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Market Garden [Map]

Size: 5000x5000m
Last update: 05/10/2024

Operation Market Garden was one of the great 'What ifs' of the Second World War. The plan was simple: launch a dash through the Netherlands and cross the Rhine, enabling the Allies to pour into Germany from the North (bypassing the poor terrain on the Franco-German border and the German Siegfried Line). This could end the war by Christmas; ensuring the Western Allies (especially Britain) would take credit for the final victory over Germany. Success would have avoided the meat grinder of the Hurtgen Forrest; possibly avoided the Battle of the Bulge, of Aachen and the bloody fighting in Germany in 1945.

The Operation was never going to be easy. The Netherlands was full of wide rivers, impassable by vehicles, with few bridges suitable for heavy tanks to cross. To get a whole army and its logistical support through Holland, the massive road bridges of Grave, Nijmegen and Arnhem would need to be taken. The Germans knew this, and so had rigged the bridges to blow - if they were to be taken in tact, they would need to be taken quickly and by surprise. There was only one way to do this: an Airborne Operation.

Operation Market would require 3 Airborne divisions to secure the bridges along the highway to Arnhem. The US 101st Airborne Division would take the bridges to the North of Eindhoven, whilst the US 82nd Airborne would seize the Grave and Nijmegen bridges further along the highway. The British 1st Airborne Division, along with the Polish Independent Paratroop Brigade, would take and hold Arnhem Bridge itself.


The second part, Operation Garden, would see the British 2nd Army (with XXX Corps as its spearhead) drive from its starting position to the South of Eindhoven all the way to Arnhem, sticking to the single road known as 'Hell's Highway'. They would link up with the 101st in Eindhoven, carry on through Veghel and Uden, then meet the 82nd Airborne at Grave. There they would cross the Grave bridge, carry on to the enormous Nijmegen bridge and from there drive the short distance to Arnhem to meet up with 1st Airborne and the Poles. All in all, this was a journey of 60 miles, ideally taking only 48 hours - the paratroops in Arnhem, the last stop, would only have to hold out for 2 days before they could be relieved.

Operation Market began on September 17th and went initially well. The 101st was unable to prevent the bridge at Son from being destroyed, though being the smallest bridge involved in the operation this wasn't a decisive setback. The 82nd Airborne landed on the Groesbeek heights and successfully seized Grave Bridge, although General Gavin was too cautious to push onto Nijmegen - once his scouting party came under fire (from just a single machine gun) they withdrew and Gavin waited for the arrival of XXX Corps to seize the Bridge. At Arnhem, the town of Oosterbeek was successfully taken, and three battalions began pushing into Arnhem. One of these battalions, led by a certain John Frost, successfully avoided German troops and holed itself up into two dozen houses surrounding the Northern end of Arnhem Bridge.

Garden got off to a much worse start. XXX Corps only left late in the afternoon of the 17th, wasting very valuable time. Eindhoven was not reached until the 18th, and progress made along the highway was slow, the British tanks vulnerable to German ambushes at every point. In Arnhem, Frost's men successfully held off a German attack from the bridge, inflicting heavy losses on the Germans but using up most of their ammunition in the process.

Monday 18th came and went and XXX Corps was still nowhere near Arnhem. Tuesday 19th saw heavy fighting, both in Nijmegen and at Arnhem. The Germans flooded reinforcements into Nijmegen, meaning brutal street to street fighting was required for the British and US Troops to push their way towards the bridge. The next day the Americans would cross the Waal in flimsy boats to take the Bridge from the Northern side, showing immense bravery though suffering horrendously. Also on the 19th, Frost came under more attacks, losing most of the buildings to the East of the Bridge. The other 1st Airborne Units tried to break into Arnhem to meet up with Johnny Frost, but were mauled in the early hours and forced to withdraw.

By the 21st the position on the North of the Bridge was untenable. Frost was injured himself and the British units were forced to surrender, unable to fend of the German tank attacks. Despite the Polish landing to the South of Arnhem at Driel, and XXX Corps finally making its way to the city, they were all too late. The final bridge was under German control; it was one Bridge Too Far. The British made a valiant defence in Oosterbeek, but they were eventually evacuated on the 25th. 1st Airborne Division had been annihilated.

Operation Market Garden ended in failure.



Used DLCs:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2317930/Easy_Red_2_Normandy/