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Osprey Campaign #270
Operation Market-Garden 1944 (1): The American Airborne Missions
Immortalized by the movie A Bridge Too Far, the parachute landings of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions were the first part of an Allied breakthrough attempt. In the late summer of 1944, the First Allied Airborne Army began to plan a complex operation to seize a Rhine River Bridge at Arnhem in the Netherlands. The airborne mission was code-named Operation Market, and the ground assault was designated Garden. The American portion of Operation Market was to employ the two divisions of Gen. Matthew Ridgway's US XVIII Airborne Corps to seize key terrain features that might otherwise delay the advance of British tank columns towards the ultimate objective of the Rhine bridge at Arnhem. The plan envisioned landing the US 101st Airborne Division near Eindhoven to clear a path for the advance of the armored divisions of the British XXX Corps, and to land the 82nd Airborne Division around Nijmegen to seize the Waal river bridges there. In view of the problems experienced in Normandy with night landings, Operation Market was scheduled to take place on the afternoon of September 17th, 1944, with an elaborate tactical air plan to suppress German flak positions.
The initial 101st Airborne Division conducted its combined parachute/glider landings on the afternoon of September 17th, 1944, using its three Parachute Infantry Regiments (PIR). The 82nd Airborne Division was dropped further northeast with its three regiments having separate assignments. Overall, the first day's operation was a considerable success compared to the Normandy drops. The Wehrmacht did not anticipate the airborne attack so resistance on the first day was light. The fighting intensified dramatically over the next several days as the Germans attempted to stamp out the landings, attacking the Allied forces on all sides of the salient.
The 101st Airborne Division pressed south towards Eindhoven on the morning of September 18th, while the British Guards Armoured Division pressed north. The paratroopers captured the city by early afternoon and linked up with the British tanks in the evening. After quickly bridging the Wilhelmina canal in the dark, the Guards Armored Division crossed around dawn on September 19th and raced up to the 82nd Airborne Division sector by 0820. Combined British and American attacks to seize the vital Nijmegen bridge were repulsed through September 19th due to the arrival of elements of the 10.SS-Panzer Division from the Arnhem area. But in a bold move, the 82nd Airborne outflanked the defenses on the afternoon of September 20th by using boats to cross a mile downstream from the bridge. Last minute German attempts to detonate the bridge failed, and British tanks were streaming over the bridge that night, heading for Arnhem.
Nevertheless, the delays caused by the initial defense at Eindhoven, the need to build a bridge at Son, and the fighting for the bridge at Nijmegen slowed the advance by XXX Corps and put it behind schedule. German resistance against the 1st Airborne Division in Arnhem was far fiercer than anticipated due to the unexpected presence of two Waffen-SS panzer divisions refitting in the area. The positions of the British 1st Airborne Division at Arnhem proved untenable and permission to withdraw was given on September 25th with the action taking place on the night of September 25-26th.
The initial 101st Airborne Division conducted its combined parachute/glider landings on the afternoon of September 17th, 1944, using its three Parachute Infantry Regiments (PIR). The 82nd Airborne Division was dropped further northeast with its three regiments having separate assignments. Overall, the first day's operation was a considerable success compared to the Normandy drops. The Wehrmacht did not anticipate the airborne attack so resistance on the first day was light. The fighting intensified dramatically over the next several days as the Germans attempted to stamp out the landings, attacking the Allied forces on all sides of the salient.
The 101st Airborne Division pressed south towards Eindhoven on the morning of September 18th, while the British Guards Armoured Division pressed north. The paratroopers captured the city by early afternoon and linked up with the British tanks in the evening. After quickly bridging the Wilhelmina canal in the dark, the Guards Armored Division crossed around dawn on September 19th and raced up to the 82nd Airborne Division sector by 0820. Combined British and American attacks to seize the vital Nijmegen bridge were repulsed through September 19th due to the arrival of elements of the 10.SS-Panzer Division from the Arnhem area. But in a bold move, the 82nd Airborne outflanked the defenses on the afternoon of September 20th by using boats to cross a mile downstream from the bridge. Last minute German attempts to detonate the bridge failed, and British tanks were streaming over the bridge that night, heading for Arnhem.
Nevertheless, the delays caused by the initial defense at Eindhoven, the need to build a bridge at Son, and the fighting for the bridge at Nijmegen slowed the advance by XXX Corps and put it behind schedule. German resistance against the 1st Airborne Division in Arnhem was far fiercer than anticipated due to the unexpected presence of two Waffen-SS panzer divisions refitting in the area. The positions of the British 1st Airborne Division at Arnhem proved untenable and permission to withdraw was given on September 25th with the action taking place on the night of September 25-26th.
96 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
About the author
Steven J. Zaloga
427 books78 followersSteven Zaloga is an author and defense analyst known worldwide for his articles and publications on military technology. He has written over a hundred books on military technology and military history, including “Armored Thunderbolt: The US Army Sherman in World War II”, one of the most highly regarded histories of the Sherman Tank. His books have been translated into Japanese, German, Polish, Czech, Romanian, and Russian. He was a special correspondent for Jane’s Intelligence Review and is on the executive board of the Journal of Slavic Military Studies and the New York Military Affairs Symposium. From 1987 through 1992, he was the writer/producer for Video Ordnance Inc., preparing their TV series Firepower. He holds a BA in history from Union College and an MA in history from Columbia University.
Mr. Zaloga is also a noted scale armor modeler and is a host/moderator of the World War II Allied Discussion group at Missing-Lynx.com, a modelling website. He is a frequent contributor to the UK-based modeling magazine Military Modelling. He is a member of the Armor Modeling and Preservation Society.
Mr. Zaloga is also a noted scale armor modeler and is a host/moderator of the World War II Allied Discussion group at Missing-Lynx.com, a modelling website. He is a frequent contributor to the UK-based modeling magazine Military Modelling. He is a member of the Armor Modeling and Preservation Society.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 18, 2014
Very nice! This short book does a nice job of discussing the American role in Operation Market Garden--the bold plan by Bernard Montgomery (who was more often not so bold) to capture a Rhine bridge at Arnhem and open the way for the invasion of Germany itself.
Two American paratroop divisions--the 82nd and 101st--were assigned to play a key role in the plan. They would capture two key bridges (at Nijmegen and Eindhoven) as British troops sped (or so it was hoped) up a road that would lead to Arnhem. British paratroopers were deposited at Arnhem to hold until the British XXX Corps arrives to complete the operation.
The book develops along the standard lines of the Osprey Campaign series. Opposing plans. Key leaders. Opposing forces. The fighting. The two division American commanders were top notch officers--James Gavin and Maxwell Taylor. Their troops were hard fighters. The expectation was that German forces would be wrecks from the retreat from France after D-Day. Unhappily for the Allies, the forces were more powerful than anticipated--making success of the bold plan a challenge.
The book does a nice job of summarizing the American involvement within the larger plan. One issue: early maps don't show the full picture. It would have been helpful to have the proposed plan of attack laid out. Nonetheless, maps do provide a sense of the larger picture.
Overall, a very useful book. . . .
Two American paratroop divisions--the 82nd and 101st--were assigned to play a key role in the plan. They would capture two key bridges (at Nijmegen and Eindhoven) as British troops sped (or so it was hoped) up a road that would lead to Arnhem. British paratroopers were deposited at Arnhem to hold until the British XXX Corps arrives to complete the operation.
The book develops along the standard lines of the Osprey Campaign series. Opposing plans. Key leaders. Opposing forces. The fighting. The two division American commanders were top notch officers--James Gavin and Maxwell Taylor. Their troops were hard fighters. The expectation was that German forces would be wrecks from the retreat from France after D-Day. Unhappily for the Allies, the forces were more powerful than anticipated--making success of the bold plan a challenge.
The book does a nice job of summarizing the American involvement within the larger plan. One issue: early maps don't show the full picture. It would have been helpful to have the proposed plan of attack laid out. Nonetheless, maps do provide a sense of the larger picture.
Overall, a very useful book. . . .
February 16, 2018
Now on to the second installment about the British part.
August 28, 2019
One of the better Ospreys I've read lately. Good narrative, maps used to full strength
A lot of stuff on the German side, which is often lacking in Market Garden books, but since It Never Snows in September: The German View of Market-Garden and the Battle of Arnhem, September 1944 there is no longer any excuse.
Another great boon is the list of planned airborne operations in the summer of 1944.
A lot of stuff on the German side, which is often lacking in Market Garden books, but since It Never Snows in September: The German View of Market-Garden and the Battle of Arnhem, September 1944 there is no longer any excuse.
Another great boon is the list of planned airborne operations in the summer of 1944.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews