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17-26 September 1944 Operation Market-Garden |
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As German forces retreated eastward a difference of opinion emerged
between Eisenhower and the senior British commander, Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery. The
former favored a relatively slow offensive that pushed all along the German lines, while the latter
argued for trying to break the enemy lines in a series of concentrated thrusts, then rushing onward
to capture certain strategic points. For the most part Eisenhower overruled Montgomery, but did
authorize him to deploy three airborne divisions, plus a Polish parachute brigade, in an attempt
to seize the bridge across the Rhine River at the city of Arnhem, in the Netherlands.
The attack took place on September 17 and initially achieved its objective. However, the Allies hadn’t reckoned on the presence of two German elite armored divisions in the area, which launched a deadly counterattack over the next several days. On the 21st they managed to retake the bridge at Arnhem, leaving the British 1st Airborne Division cut off east of the Rhine. Of the 10,000 men in that division, 8,000 were killed or captured. Montgomery’s gamble had turned into a disaster, causing all hopes of a quick defeat of Germany to vanish. Histories: Campaign Maps: Personal Accounts: Photographs: |
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