106. See WO 171/592, 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, Appendix A ‘Operation MARKET: Diary of Events, 1 Parachute Brigade HQ’, entries for 15:10 & 15:30, 17/09/1944
107. See WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entry for 15:40, 17/09/1944
108. See WO 171/592, 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, Appendix A ‘Operation MARKET: Diary of Events, 1 Parachute Brigade HQ’, entries for 15:10, 15:30 & 15:45, dated 17/09/1944
109. The 1st Parachute Battalion was fully accounted for by 14:45 but was not ordered to move until 15:40; see WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entries for 14:45 & 15:40, 17/09/1944; for Dobie’s frustration see testimony from Lieutenant Vladimir Britneff, Intelligence Officer, 1st Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, pp.137-138
110. See Baynes, Urquhart of Arnhem, p.98
111. For details of the individual Battalion tasks and objectives see Operation “MARKET”: 1 Para Bde Operation Order No. 1, dated 13/09/1944, Sept 1944, Paras. 6-8
112. See for example Otway, pp.293-294; and Powell, p.64
113. See Operation “MARKET”: 1 Para Bde Intelligence Summary No. 1 dated 13/09/1944, Paragraph 4: ‘Enemy Forces’
114. For a potted overview of Lathbury’s career see World War II Unit Histories & Officers (website), ‘1st British Airborne Division, Arnhem September 1944: Officers’ at http://www.unithistories.com/officers/1AirbDiv_officersL.htm; accessed 17/09/2010
115. See WO 171/592, 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, Appendix A ‘Operation MARKET: Diary of Events, 1 Parachute Brigade HQ’, entries for 15:30 & 13:45, 17/09/1944
116. See Middlebrook, p.127. There is no mention of such a message in the Brigade Diary of Events or Battalion War Diaries.
117. See Frost, p.210; and Middlebrook, p.144; again there is no record of this meeting in the Brigade Diary of Events
118. RV location cited in Fairley, Remember Arnhem, p.40
119. Although the Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary only refers to a single Horsa aborting from the first lift, Fairley refers to two, one carrying Lieutenant Graham Wadsworth and two Jeeps from HQ Troop, one of which belonged to the Squadron’s second-in-command Captain David Allsop, and one carrying Lieutenant Douglas Galbraith and two Jeeps from A Troop.Both loads came in with the second lift on Monday 18 September; see WO 171/406 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary, entry for 15:30, 17/09/1944; and Fairley, pp.34, 77
120. See WO 171/406 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary, entries for 13:35, 15:00 & 15:15, 17/09/1944
121. For timings see WO 171/406 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary, entries for 15:30 & 15:40, 17/09/1944
122. See Fairley, pp.40-41
123. For the establishment of the line see Kershaw, p.72
124. Lieutenant Peter Lacey Bucknall is interred in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Gelderland, Holland, Plot 16, Row B, Grave 5
125. Curiously Sergeant McGregor does not appear in the CWGC database
126. For a detailed account of the ambush and eyewitness testimony regarding the state of the bodies see Fairley, pp.45-47, 69-70
127. Timing cited in WO 171/406 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary, entry for 16:00, 17/09/1944
128. Fairley refers to McNabb being a Captain, but the Squadron War Diary clearly refers to his rank as Lieutenant; see WO 171/406 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary, entry for 16:45, 17/09/1944; and Fairley, p.47
129. The Squadron War Diary does not refer to a source for the order; see WO 171/406 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary, entry for 18:30, 17/09/1944; and Fairley, p.51
130. See Fairley, pp.48-50
131. See Fairley, p.69. Lance-Sergeant William Clifford Stacey is interred in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Gelderland, Holland, Plot 15, Row A, Grave 4
132. See AIR 20/2333, ‘Battle of Arnheim’: German account, Sept. to Oct. 1944; also cited in Middlebrook, p.126
133. See Urquhart, Arnhem, p.36
134. See WO 171/406 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary, entry for 15:40, 17/09/1944; and Fairley, p.41; the same point is made by Golden, Echoes from Arnhem, p.143
135. For a detailed account of the 1st Airborne Division’s signal set up and its problems see Golden, pp.139-169. Then Major Golden served at Arnhem as Adjutant of the 1st Airborne Division Signal Section.
136. See Middlebrook, Appendix I, ‘Order of Battle and Operational Details, 1st British Airborne Division and Attached Units’, p.459; and Appendix 4, ‘Order of Battle, US Air Units Carrying British and Polish Parachute Troops on Operation Market’, p.464
137. See WO 171/393 1st Airborne Division HQ War Diary, entry for 16:30, 17/09/1944
138. See Golden, pp.150-151; the No. 68P Set was a manpack, speech radio with a range of three miles, powered by dry batteries and a power output of 0.25 watt; see ibid., p.140
139. See for example Baynes, p.106; Dover, The Sky Generals, p.135; and Middlebrook, p.128
140. See Urquhart, p.37; the No. 22 Set was a speech radio powered by rechargeable wet batteries with a power output of 1 watt and a range of five miles; see Golden, p.140
141. quoted from Middlebrook, p.128
142. See II SS Panzerkorps Warning Order, issued by telephone at 13:40 Hours on 17.9.44; reproduced in Kershaw., Appendix A, p.321
143. For timings see Kershaw, p.73
144. See Kershaw, pp.61, 74-75
145. Quoted from II SS Panzerkorps Order, issued by telephone at 16:30 Hours on 17.9.44; reproduced in Kershaw, Appendix A, p.321
146. See ibid., p.104
147. See Zwarts, p.8. Gräbner’s action is confirmed, albeit circumstantially, by Kershaw who refers to SS Panzer Aufklärungs Abteilung 9 possessing forty vehicles but to Gräbner leading only thirty across the Arnhem road bridge toward Nijmegen; see Kershaw, pp.73, 96
148. See Kershaw, p.97; there is no mention of seeing the SS column in Middlebrook’s participant based account or Frost’s memoir
149. See ibid., pp.99-101; 750 figure cited in Reynolds, Sons of the Reich, p.121
150. See Ryan, pp.199-200
151. See Kershaw, pp.75-78; the portion of the 17:30 operation order dealing with the role to be played by 9 and 10 SS Panzer Divisions is reproduced in ibid., Appendix A, p.322; some sources give Brinkmann’s rank as Sturmbannführer but Kershaw refers to him as an SS Captain (Hauptsturmführer); see ibid., p.97
152. See Kershaw interview with Harmel on 27 October 1987; quoted in ibid. p.41
153. See ibid., pp.125-126
154. Quoted from II SS Panzerkorps Order, issued by telephone at 17:30 Hours on 17.9.44; reproduced in ibid. Appendix A, p.322. However, there is a problem with part of this reproduction. The ‘Co-ordinating Instructions’ section at the end of the Order contains the following clause: ‘SS Reconnaissance Battalion 10 now referred to as the Kampfgruppe Brinkmann is to attack and destroy the enemy parachute battalion occupying the northern ramp of the Arnhem bridge. This is in order to quickly fight a resupply route to the 10SS in Nijmegen.’ The problem is that the final instruction is out of kilter with the remainder of the order and the well-established sequence of events. Gräbner and the bulk of SS Panzer Aufklärungs Abteilung 9 crossed the bridge without incident at c.18.00, the 2nd Parachute Battalion did not reach the north end of the Arnhem bridge until c.20:00, and II SS Panzerkorps only became aware of their presence after elements of SS Panzer Aufklärungs Abteilung 10 found their passage blocked and reported back shortly thereafter. The final section of the 17:30 order is therefore reacting to an event some two-and-a-half hours before it occurred. As the majority of the 17:30 order fits with the established timeline, the final clause was presumably added in error from a later communication.
155. See ibid., pp.93-94, 96
156. II SS Panzerkorps Order, issued by telephone at 17:30 Hours on 17.9.44; see ibid., Appendix A, p.322
157. Quotes from II SS Panzerkorps Warning Order, issued by telephone at 13:40 Hours on 17.9.44; see ibid., Appendix A, p.321
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158. II SS Panzerkorps Order, issued by telephone at 16:00 Hours on 17.9.44; see ibid., Appendix A, p.321
159. See interview with Harmel dated 27 October 1987; cited in ibid., p.99
160. Quotes from II SS Panzerkorps Warning Order, issued by telephone at 13:40 Hours on 17.9.44; reproduced in ibid., Appendix A, p.321
161. See Reynolds, p.121
162. See Kershaw, pp.60, 134
Chapter 7
1. See WO 171/592 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, entry for 15:30, 17/09/1944; and WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entry for 15:40, 17/09/1944
2. According to the 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary the meeting with Gough occurred at 16:00, but the Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary relates that the main body of the Squadron came under mortar fire in the vicinity of Wolfheze station at 16:00 and that Gough did not depart for Division HQ until 16:45; see WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entry for 16:00, 17/09/1944; and WO 171/406 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron War Diary, entries for 16:00 and 16:45, 17/09/1944
3. See WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entry for 17:00, 17/09/1944
4. Testimony from Private John Hall, 1 Platoon, R Company, 1st Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, Arnhem 1944, p.139
5. See John Waddy, A Tour of the Arnhem Battlefields, p.57
6. Testimony from Lieutenant George Guyon, commander Mortar Platoon, 1st Parachute Battalion; see Middlebrook, pp.139-140
7. See WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entry for 18:00, 17/09/1944
8. PIAT: Projector, Infantry, Anti-Tank. The British counterpart to the US Bazooka and the German Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck, the PIAT was a hand-held spring and recoil operated bomb thrower, which fired a hollow charge projectile weighing 2 ½ pounds, with a range of 115 yards
9. Testimony from Sergeant Frank Manser, 7 Platoon, S Company, 1st Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, pp.140-141
10. See WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entry for 19:00, 17/09/1944
11. SS Panzerjäger Abteilung 9 strength figures cited in Kershaw, It Never Snows in September, p.104
12. See WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entries for 19:30, 20:00 & 22:00, 17/09/1944
13. Testimony from Major Christopher Perrin-Brown, OC T Company, 1st Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.142
14. For R Company casualties reaching the landing area see Middlebrook, p.142; Major Bune is interred in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Gelderland, Holland, Plot 27, Row B, Grave 6
15. Testimony from Lieutenant Vladimir Britneff, Intelligence Officer, 1st Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.142
16. Lieutenant MacFadden died on 10 October 1944; he is interred in Hanover War Cemetery, Niedersachsen, Germany, Plot 15, Row F, Grave 6
17. Figures cited in Middlebrook, p.142
18. Testimony from Major John Timothy, OC R Company, 1st Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.140
19. See Kershaw, pp.39, 47
20. See WO 171/1236 1st Parachute Battalion War Diary, entries for 04:30 & 05:30, 17/09/1944; Middlebrook, pp.175-177; and WO 166/149033 1st Airlanding Light Regiment RA War Diary, entries for 3 Battery Parachute Party 23:30, 17/09/1944 & 05:00, 18/09/1944
21. See WO 171/592, 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, Appendix A ‘Operation MARKET: Diary of Events, 1 Parachute Brigade HQ’, entry for 15:10, 17/09/1944
22. See Frost, A Drop Too Many, p.210
23. Testimony from Major Digby Tatham-Warter, OC A Company, 2nd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.145
24. Quoted from Frost, p.209; German POW & casualty figures cited in Saunders, The Red Beret, p.232; and Middlebrook, p.143
25. See Middlebrook, p.143
26. Testimony from Signalman Bill Jukes, 1st Airborne Division Signals attached to 2nd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.144
27. See Frost, pp.209-210; and Middlebrook, p.144; for Lathbury’s alleged 15:30 radio message see Middlebrook, p.127. There is no mention of such a message in the Brigade Diary of Events or Battalion War Diaries
28. See Frost, p.210
29. Quote from WO 171/1237 2nd Parachute Battalion War Diary, ‘Account of the 2nd Battalion’s Operations at Arnhem 17th December 1944’ by Major J.A.D. Tatham-Warter
30. Testimony from Major Digby Tatham-Warter, OC A Company, 2nd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.145
31. See Frost, p.210
32. Quotes from interviews with Captain A. M. Frank, 2 i/c A Company 2nd Parachute Battalion and Private S.C.E. Elliott, B Company 2nd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.146
33. Quoted from James Sims, Arnhem Spearhead, p.40. Private George Davies died of his wounds the following day and is interred Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Gelderland, Holland, Plot 18, Row A, Grave 8
34. Quoted from interview with Lieutenant Peter Barry, commanding 9 Platoon, A Company, 2nd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, pp.147-148
35. See Middlebrook, p.148; and Kershaw, p.94
36. See Kershaw, p.93
37. Quoted from Middlebrook, p.128
38. See Urquhart, Arnhem, p.39
39. See Ryan, A Bridge Too Far, pp.245-246
40. Testimony from Rottenführer Wolfgang Dombrowski and Hauptsturmführer Hans Möller, cited in Kershaw, pp.74-75, 91-92. The timings provided by the participants should be treated with caution, given that they claim to have run headlong into advancing British paratroops in the outskirts of Arnhem at 16:30, at least an hour-and-a-half before any elements of the 1st Parachute Brigade reached that area
41. All four men are interred together in Plot 18, Row A in the Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Gelderland, Holland, Lieutenant Peter Howard Cane in Joint Grave 13-14, Corporal Edgar Humphrey Rogers in Grave 16 and Thomas and Claude Gronert are interred in Graves 17 & 18 respectively
42. Quoted from interview with Corporal Robert Allen, A Company, 3rd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.130
43. Lance-Corporal William Edwin Bamsey is interred in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Gelderland, Holland, Plot 19, Row C, Grave 1
44. Testimony from Lieutenant James Cleminson, commanding 5 Platoon, B Company, 3rd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.131
45. See for example Kershaw, p.95
46. See WO 171/1238 3rd Parachute Battalion War Diary, entry for 17:00, 17/09/1944; and Middlebrook, pp.132-133. Corporal Benjamin Harry Cope is interred in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Gelderland, Holland, Plot 1, Row B, Grave 8’ Gunner George Robson has no known grave and is commemorated on Panel 2, Groesbeek Memorial, Gelderland, Holland; the CWGC records give his date of death as 26/09/1944
47. Quoted from account by Lieutenant Leonard Wright, commanding 9 Platoon, B Company, 3rd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.134
48. Testimony from Lieutenant Tony Baxter, commanding No. 3 Platoon, A Company, 3rd Parachute Battalion; cited in ibid., pp.134-135
49. See WO 171/1238, 3rd Parachute Battalion War Diary, Appendix D, ‘Diary of Events - 3rd Parachute Battalion’, entry for 18:30, 17/09/1944
50. Kershaw cites a withdrawal time of 18:00 but this was well before dark and the 21:30 timing cited by Middlebrook is likely more accurate; see Kershaw, pp.72-73; and Middlebrook, p.135
51. See ‘16th Waffen-SS Training and Replacement Battalion: Its First Day of Battle Against the British Airborne Troops near Arnhem, September 1944’, in James Lucas and Matthew Cooper, Panzer Grenadiers, pp.104-113; and Middlebrook, p.135
52. See WO 171/592, 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, Appendix A ‘Operation MARKET: Diary of Events, 1 Parachute Brigade HQ’, entry for 19:30, 17/09/1944; for Lathbury’s justification for halting at 20:00 see audio recording of Major Hibbert’s account of the incident at Paradata Airborne Assault: The Living History of the Parachute Regiment and Airborne Forces website, http://www.paradata.org.uk/media/519?mediaSection=Audio&mediaItem=1664; accessed 23/10/2010
53. Interview with Major T
ony Hibbert, Brigade Major, 1st Parachute Brigade; see Great Battles of World War II – Arnhem, television documentary series episode broadcast on UK Channel 5 TV, 25/08/2001
54. See WO 171/592, 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, Appendix A ‘Operation MARKET: Diary of Events, 1 Parachute Brigade HQ’, entry for 19:30, 17/09/1944
55. See Urquhart, pp.44-45
56. Quoted from ibid., p.45; also cited in Baynes, Urquhart of Arnhem, p.106
57. See for example Harclerode, “Go to It!” The Illustrated History of the 6th Airborne Division, p.64
58. See for example Baynes, pp.108-109
59. See WO 171/1238, 3rd Parachute Battalion War Diary, Appendix D, ‘Diary of Events ‒ 3rd Parachute Battalion’, ‘Account of C Company’s Move to the Bridge by Sergeant Mason’, entry for 17/9/1944
60. Testimony from Private W. Fred Moughton, Medium Machine Gun Platoon, HQ Company, 3rd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.136-138. Middlebrook renders Private Moughton’s name as ‘Morton’
61. Testimony from Major Alan Bush, Battalion Second-in-Command, 3rd Parachute Battalion; cited in Middlebrook, p.137
62. See WO 171/592, 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, Appendix A ‘Operation MARKET: Diary of Events, 1 Parachute Brigade HQ’, entry for 20:45, 17/09/1944
63. See WO 171/592, 1st Parachute Brigade War Diary, Appendix A ‘Operation MARKET: Diary of Events, 1 Parachute Brigade HQ’, entry for 20:45, 17/09/1944; for an audio recording of Major Hibbert’s account of the incident, see Paradata Airborne Assault: The Living History of the Parachute Regiment and Airborne Forces website, http://www.paradata.org.uk/media/519?mediaSection=Audio&mediaItem=1664; accessed 23/10/2010
64. Quoted from audio recording of Major Hibbert’s account at Paradata Airborne Assault: The Living History of the Parachute Regiment and Airborne Forces website, http://www.paradata.org.uk/media/519?mediaSection=Audio&mediaItem=1664; accessed 23/10/2010
65. Middlebrook, p.161
66. See Turnbull & Hamblett, The Pegasus Patrol, pp.69-71; and Robert Peatling, No Surrender at Arnhem, pp.18-19
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