The locations of Operation Market Garden toured by Spanish reenactors

It was the last major military failure of the Allies in World War II

The locations of Operation Market Garden toured by Spanish reenactors

@explorandoinfo Esp 4·06·2025 · 23:28 0

From September 17 to 25, 1944, the Western Allies carried out a major operation in the German-occupied Netherlands.

Farewell to Bolek Ostrowski, last Polish soldier of Operation Market Garden
Norddalsbrua, a bridge that resisted being blown up during World War II

That operation, designed by Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery of the British Army, was codenamed "Market Garden" and involved forces from the United States, Poland and the United Kingdom, with support from the Dutch resistance. The operation was designed to penetrate Germany north of the Siegfried Line. Had it been successful, Market Garden might have significantly shortened the World War II, ending hostilities by Christmas 1944. However, it was the last major Allied failure of the war.

Members of the 51 Parachute Squadron, Royal Engineers, British Army, on a visit to Arnhem Bridge, one of the most famous sites of Operation Market Garden, in 2014 (Photo: Defence Imagery).

The operation involved the simultaneous seizure of a series of bridges by American, British and Polish airborne troops to secure a long road that was to be used by a ground force. However, this plan was fraught with risks, as any obstacle on the road or the blowing up of a bridge could derail the operation, as it ultimately did. Furthermore, the German forces in the Netherlands were underestimated in the planning.

Historical reenactors in front of the Waal bridge, on the 80th anniversary of Operation Market Garden in 2024 (Photo: U.S. Army).

The British Army bore the brunt, suffering 6,484 dead, along with 3,974 US casualties and 102 Polish casualties. In addition, 6,450 British soldiers were taken prisoner by the Germans. The British 1st Airborne Division began the operation with 10,000 soldiers, of whom only 2,200 returned. The remainder fell in combat or were taken prisoner.

British and Dutch musicians parading across the Arnhem Bridge on September 16, 2022 (Photo: U.S. Army Reserve).

Today, the area of the operation has changed a lot, but many sites are still preserved almost as they appear in the photos from that time. Last year, to mark the 80th anniversary of that operation, Spaniards from the historical reenactment group Northwest Paratroops, founded in 2016 in Galicia, traveled to the Netherlands and saw those sites. Today, the channel Tropa Guripa (which I recommend subscribing to if you like military history and historical reenactment) has published an excellent video showing that trip and recounting the events of this operation, with footage and photos from that time (the video is in Spanish, you can activate English subtitles in the bottom bar of the player):