If you’ve no interest in military history, you may find a lot of this post a bit boring but I didn’t feel I could pass through Arnhem without spending some time reflecting on one of WW2 s most audacious and some would argue heroic failures.
Anyone who has seen the film “A bridge too far”, will know the general story line, but for those who haven’t – One of the biggest airborne assaults in history – Operation Market Garden, airborne drops behind German lines in 3 places, with the intent of capturing key bridges across the Rhine, and a land based attack pushing down a corridor towards these three bridges. The final bridge was that at Arnhem which the British were tasked with capturing. Through a catalogue of bad luck and mistakes, the attempt to take and hold the bridge ultimately failed, but not until Lt-Colonel John Frost and around 600 paratroopers had held off heavy German counter attacks for over 4 days. Only at the point of running out of ammunition did they finally surrender.
First stop for me was at the John Frost bridge, renamed in his honour in the 60’s. I wasn’t the only person taking photos at the bridge. I assumed the others would be Brits, but turns out they were Polish. It’s often forgotten including by me, that the Poles were in the second wave of Paratroopers sent to Arnhem, theirs became a rescue mission and they suffered horrendous casualties trying to cross the Rhine under heavy fire to reinforce the British.
I should say at this point, that this isn’t the original bridge. Having failed to capture it, allied bombers were sent to destroy it a few days later !
Having cycled across the bridge, my route took me out along they dyke and down through the flood plains, now an oasis of calm and home to much wildlife
It was from here, that attempts were made to rescue some of the trapped soldiers on the other side. Passing a memorial to those rescuers, I then had wait to take a short ferry ride back over the river.
I was heading out to the heathland where the Paratroopers had dropped. On the way was an interesting diversion. Doorwerth, a medieval castle, it played no part in WW2, but it was badly damaged and painstakingly restored over 30 years after the war.
After quite a long ride I reached Heelsum and the heathland. Selected by Field Marshal Montgomery, it was much too far from city. A simple obelisk marks the spot, now a grazing ground for sheep.
I’ve mentioned in earlier posts about how the memory of liberation is very much kept alive in the Netherlands and that was in evidence again today. Many of the houses around here flew the paratrooper’s regimental flag, rather than the traditional Dutch pennant or county flag. Even the restaurant menu had a nod to the past
My next stop was the most sobering. Oosterbeek cemetery, which houses the graves of many of those killed in the operation and those who died in Arnhem’s subsequent liberation.
It was fascinating reading some of the epitaphs on the gravestones. They went from the traditional to very personal.
Final stop for the day was Hotel Hartenstien. At the time used as the headquarters for the British 1st Airborne Division, but latterly it has become home to the Airborne museum. Outside were the usual tanks and guns you expect.
But the exhibitions inside were much more interesting. They merged a general explanation of historical events with personal accounts, experiences and artefacts. An excellent audio tour accompanied the exhibits, which were numbered so you could select detailed information for each of them. It made for a fascinating exhibition, focusing far more on individual stories. The museum is obviously well supported by those who took part and their families as there are many items , of a personal nature that have been gifted to the museum. There were two items in particular that caught my eye, the first with no story attached was a bit of rather macabre graffiti written on the wallpaper in a house, during what must have been a dreadful time.
The second immortalised in the film, is John Frost’s hunting horn. Used to rally his men to him. This wasn’t just a gimmick, he had used it throughout training with his men and in the event it proved very effective on the battlefield, especially as radio communication failed significantly on the day. The horn has a story of its own, Frost lost it in the fighting in 1944, it was discovered in rubble around the bridge in 1945 and taken home by a soldier. Despite its value it was subsequently gifted to the museum, only to be stolen (by order of a collector it is believed) . After various appeals it was returned anonymously and left on the steps of the museum.
The final part of the museum is the “Airborne Experience” one of those walk through interactive type shows. This one began sitting in the body of a glider, taking off and being dropped in Arnhem, followed by a journey to the city. It was rather good, I was half expecting someone to jump out with a machine gun and utter those immortal lines “ For you Tommy the war is over” but they didn’t. The tour finished with you walking under a display of crosses, accompanied by the voices of those who took part reminiscing. If you have a chance I highly recommended a visit to this museum.
Id taken far longer than expected to complete my little tour, so I just had time for a quick cycle around the city centre before heading back out to my Air BnB
Steady Pedals 