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Colonel Frost is on his own at the bridge

in Arnhem/September 18
A British RAF reconnaissance plane took this photo of the Rhine Bridge on Monday afternoon, September 18, 1944. The remains of the destroyed column of armored vehicles are clearly visible on the bridge.

The early morning of Monday, September 18. That was the last moment when it was quiet for the British at the Rhine Bridge. But from half past nine in the morning there was almost continuous fighting at the bridge. Because the British army units could not maintain contact with each other via radios , the…

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British at the bridge destroy Viktor Gräbner’s SS Armored Column

in Arnhem/September 18
An RAF reconnaissance plane took a photo of the destruction of the SS Armored Column by the British. (Photo: Imperial War Museum.)

A Dutch garbage collector who unsuspectingly made his rounds near the Rhine bridge on the early morning of Monday, September 18, 1944, was probably the first victim of the fighting that would take place that day. His garbage truck was fired upon by British paratroopers as soon as he entered their sector. The British were…

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September 18: the British advance stalls on the western side of Arnhem, 2 kilometers from the bridge

in Arnhem/September 18
British paratroopers advance to Arnhem via the Utrechtseweg. (Photo: Gelders Archives.)

Of the three British battalions that marched on Arnhem on Sunday, September 17, only the 2nd Battalion under John Frost had managed to reach the city. The 1st Battalion and the 3rd Battalion had been stopped by German resistance at Oosterbeek. On Monday, September 18, they tried to break through the German barrier line .…

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Airborne division without commander

in Arnhem/September 18
General Urquhart during operation Market Garden, outside of the Hartestein Hotel. (Photo: Imperial War Museum.)

While his troops were engaged in fierce battles with the Germans, General Roy Urquhart, the commander of the 1st British Airborne Division, was hiding in an attic at Zwarteweg 14 in the Arnnhem district of Lombok. In the book that General Urquhart wrote after the war about his experiences during the Battle of Arnhem, he…

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On September 18, the British fought against the Dutch on the Ginkelse Heide

in September 18
In blue the positions of the KOSB. In red the attack of Wachbataillon Nordwest. (Photo: Gelders Archives, Boeree collection.)

Not all British soldiers who had landed at Wolfheze on Sunday, September 17, had marched to Arnhem after the landing. Some of the British actually went west. The King’s Own Scottish Borders (KOSB) and the Border Regiment had been given the task of protecting the landing areas where the rest of the British Airborne Division…

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Many died during the airborne landings on Monday, September 18 on the Ginkelse Heide

in September 18
Dutch SS soldiers from Wachbataillon Nordwest shoot at the paratroopers who landed on the Ginkelse Heide near Ede on Monday, September 18, 1944. (Photo: Gelders Archives.)

A day after the first airborne landings at Wolfheze, the rest of the British airborne troops of the Airborne Division, including General Shan Hackett’s 4th Parachute Brigade, landed on the Ginkelse Heide on Monday, September 18. The 4th Parachute Brigade had almost 2,000 soldiers and consisted of three battalions: 10th Battalion, 11th Battalion and 156th…

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The 4th Parachute Brigade will be on its way to Arnhem on Monday, September 18

in September 18
British paratroopers rest on their way to Arnhem. (Photo: Gelders Archives.)

Now that the entire 1st British Airborne Division had finally landed on Monday, September 18, all troops on and around the landing areas could advance to Arnhem. The gliders on the landing areas were emptied, troops gathered and, according to the official plan drawn up in England, all paratroopers prepared to move in the direction…

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The Waal Bridge in Nijmegen is still firmly in German hands on September 18

in Nijmegen/September 18
Dead American paratroopers on Keizer Karelplein in Nijmegen. (Photo: Gelders Archives.)

The British at Arnhem were not the only airborne troops who encountered problems after the landings. The American paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division who had landed near Groesbeek also did not reach the objectives they were supposed to achieve on September 17 . Capturing the Waal Bridge was not at the top of the…

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The ground troops liberate Eindhoven and advance north, but with more than 24 hours’ delay

in September 18
Allied vehicles make their way through the crowds in Eindhoven.

The leading ground troops of XXX Corps, led by British General Horrocks, had not advanced beyond Valkenswaard on Sunday, September 17. The Germans had fought back more fiercely than the British had anticipated. The advance north was therefore slow. The bridge at Son, between Eindhoven and Grave, had been blown up the day before before…

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British at the bridge hold out, under heavy German pressure

in Arnhem/September 19
The Van Limburg-Stirumschool on the eastern driveway of the Rhine Bridge. After the Battle of Arnhem, little was left of the school.

The 700 soldiers of 2nd Battalion who occupied approximately thirty buildings on the north side of the Rhine Bridge had no illusions. The day before they had easily survived the attack of a German SS reconnaissance battalion and had also repelled several small attacks on their positions. But now, on Tuesday, September 19, the Germans…

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