September 20th, 1944, 1st Airborne Division

Tactical Shift

Major-General Urquhart, understanding the critical nature of the situation, realises a significant change in tactics is necessary. The heavy losses suffered over the previous days make it evident that they no longer have the strength to break through to Arnhem. As a result, Lieutenant-Colonel Frost’s men at the bridge are left with no choice but to hold their position until the arrival of XXX Corps.

He concludes that if the British defences at the bridge collapse, the success of Operation Market Garden could still hinge on the division’s ability to secure a bridgehead on the northern bank of the Rhine. Once XXX Corps arrives, they plan to secure the opposite bank and construct a Bailey Bridge, designed to support tanks, allowing reinforcements to cross the river and enter the perimeter.

Major-General Urquhart orders the division to regroup in the Oosterbeek area and establish a defensive perimeter extending to the riverbank. However, this proves challenging as the troops are spread out over several kilometers and face relentless pressure from the enemy. The 1^st Battalion, Border Regiment, the division’s only intact unit, is already positioned in the woods west of Oosterbeek, establishing the western edge of the perimeter. The eastern sector, however, remains undefended except for the gunners of the Light Regiment, a few Glider Pilots near Oosterbeek Church, and medical staff at the Schoonoord Hotel, located at the Utrechtseweg-Stationsweg crossroads. During the morning, this Main Dressing Station is overrun by German forces, resulting in the capture of many medical personnel, a loss that will be deeply felt in the coming days. Fortunately, the Germans, wary of potential British anti-tank weapons, withdraw without further exploiting their advantage.

As the day progresses, the Oosterbeek Perimeter begins to take shape as the scattered units of the division gradually converge. In the east, the remnants of the 1^st Parachute Battalions, the 3^rd Parachute Battalions, and the 11^th Parachute Battalions, along with the 2^nd Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment, gather in Oosterbeek. This group, though reduced to the size of an under-strength battalion, has been retreating in disarray from Arnhem until Lieutenant-Colonel William Francis Kynaston “Sheriff” Thompson halts them and directs Major Cain of the 2^nd Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment to organize a defence. Thompson arranges for supplies of food and ammunition to be sent forward and appoints Major Lonsdale as the overall commander of the group. Throughout the day, the Lonsdale Force faces a series of determined attacks from Kampfgruppe Spindler, who has pursued them from Arnhem. The fighting is intense, with close-quarters engagements between the British airborne troops and German infantry supported by tanks. During this period, Lance-Sergeant Baskeyfield is killed while manning an anti-tank gun, single-handedly thwarting an enemy armoured attack. His bravery earns him a posthumous Victoria Cross.

Despite the intensity of the German assaults, the Lonsdale Force holds its ground, preventing the Germans from penetrating the eastern sector of the perimeter and cutting off the division from the river. However, the unit is so depleted by the fighting that they are forced to withdraw closer to the perimeter, taking up positions around the Church on the outskirts of Oosterbeek. Behind them lies the division’s artillery, of Lieutenant-Colonel Thompson’s Light Regiment. The exhausted troops are finally granted a brief respite, as the Germans do not press their attack further.

In the western sector, the 4^th Parachute Brigade also fights its way towards Oosterbeek, facing fierce opposition. During the morning, the 10^th Parachute Battalion leads the advance, managing to break through enemy fire and enter the perimeter by 13:10. However, only sixty men make it through; many of the others become separated in the woods, and a significant number are captured.

Brigade Headquarters and the 156^th Parachute Battalion, unable to follow the 10^th Parachute Battalion, come under heavy mortar bombardment and repeated infantry and tank attacks, some involving flamethrowers. Despite heavy casualties and slow progress, the brigade’s fierce defense and counterattacks prevent the Germans from realizing that the paratroopers are in retreat. Among the many losses is the 156^th Parachute Battalion’s commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Des Voeux. With few officers left, Brigadier Hackett takes temporary command and orders Major Powell to lead a daring charge to capture a strategic hollow several hundred meters ahead. The manoeuvre is successful, but the one hundred and fifty men who enter the hollow are pinned down for eight hours, with half becoming casualties. Eventually, Hackett orders the survivors to break out with a bayonet charge, which succeeds in reaching the positions held by the 1^st Battalion, Border Regiment’s A Company.

Meanwhile, B Company of the 7^th Battalion, King’s Own Scottish Borderers, after spending the night at the Hotel Wolfheze, joins up with a portion of the 156^th Parachute Battalion that has mistakenly entered the village during the confusion of the previous day’s retreat. By morning, this group is forced to abandon the village. Isolated from the rest of the division, they spend the morning awaiting orders that never arrive. In the afternoon, Major Forman, commander of B Company, leads the group southwest, hoping to link up with other British forces. Unbeknownst to him, they are marching away from the perimeter. Exhausted and critically low on ammunition, the men are unaware that a strong German force has been tracking them. The Germans, seeing the vulnerable position of the British, surround them and demand their surrender. With no other option, Major Forman complies. Some men from the 156^th Parachute Battalion, positioned slightly apart from the main group, manage to slip away, but most are captured shortly after.

The 4^th Parachute Brigade’s retreat into the Oosterbeek Perimeter is complete, but at a heavy cost. Of the 2,170 men who had dropped on Drop Zone Y two days earlier, only 500 remain, including those from the 11^th Parachute Battalion with the Lonsdale Force. The brigade has also suffered severe losses among its leadership, with few officers left uninjured.

Now, of the original 10,000-strong 1^st Airborne Division, only 3,600 fighting men, excluding medical personnel, remain to defend the Oosterbeek Perimeter. After three days of continuous combat, they are exhausted, hungry, and running low on ammunition. The 1^st Airborne Division, never intended to fight its way through such heavy resistance, has paid a steep price for their earlier advances. However, the men who have made it into the perimeter are now prepared to fight the defensive battle for which they were trained. Their orders are clear: dig in and defend their positions with all they have until XXX Corps arrives.

Formation of the 1st Airborne Division’s Defensive Perimeter

By the evening, the remaining forces of the 1^st Airborne Division have successfully consolidated into a solid defensive perimeter to the west of Oosterbeek. The western side of the perimeter is strongly held by the 1^st Battalion, Border Regiment, which remains intact, with gaps in the line filled by a mix of Glider Pilots and Royal Engineers. In the north, the 7^th Battalion, King’s Own Scottish Borderers takes up a dominant position, supported by the Reconnaissance Squadron positioned behind them and the Independent Company along with elements of the 4^th Parachute Squadron securing the left flank. These largely glider-borne units are all under the command of Brigadier Hicks.

On the eastern front, initially nearly undefended, Brigadier Hackett begins to organise and solidify the defensive positions. In the southernmost part of this sector, the Lonsdale Force takes up position, with the 1^st Airlanding Light Regiment’s artillery behind them. Between the Lonsdale Force and the River Rhine, about 400 metres of open ground remains undefended but is effectively covered by machine-gun fire during daylight and by patrols at night. The strategically important Utrechtseweg-Stationsweg crossroads in the center of the eastern defence is guarded by the 10^th Parachute Battalion. As evening falls, the 156^th Parachute Battalion takes up positions along Stationsweg. Supporting these units are two squadrons of the Glider Pilot Regiment and the 250^th Light Composite Company, who are dispersed throughout the area.

The Divisional Headquarters is set up at the Hartenstein Hotel, centrally located within the perimeter. Near the headquarters, a reserve force, consisting of Glider Pilots and other units, is positioned. Approximately 180 metres south of the Hartenstein Hotel, German prisoners of war are held under guard by the Divisional Provost Company and Glider Pilots. Major-General Urquhart remains confident that the 1^st Airborne Division can hold this perimeter until ground forces arrive from the southern bank of the Rhine.

Defensive Actions of the 1st Battalion, Border Regiment and the the 7th Battalion, King’s Own Scottish Borderers

Throughout the day, the 1^st Battalion, Border Regiment, entrenched along the western edge of the perimeter, faces several enemy assaults. After repelling light probes by Kampfgruppe von Tettau the day before, the battalion now endures continuous shelling, followed by multiple probing attacks in the morning. At 08:30, the 1^st Airlanding Brigade Headquarters takes a direct hit, resulting in the deaths of four officers and injuries to several staff members. Brigadier Hicks, who is present at the time, escapes without injury.

By 10:00, A Company comes under attack from infantry and a self-propelled gun, but successfully repels the assault. C Company, however, faces persistent harassment throughout the day, struggling with the challenging terrain in the woodland, which hampers their ability to observe enemy movements. At 15:00, they come under heavy assault by infantry supported by a self-propelled gun and two tanks equipped with flamethrowers. Several positions are temporarily lost but are soon recaptured, and the enemy is forced to retreat after an anti-tank gun destroys the self-propelled gun.

In the northern sector, the 7^th Battalion, King’s Own Scottish Borderers experience minor harassment from enemy snipers, machine guns, and shelling from a self-propelled gun. However, the battalion achieves a significant success when one of their patrols manages to lure two German tanks into the range of an anti-tank gun, which destroys one of the tanks, causing the other to withdraw.

By the end of the day, the 1^st Airborne Division has successfully formed a cohesive and defensible perimeter, prepared for the continued German assaults while awaiting the arrival of XXX Corps. Despite being outnumbered and under constant attack, the division’s well-organised defence allows them to hold their ground and maintain control of the perimeter.

Road Bridge Resupply Mission

During the evening, Divisional Headquarters at the Hotel Hartenstein receives a crucial radio message from the Guards Armoured Division. It confirms that the Guards will spearhead an all-out assault on Arnhem Bridge at first light on September 21^st, 1944. However, with the bridge still under tight German control and the British defenders severely strained, an immediate resupply effort becomes essential.

A plan is launched to send a small convoy through German lines to deliver much-needed ammunition and medical supplies to the trapped British forces at the bridge. Leading this effort is Lieutenant Leo Heaps, a Canadian officer from the 1^st Parachute Battalion. Earlier in the battle, Heaps and his men had successfully executed a fast and risky dash to Sint Elisabeth’s Hospital on the second day. However, with his platoon now reduced in numbers and the Germans tightening their hold on the routes to the bridge, the task is far more perilous.

Following a meeting with Major-General Roy Urquhart at Hartenstein, Heaps agrees to make another attempt to reach John Frost and the paratroopers defending the bridge. Known for his bravery, Heaps has already proven his mettle during the battle at Arnhem, despite not being fully trained as a paratrooper. He made his first parachute jump alongside David Dobie’s battalion on D-Day and has since demonstrated considerable courage in combat.

To carry out the mission, Heaps needs volunteers to crew two heavily-loaded Jeeps. He searches the area around Hartenstein and eventually gathers a group of men willing to take the risk. The plan is straightforward but dangerous: they will drive the Jeeps to the Heveadorp ferry, cross the river to the southern bank where the German presence is weaker, and then race across the main road bridge to reinforce the British positions near the northern ramp. The element of speed and surprise is their best hope for success.

By midnight, the small team is assembled and ready. Among the group are two additional officers: Lieutenant Maarten Knottenbelt, a Dutch commando from No. 10 (Inter-allied) Commando, who temporarily leaves his liaison duties with the Dutch Resistance to join the mission, and Lieutenant Johnny Johnson, an officer from the United States Air Force Support Signal Team, who steps forward after finding himself without a role at headquarters. Alongside them are two unnamed glider pilots, armed with Thompson submachine guns, who volunteer to act as gunners.

Despite their collective bravery, the mission ends in failure. When the convoy reaches the Heveadorp ferry, they discover it is out of service, and the thick fog that blankets the riverbank makes navigation impossible. The group becomes separated in the confusion, and each man is forced to find his own way back to Hartenstein.

Royal Air Force Resupply Operations

That very same day, the Royal Air Force conducts another resupply operation, utilising 164 Short Stirling and Dakota C-47’s aircraft. In previous days, these resupply efforts had been hampered by the fact that the aircraft, unaware of the changing situation on the ground, dropped supplies into areas that had already been overrun by German forces. However, the Divisional Headquarters had been able to communicate with the Royal Air Force, informing them of the new reality and coordinating for the supplies to be dropped within the Oosterbeek perimeter.

Despite these efforts, the situation remains complex and not fully understood by all involved. To avoid air traffic congestion over the new drop zone, thirty-three aircraft mistakenly release their supplies over thre kilometres away at Landing Zone Z, directly into German-controlled territory. Once again, the resupply formation faces intense anti-aircraft fire, and the challenging conditions, including dense woodland and smoke, make it difficult for the crews to identify the correct drop points. As a result, supplies are scattered, with approximately half of them reaching British hands.

The cost of this operation is significant. Twelve Stirlings and two Dakotas are shot down, with No. 196 Squadron alone losing six of the seventeen Short Stirlings it had committed to the mission. Despite the losses, the operation provides much-needed supplies to the beleaguered forces within the Oosterbeek perimeter, although the ongoing struggle to secure effective resupply underscores the difficulties faced by the 1^st Airborne Division.

The Final Defence of Arnhem Road Bridge

By dawn, German snipers and machine-gunners have established such effective control over the area around Arnhem Bridge that British positions on either side are completely cut off from one another. Stretcher-bearers are permitted to move freely to tend to the wounded, but any other movement is perilous. Relocating troops from one building to another becomes nearly impossible, forcing each group to defend their position to the last. If their situation becomes untenable, they face stark choices: surrender, dash through intense enemy fire to reach nearby buildings, or dig into the rubble to continue resisting.

The British perimeter around the northern end of the bridge is under constant bombardment from artillery and mortars, with German forces increasingly using phosphorus shells to ignite the buildings. Armour and infantry press from all directions. While British troops still manage to fend off the infantry, German tanks roam with impunity due to the scarcity of anti-tank weapons. Despite exhaustion, the British soldiers maintain a fierce defence, holding onto the hope that relief is imminent.

Later that morning, Lieutenant-Colonel Frost manages to receive a message from Major-General Urquhart at Divisional Headquarters in Oosterbeek, despite the poor functioning of the radio sets. Frost urgently requests reinforcements and supplies, but he soon realises that the rest of the division is in a similarly desperate situation and unable to provide any assistance. The only hope for relief lies with XXX Corps advancing from the south, but with no sounds of battle coming from Nijmegen, some 18 kilometres away, the prospects seem bleak.

Intense Fighting at the Bridge

Not long after, German infantry launch a concentrated assault on the area around one of the archways supporting the bridge ramp, aiming to plant explosives and destroy it. German engineers make a determined effort to place their charges, but British engineers, led by Lieutenant Hindley of the 1^st Parachute Squadron, along with A Company under Lieutenant Jack Grayburn, bravely attempt to remove the fuses. Later in the day, the Germans try again to lay explosives, and the British make another effort to remove the charges. However, this time they are heavily exposed to enemy fire, and many are wounded or killed, including Lieutenant Grayburn, who is shot while directing his men to safety in full view of a tank. For his exceptional bravery, Grayburn is posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.

During the afternoon, Lieutenant-Colonel Frost and Major Crawley are both wounded by a mortar explosion. Unable to continue commanding his men directly, Frost hands over command to Major Gough of the Reconnaissance Squadron, though he insists on being consulted on major decisions.

Meanwhile, the 1^st Parachute Squadron and the 3^rd Parachute Battalion are forced to abandon their defensive position at the Van Limburg Stirum School. With only thirty men still capable of fighting and almost out of ammunition, they are compelled to evacuate when a tank begins to demolish their burning building. Efforts to move the wounded and reach friendly positions to the west of the bridge fail under heavy enemy fire, leading to their capture.

The Defence of the Bridge Begins to Collapse

By now, nearly every building within the British perimeter is ablaze. With so many wounded, dwindling ammunition, and declining numbers, the decision is made to consolidate all available forces in the garden area behind 1^st Parachute Brigade Headquarters. This position allows the defenders to concentrate their remaining firepower while still maintaining a line of sight on the bridge, thus preventing the 10. SS-Panzerdivision’s troops and vehicles from advancing toward Nijmegen.

Troops who manage to escape the besieged eastern sector make their way to the more secure western side, gathering beneath the bridge ramp. They are joined by A Company of the 2^nd Parachute Battalion, who have been forced out of their burning positions. This group then makes a hazardous 165-metres dash to Brigade Headquarters, navigating through mortar fire and crossfire. Those who survive dig in, forming as strong a defence as possible under the circumstances. Despite their efforts, they cannot prevent German vehicles from crossing the bridge. However, their stand delays the German advance, allowing British armour to begin crossing Nijmegen Bridge in the south just as the first German troops cross Arnhem Bridge. Had Frost’s men not held out as long as they did, Nijmegen Bridge might never have been captured.

The Truce and the End of the Battle

As the battle drags on, the remaining defensive positions are engulfed in flames, and the wounded in the cellars face grave danger. The medical officers advise Frost that a truce is necessary to evacuate the wounded. Not only would this save lives, but with their medical supplies exhausted, the wounded would be better off in German hands. Moreover, the presence of so many wounded hampers the defenders’ ability to continue fighting and complicates any potential retreat. Although agreeing to a truce means Frost himself would be captured, he consents.

Before the truce begins, Major Gough gathers about 120 men from various units and orders them to disperse northward into the town, hoping they might reach the main division in Oosterbeek. Gough remains at the bridge with the 2^nd Parachute Battalion. The two-hour truce allows the Germans to evacuate around 280 wounded men from the burning buildings, most of whom are taken to Sint Elizabeth Hospital. During the truce, Major Tatham-Warter notices that German troops are violating the terms by moving closer to Brigade Headquarters. He orders Captain Hoyer-Millar to protest, threatening to resume fire if they do not cease, despite knowing he has little leverage.

The Final Moments

Once the truce ends, Brigade Headquarters comes under intense mortar fire. Recognising they cannot withstand the barrage, Major Tatham-Warter instructs them to split into small groups and hide in the town to avoid capture. Around 02:00 start to the small groups start to disperse around the area around the bridge. However, the surrounding area is too heavily controlled by German forces, and the small groups are gradually captured. Even without ammunition, some paratroopers refuse to surrender. In one instance, a British soldier, unarmed, draws enemy fire while a comrade tries to take out a machine gun with just a knife. Both are wounded and captured, but their reckless bravery leaves the Germans astonished. By 05:00 hours, any remaining effective resistance in Arnhem collapses. The last of the airborne troops, exhausted and heavily outnumbered, are forced to surrender. With their defences overwhelmed, the remaining British forces in the area are either captured or attempting to escape through German lines.

The captured defenders of the bridge are marched to the center of Arnhem, where they join other prisoners. After being searched, they are moved to the cathedral, which now holds many captured British troops. Some fake an injury hoping they are transferred to a hospital instead of a Prisoner of War camp. Imagening it wil be easier to escape from a hospital.

Expected to hold the bridge for four days with the full 1^st Airborne Division, a mere 740 men manage to defend it for three days and four nights. Eighty-one men die in the effort, and nearly all survivors are captured, though a few manage to escape later. Contrary to the feared brutality of the SS, the British prisoners are treated with respect, and some are even congratulated by their captors for their defence.

German Reaction to Capturing the Arnhem Road Bridge

With the bridge now fully under German control, the 10. SS-Panzerdivision crosses and drives south, targeting the American 82^nd Airborne Division and the British XXX Corps ground troops stationed at Nijmegen. Meanwhile, the 9. SS-Panzerdivision and its associated units shift focus to eliminating Major General Urquhart’s forces within the Oosterbeek perimeter.

Further south, Field Marshal Model has mobilised his forces, reorganising them to counter not only the two American landings but also to target the critical road and bridges essential for XXX Corps’ advance toward Arnhem. His strategy is to seal off the Allied corridor at key points: Nijmegen, Son, and as far back as Veghel, near the original start line. The U.S. 82^nd Airborne Division at Nijmegen comes under attack from forces emerging from the Reichswald Forest, just across the German border.

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