Battle for Arnhem.... (3 Viewers)

[wayne556517]

Love that plane

 

[panda1gen]

Love that plane

One more for you Wayne





Kampfgruppe 'Von Tettau' was a large force compared to 2 Para already, but: Units Promised by HQ Netherlands, 18th September


S.S. Bataillon Eberwein


Came under command of Von Tettau on 19th September.


KG Knoche


Commander : Major Knoche

Bataillon I, Sicherheits Regiment 26, (450 men)


Bataillon II, 26 Sicherheits Regiment 26, (450 men)


MG Bataillon 30, (390 men)


Bataillon I, FlaK Abteilung 688, (2 x 37L98 FlaK)


Bataillon II, FlaK Abteilung 688, (4 x 20L113 FlaK)


Hermann Göering Schule Regiment


Commander : Oberst Waldemar Kluge

I, HG Schule Regiment, (600 men)

Reichs AD, (300 men)

Panzer Abteliung 224, (Char B, 17 Vehicles)

S.S. Ersatz Abteliung 4, (450 men)

Deelen Airfield Flak Kompanie, (8 x 20L113 LW FlaK)

Wach Kompanie (various garrison units), (500 men)

SS comanders plan

SS troops advance to assault positions

Luftwaffe troops prepare

A hard fight ahead

 

[panda1gen]

The 1st and 3rd Parachute Battalions pushed on towards the Arnhem bridge during the early hours of Monday 18[SUP]th[/SUP] September 1944 and had made some progress.




They were however, frequently halted in skirmishes as soon as it became light.






As a result, their long and unwieldy columns had to halt to beat off attacks.

 

[villagehorse]

The Germans must have been staggered at the time, on where all these enemy troops were coming from, for awhile it must have seem like there was no end to the numbers. Robin.

 

[panda1gen]

The Germans must have been staggered at the time, on where all these enemy troops were coming from, for awhile it must have seem like there was no end to the numbers. Robin.

The Germans must have been staggered at the time, on where all these enemy troops were coming from, for awhile it must have seem like there was no end to the numbers. Robin.

I agree, but they reinforced quickly, I will refer back to the German response shortly. To carry on with 1st and 3rd Parachute Battalions .....



Meanwhile, the troops in front carried on ...... unaware of the extent of the problems to their rear.




The Germans were able to delay segments of the two battalions, fragment them and then mop up the remnants.



By the end of Monday the 18[SUP]th[/SUP], the 1st and 3rd Parachute Battalions had entered Arnhem and were within 2 km (1.2 mi) of the bridge with approximately 200 men, one-sixth their original strength.



Most of the officers and non-commissioned officers had been killed, wounded or captured.

 

[panda1gen]

By Monday the 18[SUP]th[/SUP], a number of tanks and S.P. guns had arrived to support the German attacks.

extremely rare early K&C wooden Stugs


The position east of the Bridge, where A Company of 2 Para and part of the Brigade H.Q. force had borne the brunt of the attack, was strengthened by the addition of one Platoon of B Company.



Kampfgruppe Knaust, now part of the ‘Hohenstauffen’ division, started arriving in Arnhem on Monday 18th September 1944. Despite Knaust’s probing assaults from the north, Frost still felt confident about holding out, at this point.

Kampfgruppe Knaust was primarily made up of two units.

Panzer-Grenadier-Ausbildungs und Ersatz-Battalion 64, a training and replacement battalion from Bocholt, Germany. It was commanded by the 38 year old Major Hans-Peter Knaust. The unit consisted of 1 x SPW and 4 infantry companies with soldiers that were classed as ‘not quite fit for front line service'.

SPW - sdkfz 250/3

Panzer-Kompanie Mielke,commanded by Company Commander Lieutenant Mielke. This company was part of the 6th Panzer Replacement Regiment ‘Bielefeld' tank driving school in Germany. It consisted of six Panzerkampfwagen III and two Panzerkampfwagen IV tanks. Panzer-Kompanie Mielke entrained in Bielefeld, Germany and moved to Elten via Zevenaar, where the Headquarters of the company assembled with Knaust's ‘Bocholt' trainee Panzer Grenadier battalion.

The quick organisation and movement of these two units allowed Knaust to report to the 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] SS Pz Korp HQ at 0400h on the 18th September 1944. Whilst the infantry could be employed that same day, the tanks of Panzer-Kompanie Mielke would not arrive until the 19th September 1944 due to constant allied attacks on the rail system.

early K&C matte infantry with extremely rare, early K&C papier mache buildings made by Gordon

 

[villagehorse]

You certainly get the feel of the ramping up of reinforcements Kevin. It seems every hour was time critical. Robin.

 

[panda1gen]

You certainly get the feel of the ramping up of reinforcements Kevin. It seems every hour was time critical. Robin.

I think that you are right Robin.


Knaust was given initial orders to relieve the 2[SUP]nd[/SUP]/21[SUP]st[/SUP] Regt ‘Battalion Euling' that were fighting around the Northern Ramp of the Arnhem Bridge.




Knaust's Kampfgruppe were placed under command of SS-Sturmbannführer Brinkmann who was already placing pressure on the British defending the bridge. The initial attacks against the British defending the bridge were very costly.




This was because they were uncoordinated, unduly optimistic in their execution and underestimated the British strength at the bridge by 500 men.




Throughout the 18th September 1944, Knaust's infantry were involved in bitter hand-to-hand fighting from house to house and would only gain a handful of metres during the day.

 

[panda1gen]

Meanwhile, Frost’s confidence after holding back Knaust’s probing attacks was further enhanced when at about 0930 some 22 vehicles of 9th SS Reconnaissance Battalion returned from Nijmegen and tried to cross the bridge.




The paper strength was:

9 S.S. Aufklarung Abteilung


Commander : Viktor Graebner

Armament : 30 x Sdkfz 233+234?

Strength: 400 Casualties: 200

The attack was made by the SS-Pz.Aufkl.Abt. 9, under the command of SS-Hauptsturmführer Viktor Gräbner on the morning of 18th September 1944. It lasted approximately two hours and started when the armoured vehicles crossed from the south over the Arnhem Bridge.

The order of march for the German Recon Battalion was the faster vehicles first followed by half tracks then lorries/trucks. From most accounts, the British let the first few vehicles through before they opened up on the rest.







The first few vehicles made it to the north side, but those that followed did not. In a battle that raged for several hours, the airborne troops stopped the Germans on the ramp of the bridge.

 

[panda1gen]

The 9th SS Reconnaissance Battalion had been sent south the day before, but concluded it was not needed in Nijmegen.


A Puma in an assembly area prior to the push


Early preparation.


Grenadiers hitch a ride before the action


It was reported that the trucks, positioned to the rear of the advance, were bolstered by addition of sandbags and/or empty oil drums filled with sand - a truck arrives at the depot to fit this protection (See Flames of War, 15mm wargame rules on Market-Garden).


One of various half tracks in assembly area.

 

[panda1gen]

The men in the schoolhouse had a good view of the vehicles as they approached.




Two or three were allowed through before the order was given to open fire.




Sapper Ronald Emery from A Troop was one of those who immediately opened on the Germans. Emery shot the driver and co-driver of a halftrack, which crashed into the schoolhouse not 10 yards from where Emery was positioned. Disregarding the hail of machine gun fire coming from the vehicle, the sapper stood up in full view of the Germans and threw a grenade that killed the crew and silenced the gun. He then went on to assist in the destruction of five other vehicles.

 

[jazzeum]

Please keep them coming Kevin, even if they are repeats. May this message find you well.

 

[panda1gen]

Please keep them coming Kevin, even if they are repeats. May this message find you well.

Thanks Brad.

Still sucking in air at present, hope you are well.

I had requests to post larger photos. The included 'repeats' are some of approx 3000 I have managed to resize over the past few years from old and new photos, most not posted yet, so not 'true' repeats. Since I started the more detailed chronology last year, used photos are separated out.

Whichever way you try to do it, there are a very limited number of figures and sets for such a vast campaign so individual pieces will feature again.




The fusillade finally stopped two hours later, 12 German vehicles were destroyed and approximately 70 SS troops were dead, among them Gräbner. Essentially, nothing significant crossed the Arnhem road bridge during the three days the Battalion held it.

To my knowledge, the only 1/30 destroyed half track piece made, so it will continue to get a few airings from different angles with different figures.


During Monday (18[SUP]th[/SUP]) night another counterattack from the South was repelled with heavy losses.





Those few vehicles that were allowed to pass on the morning of the 18[SUP]th[/SUP] and made it past the other British Defenders at Arnhem, ended up fighting in Oosterbeek with Kampfgruppe 'Spindler'.

 

[panda1gen]

As the fighting around Arnhem Bridge continued, XXX Corps was still on the move, but traffic often stopped or slowed - they could not advance quickly enough. Although the 101st targets were captured with some delay, the 82nd were finding it hard around and in Nijmegen. Without that bridge 1st Airborne would be done.

Guards recon on Hell's Highway

Traffic jammed

Hitching a ride with the ammo

 

[panda1gen]

The 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] Parachute Battalion casualties had been heavy, but were mostly wounded. Major Wallis was killed on Monday evening (18[SUP]th[/SUP]) and Major Tatham Warter took over his command.

K&C made a Major Tatham-Warter figure in honour of his memory



From the Pegasus Archive

Unit : "A" Company, 2nd Parachute Battalion

Army No. : 75060

Awards : Distinguished Service Order

Formerly of the Oxford and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, Major Tatham-Warter commanded the 2nd Battalion's A Company, having joined them in the dying days of their part in the Italy campaign.

Fiercely independent, slim, and standing over six feet in height, and eager for a taste of war, he was described by his fellow company commander Major Dover as "a cool, calm and collected man; he was tall, a little aloof and full of confidence".

John Frost said he was "A Prince Rupert of a man; he would have been a great cavalry commander on the King's side in the war with the Roundheads". Though a fine company commander, he was not so gifted when it came to handling alcohol and was well known for getting into wild drunken fist fights in the mess with men whom he regarded as friends at the time, but of whose existence he would be utterly oblivious to on the following morning; however he would always return to his unit, fresh, and impeccably attired.



A Company were selected to spearhead the 2nd Battalion's march to Arnhem bridge because Lt-Colonel Frost regarded Digby as a thruster, and not one to hang around - thereby making him the ideal choice to lead in an operation that depended on speed. In comparison to the other battalions, the 2nd had a relatively easy advance through to the bridge, though they were held up several times by German units and armoured vehicles.



A Company were remarkably swift in brushing aside such opposition, though as they entered the narrow streets of Arnhem interference from armoured cars hampered their progress. Having called for an anti-tank gun to be brought forward to deal with these threats, the Major chose to lead his men through the back gardens of houses rather than down the main streets, thus by-passing these units and allowing him to proceed.



Tatham-Warter had often worried about the unreliability of the radio sets and so he had trained his men in the use of bugle calls that were used by the British during the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th Century. He was delighted to see it being used so effectively on the way to the bridge, and in the following days it would continue to be a most satisfactory method of communication between his platoons; their calls always audible over the noise of the bombardment.

When they arrived at the bridge shortly after dusk, A Company were feeling rather pleased with themselves. Not only had they captured the Bridge intact, but they had marched 8 miles in 7 hours over tricky terrain. En route they had killed or taken prisoner over 150 Germans, many of whom were members of the prestigious S.S., whilst only suffering one dead and a small number of wounded on their own side. All in all, a very successful start as far as they were concerned.



During the heavy fighting that followed, Digby could often be seen calmly strolling about the defences, seemingly oblivious to the constant threat of mortar barrages and sniper fire. Choosing to wear his red beret in place of a helmet and swinging his trademark umbrella as he went, Tatham-Warter, no matter how desperate the situation became, never failed in his ability to remain unconcerned and to encourage those around him.

 

[panda1gen]

Even old hands like Major Freddie Gough became disheartened when Mark IV Tanks crossed the Bridge and the battle seemed lost, but his gloom lifted instantly when he caught sight of Digby leading a bayonet charge against German infantry who had dared to enter British territory; carrying a pistol in one hand, madly swinging his umbrella about his head with the other, and now sporting a bowler hat on his head - which he had obtained from God knows where - doing his best to look like Charlie Chaplin.

ready for a bayonet charge


On another occasion he used the rolled up umbrella to in-effect disable a German armoured car, simply by thrusting it through an observation slit in the vehicle and incapacitating the driver. Tatham-Warter later revealed that he carried the umbrella because he could never remember the password, and it would be quite obvious to anyone that the bloody fool carrying the umbrella could only be an Englishman.

During the battle, Father Egan, the Battalion Padre, was trying to cross to a building on the other side of the street to visit the wounded in its cellar. He made an attempt to move over but was forced to seek shelter from intense mortar fire. He then noticed Digby Tatham-Warter casually approaching him. The Major opened his old and battered umbrella and held it over Egan's head, beckoning him "Come on, Padre". Egan drew Tatham-Warter's attention to all the mortars exploding everywhere, to which came the reply "Don't worry, I've got an umbrella."

Shortly afterwards Lieutenant Pat Barnett was sprinting over an open area he had been ordered to hold when he caught the sight of Digby visiting men who were defending the sector, holding his opened umbrella over his head. Barnett was so surprised he stopped dead in his tracks and suggested to the Major "That thing won't do you much good.", to which Digby replied, after staring at him with exaggerated shock, "Oh my goodness Pat, what if it rains?".

Signalman George Lawson was running down a street on a quest for ammunition - he had a shopping basket slung over his arm to put it in - when he saw Tatham-Warter coolly walking around and directing men to fresh positions. Upon noticing Lawson he asked him what he wanted, and was enlightened, so the Major advised him to "Hurry up and get some and get back to your post soldier, there are snipers about.", seemingly unconscious of the fact that he himself was a very obvious target.

Such untroubled and good humoured gestures doubtlessly contributed greatly to the morale of the defenders, and even when defeat was imminent, spirits were always very high. Like the majority of the defenders, Digby received several wounds during the battle for the bridge, but he shrugged off the limp, caused by minor shrapnel cuts to his posterior, and hung his umbrella from the sling on his arm. After the death of Major Wallis, Lt-Colonel Frost acknowledged Digby as his new Second-in Command and put him in charge of the 2nd Battalion, whilst he himself commanded the entire defence.

Throughout the battle, Tatham-Warter was a model of leadership and continued to enliven spirits with his eccentric sense of humour, whilst also being tireless in making sure that the defences were as solid as they could be under the circumstances. Not having fought in a battle before and choosing an unusually violent one for his debut, Tatham-Warter asked of Frost "I would like to know if this is worse or not so bad as the other things you've been in?" Frost replied that it was hard to say as some things were worse, whereas some weren't; they still had food and water, but were low on ammunition.

Once it was clear that the fight was almost lost, most of the remaining defenders were scattered into Arnhem to try and make their way back to Oosterbeek, leaving Tatham-Warter and the 2nd Battalion behind at Brigade HQ, where they could still fire upon the bridge, to fight until the last.

The massive mortar barrage that had pounded the British positions for the previous four days was now concentrated on their small perimeter. The position was untenable and so Digby concocted the plan of slipping men out of the area in two's and three's so that they could hide overnight and escape the bombardment, but return before dawn to retake their positions and still be a threat to the Germans the following morning. Unfortunately the area was utterly surrounded and very few men escaped. Major Tatham-Warter, together with almost all of his Battalion, was captured.

the last of 2 Para are captured

He was admitted to the St. Elizabeth Hospital, but only stayed there throughout the daylight hours of Thursday 21st before escaping with his Second-in-Command, Captain Tony Frank.

After dark, once their German nurses were out of sight, the pair dressed themselves, climbed down from their first floor window, and then crawled through a garden next to the hospital before, exhausted from their ordeal over the previous days, coming to a halt close by.

On the next day, using Tatham-Warter's escape compass which was assembled from the buttons on his uniform, they headed east out of Arnhem and came to a halt in the pine woodland at Mariendaal, immediately north of the railway line and a mile west of Arnhem.

 

[panda1gen]

At dawn on the following day they spotted a farmhouse on the edge of this wood and spent some time watching it for signs of life, of which there were none. The two men had not eaten since they had escaped from the hospital two days ago, and even then they had only received a small helping of mashed potato and a slice of bread. Throwing caution to the wind Tatham-Warter decided to knock on the door of the farm in the hope of finding food and shelter.

The owner turned out to be a solitary old lady, and, though initially frightened by the scarecrow appearance of these two soldiers, she prepared them some cheese and fried eggs and directed them into a barn where they slept in the loft, hidden beneath a bed of damp straw. On the afternoon of Monday 25th September they were visited by Menno de Nooy, of the Ede Resistance, who assured them that from now on they would be safe. He took the men two miles northwards to the dense Warnsborn woods where they took up residence in the more habitable accommodation of the home of Van der Ven, a farmer.

Living in a concealed room in the shed, the two men emerged each evening to cut home grown tobacco with the farmer, or to play cards with him. On the 3rd October, Tatham-Warter received a visit from the head of the Ede Resistance, Bill Wildeboer. There was at this time a considerable number of escaped airborne men on the run or in hiding with local residents, and organizing them and finding appropriate shelters was an enormous task that was beginning to overwhelm him, and so he turned to Tatham-Warter for help, who readily agreed.

The next day, dressed in civilian clothes, he and Wildeboer covered the ten miles to Ede on bicycles and Digby took up residence in the family home and made it his headquarters. His bedroom was beneath a log pile where there lay a concealed dug out which Wildeboer had himself used in the past when hiding from the Gestapo. It held a cot and some other light furnishings, and though damp it was warm and made for more than adequate accommodation under the circumstances.

A barber, a tailor, and a photographer arrived on the following day to tidy the Major up and provide him with a forged identity card; and so it was that to all intents and purposes, Digby became Peter Jensen, the conveniently deaf and dumb son of a lawyer from the Hague. He had no qualms at all about venturing out of doors, and was as bold here as he had been at the bridge; setting out each day on a bicycle to visit the increasing numbers of men in hiding. Due to his casual manner he was never suspected by the swarms of German soldiers in the area. Indeed he almost seemed to invite the attention of the enemy; once stopping to lend a hand to help push a staff car out of a ditch.

By a stroke of bad luck a group of German officers were billeted in Wildeboer's home, and shortly before the curfew, when Tatham-Warter would return from visiting the evaders around Ede, he would frequently find himself attempting to enter the house at the same time as the Germans. Initially he gave way and let them through first, but after a while grew tired of such polite gestures and insisted on entering first. There was a mild dispute over this, but after casting a scornful gaze in their direction the Germans allowed him to pass. From this day on these officers felt well disposed towards Tatham-Warter and they would nod to each other in greeting, even occasionally patting him on the back.

Tatham-Warter excelled in managing the large numbers of airborne evaders, now numbering in the hundreds, and with the signal links set up at his HQ he was able to contact British Intelligence at Nijmegen and 1st British Airborne Corps HQ in England.

He spoke each evening with Airey Neave at Nijmegen. Formerly a prisoner at Colditz and the first British officer to escape from there, he now worked for MI9, whose brief was to assist escapers and evaders in their return to the Allied lines.

(Neave became an MP after the war and was later assassinated by the INLA in 1979, by a car bomb, at the House of Commons.)

Neave wrote the following in his memoir, They Have Their Exits:

The power stations in Nijmegen on the Waal and at Ede on the northern bank of the Rhine were linked by private telephone lines which remained intact while the battle raged. The exchanges were controlled by the Resistance and they gave us the information that in the houses and forests of Ede were hidden nearly one hundred and forty men, among them Major Digby Tatham-Warter, D.S.O. This officer, a man of calm ingenuity, conducted the conversations that followed between the two power stations.

Despite the risk of capture he came from his hiding place each evening between nine and ten to the terminal house at Ede and there spoke to the rescue organisations in Nijmegen. He passed to those on duty in the power station lists of names of the survivors of the great airborne landing, which included Brigadier Lathbury commanding the First Parachute Brigade. During the first two weeks of October, 1944, I sat every evening in the gaunt power station with Major Hugh Fraser, M.B.E., of the S.A.S. (now M.P. for Stafford) listening for the telephone bell. It seemed that we were waiting for a signal from the other world.

The shells from enemy batteries at Arnhem crashed around the Nijmegen Bridge, shaking the power house. Beside us sat technical officials, their staunch Dutch faces betraying no emotion. We would wait with beating hearts for a faint ring on the telephone and Tatham-Warter's voice.

Using these communications he arranged for the RAF to drop equipment, ammunition, as well as some food and cigarettes to his force; the arms were buried in the countryside until they were ready to use them, and in short these remnants of the 1st Airborne Division were reformed into an effective force.

Tatham-Warter envisaged that his men, together with the Dutch Resistance, would launch coordinated attacks on German targets in the event of a further attempted crossing of the Rhine by the 2nd British Army, and in effect they were to be a coup-de-main force. However it became clear that an attempt to establish a bridgehead on the German side of the Rhine was not at all imminent, and so with little else to be achieved by holding their present position, the thoughts of Tatham-Warter and his men turned to their mass escape to the Allied lines.

 

[panda1gen]

Operation Pegasus was set for the 22nd October; the plan being simply to advance 138 men, most carrying arms, down to the river bank, and all were to be prepared to fight their way through heavy German opposition to get there. On paper Pegasus appeared foolhardy, possibly even suicidal, but nevertheless it was a tremendous success and all who set out upon it were evacuated to safety.

Traveling to the rendezvous area, which was deep in the woods around Renkum, with Brigadier Lathbury, the two men rode abreast on bicycles and passed as many as 200 marching German troops on the way without drawing a single challenge.

At 21:00 that evening, having conducted a reconnaissance to within a short distance of the Rhine without encountering opposition, Tatham-Warter gave the final go-ahead to begin Pegasus. His group began their march to the embarkation point, and though their boots had been wrapped in rags to dull their noise, Digby later compared their stealth to a herd of stampeding elephants.

Emerging out of the cover of the woods, two hundred yards between them and the riverbank lay a meadow shrouded in low lying mist. Tatham-Warter, at five yard intervals, ordered every man to proceed to the Rhine on his belly. To ensure the sanctity of their position, fighting patrols were dispersed upon both flanks to deal with any enemy troops in the vicinity. But for a short exchange of Spandau .....



......and Sten fire,



no shots were heard, and in this particular engagement the Germans turned and fled. The column, though perfectly intact, had strayed a few hundred yards east of where it should have been, but luckily Tatham-Warter's "V" signal on his red torch was eventually seen and their position was discovered. By 01:30 the next morning, all the men had been taken across in boats.

Major Tatham-Warter's account of Operation Pegasus can be read at here.

Upon returning to England, Digby resumed command of what remained of A Company, and wrote up a report of the defence of Arnhem Bridge which led to Jack Grayburn being posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.

K&C made a Jack Grayburn figure - shown on the right


There is little doubt that Tatham-Warter played a great part both in the defence of Arnhem Bridge and also in its glory, and for this and his first class involvement with Pegasus I, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order.

 

[Louis Badolato]

What a great story of a heroic man! I remember the character in the movie a Bridge too Far, telling the story of why he carried his umbrella. It was great chatting with you yesterday, Kevin! Stay safe, brother!:salute::

 

[panda1gen]

What a great story of a heroic man! I remember the character in the movie a Bridge too Far, telling the story of why he carried his umbrella. It was great chatting with you yesterday, Kevin! Stay safe, brother!:salute::

You and your family too.


Meanwhile.......

Major Tatham-Warter's personal story took us forward – to return to the overall story of the battle on the 18[SUP]th[/SUP] .........

The battle in Arnhem certainly had not been progressing according to the Allied plans. But, by the evening of 18 September, XXX Corps had linked up with 101st Airborne Division and had reached the blown Son bridge, where work on a Bailey bridge began immediately.



As this was happening, 82nd Airborne Division, which had secured its other target bridges, endeavoured to take the Nijmegen road bridge.....




– but the German defences held firm.



The 82[SUP]nd[/SUP], like the other airborne forces, had divergent objectives that potentially pulled them in different directions and split their forces.

Grave proved to be well defended and German forces continued to press on the 82nd deployed on the Groesbeek heights, which was also the allocated area of the Airborne Army HQ, to the east of Nijmegen. The 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment defended against German attacks in Horst, Grafwegen and Riethorst.