Operation Market Garden 1944

Operation Market Garden (17–25 September 1944) was an unsuccessful Allied military operation, fought in the Netherlands and Germany in the Second World War. The operation was split into two sub-operations:

Market – the airborne forces, the First Allied Airborne Army, who would seize bridges
Garden – the ground forces, consisting of the British XXX Corps

Market Garden contained the largest airborne operation up to that point.[e]

Field Marshal Montgomery's strategic goal was to encircle the heart of German industry, the Ruhr, in a pincer movement. The northern end of the pincer would circumvent the northern end of the Siegfried Line giving easier access into Germany. The aim of Operation Market Garden was to establish the northern end of a pincer ready to project deeper into Germany. Allied forces would project north from Belgium, 60 miles (97 km) through the Netherlands, across the Rhine and consolidate north of Arnhem on the Dutch/German border ready to close the pincer.

The operation made massed use of airborne forces, whose tactical objectives were to secure the bridges and allow a rapid advance by armored ground units to consolidate north of Arnhem. The operation required the seizure of the bridges across the Maas (Meuse River), two arms of the Rhine (the Waal and the Lower Rhine) together with crossings over several smaller canals and tributaries.

Several bridges between Eindhoven and Nijmegen were captured at the beginning of the operation. Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks' XXX Corps ground force advance was delayed by the initial failure of the airborne units to secure bridges at Son and Nijmegen. German forces demolished the bridge over the Wilhelmina Canal at Son before being secured by the 101st Airborne Division. The 82nd Airborne Division's failure to capture the main road bridge over the river Waal at Nijmegen before 20 September also delayed the advance of XXX Corps.

At the furthest point of the airborne operation at Arnhem, the British 1st Airborne Division encountered initial strong resistance. The delays in capturing the bridges at Son and Nijmegen gave time for German forces, including armored divisions, to be moved into Arnhem from Germany. In the ensuing battle, only a small force managed to capture the north end of the Arnhem road bridge and after the ground forces failed to relieve them, the paratroopers were overrun on 21 September. The remainder of the 1st Airborne Division were trapped in a small pocket west of the bridge, having to be evacuated on 25 September.

The Allies had failed to cross the Rhine and the river remained a barrier to their advance into Germany until offensives at Remagen, Oppenheim, Rees and Wesel in March 1945. The failure of Market Garden to form a foothold over the Rhine ended Allied expectations of finishing the war by Christmas 1944.[

[ryanbluer]

My Uncle and Namesake was one of the Paratroopers who fought at Arnhem Bridge with Jonny Frost, his name was Bombardier Leslie Bluer and he was with the 1st Air-landing Brigade H.Q guns . He was one of the 4 Gun crews that made it to the bridge and one of the lucky ones who survived the action that took place there. Although very badly wounded and taken into captivity, if not for the kind medical attention from some of the Dutch civilians who were helping our wounded he may never have survived.
So I am forever grateful to the people of Holland and the brave and courageous citizens of Arnhem for all they did for him and his fellow wounded soldiers.

[jaygreider]

My father was 82nd Airborne - 505 PIR during Market Garden.

[pjmoseley]

Such a brave generation never to be seen ever again. they paved the way to the country we now inherit.

[dancahill]

Shame they didn't listen to Patton. British military leadership in WW1 and WW2 was incredibly weak. I suppose that's what you get from a rigid, at the time, class structure.

[jessieeagle]

Never heard the Sherman and Cromwell tanks being praised so much before

[brianbarber]

Ok, the timeline and movements of both sides seem fairly accurate, as well as the plans, strengths, weaknesses, response, weapons employed, and the outcome overall on both sides. However, the newsreel and film additions are horrible and distracting when considering the topic. Authentic footage from the invasion of France and Poland, Russia, Normandy, the breakout from the Bocage, and the Bulge...even a clip of an American tank crewman gravely injured after a tank duel in the city of Cologne (Koln), Germany...not so much from the actual area of operation...the Netherlands. I do appreciate the clips but I hate fillers. This is a History Channel pizza time account of Operation Market Garden. It does not address the true desperation of the battle. Too bad. It is more of a display of 10 years of WW2 film footage without any thought as to its accuracy when they are cast upon the battle for the bridges. Shabbily done... "An AMARDA Of The Air"? WTF is an Amarda? Poorly done and a waste of time. Read September Snow instead.

Where and when did the British military defeat a modern military - without help of the U.S., Canada and Australia? Any in WWII? WWI?

[scottmurphy]

Ike should have fired Montgomery after this disaster. Patton always said _"It seems Monty is more concerned with no losing a battle than he is about winning one"_

[andrewkawaoka]

8 thousand troops lost their lives under Monty plans, other generals outline plans at minimum troop lost, the price of his glory cost too many lives

[stevenjustice]

1:14:53 why did the 82nd wait til day 2 to make a serious attempt at the nimjengen one their number one priority!!! They got grave on day one...and it was the lesser of the bridges.

[czechmate]

The M1 was NOT an automatic rifle. It was semi auto.

[laurentpremel]

Maybe, just maybe, lack of available footage, but WOE did they put some from WINTER in American sector ? Read Kershaw's "It never snows in September" ! :D

[Pugiron]

Typical English documentary of the subject, full of "What If's" and justifications and praise for Monty to defuse the scope of the disaster.

[ChrisJohnson-hkes]

Tomorrow, we have a soldier who was recently identified, coming home to be laid to rest. He was in this operation and lost his life. Such brave brave souls!

[Spazts]

Operation market garden but in roblox RP: germans in the bridge there tank glitches

allied fores; jumping off a plane that is not moving

u shoot but cannot kill

there using boom box and chilling


in real life: *;-;*

[Clipgatherer]

The failure of Operation Market Garden did not seriously affect Montgomery’s reputation. He remained the great Viscount Montgomery of Alamein who accepted Germany’s surrender in May 1945.

[hpnieuwkoop]

they where not in holland they where in the netherlands . get it right people .

[MP-mkwp]

Das Ende der ersten britischen Luftlandedivision bei Arnheim

[kashyap]

Superb documentary. Very interesting to learn how the defence strategists. One of the best docs

[markmullin]

Montgomery was a idiotic " showboater"
He cared too much about his own ego, than worry about the objective!
Patton was a much better general.