Commandos during WWII. Worth it?

[storealex]

Dachs

It was the 3rd Battalion from 82nd which crossed the Waal. This unit became the Divisions reserve and as such able to undertake the attack, but only after the arrival of Guards Armored from XXX Corps freed them up and enabled them to do that. Henke was never able to shift sufficient effort to the crossing because he had to defend the bridges from attacks from the South, including British tanks. You cannot focus on an isolated part of the battle, but have to look at it at its entirety and especially, what the arrival of XXX Corps meant for the entire outcome, not just the crossing (Which they also supported)
Also keep in mind that meanwhile the Germans attacked to east, threatening to take the only bridge capable of bearing tanks, but was stopped by the 505th and the Coldstream Guards.
And finally, the canvas boats used by the 82nd was provided by the British reinforcements.

The Brits were several times actively participating in pushing back German counterattacks. Without the arrival of British forces on the battlefield, the Americans would have to fight a much larger enemy, and the would have a hard time creating a reserve to conduct an assault. Yet alone the fact that the paratroopers would have to swim across the Waal. Now I know that they were some of the best soldiers of WWII, but the aid of British forces was a huge factor in their brave attack becoming a success.

 

[privatehudson]

Everything about the situation at two Nijmegen bridges reflects as much the flaws in the Market Garden plan as it does the ability and bravery of the paratroopers and tankers who captured them (although neither of these would I question for a moment).

The Nijmegen bridges should have been given a higher priority from the very start of the operation. Yes Gavin's men were stretched thin, but the fact that the Waal crossings were relegated in importance below the bridges over the Maas-Waal canal was a definite mistake. You can throw a bailey bridge over most canals, you can't throw one over the Waal at Nijmegen. If the Germans had successfully blown the bridges at any time after the landings, 1st Airborne would have been screwed.

That's why Gavin's remarks on the British plans have always struck me as a tad hypocritical since some of the same criticism could easily be leveled at his plan, and the points he would have raised in his defence could just as easily apply to 1st Airborne's situation. Ultimately though such a crossing should never have been necessary, as brave and brilliant as it was, airborne soldiers should not be asked to conduct a river crossing under fierce enemy fire during daylight, and especially not if you know that the crossing can't be exploited straight away.