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Posted on 10/13/2004 11:49:28 PM PDT by SAMWolf
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 are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.
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| Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel free to address their specific circumstances or whatever issues concern them in an atmosphere of peace, understanding, brotherhood and support. The FReeper Foxhole hopes to share with it's readers an open forum where we can learn about and discuss military history, military news and other topics of concern or interest to our readers be they Veteran's, Current Duty or anyone interested in what we have to offer. If the Foxhole makes someone appreciate, even a little, what others have sacrificed for us, then it has accomplished one of it's missions. We hope the Foxhole in some small way helps us to remember and honor those who came before us.
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As the 101st secured Eindhoven and Veghel at the start of Operation Market-Garden, its battles in Holland were only just beginning.  In broad daylight the three parachute infantry regiments of the 101st Airborne Division descended with amazing accuracy on designated drop zones in Nazi-occupied Holland. It was September 17, 1944, and the Screaming Eagles were to play a vital role in Operation Market-Garden. Once the Allied armies had broken out of their D-Day beachhead and through the bocage, or hedgerow country, of France, they advanced rapidly. Disorganized German units retreated before them.  Fixed fortifications, known as the Siegfried Line or West Wall, barred a direct strike into Germany itself. In the northern area of Allied operations, British Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery had devised an ambitious plan to outflank the Siegfried Line and facilitate a drive directly into the Ruhr, the industrial heart of Germany. Montgomery's plan relied on the First Allied Airborne Army, of which the U.S. XVIII Airborne Corps, including the 101st and 82nd Airborne divisions, was a part. The commander of this army was Lt. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton.  In England paratroopers from 101 Airborne Division are 'boarding' for operation Market Garden on September 17th 1944. The U.S. airborne troops, who had participated in the D-Day operations, had been resting and absorbing replacements in England since mid-July. For Market-Garden, it was hoped that the Americans, along with the British 1st Airborne Division, would launch a bold strike across the Maas, Waal and Neder Rijn (Rhine) rivers in Holland that would pave the way for ground troops to advance swiftly into Germany and end the war by Christmas of 1944.  Holland, September 18, 1944. Heavily loaded American CG-4 gliders bound for LZ W in the 101st Airborne Division's area. Key to the success of Montgomery's plan would be the seizure of bridges across rivers and adjacent canals by the airborne troops and swift movement of ground forces up a single highway, spanning roughly 60 miles from the Allied lines in Belgium to the Dutch town of Arnhem. The troops would hold the bridges until relief appeared in the form of the British XXX Corps charging down the single road, crossing the bridges successively and arriving at Arnhem as the vanguard of a larger force pushing southeast into Germany.  The Son Bridge The 101st would secure the southernmost bridges, including one over the Wilhelmina Canal at the town of Son, a pair spanning the Dommel River at St. Oedenrode and then four more over the Aar River near the town of Veghel. Eindhoven was also to be captured while the men of the 101st held open 15 miles of the road toward Arnhem for the XXX Corps' use. By the end of their service in Market-Garden, the men of the 101st would refer to this stretch of road as "Hell's Highway." Farther north, the 82nd Airborne was ordered to capture the bridge at Grave, the longest in Europe. The 82nd would also take one or more of the four bridges across the Maas-Waal Canal, another bridge over the Waal at Nijmegen and the area around the town of Groesbeek. The final leg of the XXX Corps' drive involved a dash from Nijmegen to Arnhem, where the British 1st Airborne was to capture and hold three bridges across the Rhine.  The haystack at right would have softened the landing for this paratrooper who hit the earth head first during operations in Holland by the 1st Allied Airborne Army. September 1944. Had Market-Garden succeeded, the war might indeed have been shortened. As it turned out, elements of two SS panzer divisions, the 9th and 10th, had been ordered to the vicinity of the Allied thrust to rest and refit in the days immediately prior to the start of the operation. Also, by coincidence, while Market-Garden was getting underway, the German 59th and 245th Infantry divisions were in transit from the area of the German Fifteenth Army to that of the First Parachute Army—right in the operation's path.  The Son DZ on 17 September, 1944 Intelligence that indicated strong concentrations of German forces in the proposed area of operations appears to have been ignored by planners. Due to stiff resistance, Operation Market-Garden was doomed to failure. The 1st Airborne fought an epic battle for 10 days in and around Arnhem, but of the nearly 10,000 British paratroopers who participated, just over 2,000 escaped death or captivity.  Holland liberated - 17-09-44 Son. Soldiers of the 101st US Airborne Division and citizens looking at a German 88mm anti aircraft gun which has shot down 17 allied aircraft judging by the number of kill rings on its gun barrel, before being knocked out. On the afternoon of September 17, the 101st executed a nearly flawless airdrop. All but two of its battalions were delivered to their correct drop zones. Unlike what had happened in the D-Day drops, the transport pilots held their planes steady and on course through anti-aircraft fire rather than taking evasive action that could have scattered the troops. Most units assembled and moved toward their objectives shortly after landing.  Holland liberated - 17-09-44 Son. A soldier of the 101st U.S. Airborne Division is leaving the landing area near Son. Note his beret on his right shoulder and Garand rifle. Dropping near Son, the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, under the command of Colonel Robert F. Sink, was to capture a bridge over the Wilhelmina Canal and then advance south to Eindhoven. The 502nd, commanded by Colonel John H. Michaelis, would establish a perimeter around its drop zone just north of the 506th so that it could later be used as a glider landing zone. It was then to capture a bridge over the Dommel and take bridges over the Wilhelmina Canal near the town of Best. The 501st, under Colonel Howard R. Johnson, was still farther north, where the regiment was instructed to take both road and rail bridges on the Willems Canal and the Aar River near the town of Veghel.
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Not entirely your fault, I wandered far and wide.
Nightwish and Within Temptation are Gothic metal bands.
Nigthwish has a front singer named Tarja Truanen.
She has powerful vocal talent and makes some songs, like "The Siren" sound pretty fascinating.
ROTFLMAO!
I was consistantly get 9 points for my slaps! :-)
If you have to move your troops from Germany, move them to Poland! Welcome! You won't regret it!
That's what I've been saying, move them to the New Europe.
Hi Radu!! Good to see drop in.
:-) Drove past it on the way to Antietam and jusy had to stop.
Stuck my head in to see how he did it and he had pipes running back into the store feeding steam to the mug.
Ok, so it's BOTH our faults. LOL!
Must be nice to get to wander.....I've been pretty much stuck at the ol' homestead. Just haven't had much free time to sit at the computer. :-( This is a rare moment.
I figured those were bands. I just haven't heard of them. No good radio stations around here to keep me up with things. It's one thing I really miss about living in Raleigh.....they had ALL kinds of good stations, something to suit anyone's musical tastes. A lot of cool night clubs in those days, too, with hot bands of all sorts.
*siiiiigh* I miss those days.
YEAH!!! I got a couple of 10 pointers!!! Love the thud he makes when he hits the floor!!
Howdy SAM. It's nice to have a chance to stop in while folks are awake! LOL!
I hope the winds are blowing Mt. St. Helen's mess away from y'all, not towards ya. It's neat to see what's going on but then, I see it on TV. It must be a different outlook for everyone in the surrounding area.
Nothing major yet out of St. Helen's. If she went today the ash would have come our way. :-(
The best I could get was an 8. :^(
Glad to hear you were spared the mess. I've been trying to keep tabs on the situation, with you and snippy in mind.
It looks like it could go any time, though, doesn't it? Whew, I feel for all of you who live in close proximity.
Hi radu!!
Eight is good. A 10 gets you Ralph Nader saying "This is Ralph Nader and I approved this message" :-)
Thanks Radu. I think the worst we could get would be a lot of ash.
You're correct, the Brits had captured Antwerp but it was unusable becasue they didn't clear the approaches.
Based upon the timelines, I'll have to disagree with both of you. Antwerp fell about 10 days before Market Garden was launched. If you look at the British progress along the coast, they were not slowed down by resources being diverted to MG. (Also look at the relatively short timeline between MG approval and implementation.)
So the capture of Antwerp wasn't delayed by MG; neither was the clearing of the port.
Neither the armor of XXX Corps or the Airborne troops would have been likely candidates for manpower to re-open the port. Naval units would have to work on clearing the harbor itself which, along with its approaches was heavily mined, and engineering units would have been needed to deal with on-shore issues. (Yes, some engineering units were assigned to XXX Corps, but not enough to make a difference at Antwerp.) The port was re-opened for shipping about 3 months after it was re-captured.
Nightwish has a video coming out for a song they have called "Wish I had an Angel".. a pretty rough goth metaltune.
Sometimes when I'm wandering about, I miss stuff and miss important updates on stuff.
:-(
Hmmm. Market Garden...Monty....therein lies the problem, imho.
LOL. Like the tagline.
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