arnhem Air War

Meanwhile, the skies above Arnhem had been alive with Allied aerial activity throughout the offensive.

With their supplies of food and ammunition running low, the men at Arnhem had to rely on the courage of Royal Air Force pilots to keep them supplied.

Unfortunately, faulty radios meant communication between ground and aircrews was negligible.

RAF heavy bombers couldn’t operate without endangering the soldiers on the ground with friendly fire without proper direction. Likewise, supply drops could not be properly coordinated.

Another problem for the airborne is, by the time the fighting had begun to concentrate around Oosterbeek, the original drop and supply zones had been overrun by the Wehrmacht. 

RAF-dropped supplies were finding their way into Wehrmacht hands with the German soldiers particularly impressed by the quality of Allied chocolate rations.

Wing Commander Graeme Harrison

Image: Wing Commander Harrison (far left) describes the situation over Arnhem (© IWM)

Wing Commander Graeme Harrison commanded 190 Squadron of the RAF during Market Garden. Over the first five days of the Battle of Arnhem, Graeme and his men flew almost 100 sorties to the Netherlands dropping paratroopers and supplies. 

It was dangerous work and they faced the constant threat of fighters and withering anti-aircraft fire.

Graeme was born in 1915 in Canada, but he grew up in Rustington, Sussex. He joined the RAF in the mid-1930s, and during the Second World War flew missions against the Japanese before being transferred to the UK. 

He flew sorties over Germany and was awarded the American Silver Star for leading US bomber groups against enemy targets. 

He took command of 190 Squadron in January 1944 and led them through the Normandy Campaign and Market Garden.

On 21 September, 190 Squadron set off for Arnhem once more. Their fighter cover was late and German aircraft pounced on the undefended bombers. Enemy fighters shot down fifteen and anti-aircraft fire brought down a further eight.

Nevertheless, the survivors continued to Arnhem. 

Graeme dropped his supplies to the waiting troops but while turning for home his aircraft was hit and crashed. All nine men aboard were killed. Graeme’s second daughter was born a few months later.

Originally buried near where the aircraft came down, in October 1945 Graeme was reburied in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery.

25-26 September: Tragedy

Image: British POWs are marched through the streets of Arnhem by German guards (© Bild)

Exhausted by days of constant fighting, the remaining British airborne troops at Oosterbeek were forced back into an ever-smaller pocket. 

There was no safe space to evacuate the wounded. Those who could still handle a weapon remained in the fight.

It was announced on 24 September that the remaining British soldiers at Oosterbeek should attempt to escape back across the Rhine.

The evacuation, codenamed Operation Berlin, was begun at 10:00 pm 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 any surviving paratroopers.

Under fire from German artillery mortars and machine guns, the last Allied soldiers gratefully accepted their ferry rides to safety.

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.

Corporal Anthony Lloyd

Image: Corporal Anthony Lloyd

Corporal Anthony Lloyd was from Penarth in Wales. He enlisted in the Royal Welsh Fusiliers before joining the Parachute Regiment. 

He served in North Africa where he was awarded the Military Medal for gallantry, and then fought in Sicily and Italy. He returned to the UK in early 1944 and was presented with his medal at Buckingham Place.

Anthony fought at Arnhem and was badly wounded, before being taken to the Regimental Aid Post at Kate ter Horst’s house. 

Kate had watched with joy as the airborne troops arrived on 17 September but had then spent the following days helping the constant stream of wounded who were brought to her home. 

She soon became known as the ‘Angel of Arnhem’. Injured soldiers crowded into her house but with supplies exhausted, there was little that she or medical staff could do.

Anthony was one of many who were too badly wounded to be taken across the river on the night of 25 September, and as dawn broke on the 26th, German soldiers moved in and captured those who had been left behind. 

Sadly, before German doctors could help him, Anthony succumbed to his wounds.

He was buried in the garden of Kate’s house alongside 56 others who had died there. In August 1945 he was laid to rest in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery.

The missing of Arnhem

More than 400 men who died in the Netherlands during Operation Market Garden have no known grave.

They are commemorated by name on the CWGC’s Groesbeek Memorial, near Nijmegen.

John Baskeyfield VC

Image: John Baskeyfield VC

Born in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, John worked as a butcher until he was called up in 1942. He served with an anti-tank unit of the 2nd South Staffordshire Battalion and fought in North Africa, Sicily and Italy. 

On the third day of the Battle of Arnhem he was manning his gun when his position was attacked by German Tiger tanks.

These massive machines struck fear into all who faced them, but John and his comrades stood their ground. 

Two of the tanks were destroyed but one by one all his gun crew members were killed. 

Severely wounded, John manned the gun alone and continued to fire round after round. When a German shell knocked out his gun, John crawled to another. Weak from loss of blood and in terrible pain, he fired two more rounds before being killed. He was 22 years old.

Survivors passed on the story of John’s singlehanded stand and in November 1944 he was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for supreme gallantry beyond praise. 

When the army graves registration teams came to Arnhem in 1945 there was no sign of his final resting place. His name appears on panel 5 of the CWGC Groesbeek Memorial to the Missing.

"Missing" was often the hardest news for families to hear and some struggled to accept that their loved one had simply vanished.

John’s parents could not come to terms with the thought that their hero son had no known grave and made a special pilgrimage to Arnhem. 

Their heart-breaking story was told in the Daily Express on the anniversary of his death. The article began with the words "The two saddest people in Arnhem tonight are the parents of John Baskeyfield".

All day they had walked amongst the graves in the newly made Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery hoping to find his name, his mother proudly wearing his Victoria Cross.

Finally, they decided to lay their flowers on the grave of an unknown soldier.

Discover the Legacy of Liberation with Commonwealth War Graves

The Legacy of Liberation marks the 80th anniversaries of several pivotal moments during the Second World War. 

From Kohima and Imphal to the D-Day Landings, the Legacy of Liberation remembers these remarkable events.

Join us to mark these historic moments. Visit The Legacy of Liberation today to learn more.