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Devised as a two-stage air and ground tactical plan of action, Operation Market Garden was the largest airborne invasion in WW2. Market was to drop four airborne units two American, one British and one Polish into northern Holland to take and hold, for 48 hours, a network of roads and bridges for Garden, a convoy of British tanks, armored personnel carriers and trucks full of infantrymen of the British 2nd Army from Belgium to Eindhoven and all along the Arnhem-Nijmegen metropolitan area, over the Neder-Rijn (Dutch Rhine) River and push straight into the border of Germany, hit the Ruhr industrial heartland and drive onward towards Berlin thus ending the war in Europe by December 25th, 1944. Allied soldiers were confident this would be an easy task considering the German forces were mostly made up of Volksgrenadiers or People's Infantry consisting of soldiers who too old or too young for the Standard army as well as retreating defenders of the Normandy battles. However, Arnhem was occupied by the 2nd SS Panzer Corps for rest and refitting and additional German troops were withdrawn from the port of Antwerp, Belgium. 60,000 veteran German panzers and troops, well trained and equipped and prepared to repel the assault of The Screaming Eagles at Eindhoven, The All American at Nijmegen and Grave and The Red Knights at Arnhem. Delays of reinforcements from both the Polish Gray Eagles and the tanks of British Guards Armored Division of 30th corps halted outside of Nijmegen and the only 18 miles away from Arnhem to wait for the infantry support, jeopardize the operation, and put The Red Knights at risk. They fought stubbornly refusing to give in to the tanks and heavy guns of the Huns until mounting casualties, exhausted medical supplies and ammunition as well as air dropped supplies not being able to come through to the Arnhem Knights forced them to come to the realization that Market Garden could not succeed and so the airborne troops had to pull out immediately. Chaplains, Radiomen, Medics and Badly Wounded comrades were left behind so others could escape. Sadly, the Dutch people beyond the city of Nijmegen would not see liberation for another seven months.

The Screaming Eagles = US 101st Airborne Division The All American = US 82nd Airborne Division The Red Knights = British 1st Airborne Division The Grey Eagles = Polish 1st Parachute Combat Brigade